The Congressman Bows Low

The finance director sneered.

“Manager Park didn’t lift a finger when Cha Jae-rim was arrested, but now you’re all worked up because Manager Kang is being taken away?”

“B-but how can you compare the two? Cha Jae-rim was taken away by the main office itself. What could I have done…?”

“Are you saying the police are easier to deal with than the main office, is that why you’re acting up like this?”

“No, Director, that’s not it…”

The finance director glared at Manager Park.

“I know why you’re behaving this way. But your hands are clean now, and so are mine. So stop dreaming and just keep quiet.”

“Director…!”

The finance director ignored Manager Park’s pleading face and spoke to the police officer.

“Take him away quickly.”

With even the director abandoning him, Manager Kang had nowhere else to turn.

Manager Park, who was now the most likely to be the next target, swallowed hard and watched as Manager Kang was dragged away.

Captain Seong gestured to his subordinates, who then dragged Manager Kang out.

Cha Jae-rim couldn’t miss such a spectacle.

So he slipped outside and nonchalantly leaned against the wall.

Manager Kang’s face was a picture of despair.

Manager Park’s face was pale with fear.

‘This is rich.’

Manager Kang’s gaze, as he was being dragged away, fell upon Cha Jae-rim leaning against the wall.

Cha Jae-rim met Kang’s gaze and grinned.

Kang’s entire body quivered at Cha Jae-rim’s devilish grin.

“Y-you… Cha Jae-rim… it was you.”

Cha Jae-rim just kept smiling, not bothering to reply.

Manager Kang’s face turned ashen, and he thrashed around, cursing.

“This is a setup! It was all made up by that bastard! A setup, I tell you! If you’re going to arrest someone, arrest that son of a bitch!”

Kang freed himself from the police officers’ grip and pointed a finger at Cha Jae-rim, shouting.

Cha Jae-rim bowed slightly to Kang.

“Have a nice trip.”

“You little…!”

The police, with Kang’s mouth covered, dragged him away.

The noisy office suddenly fell into a heavy silence.

With Kang gone, the finance director’s gaze naturally shifted to Cha Jae-rim.

A passage from the newspaper article flashed through his mind.

…Public servant A (24) employed at the Seongbuk District Office…

…A (24)…

…(24)…

There was only one person in the entire district office who was a mere twenty-four years old.

Cha Jae-rim.

The finance director’s gaze as he looked at Cha Jae-rim flickered.

And his lips unconsciously uttered his name,

“Cha Jae-rim…”

Cha Jae-rim looked towards him, his mouth smiling but his eyes serious.

That evening, a small party was held in Cha Jae-rim’s rooftop room.

The attendees were one human and one ghost.

Cha Jae-rim ordered a whole fried chicken and cracked open a can of beer.

The sound of the can opening was particularly pleasant to his ears today.

“Have a beer, old man.”

With those words, Cha Jae-rim opened a beer for Goo Young-jin as well.

Goo Young-jin glared at the beer in front of him that he could see but not touch or drink.

[You didn’t buy that for me, did you? You’re just putting on a show, since you’re going to end up drinking both cans yourself anyway.]

“When making offerings to ancestors, the ancestors are served first, and then the living descendants drink. It’s the same now.”

[Even without it, being a ghost is just one endless, drunken heatstroke.]

“At least pretend to enjoy it.”

[Do you really think such a commoner’s food can satisfy me? Hurry up and become successful so you can have meals that are worthy of my status.]

“On a good day like today, just say something nice.”

Cha Jae-rim patted Goo Young-jin on the shoulder and gulped down his beer.

The refreshing sensation that made his throat sting sent shivers down Cha Jae-rim’s spine.

He then took a big bite of a chicken leg that was still warm and steaming.

At the sight, Goo Young-jin, who no longer felt hunger, found himself swallowing involuntarily.

Goo Young-jin deliberately looked away and spoke.

[Don’t forget that this whole thing was entirely my doing. If it weren’t for me, you would have been disciplined and charged by now, never mind having a beer.]

Cha Jae-rim chewed on his chicken for a moment before replying.

“Yes, that’s why I agreed to follow your advice and go into politics.”

[If you plan to break your promise later, you might as well quit. There will be one obstacle after another from now on, to the point where this incident will seem like a piece of cake.]

“You may have lied as easily as you breathed when you were a member of the National Assembly, but I am not.”

Goo Young-jin glared at Cha Jae-rim’s words.

[If you’re going to be a politician, you’ll have to tell countless lies. You won’t have long to enjoy mocking others, so make the most of it while you can.]

“I will, as you say.”

Cha Jae-rim laughed and finished off the rest of his beer in one go.

A few days later, Cha Jae-rim’s suspension was lifted and he returned to the Finance Department of the Seongbuk District Office.

When he returned, the seats of Manager Kang and Manager Park were empty.

The changes didn’t end with just those two positions.

The gazes of the employees who looked at Cha Jae-rim upon his return were strange.

Finance Director and all the employees looked at Cha Jae-rim with fearful eyes.

They didn’t know what tricks he had pulled, but he had used a major media outlet to get rid of two of his superiors who were far above him.

The employees felt a sense of awe at the sight, and those who had secretly disliked Manager Kang and Manager Park were secretly delighted.

Overall, however, the atmosphere that dominated the office was one of caution.

They had witnessed with their own eyes the scene of Manager Kang being dragged away by the police.

Up until now, Cha Jae-rim had been someone who would meekly endure being strangled slapped on the cheek by Manager Kang.

But suddenly, as if he had been possessed by the strength of a tiger, he had brought the Far East Daily to his aid and flicked Manager Kang into a prison cell with his finger.

If someone who seemed capable of doing such a thing had done it, it would have been understandable. But for a low-ranking employee who had never shown any signs of being anything but ordinary to suddenly do something like this, the employees couldn’t help but feel a sense of fear as if they were under a spell.

And since there was no way of knowing when this spell-like power Cha Jae-rim possessed might turn against them, they had no choice but to be wary of him.

Even those who were innocent felt uneasy.

But among the people in the Finance Department, there were more who were guilty than innocent.

The Finance Director, in particular, was no better than Manager Kang or Manager Park.

The reason he hadn’t been caught up in their schemes was because he had read the signs of the times and realized that if he continued to hesitate, he too would be caught up in the scandal and thrown in jail.

The Finance Director had volunteered to work overtime on the day Manager Kang was arrested and had shredded all the incriminating documents in the archive.

But he still couldn’t shake his unease.

Keeping Cha Jae-rim by his side was like holding a grenade in his mouth that could explode at any moment.

Goo Young-jin stood behind Cha Jae-rim and spoke.

[You must be flustered, right? The real villains were Kang and Park, but the looks they’re giving you are bone-chilling.]

Cha Jae-rim didn’t reply verbally but instead opened a Word file on his monitor and typed out a response.

– I didn’t think they’d look at me kindly.

[It’s only going to get worse from here. You can’t keep working here.]

– But I can’t just quit.

[I’m not saying you should quit. Just hang on for now. A way out will open up soon.]

– My specialty is hanging on.

Cha Jae-rim smiled faintly.

The power of the Far East Daily was truly extraordinary.

After Manager Kang was arrested, Manager Park, who had been holed up in his house ever since, was also arrested.

And Taeyoung Construction President Jin, who had treated them like ants, was no exception.

The press was watching.

The police launched a full-scale investigation.

The city government also mobilized all of its audit personnel to investigate the Seongbuk District Office.

Among all the auditors who were mobilized, there was no Choi Young-gil.

“I didn’t think he’d even send Secretary Choi flying.”

[Getting rid of Kang and Park is less important to the mayor than getting rid of Choi.]

“How come?”

[Even if not for Kang and Park, he could always find an excuse to swing his sword.]

“Because corruption is happening somewhere at this very moment. And if the mayor wants to, he can get rid of those people at any time.”

Goo Young-jin nodded.

[That’s right. What’s more important to the mayor is to sharpen the sword he swings.]

“Sharpen the sword?”

[Just like this time, when Secretary Choi leaked information to his cronies and messed up the plan from the start, the operation that was meant to establish the mayor’s authority ended up weakening it instead.]

“Ah, yes.”

[Those kinds of people make the sword rusty. You have to get rid of those rusty people before you can swing it.]

“So by getting rid of Secretary Choi, he’s setting an example for the rest of the audit staff?”

Goo Young-jin chuckled.

[Setting an example. You know fancy words like that too.]

“How dare you underestimate me… This is the kind of thing that even appears on the civil service language exam.”

[The mayor will be happier about the fact that there’s an excuse to get rid of Choi than he is about punishing Kang and Park.]

“The ways of the elite are so complicated.”

[Indeed. You need to be able to solve fourth and fifth-order equations in your head.]

Goo Young-jin laughed sarcastically.

The corruption involving Taeyoung Construction was, according to the key figures Manager Kang and Manager Park, nothing more than a ‘side business’.

All sorts of corruption came pouring out like vines.

Some of it was fresh, having been committed just last month, while some of it was old, dating back more than ten years.

The corruption was not limited to Manager Kang and Manager Park.

A few retired civil servants who had moved to the countryside to farm and enjoy their peaceful retirement were also implicated.

The district office dismissed all those who were caught.

Decisions such as dismissal would be made after lengthy trials.

Cha Jae-rim didn’t care whether Manager Kang was dismissed or not.

He was going to die soon anyway, he was just clinging to life support.

The incident had blown up with the maximum firepower that a 9th-grade civil servant could muster.

For better or for worse.

Cha Jae-rim was no longer just Public Servant A.

He had become an internal whistleblower who was prepared to die in order to expose corruption.

For now, at least, he had achieved his initial goal.

He had avoided becoming a weak internal whistleblower who would disappear after being crushed by the organization’s relentless scrum.

Goo Young-jin was satisfied with Reporter Han ho’s article.

[That Han ho is a useful fellow, after all! I chose well. He made you not just a pitiful low-ranking employee who had been falsely accused, but an internal whistleblower who risked death to expose corruption.]

“I would have preferred to be a pitiful low-ranking employee.”

[That would have been better if you wanted to continue working as a civil servant. Because then you could have gained a little sympathy. But if you want to go into politics, the latter is much better.]

“So that’s why Reporter Han ho wrote the article that way, to tell me to go into politics?”

[How would he know that you wanted to go into politics, he’s not a shaman. He probably thought you would just stay at the district office.]

“Then why is he doing this?”

[Because he wants to screw with you. He knows very well what happens to internal whistleblowers who stay in the organization.]

Cha Jae-rim said in a disgruntled voice,

“Why would he want to screw with me?”

[Why wouldn’t he want to screw with you? You’re just a lowly civil servant, yet you made a reporter from the great Far East Daily dance to your tune.]

“…”

Cha Jae-rim had nothing to say.

From now on, it was the time of the elite.

TV news picked up the article that the Far East Daily had published.

– The determination of a young civil servant who was willing to risk his life to expose corruption in the public sector is causing quite a stir in society…

The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Public Relations Office declared this incident to be the starting point for the eradication of corruption in public office.

Around that time, Reporter Han ho called Cha Jae-rim.

– Mr. Cha Jae-rim, I kept my promise.

“Yes, thank you.”

– Now it’s your turn to keep your promise to me. Kim Shin-doo.

“Oh, yes. Of course.”

– Send me the address quickly. Dongducheon-si, Gyeonggi-do. What’s next?

Cha Jae-rim said with a laugh,

“I know it’s shameless, but could you please grant me one more favor?”

– Wow, you really are shameless.

He knew he was shameless.

He couldn’t help but be shameless.

He was coached by the most shameless man in South Korea while he was alive, so how could he have any shame?