Has he started having second thoughts now that the presidency of the Republic of Korea is within reach?
I felt a heavy disappointnt at Yoon Chang-ho’s silence.
“What on earth is going on, sir? I told you I would pave the way for you to beco president. But now it seems you’re thinking differently. Do you feel you no longer need ?”
Yoon Chang-ho, who had remained wordless, filled his cup with makgeolli and said quietly,
“Mr. Kim.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Why would I do sothing to turn against you? You must have misunderstood sothing...”
I cut him off coldly.
“Chairman, if you lie or try to make excuses here, I’ll let go of the hand we once shook. What happens after that will be sothing you’ve brought upon yourself. Don’t bla for it.”
At my firm tone, Yoon Chang-ho stopped talking, his lips only twitching faintly.
Then he drank two cups of makgeolli in succession.
I gave him ti to collect his thoughts, showing no reaction.
Finally, after drinking one more cup, Yoon Chang-ho sighed deeply and slowly opened his mouth.
“How much do you know?”
“I only know that the senior mbers inside the Centrist Party have been acting strange lately—and that you’ve been eting them more frequently.”
I hadn’t yet investigated the party’s internal situation since stirring up Jeong Chanseong to send a warning.
So I only ntioned the reason for my suspicion, and Yoon Chang-ho gave a small nod.
“Well... I was surprised myself.”
Sothing about his tone was off. After a long pause, he continued.
“You know the Centrist Party isn’t made up of just my faction and Congressman Lee’s faction, right?”
“Yes, I know.”
Even if the party had been founded around Yoon Chang-ho, it didn’t an he could control everything.
People form cliques as soon as three or more gather together.
And politicians, above all, always move according to their own interests.
“About sixty percent of the assembly mbers belong to my and Lee’s factions. The rest are divided into two other factions. Those two joined forces—and ca to .”
That much was within my expectations. The closer the presidential election approached, the more they would try to flaunt their numbers to raise their stakes.
“But soone completely unexpected rallied them and started pressuring . He said that if I didn’t comply, he’d take them all and leave the party.”
I frowned unconsciously. I hadn’t expected them to play the defection card.
“Who is it?”
“Forr President Choi Sun-man.”
“...Did you say Choi Sun-man?”
“Yes. Didn’t President Kim Hak-gwon recently pardon them under the banner of national unity? The mont he got out, he started scheming this.”
Choi Sun-man was the last president of the military regi that had seized power through a coup.
He had fallen along with Cheongpunghoe, but President Kim Hak-gwon pardoned him, claiming it was for the sake of national reconciliation.
Even back then, there had been a public backlash. To think that man would cause this ss afterward.
“That’s not all. He said that unless I joined hands with them, the Conservative and Progressive Parties would rge. You know what that would an, don’t you?”
A rger between the Conservative and Progressive Parties.
Could two ideologically opposite parties really unite?
It seed impossible, but when cornered, politicians were capable of anything.
Even the three-party rger back then had been sothing no one had predicted.
If three mismatched parties united under the pretext of contributing to democratization, they could easily beco a massive ruling bloc capable of exerting serious pressure.
Now I finally understood Yoon Chang-ho’s strange behavior.
“Chairman, you should have told about this.”
“Forr President Choi Sun-man hinted that he knew you. He pressed , saying I was nothing more than your puppet.”
“Do you really believe that?”
Yoon Chang-ho slowly shook his head and t my gaze.
“No, you wouldn’t make your puppet. You’re the kind of man who wouldn’t care what I did as long as I didn’t get in your way. But... I couldn’t bring myself to say that to him.”
The ghost of Cheongpunghoe was still haunting the political stage.
A man who had lost most of his support base had managed to recruit a group of Centrist Party assemblyn in such a short ti?
Impossible without a powerful hand behind him. Soone was clearly pulling strings from the shadows.
“What are their demands?”
“They want a proper primary after the rger with the Conservatives.”
“...Will you accept?”
“What choice do I have? If I refuse, forty percent of our party’s mbers will defect to the Conservatives. And if that happens, even Lee’s faction will start to waver.”
If all those mbers defected and the Conservatives and Progressives rged, they would instantly beco the majority party.
“You hold their weaknesses, don’t you?”
I had dirt on most of the National Assembly mbers.
Not just those in the Centrist Party—there wasn’t a single assemblyman in the Conservatives or Progressives who hadn’t taken my money.
But that was a card I could never play. It was a double-edged sword that could also turn against .
Of course, I still had plenty of other leverage on them.
“Yes. I have them.”
“They’re terrified of that. The fact that soone like you exists—soone who can yank their leash at any mont.”
I said nothing, simply staring at him. Even under my cold gaze, he didn’t stop talking.
“As you know, holding a politician’s leash is a double-edged sword. And unlike Chairman Cheon, you actually swing that sword. Naturally, they’re afraid of you.”
Grandfather had never wielded the power or the leverage he had over politicians.
He only made “requests.” And they never refused his requests.
They believed they were accepting his requests in exchange for favors.
But my thods had been completely different.
When I destroyed Cheongpunghoe, I had not hidden my financial or physical power. On top of that, I had publicly handed over the cris of those allied with Cheongpunghoe to the press and prosecutors.
Anyone who interfered with my plans—no matter who they were—I crushed them.
It was natural for politicians to both fear and see as a thorn in their eyes.
But it was still hard to believe that a washed-up old man like Choi Sun-man could beco the rallying point for all of them.
“If Choi Sun-man steps forward, a rger between the Conservatives and Progressives is impossible. You know how much the Honam region, the Progressives’ core base, despises him.”
“He doesn’t seem intent on stepping forward himself. He says he just wants to diate and coordinate between them from the middle.”
I downed the cup of makgeolli in one gulp. Still, my thirst didn’t fade.
“Should I have eliminated Choi Sun-man # Nоvеlight # too?”
I cald the murderous intent rising inside and shook my head.
Even for , killing a forr president would be suicide.
I took a deep breath to steady myself. Yoon Chang-ho, too, fell silent for a while, perhaps organizing his own thoughts.
“So, you plan to abandon and join hands with them to beco president? Their puppet?”
“Haha, so now you’re calling a puppet too.”
Yoon Chang-ho gave a bitter smile. I knew well what inferiority complex was eating away at him.
But that wasn’t an excuse. I continued, voice as cold as ice.
“When a politician incurs a debt, the price is always high. It always has been, and it always will be. That’s why I’ve never hesitated to support you—to make sure you never had to beg anyone for help. But now you’re talking about owing debts to multiple people? Even if you beco president, they’ll all demand positions. You’ll end up their puppet, unable to act on your own.”
“...”
“You should have told first and discussed counterasures. How can I trust you now?”
With a heavy expression, Yoon Chang-ho shook his head.
“It might sound like an excuse, but I wanted to find out what they were plotting—whether they were really preparing to leave the party, what their true goal was. I was going to talk to you afterward. Like I told you before, I have no intention of letting go of the hand we clasped.”
“Hmph...”
“Believe it or not, that’s your choice. But if I had to choose between you and forr President Choi, I’d choose you.”
When he finished speaking firmly, he lowered his eyes.
Of course, I couldn’t take his words at face value.
“Chairman, I can’t say I trust everything you’ve said. I’ve already felt too much betrayal and disappointnt.”
“I understand.”
“Still, I’ll try to believe you. Just tell exactly which heavyweight politicians have joined hands with forr President Choi.”
Yoon Chang-ho listed the nas he knew.
Big nas from the Centrist, Conservative, and Progressive Parties were all involved.
What shocked most was that Congressman Heo Tae-min, the floor leader of the Progressives, was among them.
“It’s one thing for Centrist and Conservative mbers to cooperate, but Heo Tae-min? That doesn’t make sense.”
“I was surprised too. If Heo Tae-min’s joined them, then a rger between the Progressives and Conservatives might actually be possible. After all, he leads the largest faction in the Progressive Party.”
Heo Tae-min was one of the Progressive Party’s strongest presidential hopefuls.
In the previous tiline, he lost the nomination to Congressman Han Seung-ho, who enjoyed overwhelming public support, but he still led the largest faction.
“For now, keep eting with them. I’ll handle the counterasures. Find out what they’re really thinking.”
“Understood. I’ll do that.”
Had Heo Tae-min been blackmailed by forr President Choi?
It was an unexpected turn of events, but since I knew now, I could plan accordingly.
For now, I had to decide what to do with Yoon Chang-ho himself.
I looked at him firmly as he drank and said,
“When all this is resolved, and if you beco the presidential candidate, step down from the party leadership.”
“...You...”
Yoon Chang-ho’s eyes widened, and he trailed off.
“I can no longer trust you completely.”
“I explained everything, didn’t I? It’s a misunderstanding.”
“Even so, I need so insurance. I’ll have to take so risks in this situation. If you beco president and change your mind, that would be troubleso. I need at least one weapon in my hand.”
I could see his hand trembling as he gripped his cup.
“If you’re not planning anything else, there’s no reason to worry. Or... are you?”
“No, I’m not.”
“Then will you step down from the party leadership?”
“...”
He didn’t answer right away.
Even though the president held enormous power in Korea, running the governnt smoothly was impossible without controlling the ruling party.
No one knew better than Yoon Chang-ho how much President Kim Hak-gwon had suffered from a hostile National Assembly.
So his hesitation at my demand to relinquish party control was understandable.
But he had no other choice. Staying with was still better than siding with Choi Sun-man.
“Alright. I’ll do it. Then do you plan to hand party leadership over to Congressman Lee?”
It was too soon to give Myungsoo the reins. I shook my head.
“No. I won’t put Myungsoo at the forefront yet.”
“Hm.”
“Do you have anyone in mind, then?”
“No, I don’t. I’ve never once considered stepping down as party leader, after all.”
If this hadn’t happened, he would have entered the presidential race with strong backing, so it made sense he hadn’t thought about it.
“I’ll consider soone you recomnd, if possible.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Good. And Congressman Jeong Chanseong can’t be saved. Starting tomorrow, his corruption will be revealed one article at a ti in the press. No one will be able to stop it.”
Yoon Chang-ho nodded, checked the ti, and stood up.
“I should get going. It’s getting late.”
“Yes, sir. Please go ahead.”
He stood but didn’t leave imdiately.
After a brief hesitation, Yoon Chang-ho finally turned and left Grandma’s house.
When he was gone, I sat quietly for a mont, organizing my thoughts, then drank one last cup and rose from my seat.
“Let’s go too. Things are about to get busy.”
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