#134

Park Dong-Hee was still out of it. Or rather, he didn’t want to come to his senses. The memories of that day were too vivid. He wanted to relive them. It was the most stimulating night and day he’d ever experienced, and probably ever would.

He had to go to Hwangmu-eup to get his car anyway. Just in case, he contacted Nam Ji-hoon, who welcomed him to the shop anytime. Detective Oh Dae-Ho, his senior and Park Dong-Hee’s reliable backer, would throw a fit if he knew, so he deliberately didn’t mention that he’d talked to Nam Ji-hoon. There wasn’t even a chance to mention it.

Senior Oh, who rarely took days off, didn’t come to work on Monday morning. He hurriedly tried to contact him, but he didn’t answer his cell phone or home phone. At first, he thought he must have a terrible hangover. Even he, young as he was, barely made it to work, so he figured Senior Oh must be even worse. But when he didn’t show up even after lunchtime, he started to worry. He was wondering if he should go to his house when he finally got in touch.

“Where are you, Senior?”

I have some business to take care of, so I won’t be in today or tomorrow.

That’s all he said in response to the question of where he was. His own voice was hoarse, but Senior Oh’s tone was unusual.

“Is something wrong?”

What’s wrong? Anyway, I’ll see you on Wednesday.

He deliberately cut off the conversation.

Is his Mother sick?

He tilted his head and hung up the phone.

Perhaps because there was no Senior Oh to nag him, Park Dong-Hee was more distracted than usual. He couldn’t focus on his work all day.

I wish I could see that woman again.

He fiddled with his cell phone.

He didn’t even know her real name, let alone her contact information. They say you can build the Great Wall in one night, so what would it hurt to tell him her real name? The bitch just kept saying she was “Anne.” She said it was from that novel “Anne of Green Gables.” He didn’t even ask, and she was telling him useless things.

Anne was hotter than any woman Park Dong-Hee had ever met. She was something else for a young girl. He didn’t even think about Rose. She had white, full breasts and buttocks, and above all, she knew how to use every hole. He wanted to ask how she learned to be so good. Then, when he thought that Nam Ji-hoon, that bastard, might have fucked her first, he felt a surge of anger. He felt pathetic.

Park Dong-Hee, get a grip. What are you expecting from a prostitute?

A dozen times a day, he was jealous of Nam Ji-hoon, cursing at her, and blaming himself.

Naturally, he made a lot of mistakes. He was severely reprimanded for mistakes that would normally have been laughed off. It was all because Senior Oh wasn’t there. It seemed like they were out to get him.

Everyone was jealous of the successful young Park Dong-Hee. They’d be shocked if they knew he was working on a secret project. No, they’d be insanely jealous if he got a special promotion, right? Thinking that, he endured the nagging of a senior who particularly hated him.

“It’s so inconvenient without a car.”

He was drinking coffee from the vending machine and smoking a cigarette. Park Dong-Hee said this without anyone asking. Then, a senior standing next to him asked nonchalantly.

“Why? Did it break down again?”

“Yeah. It’s the third time this year. I should just buy a new one.”

“Yeah. Buy one while you’re still a Young man. You won’t even dream of it once you get married.”

The senior gave him sincere advice, talking about his meager salary.

“Should I? But it’s a bit tight to buy a new one.”

He scratched his head.

Since his Father was laid off from his job during the IMF crisis, Park Dong-Hee was the only one earning money at home. His sister only came around when she was in need, and his Hyung acted like he was doing them a favor by sending a few bucks for allowance. Inevitably, Park Dong-Hee’s earnings were currently supporting his Father, Mother, and himself, a total of three people.

“Hey! Try feeding your wife and kids and taking care of your elderly parents with that salary. You won’t be able to buy a toy car, let alone a real one.”

Hearing that, his ears perked up again.

Even though times had changed, there were still many seniors who lived with their parents. He figured his future wouldn’t be much different. As the youngest, he wouldn’t have to live with them at least, but he’d have to give them allowance and living expenses.

“Is that so?”

“It’s not ‘is that so,’ it’s ‘yes, you idiot.’ Buy it now if you’re going to buy it. You don’t have a girlfriend anyway, do you?”

“Hey, you can always make one if you want.”

“Oh, really? Looks like you have someone in mind? Who is it? Miss Hwang from the civil affairs office?”

“Senior, come on. What do you take me for?”

“Not Miss Hwang? Then who? The daughter of the restaurant in front?”

The senior asked persistently, but Park Dong-Hee just smiled.

The mention of a girlfriend reminded him of that woman again. Girlfriend Anne. It was fun like a pun.

Anne had a look that made it hard to tell whether to call her a woman or a child. Unlike her mature body, her face was quite youthful, which made it even more so.

Anne was one of the four women that Nam Ji-hoon had provided at the room salon. She was the least noticeable because she was short and didn’t have a great face. Like the other women, she wore heavy makeup, so he didn’t believe she was twenty-two. She looked at least twenty-five. But when she took off her makeup and joked, “I’m actually seventeen,” she really looked that age, and he was startled.

So, he casually mentioned it to Senior Oh, who replied indifferently, “Seventeen is all grown up. It’s an age when you can get married and pregnant.” Park Dong-Hee had asked because he was worried that he might have prostituted with a minor.

‘Would Ji-hoon be crazy enough to hook up a minor with a detective?’

Senior Oh looked at Park Dong-Hee with a pathetic expression.

Right. She must be twenty-two. Or maybe she was twenty-five. They often lied about their age there. Especially the old bitches played with their age. Park Dong-Hee had seen many women who looked well over thirty pretending to be twenty-two or twenty-three. He just let it go because it was cheap, otherwise, he would have messed up their faces.

For Park Dong-Hee, who was turning thirty this year, twenty-five felt a bit old. Twenty-two would be perfect. He decided Anne’s age on his own, even though they weren’t even dating, let alone married. If there were no prying eyes, seventeen would be fine. Everyone says women are better the younger they are, right? He grinned lecherously.

He made the excuse of his car and left the police station at 5 p.m. He didn’t want to go to the intercity bus terminal, so he chose to transfer between city buses. It was a big mistake. What kind of village never ended no matter how far he went? He had to transfer buses four times before finally arriving in Hwangmu-eup. If he had his car, he wouldn’t have had to go through this trouble, and he was angry. He spat, saying it was disgustingly far and he would never come here again.

Park Dong-Hee went to the parking lot, found his car, and immediately turned it towards Seoul, Anne or whatever. It was rush hour, so the traffic was heavy. It was okay from Hwangmu-eup to Hanju-si, but as soon as he left Hanju-si, the traffic jam got worse. He kept stopping and going. Thanks to that, he had a lot of time to think.

Wouldn’t it be stupid to go back now that he’s come this far? He had transferred buses four times, after all. Besides, Nam Ji-hoon had said he would treat him generously this time too.

What should I do? What should I do?

Park Dong-Hee eventually turned the car around.

Unaware that a trap was waiting for him, he stepped on the accelerator with excitement.

* * *

The community center was still crowded. The police substation chief left four officers behind in preparation for any unfortunate events.

The villagers all stayed in the community center, saying they were having a countermeasures meeting. No one tried to move until late at night, so they ate and slept there.

man stayed in the community center the whole time, helping the women’s association. The youth association members went out to smoke all the time, and they would argue with each other outside, and one of them would get upset and disappear.

Because it was difficult to leave the few the child alone in their respective homes, they were brought to the playroom on the second floor. Although it was on the second floor, the soundproofing was poor, so the crying and arguing from the first floor were transmitted as they were.

Fortunately, there was an old TV in the playroom. The the child were all glued to the TV, and they smiled brightly at the snacks and ice cream, as the child would.

Tae-heun had a lot to do. He was mobilized to assess the extent of the fraud damage. It wasn’t that the police knew Tae-heun was familiar with such things and assigned him to it, but rather that he volunteered. He approached the police after finding a way to check the villagers’ documents.

“Oh, it’ll take more than a week just to sort this out, won’t it?”

Tae-heun pointed to the pile of documents and looked pitiful.

“Yes. We’ll take care of that. Go ahead.”

“Are you going to sort it out manually?”

“Ah, I said go.”

Corporal Kim waved his arms as if chasing away a peddler, looking annoyed. It was the reaction he expected, so he didn’t give in.

“I used to specialize in this kind of thing when I was at the company.”

Tae-heun took out a business card from his wallet that said Manager Kim Tae-heun, Namsan Industries.

“I’m resting now because I’m sick, but when I worked here, I was in the accounting department.”

Corporal Kim, who glanced at the business card he was forced to take, reacted to the word accounting.

“Accounting?”

“Yes. I managed everything from small tasks like managing employee salaries to managing the company’s bank accounts and funds. As you know, a company doesn’t just run on its own, right? Basically, you have to take on debt, so it’s a very important job. Debt is just debt, isn’t it?”

He seemed interested. Corporal Kim picked up the business card and examined it again carefully.

“What exactly does Namsan Industries do?”

“It’s a small trading company, but our President is also very interested in land, so we also do real estate investment. If you really don’t believe me, give them a call.”

Tae-heun said very confidently. If you called that number, a Namsan Industries employee would actually answer. Of course, it wasn’t real, it was like a role-playing game. Personnel were assigned to the ghost company called Namsan Industries. People were assigned in advance to play the roles of secretaries, section chiefs, and managers.

Corporal Kim hesitated for a few minutes before picking up the phone at the community center. And he checked. He asked in detail whether they knew Manager Kim Tae-heun and what exactly he did there. He also asked about Tae-heun’s appearance. He was a very meticulous person. Anyway, after a long phone call of about 10 minutes, he confirmed his identity.

But he was still worried. Unlike his naive appearance, he was a picky guy.

“I have nothing to do with Chairman Kwon or anyone in this town. The only reason I came here was because Detective Oh Dae-Ho introduced me.”

Tae-heun emphasized that he was not involved.

“I know. Dae-ho introduced you.”

Corporal Kim said with a sullen expression.

Judging by the way he said his name, he was at least the same age as Detective Oh. Tae-heun thought that he might be one of the police officers who had helped him with the immigration bag incident last time.

“It would be much easier to see if you organize your reports in charts.”

“Is that possible?”

“Of course. When are you going to do this manually? There’s a great computer program called Excel, and you can use it to sort everything out overnight.”

“That fast?”

Corporal Kim’s eyes widened. He seemed interested in the fact that it could all be done overnight.

“Of course. It’s not my place to brag, but I’m a specialist in that.”

The way he spoke was like a medicine peddler.

“It’s easy to figure out the extent of the damage, and you can sort it from the most damaged to the least, or vice versa. If you want, you can classify it by age, gender, neighborhood, etc.”

Before he knew it, not only Corporal Kim but also other police officers were listening to what Tae-heun was saying. Who wouldn’t be interested in having their troubles solved overnight?

“I absolutely don’t have any other intentions. I just want to help because the damage in our town is so great. I’ve received a lot of help from my neighbors in Dongjam-ri while I’ve been staying at Ki-beom’s house. I hate being bothered, so I’ll just organize the data and leave.”

That’s how Tae-heun was mobilized to assess the extent of the damage in this fraud case.

135 – Chapter 135