CLABC 21

Chapter 21

“Wow. Guess it really is a construction company—this building’s got some serious presence.”

The man stood for a long while, looking up at the headquarters of Gangsang Construction, the tails of his outdated, worn trench coat fluttering in the wind.

“People from families this flashy always have some dirty secret tucked away somewhere.”

Rubbing his chin, where a rough bluish shadow of poorly shaved stubble remained, he stepped toward the front entrance.

“Excuse me. I don’t think I’ve seen you before. What brings you here?”

Before he could even take a few steps into the lobby, the man—who looked completely out of place—was stopped by a security guard.

“Ah. I have an appointment with the CEO.”

“With the CEO?”

The guard scanned him from head to toe, clearly skeptical. Used to reactions like this, the man nodded calmly.

“Yes. Please check with the executive office. I have an appointment at twelve. Just tell them it’s ‘Mr. Gong.’”

Taken aback by the man’s confident attitude, the guard hesitated before relaying the message to the front desk and asking them to contact the CEO’s office.

“They say to send Mr. Gong right up.”

Only then did the guard bow politely and guide the man to the private elevator that led directly to the executive floor.

“My apologies. This elevator will take you straight to the CEO’s office.”

“Sure, sure. That happens sometimes. Well then.”

The man fiddled with his ear as he stepped into the elevator.

“Do I really look that strange? Anyone can tell I’m a highly capable detective. Right? …Right?”

He studied his reflection in the mirror-lined elevator until the ding sounded and the doors opened.

“Uh, I’m here to see CEO Han Kang-yoon.”

“Yes. He’s been expecting you. What would you like to drink? Coffee, tea, or sparkling water?”

“Oh. Then something very sweet and smooth… Could I get a mix coffee with lots of ice?”

“Yes, of course. CEO Han, your guest has arrived.”

The man grinned broadly at the pretty secretary who opened the office door for him—then locked eyes with Kang-yoon, who was looking straight at him from inside.

Damn. Look at that physique.

Kang-yoon stood up from behind his desk and walked over. Faced with the man’s solid build and steady, commanding stride, the visitor felt a faint sense of pressure and cleared his throat as he headed toward the sofa.

“Welcome, Detective Gong. I’ve been waiting for you.”

“Haha. Yes, hello. I’m Gong Jin-hwan. It’s an honor to meet you.”

He tried to keep his confidence up, but his shoulders kept slumping unconsciously as he bowed and shook Kang-yoon’s outstretched hand.

“Thank you for making the time to come.”

“Oh, not at all. Of course I had to.”

When Kang-yoon sat down in the single armchair at the innermost side of the table, Jin-hwan naturally took the far end of the long sofa beside him. Almost immediately, there was a knock, and the secretary entered carrying a dark wooden tray.

“Here’s your coffee.”

“Ah, thank you very much.”

Condensation formed on the glass holding the iced mix coffee. Jin-hwan took a refreshing sip before opening the briefcase he’d brought with him.

“I’ve been working as a detective for seven years now, but I’ve never had a case where it was this hard to find any clues.”

“I heard you were a police officer before becoming a detective.”

“Yes. I was a homicide detective. After getting caught up in an unfortunate incident, I struggled mentally… I just couldn’t continue anymore. But I still had to make a living. And, well—turns out the only thing I really know how to do is this kind of work. Ha ha.”

Kang-yoon nodded as Jin-hwan spoke, then poured tea from a thermos into a glass filled with large ice cubes.

“Oh, is that chrysanthemum tea? Smells nice.”

“Yes. My wife brews it for me every morning.”

“Man… you’ve got everything, CEO. A great company, a caring wife…”

Jin-hwan trailed off as he sliced open a carefully sealed document envelope with a knife.

“These are all the materials I’ve managed to gather so far. Please take a look.”

After taking a sip of the cool chrysanthemum tea, Kang-yoon accepted the stack of photographs. Some were ones Jin-hwan had already sent to his phone, others he was seeing for the first time. There must have been well over a hundred.

“Trying to trace the remnants of someone who died more than thirty years ago is harder than threading a camel through the eye of a needle.”

Jin-hwan muttered as he drained nearly half his coffee.

“Then how were you able to take these photos?”

“There’s someone who remembers a woman named Ahn Ji-hye—and prays for her soul.”

“…Prays for her soul?”

“There’s a very small temple deep in the mountains of Gangwon Province. Her spirit tablet is enshrined there, with a candle kept lit. I was told that since 1990, the candle has never once gone out. Which means someone has been paying, every year, for her soul to be honored.”

Kang-yoon examined the photos of the tablet and candle more closely.

The tablet had been polished to a shine, and the large candle—clearly replaced not long ago—bore the name Ahn Ji-hye written in Chinese characters.

“As I investigated people who remembered her, something started to bother me. A young woman who gave birth at twenty and died. A poor woman who’d been sick for a long time and died not long after receiving a shamanic calling. How could someone like that give birth at Daehan Hospital? Even now, but especially back then, that place was famous for only admitting people from very wealthy families.”

Kang-yoon fell silent, deep in thought.

Watching his serious expression, Jin-hwan spoke carefully.

“May I ask… was Ahn Ji-hye someone important to you?”

“Well… that’s something I’ll have to look into further.”

“Ah. I see…”

“Please give me the address of this place. And also the address of where the shaman who kept these photos is staying.”

“Understood. But… are you planning to go yourself? They probably won’t welcome you. Everyone has their own story, after all. The family members I found related to Ahn Ji-hye reacted negatively just hearing her name.”

“I see. All right. Were you able to identify the person who’s been honoring her?”

“That much was difficult… Unless the police get a warrant and seize records, it’d be nearly impossible to find out privately. Believe me, I wanted to dig deeper too…”

Jin-hwan smacked his lips in regret.

After studying the photos a bit longer, Kang-yoon stood, walked back to his desk, and retrieved an envelope from a drawer.

“This is your payment for now. Please gather as much information about her as you can, no matter how small the clue. And be discreet. I don’t want word getting out that I’m looking for her.”

“Of course. Protecting a client’s privacy is rule number one for me. Thank you very much for the fee. Ha ha.”

Sneaking a peek inside the envelope and seeing it stuffed with fifty-thousand-won bills, Jin-hwan grinned widely.

“Then I’ll be on my way. I’ll contact you immediately if anything unusual or new comes up.”

“Yes. Thank you. Take care.”

This time, Jin-hwan straightened his shoulders a bit as he shook Kang-yoon’s hand before leaving with his now-lighter bag.

“Have a good day.”

The secretary, typing at her keyboard, nodded in farewell. Jin-hwan returned the gesture with a shy smile.

Why would a perfect CEO like him be looking for such a pitiful woman? A lost family member? His mother, maybe? There were always rumors that Han Kang-yoon was the son of a concubine… But after all this time? And was she really a concubine to begin with?

He had many questions—but a detective had to strictly respect a client’s private life.

“Either way, I’ll dig deeper. He’s generous, too. With money like this… guess I’ll have to work hard.”

Thinking it’d been a while since he’d enjoyed good food and soju, Jin-hwan flipped his trench coat and walked away from the building.

“Someone praying for Ahn Ji-hye’s soul…”

At that same moment, Kang-yoon—still staring at the photographs—slowly furrowed his brow.