Genius Grandson Of The Loan Shark King

I postponed my departure by one day and went down to Busan.

After my name began appearing in the media, I heard that Grandma had stopped going out altogether.

“Grandma. I’m here.”

When I opened the door and stepped inside, it was not Grandma but Cheon Jiyoung who greeted me.

“Oppa, you’re here?”

I already knew, but I pretended not to and asked with a smile.

“Why are you here? I heard you were going abroad.”

“I was going to, but I thought Grandmother would be alone, so I just fled to Busan.”

After Cheon Jiwon’s exposé press conference, Cheon Jiyoung had disappeared.

Reporters could most easily approach Cheon Jiyoung, so it was an excellent choice.

From the start, celebrities and the press had no choice but to stay close, and compared to Cheon Jisoo, Cheon Jiwon’s biological younger sister, Cheon Jiyoung was an easier target.

“I even turned off my phone and completely went off the grid. I do feel a little bad for the company.”

I took off my shoes and stepped into the living room, patting Cheon Jiyoung’s shoulder.

“You did well. Thank you. For looking after Grandma too.”

“Well... Is it because of you, Oppa? I was just worried about Grandmother.”

“Where’s Grandma?”

“In the kitchen. She said you were coming and went grocery shopping from dawn. It’s good that she went out for the first time in ages, but... Honestly, I don’t know what’s so lovable about you.”

I laughed and headed toward the kitchen.

“Grandma. I’m here.”

“You’re here? Wait just a bit. It’s almost ready.”

“We could have just eaten out.”

“You said you’re leaving after one day, didn’t you? Enough. Don’t make a fuss. Go wash your hands.”

“Got it.”

Grandma’s reaction was the same as always.

She must have suffered a lot emotionally, but it seemed she was not showing it because she did not want me to worry.

When I washed my face and hands and came back out, the table was set with soybean paste stew and a full meal packed with Grandma’s cooking.

Seeing Cheon Jiyoung helping Grandma by carrying spoons and side dishes made the corners of my mouth rise.

“World star Cheon Jiyoung carrying side dishes here. This would make a huge article, wouldn’t it?”

Cheon Jiyoung glared at me with sharp eyes, but I simply shrugged and sat down.

The meal began without much conversation.

Grandma did not deliberately speak to me either, and Cheon Jiyoung was the only one chattering away.

“Oppa, did you watch the drama I starred in?”

“You did a drama?”

“What? And you call yourself my oppa...”

I let Cheon Jiyoung’s story go in one ear and out the other while watching Grandma’s expression.

But Grandma silently picked the flesh off the hairtail and placed it on my rice bowl.

After the meal ended, we went to the living room and began talking together while eating fruit.

“Grandma. You’re not asking me anything.”

“Why? Did something happen?”

Cheon Jiyoung, who had been chattering beside us, also closed her mouth once Grandma and I began talking.

“They must have been talking about it on the news every day.”

“Don’t know. Not interested.”

Grandma grumbled and focused only on peeling the fruit. It seemed she was trying not to bring up that topic.

“It’s over now. So you don’t have to worry.”

“I’m sure you handled it fine. Here. Eat this.”

Grandma speared a slice of apple with a fork and held it out. I accepted it with a smile.

“Grandma. How’s your health?”

“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me and just do your work properly.”

“That’s good. You’re going to the hospital often, right?”

“I said I’m taking care of it myself. How did you get so full of nagging?”

“It’s because you’re at that age, Grandma. As long as you’re okay, that’s fine.”

The conversation stopped again.

When the silence stretched out, Cheon Jiyoung opened her mouth again.

At Cheon Jiyoung’s chatter, Grandma soon regained her smile.

When night came, Grandma went in to sleep first.

Cheon Jiyoung and I each held a cup of coffee and went out into the yard.

“Are you okay?”

“Me? I’m...”

“Cheon Jiwon and Cheon Jisoo pointed knives at each other. Reporters will probably ask you about it later, even if not now. You’re not in a profession where you can avoid the media.”

Cheon Jiyoung did not answer and only sipped her coffee.

After a long silence, she opened her mouth.

“I contacted Jisoo unnie.”

“What about Cheon Jiwon?”

“Unnie said he went into hiding.”

I only smiled.

I already knew where Cheon Jiwon was hiding.

Once the situation was more or less settled, I intended to make him pay for holding that press conference.

“I see. You don’t have anything to ask me separately about Cheon Jiwon’s press conference?”

“No.”

Cheon Jiyoung must have been curious too, but she did not ask.

Was she afraid of learning the truth, or was she truly not curious?

I could not tell which it was, but either way, she did not seem to want to talk about it any further.

“Okay.”

“But how did you persuade Jisoo unnie? She’s not the type to step forward like that.”

“Who knows. She must have had something to gain.”

“Ugh... I don’t know anymore.”

Leaning back against the bench, Cheon Jiyoung let out a deep sigh and looked up at the sky.

“I’ll stop the press from approaching you as much as possible. But I can’t block all of them. Reporters aren’t exactly the kind of people who listen.”

“It’s fine. I can just ignore them. Leave them alone. I’m at that level.”

Cheon Jiyoung smiled and joked. Unlike before, she looked stronger now.

I smiled and looked up at the sky alongside Cheon Jiyoung.

A bright full moon hung in the sky.

“Oppa, Grandmother’s health isn’t what it used to be. Even if work keeps you busy, spend time with her often.”

At those words, I turned my head and looked at Cheon Jiyoung.

“She forgets things a lot too. If I hadn’t been beside her, I wouldn’t have known either.”

“Tell me in detail.”

Without realizing it, I asked in a hardened voice.

“A few days ago, we had lunch together, and I was watching TV in the living room. Then Grandmother came out of her room and told me to eat lunch. It hadn’t even been an hour since we ate...”

Cheon Jiyoung’s voice carried a slight wetness.

And as I listened, my face slowly hardened.

“Besides that, she sometimes puts a pot on the stove and forgets about it. Anyway, she’s a little different from before.”

“The hospital never contacted me...”

I had told the hospital Grandma went to in advance to send me the results of every checkup.

“There might not have been any problem when she went to the hospital. I wouldn’t have known either if I hadn’t been living with her. It doesn’t happen all the time.”

“...How long will you stay here?”

“Until things calm down a bit?”

“Jiyoung. I need to ask you a favor. I’m in the middle of something important right now...”

“Oppa, don’t regret it later. Today might be the last day. She’s at that age.”

It was a firm tone unlike Cheon Jiyoung.

“Work? Of course it’s important. But time with Grandmother isn’t forever. You know that, right?”

I had already gone through it once.

There was nothing I could do except nod.

“Well, if you say you’re going to stay beside her instead of working or whatever, Grandmother will probably stop you. But to Grandmother, you always come first. No matter how sweet I am to her, I can’t beat you. It honestly makes me feel a little hurt, you know?”

Cheon Jiyoung spoke playfully to lighten the serious mood, but my head was complicated.

“Think about it carefully, Oppa. I’ll go in first.”

Cheon Jiyoung stood first and went into the house.

Once she disappeared, Manager Ma approached.

“Manager Ma. They say Grandma’s memory comes and goes.”

“What? We have never received any such report from the hospital.”

Manager Ma seemed surprised too, and a rare look of shock appeared on his face.

“I know. I think I trusted the hospital too much. She is at that age, after all.”

“It may simply be forgetfulness common among the elderly. Nothing is certain yet, Boss.”

“...It would be difficult to postpone the next schedule, wouldn’t it?”

“I’m sorry. It would be difficult to postpone the appointment with the Fed Chair.”

“Understood. I’ll think alone for a bit. Go inside and rest.”

“No, sir. I’ll stand by from behind.”

As if understanding my troubled heart, Manager Ma stepped back a good distance and waited.

I stared at the full moon and fell into thought for a long time.

The next day.

“Grandma. Once I finish what I’m doing, I’m going to rest properly. Then let’s travel together and do things like that.”

“What for? You should work while you’re young.”

“I need some rest too. I’ve been running too hard. At this rate, I’ll die before you do.”

“What are you saying! How can you say that in front of your grandmother!”

Grandma slapped my back.

But there was not as much strength in it as before.

Suddenly overcome with emotion, I bit my lip and urged her.

“So eat properly and go to the hospital every week. Okay?”

“Why? Did someone say I’m dying now?”

“...Don’t say things like that.”

In the end, I could not hold back and frowned. Grandma patted my shoulder.

“Muhyuk. Grandma will stay healthy until you bring home a wife. So don’t worry about Grandma and hurry up and bring a wife.”

“Then if I never get married for the rest of my life, will you keep living in good health?”

“You again!”

Grandma once again smacked my back with her palm.

“Hurry up and go. You’ll be late.”

“Got it. Stay healthy, Grandma. I’ll come back soon.”

“Why are you acting like this today?”

“It’s been a long time since I saw you, so I thought you’d aged a lot.”

“Oh my. Grandma isn’t going anywhere. Hurry up and go.”

Grandma pushed me.

Pretending I could not resist, I let myself be pushed and got into the car.

“Jiyoung. Take Grandma to the hospital for sure.”

“Yeah. Don’t worry and just hurry up and go.”

The car door closed.

Looking ahead, I said:

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, Boss.”

The car carrying me slowly set off.

For a while, I kept looking back, trying to keep Grandma’s face in my eyes.

Once Grandma disappeared from view, I erased the smile on my face.

“Manager. We need to move things a little faster.”

“Yes. I’ll convey that to everyone.”

Even if only to spend a little more time with Grandma, I had to finish everything quickly.

* * *

At a high-end restaurant in Washington, I was waiting for the Fed Chair.

At the appointed time, Ben Bernanke arrived.

“Charlie, it’s been a long time.”

Ben Bernanke offered his hand first.

“Yes, Chairman. Thank you for making time for me.”

We sat down and began with light conversation.

Once the food came out, neither of us deliberately brought up any heavy topics until the meal was over.

After the meal, while drinking coffee, we moved to the main subject.

“I know that you intervened in the Bear Stearns acquisition negotiations, Charlie.”

“That’s correct. I arranged the negotiations between Alan and Jamie.”

“I heard it was more than a simple arrangement...”

I did not give a definite answer and replied with a smile instead.

Then I set down the coffee cup in my hand and spoke.

“Rather than my arranging the merger between JPMorgan and Bear Stearns, wouldn’t the bigger problem be that you are Baltiche’s pawn?”

The smile vanished from Ben Bernanke’s face.

“What is that supposed to...”

Without answering, I raised my hand and summoned Manager Ma.

“Manager. Give Chairman Ben Bernanke what we brought.”

Manager Ma placed a sealed document envelope on the table and stepped back.

“What is this?”

“Look at it. Read it, and then we’ll talk.”

With a rigid expression, Ben Bernanke untied the string sealing the envelope.

Soon, he took out the papers inside and began reading.

The longer he read, the paler his face became.

“This is...”

“One of the pieces of evidence we possess. This alone would probably be enough to drag you down from that position.”

The Fed Chair was absolutely not a position that should create economic policy for someone’s private benefit.

Because the Federal Reserve was not merely an institution that created America’s economic policy, but an institution that moved the economy of the entire world.

“...This much isn’t enough. In a way, the fact that I’m meeting you right now, Charlie, isn’t all that different from this.”

“I told you. That is not all the evidence we have. Before JPMorgan and Bear Stearns merged, you met with two people from the core families belonging to Baltiche and discussed countermeasures. Didn’t you?”

When I said it openly, Ben Bernanke drew in a sharp breath.

“The Fed Chair being someone’s pawn... The whole world will laugh. Your honor will fall straight to the ground too.”

Originally, I had not planned to corner Ben Bernanke this way.

But with Grandma’s health now in doubt, did I really need to take the long way around?

I had to take the fastest shortcut possible.

“What do you want from me?”

“Let go of the hand you’re holding with them and take mine instead. If you do that, this evidence will never see the light of day.”

I quickly revised the plan that would have blown Ben Bernanke away along with the others and decided to pull him to our side.

“The setting sun and the rising sun. I believe you know very well without much thought which one it would benefit you to join hands with, Chairman.”