Chapter 3
As if to say you’ve heard enough, now leave, the man jerked his chin toward the door.
Even faced with such rudeness, Yuri couldn’t bring herself to get angry.
“Just once—just once more, please reconsider. I’m not asking to stay indefinitely. I only… I just need a little more time to relocate the orphanage.”
Nothing about the situation made sense, but for now, Yuri’s priority was to buy as much time as possible.
“That’s how three months turn into six, and six into a year.”
“……”
“If you keep stubbornly holding out, you’ll just end up getting dragged out by hired thugs—beaten in the process. In front of the children.”
“Excuse me, sir—!”
“Or will you put the children forward again? Like you’re doing now?”
“When have I ever used the children like that—!”
She snapped back instinctively, and he looked at her with faint amusement.
“Then what do you plan to put forward instead?”
“That’s…”
“Stop wasting time on useless things and leave.”
“……”
“Unless you can make it worth my while.”
He leaned forward slightly, resting his elbows on his knees, and looked at Yuri with undisguised desire.
At his blatant provocation, Yuri finally stood up—but that was all she did.
His words were clearly insulting, and anger surged to the top of her head, but…
Song Yuri.
As the one responsible for the orphanage, there was only one thing she could do right now—plead with him.
“I also grew up in Hope Orphanage. More than anyone, I want the children to be happy. But something like that…”
Her sincerity, however, failed to reach Shinwoo.
Glancing at his watch, he reached for the intercom and immediately instructed his secretary.
“See the guest out.”
“W-wait, sir! I haven’t finished what I—”
“I told you. You have ten minutes.”
He gave her no time to persuade him. Right then, a male employee—likely his secretary—entered and tried to usher Yuri out.
Yuri realized instinctively: if she left like this, nothing would be resolved.
Driven by desperation, she did the one thing she never wanted to do.
“Huh? H-hey! You can’t do this here—!”
She dropped to her knees on the cold floor.
Her small fists, resting on her thighs, turned pale as they trembled.
“What should I do? I’ll do anything you ask… Please, just give me more time.”
Shinwoo looked down at her and let out a scoff.
He had never seen a woman so devoid of pride—but now, at last, she was doing something that piqued his interest.
“Sir, this won’t do. I’ll call security—”
“That won’t be necessary. Leave us for now.”
“Pardon?”
Caught off guard by the sudden turn of events, the secretary hesitated and reminded him of his next appointment.
“But, sir… your next schedule is with Jinra—”
“I know. Just go. I’ll handle it.”
As if too annoyed to continue, Shinwoo waved him off. The secretary had no choice but to leave.
Once they were alone again, Yuri swallowed nervously.
Then—
“You said you’d do anything.”
“……”
“Can you really do anything?”
“…If it’s something I can do, I’ll try.”
Shinwoo found her determined gaze appealing—and yet, he also felt the urge to break that very resolve.
Not that kind of look…
He slowly approached Yuri, who was still kneeling.
Sensing something unsettling in his gaze, Yuri lowered her head and tried once more to appeal to him.
“Please… show some lenien—”
“I prefer deals over leniency. Especially ones where both sides come to a clear agreement.”
Grabbing her chin roughly, Shinwoo forced her to meet his eyes.
“Mm—”
“And I’ll say this again—when you speak, look at me.”
“……”
“I don’t like it when people avoid my gaze.”
He knew she was only speaking out of desperation to escape the situation.
That was precisely why he intended to bind her more tightly—under the guise of a “deal.”
“What, are you afraid?”
“Th-that’s…”
Yuri bit her lip.
She felt like she could guess what he wanted—yet at the same time, she couldn’t.
He seemed to read her thoughts effortlessly, while she couldn’t read even a fragment of his.
“If you’re hoping for half-hearted sympathy, it’s not too late. Leave. The door’s open.”
“……”
“If not, then let’s talk. About the deal you and I will make, Ms. Song Yuri.”
What could he possibly want from her?
Fear rose first.
She didn’t want to show weakness—but he had already seen through her completely.
“I prefer deals that benefit me more.”
“……”
“So, what can our vice director offer me?”
At his suggestive words, Yuri’s heart began to pound erratically.
It wasn’t just racing—it felt as though all the blood in her body was rushing to her heart, threatening to burst it.
It was closer to terror.
From the beginning, he had stood out even among the rough-looking men surrounding him.
He was not a gentleman.
Back in the elevator, when they had been alone, his gaze had swept over her worn clothes as if stripping them away. Now, that same gaze was fixed on her face.
He’s dangerous.
Only then did Yuri realize the kind of trap she had fallen into.
The meaning behind the gaze that had persistently followed her since their first meeting was not complicated at all.
And that realization left her unable to move even a finger.
“Are you going to stay like that?”
As if her fear didn’t concern him at all, Shinwoo glanced at his watch and frowned.
He had mentioned before how much he hated wasting time.
There was no way her hesitation pleased him.
“N-no… I’ll get up.”
Yuri quickly rose to her feet. Shinwoo immediately walked over to the main sofa and gestured for her to sit.
“Very well. I’ll give you another year.”
She didn’t even have time to feel relieved at his words.
Instead, anxiety over what he would demand in return filled her mind.
There was no such thing as something for nothing.
And she knew that wishing for such luck was nothing more than shameless greed.
Regardless of her fear, whatever he wanted—whatever it was—she had no choice but to do it.
“Then… please tell me what you want—”
Yuri spoke with determination, but an unexpected name fell from his lips.
“Song Yuhan.”
Hearing Yuhan’s name from a stranger, Yuri’s expression stiffened.
“Send him overseas for adoption.”
At those words, her face froze completely.
“…What?”
“Or is placing him with an overseas institution possible?”
“Wait—what are you saying? Send Yuhan abroad?”
“For various reasons, it’s inconvenient for him to stay in Korea.”
Yuri couldn’t understand a single word Shinwoo was saying.
“No, sir… how do you even know about Yuhan—”
Without the slightest consideration for her confusion, he spoke coldly, shaking her to the core.
“He’s my younger brother.”
“…What did you say?”
“Unfortunately, he’s paralyzed from the waist down and autistic, so adoption into a normal family would be difficult. And I have my own circumstances—I can’t take care of him.”
“……”
“Overseas, awareness of disabilities is better than in Korea. Wouldn’t it be best to send him for adoption while he’s still young?”
Tae Shinwoo.
At present, he ran a law firm, but just a few years ago, he had been the Executive Director of the Strategic Planning Team at Taehwa Construction.
Originally a loan shark operation based in Myeong-dong, Taehwa Construction had expanded aggressively using its vast capital.
As a result, in less than twenty years since its founding, it rose to become the number one construction company in South Korea.
And Tae Shinwoo, at the age of twenty-seven, had been rapidly promoted to Executive Director of Strategic Planning—placing him at the very center of Taehwa Construction’s power structure early on.
