Chapter : 29
“Director Park Su-ho. He may be older, but he moves carefully. Investigating someone is nothing for him.”
According to the explanation, he was apparently famous as a go-to person for the errands of wealthy families.
Joo-young had also hired him before to gather evidence of her ex-husband’s affairs, so she knew he could keep a secret.
Confident in her recommendation, Joo-hye carefully tucked the business card into her pocket.
“So, what do you want me to investigate first?”
“I haven’t decided for sure yet. Because…”
Joo-hye hesitated, then let out the worry that had been on her mind.
“After the divorce, I’m not sure what will happen with Jinju Construction.”
“Jinju Construction?”
“Daehyun is the major shareholder now, but if we divorce, the situation will change.”
The moment Daehyun was ousted, there was a strong possibility that Su-ha or Soo-kyung could reclaim their positions.
He had already merged Woo-nam Construction into Jinju Construction, so there wouldn’t even be a place for him to return.
“I don’t want Daehyun to lose everything and be driven away in misery…”
“If you set conditions like that while hoping for a divorce, you’ll exhaust yourself during the preparation process.”
Joo-young shook her head in disbelief. She couldn’t understand why, even though it was obvious that Joo-hye still had feelings for him, she would complicate the divorce with such burdensome conditions.
Seeing Joo-young’s puzzled gaze, Joo-hye replied with a troubled expression.
“If Daehyun gets caught up in rumors after the divorce, it won’t reflect well on our group either. Rumors are already spreading.”
“Rumors?”
“At the arboretum’s commemorative event… I overheard people talking badly about our marriage.”
Joo-hye recounted in detail the hurtful words she had heard at the party after the ceremony.
“They said humiliating things just because we didn’t have a child. I never imagined I’d hear such words.”
As she spoke, Joo-young’s expression hardened, and she subconsciously placed a hand on her stomach.
She too had endured countless rumors of infertility when she divorced her ex-husband. If she hadn’t met Kang-il and had Yoon-hee, the blame would likely have still been on her.
“How did you even survive that, sister?”
“Joo-hye…”
“How did you endure those painful words all that time…?”
Joo-young imagined how heartbreaking it must have been and felt tears welling in her own eyes.
“You’re too soft-hearted, that’s your problem.”
Joo-young laughed loudly, patting Joo-hye on the shoulder.
She worried whether someone so gentle and pure could really win the huge battle ahead.
“Thanks to that, you’re happier now than back then! And you’ll be fine too.”
“Sister.”
“Steel yourself, Joo-hye.”
Joo-young offered a sincere, low-voiced piece of advice.
“Divorce… is really not easy.”
Hearing it directly from someone who had gone through the long process herself made Joo-hye feel a chill.
While Daehyun was away in Japan on a three-day business trip, Joo-hye decided to tidy up some matters at the arboretum.
The villa wasn’t too far from the office, and she thought it might be difficult to go there once Daehyun returned.
Early in the morning, she called Jun-hwi to the office to inform him, and his expression immediately stiffened.
“Senior.”
He had only called her that, but his gaze was full of emotion.
Jun-hwi had stopped Daehyun that day, but he still didn’t know the exact reason why Joo-hye had tears in her eyes.
“If there’s anything I can help with, just say the word.”
Jun-hwi boldly pounded his chest, showing off, trying to reassure her.
Joo-hye, reviewing piled-up approval documents, couldn’t help but smile.
“Why are you laughing?”
“You’re so kind… I really don’t understand why your husband restrains you. No one else is as pure-hearted and genuinely cares about me as you do.”
“Pure-hearted?”
Jun-hwi repeated her words like a mantra, then let out a soft, deflating laugh.
It was funny to think that Daehyun’s intuition wasn’t wrong this time.
He was a meticulous man, yet he had somehow allowed Joo-hye to want a divorce so badly.
“My husband doesn’t seem to believe me.”
Why?
Joo-hye’s eyes sparkled faintly as she whispered.
Jun-hwi gazed at her deep brown eyes like jewels and muttered with a sigh,
“I thought he was completely hopeless, but even he has a sharp eye. Maybe it’s because he’s in business.”
“Huh?”
“No, I mean… really, you won’t tell me why you cried that day?”
At the pressing question, Eun-jae’s face popped into Joo-hye’s mind again.
She hid her smile and fell into serious thought. There was still so much she didn’t know about Eun-jae, and she realized she wouldn’t get to know for a while.
“Jun-hwi, is the new employee still at the front desk?”
“Song Eun-jae?”
Though he didn’t answer directly, Jun-hwi quickly grabbed the walkie-talkie. After a short conversation with the staff inside, he gave the answer.
“Yes, she’s still there.”
“Please tell her to come in front of the zelkova tree for a moment.”
“The zelkova tree? Why… all of a sudden?”
“I’ll explain everything at once if I succeed in the divorce safely.”
She felt apologetic and embarrassed for not giving any proper reason, but right now, there was no one else she could trust.
“Please, Jun-hwi.”
Hearing the earnest tone, Jun-hwi rubbed his forehead and sighed.
He knew well that, despite all the difficult requests, he could never refuse Joo-hye.
“All right, senior. I’ll wait.”
As usual, Jun-hwi ran off to fulfill her request.
After he left, Joo-hye finished tidying up and headed to the main building.
Stepping outside through the garden path, the sunny weather greeted her.
Walking slowly toward the zelkova tree under the summer sun, the sunlight danced through the leaves, scattering blue-green shadows like paint around her.
“Director.”
Soon, Eun-jae, who had been called, spoke from behind.
Instead of answering, Joo-hye handed her the coffee she was holding.
The coffee she brought from the office was still cold.
“Ah… thank you!”
Eun-jae bowed her head sincerely. Her smiling face was still fresh, but thinking of the secret meetings with her husband made even that brightness seem brazen.
“Eun-jae, do you have a boyfriend?”
“Excuse me?”
The question was direct and sudden. Eun-jae widened her eyes in surprise, then let out a small, self-deprecating laugh.
“A boyfriend… I don’t have time or money for that.”
“I heard from other staff that you get a lot of confessions?”
Even though she had just started working, men had already come to see her at the arboretum.
Among them were famous figures in the business world whom Joo-hye had heard of.
Apparently, word had spread among the third-generation chaebols, and many asked Eun-jae for her number like a bet.
Hearing that Eun-jae had coldly refused each time, Joo-hye couldn’t help but feel sympathetic, realizing how sincere she must be toward Daehyun.
“There are many people confessing, not just to me.”
“Have you ever thought of being an entertainer?”
Curious, Joo-hye asked, and Eun-jae gave an embarrassed smile.
“I probably couldn’t do it properly anyway.”
“Why?”
“The entertainment industry is terrifying. If you lose popularity, people forget you fast, and if you quietly disappear, no one will notice… I don’t want to live so lonely and desolate. I also don’t think I could succeed.”
Her words carried weight, as if she had seen it firsthand.
Joo-hye fell silent, losing her words, when Eun-jae unexpectedly said,
“I… respect you, Director.”
Surprised, she looked at Eun-jae, who was smiling innocently.
The childlike purity in that smile made Joo-hye’s lips tremble slightly.
“I heard from the team leader about how you founded this arboretum and how sincerely you run it.”
“Jun-hwi?”
“Yes. He said it was your dream since college.”
Despite secretly meeting another woman’s husband, could someone shine so purely?
Joo-hye forced herself to smile, suppressing the queasy feeling in her stomach.
“I want to be like you too, Director.”
Eun-jae’s sparkling eyes made Joo-hye uncomfortable. She felt like yelling at her to disappear immediately.
“…You probably will, someday.”
But Joo-hye didn’t say that. Instead, she left Eun-jae alone and walked away.
She wondered what her husband would do to that girl if they divorced.
Could it be that she was planning to become Daehyun’s new wife instead…?
Painfully, it was only that thought that made her slightly curious.
