Chapter 187

At An Jungyong’s accusation, the master glared at Choi Jonghun with a hardened expression. Simultaneously, as his hand started to twitch, Kang Jin swiftly blocked his view.

“Are you going to hit him again?”

The master stared daggers at Kang Jin before opening his mouth.

“Don’t I just pay them their salary?” With that, he walked over to the counter, took out some money, and thrust it towards Jonghun. “Hey, take this.”

As Choi Jonghun hesitated to reach for the cash due to the irritable tone of the master, Kang Jin firmly interjected.

“How much is that?”

“What?”

“It looks like less than sixty… If two months’ wages amount to less than sixty, does that mean you’re paying him thirty thousand won per month?”

“You only worked five hours a day—!” The master lowered his voice, mindful of Wo Jiaming’s presence.

Kang Jin observed this and asked, “How many hours do you work per day?”

“From 5 PM to 10 PM.”

“And for how many days?”

“One day off on Wednesday, so six days a week.”

“Duly noted,” Kang Jin mentally calculated as Doyoung Min interjected:

“It amounts to 1,002,000 won.”

Kang Jin glanced at him, impressed.

He calculates quickly.

Mentally acknowledging Doyoung’s speed, Kang Jin turned back to the master, knowing that wasn’t the crucial point.

“Did you hear that?”

“That kid…uhm… Jonghun mentioned he gets paid 500,000 won per month for his work.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

As they conversed, the master’s gaze shifted. He noticed Wo Jiaming whisper something to Manager Moon, who then took out a notepad from his pocket and headed towards the kitchen.

“Foreman, where are you going?! Foreman!”

The master was well-acquainted with the local health inspection team due to frequent surprise visits during his food business operations. Word often spread about these inspections, allowing him to prepare beforehand and avoid any issues. However, now he felt uneasy as he hadn’t had time to get ready this time, especially with the foreman heading straight for the kitchen.

Ignoring his master’s words, Manager Moon started heading towards the kitchen.

Kang Jin shouted out at this sight, “Watch out for mice in the kitchen!”

Manager Moon turned to Kang Jin upon hearing his warning.

“Mice?” he asked.

Kang Jin glanced toward Sung Yongsoo and yelled back, “There’s a mouse trap behind the freezer!”

“Keep an eye on the area near the freezer!” With these words, Manager Moon grimaced, shot a look at the master, then entered the kitchen.

“Excuse me! What do you mean by suddenly conducting an inspection like this?”

As the owner hurriedly tried to approach Manager Moon, Wo Jiaming laughed.

“Health and censorship inspections can be conducted unannounced. But arranging a meeting beforehand for such purposes?”

“But this seems…like retaliation?”

“Then why don’t you conduct a health inspection at my house?” Wo Jiaming’s response prompted the master to bite his lip and glare at him.

“As a legislator, how can you behave like this?”

“Behave like what?” Wo Jiaming laughed at the master’s words. “How can you accuse me of misconduct when I haven’t even begun yet?”

He then turned to An Jungyong. “And during our conversation just now, didn’t we uncover more illegal practices?”

An Jungyong nodded in agreement with Wo Jiaming.

“Even if the student agreed to receive only 500,000 won, as an employer, you have the legal obligation to pay the minimum hourly wage.”

“No, he said he would accept 500,000 won.”

“The minimum wage is exactly that—the lowest hourly rate employers must pay their employees by law. Paying less than this amount is illegal.”

“This is insane.” The master glared at Choi Jonghun. “Hey, you little punk! You told me you’d take only 500,000 won. Speak up!”

At his master’s outburst, Choi Jonghun looked flustered and exchanged nervous glances between An Jungyong and his employer.

Kang Jin grabbed Choi Jonghun’s shoulder reassuringly. “What could he know?”

“What do you mean?”

“You already mentioned it yourself. He’s just a kid… What could he possibly understand? As adults, we should have explained things better to him. If he didn’t realize how low the payment was for accepting 500,000 won, then…” Kang Jin smiled wryly at the master. “Are you even human?”

“What?! You little…!”

As the legislator clenched his fist and advanced toward Kang Jin, ignoring his status, she laughed again.

It’s been a while since I’ve gotten to throw some punches.

Having worked various part-time jobs at construction sites for years, Kang Jin had encountered her fair share of odd characters. Some claimed they used to be gangsters and tried to steal her daily wages, others turned out to be thieves during team-building retreats…

Regardless, all these experiences ensured that Kang Jin could hold her own against anyone when it came to fighting. However…she preferred to let her opponents make the first move. Even if both fighters ended up victorious, letting them strike first was better than initiating the attack herself.

As Kang Jin contemplated this strategy and took a step forward, Han Myung-hyun, O Jaimyung’s legislative assistant, blocked her path.

“Stop.”

“B…” Before Kang Jin could finish his sentence “back off,” Han Myung-hyun grabbed and twisted Kang Jin’s arm.

Crack!

Han Myung-hyun had bent Kang Jin’s incoming hand.

“Aaargh!”

“We will settle this through dialogue.” With a stern face and voice, Han Myung-hyun pushed Kang Jin back.

“Guh! Who do you think you are?” Kang Jin’s astonished exclamation fell on deaf ears as Han Myung-hyun took a position behind Wo Jiaming.

Wo Jiaming smiled at Han Myung-hyun’s stance. “You haven’t changed a bit.”

“Once learned, never forgotten,” Han Myung-hyun replied firmly.

Nodding, Wo Jiaming turned to Kang Jin. “Firstly…you didn’t even pay him minimum wage.”

“Just pay him his salary!”

Upon hearing this, Kang Jin looked at Choi Jonghun.

“How long have you worked here?”

“From April to October.”

“That’s seven months. If he paid you five hundred thousand won per month…you’re owed at least fifty-two thousand won each month. Multiply that by seven months, plus two million forty thousand for the unpaid wages of these last two months…”

Kang Jin glanced at Doyoung, who promptly responded:

“It totals 4,514,000 won.”

Kang Jin turned to the master with Doyoung’s figure.

“There you go.”

The master bit his lip and glared at Choi Jonghun, causing Jonghun to hastily lower his head. Kang Jin chuckled, placing a hand on Jonghun’s shoulder.

“You didn’t do anything wrong, so why bow your head?”

Kang Jin whispered softly into Choi Jonghun’s ear as he continued speaking, “Lower your head… Now confidently raise it and stand tall. And…” After hearing Kang Jin’s words, Choi Jonghun looked flustered at him with wide eyes. Smiling, Kang Jin gently pushed him forward towards the master, placing his hand on Jonghun’s shoulder.

Approaching the master under Kang Jin’s guidance, Choi Jonghun hesitated briefly before stating firmly:

“Please give me my overdue wages.”

Crack!

The master glanced at Choi Jonghun, then subtly shifted his gaze to the representatives from the Labor Department and Congress.

“So…will you leave after receiving your payment?”

Kang Jin chuckled at the master’s question.

“Well, even if we’re told not to go until we get our money, we’ll still depart eventually… But these individuals receive salaries from the nation, so they have their duties to fulfill before leaving.”

“What do you mean?!”

“Or don’t pay me at all.”

The master stared at Kang Jin’s suggestion. Under his gaze, Kang Jin continued.

“It may take some time…but the Labor Department handles unpaid wages quite well. And given this situation, I think they’d handle it even better.”

Kang Jin smiled slyly and added, “Plus, there’s always the possibility of a harsher punishment from the judge.”

At the mention of judges and harsher punishments, the master’s face hardened. Kang Jin observed him closely before urging,

“Let’s just wrap this up quickly.”

He extended his hand toward the master.

“No need to drag things out. Let’s finish this. Give me my money.”

With that, the master glanced between Kang Jin and Choi Jonghun.

“Tomorrow…come back tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? No need to come back here tomorrow. Give it now.”

“Cash…I don’t have cash.”

“Who uses cash these days? Just transfer it to my account.” Kang Jin then scanned the store and added, “With a shop this big, I’m sure you’re not running your business without several hundred thousand won in savings, right?”

“You…”

Kang Jin noticed the master glaring at him and continued.

“Transfer the money or else…” He turned towards Wo Jiaming with a grin. “…if we leave today and Jonghun comes alone tomorrow, who knows if he’ll get paid in ten-won coins?”

Wo Jiaming nodded in agreement.

“Do you think he’s that heartless? And as you said, someone running a business like this must have hundreds of thousands in their bank account, no?”

Shhhk!

Wo Jiaming stared intently at the master.

“If you’re gonna pay him, just do it here and let us go. Then we can…leave sooner.”

The master’s body trembled with anger at their banter before he finally spoke up.

“Give me your account number…”

“What did you say?”

“I said give me your account number.”

Kang Jin glanced at Choi Jonghun as per his boss’s request. Before Jonghun could verbally provide his account details, Kang Jin handed him his phone to write down the information instead. Once done, Kang Jin thrust his phone toward the master.

“Make sure you double-check whose name is on this account before sending the money. Don’t come back later claiming you sent it to the wrong person.”

The master glared at Kang Jin but quickly pulled out his own phone and started typing away.

And then…

Ping!

A text message notification arrived on Choi Jonghun’s phone.

After reading the text message, Choi Jonghun looked at Kang Jin with surprise. In turn, Kang Jin reached out to check the contents of the message himself.

It stated that the overdue salary had been deposited into Choi Jonghun’s account. Kang Jin nodded and turned to the master.

“You still need to settle your tab properly.”

“I paid you already!” The master growled lowly.

Kang Jin shook his head, smiling wryly at the master’s reaction. “Sure, wages were settled…but we haven’t come to an agreement yet, have we?”

“What the hell?! What agreement?!”

“You hit someone, remember?” Kang Jin reminded him.

The master took a deep breath. “That was—”

“That was what? You think it’s okay to hit someone who has no money or connections?”

As Kang Jin spoke icily, the master glanced at him before nervously pulling out his phone again.

“Name your price.”

“Excuse me?”

“Just tell me how much. Money solves everything, right?”

Watching the agitated master, Kang Jin turned toward Choi Jonghun.

“Jonghun.”

“Yes?”

“Do you want to accept it for money or out of pride?” Choi Jonghun looked at Kang Jin as if unsure what he meant. After a moment, realization dawned on his face, and he nodded.

“Pride,” replied Choi Jonghun firmly.

Kang Jin nodded and turned to the master.

“Apologize.”

“What?”

“You learned this when you were young, right? When you’ve done wrong, start by apologizing.”

“But…I’m giving him money!”

“Sometimes, pride is more important than money. Haven’t there been times like that for you too, sir?” Kang Jin stared intently at the master. “Just like now.”

The master bit his lip upon hearing Kang Jin’s words.

“Sir.”

His eyes shifted towards the entrance, still biting his lip. Soon, confusion filled his face as four familiar men entered the room.

Isn’t that Jang Taesu and the police chief?

Congressman Jang Taesu of Dongjak-gu District and the Chief of Police from the Dongjak station entered together. As Jang Taesu approached with a smile, Lee Yoo-bi extended her hand to greet him warmly.

“Congressman Jang, thank you for joining us.”

“I couldn’t miss this dinner invitation, Representative Yoo. By the way… Is something wrong? Why does President Kang look so troubled?” Jang Taesu seemed concerned about his acquaintance. The relationship between local influencers and their representatives was often inseparable. Since President Kang himself could be considered such an influencer, Jang Taesu knew him well.

Under Jang Taesu’s gaze, President Kang felt increasingly uneasy. While other legislators might not care, Jang Taesu represented this district. And on top of that…the accompanying police chief…

Jang Taesu was also a local legislator, and to top it off…he had entered with the police chief…

That bastard…

President Myung, or rather Kang Jin, glared at Choi Jonghun as if he wanted to kill him. Seeing this, Jang Taesu smirked approvingly. He’d come here urgently because Lee Yoo-bi said there was something important to discuss, but the situation seemed quite peculiar.

What’s going on? Did that old man Wo Jiaming cause trouble again?

Despite his thoughts, Jang Taesu couldn’t help but smile. Whatever Wo Jiaming was involved in, it usually turned out beneficial for those associated with him. As long as it didn’t contradict party policies, aligning with Wo Jiaming’s actions never resulted in negative publicity.