Chapter 31: The Beginning of Politics (1)
Wedding hall.
The protagonist of today was Yeonhwa.
Her partner was a fan who had followed her.
He was an ordinary office worker.
Average height, average looks, average company.
He was, in every sense, utterly average.
“President Kang, may we have a brief interview?”
“This is a wedding hall. Let’s talk after the ceremony.”
“I understand that several parties have offered to recruit you. Is there a particular reason you chose the People’s Union Party?”
“I’ve heard that there are members of the Korea Unification Party and local government heads around you, President Kang. Were you not satisfied with their offers?”
“Were you offered a proportional representation seat?”
Three or four reporters in front of me kept firing questions.
“The ceremony will begin shortly. Let’s talk after it’s over.”
“There’s a rumor that you received the number two spot on the proportional list. Is that true?”
“Did you meet the party leader?”
I was furious and glared at the reporters, but held myself back.
It was because a scene from my past life came to mind in that instant.
I had gotten into a shouting match with reporters, but that wasn’t a behavior that helped a politician.
“How many times must I say it? I’ll give you time after the ceremony, so please wait.”
“Cheonmyeong, let’s go in. The ceremony’s about to start.”
Ahn Jin-su took my arm and led me into the wedding hall.
From behind, Ji Jeongseok’s voice echoed.
“The ceremony will be over in forty minutes. Just wait.”
“Reporter Ji, don’t you know anything?”
“Let’s share what we have.”
“I’m not a spokesperson. What can I say? Ask me later.”
Once inside the hall, I sat at the front next to Mom.
Mom seemed overwhelmed with emotion at the thought of sending off her only daughter.
“Mom, time really flies.”
“It feels like just yesterday I was holding your hand and sending you to school.”
“Do you feel empty?”
“Empty? Not really. As long as she lives happily, it’s fine.”
Yang Seok-gu, who was officiating, declared the commencement of the ceremony.
“We now begin the wedding of groom Tak Min-woo and bride Kang Yeonhwa, in the presence of both families, relatives, and guests.”
And so the ceremony began.
The ceremonial candles were lit, and the groom and bride entered to loud applause.
It was moving.
Emotions like sadness, regret, anticipation, and bittersweetness filled my heart.
I had felt sorry that she matured too quickly at a young age, and I had tried to let her live like others her age.
Yeonhwa’s voice, choking up as she called me last night, still rang vividly in my ears.
‘Oppa, I know you gave up so much and lived for me. I’m here because of you. Thank you so much.’
After the officiant’s address, the bride and groom bowed before Mom.
Yeonhwa ended up bursting into tears, and Mom’s eyes also turned red.
I never cried at things like this.
My eldest brother beside me closed his eyes to hold back tears, and when Kang Daemyung started crying audibly, I also felt my emotions well up.
So that Yeonhwa wouldn’t feel small, so she wouldn’t sense Dad’s absence, so she wouldn’t worry about money, and so she’d keep her bright personality—
Yeonhwa grew up just as I had wished.
“Now that the reunion of separated families is over, we’ll proceed with the congratulatory song. Bride, please stop crying. People might think you’ve been kidnapped by a villain.”
Yang Seok-gu’s joke drew laughter.
Yeonhwa had cried far too much.
Even during the song, during the bow to both families, during the cake cutting, during the exit.
After the photo session, when we stepped outside the hall, reporters flocked around me.
“President Kang! Please answer us.”
There were too many people around, so I moved toward the outside.
“Follow me.”
Opening the gate that led outdoors, we came to a small garden.
I walked toward a secluded corner with no people and turned around.
There were four reporters.
“One question each.”
“Is there a reason you chose the People’s Union Party?”
“They gave me steel instead of a blade.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I will be running in a constituency.”
“What?”
The four reporters exclaimed in surprise at the same time.
“I’ll forge a sword by grinding the steel.”
“Which constituency will it be?”
“That’s not my decision to make.”
“Was there no offer from the Korea Unification Party?”
“Since my party affiliation has been decided, I won’t answer that.”
“I heard you donated to ‘Total Care,’ a project by Ik Je-hoon, the Mayor of Seoul. Didn’t they approach you?”
“As I said, the past is meaningless.”
“Were you dissatisfied with the Korea Unification Party’s offer?”
How many times must I say it for them to understand?
I clearly stated that since my affiliation was decided, I wouldn’t comment on the past, yet the reporters wouldn’t give up.
I firmly shut my mouth.
“President Kang, you said you would grind steel into a sword. Once the sword is forged, will you command the world?”
“If the world cries out for a sword, I must answer.”
“You mean you’ll run for the presidency?”
“The stone hasn’t even approached the forge yet. Don’t get ahead of yourselves.”
Knowing that reporters would try to extract sensational headlines, I wrapped things up.
Still, it wouldn’t be bad if the article went out that way. After all, politicians survive on publicity.
Just then.
“Kang Cheonmyeong! Long time no see.”
A sharp voice rang out.
The woman approaching in a mink coat was Seo Inha.
I had seen her appear twice as a reporter on Yeonhan News TV.
We’d had a poor relationship since childhood, so I wasn’t pleased to see her.
“How did you know and come here?”
“It’s the wedding of a neighborhood friend’s younger sister. I came to congratulate them. I even gave a cash gift.”
“Cheonmyeong! Time for the wedding bow ceremony.”
Yang Seok-gu called out loudly from in front of the gate.
I looked at the reporters and spoke.
“That’s all for today. I’ve taken one question from each of you.”
“I’ll call you later. Let’s talk for a bit.”
I shook my head at Seo Inha and headed to the bow ceremony room.
On the way home with the family.
I looked at Mom’s face through the rearview mirror.
An indifferent expression.
“Mom, are you okay?”
“Yeonhwa will live well, so there’s nothing to worry about.”
Her words carried concern for my brothers. The eldest who wasn’t married, and the second who wasn’t ordinary.
I looked at my eldest brother in the passenger seat and asked,
“When are you getting married?”
“When the right person comes along. If not, I’m fine living alone.”
“Nothing in this world just happens on its own.”
“I believe in destined love.”
I couldn’t say more.
Perhaps my eldest brother was sacrificing himself to take responsibility for the family.
The sense of responsibility from Father’s death.
That had become his trauma. Being dragged into the army and unable to attend Father’s funeral seemed to weigh heavily on him. Maybe that’s why he tried to stay by Mom’s side even more.
“Cheonmyeong.”
Mom called.
“Yeah.”
“Be careful driving.”
“I’m always careful. That’s what you’ve always said since I was little.”
“It means to be careful with everything.”
“I’ve been getting a lot of advice from Hyung. I’ll do well.”
In the end, Mom didn’t stop me from doing what I wanted.
Just like always, she didn’t break my stubbornness—she changed her own thinking.
“Hyung-ah, stay over tonight. It’s boring without Yeonhwa.”
Kang Daemyung’s eyes were still swollen from crying so much.
“Okay.”
But I couldn’t stay over.
I had to drop by Mom’s house for a bit, then leave once Kang Daemyung fell asleep.
“Is On-chan’s mom going straight home?”
“She had a hard time earlier from crying. On-chan doesn’t seem to be feeling well.”
“If there’s something to do, ask me to handle it and tell her to go take care of it.”
“Okay.”
Though Mom didn’t work, she stayed busy.
She went swimming in the morning and attended two cultural classes at the district office.
Woo Ah-mi didn’t want to disturb her, so she used a babysitter when she had plans.
My eldest brother looked at me and asked,
“Cheonmyeong, your induction ceremony is tomorrow, right?”
“Yeah. It’s at the party leader’s office.”
“There’ll be tough vetting. I’m not worried because you’ve lived righteously, but there’ll be fake news, so make sure to explain things well. It’s no good making enemies with the press.”
“Got it.”
Getting along amicably with reporters was a task assigned to me.
Since I had entered politics, I decided to follow Hyung’s advice.
The car came to a stop in front of the apartment parking lot.
“Cheonmyeong, you should go home and rest too.”
“Yeah. You must be tired too, so go home and rest. There’s the induction ceremony tomorrow, so get a good night’s sleep.”
I looked at Kang Daemyung with an apologetic expression.
“Hyung-ah, you can go. I’m tired, so I’ll get some sleep.”
“You sure you’ll be okay?”
“Come visit next time.”
“I will.”
Kang Daemyung didn’t throw a tantrum like he used to.
Having Big Oppa around made me feel at ease.
As I sent my family off and turned the wheel, an unknown number flashed on my mobile phone.
I had a feeling it might be Seo Inha.
I didn’t pick up on purpose.
It was bothersome.
Party Leader’s Office.
“This is Kang Cheonmyeong, the second recruit of our party, and the CEO of NetinKorea. As you all know, he is a capable businessman who overcame a difficult background and succeeded as a billionaire.”
The introduction was longer than I expected.
“For five consecutive years, his company has been ranked number one in places job seekers most want to work. He practices noblesse oblige by giving back the company’s profits to society. He’s a young entrepreneur who will accomplish great things for both our party and South Korea.”
I received a pamphlet containing the People’s Union Party’s constitution, rules, and policies, along with a party membership certificate from the party leader. Then, I accepted the bouquet offered by the floor leader and held it to my chest.
The flashes from the cameras popped nonstop—perhaps because so many reporters had come.
“Please shake hands one more time.”
I shook hands with the party leader and smiled toward the cameras.
I had practiced in front of the mirror yesterday, but it still felt a bit awkward.
Next came the entrance press conference.
“To the beloved and respected people of this nation, today I have joined the People’s Union Party. Even when I lived in a hopeless shantytown as a child, I never painted a bleak future. I always believed there was a way forward, and I believed that if I moved forward silently like a rhinoceros’ horn, a bright future would surely open.
(omitted)
I will dedicate everything I have to help South Korea’s economy grow. Just as I developed NetinKorea into a world-class IT company, I will make sure our economy rises to the ranks of advanced nations. A strong nation, a happy people—I will be a small grain that helps create such a country.”
The party leader blocked the reporters’ questions.
“There will be no questions today. The schedule is tight.”
I had been briefed in advance.
As a political rookie, I might slip up, so they advised me to be cautious with my words.
A large part of this stemmed from a distorted article about what I said at the wedding yesterday.
[Kang Cheonmyeong, CEO of NetinKorea, Declares Presidential Bid.]
That was the headline of this morning’s article. I had asked the reporters not to jump ahead, but the article came out that way anyway.
Personally, I didn’t think it was bad, but the party was concerned it would make me look arrogant.
“Please allow at least a few simple questions.”
“He’s the second recruit, how can you treat it like this?”
“We apologize. A separate time will be arranged for the press. We ask for your understanding today.”
The floor leader grabbed my arm and pulled me to the side, and I followed him out.
Then—
A sharp voice rang out.
“Kang Cheonmyeong, is it true that you were involved in multiple incidents of school violence during your student days?”
I turned my head to see who it was.
Seo Inha.
A truly cursed connection.
Next to her stood Jin Jung‑o, the reporter who had brought up questions about Seo Du‑hyeop.