How a Salaryman Became an Underworld Boss

“Director Nevers, why do you think Minister Peng didn’t question our lies?” Chief of Staff Lee Jihun asked curiously as he watched Minister Peng Yuxiang’s interrogation from the observation room.

“Minister Peng is currently in an agitated and anxious state, so he’s being driven by emotion rather than reason.”

“Once he calms down, will he realize that we fooled him?”

“That’s possible, but by then he’ll be faced with the harsh reality of his own abduction.”

“So in the end, he’ll simply accept it? By the way, has it actually been confirmed that he embezzled government funds from the MSS?”

“Yes, absolutely. Director Tang Chao gave us that information, and we anonymously tipped off Inspection Department Director Wang Wei.”

“Now I understand.”

Director Nevers looked at the briefcase lying on the table and turned to me.

“Chief Manager Cha, why didn’t you tell Minister Peng that we have this briefcase?”

When the National Intelligence Service operatives and Korea Investment employees abducted Minister Peng Yuxiang, they had also taken the briefcase containing his laptop. That was what Director Nevers was referring to now.

“Director Griffin promised to compensate Minister Peng for whatever information he possesses. I took into account the high probability that his laptop contains an enormous amount of valuable data.”

Director Nevers seemed to understand Cha Jiham’s intention. He had kept quiet about the briefcase to save money on the compensation they would have to pay Minister Peng Yuxiang. However, there was one significant problem with that plan.

“But if we want to save money on the payout, don’t we first need to crack the password on Minister Peng’s laptop?”

Instead of answering Director Nevers’s question, I turned to an NIS operative.

“Operative Hong Jongsu, did you see Minister Peng enter the password on his phone before calling Director Tang?”

“Of course.”

“As you saw, he tapped numbers on the screen to unlock it.”

“Ah... I understand what you’re getting at! Give me a second.”

Operative Hong Jongsu walked over to the equipment and began rewinding the video recordings taken from various angles. After a while, he paused when he found the right frame. Enlarging the image on the screen, he played the footage. After repeatedly pausing and replaying it several times, he wrote down the numbers on a piece of paper and handed it to me.

Once I had the combination, I opened Minister Peng Yuxiang’s laptop and turned it on. Before long, the password prompt appeared. Without hesitation, I entered the numbers from the note. The system accepted the password immediately, and around twenty folders appeared on the screen.

Director Nevers, who had been watching, exclaimed in astonishment,

“Chief Manager Cha, did you know in advance that Minister Peng used the same password for his phone and laptop?”

“Most people have a habit of using the same password because it’s easier to remember. I simply decided to test that possibility, and I got lucky.”

“Luck is a skill too.”

“Hahaha. Is that so?”

Slightly embarrassed, I handed the laptop to Operative Hong Jongsu.

“Check what kind of materials are stored on it.”

Under our intent gazes, Operative Hong Jongsu began examining the folders one by one. After some time, his eyes widened.

“It looks like Minister Peng Yuxiang was managing someone’s secret slush fund!”

“No way!” Director Nevers exclaimed, louder and more astonished than anyone else.

Operative Hong turned the monitor toward us and continued his report.

“Look here. It lists bank names, account numbers, passwords, and the names of the account holders. The accounts at different banks are all registered under the same person’s name, and the amounts deposited in them are astronomical.”

“Couldn’t these be Minister Peng’s personal funds?”

Operative Hong turned toward me. I immediately understood what he was thinking and answered without hesitation.

“If Minister Peng had that much money, he wouldn’t have embezzled government funds from the MSS.”

“That’s true. Then whose hidden assets are these?”

“The moment he disappeared, President Xi immediately imposed something close to martial law in Dandong, Dalian, and Shenyang. Doesn’t that suggest anything to you?”

“Could it be...”

I understood perfectly why Director Nevers left the sentence unfinished.

“I’m leaning toward the same conclusion as you, Director Nevers, but we need to verify everything thoroughly.”

“How?”

I couldn’t answer Director Nevers’s question until I confirmed one detail.

“Operative Hong, please check whether the money is still in the accounts.”

“Understood.”

After giving a brief reply, Operative Hong Jongsu accessed the first bank’s website and logged in. He quickly entered the account number and password and checked the balance. Then he checked all the other banks just as carefully.

“Chief Manager Cha, all the funds are still there.”

“Phew, what a relief.”

After replying, I immediately called NIS Director Om Giyeon and asked him to come up to the observation room. Before long, the door opened and he entered with Director Griffin. Taking seats on an empty sofa, they looked at me curiously.

“Chief Manager Cha, what happened?”

“I just cracked the password on Minister Peng’s laptop.”

“What?!”

NIS, CIA, and FBI operatives had put considerable effort into trying to crack Minister Peng Yuxiang’s laptop password, but every attempt had ended in failure. It was understandable that my statement left them stunned.

“How exactly I managed to obtain the password isn’t particularly important, so let’s skip the details.”

“What do you mean, ‘isn’t important’? What are you talking about?” NIS Director Om Giyeon asked, making it clear that he wanted to hear the details.

“Most people have a habit of using the same password for convenience...”

I briefly explained to NIS Director Om Giyeon and Director Griffin exactly how I had discovered the combination.

“...In short, I simply got lucky.”

“Luck is a skill too.”

“Haha! That’s exactly what I just told Chief Manager Cha,” Director Nevers interjected with a smile.

“I see. Chief Manager Cha, continue.”

“All the folders are in Chinese, so I asked Operative Hong Jongsu to examine them. He’ll give the report from here.”

Handing things over to Operative Hong, I stepped into the background.

“There are twenty-two folders on Minister Peng’s laptop. I opened the first one...”

Operative Hong Jongsu gave a detailed report on its contents, turning the screen so that NIS Director Om Giyeon and Director Griffin could follow more easily.

“...For these reasons, Chief Manager Cha suggested that this may be President Xi Jinping’s secret slush fund.”

“That’s a perfectly logical conclusion. When will you be able to examine the materials in the other folders?”

“There are seventy-five gigabytes of data stored on the laptop.”

“Wow! That’s an enormous amount. A complete review will take a tremendous amount of time.”

“I completely agree, Director.”

“Download everything from the laptop just in case.”

After giving Operative Hong the order, NIS Director Om Giyeon turned toward me.

“Chief Manager Cha, are you certain that Minister Peng is managing President Xi’s hidden assets?”

“I think that’s the most likely scenario, but we need to verify it.”

“And what would be the best way to do that?”

‘Haa... I have to chew up all the work and practically spoon-feed it to them.’

“I think all we need to do is spread a rumor that President Xi is turning the country upside down trying to arrest Minister Peng.”

At that moment, Director Griffin joined the conversation as though an idea had suddenly occurred to him.

“Chief Manager Cha, let’s assume Minister Peng really is managing President Xi’s slush fund. What should we do?”

I immediately saw through Director Griffin’s intentions. He was plotting to seize Xi Jinping’s secret funds. To confirm my suspicion, I asked him directly.

“Your guess is correct, Chief Manager Cha.”

“There’s one essential condition if we want to seize President Xi’s assets.”

“What is it? Tell me.”

“We’ll have to tell Minister Peng that his laptop is in our possession.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“And if we do that, we’ll have to compensate him for the information stored on it.”

“Hmm...”

Director Griffin hesitated and fell into thought. I immediately understood what he was considering. He was weighing the pros and cons of admitting to Minister Peng Yuxiang that they had taken his laptop. I had a rough idea what conclusion he would reach.

Sure enough, after a while, he spoke.

“What if we exchange the materials on Minister Peng’s laptop for President Xi’s secret assets?”

“I think that’s an excellent idea.”

However, NIS Director Om Giyeon seemed to have a different opinion.

“Director Griffin, Minister Peng was abducted by our NIS operatives together with Korea Investment employees.”

“I remember perfectly well.”

“Then you understand that the ownership rights to both him and the laptop belong to our country?”

“Ahem, that completely slipped my mind. My apologies.”

Director Griffin was a proud man who rarely apologized. This time, however, he acknowledged that Om Giyeon was right without making excuses. It only emphasized just how badly he wanted Minister Peng Yuxiang and his laptop.

Relieved, NIS Director Om Giyeon continued the negotiations.

“I accept your apology, Director Griffin. If you want Minister Peng and the laptop, your side will first have to provide our country with appropriate compensation.”

“That would be fair.”

“How about determining the amount of compensation after we assess the importance of the materials on the laptop?”

“I fully agree with your proposal, Director Om.”

“Then shall we find out whether he really is managing President Xi’s secret slush fund?”

***

“Director Om, where have you been?” Minister Peng Yuxiang asked curiously when NIS Director Om Giyeon entered.

Om Giyeon first decided to lay the groundwork in case of any unforeseen complications.

“Our operatives who were in Dandong have just returned.”

“You mean the people who rescued me?”

“Exactly, Minister Peng. However, because Dandong, Dalian, and Shenyang were placed under conditions bordering on martial law, they had tremendous difficulty getting out.”

“Are you saying that alert was raised to catch me?”

“We’ve reached the same conclusion.”

Minister Peng Yuxiang closed his eyes and sank into thought. NIS Director Om Giyeon and Director Griffin sat silently beside him without disturbing him.

After quite a long time, he opened his eyes and spoke.

“President Xi didn’t raise the alarm because of the embezzlement. There’s another reason.”

“And what would that be?”

“I manage his secret slush fund.”

Cha Jiham’s assumption had proven one hundred percent correct.

“I see...”

“But unfortunately, I lost the laptop containing all the information about President Xi’s assets.”

“We have your laptop.”

“What?! Is that true?!” Minister Peng Yuxiang exclaimed, his eyes widening in genuine astonishment.

“Our operatives took your briefcase from the hotel room before they left.”

“Ahahaha!”

Overcome with relief, Minister Peng Yuxiang burst into loud, booming laughter.

As soon as his laughter subsided, Director Griffin joined the conversation.

“Since everything has worked out so conveniently, why don’t you take President Xi’s money for yourself, Minister Peng?”

“Can you help me do that?”

“Of course. But on one condition.”

“What condition? Tell me quickly!”

“We’ll help you seize his hidden assets in exchange for the materials stored on your laptop.”

“I accept your offer, Director Griffin!”

And just like that, Director Griffin got exactly what he wanted without much difficulty.