Chapter 8
“Why?”
Chairman Ha Tae-won spoke.
His voice was curt, emotionless, and directed with his back turned. It was the same tone as always. Standing like a soldier, Yoon-jae waited for the man to continue, eyes fixed on the familiar figure.
“You took something that could’ve been simple and made it unnecessarily complicated.”
It had already been over a decade since the day they’d first met. Yoon-jae, watching the chairman’s still-imposing frame, finally spoke the words he had prepared for a long time.
“Go Kyung-chul is notorious in the industry for his poor character. In the long run, marrying into that family would’ve tainted Yeongdo’s reputation.”
“So you chose her instead?”
“It was the best option to end things cleanly. If my position gains too much influence, potential dissenters could emerge.”
Though she was still young and naive, the shareholders had long been eyeing Yoon-jae—illegitimate or not—as someone with the qualities befitting Yeongdo’s next leader.
Chairman Ha had once considered marrying him into the Ha family, making him his daughter Ha Seong’s husband, but that plan had been derailed when Yoon-jae married Ae-jung instead.
Turning toward him, the chairman’s expression remained unreadable, though his words hinted at lingering disapproval.
“So this is your will?”
“It is my desire, sir.”
That desire had been born from his late mother’s wish—for him to live safely under Chairman Ha’s protection, to belong within Yeongdo.
Chairman Ha had never truly cared about Yoon-jae’s marriage. To him, his son was merely a tool. Had Eun-se not been such a foolish child, he might never have accepted this bloodline into the family. Whether Yoon-jae became a son-in-law or not made no real difference to him.
Truthfully, the reason he had even promoted Yoon-jae to Executive Director was simple: the boy was useful. As long as he served Yeongdo’s interests, nothing else mattered.
None of it mattered.
Chairman Ha was not the kind of man to get swayed by such affairs, and Yoon-jae had never expected anything from him. He never wasted emotions on this relationship.
Go Woo-ri’s death, though unforeseen, wasn’t his problem.
Or perhaps… now it was.
Ju Ae-jung.
Even while working, she kept intruding on his thoughts. That woman, who now seemed to be mentally unraveling, tormented his mind.
His expression briefly flickered with something unplaceable before vanishing.
Chairman Ha, observing him silently, turned around with a heavy gaze.
“If that’s your will, so be it.”
With that detached statement, the chairman gestured lightly. Yoon-jae bowed respectfully to his back and exited the study.
Outside the family home, he rubbed his tired eyes. He had just returned from a week-long overseas business trip and exhaustion crept in.
That whole week had been spent cleaning up Eun-se’s rookie mistake as PR Director for Yeongdo. It had been draining.
A week?
No—ten days.
After returning from Go Woo-ri’s funeral, Ae-jung had locked herself away in her room for three or four days. Then Yoon-jae had left on his trip. It had been ten full days since they’d last seen each other.
Not that he missed her, but even on the road, his mind had refused to let go of her.
Even during that meeting with Chairman Ha…
Suddenly, her piercing voice echoed in his memory:
“You crazy psychopathic bastard!”
It had been like a scream—furious, venomous eyes glaring behind her glasses, her mouth spitting out curses like machine-gun fire.
Tap.
He tapped the leather steering wheel lightly.
That face—unhinged and livid—flashed through his mind.
Ju Ae-jung.
Back in college, when he had first met her before joining Yeongdo, she had been quiet, unnoticeable. She barely spoke, often scolded for mumbling during presentations, and was so gloomy and reclusive she had no friends.
He vaguely remembered hearing she had dropped out, but since they weren’t close, he hadn’t thought much of it.
And then, ten years later, they had met again—at Yeongdo.
Tap.
His tapping hand stilled.
“Did she change… or was she hiding it all along?”
It hadn’t happened overnight, but her personality had done a complete 180—right on their wedding day.
Could someone really change that drastically? Or was it psychological?
“Maybe she really is mentally ill…”
After a beat of silence, he started the engine.
Whether she had changed or concealed it, the fact remained: they had married for their respective goals, and he had paid the price.
So no matter how much she changed, it changed nothing.
When he entered the house, he was greeted by the longtime housekeeper, Mrs. Kim.
“Welcome home, sir.”
She had been with him for many years—one of the few who could accommodate his meticulous routines. She had even agreed to transfer to his marital home without hesitation after his sudden wedding.
Despite having an extra person to care for.
“Have you eaten?”
“I’m fine. You can head home for the night.”
“Yes, sir. But, Director…”
He paused at the unusually hesitant tone.
Mrs. Kim rarely initiated conversation, so he immediately sensed something was off. Setting his briefcase aside, he headed toward the inner rooms.
“Where is she?”
His expression darkened. He had almost forgotten the strange things Ae-jung had been saying lately.
She was diagnosed with severe depression. The faint scars on her wrist testified to the seriousness of her condition.
As he quickened his pace, Mrs. Kim hurried behind him.
“She’s in her room, but more than that, she’s… eating too much…”
“Didn’t I ask you to make sure she eats, even by force if needed? If not, take her to the hospital.”
“No, that’s not it!”
Just as they entered the living room—
“Mrs. Kim, do we have any milk?”
A cheerful voice called out from somewhere out of view. They stopped and looked toward the sound.
Soon, a head popped up from behind the kitchen island.
“There’s barely any left.”
“…”
There, peeking above the counter with an oddly bright smile, was Ae-jung.
“Oh! When did you get back?”
She blinked innocently, as if nothing was out of the ordinary.
“R-right! I’ll get it for you right away!”
Mrs. Kim scurried off. Meanwhile, Ae-jung straightened up.
“Thought you ran away.”
Was it a joke? He couldn’t tell. What stood out more was her oddly radiant complexion.
She wore a loose oversized T-shirt—clearly his—and casually approached, a bag of cereal in one hand.
“That shirt…”
“Ah, this? I didn’t have anything to wear, so I borrowed it.”
From top to bottom, she was dressed entirely in his clothes.
And it wasn’t just her face—everything about her looked oddly polished. Like a perfectly glazed porcelain doll, she held out the cereal bag.
“Want some?”
She’d gained weight.
No doubt about it. She had always been skinny, so the change wasn’t unpleasant, but her face had clearly filled out in just ten days. It was shocking.
His eyes lingered on her, saying nothing.
She let out a hearty laugh.
“Haha, I know, I gained weight, right? I mean, who knew you could gain 4kg in just a week?”
“…”
“I used to think spending money was the easiest thing in the world.”
She scratched her head, thinking back to her recent weigh-in.
Then grabbed her belly.
“But it’s not. You know what is? Gaining weight. That’s the easiest thing on Earth. Crazy, right?”
She sounded genuinely proud of the revelation, like she had discovered a universal truth.
Yoon-jae felt a headache coming on.
“Madam, here’s the milk…”
Mrs. Kim returned with a carton in hand. Ae-jung beamed.
“Thank you, Mrs. Kim!”
She hummed a cheerful tune as she poured the cereal into a bowl.
There were no signs of depression. Not even close. If anything, she seemed too lively.
“Going to eat and sleep right away.”
Her cheeks puffed out with happiness as she prepared her late-night snack.
Yoon-jae stood silently, observing the surreal scene.
This was no longer the fragile, pale woman he remembered. Her face now looked supple and healthy—like it would squeak if you touched it.
His narrowed gaze lingered.
He had been so caught up in confusion, he had nearly forgotten something important.
“What was it you wanted to say?”
“Ah, yes. She’s… eating so well.”
Mrs. Kim mumbled shyly.
Yoon-jae turned back toward Ae-jung.
“Wow, this is so good.”
With a radiant smile, she spooned cereal into her mouth—completely content.
And for some reason, Yoon-jae chuckled.
Was it a scoff? A sneer?
He didn’t know.
But the laugh slipped out, so natural he didn’t even notice it himself.
And Mrs. Kim, eyes wide, silently watched the impossible happen.
