Chapter 149: < Protect – Episode 148 – Guardian Angel [4] >

Kim Yeon Ji’s story was soon exposed to the public.

Ahn Soo Ho didn’t brag about it to the media, but since she was a member of the Guardian Angel fan club, the rumors got out in no time. Some criticized Kim Yeon Ji for pretty much begging for money, but once they found out about her little sibling’s leukemia, they shut up about it.

The club president of Guardian Angel was none other than Jang Il Ho, who got famous after accidentally filming Lila’s incident in Monaco. He was out of his mind trying to juggle his personal page as well as the official fan café. He did hire some executives, but there were so many members waiting to get in that it was a war every single day.

The total number of members reached 500,000 people in no time.

But many of them just signed up because it was the trend. The fact that a non-celebrity had more than 500,000 fan club members was an impressive thing. Some wondered if even Hosoo Entertainment’s employees and Ahn Soo Ho’s family signed up to support.

‘It’s possible.’

There probably were some Hosoo Entertainment Group employees as well as family members. If this was any other rich person, people would have accused him for bribing people, but Ahn Soo Ho’s image offset any negative outlook.

“Huh?”

Jang Il Ho was going through countless messages when he came across an interesting t.i.tle.

Is Il Ho gay? I’m Soo Ho. Level up this ID.

There were many people pretending to be Ahn Soo Ho. So he texted Ahn Soo Ho’s number that he got at the fan meeting just in case.

Soo Ho! Would you like me to level you up?

Yup.

He answered in a careless way, but Jang Il Ho was just touched that he responded right away.

Okay! I’ll do that for you right now!

Thank you!

He went into the settings and leveled up Ahn Soo Ho’s ID. But his ID seemed strange.

‘Dummy Magician Anna-Anne?’

Dummy Magician? Anna-Anne? Was that his gaming ID? Jang Il Ho texted him back.

Soo Ho! Did you spell your ID correctly?

Hm, is it weird?

It is. Dummy Magician sounds a little…

I’ll change it.

Ahn Soo Ho’s ID changed soon afterward.

‘Great Great Magician Anna Anne.’

In the internet world, ‘magician’ was a word with a sad tale. Not just a great magician, but a great, great magician? It was deplorable. He felt a rush or pain was.h.i.+ng over him, but the fact that Ahn Soo Ho signed up for his fan café was a big deal.

Jang Il Ho posted an announcement.

Ahn Soo Ho has joined the fan café! He’ll soon post proof that it’s him, so watch your manners!

As soon as the announcement was posted, something crazy came up. While Jang Il Ho stared at it, his phone’s notification went off.

Where should I upload my posts to?

Post it to announcements! That’s the easiest!

Okay!

A moment later, a photo was posted along with a caption. The photo showed Ahn Soo Ho smiling awkwardly with the Star Tower office in the background. The amateur selfie made people feel even closer to him.

It’s nice to meet you. I’m Ahn Soo Ho.

Wow!

I can’t believe this!

You must be busy dealing with the media!

I like your greeting!

When’s your next fan meeting?

A businessman should focus on business.

Seol Hyun said he would though…

That wasn’t in her place to say. They’re not even married yet.

You crazy b.a.s.t.a.r.d! You can’t diss Seol Hyun here… (message deleted)

That’s what happens!

There are too many fake members! Let’s get rid of them!

Ahn Soo Ho was smirking at the comments when he heard a knock.

“Come in.”

Han Chae Kyung was busy following Oh Joo Kyung around running all sorts of errands.

‘Come to think of it, they all have similar names.’

Oh Joo Kyung, Seo Joo Kyung, and Han Chae Kyung all sounded similar. They were the women power representing Hosoo Entertainment Group. Team Leader Lee Sun Mi was being treated like a director, but she wasn’t as powerful as these three. Actually, since Jang Seol Hyun controlled Ahn Soo Ho, she might have been the most powerful of them all.

‘Not even. The mother-in-law has control over the daughter-in-law.’

The final winner might have been Mrs. Park Ok Nam.

“Mr. Logan and Lee Jung Hoon have left Incheon International Airport.”

“Really?”

Ahn Soo Ho told his mother about Lee Jung Hoon. Once she heard, she took a broom and beat up her son. He had never seen Mrs. Park so angry before, and it was likely that she broke one of his bones.

“How’s the broadcasting company?”

“It’s going smoothly.”

Once HBS completed their test broadcast, they went right into work.

“Are broadcasting companies connected to fas.h.i.+on?”

“I didn’t study fas.h.i.+on but fas.h.i.+on business instead. Did you forget already?”

“Well, I’m glad it’s going smoothly. What’s Director Oh doing?”

Ahn Soo Ho changed the subject in response to Han Chae Kyung’s criticism.

“She’s getting ready for the construction bidding.”

“Are the negotiations with the government complete?”

“Yes, Sir. It’s almost all set.”

He predicted that there would be a long administrative procedure ahead of a construction that was planned to go on for 10 years.

“But there are many protests going on about how it will increase the cost of land.”

“Gentrification.”

That term wasn’t entirely true since Gangnam’s land was always expensive, but the rich and the poor were always relative. The difference between Ahn Soo Ho and a typical rich person in Gangnam was like that of a child and an adult.

“How ironic.”

“You don’t have to worry about this, CEO Ahn. The politicians will handle it.”

“I know.”

He wouldn’t have said anything if they were living paycheck to paycheck, but if they could do business in Gangnam, that meant they made enough for a living. It was more possible that this was a strategy they devised. There were all sorts of interest groups fooling around with the price of land.

“Do you talk to Na Hee often?”

“Yes. I call her at least once a day.”

“Visit her at least once a week. She sacrificed a lot for you.”

If it wasn’t for Kim Na Hee’s sacrifice, Han Chae Kyung would have been framed for another person’s murder. The sacrifice she made wasn’t easy, especially for someone who didn’t give birth to her herself. But from the outside, Kim Na Hee was known as the dictator of the fas.h.i.+on industry who was cold as ice.

‘People change over time.’

The pain of not being able to bear children was probably beyond words. Kim Na Hee certainly loved Han Chae Kyung, but there was some obsession to it as well.

“Have you heard of the World Cla.s.s Project?”

“I have. That’s what you’re working on with my aunt, right?”

“Yeah.”

They created committees for the world beauty pageant, the world martial arts compet.i.tion, the world shooting compet.i.tion, and the ugliest man compet.i.tion. The ugliest man compet.i.tion was half a joke, but he decided to go through with it since it was original and fresh.

“Once you wrap up your work with the broadcasting company, move on to that.”

“Yes, Sir.”

She immediately realized that Ahn Soo Ho was doing her a favor.

Once Han Chae Kyung left, he turned his computer back on. Even though he wasn’t gone for long, there were over 10,000 comments. He pa.s.sed through all the useless comments and then stopped at one in particular.

h.e.l.lo, Mr. Ahn Soo Ho. I’m a mother of two from Sangye-dong. I’d like to express my admiration for you after seeing Kim Yeon Ji’s story on the news. I’m quite jealous of her good fortune. I wonder what could have happened if I had the courage to speak to you as well. Then would my children be able to receive help?

The age was hidden, but she was definitely not in her 20s. Ahn Soo Ho tapped his desk with his fingers. Helping Kim Yeon Ji wasn’t difficult. She wasn’t useful at the moment, but he felt like he made an ally who would back him up in the future. How many Koreans were there who trusted him without believing all the rumors?

‘10,000?’

Even 10,000 was a lot of people. Being a fan and trusting someone were two totally different things. There probably weren’t many Hosoo Entertainment Group staff or family members that truly trusted Ahn Soo Ho.

‘Only those who are desperate know the value of loyalty.’

The rule of the battlefield was to never kill an enemy who has surrendered.

It was hard to actually get up close to an enemy in modern wars, but the way soldiers treated captives had always been thorough. That was because a soldier never knew when they would become a captive one day. Ahn Soo Ho always gave people a chance, and that made Ahn Soo Ho into a model for even those who hated him.

Ahn Soo Ho picked up his interphone.

“Tell Director Navarros to come up.”

He put down the phone and then pulled out his mobile. He didn’t mind being a pushover this time. If he could buy loyalty with money, it was more than fair.

“Jeong Yeon? Let’s meet up today.”

******

“Tsk, tsk! Rich people should act like one.”

“He’s still young, so he must’ve really wanted popularity.”

“What’s the point of having so much money when he doesn’t know the rules here?”

“That’s how young people are. When he gets older, he’ll understand.”

It sounded like the people clicking their tongues at Ahn Soo Ho on the news were people from a famous corporation, but they were actually just from a small to medium sized company.

“We want to raise our wages to, but if we did, our company would go bankrupt! If that happens, our employees would have no jobs!”

“That’s right!”

“We’re doing everything we can! But what? Win-win management? The workers’ rights? That’s bulls.h.i.+t!”

“I agree!”

Deputy Kim Sung Gil was in the middle of making coffee when he started cussing in his head at what he was seeing on TV.

‘What is that crazy guy saying? Is that why they change to a new Benz as soon as it comes out? And most of them don’t even golf! What are they doing with so many golf members.h.i.+ps? They say they don’t have money, but then their kids go off and get their own departments! Those b.a.s.t.a.r.ds!’

The president and executive director were often related. Many companies were run by families, and the company that Kim Sung Gil worked at were run by people with the same last name. An entire family run the company together as if they still lived in the Joseon era.

Kim Sung Gil looked at his watch.

It was 7 o’clock meaning he should’ve finished work a long time ago. Since the president and executive director were still at work, the other employees couldn’t go home. He thought about his wife who was at the hospital for the last few days and raged on the inside.

‘I have to go there so she can rest…’

Why did he have to work overtime when there was no work to do?

“Hey, Deputy Kim. I heard your son is sick.”

“That’s right, Sir.”

“Tsk, tsk! Young people are so weak these days! Back in our day, we even ate rocks! That’s what’s wrong with the kids these days. You have to raise them to be strong. Look at my kids. They grew up so well.”

“I agree, Sir!”

When the executive director bragged, the section chief played along. Kim Sung Gil was smiling on the outside, but on the inside, he wanted to throw coffee in his face. He then presented his president with coffee.

“Ugh! What’s wrong with this? Don’t you know how to make coffee?”

“I apologize.”

“Tsk, tsk! You uneducated little…”

“Hey, Ms. Lee! Bring me a new coffee!”

Kim Sung Gil apologized with his head down, and the executive director asked a young woman to bring him another one. He felt bad for Lee Kyung Hee who did nothing wrong, but he actually made the coffee bitter on purpose.

‘You son of a b.i.t.c.h!’

Once he escaped the president’s sight, his section chief pushed him to leave.

“Go. You have to go to the hospital, right?”

“Section Chief…”

“It’s fine. It’s not like you have any work to do.”

“Thank you.”

Kim Sung Gil ran out the door with his uniform still on. He reached into his pocket to get his employee card when he flinched. He felt an envelope in his pocket. And inside were 10,000 won and 50,000 won bills. When he turned around, he saw his section chief waving.

‘Thank you, Section Chief…’

Despite working under a b.a.s.t.a.r.d of a president for 20 years, the section chief was kind. As soon as Kim Sung Gil got out of the building, he hailed a taxi. He normally wouldn’t have paid for a taxi, but every minute was important today. When he arrived at the hospital, he was about to send a text but then stopped himself. That was because his wife, who was supposed to be in bed, was balling her eyes out while holding onto someone.

‘No way.’

He felt suffocated at the thought of a family he didn’t want to think about. He approached step by step. In the meantime, Kim Sung Gil had all sorts of thoughts going through his head. Deep regret, despair, fear, and many more.

‘My baby! My son! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!’

When he was young, he didn’t know being poor would cause so much misery. Why didn’t he think of a way to make money when he relied on his parents and even graduated university? He also regretted that he asked his parents for money when he got married.

‘I wish I could afford a better hospital and better doctors!’

He hated himself from 10 years ago.

He despised himself.

“Honey!”

As soon as the wife recognized her husband, she ran into his arms.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“Pardon?”

After wiping her tears away, she looked at her husband and then smiled.

“It’s a misunderstanding! Our son will live! He’ll be okay!”

“What?”

Kim Sung Gil looked as if he had been slapped on the face.

“They helped us!”

“h.e.l.lo, Sir.”

He looked at the man handing him his business card and flinched.

“The third Do brother?”

“Ahem! My name is Do Min Ho!”

The comedian, Do Min Ho was now gone and replaced with Do Brother number 3.

“What’s happening?”

“You don’t have to worry, Sir. We’ll pay for all of the medical and surgery fees.”

“Pardon?”

Kim Sung Gil’s face was so red that his wife bowed in his stead.

“Thank you! Thank you!”

Even though he wasn’t the one who did it, Do Min Ho felt good, and he wasn’t the only one who felt good. The celebrities of Hosoo Entertainment went around hospitals all over Korea and helped out families with hards.h.i.+p.

And the reporters were certainly on their tail.

Director Choi Jung Yeon of Hope Medical a.s.sociation raised 100 billion for children!

It’s on Ahn Soo Ho! He donated 100 billion won for children!

The celebrities of Hosoo Entertainment are giving back!

Is it Ahn Soo Ho’s mission to save sick children?

Some criticized Ahn Soo Ho claiming it was a stratgety to gain popularity, and an anonymous source claimed that he planned on becoming a member of the national a.s.sembly. However, Ahn Soo Ho decided not to take action this time.

And a month later, the Guardian Angel fan club surpa.s.sed more than a million members.

< Protect – Episode 148 – Guardian Angel [4] > The end.