AOA 65

I reflexively worried whether my messy face would give anything away. As I hesitated for a moment, perhaps sensing my presence, Baek Mugyeong turned toward me.

“Jeong Minchae?”

A man who would normally just give a brief nod to acknowledge me now called out my name with a surprised expression. It was probably because my face was completely twisted up.

Right now, everything making me angry, wronged, frustrated, and miserable had nothing at all to do with Baek Mugyeong. We had just happened to run into each other by chance. But for some reason, seeing him made a wave of emotion rise up again.

The sorrow exploded, and tears began streaming down my face before I even realized it. I only felt embarrassed for a second.

Since the tears were already falling, I just let myself cry. Baek Mugyeong, clearly flustered, hurried over to me, but I couldn’t stop crying.

“Jeong Minchae? What’s going on?”

I wanted to scream that my father was holding my brother’s life hostage, that I wanted revenge, that I wanted to blow up this marriage and be done with it all. My head felt hot and dizzy. Maybe that’s why something completely unrelated came out of my mouth.

“Three years. In three years… we’re really getting divorced, right?”

“Why are you asking that all of a sudden?”

“Please… just say yes. That way, that way… ngh. That way I can hold on.”

“As you said, we’ll get divorced in three years.”

Maybe I looked pitiful, because Baek Mugyeong agreed. That just made me feel even more miserable. This time, I sobbed loudly.

My vision was too blurred with tears to see his expression. But I saw him hold out a handkerchief. Just like he had on the plane to our honeymoon.

I didn’t refuse his kindness. I accepted it and buried my tear-streaked face in the fabric.

The tears didn’t stop easily. Only after crying for a long while could I finally calm down.

“Have you finished crying?”

Baek Mugyeong hadn’t left. He waited patiently and only spoke after I blew my nose into the handkerchief.

“Yes. Hic… thank you. The handkerchief, I’ll, I’ll take it to the laundry room later.”

There was no way I could return the handkerchief, soaked with tears and snot. I quietly tucked it behind my back. Unlike on the plane, Baek Mugyeong didn’t ask for it back. Nor did he turn and disappear into the building.

“What happened?”

“Well…”

“I’m listening.”

By now, my eyes were so swollen I couldn’t see his expression clearly. But his voice carried the unmistakable will to know why I had been crying so hard.

“It’s just… a family issue.”

I didn’t explain in detail. Just saying it was a family issue was enough. After all, Baek Mugyeong also had to play the good grandson in front of Baek Jinseok.

“Do you have a way to resolve it?”

It might sound strange to think this now, but I felt like I could guess one of Baek Mugyeong’s MBTI letters. This was probably his way of offering comfort.

“With time… I will.”

I stammered. I had to wait until next winter for my stocks to double again. My brother’s third surgery would also be over by then.

I still didn’t have proof to strike at my father’s weak spot. At the very least, I’d need to endure another full year.

“Can you last until then?”

“Probably… no, I will.”

“Is there anything you want to ask of me?”

At the unexpected question, I looked up at Baek Mugyeong with my puffy eyes. It felt like if I said I needed money, he would give it to me.

But I didn’t need money right now. What I wanted was to stick it to my father.

“There is something, hic… Please help me find where my mother—my birth mother, who passed away—is buried.”

“Excuse me?”

“You probably already know, but the woman who gave birth to me died a long time ago. I don’t know where she’s buried, or if she’s in a columbarium. When I ask my father, he won’t tell me. I know it’s a strange request, but I felt uncomfortable hiring a private investigator.”

The family register only showed my mother’s birth date. Because I was her biological child, I could find the date of her death from her basic record.

But that was all I knew. I had no idea how she died, or where she was laid to rest. My father acted like she had never existed. When I asked about her, he coldly said there was no need to know such useless things.

After I lost my mind from the side effects of his medication, I no longer showed any interest in my mother or her side of the family. Then I died like that.

Even after repeating my life, things didn’t change much. I had only gotten some information about my mother’s family from my father to avoid being called the child of a mistress.

I had no memory of my birth mother. Maybe that’s why I didn’t feel longing or affection. I’d thought it was fine to go through life not knowing anything about her.

But after my father’s cruelty stripped away all remaining affection, I began to worry about her grave or urn. Judging by his behavior, he probably hadn’t taken care of it at all.

At the very least, I wanted to show basic respect to the woman who gave me life. Hiring a private investigator was an option. But if my movements reached my father’s ears, it could get messy.

If Baek Mugyeong helped, it could all be handled cleanly and discreetly. As the third-generation heir and executive director of DS Motors, this kind of thing would be simple for him.

I stared at him silently, waiting for his answer. He furrowed his brows slightly.

“That’s all?”

“Yes. Hrrm.”

My nose was stuffy, and my voice came out weird. I wiped it with the soaked handkerchief.

“You’re not going to take revenge?”

“…What?”

Startled by the unexpected word, I blinked at Baek Mugyeong. His expression was as serious as before.

“I said revenge.”

“I mean, that’s…”

I couldn’t answer properly.

Revenge?

Where had that come from? I didn’t understand why Baek Mugyeong would bring it up. More importantly, the way this conversation was going, it almost sounded like he would do it if I asked him to.

“Do you not want it?”

“If I asked… would you get revenge for me?”

Without thinking too long, I asked directly. I didn’t forget to meet his gaze head-on.

“If that’s what you want.”

He responded with equal directness. I was at a loss for words.

A thunderclap seemed to crash inside my head. This was an opportunity. And only an idiot would miss it.

“Okay. Please do it.”

“All right.”

“…Um, I’m curious. Why are you suddenly offering to get revenge for me?”

Now that I’d opened up, I wasn’t afraid anymore. And honestly, I was curious. Knowing Baek Mugyeong’s personality, this was totally unexpected.

He and my father weren’t close, far from it. Even if my father was an elder in name, Baek Mugyeong was the one in control. Thanks to all the messes Jeong Guihyeon had caused, that power dynamic had only solidified. Baek Mugyeong treated my father like a stranger.

In other words, it didn’t make sense for him to go out of his way to get revenge. To Baek Mugyeong, my father wasn’t someone worth the trouble.

So the question why was inevitable.

Baek Mugyeong replied flatly.

“Consider it the price for keeping quiet in front of Grandfather.”

I remembered the Lunar New Year when I’d met Baek Jinseok. Honestly, I hadn’t done much. I just answered a question and stayed quiet. But if that helped Baek Mugyeong, then so be it.

“I don’t know how you plan to get revenge, but… I do know something. I need proof that Jeong Guihyeon is using drugs.”

The secret I knew about my father was explosive. Even if just the rumor spread, his precious reputation would be crushed.

It would be great to have solid evidence, but if something leaked through Baek Mugyeong, it would be over.

So the only thing I could ask of him was related to Jeong Guihyeon. I knew from my memories before regression that he was using drugs, but I had no proof.

If I was going to get revenge later, I needed evidence. At the very least, I wanted to brand him as a druggie. He might not care, but it would destroy my father, who cared deeply about appearances.

“All right.”

Baek Mugyeong agreed without hesitation. The way he said it so confidently made him seem even more impressive than usual.

The winter wind was biting, and my tear-soaked cheeks were freezing. I’d been sad and miserable just moments ago, but now I felt strangely relieved.

This was a moment when I should say thank you.

“Thank you.”

“You should head in.”

“What about you, Baek Mugyeong?”

“I have a call to make.”

I remembered that he had been on the phone when I first entered the garden. He must’ve hung up because of me.

I didn’t ask why he’d been calling from outside instead of inside. Instead, I bowed politely and headed indoors.

In the kitchen, Kim Juhyun greeted me, asking if I had just come home. I returned a quick greeting and went straight to the bedroom on the second floor.

As soon as I stepped into the warm room, the cold sting on my cheeks began to thaw. I rubbed them with both hands and squeezed my eyes shut.

I might have known the future thanks to the regression, but the smallest variable could change so much around me.

When I woke up this morning, I never imagined I’d get slapped by my father. And I certainly didn’t expect Baek Mugyeong to offer me revenge.

In a world that seemed determined to crush me, Baek Mugyeong had given me a way to breathe.

I laid a hand on my cheek, and smiled.