Pay With Your Heart

Chapter 391: Ploy.

“What the hell are you up to?” Ji-Tae demanded as he trailed behind Dan-Han into his office.

He watched as the man lowered himself to his seat behind his large mahogany desk and turned on his laptop, with no care whatsoever of answering his question.

“Lee Dan-Han.” He growled with a clipped voice.

“I’m not answering you because I don’t see the need to explain myself twice.” Dan-Han bluntly told him without taking his eyes off his laptop. He had said everything worth saying in the board room, and all had been concluded, so there was no need to repeat his words.

Ji-Tae looked at him incredulously. “You don’t get to explain yourself?” He almost snapped while Dan-Han couldn’t help but raise his gaze to him.

“I don’t need to remind you this is my office, not one of your clubs, so control yourself.” Dan-Han coldly chided. “And should I say it is good not to see you smile for once? I was beginning to think you have a medical condition.” He hissed and returned his attention to his laptop. There was a lot of work to do, and he wanted to attend to them with no intrusion whatsoever.

Ji-Tae scoffed and plopped himself onto one of the seats across Dan-Han’s desk. He leisurely crossed his legs by the knees as he gave the man a lazy look. “Tell me, president Lee, why me?”

.....

“Why you what?” Dan-Han asked as he jotted some data down on a sheet of paper.

“Why are you sending me there? One minute you’re trying to bury me on the third floor with an inadequate salary-”

“You don’t look like you’re lacking,” Dan-Han ed.

“-and the next minute, you’re placing me in charge of a project? And also declaring me as what, your successor?” He narrowed his eyes as suspicion and disbelief twirled through them. “What ploy is this?”

Dan-Han finally paused himself from working on his laptop and sunk into his seat as he returned Ji-Tae’s intense gaze, a brow slightly cocked at him. “Ploy?” He asked, but he continued without waiting for his reply. “Are you saying you don’t want to be my successor?”

“I didn’t know that was an offer on the table.” Ji-Tae sharply replied.

Dan-Han casually shrugged. “Well, now you know, and since you now do, can you tell me why are you still here complaining and not on a plane?”

“You tell me.” Ji-Tae tipped his chin at him before intently furrowing his brows. “Big brother, what game are you up to?” He daringly asked while Dan-Han almost rolled his eyes at how awkward and sarcastic ‘big brother had sounded out of his mouth.

“The Lee Dan-Han I know would never give me such an opportunity out of his goodwill because that’s what you really lack, president Lee – goodwill.” He boldly told him, but Dan-Han blankly stared at him as he listened, silently encouraging him to go on.

Ji-Tae uncrossed his legs and leaned closer to the desk, his countenance turning more solemn than it was minutes ago. “We both know you summoned that unnecessary meeting so that I wouldn’t say no, and I’d have no choice but to go with whatever game you think you’re about to play with me.” He lulled back in his seat, he narrowed his gaze to gauge Dan-Han’s thoughts and note every of his expression, but the man gave nothing. He derisively chuckled as his face relaxed and regained its usual composure. “My question here is, why?” He asked while Dan-Han maintained the stoic look on his face.

“Again, I ask why what?” Dan-Han casually replied while Ji-Tae humorlessly chuckled.

“You and your God-complex, President Lee. This is you trying to play God with me, isn’t it?”

Dan-Han shook his head and replied. “No. This is me trying to teach you as I’ve always done.”

“Teach?” Ji-Tae snickered. “You don’t teach anybody, cousin. You move around like you’re a king, and you try to turn everybody into your underling.”

“Then why haven’t you fallen in line?” Dan-Han tilted his head sideways as he gave Ji-Tae a questioning look. “If you know me so well, then you’ll know there’s a lesson waiting for you at the end of this line. So if I were you, I’ll be heading for that plane right now so you wouldn’t miss your class. There’s a big mess for you to clean, and I’m placing you in charge of it, not because of the things you’ve accused me of but because you’ve been in charge of projects before, only in a place more reclusive and far away from home.”

“So you’re being generous by sending me to Country B?” Ji-Tae challengingly cocked a brow at him while Dan-Han chuckled.

“I’m not being generous to you. If I told you otherwise, you wouldn’t believe me, and I wouldn’t believe myself either.”

“So you admit this is a trap?” Ji-Tae suspiciously narrowed his eyes at him, and Dan-Han could feel his suspicion. It was good. He would have been worried if the boy wasn’t feeling suspicious because all of this meant he still didn’t know he knew of his plan.

“Ji-Tae, I know my father has something going on with you, and he was the one who helped you back. We both know he thinks he has it all figured out, but I’m just trying to show him otherwise. So yes, I’m not being generous with you. I’m only using you to spite him and try to keep my seat, but I’m also giving you an opportunity at a fair fight. Make this project work, and no one will question whether or not you’re deserving of my seat when the time comes. And if you succeed in taking my seat, I’ll be taking my father’s. We both know this is how it works, so now you know why I’m doing this.”

Ji-Tae intently gazed at Dan-Han’s face as he once again tried to study his expression, but he knew that was a futile exercise. If there was one thing Dan-Han was known for, it was his inscrutable look.

Ji-Tae couldn’t shake off the fact that something else was going on, but he couldn’t lay his finger on it.

Yes, Dan-Han liked playing smart as well as dirty, and he never laid out all his card. But also knowing how the man loved to spite his father, especially since the disapproval of his woman, he couldn’t help but wonder if this was all there was to his plan.

He didn’t need to wonder if Dan-Han knew of his plan, but he doubted it. Everything was going according to plan, and everyone was well accounted for. And if Dan-Han already knew of his plan, even a tad bit, he wouldn’t be sitting on his seat staring at him, but rather he’d have him dragged and chained to the ceiling of his base, where he’d derive pleasure in torturing him. The man always handled things in a brash and brutish manner. That was his forte.

“So when do I leave?” He finally asked while Dan-Han picked up his pen to continue his work.

“Chang-wok will let you know.” He replied. “All resources will be allocated to you.” He added.

Ji-Tae stared at him for a while before nodding his head and rising to his feet.

“This had better be good, president Lee. I hate surprises.”

“We all hate surprises, but I’ll ensure you never run out of supply.”

Ji-Tae chuckled as he turned towards the door. If this was how it was going to be, then fine. Both father and son can go at it at his expense, of course, but he’d have his time, that he was certain of.

“And I’ll also try my best to return the favor.” Ji-Tae amusedly replied.

“Ji-Tae?” Dan-Han called to stop him, and he turned around and looked at him.

“Be careful out there. The country’s law isn’t as flexible as it here.” He cryptically said.

Ji-Tae smiled. “I know.”

“That’s good to know.” He replied with a dismissive note. Dan-Han watched him as he left. The boy was smart; he had to give him that. He would have had a bright future at the company, but he had chosen a wrong path to tread, and that was no one’s fault, and there was nothing they could do about it.

He knew Ji-Tae would be suspicious the moment he summoned him for the meeting, and he was right when he said it had been unnecessary because it was indeed unnecessary. All he had to do was send him away with an order, but this wasn’t just about sending him away, but rather about preventing Ji-Tae from finding out he knew about his plan to sabotage him, as well as knowing who Ji-Tae knows.

The boy seems to have a lot of money, money that couldn’t just come from whatever illegal business he had going on. Firstly, he had bought a company that had invested in his project. Secondly, he had bought containers full of building materials. Those would cost him a lot of money, and he still didn’t seem to be out of it. Dan-Han hated to do this, but he had no choice. He wouldn’t want to put down his own blood, but this way, he would be able to force Ji-Tae’s hand and finally put him on a leash.

He picked up his phone and dialed a number. “Send those containers to country B. Ji-Tae will be needing them.” He ordered.