Restoring the café was quite a difficult task. After spending two full days just cleaning it, Lee Won decided to procure materials and make tables and chairs herself. The grandmother’s frustration did not last long. True to her Russian temperament, who had always struggled with hardships, she stood up and started anew.
“I think it would be a good idea to change the interior this time.”
When she came to Lee Won’s office instead of the messy café and handed him some crumpled paper, Lee Won readily agreed. The old wooden table had cracks here and there, and the legs were not the right length, so it made a rattling noise. This time, the grandmother wanted sturdy chairs and tables made of iron.
“I can make them, but wouldn’t wood be warm in the winter?”
When Lee Won carefully advised her on the design she had carefully considered, she soon fell into a dilemma again. The Russian winter was so harsh that it could easily crush any desire for interior design. In Russia, where the north wind blows for more than half a year, Lee Won’s advice was quite effective. In the end, Lee Won promised to make new furniture whenever Grandma needed it, and agreed to make a table and chair out of wood.
Nikolai, who had been beaten and sick for three days, finally gathered his strength and joined the work.
“It’s because of me, I’m sorry, Grandma Ivana.”
When Nikolai’s eyes quickly welled up, Grandma pretended to be blunt and said to him.
“That’s okay, broken vodka or something.”
That evening, Nikolai spent all his money to buy high-quality vodka for Grandma. Other residents who were too scared to come forward also helped out and raised some money. People did not hesitate to help each other even though they were struggling to survive their hard lives. Thanks to this, Grandma’s café regained its former appearance much faster than expected.
It hadn’t snowed for several days, and the weather was warm and sunny. People all said it was a good omen and gave the grandmother a compliment. Lee Won woke up refreshed, changed his clothes, and went downstairs. Every day was the same routine. During the day, he helped rebuild the cafe, and from the evening until late at night, he prepared for the trial with Nikolai.
The only way left was to make the unfairness of the situation known through the trial. Although the odds of winning were slim, Lee Won was determined to never give up until the end. Nikolai was the same. Those who had nothing left to lose banded together to help Nikolai and the grandmother. However, there were too many things that those who had nothing could not do. The key was to uncover Zhdanov’s corruption and prove that the land and factory had been unfairly taken away, but no matter how hard he ran, it was difficult to find valid evidence, and there was no one to testify on Lee Won’s or Nikolai’s side.
One evening, when the trial was just around the corner, Lee Won was thinking about the trial against Zhdanov while cutting wood to make the last table. How nice it would be if everything ended with just proving that the documents were forged. How can documents that are obviously forged not be evidence? Thinking about it again, I felt frustrated and angry. It was when I was chopping wood recklessly in a fit of anger. Suddenly, the old door opened and someone came inside. Although business was closed, people from the town came and went frequently, so Lee Won raised his head without thinking much and stopped there. He was noticeably tall, so he passed through the front door, which was usually large enough for most people, with his head down. Thanks to that, Lee Won saw the palanquin before his face. Of course, he could tell who he was just by his unique hair.
Caesar.
Lee Won silently watched him straighten his back and look around the store. The inside of the cafe, which was dusty from cutting and pasting wood, was starting to look pretty good. Caesar, who had been staring blankly at the wooden table Lee Won had made himself, shifted his gaze. Only then did he meet Yiwon’s gaze for the first time since entering the store.
“It’s been a while.”
Instead of greeting Caesar, who gave him a brief greeting, Yiwon glared at him with hostility instead.
“What’s your business?”
Yiwon, who had casually blurted out the harsh words, did not try to correct them. Caesar continued speaking without much reaction to the defiant gaze he was receiving.
“I have something to give you. I think you’ll want it.”
Only then did Yiwon turn his gaze to the envelope he was holding. The rather thick envelope was tightly sealed so that the inside could not be seen. Caesar opened his mouth at the suspicious gaze with a displeased expression.
“You’re holding a trial against Zhdanov, right?”
“So?”
Yiwon irritably urged him to continue. However, Caesar was not in a hurry at all and was just taking it easy.
“If it’s a city councilor, it’ll be pretty tough. Plus, he has connections with high-ranking officials.”
“Just tell me what’s going on.”
Lee Won stared at the door openly. As if he was going to kick him out if he hesitated any longer. Caesar’s silver-gray eyes rippled softly as if he was enjoying himself.
“Don’t you need evidence?”
Lee Won hesitated at the enticing voice, like a fisherman casting bait. Caesar continued in a comfortable tone.
“There’s always evidence left behind in all corruption. They take advantage of each other’s weaknesses in case the other party betrays them.”
Caesar lightly held up the envelope.
“This is exactly what you use it for.”
Lee Won’s expression changed. Zhdanov’s corruption was hidden in that envelope?! In a disadvantageous trial where even the jurors were likely to have been bribed, evidence was more important than anything else.
The next question was why that man was suddenly acting like this. If it was true, it must have been exactly what Yi-won wanted. At his expression of longing for a moment, Caesar smiled faintly as if he had expected it.
“If you want it, change your clothes and come down in 20 minutes, because it’s difficult to wear that.”
Caesar glanced at Yi-won’s dusty old jeans and shirt and said.
“It’s almost time for the reservation.”
“Reservation?”
When Yi-won asked him again, bewildered, Caesar readily answered.
“Let’s have dinner together and talk.”
Yi-won immediately frowned, but Caesar’s reaction remained the same. He looked down at his watch as if he had been expecting it.
“There’s 19 minutes left.”
“How can I trust you?”
“I won’t use the same method twice.”
Caesar simply brushed aside Yi-won’s suspicions and tilted his head.
“Is this unnecessary?”
At the sight of him shaking the thick documents in front of his eyes, Lee Won bit his lip. Caesar added to Lee Won, who turned around with a low curse.
“Since you cursed, I’ll reduce it to 10 minutes.”
“Damn, don’t make me laugh. Who would…”
“Five minutes.”
Caesar responded immediately and quickly turned around.
“I’ll be leaving in exactly 5 minutes, so if you need proof, do it yourself. And I hate those shabby clothes, so wear the best thing you own.”
Caesar looked at Lee Won’s entire body with disgust, opened the door, and went out.
―I’ll be leaving in exactly 5 minutes.
As if to prove his words, Lee Won swallowed the curse that was on his lips and quickly ran up the stairs.
Exactly 5 minutes later, Lee Won barely managed to get into the car that started and headed to a grand restaurant in the city. He had seen the building several times as he passed by, but this was the first time he had realized that it was a restaurant. As expected from Russia, where the idea that “big is good” is a given, he often found buildings and structures that were noticeably large, but this was his first time seeing a restaurant this large.
“Welcome, Tsar.”
The man who bowed politely looked like a restaurant executive at first glance. He must have been the manager or someone of a similar rank. It was surprising that he personally came to the entrance and guided them to their seats, but what was equally suspicious was Caesar’s attitude as he walked along, following his guidance as if it were a given.
Well, if you fall out of favor with the mafia, you’ll be stuck in a frozen lake in the cold winter, waiting for spring to come, so it’s only natural.
The manager smiled kindly at Lee Won and pointed to a table. As soon as the employee who followed him sat down on the chair that was brought out, the manager who had handed out the menu disappeared with the employee. Inside the restaurant, which was as large as it was from outside, many people who had come to enjoy a meal were sitting at tables full of people.
The number written next to the menu was equivalent to Lee Won’s monthly living expenses, but to the people gathered here, it was probably just a number for one meal. Lee Won glanced at Caesar’s familiar figure choosing wine before eating. When he raised his head, the employee waiting on one side quickly approached and bowed.
Caesar, who had ordered 82-year-old Petrus wine, glanced at Lee Won. As if asking if he liked it. Lee Won simply furrowed his brow slightly. In fact, it didn’t make much difference to him whether he drank wine worth several thousand rubles or plain water. What was important now was the information that the man had. What on earth was in that envelope? He was curious, but when he turned around after leaving his coat at the restaurant entrance, Caesar had nothing in his hands. Lee Won became anxious, but decided to wait and see.
If it’s not that great, I’ll stab you with a knife.
He glanced down at the knife on the table, and Caesar opened his mouth.
“Georgian wine is good, but my taste is French wine.”
Caesar stared at Yi-won as if asking what he thought. Yi-won answered with an indifferent face.
“I don’t know much about wine.”
“There’s a theory that Georgian wine is the first wine in human history. What do you think?”
Yi-won frowned.
“If you know that and drink it, will the taste change?”
Caesar readily said.
“The diversity of the senses is proportional to the amount of knowledge. The more you know, the more sensitive you become.”
It was a nonsense. Yi-won would rather live his whole life not being able to tell the difference between wines, so he wanted to tell them to hand over the envelope, but Caesar kept talking about wine, as if he had completely forgotten why he had dragged Yi-won here.
“If you drink them side by side, you can definitely feel the difference in taste. Don’t wines have their own personalities? French wines are elegant but picky. American wines are rough but strong. Georgian wines are, well, flat and hard at first, like a stubborn virgin, but once you get used to them, they’re like the best seductresses in the world…”
Just then, the employee came back with the Petrus wine. Caesar checked the label, finished a quick tasting, and nodded. After receiving permission, the employee poured Yi-won some wine as well and stepped back. Caesar raised his glass lightly as if he was toasting, and said,
“Enjoy it, cooking is also art.”
He seems to not know that art used to be the exclusive domain of the bourgeoisie.
Thinking to himself, Yi-won silently brought the wine to his mouth.
“Unfortunately, sports cars are not very useful in Russia. It snows frequently and strong winds blow, and it’s really difficult without a roof. But I keep buying them, even expanding the garage for a car I won’t even drive.”
Okay, so hand me the envelope!
As I’ve felt before, he was a man who tested the limits of patience. During the meal that lasted an hour, Caesar didn’t mention the documents even once. The wine was just the beginning. The conversation changed from soccer to genetics and a recent Nobel Prize-winning author, and now it was about a supercar that I might only see once in my life.
Yi-won held the corner of the napkin tightly and barely held back the urge to swing the knife wildly at Caesar. His eyes kept circling around Caesar. Where on earth did he put it?! Lee Won tried his best to suppress his desire to grab Caesar by the collar and demand that he hand over the envelope right away, while ignoring his praise for his Ferrari.
When he brought up football after wine, he hesitated, but let it go. He thought it was polite to respond to the conversation to some extent since he had agreed to the meal. But now he was fed up. Lee Won, whose patience had reached its peak, decided not to tolerate Caesar again when he brought up a new topic and wasted time.
“Dessert.”
He thought it was the end, but he was mistaken. Unfortunately, the restaurant’s special dessert menu consisted of five courses. When the first dessert, ice cream, arrived, Caesar opened his mouth.
“The origin of ice cream is…”
At the same time, Lee Won suddenly stood up. The napkin he had been holding on his lap fell to the floor, but he ignored it. When Caesar stopped talking and looked up at him, Yi-won spoke in a cold voice.
“If you won’t give me the documents, there’s no reason to waste time with you like this.”
As he was about to go back to his original decision, the employee standing over there immediately approached him and handed him an envelope. While Yi-won hesitated and looked at him, Caesar took the envelope with one hand and stared at him.
“Here it is.”
When Yi-won reached across the table to grab it, Caesar simply pulled his arm away and turned it into a blister.
“It won’t be free.”
Was the torture he’d endured so far not enough? When Yi-won furrowed his brows and looked at him, Caesar said.
“I’ll give it to you if you kiss me.”
The famous restaurant, which was at its busiest during dinner time, was packed with people eating and employees. There were quite a few people glancing at the two of them with a strange atmosphere. Caesar narrowed his eyes as if to say, “What are you going to do?”
Yi-won didn’t hesitate.
Standing across the table, Lee Won bent down and pressed his lips to Caesar’s. Her elastic, soft lips touched Caesar’s neat lips, but soon pressed them firmly. Caesar closed his eyes without thinking.
When a sigh like an exclamation escaped, Lee Won’s hand snatched the envelope Caesar was holding as if it was snatching it away. And the kiss ended. Lee Won, who quickly got up, looked down at Caesar with a blank expression on his face, which was no different from usual.
“Then that’s it.”
After leaving a short greeting, he immediately turned around and left the restaurant. All that was left were Caesar and the people who were watching them with surprised faces. A smile slowly appeared on Caesar’s lips as he quietly watched Lee Won’s back.
The employee who had been hesitating and watching carefully approached him, cleared away the empty bowl, and placed the next dessert in front of Caesar. A delicious jelly soaked in wine was placed in front of him. Caesar took out a cigar from inside his jacket and lit it without touching the dessert. The spicy smoke seeped deep into his lungs.
You are so funny.
A satisfied smile remained on his face as he calmly exhaled smoke.
“Oh my, you are really amazing!”
As soon as he left the courtroom after the first trial, Nikolai shouted in excitement. To him who had been anticipating absolute defeat and even contemplating suicide, today’s trial was nothing short of a miracle. Lee Won smiled and warned him not to be too relieved, but inside he still had mixed feelings.
The documents Caesar gave him were surprising. They were from ten years ago, but Zhdanov had used the same method to steal someone else’s land and buildings. The evidence of his evil deeds was so clear.
The person who created the falsified documents, the procedure that was processed in an instant without any suspicion, and the family that suffered from poverty and lost their lives because of it were all clear evidence. Of course, even if they had all these documents at the time, they would have lost everything. Even now, ten years later, it was difficult to be certain of victory. However, it was true that a tiny ray of sunlight was streaming in from the deep, deep tunnel.
“This is just the beginning. Be strong. There will be unimaginable threats ahead.”
“Hmm, I understand.”
Nikolai nodded firmly with the same face as before. Just then, Zhdanov came out with the lawyers. He glared at Nikolai and Lee Won with scary eyes, then quickly walked down the hallway and disappeared from sight.
“Well, then today…”
“Yes, you worked hard. I should go tell my wife. Thank you, I really appreciate it.”
Nikolai greeted them repeatedly and hurriedly turned around and ran as if he was flying. Lee Won, who was looking at her back, soon ended up smiling bitterly. He was going to tell her to prepare for the next trial. Well, it’ll be okay for a day. Lee Won thought to himself and followed her out of the court.
It’s only the beginning, but it’s not bad for a start. The problem is that there will be bigger things to come. That was all the evidence he had prepared. Will the court side with Nikolai with that?
Lee Won, who had been sighing absentmindedly, suddenly felt a gaze and raised his head. An elegant sedan was parked on the street where the bright sunlight was shining. The car windows were so darkly tinted that it was hard to tell if there was anyone inside, but Lee Won could feel it instinctively.
It was only after that that he realized that the car was familiar. His steps slowed down. The car window rolled down silently in front of Lee Won, who slowly approached.
“Hello, Mr. Lawyer.”
The silver-haired man who spoke in a relaxed voice smiled.
“Didn’t the trial result go well?”
Lee Won answered, not trying to hide his unpleasant expression.
“This is just the beginning.”
“Oh, there’s a long way to go.”
Caesar, who pretended to be sorry, said something.
“If there was something like this, it would be helpful.”
Lee Won stopped in his seat without saying anything. He knew it without having to ask. It must have been something Nikolai desperately needed at this moment.
A dull sound of a door opening was heard inside the closed car. Lee Won stared blankly at the softly opened car door. Caesar watched him with a smile, as if asking what he was going to do.
Knock.
After a while, the car door closed, and Lee Won left in Caesar’s car.
Knock.
Lee Won raised his head at the knock. After a moment, it was the owner’s grandmother who opened the door.
“Take a break.”
Grandma brought her homemade cookies and black tea and handed them to Lee Won. Lee Won hurriedly got up and took the tray, but there was no place to put it down. Looking down at the desk and floor, which were cluttered with documents, materials, and books, with an embarrassed look, Grandma also clicked her tongue and opened her mouth. Naturally, he shrugged his shoulders, anticipating the nagging that would come, but surprisingly, Grandma looked around without saying anything.
“Hey, can I move this?”
Grandma asked, pointing to the documents that were all the way to the bed. Lee Won nodded, remembering the contents of the documents by their location.
“Yes, just push them…”
Grandma pushed the documents away with more careful hands than usual. Lee Won, who had finally found a place to put the tray, let out a sigh of relief and looked down at the table.
“Thank you.”
There weren’t many cookies that looked like they were made of good material. Lee Won picked up one of them and put it in his mouth, and Grandma asked him.
“Is there much left?”
Lee Won drank the warm black tea she brought and answered after emptying his mouth.
“The trial process is long… I expected it.”
“Nikolai seems very tired.”
Lee Won nodded at her grandmother’s words.
“Most people get exhausted during the trial process and fall.”
The verdict was still far away. Zhdanov was making his last desperate move. He had been harshly pressuring him with clear evidence, but the outcome was still unpredictable.
I need a decisive blow.
Lee Won slowly chewed on his cookie with a serious expression. Only one face came to mind.
Caesar.
Every time the trial ended, he would show up and give him one clue or decisive piece of evidence. His behavior, which continued like a habit, made Lee Won wait for the next one. Even though it wasn’t a pleasant feeling. It was an inevitable thing. Because he was the only one who could provide solid evidence of Zhdanov's corruption and various absurdities.
The problem is that it’s not free.
Everything in the world comes with a price. It’s something I’ve experienced countless times in my life. This time, too, Lee Won followed the whereabouts of Zhdanov’s dismissed secretary that Caesar had told him about and found a clue. He had already left overseas, but his remaining family members had secretly revealed that there had been some kind of deal between him and Zhdanov. If we dig a little deeper using this, it will become circumstantial evidence of bribery.
… But…
No matter how much I ran around and thought about it, I couldn’t come up with a way to solve Nikolai’s problem quickly. They say a champion falls to a jab, but a jab alone won’t work.
I need a final counter.
Lee Won thought, and deep wrinkles formed on his forehead again.