After sending Jungeun home, Hana sits quietly in the back seat, leaning her head against the headrest as she shuts her eyes – worn out from the events during the day. Joohyuk peers up into the rear view mirror and sees Hana resting. He feels bad to interrupt her rest but there was something she needed to know. 

"Forgive my interruption, Jeonmunim but I found out who was behind the scandal." 

He watches through the mirror as Hana's eyes snap open, straightening her back – fully alert after catching Joohyuk's words. 

"Who?" Hana husks. 

"Madam Jeon." 

Hana snickers in response. She figures only the old hag would resort to this kind of vile, cheap tricks. When was there ever a doubt? That woman would do that anything to achieve her goals even if it meant sacrificing her family. It incites the darkness deep inside Hana's heart 

"I tracked down the reporter who first released the article and finally got him to confess. He admits to receiving a tip from Madam Jeon's side that Heejin would visit you," Joohyuk adds. 

Hana stays silent after a while, deep in thought. She believes she's been dallying for far too long and that's caused Madam Jeon to grow lax. Madam Jeon needs to learn that she's no longer the weak, powerless and nice Hana from before. 

"Nam Biso. I believe it's time to start our plans. I want that old hag to suffer like I did. I want her to feel the anguish that I endured from losing my mother with every fibre of her body," Hana utters coldly. 

"Yes, Jeonmunim."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Another new day dawns with Jungeun agreeing to visit Hana's office to discuss about their next move. While waiting for her fiancee to arrive, Hana decides to divert her attention onto something else. With her chair facing the floor to ceiling windows, she blankly watches as the clouds drifts by leisurely. Similar to the slow drifting clouds, her mind wonders off as well. 

Her fingers unconsciously fiddles with the sleeves of her knitwear as she silently ponders upon the information that Joohyuk had delivered earlier this morning. He tells her about Madam Jeon's plans to meet with a representative from Kim Corporation. She doubts the old hag knows that Jungeun is the one Kim Corporation will be sending to represent them. She smirks devilishly – she is definitely going to have Jungeun put the old bat through a unpleasant time. They are going to plan one heck of a surprise exclusively for that conniving old hag.

Knocks on the door draws Hana's attention from the fluffy white clouds towards the entrance to her office. She sees Joohyuk and Jungeun walking through the door as her face instantly lights up like houses during Christmas when her eyes meet Jungeun's. She jumps off her chair, excitedly making her way down to the sitting area, taking her place in the armchair. Joohyuk and Jungeun occupies the sofa opposite each other and adjacent to Hana. 

"Sorry, I'm late. I had to clear some files in the office," Jungeun apologizes.

After being appointed the managing director of Kim Corporation, Jungeun's workload has increased significantly because of her predecessor who was terrible at doing his job right hence, leaving Jungeun to clean up his mess. 

"It's alright. I completely understand. I'm thankful you even got the time to come today," Hana says. 

"Well, it's plan making day. I had to come," Jungeun counters with a playful glint in her eyes. 

The sides of Hana's lips curve to form a half smile. "Of course, my plans wouldn't be complete without you as my main star."

Jungeun shyly smiles under Hana's loving gaze as Joohyuk sits there awkwardly. He clears his throat, breaking Hana and Jungeun's moment as they turn to look at him questioningly. 

"Pardon me, my throat is a little dry," Joohyuk quickly makes up an excuse.

Hana doesn't question him as she finally starts to get serious. 

"Jungeun, I heard the Chairman appointed you as the person in charge of the Jeon project. Is that right?" 

Jungeun nods and says, "My father was sceptical and rejected the Jeon's offer to meet several times however, my predecessor believed the deal would bring benefits and tried to convinced him so. He agreed eventually but as I've told you over the phone, the initial contract has massive discrepancy - it obviously leans more towards the Jeon's benefit."

"No doubt the work of that old hag," Hana hisses, her anger rising at the thought of the old hag – cooling down when she recalls an unanswered question that has been lingering on her mind. "What happened to your predecessor? After Nam Biso handed you the evidence, I trust you used it against him, no?" 

Turns out, Jungeun's predecessor was one of Madam Jeon's lap dogs and swallowed large amounts of bribes – money, ual favours and even real estate. That's why he was so eager to get Jungeun's father to agree to the Jeon project deal. 

"I handed the envelope to my father and not even a day later, the man was summoned by the disciplinary committee and fired. He admitted to receiving the bribes but he refused to disclose who," Jungeun answers. 

"Madam Jeon knows better than to leave tracks behind. She probably has something on him which prevents him from opening his mouth," Hana mutters irritatedly. 

"A few reliable sources says that Madam Jeon is quite notorious in the underground scene for meeting those she puts on her pay roll in the multiple illegal establishments she owns. These places help to fund some of their endevours. The ones we found were only the beginning," Joohyuk voices out, cutting in after staying silent. 

"We need to take down her resources one by one – starting with the underground sources. With each limb she loses, the easier it'll be to take her down," Hana says. "I'll find a way." 

"I'm meeting her the day after tomorrow to discuss about the investment deal. What do you think I should do?" Jungeun asks. 

"Well, for starters, push her off her high horse. The old hag's pride is the most important thing in the world so wounding it would throw her off her game. You say this investment deal leans more towards the Jeon's benefit, right?" Hana questions, receiving a nod from Jungeunin regards to her question. "Then, we make it more beneficial for us. Cutting down the original investment and demanding for a more advantageous deal on Kim Corporation's behalf will definitely set her off. Do what you can to hurt her ego, then, she'll fall right into our hands." 

Jungeun understands what Hana was getting at. Essentially, doing all she can to destroy the older woman's ego without holding back. That was Jungeun's forte, hurting someone's ego was child's play to her. Her heart flutters, unable to hold her eagerness in – she is going to have a lot of fun two days from now it seems. Jungeun then recalls the pictures inside the evidence envelope. How was Joohyuk and Hana able to obtain such shots? 

Jungeun decides to ask Hana for an answer. "Speaking of which, you never told me how you found so much dirt on my predecessor. The pictures inside the envelope look like they were taken a close range." 

Hana laughs dryly – the laugh trailing off as Jungeun narrows her eyes upon her suspiciously. Hana looks to Joohyuk for help explaining but the straight laced secretary merely blinks without uttering a word, his eyes displays an apologetic look. 

Hana sighs when she realizes her secretary wasn't going to be of any help.

"Well?" Jungeun questions impatiently with her arms crossed across her chest.

"Joohyuk and I happened to be scouring one of the clubs that Madam Jeon owns after receiving a tip-off that she was meeting someone that night and we saw him entering through the back entrance so we followed him. Turns out, there was a lot of things he was doing behind your father's back," Hana explains. 

Jungeun's eyes widen, contorting into pure anger. "YAH! PARK HANA!! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND!?! Do you have any idea how dangerous these kind of places are? What if someone saw you? You could have gotten hurt." 

"I know but that was the only way to get evidence. Plus, I brought along Joohyuk and we had Jiu backing us so I was more than safe," Hana utters with confidence. 

Jungeun furrows her brows, asking, "Who is Jiu?" 

"Jiu is a friend of Nam Biso. She's a pro hacker," Hana replies. 

Jungeun turns to look at Joohyuk who nods his head. 

"See, Jungie. We were safe, okay? Jiu was prepared to call the cops in case something went wrong. Joohyuk is a master in three different martial arts so no one would have been able to touch me anyways." Hana tries to justify her actions but quiets down, head tilted down in shame when Jungeun shoots her a pointed glare. 

Jungeun sighs, running a hand through her hair. When was Hana going to stop worrying her? All these dangerous stunts were so reckless and yet, Hana was basically throwing herself into it. She hopes at the end of the day, nobody gets hurt and the older woman is punished for her crimes. That was the only way Hana will be at peace and cease her rash decisions. 

"So, she's an illegal hacker?" Jungeun questions, shifting the topic. 

 Joohyuk finally decides to participate, figuring that it was his turn to explain. "Not exactly. She graduated MIT couple years back and was scouted by four different intelligence agencies including our very own NIS."

"Which did she join?" 

"None. She became a florist," Joohyuk answers.

Jungeun quirks a brow towards Joohyuk, believing that Joohyuk was messing with her but there was no indication that he was. 

"She only got that degree to please her parents but she's happier now as a florist," Joohyuk adds as Jungeun drops the brow and says nothing. 

"Thanks to her and an inside man, we got the evidence of illegal money laundering through each underground establishment from the desktop. Not to mention, the large amount of tax evasions. We have more than enough to shut her down considering she doesn't even have a license for these establishments. The only bad thing is that her name isn't in any of this. She does well to hide," Hana comments. 

 "How did you manage to get an inside man? I would have thought most people would be loyal to their employer," Jungeun says.

Hana smirks and replies, "With enough money, I can make anything happen, Jungie." 

Hana's smirk drops and somehow turns into a bitter sneer, worrying Jungeun.

"It's the reality of this world. Money makes the world go around and I have to use money against her if I'm going to win," Hana utters darkly.

Jungeun slides her hand over Hana's – Hana's expression softening as she gazes upon Jungeun fondly. Jungeun brought Hana sanity, reason and stability – something she was going to need if she is to win against Madam Jeon without losing herself. Her eyes scan Jungeun's face as she wonders how she ever get so lucky to get such a good friend and an even better mate. Hana doesn't know but for what is worth, she's prepared to fight to keep Jungeun with her. 

 "I understand that it was necessary but no more, okay? You can't put yourself in danger like this. Your family, your mother, me – none of us would want you to get hurt because of this," Jungeun expresses with concern. "Promise me, you'll keep yourself far from danger." 

 Hana uses her free hand and places it above Jungeun, looking her straight in the eyes. 

 "I promise I won't do this again. Next time, I'll let you decide whether it's a good idea or not. Would that be alright?"

Jungeun tightens her hold on Hana's hand, nodding her head in response. Hana's dimple smile warms Jungeun's heart as they fall into their own world, completely forgetting that Joohyuk was still in the room with them. He sighs internally, choosing to look away to give them space, silently mumbling something along the lines of 'I can't stand couples' (He's single, people) 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The long-awaited day finally arrives as Jungeun composes herself on the way over to the restaurant. The car comes to a stop in front of the entrance of the restaurant. The valet moves fast to get the door for Jungeunas she steels her nerves, sliding out of the car elegantly. She straightens her blazer, buttoning it as she walks up the stairs and into the restaurant with her secretary tailing behind her. As she steps into the empty restaurant, she spots the only customer –  a woman dressed to the nines, sipping her water like wine. Madam Jeon. 

Jungeun walks confidently with her head held high, a mask shrouding her face as her cold brown orbs meet Madam Jeon's distant ones. She approaches the table and watches as the older woman stands up. 

 She bows slightly and introduces herself. "It's nice to meet you. I am Kim Jungeun, managing director of Kim Corporation."  

"Pleasure to meet you as well, Ms Kim," the older woman greets with a faux smile, stretching out her hand to Jungeun. "Most people refer to me as Madam Jeon. I am the CEO of Jeon Industries." 

The woman appears harmless and almost friendly while introducing herself. Had Hana not mention all the horrendous things she's done, Jungeun would really have believed this facade. She looks down at the outstretched hand and decides against taking it as she hears the older woman speak once more. 

"Aren't you Hana's fiancee? I didnt expect you to be the new managing director. What are the odds!" Madam Jeon exclaims. 

 Jungeun shoots the woman a tight lipped smile, maintaining her professional side as she moves to sit down, ignoring the outstretched hand. Madam Jeon doesn't seem to take offence to Jungeun's actions. Perhaps she did find it offensive and she's hiding it for the sake of business but Jungeun couldn't care eitherways.

"You know my fiancee?" Jungeunquestions without any genuine interest. After all, she knew the truth. 

Madam Jeon smiles with a look that Jungeuncouldn't decipher however, she knew it was nothing good. "Yes, we are acquainted, I supposed. She dated my daughter, Heejin. I'm aware that you know each other."

Her lips press together to form a thin line as Jungeun's eyes turn cold at the mention of Jeon Heejin. 

"We're acquainted," she answers shortly.

Jungeun holds her hand out to the side as she asks her secretary to hand her the file.

"Let's not waste time, shall we? The chairman has placed me in charge of this deal as I have taken over the former managing director post. I hear my predecessor tried a lot of ways to convince the chairman into accepting this deal."

"Which I am grateful to both the chairman and your predecessor. I hope you and I can come to the same understanding," Madam Jeon says.

Jungeun curves her lips into a half hearted smile, "Yes, well, I've spotted a few things that needs to be clarified before we proceed."

The woman interrupts Jungeun, "If you don't mind–" 

Jungeun looks up from the contents of the file and blankly stares at the older woman."–What happened to the former managing director? I never really heard much about the reason for his sudden departure."

Jungeun shuts the file with one hand, looking unamused at the woman who blinks in shock. "We found out that he's been involved in some unpleasant things which will damage the company's reputation if it were to get out so we've let him off."

Madam Jeon swallows thickly and nods, "I see."

"As I was saying, our supposed investment was meant to be 100 million USD for a 25% portion of the profits. Is that correct?"

"Yes–" Jungeun promptly cuts her off, "Which is why we have decided that we are investing too much for such a low profit. It's disadvantageous to our company and the board agrees with this statement." 

Madam Jeon tries to refute it, "But your predecessor has already agreed to–"  

"–And as the new managing director, I am changing it with the approval from the board and the Chairman," Jungeun cuts in once more with a tight-lipped smile. 

Jungeun could practically see the smoke coming out of the older woman's ears as she moves to deliver the final blow to Madam Jeon's already fragile ego.

"Therefore, instead of the original 100 million, we will only be investing half of that amount and the profits shall be increased by 5% to 30 which I believe is a fair exchange. This isn't my thoughts alone but after long discussions held with the board and the Chairman."

"Miss Jungeun, cutting your investment by half and requesting for an increase in profit will need further discussion on my end. It will delay our progress. I would have to ask you to reconsider."

"Madam Jeon, I am merely guarding my company's interest. If I were to approve a deal that is disadvantageous on our end, I'm afraid I'll be cursed out. I do hope you understand. But if we truly cannot come to a consensus, I'm sorry but our company may not choose to invest," Jungeun says.

Madam Jeon grits her teeth, "Yes, I understand, of course."

Jungeun fakes a smile. "Brilliant! It was great talking to you but I'm afraid I have another appointment after this. If you'll excuse me."

Jungeun stands up, bowing slightly before making a swift exit with her secretary following behind her. Madam Jeon on the other hand slam her hand on the table, shocking her poor secretary who shivers in fear.

"That young kid is just looking for trouble! How dare she talk to me that way! I am years ahead of her in this business and yet, she dares to dally a deal with me! Not on my watch!" 

HHHH, Hi! How is everyone? I hope you're enjoying the fic so far. Sorry about the crazy amount of time skips, I just want to tell everyone to ignore the timestamps. This is probably the last chapter I'm going to release since I'm going back to school and I won't have time to update. Thank you for reading and subscribing to this fic. Please do comment, I really want to know what you think. That's all from me. P.S as usual, I don't proofread so please excuse any mistakes. Love, author, H.