Hyeon-ju and Geon-woo drove to President Choi's secret hideout. They entered a private parking area and stepped out of their vehicles.
Geon-woo immediately looked at the battered Mercedes. "Are you guys okay?!"
Hyeon-ju and Joe nodded their heads at him. "We are fine."
Woo-jin chimed in from the side while he checked the dents on the SUV. "Those bastards! They do not regard traffic laws at all!"
Joe chuckled as he patted Woo-jin on the back. "If they regarded the law, then they would not have become criminals in the first place."
Hyeon-ju walked toward the unassuming house standing before them. "Bring the boxes in."
Woo-jin and Geon-woo started to carry the heavy boxes inside the small building. Joe sat on the edge of the SUV's engine bay and watched them work for a moment.
He remembered something and quickly got off the car to go to the Mercedes. He gripped the rear door handle and pulled it. The metal was jammed and did not budge
.
Joe put his leg up against the side of the car for leverage. He pulled the door with all his might until the hinges snapped.
CREAK!
The door ripped off completely and Joe stumbled back with the scrap metal in his hands. Inside the car, Jang-do and In-beom lay unconscious and bloodied.
Joe checked their pulses and sighed in relief. They were still alive. These two were more important than the money. They were the key to defeating Smile Capital.
Geon-woo and Woo-jin finished carrying the boxes into the house. Joe pointed at the two unconscious men in the back of the car.
"Carry them inside. These guys are the gold-laying geese who will help us destroy Smile Capital."
Woo-jin and Geon-woo nodded and picked up the heavy bodies. They carried them into the small house while Joe followed behind.
There was a hidden underground lift inside the residence. They stacked the boxes on the floor of the elevator. Hyeon-ju stood inside while the boys brought the bodies and Joe joined them.
Hyeon-ju pressed the button and the lift began dropping down into the earth. It moved slowly until it stopped with a soft sound.
DING!
The group got out and each of them carried a box. Yang-jung stood before them with a stern face and watched them approach.
He patted Hyeon-ju and Geon-woo as they passed by him. "Good job."
Woo-jin tried to slip in with them but Yang-jung stopped him with a heavy hand. "Hey."
He patted Woo-jin on the shoulder. "Good job."
Woo-jin looked hesitant and shifted his weight. "Uh, yeah."
Yang-jung smiled at him but the expression looked strangely horrific. "Get some sleep, okay? Come to the restaurant tomorrow."
It felt more like a threat than a friendly invitation. Woo-jin looked startled and spoke in a nervous voice.
"What? Uh, what for?"
"For food."
"Oh."
Yang-jung stared at him to get a real answer. "Okay?"
"I don't usually eat lunch."
"You will."
Woo-jin gulped and nodded his head. "Yeah."
Yang-jung patted him on the back one last time. "Go on."
Woo-jin quickly slipped away into the hideout. Joe was about to follow him but Yang-jung called out to him too.
"Hey. You okay?"
Joe nodded. "I am fine. Thanks for asking."
Yang-jung nodded and turned to enter the main area. "You are doing a good job. Keep doing it."
Joe smiled and carried his box inside. He set the heavy container down on the floor.
President Choi came up behind Hyeon-ju. "Are you all right?"
Hyeon-ju covered a bruise on her arm that she got during the car chase. "Yes."
President Choi sighed in relief. "That is all that matters."
Hyeon-ju looked at the rest of the supplies. "I have more boxes to move. You should sleep."
She started to leave the room. President Choi called out to her once again.
"Hyeon-ju, are you sure you are not hurt?"
Hyeon-ju nodded without looking back and walked out. "Yeah."
Yang-jung entered the room right after she left. "President Choi, these kids have captured Jang-do and In-beom."
President Choi looked up with wide eyes. "What?"
Yang-jung gave a firm nod. "I just saw them at the elevator."
President Choi processed the news for a second. "Tell Du-yeong to come here immediately."
Yang-jung nodded and left the room to make the call.
---
Du-yeong arrived at the secret base a short while later. He met Yang-jung near the entrance and noticed the serious look on his face.
"What happened? Why did you call me so urgently?"
Yang-jung did not offer an explanation right away. "Follow me."
They walked through the house and took the lift down to the underground base. Yang-jung led him straight to a reinforced storage room at the back of the hallway.
Inside the room, one man was bound tightly to a wooden chair with thick ropes. Another man was secured to a metal bed frame with heavy iron chains. The man on the bed growled like a wild animal and strained against the metal links.
Du-yeong looked at the prisoners with a surprised expression.
"Who are these guys?"
Yang-jung stepped forward and ripped a cloth covering from the first man's face.
Du-yeong's eyes narrowed instantly. The man in the chair was Im Jang-do. His eyes and mouth were sealed shut with layers of duct tape.
"You captured Im Jang-do? Why didn't you inform me? Weren't we supposed to attack tomorrow night?"
Yang-jung raised his hands in a defensive gesture.
"It was not me. The kids did it. They got attacked by Jang-do and they knocked him out and brought him here."
A small smile appeared on Du-yeong's face as he looked at the high-ranking prisoner.
"I guess sending those kids was the right decision after all. So, what did President Choi say?"
Yang-jung's expression turned grim.
"We have to extract all the information we can, but the kids will be watching the whole thing."
Du-yeong frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. "Why would he order that?"
Yang-jung shrugged because he did not have an answer. "I do not know. I told the kids to bring some salt water. They will be here any minute."
Du-yeong nodded helplessly. He was about to become a father soon so he held a soft spot for the kids even though they were nearly in their mid-twenties.