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Chapter 302: Han Woo-Ju (6)

I walked briskly toward her and began speaking sharply. "Ms. Lee, are you attempting to coach false testimony?"

A flash of panic crossed Lee Moon-Yung\'s eyes. "Wh-what are you talking about? False testimony? That\'s absurd!"

Even a lawyer could face criminal charges for coaching false testimony.

Lee Moon-Yung quickly began defending herself. "I\'m just here to ask Mrs. Gae Eun-Sook a few questions. I never suggested she lie under oath!"

"What business does a lawyer have with a key witness in a case? Is KJ Law Firm planning to produce a legal drama or something?" I replied sharply.

Lee Moon-Yung\'s mouth snapped shut and her eyes started darting around as she tried to find a way out of the situation.

"Do you have anything more to say?" I continued.

"..."

"If not, please step aside," I demanded.

However, Lee Moon-Yung remained rooted to the spot and began giving what she called "advice" to Gae Eun-Sook. "Mrs. Gae, you don\'t have to say anything that could harm your position."

Gae Eun-Sook nodded her head in agreement. "Understood."

I couldn\'t help but let out a dumbfounded laugh. "What do you think you\'re doing right now, Ms. Lee?"

"I\'m just waiting for Mrs. Gae\'s lawyer to arrive."

"Do you think I\'m clueless just because I\'m not a legal professional? Recommending another lawyer to take on a case is also a violation of the Attorneys-at-Law Act."

When I pointed out that she was violating a law, Lee Moon-Yung was clearly flustered. "H-how do you know about that law...?"

"You don\'t need to worry about that. Should we take this all the way, then? Hmm?"

Cornered, Lee Moon-Yung did something utterly ridiculous—she asked Gae Eun-Sook for help. "Mrs. Gae, did I ever suggest that you hire another lawyer?"

"N-no, I... I reached out to the KJ Law Firm because I needed advice...And I don\'t know anything about Mrs. Yoo\'s synopsis!"

Clearly nervous, Gae Eun-Sook avoided making eye contact with us as she spoke.

At that moment, Han Woo-Ju stepped forward. "Mrs. Gae! You read my synopsis just last week! You even told me it was really interesting and that it would definitely be a success!"

"Wh-when did I ever say that? Your synopsis? I don\'t know anything about that! I didn\'t see anything!"

"Mrs. Gae! This is too much!" cried Han Woo-Ju as her eyes were filled with tears and her voice trembled with frustration.

I gently patted her on the back before turning my attention to Gae Eun-Sook. "Mrs. Gae. Do you remember Traitors, Under Heaven and The Moon of Lee Tae-Baek?"

The titles I mentioned were projects she had worked on as a mid-level manager, leading a team of assistant writers.

Gae Eun-Sook held the position of head writer in the writers\' room and oversaw other assistant writers. "Wh-why do you ask?"

"Weren\'t you responsible for managing the script fees during those projects?" I asked.

In my past life, Gae Eun-Sook gained recognition as a writer with her long-developed project, Children of Destiny, which achieved 18% in viewership ratings.

However, several of her former assistant writers came forward to expose her past actions after her success: they revealed that they had been forced to give up 300 thousand won of their meager 1 million won monthly salaries to Gae Eun-Sook while working as assistant writers.

Despite Gae Eun-Sook\'s claims that such was a long-standing practice in the writers\' room and she wasn\'t the only one who had done it, the public reacted with disdain. After that scandal, Gae Eun-Sook\'s career came to an abrupt end.

As I hinted at this memory, I noticed Gae Eun-Sook\'s face growing increasingly pale. "I-I was in charge of the writers\' room fees because I was the head writer. But wh-what\'s the problem with that?"

"Are you really going to go down this path? If so, how about I inform the KBC President about the \'writers\' room fund\' issue from back then..."

At that moment, Gae Eun-Sook suddenly shouted, "Wait, please!"

Realizing what I was about to reveal, she began pleading with me to stop.

Seeing Gae Eun-Sook\'s change in attitude, Lee Moon-Yung quickly interjected. "Mrs. Gae. I don\'t know what\'s going on, but I can help you if you tell me the truth!"

Lee Moon-Yung once again overstepped her boundaries out of panic. Despite being a lawyer, her lack of experience was causing her to make mistake after mistake.

She tried to regain control of the situation, but Gae Eun-Sook\'s composure was breaking under the pressure.

"What? Why should I tell you anything, Ms. Lee? Are you my lawyer? No, you\'re not!" Gae Eun-Sook retorted.

"W-well, that\'s true. But you need to protect yourself from being threatened..." Lee Moon-Yung stuttered.

"No, I don\'t need anything from you. Just leave, now!"

With that, Gae Eun-Sook physically pushed Lee Moon-Yung out of the room.

Unable to resist further, Lee Moon-Yung was forced to leave the writers\' office.

***

The KBC writers\' office was set up with a long table at the center, surrounded by individual desks where writers could work.

While main writers usually had separate rooms, assistant writers and sub-writers often worked in this shared space.

Today, the office was empty except for us.

After forcing Lee Moon-Yung out, Gae Eun-Sook took a few deep breaths before speaking, "It was a common practice! I didn\'t pocket the money but I passed it up to the senior writers as a fee for their guidance."

"I understand. But you were the one who collected that money, weren\'t you, Mrs. Gae?"

Until a few years ago, it wasn\'t uncommon for senior writers to skim off the script fees meant for assistant writers and pass them up to the main writers or producers.

Taking money from writers who earned less than 1 million won a month was an unforgivable act. Yet many writers still secretly engaged in such practices, with Yoo Sun-Jung being one of the worst offenders.

Tears welled up in Gae Eun-Sook\'s eyes as she tried to defend herself. "What could I have done? The senior writers demanded the money! I had no choice and I lost more money than I took!"

Though she was trying to paint herself as a victim, I remained firm. "Just because it was a common practice doesn\'t mean the wrong you did goes away."

"Th-then what do you want me to do?"

"You need to compensate those who were harmed and start doing the right thing from now on."

"But I don\'t have any money saved up!"

"Who said you had to compensate them with money?"

"Then what do you expect me to do?"

"You have enough influence to help those assistant writers who suffered back then find good positions now, don\'t you? I can also help where I can."

With her connections, she could easily find work for those former assistant writers.

After some hesitation, Gae Eun-Sook nodded in agreement. "Alright, I\'ll do it."

Then, I brought Han Woo-Ju forward. "And one more thing. Please testify truthfully that you saw Writer Han\'s work a week ago. If you do that, I won\'t pressure you any further."

Gae Eun-Sook looked back and forth between Han Woo-Ju and me. Seemingly on the verge of saying something, she hesitated before bowing her head in apology. "I-I\'m sorry, but I can\'t do that."

When I asked why, Gae Eun-Sook reluctantly explained, "To be honest, I really want to help. I really do... but Mrs. Yoo won\'t let it slide. She\'ll destroy me and remove me from this industry! Didn\'t you see how she sent a lawyer after me earlier?"

Gae Eun-Sook was terrified of Yoo Sun-Jung as much as she was afraid of her past actions being revealed. She explained that Yoo Sun-Jung had a history of ruining people\'s careers, ensuring they could never work in the industry again if they crossed her.

She was so scared that she was visibly trembling.

I knew it was time to reassure her. "Don\'t worry. Writer Yoo Sun-Jung won\'t be able to continue her career as a writer."

Gae Eun-Sook\'s eyes widened in shock. "What do you mean? How could that happen?"

Instead of answering, I pulled out my phone and called Lee Ji-Yeon. Switching to the speakerphone, I could soon hear Lee Ji-Yeon\'s voice come through.

-Has Writer Gae agreed to testify?

"No, not yet."

-Am I on speakerphone?

"Yes."

That\'s when Lee Ji-Yeon shouted in a loud voice.

-Writer Gae, are you listening? It\'s me, Lee Ji-Yeon.

Gae Eun-Sook jumped in surprise and answered in a shaky voice. "M-Ms. Lee. Hello. How have you been?"

-How have I been? Not well, because Sun-Jung is trying to sabotage a project I\'m involved in.

"S-sabotage a project you\'re involved in? What do you mean?"

-I\'ve agreed to join Hwaranjeon as a supporting writer.

Gae Eun-Sook\'s eyes widened in disbelief.

"You\'re joining as a supporting writer...?"

-Yes. And you know what would happen when I announce that I\'m working on Writer Han\'s project, right?

Gae Eun-Sook swallowed nervously.

The involvement of Lee Ji-Yeon, one of the most respected figures in the Korean drama industry, would undermine Yoo Sun-Jung\'s credibility entirely.

-I\'m planning to take this opportunity to kick Sun-Jung out of the industry for good. How dare someone who calls themselves a writer steal a mentee\'s script?

As Lee Ji-Yeon vented her anger, Gae Eun-Sook became visibly flustered.

-So what are you going to do now? Hurry up and tell me! I don\'t have all day!

"I-I\'ll testify! I\'ll say that I saw Writer Han\'s synopsis a week ago!"

\'Perfect,\' I thought.

-Good! Now come to Samseong-dong right away!

"Samseong-dong?"

-Yes, we\'re holding a press conference soon. You need to be here to help.

Overwhelmed by Lee Ji-Yeon\'s push, Gae Eun-Sook agreed while still in daze. "Yes, I\'ll be there."

-Alright. See you soon. And Yoon-Ho, make sure you bring her along!

"Yes, Ms. Lee. I\'ll make sure she\'s there."

Click.

As soon as the call ended, Gae Eun-Sook reached out and took Han Woo-Ju\'s hand. "Writer Han, I\'m so sorry. I was just so scared when Mrs. Yoo Sun-Jung sent her lawyer to threaten me... I must have lost my mind for a moment."

Han Woo-Ju looked at her with empathy.

Although Gae Eun-Sook had been complicit in some questionable practices, she was also a victim of the power dynamics in the industry.

That\'s why I decided to give her a chance instead of taking legal action.

Han Woo-Ju held Gae Eun-Sook\'s hand firmly. "Thank you for agreeing to testify. And you\'ve helped me so much in the past... Please help me just this once more."

"Of course. I should have done this from the beginning. I\'m so sorry."

The two women reconciled with tears in their eyes.

I watched them for a moment before adding one final condition. "And one more thing, Mrs. Gae."

Gae Eun-Sook looked up at me with tears still in her eyes.

"If you testify truthfully, I\'ll help with the adaptation of your current project into a drama."

Gae Eun-Sook\'s Children of Destiny was a decent success in my past life. Helping her get the script adapted into a drama now would be mutually beneficial, and it could also change her fate in this timeline.

Gae Eun-Sook\'s face brightened at the offer. "R-really?"

With that, we left the KBC writers\' office and headed toward the underground parking lot.

As we made our way down, I checked my planner and saw that the relevant scheduled event was finally disappearing.

[Everyday V10.1]

[Date: March 17, 2021]

-01:00 p.m: <Schedule Deleted>

(Deleted Schedule: Meeting regarding the copyright lawsuit for Hwaranjeon. (Report: Assistant Writer Han Woo-Ju, accused of stealing the scenario from her mentor, Writer Yoo Sun-Jung.))

***

At the Intercontinental Hotel in Samseong-dong, the small banquet hall was packed with over 100 reporters.

"Are you ready?" Lee Ji-Yeon asked.

Kim Soll-Ip, Han Woo-Ju, and Gae Eun-Sook all nodded in unison. "Yes, we\'re ready."

"Alright. Then let\'s go to the press conference."

Just as we were about to open the door to the small banquet hall, a call came in from Yoo Sun-Jung.

"Hold on a moment. It\'s Writer Yoo Sun-Jung calling," I explained.

Lee Ji-Yeon, who had her hand on the doorknob, paused and stepped back. "Go ahead and take it. Let\'s hear what she has to say before we start."

"Got it."

As soon as I answered, Yoo Sun-Jung\'s angry voice blasted through the phone.

-Hey! What the hell do you think you\'re doing? I heard you threatened Writer Gae and my lawyer!

"You think I threatened them?"

-Don\'t play dumb with me! KJ Law Firm is preparing a lawsuit against you as we speak, so be prepared!

I scoffed. \'Just as expected.\'

I responded coldly, "You really are shameless until the end."

-Wh-what? Hey! Did you just talk down to me? You little brat, how dare you!

"Someone like you doesn\'t deserve respect. How could you stoop so low as to steal from your own mentees? Are you even human?"

-You... you insolent little...

Before she could finish, I hung up the phone. After all, there was no point in listening further.

Lee Ji-Yeon looked at me with a smirk. "What did that crazy bitch say?"

"She\'s accusing us of being thieves."

Lee Ji-Yeon\'s smile turned icy. "What an asshole. She\'s out of her mind. Let\'s give her a taste of her own medicine. Everyone ready?"

"Yes, Ms. Lee."

"Let\'s do this!"

Following Lee Ji-Yeon, we headed into the press conference, ready to expose all the crimes that Yoo Sun-Jung had committed.