Episode 69

The voice, which sounded as if it were genuinely glad to see me, was definitely that of Assembly Member Jung Seok-gyu.

And the direction it was coming from...

"Isn't that Yoo-seung?"

I had deliberately chosen a seat in the furthest corner, thinking that something like this might happen.

"......It's been a while, Assembly Member Jung."

"Was it last winter in Cheongdam-dong that we last met?"

"Haha..."

I glossed over the question with a laugh. After all, the Park Yoo-seung this guy had met and I were different people.

Since I didn't have those memories, I had no choice but to play it vague.

"Although it's late, congratulations on entering law school. Wow, for Yoo-seung to be in law school. That's something to be surprised about."

I gave an ambiguous nod.

Jung Seok-gyu, who had been staring at me intently, lowered his gaze to the textbook I was holding.

"You're even making good use of your spare time."

"I have to work harder since I started late."

"That's a commendable thought. In that case... hmm, no. Never mind. Keep up the hard work."

Jung Seok-gyu's eyes flashed as if he had thought of something, but he soon left it at a word of encouragement and walked towards the podium at the front of the room with his aide.

"......You know him?"

Han Seol asked in a low voice.

"A little."

I nodded.

"His biggest sponsor is the Yu Seong Group."

The Political Funds Act of the Republic of Korea stipulates the methods and amounts by which politicians can receive donations.

This is to prevent the so-called 'black money' of unknown origin.

Officially, it is impossible for a politician to receive donations unless they go through the National Election Commission or a sponsorship organization.

But if you're determined, there are always ways around it.

The 'friendship' between Park Geon, the owner of Yu Seong Group, and Assembly Member Jung Seok-gyu was, in fact, an open secret that everyone who knew anything was aware of.

Of course, Park Yoo-seung had been treated like an outcast in his family, so even considering that, it was impossible to know exactly how Jung Seok-gyu viewed him.

'Well, I can make a rough guess, though...'

In any case, directly catching his eye wasn't exactly a welcome development.

As I sat there with a sullen expression, Jung Seok-gyu, who was now on the podium, grabbed the microphone.

"Hello, students of Korea University Law School."

With a simple greeting, the special lecture began.

"I am National Assembly Member Jung Seok-gyu."

He bowed his head to the audience.

"It goes without saying, but you are all truly exceptional talents."

The students, who were still sending wary and indifferent gazes at the unfamiliar politician they had only seen on TV or in the newspapers, were in front of him.

As if it were a familiar occurrence, Jung Seok-gyu began to speak.

"I majored in law during my university days, and I've continued to work in fields related to law to this day... but studying as an examinee to pass a national exam must be quite different."

He started by flattering the audience, who were the subjects of his speech.

"Among my undergraduate classmates, the friends who passed the bar exam and became legal professionals were all exceptional from the start. They were all prodigies. I believe that you, the practical juniors of our law department and prospective legal professionals, are no less outstanding."

He deliberately didn't mention the minor differences.

For example, that in his time, the number of successful candidates for the bar exam was only 300 per year, whereas the current bar exam produces at least 1,700 successful candidates every year.

The students, who had been forcibly dragged to the National Assembly Member's special lecture, were generally not very enthusiastic at first.

However, as this high-ranking figure lowered himself and praised them, the atmosphere gradually relaxed.

"Even at this very moment, you must all be studying fiercely every day. I want to say that you've worked really hard."

Murmuring voices intertwined.

"That guy, he knows that we're struggling to study."

"I thought that he might not know anything because he's not a legal professional, but it seems he's not like that?"

In fact, law school students were a strange group with an ambiguous identity.

Their essence was, of course, examinees studying for the major qualification exam, the bar exam.

But unlike other exam takers, they were also beings who had already gone through a certain rite of passage and belonged to a certain place.

Because of their unique position, the way people viewed law school students was also divided into two categories.

Some praised them, saying that being a law school student was something amazing.

Others, however, criticized them, saying that it was much easier and more comfortable to become a legal professional than it was during the bar exam, or that the competition in 'their own league' was unfair.

In reality, the latter was much more common.

Even if you just looked at news portal websites, in articles that even mentioned the legal profession or law school in passing, you would inevitably see comments like, 'law school graduates are ruining the legal profession' or 'abolish law school and revive the bar exam' pop up.

As such, there was something that made people's hearts flutter about the recognition from an outsider, especially an outsider with a very high social status like a National Assembly Member.

'He's good at it.'

Politicians on the TV screen often seemed very foolish.

But that was only because of the trap of conflicting interests that inevitably bound them due to their duties.

In reality, they were monsters among monsters, equipped with absurd specs, the ability to win people over, a sense of the situation, and even luck.

That was even more true for a seasoned middle-ranking Assembly Member like Jung Seok-gyu.

It was nothing for him to win over young people who hadn't even taken their first step into society.

"The reason why I'm here today is to tell you about legislation. Because some of you will inevitably end up in the position of 'making' laws, like me, rather than upholding or enforcing them."

As he said that, Jung Seok-gyu handed out prepared materials.

'Empty words.'

Of course, it wasn't as if Jung Seok-gyu was completely lying.

The justification for this special lecture was to hear an explanation of the legislative process from a person who was actually involved.

The public law that we were learning included 'the theory of the structure of governance,' which dealt with the functions of the government and the National Assembly, so it wasn't completely illogical.

But the justification was just a justification.

I tuned out Jung Seok-gyu's explanation of the functions of the National Assembly, the role of the Assembly Member, and the process of how bills were reviewed and legislated.

Jung Seok-gyu's purpose in being here was unrelated to the content of the lecture, and the information that I needed to pay attention to was also separate from that.

When I glanced to my side, Han Seol had also lost interest and was staring intently at her casebook.

Lee Ha-roo had already been asleep for quite some time.

I also quietly pulled out my question book and started working on the multiple-choice questions that I had been looking at.

"......And so."

As I was re-checking the familiar statements several times and memorizing the explanations, the boring stories had come to an end, and I could feel that the topic was slowly about to change.

"This is something that I'm saying as Jung Seok-gyu, a human being, and not as National Assembly Member Jung Seok-gyu."

That was how Jung Seok-gyu started.

"I, as an individual, am involved in various welfare projects. I've created a foundation and am running an orphanage, and I've also established a volunteer center that provides shelter and free meals to the elderly who have nowhere to go."

But that wasn't enough, said Jung Seok-gyu, shaking his head.

"It's not enough to just help people who are currently in difficult circumstances. If we want to change the world into a more hopeful place, we need to cultivate talented and promising individuals of the next generation."

By this point, it was clear what he was trying to say.

"And I believe that you are those people."

The students, who had realized that the story was now related to them, perked up their ears and reacted.

"Actually, the 'Shinyeong Foundation,' where I'm a consultant, has recently established a scholarship to select and support talented students. Of course, that includes a scholarship for law school students like you."

A scholarship.

At that word, the eyes of several quick-witted people in the audience changed.

"If you simply fill out a brief application, the foundation will review it and select scholarship recipients."

It was strange.

Korea University Law School was a national institution, and it boasted the lowest tuition fees of any law school in the country.

Even so, paradoxically, it was also a law school with a large number of wealthy students, who easily exceeded the 10th percentile benchmark.

For them, a scholarship was something that was good to receive, but it wasn't something that they necessarily needed.

Therefore, there shouldn't have been that many people interested in the scholarship system.

"......Of course, scholarship recipients will be given not only financial support, but also opportunities for various 'experiences.' I, as a consultant for the foundation, will 'personally' guarantee it."

'Ha, as expected.'

This part was exactly the same as in the original work.

"What does that mean?"

Han Seol asked from beside me.

"Simply put... it means he's looking for new faces to join the 'Jung Seok-gyu camp'."

What did it mean to become a scholarship recipient of a foundation that had a National Assembly Member as its backer?

In South Korea, the power of the golden badge that this man was wearing was beyond imagination. It literally worked everywhere.

He had connections to all sorts of people in all walks of life, and you could enjoy all sorts of non-material and intangible benefits that a powerful person could provide.

For a simple example, in the original work, an extra student who was selected as a scholarship recipient of the Shinyeong Foundation was immediately contacted by a major law firm and had their employment confirmed in the next semester.

His grades were in the bottom 20%. A rank that would have been absolutely impossible under normal circumstances.

Of course, you weren't only given rights. This was a procedure for Jung Seok-gyu to leave his own brand on the talented people who would spread out into all walks of life in the future.

Selected scholarship recipients would be able to carry Jung Seok-gyu's name on their backs, but at the same time, they would be incorporated into an invisible pro-Jung Seok-gyu force.

"Th, that's such a heavy issue...?"

"From the start, there's no way that such a busy person would come all the way here just to give an explanation that even a National Assembly office worker could do."

This audience wasn't an ordinary group. They were students of Korea University Law School.

Talented people who would permeate the core of the legal profession in South Korea in the future.

Some would become judges or prosecutors, and some would take positions at the heart of major law firms.

Or, there might even be some who would enter politics.

If he could leave his mark on such promising individuals beforehand, it would be a profitable endeavor for Jung Seok-gyu.

Especially for that man, who was shady and had a lot of skeletons in his closet, he would need that kind of groundwork even more.

"I think some of the quick-witted ones have already figured it out?"

As I said, several people were hurriedly pulling out their laptops and searching for the Shinyeong Foundation.

Even those who had grown up with more than enough money weren't often given opportunities like this.

Even if we were sitting at the very back in the corner, everything was clearly visible from here.

Of course, there were also many students who didn't pay any special attention to it.

That kind of quick-wittedness didn't necessarily correspond with studying ability.

But that was something that didn't matter to Jung Seok-gyu.

If someone couldn't even understand such an obvious message, then it meant that they weren't talented enough for him to bother picking them out.

"Alright, then. Let's end the special lecture here."

Jung Seok-gyu clapped his hands.

"Let's have a brief Q&A session. Since I'm a busy man working for the country, I'll only take two questions, and then I'll have to leave."

"Um, if there are any questions, please feel free to raise your hand..."

The aide who had been following Jung Seok-gyu like a shadow repeated his words.

He had clearly said to feel free, but his face looked like he was hoping that there wouldn't be anyone who asked a question, as if he just wanted to leave work early.

But it seemed that his prayers were in vain.

Someone raised their hand.