"Are you out of your mind?"

Once she had Jeong-eun Lee inside the master bedroom, Suk-ja Chu rounded on Jeong-eun Lee.

"Why? It's my right, plain and simple. I'm not even allowed to claim it?"

"Your right, plain and simple? How is that your right?"

"You're talking like Father now, Mother. Why isn't it my right? I worked myself to the bone for Ilhyeon. I can't walk out with that much?"

Jeong-eun Lee was the one shouting — why shouldn't she ask for Ilhyeon Construction?

Suk-ja Chu, though, still had no time for the way Jeong-eun Lee was carrying on.

"Do you even know what Ilhyeon Construction is? Ilhyeon Construction is the mother-body of Ilhyeon. How am I supposed to hand that to you? Your brother, now, that would be another matter……."

"There it is. There it is. So there was another angle."

Jeong-eun Lee put a finger up at Suk-ja Chu, as if Suk-ja Chu had finally let slip what she was really after.

Suk-ja Chu batted down the finger Jeong-eun Lee had leveled at her and said,

"Pointing at your own mother…… Prison taught you nothing but bad habits."

"Is that the problem right now?"

Jeong-eun Lee lowered the finger she had aimed at Suk-ja Chu and gave a snort.

"So in the end, Mother, the reason you're saying no is that I want Ilhyeon Construction and it's supposed to go to my brother. Am I wrong?"

"No. It's more than that……."

Suk-ja Chu began to defend herself and stopped.

With a daughter and a son watching, excuses felt absurd.

"All right. I'll say it straight. It's because of your brother. And that's how it should be, isn't it?"

Suk-ja Chu raised her voice and looked from Jeong-eun Lee to Chang-jong Lee, who sat there quietly reading the room.

Then she lifted her chin and said,

"Mun-jong is the eldest son. So of course he inherits. Ilhyeon Construction, as the two of you know, is the company your grandfather founded. Today's Ilhyeon Group came out of it. Your father worked at Ilhyeon Construction for years, and Mun-jong worked…