The Meaning of Leniency

“Thank you, Attorney.”

Go Eunhyeok bowed deeply in front of the courthouse.
At that moment, a thought crossed my mind that maybe I keep doing this job for salutations like these.
The sunlight, already carrying the warmth of spring, poured down, neither too bright nor too faint.
Under that sunlight, Go Eunhyeok’s smiling face looked somewhat relieved, a departure from his usual self.

“Not at all. I’m glad it was resolved without much difficulty.”
“Still, coming to the courthouse… I was quite nervous. As if I had committed a crime.”

Go Eunhyeok ran a hand through his hair, which had grown longer, and smiled awkwardly.

“Haha, I suppose so. It’s not a place one usually has a reason to visit. But do you know something?”
“Yes?”
“It’s actually the people who haven’t committed any crime who often feel that way.”

I smiled at Go Eunhyeok, who was staring at me with a stunned expression, and added.

“But you must have gone through a lot. Are you sure you’re okay with not receiving any settlement money?”

Go Eunhyeok let out a deep breath and then gave a single, firm nod.

“Yes, I think I’ll feel more at ease not taking it.”
“If that’s what my client wishes, then that’s what we’ll do. Shall we go, then? I’ll give you a ride.”
“Yes. Is your arm okay now?”
“Thanks to you.”

The other party’s claim that he ‘provided the pretext for the divorce’ was a lawsuit that was difficult to establish from the beginning, but the dissemination of false information was a different matter.
When I asked Jeong Donghyeok to look up the IDs, Go Eunhyeok’s guess that they were using multiple IDs was half right and half wrong.

“Um, Attorney. The five IDs you mentioned are under different names, but they appear to belong to the parents.”
“…I see.”

When I told him this, Go Eunhyeok was silent for a moment… but soon nodded as if in understanding.
And around the same time, the defamatory posts about Joy Clinic stopped.
It was because the child named Siwoo had finally completed his treatment after many twists and turns and returned home.

‘That must have been a big reason why Go Eunhyeok showed them leniency.’

Now it was time for us to return as well.

Vroom.

In the quiet car, Go Eunhyeok looked out the window before shifting his gaze to the front and opening his mouth.

“Attorney.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
“The word ‘leniency.’ It suddenly occurred to me that it seems to be used too commonly.”

Instead of pressing him with a question, I quietly stepped on the accelerator towards our destination.

“When a situation arises where a person has to show leniency to another, it’s ultimately a time when someone has to be forgiven…”

The traffic light in front of us changed.
I slowly brought the car to a stop.
Go Eunhyeok lowered his gaze with an expression that seemed to recall the recent past.

“Hearing and seeing that word today… It suddenly makes me wonder if the person who needs forgiveness isn’t asking for it too easily from the person who has to forgive, if it’s not being used too conveniently.”

As I stared at him, Go Eunhyeok looked up with a face of realization and quickly waved his hands.

“Ah, no. Of course, I’m not saying we should retract the settlement or anything like that. My case wasn’t a big deal, really.”
“But you were harassed quite a bit. The posts I found alone were at least fifty. Including the deleted ones, it would be double that.”
“But the clinic is running fine without much trouble, and the people who come tell me they know it’s not true.”

[…The light changed.]

‘Ah, thanks.’

I was so engrossed in Go Eunhyeok’s story that I didn’t even realize the light had changed.
It seemed Go Eunhyeok was the same.
I gripped the steering wheel, looking at the familiar road.

“…I suddenly realized that the words I heard today are the same words spoken even after killing someone. That’s why I feel a bit complicated.”
“It’s only natural. It’s bound to feel strange.”

I rubbed my inexplicably stiff lips and spoke again.

“Sometimes, you know, there are words whose meanings you can guess just by hearing them?”
“Yes.”
“In that sense, the word ‘leniency.’ It’s a thought I had before I started this job.”

Go Eunhyeok nodded quietly.
I gripped the steering wheel and continued.

“I naturally thought ‘seon’ (선) would be ‘good’ (善) and ‘cheo’ (처) would be from ‘to handle’ (處).”
“…Yes.”
“So I thought it meant something like ‘to handle in a good way, in a virtuous way,’ and looked it up in the dictionary.”
(TL note: The Korean word for leniency is seoncheo (선처).)

As I said that, I checked the rearview mirror.
Three more traffic lights, and we would be at the intersection where Dike and Joy Clinic faced each other.

“But it was different. The original meaning of leniency is ‘to handle according to the circumstances.’ Not ‘virtuously’.”
“Ah…”

Go Eunhyeok stared at me with a blank expression, as if he had realized something.

“Like you said, Mr. Go, I too once wondered why people use that word in court, or in disputes, instead of asking for forgiveness.”

It was a question I had harbored long ago.
I never thought someone would bring this question to me.
So I shared with Go Eunhyeok the conclusion I had reached back then.

“Forgiveness is asking for understanding because you’ve done wrong, but leniency is asking for your ‘crime’ to be lessened. The actual price of your sin.”
“……”
“Even in that situation, they want to save themselves. Even if there’s someone shedding tears of blood because of them.”

That’s why, during my time as a judge, I always told those who begged me for leniency.

“Leniency is not a plea for ‘forgiveness’ from the judge. This court only decides the price of the defendant’s crime. If you wish to ask for forgiveness, ask the victim.”

Silence fell in the car. It was because both Go Eunhyeok and I were lost in our own thoughts.
It wasn’t a suffocating silence.
The fact that we could concentrate on our own worries was rather comfortable.

Screech.

Not long after, we arrived at our destination.
Even though we had arrived, no one got out of the car.
In the calm silence, Go Eunhyeok finally spoke after a long pause.

“Um, Attorney. The legal fees… what should I do about them? You haven’t mentioned them at all.”
“Ah, the fees are fine. We didn’t even go to a formal trial.”
“But it’s a fact that you helped me. Please accept the fee. My mind won’t be at ease otherwise.”

Go Eunhyeok seemed genuinely uncomfortable, not knowing what to do.
Looking at him, I felt as if I was the one troubling him.
I smiled awkwardly and lifted my arm that had been resting on the steering wheel.
Go Eunhyeok’s gaze naturally shifted.

“Thanks to the treatment you gave me before, the burn healed so well you can’t even tell I had one. So, let’s consider this my legal fee.”

Go Eunhyeok stared at my arm for a moment, then nodded as if he had made a decision.

“Then… I’ll be your doctor for life. For free, of course.”
“What?”
“It won’t do you any good to refuse.”

To think that Go Eunhyeok’s unique stubbornness, which I had forgotten, would emerge at a time like this.

“If you ever need my help, I’ll be there. Of course, it would be better if you had less reason to call me, but still.”
“Then I will always be there to help you legally. For free, of course, for me too.”

We both laughed and finally got out of the car after our dramatic agreement.

“Get back safely.”
“You too, Attorney. See you next time. Thank you so much for today. …My thoughts have also cleared up thanks to what you said in the car.”
“Not at all. Ah, feel free to drop by the office when you’re bored. I, uh, heard. From Mr. Lee Ilwoo.”
“Ah… that’s embarrassing.”

Go Eunhyeok rubbed his reddened ear, seemingly caught off guard, and his eyes darted around a few times.
Like someone who was genuinely shy.
I said to him what I had been thinking ever since Lee Ilwoo had told me his story.

“It’s been several years, but I’d also like to express my gratitude to you, Dr. Go.”
“What?”

Go Eunhyeok’s large eyes grew even wider as he asked. His face was full of confusion, as if he didn’t understand what I meant.

“Mr. Lee Ilwoo, whom you saved, has saved me several times.”

As soon as I finished, he smiled the brightest smile I had seen from him since I’d known him.

Chime.

“Ah, Attorney Cha. You’re here?”
“Yes, Office Manager. Where has everyone gone?”

‘Why is he hesitating?’

Uncharacteristically, Jeong Donghyeok paused to choose his words before answering.

“…Attorney Won went to a site, and Mr. Lee Ilwoo stepped out for a moment to check something. He asked me to tell you he’d be back soon. More importantly, a client has arrived.”

I followed Jeong Donghyeok’s polite gesture and shifted my gaze.
Following his fingertips, I spotted a middle-aged man sitting at the table.
The man was dressed plainly.
A worn-out jacket appropriate for the season, comfortable pants, and sneakers with worn-down heels.

‘There’s a strange dissonance…’

Even though the clothes fit the man’s build perfectly, it was as if he were wearing ill-fitting clothes.
Moreover, his face was somehow familiar.
Especially the sharp eyes, which sparked a sense of deja vu amidst the feeling of incongruity emanating from the man.

‘…Oh, could it be?’

With a sense of disbelief, I looked at Jeong Donghyeok, and he gave a slight nod.

[…Is that really Chief Prosecutor Won Hayeop?]

‘It is. Attorney Won’s father.’

Jeong Donghyeok and I exchanged a subtle glance and walked over to the table.

“Hello. Have you been waiting long? I’m attorney Cha Yohan.”
“Ah, hello. I haven’t been waiting that long.”

The man smiled innocently and lightly shook the hand I offered.

[You’re not going to let on that you know him?]

‘No, there must be a reason he came like this. Otherwise, he would have revealed himself long ago.’

I sat down facing Won Hayeop, pulled the corners of my lips into a smile, and spoke again.

“I heard from the office manager. You’re here to request our services. How may I help you?”

At my words, Won Hayeop’s head dropped.
To an outsider, his expression would be difficult to read.

‘If I didn’t know his face, I would have been completely fooled.’

Even before Won Youngoh revealed it, I might not have known their relationship, but I wasn’t unfamiliar with the man himself.
Won Hayeop let out a deep, worried sigh, and after his lips trembled a few times, he began to speak.

“I work for a bus company, and I’m being sued for embezzlement.”
“Embezzlement?”
“Yes.”

Won Hayeop continued his story with a natural performance.

“It’s been a while since we stopped accepting cash, but the elderly sometimes get flustered… That day, I had no choice but to let them on. I intended to pay for them myself later.”
“I see.”
“Yes, but the company said I intentionally abetted fare evasion to cause a loss to the company, and that they would sue me for embezzling the corresponding fares.”

‘This leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.’

I couldn’t tell if Won Hayeop had come to see his estranged son or me.
But what was even more incomprehensible was that this was the case he had chosen.

[…This is a famous story. There’s already a precedent for it.]

‘I know. Is he testing me?’

As I remained silent, choosing my words carefully in response to Won Hayeop’s story, Jeong Donghyeok looked at me with an anxious expression.
I made a show of contemplating for a long while before answering.

“The situation must be very upsetting. If you’re being sued for embezzlement, your livelihood must also be at risk…”

I deliberately trailed off.
I had no intention of playing along when I knew the truth.

“I’ll find a way to pay the legal fees, even if I have to do manual labor. Can’t you take the case, Attorney? I heard you help people in difficult situations, so I came here.”
“Hmm…”

I deliberately crossed my arms, mimicking Won Youngoh’s habit, and feigned deep thought for a long time.

“Alright. I’ll take the case.”

Swoosh.

“But if I really take this case, what was your plan after that?”

And I uncrossed my arms, leaned forward, and added.
Towards Chief Prosecutor Won Hayeop, who was studying me with a pitiful gaze.