Chapter 42
Translator: Dreamscribe
“So what you're saying is... you didn’t even acquire ownership of the tower, not even a pre-sale right, but spent a whopping 2 trillion won just to lease hotel space?”
Hearing it, he was so dumbfounded that he stopped cutting his steak.
“I haven’t spent it yet. The group has to support it on a corporate level. And it's not just a simple lease. It’s a business right that can catapult us to number one in the industry.”
“Anyway, you’re not buying LK Tower, you’re just leasing hotel space, and you’re burning 2 trillion won for that?”
“If we just pay the 2 trillion won, there’s no need to pay rent. We’ll be able to operate our Baekje Hotel in LK Tower for good. How would you buy LK Tower with just 2 trillion won? Its current value is over 6 trillion won.”
“You said you’re going to hand over the hotel profits to them?”
“Hand over? It’s just a portion, a portion!”
“And that’s after offering up 2 trillion won?”
Kang Mi-ra knew as well.
That this is an incredible waste of money.
“It’s to firmly secure our spot as number one in the industry. Father always said that, whatever we do, be number one.”
“Don’t you think Father would’ve told you to think twice about 2 trillion won?”
“So are you going to help or not? Honestly, to Kangseong Electronics, 2 trillion won is pocket change.”
Chairman of Kangseong Group let out a short sigh and wet his lips with wine.
"That's some expensive pocket change. Do you think 2 trillion won is the name of a local convenience store? And is it really for the number one spot in the industry? Or did you just want to get into LK Tower?”
"I can't say it's not that at all. That’s why I said it before. Since LK Group is building a tower like that, we need to build something even taller.”
“Yeah. And what happened to LK Group because of that? They ended up losing the tower to some unheard-of securities firm and now they’re about to hand over the hotel business rights to us too.”
Kang Mi-ra finally lost her patience and snapped.
“So are you going to help me or not? If we miss this chance, we’ll never catch up to LK Hotel.”
“Is the group’s money yours?”
“I know. It’s yours, oppa. But have I ever shown ambition about running the group? Have I ever opposed Father’s decision to pass everything on to you as the eldest son? You can do at least this much for me.”
“You always brings that up when you are at a disadvantage.”
But what she said was true.
When their Father said he would pass down the group to his eldest son, Kang Mi-ra gave her full support without hesitation.
In the past, she thought it was only natural, but after watching LK Group fall into chaos due to a prince’s rebellion, maybe it was actually a relief.
“2 trillion won is all you need, right?”
“Ah, there’s one more thing. LK Group guys are apparently lobbying the political world to not lose the tower, throwing money around and pressuring them. Take care of that too.”
“So now we’re basically paying and wielding the knife for Kwangwoon Securities?”
“What can we do? If we want to get the LK Tower, we need those guys.”
“Let’s be clear. We’re not taking LK Tower. We’re delivering it to Kwangwoon Securities. All we’re getting is the hotel business rights.”
"Geez. You're being so nitpicky. Just eat your meat. It'll get tough. Anyway, you'll do it, right? Huh?"
His sister was smiling broadly, seemingly in a good mood.
When LK Tower was under construction, she used to whine constantly about how it would be a dream to run a hotel there.
That dream was finally coming true.
With a whole 2 trillion won.
‘At this rate, Kwangwoon Securities, those bastards, are just getting a free meal.’
Kwangwoon Securities.
Lately, that name comes up a lot.
They’re even trying to snatch LK Tower without spending a penny by using Kangseong Group.
“You can get it done as quickly as possible, right?”
“Yeah. Anyway, we’re about to launch a new smartphone, so we don’t have time to keep focusing on this. We need to wrap it up fast.”
“Phew. If you just do this for me, I swear I’ll never bother you about the hotel business again. Promise~.”
They were absolutely infuriating bastards, but in the end, it looked like things were going to go exactly the way they wanted.
***
Currently, Korea is abuzz due to the sudden intervention of Kangseong Group in the matter of LK Tower.
But we were focused on something else.
“Wow... They must really be crazy.”
“This actually passed?”
The United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU.
Also known as Brexit.
After the Prime Minister’s announcement, a national referendum was swiftly prepared and counted.
With a narrow margin of 2%, Brexit was ultimately passed.
Now, the United Kingdom will leave the EU.
It had become official.
European countries evaluated it this way.
A global betrayal.
“How are the stocks we placed bets on?”
“Yes. They’re already going wild. Especially the pound, it’s dropping sharply.”
The fact that it was dropping meant we were making money accordingly.
Because we had anticipated Brexit and shorted the pound and various other stocks, then just held our positions.
“Are they seriously all out of their minds? Leaving the EU will definitely bring more harm than good.”
“It shows how much fear and backlash toward immigrants has grown. The recent terror attack must have been a direct hit.”
The reason British citizens dislike immigrants is because they were taking jobs at very low wages.
But even if all the immigrants were expelled, that wouldn’t create new jobs.
Higher labor costs would reduce employment, and in contrast, product prices would rise.
Moreover, the tax benefits enjoyed through trade with the EU would disappear, making the future of the UK economy impossible to predict.
“Department Head, should we pull our money out now and go for short-term trades?”
“But if we recover all the funds we've spread out, our profit margin is already 30%.”
“Even though money is pulling out due to the Brexit shock, couldn’t there be an immediate rebound?”
30% from 1 trillion won.
We had made 300 billion won in one shot thanks to Brexit.
The scary thing is, this isn’t the end.
The pound, the banks, and all the UK companies that had benefited from the EU.
None of them are functioning normally now.
They’ve all been hit with a carpet bombing and just keep dropping endlessly.
Of course, just as the staff said, there could be a rebound.
“.......”
I touched each stock listed on the board one by one.
Nothing gave me any particular feeling.
Trying to pull out funds to go for short-term trades, only to buy back in again, might actually cause more loss.
If so, there was only one strategy I could take.
“Let’s hold.”
In the midst of this turbulence, all we had to do was sit back, sip our tea, and wait for the money to roll in.
***
"Wow. Kangseong Group really is Kangseong Group. All those articles criticizing our Kwangwoon Securities have completely vanished.”
For a while, articles criticizing Kwangwoon Securities had filled every media outlet.
LK Group had launched a full-on public opinion campaign.
But after the dramatic agreement with CEO Kang Mi-ra, those articles disappeared like a lie.
"Look at this too. Articles are coming out saying our Kwangwoon and Baekje Hotel contributed to national prestige."
Is this the power of Kangseong Group?
Kangseong Electronics, considered the core of Kangseong Group, holds 70 trillion won in cash assets alone.
If you combine all its liquid assets, it’s over 140 trillion won, the largest conglomerate in South Korea.
They also had deep political ties from long ago, and the media, as always, sided with those who had money.
“Even the pressure from the political world has completely vanished?”
“They were throwing a fit, saying the Financial Supervisory Service would investigate or whatever, but now everyone’s tucked their tails.”
“Guess that means Kangseong Group’s words carry more weight than LK Group’s.”
With things like this, there would be no more options left for LK Group.
Bank loans were already blocked, and as soon as word spread that Kangseong Group had joined hands with Kwangwoon, even the funds began scrambling to exit.
Everything had gone according to plan.
Exactly according to Jung Jin-ho’s plan.
“Even suggesting a partnership with Baekje Hotel, and boldly naming 2 trillion won as the sale price in front of that hard-nosed CEO Kang Mi-ra. Just how many hearts does he have, seriously?”
“I thought Department Head Jung was going to flip the whole deal back then.”
“But to think she would actually accept that absurd demand...”
When Jung Jin-ho instructed them to demand 2 trillion won from CEO Kang Mi-ra.
To be honest, Hwang Dae-woon had felt dizzy just reading it.
But what was his creed, anyway.
Once he decided to believe, even if he got backstabbed, he would believe to the end.
And Jin-ho answered that steadfast trust.
By handing over the hotel business rights for a staggering 2 trillion won, Kwangwoon Securities was now able to take LK Tower without spending a single penny.
“Ah. Of course, we still have to pay off LK Tower’s bank debt. That amount is about 700 billion won.”
“So we pass on 1.1 trillion won to LK Group. Use 900 billion won to pay off the 700 billion debt. That leaves us with 200 billion won?”
“Yes. An enormous result. Even after taking LK Tower, we still have money left over.”
It still doesn't make sense.
How could such magic, more magical than magic, happen?
From the day he started working with Jin-ho, it had been a series of miracles.
"In financial circles, they're saying this: our Kwangwoon Securities fleeced both LK and Kangseong simultaneously."
“But there’s no such article in the media?”
“Of course not. Publishing something like that would only provoke Kangseong Group.”
But anyone working in this industry would know.
That only Kwangwoon hit the jackpot.
“Well, it’s not like Kangseong came out empty-handed. They completely wiped out LK Hotel.”
“Yes. That would be a good thing for Kangseong Group too. Baekje Hotel had always lagged behind LK Hotel. And because of this incident, LK was eliminated from the duty-free business too, so there’s no competition to worry about anymore.”
Long and lengthy, no. It wasn't that long either.
Then maybe persistent?
No. This was more like a one-sided beating of LK Group, so there wasn’t even any struggling involved.
We won without even doing much.
Jin-ho, who had once managed to clear a raid in-game by somehow dragging along those older guys, was doing the same here.
“But there’s a problem, CEO-nim. We need to give Department Head Jung Jin-ho an incentive, but this time we have no idea how much to set it at...”
Just from the investments alone, they had made several hundred billion won.
They were also making profits from the Brexit bet.
But the biggest achievement, by far, was LK Tower.
How were they supposed to value that and pay him?
“If we try to pay him in cash, Jin-ho won’t like it. Because to pay him a bonus now, we’d have to take part of the investment funds he’s allocated.”
Jin-ho absolutely hated lowering the bet amount.
“Then what about giving him equity?”
“Stock options?”
“Not stock options, just actual equity.”
Giving him shares.
Currently, Kwangwoon Securities is a unlisted private company.
There was a time when they pursued going public under the dream of creating a Kwangwoon Financial Group, but they had to shelve that plan after falling behind competitors.
“Giving a portion of the bonus in equity isn’t a bad idea. And it’s also bothering me that Jin-ho is still just a department head. When he met with Baekje Hotel, people gave strange looks because of his title.”
That meant they needed to promote him to executive level.
No one objected to the idea of promoting Jung Jin-ho, who had onjoined tly recently he company, to an executive position.
“Sounds good. For someone like Department Head Jung Jin-ho, it wouldn’t be a problem to make him an executive.”
“Honestly, even if we had to serve under him, we wouldn’t complain.”
But even if they made him an executive, what position would be fitting?
Even as an executive, he would likely continue investing in the Prime Department.
“Is there any usable space in LK Tower for an office?”
“Ah, yes. Most of it is taken by Baekje Hotel, but there are areas available for our use. Are you thinking of moving your office there? It’s definitely more spacious and nicer than here.”
“No. What would I do there? I’m fine right here. It’s not for me, I should send Jin-ho.”
“Then perhaps create a space just for Department Head Jung Jin-ho...?”
“Yeah. Find out what kind of space they have. I’m thinking of relocating Jin-ho’s department, and even the Research Team and any other teams he needs, all over there.”
Since Jin-ho had secured a unit in LK Tower, the plan was to ensure he could commute comfortably, and rest there whenever he needed to.
But there was still one remaining issue.
“An executive...”
At that moment, a thought came to mind.
Director, Division Head, Managing Director, Vice President, and so on.
Even those titles now seemed too light for Jin-ho.
Something with more weight was needed.
“If we’re going this far for him, should we just create a subsidiary for him?”
A new investment firm, by Jung Jin-ho, for Jung Jin-ho.
***
“No, seriously, I was so shocked. In that important meeting, oppa was sitting right next to the CEO of Kwangwoon Securities. He looked like a completely different person.”
My younger sister had been repeating the same story all weekend.
The funny thing was, our parents were listening every time like it was the first they’d heard it, admiring it all over again.
“I definitely saw it then. That CEO of Kwangwoon Securities briefly discussed something with oppa, and then suddenly, he called out ‘2 trillion won’ right there! Our CEO and the executives turned beet red in shock... Ugh, I still get goosebumps.”
“So? So what happened?”
“What do you mean what happened? At first they freaked out, saying no way, but in the end, our CEO backed down. And those executives who always yelled at us couldn’t say a word in front of oppa. It was so satisfying, I swear.”
Yoon-ah was hyping me up as much as she could in front of our parents, who were watching her with sparkling eyes.
It did feel good to be acknowledged by my little sister, but honestly, that day, I thought Yoon-ah looked amazing too.
In a perfectly fitted suit, standing confidently and presenting in front of all those people, she looked completely different.
To be assigned to present at such an important occasion means she was being recognized.
Even though she could’ve quit the company and done whatever she wanted with my money, she chose not to. Now I understood why she worked so hard.
She was building her own career, following her own goals.
She’s really impressive.
When did she grow up this much?
“Our son’s already at an executive level?”
“Well, yeah. They gave him a car. Even a chauffeur. And he gets paid an insane amount too. That’s probably why he’s in meetings with people from Kangseong Group.”
“Exactly! Our CEO is from Kangseong Group, but I’ve never seen her so flustered before. Hehe.”
Being praised like this was a little embarrassing.
But it felt good.
So this is what it feels like to be recognized by your family.
“But what’s this?”
I pointed to the shopping bag placed on the seat.
“Huh? Oh~ that’s the new model from Kangseong Electronics. It’s called the K7. It’s not officially released yet, but they did a raffle and handed some out to employees. And guess what? I won one. I brought it because I just changed my phone not long ago. You bought me one, remember? So... maybe you could use it instead?”
I don’t really play mobile games or anything, so my current phone works fine.
Hmm. But looking at it now, maybe it’s time to let it go.
“Can I take a look?”
“Sure. Check it out.”
So this is the new model.
It’s not on sale yet, but they’ve been advertising it like crazy.
“What do you think? Nice, right?”
It was definitely lighter than my current phone and had a better design.
Especially the touch sensitivity...
ZAP-!
“Wah!”
I jumped at the sudden, sharp spark and dropped the phone.
Once on the edge of the table.
Once hard on the floor.
“......”
And just like that, the phone met a glorious end.
“No matter how much you didn’t like it, you didn’t have to destroy it...”
“No, sorry. That wasn’t what I meant to do.”
“It’s fine. I got it as a prize anyway. But still, kind of a waste. It was a really nice model.”
“If you need one, should I buy it for you?”
“No thanks. I just got mine not long ago.”
I gently touched the broken phone.
What the hell just happened... Ow, that stings!
Rubbing my stinging finger, I pushed the phone far away.
'What was that?'
Why did it give off such a strong reaction just now?
*****
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