Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 306

Think about a famous city. What’s the first thing that comes to your mind? Maybe a special building? Landmarks are like symbols. They are buildings or places that you see and instantly know where you are.

The Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. Imagine lovers strolling beneath it. The Empire State Building in New York, USA. Think of the city’s energy and tall buildings. Buckingham Palace or Big Ben in London, England. Picture red buses and royal guards. And the Namsan Tower in Seoul. See the city lights sparkling below.

For an architect, creating a landmark is like a dream come true. Imagine designing a building so special that it becomes the symbol of a whole city! This is what Woo-jin dreamed of. He had always loved buildings and wanted to create something amazing for Seoul, his city.

So, Woo-jin decided to take part in the project. He believed he was ready. The Samsung-dong Global Business Center, a huge project that usually would have waited years to start, was now his focus. He was in charge, dealing with billions of dollars.

KCA Investments was a big global company from Korea. They managed huge amounts of money. Since 2015, they had a big problem. A project called the Samsung-dong Global Business Center (SGBC) was in danger.

KCA had planned this project with another company, SH Corporation. But then, something unexpected happened. A family fight inside SH Group caused big money problems. SH Corporation decided to leave the SGBC project.

This was a disaster for KCA. KCA had agreed to build the project, but SH Group owned part of the land and the project’s shares. It was like building a house together, and then one partner suddenly wanted to leave and take their part of the house with them.

The problem was about money and shares. Imagine the SGBC project is like a giant cake. KCA and SH Group both owned pieces of this cake (shares). SH Group wanted to sell their piece of the cake, worth 500 billion won – a huge amount!

KCA wanted to buy SH Group’s shares to control the whole project. But they didn’t have enough money. SH Group offered to sell their shares for a bit less, but it was still too expensive for KCA.

SH Group gave KCA one year to find the money. But KCA couldn’t. Now, SH Group was going to sell their shares to another company called ‘Dongjin Investment & Securities’.

SH Corporation told KCA, “If you don’t buy our shares by the end of this year, we will sell them to anyone, even if we have to sell them in small pieces.”

Director Song Ju-bin from KCA was shocked. “What! If you do that, the project will be ruined!”

We are sorry,” SH Corporation said, “but we have no choice.”

If SH Group sold their shares to many different companies, it would be a disaster. Imagine trying to build that cake with ten different bakers who all have different ideas! It would never work.

KCA couldn’t buy the shares slowly over time either. They were already losing money by having their money tied up in the project. And if other companies bought shares, they would sell them for even more money later.

So, with only six months left, Director Song Ju-bin was in big trouble. If he didn’t find a solution, his company could fail, and he would lose everything.

Director Song Ju-bin felt terrible. It wasn’t just his job; he had invested his own money in the company. He felt like he was trapped, with no way out.

He couldn’t just give up. He traveled everywhere, meeting people, begging for help. He even talked to big investment companies he didn’t know at all. He hoped someone, somewhere, could help.

But in the end, Ju-bin came back to Korea, defeated. He sat in his office, feeling hopeless.

Then, one day, his secretary said, “Director, you have a visitor.”

“A visitor? I don’t remember anyone today.” Ju-bin’s mind was a mess.

“It’s CEO Seo Woo-jin. You have a lunch meeting with him.”

“Ah…! That’s right! I completely forgot.” It was Seo Woo-jin, the famous young architect.

Ju-bin remembered meeting Seo Woo-jin once before, a long time ago. It was at the start of building the Magok Convention Center, which Woo-jin had designed. Ju-bin had gone just to be polite, as his company was connected to the project. He had exchanged business cards with Woo-jin but never thought they would meet again.

Woo-jin had seemed nice and polite, even though he was already famous. Ju-bin had a good impression of him. But their businesses were so different; he didn’t expect to see him again.

So, today’s meeting was a surprise. Ju-bin went to meet Woo-jin, wondering, ‘Why is he here?’

They started by talking about normal things, like the weather and coffee. Then, Woo-jin said something that made Ju-bin freeze.

“I’m here today to talk about designing the Samsung-dong Global Business Center,” Woo-jin said calmly.

Samsung-dong Global Business Center. SGBC. Ju-bin was speechless. It was true they hadn’t chosen a designer yet. Normally, having someone as talented as Seo Woo-jin interested would be great news.

But this was not normal.

“That’s…” Ju-bin started, not knowing what to say. *Does Woo-jin even know what a mess this project is in?*

Ju-bin’s mind raced. Should he explain everything? Where should he even begin?

Woo-jin looked serious. Ju-bin decided to explain the situation. He needed to be honest.

“CEO Seo,” Ju-bin began, trying to stay calm. “We would be thrilled if you designed the SGBC. But… things are not good right now.”

“How much do you know about the project’s problems, CEO Seo?” Ju-bin asked carefully.

“What do you mean, ‘how much’?” Woo-jin replied, looking directly at Ju-bin.

“About the situation… the financial trouble.”

As Ju-bin explained, he realized Woo-jin already knew a lot. This made Ju-bin even more confused. *Why is he here if he knows how bad things are?* It made no sense to talk about design now.

“CEO Seo,” Ju-bin repeated, “The project is basically falling apart.”

“I know,” Woo-jin said simply.

“I’m telling you this because I like you, CEO Seo,” Ju-bin continued, “Giving you the design rights would be amazing, but right now, nothing can move forward. If you get involved, it could cause big problems for your company.”

Ju-bin was bewildered. He didn’t understand why Woo-jin was still here. He didn’t know Woo-jin well enough. If he did, he would know that Woo-jin was always prepared and thought things through carefully. Woo-jin wouldn’t be here if he didn’t see a solution.

Then, Woo-jin spoke again, his voice calm and steady.

“Isn’t there a way to start building immediately?”

“What do you mean?” Ju-bin asked, completely lost.

“We, WJ Studio, will buy the shares that Dongjin Investment is trying to buy. At a lower price.”

“Pardon?” Ju-bin’s eyes widened in shock.

“Isn’t the problem that SH Corporation is leaving?” Woo-jin explained, “If they sell their shares to many companies, the project will be impossible. Everyone will have different ideas.”

“Y-yes, that’s right,” Ju-bin stammered.

“I will buy half of the shares SH Group is selling,” Woo-jin said, “Please buy the other half from KCA Investments.”

Ju-bin’s mind started racing. Half of SH Group’s shares… about 240 billion won. It was still a lot of money, but… it was possible.

*If it’s that much… maybe I can sell some of our overseas properties…*

Before, buying *all* the shares was impossible. Even if he somehow found enough money for half, if the rest went to another company… it would still be a disaster.

But if Woo-jin took the other half… and gave more power to the SGBC project…

Suddenly, Ju-bin saw a tiny light in the darkness. A glimmer of hope.