Mining And Construction Tycoon [EN]: Chapter 76

76. Her Wish (2)

A dancer whispered softly.

[But you don’t want children.]

That was true.

Tae-soo still couldn’t forget his children from his past life.

Because those children weighed on his mind, haunted him.

He hadn’t yet decided to embrace another child.

[I don’t intend to persuade you otherwise. Actually, I’m not confident either. I’m scared of being pointed at as a foreigner’s wife, a foreigner’s child.]

It was a time when international marriages were uncommon.

Especially in Saudi Arabia.

The same was true in Korea.

The gaze towards children of foreigners was even more unkind.

[I really like you a lot, but our end is predetermined. That’s why I decided to leave.]

Tears fell from her chin.

Landing on Tae-soo’s hand that was holding her.

Tae-soo hugged her even tighter.

[International marriage, children of foreigners, let’s think about these issues over time by my side. It’s something that requires resolve from both you and me.]

She smiled through tear-filled eyes.

[You know it too, don’t you? Our love is a difficult love that requires resolve.]

[Nothing is achieved without resolve or determination.]

[I was prepared for the end when I chose you. I have to pay the price for my love.]

[If it’s the price of love, I’ll pay it with you. Whatever it is.]

[But I can’t let my child pay that price.]

Love is an illusion.

But a child is reality.

She smiled faintly, shedding tears.

[Do you hate someone like me? You probably can’t understand, right?]

Tae-soo wiped away her tears.

[No, I understand. And I don’t hate you either.]

[I’m so foolish, right? After worrying so much, I ended up making such a poor decision.]

[If you’ve made that decision after careful consideration…]

Tae-soo placed his lips on her forehead.

[I’m willing to accept your decision.]

The dancer hugged Tae-soo and whispered.

[I knew you would say that. You always respect my wishes.]

She closed her tearful eyes.

Tae-soo’s embrace was warm.

[This is the last time we’re together.]

-I hope I don’t become an obstacle in your path…

That was her wish.

* * *

The Saudi airport restroom.

Secretary Song’s daughter came out of the restroom.

She was dressed in a men’s suit.

Secretary Song’s wife exclaimed in surprise.

“Why are you dressed as a man? What’s wrong with you, a pretty girl?”

“Mom, be quiet. Do you want foreign women to wander around and face some terrible situation?”

Secretary Song’s daughter deliberately deepened her voice.

She grabbed her mother’s hand and pulled the trunk.

“Once we leave the airport, Mom, you’ll wear the clothes of a local woman and use a veil to cover your face.”

Secretary Song’s daughter hurried, extremely wary of her surroundings.

“I don’t know which one to use here, hijab [a headscarf worn by Muslim women], chador [a full-body cloak worn by some Muslim women], abaya [a loose-fitting robe worn by Muslim women], or burqa [a full-body covering worn by some Muslim women], so let’s use what a local merchant recommends, so they don’t know we’re foreigners.”

“Why are you so scared? Right now, your father is in such a terrible…”

“I told you, Dad is alive. It’s going to be very difficult to find Dad. We might have to search the desert.”

“What are you going to do? Huh?”

“I’m going to go to the hotel where Dad stayed first. Dad would have left a trail.”

Just then.

A man with a deep voice asked in English.

[Are you from Korea?]

[You’re mistaken. We’re Japanese.]

Secretary Song’s daughter feigned ignorance.

But the man had Secretary Song’s letter.

It was a letter in Korean.

She confirmed the code left by Secretary Song.

Only then did Secretary Song’s daughter bow.

[Please take care of us.]

* * *

-I made this for you.

She gave Tae-soo a handkerchief as a farewell gift.

It was embroidered with colored thread on Bedouin fabric [fabric traditionally made by nomadic Arab tribes].

Tae-soo realized only after seeing the handkerchief.

He didn’t even know her name.

She never told him her name.

In Tae-soo’s heart, she would be remembered forever as a beautiful dancer.

“What are you doing here?”

It was Secretary Song.

Tae-soo put the handkerchief he was fiddling with into his pocket.

“I was just clearing my head.”

“You look quite troubled. Is work very complicated?”

Tae-soo couldn’t answer.

Secretary Song handed Tae-soo several notebooks.

They were notebooks brought by his wife and daughter from Korea.

“What is this?”

“It’s the price of a life. A bomb to throw at Han Cheong-ho.”

It was a ledger detailing Han Cheong-ho’s corruption.

The several ledgers were organized by Cheongil Group’s affiliates.

Tae-soo hurriedly flipped through the pages.

“It’s sparse.”

“You grasped that at a glance?”

Secretary Song looked at Tae-soo with a dumbfounded expression.

How many affiliate ledgers had Tae-soo seen in his past life?

Moreover, he had learned how to create and read ledgers directly from Secretary Song.

It meant familiar ledgers, familiar items, and familiar arrangements.

“I’ve extracted and written down only the problematic parts from what I was involved in.”

Corruption, embezzlement, bribery, tax evasion, concealment.

The ledger mainly recorded such things.

Tae-soo pointed to a strange part while flipping through the ledger.

“What are these red X marks here? They appear frequently.”

“Ah, that? It means Han Cheong-ho has completed the sale, gift, bestowal, or destruction of evidence.”

Secretary Song marked the things that Han Cheong-ho had cut off and the related evidence that had been destroyed in that way.

Tae-soo’s expression became serious.

“It seems Han Cheong-ho is destroying evidence from time to time.”

Secretary Song’s eyes shook violently.

Tae-soo noticed.

“Secretary Song, you’ve destroyed quite a bit too, haven’t you?”

“…If the higher-ups tell you to do it, you have to do it. What choice do you have if you want to live? I’m about to die right now.”

That was Secretary Song’s secret to surviving under Han Cheong-ho for 28 years.

Secretary Song sighed deeply.

But then he raised his head.

“Most of them are things that inevitably left my hands, but in cases where I had to destroy them myself, I collected them separately. There’s quite a bit of that too.”

That’s probably why Han Cheong-ho’s secret ledger was created.

“Judging by this, Han Cheong-ho probably had others destroy evidence as well.”

“The ones marked with triangles are things that are presumed to be so. I secretly collected what Secretary Park and Secretary Ahn were doing.”

There were quite a few triangle marks as well.

It was unfortunate.

“It seems we’re lacking a decisive blow to screw over Han Cheong-ho.”

Han Cheong-ho had spread a lot of bribes everywhere.

At this rate, it’s clear that the higher-ups will turn a blind eye.

“So, this isn’t enough to buy my life and my family’s lives, is it?”

“It’s enough. It depends on how I use it.”

It would be lacking…

Secretary Song stared at Tae-soo.

His eyes were full of goodwill.

“Are you just going to let me go like this? Won’t you regret it?”

“You’ve met your family, so you should live happily now. The shackles are broken. You’re free to leave.”

How could he leave like this?

“I want to stay by Kang Tae-soo’s side a little longer.”

It was unexpected.

“I still have many favors to repay. I want to help destroy Han Cheong-ho.”

Secretary Song took out another book from his pocket.

He had brought it to give to Tae-soo.

“This will be the biggest weapon. But it’s something that requires taking on that much risk.”

It was a different dimension from the ledgers he had presented earlier; it was Han Cheong-ho’s secret ledger.

“This is…!”

Tae-soo’s eyes widened.

Tae-soo’s hand, turning the pages, was hurried.

Tae-soo looked at everything, down to the last page, and then closed his eyes.

“Certainly. We can send Han Cheong-ho away in one shot.”

“If you use this, you’ll be in danger too. This is a document that shouldn’t be in the world.”

That was probably true.

To use this properly, Tae-soo would have to risk his life as well.

But it was a weapon with that much destructive power.

“I’ll use it carefully.”

He had to look for an opportunity and set the stage properly.

He had to pick out only Han Cheong-ho and plunge him into the mire.

‘It’s not time to use this yet.’

To use this properly, it seemed like there would be quite a few things to prepare.

“Just one shot. That’s all we need.”

If he was going to die, only Han Cheong-ho should die.

Tae-soo shouldn’t get involved in catching Cheongil.

* * *

After the dancer left, Tae-soo focused solely on construction.

June 22, 1973.

In Korea, the Namhae Bridge was opened.

On the same day in Saudi Arabia, Tae-soo’s sole bid for the Khaybar-AlUla Expressway construction was held.

And the next day, June 23.

President Park Chung-hee announced the ‘June 23rd Declaration for Peace and Unification,’ proposing non-interference in internal affairs and simultaneous entry of South and North Korea into the United Nations.

On the same day, the bidding for the Khaybar-AlUla Expressway construction was closed.

Tae-soo easily won the Khaybar-AlUla Expressway construction.

In his past life, it was a $24,059,000 project, but this time, the amount jumped to $35 million.

It was a gift from Rahman.

A few days later, an invitation arrived from Pohang Iron and Steel [POSCO, a major South Korean steel company].

Please attend the Pohang Iron and Steel completion ceremony and grace the occasion with your presence?

The event was scheduled for July 3, 1973.

Pohang Iron and Steel was completed, marking the first step in Korea’s iron and steel nation-building.

The Saudi ambassador was overjoyed to receive the invitation to the Pohang Iron and Steel completion ceremony.

“Hooray! I can finally escape Saudi Arabia!”

An invitation to the Pohang Iron and Steel completion ceremony also arrived for Tae-soo.

However, Tae-soo politely declined to attend, citing construction as the reason.

The ambassador conveyed his intention to return home together to Song Chang-joon, the second secretary who was the Saudi ambassador’s confidant.

“I’m sorry. I’ll stay in Saudi Arabia a little longer. There’s a lot of work to do to help with the construction.”

However, Song Chang-joon refused to return home.

He did not submit his resignation to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and volunteered to stay and help Tae-soo.

Song Chang-joon and Holjook were diligently learning the work under Secretary Song’s guidance.

“They’re quite good. These two definitely have talent. Excellent.”

From some point on, the frequency of Secretary Song’s compliments began to increase.

That’s how time passed.

Newspapers and broadcasts talked about the Middle East war every day.

-October 6, 1973! The Fourth Middle East War has broken out!

-Egypt and Syria have joined forces and launched a full-scale surprise attack on Israel!

-On ‘Yom Kippur’ [the holiest day of the year in Judaism], the Jewish Sabbath! The damage to Israel is severe due to soldiers on leave!

And on October 17.

Seven Arab oil-producing countries, enraged by the Western world’s support for Israel, issued a statement.

In his past life, it was a total of six countries, including OPEC’s [Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries] Libya, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Syria, and Tunisia, but this time, Saudi Arabia joined, making it a total of seven countries.

-We will impose an oil export ban on Western countries that support Israel!

-All oil companies in countries that support Israel will be expelled!

The oil-producing countries joined hands and drove out Western European oil companies.

The ‘weaponization of oil’ had begun.

The repercussions were enormous.

Newspapers and broadcasts reported on it in real time.

-European oil company stock prices are plummeting every day!

-Due to the plunge in oil company stock prices, other oil-based industry stocks derived from it are also repeatedly plummeting!

-Due to the import ban by oil-producing countries, oil prices are soaring every day!

The world’s first oil shock had erupted.

The whole world was turned upside down by the aftermath of the Middle East war.

And a few days later. October 26, 1973.

-The Middle East war is over!

-Israel barely repelled the Arab coalition forces with a counterattack!

Israel exposed the vulnerabilities of its national security, and the losses were very large.

The Western powers that supported Israel were deprived of oil.

Thus, the golden age of capitalism due to cheap oil from Western countries came to an end.

A global upheaval had begun.

Taking advantage of that change, the power structure of the Saudi royal family also underwent a major upheaval.

Who is Khalid, the Saudi Minister of Defense who has rapidly emerged as the most powerful figure in the royal family through the Middle East war!

A giant who had been crouching down until the Middle East war stretched.

He repaired the division caused by the power struggle between the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Construction, and he took control of the royal family.

Abdullah, the commander of the National Guard who was his right-hand man, was promoted and took the position of Minister of Industry.

And Rahman, Khalid’s son, was promoted to the position of person in charge of eastern city development for his military achievements in the construction and supply of logistics bases.

[This is all thanks to you. Now that Abdullah has become the Minister of Industry and Rahman has become the person in charge of eastern city development, we can put more effort into the Jubail Industrial Port construction.]

Khalid added one more word.

[Not a single liter of oil will be sold to Cheongil Oil. All seven Middle Eastern oil-producing countries.]

As a result, the Cheongil Group was turned upside down.

It was reported that Jang Jun-yong of Geumsan teased Han Cheong-ho in front of him, saying that Geumsan was receiving oil well from Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, so there was nothing to worry about.

“It’s finally over.”

December 1. Construction of the Khaybar-AlUla Expressway began.

On December 3, the Yanbu-Um Lajj Expressway construction was completed.

Tae-soo won the bet with Rahman.

After all the oil settlements were completed, a whopping 60 million barrels of oil fell to Tae-soo!

Then someone came to Tae-soo.

“Have you been well? It’s been a while.”

It was the man in the hanbok [traditional Korean clothing] I saw at Jang Mal-dong’s house.