Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 320

320

“You were looking down on me, sir.”

“Looking down? Me?”

“Yes, the fact that you confidently told me you were investigating me right in front of me—that’s looking down on me. You couldn’t have done that if you didn’t look down on me. Don’t you think?”

“Uh, that’s…”

Choi Seong-pil couldn’t think of a good excuse.

Of course, Hyun-sung wasn’t wrong. But it wasn’t really because he looked down on him. He just wanted to test him, to see what kind of person he had. But he couldn’t very well say, ‘I did that to test you’ now.

Hyun-sung continued.

“You know, the act of investigating someone is bad enough, but what’s worse is what you did just now. How could you act like that in front of me, even if I am young? That’s what I find more offensive.”

“Ahem…”

Choi Pil-seong could only clear his throat. He was speechless. Everything Hyun-sung said was correct.

He felt somewhat wronged, but he thought he would be in even more trouble if he said anything else, so he just nodded, using that to replace any words he might have said.

Then Hyun-sung’s voice was heard again.

“I’ll stop here.”

“Oh? Okay, well, I apologize again. And… oh, never mind. About the land…”

“Just a moment, sir. Let’s talk about that later. I’m going to the restroom for a bit.”

“Oh, sure. Go ahead. No rush.”

Hyun-sung got up from his seat and left the real estate office.

As soon as Hyun-sung left, Park Young-jin burst into laughter.

“Puhaha… Councilman Choi, you’ve finally met your match today.”

“Wow! This is… that kid really knows how to get to people. I just wanted to test him, and look what happened. Haha, geez…”

“What? Test? What are you talking about?”

“Actually, the thing is…”

Choi Seong-pil began to explain why he had acted that way towards Hyun-sung earlier. As Choi Seong-pil explained, Park Young-jin began to chuckle. Finally, when Choi Seong-pil finished his explanation, he immediately spoke.

“So, you wanted to see his humanity, is that it?”

“Yes, after investigating him, I found out that he’s not the kind of person we generally think of.”

“Is he that much?”

“Yes, he’s beyond imagination. Don’t be surprised. It’s one billion won.”

“One billion? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

Park Young-jin was dumbfounded by Choi Seong-pil’s words. Not just a small amount, but one billion won—this was an unimaginable sum.

Then Choi Pil-seong spoke again.

“That’s the amount deposited into that kid’s account.”

“What?”

“I didn’t believe it at first either. But no matter how many times I checked, it was definitely true.”

“Is that real?”

Park Young-jin couldn’t believe it. How could anyone deposit one billion won into a young student’s account?

Park Young-jin asked again.

“Who on earth deposited one billion won into a student’s account?”

“That’s another surprise. It’s Shin Chun-oh.”

“Shin Chun-oh? Who’s that?”

“I didn’t know who he was at first either, but after further investigation, it turns out he’s the chairman of Nongshim.”

“The chairman of Nongshim? Why would he give Kim that much money? Are they relatives or something?”

“They’re not relatives. Chairman Shin Chun-oh stayed at the kid’s store for about a month. He slept at an inn, of course, but he went to the store almost every day. I just can’t understand it. Why would the chairman of Nongshim stay in that rural area for a month?”

The only unsolved mystery was this. He could find out everything else, but he couldn’t figure out why Chairman Shin Chun-oh of Nongshim had stayed there for a month.

Park Young-jin asked again.

“So, you couldn’t find out that part?”

“Yes, that was the limit.”

“So, Kim just has that money?”

“No. He sent 100 million won to his father and bought 500 million won worth of land.”

“Land? Where?”

“But that’s…”

Choi Seong-pil trailed off.

Then Park Young-jin immediately asked.

“Why? Is there a problem?”

“It’s not that, he bought land in Ilsan, but…”

“Ilsan? Why there?”

“That land is strange.”

“Strange? What do you mean?”

“It’s a mountain. And he bought all the surrounding rice paddies and fields.”

This was the most incomprehensible part of the investigation. It was a mountain, and he wasn’t going to farm, yet he bought all the surrounding rice paddies and fields. Not just a small amount, but a whopping 500 million won worth. Does that make any sense?

Park Young-jin nodded and continued.

“A mountain and rice paddies… so he’s investing.”

“Investing?”

“Yes, since it’s close to Seoul, he probably thought it would be developed later and bought it in advance. But according to my information, I haven’t heard anything about that area being developed… But judging by what this kid is doing, he wouldn’t have bought it without thinking. I think I’ll have to go up there and check it out myself soon.”

“In person?”

Choi Seong-pil tilted his head. He wondered if it was really necessary to go that far.

Park Young-jin continued.

“The amount is too big to just ignore.”

“You’re talking about 500 million won?”

“Yes, 500 million won is no small amount. I’ve lived over 60 years and haven’t even touched that much money. And these days, the country is in a bit of turmoil.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Land prices in Seoul are too high. Land prices go up every day. At this rate, something’s going to happen within two or three years.”

Choi Seong-pil tilted his head again. He couldn’t understand exactly what Park Young-jin was saying.

“What do you mean by ‘happen’?”

“They’re going to disperse it before it happens.”

“Disperse?”

“Eventually, it’s housing. The housing shortage in Seoul and the metropolitan area is no joke. And the analysis is that it will peak after the Olympics next year. If that happens, the government won’t be able to just sit back and watch. They’ll end up creating housing sites in areas close to the metropolitan area.”

“Creating housing sites?”

“Yes, eventually what’s needed is apartments. To do that, they’ll probably have to develop a few new cities, but I don’t know where they are right now. If I had a lot of money, I’d like to bury it in a few expected places, but I don’t have that luxury…”

Park Young-jin clicked his tongue as if he was disappointed.

Then Choi Seong-pil immediately asked.

“Could it be the Ilsan area that Kim invested in? Especially since it’s related to the chairman of Nongshim.”

“Well… but we didn’t have Ilsan in our information. Anyway, I’ll have to go up there and check it out this time. By the way, is that all there is to Kim’s movements?”

At Park Young-jin’s question, Choi Seong-pil shook his head slightly and continued.

“He bought a building last year.”

“A building?”

“Yes, it’s a two-story building next to the Seomyeong Terminal, which is the best location in that rural area. But the important thing is not that.”

“That means there’s something else?”

“Yes, there’s land in the middle of the mountain that I’ve been eyeing, and he’s buying up all the surrounding land.”

“What’s he going to do with land in that rural area?”

Park Young-jin tilted his head slightly. Even at first glance, it was far from being an investment. He wasn’t going to farm either. But he’s buying land? Naturally, he couldn’t help but be curious.

Choi Seong-pil shook his head and immediately continued.

“I don’t know the reason either. Of course, a road is being built there, but…”

“Wait!”

Park Young-jin immediately interrupted Choi Seong-pil.

Then Choi Seong-pil immediately asked.

“Why?”

“A road is being built? When?”

“In two years. It will be a four-lane road. But the important thing is that even if a road is built, the land price won’t rise enough to invest in the land. Because it’s a rural area anyway.”

“That’s true, but if there’s another purpose, it’s a different story.”

“Another purpose?”

At Choi Seong-pil’s question, Park Young-jin nodded and continued.

“Yes, if it’s not necessarily for the purpose of investing in land, but for another purpose that we don’t know, it’s a different story. The important thing is whether Kim knew that the road was being built when he bought the land.”

“Hmm… that could be. But what does that have to do with you, 형님(hyungnim) [older brother/respected elder]?”

“Hehe, what do you mean, what does it have to do with me… are you that clueless?”

Park Young-jin looked at Choi Seong-pil with a slightly pathetic expression.

Then Choi Seong-pil tilted his head as if he didn’t know why and said.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“If he knew that information in advance and bought the land, what does that mean?”

“What does it mean? Ah, you mean the information network?”

“That’s right, I don’t know the purpose, but if he has that much information, it’s a jackpot. Think about it, where did that friend buy land now?”

“You’re talking about Ilsan now?”

Snap!

Park Young-jin snapped his fingers and immediately continued.

“Bingo! Of course, the value of information is different because it’s a rural area, but if that’s true, that friend has something we don’t know. Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense to go all the way to Ilsan and buy 500 million won worth of land. Don’t you think?”

“Just in case, what if the government announces Ilsan as a new city in a few years?”

“Do you have to ask that to know?”

“I don’t have a sense of how much it would be.”

“100 times.”

“What? 100 times?”

“Yes, at least. He’ll be sitting on a pile of money.”

Choi Seong-pil looked up at the office ceiling for a moment.

100 times…

The money that this kid invested now is 500 million won. If this kid knew in advance and invested, that money will increase to 50 billion won. That’s at least.

Huh!

Choi Seong-pil felt like he was suffocating without realizing it.

Then Park Young-jin’s words continued again.

“The problem is how to find that out…”

“Don’t worry about that. I have a way.”

“Really?”

“Yes, but if you find that out, what are you going to do?”

“What do you mean what am I going to do? It’s obvious. I’m going to scrape together all the money I can and go to Ilsan. Of course, you’re coming with me. This is all in.”

“Hehehe…”

Choi Seong-pil couldn’t help but let out a strange laugh.

If that happens, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. A whopping 100 times. 100 times!

It was when Choi Seong-pil was spreading his wings of imagination.

Step, step.

The sound of Hyun-sung’s footsteps was heard approaching.

***

“You want to buy the land in the middle of the mountain?”

Hyun-sung asked, looking at Choi Seong-pil.

Then Choi Seong-pil nodded and immediately continued.

“That’s right. As you know, since it’s in the middle of the mountain, the scenery is the best in the neighborhood, isn’t it?”

“That’s true. But the accessibility is very poor because the transportation is not good. Why are you trying to buy it?”

“I’m thinking of building a house.”

“A house?”

“That’s right. When I get older, I want to build a house there and spend my old age there.”

Sneer.

Hyun-sung turned his head slightly and smiled. He couldn’t help but laugh at Choi Pil-seong, who was lying without batting an eye.

In his past life, Choi Seong-pil was the person who ran a garden restaurant of over 150평(pyeong) [a traditional Korean unit of area, approximately 400 square meters] there. In the end, he’s going to hide his purpose until the end.

Hyun-sung smiled and asked.

“Is that so? Then I can’t sell the land even more.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“In my opinion, I think the value of the land is too precious to simply build a house and live there.”

“Precious? That sounds like you have another purpose, so what are you going to do there?”

“I’m thinking of running a restaurant.”

At that moment, Choi Seong-pil’s eyes sparkled.

Right now, the road is so narrow that it’s not easy to access. There is a prerequisite for running a restaurant there. That’s the road. It is absolutely impossible to run a restaurant there unless the road is built.

But a little while ago, the kid said he was going to run a restaurant there. That means he knows in advance that a road will be built in front of it.

Choi Seong-pil glanced at Park Young-jin and smiled, then immediately asked Hyun-sung.

“No, does that make sense? You’re going to run a restaurant in a place where there’s no road, so is there any talk of a road being built there?”

“Yes, it will be built. It’s also a four-lane road.”

“Huh! A four-lane road?”

It was the moment Choi Seong-pil’s eyes turned upside down.