Still, I Will Live As The Son-In-Law Of A Conglomerate [EN]: Chapter 116

34th. Underwater Competition (1)

The study froze in an instant. The culprit, Go Seung-ju, covered the receiver of his phone with his hand.

“I’m sorry, Chairman.”

“It’s alright. Finish your call, and we’ll talk.”

“Yes.”

Go Seung-ju, who had lowered his head, looked up when his grandfather waved his hand, and answered the phone again.

“Yeah, Shinseong? Taehyun? Okay. Keep looking into it and contact me.”

As soon as Go Seung-ju finished the call, he went to his grandfather, lowered himself, and whispered in his ear. As the whispering went on, his grandfather’s expression hardened, and the hand on the table clenched as if it would burst.

Go Seung-ju’s expression was grim as he straightened up after whispering. His grandfather also shouted with a stiff face.

“Prepare to cut as much as possible during the due diligence [investigation of a business before acquisition]. You may leave.”

The ‘you’ his grandfather referred to, the presidents of the Heavy Industries affiliates, all bowed to the grandfather and left the study. Among the people left in the study, the grandfather saw me pulling up my chair and asked Go Seung-ju.

“Is it true?”

“It’s certain, Chairman. The information team received it from the *Dongyang Ilbo* [a major South Korean newspaper] reporters, and they confirmed the contents from both *Hanyang Ilbo* and *Joguk Ilbo* reporters before passing it on.”

According to what I heard from my grandfather during the Hanko Group acquisition, *Dongyang Ilbo* is where our family will have a marriage alliance. Information from such a place couldn’t be wrong.

Bang!

“Damn it!”

As soon as Go Seung-ju finished answering, his grandfather slammed the desk and shouted. Seeing his grandfather’s trembling fist, everyone swallowed hard.

“What’s wrong, Chairman?”

“Jin-ho *hyung* [older brother or respected male figure] and Jang Ho-geon are about to cause a major accident.”

My spine tingled at the grandfather’s answer, filled with disappointment. If Taehyun and Shinseong caused a major accident… could it be?

“G-Grandfather?”

Seeing my shaking eyes, the grandfather opened his mouth weakly.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, Seong-min, but Taehyun Group is planning to attack Ado Group through *Hanyang Ilbo*, and Jang Ho-geon is using *Joguk Ilbo*. They’re going to devour Ado Group. Those bastards!”

I never thought my extreme guess would be so accurate. I didn’t expect these two families, with their strong attachment to automobiles, would play such a strong hand!

“That’s absurd, Chairman! Neither side has the capacity to acquire Ado Group. What are they betting on to do such a thing? If they can’t clean up the mess, even the lame-duck government will use its last bit of strength to retaliate…”

Bae Jae-hoon was right. With conglomerates collapsing one after another, even a lame-duck government wouldn’t stand by and watch a giant company like Ado Group fall.

While everyone showed signs of disbelief, I took a moment to think. What were Taehyun and Shinseong relying on to do such a thing?

While I was racking my brain faster than when I took the college entrance exam, something flashed through my mind. Damn it!

Seeing me gritting my teeth, the grandfather asked.

“Do you have any idea?”

“I think we’ve been had.”

I couldn’t hide my resentful feelings. How could I have been so naive!

“Been had?”

“Yes. Shinseong, I don’t know, but Taehyun seems to have set up a smokescreen. What do you think, Chief?”

Go Seung-ju lowered his head at my question. After a while, Go Seung-ju raised his head sharply and looked at me.

“Could it be?”

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, Chief, but that’s probably right. I don’t know about Shinseong, but the only place Taehyun Group could get money is the Hadong Steel Mill construction.”

Go Seung-ju nodded as he looked at me after speaking. My thoughts and Go Seung-ju’s matched up to a frustrating degree. Damn it!

It was strange. Taehyun Group, like a bulldozer, had been dragging out the civil engineering work for the steel mill construction for almost a year….

It’s a conclusion interpreted to fit the result, but Taehyun Group’s Hadong Steel Mill construction was clearly holding cash under the guise of construction costs. Just like we hoarded dollars under the pretext of adjusting overseas mines or CMA [Cash Management Account] portfolios that we wouldn’t develop right away!

The grandfather, who had been seething, stretched out his hand and shouted.

“Bring me some water! Quickly!”

I quickly filled a glass with water and handed it to my grandfather. The grandfather snatched the glass from my hand and emptied it in an instant.

The grandfather put down the glass with a thud, took a breath, and called Go Seung-ju.

“Chief Go!”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“Quickly find out about the money Taehyun Group has tied up in the Hadong Steel Mill construction! Figure out their liquid assets too! Find out if Jang Ho-geon has any hidden money!”

After listening to Go Seung-ju and his grandfather’s conversation, I got an estimate. I can’t just sit back and get beaten.

***

Jang Ho-geon, one of the two men who caused a state of emergency in the Haedong Group’s leadership.

He was currently overseeing the acquisition of Ado Group with Lee Soo-han and his aides in the Seong Assemblyman’s office.

“There won’t be any problems with the funds, right?”

“No, Chairman. We will terminate the semiconductor equipment contract with Nikon and Tokyo Electron early next month and bring in the funds. Neither side has produced the equipment according to the contract, and we will receive a penalty as a commission, so it won’t be a losing deal.”

“How is the disposal of Shinseong Corporation’s semiconductor inventory going?”

“It’s going smoothly. We plan to pass it on to overseas buyers who received slush funds invested by us during the last yen appreciation speculation and convert it into cash. Selling it at 20 percent cheaper than the market price is a concern, but we will distribute a press release stating that it was unavoidable for inventory disposal purposes.”

After listening to the executives’ reports, Jang Ho-geon asked Lee Soo-han.

“How much will we have if we terminate the equipment contract and dispose of the semiconductor inventory?”

“We will have up to 1.5 trillion won ready. The funds are sufficient, Chairman.”

Jang Ho-geon wore a satisfied expression at Lee Soo-han’s answer.

“The super-gap strategy has been quite fun, hehe.”

“That’s right. Everyone thought we were all-in on semiconductors, didn’t they? Hehe.”

“That’s right. That’s what we’ll do in the long term, but we have to eat what we can, hahaha.”

Jang Ho-geon laughed heartily with a refreshing expression.

Using the fact that he has a great attachment to semiconductors, he hid 1.5 trillion won under the guise of a super-gap strategy? To acquire Ado Group’s parent company, Ado Motors.

The money lost to hide the funds is a whopping 300 billion won, but Jang Ho-geon didn’t care. If he acquires Ado Motors, the parent company of Ado Group, which will be reborn with public funds, he can save Shinseong Corporation’s automobile business division? By way of merger.

“The politicians and bankers will definitely support us, right?”

“Yes, Chairman. The politicians are also uneasy about the public sentiment that has become fierce as other conglomerates have collapsed, starting with the Hanko Group incident. The bankers were already considering the timing of recovering Ado Group’s loans even before we told them to.”

The guys who create the atmosphere and the guys who provide the money have all abandoned Ado Group, Geum Seok-ho, and the underlings beneath him. There were no obstacles to stop Jang Ho-geon.

It was a great opportunity for Jang Ho-geon. Business was business, but he could keep a promise to a friend who had passed away, a promise that Lee Soo-han might know, but the other aides wouldn’t.

It was an exciting and anticipated event, but as the chairman of Shinseong Group, Jang Ho-geon hid his emotions with a sinister smile.

“Our Ho-min… he even put up his own petrochemical business, which he raised with his own hands, as collateral to acquire Hanko Steel. He’ll die of frustration if he sees me acquiring Ado Motors, hehe.”

“That’s Jang Vice Chairman’s problem. If we merge Ado Motors and Ado Group this time, we can save the automobile business and expand the heavy industry sector smoothly, hehe.”

It was something that Lee Soo-han desperately wanted as well.

The more affiliates Jang Ho-geon had and the bigger they became, the higher his status as Jang Ho-geon’s closest aide would be. He understood why Jang Ho-geon was so attached to automobiles and supported him humanly.

“Let’s start today. Contact broadcasters, newspaper reporters, bankers, gold badges [influential people], prosecutors, and judges. Give them whatever they want, whether it’s alcohol, money, or women, and shake Ado Group.”

They are all power elites who are said to be in this country, but to Jang Ho-geon, they are just pieces to play on a chessboard. Just like his father, Jang Byeong-ho, did.

***

When Jang Ho-geon rolled up his sleeves and entered the main game, Taehyun Group was also preparing to acquire Ado Group.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Chairman. If we recover the steel mill construction funds and collect from each affiliate, we can create 1.5 trillion won.”

Myung Jin-ho, the chairman of Taehyun Group, sat in the upper seat of the sofa in the Taehyun Group chairman’s office.

He wore a pleased expression as he listened to the confident answer of Myung Seon-gu, his eldest son and CEO of Taehyun Automobile Service, Taehyun Precision, and Taehyun Development.

“That’s enough. That should be enough for us to acquire Ado Motors, euhehe.”

Myung Jin-ho laughed so hard that his mouth seemed to tear.

Isn’t this a golden opportunity for Taehyun Group to take up 70% of the domestic automobile market? There is no drug as fascinating to businessmen as ‘monopoly,’ so even Myung Jin-ho, who has stayed away from alcohol and tobacco, could not refuse that drug.

“It was a good decision to change the Hadong Steel Mill plan, Chairman. We sent a warning to Daehan Steel and acquired Ado Motors, hehe.”

Myung Seon-gu emphasized the Hadong Steel Mill construction and smiled sinisterly.

The Hadong Steel Mill construction, which Myung Seon-gu pushed for, was a project prepared because Taehyun Group, which has a high demand for steel, hated having to bow down to Daehan Steel and buy steel plates.

Then, after hearing about the Ado Group problem that started circulating in the Myeongdong private loan market last fall, Myung Seon-gu changed the plan. It was a hastily made plan, but it was a golden opportunity to raise his evaluation that he was like a bear, as he had obtained the steel mill business rights and acquired Ado Motors.

“Of course, of course. The steel mill site isn’t going anywhere, so we can build the furnace later. But we have to devour Ado Motors first, as such a property won’t come out again, euhehe.”

“That’s right, Chairman. If we acquire it with plenty of public funds, it will become an even more attractive property, hehe.”

Myung Jin-ho, Myung Seon-gu, and the other executives laughed heartily, but only two people couldn’t laugh: Myung Se-ho, the chairman of Taehyun Motors, and his son, Myung Seon-gyu, the president of Taehyun Motors.

If Taehyun Group affiliates acquire Ado Motors and merge that Ado Motors with Taehyun Motors, their shares will be greatly reduced, so it was obvious that they would lose control of Taehyun Motors.

However, they couldn’t openly oppose the opportunity for the group to grow, so the two fathers and sons felt like their insides were burning.

***

I asked Seon Hae-cheol for an indefinite vacation and locked myself in my house, racking my brain. How much money does this Jang Ho-geon have to try to bring down Ado Group, and if he has money, how much is it?

After groaning for five minutes, I sighed.

“I can’t do it.”

One of my iron rules is that if I can’t find an answer after thinking for more than 5 minutes, I cleanly give up and move on to the next thing. Whether it’s Taehyun Group or Jang Ho-geon, they are not people who do things without thinking, so it was more efficient to prepare for the Ado Motors merger and acquisition assuming the worst.

“Ado Motors…”

It’s a good company.

Although it has nearly 11 trillion won in debt, including 3 trillion won in accounting fraud, it is the holding company of Ado Group, which has 50,000 employees and sales of approximately 14 trillion won, and is the second-largest automobile company in Korea.

The ABCs of such an Ado Motors merger and acquisition are determined.

A large-scale reduction of existing shares (減資) [a capital reduction].

Debt relief and debt-to-equity swaps through the injection of public funds.

This plan is the method that Taehyun Group used when it acquired Ado Motors in my past life. I was thinking of adding one more thing to this.

“Purchase all Ado Motors shares…”

I trailed off and let out a hollow laugh. In the past, I would have used tricks to cut even a penny more, but now I’m thinking about collecting all the shares….

I have to do this ridiculous thing.

This is an opportunity to perfectly satisfy my grandfather’s management philosophy of ‘overwhelming dominance,’ which was revealed in the Hanko Group acquisition. It is an opportunity to clearly prove my qualifications as a successor.

This is also an opportunity to make Jang Ho-geon, who has a strong attachment to automobiles, covet me. To win the hearts of both men, our family must swallow 100 percent of Ado Motors’ shares.

It’s not an impossible plan.

I don’t know exactly how close my grandfather and Geum Seok-ho, the chairman of Ado Motors, are, but I’m putting my hopes on the fact that the Ado Motors large sedan that my grandfather, father, and I inherited is the first car.

Even if it was assembled by importing parts from Peugeot, the symbolism of the first car is by no means light. Seeing that the first car is in our family, the relationship between the two must be more than ordinary. There is a high possibility of obtaining internal cooperation.

In addition, Haedong Securities changed the 200 billion won in promissory notes that Ado Group was stuck with last year into 200 billion won in Ado Motors bonds.

If we convert those bonds into equity, we can get at least 5 percent. If we exceed just 3 percent, we can request to inspect the accounting books, so we will have the legal right to access internal information.

All that remains is the approval of my partners. I immediately picked up the phone and made a call.