Still, I Will Live As The Son-In-Law Of A Conglomerate [EN]: Chapter 9

9. 3rd. Commencing Action (2)

A lot happened in six months.

In March, the assets of officials from the Blue House [South Korean presidential residence] and the ruling party were disclosed, and in June, the Public Service Ethics Act was completely reorganized, making the assets of high-ranking government officials public.

And today, on the evening of August 13, the day after the disclosure of assets of high-ranking public officials, the biggest event occurred.

[At this moment, with a solemn heart, I announce the ‘Presidential Emergency Financial and Economic Order Regarding Real Name Financial Transactions and Guarantee of Secrecy’ in accordance with the provisions of Article 76, Paragraph 1 of the Constitution. In addition, in accordance with the provisions of Article 47, Paragraph 3 of the Constitution, the President’s emergency financial and economic order…]

Even after watching the President’s surprise address, Chairman Lee Dae-soo’s face changed like a Hahoe mask [a traditional Korean mask known for its exaggerated and comical expressions].

“Euhahaha! As expected of our eldest grandson!”

Chairman Lee Dae-soo laughed happily for the first time in a while, repeatedly hitting the desk as if satisfied. Hadn’t he safely siphoned off trillions of won without missing a penny? All thanks to his eldest grandson!

Only after turning off the sturdy TV of Kumkang Group, the maternal home of his eldest grandson and the parental home of his beloved eldest daughter-in-law, did Lee Dae-soo pick up the receiver. Wasn’t there someone to share this feeling with?

“It’s me, Seung-joo. Our eldest grandson’s words were spot on, euhahaha.”

[I was also surprised by the press conference just now. Yesterday was the last day, and it coincided like this… Congratulations, Chairman.]

“Congratulations, my foot. He’s my own flesh and blood, so he needs to have that kind of brain to grow our family and Haedong, euhehehe.”

Lee Dae-soo, who had been laughing heartily, stopped abruptly and changed his expression.

“Tonight will be quite noisy, right?”

[Yes. The other group’s chief secretaries and I have agreed to meet after the meetings of our respective groups. Just looking at their faces will be entertainment enough, haha.]

“Euhahahaha! There won’t be a better drinking snack than that. Tell all the key affiliate presidents to meet in Samcheong-dong right now. Tell Myung-jin and Sung-min to see me tomorrow morning.”

[Yes, Chairman.]

After finishing the call, Lee Dae-soo told the head butler through the intercom to prepare to receive guests, and then waited leisurely in front of his desk, watching refreshments being placed on the table.

[Chairman, everyone has arrived.]

“Come in.”

As Lee Dae-soo shouted towards the door, eight men, including Bae Jae-hoon and Kang In-joo, rushed in.

“Everyone, sit down.”

Everyone sitting on the sofa was trying to suppress their excitement.

“Did you all take good care of your hidden nest eggs?”

At Lee Dae-soo’s casual question, the men’s lips twitched or their eyes turned into crescent moons. Lee Dae-soo didn’t miss that sight and chuckled.

“Hehe, it seems like everyone salvaged something.”

“Thank you, Chairman. We survived thanks to you.”

The seven presidents and Ko Seung-joo lowered their heads, speaking in clear voices, but Lee Dae-soo waved his hand dismissively and took a sip of tea.

“Everyone will have lost one or two limbs because of this. Don’t you think? Euhahaha!”

Seeing Lee Dae-soo laughing heartily, the other men joined in. While others were falling, they had protected all the group’s slush funds and private loan funds, putting them several steps ahead.

As the laughter subsided in the conference room, Lee Dae-soo opened his mouth.

“Chief Ko, how are our funds doing?”

“Most of them have been taken overseas through Triumph, and the rest have been withdrawn in cash or transferred under new borrowed names. All the land has also been registered under the company’s name. I’ve also cleanly erased the Chairman’s traces in Myeong-dong [a major financial district in Seoul], so everyone will be off guard.”

“I understand.”

Ko Seung-joo closed his mouth, and Lee Dae-soo nodded and said.

“From now on, our Haedong will withdraw from Myeong-dong.”

All the presidents blinked, staring at Lee Dae-soo.

Private loan funds, Haedong Group’s hidden business for over half a century and a cornucopia. It was the personal property of the late Chairman and his only son, Lee Dae-soo, and was operated separately from the group’s slush funds, but those private loan funds were the lubricant that smoothed the group’s cash flow, weren’t they?

Unlike the quiet Ko Seung-joo, the seven presidents were agitated, and Lee Dae-soo slammed the desk.

“Ahem, calm down. I’m not saying we’re withdrawing completely. We’ll step back and only grasp the big picture. We need to hide the body, right? Hehe.”

As Lee Dae-soo laughed softly, the presidents sighed in relief or smiled. As Lee Dae-soo said, reducing risk instead of stepping back would be a greater benefit in the long run.

As the voices subsided, Lee Dae-soo shocked them once again with his subsequent declaration.

“From now on, we will grow the group. If the business value is sufficient, we will use both private loan money and the bank guys’ money as much as we want, so keep that in mind.”

The presidents couldn’t help but suspect that Lee Dae-soo was senile. The man who had only done business with the group’s surplus money and was called the ‘Samcheong-dong Miserly Old Man’ was going to use private loan funds and even bank loans?

Lee Dae-soo, making eye contact with each of the presidents, said.

“It’s not right away, so don’t move hastily. Go now.”

At Lee Dae-soo’s order to leave, the presidents left the study. Only two people remained in the room.

“You were very surprised too, weren’t you?”

“It would be a lie to say no.”

Ko Seung-joo saw Lee Dae-soo’s stern face and erased the smile from his face.

“I’m sorry, Chairman.”

“No. I’ve been thinking a lot while going through this.”

“If you’re talking about thinking…?”

“Whether to fall into a mere nouveau riche who only clutches money, or to revive Haedong.”

Lee Dae-soo’s expression, speaking calmly, was heavier than ever before.

“It’s been decades since we’ve been cowering under the oppression of the military. It’s all my fault that Haedong, which was once the best company in this country, has become like this.”

“No, Chairman. How is that the Chairman’s fault?”

Ko Seung-joo waved his hand in embarrassment, but Lee Dae-soo shook his head.

“No. I should have been more greedy, but it was wrong of me to be stubborn and indulge in money-making because I didn’t want to bow down to those lowly people. That little bit of money, no matter how much you pile it up, is just scraps of paper…”

“Chairman…”

Ko Seung-joo couldn’t say anything more at Lee Dae-soo’s poignant self-reproach. Wasn’t Lee Dae-soo the one who didn’t want to bow down to the political soldiers, and because he was worried that his close relationship with them would affect the private loan market, he gave them as much kickbacks as they wanted and only grew the group as much as they ordered?

Lee Dae-soo smiled gently at Ko Seung-joo’s somber expression.

“Those rotten soldiers—the owner of the Blue House has pushed them out, so things will be different now. I don’t know when I’ll go, but I’ll grow the business. That way, I can give you, Myung-jin, and Sung-min a fair share, hehe.”

“Ah, no, Chairman! I can’t even count the favors you’ve done for me so far, how could I…?”

Ko Seung-joo couldn’t continue speaking and lowered his flushed face, but Lee Dae-soo looked at him and laughed heartily.

***

As I entered Samcheong-dong with Park Tae-jin, there was an unexpected person.

“Uncle!”

It’s Lee Myung-jin, who should be in the Middle East. It seemed like he came to Korea to check on yesterday’s events. As soon as I saw his face, I forgot all about seeing my grandfather or Ko Seung-joo.

“Oh, my dear nephew. This uncle is back alive, haha.”

Lee Myung-jin greeted me, showing off his healthy, tanned skin from the scorching sun of the Middle East.

To be honest, I came here today hoping to hear praise about the real-name financial system, but I didn’t expect to meet Lee Myung-jin. I almost burst into tears when I remembered how he tirelessly ran around to save the group until the very end in my first life.

“Why is he like this? Does he like seeing this uncle’s face that much? Haha.”

Lee Myung-jin laughed heartily and stroked my head, but I just hugged him.

Lee Myung-jin worked hard to protect the group, while I sold Haedong Group’s stock.

I gathered Shinseong Electronics stock with the money I made by selling the stock. It was to make sure I wouldn’t be pushed around even if I became the son-in-law of Shinseong Group.

Even though I must have looked like an enemy to him, Lee Myung-jin gave me the little bit of clean money left in the group and the family as a dowry when I married Jang Su-yeon, telling me not to be discouraged.

Seeing him again like this, after he had taken care of me in place of my deceased father, I was overwhelmed by the sins I had committed and couldn’t say anything.

Hugging him silently, I composed myself and looked at Lee Myung-jin with a bright expression.

“Uncle, you didn’t come empty-handed, did you? Your beloved nephew was discharged from the hospital.”

At my bold words, Lee Myung-jin’s eyes widened, and then he laughed heartily.

“Hehe, look at this guy? He’s become very cheeky while resting in the hospital?”

The announcement of the ‘real-name financial system’ that I made as soon as I started my second round of life has been successfully implemented, so I must have paid off more than I owed in my previous life.

“Alright, alright. Don’t just stand there, sit down and have a meal first.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

The five of us—me, Park Tae-jin, my grandfather, Ko Seung-joo, and Lee Myung-jin—sat down together and started eating. Since we were gathered for a good reason, the conversation was naturally warm.

“Did you go that far?”

“Yes. So Director Jo and I had the kids stir up the Myeong-dong private loan market. Thanks to that, I even gave the kids bonuses to buy new shoes, haha.”

Lee Myung-jin listened to Ko Seung-joo’s story about how the people in charge of the group’s secretariat and Haedong Merchant Banking’s planning department wore out their shoes running around Myeong-dong to secure new borrowed-name accounts to avoid the real-name financial system, and how they took out cash from existing accounts and put it into new accounts, or stored boxes of cash or department store gift certificates, and clicked his tongue.

“It was like a movie. I heard about it from my brother when I was in the Middle East, and I also heard about it from the construction director and other directors…”

“Those people were busy too. They sold the land and transferred all the money into new accounts, and secured inventory in the retail sector.”

Lee Myung-jin, laughing heartily with Ko Seung-joo, looked at his grandfather and said.

“Now that the housekeeping is solid, it shouldn’t be difficult to focus on winning construction orders in the Middle East, Father.”

“Okay. It’s okay if we don’t make a profit, so focus on increasing the order backlog until we establish our position.”

“Yes, Father. I’ll win even bigger projects soon, haha.”

I was quietly eating my rice, listening to my uncle and grandfather’s conversation, and I took advantage of a break in the conversation to ask what I was curious about.

Even if I couldn’t do it right away, I definitely needed Lee Myung-jin’s help with the Gangnam Terminal development plan, so I had to ask about the situation.

“Uncle, how is the domestic construction business?”

“Well… There’s a lack of work, and it’s not profitable because of the top companies like Shinseong Corporation and Taehyun Construction. There’s a lot of low-price bidding.”

A shadow fell over Lee Myung-jin’s face, but I thought it was a good thing.

At the end of the year, an opportunity will open up to feed Shinseong Group a sweet potato [a Korean expression meaning to trick or deceive someone] while growing Haedong Group’s business. With what happened yesterday, the medicine of what I have to say will work well.

I subtly dropped a bait to my grandfather and Lee Myung-jin, who were eager to expand the domestic construction business, unlike overseas.

“Uncle, how about the Gangnam Terminal construction?”

“Gangnam Terminal? Shinseong Group is in charge of it, right?”

“You never know until you break ground, right?”

Unlike me, who asked with an innocent expression, Lee Myung-jin said with a stern face.

“Even if the Jang family gives up, the construction cost is the problem. It’s definitely not a project that will end with 100 or 200 billion won, Sung-min.”

I knew why he was showing reluctance.

The final construction cost of the Gangnam Terminal that I remember is about 400 billion won.

Even considering the design changes in the middle, the increased construction period and interest costs, and inflation, it’s not something that Haedong Construction can handle with its own cash, right?

In other words, considering our group’s culture of not doing business with other people’s money until now, and the current situation where the entire Shinseong Group is sweeping everything from construction to occupancy, it doesn’t make sense. Nevertheless, I had to keep persuading them because Haedong Group had to take on this project.

“What if we build the terminal and put in a department store? We can also guarantee the construction client’s loan. I think it would be good to use bank money if necessary… What do you think, Grandfather?”

Lee Myung-jin looked at me with a surprised expression. Isn’t this a completely different method from what Haedong has been doing until now?

“We’ve been running our business without using debt until now, Sung-min. Isn’t that right, Father?”

Even though he raised his voice, he was looking at his grandfather’s face, so Lee Myung-jin couldn’t hide that he was a businessman.

If we just complete the Gangnam Terminal construction, we will gain experience in constructing a complex terminal. If the conservative management style that has been passed down for over 50 years changes, that is.

“Let’s finish eating first. Let’s go upstairs and talk about it.”

My grandfather started eating rice in his soup bowl, and we quickly poured rice into our soup bowls and diligently spooned it up. The voice and words left room for discussion, so if I push it one more time in the study, I think I’ll get an order to at least review it….