The Conglomerate Family Became A Villain [EN]: Chapter 208

208. After Winter (1)

The star of the 1986 CES [Consumer Electronics Show] was the optical mouse. The mouse was the optimal input device to support the graphical operating system that started with the Macintosh.

“Excellent.”

Jung Hyun-woo nodded, moving the noticeably improved optical mouse.

“It’s the best product. The CEO will be pleased as well.”

When he first attended CES, no one recognized him. But in just a few years, Jung Hyun-woo had become a celebrity. Because of this, he had to bring not only staff but also bodyguards.

‘Even if it’s uncomfortable, there’s no other way.’

On the first day, when he moved alone, he couldn’t properly examine the products because of the flood of autograph requests and people talking to him.

‘Actually, the reporters are more of a problem than the general public.’

The general public was only interested in autographs or photos, but reporters often wanted unscheduled interviews with him.

Of course, most reporters didn’t make unreasonable demands, but a few who wanted to get a scoop didn’t care about journalistic ethics.

It was when he clicked the mouse a few more times.

He felt the attention of those around him.

‘I should stop here.’

He took his hand off the mouse and smiled brightly.

“I want to buy it as soon as the product is released.”

The mouse representative smiled brightly at his compliment.

“We will ship it to the CEO first.”

When Jung Hyun-woo gestured, his secretary, Luna, approached and handed over a business card with the company address.

“Please contact us here.”

Jung Hyun-woo and his staff then moved to the next booth.

‘There are more sophisticated products than last year.’

Computers and electronic products were developing rapidly.

‘Within a few years, LCD TVs will appear to replace cathode-ray tube TVs, right?’

He stopped in front of the Commodore booth.

‘Is LCD still Samjung Electronics’ [Likely a typo and should be Samsung Electronics]?

Jung Hyun-woo had already acquired a significant number of Samsung Electronics shares.

‘Once the investment in Japan is over, I need to look into that as well.’

Because he stopped in front of the Commodore booth, the Commodore representative’s face brightened.

“Is there a product you are interested in?”

Jung Hyun-woo pointed to the new computer placed closest to him.

“It looks better than last year’s product.”

The representative managed his expression and said.

“It is an improved product that complements all the shortcomings of last year’s product.”

“Oh, I see.”

Jung Hyun-woo looked at the improved product here and there.

‘Commodore was pushed back because of this.’

It certainly looked better than the product released last year. However, CES was not a place to release improved products.

For success, you had to release something groundbreaking that would lead the industry or grab the attention of consumers.

‘Commodore has no appeal.’

He examined Commodore’s new computer for about 10 minutes before leaving.

“Aren’t you buying Commodore’s new product?”

Jung Hyun-woo shook his head at his secretary Luna’s question.

“I don’t think I need to this year.”

“Is the product not good?”

“Dell is much better.”

Dell Computer once again caused a sensation in the computer market this winter.

The fact that Victoria Fund’s stock price could maintain $15 despite Victoria Fund’s sudden investment in Japan was thanks to Dell Computer’s strong performance.

“CEO, it’s almost time for our company’s presentation.”

Jung Hyun-woo nodded slightly at Luna’s words.

“Let’s go there.”

This year, the person in charge of Victoria Corporation’s presentation was Sarah, not Robert.

She was standing on the podium wearing a white mini dress.

‘Such a flashy outfit in winter?’

It was when Jung Hyun-woo narrowed his brow slightly.

The sound of camera shutters being pressed could be heard from here and there.

Click. Click.

It seemed that Sarah’s beauty and mini dress caught the attention of reporters.

‘Hmm, was that the selling point?’

But Victoria Corporation was not a small company that needed Sarah to attract the attention of reporters with her outfit.

“CEO, is there something you don’t like?”

Jung Hyun-woo raised his right hand at Luna’s question.

“There’s nothing like that.”

He answered no, but Luna could tell that Jung Hyun-woo’s expression was dark.

‘When the CEO makes this expression, he is mostly full of complaints.’

A moment later.

Sarah’s presentation began.

“Reporters! Stakeholders! Thank you for coming to this event.”

Today was not a day for general visitors, so Sarah proceeded with the presentation focusing on reporters.

“I’m Sarah Hilton, COO [Chief Operating Officer] of Victoria Corporation.”

As soon as her introduction ended, camera shutters moved once again.

Click. Click. Click.

Someone was slightly surprised, perhaps because they didn’t know her identity.

“Sarah Hilton, is that the heiress of the Hilton family?”

“Didn’t you know? There are rumors that Victoria Corporation is supported by the Hilton family.”

Since everyone’s attention was on Sarah, Jung Hyun-woo was able to be free from the attention of those around him for a while.

‘Sarah has a good voice too.’

Even if someone has an outstanding appearance, there are quite a few people whose favorability decreases due to a bad voice.

But Sarah belonged to the group with excellent looks and voice.

‘It’s the icing on the cake.’

Sarah’s presentation continued.

“Victoria Corporation will continue to innovate in 1986 this year. And at the forefront of that innovation is financial services, including JP Service.”

She announced the new version of JP Service first.

Reporters checked the materials prepared by Victoria Corporation employees and pressed the camera shutters again.

Click. Click.

Several features had been added to the new version of JP Service.

“The most important feature is that you can now check multiple stocks at the same time, not just one.”

Until the previous version, JP Service could only check the stock price of the stock you were viewing.

But in this version, the stock prices of recently viewed stocks were displayed in the upper right corner.

“Now you can check the stock prices of up to five stocks at the same time.”

The reporters nodded greatly at her presentation.

“If you can check five stocks at the same time, it’s like being in a brokerage firm.”

“No one invests in ten stocks at a time. Most people will feel something similar.”

Sarah’s explanation continued.

“Exchange rates and commodity prices will be displayed in the upper left corner.”

JP Service was following the 21st century stock trading program.

“Exchange rates and commodity prices are displayed at the same time?”

“Then, is it not necessary to read the economic newspaper?”

“I didn’t know it would develop this much in a year.”

The reporters were amazed at the development of JP Service.

Jung Hyun-woo was satisfied with their reaction.

‘This side didn’t just invest in real estate.’

Some reporters wrote articles saying that he had lost his initial intentions because of his real estate investment, but he was spending more time improving JP Service than investing in Japanese real estate.

“In this version, many bugs have also been improved. According to the service improvement team’s report, 16 bugs have been improved.”

Jung Hyun-woo narrowed his brow slightly after hearing her words.

‘The fact that there were 16 bugs is this side’s fault.’

Among the bugs improved this time, there were many that could not be found in the short term.

The only way to find these bugs was through continuous monitoring.

“Victoria Corporation is always trying to provide investors with the best solutions.”

Applause erupted from various places at Sarah’s shout.

Jung Hyun-woo also applauded.

Luna was somewhat relieved to see him applaud.

‘It seems that he likes Miss Hilton’s presentation.’

It was the moment he smiled faintly.

“Excellent.”

Someone approached Jung Hyun-woo and his party.

“Miss Marine?”

It was Lyra Marine who came to the venue to listen to Sarah’s presentation.

“Charlie told me. He said I could look forward to this version.”

Lyra Marine liked the new version released by Victoria Corporation.

‘Charlie knows exactly what business is at the center.’

While the two were talking, Sarah’s presentation continued. She finished the presentation on the new version and mentioned the next generation service.

“In the version to be developed in the future, we plan to include the financial statements of the stock in addition to searching and checking the stock.”

It was a story that they would allow people to know the information of the company without subscribing to an economic newspaper.

The reporters were surprised by Sarah’s presentation.

“With a computer… no, can you know the financial statements of a company with just JP Service?”

“Is that possible?”

Features that were taken for granted in the 2020s were treated as imaginary stories in 1986.

Lyra Marine was also surprised by Sarah’s presentation.

“Charlie, is that possible? No, even if it is possible, it will be impossible for the time being, right?”

Jung Hyun-woo smiled.

“It will be installed in the version that will be released next year.”

Lyra Marine’s eyes widened.

“The version that will be released next year?”

Because her voice was too loud, the eyes of the reporters around her moved.

“It’s Charlie Jung.”

“Charlie Jung?”

“Really.”

Jung Hyun-woo sighed briefly inside.

‘Hoo… This is troublesome.’

He thought his fame was excessive.

‘Is it this much just by appearing on TV a few times?’

Jung Hyun-woo thought he had only appeared on TV a few times, but his photos had already been published in articles and newspapers dozens of times.

As of 1986, there was no reporter who did not know his face and name.

Sarah was still continuing her presentation with a calm face, perhaps because she had not yet discovered Jung Hyun-woo and Lyra Marine.

“The next-generation version will provide not only financial statements but also information on stocks related to the stock.”

It was a story that information on competitors or stocks in the field would be displayed together.

“Information on other stocks? Amazing.”

“It’s Victoria Corporation after all.”

“They lead the innovation in the financial sector every time.”

“Now, no one can beat Victoria Corporation in the financial services sector.”

JP Service’s competitor, Morgan Future, was struggling to display the stock price of the stock, let alone various functions.

The reporters thought that it would take at least 5 years for Morgan Future to catch up with JP Service.

‘5 years is also a positive calculation. If they do it wrong, they may never catch up.’

Sarah finished the story related to JP Service and moved on to the next.

“Next is the security solution developed by Victoria Corporation.”

The reporters tilted their heads after hearing her story.

“It seems that this year will not end with just JP Service.”

“Not only did they innovate JP Service, but they also prepared other services…”

Lyra Marine knew that Victoria Corporation was developing a bank security service, so she was not very surprised.

However, she did not expect its commercialization to be so fast.

“Charlie, is the security service already being commercialized?”

Jung Hyun-woo nodded and replied.

“The service will be available in the second half of this year.”

Sarah said that the security service developed by Victoria Corporation would prevent hackers from hacking and greatly helped in tracking down the culprit in last year’s hacking incident.

The reporters could not help but be surprised once again at Victoria Corporation’s technology.

“It seems that the IT industry is now being reorganized into the Big 3.”

“Big 3?”

“Apple, Microsoft, Victoria Corporation.”

The common point of the three companies was that they had strengths in software rather than hardware.

Of course, in the case of Apple, it also had strengths in hardware due to its unique design and user convenience.

Sarah spent about 5 minutes introducing the security service and then moved on to the next.

Lyra Marine raised her voice slightly after seeing that her presentation was not easily over.

“You have prepared more than one business.”

Jung Hyun-woo shrugged his shoulders and accepted her words.

“Didn’t I say I would open the future?”

His declaration to move towards the future was not empty words.

“Towards the future?”

“Victoria Corporation’s technology will advance the future.”

Lyra Marine sighed inwardly after hearing his answer.

‘Hoo… It’s not just investment or software development. The perspective of looking at the future itself is different from us.’

She thought while looking at Jung Hyun-woo.

‘Isn’t Charlie the Leonardo da Vinci of our time?’

Lyra Marine thought of Leonardo da Vinci because he showed genius in many fields. Of course, his genius was not innate.

“Victoria Corporation is currently collaborating with IBM, Microsoft, and Dell Computer to increase the compatibility of each service. The result will be out soon.”

Sarah rattled off the story that Victoria Corporation’s various software would be combined with Microsoft’s latest operating system and IBM’s latest chipset.

Lyra Marine let out a sigh rather than an exclamation after hearing her story.

“Hmm, that’s great.”

She had complicated feelings.

‘Choosing Charlie was the right decision. But I couldn’t have all of him.’

If I had decided on a more aggressive investment a little earlier…

If that had happened, Bank of America could have owned more than half of Victoria Corporation.

Jung Hyun-woo explained as if adding to Sarah’s presentation without knowing her feelings.

“Now, it will be as important to increase efficiency as it is to create new software. Collaboration with Microsoft, IBM, and Mac computers can be said to be the result for that.”

Lyra Marine only nodded lightly after hearing his words.

Sarah’s presentation did not end with collaboration with several companies. She finally talked about the game business she was working on with Nintendo.

“This year, Victoria Corporation will provide you with more games with Nintendo. Some of those games will be completely new genres, and an innovative play environment will be provided.”

She talked about the 1986 plan of Victoria Corporation’s game business division, displaying screenshots and concept art of the game being developed on the screen.

Jung Hyun-woo thought while listening to her presentation.

‘Should I put John in that position next year?’

The John he was thinking of was John River, the head of the game business division.

But he soon changed his mind.

‘John lacks visuals, so it might be better not to.’

Besides, John River was not a good speaker.

“Charlie, you’ve prepared a lot this year.”

Jung Hyun-woo scratched his head at Lyra Marine’s compliment.

“It seems like the presentation feels too long.”

“No. I’m telling you sincerely.”

Sarah’s presentation ended with the game business. As soon as her presentation ended, the reporters continued to flash their flashes.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Click! Click!

“Sarah will be on the front page tomorrow.”

Lyra Marine accepted his words.

“Probably.”

She thought that Sarah’s appearance and background would be very good to report.

‘Victoria Corporation has produced another star.’

For a listed company, the more stars, the better.

“Miss Marine, I’ll go to Sarah first.”

Lyra Marine nodded slightly.

“Please tell her that I enjoyed today’s presentation.”

Jung Hyun-woo parted ways with her and headed to Sarah.

“Sarah.”

Sarah was wiping sweat with a handkerchief.

“Charlie? Did you see it?”

“I was in the back, so it seems like you didn’t see me.”

“That side is dark.”

Sarah was standing in the brightest place, so she couldn’t see where Jung Hyun-woo was standing.

“What’s that handkerchief for?”

“I sweated a lot during the presentation.”

The CES site was sufficiently heated, but it was not enough to sweat.

“Sarah, are you not feeling well?”

Sarah shook her head and replied.

“How could that be?”

“To say that, you’re sweating…”

“I’m nervous.”

Jung Hyun-woo’s eyes widened.

“I didn’t feel that way at all when I looked from below.”

Sarah sighed deeply while listening to his words.

“Hoo… How can I not be nervous when there are so many cameras? My legs were shaking.”

Jung Hyun-woo narrowed his brow slightly after hearing her words.

“I should have done it.”

Sarah shook her head and said.

“No. I have to do this much as a COO.”

She tried to smile.

“Is there tomorrow too?”

“Tomorrow’s audience will be general visitors, so I think it will be a little more comfortable.”

“Miss Marine came.”

“Miss Marine?”

“She told me to tell you that she enjoyed it.”

Sarah put down her handkerchief and asked.

“Charlie, weren’t you nervous in front of the reporters?”

Jung Hyun-woo tilted his head and replied.

“I wasn’t nervous because I was focused on what I was talking about.”

Sarah thought while saying, ‘I see.’

‘My vessel is different from his.’

It felt like she couldn’t keep up with Jung Hyun-woo unless she did her best.

Of course, she had no intention of giving up on following him.