The Conglomerate Family Became A Villain [EN]: Chapter 271

271. Winner and Loser (1)

The atmosphere in the convention room was heavy.

The interpreters, being elites, were well aware of the seriousness of the issue being discussed. Even their voices were hushed.

“The people trying to embezzle the money must hold significant positions.”

Those in high positions were conspiring.

“Is it embezzlement?”

Chung Hyun-woo answered Chairman Kajima Jiro’s question.

“It’s breach of trust.”

“Not embezzlement, but breach of trust. I’d like to hear the details.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro, while possibly the mastermind behind this, pretended to know nothing and addressed Chung Hyun-woo.

Of course, Chung Hyun-woo also suspected his involvement.

‘They wouldn’t have pushed such a big deal at the working level.’

He cleared his throat and said,

“The first sale is in January.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro nodded slightly.

“I’ve heard about it.”

“For this first sale, the two companies exchanged information relevant to the transaction.”

“Basic information exchange?”

“The information exchanged concerned real estate market prices.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro frowned and asked,

“Are you saying the market prices were wrong?”

Chung Hyun-woo put a slight emphasis on his voice.

“The market prices presented by Victoria Fund and Kajima Group matched.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro tilted his head after hearing his answer.

“If the market prices matched, doesn’t that mean you exchanged accurate information? I don’t see why that’s a problem. Or is there a problem in another area?”

Chung Hyun-woo answered his question coldly.

“The matching information was incorrect, not accurate.”

Incorrect information matched.

Chairman Kajima Jiro realized what had happened.

‘Charlie Chung must have investigated the real estate market prices separately.’

He considered this possibility and had prepared for it.

He sent people to major real estate agencies and construction companies in Tokyo to monitor the movements of Victoria Fund employees, and he also kept an eye on the escorts Chung Hyun-woo brought.

Furthermore, Yuu Tanaka was tasked with controlling the people on the Victoria Fund side.

‘Where did the problem occur?’

Chung Hyun-woo and his escorts had not left the hotel. There was also no record of them making phone calls from the hotel.

Moreover, Kajima Construction had a tight grip on the brokerage firms in Tokyo.

‘The only thing I can think of is…’

Competitors such as Taisei Construction or Shimizu Construction. They might have sensed the movements and reached out to Victoria Fund and Chung Hyun-woo.

‘If things have gone that way, it’s dangerous.’

If Chung Hyun-woo found fault with Kajima Construction’s irregularities and switched partners to Taisei Construction or Shimizu Construction, Kajima Group would face enormous losses.

“Was it really incorrect information?”

Chung Hyun-woo nodded and responded to Chairman Kajima Jiro.

“Since it’s a transaction involving a lot of money, we cross-checked through various channels.”

“Can you tell me about those various channels?”

Chung Hyun-woo clasped his hands together at his request.

“I’ll tell you if the two interpreters can keep a secret.”

Chairman Kajima spoke in a heavy voice.

“Our interpreters will keep secrets no matter what. If they can’t, Kajima Construction will give up all its rights and step down.”

“Does stepping down mean you’ll accept any notification [formal communication] from our side?”

Chairman Kajima Jiro replied briefly.

“Yes.”

He wanted to know which side had interfered.

‘Shimizu? Or Sekisui? If not them, could it be Sumitomo?’

Sumitomo Bank was a leading giant bank, and if they pushed with capital, even Kajima Group would be in danger.

“It’s the CIA.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro’s eyes widened at Chung Hyun-woo’s answer.

“The CIA?”

Does the CIA even investigate real estate market prices?

“The CIA can find out any information if they want to.”

The CIA was the world’s best intelligence agency at this point, so his words were not wrong. But why would the CIA investigate the real estate market prices owned by Victoria Fund?

“I know that. But what does the CIA have to do with this deal?”

“The CIA has nothing to do with this deal, of course. What is related to the CIA is Victoria Corporation. Victoria Corporation and the CIA have a long-standing cooperative relationship.”

This was slightly embellished.

Victoria Corporation itself had a short history, so it couldn’t have a long-standing cooperative relationship with the CIA.

But Chairman Kajima Jiro didn’t know this fact. Therefore, he couldn’t help but flinch at Chung Hyun-woo’s words.

‘Is he a man who even moves the CIA?’

It was a moment to newly feel the power of America’s number one tycoon.

‘Maybe they’ve been wiretapping all our phones.’

Chairman Kajima Jiro felt a chill down his spine at the thought that his phone might have been tapped.

“You’re saying you found out about the problem through the CIA.”

“That’s right.”

“Then did the CIA also tell you who caused the problem?”

This was a question to test how much Chung Hyun-woo, or rather the CIA, knew.

Chung Hyun-woo also knew this well.

‘Should I give him a little scare?’

He put a slight emphasis on his voice.

“On our side, it’s Mr. Tanaka.”

When Yuu Tanaka’s name was mentioned, Chairman Kajima Jiro couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief.

‘Haa… Americans are still ruthless.’

He organized his thoughts into two categories after hearing Chung Hyun-woo’s answer.

The first was that Chung Hyun-woo and Victoria Corporation were thoroughly prepared.

If they mobilized even the CIA to gather information and monitor employees to protect assets, they couldn’t be beaten.

‘It means that American companies can’t be defeated with our clumsy tricks.’

The second thing he thought about was that Victoria Fund and Chung Hyun-woo might have set a trap.

What if Morgan Stanley, who approached him, was working with Victoria Fund?

If that were the case, Chairman Kajima Jiro would be caught in the net.

‘We can’t rule out this possibility either.’

Morgan Stanley was an American company, and to put it slightly exaggeratedly, it had the same roots as JP Morgan, which had a close relationship with Victoria Corporation.

If it was Morgan Stanley’s trap, it could fully explain why Chung Hyun-woo knew about their plot.

‘If things are going that way, then his mention of the CIA would be a lie.’

Because he would be pretending to be a victim after drawing himself into the conspiracy.

The problem was that no matter which of the two things mentioned above was true, the situation was still unfavorable for Kajima Group.

“Can you also know the traitor on our side?”

Chung Hyun-woo shook his head from side to side.

“I didn’t ask for information up to the Kajima Group.”

He didn’t know because he didn’t ask.

This meant that he could find out as much as he wanted if he wanted to know.

“An unexpected problem has occurred in a big deal.”

Chung Hyun-woo relaxed his voice when he readily admitted the problem.

“The transaction date promised with the U.S. government is January. So the headquarters must keep January.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro raised his eyebrows once again at the mention of the promise with the U.S. government.

“Are you selling the real estate because you made a promise with the U.S. government?”

Chung Hyun-woo nodded and replied.

“That’s right. The U.S. government doesn’t want U.S. dollars to flow into Japanese real estate. They actually think this kind of investment is the cause of worsening financial balances. Of course, this is a fact that Mr. Tanaka doesn’t know.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro received the words in a low voice.

“I didn’t know there was such a situation. Then you must sell the real estate in January.”

Chung Hyun-woo said in a dry voice.

“Since there is a problem with both working teams, I would like to do this deal with another party.”

He would sell the real estate to another company, not Kajima Group.

This was what Chairman Kajima Jiro feared the most.

“Mr. Chung. That’s not possible.”

Chung Hyun-woo raised his eyebrows at his words.

“Not possible?”

“We will find the problematic employee on our side. Please give us a little time.”

Chung Hyun-woo said coldly.

“There is no time for that.”

“We will submit a new proposal with accurate market prices.”

Even without the internet, it was not difficult to grasp real estate market prices.

In the case of Kajima Group, it had offices all over the country, including Tokyo, so it could grasp real estate market prices over the phone in just one day.

“You may be able to quickly create an accurate proposal, but it’s different here. We can’t always rely on the CIA.”

Even if you can, we can’t.

“Mr. Chung!”

As Chairman Kajima Jiro’s voice rose, Chung Hyun-woo raised his right hand with his palm showing.

“Calm down. We are talking about a solution.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro wanted to obtain exclusive rights to the real estate owned by Victoria Fund at this meeting today. But the story was going in a completely different direction.

“Then how can we get you to sell the real estate to our Kajima Group?”

Chung Hyun-woo threw a question instead of an answer.

“Chairman Kajima, does Kajima Group continue to do business with a company that caused a serious problem before the transaction? Don’t you usually look for other business partners?”

Chairman Kajima Jiro clenched both fists tightly.

“Kajima Group has been with Victoria Fund since it entered Japan. Are you denying all that time, Mr. Chung?”

“I’m not denying that fact. If I did, I would have considered a lawsuit for damages.”

When the lawsuit for damages came out, Chairman Kajima Jiro’s body lost strength.

‘A lawsuit with a major American company.’

Even if the Japanese company did nothing wrong, the U.S. government would clearly take the side of its own company.

‘If it goes to international trial, there is a high possibility that we will lose.’

Chairman Kajima Jiro stared at Chung Hyun-woo.

A young man in his twenties with clear eyes.

But what lived inside was an absurd monster.

‘I was deceived by the appearance.’

The problem was that he saw him as someone who could be deceived as much as he wanted if he used his hands.

“I’ll give you 10% more of the market price.”

Chung Hyun-woo said in a soft voice.

“If you deduct 20% and then add 10%, isn’t that our loss?”

“You can ask the company Mr. Chung wants to review the market price, and we will accept it.”

“The company we want?”

Chairman Kajima Jiro replied in a firm voice.

“We don’t care whether it’s Sumitomo Construction or Shimizu Construction.”

Chung Hyun-woo said coldly.

“Is there any guarantee that they won’t join hands with Kajima Construction?”

“Our headquarters and Sumitomo Construction and Shimizu Construction have been in competition for the past few decades. If you check through the CIA, you will know that they are not people who will manipulate market prices for our benefit.”

Chung Hyun-woo wore a half-doubtful expression.

“We will entrust the investigation to a third party.”

Chairman Kajima Jiro said as if adding.

“Mr. Chung, this is not just our fault. Didn’t Victoria Fund also fail to supervise, so the employee rebelled?”

Chung Hyun-woo showed a cold reaction to his question.

“Mr. Tanaka is not just an employee, but a branch manager. I think Kajima Group is the only one who can seduce him. And we actually have his call records.”

Securing Yuu Tanaka’s call records was a lie. But at this point, there was no way for Chairman Kajima Jiro to know the truth.

“Hmm…”

“I’ll review what you said earlier for a moment. Let’s meet again in 30 minutes.”

It meant that he would meet again after consulting with his escorts.

Chairman Kajima Jiro had no choice but to nod.

“Let’s do that.”

He got up from his seat and headed north of the convention room.

Conversely, Chung Hyun-woo went outside through the south door. When he came out, John Peer approached and asked.

“How did it go?”

Chung Hyun-woo knew that Yuu Tanaka was nearby and answered calmly.

“It’s not easy.”

“Hmm, it seems that Kajima Group is not accepting our proposal.”

Yuu Tanaka thought while listening to Chung Hyun-woo’s conversation with John Peer.

‘The reason why the negotiations are not going well is because Charlie Chung made excessive demands.’

He still believed that things could proceed smoothly if he followed his words.

“Mr. Chung, I think it’s better to take a step back at this point.”

Chung Hyun-woo tilted his head at Yuu Tanaka’s words.

“Take a step back?”

“There will be no problem if we trade at the amount that both sides have matched.”

Yuu Tanaka thought that the premium due to exclusive sale was the problem.

But the truth was not.

“I think that needs some discussion.”

Chung Hyun-woo turned his head to John Peer.

“John, let’s talk separately.”

He wanted to talk alone in a place excluding the escorts.

Yuu Tanaka was the Tokyo branch manager, so he couldn’t follow them.

‘Tsk, you’re excluding me again.’

Strictly speaking, he was a working-level employee, so he had no authority to advise or interfere with the management of the headquarters.

When Chung Hyun-woo came out to the hotel lobby, the bodyguards stood about 10m away.

“Charlie, what’s going on?”

Chung Hyun-woo smiled and replied.

“I gave him a little scare.”

John Peer’s eyes widened and asked.

“You scared Chairman Kajima?”

“I lightly informed him what would happen if he deceived us.”

Lightly informed.

John Peer narrowed his brows at his answer.

“Charlie, isn’t that a bit dangerous?”

He was one of those who thought that you shouldn’t threaten the other party when trading.

This part was subtly similar to Robert.

“John, it wasn’t that big of a deal. I don’t think there is any risk in this story.”

John, unlike him, had a serious expression.

“What if you scare Chairman Kajima and there is a problem with the Japanese business?”

More than 90% of the assets owned by Victoria Fund were tied up in Japan.

“I handled it well so that there would be no problem. You can trust me.”

Since Chung Hyun-woo asked him to believe him, John Peer couldn’t help but believe him.

‘Besides, the conversation between the two had already passed.’

He clenched his fist lightly and said.

“Okay. I’ll trust Charlie’s words.”

Chung Hyun-woo knew John Peer’s concerns and said in a soft voice.

“John, the problem is elsewhere.”

A deeper furrow was dug in John Peer’s brow.

“Are you saying there is a problem elsewhere too?”

“Chairman Kajima Jiro made a new proposal.”

A new proposal.

John Peer paused at his answer.

“What kind of new proposal?”

“He said that he would entrust the inspection of real estate market prices to a third party and add 10% of the market price as an exclusive premium, so let’s continue trading with them.”

John Peer could see how Chung Hyun-woo had negotiated.

‘He pressured Chairman Kajima Jiro and made him make a losing proposal.’

Looking at the results alone, it was the best. But he thought that Chung Hyun-woo’s pressure could cause problems later.

“The transaction itself is advantageous to us, but…”

Chung Hyun-woo raised the end of his words slightly.

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

“I don’t know if I can trust the third party designated by Kajima Group.”

Chung Hyun-woo shook his right hand and said.

“We have the right to designate a third party.”

“Yes? If we have the right to designate a third party, there is no reason not to do it, right?”

Chung Hyun-woo didn’t look like that.

“Isn’t the premium a bit small?”

10% of $100 billion was $10 billion.

“If 10% is small…”

“I was thinking about 20%.”

John Peer shook his head from side to side.

“That probably won’t work.”

“Is that so?”

“Chairman Kajima Jiro was caught off guard, so he probably raised the conditions as much as possible. Considering the circumstances of Kajima Group, I don’t think more than 10% is possible.”

John Peer was one of those who thought that he should continue working with Kajima Group even if there was no premium.

‘It’s impossible to find a new business operator now.’

Victoria Fund and Kajima Group were too intertwined.

Chung Hyun-woo listened to his words and put his hands behind his head.

“Hmm, then I can’t help it.”

“Charlie?”

“I don’t like it, but I’ll accept 10%.”

John Peer listened to his words and stroked his chest.

‘Phew… I’m glad it’s over at this point.’

He couldn’t rest assured until he exchanged the money he earned in Japan for dollars.