We Do Business In Full Auto [EN]: Chapter 122

122

Alternative Plan (2)

“What are you talking about?”

“No, I got excited and misspoke. Can’t you let me have this AI!?”

Lee Seulgi was looking at me with a rather earnest expression.

I thought she would naturally recognize Cecil’s value. If Cecil could assist her in her state of being overwhelmed with work, smooth operation would be possible.

A genius brain, the ability to grasp the core of issues, and a beautiful appearance with diplomatic skills.

Diplomacy isn’t just about relations between countries. It’s company to company, in sales, and even in meetings between management executives.

In fact, the operation of a company involves deep diplomacy within its internal structure.

Lee Seulgi’s request to have a very useful AI was, in a way, only natural.

“What should I do?”

“Cut my salary! And give it to me!”

“Are you asking for ownership?”

“Not that, I’m asking you to let it help me with my work!”

Her expression becomes even more earnest.

I wanted to tease her more, but I was concerned that Lee Seulgi’s loyalty might be seriously diminished, so I gave her permission.

“Do it.”

“Really!?”

“Yeah.”

“President, I love you!”

“Whoa? I’m taken. Go back in a time machine for about 10 years and then try hitting on me.”

“That’s too much, isn’t it? To a virgin.”

“Will you be able to use Cecil’s abilities well? It’s a rare genius AI. I also make AIs, but geniuses are born probabilistically.”

“If you give it to me, I’ll work hard to grow the company!”

“Do that.”

“Thank you!”

Lee Seulgi jumped up and down, so happy.

Well, she had been organizing documents and working hard alone until now, so the appearance of an AI that could grasp the key points and include her own opinions must have been shocking to her.

“Well, shall we go home now?”

“Yes! I’ll take you there.”

On the way home.

Lee Seulgi wore a pleasant smile from beginning to end.

It was obvious that her workload would be greatly reduced if Cecil was with her.

“Are you that happy?”

“Of course. It’s obvious that my work will be reduced by half or less.”

“That much?”

“This is an innovation! If you sell it to each CEO, you can get a lot of money.”

“Hmm. I won’t sell it. It’s different from ordinary AIs.”

“That’s what I mean.”

You can’t sell a vampire noble.

Unlike dummies, vampire nobles live on my magic power. So I can’t sell them.

Once I sell them, I have to constantly supply them with magic power, but I couldn’t do that.

“It’s a new world. How on earth did you make this?”

“Just… well, I guess?”

“You’re definitely a genius. The children are geniuses, and I think your wife is the same. Right?”

“Lisa is…”

Is my wife a genius?

I had that question a long time ago.

But Lisa has never shown her genius. But now I think that’s all possible because she’s a genius.

“Maybe so.”

“How can there be such a family of geniuses?”

Lee Seulgi clicked her tongue.

She thought I was beyond a prodigy, and that it was a great achievement to have created this AI.

What kind of expression will she have in the future when she learns that this is not science but black magic?

Lee Seulgi stroked Cecil’s head.

“You are my treasure. Got it?”

“Please order me to do anything, little master.”

I thought that if Cecil was a man, I would have fallen in love with her.

I’m glad I picked her as a female, I suppose?

Soon I arrived home.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow! Can I use this!?”

“Do that. Just don’t break it.”

“Don’t worry.”

Lee Seulgi was taking care of Cecil to the point of being burdensome, but Cecil was maintaining a poker face.

She will laugh enough when she needs to laugh.

When she enters diplomacy, it will naturally happen.

It seems that when companies are established, one mutant vampire noble should be assigned to each company.

On the day of the inauguration.

Today is the day of the decisive battle.

It was a legitimate acquisition of the company through a big deal and M&A [Mergers and Acquisitions], but today, after the inauguration ceremony, I had to declare a large-scale restructuring, so it was truly a day of decisive battle.

I look in the mirror and check my clothes.

After that, my wife fixed my tie.

“Have a good day.”

“Have a good day!”

Sua greets me, following her mother.

I lightly hug Sua and leave the house with Sujeong.

Sujeong’s school was a 5-minute walk from home, so I was going to drop her off and go to the inauguration ceremony.

As soon as Sujeong comes out of the house, she can’t hide her excitement.

“Dad! Then everyone’s heads will be cut off!?”

“Hey. Why are you expressing it like that?”

“Then, isn’t it?”

Sujeong seemed to know very well that restructuring was necessary to make a profit.

As President Lee Cheol-jin complained, Cheonwoo Trading not only mediated trade but also directly operated shipping lines.

Once this shipping line set sail, it had to sail at sea for at least a few weeks, so labor costs were considerable.

After disembarking, they took a break, but they traveled around in distant foreign countries for at least a month or more, and it was a repetition of such work throughout the year, so wages were bound to be expensive.

Sailors basically had an annual salary of around 100 million won [~75,000 USD], and even with a little experience, it easily exceeded 100 million won.

It wasn’t for nothing that businesses went bankrupt due to labor costs or suffered from financial difficulties due to deteriorating profits.

The opportunity to get rid of high-income earners and plant vampires there is only at the moment when the CEO changes.

If I miss this opportunity and the company stabilizes, I would obviously face extreme backlash.

The superficial reason for the M&A was the big deal, but that was just a justification, and if I brought up the deficit as the real reason, I could easily push for restructuring.

“Let’s just call it early retirement. And a significant number of executives will return to the Cheonwoo Group, so there won’t be much backlash. A significant number of sailors will move to other companies, so that won’t matter either.”

“Then how do you fill that gap?”

“Once the vampires take over, they’ll adapt quickly. Don’t worry.”

“As expected of Dad.”

Sujeong has recently succeeded in deciphering Runes to some extent.

When Sujeong’s decoding is finished, she may be able to find a way to reach the 7th Circle [a high level of magical attainment].

If I can reach the realm of the 7th Circle.

At that time, I will have enough legions to put the undead in all businesses.

I part ways with Sujeong in front of the school.

“Then Sujeong will be deciphering Runes again today!”

“Okay. I hope you can find a way to reach the 7th Circle as soon as possible.”

“I’ll try. But it’s not easy.”

I stroke Sujeong’s head once.

Sujeong jumps up, kisses me on the cheek, and disappears into the school.

As expected, Sujeong’s followers (?) were waiting in front of the school.

I don’t know if she has good relationships with her classmates or if she has become the leader of her friends, but I don’t think I need to worry too much about Sujeong’s school life.

Soon, the car arrives.

Secretary Lee Seulgi greets me.

“Chairman! Get in!”

“Chairman?”

“You’ll be called that soon, right?”

The title is unfamiliar.

After the inauguration ceremony at the trading company today, the Soo Group will be officially declared. All companies will be incorporated into the Soo Group’s affiliates and renamed.

Cheonwoo Trading will also be called Soo Trading.

“Let’s go.”

I comfortably settle into the luxury car.

Although the businesses are tied together as the Soo Group, there were still shortcomings in seeing it as a mid-sized business group.

“We should start considering overseas expansion.”

“Overseas expansion?”

“Once we conquer the domestic convenience store industry, we should expand to Japan or China. The same goes for lunch boxes.”

“Are you already thinking about that?”

“For now?”

“For now…….”

“It doesn’t matter because it will be running in full auto anyway, right?”

“If full auto is possible, the business can’t fail.”

In the end, convenience stores are a labor cost battle.

No, I wondered if that wasn’t the case for all businesses.

I was able to create more dummies, and now I was planning to put dummies in all the companies.

It’s a management strategy that can never fail.

“Ah, and Chairman.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Intelligence has come in that GK and Nine colluded to lower the price of goods by about 2% more.”

“From the intelligence department?”

“Yes.”

“Director Lee is doing a good job.”

“What should we do?”

It’s slowly reaching the threshold.

Even if we use dummies, GK and Nine won’t be able to withstand it if the price of goods drops by 20%.

If time passes like that, Soo Convenience Store will inevitably become difficult.

But even so.

“Just leave it alone.”

“Is it okay?”

“We have a very big advantage called labor costs. No matter how much they attack me, they’ll eventually realize that they’re just cutting their own flesh.”

For now, I decided to turn off my attention to convenience stores today.

If it’s going to happen anyway, just let it happen. If I awkwardly intervene here, I’ll only waste my energy.

I already had a countermeasure for that.

I already knew that GK had started a chicken game [a strategy where two opponents escalate a conflict until one yields], so now I had to focus only on the inauguration ceremony and restructuring.

GK Group headquarters.

President Lee Jeong-man met with the president of Nine Convenience Store today and signed an agreement to lower the price of goods by 2% more. From today, GK and Nine will supply goods by additionally lowering the price by 2%.

Of course, the store owners and the company shared the risk, and fierce opposition from the store owners was expected.

Director Lee Yu-chan was worried that the situation was getting worse.

“The store owners may hold a protest.”

“They also know that a chicken game has started, right?”

“Even so, carrying out a 17% reduction is…….”

“Director Oh also knows. Soon, those Nine Convenience Store guys will collapse.”

“Ahem. There are rumors that he will be inaugurated as the representative of Cheonwoo Trading today and will soon be tied to the Soo Group.”

“A business group?”

“Yes. It seems that they are planning to launch a business group by tying together food, trade, retail, and science.”

“I guess he wants to hear the sound of chairman [a Korean expression for wanting to be called ‘Chairman’].”

“He’s full of 허세 [heose – Korean for showing off]. He’s lucky enough to invent an android and is expanding like an octopus with the money he sold it for.”

“He doesn’t have the basics of management. Does the profit increase just by increasing the size of the company? Never. It’s better to have one solid company than several poor companies. As Director Lee said, he’s full of 허세 [heose – Korean for showing off]. Did you roughly leak the information?”

“Of course.”

“What was their reaction?”

“Too calm.”

“Calm?”

“It’s as if they knew this was going to happen.”

President Lee Jeong-man felt a little uneasy, but he was confident that GK would be the winner of the chicken game.