We Do Business In Full Auto [EN]: Chapter 48

48

Requiem (2)

It was around lunchtime.

I had been worried about what to do if I couldn’t find the Turtle Ship this morning, but I’m glad it went as expected.

I was planning to meet my family in the afternoon and tour Geoje Island until tomorrow. I asked the government to block reporters’ access, and they replied that they would do their best to prevent my family from being exposed to the media.

This wasn’t just a concern about the leakage of technology, but also related to the British royal family, so I was able to get a positive response.

I’m excited to see my family.

But no matter what, I have to do my job.

I am now used to standing in front of the media.

The public’s attention was focused here, and I had anticipated this to some extent when I received the request, so I had to put up with this much inconvenience.

Buzzing.

This time, instead of just dealing with reporters chasing after me at the pier, it was a formal press conference.

The conference hall was provided by Geoje City.

“It’s Team Leader Lee Yoo-sung!”

When I entered the conference hall, there was a commotion.

People from all walks of life were gathered here.

When the entry of ordinary people was restricted, people camped out outside the conference hall. And hundreds of people, all holding their breath at the sound of my footsteps.

As I went up to the platform, questions about the Turtle Ship poured in.

I put a picture on the projector.

“This is the original form of the Turtle Ship that everyone is curious about.”

“Wow!”

“The Turtle Ship was really sunk?”

“It’s not a restored Turtle Ship, it’s the real thing…….”

Some reporters trembled.

People’s reactions are understandable, as the actual Turtle Ship, which they thought would be sleeping on the seabed, has been revealed.

What about the reaction of historians here?

“I can’t believe I’m seeing the real Turtle Ship before I die. I have no regrets even if I die tomorrow.”

“I want to see the real thing as soon as possible!”

The faces of Oh Sang-shik and his daughter Oh Hye-soo are visible.

Oh Sang-shik was sitting in a wheelchair. He even chartered a helicopter to fly here quickly. He’s a dedicated man.

The mayor of Geoje and the head of Namhae County were also in attendance.

It wouldn’t look good if politicians were missing from such an event. As the attention of the entire nation was pouring in, they were all eager to provide support.

“Is that really the Turtle Ship?”

“Yes. It’s stuck between the sea cliffs.”

“Sea cliffs… How on earth did you take that picture?”

No matter how many times they ask, my answer is always the same.

“It’s a company secret.”

“Hmm.”

“As you can see, the currents are not strong inside the cliff. This is because the Turtle Ship is in a recessed space. Therefore, there is no erosion, and the original form, including the wood, is preserved without damage.”

“I’ve learned that preservative wood doesn’t get damaged.”

“There are many historical examples.”

There were many cases of salvaging warships that were hundreds of years old. That’s why historians were calling for the salvage of the Turtle Ship.

If there were no such examples, even historians would have a hard time strongly advocating for the salvage of the Turtle Ship.

“How did you know that the retreat route was changed at that time?”

“As I said before, the traces of the artifacts point to the north. That means General Won Gyun changed the sea route. So, I also changed the search area and searched.”

“You have more insight than historians.”

Some historians blushed.

The traces presented by many historians were wrong.

The overall framework may be similar, but the Turtle Ship came from a completely unexpected place.

In fact, I might not have found it if I didn’t have the soul of a Joseon [Korean dynasty] naval officer.

“What are your plans for the future?”

“I’ll discuss it with H Group, but I’m going to rest until tomorrow and make a salvage plan the day after tomorrow. I need to rest because I’m cold. It’s the weekend from tomorrow, but H Group’s salvage work will continue. We need to recover the artifacts and get to the most important work.”

I come down from the platform.

Oh Hye-soo ran up to me quickly.

Oh, why is that woman doing that again?

“You are really…….”

“Why are you so intimidating?”

“You are a lifesaver!”

She grabbed my hand.

The fact that the Turtle Ship was salvaged is historically significant, but it’s not like I’m a lifesaver.

I shook my head.

“It would not have been possible without the help of the spirits of our ancestors who participated in the war at that time.”

“How can you say such cool things!”

I slipped my hand away.

I mentioned the soul, but no one thought that I really used the soul to succeed in the Turtle Ship exploration.

The steps out of the auditorium are light.

Reporters flocked to me, and historians were not idle.

Their questions were obvious.

The technology used so far was beyond science, so the question was what kind of technology would be used for the salvage.

If they asked that question, my answer was always obvious, so I didn’t bother to deal with them.

“Take care!”

“Thank you.”

A luxury sedan was ready to depart in front of the conference hall. Department Head Han Cheol-soo was in it.

Clack!

As soon as the door closed, the car started.

“You worked hard.”

“Oh, I’m really going to get neurosis. I think I have camera shyness.”

“Hahaha! You’ll get used to it soon.”

“I really hope that there will be no more media exposure when this is over.”

“If you want, it will be. But many people are already interested in you. You may have to close the cleaning business and come up with another business.”

“I don’t care what kind of business it is as long as I can raise enough money.”

“Haha. Then we can discuss it with us.”

H Group is a really strong lifeline.

Of course, Dr. Oh Hye-soo’s connection, who receives requests from the government, is also strong, but I didn’t really want to work with that woman.

“I was really surprised. I can’t believe the Turtle Ship was submerged there. It’s impossible to infer from the traces of the artifacts.”

“I just thought about it from General Won Gyun’s point of view at the time. There could have been an ambush. I heard that the weather was windy and cloudy.”

“Huh? Is there such a record?”

“Yes.”

Actually, I don’t know.

But if I push the historians, wouldn’t that kind of information come out?

“Now we have to do the salvage work.”

“Wasn’t that supposed to be discussed on Monday?”

“But we have to discuss the cost. We have time to get to the terminal.”

There is a bus that goes directly from Seoul to Geoje. It was a long way from here to the terminal, so it was a good time to discuss this.

I straightened my posture.

The salvage itself is not a problem.

If I use black magic in its current state, I can salvage the Turtle Ship without a scratch. Then, the most important thing for me is the salvage cost.

“Tell me.”

I asked seriously again.

The department head also sympathized with my serious attitude and said seriously.

“How about 2 billion won? [Approximately $1.5 million USD]”

“Yes?”

“We can use our equipment as much as possible. However, partial technology is needed. For example, technology to lift the Turtle Ship without damaging the main body.”

I caught what he meant.

A huge crane will be used to salvage the Turtle Ship, but the currents above the cliff are so strong that it could break if something goes wrong.

Considering the historical value of the Turtle Ship, H Group could suffer enormous damage.

If you’re thinking of doing business in Korea after destroying Admiral Yi’s masterpiece, you’d better give up early.

Of course, that solid company wouldn’t go bankrupt, but it was a terrible thing to even think about.

My job is to block the flow of currents.

It wasn’t difficult to use black magic.

“I’ll try to block the currents.”

“Huh! Is that possible?”

“Yes.”

“Hahaha. What the hell is that… It’s a secret, right?”

Han Cheol-soo has now given up asking me about technology.

It’s embarrassing to ask more because it’s a company secret. Otherwise, he might not even get help.

“If you do that, can we lift it without any problems?”

“Of course. As soon as it gets out of the seabed, I’m going to put it on this steel plate and pull it up. We need two huge salvage ships.”

“Are more salvage ships being added?”

“They’re coming now.”

Indeed, it is H Group.

Among H Group’s affiliates, there was H Shipbuilding & Marine. It was not difficult for Han Cheol-soo to bring two salvage ships they owned.

“2 billion is really a lot of money for me.”

“It’s a small amount for us. The chairman initially called for 3 billion. However, after internal discussions, we thought it was too much and cut it a little.”

“The cut is that level…….”

“If I give you a tip, we can negotiate about 500 million.”

“Hmm. Can we do it for 2.5 billion?”

“Hahaha. Go ahead.”

It’s a really strong lifeline. No, at this point, it should be called a steel wire.

It was H Group who was trying to give me money that they didn’t have to give me. I’m grateful for that.

“Develop an uninhabited island with that money. If you need it, we can provide infrastructure cheaply.”

“Thank you for that.”

I’ll take the favor.

I was worried about how to build infrastructure on an uninhabited island.

H Group has a lot of experience in developing uninhabited islands. They had experience in creating everything from small islands to huge resorts.

With that experience, there is no construction company in the world that is better than H Construction.

“Let’s talk about that later.”

“Thank you for your concern, Department Head.”

“Hahaha. No. This much is natural.”

While I was talking to the department head, I arrived at the Geoje Express Bus Terminal.

The department head handed me a bundle of gift certificates.

“This is a gift.”

“What is this?”

“It’s a local gift certificate, and the mayor of Geoje gave it to me. He told me to give it to you. I bought some and put it in.”

Bundles of 100,000 won [Roughly $75 USD] gift certificates were tied together.

Isn’t this bribery?

Well, there was no reason not to accept it. It was money given by the mayor of Geoje and H Group, and it would be even stranger if I got sick from eating it.

In front of the bus terminal.

I was eagerly waiting for my family.

The waiting time feels boring.

I hadn’t seen my family’s faces for a few days, so they kept appearing in my dreams.

I couldn’t live without my family.

Chee-ik.

The bus from Seoul arrived.

Many people got off, and finally my wife with her gorgeous blonde hair, Soo-ah, whose blonde hair was starting to grow, and Soo-jung, who had mysterious platinum blonde, or silver hair, that reached her waist, ran to me.

People’s eyes were naturally drawn to Soo-jung.

“Dad~!”