After the Divorce, I Found a Thousand Bitcoins - Chapter 180

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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I Got Divorced and Found a Thousand Bitcoins Episode 180

Zhao Qian’s smile completely crumbled.

Undeniable displeasure was clearly revealed through the deeply carved wrinkles.

“I acknowledge Chairman Choi’s boldness.”

Zhao Qian pressed his hands on the table and slowly stood up.

The overwhelming pressure emanating from his massive frame heavily weighed down the banquet hall.

“But you must keep in mind that corporate arrogance can escalate into conflicts between nations.”

It was a clear threat.

A warning that if they didn’t obediently hand over the desired technology, he would inflict massive retaliation on the South Korean government and economy as a whole.

“Issues between nations are a domain for politicians to resolve.”

Kang Hyeon also stood up from his chair and replied.

“It’s not something I should be involved in.”

“….”

“But if my decision causes damage to the Korean market and disrupts my business.”

Kang Hyeon lightly adjusted his tie while looking directly into Zhao Qian’s eyes.

“I too will mobilize the capital I possess and won’t stand idly by.”

An eye for an eye, capital for capital.

It was an arrogant declaration of war that only someone capable of shaking the hegemony of the world economy could utter.

The muscles in Zhao Qian’s cheek twitched slightly.

“We’ll see about that.”

He spat out those words and turned around.

Liu Wei and the secretaries hurriedly followed behind him.

At Kang Hyeon’s appearance of not yielding until the very end, the Chinese officials left the banquet hall unable to hide their deep hostility.

Kang Hyeon returned to his accommodation at Zhaoerdai without delay.

The security escort vehicles that had been following throughout the car journey had noticeably decreased.

It was the beginning of blatant cold treatment.

“Be especially careful tonight.”

Before crossing the threshold of the suite room, Kang Hyeon briefly instructed the security team manager.

“Control all access by outsiders regardless of reason. Use only the food and beverages we brought.”

“Understood. We’ll maintain thorough vigilance.”

Kang Hyeon entered the room and took off his coat.

Blue lights were still flickering behind the chandeliers and murals.

The eyes of surveillance would be tracking Kang Hyeon’s every move more fiercely than before.

‘Zhao Qian.’

Kang Hyeon turned off the lights and lay down on the bed.

The possibility of physical harm was low. If he died here, American and Western capital wouldn’t leave China alone.

But this was the heart of enemy territory where any unexpected variables could arise.

Kang Hyeon spent the night in light sleep.

The next morning.

Fortunately, there was no physical action from the Chinese side.

But the atmosphere itself was completely different from yesterday.

On the way to the airport with Kang Hyeon’s vehicle.

The urban roads were completely blocked, and the noisy escort procession had disappeared.

Even Liu Wei wasn’t visible in front of the private jet’s stairs.

A cold departure without a single high-level official seeing him off.

It was typical petty power play of a great nation, inviting someone as a state guest then driving them out with contempt.

“Let’s depart.”

Kang Hyeon casually glanced once at the empty runway before entering the aircraft.

There was no reason to waste emotions on such shallow mistreatment.

The private jet roared as it kicked off from Beijing’s murky sky.

Seoul KH Group Headquarters.

As soon as Kang Hyeon returned to the country, an emergency assembly order was issued to the top-floor conference room.

Subsidiary presidents and key executives were holding their breath while maintaining their positions.

“Negotiations with Zhao Qian have broken down.”

Kang Hyeon briefed the situation as soon as he sat at the head seat.

“He wanted KH’s technology transferred for free, and I demanded complete withdrawal of China’s technology control legislation.”

“….”

“There’s no compromise. The Chinese side will take some kind of action soon.”

The executives’ faces all hardened in unison.

The price of directly opposing Zhao Qian’s intentions.

It could go beyond the level of simple trade retaliation.

“Chairman, currently our group’s dependency ratio on rare earth elements and robot drive system components from China reaches 40 percent.”

The strategic planning director reported while swallowing dry saliva.

“If the Chinese government forcibly imposes export controls, the mass production lines at the Ohio robot factory will completely stop. Astra’s space launch vehicle schedule will also suffer serious damage.”

“That’s not all. If Chinese capital in Korea withdraws funds all at once, the domestic financial market will also be greatly shaken.”

Heavy sighs erupted from various parts of the meeting room.

Although Kang Hyeon had Edwin as a reliable shield behind him, there was no immediate way to prevent physical retaliation that cut off parts supply chains right before their eyes.

If Zhao Qian drew the sword of retaliation, it would amount to holding not just KH Group but the entire Korean economy hostage.

“We need to establish countermeasures.”

Executive Director Lee Gi-cheol, participating in the meeting via video conference from the United States, spoke coldly.

“We must immediately activate Plan B to diversify the China-sourced raw material supply chain toward South America and Africa. The initial logistics costs will be enormous, but there’s no other way.”

The executives nodded with stern faces at Lee Gi-cheol’s words.

The collision had already become an unavoidable reality.

A situation where two massive forces were aiming at each other’s vital points, just before pulling the trigger.

Kang Hyeon quietly observed the executives pouring out countermeasures with a heavy expression.

“Execute supply chain diversification immediately.”

Kang Hyeon’s voice instantly silenced the murmuring in the meeting room.

“I’ll approve short-term logistics cost increases without limit. Complete an independent structure that doesn’t depend on China for even 1 won worth of core components in the shortest time possible.”

A declaration to completely cut off the leash that Zhao Qian could grab and shake.

Kang Hyeon’s cold gaze sharply pierced through the red territory on the world map displayed on the large monitor.

‘If you want war, I’ll gladly escalate the game.’

There would be no compromise with China.

Kang Hyeon stared at the large monitor in his office.

The screen displayed rare earth element reserves and import-export indicators from around the world.

Overwhelming red. More than 80 percent of the world’s supply chain was tied to a single country called China.

It was the largest and most violent weapon that Zhao Qian relied on.

‘But it’s not like there are no alternatives.’

Kang Hyeon’s cold eyes turned toward a point in the past.

A few years ago, Kang Hyeon had secretly acquired a hardware startup in Dubai.

The core of the technology was clear. Design technology for data center server boards that didn’t contain even 1 gram of rare earth elements.

At that time, Kang Hyeon had swallowed them whole and incorporated them under the Nereid Research Institute led by Nathan.

Beep.

Kang Hyeon connected the desktop’s secure communication network.

-Yes, Boss.

Nathan’s voice came through the receiver.

“How’s the server efficiency at the Ulsan Data Center?”

-The synergy with Nereid’s immersion cooling system increased data processing speed by 15 percent compared to existing systems.

It was successful demonstration.

But what Kang Hyeon wanted wasn’t just reducing server room maintenance costs.

“I’m curious about the versatility of that technology.”

-By versatility, you mean….

“Can the alternative alloy technology applied to server boards be transplanted to other physical hardware as well? Like the drive motors of robots to be mass-produced in Ohio, or the control modules of Astra launch vehicles.”

A brief silence flowed through the communication network.

Nathan’s typing sounds paused momentarily.

-…Stationary servers and physically moving drive systems have completely different resistance values. I can’t give a definitive answer right now on whether we can achieve magnetic field efficiency that could replace permanent magnets.

“This isn’t a situation where we can stall for time.”

Kang Hyeon picked up a pen and lightly tapped the desk.

“Gather the team members immediately and run physics calculation simulations. Report the results within one hour.”

-Understood. I’ll contact you immediately after internal discussions.

The communication ended.

Kang Hyeon put down the headset and immediately opened another line.

It was a hotline directly connected to the Oval Office, White House across the Pacific.

-I’ve heard about the situation, Mr. Choi.

President Edwin’s voice was heavier and more subdued than usual.

-It seems Zhao Qian has finally decided to draw the sword of supply chains. The U.S. Department of Commerce has also detected China’s movements to control rare earth and critical mineral exports.

“Have you prepared countermeasures?”

-We’re opening indirect import routes through allied nations, but the volume is woefully insufficient. I’m concerned there might be disruptions to KH’s factory operations within the United States.

Edwin spared political rhetoric.

He knew better than anyone that if capital flow was blocked, his own political position would also be shaken.

“Just buy us a little time.”

Kang Hyeon answered while lightly adjusting his tie.

“Please apply diplomatic pressure on China at the U.S. administration level. We need to delay the timing of a comprehensive export ban as much as possible.”

-Understood. We’ll take immediate action through the State Department.

Having finished coordinating with the United States, Kang Hyeon immediately connected to the South Korean government hotline without delay.

His contact was Minister Choi.

-Intelligence has come in that China is targeting KH Group directly.

Minister Choi’s voice carried deep perplexity.

-If Chairman Zhao Qian controls not only rare earths but also battery raw materials, all of South Korea’s key industries will come to a halt. Chairman, what exactly did you discuss in Zhongnanhai?

“I simply refused China’s unreasonable technology theft.”

Kang Hyeon drew a cold line.

“If the national economy is shaken, that’s the government’s responsibility for failing to diversify supply chains, not a problem with my business.”

-Haa….

A deep sigh came through the receiver.

Minister Choi’s voice, which had been unable to hide his difficulty, soon sank heavily.

-Since it’s already happened, there’s nothing we can do. Understood. I’ll coordinate with the Blue House to activate countermeasures against China’s economic retaliation.

“Please also prepare an official protest statement at the government level. We cannot let them shake the Korean market at will.”

-I’ll keep that in mind.

After finishing the call, Kang Hyeon leaned back deeply in his chair.

The stage was set. He had completed preparations to primarily deflect China’s economic retaliation using the United States and South Korean governments as shields.

But that was merely a stopgap measure to buy time.

A fundamental solution.

Unless he could cut off the massive leash of rare earths itself, he could never win the war against Zhao Qian.

Beep- Beep-

Just then, the secure communication network on his desk rang sharply again.

It was Nathan. Less than an hour had passed.

Kang Hyeon picked up the headset without delay.

“The conclusion?”

-Boss.

Nathan’s voice through the receiver was trembling slightly.

It wasn’t anxiety or fear. It was waves of extreme excitement being suppressed.

-It’s possible. No, it’s perfect.

“Report specifically.”

-We ran physics calculation simulations using the newly recruited team members and Nereid’s main server. We twisted the molecular structure arrangement of non-rare earth alloys very minutely.

Tap tap tap.

Complex 3D data and figures were transmitted and appeared on Kang Hyeon’s monitor.

-The results are astounding. Compared to neodymium permanent magnets containing rare earths, the magnetic field efficiency reaches up to 92 percent.

“92 percent.”

-Yes! The 8 percent power reduction is a figure that can be sufficiently offset by optimizing Orbis robot joint drive software!

Nathan continued his report while panting.

-We can immediately integrate it into space launch vehicle control modules as well. Most importantly….

“It would be the cost.”

Kang Hyeon said dryly while staring at the bottom of the derived data.

-Correct. We can reduce costs by more than 60 percent compared to importing and processing existing rare earths. Once yield is stabilized, this will be a revolution that overturns the entire hardware ecosystem!

The moment China’s most powerful weapon would become useless.

It was perfect independence that could produce the world’s most advanced robots and space launch vehicles without rare earths.

“Don’t waste time.”

Kang Hyeon’s voice echoed through the office.

“Set up mass production processes for the alloy immediately. Completely revise the design of all hardware components going into the Ohio Robot Factory and Texas Space Base to be based on non-rare earth materials.”

-Understood! I’ll immediately begin all-night work in coordination with the Orbis and Astra teams!

The communication ended.

Kang Hyeon quietly looked down at the perfect figures of the simulation displayed on his monitor.

At the very moment Zhao Qian tried to tighten the noose, the most lethal and perfect countermeasure had opened up.

‘The rules of war have changed.’

The rare earths that Zhao Qian thought were his weapon could no longer strangle their necks.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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