After the Divorce, I Found a Thousand Bitcoins - Chapter 64

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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 064

 

As a result, we didn’t discuss anything particularly significant at the site office.

 

For now, we only talked about the other associations excluding that one, saying we had plenty of time so let’s take it easy.

 

‘But he was unusually fixated on that association.’

 

Manager Lee Ji-hun’s reaction was a bit strange.

 

It seemed like he desperately wanted to hear comments about this association.

 

-How about it? If the directors’ association with renowned directors participates, the theme park’s quality will surely improve significantly.

 

I could have agreed with him.

 

‘But after seeing the black web, I couldn’t do that.’

 

So I deflected.

 

Manager Lee Ji-hun seemed displeased and soon got up and left, but that wasn’t the important part.

 

‘The trigger that starts from the Directors’ Association will eventually bring down this theme park.’

 

An impossible occurrence.

 

Something that shouldn’t happen.

 

The theme park was KH Construction’s core business.

 

If that failed, everything would fall apart.

 

‘It’s not just about money flying away. If the first project fails, trust in the construction projects KH Construction participates in will decline.’

 

KH Construction was one of the cash cows that would bring me long-term profits.

 

If such a place went wrong from the start, problems would arise.

 

‘I need to look into this Directors’ Association.’

 

* * *

 

There are many associations in South Korea.

 

They claim to represent their respective fields, but in reality, that wasn’t the case.

 

Especially for incorporated associations, you could create an association just by paying money, so if you put your mind to it, unrelated people could establish associations.

 

Yun Man-seok, the current president of the Directors’ Association, was a film director who was active in the 80s and 90s.

 

He had once made commercially successful films, but all his works from the 2000s onward had flopped.

 

Currently, he naturally couldn’t engage in creative work and only held the title of veteran.

 

“Oh, it’s me. I’m doing a project with Incheon City this time. Huh? Making a movie? What movie would I make at this age? I’m just trying to do work that helps our film industry.”

 

The connections naturally formed over long years in the industry.

 

These were the jobs that currently kept him fed.

 

“Yeah, yeah. Let’s meet face to face and talk. How about the day after tomorrow? Right, let’s meet in Jongno 3-ga.”

 

After hanging up, the corners of his mouth turned up.

 

“Great. If I can somehow persuade this guy to join, the support funds I can demand from Incheon City will increase.”

 

“Who is it that’s got you in such a good mood?”

 

“You know Young-cheol, right?”

 

“Young-cheol? Kim Young-cheol who appeared in The Great Warrior?”

 

“Yeah. I’m meeting with that guy the day after tomorrow.”

 

“But that guy’s an actor, not a director. Is it okay to put someone like that in the association?”

 

“What does that matter? Does the Directors’ Association have to have only directors?”

 

“Well, that’s true too. If Young-cheol joins our association, it’ll become much more solid!”

 

When his old friend and vice president Han Deok-su agreed, his mood improved.

 

“Exactly! Now that our membership is becoming solid, we can negotiate with Incheon City to pull in more support funds!”

 

“How much were you originally supposed to receive?”

 

“We agreed on 100 million won.”

 

“Will that be enough? I heard that theme park project is worth several hundred billion won. Plus, how successful are Korean films worldwide right now?”

 

“That’s true too. It’s because we paved the way well that our juniors succeeded.”

 

“Besides, the movies coming out these days lack depth! What kind of movies are they making with all that CG and ridiculous scenarios?”

 

These two had no qualms about putting down the current generation’s achievements to elevate their own.

 

“In our time, we made movies without CG. These days, they’re all just superficially stylish.”

 

“If we had the capital to make movies again, we’d definitely create tremendous masterpieces. Now that it’s the age of globalization, they’d be recognized as worldwide classics.”

 

“Right. Even the Academy, our dream, wouldn’t be impossible!”

 

Their goal was to make movies again.

 

Since there was nowhere to get production funding, they were now thinking of using Incheon City’s support funds.

 

And they aimed for their lifelong wish of being nominated for an Academy Award.

 

“For that, we need to properly persuade Incheon City.”

 

“Who are the successful juniors these days?”

 

“Wouldn’t Bong Jun-seok be good?”

 

“Hmm, it has to be that guy, right?”

 

“Right. He won an Academy Award and is the most publicly known. If we mention his name, Incheon City will definitely give us huge support funds. Even a billion won wouldn’t be a problem, right?”

 

But there was a problem.

 

“How do we bring in Bong Jun-seok?”

 

They had no personal connection with Bong Jun-seok.

 

They knew his contact information.

 

As veterans, they were invited to various events and had met and exchanged contacts there.

 

But getting him to join the association was a different matter.

 

“Hmm… How about we slowly get him to join the association and persuade Incheon City first?”

 

“How do you mean?”

 

“We say he’s going to join in the future. Something like that.”

 

“What if that fails?”

 

“Ah! Then it fails. When did we ever say he was our member?”

 

“That’s true, isn’t it?”

 

Their thinking was already abnormal.

 

It was natural.

 

Normal people don’t think about deceiving others to extract billions of won.

 

* * *

 

Kang Hyeon investigated the Directors’ Association.

 

And he discovered one fact.

 

“This is a strange place.”

 

The investigation was conducted by Kim Ha-ryul.

 

She had quickly found out about the association using her characteristic information network.

 

“Strange, you say?”

 

“Yes. There are quite a few association members, but most are composed of associate members who don’t pay dues. There are about ten regular members, and they’re all executives.”

 

The structure was so loose you’d wonder if it was even an organization, but many incorporated associations were like this.

 

It looked like something significant, but was actually similar to paper companies in form.

 

“Most importantly, it’s a film directors’ association, but there isn’t a single member who has made a film in the last 20 years.”

 

“Why would Incheon City want to make an agreement with such a place…”

 

The bigger problem was the black web.

 

The black web had appeared when the AI sector was greatly shaken too.

 

If the same thing happened this time, the theme park project itself could be in jeopardy.

 

The problem was that despite this flimsy structure, there was no way to persuade Incheon City.

 

‘The decision on business partners ultimately lies with Incheon City. Just because we’re constructing the theme park doesn’t mean we can control that far.’

 

It wasn’t that there was no method at all.

 

It would be possible if we entered as a core partner in this project itself.

 

The problem was that we’d have to pay enormous costs to do so.

 

Since this was a project Incheon City had staked everything on, we’d have to invest hundreds of billions and tie it up.

 

But from Kang Hyeon’s current position, it was difficult to proceed with such expenditure.

 

‘Large-scale positions are already tied up in nickel. I can’t move the funds invested here until the super cycle begins.’

 

Currently, with large-scale funds tied up in various businesses and nickel positions, there was no room to put money into this project too.

 

In other words, we needed to find another method.

 

“For now, investigate further. Whether this incorporated association will really help with the Yeongjong Island theme park project, and whether there are any legal issues.”

 

“Understood.”

 

As Ha-ryul left the office, Kwangho, who had been listening to the conversation, spoke up.

 

“Why? Does that place seem problematic to you?”

 

“I looked into it since it’s supposed to be a partner corporation. But after hearing the story, it seems strange.”

 

“True, it looked that way to me too. It feels exactly like old men gathering in a back room and putting up a nameplate, doesn’t it?”

 

Though it was a blunt expression, it seemed like the most appropriate one.

 

“I can’t really understand why Incheon City would want to partner with them either. With that level of funding, they could collaborate with much better places.”

 

“Maybe there was money changing hands under the table?”

 

“Under the table money?”

 

“Yeah, these large-scale projects are usually rife with bribes and corruption.”

 

Working in the financial industry, one encounters various rumors and news.

 

One of them was news about bribes and corruption occurring in projects worth hundreds of billions.

 

With such large amounts of money involved and various people entangled, illegal activities naturally occurred.

 

“But would this incorporated foundation have that kind of money to give?”

 

“Well. Slipping money to one or two key officials might be possible, don’t you think?”

 

“Hmm.”

 

“So what are you planning to do?”

 

“Honestly, I don’t know. Incheon City didn’t formally request my consultation, and it was just a casual question from a site manager I happened to meet.”

 

“True, since they’re civil servants, procedures are important. Or you’d have to bring in someone big enough to ignore those procedures. Don’t you know anyone in the entertainment industry?”

 

“No. I have no connections in that field at all.”

 

“Doesn’t Richard know people in Hollywood?”

 

“He probably does. But it doesn’t fit this project. After all, it’s themed around K-culture.”

 

There seemed to be no way out from various angles.

 

That’s when a person’s name came to Kwangho’s mind.

 

“Manager Kim Hyeon-su.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“That person used to appear on TV a lot. Since he frequently appeared on variety shows, wouldn’t he know many people in that industry and celebrities?”

 

“Ah! That’s right.”

 

“Try contacting him and ask for some introductions.”

 

It seemed like a path forward was becoming visible.

 

* * *

 

A few days later.

 

Kang Hyeon visited Kim Hyeon-su’s gym.

 

“CEO! Welcome!”

 

“Have you been well?”

 

He shook hands with the still energetic Kim Hyeon-su and entered the gym.

 

The gym located in the basement was quite spacious.

 

The interior was properly equipped, even having a makeshift octagon.

 

“Choi CEO!”

 

At that moment, Kang Chan-wook, who had been teaching students, came running over.

 

“Fighter Kang Chan-wook, have you been well?”

 

“I’ve been well thanks to you. Ah, and I really wanted to express my gratitude. Thanks to the bonus you gave me, my father was able to get surgery.”

 

“That’s great. Which hospital did you decide on?”

 

“I still need to look into it. They said it takes some time to get into a higher-level hospital. Even more so for university hospitals.”

 

At the mention of university hospital, Kang Hyeon thought for a moment and said.

 

“There’s a university hospital I go to. Let me ask if they have any openings in their schedule.”

 

“Are… are you serious?”

 

“Yes. It might not work out though. If possible, I’ll try to move up the schedule.”

 

“Th… thank you!”

 

“It’s not confirmed yet, so don’t get your hopes up too much.”

 

“Just you doing this much is more than enough to be grateful for!”

 

Seeing Kang Chan-wook’s bright smile showing how truly grateful he was, Kang Hyeon smiled too.

 

Watching the two of them, Kim Hyeon-su also looked moved.

 

“By the way, Manager.”

 

“Ah, yes.”

 

“The reason I came today is because there’s something I’d like to ask of you.”

 

“A request?”

 

“Could we talk quietly for a moment?”

 

“Of course. Please come this way.”

 

Following Kim Hyeon-su’s guidance, they moved to the manager’s office.

 

Once the door was closed, only slight noise could be heard, and it became quite quiet.

 

“The thing is, among the projects I’m currently working on, there’s the Yeongjong Island theme park.”

 

“I know about it. I’ve seen it in articles before too. You caught rental scammers and started building a theme park there, right?”

 

“Yes. To be precise, the theme park itself isn’t a project I’m running, but one Incheon City is proceeding with. The theme there is K-culture.”

 

Kang Hyeon explained the theme park to Kim Hyeon-su.

 

When Kim Hyeon-su nodded as if he understood after hearing the explanation, Kang Hyeon brought up the main point.

 

“So I was wondering if among your acquaintances, there might be someone you know in the film industry or music field.”

 

At Kang Hyeon’s request, Kim Hyeon-su grinned and strongly thumped his chest.

 

“Of course! Just trust me!”

 

Kim Hyeon-su answered more reliably than ever before.

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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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