Goblin Library - Chapter 214

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 214.

Kim Ki-chun turned his head, pondering what business Lee Gang-hun could possibly be planning.
『Have you looked into the China side?』
『I’ve confirmed with the paint suppliers we have connections with, and there are no Korean Trade Companies trying to establish new transactions outside of existing clients.』
『Did you investigate through other companies as well?』
『We also checked with other Trade Companies that deal with China to see if any new competitors had emerged, but there’s no word of that.』
Kim Ki-chun fell silent for a moment after hearing the employee’s report, then spoke.
『Is there any large-scale paint project heading to China?』
『The construction industry has slowed, but construction projects are still happening.』
『Construction naturally happens. If it didn’t, construction companies would go bankrupt… but it’s not the construction sector. Construction can be adequately covered with paint made in China. What about specialty paints?』
『There is information that a new automobile production line is being launched at Pan Motors. So there’s talk that they’re looking for specialty paints from abroad.』
『Pan Motors, huh….』
As Kim Ki-chun was lost in thought, one of the employees spoke up.
『Could we be barking up the wrong tree?』
『Wrong tree?』
『A large corporation like Pan Motors would have no reason to conduct business with a small-to-medium enterprise like Lee Gang-hun’s company.』
『That’s true.』
『So it’s not Pan Motors. And we’ve been thinking that Lee Gang-hun is selling Korean products to China… but what if it’s the opposite? What if he’s trying to sell Chinese products to other countries? That would make sense, wouldn’t it?』
『Other countries?』
『Lately, with China’s Belt and Road Initiative, there’s been a lot of construction happening abroad. If he’s sending Chinese paint to those places, it would be a profitable business. So wouldn’t it make sense if he was looking at Chinese paint catalogs for that reason?』
At the employee’s words, Kim Ki-chun pressed his forehead with his hand and sighed.
『Why would China entrust that to Lee Gang-hun?』
『Sir?』
『The Belt and Road Initiative is a business that generates reliable profits for Chinese companies with minimal difficulty—like swimming while standing on the ground. Why would they entrust it to Lee Gang-hun? There would be no need for a Trade Company. The paint manufacturers could simply load it onto ships and send it themselves.』
『Ah….』
The subordinate, realizing he had said something foolish, flushed red and lowered his head. Kim Ki-chun glared at him irritably before turning his gaze away.
His eyes drifted toward the right end of the conference table—the seat where Lee Gang-hun used to sit.
Lee Gang-hun was not in the same department as Kim Ki-chun, but he participated in integrated meetings as a manager-level employee.
Whenever there were problems or obstacles, he would offer his opinion.
And every single one of those opinions hit the mark precisely. But Kim Ki-chun, who had never gotten along with Lee Gang-hun, consistently dismissed his suggestions.
Though not entirely. Outwardly, he would scoff, ignore, and criticize, but then he would have a subordinate add something to that opinion and present it again as their own.
And then….

-Manager Jang has good ideas, but the details are lacking. See how much better that useless idea became when done this way.

He delivered the rebuke in this manner.
Of course, his subordinates understood that this was all intended to diminish Lee Gang-hun… but with Kim Ki-chun wielding such formidable power, they couldn’t bring themselves to defend Lee Gang-hun.
Kim Ki-chun watched the seat where Lee Gang-hun had been sitting and cursed him inwardly.
If that incompetent bastard hadn’t wasted time on useless schemes, I would have seen this through to the end.
The relationship between Kim Ki-chun and Lee Gang-hun hadn’t been poor from the beginning. Kim Ki-chun understood well how valuable a competent and capable subordinate could be to him.
But….
The problem was that he had testified against me.
Kim Ki-chun, who had been silent for a moment, opened his mouth.
『Let’s wait a bit longer….』
But before Kim Ki-chun could even broach the main topic, the conference room door burst open.
『What is this! Can’t you see we’re in a meeting!』
Even as Kim Ki-chun shouted, the Factory Employee who entered hurried over and whispered something in his ear.
After hearing the news, Kim Ki-chun looked at him with startled eyes.
『Prefabricated buildings?』
『They’re currently conducting a presale business targeting local wealthy individuals and Chinese investors with them.』
『A presale business?』
『They’re building a village.』
『A village?』
Kim Ki-chun, who had been parroting the employee’s words like a fool, fell silent for a moment before noticing the Chinese paint catalogs scattered across the conference table.
And… he understood.
『Ha! I’ve been played.』
『Director, what do you mean?』
Kim Ki-chun answered the employee’s question.
『Back when we were competing in the home appliance sector, Lee Gang-hun brought a stack of used car catalogs to a meeting with those people.』
『Used car catalogs?』
『When I asked why he was bringing such things, he said there would be a use for them. Then while talking with the people from that country, Lee Gang-hun accidentally knocked over his bag and the catalogs spilled out.』
Kim Ki-chun let out a bitter laugh.
『Seeing that, those fools from that country thought our next business venture was exporting used cars. They wasted time investigating and looking into it.』
At Kim Ki-chun’s words, the employee looked at the Chinese paint catalogs on the table in shock.
『Then?』
『Yes… he wasted our time with this. Ha! I got outmaneuvered…!』
Kim Ki-chun suddenly roared and swept the catalogs across the table with his hand.
Whoooosh!
As the catalogs fluttered to the floor, Kim Ki-chun stomped and trampled them, biting his lip.
『That bastard Lee Gang-hun made a fool of me!』
At the sight of Kim Ki-chun ranting and fuming loudly, one of the employees nearby gave a subtle signal to the others.
The employees rose one by one and quietly slipped out of the conference room.
Once all the other employees had left, that employee cautiously approached Kim Ki-chun’s side.
『What is the matter, sir?』
『That bastard Lee Gang-hun blinded me with paint while exporting prefabricated buildings to that country.』
『You don’t mean… building a village, do you?』
『Exactly. We’re constructing luxury homes for the wealthy using prefabricated buildings!』
『On that land?』
『Yes. Damn it!』
Kim Ki-chun glared at the paint catalog before turning his gaze toward the Factory Employee.
『How could you not know about this? We’re making prefabricated buildings for export. Can this be done in just one or two months? Assembling them, shipping them by boat from Korea to there! Can this possibly be done in one or two months?!』
『I will look into it.』
『This is—』
Kim Ki-chun had raised his hand without thinking, but he bit his lip and lowered it.
No matter how angry he was, he wasn’t trash who would resort to violence against a subordinate.
Lowering his hand, Kim Ki-chun exhaled heavily and spoke.
『What good does investigating now do? If we’d looked into this before the export or before making the prefabricated buildings, we could have intervened somehow. But now the work is already underway and the business is in progress.』
『I apologize.』
『Never mind. Go. No, investigate. Find out the scale of this village project and what kind of profit margins it has.』
『Understood.』
As the Factory Employee hurried out, Kim Ki-chun sighed.
『There’s no one worth using. Not a single one worth using.』
Shaking his head slightly, Kim Ki-chun pulled out his phone and called someone.
『Hello. Manager Zhang, how have you been?』
Fluent Chinese flowed from Kim Ki-chun’s lips. Having worked at the Trade Company for so long, he had built close connections with Chinese contacts.
『You know that Korean guy named Lee Gang-hun who used to complain before? He’s supposedly building houses there now. Do you know about it? You told me back then to let you know if that guy went back to that country. He should be there now.』
As he spoke, Kim Ki-chun suddenly squinted his eyes.
Now that he thought about it, these guys hadn’t even detected that Lee Gang-hun had gone to that country.
Of course, he’d already been informed that Lee Gang-hun had left the country. He’d simply assumed the destination was China and that he was going to conduct paint business.
Just as Kim Ki-chun was thinking he’d need to scold his subordinates, he heard the other party’s voice.
[We already know about it.]
『You know about it?』
[We’ve negotiated with our bosses. From now on, we won’t touch Lee Gang-hun in this country.]
『What do you mean, you won’t touch him? That guy is causing Manager Zhang losses right now!』
[He presented us with a business that would not only compensate for those losses but provide far greater profits.]
『He presented a business?』
[Yes. So… there’s nothing we can do.]
『No, Manager Zhang. You should think about the damage that guy caused you.』
[It’s already been decided from above.]
『So it just ends like this?』
[Unless Boss Kim proposes an even better business that would make the higher-ups reverse their decision. Then I could bring it to my boss.』
『A better… business?』
[Yes, a better business. We move according to profit.]
『That…』
[Do you have one?]
『No, that can’t be right. Of course there is. Ah! What about the paint business? We’re currently researching new business ventures in the paint sector.』
It wasn’t a properly established operation, but while I investigated and searched for what Lee Gang-hun was up to, I did uncover a few items worth considering.
Of course, the margins were too thin for them to pursue, but still… it was a business that wouldn’t result in losses.
[Paint, huh….]
『Manager Zhang’s location also requires a lot of paint, doesn’t it? How about we try making a good deal?』
At Kim Ki-chun’s words, the other party sighed.
[We source our paint from our home country. There’s no reason for the Boss’s company to insert itself in between.]
『That… that’s true.』
Kim Ki-chun’s face flushed as he recalled that he had just uttered the same foolish remark his subordinate had made to him.
[And… the Boss’s information network seems slower than expected. When did Lee Gang-hun enter this country, and you’re only contacting us now?]
『That… well, you see.』
Kim Ki-chun cursed inwardly, thinking that this bastard should have informed him beforehand.
This man had known the information I was only hearing now for several months.
If he had relayed it earlier, I wouldn’t have wasted months on such futile efforts.
[And going forward, let’s just stick to formal language.]
As the Chinese man attempted to end the call, Kim Ki-chun hastily called out to him.
『Hey, hey. Brother, bro….』
But the call had already been disconnected, and naturally, Kim Ki-chun’s voice never reached him.
Kim Ki-chun immediately called him back. But no matter how long he waited, the other party didn’t answer, so Kim Ki-chun bit his lip.
『Damn it!』
A moment later, Kim Ki-chun pulled out his phone with a determined expression.
『It’s me. Book me a flight to ** Unnamed Country right now.』
Then Kim Ki-chun opened the conference room door and stepped out.
He pointed at two Factory Employees in turn, who were staring at him with surprised eyes.
『You, and you. Both of you are going on a business trip to ** Unnamed Country with me.』
『Yes? A business trip?』
『That’s right, a business trip. What, you don’t like it?』
At Kim Ki-chun’s venomous gaze, the Factory Employee quickly shook his head.
『No, sir. If you tell me the schedule and what materials need to be prepared, I’ll get ready right now.』
Kim Ki-chun responded to the Factory Employee’s words.
『Never mind. Just pack some clothes. Contact my secretary and have her book your tickets too.』
As Kim Ki-chun turned to leave, the Factory Employee quickly asked.
『Are we leaving right now?』
『Pack your bags. Once the flight tickets are secured, we’re departing immediately.』
『Understood.』
After giving his instructions, Kim Ki-chun left the area.
When Kim Ki-chun arrived at the floor where the executive offices were located and quickened his pace, Director Oh approached from the opposite direction.
『Director Kim, where are you rushing off to?』
Kim Ki-chun glanced at him briefly and hurried on without answering.
At this, Director Oh chuckled and spoke.
『Director Kim, you always pretend not to recognize people when you see them. Or is something troubling you?』
At Director Oh’s outburst, Kim Ki-chun turned to glare at him. Yet he uttered not a single word in response and continued on his way.
Witnessing this, Director Oh suppressed a smile.
It seemed Lee Gang-hun’s plan was progressing even better than anticipated.
Director Oh soon set off as well. He needed to work just as diligently behind the scenes as Lee Gang-hun was working openly.

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