Goblin Library - Chapter 216

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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 216.

Kim Ki-chun asked as he looked at the Helpful Driver.
“Such a place exists?”
“If we water it well, it will grow fine in this soil… but it’s not easy to bring water to such a place.”
“Does it exist or not?”
“It does. If you go an hour or two from here…”
“That’s too far. I’d prefer somewhere within thirty minutes.”
“There is one place, though…”
“Really? Then would you take me there?”
At Kim Ki-chun’s words, the Helpful Driver extended his hand.
When Kim Ki-chun handed over a hundred dollars, the driver took it and spoke.
“The taxi fare is separate.”
“Understood.”
“Then get in.”
At the driver’s words, Kim Ki-chun pointed to one of the Factory Employees with his hand.
“Get in.”
“Me?”
“Get in that and lead the way.”
“Understood.”
Once the Factory Employee got into the taxi, it immediately departed.

***

While reviewing the purchase contracts with his clients, Lee Gang-hun was on the phone with the Company President of the Prefabricated Building Factory back in Korea.
“I apologize for calling at such a late hour.”
[Apologize? Don’t be ridiculous. Even if you called me at 4 in the morning, or when I’m passed out drunk, I’d welcome it.]
“Thank you for saying so. I’ve sent you the materials related to the prefabricated buildings we contracted today. As you’ll see, they’re similar to the existing blueprints, so there shouldn’t be any need to create new designs.”
[People’s preferences are all quite similar. The basic framework doesn’t change much.]
Over time, I had gradually modified the structures according to what customers wanted. And when I created blueprints based on those structures, the new customers’ desired structures turned out to be largely identical to the already-completed blueprints.
So I could simply build houses using those designs.
“Then please proceed with the work accordingly… and you do remember our previous contract, don’t you?”
[Which one are you referring to?]
“The clause that states you cannot conduct business with other companies while we’re operating here.”
[Ha ha ha! Of course I remember. The Director included that as a special clause back then. Besides, this business has increased our company’s income tremendously—I’m not going to bite the hand that feeds me.]
“I’m relieved to hear you say that. As you know, we’ve made considerable profits from this venture. That’s precisely why follow-up competitors will soon enter the market. I need you to be careful—don’t let them sweet-talk you into doing something you’ll regret later.”
I spoke honestly with him. That way, he could mentally prepare himself.
[Of course. Of course.]
“Please take my words to heart.”
[….]
After a moment of silence, the other party asked cautiously.
[Is something going to happen?]
The way I was warning him suggested there was something more to this.
“You’ll be contacted by some suspicious people soon.”
[Suspicious people?]
“We’ve made money from this business here, haven’t we?”
[That’s true.]
“So follow-up competitors will inevitably emerge. However, since all the skilled prefabricated building companies in Korea are already under contract with us, they’ll either have to poach your company’s executives or look abroad for alternatives.”
[Ah….]
“So they’ll be reaching out to prefabricated building manufacturers.”
[I see.]
Hearing the excitement in his voice, I chuckled and spoke.
“That’s why I included the special clause. When temptation feels strong, read that contract clause again. Since I gave you favorable terms… I made sure the special clause was equally stringent. Ha ha ha!”
I hung up after speaking in a joking tone. Then I called the other companies as well.
Of course, I knew these company presidents were trustworthy and good people. But money has a way of changing things.
Moreover, Kim Ki-chun was a master at seducing others with honeyed words. So I needed to establish safeguards beforehand.
And… if things went wrong, these people could suffer losses. When undertaking this business, I had offered them favorable terms.
Of course, my company also needed to profit—not excessively, but the returns were guaranteed to be higher than domestic sales.
But if someone offered even better terms? Unless Kim Ki-chun was willing to accept a losing deal, problems would inevitably arise.
In the worst case, I might not even receive the final payment.
In any case, I had anticipated this and included special clauses beforehand. Breaching the contract would result in various penalties, but otherwise, the terms were favorable for them.
That’s why the presidents agreed to the contract despite seeing the special clause.
After I finished calling everyone and put down my phone, Mahmoud approached me.
“We’ve received a contact from someone who wants to purchase land.”
“So, how much did they ask for?”
“They wanted more than market value, so I refused to sell.”
“Well done.”
I chuckled. Mahmoud watched me for a moment before speaking.
“How did you know that this Kim person would attempt a similar business to ours?”
“That’s the kind of man he is. He enjoys sabotaging the business of people he dislikes more than he enjoys profiting from his own ventures. So I figured once my business gained momentum, he’d try to replicate it. Besides, it’s a profitable business.”
“Then, will he try to purchase the land we’ve already bought?”
Once the residential project gained traction and money began flowing in, I purchased land under Mahmoud’s name.
Since it was far from the city and completely undeveloped, I was able to acquire it at a bargain price.
“People are drawn to views—lakes or rivers with water, or areas with forests and greenery. But this lake nearby is the only one in the region. That leaves forests and greenery views. And the only place within commuting distance of this area with soil suitable for developing greenery is that location.”
“Then wouldn’t it be better for us to develop that into a second village as well?”
“Perhaps once our business expands further, but not now. This is a trap.”
“A trap?”
“For now, we buy that land cheaply and hold it. It’s wasteland, so it’s inexpensive, but to Kim Ki-chun’s eyes, it will look like a goldmine. Since you won’t sell the land, he’ll try to purchase it by offering more money. Once he’s driven the price up sufficiently, we simply sell and profit.”
“How much of an increase would you wait for before selling?”
“Fifty times.”
“Fifty times? Would he really pay that much to buy it?”
“The land value in our current development area has increased a hundredfold.”
“That’s… true.”
Even at a hundredfold increase, the original land value was so low that it amounted to something like a penny becoming a hundred pennies.
Of course, it was a staggering sum for the local common people, but for the wealthy, it was a manageable amount.
“So even if we propose a fifty-fold price, it wouldn’t be unreasonable.”
“What if he doesn’t buy?”
“Then we simply build houses there ourselves later.”
“And if he does buy?”
“Then the real trap springs into action.”
“What do you mean?”
Mahmoud tilted his head in confusion, so I explained.
“Who’s invested in our land right now? The real power brokers of this country and the Chinese. But if similar developments appear elsewhere? Then the steep appreciation we’ve seen here in land and property values will stall. There’s another option now. Naturally, they won’t be pleased about that, will they?”
“Ah! So that’s why you call it a trap.”
“Exactly.”
“But if we build houses there, wouldn’t those people dislike us as well?”
Mahmoud looked puzzled, and I laughed.
“We’ll have to sell that land to them at a discount. Of course, slightly higher than what we paid for it.”
“Ah…”
“A company like ours, with nothing to our name, must partner with people who have money and power. The moment we get greedy, they’ll devour us.”
Then I let out a quiet laugh.
“Director Kim is intelligent, but he only sees the big picture. Ha! I wonder what he thinks I’m using to fund this business… If it were me, I’d have verified whose money went into it first.”
At my words, Mahmoud looked at me and smiled.
“You’re truly remarkable. Now I understand why you didn’t purchase the land directly yourself.”
“It would be nice to make money by buying land, but to raise the value of that land, I’d need capital—which I don’t have. Besides… Kim Ki-chun serves a dual purpose.”
Then Lee Gang-hun looked at Mahmoud.
“You’re going to become a wealthy man this time, Mahmoud.”
At Lee Gang-hun’s words, Mahmoud couldn’t help but smile.
He had purchased land in the areas where Lee Gang-hun instructed him to build. Though the land was inexpensive, Mahmoud owned so little and had so many expenses that he couldn’t buy much, but he acquired as much as his circumstances allowed.
Eventually, as the land values here rose, he earned a substantial fortune. And with that money, he purchased the land Lee Gang-hun told him to buy again.
And if that land were to sell for fifty times its value as Lee Gang-hun predicted… he would truly be wealthy enough that others would nod in acknowledgment.
“I received a call from the broker.”
Lee Gang-hun waved his hand lightly, signaling him to take the call. Mahmoud answered.
“Hello. Double the price? I have no intention of selling. No, I have no intention of selling.”
Mahmoud hung up and turned back to Lee Gang-hun.
“Now he’s offering three times the price.”
“Wait until it reaches fifty times.”
“What should I say if he asks why I won’t sell?”
“Tell him it’s your land and you’ll do as you see fit.”
“Understood.”
Lee Gang-hun gazed out the window at the lake and murmured to himself.
“Excellent.”
For Lee Gang-hun, no matter how things turned out, it was a profitable venture, so he couldn’t help but feel pleased.

***

The local Real Estate Broker hung up the phone and looked across at Kim Ki-chun with an expression of bewilderment.
“He won’t sell.”
“We offered triple the price and he still won’t sell….”
Kim Ki-chun pondered for a moment, then examined the land marked on the map.
“Is there any talk of this location being profitable or developed?”
“Nothing like that.”
“What was this land used for before?”
“It was farmland.”
“Then why isn’t anyone farming it now?”
“The well dried up, and since it costs money to dig new wells, it was abandoned. So now it’s become wasteland.”
“Then why did this person buy this land?”
“I don’t know either. I didn’t sell it to him.”
Kim Ki-chun thought for a moment before speaking.
“Call him back and tell him we’ll buy it for ten times the price.”
“Ten times?”
The Real Estate Broker looked at him with astonished eyes, then spoke cautiously.
“Is something going to happen there?”
“You don’t need to know that. Just make the deal.”
At Kim Ki-chun’s words, the Real Estate Broker licked his lips.
And privately, he thought he should buy some land in the nearby area himself.

Kim Ki-chun was on the phone with the Company.
“Right, it went through? Good. Excellent. Okay! Now I’ll prepare the land, so you contact the domestic prefabricated building companies. The conditions? Use the same conditions they’d offer us for a contract. Do I really need to spell that out? Fine. Anyway, once everything’s ready, we’ll bring it over immediately. Prepare a few sample buildings similar to the images in the photo files.”
After hanging up, Kim Ki-chun saw the Real Estate Broker staring blankly ahead.
“Call him again.”
“But he refused even when we offered thirty times the price….”
“Sixty times!”
At Kim Ki-chun’s words, the Real Estate Broker’s eyes widened in shock.
“S…sixty times?”
“Tell him that’s the final offer. If he refuses this time, there will be no more calls.”
“W…well!”
The Real Estate Broker, who had been staring at Kim Ki-chun with a stunned expression, made the call.
“Will you sell the land? We’ll give you sixty times the market price.”

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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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