Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 118

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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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118. If you finish the job well, I’ll make sure to take care of the rest.

A taxi pulled into the Gangnam Entertainment District, where neon signs sparkled brilliantly and night clubs and room salons lined the streets, before coming to a stop.

“That’s 8,200 won, sir.”

The Taxi Driver checked the meter and spoke, while Son O-seung, a manager at Donghae Peregrine Securities, pulled out a 10,000-won bill from the back seat and handed it over.

“Keep the change.”
“Oh, thank you so much.”

Manager Son O-seung stepped out of the taxi and looked up at the large sign that read “Mulspora.”

“Good timing.”

Jo Chul-rae, who followed him out, glanced around and asked.

“Isn’t this a room salon?”
“It is.”
“Then why are we—”
“You’ll understand once we’re inside. Come on.”

Jo Chul-rae had followed along without question when Manager Son O-seung suddenly said they had somewhere to go around quitting time.
Watching Manager Son O-seung walk ahead toward the room salon entrance without offering a proper explanation, Jo Chul-rae’s expression grew bewildered.

“What on earth is this about?”

Though he couldn’t make sense of the situation, he couldn’t very well abandon Manager Son O-seung and head back alone.
Jo Chul-rae smacked his lips and quickly followed after Manager Son O-seung, who was already well ahead.

“Welcome!”

As they stepped inside the room salon, greeted by a neatly dressed waiter, a woman in her early thirties wearing a plunging neckline dress smiled brightly and welcomed them both.

“My, Manager Son, welcome.”
“Madam, you’ve been well?”

The woman called Madam looked at Manager Jo Chul-rae, who stood somewhat awkwardly behind Manager Son O-seung, with a gaze that subtly exuded decadent charm.

“You seem to be visiting for the first time. Who might you be?”

Manager Son O-seung answered with a self-satisfied expression, inhaling the delicate fragrance that emanated from the Madam who pressed herself against him.

“Manager Jo Chul-rae—he’s one of my subordinates.”
“I see.”

The Madam greeted him with a flirtatious smile in her eyes.

“I’m Choi Mi-mi. Just call me Madam Choi for convenience.”
“Yes, of course.”

Manager Jo Chul-rae hastily lowered his head to avoid her sticky gaze.
Though Madam Choi was undeniably beautiful, he had a premonition that if he made a careless move, he might end up being devoured instead.
Madam Choi smoothly extricated herself from Manager Son O-seung’s embrace, which had been groping at her hips, and spoke.

“You’ve come to meet the director, haven’t you?”
“Yes. Is he here?”

Manager Son O-seung asked with a reluctant expression, lowering his hand.

“He’s in the VIP room right now. Please follow me, and I’ll show you the way.”

With that, Madam Choi walked into the inner corridor lined with red carpet.
The form-fitting dress she wore revealed her slender waist and voluptuous curves in full detail.
Manager Son O-seung watched her seductive, swaying silhouette with half-lidded eyes before following her steps.
Upon arriving at the room at the very end, Madam Choi gave a light knock and opened the thick solid wood door to enter.

“Your guests have arrived.”

Manager Son O-seung and Manager Jo Chul-rae then stepped into the room, passing by Madam Choi as she moved to the side.

“We apologize for arriving after you.”

Following Manager Son O-seung, who bowed at a perfect right angle, Manager Jo Chul-rae also found himself lowering his head in unison.
He couldn’t fathom who the other party was that made Manager Son O-seung conduct himself with such deference.
As Manager Jo Chul-rae straightened his upper body, he caught sight of a man seated in the center of the U-shaped sofa with a woman on each side, and his eyes widened in shock.

“That’s enough. Sit over there.”
“Yes, sir.”

Director Son O-seung responded promptly to Woo Ho-geun’s arrogant command, delivered with a slight tilt of his chin as he settled into his seat.
Then he nudged Manager Jo Chul-rae, who couldn’t hide his bewilderment, with one elbow and moved to the empty sofa on the left.
Madam Choi, who naturally took her place beside Manager Oh Sang-hyun across from them, reached for the bottle of liquor on the table and poured drinks for the two newcomers.

“Since we have new guests, should I bring in more girls?”

Woo Ho-geun withdrew his arms from the young women flanking him on both sides and spoke.

“No. We have some quiet business to discuss first. Later.”
“Understood, sir.”

At a subtle glance from Madam Choi, the long-haired young woman on Woo Ho-geun’s left picked up the cosmetics pouch she’d left beside her.

“We’ll just touch up our makeup and be right back.”

Woo Ho-geun gave a small nod, and as if on cue, all the young women rose and filed out.

“Just ring the intercom when you’re finished talking.”

Madam Choi smiled brightly, said her piece, and excused herself.
As Madam Choi closed the door behind her in the hallway, only four men remained in the spacious private room—Woo Ho-geun and the others.
An awkward silence settled over them, and Manager Jo Chul-rae, sitting beside Director Son O-seung, kept his eyes darting nervously around his tense face.
When his gaze met Woo Ho-geun’s, Manager Jo Chul-rae flinched and quickly looked down.

“What did you say your name was?”
“Jo, Jo Chul-rae, sir.”

Sensing his moment, Director Son O-seung interjected.

“He’s one of the top five scalpers in our company—and in Yeouido, for that matter—when it comes to ultra-short-term scalping trades.”
“Hmm.”

Woo Ho-geun, who had been studying the tense Manager Jo Chul-rae, asked in a slightly languid voice.

“Do you know who I am?”

At that, Manager Jo Chul-rae lifted his head slightly and answered carefully.

“You’re Woo Ho-geun, the director of the Headquarters Planning Division, aren’t you?”
“Indeed, you know your facts.”

Watching Woo Ho-geun nod with unmistakable pride, Manager Jo Chul-rae thought to himself.

‘How could anyone not know the chairman’s wayward son, whose name circulates through securities district gossip whenever there’s idle chatter?’

Though the Headquarters secretariat kept his affairs under strict control to prevent external leaks, Woo Ho-geun had earned a notorious reputation for his sordid private life and frequently appeared in securities district rumors.
Moreover, as the heir apparent to the Donghae Group—the conglomerate that owned the Securities Company where Manager Jo Chul-rae worked—he commanded even greater attention.

‘Did you hear? Our chairman’s son was caught leaving a hotel with some actress again.’
‘Which actress?’
‘You know, xx. The one who did that beverage commercial recently.’
‘Wasn’t it a model last time?’
‘How many women does the chairman’s son sponsor? I heard the secretariat spends astronomical sums just keeping journalists’ mouths shut.’

Recalling the gossip he’d traded with colleagues just hours ago over cigarettes, Manager Jo Chul-rae felt an awkward twinge and lowered his gaze.

“Let’s have a drink first.”

As Woo Ho-geun picked up a glass of straight liquor, everyone reached for their glasses.
Manager Jo Chul-rae quickly grabbed the straight glass that Manager Choi had poured earlier and clinked it with both hands.
Then he turned his head slightly to the side and downed the potent spirits in one gulp.

“Ahh.”

He felt the sharp burn in his throat followed by the warmth spreading down his esophagus.
Rising promptly, Manager Jo Chul-rae picked up the liquor bottle and began refilling the empty glasses in order, starting with Woo Ho-geun at the head of the table, matching the mood perfectly.

“I’ll pour yours, Manager Jo.”

Pleased by the perceptive gesture, Woo Ho-geun took the bottle.

“Thank you.”

Manager Jo Chul-rae respectfully extended his glass with both hands and received the drink that Woo Ho-geun poured himself.
After the liquor made its round, Woo Ho-geun leaned back and asked.

“So scalping is repeating dozens of trades over the course of an hour?”

Son O-seung, the department head, quietly interjected and added his thoughts.

“It’s not simply about making many trades. You observe stock price movements in minute and second intervals, then buy and sell at the right timing to generate profits.”
“So it requires quick hands and sharp judgment.”
“Exactly.”

Jo Chul-rae felt an inexplicable unease watching Son O-seung lavish such praise on him—whatever his hidden agenda might be.

‘Why is he acting so differently from his usual self?’

Ever since he’d suddenly dragged me along, claiming we had somewhere to go together, this seat had felt like sitting on pins and needles.

“Perfect.”

Woo Ho-geun, lounging with arrogant composure, appraised him from head to toe as though evaluating merchandise before speaking.

“I have a job to do. Want to join me?”

Jo Chul-rae’s expression turned puzzled at the sudden proposition.

“What kind of job, sir…?”

Son O-seung, standing beside him, immediately chided him and stepped forward.

“When the director speaks, you just say yes and do whatever he tells you. Why do you have so many questions?”
“But…”

Jo Chul-rae hesitated, seized by an ominous premonition.
He felt deeply wronged—asked to do something without even knowing what it was.
Woo Ho-geun chuckled with amusement and spoke.

“No, you’re the player who’ll be taking the lead on this job. You should at least know what it is.”

Woo Ho-geun fixed Jo Chul-rae with a meaningful expression as the latter quietly gauged the situation.

“You know Boseong Communications.”
“….”
“I have some connections with their major shareholder, and he mentioned the company will have several positive developments coming soon.”
“…!”
“It’s a good opportunity, and I didn’t want to see it go to waste, so I called you.”

The moment Manager Jo Chul-rae heard those words, he immediately recognized it for what it was—a scheme.
For years, deliberately manipulating stock prices of specific securities to profit from the spread before exiting had been an open practice in the Securities District, so it wasn’t particularly unusual.
But if a third-generation chaebol like Woo Ho-geun was personally orchestrating it, the scale would be far beyond pocket change.
Without realizing it, my breathing quickened and my mind went blank as white paper.
But only for a moment.
Like a veteran worn smooth by years in the Yeouido Securities District, I quickly regained my composure.
Woo Ho-geun, not missing that shift, smiled with satisfaction and spoke.

“Your job is to use the nominee accounts and funds that Manager Son here has prepared to repeatedly buy and sell, driving the stock price up to our target.”
“You’re asking me to engage in collusive trading.”
“That’s right.”

Woo Ho-geun flashed a satisfied smile, his white teeth gleaming.

“If you have the skills I’ve heard about, it shouldn’t be too difficult.”

As Manager Jo Chul-rae reflexively swallowed hard, Woo Ho-geun spoke in a measured tone.

“If you finish the job well, I’ll make sure Manager Son and I have your back.”
“….”
“And on top of that, I’ll set aside a big one for your cut.”

A big one meant one hundred million won.
Greed rippled across Manager Jo Chul-rae’s face as he heard an offer difficult to refuse.

“So, will you work with me?”

When asked again, Manager Jo Chul-rae hesitated briefly before nodding his head.

“I’ll do my best if you entrust this to me.”
“Good. That’s what I wanted to hear.”

Having received the answer he wanted, Woo Ho-geun smiled broadly, as if he’d known it all along.

* * *

The next morning.
Descending from the second floor in tailored trousers and a crisp white dress shirt, Seok-won approached Park Tae-hong, who sat as he always did at this early hour—perched on the living room sofa with a newspaper spread before him—and offered his morning greeting.

“I hope you slept well, sir.”
“I did.”

Park Tae-hong lowered the newspaper he held in both hands, revealing only his eyes as he offered a brief reply.

“You’re up? But why are you dressed like that?”

At that moment, Jo Deok-rye, dressed in a home robe, emerged carrying a tray with medicinal herbal broth for Park Tae-hong. Catching sight of Seok-won’s attire, she posed the question.

“Don’t tell me you’re heading to the office today?”
“Yes. My business trip to the United States ran longer than expected, so I have quite a bit of work piled up.”

Jo Deok-rye handed the bowl of herbal broth to Park Tae-hong, her expression tinged with concern.

“Oh my, how can that be? You only arrived yesterday—you haven’t even adjusted to the time difference yet. Take at least one day to rest before you go back to work.”

At that, Park Tae-hong downed the bitter herbal broth in one long gulp and set the bowl down with a sharp clink.

“Rest? He’s been having plenty of leisure time already—he needs to make up for it as quickly as possible.”
“Good heavens, why do you always have to be so hard on the boy? He was on a business trip, not a vacation.”

Cornered and unable to muster a proper retort, Park Tae-hong grumbled while avoiding his wife’s piercing gaze.

“This herbal broth is far too bitter.”
“There’s candy over there—have some.”
“It only gets more bitter each time. Are you deliberately brewing it to taste worse?”
“Then go complain to the herbal medicine clinic.”

Jo Deok-rye replied curtly, yet turned to Seok-won with a gentle smile.

“Breakfast is ready, so eat a hearty meal before you go.”

With that, she gathered the empty herbal broth bowl and made her way toward the kitchen where the Gunsan Housekeeper was.
Having gained nothing from his words, Park Tae-hong smacked his lips and turned his head toward Seok-won, who stood beside him.

“Do you have anything urgent this morning?”
“No.”
“Then come to the Study Room before work—I need to discuss something with you.”

I was curious about what this sudden matter might be, but I figured I’d find out soon enough when I heard it directly, so I simply replied.

“Understood.”

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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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