Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 185

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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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185. Why don’t you let me handle it?

Shenyang, China.
After completing a three-day, four-night schedule, Chairman Park Tae-hong sat in the VIP lounge of Taoxian International Airport on the outskirts of the city alongside his eldest son, President Park Jin-hyung.
Park Tae-hong sank into the plush sofa and habitually withdrew a cigarette, placing it between his lips.
Chief Secretary Gil Seong-ho, seated to his left, quickly flicked his lighter and lit it for him.
Drawing the white smoke deeply into his lungs and exhaling it slowly, Park Tae-hong glanced at his eldest son.

“So once we complete the second phase expansion as planned, all production facilities will be transferred to China except for the Ansan Manufacturing Plant.”

President Park Jin-hyung straightened in his seat and replied.

“Yes. Once that happens, production costs will decrease and our margins should improve significantly.”
“Even if labor costs are low, a high defect rate renders everything pointless. How do you plan to address that?”
“We plan to bring additional skilled workers from Korea to train local employees and keep the defect rate as low as possible while maintaining quality.”
“Experienced skilled workers don’t fall from the sky, so that’s the only way forward.”

Then, recalling something, he furrowed his brow and spoke.

“What was it called—this mingong thing? You said employees we’ve trained often abandon their posts without notice because of it?”

President Park Jin-hyung’s expression became slightly uncomfortable at the sudden question.

“Yes. What Koreans call Lunar New Year, the Chinese call the Spring Festival. During this time, most workers who came to the cities for employment return to their hometowns to spend the holidays with their families.”

Just as Korea experienced massive homebound migration during Lunar New Year and Chuseok, so too did China.

“Since China’s territory is so vast, it often takes two or three days just to reach one’s hometown. Because of this, Spring Festival holidays typically last a week or more.”
“With such vast distances and poor transportation infrastructure, returning home is no trivial matter.”
“Rural workers who come to the cities for employment are called migrant workers or mingong. The problem is that many of them don’t return after their Spring Festival break—they simply move to other factories instead.”

President Park Jin-hyung sighed softly, clearly troubled.

“This phenomenon is called the mingong shortage. After this year’s Spring Festival break, ten percent of our entire workforce at the Shenzhen Manufacturing Plant failed to return, abandoning their posts. We’ve faced considerable difficulty recruiting replacement workers.”

Park Tae-hong’s brow furrowed as he frowned.

“I went to the trouble of teaching him, and if he just leaves like that, all my effort goes to waste. Plus, with fewer staff, won’t it affect the Manufacturing Plant’s operational capacity?”
“That’s why we’re exploring various measures to minimize turnover, including building a new Dormitory and providing special incentives to employees who return after the Lunar New Year break.”

Yet even with such efforts, it seemed difficult to completely prevent employee attrition—Park Jin-hyung’s expression wasn’t particularly bright.

“No matter how much machinery we use, the most important thing in business is people. Never forget that, and pay closer attention to labor management.”
“Yes. I’ll keep that in mind.”

The second son was so exceptional that the eldest was equally sincere and dependable.
Since this son had never disappointed him once, Chairman Park Tae-hong refrained from speaking at length, lest he sound like he was interfering.

“Anyway, meeting Wei Jizhong in person gave me the impression that he’s quite favorable toward us, which is fortunate.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong tapped his cigarette lightly against the ashtray on the table, sharing his impressions from this trip to China.
Park Jin-hyung’s lips curved into a slight smile.

“Since we’re a foreign company that Wei Jizhong personally attracted, he does provide considerable convenience. But I think the reason he’s been more cooperative this time is largely due to the private jet you arrived on.”
“Hmm?”

Chairman Park Tae-hong looked at him with a cigarette in his mouth, his expression asking what that meant.
Why would a private jet suddenly matter?
Seeing his confused gaze, Park Jin-hyung shrugged.

“We naturally expected you to transfer through Beijing and take a Chinese commercial flight, but you showed up with a private jet out of nowhere—wouldn’t that be surprising?”
“I see.”

Understanding the implication, Chairman Park Tae-hong let out a belated chuckle.

“I’m sure our company’s evaluation has risen considerably.”
“Heh heh heh, it certainly has. Especially since it was an expensive one among private jets.”

As Chairman Park Tae-hong chuckled without hiding his satisfaction, his son Park Jin-hyung leaned forward slightly and asked.

“But did Seok-won really give you a private jet as a gift?”
“Why? Does it sound like a lie?”
“It must be worth hundreds of billions at least, so honestly, it’s hard to believe.”

Despite having witnessed it with his own eyes, Park Jin-hyung still wore a bewildered expression.
Chairman Park Tae-hong chuckled again, pulling his lips up as far as they would go as he answered.

“That guy may not know much else, but I’ve always said he has a natural talent for making money.”
“So you’re saying that’s really true?”

I’d heard from Park Tae-hong, who arrived on his private jet, that while my younger brother Seok-won was studying abroad in the United States, he’d invested his Powerball winnings and multiplied his money tremendously.

‘I figured he’d just save it somewhere or leave it with Father, but I never imagined he’d keep actively investing that money.’

What shocked me most was hearing that the amount he’d grown was so substantial that even Father, the chairman of Daeheung Group, described it as a considerable sum. It was such an astounding story that I found it hard to believe.
Watching his eldest son’s reaction, Park Tae-hong wore an understanding expression.
After all, he’d had a similar reaction before reading the newspaper article and hearing the detailed explanation himself.

“In terms of liquid assets, he probably has more than I do.”
“What? To that extent?”

Park Jin-hyung asked, his eyes widening in surprise.

“When have you ever seen me joke about something like this?”
“Well… that’s true, but…”

Watching Father lean back leisurely against the sofa, Park Jin-hyung shook his head with an expression of uncertainty about whether to believe it or not.
The proceeds from selling all his Netscape shares alone exceeded ten billion dollars—well over one trillion won in Korean currency—so it wasn’t an unreasonable claim.

“If you have any spare cash, try entrusting it to Seok-won. He’ll easily double it, or even triple it for you.”
“You’re really saying I should entrust my investments to Seok-won?”
“Didn’t I just tell you? That guy truly has an exceptional talent for making money.”

Park Tae-hong swallowed the words that he takes after me.

“Then… could it be that Father also…?”
“Heh heh.”

At Park Tae-hong’s meaningful smile, Park Jin-hyung’s expression turned astonished.

“The commission is steep, which is the drawback, but I’ve had some fun with it.”
“Wait, since when…?”

What on earth had happened while I was busy working hard at the company?

“Does Mother know about this too?”
“….”

Park Tae-hong’s mouth snapped shut abruptly.
I’d asked the question wondering if perhaps even my mother had entrusted money to my younger brother to manage, but it felt as though I’d touched upon something I shouldn’t have asked about.
Just then, Choo Se-young knocked and entered, speaking.

“Chairman. You may proceed outside and board now.”

Park Tae-hong stubbed out his nearly finished cigarette in the ashtray and rose to his feet.

“Then let’s go.”

Park Jin-hyung, rising from the sofa to follow, muttered under his breath.

‘Should I really give him a chance?’

Seeing Father so satisfied, it appeared my younger brother did possess some talent for managing money.
He pondered the matter seriously as he followed Park Tae-hong toward the private jet waiting on the tarmac.

* * *

Nissan Motor Headquarters in Yokohama, Japan.
Yamamoto, the Finance Director seated on the sofa, set down the report in his hands with a tense expression and asked in a clipped tone.

“Is the content of this report accurate?”

Moriyama, the Finance Manager who received the gaze, nodded heavily in response.

“Yes. If things continue as they are, there is a strong possibility the exchange rate will exceed 100 yen per dollar within a month at most—perhaps even as soon as next week.”

Yamamoto’s face contorted immediately upon hearing this.
Normally, a weak yen would have been welcome news for Nissan Motor, as it would strengthen export competitiveness and bring profit.
But this time it was different—if the dollar-yen exchange rate exceeded 100 yen, the knock-in option contracted with the Eldorado Fund would be triggered at that very moment.

“How much loss will we face if the option is triggered?”

Yamamoto asked in a grave voice.
Moriyama, whose complexion had remained dark throughout, hesitated before finally speaking.

“When the knock-in option is triggered, we must sell 2 billion dollars—four times the contracted amount—to the Eldorado Fund at the agreed exchange rate. Even at a baseline of 100 yen per dollar, that means we lose 200 million dollars, which is a 10% loss.”

Yamamoto, the Finance Director, gasped at the staggering sum, his expression turning ashen.

“200 million? Did you just say 200 million dollars?”
“…Yes.”

Moriyama, the department head, fixed him with a resentful glare.

“That’s precisely why I warned you last time that this was risky and we needed to take precautions.”
“Are you saying this mess is my fault!”

The words “Then whose fault is it?” rose to Moriyama’s throat, but he swallowed them back down.

“When exchange rates are swinging wildly in both directions, currency hedging is an absolutely necessary choice to eliminate risk. You agreed to the hedging yourself!”

Yamamoto twisted his expression into an excuse.
But the more he spoke, the more exasperated Moriyama became.
It was true that they had agreed hedging was necessary, but it was Yamamoto himself who had chosen to contract with the high-risk Eldorado Fund option.
Despite Moriyama’s repeated warnings, Yamamoto had dismissed them, insisting the exchange rate would never exceed 100 yen per dollar. Now, watching him brazenly evade responsibility, Moriyama felt utterly disgusted.

“200 million dollars—not 20 million, but 200 million. This is absolutely maddening.”
“That figure is based on when the exchange rate was 100 yen per dollar. As the yen weakens further, the losses will only grow larger.”
“Don’t I know that!”

Yamamoto snapped back with irritation in his voice.
He drained the cold coffee in front of him in one gulp, then clenched both fists tightly, his anxiety mounting.

“Isn’t there any way to terminate the option early?”
“It’s impossible.”

Moriyama shook his head firmly.
At his categorical response, Yamamoto the Finance Director furrowed his brow and pressed further.

“There’s no such thing as a contract that can’t be terminated. If we look hard enough, there has to be a way!”

But Moriyama, who had already reviewed the contract terms meticulously multiple times, spoke with skepticism.

“There is a clause allowing both parties to terminate the contract early by paying a penalty fee. However, if the exchange rate rises even slightly more, we can meet the conditions of the liquidated option and make substantial profits. Do you really think Eldorado Fund will agree to terminate the contract so readily?”
“Ugh.”

Yamamoto, rendered speechless, gnawed at his lips.
If the situation were reversed, he doubted he would commit such a foolish act either.
But with a catastrophe looming on the horizon, Yamamoto couldn’t simply sit idle and forced himself to cry out.

“That doesn’t mean we just do nothing and fold our hands! We’re looking at losses exceeding 200 million dollars—we have to try something!”

As he pressed the matter aggressively, a flash of irritation crossed Moriyama’s face.
Moriyama felt his own anger rising at Yamamoto’s behavior—creating the disaster himself yet raising his voice as if blameless.
But the damage was already done, and now damage control took priority before losses spiraled further.
Moriyama suppressed his frustration and wracked his brain for any possible solution.

“The likelihood of them agreeing to terminate the contract is low, but even if they do consent, we’ll have to pay an extremely substantial penalty.”
“Hmm…”

After a brief hesitation, Yamamoto ventured cautiously.

“At least negotiate and try to minimize the penalty as much as possible.”

It was painfully obvious he was worried about responsibility if they paid the massive penalty, terminated the option contract early, and the dollar-yen exchange rate failed to exceed 100 yen.
Rather than taking bold action to minimize losses, he was already calculating how to reduce his own liability—a pathetic sight that drew an involuntary sigh from Moriyama.
Separate from Yamamoto’s contemptible behavior, it was crystal clear that without intervention, the company would suffer catastrophic losses, so Moriyama answered weakly.

“I’ll do my best.”

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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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