Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 190

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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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190. It’s difficult, I know, but it’s something that needs to be cleared away eventually.

[National Assembly Paralyzed by Former President Noh Ki-hoon’s Slush Fund Scandal
At today’s National Assembly interpellation session, Democratic Peace Party member Ju Gyu-hwang presented concrete evidence regarding allegations of 400 billion won in slush funds belonging to former President Noh Ki-hoon, demanding thorough prosecution investigations and the invocation of the National Assembly’s investigative powers. The revelation has sparked considerable uproar.
Representative Ju Gyu-hwang disclosed that former President Noh had concealed approximately 400 billion won in slush funds by dividing them into 40 accounts of 10 billion won each and dispersing them across commercial banks.
In response, the ruling coalition parties unanimously called for the Prosecution to conduct a thorough investigation into the former president’s slush funds and for the National Assembly to invoke its investigative authority to launch an inquiry…]

Park Tae-hong, having returned home from work, sat on the sofa in his study room reading the evening newspaper and clicked his tongue disapprovingly.

“If you’re going to collect money, you should at least manage it properly. Stashing it in bank accounts—it’s absolutely ridiculous.”

Though I had dispersed the funds using nominee accounts and shell corporations, the slush fund management was so amateurish that it would be exposed with even a cursory investigation. I was so astounded that I could barely speak.
When the scandal first broke, I had even thought that Representative Ju Gyu-hwang, in his excessive enthusiasm, had stumbled into a trap and acted rashly, causing this mess.
Setting down the newspaper on the table, I gazed at the large black-and-white photograph of Representative Ju Gyu-hwang and muttered to myself.

“This will certainly stir up the political arena and the business world for quite some time.”

If the slush fund issue truly escalated to a full prosecution investigation, the repercussions would inevitably extend not only to the former president’s camp but also to the business leaders who had provided the funds.
Feeling frustrated, I opened the wooden box lid on the table and withdrew a cigarette from the neatly arranged contents, placing it between my lips.
As I lit it with a lighter and drew the white cigarette smoke deeply into my lungs before exhaling slowly,
a knock sounded, and Seok-won opened the study room door and entered.

“I’m back.”
“Good. Thank you for your hard work.”

As Seok-won turned to leave after greeting me, I suddenly remembered something.

‘Come to think of it, that fellow has a sharp mind and quick wit.’

Moreover, he had an excellent ability to read the times and anticipate what might unfold, so it seemed worthwhile to hear his thoughts on this matter.

“Wait, I have something to discuss. Come sit here.”

Seok-won tilted his head in confusion before turning his steps and settling onto the empty sofa to my right.

“What is it, sir?”

Park Tae-hong tapped ash from his cigarette onto the crystal ashtray on the table as he asked.

“You’re aware that the former President No’s slush fund scandal broke today, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”

Aware? I’d witnessed far more than that.
I’d watched the entire revelation unfold directly at the scene when Congressman Ju Gyu-hwang made his exposé, yet Seok-won answered briefly without revealing anything.

“Well, it’s been so loud all day that there’s no way you wouldn’t know.”

Park Tae-hong continued speaking with the cigarette held between his fingers.

“The indices dropped significantly from this afternoon—you must have taken quite a hit as well.”
“While there was some impact, we managed to get through without major losses thanks to having liquidated most of our positions beforehand.”

Park Tae-hong, who had naturally assumed there would be losses given this was an unexpected catastrophe no one had anticipated, paused at the unexpected answer and looked at his second son.

“You sold the stocks in advance?”
“Yes.”

Park Tae-hong straightened his posture and narrowed his eyes.

“Don’t tell me you somehow knew this would happen?”

Seok-won shrugged as if the suggestion was absurd.

“Even the other Democratic Peace Party congressmen didn’t know about it until it suddenly broke. How could I possibly have known in advance?”
“Right… I suppose that’s true.”

Even thinking about it himself, it was an outlandish notion.
Park Tae-hong let out a hollow laugh and deliberately scolded Seok-won to mask his embarrassment.

“You’re always pulling off such impossible feats that I can’t help myself.”
“Ha ha.”
“So what exactly made you sell the stocks?”
“I had a bad feeling about it.”

Park Tae-hong, who had expected some grand reason, slightly furrowed his brow.

“You sold all your stocks just because you had a bad feeling about them?”
“Yes.”
“Good heavens….”

Park Tae-hong stared at Seok-won with an expression of utter disbelief.

“That was truly your only reason?”
“Of course, I had my own reasoning behind it.”

Seok-won explained in a measured tone.

“Since the expanded foreign investment quota took effect in July, new capital has flowed into the market and the previously weak indices have rebounded significantly. But the fundamental problems haven’t been resolved. Everyone’s celebrating and predicting a bull market, yet something about it felt unsettling to me.”

Park Tae-hong tilted his head and asked back.

“What fundamental problems are you referring to?”
“The rapidly growing trade deficit and the weakening yen.”
“Hmm.”

Seeing my second son’s expression turn serious, I too let out a heavy sigh.
Seok-won leaned forward and continued.

“You’re aware that the Ministry of Finance and Economy recently projected this year’s trade deficit to reach 8.5 billion dollars. For a nation like Korea with a small domestic market and an export-oriented economic structure, an increase in trade deficits is no trivial matter.”
“But isn’t that deficit a result of importing necessary machinery and equipment from abroad due to large-scale facility investments, including semiconductors?”

Park Tae-hong countered in a firm voice.

“That’s right. The boom from the secondary benefits of the Kobe earthquake and yen strength created optimism, so many companies expanded their factories and increased equipment. If exports surge significantly under these expanded production conditions, then the current deficit would indeed be positive as you say. Unfortunately, a major headwind has recently emerged in the export environment.”

Park Tae-hong, quickly grasping what I meant, immediately stated the answer.

“You’re talking about the yen turning weak.”
“Yes. Since a weaker yen strengthens Japanese companies’ competitiveness, Korea’s exports will inevitably suffer relative damage.”

Park Tae-hong nodded heavily, cigarette in mouth.

“If exports decline while companies have already invested heavily and significantly expanded their facilities, their earnings will inevitably worsen. Then naturally, stock prices can’t possibly improve either.”
“So that’s why you sold the stocks?”
“The stocks rose above their fair value due to a specific event, so it’s more profitable to sell before they fall again.”

Seok-won shrugged as if it were obvious.

“I expected the stock price to decline soon, but I never imagined that former President No’s slush funds would become the catalyst.”

Of course, I had anticipated everything and made preparations accordingly, but since I couldn’t speak the truth, I acted as though I knew nothing at all.
Park Tae-hong, unaware of this, quietly mulled over the explanation and instinctively admired Seok-won’s remarkable ability to grasp the flow of money and see far into the future.

‘Looking at this, he truly was born with a talent for making money.’

Park Tae-hong stubbed out his cigarette, which had burned down to almost nothing, in the ashtray and asked.

“Regardless, how do you think this situation will unfold?”
“I believe it’s likely that the President will soon issue direct orders for an investigation, and former President No and his associates will face Prosecution scrutiny.”

Park Tae-hong’s expression grew grave.

“This could end up stirring a hornet’s nest. Would the Blue House really choose that path?”

Seok-won then calmly explained the reasons why they had no choice.

“Unlike before, this time concrete evidence has emerged. More importantly, if they try to cover it up forcibly, the approval ratings—already plummeting due to repeated major disasters—could collapse entirely, leading directly to a lame duck presidency. There’s no other option.”
“You’re right. The Blue House is in a difficult position.”

Park Tae-hong crossed his arms and murmured.

“If they misstep, everything the President and the ruling party have done to sever ties with the military regime could come to nothing. They’ll have no choice but to take a harder stance.”
“That’s true.”

The financial real-name system and the purge of Hanahoe that President Kim Sung-gyu implemented immediately upon taking office were partly aimed at clearing away old practices, but also served to erase accusations that he had colluded with the military regime to seize power.
Yet no matter what, the fact that the current ruling party was formed through the three-party merger and that President Kim Sung-gyu came to power as a result could not be denied.
This made matters from the military regime era extremely uncomfortable for the Blue House and the ruling party, and they would naturally prefer to avoid them.

“The problem is that once the investigation begins, former President No’s slush fund case could spread beyond party lines and engulf the entire political establishment.”

Hearing this, Park Tae-hong’s brow furrowed.

“What do you mean by that?”
“Of course, he probably kept some for himself, but where would he have spent such enormous sums accumulated during his tenure?”
“…!”
“Surely a considerable amount flowed into political circles. And that would include the opposition parties as well.”

Park Tae-hong’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Are you saying opposition figures also received money?”
“Politics requires funding, after all. And given that one of the Three Kims will certainly become the next master of the Blue House in the upcoming presidential election, wouldn’t he want insurance to ensure a comfortable life after leaving office?”
“True enough. With so many skeletons in the closet, he’d certainly feel insecure about the future.”

Park Tae-hong smiled bitterly and nodded in agreement that such a scenario was entirely plausible.

“Once the Prosecution launches its investigation, the former president will likely disclose these facts himself to protect his own interests, claiming the money wasn’t for personal use but rather served as a form of state governance funds, thereby attempting to escape punishment.”
“Surely he wouldn’t admit such a thing himself?”
“He’d be sending a message—a threat—that if he goes down, the Blue House, the ruling party, and the opposition will all be dragged down with him.”

Once again, Park Tae-hong grasped the implication with sharp intuition.

“In other words, he could pull everyone down with him in a mutual destruction scenario.”
“Yes.”
“This is troublesome….”

Park Tae-hong frowned as if seized by a headache.

“If I’m not careful, this could spiral into something far worse than I anticipated.”

Seok-won carefully observed Park Tae-hong’s expression before asking cautiously.

“Did we perhaps pass any money to the former president?”

Park Tae-hong’s expression hardened momentarily. He stared at his second son in silence before answering in a subdued voice.

“Yes. Someone from the Blue House came directly and we transferred just over 10 billion won in CDs and cash.”

With matters having reached this point, there was nothing left to hide, and moreover, Park Tae-hong trusted his second son, so he laid out the facts plainly.
Based on his memories from before the regression, the Prosecution’s investigation had revealed that nearly every major conglomerate ranked within the top fifty in the business world had handed over slush funds, so he had anticipated that the Daeheung Group would have done the same.
Thus, Seok-won nodded without displaying particular surprise.

“Just as I thought.”

Park Tae-hong’s eyes flickered with surprise at such a composed response.

“So you’d already anticipated this.”
“To amass slush funds worth hundreds of billions of won, you couldn’t rely on just one or two conglomerates. And unfortunately, the reality of doing business in Korea is that you can’t survive without appeasing those in power.”
“True. It’s shameful and dishonorable, but… you’re right.”
“If this escalates, Father may be summoned by the Prosecution for questioning, so it would be wise to prepare in advance.”
“Once the slush fund investigation begins, they’ll try to trace the sources of the money, so that’s inevitable.”

Park Tae-hong nodded in agreement, his expression equally grave.

“If you’re questioned, tell them exactly how much you gave without hiding anything.”
“Are you telling me to confess guilt?”

Seok-won answered Park Tae-hong, who was frowning at him, in his usual measured tone.

“Even if you’re found guilty, since so many other business leaders are involved, most will likely receive non-custodial indictments or suspended sentences. If they actually imposed prison time, every major conglomerate CEO in the top fifty would have to go to jail, and that’s simply impossible.”

Unless they wanted to destabilize Korea’s entire economy, they couldn’t do such a thing.
Park Tae-hong suppressed his irritation and listened carefully to Seok-won’s words.

“So this would be a good opportunity to come clean about everything from the past. It’ll benefit you in the long run.”
“Tsk….”

Park Tae-hong, his expression conflicted, leaned back in his chair and exhaled deeply.

“You must be tired. Go on home.”

Seok-won started to speak but fell silent when he saw Park Tae-hong’s pensive expression.

“Yes.”

As Seok-won rose from his seat and closed the Study Room door behind him, he caught one last glimpse of Park Tae-hong lighting another cigarette, exhaling white smoke into the air.
The deep creases etched across his brow spoke volumes of his troubled thoughts.
Seok-won gazed at the firmly shut Study Room door and muttered bitterly.

“It must be difficult, but eventually you’ll have to face it anyway. There’s no way around it.”

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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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