Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 219

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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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219. This is exactly why I can’t leave the boss’s side.

From afternoon onward, snow began falling again, blanketing the entire city in pristine white.
Seok-won stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Penthouse living room, sipping warm coffee while gazing down at the cityscape draped like a white blanket.

Bzzzz.

As the vibration alert sounded, Seok-won set his mug down on the table and retrieved his phone to answer the call.

[This is Lee Chul-gyun. Is this a good time to talk?]

At the sound of that deep voice, I recalled the face of Lee Chul-gyun, whom I’d first met beneath the Dongjak Bridge not long ago.

“Looks like you’ve completed the task I requested.”
[I finished the work long ago, but verification took a bit longer to ensure there were no errors.]
“Better to hear accurate information late than incorrect information early.”

Seok-won spoke calmly, still standing before the expansive glass window.

“Tell me what you found.”
[Just as you suspected, there was someone orchestrating the exposure of the employment favoritism scandal involving Manager Choi Bok-rak.]

I wasn’t particularly surprised, having already anticipated as much.

[I traced the reporter from Sechang Daily News who first broke the story, and it turns out he recently bought a new car—money had to come from somewhere.]
“….”
[Additionally, I confirmed that Director Bae Sang-yun from the Securities Supervisory Authority has been secretly meeting with Donghae Group personnel at upscale establishments, accompanied by the audit director.]

A flicker of recognition crossed my eyes as I listened in silence.

“Which Donghae Group person are you referring to?”
[Manager Oh Sang-hyun—he’s the one who handles the dirty work for Executive Director Woo Ho-geun, the eldest son of Chairman Woo Yong-gap.]

So that was the reason for the persistent unease I couldn’t shake.

‘So it was Woo Ho-geun orchestrating everything from behind the scenes after all.’

Adjusting the phone in my hand, Seok-won spoke in a calm, measured voice.

“You’ve secured evidence as well, not just words, correct?”
[Of course. I’ve entrusted Team Leader Choi Ho-geun with photographs and audio recordings of Oh Sang-hyun meeting with Securities Supervisory Authority personnel. You can verify them later.]
“You recorded the conversations?”

Lee Chul-gyun answered matter-of-factly.

[Isn’t an audio recording more conclusive than a few photographs?]
“True enough.”

A smile played at the corners of my mouth.
Regardless of how the recording was obtained, the results exceeded my expectations.
As I wore a satisfied expression, my resolve to make Lee Chul-gyun one of my people only solidified further.
With skills like these, there would be countless uses for him in the future.

“Good work. I’ll have Manager Choi give you the final payment, so collect it.”
[Understood.]
“Ah, and I’d like to make an additional request. Would that be possible?”
[As long as the pay is right, anything is possible.]
“I want you to dig up misconduct involving the Sechang Daily News reporter and Securities Supervisory Authority personnel connected to this case.”
[Those stinking bastards won’t be difficult to expose.]

Lee Chul-gyun’s voice carried quiet confidence.

“The fee would be the same as this time, correct?”
[Yes. Let’s do it that way.]

After ending the call, I slipped the phone into my pocket and muttered with a cold expression.

“I’m not sure how much he’s uncovered, but to retaliate by sabotaging my operation like this… he’s not just some hot-headed idiot.”

Still, even so, he would merely become slightly more troublesome to handle—nothing would fundamentally change.

“If I intervene now, I’ll only heighten his vigilance without gaining anything.”

The real game was still ahead, and there was no reason to escalate matters and jeopardize my carefully laid plans.
I wore a smile as cold as the snow falling outside.

“Maybe venting your frustrations improved your mood, but enjoy yourself while you can. A terrible hell awaits you soon.”

* * *

The Trading Floor of the Eldorado Fund, located in the One New York Plaza Building in Manhattan, was eerily quiet despite the stock market being open for trading.
Normally, traders should have been gripping their phones and shouting, filling the space with deafening noise.
But since it was year-end, most had already settled their portfolios, locked in their profits, and closed their positions, so everyone had naturally grown lax.
In fact, there were quite a few empty desks where people had taken vacation.
Among those still manning their stations, there were almost no supervisory-level staff—mostly junior traders with one or two years of experience.
Mason, who lacked extensive experience but received treatment comparable to a senior trader as a founding member of the fund, leaned back in his chair with a bored expression.

“Quite slow today.”

He passed the time by repeatedly tossing up and catching a baseball signed by Derek Jeter, a rookie player for the New York Yankees who debuted this year.
While checking his watch occasionally and waiting for the market to close, someone suddenly snatched the baseball he had tossed up mid-flight.

“If you have nothing to do, why don’t you organize some documents instead?”

Mason, noticing Andrew, the Senior Chief Investment Officer, standing beside him, jumped in surprise and quickly straightened up.

“Chief. Wasn’t today supposed to be your day off?”

Andrew rolled the baseball he had caught in one hand while scanning the Trading Floor once over.

“Just stopped by on my way. How’s the market looking?”

Mason quickly glanced at the monitor installed on his desk.

“The S&P 500 is up 2.72 points to 614.21, and the other indices are continuing their upward trend.”
“Hmm.”

Andrew, wearing a gray cashmere coat, turned his head to gaze at the large market ticker mounted on the wall, and his brow furrowed slightly.
With short positions in place, the S&P 500 showed no signs of declining, instead creeping steadily upward—an unwelcome sight.
Andrew straightened his head and asked again.

“Is the trading volume high?”

Mason, sensing Andrew’s displeasure, quickly offered a response.

“As you know, it’s year-end, so trading volume is less than half of usual.”
“True. By this time of year, everyone’s wrapped up their annual trades, so there wouldn’t be much activity anyway.”

Andrew tossed the baseball in his hand lightly to Mason and turned to leave.

“I’m heading out now. If nothing urgent comes up, everyone should leave early.”
“Yes, understood.”

Andrew raised one hand in a casual farewell and exited the Trading Floor.
The hallway, which would normally be bustling with employees, lay quiet and still today.
Andrew pressed the call button and waited for the elevator while pulling out his phone from his inner pocket to call Landon Shore, the CCO of Eldorado Fund.
After a few rings, Landon picked up.

[Hello?]
“Landon. It’s me.”

He could hear loud chatter in the background—Landon was with his family.

[What’s the matter?]
“Did you see that the S&P 500 rose to 614.21 today?”

Landon spoke from a quieter location, apparently having moved away.

[The Federal Reserve’s rate cuts seem to be having a longer effect than expected.]

Andrew’s expression grew troubled as he lowered his voice in response.

“Before the Christmas break, I deposited an additional 500 million dollars in margin with both Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers. We’re still fine for now, but if the S&P 500 breaks above 620, we’ll get a margin call immediately.”

Just then, the elevator arrived and its doors opened.
Seeing people inside, Andrew raised his hand apologetically and turned away.
He walked to the end of the empty hallway and stood before a glass window, continuing the call.

[620 doesn’t leave us much room to breathe.]

Landon’s tone was serious—he clearly understood the gravity of the situation.

“It’s just that trading volume is low because it’s year-end. Once strong buying pressure kicks in, we shouldn’t have much trouble breaking past 620 in a single day.”
[On the other hand, if trading volume increases when the new year opens, couldn’t we see a flood of sell orders driven by shutdown concerns?]
“That could happen if the White House and the Republican Party are still battling over the budget by then.”
[Looking at the atmosphere in Washington right now, they’re not narrowing their positions—the standoff is intensifying. The odds of a dramatic resolution within days are low.]

Andrew’s eyes gleamed at the hint that the other party knew something.

“Do you have grounds for such confidence?”
[I was actually planning to tell you this. Speaker Sabitz apparently left for Atlanta this morning.]

Andrew asked back, sounding surprised.

“Is that really true?”
[Our lobbyist in Washington passed along the information, so it’s reliable intelligence. It’ll probably make the news soon.]

Atlanta was the capital of Georgia, where Speaker Sabitz’s congressional district was located.
Since the Federal Congress session had already ended, it wasn’t unusual for a federal representative to head back to their district to spend the year-end there.
But the problem was that the next fiscal year’s government budget had failed to pass after President Davidson exercised his veto, leaving the federal government in a shutdown.

[What do you think it means that Speaker Sabitz left Washington without a budget agreement in place?]
“It’s a clear statement that he has no intention of negotiating with the White House.”
[Exactly right. The problem is that President Davidson shows no sign of backing down either.]

Andrew gazed out through the glass windows in the corridor at the snow falling heavily.

“If the shutdown extends into the new year, the political pressure will mount, so the White House’s stance could change, couldn’t it?”
[Politics can turn in any direction at any time, so that’s possible. But what matters is that both sides are still pushing hard, as if determined to see this through to the end.]

Andrew held the phone to his ear while stroking his chin with his free hand.

“The Republican Party must be feeling significant political pressure as well. Perhaps they’re both waiting to see who gives in first and comes to the negotiating table.”
[It’ll become a contest of who can hold out longer. What’s certain is that the shutdown doesn’t feel like it’ll end easily.]
“Then it really might exceed the previous record of 17 days for the longest shutdown, just as you predicted, sir.”
[If that happens, no matter how much the Federal Reserve cut rates, the stock market won’t be able to maintain its current upward momentum.]

Andrew nodded and continued.

“Anxiety and fear will grow stronger than optimism.”
[I’ve trusted you from the start, but watching how things are unfolding, it increasingly feels like the short bet will succeed.]

Landon’s laughter filtered through the phone.
Andrew’s face, too, had lost much of the anxiety it had carried before.

[The fund account still has plenty of cash reserves, and if needed, we can always pull in the profits we made from our yen positions. Don’t worry about margin calls—just maintain the position.]

With sufficient buffer funds to weather any margin call, as Landon had assured him, Andrew saw no need for further discussion and wrapped up the conversation.

“Understood. Have a good end of year, sir.”
[You head home and get some proper rest too.]

After ending the call, Andrew pocketed his phone and muttered to himself.

“If Speaker Sabitz has already left for Atlanta, untangling this knot will certainly become far more difficult.”

If the markets opened in the new year without a dramatic resolution during these final days of the year, what would Wall Street investors make of it all?
The thought of such upheaval both worried and thrilled me.

“If the market, which had been riding high on optimism, suddenly crashes and plummets… that would be absolutely exhilarating.”

Andrew, lost in such imaginings, broke into a faint smile.

“This is exactly why I can’t leave the boss’s side.”

Muttering softly, Andrew thrust his hands deep into his coat pockets and walked toward the elevator.

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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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