Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 249

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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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249. Summon all the executives right now.

Four days later, at the Mapo Daeheung Group Headquarters.
Seok-won, his face rigid and expressionless, entered the adjoining office with Han Ji-sung, his attendant secretary.
The secretarial staff seated at their desks quickly rose to their feet and bowed their heads respectfully.

“Young master—no, President. Welcome.”

Choo Se-young, whose hairline seemed to have receded slightly since I’d last seen him, hurried around his desk and spoke with evident nervousness.
Seok-won gave a small nod and asked, his expression still taut.

“Is the Chairman inside?”

Sensing something unusual in the atmosphere, Choo Se-young answered immediately, his eyes darting about.

“He’s waiting inside with the elder president.”

Upon hearing this, Seok-won left Han Ji-sung behind and approached the Chairman’s Office door, giving it a light knock before opening it.
Inside, Park Jin-hyung, the elder son and president of Daeheung Textiles, and Park Tae-hong, the Chairman, who had been seated on the sofa drinking coffee, looked up at him.

“You’re here?”
“Yes.”

Seok-won gave a slight bow and then exchanged a brief glance with his older brother, President Park Jin-hyung.

“Come sit.”

Park Tae-hong set down his coffee cup and gestured.
As Seok-won unbuttoned his jacket and settled onto the empty left sofa, Park Tae-hong asked him in his usual manner.

“Would you like some tea?”
“No, thank you.”

Park Tae-hong’s eyes narrowed as he observed Seok-won’s rigid expression.
Sensing that something unusual was afoot, Park Tae-hong turned his head and gave a subtle signal to Jung Yun-kyung, who stood near the door.

“That’s fine, so let’s call it a day.”
“Understood.”

Jung Yun-kyung quietly closed the door and left.
Park Jin-hyung, seated across from me, regarded his younger brother with a puzzled expression as I leaned back against the plush sofa and asked.

“Has something happened? Your face looks awfully tense.”

Seok-won then glanced between me and his older brother before speaking in a grave tone.

“Do you remember when I mentioned before that our group’s governance structure was too vulnerable to external attacks?”
“Of course.”
“Well, the threat we feared has materialized.”
“…?!”

I raised my eyebrows and pressed him sharply.

“What do you mean the threat has materialized?”

Park Jin-hyung, who had been listening intently, fixed his gaze on Seok-won with visible tension.
Under the weight of both their stares, Seok-won opened his mouth deliberately.

“I’ve confirmed that there are parties attempting a hostile takeover of Midopa Department Store.”

Before he could even finish, I slammed my palm against the armrest of the sofa.

“What kind of bastards would attempt something like this!”

Park Jin-hyung’s eyes widened as he pulled himself forward in his seat.

“Are you absolutely certain about this?”

Seok-won nodded slightly and answered in a heavy voice.

“I’ve already confirmed that over 10% of the shares have been transferred to the other party.”
“What!”

Park Jin-hyung could not hide his alarm at learning that the opposition had already secured such a substantial stake.
My own complexion darkened as I glared with fierce intensity.

“So you’re telling me that while they accumulated such a massive stake, no one noticed a thing? Everyone was completely in the dark? What on earth was the finance team doing!”

Even if Park Tae-hong and his family combined all their shares in Midopa Department Store, they didn’t even reach 20%.
But when the other party had already accumulated over 10% of the stock—half of what they needed—it was enough to make anyone furious.

“They disguised it to look like foreigners were buying the stock, so it would have been difficult to notice the accumulation.”
“Regardless, how could you not know until things got this bad!”

Park Tae-hong’s face flushed with anger as he raised his voice.
Despite having warned them multiple times already, there was no denying their carelessness, so Seok-won didn’t make excuses for the stock traders either.
As Park Tae-hong fumed and breathed heavily, Park Jin-hyung spoke with a grave expression.

“From what I’m hearing, it seems like someone has carefully planned and is systematically moving to target Midopa Department Store. Do you know who’s behind this?”

Park Tae-hong was equally curious about this, so he leaned forward on the sofa and looked at his second son.

“It’s Donghae Group.”

Shock flashed across both their faces.

“Donghae Group? Are you certain?”

Park Tae-hong asked as if he couldn’t believe it.
Park Jin-hyung, his older brother, was equally surprised—he hadn’t expected it to be Donghae Group either, and his mouth fell open.

“Could there be some mistake?”
“No. I’m certain.”
“But why would Donghae Group attack us? We’re not particularly close, but we haven’t made any enemies either.”

Park Tae-hong muttered with a bewildered expression, as if his head were spinning.
Seok-won, seeing their reaction, explained one by one the reasons he was certain it was Donghae Group.

“The channel being used to accumulate Midopa Department Store stock on the market is Donghae Peregrine Securities.”

Since it was an important matter, Park Jin-hyung raised an objection with a cautious tone.

“They could simply be helping with the accumulation. Based on just that alone, it seems insufficient evidence to conclude that the other party is Donghae Group.”
“Of course, that’s true.”

Despite the sharp observation, Seok-won continued speaking with unshaken confidence.

“Disguising themselves as a foreigner to deflect public attention was successful, but that method has one fatal weakness.”

Park Jin-hyung then responded as if something had just occurred to him.

“You’re talking about the foreign investment limit, aren’t you?”
“Exactly. No matter how much capital they have, the law restricts foreigners to holding a maximum of 15% of total shares. The law changed today, raising the limit to 18%, but even that wouldn’t be nearly enough to conduct a hostile takeover of Midopa Department Store.”

Park Jin-hyung nodded in agreement as he continued.

“That’s right. Just the Midopa Department Store shares held by Father and our family alone amount to 19.6%, and if we gather the friendly shares as well, we’d easily exceed 25%.”

Park Tae-hong, sitting with his arms crossed and a grave expression, nodded as if he shared the same thought.

“So they’re using a trick—transferring some of the shares they’ve accumulated through Donghae Peregrine Securities, disguised as a foreigner, to other places.”
“They transferred the shares they bought to somewhere else?”

Park Jin-hyung asked, narrowing his brow.

“Yes. By moving the purchased shares elsewhere, they can continue accumulating additional shares without breaking the law, using the freed-up allocation.”
“Unbelievable….”

Park Jin-hyung let out a breath of exasperation, his expression one of utter disbelief.
Park Tae-hong’s face grew increasingly grave as well.
He now clearly understood that this was a meticulously calculated and prepared attack from the very beginning.

“If you knew where they transferred or deposited the shares they accumulated, you’d understand why I’m certain Donghae Group is behind this.”

Park Tae-hong then asked, his voice strained as he forcibly suppressed his anger.

“Where is it?”
“Baekje Industrial.”
“…!”

Park Tae-hong’s eyes flashed fiercely as he clenched his teeth.

“Baekje Industrial—that’s the in-law company of Woo Yong-gap, Chairman of Donghae Group.”
“Exactly. When undertaking something this significant, there’s no one more trustworthy to entrust it to than family.”

This circumstantial evidence alone was sufficient to confirm that Donghae Group was behind it.
Chairman Park Tae-hong clenched his fists and trembled with rage.

“That’s right. Chairman Woo has been an eyesore for a while now, and he dares to pull off something like this behind my back.”

Just days ago, we had seen each other at a Federation of Korean Industries gathering.
The thought of Chairman Woo Yong-gap treating me with such composure while secretly scheming and mocking me behind the scenes made my blood boil.

“Hmm.”

President Park Jin-hyung let out a low growl and his expression filled with fury.
Unlike the two of them, Seok-won responded with a composed demeanor and laid out countermeasures.

“Since the damage is already done, rather than wasting time on anger, our priority should be to respond as quickly as possible before the situation deteriorates further.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong, befitting the head of a major group, suppressed his rising fury and looked at his second son.

“Phew… You’re right. What do you suggest we do?”
“It would have been better if we’d prepared in advance, but now that a hostile takeover has been attempted, our only option is to secure more shares than our opponent by any means necessary and block their attack.”

It wasn’t a particularly novel answer, but it was the most certain method, so Chairman Park Tae-hong nodded gravely.
He felt regret that if he had heeded his second son’s warning and prioritized strengthening the corporate structure, he wouldn’t have faced this situation. But dwelling on such thoughts now was pointless.

“The construction costs for the Gangnam Branch have depleted nearly all available cash within the group, so I’m concerned whether we can properly respond if a share battle erupts.”

President Park Jin-hyung spoke with a worried expression.

“They’ve calculated all of that and struck at this most vulnerable moment.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong furrowed his brow and snorted, then his expression hardened immediately.

“But we can’t just stand by and let thieves with drawn blades rob us of everything. Whether we borrow from banks or take on dollar debt, we must protect Midopa Department Store by any means.”

If we lost Midopa Department Store, the complex web of shareholding relationships could result in the entire Daeheung Group being handed over, so we had to maintain management rights even at great cost.
President Park Jin-hyung, fully aware of this situation, also nodded in agreement.
It was clear this would become a devastating game of chicken with massive losses for both sides, but we couldn’t back down.
Seok-won watched the two men steel their resolve, then opened his mouth.

“First, we should mobilize all available cash to purchase department store shares while simultaneously exposing Donghae Group’s hostile takeover attempt through the media.”

Park Tae-hong’s eyes narrowed with confusion at the suggestion.

“Inform the media about the situation?”

Park Jin-hyung’s expression mirrored the bewilderment, his brow furrowing slightly.

“If we do that, the stock price will skyrocket, making it harder for us to acquire the shares we need.”
“Exactly.”
“Hmm?”

Seok-won flashed a knowing smile, meeting both men’s gazes directly.

“If we’re struggling, they’ll have to buy shares at inflated prices too. That way, we can drain their prepared capital reserves.”

Park Tae-hong’s hand suddenly slapped against his knee as understanding dawned.

“Ah! So you’re planning to shake them up and slow their share acquisition as much as possible since we’re not fully prepared yet.”
“Yes. And if we frame it to public opinion as a hostile takeover—especially with foreign capital trying to seize control, something the business community abhors—we can apply considerable pressure on Donghae Group.”
“Most conglomerate chairmen will take this seriously, considering that ours isn’t the only group with limited founder family shareholding. That’s truly brilliant thinking.”

Park Tae-hong’s eyes gleamed with approval.
If the hostile takeover of Midopa Department Store succeeded, other conglomerates would face similar risks, making it impossible for them to dismiss this as someone else’s problem.

From my memories before regression, I recalled how the Federation of Korean Industries and other conglomerate groups had fiercely opposed Donghae Group’s attempt to swallow Daeheung Group by bringing in the foreign Peregrine Securities.

Donghae Group was branded a traitor and isolated as a result, while Daeheung Group managed to protect Midopa Department Store with lateral support from other conglomerates.

Of course, both groups suffered massive losses from the fierce share battle and neither survived the devastating waves of the IMF crisis that followed.

When both groups collapsed and were dismantled, their prime subsidiaries were divided among other conglomerates—a situation where everyone else benefited while we did all the work.
Park Jin-hyung then raised the immediate concern, his voice tinged with worry.

“Still, ultimately we need to hold more shares than they do to win this fight. I’m concerned because we’ve only secured 19.6% of the shares.”
“Hmm. That’s true.”

Park Tae-hong’s expression grew troubled, fully aware of how little cash the group possessed.
While I’d said we needed to secure funds somehow, the reality of execution left me staring at a blank wall with no clear path forward.
As both men wrestled with the impasse, Seok-won interjected.

“It’s not 19.6%. It’s 28%.”
“What do you mean?”

Seok-won’s lips curved into a smile as he pulled them back slightly.

“I anticipated something like this might happen, so I established a paper company in Hong Kong and purchased a 5% stake in Midopa Department Store. And sensing something odd myself, I’ve been accumulating shares over the past few months and secured 3.4% for myself.”

Park Tae-hong’s eyes widened with genuine delight at this completely unexpected revelation.

“Is that true?”
“Yes. So our total stake comes to 28%.”

Park Jin-hyung’s face brightened noticeably as he spoke.

“Then we have a real fighting chance.”

Hope surged through the room as the atmosphere shifted dramatically.
Park Tae-hong gazed at his second son with an approving gleam in his eyes, his expression warm with pride.

“You clever boy. Preparing contingencies in secret like that—you’ve surpassed me.”

Park Tae-hong nodded repeatedly in satisfaction, then his eyes suddenly flashed with steely determination.

“That Chairman Woo has underestimated me. I’ll make sure no one ever dares to covet our group again—I’ll teach him a lesson he won’t forget.”

He extended one arm and pressed the intercom button on the side table.

[Yes. What are your orders, Chairman?]
“Summon Gil Secretary Director and all the executives immediately.”

Jung Yun-kyung’s voice came back promptly, her tone crisp and professional.

[Understood, sir.]

Park Tae-hong looked at his two sons seated on either side of him with unwavering confidence, interlacing his fingers.

“You two stay here with me until the executives arrive.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Of course.”

This was an incident that required the entire group to stand united against.
And Park Tae-hong had resolved never to forgive Chairman Woo Yong-gap for orchestrating this sinister scheme from the shadows.

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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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