Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 263

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

263. It’s all karma they’ve accumulated themselves—what can be done about it?

“Huh. I wondered why they seemed so confident, but they were hiding a card like this.”

Chairman Kwak Dong-hun let out a hollow laugh from his seat on the sofa after hearing about the disclosure statement that Midopa Department Store had just filed.
Then Yeom Geon-u, the Chief Secretary seated to his left—a tall man with a lean, muscular frame—adjusted his wire-rimmed glasses and spoke.

“With a disclosure like this coming out on the final day of the public tender offer, Donghae Group must feel like they’ve been blindsided.”
“From the start, their real aim in trying to seize control of Midopa Department Store was to use the textile shares they hold to swallow up the entire Daheung Group. That’s how it would feel.”

Chairman Kwak Dong-hun, crossing one leg over the other, wore an expression of intrigue.

“Donghae Group will probably file for a preliminary injunction against the sale of those shares immediately.”
“If Daheung Venture Capital takes possession of the textile shares like this, then even if they acquire Midopa Department Store, it becomes nothing but an empty shell, doesn’t it? So they’ll do everything in their power to block it.”
“That they will.”

Chairman Kwak Dong-hun nodded slightly and asked.

“How much money has Donghae Group poured into accumulating Midopa Department Store shares so far?”
“We estimate roughly 900 billion to 1 trillion won. And depending on how many individual investors respond to the public tender offer that closes today, we’re projecting the amount could increase by an additional 2 to 3 trillion won.”
“So even taking the middle figure, we’re well over 3 trillion won.”
“That’s correct.”

Chief Secretary Yeom Geon-u’s eyes gleamed behind his wire-rimmed glasses.

“The problem is that even after all that, they haven’t secured a majority stake.”
“Excluding the public tender offer, Donghae Group currently holds about 21.8% of shares, correct?”
“Yes, that’s right.”

Chairman Kwak Dong-hun crossed his arms and spoke.

“Even if they acquire just 20% more shares through the public tender offer, they could gain an advantage over Daheung. But spending over 3 trillion won to acquire Midopa Department Store seems like an overextension.”
“I share that assessment. Of course, if we consider all the subsidiary companies under Midopa and the real estate they hold, it should be worth at least 1 trillion won. But with one of the key assets—the textile shares—slipping away and Daheung Group still holding a considerable stake, the possibility of management disputes resurfacing at any time means this would definitely be a reckless move.”
“Right. That’s true.”

Chairman Kwak Dong-hun nodded slightly.
Then, as if something had suddenly occurred to him, he lifted his head and asked.

“But I understand Daheung Group’s financial situation has been strained. Where did they get the money to transfer the textile stake held by Midopa Department Store?”

He tilted his head, his expression betraying confusion.

“If they had such funds, wouldn’t it have been better to secure even one more share of Midopa stock?”
“I share that concern. While this equity transfer might save Daheung Textile, if Midopa Department Store slips away, half the group—including all the subsidiaries beneath it—would be lost.”

Kwak Dong-hun, turning the matter over in his mind, furrowed his brow slightly as he spoke.

“Perhaps their financial difficulties made it impossible to continue the equity battle. So they chose to sacrifice the flesh to save the bones—preserving only the textile division and the subsidiaries below it.”

Then Chief Secretary Yeom Geon-u carefully opened his mouth.

“It’s possible we’ve been misunderstanding Daheung Group’s financial position.”
“What do you mean by that?”

Kwak Dong-hun looked at him with puzzled eyes.

“According to the disclosure Midopa Department Store filed, they didn’t sell the textile stake at a discount. The announcement specified that they sold everything at yesterday’s closing price.”
“That could mean another subsidiary provided emergency payment guarantees or loans to cover the sale proceeds.”

At this dismissive response, Chief Secretary Yeom Geon-u continued with a notably serious expression.

“I initially thought the same, but after inquiring more thoroughly through the exchange, it turned out that Daheung Venture Capital paid the full amount in cash and acquired the stake.”
“Is that really true?”
“Yes, it is.”

Kwak Dong-hun’s brow furrowed sharply.

“If they didn’t lower the price and transferred it at market value, it would have required at least a hundred billion won. And they paid it all in cash.”

At his incredulous murmur, Chief Secretary Yeom Geon-u lowered his head and answered.

“I also found it hard to believe, so I verified it multiple times. But it was true.”
“Huh.”

Kwak Dong-hun let out a hollow laugh, his eyes narrowing to slits.

“So Chairman Park has been carrying around some enormous hidden pocket that nobody knew about.”

Up until this point, it wasn’t unusual for companies to siphon off portions of corporate funds to create slush funds for various purposes.
Saseong Group was no exception—they kept a large secret safe hidden behind a wall panel in the secretary’s office, ready to be accessed at any time, containing stacks of cash and bankbooks worth hundreds of billions of won in slush funds.
Chairman Kwak Dong-hun stroked his lips with a dissatisfied expression.

“Even if that’s true, if we withdraw the hidden slush funds now when public attention is focused on us, we might extinguish the immediate fire, but it’ll become a headache later.”
“That would suggest they were desperate enough to have no room to think about the future, wouldn’t it?”

At that, Chairman Kwak Dong-hun shook his head.

“That can’t be it. If that were truly the case, there’s no way they would have rejected the funds the Federation of Korean Industries offered to lend.”

Borrowing money from Saseong and Hyun-woo was clearly better in many ways than withdrawing hidden slush funds with the resolve to face a tax investigation, even if the terms weren’t favorable.
Chairman Kwak Dong-hun tapped his fingers on the armrest of the sofa he was sitting on, pondering briefly before lifting his head.

“No matter how I think about it, I can’t shake this uneasy feeling. Look into where exactly these funds came from.”
“Yes, understood.”

Chairman Kwak Dong-hun exhaled a long breath through his nose and then opened his mouth again.

“In any case, now that a hundred billion won in cash has materialized, Daheung Group won’t just sit idle—they’ll use it to acquire shares.”
“As you say, if they keep it as reserves, Donghae Group could swallow it when they lose management control. So it’s highly likely they’ll loan it to other subsidiaries in the form of loans to purchase Midopa stock.”
“That’s right. If it comes to an extraordinary general meeting, the outcome might not be decided so easily.”

Chairman Kwak Dong-hun found the situation quite amusing and his eyes gleamed with interest.

* * *

Daehung Venture Capital Headquarters in Gangnam, Seoul.
With only a short time remaining before the market close, the fund management department office resembled a war zone.

“Right. 32,000 and 5,000 shares! What? It’s gone up again already!”

[Donghae Oil 33,120
4,680]

Manager Jung Hwan-yeop, with the receiver wedged against one shoulder and his upper body bent forward to check the monitor, furrowed his brow and shouted.

“Damn it! Got it—buy at the current price.”

When the transaction was finally settled at a price higher than the initial asking price, I slammed down the receiver as if to break it and grumbled.

“Phew. The stock price is rising like crazy.”

Then Choi Ho-geun, who had rolled up his dress shirt sleeves, stepped closer and spoke.

“Come on. You’re being so gentle putting it down—are you worried the phone will break? Why don’t you just hurl it at the wall?”
“It’s just one phone. How much could it possibly cost? You’re being too much.”
“Let’s treat company property like it’s our own, shall we?”

Then Jung Hwan-yeop pouted his lips.

“You never used to be like this, but now that you’ve made manager, you’re openly acting like a fossil.”
“This guy really never learns.”

Once again, Choi Ho-geun’s mouth—a magnet for trouble—made him furrow his brow before he exhaled a deep sigh.
I wondered if that reckless personality of his would ever change.

“How’s the buying going?”

Jung Hwan-yeop ran a hand roughly through his hair and replied.

“As you can see, everyone’s caught the scent—the available listings have dropped sharply. Though our aggressive buying every time something comes on the market certainly plays a role.”

Choi Ho-geun studied the stock price chart, its graph climbing steeply, his expression turning serious.

“It’ll jump even higher tomorrow, so acquire as much volume as possible before market close.”
“Yes, sir.”

Jung Hwan-yeop acknowledged and rapidly tapped the keyboard with his other hand, entering buy orders.
The guy had quick hands—that much was undeniable—and at moments like this, he felt quite reliable.

‘If only he’d just keep his mouth shut.’

Choi Ho-geun gently patted Jung Hwan-yeop’s shoulder while his mind wandered elsewhere, then surveyed the other side of the room with an assured gaze—Yu Seok-hyun holding two receivers in both hands mid-call, and Hong Jae-hee busy organizing transaction slips.

* * *

Meanwhile, Seok-won monitored the stock price movements from the President’s Office to ensure they wouldn’t interfere with the transaction.
Standing before a desk with two CRT monitors side by side, Seok-won watched Donghae Oil’s stock price, which had surged over 10% in a single day.

“By now, Donghae Group must have sensed something was amiss.”

It would have been stranger if they hadn’t found it suspicious—a stock that didn’t normally trade heavily suddenly experiencing such a dramatic surge.
Seok-won extended his arm, grasped the mouse, and pulled up the Midopa Department Store stock chart.

[Midopa Department Store 70,000 ▼ 130]

The Midopa Department Store stock price, which had been climbing as if it would breach 80,000 won any moment due to the hostile M&A issue, had settled at 70,000 won—the price Donghae Group had proposed—since Daheung Group refused to raise its offer further even as the public acquisition deadline approached.

“Even if they realize too late what happened, they can’t cancel the public acquisition now. They’ll be kicking themselves.”

Seok-won flashed a dark smile, baring his white teeth.
Just then, a vibrating ringtone buzzed, and he picked up the mobile phone resting on the corner of his desk.

[It’s done.]

At Lee Chul-gyun’s heavy voice, Seok-won leaned back in his chair.

“Looks like you’ve finished all the preparations, calling like this.”
[Yes. The information will be released tomorrow during the lunch break.]
“Then the news will break through the afternoon edition and evening news broadcasts.”
[That’s right.]
“I’m sure you handled it well, but I trust you’ve kept a tight lid on any information leaks beforehand.”
[I only distributed materials to reliable sources, so there’s no need for concern.]

Seok-won nodded.

“Good work. If anything comes up in the meantime, contact me immediately.”
[Understood.]

After ending the brief call, Seok-won set down his phone and muttered to himself.

“I have too much else to do to get bogged down in this matter for long. I need to wrap this up quickly.”

Then the face of Woo Ho-geun came to mind—someone he’d encountered a few times and always found unlucky.

“Summer will be here soon, and a young master who’s never known hardship will find it quite difficult to endure the heat in a prison cell without air conditioning. But what can be done when it’s all karma of his own making?”

Seok-won switched the monitor display back to the stock chart and gazed at the Donghae Oil stock price, which continued its steady climb, sipping his coffee with unhurried composure.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————