Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 275

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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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275. Well, that’s exactly what I wanted to say.

Crash!
“Damn it! Damn it!”

Woo Ho-geun, completely unhinged, swung a golf club and hurled obscenities as he smashed everything in his private office to pieces.
The computer monitor shattered and tumbled beneath the desk, while expensive vases, decorative pieces, and glass cabinet doors scattered across the floor in fragments.
The deafening crash of breaking objects echoed beyond the office, but everyone knew Woo Ho-geun’s temperament well enough to keep their distance, huddling in fear without daring to approach.
After a moment, when the room lay in complete devastation as though a typhoon had swept through it and nothing remained to destroy, Woo Ho-geun finally ceased his rampage, breathing heavily as he lowered the golf club.
Oh Sang-hyun, who had been standing quietly in the corner observing everything, regarded the heaving Woo Ho-geun with an expressionless face, using the golf club as a cane.

“Have you calmed down now, sir?”
“Damn it all.”

Woo Ho-geun tossed the golf club aside and roughly yanked his necktie loose before collapsing onto the sofa.

“Connect me with Hurd immediately!”
“Yes, sir.”

Watching Oh Sang-hyun pull out his mobile phone from his inner pocket to make the call, Woo Ho-geun ground his teeth.

“These bastards stabbed me in the back.”

They had broken their agreement without warning, so his sense of betrayal was justified.
Worse, he had learned of Peregrine Securities Hong Kong’s change in attitude for the first time in the conference room where his father, Chairman Woo Yong-gap, and the group executives were gathered, humiliating him in front of them all.

‘These idiots!’
‘I’ll look into what happened immediately. Just give me a moment….’
‘He said to leave it to him, and this is the result?!’
‘Father! It’s not like that….’
‘Shut up!’

Chairman Woo Yong-gap had erupted in fury, rebuking him severely in front of all the executives and even striking his cheek.
The blow had been so hard that a red handprint still marked one side of his face.
But Woo Ho-geun felt the sting of humiliation far more acutely than physical pain, trembling as he barely suppressed the surging rage within him.
Then Oh Sang-hyun extended the mobile phone forward and spoke briefly.

“You’re connected.”

Woo Ho-geun snatched the phone and clenched his fist, drawing a deep breath.
Otherwise, he feared profanities would spill from his lips.

“I’m certain you know why I’m calling.”

Between his tightly clenched teeth, Woo Ho-geun released a strained voice.

[It must be about the additional funding.]
“Has there been some mistake? Was the document sent incorrectly?”

I held onto hope until the very end, but the answer that came back shattered my expectations.

[No. As stated in the official notice we already sent, we will provide no further support regarding this M&A.]

At the firm response that left no room for negotiation, Woo Ho-geun gripped the phone tightly.

“What are you saying? How can you do this so suddenly!”

But Hurd’s tone was cold, unlike before.

[We did have verbal discussions, but we never signed a formal contract. And considering we’ve already lent you a substantial sum, I believe we’ve done our part.]
“That’s absurd!”

Just as I was about to protest, Hurd cut me off and spoke first.

[Unlike what you initially told us, it’s Donghae Group that has complicated the situation by failing to proceed with the work properly.]

At this attempt to shift blame, Woo Ho-geun nearly erupted in curses.
But since he was the one in need, he struggled to compose himself and forced his voice to remain calm.

“I admit the original plan went awry. However, if you provide additional funding, we can secure victory at the upcoming emergency shareholders’ meeting and take control of Daheung Group.”

I tried hard to persuade him, but Hurd remained indifferent.

[I’m not so sure. Even if we provided additional funding, it seems unlikely the plan would succeed.]
“What do you mean by that!”
[That Donghae Group won’t be able to swallow Daheung.]

As Hurd stated matter-of-factly, Woo Ho-geun narrowed his brows and attempted to persuade him once more.

“If this is about Midopa Department Store selling its stake in Daeheung Textiles, I’ve already found an alternative to secure the remaining subsidiaries, so there’s no need to worry.”
[….]

Hurd fell silent for a moment before speaking again.

[Judging by what you’re saying, it seems Donghae Group still doesn’t realize who they’re actually fighting against.]

His tone carried a hint of sympathy.
Woo Ho-geun’s expression darkened with displeasure as he asked.

“What do you mean by that?”
[Have you heard of the Eldorado Fund?]

At this unexpected mention, Woo Ho-geun replied with a puzzled expression.

“I’ve never heard of it.”

Though Donghae Group maintained a securities company as a subsidiary, they remained provincial in their outlook—utterly indifferent to the outside world and focused solely on comfortable profit-making within the domestic market. Consequently, Woo Ho-geun and Donghae Group were ignorant of Wall Street and international financial developments.
Hurd internally clicked his tongue at their apparent lack of due diligence despite attempting a hostile M&A.
Yet he couldn’t fault them entirely, for even he and his associates hadn’t suspected the Eldorado Fund’s involvement with Daheung Group until Seok-won came directly to them.
Still, this confirmed once more that the M&A was destined to fail.

‘It was never going to succeed from the beginning.’

Though there had been complications along the way, Hurd was relieved to be extracting himself before deepening his involvement and compounding losses. He continued speaking.

[It’s a hedge fund that’s been receiving significant attention on Wall Street recently.]
“But what does that have to do with us?”

Woo Ho-geun’s brow furrowed deeper as understanding began to dawn on him.

“Don’t tell me this Eldorado Fund has joined hands with Daheung Group?”
[I’d say it’s more accurate to say they were essentially one entity from the very beginning.]

Woo Ho-geun’s expression betrayed his confusion.

“What exactly are you talking about?”

Hurd responded calmly to the irritated question.

[The representative of Eldorado Fund is Park Seok-won.]
“…!”

The moment that name—one that made his teeth clench just thinking of the face—emerged from an unexpected direction, Woo Ho-geun froze with the phone pressed to his ear.
Wondering if he’d misheard, he straightened his upper body and asked urgently.

“Did you just say Park Seok-won?”
[Yes. He’s the second son of Chairman Park Tae-hong of Daheung Group.]
“How… how is that possible…?”

As if struck hard on the head with a blunt object, Woo Ho-geun doubted his own ears for a moment, his expression one of disbelief.

“Park Seok-won that bastard is the representative of Eldorado Fund? You must have confused him with someone else with the same name.”

But the answer that came back only deepened Woo Ho-geun’s despair.

[I heard it directly from him in person, so it’s a confirmed fact.]

Woo Ho-geun’s mouth hung open in shock.
But the bad news didn’t end there.

[I’ll send an official document today, but since we’re connected now, I thought it best to tell you immediately.]

Hurd continued in his blunt tone.
Still reeling from the shock, Woo Ho-geun held the phone numbly, his face hardened.

[I’ve sold all the bonds I lent you to Eldorado Fund. Going forward, if there’s anything to discuss regarding this matter, please handle it with them.]
“Wait. Wait a moment. What did you say?”

Woo Ho-geun, who had been dazed, suddenly snapped to attention at this thunderbolt of news.

“You’re saying you transferred the bonds to Eldorado—to that bastard Park Seok-won?”
[Yes.]
“No! How could you do this without even consulting us once!”

Woo Ho-geun’s face flushed crimson as he shouted accusingly.

“Whether we sell the bonds or continue holding them is entirely our decision. There’s not a single clause in any contract drawn up by both parties stating that we must obtain Donghae Group’s consent before liquidating our position.”

Hurd, meanwhile, countered with clinical detachment and cold precision.
At that, Woo Ho-geun slammed his fist against the armrest of the sofa where he sat, his voice seething with fury.

“Regardless, it’s a matter of basic decency to give us at least a heads-up!”

As Woo Ho-geun raged, Hurd responded with a dismissive snort.

“Had we known the Eldorado Fund was backing the Daheung Group, we wouldn’t have touched this M&A in the first place. We’ve suffered considerable losses liquidating copper futures positions we’d hastily accumulated when our exposure became compromised, but since there’s fault on our end for rushing in without proper due diligence, consider yourselves fortunate we’re not pursuing damages.”

Woo Ho-geun’s mind grew even more tangled, unable to fathom why copper futures had suddenly entered the conversation.

“In any case, we’re withdrawing completely from this matter, so understand that clearly.”

With the situation already precarious, the withdrawal of Peregrine Securities Hong Kong—the financial lifeline sustaining the deal—would effectively render the Daheung Group M&A dead in the water.
Woo Ho-geun, acutely aware of this reality, abandoned his anger and seized Hurd’s arm with desperate urgency.

“Please reconsider. If there are conditions you want met, I’ll do everything in my power to accommodate them.”
“Sigh…”

Hurd made no effort to conceal his exasperation.

“You seem to have misunderstood. We assess the probability of this M&A succeeding as extremely low. Frankly, forgetting about securing management rights—if Donghae Group can avoid being devoured by the Eldorado Fund, that alone would be fortunate.”

At his categorical pronouncement, Woo Ho-geun bit down hard on his lower lip.

“Still, since we once stood together, I’ll offer you one piece of advice. If you wish to minimize the damage from the storm bearing down on you, you should abandon this equity struggle now and meet with Park Seok-won of the Eldorado Fund to beg his forgiveness by any means necessary. Otherwise, not just you, but the entire Donghae Group will face severe consequences.”

To kneel before an adversary brimming with such fierce animosity and competitive drive was utterly unacceptable.
Of course, Seok-won paid him no mind whatsoever—and that, paradoxically, only inflamed his resentment further.
As the inferiority complex buried deep within him erupted, Woo Ho-geun’s resistance surged anew, and he spoke with a hardened expression.

“That will absolutely not happen. Even if you withdraw, we’ll continue with the M&A!”
“How unfortunate. The outcome is predictable, but the choice is yours—do as you wish.”

Woo Ho-geun, now fully convinced that further pleading would not sway Peregrine Securities Hong Kong, spoke in a hollow voice.

“You’ll come to regret this decision.”
[Well, that’s exactly what I wanted to say.]

Hurd responded with a sneer.
Unable to contain himself, Woo Ho-geun ended the call without another word, then finally lost his temper and let out a loud curse.

“Damn it all!”

Woo Ho-geun swung his arm and hurled his mobile phone hard against the floor.
Oh Sang-hyun watched the phone shatter with a crack as it hit the ground, then stepped closer to gauge the expression of Woo Ho-geun, whose breathing had grown ragged and heavy.

“If Peregrine Securities Hong Kong really withdraws like this, our entire plan will fall apart. Are you certain about this?”

Woo Ho-geun tilted his head back against the sofa, wrestling with how to overcome this crisis, before finally lifting his chin.

“Contact President Kwon and tell him I need to see him urgently.”
“Do you mean President Kwon Seung-seop of Donghae Mutual Credit Union?”
“That’s right.”

Sensing something ominous, Oh Sang-hyun regarded him with a look of concern.

“Why President Kwon all of a sudden…?”

Woo Ho-geun irritably swept his hair back with one hand.

“The funds coming from Hong Kong have been blocked, so we need to secure money from somewhere else to cover the shortfall!”

Sensing the danger in his willingness to cross a line that should never be crossed, Oh Sang-hyun tried to dissuade him.
But seeing his face twisted with rage, it was clear he was in no mood to listen.
Judging that any attempt to reason with him would be futile, Oh Sang-hyun answered with resignation.

“…Understood.”

Woo Ho-geun’s eyes gleamed with bloodshot intensity as he muttered through gritted teeth.

“Park Seok-won, you bastard. You think I’ll back down now? Let’s see who comes out on top. Let’s take this all the way.”

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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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