Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 87

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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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87. Better than a mosaic.

A crystalline weekend morning without a single cloud in the sky.
Chairman Park Tae-hong emerged from the master bedroom dressed in a short-sleeved polo shirt and stretchy black trousers.

“You’re leaving already?”

Jo Deok-rye, sipping tea while reading a book on the living room sofa bathed in brilliant sunlight streaming through the expansive floor-to-ceiling windows, lifted her gaze to regard her husband.

“Yes. I haven’t been to the golf course much lately, and my putting seems off. I thought I’d head out a bit early to get some practice in.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong replied as he settled into the seat across from her.

“You mentioned you have a golf appointment with Chairman Kwak from Saseong Group today?”
“That’s right. Chairman Yu from Daegwang Group is joining us as well.”
“Then have some medicinal tonic before you go.”

Jo Deok-rye pretended not to notice her husband’s reluctant expression and promptly raised her voice toward the kitchen.

“Gunsan Housekeeper? Please bring the Chairman’s tonic.”
“Yes, ma’am.”

As if she had been forewarned, the Gunsan Housekeeper promptly emerged with the medicinal tonic she had kept warm on a serving tray.
Chairman Park Tae-hong reluctantly grasped the white porcelain bowl containing the tonic and, under the insistent gaze of his wife beside him, swallowed it down with audible gulps.

“Here, have a candy.”

The moment Chairman Park Tae-hong’s face contorted at the bitter taste, Jo Deok-rye unwrapped a candy from the tray and popped it directly into his mouth.

“Who do you think I am, a child?”

Chairman Park Tae-hong grumbled while rolling the candy around in his mouth, setting the empty bowl back on the tray.

“This batch of tonic seems even more bitter than usual.”
“Well, medicine that’s good for you is naturally bitter, isn’t it? This was specially brewed with a sixty-year-old ginseng root, so don’t skip it—make sure you drink it regularly.”
“I really don’t know where you find these things… Fine, fine.”

As the Gunsan Housekeeper cleared away the empty bowls and trays, heading back to the kitchen, Chairman Park Tae-hong suddenly spoke as if remembering something.

“Oh, that’s right. Tell Seok-won to come down.”
“Why the second son?”
“It’s a good opportunity. I want to take him to meet Chairman Kwak and Chairman Yu.”
“If that’s the case, you should have mentioned it sooner.”
“Why? Isn’t he home?”

Jo Deok-rye cast a sidelong glance as she spoke.

“He said something came up and he’d be away in the United States for a few days. Don’t you remember?”

Chairman Park Tae-hong, belatedly recalling what he’d heard days ago, clicked his tongue in frustration.

“Was he leaving today?”
“He’s probably on his way to the airport by now.”
“Is that so?”

Chairman Park Tae-hong, responding with an embarrassed expression, furrowed his brow and blamed Seok-won.

“Why can’t this boy just stay put at home? He can’t even wait a moment before running off somewhere again.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong grumbled with a petulant expression.

“Don’t tell me there’s some woman in the United States?”
“Dear!”

Jo Deok-rye shot her husband a sharp glare.

“Is that something you should be saying about your own son!”
“No, I was just speaking carelessly.”

When his wife flared up in anger, Chairman Park Tae-hong quickly averted his gaze and mumbled an excuse.

“What if some strange rumor starts spreading? Even as a joke, don’t say such things!”
“Understood.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong, avoiding his wife’s sharp gaze, began preparing to rise from his seat.

“Ahem. I should head out now.”

Fortunately, I had a golf appointment today; otherwise, I might have spent the entire day confined to my study room under my wife’s reproachful gaze.
Just then, Jo Deok-rye picked up a thin file folder she had placed beside her and handed it to me.

“Take this with you.”
“Hmm? What is this?”

Park Tae-hong, caught off guard, tilted his head to the side as he accepted the file folder.

“I’m not sure. Your second son asked me to give it to you before he left.”
“I see.”

When Park Tae-hong opened the file folder, it contained the June operational report for the investment funds he had entrusted to Seok-won.

[Initial Investment Capital: 16.33 billion won
Total Profit: 65.96 billion won (as of July 15, 1994)]

Seeing the money had grown substantially again compared to last month, the corners of Park Tae-hong’s mouth curved upward.

“What’s with that expression?”
“It’s nothing.”

Park Tae-hong quietly closed the file folder, murmuring with a satisfied expression.

“That boy. He certainly knows how to do his work properly.”

* * *

Inside a luxuriously appointed business jet.
Seok-won lay in deep sleep, his large, spacious seat reclined at a diagonal angle.
Though an eye mask covered his eyes, his flawless skin and sharp jawline remained fully visible.
A slender blonde Stewardess in a form-fitting uniform approached and gently bent her upper body forward to wake him.

“Sir, please wake up.”

Seok-won stirred slightly and lifted his eye mask upward.

“We will arrive at our destination in thirty minutes.”

The Stewardess spoke with a smile on her face.
Once Seok-won had completely removed the eye mask and straightened his upper body, the Stewardess waited beside him and asked again.

“May I bring you some coffee?”
“Yes, please. Make it strong enough to jolt me awake.”
“Understood. Please wait a moment.”

As the Stewardess disappeared toward the galley at the rear, I pressed the button to raise the seat back that had been reclined.
Then I turned my head to gaze outside.
Beneath the circular window, thick white clouds blanketed the view, obscuring everything else.
I had embarked on this unplanned trip to the United States because I’d received word that the new web browser beta version I’d been waiting for was finally complete.

“I thought they’d need until summer at the earliest, but they actually finished by July. Remarkable.”

Overtime was standard, and Tom had apparently been living in the office, working around the clock without pause on development alone, and he’d delivered on his promise—completing the beta version far ahead of the original schedule.

“I thought America was supposed to value work-life balance, but it seems they grind through developers just like Korea does.”

When I’d visited the Silicon Valley office last time, the developers looked like they’d been through a meat grinder.
The image flashed before my eyes: stacks of takeout coffee cups piled high on desks from caffeine consumption, developers slouching like zombies in front of their computers, writing code.

“I wonder if I’m pushing them too hard.”

I was somewhat concerned, but given how rapidly the situation was evolving, it was advantageous to complete and release the new web browser as quickly as possible, so I decided to turn a blind eye.

‘It’ll be tough for now, but I can compensate them generously with stock options later.’

After all, workplace stress was always cured by money, wasn’t it?
With that thought, I offered a moment of silence for the developers who were grinding away even now.

“Here is your coffee.”

The Stewardess returned and set down a refreshing iced Americano.
While hot coffee was typically standard, she had remembered my preference for iced Americano—true to my Korean tastes.

“Thank you.”

Seok-won picked up the cup and took a long sip of the ice-filled coffee.
With the caffeine flowing through him, his mind finally began to clear a little.

The Gulfstream IV business jet continued its flight for some time before arriving over San Francisco Airport and gradually descending.
Most people grew tense at this point, but Seok-won, now completely accustomed to flying, simply maintained a composed expression while fastened in his seat.
Soon, with a thud as the wheels touched the ground, the aircraft successfully completed its landing.
Still seated, Seok-won turned his head to gaze out through the cabin window.
Before him stretched the sight of a massive terminal building and several large commercial aircraft lined up in rows—befitting one of the United States’ premier hub airports.
Following the control tower’s guidance, the business jet moved slowly into the expansive parking area and came to rest in an empty spot.

“Have a wonderful time.”

The Stewardess standing at the cabin door bid him farewell with a charming smile.
Seok-won gave a slight nod and descended the aircraft via the tarmac stairs.
A powerfully built Black Man in a suit and sunglasses approached him.

“Are you Mr. Park?”
“Yes, I am.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Tyrone, and I’ll be looking after you during your stay in San Francisco.”
“Good to meet you.”

After a light handshake, Tyrone gestured toward the black limousine waiting behind him.

“I’ve prepared the car. Shall we go?”

Seok-won walked to the limousine and climbed into the back seat through the door Tyrone held open.
The air conditioning had been running on standby, so the interior was refreshingly cool and comfortable, a stark contrast to the outside heat.
After loading the luggage into the trunk, Tyrone took the driver’s seat and glanced back to ask.

“Shall I take you to the Hotel?”
“Before that, let’s stop by the Silicon Valley office first.”
“Understood.”

The limousine, with Tyrone at the wheel, smoothly exited the airport.

* * *

When I returned to the Netscape Office after several months, it was in even worse condition than before.
With all the partition walls removed to make the space appear twice as large, mattresses and sleeping bags lay scattered haphazardly in one corner, emanating a stale, musty odor—evidence that the developers had been coding day and night without ever leaving.
Atop the desks, half-eaten pizzas and sandwiches were piled alongside disposable coffee cups in such disarray that it would require calling in a professional cleaning service to restore order.
The employees’ condition was even more dire—every single one bore dark circles beneath their eyes from severe sleep deprivation, and several were slumped over their monitors, half-unconscious as if they might collapse at any moment.

“Is this an office or a beggar’s den…”

Suppressing the urge to fling open the windows and air out the place immediately, I shook my head in dismay.
I considered calling out to one of the employees, but their condition made it clear that now was not the time for conversation.
Giving up, I made my way alone to Tom’s private office in the back and knocked on the door.

“Tom, you in there? I’m coming in.”

As I opened the door and stepped inside, I saw Tom Harper sitting at his cluttered desk, fingers flying across the keyboard.
The main difference from last time was his hair, which had grown long and unkempt like a hippie’s, and his face, which was covered in stubble—whether from neglecting to shave or intentionally growing it out, I couldn’t tell.

“Tom?”

When I called his name again, Tom finally looked up, his expression brightening with recognition.

“Yeah. You made it?”

As I approached, I glanced at the bulky CRT monitor.

“I heard the beta version was finished, but apparently it wasn’t.”
“No, it’s done.”
“Then why are you and everyone out there in such a frenzy?”
“We ran some basic tests among ourselves while you were away, and we found a few bugs that we’re in the process of fixing.”
“Are they serious?”

So that’s why everyone looked like they’d been through hell.
I asked with a slightly more serious expression, and Tom removed his hands from the keyboard, leaning back in his chair.

“Nothing critical—we should be able to finish the fixes within two or three days.”
“That’s a relief.”

I asked with a relieved expression.

“So there’s no problem with running the beta test?”
“Of course not.”

At Tom’s confident response, Seok-won’s eyes gleamed with barely concealed anticipation.

“Can I see it right now?”
“Absolutely.”

Tom immediately moved the mouse and launched the newly developed web browser.
The hard drive whirred to life, and moments later the screen displayed the characteristic gray background with Netscape’s iconic N logo anchored in the upper left corner of the main interface.
Three rows of menu options lined the top, beneath which the bold text “Netscape Navigator 0.9” proclaimed the name of this revolutionary new web browser.

“Try it yourself.”

Tom shifted slightly to the side while remaining seated, gesturing for me to take over.
After a moment’s hesitation, Seok-won moved the mouse and positioned the cursor in the address bar.
He typed in Harvard University’s homepage address, pressed Enter, and watched as the page loaded far faster and smoother than the existing Mosaic browser.
Seok-won then visited several other university and corporate homepages, and straightening his posture, his expression radiated satisfaction.

“What do you think?”
“It’s better than Mosaic.”

Tom shrugged his shoulders with a self-satisfied grin.

“I poured my soul into this over the past few months, so of course it is. Even as a beta version, this could ship as-is and completely obliterate Mosaic.”

Mosaic was also a web browser he had spearheaded, but whether he had completely lost interest after the previous incident or his attention had simply shifted entirely to this new creation, Tom displayed an attitude of utter indifference toward it.
From Seok-won’s perspective, it was undeniably far superior to Mosaic, so he could be certain of success.

“I knew you could pull it off.”
“No. I could never have done this alone without your help.”

Tom spoke with genuine sincerity, laying bare his honest feelings.
In truth, without Seok-won’s substantial investment and his resolution of the intellectual property issues that had emerged midway, developing this new web browser so quickly would have been impossible.
Of course, even without Seok-won’s involvement, Tom Harper would have eventually met other angel investors, founded Netscape, and achieved great success.
But in this timeline, such a meeting never occurred, so Tom Harper would never know what might have been.

“You understand this is just the beginning, not the end, right?”
“Of course. I’ll wrap up the beta testing as quickly as possible and release the official version before year’s end, so just leave it to me.”
“I’m counting on you.”

Seok-won nodded with a smile.
Meanwhile, the developers outside suddenly shivered as an inexplicable chill ran through them while they were frantically fixing bugs.

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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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