Max-Level Son of a Chaebol Family - Chapter 80

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

80. This Actually Works? (1)

 

Chairman Kim of Wookwang quietly stared at President Sim.

 

“An interesting fellow. You anticipated everything, is that it?”

 

“Where is there a case of corporate mergers and acquisitions that doesn’t involve promissory note transactions? What matters is the ratio and the conditions.”

 

“That’s the problem.”

 

Chairman Kim tapped the paper’s text with his fingertips.

 

“Taeseong’s priority negotiation rights regarding the reacquisition of Taeseong Chemical?”

 

Chairman Kim’s eyes flashed coldly.

 

“And you want to substitute transferring equity shares according to the promissory note ratio? According to private loan market rules at that? Ha!”

 

Chairman Kim crumpled up the paper and threw it behind him.

 

“These conditions seem excessively favorable to Taeseong. Do you think I would accept such terms?”

 

“Let me ask for confirmation. Is the promissory note issuer Wookwang Group Holding Company?”

 

“No, it’s Wookwang Construction.”

 

President Kim of Wookwang Construction bristled and opened his mouth.

 

“Hyung!”

 

“Didn’t you say you’d show results?”

 

The Wookwang Construction President seemed to have many sore spots.

 

President Sim said.

 

“If Wookwang deliberately and maliciously defaults on the promissory notes, Taeseong would end up losing the company entirely without receiving a single penny.”

 

When promissory notes default, they’re no different from scraps of paper.

 

The basic premise of promissory notes is corporate credit, and you can’t put a value on the credit of a bankrupt company.

 

“Will you use Wookwang Construction as a sacrificial card?”

 

“To get a 15 billion won company for free, the prerequisite would be for Wookwang Construction to go bankrupt first. Wookwang Construction is also a Wookwang subsidiary.”

 

“But Wookwang Construction set fires during the forced eviction of Guro-dong Shantytown and bought off the media to blind His Excellency’s eyes and ears, earning the Blue House’s ire.”

 

That was why the Wookwang Construction President couldn’t argue back and was just biting his lips tightly.

 

“The government will soon implement real estate regulatory measures, the Subway Line 2 project has fallen through, and you’ve even missed the Gangnam Seoul Express Bus Terminal construction project you had your eyes on. The calculation must be that even if you abandon Wookwang Construction, salvaging Taeseong Chemical would still be profitable.”

 

President Sim snorted derisively.

 

“Wookwang Construction? Try putting it on the M&A market right now. Would you even get 5 billion won?”

 

President Sim clenched his teeth tightly.

 

Then he picked up the crumpled paper that Chairman Kim had thrown away.

 

“I need to use the restroom.”

 

Bang!

 

President Sim left the president’s office without looking back.

 

* * *

 

President Sim immediately rushed toward the Secretary Office where I was.

 

Burst!

 

“Young Master!”

 

President Sim said, breathing heavily.

 

“Wooguang is trying to take over Taeseong Chemical for nothing! I absolutely can’t stand it anymore! We need to call the Taeseong Group Legal Team and General Affairs Team. Let’s examine everything one by one!”

 

“You have every right to be angry. Using promissory notes without collateral is one thing for property transactions, but trying to settle even mergers and acquisitions with promissory notes is excessive greed.”

 

“Exactly! I will absolutely never accept these conditions…!”

 

“So let’s use this opportunity to demand that we also secure equity shares in Wookwang Steel as collateral.”

 

President Sim’s mouth fell wide open.

 

“Would that work? Wooguang has plans to expand from steel into shipbuilding, transportation, and even defense industries!”

 

“If they can’t offer Wookwang Steel, we should at least hold onto Wookwang Securities.”

 

“…!”

 

“Taeseong doesn’t have a securities company yet. Look at the repurchase negotiation conditions. What would happen to Wookwang Securities held as collateral if Wooguang fails to honor the promissory notes on time?”

 

“…!”

 

President Sim quickly unfolded the crumpled paper.

 

【If the promissory notes are not fully paid by maturity, equity shares will be transferred according to the promissory note ratio.】

 

President Sim unconsciously shouted.

 

“You mean if they can’t honor the promissory notes, not only Taeseong Chemical but also Wookwang Securities would come over to us? Is that possible?”

 

“That’s why I deliberately added more conditions.”

 

【If you give up on the promissory note payment and demand negotiations for Taeseong Chemical reacquisition, the rules of the private loan market apply.】

 

“President Sim knows well how collateral is handled in the private loan market, right?”

 

“······Huh?”

 

“Giving up on promissory note payment includes the bankruptcy of the note issuer.”

 

“······!”

 

I don’t know about other things, but I stake my life on money recovery.

 

If Woo-gwang tries to get away with promissory notes, we can just get away with it too.

 

I winked with one eye.

 

“If we do this well, doesn’t it seem like Taeseong could get a foothold in Wookwang Securities this time?

 

“My goodness! Young Master, just how far ahead are you looking······!”

 

“If dealing with Woo-gwang is too much, I’ll attach someone to help you. As promised.”

 

There are two people who can provide supporting fire at times like this.

 

But President Sim was already filled with full-power motivation.

 

“No. I’ll try to resolve it on my own. I’m not that incompetent!”

 

“Manage your expression. If you keep smiling like that, Woo-gwang will be suspicious.”

 

“Oops! Don’t worry! I have that much acting ability!”

 

President Sim smiled proudly.

 

“Then I’ll come back with good news! I’ll definitely get it in promissory notes!”

 

Click.

 

President Sim rushed out as if flying.

 

* * *

 

President Sim, who returned to the President’s Office, shouted resolutely.

 

“Fine. I’ll accept the 15 billion won promissory note.”

 

“Good.”

 

“But I need to add one more condition. I should secure at least one more collateral in case Wookwang Construction goes bankrupt.”

 

“Collateral?”

 

“Yes, Wookwang Construction is unstable so I can’t trust it. I need a guarantee from a more solid affiliated company.”

 

“Where?”

 

“Either Wookwang Steel or Wookwang Securities. You should give up one of the two.”

 

President Sim picked up the paper that Chairman Kim had crumpled and thrown away, and spread it out again.

 

“Even if the promissory note becomes an issue, we can dispute it during the repurchase negotiations. That’s why these special provisions are included too.”

 

“Sim Won-cheol.”

 

And so began the sharp confrontation between Wookwang and Taeseong.

 

The presidents of Wookwang’s affiliated companies rose up as a group, trying to force it through somehow.

 

In contrast, President Sim was the only one defending Taeseong’s position.

 

No matter how much Taeseong shouted that they could make no more concessions, Wookwang pushed forward unreasonably.

 

-Full payment in promissory notes!

 

How long did they continue that blood-splattering war of words?

 

“You should know that Taeseong has even conceded on the promissory notes. So let’s finish this today. If you want Taeseong Chemical with all those extras piled on top, now is the time to make a decision.”

 

President Sim stood up abruptly with an extremely tired face.

 

“I’ll step out of the President’s Office for a moment. Let Wookwang decide by majority vote in Wookwang style.”

 

It was when President Sim was about to leave without looking back.

 

“Sim Won-cheol, won’t you join Wookwang? I’ll let you manage Taeseong Chemical.”

 

“No thank you.”

 

President Sim slammed the door and came out.

 

* * *

 

This time too, President Sim came running to the Secretary Office.

 

Unlike before, his face looked extremely tired, but his smile stretched from ear to ear.

 

“Young Master, they’ve almost completely fallen for it! Wookwang is desperately trying to get something for nothing.”

 

“You’ve worked hard.”

 

“From what I can tell, it looks like they’ll put up Wookwang Securities as collateral! What a relief.”

 

President Sim brushed his chest in relief.

 

“If they offered to put up Wookwang Steel, I’d really want to decline. That side has such massive accumulated deficits and equipment investments that need to be made. Once you bite into it, it’s not easy to get out.”

 

“That would be the case.”

 

Tap tap tap tap tap! Click. Tap tap tap tap!

 

“Young Master, this is not the time to play with the typewriter. Please move aside. I need to draft a contract regarding the Taeseong Chemical merger and acquisition right now.”

 

President Sim smiled grimly.

 

“The Wookwang Group Chairman has made up his mind, so if the acquisition negotiations fall through because there’s no contract, it’ll be a bloody disaster.”

 

Clatter clatter clatter! Click!

 

“Take this.”

 

“What is that?”

 

“A contract regarding the Taeseong Chemical merger and acquisition.”

 

“What did you say?”

 

President Sim’s mouth fell wide open.

 

“Three pages?”

 

President Sim burst out in a hollow laugh.

 

“We’re handing over Taeseong Chemical worth 30 billion won, and it’s just a three-page contract…”

 

“If the contract gets too long, it’ll just create more work for the Legal Team. Prepare a proper contract when you go to the re-acquisition negotiations.”

 

Since I’m planning to take back Taeseong Chemical before long.

 

What’s the point of putting great effort into a contract that’ll be used briefly and then discarded?

 

Just covering the important points would be enough.

 

“Huh…! What am I looking at right now?”

 

President Sim rubbed both eyes vigorously with the back of his hand.

 

“Everything that should be included is properly formatted according to the standard forms. Even the legal clauses and spelling are perfect. This is really… Huh!”

 

I pretended not to know.

 

I couldn’t very well say that this was nothing since I’d been writing everything from Private Loan Contracts to Corporate M&A Agreements all the time.

 

There’s no way to explain this, is there?

 

“You’ve already written in all the special provisions regarding Wookwang Securities collateral.”

 

President Sim had a grave expression as he clenched both fists tightly.

 

“The Short-term Promissory Notes are worth a whopping 15 billion won. If something goes wrong, Wookwang could face a chain bankruptcy because of those notes. What if the promissory note deal falls through because of that?”

 

“Wookwang probably won’t think too seriously about chain bankruptcy.”

 

If they had been thinking like that, the IMF crisis wouldn’t have come.

 

Why do you think there were mass bankruptcies of conglomerate companies during the IMF crisis?

 

It happened because they couldn’t cover their promissory notes. From recklessly expanding octopus-like businesses with other people’s money.

 

Just like Wookwang now.

 

“Anyway, promissory notes are debt, loans are debt, and private loans are debt too. People are stingy with their own money but treat other people’s money so carelessly, you know?”

 

That’s why they’re having such thieving thoughts even when acquiring a profitable company like Taeseong Chemical.

 

Shameless brats!

 

“If you tell them to buy equity shares with cash, they can’t even imagine it, but if you tell them to take it with promissory notes, they think the risk is manageable. They probably believe the government won’t just let major corporations collapse in succession.”

 

Actually, just look at the 8.3 private loan freeze measure from a few years ago.

 

“Even though Wookwang was on the list of insolvent companies a few years ago, they were able to transform into a sound company by massively writing off private loans and promissory notes during the 8.3 private loan freeze measure, right?”

 

That must be what Wookwang was counting on.

 

“Too big to fail! The audacity to think that if Wookwang, ranked 9th in business circles, goes down, the Republic of Korea’s economy will be shaken to its roots! The expectation that the government won’t just stand by and watch! Short-term promissory notes? They probably think Wookwang’s sales revenue can handle it easily, right?”

 

President Sim pressed his temples firmly.

 

“Would you believe me if I said that today I feel not only like I’m possessed by a ghost and have become a complete idiot, but now I even feel like I’m getting a lecture from an economics expert?”

 

Regardless of that.

 

Snap.

 

‘Guardian Spirit, what are the Wookwang people doing? Is the majority vote all finished?’

 

That dictatorial Chairman Kim of Wookwang deciding by majority vote?

 

Even a passing dog would laugh at that.

 

* * *

 

Inside the Taeseong Chemical office, the Wookwang subsidiary presidents sat in two rows on the sofa with seriously hardened expressions.

 

Chairman Kim looked around at the Wookwang subsidiary presidents.

 

“President Seo, what would be Wookwang’s benefit if we follow Sim Won-cheol’s proposal?”

 

“The movable assets that Taeseong hasn’t managed to handle yet are worth hundreds of millions, and if we can cover the company acquisition funds with promissory notes, including the bank and private loan interest we could save…”

 

President Seo, who had been diligently working his abacus, raised his head.

 

“We’re looking at easily billions in profit.”

 

Chairman Kim smiled with satisfaction and looked around at the other affiliated company presidents.

 

“President Lee, what about the conditions Sim Won-cheol added? How disadvantageous are they to Wookwang?”

 

“If we don’t repay the money within the set period… it won’t be Taeseong but Wookwang that will lose Taeseong Chemical for a bargain price.”

 

“Hmm.”

 

“Most of the promissory notes proposed by Taeseong were short-term promissory notes.”

 

“Why is that a problem? Don’t most companies use short-term promissory notes?”

 

Promissory notes could be described as credit contracts between companies.

 

In inter-company transactions, the transaction amounts are usually large, so exchanging large sums of money within short periods happens frequently.

 

Therefore, instead of paying cash for each transaction, it was common to settle accounts with short-term promissory notes.

 

In the case of Wookwang and Taeseong, they had formed close business relationships, so promissory notes were exchanged particularly often.

 

“The problem is that the amount is 15 billion won. If problems arise, it could become quite dangerous.”

 

“No matter how poor Wookwang’s cash flow is, it’s not so bad that we can’t handle this.”

 

Chairman Kim snorted.

 

“Even if problems arise, do you think the Blue House would just sit back and watch? There will definitely be mediation.”

 

Chairman Kim looked at another affiliated company president.

 

“President Jang, what’s the possibility of repurchase negotiations with Taeseong?”

 

“How often do we get a chance to acquire Taeseong Chemical with just a few promissory notes? If it comes to repurchase negotiations, we should desperately refuse.”

 

Chairman Kim clasped his hands and leaned back against the sofa.

 

“This isn’t a picture Cha Tae-seong intended. It’s definitely Sim Won-cheol’s independent decision. That’s why it’s such a rare opportunity.”

 

He smiled while looking at the affiliated company presidents lined up in two rows.

 

“Those who oppose the Taeseong Chemical acquisition conditions proposed by Sim Won-cheol, raise your hands.”

 

If they opposed, they would fall out of Chairman Kim’s favor.

 

Everyone just watched each other’s reactions and cleared their throats awkwardly.

 

“We’ll use Wookwang Securities as the collateral demanded by Taeseong. Those who oppose, raise your hands.”

 

Chairman Kim finished the last sip of his remaining coffee.

 

The coffee, bitter as wormwood, revealed the bottom of the cup.

 

“Unanimous then. Bring Sim Won-cheol here.”

 

It meant it was time to stamp the contract.

 

* * *

 

‘Wow!’

 

I was looking down from the Secretary Office window when I witnessed an unbelievable sight.

 

‘The Death Countdown and orange arrow disappeared all at once!’

 

It happened in the blink of an eye.

 

They vanished simultaneously like lights going out, you know?

 

‘This actually works? ······Hm?’

 

A silver light rippling like a thin membrane over my body.

 

This is the first time I’ve seen something like this.

 

‘What is this?’

 

[Oh, it seems the Great King is giving you real-time additional settlement for the merit of saving people.]

 

‘You startled me!’

 

Don’t speak so close to my ear like that!

 

But what?

 

‘Real-time additional merit settlement?’

 

Wasn’t post-payment the basic principle for Underworld settlements originally?

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