New Employees With an Annual Salary of 1 Trillion Won - Chapter 138

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 138. Cracks (2)

The SOC project rolled along smoothly.

Since it was an issue agreed upon by both ruling and opposition parties, not a single person voiced opposition.

With the project running itself through the committee, it was time to focus on other areas, and coincidentally, the Tiger Fund Asia Division Manager had arrived in Korea.

“Branch Manager, it’s been a long time. I’ve been traveling all around Asia and only just arrived in Korea.”

“You’ve worked hard, Division Manager. I should have visited you first – I apologize.”

“Everyone at Tiger Fund knows how busy the Branch Manager is, so what’s there to apologize for?”

We exchanged light greetings.

Since Division Manager Song had once led the Korea Branch, we could naturally continue our conversation and get straight to the point.

“I heard you completed the ATL stake acquisition.”

“We acquired 100% of the shares, but left management to the founding team as before. Nominally it’s a complete subsidiary, but in practice you can consider it a company under our umbrella.”

Thanks to the Asia Branch, I could reduce my workload.

To enter the battery industry in earnest, we needed several companies, and ATL was the core company among them.

It was even being discussed as a battery supplier for iPods, so despite being a startup, its technology was industry-leading.

“I heard you used a lot of funds for the ATL acquisition.”

“Considering the company’s scale, we did use quite a bit. It cost 80 million dollars to acquire all assets.”

Was I the strange one?

When he said they acquired a company for 80 million dollars, it felt cheap to me.

In Korean won, about 96 billion won – less than 100 billion won to acquire a battery company.

“You’ve worked hard. I should meet with ATL’s management soon to discuss things.”

“Then wouldn’t it be better to transfer ATL’s shares to the Korea Branch? That would make it more convenient for Branch Manager to work.”

“There’s no need to transfer all the shares – I’d like 50% transferred to the Korea Branch. And I plan to move ATL’s research institute and R&D center to Korea as well.”

I wanted to move ATL’s foundation from Hong Kong to Korea.

No matter how they said it only took a few hours to get to Hong Kong, traveling by plane was inefficient.

So I needed to move the main development departments to Korea for me to manage them directly.

“I’ll convey that to ATL’s management. But is there a particular reason to move the research institute and R&D center to Korea?”

“Hong Kong has been returned to China. China is still guaranteeing Hong Kong’s independence for now, but won’t they try to control it someday? So it’s safer to distribute the facilities.”

Actually, it was simply because I didn’t want to take planes, but I couldn’t say that.

So I presented two reasons to persuade Division Manager Song, and my words must have sounded reasonable because he nodded.

“True, China won’t just leave Hong Kong alone.”

“How are the other Chinese companies we acquired doing?”

“They’re flowing along very well. Companies like Tencent and Alibaba that Branch Manager recommended are growing rapidly. If they keep growing like this, we should be able to recover our investment by next year.”

The companies I recommended were targeting China’s domestic market.

China’s domestic market was so huge that if they grew well, they could expand to rival global companies.

“These are companies that can earn hundreds of times the investment, not just recover it.”

“If Branch Manager says so, I have to believe it. The growth speed of the Chinese market these days is certainly no joke.”

“The Chinese market has become structured to grow even larger than expected. Because it’s no longer being checked.”

“What kind of checking do you mean?”

Division Manager Song listened intently.

To him, I showed a glimpse of the structure that only I could see.

“Due to the terrorism in the United States, all attention has turned to the Middle East. Thanks to that, China has gained time to grow without any checks.”

“You can view international society from that perspective too. Certainly the US doesn’t have the capacity to worry about other places because of the Middle East.”

“And China is on the verge of joining the WTO. Once incorporated into the global trade system, countries and companies wanting China’s cheap labor will flock there.”

“China’s labor costs are certainly cheap.”

The Chinese market was facing high-speed growth.

So this was when the Asia Branch’s role became important, and I needed to provide direction to Division Manager Song.

“Real estate investment looks good too. When companies flock in, real estate prices will naturally rise.”

“That’s true, but Chinese real estate has such high risk that I’m reluctant to invest. In China, all land ownership belongs to the state, and companies or individuals can only have usage rights.”

China didn’t have the concept of buying land at all.

They only had the right to lease land from the government.

So investing in real estate that had to be returned to the government anyway was too risky.

“That’s why I only recommend short-term investment. If we secure real estate in key areas in advance, we can achieve big profits in a short time.”

“Short-term investment certainly wouldn’t be bad.”

“China is likely to rapidly emerge as the world’s factory soon. So there’s no reason not to invest in real estate.”

We could achieve long-term profits through Chinese IT companies.

If we could create a structure to earn short-term profits through real estate as well, the Asia Branch could grow rapidly.

“Talking with Branch Manager certainly makes my head feel clearer! I should proceed with more aggressive investments.”

“With Division Manager’s abilities, you could achieve the maximum profits since the Asia Branch was established.”

“If Branch Manager helps, what couldn’t I do?”

Division Manager Song left with a smile.

After he left, Accountant Kim Do-yoon, who had been waiting, came in.

“Branch Manager, there isn’t much time left before the Daehyeon Construction executive meeting.”

“I can’t be late to the first executive meeting I’m conducting. Let’s leave right now.”

It had been quite a while since Daehyeon Construction came under Tiger Fund.

Even so, I had never convened an executive meeting and just left it to operate as before.

It wasn’t because I trusted Daehyeon Construction’s executives.

It was to understand in more detail what they were up to.

***

The first Daehyeon Construction executive meeting I convened.

Befitting a company that once represented South Korea, the executives still exuded strong presence.

When I entered the conference room, everyone stood up, but their greetings were merely formal.

Their eyes still seemed to say they controlled the company, and the documents scattered messily on the table made me uncomfortable.

“I’m Lee Jung-hoo from Tiger Fund Korea Branch. Nice to meet you.”

“Thank you for coming to see us. I’m President Shin Do-young of Daehyeon Construction.”

President Shin Do-young had a military-like appearance.

He was from Daehyeon Construction’s first public recruitment class and could be considered Chairman Wang’s person.

But now he was just a puppet president who didn’t belong to any faction.

“I feel sorry for coming so late.”

“Not at all. We’re grateful whenever you come.”

“Ahem.”

A throat-clearing sound came from somewhere.

It came from Vice President Kim Hak-su sitting next to President Shin Do-young.

Vice President Kim Hak-su was the head of the owner faction, the largest faction in Daehyeon Construction.

Daehyeon Construction had four factions in total.

The owner faction from the existing Daehyeon Construction line.

The creditor faction appointed when it was handed over to creditors.

And the reform faction composed of young executives in their 30s and 40s.

Finally, the independent faction that didn’t belong anywhere.

Just looking at the meeting hall arrangement, the factions were sitting together.

But I pretended not to notice and continued speaking.

“Before the meeting, let me share some positive news first. Tiger Fund plans to invest over 1 trillion won in SOC projects this year alone. And we’ve decided to entrust all expansion construction for Daehyeon Semiconductor and Nexcon Factory to Daehyeon Construction.”

“We won’t have to worry about winning contracts anymore. Thanks to Tiger Fund, we can put our minds at ease.”

President Shin Do-young expressed sincere gratitude.

Silence flowed through the conference room for a moment, then the reform faction and some independent executives gave awkward applause.

The largest owner faction and creditor faction showed no reaction and just maintained their positions.

“And Tiger Fund has cleared all the astronomical debt that Daehyeon Construction was carrying. You no longer need to struggle paying hundreds of billions in interest every month. The debt ratio has dropped to single digits, and credit rating agencies have already upgraded Daehyeon Construction’s rating. It’s no longer a troubled company, but has returned to being a trustworthy global construction company.”

This time too, reactions split by faction.

The reform faction and independent faction nodded and applauded.

Some looked at neighboring seats and exchanged glances, with expectations that they could finally breathe showing on their faces.

In contrast, the owner faction and creditor faction were cold.

The Owner Faction seemed hurt in their pride that an external fund had solved problems they couldn’t resolve themselves, crossing their arms and turning their heads away.

The Creditor Faction couldn’t hide their anxiety, as the severing of debt ties with the banks meant a reduction in their own authority.

“Are you evaluating Daehyeon Construction as a failing company? Daehyeon Construction’s technology is not only the best in Korea but ranks among the top globally. Don’t underestimate the field experience and connections we’ve built with blood and sweat over decades. You may have solved the debt problem, but construction sites don’t run on money alone.”

Vice President Kim Hak-su, the leader of the Owner Faction, raised his voice.

If a company whose management rights had been transferred to creditors wasn’t a failing company, then what company would be?

Vice President Kim Hak-su was still living in the past, and the Owner Faction following him was also unable to escape from the past.

Now it was time to show them reality.

It was necessary to engrave deep into their bones the fact that Daehyeon Construction had changed owners.

“I know well that the field is important. But weren’t you the ones who used that field as an excuse to commit embezzlement and corruption? Think about why Daehyeon Construction became a failing company.”

“You’re saying it’s our responsibility! Your words are too excessive! I won’t say there was no embezzlement and corruption. But that was just industry practice, and we merely followed orders from Daehyun Group headquarters!”

Vice President Kim Hak-su screamed out excuses.

But his excuses were too pathetic.

Saying they bore no responsibility and it was all ordered from above.

“Are you telling me that all the acts of creating slush funds through private contracts, siphoning money by cutting subcontractor rates, monopolizing material supplies to specific companies for kickbacks, and pocketing money through false construction costs had nothing to do with you, Vice President!”

I had already secured evidence of various corruptions.

Daehyeon Construction’s management rights had been transferred to the creditor group.

Getting all the materials from the creditor group made detecting corruption not difficult at all.

Moreover, RedLine had moved as well.

Those who had infiltrated as Nexcon’s security now penetrated Daehyeon Construction’s field workers, security, and even office staff to collect various information.

“You’re saying this because you don’t know the field. If you’re too rigid, the field won’t function. It’s unavoidable to spray appropriate lubricant.”

“You should spray lubricant on the field, so why are you taking it to your own warehouse?”

I threw a file folder.

Inside were various corruption evidence.

On the first page was a stark record of how material supply companies had been switched to Vice President Kim Hak-su’s relatives’ companies.

“…H-how did you get this?”

The conference room froze.

Vice President Kim Hak-su couldn’t continue speaking with his pale face.

The Owner Faction executives were restless, only glancing at each other.

Someone avoided eye contact while cleaning their glasses, and there was even an executive who just shuffled through documents for no reason.

The Creditor Faction looked at such behavior with contempt.

And they even showed anticipation that they might be able to control Daehyeon Construction once the Owner Faction disappeared.

“What do you think will happen if I hand this material over to the Prosecutor’s Office? You’ll be holding your next executive meeting in prison.”

“I-I’m sorry.”

“I won’t hold everyone responsible. As Vice President Kim Hak-su said, there might be people who had no choice but to follow orders from above. But those who crossed the line must take responsibility and step down.”

The best way to tame a faction is to remove its leader.

When the central axis disappears, power naturally weakens, and they learn to protect themselves.

“I will take all responsibility and step down.”

“It seems unreasonable for you alone to take responsibility, Vice President.”

It wasn’t something the vice president should take responsibility for alone.

A few executives living in the past needed to join hands and leave together for Daehyeon Construction to move toward the future.

“How far do you want the resignations to go?”

“Please have two division heads and one executive managing director step down together. Even without mentioning names, you know well who they are, Vice President.”

The vice president naturally turned his head.

Most executives avoided his gaze, but a few seemed resigned and accepted the vice president’s look.

“We will take responsibility and resign.”

“If you step down now, I won’t pursue legal responsibility. And I won’t prevent you from establishing new positions with secondary contractors.”

The core figures of the Owner Faction stood up from their seats and left the conference room on their own.

With this, the purge of the Owner Faction was complete. However, the cleanup wasn’t finished yet.

The next target was the Creditor Faction, standing upright and holding their ground on one side of the conference room.

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