New Employees With an Annual Salary of 1 Trillion Won - Chapter 71
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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 71. The Poisoned Chalice (1)
The General Manager called me to the Fund Office.
Since the General Manager rarely called anyone first, I hurried to the Fund Office.
When I arrived at the office, there was one employee scratching his head, standing in front of the General Manager.
“Danny, tell the Deputy Branch Manager exactly what you told me earlier.”
“I received a proposal from Cali Fund. They said if I tell them Hanseo Bank’s acquisition price, they’d promise me 1 million dollars and a senior manager position.”
“They attempted to buy an insider?”
“It’s very common on Wall Street.”
His reaction was as if it was completely natural.
Just how dirty was Wall Street that he wouldn’t even blink an eye at insider bribery?
It sounded nice calling it insider buying, but in other words, it was betrayal.
“But if you reported this fact to the General Manager, then the insider buying failed, right?”
“I had already thrown out some bait beforehand. I promised to give 1 million dollars as a bonus to anyone who gets approached for insider buying. Danny, it’ll be deposited by today.”
“Thank you!”
Danny’s face was full of smiles.
He had just received a bonus worth about 1.1 billion won for doing nothing, so of course he’d be happy.
But the General Manager was amazing too.
He had foreseen this situation in advance and prepared the employees beforehand.
It wasn’t just empty words of comfort.
He accurately read Cali Fund’s movements and even promised a corresponding amount.
“If you do one more thing for me, I’ll give you an additional 500,000 dollars as a bonus.”
“What kind of work?”
“It’s simple. Just pass our bid price to them, as Cali Fund wants.”
“You’re telling me to pass them a false bid price. Could it be… a double spy? It’s a role I’ve wanted to try at least once since I was young.”
Was this Wall Street’s way?
It was a world where espionage ran rampant.
“A false bid price won’t work. Pass them the real bid price. That way you can keep exchanging contact, right?”
“You’re going to keep using me as Cali Fund’s spy?”
“Something like that. Go pass them the bid price right now. You’ll receive 1 million dollars from our side and 1 million dollars from their side? You’ll be able to spend this summer vacation very luxuriously.”
“Really… is it okay to take Cali Fund’s money too?”
“Take it. There’s no reason to refuse money. If you handle this matter well, I’ll also promise you a senior manager promotion.”
“I’ll do my best!”
Manager Danny went outside excitedly.
He even hummed a tune, perhaps because he had earned billions of won without betraying anyone and could now play an interesting role.
“Do you trust Manager Danny?”
“On Wall Street, you don’t trust people, you trust money. If he can make bigger money by staying with me, why would he betray me?”
“Did you expect Cali Fund to come out like this?”
“Of course. I know how much effort Cali Fund put into acquiring Hanseo Bank. They could do worse things than buying insiders.”
Indeed, how much effort must they have put into planting lines in the Financial Authorities?
If they failed in the Hanseo Bank bid, no place would suffer as big a loss as Cali Fund.
“Do you think they might have planted spies in other places too?”
“Of course they would. Well, we don’t need to worry about such things. We just need to do what we have to do.”
“You’re not planning to submit the same bid amount you gave to Cali Fund, are you?”
“Of course we have to submit it as is. Why would I throw away a bid amount that the Korea Branch as well as Headquarters experts spent days thinking about and creating?”
It was something that didn’t make sense logically.
There was no information as important to keep secret as the bid amount. So why did he give away the bid amount?
I was curious about the reason for giving the bid amount to Cali Fund when he had no intention of modifying it.
“Should I think that you intentionally gave away the bid amount because you don’t want to win the bid?”
“That’s not it either. It’s more like a provocation saying ‘try it if you’re confident you can bid more than us.’ Think of it as mockery that we’re going to crush you with money.”
“How much are you planning to spend to be so confident about the bid amount?”
“1.5 trillion won.”
It was an amount that meant giving up profits.
No matter how desperate Cali Fund was, could they spend as much as 1.5 trillion won?
Even if they sold after acquisition, it was an amount that would leave almost no profit.
“That seems like too excessive an amount. With that much money, Cali Fund might give up on bidding.”
“That’s their choice. They can compete with us, or they can obediently hand it over to us – either would be fine.”
“If we acquire Hanseo Bank with that amount, won’t there be no benefit for us?”
“Then we can just break even and sell. From the Korea Branch’s perspective, 1-2 trillion is an enormously large sum, but by Headquarters standards, one failed Investment of that scale isn’t a big problem.”
Oh Chang-jin was the representative of the Korea Office.
There were clear limits to the money he could move.
But the General Manager was different.
A position that could influence all of Tiger Fund.
To him, even 1-2 trillion was just ‘money to spend when needed.’
“So you’re ultimately spending over 1 trillion won to crush your competitors?”
“I can bear that much to make an example. I need to crush them thoroughly so that bastards like Oh Chang-jin can never run wild again.”
“I’m not sure if it’s really worth that much.”
“The value is more than enough. Above all, it makes me feel better. What could be more important than that in this world?”
I couldn’t tell if he was joking or being serious.
The General Manager’s face showed no emotional fluctuation at all, making it even more impossible to tell.
“Are you serious?”
“Let’s call it serious mixed with jokes. It’s not simply for my feelings though. More precisely, it’s an action for all of Tiger Fund. Even if Employee Lee or other Tiger Fund staff experienced unreasonable treatment outside, I would act the same way.”
Should I see this as behavior to protect the group?
When you’re on our side, he’s infinitely reliable, but when you’re on the other side, he doesn’t discriminate between means and methods.
“This seems like something you can’t easily learn even if you want to.”
“Employee Lee will learn it someday too. To protect an organization, you must thoroughly crush your enemies.”
I could understand the General Manager’s thinking to some extent.
But I questioned whether I could do the same.
Of course, I had also gritted my teeth at Cali Fund and had been running day and night, cutting sleep to bring about their downfall.
But could I pour out trillions of won to attack opponents like the General Manager?
Of course, if I suffered direct damage, then I might do the same.
***
I returned to my daily routine.
Time flew by as I focused on my work.
Securing equity shares in three Game Companies naturally increased my workload.
Securing equity shares meant collaboration, and creating programs needed by each Game Company made me work well past quitting time.
‘It’s time to help organize the Store too.’
Instead of going Home, I headed straight toward Yeouido Station.
As expected, my Parents were finishing their day’s business and organizing the Store.
“Your Son is here! Should I help you with something?”
“Why did you come here instead of going straight Home?”
“I couldn’t just go Home. Oh! And Store #2’s sales are doing well too, right?”
“Of course. I taught Chang-seop so well. I even went all the way to Sinchon today to show him everything in detail.”
Store #2 had also successfully established itself.
Of course, this was possible because it wasn’t a typical franchise model.
This kind of revenue was possible because I rented out both the custom-made espresso machine and the kiosk I developed for extremely low fees.
“Did Uncle Chang-seop say it was manageable?”
“He said it’s busy but not difficult. You wouldn’t believe how much he praises the kiosk. He says it’s much better than hiring part-timers and wants to bring in another one.”
“If he knew the price of the kiosk, he wouldn’t say that. One unit costs at least ten million won. Plus, you can’t even find kiosks with these features on the market.”
Kiosks used in government offices or hospitals.
Though it varies by specifications, some products cost over twenty million won.
But the kiosk I made had even more features and was almost the only model specialized for restaurant environments.
Getting a kiosk like this would be absolutely impossible for ten million won.
If you hired experts to make one, the features would easily cost tens of millions of won, so naturally it would be better than part-time workers.
“Over ten million won? I didn’t know it was that expensive. I thought I was saving on part-timer wages but it would cost a lump sum.”
“Right now the company is renting it out almost for free. That’s why you’re using it cheaply – other stores wouldn’t even dare to try.”
“That’s true. The current minimum wage is 1,865 won. To break even with that… I’d have to use it for about 2 years.”
Is it because he runs a business?
His calculation speed has gotten incredibly fast.
But since he didn’t know the actual price of the kiosk, his calculation was wrong.
It would take at least 5 years of use, not 2 years, to break even.
“But you don’t need to baby it too much. The company agreed to handle repairs and service for our store.”
“My son works at an amazing company. But… would Store No. 3 be possible?”
“Store No. 3? Did someone you know ask you again?”
“Since even Chang-seop hit it big, there’s been chaos everywhere with people asking.”
Store #1 and Store #2 were essentially volunteer work structures.
I was only charging fees that didn’t even cover the cost of the kiosk and espresso machine.
But I couldn’t expand more stores this way, and it was time to draw the line.
“The machines used in Store #1 and Store #2 were rented cheaply as a pilot program concept from the company. It’ll be difficult to do that going forward. Initial startup costs will increase, and fees will be higher too.”
“Isn’t that the same with other brand franchises? You have to pay for interior costs and fixed royalties.”
Now that I heard it, that was true.
Other franchises already had that structure, so there was no need to feel much resistance.
“Still, I can’t just accept anyone.”
“Do I look like I’d bring just anyone? Remember Uncle Ki-dong who lived Next Door?”
“You mean Father’s colleague?”
“Right. He’s a guy I worked with for over 20 years as hiring classmates – how could I refuse his request? And he didn’t blow his severance pay, so he should be able to afford the franchise costs.”
Actually, I wasn’t too worried about it.
Father was someone who could definitely cut things off when he needed to.
But the current method of expanding franchises through personal connections needed to be avoided, and new standards were necessary.
“The franchise fee is 5 million won. The kiosk and machine have separate rental fees, and we’ll charge monthly commission separately. Of course, interior costs are also your responsibility.”
“I can definitely handle that much.”
“And lastly, there’s a mandatory 3-month training period under Father. I can’t go and help you every day like I did for Chang-seop.”
I set various conditions.
Among them, the ‘3-month training condition’ was quite a high barrier to entry.
“You mean I have to work for 3 months earning minimum wage like a company intern?”
“You need at least that much passion to open a Max Coffee franchise.”
“Isn’t that being a bit too demanding?”
“If you don’t like it, you can do a different franchise.”
High barriers to entry were necessary to manage the brand properly.
Moreover, as the only coffee brand connected to Rollbook, more thorough management was needed.
“I’ll tell him that. If he still says he wants to do it, can I accept him?”
“If he has that much passion, it’s fine to accept him.”
“I should have a drink with him tonight and talk it over.”
“Honey, what do you mean drinking at this hour!”
Just as the conversation was about to turn into a marital argument.
A man dressed in a suit approached us.
“Hello. I’m from the F&B Division under Hanyang Dairy.”
“What can we do for you?”
I stepped forward to respond first.
Hanyang Dairy was quite a large food company, and the word ‘division’ gave me an ominous feeling.
“Are you the CEO of Max Coffee?”
“That’s correct.”
“I visited you once before. Let me say it again. Our Hanyang Dairy Restaurant Business Division wants to acquire Max Coffee.”
It felt strange.
Lately, I was always the one proposing acquisitions, so this was the first time I was receiving an acquisition offer.
“Max Coffee has no intention of being sold.”
“We’ve brought really good terms.”
“I don’t need to hear the terms. Just go back.”
In this situation, I had to draw a firm line.
If I showed any opening, it would only become more troublesome.
“This proposal is our final offer. If you refuse, you might face some inconveniences.”
“Is that a threat?”
“You’re free to think of it that way.”
The Hanyang Dairy person’s tone was aggressive.
Was this the tyranny of Large Corporations? But I didn’t care at all, and once again clearly expressed my refusal.
“I have no intention of accepting your proposal, so just go back.”
“You’ll regret this.”
“That won’t happen, so please leave.”
He stared at me for a long time, then let out a deep sigh.
But I didn’t even blink, and silently continued organizing the Store with my Parents.
I could handle this because I had experienced too much at Tiger Fund to be afraid of Large Corporations.
Annual Salary 1 Trillion New Employee Chapter 71
E-book Publication Date | 2025.11.27
Author | Seo Oh
Publishers | Heo Heung-beom, Park Geon-won
Published by | Poten
Address | [04783] 10th Floor, 8 Yeonmujang 11-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul
Phone | 02-6320-8500
Fax | 02-6320-8585
ISBN | 9791175305892
Price | 100 won
ⓒ Seo Oh 2025
This E-book is a copyrighted work protected by copyright law.
This E-book is published under the author’s contract, so unauthorized reproduction, duplication, distribution, and sharing are prohibited without written consent from both parties.
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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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