The Return of the Ruined Chaebol's Third-Generation Heir - Chapter 117

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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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Regression of a Fallen Chaebol’s Third Generation — Episode 117
“Has there been any contact from DK Capital?”
Seonjin Global Office.
After hours, only Kang Jin-ho and a subordinate employee remained.
Kang Jin-ho sat on the sofa leafing through documents, his expression far from bright.
“Nothing yet. I called the person in charge again to confirm, but they just keep saying they’re coordinating the executive’s schedule…….”
“Coordinating the schedule? What kind of schedule coordination takes a whole week?”
As Kang Jin-ho asked with irritation, the subordinate fell silent.
It had been a week since submitting the meeting request to DK Capital, and the same response kept coming back.
“The bidding deadline is less than a month away.”
The subordinate looked up, and Kang Jin-ho swept the documents off the table as he continued.
“Less than a month.”
The problem was money. Personnel for immediate operations had all been set up, but without funds, they couldn’t move forward.
“The proposal is nearly complete. The personnel we brought from Seonjin Logistics even have client company data, so practical preparations are moving quickly.”
“The proposal isn’t the problem.”
Kang Jin-ho tapped the table with his finger.
“Once we land the contract, cargo needs to start flowing next month. We need at least fifty trucks, but how many do we have now?”
“…….”
“We scraped together five just for appearances, but can we do anything with five? Leasing contracts cost money too.”
The subordinate bowed his head.
“And the warehouse for sorting and loading cargo? Just the deposit is hundreds of millions.”
Kang Jin-ho didn’t stop there.
“The TMS is the same — we’re already behind schedule building it from now, and we haven’t even met with construction firms yet.”
TMS was the Transportation Management System, essential for a logistics company.
As the nervous system of a logistics firm managing cargo dispatch, routing, and real-time location tracking, operating cargo from dozens of subsidiary companies without it was nearly impossible.
Just the fact that Kang Jin-ho was laying it all out seemed to drain him; he ran a dry hand across his face.
“What did I ask you to look into?”
He turned and fixed the subordinate with a sharp look.
“We’re in contact with multiple banks and investment firms in parallel, but no one’s stepping forward to actively invest.”
Since they couldn’t wait for DK Capital alone, they were still reaching out to various banks and investment companies, but no encouraging news had come from anywhere.
“Something doesn’t add up.”
“Sir?”
“No matter how cautious domestic banks and investment firms are, it doesn’t make sense that there isn’t a single place willing to invest in our business.”
Kang Jin-ho frowned as he thought.
‘Could it be… my father?’
The banks and investment firms’ passiveness suddenly made sense if his father was involved.
His father, who had handed him a company the moment he landed and ordered him to grow it. Kang Jin-ho had thought of it as part of business training everyone underwent.
He’d had the same experience, but this current game felt like his father was pushing him toward a cliff’s edge.
And the thought that his father was at the center of it began to take hold.
‘He doesn’t trust me this much? Testing me to this degree?’
His father, Kang Tae-yong, was certainly the type to do it. Having lost out in competition with his brothers, he held the belief that his successor had to be perfect.
As a child, Kang Jin-ho had tried to live up to those expectations, but always fell short.
‘But… what if.’
Kang Jin-ho’s thoughts began to drift in a different direction.
‘What if it’s not to see my abilities but…’
What if there was someone else in his father’s mind instead of Kang Jin-ho himself? His younger brother.
Unlike him, his brother had grown up receiving their father’s love from childhood. And he’d delivered everything their father wanted.
A seed of suspicion took root in Kang Jin-ho’s heart.
“How did the banks you met react?”
“Sir? Just as I reported…….”
“Not that! You told them about me, didn’t you?”
“Yes, I did. If you’re asking about the reaction to you, sir… their expressions were indifferent.”
Kang Jin-ho’s face hardened. The successor of the second-largest conglomerate in the business world, pursuing a venture with guaranteed success, and they couldn’t care less?
If that were the case, it would only be possible if someone more powerful was involved.
His suspicion began to harden into conviction.
Buzz—
While he sat wrestling with these thoughts, the subordinate’s phone rang.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
The subordinate answered.
It was a brief call. In just a few exchanges, the subordinate’s expression changed, and after hanging up, he turned to Kang Jin-ho with a pleased face.
“DK Capital just called. They want to meet.”
“When?”
“They asked us to arrange a time this week.”
The corners of Kang Jin-ho’s mouth slowly lifted.
With the anxiety of a week melting away in an instant, he leaned back against the sofa.
‘Things won’t go the way I think. I’ll turn it all around myself.’

* * *
“You must be CEO Kang Jin-ho? This way, please.”
A few days later, in Yeouido.
Following the receptionist’s guidance, he entered the office.
The moment the office door opened, the atmosphere felt different from a domestic investment firm.
English echoed between employees, and on the wall hung a photo of Volta Motors’ owner Ryan Holt and Danny Kim together.
‘So he’s that close to Ryan Holt.’
Kang Jin-ho’s gaze lingered on the framed photo.
With market capitalization exceeding $1.9 billion, whatever important role Danny Kim had played, the legendary Ryan Holt mentioned him in every interview.
“Oh, welcome!”
A man emerged from inside himself.
Dressed casually rather than formally, his face shone with a bright smile.
“Danny Kim. I’m really sorry for the wait. Meetings have been piling up lately.”
“Not at all. Kang Jin-ho, Seonjin Global.”
They shook hands and exchanged business cards.
Danny received Kang Jin-ho’s card with a smile and gave an approving nod.
“Come inside, please.”
He was shown not to a meeting room but to Danny’s personal office.
As soon as they sat on the sofa, Danny pulled a drink from a mini-fridge and asked.
“Would you like coffee? Water? For the record, I also have beer.”
Kang Jin-ho smiled.
“Water, please.”
“Good, good.”
Danny brought water and coffee, sat across from him, and opened his mouth.
“I hear you studied in America, CEO Kang. Where did you study, if I may ask?”
“I did an MBA at NYU.”
“Ah, I’ve met my second hometown friend. I spent a lot of time in New York too. Where in New York did you live?”
“Manhattan Midtown.”
“Is that Korean restaurant still there? The one around 32nd Street?”
“Oh, that place? It should still be there.”
Danny clapped his hands.
“The best thing about coming back to Korea is the food. In America, you’d need to take a plane for Korean food, but here it’s a five-minute walk.”
Kang Jin-ho was surprised by Danny’s demeanor.
He was completely different from the people he’d met at banks or investment firms.
Rather than launching into rigid money talk from the start, he was the type to see the person first.
Danny seemed eager to find common ground with him.
‘I like this guy.’
Kang Jin-ho smiled and spoke.
“That’s true. But you know how it is — once you come back to Korea, you miss New York.”
“Ha ha ha, that’s right. Exactly.”
Danny clapped and laughed heartily.
“CEO Kang, you really do miss New York.”
“Yes, the atmosphere there was nice.”
“Doing this work, I sometimes miss New York too, because doing business in Korea isn’t easy. It’s so different from America. The investment environment, for instance.”
Kang Jin-ho nodded vigorously at Danny’s words.
Danny was scratching where it itched.
“Goodness, CEO Kang and I get along so well, I’ve just been sharing strange stories.”
“Not at all. I too, CEO Kim…….”
“Ah, please just call me Danny. I still can’t get used to the title ‘CEO.'”
“Is that so?”
Kang Jin-ho laughed, and Danny nodded and opened his mouth.
“Well then, shall we talk business?”
As Danny sipped his coffee and naturally moved to the main topic, Kang Jin-ho spread out the materials he’d brought on the table.
“Seonjin Global was created to handle logistics and transport for all Seonjin Automobile Group subsidiaries.”
Danny picked up the documents laid out before him, and Kang Jin-ho continued his explanation.
From the logistics scale of the Seonjin Automobile Group, to the nature of this contract, to why Seonjin Global couldn’t help but win.
Danny nodded as if impressed while leafing through the materials, then asked.
“But if it’s such an attractive deal, domestic banks should have lined up. Why come all the way to us?”
Kang Jin-ho’s expression stiffened for a moment, then relaxed. In Danny’s eyes was pure curiosity, not judgment.
“Domestic banks won’t work. They only look at collateral, track record — that sort of thing. They don’t have eyes for the business itself.”
Danny nodded along in agreement.
“That’s frustrating for me too. When I meet companies wanting investment, they seem more interested in how much they’re making right now than in vision.”
“…….”
“But from an investment perspective, none of that matters. A company can collapse overnight if they borrow my money and misuse it.”
Kang Jin-ho nodded, resonating with Danny’s words.
“So what I want to know is the vision for the work ahead, and CEO Kang, you show that well.”
At that, Kang Jin-ho felt his shoulders tighten. Danny was the first person to speak on his behalf.
Kang Jin-ho, energized, began laying out more details.
That key personnel had already been poached from Seonjin Logistics, that client data had been secured, that the proposal was nearly complete.
Even hinting that the bidding was qualitative evaluation, which gave him a favorable hand.
Danny flipped through the materials, nodding at the right moments, marveling, asking questions.
Kang Jin-ho, buoyed by the response, kept talking.
“And one more thing I should mention.”
Kang Jin-ho paused, then continued.
“I know DK Capital has dealings with Seonjin Trading Company.”
Danny’s expression didn’t change as he looked at Kang Jin-ho.
“Seonjin Trading is already a finished enterprise. The shipping industry itself is declining. We’re just beginning.”
Danny shrugged slightly.
“Shipping is rough, sure. But logistics — is it different?”
“Very different. Once we win the contract, we’re looking at hundreds of billions in revenue the first year, and listing within three years. From the moment you put money in, investment recovery is essentially guaranteed.”
At nearly the one-hour mark of the meeting, Danny gathered the tone and spoke.
“CEO Kang, frankly, I think this is an attractive deal. I’ll review it positively and get back to you.”
Kang Jin-ho’s face brightened.
“When could we expect a decision?”
Danny leaned back in his chair and spoke at ease.
“Well. I’m very positive myself, but the principal investor’s opinion matters too. Trust and wait, please.”
Principal investor. It meant there was someone else behind the investment firm actually providing the capital. Danny Kim was the operating company CEO, with another person holding the investment decision power.
“So there’s a separate investor behind you?”
“All investment firms work that way. However, the principals trust my judgment completely since they entrust me with their money, so don’t worry. They’re all busy doing their own thing.”
Kang Jin-ho was greatly reassured by this. If Danny pushed forward, the investment was as good as secured.
“Then I’ll trust and wait.”
“Yes, I’ll get you an answer soon.”
Kang Jin-ho shook hands with Danny and stood up. He left the building, got into the waiting car, and turned to his subordinate.
“We’re good.”
“Has the investment decision been made?”
“It’s still under review, but the feeling is right.”
Kang Jin-ho smiled as he spoke to the subordinate.
“If DK requests any documents, send them right away. It’s the top priority.”
“Yes, understood.”

* * *
“So you’re saying business structure transformation is needed starting now?”
Sitting in the director’s office reviewing accumulated work reports, Lim Do-hyeon looked up from the documents he was reviewing.
“Yes. Personally, I thought the appropriate time would be one year from now when the Ochang Fulfillment Center is completed, but given external pressure, I believe we need to start now.”
“Kang Seon-woo’s vision for business structure transformation is a shift from corporate logistics to fulfillment and courier logistics.”
“That’s correct.”
Brief silence fell. Lim Do-hyeon leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms.
“Corporate logistics is structurally dependent on the shipper. If a shipper decides to handle logistics themselves, there’s nothing we can do.”
That was reality. Some businesses could be responded to, others couldn’t — and corporate logistics was very dependent on the shipper, an inefficient business from a logistics firm’s perspective.
“It’s Seonjin Automobile Group now, but other large corporate shippers could follow the same path.”
“The same path meaning?”
“There’s nothing better than a logistics subsidiary as a succession vehicle for the second and third generations. If you funnel your group’s work to your own logistics company, sales are guaranteed, and once you list, it becomes assets worth hundreds of billions.”
Director Lim Do-hyeon nodded.
“No matter how well we do, if the shipper leaves, it’s over.”
“Exactly.”
Lim Do-hyeon’s expression showed the discomfort of something undeniable.
“So we need alternative revenue sources, and I believe Social Commerce can be that answer.”
Based on the data Kim So-mi had researched, I spoke.
“There are now over 500 Social Commerce firms scattered across the country. Rocket Shopping, Ticket Shop, and WeMarket are representative examples.”
The word “scattered” was accurate. They’d sprouted like mushrooms after rain starting early this year, and some were already beginning to purchase and ship goods themselves.
“Monthly logistics volume is growing 20 to 30 percent month-over-month. Looking at the entire courier market, it’s growing over 15 percent annually from 1.2 billion packages a year. Yet not a single one has their own logistics infrastructure.”
“From our perspective, if we dig into that market, there’s definitely money to be made.”
“Exactly.”
Of course, in two or three years most of this market would consolidate and only a handful would survive, but there was no need to worry about that now.
By then, Seonjin Logistics’ business structure transformation would be complete.
“I understand what you’re saying, but the Fulfillment Center won’t be completed until a year from now. Systems will need up to another eighteen months to stabilize.”
“We can start the system stabilization ahead of time.”
“Really?”
“Yes, if we reallocate some space at the Gunpo Hub, we can start Social Commerce logistics right away. We convert part of the existing courier operations and run it first, then transition fully once the Ochang Center is complete.”
“Starting at Gunpo first…….”
Lim Do-hyeon rested his chin on his hand, sinking into thought.
“I think it’s good to see Gunpo as a sort of testbed. Once we implement it and spot issues, we can apply those corrections right in the construction phase for Ochang, and the system should stabilize without much extra time needed.”
“And we’d be training personnel from now on…….”
Lim Do-hyeon received my words in agreement before looking at me and asking.
“But if Seonjin Automobile’s volume disappears, we’ll have an immediate revenue gap. Is there time to fill it with Social Commerce?”
“Regardless of the bidding outcome, the earlier we enter the Social Commerce market, the better. If we win the bid, we buy time. If we lose, having alternative revenue locked in lets us endure. We prepare to win, but also prepare to lose.”
Lim Do-hyeon nodded.
“Good. Send up detailed plans right away.”
“I’ve already prepared them. I’ll go print and submit right now.”
“Ha ha ha.”
Lim Do-hyeon laughed, looking at me.
“You came already having all the conclusions drawn up and convinced me.”
“……I thought whichever direction, sooner was better.”
“That’s very like Kang Seon-woo. Good. I’ll report to the CEO right away, so have the report ready.”
I bowed and left the director’s office, turning to head back to my desk.
Buzz—
A vibration came from the phone in my pocket, and the name on the screen was Danny.
I turned my steps toward the break room and pressed the call button.

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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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