The Return of the Ruined Chaebol's Third-Generation Heir - Chapter 129

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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 Heir — Episode 129
“Representative, shall I push back the checkout?”
Sunday afternoon at a hotel in Osaka.
A day had passed since I’d made the proposal to Nakamura.
If I faced the situation squarely, there was no reason to refuse it.
The problem wasn’t the refusal—it was the pride that took time to accept.
And I had no time.
Hong Sang-jin asked from the doorway, and I shook my head.
“No. I came here with weekend plans, so I need to be back by evening regardless.”
“Then I’ll stay and follow up with Shinjin. I’ll also meet with other companies as you mentioned.”
“You’ll have quite a lot on your plate.”
At my words, Hong Sang-jin smiled.
“Actually, I’m enjoying this. Back in Ochang, I was buried in paperwork. Now that I’m meeting partners and uncovering opportunities, it feels like I’m alive again.”
Shinhwa Welltech was fundamentally a company of thorough technicians. Because of that, Park Jin-hyeok had spearheaded nearly everything, while Hong Sang-jin supported him on the business side.
From his perspective, he seemed to have been looking for a chance to contribute.
“I’m reassured by your presence. It’s also why I can entrust Shinhwa Welltech to you.”
“I appreciate your trust. Then I’ll return in time for your departure.”
After Hong Sang-jin left, I put the documents in my bag and checked my watch.
A little over three hours remained. I had to leave the hotel in at least two hours.
“I’ll be leaving without getting an answer, then.”
Ring—
Just then, the phone in the room rang, and I picked up the receiver.
“Yes.”
A guest has arrived in the lobby. His name is Nakamura Kenji. That’s what he asked me to tell you. How would you like us to….
The call came from the hotel lobby. Nakamura Kenji had arrived. He must have come to a conclusion about something.
I took a long, slow breath and opened my mouth.
“Please send him up.”
After I hung up, there was a knock shortly after, and when I opened the door, Nakamura Kenji stood there.
The confused expression from yesterday was nowhere on his face.
“Come in.”
I gestured for him to sit, and Nakamura took the sofa.
“The board has made a decision.”
The moment he sat down, Nakamura Kenji spoke to me.
“We’ll sell the Joint Venture Equity.”
In that moment, all the anxious thoughts that had weighed on my heart were swept away.
With this, Shinhwa Welltech had secured the foundation to move up another level.
“It must have been difficult. Thank you for making such a good decision.”
Nakamura paused for a moment.
“The board was split three to three.”
……
“The opposing side’s logic wasn’t wrong either. The Joint Venture was our foothold in Korea, after all. There was talk that we’d regret this once the crisis ends.”
Nakamura looked at me as he spoke.
“But I felt the proposal was too necessary and too good to refuse, and with the company dying, there was no point in clinging to the Joint Venture.”
His jaw tightened slightly. I didn’t particularly want to probe what lay beneath that hardened expression.
‘He must feel the burden of pushing through a motion that half opposed.’
That half the board opposed also meant Nakamura’s position was being shaken. He’d pushed through a motion with opposing votes using his authority as Representative Director.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t convince the opposition—it was that there wasn’t time to. If this decision proved wrong, Nakamura Kenji would have to shoulder all the responsibility.
The director’s position was one of responsibility, but an excessive weight was now resting on his shoulders.
Saving the company was simply what had to be done, so he wouldn’t receive good marks for it, and later, if the Joint Venture became a problem, he would bear full responsibility for that decision.
“I’m grateful for the decision. We’ll move quickly with the procedures. Let’s use an appraiser that both sides agree on.”
Nakamura nodded and we exchanged some practical details.
The appraiser selection timeline, contract drafting, and fund transfer methods.
Just as we were finishing the discussion—
“Representative Kang.”
Nakamura Kenji broached the subject cautiously.
“May I say one more thing?”
“Of course. Please speak freely.”
“We’re planning a Paid-in Capital Increase.”
A Paid-in Capital Increase is when a company issues new shares to raise funds.
With the 3 billion yen from the Joint Venture sale, we could get through the immediate crisis, but it might not be enough to normalize Shinjin headquarters operations.
“Could Shinhwa Welltech participate in that capital increase?”
Nakamura continued, looking at me.
“Selling the Joint Venture alone won’t be enough to convince the board. We need proof that in losing the Joint Venture, we’ve gained a stronger partner.”
He paused and gathered his breath before continuing.
“Right now, there’s no one in Japan willing to invest. The banks, the investment firms—they’ve all turned their backs. And…….”
……
“We need proof of partnership.”
Nakamura took a single breath.
“……To be honest, that’s what I need right now.”
My mind raced.
If Shinhwa Welltech became a shareholder of Shinjin headquarters, we’d gain something far greater.
Shinjin headquarters was a company with customer networks and patent portfolios across all of Japan.
Once Shinjin recovered, Shinhwa Welltech would sit in the Japanese market as a shareholder in Japan’s largest mid-tier precision chemical company.
The scale of sales that Hong Sang-jin was now out working on would be completely different.
Beyond that, it would block Shinjin from partnering with any other Korean company.
We’d lock in a raw materials supplier through equity stakes.
For Nakamura to bring this up first—there was no better scenario than this.
“What scale are you thinking?”
“Around 10 to 15 percent. I’ll maintain management rights, and I’ll give you authority roughly equivalent to board observation.”
I nodded. Given the physical distance anyway, I had no intention of getting deeply involved in management.
An observer position was more than sufficient.
“That works for me.”
Nakamura looked surprised. He hadn’t expected me to decide so quickly.
“Once Shinjin recovers, it’ll be the strongest partner we could have in Japan. It’s a good proposal for us too.”
Nakamura’s expression eased slightly.
“Thank you.”
“I need to head back to Seoul now. We’ll push forward with the rest through Representative Hong, and I’ll make sure things move quickly.”
As I stood, Nakamura also rose.
“Thank you, Representative Kang. It seems my decision seven years ago to choose Shinhwa Welltech as a partner wasn’t wrong.”
Nakamura Kenji said this and extended his hand. I smiled and clasped it.

* * *
“I should have picked you up myself.”
As soon as I returned home, I got into Jung Tae-sung’s car, which was waiting at the airport.
Jung Tae-sung spoke with unmistakable regret, and I chuckled.
“Thanks to your concern, the trip went well.”
“How did it go? Was the business concluded successfully?”
Jung Tae-sung asked, glancing at the rearview mirror.
“Yes. I think you’re going to be very busy from here on. We’ve agreed to acquire the entire Joint Venture Equity stake that Shinjin holds.”
“Congratulations.”
“Ha—did you not hear what I said? You’re about to get swamped with work. I went out and caused trouble again, and now I’m handing it over to you.”
“For you to thrive, that’s a good thing for me, and I’m satisfied with that.”
At Jung Tae-sung’s words, I smiled.
“And Shinhwa Welltech will participate in Shinjin headquarters’ capital increase under our company name.”
“That sounds like it’ll require considerable funding. How much should we prepare?”
“Since SJ Holdings is the major shareholder of Shinhwa Welltech, this acquisition should probably come from the SJ Holdings level. We’ll need to negotiate, but both matters combined should run around 150 billion won.”
The Joint Venture stake could be acquired for 40 billion won, but the 10–15 percent stake in Shinjin carried a hefty valuation.
“If we need funds, we can talk to Ribbon…….”
“It looks like we can handle it with internal SJ Holdings funds.”
Over time, SJ Holdings had also been growing its assets internally through traders. We needed funds for scholarship programs and for capital needs at Shinhwa Welltech and Synapse.
“Good. Then let’s proceed that way.”
“Once it’s decided, I’ll make the trip to Japan myself.”
At Jung Tae-sung’s words, I nodded and pulled out my phone to call Park Jin-hyeok in Ochang.
Yes, Representative.
“Director, sorry to bother you on the weekend.”
Not at all. I was actually waiting to hear from you.
It seemed Park Jin-hyeok had been anxiously awaiting my news from Japan.
“The Joint Venture will now be 100 percent owned by Shinhwa Welltech.”
The line went quiet.
……Did it work out?
“Yes. Now we have the power to make decisions independently.”
Until now, the Joint Venture board had been composed of directors dispatched from both Shinhwa Welltech and Shinjin.
It was true that even when Park Jin-hyeok tried to introduce new processes or technologies, he was blocked.
So that’s why you ordered me to expand the Ochang semiconductor line several months ago.
A few months prior, I’d instructed Park Jin-hyeok to expand the Ochang semiconductor line. At the time, he’d asked me a question.
The electrolyte had gotten on track—why expand semiconductors further?
Now he understood that line was built for exactly this.
“Calling it ‘thinking ahead’ would be an overstatement. I couldn’t have known an earthquake would hit. I simply thought that someday we’d have to bring the Joint Venture under our control.”
That’s admirable. Really.
His words carried genuine sincerity. After hesitating for a moment, Park Jin-hyeok seemed to recall something and refocused.
If we move the Joint Venture line, the Ochang cleanroom class could become an issue.
Once he started discussing technology, his voice changed. He truly was a born engineer.
The Ulsan Joint Venture line was designed as Class 100, but the Ochang expansion line is Class 1000. We’ll need an upgrade to run high-purity semiconductor processes.
Cleanroom classification is where lower numbers mean cleaner environments.
Class 100 is an environment with extremely low particulate matter in the air—essential for high-purity semiconductor processes.
I also need to check how many of Shinjin’s technical staff have experience with Process Transfer. May I contact President Nakamura directly? It’s faster to sort out technical deployment engineer-to-engineer.
“Yes, it’ll be faster to coordinate through Representative Hong. And we’ll spare no expense upgrading the cleanroom—let’s get it done quickly.”
Understood. By the way—
Park Jin-hyeok seemed to have something else to tell me.
The European raw materials you instructed before your trip are also looking promising. We’ve made contact with a distributor handling German chemical company volumes domestically, and they say they have surplus quantities that were supposed to go to Japan.
Raw materials destined for Japan were left floating when the earthquake shut down factories.
Once one knot came loose, several things began flowing smoothly together.
We’re thinking of taking all of it.
“Go ahead and do that, and also arrange for steady supply shipments going forward. We need to diversify our supply chain for now.”
Yes, I’ll follow your instructions.
After finishing the call with Park Jin-hyeok, I leaned back in the seat.
“Director, drive slowly, please. Once I’m home, there’ll be mountains of work waiting. I need some rest in the car.”
At my words, Jung Tae-sung nodded and eased off the accelerator.
‘It’s been the busiest weekend since I got back. I’ve wrapped up the urgent matters…….’
Soon enough, I would be harvesting the fruits of all this.

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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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