» The Youngest Son of Sunyang
The Youngest Son of a Conglomerate - Chapter 224
[224] Complacency is Forbidden 1
"What do you think?"
"Huh?"
"Chairman Joo Gwangshik."
"Oh? Chairman Joo? What about him?"
"Uncle!"
In the end, I yelled at Oh Sehyun, who kept feigning ignorance.
"Hey, hey, you should get the hint by now. Why are you playing dumb, you who are usually so quick on the uptake?"
Such a sudden cutoff? How could this be?
Just a month, no, even a mere fortnight ago, hadn't he been poring over three or four monitors, checking the financial markets daily, and reviewing every one of the dozens of reports coming from HW Group?
Yet, after sending out a company-wide email, he had become more sluggish than a veteran soldier with just two weeks left until discharge.
The email had declared a long-term leave of absence under the preposterous pretext of "mental and physical exhaustion," stating that during this period, executives from each department would take responsibility for investments, but daily reports were to be submitted to me.
Acting CEO – that was the tag affixed to me.
"Consider yourself lucky that I didn't formally resign and instead used a trick, all for your sake. If you keep bothering me, I'll just open a board meeting and propose electing a new CEO."
"It wouldn't be a bad idea to meet Chairman Joo Gwangshik for one last meeting in your current capacity, would it?"
"It would be bad. What's the point of expanding my network now? From now on, I'll be networking with resort locals. You handle it."
I couldn't push him any further.
At this rate, his retirement truly began today.
"Then just give me a hint. Why does Chairman Joo Gwangshik want to meet the CEO of Miracle Investment?"
"Didn't he say he wanted to discuss the acquisition of Daehyun Card?"
"What if it's not that?"
"Then it can only be a trick to use Miracle Investment, can't it?"
"What do you think he's using us for?"
"Even I don't know that."
This was no different from a veteran soldier teasing a newly assigned recruit.
"I don't know about anything else, but if he insists on meeting me when he has no intention of handing it over, isn't it because he needs a certain 'picture'?"
"A 'picture'? Ah! The 'picture' of you and Uncle having an important discussion?"
"Probably?"
The problem was why he needed such a 'picture,' but there was no way to know. As I racked my brain, Oh Sehyun said with a laugh,
"Alright, I'm in a good mood. Call Chairman Joo Gwangshik."
"What?"
"Quickly, before I change my mind."
I felt a little uneasy, unsure of what he would say, but I figured a man of his immense experience wouldn't make a mistake.
"Just a moment."
I took out my cell phone and quickly connected the call.
"Chairman. This is Jin Dojun."
I offered a brief greeting and handed over the phone.
"Ah, it's regrettable to greet you by phone, Chairman."
Oh Sehyun began the call with a genial voice. He exchanged a few ordinary pleasantries before getting to the point.
"Chairman. If you have anything to discuss regarding the Daehyun Card acquisition, you can confer with Director Jin Dojun. I will defer to Director Jin's judgment and abide by his conclusion. Therefore, please finalize this matter with Director Jin Dojun. Well then...."
Oh Sehyun abruptly ended the call and tossed the phone back to me.
"There, see? Now you handle it."
He turned his gaze back to the monitor.
"Now, stop bothering me and get out. I have a lot of emails to send."
* * *
"Director. No matter how I look at it, this is an exaggeration. The emergency funds Daehyun Card needs don't even amount to 200 billion won. So why a sale...?"
Vice President Jang Dohyung placed a rather thick file of documents on the desk.
Judging by the black smudges of hand grime, it seemed he had thoroughly analyzed it.
"What about the money borrowed from affiliates?"
"I couldn't ascertain the exact amount. However, those affiliates are also companies under Chairman Joo Gwangshik. There's no urgent reason for them to be repaid either."
Vice President Jang Dohyung stated his thoughts with a voice full of conviction.
"As I mentioned in the last report, the government also views the situation favorably. In other words, there's no external pressure."
Jang Dohyung glanced at me cautiously before speaking carefully.
"If he's actively pursuing a sale despite there appearing to be no significant problems on the surface, it means there's an unsolvable ticking time bomb internally. If not, then he must have another agenda, don't you think? I hope we don't get needlessly dragged into it."
There's no reason for me to dance a madwoman's sword dance just because of Chairman Joo's ulterior motives. At this point, I need to cast aside greed and view the company from a different perspective.
"Vice President."
"Yes."
"Formulate a strategy to target Daehyun Card."
"What?"
"We need to seize Daehyun Card's main customer base. We need a strategy that will appear extremely blatant to Daehyun."
"Ah...!"
"I want to take a peek at their inner workings. If they have no major problems, they'll hold out for a long time. If they have many problems, their true colors will quickly be revealed. Let's decide on the acquisition then."
"We'll launch a new card offering services similar to Daehyun Card, or add those services to an existing card and hit them with an advertisement."
Vice President Jang Dohyung also possessed a strong fighting spirit.
As soon as he heard the call to battle, he immediately became fired up.
"Yes. But before the advertisement, we should spread rumors, shouldn't we? So that Chairman Joo Gwangshik hears about Sunyang Card's new services first."
"Of course. I'll start by having meetings with the financial sector about this. Then it will reach Daehyun's ears immediately."
Having completed all preparations for the coming storm, I waited. While others were swept away by the tempest, I alone prospered, falling into arrogance beyond mere complacency.
I had to escape the delusion that everything around me was my spoils of war. If something wasn't absolutely necessary, there was no need to deliberately pursue it, nor should I lose the composure to distinguish genuine gems from mere stones, blinded by external expansion.
However, I also mustn't forget to firmly suppress anyone who tries to use me, ensuring they never entertain such thoughts again.
* * *
"Oh, my dear nephew. Did something upset you? Why do you avoid me so coldly?"
"It's not like that. I've been incredibly busy recently with many things to take care of. My apologies."
"No, no. No need to apologize. It's usually the one who's in need who digs the well, isn't it? I was just exaggerating a bit. Haha."
Chairman Joo Gwangshik laughed boisterously, but he couldn't hide the tremor in his eyes.
"By the way, I heard a rumor too. That CEO Oh Sehyun is taking a temporary break?"
"Yes. A sabbatical, they say? He mentioned he'd been running too hard and was completely drained of energy. He plans to rest for about a year and recharge."
"What a fortunate man. A year-long vacation during such difficult times? Incredible."
As for good fortune, who could be more blessed than you, born into a chaebol family? Isn't your destiny simply to acquire titles like CEO or Chairman as soon as you come of age, without any particular effort, merely because you were born a founder's child?
On the other hand, people like Oh Sehyun carve out their bones and strip their flesh to seize such titles. For the words "fortunate man" to come from your mouth is an insult to such individuals.
I wanted to retort like this, but I kept the words to myself.
"The doctor's diagnosis was absolute. He warned that if he continued at this pace, his body would break down."
"Oh dear, tsk-tsk. How can you believe a doctor's words one hundred percent? It's their job to say you're sick. If they said you were fine, who would seek a doctor?"
"Regardless, since he's made his decision, he won't go back on it."
"Then is my nephew filling that empty seat?"
"Not entirely. Regarding investments, I'll filter what needs filtering, and anything difficult to judge, I'll have CEO Oh reconfirm."
"I see. But they said they'd entrust even the card company acquisition to you.... That judgment won't be easy, will it? Am I wrong?"
He clearly wanted to meet CEO Oh Sehyun until the very end. I had to shatter that expectation.
"Uncle, you're really quite clueless at times like this."
"What? Me?"
"Yes. Would he entrust such an important matter to me? He was subtly expressing his refusal."
Chairman Joo Gwangshik bit his lip firmly.
"Refusal, you say.... Then the rumors circulating now must be true."
"What rumors are you referring to?"
"The rumor that Sunyang Card is preparing to declare all-out war on me. You don't know?"
"I couldn't possibly know about such an important matter."
Joo Gwangshik glared at my face for a moment, then burst into laughter.
"Hahaha, well now.... I can't possibly contend with your duo's combined play. Incredible. Haha."
As I stared blankly at his face, pretending to know nothing, he reverted to his usual slick demeanor.
"What's going on here? It seems you're aiming to properly topple Daehyun Card since it's already unstable... but if you come at me like that, I'll be frightened. Let's stop here. Aren't we the kind of people who don't need to point swords at each other?"
"What on earth are you talking about...."
When I played innocent once more, his voice lost all traces of amusement.
"Stop it. Your relationship with him is practically one body, enough to entrust a company to. What do you mean you don't know? Let's stop playing games."
As dry as his humorless voice, I responded,
"It was you, Uncle, who showed weakness. This isn't a matter of people; it's a matter of companies. When a weakened competitor is trying to regain its footing and rise again, are we just supposed to stand by and watch?"
As I revealed my true intentions, Chairman Joo's eyes narrowed.
"Isn't it the nature of this business to topple even perfectly sound companies by any means necessary if one desires them? What's more, if a fallen company tries to get back up, and you don't trip it and knock it down again, is that a company? It's a rehabilitation center."
"What are you talking about? I said I'd give it to you. Pay a fair price and take it. Why trip a company that has already surrendered?"
Good. That's the response I wanted.
"Very well. Then I will send a truckload each of Miracle Investment's audit team and accounting team. Show us the company's inner workings properly. Only then can we decide whether to acquire it, and if so, for how much, correct? If you accept this proposal, I will consider the all-out war null and void."
As expected, he couldn't answer. Of course, showing all the accounting ledgers wouldn't be easy, but if the company was in such a critical state that it had to be handed over, there would be nothing they couldn't show.
It was clear he had another agenda.
"It seems like you're calculating to thoroughly grasp the company's situation and then attack its weak points, doesn't it?"
"Asking someone to buy something without properly showing it off, however, seems like a calculation to not sell it at all, doesn't it?"
There was no need for further verbal sparring.
There was no longer any need to figure out Chairman Joo's true intentions.
I just needed to attack until he screamed and raised both hands and feet in surrender. It wasn't about an exaggeration; it was about truly putting him in danger and ensuring he could never rise again.
"Then, since I've conveyed CEO Oh's opinion, I'll take my leave now."
"Wait, just a moment. Listen to the rest of what I have to say. The truth is...."
"Uncle.... No, Chairman Joo."
I brushed away his hand, which he urgently extended.
"I don't know what your circumstances are, but it's already too late. Frankly, I don't even want to know. Sunyang Card is sharpening its knives and preparing its bullets. To stop now would be to crush the high morale of our troops. I can't do such a thing."
Chairman Joo Gwangshik was sweating on his forehead, trying to hold me back, but I steeled my heart.
"Did you mistakenly believe that Miracle Investment, and I, were mere tools in your pocket, to be taken out, used however you pleased, and then put back when finished?"
"Not at all. It's a misunderstanding. Just a little help would be...."
"Why should I? Who would help whom? Nephew, Uncle... such titles should remain mere appellations. Our true nature is to devour or be devoured."
A beast of prey with its meal in sight.
I showed that true nature and turned my back.