Capítulo 516: Chapter 516: Nothing Changes from the Past
When I firmly declined, Bo Yibo frowned.
"Isn't it better for Kim Jong-il to come down for your business?"
"That's right. As long as Kim Jong-il is in power, I won't engage in any business with North Korea. But I also don't want China or the U.S. getting involved to topple the regime. If that happens, the other side will surely try to exert their influence in some way. Right? The moment the U.S. executes a plan to behead Kim Jong-il, China will gather its troops at the border, won't it?"
Of course, it wouldn't escalate to a full-scale war.
But if someone ends up taking power after Kim Jong-il is overthrown due to outside influence, both the U.S. and China would inevitably be uncomfortable with each other.
In the end, it would lead to the same old scenario.
And obviously, that would make it even harder for me to pursue what I envisioned.
"So ultimately, nothing will change from the past."
"What are you really trying to say? Are you suggesting we should just let things fall apart naturally? I have no intention of doing that. This will be my final task."
I had never conceived of China directly toppling Kim Jong-il's regime.
In the future I knew, China had always supported the North Korean regime.
Of course, it wasn't because they harbored any goodwill towards Kim Jong-il or his successor Kim Jeong-un.
Politically, it was because it brought them benefits.
But thanks to my involvement this time, everything had turned completely upside down.
Now Bo Yibo seemed intent on ousting Kim Jong-il. This was something unprecedented.
"Artificial interventions won't lead to change in North Korea. As I mentioned earlier, the U.S. will maintain tensions as long as North Korea refuses to abandon its nuclear capabilities. This isn't good for China either. The best choice would be to let the regime collapse naturally and allow them to make their own choices thereafter."
"Nonsense! North Korea has always been under our influence. What can the U.S. do? Nuclear weapons? Just demand they abandon them. We can protect them, that's all it takes."
Bo Yibo seemed to have made up his mind. I shook my head, adopting a demeanor as if I were stepping back.
"If that's how you truly feel, then do as you wish. I won't get involved in this matter. I don't understand why you're making such an offer to me."
Though I said this, I of course knew the reason.
It's easier for them to use me rather than directly approaching the Chinese government to woo them.
If I took center stage, I could prevent any intervention from Russia and the U.S. That's why they resorted to this underhanded proposal.
"Then we won't be voting in favor of the sanctions either."
Bo Yibo stated decisively. If I conceded here, I would never hold the initiative for the rest of my life.
"Is that so? Do the others here feel the same?"
I asked while glancing at others instead of focusing on Bo Yibo.
However, no one answered back.
Bo Yibo's claim of a final task seemed to prevent anyone from opposing him.
I looked at Wen Jiabao, who was already somewhat informed, but he too avoided my gaze.
If he stepped in, Wen Jiabao could also risk losing his position. That was completely understandable.
'"I'd better withdraw for now."'
I stood up without hesitation.
"If everyone shares the same thoughts, there's no need for further discussion. You can oppose the sanctions, support them, or even eliminate Kim Jong-il—do as you wish. Let's pretend today's discussions never happened."
A deep look of confusion crossed Bo Yibo's face.
"Boss Kim. This will be beneficial for you too. But why do you oppose it so vigorously?"
"Interfering with what could naturally resolve itself is pointless. If we fail or get discovered at any moment, we can't predict what Kim Jong-il might do. He's unpredictable now; he could truly launch an attack on Korea. Hence, I will now take my leave."
"..."
Bo Yibo glared at me in silence, but I met his gaze without backing down.
Perhaps displeased with that, Bo Yibo furrowed his brows.
"Regrettably, I'll take my leave now. It was nice to meet those elders. It would've been better if we reached a good conclusion."
I gave a slight nod to the group before turning away.
"Hey, Boss Kim!"
Zhang Zemin called out loudly from behind, but I didn't stop walking.
As I opened the door, the men who had searched me earlier were standing there, blocking the way.
There were loud noises from inside, so it seemed they were blocking the door.
From the stern expressions, it looked like they would not step aside without an order. I turned to Hu Jintao.
"Chairman Hu? What is going on right now?"
Hu Jintao looked around perplexed. He soon directed his instructions towards the men.
"Step aside."
Only after Hu Jintao's command did the men finally move aside.
I lightly pushed past them and stepped outside.
"Are you leaving now?"
The elderly guide approached me and asked, casting a quick glance at the atmosphere inside before hastily closing the door.
"Yes, it's time for me to go."
The elder nodded and spoke to the men.
"Bring back the phone we stored earlier."
Receiving my phone back, I followed the elder as we walked.
A moment later, Manager Ma joined us as we exited the villa.
"I'll take you directly to the hotel. Until next time, then."
I returned to Beijing in the car I had come in.
As soon as I entered the hotel room, I called for Manager Ma.
"Manager."
Manager Ma nodded and quickly opened a bag containing detection equipment. He started searching the residence for any bugs.
It didn't take long for him to find five listening devices.
"Get rid of them all."
Manager Ma smashed all the bugs. He verified that they had also tampered with my phone, so he destroyed it as well.
"These guys have some nerve."
It was always like this. Every time I visited China, it was a task to find listening devices in my residence.
One might think giving up would be natural after so many failures, but they were exceptionally persistent.
Manager Ma pulled out another bag and switched on a laser jamming device. Now, no one could eavesdrop on our conversations from the outside.
From then on, I began to openly converse with Manager Ma.
We discussed measures about this matter until late at night.
By now, those gathered earlier must be fiercely debating their next move.
Of course, even though I stormed out of the meeting, I couldn't easily give up on this matter.
If the sanctions are not passed, a real war might break out.
In such a case, even if Yoon Chang-ho conveys a message during this U.S. visit that war is absolutely out of the question, the Neocon hardliners will persuade Bush to enforce it.
The U.S., having triumphed in Afghanistan and Iraq, wouldn't fear anything.
"For now, let's observe further. They must be in a complicated situation themselves."
No matter how many opinions were shared, no sharp solutions emerged.
In the end, after speaking with Manager Ma for a long while, it was dawn before I could fall asleep.
I woke up to the sound of a phone ringing early in the morning.
"…Hello?"
― Hey, hey! Mu-hyeok!
Myeong-su called out urgently, pulling me away from my sleep.
"What? What happened now?"
― North Korea launched a missile again.
"What? Again?"
North Korea's provocation cycles were getting shorter.
I began to think that Kim Jong-il might spiral out of control.
"Myeong-su, hold on a second."
Having just woken up at dawn, my mind wasn't quite functioning yet.
I stepped out of the bedroom and into the living room.
"Manager, could you get me a cup of coffee?"
I sat on the living room sofa, requesting coffee from Manager Ma.
"Now tell me again, when did it launch?"
― It was launched 30 minutes ago into the East Sea. It's breaking news on television right now.
"Is it still early in Washington?"
― Yeah.
"Let's read the atmosphere in Washington and get back in touch. I'll check in on the mood in China."
― Got it. But isn't Kim Jong-il seriously losing it? How long has it been since the last nuclear test, and he's already thinking of launching another missile?
"Ha, I don't know either. I'll find out what I can too."
Ending the call, I tousled my messy hair with my hands.
Just then, Manager Ma conveniently handed me a warm cup of coffee.
"Manager, let's turn on the TV for a bit."
Manager Ma turned on the television. The wide screen was broadcasting North Korea's missile launch as breaking news.
I watched the news in silence. It seemed the Chinese media also hadn't grasped the situation as they were only reporting vague statements without detailed information.
Sighing deeply, I turned off the TV as Manager Ma cautiously took a seat.
"What on earth are they thinking?"
"They might be in a desperate situation. U.S. analysis suggests there's a high probability that the last nuclear experiment failed, right?"
"Even so, the UN hasn't been convened yet… Continuing provocations will only harm themselves. No one will want to help North Korea as it gets more aggressive. Making such choices indicates there's probably a problem within North Korea. We need to look into it further."
If it wasn't internal division, then Kim Jong-il had truly gone mad.
Whichever it was, I felt frustrated because I couldn't accurately grasp the internal situations in North Korea.
"At this rate, they might really launch a missile at South Korea as well. Sigh, this is maddening."
It was even more frustrating in a place where common sense didn't prevail.
I also considered accepting Bo Yibo's proposal to quickly eliminate Kim Jong-il.
While I was sorting through my complex thoughts, the doorbell of the hotel room rang. Manager Ma walked toward the door.
"Who is it?"
"I'm here at the request of Chairman Hu."
Manager Ma looked back at me. I nodded slightly.
The door opened, and a man came in. After bowing his head to greet me, he spoke.
"Chairman Hu has asked you to come to his office."
"Is there something still to discuss?"
"I don't know anything. I just received instructions to bring you to him."
I nodded back and replied.
"Please wait a moment."
"Sure, I'll wait in the lobby."
The man bowed his head again and left. As soon as the door closed, I told Manager Ma.
"Get ready."
"Yes."
Moments later.
We arrived at the Kunming Hall in Zhongnanhai in Beijing.
The most secretive space in China.
This was where the offices of the Politburo Standing Committee were gathered.
Following the aide, I entered Hu Jintao's office, which was located at the innermost part.
"Oh! Boss Kim, welcome!"
"Thank you, Chairman."
Only Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao were waiting for me.
"Please have a seat."
I sat down facing Wen Jiabao. After exchanging a brief greeting with him, Hu Jintao immediately spoke.
"Are you aware that Kim Jong-il has launched a missile again?"
"Yes, I received a message from the U.S. before I came here."
"Yes, just before launching in the early morning, our government received another notification from them."
I nodded. Knowing that, there was no way I would show such a reaction yesterday.
"Upon further inquiry, it seemed the launch wasn't even planned. Isn't this equivalent to a declaration of war from Kim Jong-il against us?"
"That could be the case. It may be a way of signaling, 'Don't provoke us. The more you do, the bigger our retaliation will be.' No one could have anticipated that he would carry out provocations again at a time when the UN Security Council hasn't even been convened."
Hu Jintao sighed heavily.
"We too did not foresee this. We were closely monitoring Pyongyang after the recent nuclear test, but this sudden event left us in the dark. This is like a challenge thrown at us. We can't ignore it."
"Is that so? But why did you call me back? Didn't our discussion conclude yesterday?"
"Listen here, Boss Kim."
Hu Jintao spoke in a serious tone.
"China will actively step in to pass this sanctions bill."
"Hmm."
"Just keep your promise from yesterday. Please proceed with the construction of the oil pipeline between Russia and China."
Finally, I got the answer I had wanted. However, this wasn't enough now.
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