Chapitre 3: CH3 - Gulf War
Hannam-dong, Seoul.
In a wealthy neighborhood where large mansions are surrounded by high walls, there was a two-story mansion that caught the eye, with a red maple tree standing tall among the pines even in spring.
The mansion, built on a 2,084.68m² (631 pyeong) plot with one underground floor and two above, was where Chairman Park Tae-hong, the owner of Daeheung Group, lived with his family.
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Sparrows chirped noisily like an early morning alarm from the branches of pine trees lined up in the wide yard as Chairman Park Tae-hong opened the door of his bedroom and came out into the living room.
Born in 1930, Park Tae-hong was 62 years old this year, a man whose sharp eyes and square face revealed his extroverted and bold personality. He often bragged that he had once won an ox at a wrestling tournament in his youth, and he had inherited the large stature and frame of his father, the late founder
Chairman Park Yong-joo. He loved sports and had been operating a women's volleyball team under the group for over 10 years while also serving as the chairman of the Korea Volleyball Association.
"Chairman, you're up." Mrs. Gunsan, who had been managing the household for a long time, greeted him with an apron on as she stood in the kitchen. Nodding slightly, Chairman Park Tae-hong sat down on the sofa and said, "Bring me a cup of coffee."
"Yes." It was Chairman Park Tae-hong's long-standing habit of drinking a cup of coffee first thing in the morning. While Mrs. Gunsan, familiar with the routine, went back to the kitchen to brew the coffee, Chairman Park Tae-hong picked up the morning newspaper lying on the living room table.
[International Oil Prices Rising: Inflation Expected to Increase, Trade Balance Likely to Worsen. In late last month's OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) meeting, contrary to initial expectations, there are signs that they will decide to cut production instead of increasing it. As a result, the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil has risen to $22.4 per barrel, a 17.4% increase from the end of last year. Due to this, the cost of imported crude oil is also expected to rise sharply, and this year's current account deficit is projected to increase from the originally expected $7.5 billion to $8 billion. The government is...]
"Tsk." After reading the article in the economic section, Chairman Park Tae-hong clicked his tongue briefly, furrowing his brow. Just last year, oil prices had dropped to $16 per barrel based on WTI.
However, prices had gradually risen and now had easily surpassed the $20 mark, leaving him feeling uneasy from a business perspective. Moreover, he was particularly concerned because, two years ago, the Gulf War had suddenly broken out in the Middle East, causing oil prices to skyrocket from $14 to $40 in one go.
"There won't be a spike like last time, but it's still bothersome."
As the rising oil prices would increase production costs and negatively impact the group's main textile business, the wrinkles on Chairman Park Tae-hong's forehead deepened.
"I brought your coffee." At that moment, Mrs. Gunsan came over with a warm cup of coffee and set it down in front of him. Chairman Park Tae-hong reached out, picked up the coffee cup, took a sip, and smiled with satisfaction. The coffee, sweetened with milk and sugar just to his taste, was perfect for him.
"What's for breakfast today?"
"I got some good beef knuckle bones, so I made a hearty broth. I've also prepared boiled pork and green onion kimchi, so it'll be delicious when you eat them together."
"Knuckle bone soup sounds good." Knowing well Chairman Park Tae-hong's taste in food, Mrs. Gunsan smiled slightly and said, "I'll set the table shortly."
It was usually around 30 minutes that Chairman Park Tae-hong spent reading the newspaper and drinking his coffee in the morning. As Mrs. Gunsan was about to turn around to start preparing breakfast, the telephone on the living room table suddenly rang loudly.
Ring, ring.
Mrs. Gunsan, who was on her way to the kitchen, quickly answered the phone. "Yes, this is Hannam-dong."
[Auntie, it's me.]
Recognizing Seok-won's voice on the other end, Mrs. Gunsan's face brightened.
"Oh my, it's the second young master." Chairman Park Tae-hong, who had been sitting on the sofa, finishing the article in the economic section, looked up.
"What? Our second son?"
"Yes, Chairman."
When Mrs. Gunsan covered the receiver with one hand and answered, Chairman Park Tae-hong put the newspaper down on the table and said, "Let me have it."
Taking the receiver from Mrs. Gunsan, Chairman Park Tae-hong immediately called his second son's name.
"Is that you, Seok-won?"
[Father, I see you're already awake.]
Hearing his second son's voice for the first time in a while, Chairman Park Tae-hong recalled the story he had heard a few days ago at a business gathering about how the chairman of another group had been humiliated after offering a large donation to get his son into an Ivy League university, only to be turned down.
'Raising children is as difficult as running a business.' Even if it wasn't publicly known, there were quite a few chaebol second and third-generation heirs who caused their parents a lot of heartache with big and small scandals. In contrast, his second son had been admitted to Harvard, one of the top Ivy League schools, with excellent grades and was even attending on a scholarship, making him proud and satisfied.
"How's your health?"
[I'm fine.]
He still remembered how shocked he had been a month ago when he heard the news that his second son had been shot by an armed robber.
As soon as he received the news, Chairman Park Tae-hong canceled all his scheduled appointments and rushed to the United States with his wife. Fortunately, as if blessed by heaven, his critically injured second son had miraculously recovered and survived, but even now, just thinking about it made his heart tremble.
"If you feel even the slightest discomfort, go to the hospital immediately, and always be careful."
[Yes, Father.]
"As I said last time, you've been through a major ordeal, so if it's tough, don't push yourself too hard, and it's okay to take a semester off. It doesn't matter if you graduate a year or two later."
[I'll be graduating next year, so I'll just keep studying. And really, I'm fine.]
Hearing the subtle determination in his son's voice, Chairman Park Tae-hong clicked his tongue in reluctant acceptance.
"Tsk. Alright, then do as you wish." Still, he felt somewhat reassured, sensing that his son's voice seemed brighter than when he had last seen him in the hospital.
"That aside, if you're not coming back to Korea, what's the reason for this call? Your mother's been telling you to call just to say hello, but you never do."
[Father, I'm calling because I have something to tell you first.]
"Hmm?"
[Have you ever heard of something called Powerball?]
Chairman Park Tae-hong frowned slightly, trying to recall the somewhat familiar yet unfamiliar term.
"I'm not sure. What is it?"
[It's a lottery issued in the U.S.]
"Oh, like a housing lottery?" At that time in Korea, Lotto hadn't been introduced yet, so most people thought of the housing lottery, a type of drawing-based lottery, when they heard the word "lottery."
[Well, it's something like that.]
"Why are you suddenly bringing up lotteries? Did you buy one and win first place or something?"
[Yes.]
"Hmm?" Chairman Park Tae-hong had casually tossed out the remark, but hearing the response, he blinked in confusion. Thinking he might have misheard, he even rubbed his ear before asking again with a chuckle.
"What did you say?"
[I said I won first place in the Powerball lottery.]
"You? In the lottery?" Even after hearing it twice, it was hard to believe, and Chairman Park Tae-hong was astonished, wondering what was going on.
"Is that really true?"
[Yes. I went to the lottery commission yesterday and confirmed the win, so I'll be receiving the prize money soon.]
"Hah! Well, I'll be damned." Chairman Park Tae-hong exhaled sharply and laughed. "They say good things come after bad ones, and it seems that's no lie. I never imagined something like this would happen." Though he was surprised by this unexpected news, Chairman Park Tae-hong quickly regained his composure, befitting the leader of a large conglomerate.
"Congratulations. America's a big country with a large population, so I'm sure the prize money must be substantial."
[It's quite a bit.]
At this point, Chairman Park Tae-hong still thought of it as just a bit of good fortune. At that time, the first prize for the housing lottery was 150 million won. A 24-pyeong apartment in Gangnam cost just over 100 million won, so it was an amount that could change an ordinary person's life. But for Chairman Park Tae-hong, the head of a major corporation, it wasn't a particularly large sum, so he didn't think much of it.
"So, how much is it?"
[$190 million.]
"…What?" Chairman Park Tae-hong tightened his grip on the receiver and asked again. "What? How much?"
[$190 million. After taxes, it'll be reduced to around $119.7 million.]
While Seok-won spoke nonchalantly, Chairman Park Tae-hong was genuinely shocked this time and couldn't close his gaping mouth. Once, the group had recorded exports exceeding 1 trillion won, but as the core textile business contracted, Daeheung Group's export value remained at $970 million last year. And now his son was going to receive an amount equivalent to 10% of the group's export value?
Chairman Park Tae-hong, who had expected the prize to be around 1 billion won, similar to the housing lottery, was utterly bewildered. Whether he was aware of this or not, Seok-won continued to speak in a laid-back tone over the receiver.
[It's standard practice here to disclose the winner's identity, so my name and face will be in the newspapers. I refused an interview, but they said I had to take a photo.]
"Wait, wait a minute." Chairman Park Tae-hong took a deep breath, his face filled with confusion. "So you're telling me you really won over 100 million dollars in the lottery?"
[Yes.]
"Hah!" Even though it was America, he never imagined the prize would be that large, and Chairman Park Tae-hong exhaled again in disbelief.
[They'll only publish my name and age in the article, but I wanted to let you know in advance just in case. I'll call again later as I have something else to do now.]
"Alright." Still too stunned to properly respond, Chairman Park Tae-hong remained seated on the sofa, staring blankly as if in a trance.
"What in the world is going on?"
***
Austin, Texas, USA.
Seok-won placed the receiver back down on the hotel room sofa and smacked his lips.
"He seemed quite shocked." If he were in his father's shoes, he'd probably be just as bewildered if suddenly told he'd won a huge lottery. Imagining Chairman Park Tae-hong, who usually exuded a heavy charisma at work, looking dumbfounded and flustered, brought a small smile to his face.
"Now that I've told Father, I don't need to contact the rest of the family." For a moment, Seok-won thought about his mother and older brother back in Korea, but then he let the thought pass.
When he first woke up, his sense of identity as Kim Gwang-seop had been much stronger, making him feel awkward around the family of the original owner of the body. But now, it felt completely natural. In the process of merging the memories of the two people, it seemed he had also absorbed the emotions associated with their families.
After overcoming the shock of returning to the past and regaining his composure, the first thought that came to his mind was why he had to possess the body of the owner of Daeheung Group.
Compared to his original life, it was like being born with a diamond spoon in his mouth, but the problem lay ahead. He knew that from now on, the family's fortunes would gradually decline until the group couldn't survive the IMF crisis and was dismantled.
Chairman Park Tae-hong, who appeared to be in good health, would eventually succumb to a heart attack, unable to cope with the shock of the group's bankruptcy. After his sudden death, the eldest son who succeeded him would also struggle to revive the group but would ultimately fail, leading to a lonely end abroad—a well-known tragic tale.
"If only it were Sae Sung, Hyun Woo, or at least ST Group…" He felt a twinge of regret, but it was a luxury to complain, and in truth, he was incredibly fortunate just to have this new life.
"Since I know the future, I can avoid the misfortunes that are to come." He didn't want to lose his family again, having already lost them once in his previous life. And now that he had been given a new opportunity, a desire to pursue the dream he had always held in his heart began to stir.
"After hearing the stories of legends on Wall Street like George Soros, I wanted to become someone like that." It had seemed like nothing more than an unattainable fantasy, but now that he had gone back in time, it was no longer just a dream.
"This is just the beginning." Murmuring to himself as if making a vow, Seok-won checked his watch after rolling up his sleeves, then rose from the sofa.
"They should be arriving soon." He left the room and took the elevator down to the lounge bar on the first floor of the hotel, where the soft sound of a piano greeted him. Outside the large floor-to-ceiling windows, the darkness of night had fully settled in, and on the stage, a pianist was playing slow and sweet jazz.
Standing at the entrance of the lounge bar, Seok-won looked around and soon spotted Landon sitting at an inside table. He walked straight over.
"You're here." Landon, who had already ordered a beer, smiled brightly as he stood up and extended his hand.
After a light handshake, Seok-won sat down in the empty seat opposite and said,
"Sorry for asking to meet at such a late hour."
"Haha! No problem. You're a big-paying client, so it's only natural. Call me anytime you need anything." Since he had agreed to pay Landon $100,000 for his services, there was some truth to what Landon said.
"Would you like to order?" At the hotel staff's question, Seok-won glanced at Landon's beer.
"I'll have the same, please."
"Certainly." After the hotel staff stepped back, Seok-won briefly scanned his surroundings before turning back to Landon.
"I'm thinking of setting up a company in the Bahamas. Can you handle that?" Landon's eyes sparkled as he listened.
"Are you planning to create a company to manage the prize money?"
"That's right."
As if he had expected this, a smile spread across Landon's face.
"Considering taxes and various other factors, that would indeed be the most advantageous move. You've made a very wise choice. If you entrust it to me, I'll make sure everything is handled smoothly."
"I'd like to have it set up by the end of this month. Can you manage that?"
"You must be doing it for the investment you mentioned earlier." When Seok-won nodded, Landon rolled his eyes as if calculating something in his mind.
"It's a bit tight, but I'll do my best to meet the deadline. However, it might cost a little more…"
"That's fine."
"In that case, there's no problem at all." Landon took a long swig of his beer and smiled confidently.
TL/n -
The Gulf War, also known as the Persian Gulf War, took place from August 2, 1990, to February 28, 1991. It was triggered by Iraq's invasion of Kuwait under the leadership of Saddam Hussein.
The invasion of Kuwait by Iraq in August 1990 led to fears of a major supply disruption. This caused oil prices to spike from around $17 per barrel in July 1990 to $46 per barrel by October 1990
***
If you want to know how OPEC's decision causes the Oil price to change then you can read An Investor Who See Future novel.
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