章 84: Chapter 84: Economic Turmoil
Future Building.
I constructed a single building on the 1,000-pyeong lot in Daechi-dong that I took from Chairman Hyun-bo, instead of the two originally planned.
I had planned for Han Gyeong-yeong to use it when he came to Korea, but I thought it would be better to get a small office for his good guy act.
In the end, this place was meant to be Eva's stronghold.
"I've decorated the top floor like a hotel; you can stay there."
"When can I take a look?"
"How about the end of this year? Do you like it? It's my gift to you."
"GOOD!"
Eva seemed genuinely pleased, gazing up at Future Building with a huge smile on her face.
"For now, I'll stay in the hotel suite while I get everything ready."
"You said I could bring in anyone I wanted, right?"
"Do you have anyone in mind?"
"Not yet; I need to meet them first. I have to prepare in advance so we can start work by the end of the year. You'll be busy, but will you stay with me today?"
Eva shot me a seductive glance.
"Hahaha, I didn't make any other plans today. I'll show you around Seoul. This is your first visit as an adult, right?"
"Yeah, let's start with something spicy!"
I took Eva to the restaurant I had reserved, a traditional Korean place that foreigners often visited.
While discussing the preparations, I took her to the hotel.
"The night view of Seoul rivals that of Hong Kong, huh?"
"It's come a long way, hasn't it?"
"I didn't expect it to be this impressive."
Eva murmured as she looked out the window.
"Can you really say this country is facing a crisis?"
"You saw what happened in Thailand."
"But Thailand and Korea have completely different economic scales."
Eva's words were accurate.
There was an unbridgeable gap between the economies of Thailand and Korea.
Korea was the second country in Asia to join the OECD.
On the surface, the Republic of Korea was an economic powerhouse, credited with the Miracle on the Han River.
But it was just a sandcastle built on a hollow foundation of debt.
"Indonesia, Taiwan, and Hong Kong won't escape unscathed either. The Wall Street hyenas don't discriminate; Korea is their ultimate target."
Originally, Korea wasn't in their plans, but seeing it wobble under Southeast Asia's economic crisis made them decide to attack.
Backed by the U.S., they pressured the IMF to impose favorable conditions on Korea.
"Trust me, boss. This crisis will be my opportunity. Thanks for including me in this event!"
Eventually, the car slowly came to a stop at the hotel entrance.
"Let's head in. We can have a drink in the room where you'll be staying for now."
Eva nodded and elegantly stepped out of the car.
Her appearance was certainly eye-catching.
As Eva approached me, crossing her arms, she said,
"Since today is the last day, is this okay?"
As she said, once today passed and she fully entered the political and financial scenes, it would be hard to meet like this again.
"Yeah, let's go."
The next day.
I left the hotel early in the morning.
"What's on today's agenda?"
"Aside from a dinner appointment with Miss Cheon Ji-young, I have no other plans."
"Then take me to Myeong-dong."
Hyeon-seong was learning the basics of ledger management and loan sharking under the guidance of Twin Blades in Myeong-dong.
According to Twin Blades, he was learning faster than expected.
"Welcome, boss!"
As we arrived at the office, Twin Blades Kim Ho-sik was the first to greet me.
"You look good, Boss Kim!"
"Hahaha, I've been just idling around lately while others are busy making money."
As the economy tightened and money became scarce, Myeong-dong was the first to react.
With banks and credit companies holding back funds, the only option left for the public was the loan shark market.
In particular, small businesses and self-employed individuals were knocking on Myeong-dong's doors in desperation.
Unaware that it was a shortcut to ruin.
"Boss Kim, it's time for you to launder your identity. If you lend money now, it'll be hard to recover it later, making it difficult to operate above board."
"I understand; I've heard that before."
As I entered the office, I saw Hyeon-seong sitting at the desk, reviewing documents.
"So, how's it going?"
Hyeon-seong looked up at my voice.
"Oh."
His blunt personality hadn't changed at all since joining the loan shark market.
I moved behind Hyeon-seong and peeked at the documents; they were all loan applications.
"Are you getting used to it?"
"It's a bit tough, but I'm managing."
"You only need to grasp the basics; you won't be working directly, so there's no need to know everything like an expert."
"No, I need to know so I can do my job properly."
Hyeon-seong's stubbornness was showing.
"Alright, do as you wish. Let's grab a bite to eat."
Hyeon-seong checked the clock on the office wall and tilted his head.
"It's not even noon yet."
"So what? Let's go out!"
"Alright, I'll wrap this up quickly."
While Hyeon-seong finished up the papers, I chatted with Twin Blades on the sofa in the office center.
"Next year, we'll start setting up loan companies. You should appoint trustworthy people as frontmen, and Hyeon-seong will assist you, but you need to handle all the operations yourself, boss."
"Thank you for the opportunity."
"Don't betray me; there are only two left now."
"I know."
Twin Blades was more aware than anyone else about how Hammer and Bandit were dealt with; I was glad he understood.
"You'll be rewarded for your hard work."
"Yes."
"If you touch the rice cake, crumbs will get on your hands; I'll tolerate it to a point, but don't cross the line."
"Understood."
By the time Twin Blades finished his warning, Hyeon-seong stood up.
"I'm done."
"Really? Then let's go. Boss Kim, see you again soon!"
"Yes, boss, take care!"
We entered a shabby restaurant nearby.
It had been a while since I ate in a bustling restaurant filled with people.
"Things are going to get busy starting next year."
"Oh?"
Myeong-su was fulfilling his military duty as a legal officer and planned to join the Prosecutors' Office after his service ended.
Hyeon-seong had been exempted from military service after that incident.
"Thanks for helping me out."
"No problem; I owe you more."
Even Hyeon-seong, who had been a sore point, seemed to be settling in and adapting to his place, easing my burden a little.
I hadn't spoken much with Hyeon-seong, whether for my satisfaction or his future.
I just hoped this would be a good choice.
After parting with Hyeon-seong, I arrived in Pyeongchang-dong.
When I stopped by to greet my grandfather in the study, he spoke first.
"You were out late last night."
"Yeah, I had some things to take care of."
"Sit down; I have something to discuss."
"Sure."
My grandfather's expression was quite serious.
As I took my seat, my grandfather hesitated a moment before finally speaking.
"The government contacted me; they want me to release my dollars into the market."
That was quicker than expected.
The government reassured the public that it maintained foreign reserves of $30 billion every year, while also announcing financial reform laws that expanded individual foreign currency holding limits to $500,000 without questioning the source, all to maintain that $30 billion reserve.
"What do you think, grandfather?"
"If pouring my dollars doesn't prevent the economic crisis, I'll just be burdening the government. Isn't that just urinating on a frozen lake?"
That was true; even if my grandfather poured all his dollars in, it wouldn't make a difference.
It was better to hold on to it and lend it out to businesses later.
"Then you should decline their request."
"Would that be a problem? It's not wise to get on the bad side of the regime."
"Don't worry; the government is already dead. The Prosecutor General has a good relationship with us, and the head of the National Tax Service is a long-time friend of yours, right?"
Two agencies that could threaten my grandfather were deeply connected with us.
The foolish government has made overly political decisions, thinking it can engage in pointless power struggles with the Bank of Korea. Ignoring their warnings and even dismissing reports from frontline officials—you'd think the guy in charge of the economy would have better sense.
This administration has staked everything on joining the OECD and achieving a per capita income of $10,000.
All for purely political reasons.
The government was completely oblivious to the fact that the investment firms were lending money obtained from short-term foreign debts back to Southeast Asia and domestic companies.
With rising interest rates in the U.S. and economic crises in Southeast Asia, a portion of the massive funds that flooded into Asia was now heading back to the U.S.
The countdown to disaster is drawing closer.
"Have you heard from the big corporations yet?"
"Still no word from the top ten companies?"
"What about Asin?"
Grandfather nodded slightly.
"Asin has no owner, so who would send a representative to me?"
"That's true. But who from the government reached out?"
"The Minister of Finance called directly, claiming it was a VIP order. He tried to project an intimidating presence… what a fool. It's ridiculous that someone like him is steering the economy of a nation."
Thailand's surrender was just the beginning.
The Indonesian rupiah has collapsed due to attacks on it, and assaults on various Southeast Asian countries, starting with Indonesia, Taiwan, and the Philippines, have begun in earnest.
"In a few months, the big corporations will line up to seek us out."
"What do you want?"
"Just do what you always do, Grandfather. Use their key company's shares as collateral or issue convertible bonds."
"Haha, understood. I don't know what you want, but I'll make sure to do it right."
"Especially for Il-sung Electronics, I hopee to secure as much as possible."
"Il-sung Electronics?""
I smiled at my grandfather, who looked puzzled.
"Yes, it's the core of Il-seong Group.""
"I'll do my best."
"Thank you."
After finishing my conversation with Grandfather, I went upstairs, where Manager Ma reported to me.
"The preparations for establishing the PMC are complete. By next month, the corporation will be formed, and we've received word that weapons purchases will begin next spring."
"Really? What about the Korean branch?"
"They plan to set it up next spring. They're sending a team of Navy SEAL veterans to assemble it."
"Eric is doing well."
So far, over $2 billion has already been invested in the PMC establishment.
We hadn't even started purchasing weapons, and the expenditure was already staggering.
"The money is piling up like crazy."
"Well, it's a private army we're building. But once we get contracts from the U.S. government, recouping the funds shouldn't take long."
"True, and money isn't everything. Just keep things moving forward."
"Understood."
After sending Manager Ma off, I called Han Gyeong-yeong.
― Hello.
Han Gyeong-yeong's voice was groggy, as if he had just woken up.
"Did you just wake up?"
― Ah… is that you, Mu-hyeok?
"If you're going to sleep, call me later."
― No, just a moment.
I could hear him moving around hurriedly on the other end of the line.
― Yawn… What's going on?
"How much is invested in the Bermuda corporation?"
― Black Mouse?
"Yeah."
― It's a little over $30 billion.
"Okay, invest that in Korea. As soon as the market opens tomorrow, let's bet that the exchange rate will exceed 1,800 won by January of next year, and that the stock price will be below 400."
― …What? Wow, I'm wide awake now.
"1,800 won, stock price 400."
Han Gyeong-yeong was silent for a while.
"You get it?"
― I understand, but… I'm not sure we can burn $30 billion. I'll check as soon as the market opens in the morning.
"Yeah, please do."
"― Is Southeast Asia done for?"
"No, Hong Kong is still left. There's still time, so place a $30 billion bet that Korea will collapse."
Korea hadn't fallen to the Wall Street attack.
A bomb from within detonated, leading to its own destruction.
If they give up on the Korean market simply because it's their home, other hedge funds would definitely take advantage.
I recalled what Chairman Song had once said.
"Then you must seize the opportunity. If you don't, someone else will profit from it. That's the economy for you."
Exactly, it's better for me to take it than let it slip away.
Han Gyeong-yeong started buying up all available futures options under the ghost company's name in Bermuda, hiding his identity.
The hedge funds that had been touring Southeast Asia were now preparing to attack Hong Kong, the financial hub of Asia.
The greatest opportunity to profit from the Asian financial crisis had arrived.
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