Chapter 266: Your Hunch Is Right

I gave Chairman Park Yeongil and the others a detailed report on our business trip to Switzerland.

There was nothing more left to report.

However, Chairman Yoon Jongu remained seated in his chair as though he had no intention of leaving.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who thought so, because Park Yeongil asked him,

"Yoon, do you have something else to discuss with me?"

"Not with you," he replied. "I need to talk to Director Cha."

"Me?" I asked in surprise, pointing at myself because I hadn't expected that at all.

"We still need to settle the purchase of our company's official residence."

Mother planned to buy the official residence from Hangang Group, renovate it, and open a restaurant there.

But just as we were about to discuss the details of the transaction, NIS Director Om Giyeon summoned me.

Commander Kwak Taesu had reported that his only son had disappeared without a trace in Switzerland and asked us to use Saho to find him.

Events unfolded rapidly, and I immediately flew to Switzerland with the cat.

Because of that, signing the sales contract for the Hangang Group property had naturally been postponed.

And that was exactly what Yoon Jongu was reminding me about now.

"Ah, I understand what you mean," I replied.

"There's no point dragging this out. Let's settle the contract right now," Yoon Jongu suggested.

"I agree with your proposal, Chairman."

The moment I finished speaking, Chief Secretary Song Dosok placed his briefcase on the table.

He took out a transparent folder and handed it to me.

"I've already prepared the contract. Give it a quick read and sign it."

I opened the folder and was reading through the document when the transaction price made me stop.

"Chief Secretary Song, are you sure this amount is correct?"

When Hangang Group had purchased this official residence, it had paid seven billion won for it.

But the contract clearly stated five billion won in black and white.

Finding himself in an awkward position, Chief Secretary Song Dosok chose to shift all responsibility onto Chairman Yoon.

"I merely followed the Chairman's instructions."

I turned toward Yoon Jongu, trying to understand what was going on.

Catching my gaze, he put on a displeased expression and said,

"Director Cha, how many times have you helped us out lately?"

"I won't deny that I've helped," I replied.

"Frankly, I should've just given you the house for free. But knowing you, you would've refused a gift like that. So I cut the price to five billion won."

"I'm sincerely grateful for your kindness, Chairman, but I'd like to purchase it at market value."

"I am charging you the actual market value—five billion won!"

"I know perfectly well how much this Hangang Group property is really worth."

"Hmm..."

Without finishing his sentence, Yoon Jongu tapped his fingers against the armrest of the sofa, sinking into thought.

I sat silently, giving him time to think it over.

After a while, he stopped tapping and spoke.

"Director Cha, in exchange for the discount, do something for me."

"What would you like me to do?"

"Now isn't the time. I'll tell you later."

"Understood."

With that, I took a pen from the inside pocket of my jacket and boldly signed the document.

Song Dosok immediately removed one copy of the contract from the transparent folder.

Then he took another folder from his briefcase and handed it to me along with the contract.

"Transfer five billion won to the account listed in the document."

"All right."

"This folder contains all the documents required to transfer ownership. Don't drag your feet. Get the process completed as soon as possible."

"I will."

The moment I answered, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan addressed me.

"Director Cha, I'll take care of the ownership transfer."

"Why would you take that upon yourself?"

"I'm not planning to run around handling the paperwork myself. I'll simply assign it to the Legal Department."

"Ah, I see. Then I'll give you all the necessary documents."

Realizing that our conversation was over, Chairman Park Yeongil spoke up.

"Director Cha, you can return to your office."

"Yes, sir."

After giving a brief reply, I rose from the sofa.

I politely bowed to Park Yeongil and the others, opened the door, and left the office.

As though he had been waiting for exactly that, Park Yeongil immediately asked Yoon Jongu,

"So what are you planning to ask Director Cha to do?"

"Hehehe."

Yoon Jongu answered only with a sly, devious chuckle.

***

I had been certain that the CEO of KBH Investment would have a separate office.

After leaving the Chairman's reception area, I asked one of the secretarial staff where the CEO's office was. To my surprise, I was told that no separate office had been created for the head of the company at all.

All I could do was shrug as I headed to my department director's office on the thirtieth floor.

After sitting down at my desk and turning on my laptop, the first thing I did was transfer the five billion won for the purchase of Hangang Group's official residence to the account listed in the contract.

After that, I used the intercom to summon President Cho Myeongsu, who had been appointed Vice President of KBH Investment.

"Director Cha, you called for me?"

Something struck me as strange.

Today, I had come to work as the CEO of KBH Investment.

Logically, Cho Myeongsu should have addressed me as "President."

Yet he was still calling me "Director."

As soon as he sat down on the sofa, I asked him why.

"You are the Chairman's successor as well as the CEO of KBH Investment," Cho Myeongsu explained. "When someone holds positions at multiple companies, it's customary to use the title by which they're best known publicly. The Chairman took that into consideration and decided that you would continue to be addressed as 'Director.'"

"Ah, I see."

"And since I've transferred to KBH Investment, you can call me 'Vice President.'"

"All right. But why wasn't a separate office prepared for the CEO of KBH Investment?"

"That is also because you're Chairman Park's successor."

There was a light knock at the door, and the secretary entered to serve drinks.

Chief Secretary Kang Inhan followed her into the office and sat across from Vice President Cho Myeongsu.

As soon as the secretary set down the cups and left, I addressed him.

"Chief Secretary Kang, what brings you here?"

"The Chairman told me to come see you."

"I see."

Nodding, I continued questioning Vice President Cho Myeongsu.

"Vice President Cho, your title was lowered from 'President' to 'Vice President.' Doesn't that bother you?"

"What matters to me is the substance of the work I do, not how impressive my title sounds."

"But isn't KBH Investment's scope of operations narrower than Korea Investment's?"

"Korea Investment primarily dealt with domestic companies, while KBH Investment will invest in global giants. So the scale of our operations will actually become considerably broader."

"That makes sense. Let's get down to business. How is staffing for KBH Investment progressing?"

"We plan to recruit a total of one thousand employees. Korea Investment and Hangang Group have each provided us with 150 specialists, while Bongard Investment Group has assigned us one hundred people. We'll fill the remaining seven hundred positions through open recruitment."

Bongard Investment Group was the world's largest company by assets under management.

Naturally, the employees of such a corporation took enormous pride in where they worked.

And yet a full hundred of those elite professionals had decided to transfer to the newly established KBH Investment?

I asked Cho Myeongsu if he knew why they had made such a decision.

"I never said they resigned from their company and transferred to ours," Cho Myeongsu replied.

"I'm not quite sure what you mean."

"They believe our company is a subsidiary of Bongard Investment Group. They think they've simply been assigned here on rotation."

Korea Investment was KBH Investment's largest shareholder, with a forty-percent stake.

So strictly speaking, KBH Investment was a subsidiary of Korea Investment.

However, the employees from Bongard Investment Group believed it was their own subsidiary.

Realizing that this misunderstanding needed to be cleared up immediately, I called Chairman Bongard.

After several rings, his cheerful voice came through the phone.

"[Director Cha, when did you get back to Korea?]"

During our business trip to Switzerland, we had stayed at his private villa.

I had thanked him for providing us with accommodations at the time.

However, when we left for home, everything had been so hectic that I hadn't been able to call him.

So he hadn't known that I'd returned.

"I arrived yesterday afternoon," I replied. "Thank you again for letting us use your villa."

"[You've already thanked me for the villa. Tell me what you're calling about.]"

"I apologize in advance, but this won't be a pleasant conversation."

"[Did something bad happen?]"

Sensing that something was wrong, Chairman Bongard immediately tensed, his voice turning dry and stern.

"I won't hide it. There is a problem."

"[What's the situation?]"

"I'd like you to make the employment status of the personnel sent to us from Bongard Investment Group completely clear."

"[They're employees of KBH Investment. What's the problem?]"

"They believe KBH Investment is a subsidiary of Bongard Investment Group."

"[Hmm...]"

Chairman Bongard fell silent, clearly thinking something over.

All I could do was wait while he considered the matter.

After some time, he finally spoke again.

"[Director Cha, I'm truly embarrassed. I'll personally take charge of this matter and straighten them out.]"

There was genuine apology in Chairman Bongard's voice.

Since he had acknowledged the mistake, there was no reason to turn it into a bigger conflict.

"I'd greatly appreciate that."

"[Since we're talking, may I ask you something?]"

Still, caution came first. There was no telling what he might ask.

"I'll hear the question first, then decide whether to answer. Fair?"

"[Of course. We've accumulated quite a lot of idle capital, but we can't decide where to invest it. I'd like to hear your opinion.]"

"I think oil futures would be an unconventional but promising option."

"[Oil futures?]"

Global oil prices had soared to their peak immediately after Russia invaded Ukraine.

At the time, the United States and other countries began aggressively developing shale gas deposits that had previously been unprofitable.

As a result, oil supply exceeded demand.

Consequently, crude oil prices continued to fall relentlessly.

It was no surprise that my advice to invest in oil futures puzzled Chairman Bongard.

"One of the reasons oil prices can't rise is China's prolonged economic downturn," I explained.

"[I completely agree with you there.]"

"And the Chinese economy can't recover because Chairman Xi Jinping keeps doing utterly foolish things."

"[Are you saying Chairman Xi will stop doing those foolish things soon?]"

"If he stops, he'll have to step down. So he won't stop on his own."

"[But then China's economy won't recover either, will it?]"

"It's simple. Chairman Xi just needs to be overthrown."

"[What are you talking about?!]"

Chairman Bongard's astonished shout nearly deafened me through the phone.

"What I'm about to tell you must remain between you and me, Chairman Bongard."

"[My lips are sealed. Hurry up and tell me what's happening in China.]"

"Our country and the United States are secretly supporting General Tang Guochang, an influential figure in China's military leadership."

"[Could it be...]"

I understood perfectly well why Chairman Bongard had trailed off in the middle of his sentence.

"Your hunch is right."

"[Hmm... I see. And what are the chances that the coup will succeed?]"

"The answer to that question is already contained in my advice to invest in oil futures."

"[Understood.]"

"But don't let any rumors spread under any circumstances. Buy the oil futures as discreetly as possible."

"[Don't worry. We'll handle it perfectly,]" Chairman Bongard concluded confidently.