Chapter 145: That Time I Started Redevelopment in South America (4)

TL: Skye

Meanwhile, how were the people who had lived in Libertad, only to become Evictees overnight and be forced to leave, getting by?

Ordinarily, adapting would not have been easy.

After all, when people are uprooted from the place they call home, their lives change with it.

Even in Korea, once a demolition is decided, groups ranging from the National Alliance of Evictees to all manner of civic organizations take to the streets in protest.

But things were different in San Marcos.

Surprisingly, no one had any complaints.

Of course, their loyalty to Yu-jin played a part, but there was an even bigger reason.

Life in New Town was far better than they had expected.

“Honey, is this place... really this clean?”

They had gone from living in the Old Town Shantytown to a brand-new apartment in a clean five-story building. Naturally, their satisfaction was through the roof.

“The tap water doesn’t come out rusty?”

“There’s no mold on the walls?”

“The bathroom is inside the house!”

In most of the old houses in Old Town, the bathroom was outside.

Whenever it rained, they had to take an umbrella outside just to use the toilet.

To them, an indoor bathroom was practically a symbol of civilization itself.

“C-couldn’t we just... keep living here?”

It was nice enough to make them say things like that.

Even the government support left nothing to be desired.

For residents who worked in Libertad, shuttle buses ran every morning and evening, allowing them to commute between New Town and downtown Libertad in under thirty minutes.

A Tortilla Foods shopping center also opened in the commercial district.

Residents could buy everything from groceries to household necessities in one place, and thanks to government subsidies, prices were actually lower than in downtown Libertad.

More than anything else, however, the Evictees were happiest with the schools.

Back in Old Town, children had to walk more than thirty minutes to get to school, but in New Town, all the schools were within five minutes of home.

Thanks to that, parents could go to work without having to worry.

The facilities were excellent, and the quality of education was in no way inferior to that of schools in Libertad.

An elementary school in New Town.

A spotless classroom. White walls. Children sat in a classroom furnished with brand-new desks and chairs.

“All right, today we’re going to talk about the things His Excellency has done for San Marcos.”

The children’s eyes sparkled.

“Now, who would like to tell us?”

Every hand in the classroom shot up at once.

“His Excellency gave us homes!”

“He gave us food too!”

“He caught the bad guys for us!”

“He protected us from the hurricane!”

“His Excellency has an awesome jaguar!”

The classroom erupted into chatter.

“Right! I saw it too! There was this huge black cat next to His Excellency!”

“It’s not a cat, it’s a jaguar!”

“They say His Excellency is the only president in the whole world who has a jaguar!”

The teacher smiled and clapped her hands.

“That’s all correct. His Excellency works tirelessly for all of us. So, how should we repay His Excellency for his kindness?”

The children answered in unison.

“We should study hard and grow up to become wonderful adults!”

“That’s right!”

A portrait of Yu-jin looked down over the classroom.

***

Meanwhile, at that very moment.

Yu-jin was sitting across from Hyunhwa Construction CEO Park Dongsu in his office.

The reason for their meeting was construction costs.

Park Dongsu pushed a proposal across the desk toward Yu-jin.

“This is the structural system we’re planning to use for the apartment buildings.”

“A Wall-slab Structure.”

“Yes. Instead of erecting columns, the walls themselves bear the load of the building. With no columns taking up space, the interiors are more spacious, and we save on materials.”

“That sounds like it could be structurally vulnerable...”

“We’re planning to use a substantial amount of rebar, so there’s no need to worry.”

Park Dongsu showed him a cross-sectional diagram.

“Its wind resistance is also superior to a column-frame structure. The entire wall functions as a single structural element. It can easily withstand a Category 4 hurricane.”

The combination of hurricane resistance and low construction costs immediately piqued Yu-jin’s interest.

“And this is where the real savings come in: the Standard Floor Plan.”

Park Dongsu flipped to the next page. The same blueprint had been drawn over and over again.

“We use the same floor plan across hundreds of buildings. Every twenty-five-pyeong unit gets the same twenty-five-pyeong plan, and every thirty-four-pyeong unit gets the same thirty-four-pyeong plan. Since the layouts are identical, we can reuse the Formwork.” [TL: One pyeong is approximately 3.3 square meters.]

“Reuse the Formwork?”

“Yes. Normally, Formwork is used once and discarded, but if we repeat the same design, we can reuse it dozens, even hundreds of times. The savings on Formwork alone are enormous.”

Park Dongsu pointed to the cost analysis table.

“More importantly, there’s the productivity gain from repetitive construction. When workers repeat the same tasks, their proficiency improves. When they build the first building, one floor takes five days. By the tenth building, that drops to three days. From the twentieth building onward, they can finish a floor in two.”

“If the construction schedule gets shorter, labor costs go down too...”

“Correct. By shortening the construction schedule, we can reduce labor costs and ultimately bring down the overall construction cost.”

Park Dongsu opened to the final page as he spoke.

“Then what would the presale price per unit be?”

“About this much.”

“Can’t we make it a little cheaper?”

“This already reflects about as much cost reduction as we can manage... We only got it this low because we’re building a hundred thousand units all at once. Under normal circumstances, it would have been at least thirty percent more expensive.”

“Hmm...”

When Yu-jin let out a thoughtful hum, Panther, who had been lying beside him, opened his eyes.

“Grrrr!”

Park Dongsu immediately began trembling.

“...We’ll do our best to bring the price down further.”

“I’m counting on you, CEO Park.”

Yu-jin was a president who thought of nothing but his people.

***

News of the San Marcos redevelopment crossed the ocean and hit Korea.

The stock market was the first to react.

[Saseong Corporation Wins 100,000-Unit San Marcos Redevelopment Contract — Shares Surge 15%]

[Hyunhwa Construction Confirmed for Major Caribbean Project — Up 22% Intraday]

[Construction Stocks Rally Across the Board — Expectations Rise for San Marcos Boom]

As soon as the disclosure was released, Saseong Corporation’s stock rocketed toward its Upper Limit the moment the market opened.

Hyunhwa Construction was no different. The sheer scale of a hundred thousand housing units had shaken the Korean stock market.

The massive overseas order had arrived at a time when Korea’s domestic housing presale market had hit rock bottom and new construction starts were plummeting.

Investors who already owned construction stocks raised their glasses in celebration, while those who had missed out kicked themselves.

One securities analyst published the following report.

[San Marcos has saved the Korean construction industry. With the domestic presale market in a slump, the 100,000-unit contract in San Marcos effectively guarantees two years of work for Korea’s major construction firms. We are revising our target prices upward.]

And it was not just construction stocks that rose.

Shares of International Group, the parent company of International Steel, also climbed, along with those of heavy-equipment manufacturers that had exported machinery to San Marcos.

San Marcos itself had become a positive catalyst for the Korean stock market.

9:00 p.m. NBS News.

The anchor delivered the first story in a clear, resonant voice.

[Our first story. Positive developments originating in San Marcos are having a favorable impact across the Korean economy.]

The screen changed to footage of Seoul’s financial district in Yeouido.

[Korean construction firms participating in San Marcos’s massive redevelopment project have seen their shares surge across the board. Saseong Corporation rose 15%, while Hyunhwa Construction gained 22%, with related stocks also showing strong performance.]

The screen switched back to the anchor.

[Even more noteworthy is the exchange rate.]

A graph of the won-dollar exchange rate appeared onscreen.

After remaining elevated for months, the exchange rate had fallen sharply over the past two weeks.

[The won-dollar exchange rate, which recently surpassed 1,500 won to the dollar, has now stabilized in the low 1,400-won range. Let’s hear from Professor Choi Ikhyun of Hankuk University’s Department of Economics. Professor, what accounts for this change?]

The professor sitting beside the anchor began his explanation.

[The enormous volume of dollars flowing in from San Marcos is increasing the supply of dollars in the market and helping stabilize the exchange rate. Furthermore, this is not a one-time inflow but a sustained one, so the foreign exchange market appears to be responding accordingly.]

[And I understand there’s more good news?]

The anchor nodded as he asked.

[Yes. We are also beginning to see signs of change in international oil prices, which had remained extremely high due to the prolonged blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.]

An oil price graph appeared onscreen.

[Following the United States’ airstrikes on Iran, the Strait of Hormuz was effectively closed, causing international oil prices to skyrocket. Korea, which depends on the Middle East for most of its crude oil imports, subsequently found itself facing an energy crisis.]

The screen changed. Footage showed an oil tanker in the Caribbean leaving port.

[However, the situation has begun to change since San Marcos recently decided to expand its crude oil supply.]

[How has it changed?]

The anchor asked.

[As you can see, oil prices are gradually stabilizing. Petroleum feedstocks such as naphtha are also being supplied at stable levels.]

[I see. Thank you, Professor.]

[My pleasure.]

The anchor wrapped up the segment.

[Until just a few years ago, San Marcos was a country whose name was unfamiliar to most Koreans. Today, it is becoming an indispensable partner to the Korean economy. In our next story, at the National Assembly...]

The San Marcos Gallery on City Inside exploded as well.

Title: Saseong Corporation stock lol thank you San Marcos

ㄴ 100,000-unit contract drops and it shoots to the Upper Limit lol

ㄴ Made money thanks to His Excellency

ㄴ I made 22% on Hyunhwa Construction too lol

ㄴ I bow toward San Marcos every morning

ㄴ His Excellency saved the Korean construction industry

ㄴ Why the hell is another country’s president saving our economy lol

Title: Apparently San Marcos is why the exchange rate stabilized

ㄴ Dollars earned in San Marcos are flowing into Korea

ㄴ Construction payments + steel payments + equipment payments

ㄴ Thought the high exchange rate was gonna kill us, but we survived

ㄴ So His Excellency is keeping Korea’s exchange rate in check for us?

ㄴ lol the president of San Marcos is the savior of the Korean economy

ㄴ At this rate Korea’s gonna make His Excellency’s birthday a national holiday

Title: Why fuel prices fell.jpg

ㄴ Venezuelan crude was coming in via San Marcos

ㄴ Apparently San Marcos Energy is refining it and selling it to Korea

ㄴ His Excellency even fixed the oil situation?!

ㄴ Saved construction, stabilized the exchange rate, and now oil too

ㄴ At this point shouldn’t His Excellency just become president of Korea?

ㄴ Honestly, His Excellency seems better than the current administration

ㄴ lol he’d probably get elected if we voted

ㄴ He’s a San Marcos citizen though

ㄴ Can dual citizens not run for president?

ㄴ lol

Title: Summary of San Marcos’s economic impact

ㄴ Construction: 100,000-unit contract → construction stocks skyrocket → two years of guaranteed work

ㄴ Steel: International Steel at full capacity → parent company shares rise

ㄴ Exchange rate: dollar inflows → won-dollar rate from the 1,500s → low 1,400s

ㄴ Energy: Venezuelan crude refined → reduced dependence on the Middle East → oil prices stabilize

ㄴ Conclusion: San Marcos = Korea’s lifeline

ㄴ lol this is funny and depressing at the same time

ㄴ South Korea being kept afloat by another country’s president

ㄴ No, it’s not like he’s supporting us. It’s mutually beneficial

ㄴ I love you, Your Excellency

Choi Yu-jin, the hero of San Marcos, was becoming a hero in Korea as well.

*****

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