CH440 | Heir

After wrapping up the negotiations, I returned to my office.

Vice Chairman Han was already waiting with an iced Americano in hand.

I downed it in one go, not stopping at the coffee itself but crunching the ice cubes between my teeth.

“Did the negotiations not go well, sir?”

“We gave and took what we wanted. In the end, we agreed to drop our lawsuits without conditions.”

“It’s a bit regrettable, but resolving it under those terms isn’t bad either. If we had continued with the lawsuits, we could have dealt Novo Nordisk much heavier damage—but we, too, would have had to accept significant losses.”

As the ice slid down my throat, even my head felt chilled.

This negotiation had ended in either a draw—or with me slightly on the losing end.

Of course, in the long run, Yugobin’s value would only grow, so it was still a win for me.
But for now, the compensation we could have demanded was worth more than Yugobin, so I should have wrung out at least a little more.

“That sly old fox… It’s been a long time since someone managed to get under my skin like that.”

“What happened?”

“He said that if I donated five billion dollars, he’d help me join the 2M Shipping Alliance.”

“What authority does Novo Nordisk have to talk about shipping alliance membership?”

“It looked like they had some very thick connections with the Danish government.”

“Well, most major companies in the world have some line to their governments.”

This negotiation left me somewhat unsatisfied.

Still, the dispute over technology theft had been resolved quickly, sparing us further scandal.

And with this, we had proven that all rights over Yugobin lay with Centurion and the Taewoo Group, so there was no real downside.

I tried to console myself with that thought.

But when I remembered Chairman Russ’s final expression, irritation flared up in me again.

“How many ships do we currently own?”

“Taewoo Shipping’s fleet capacity is just over 2.1 million TEUs.”

“And if we include the ships held as collateral by Fintech Bank, as well as those we own under borrowed names?”

The vessels we had shown shipowners were not the full picture.

There were also quite a few ships not registered directly under Taewoo Group’s name but instead held through Fintech Bank or other entities.

In particular, we had acquired a considerable number of vessels during the Greek and European financial crises.

“All together, it comes to just under 2.8 million TEUs.”

“With that scale, where do we rank globally?”

“That would put us on par with COSCO Shipping, currently ranked fourth worldwide. The number one carrier, Maersk, holds over 4 million TEUs.”

By merging Hyunjin Shipping and Hyundai Merchant Marine, which had been the world’s seventh largest, and adding the ships I had accumulated, Taewoo Shipping had suddenly risen to become the fourth largest shipping line in the world.

Being the world’s fourth largest on our own was an impressive achievement.

But it still wasn’t enough to stand against the global shipping alliances single-handedly.

Especially not against the 2M Shipping Alliance, formed by the world’s number one and number two carriers.

Together, their combined fleet capacity exceeded 8 million TEUs.

Of course, the capacity actually contributed to the alliance was more limited.

Even though Maersk owned over 4 million TEUs in capacity, the amount it contributed to the alliance was just over 1.6 million TEUs.

Still, Taewoo Shipping alone was no match for the alliances.

“Taewoo Shipping can’t realistically take on a shipping alliance by itself.”

“What about forming an alliance with carriers from Taiwan, Japan, or perhaps China?”

“We can’t extend a hand to those who broke away from the alliance Hyunjin Shipping was part of and betrayed us. And as for the other alliances, it’s highly likely they’ve already aligned themselves to keep the Korean shipping industry in check.”

It wasn’t called a cartel for nothing.

For the sake of their own profit, they could always band together.

And if any one of them broke ranks and sided with Taewoo Shipping, that company would face devastating retaliation.

So who would ever want to join hands with Taewoo Shipping?

Convincing individual carriers was impossible; the only way forward was to persuade an entire shipping alliance itself.

“The restructuring of the alliances isn’t over yet. Shouldn’t we start shaping the situation now?”

“Of course. We need to break apart the framework the existing carriers have built and create one where we take the lead.”

“Do you think it’s even possible to create circumstances strong enough to dismantle a cartel?”

“With the right powerful ally, strong enough to counter a shipping cartel, it’s more than possible.”

“Such an ally exists?”

There wasn’t any single carrier strong enough to take on the shipping cartels.

But if I used not a carrier, but a country—then yes, we could confront them.

“The U.S. presidential election isn’t far off, is it? Once it’s over, we’ll have the chance to shape things.”

“Are you planning to use the United States to dismantle the cartel? Isn’t that… a bit too large in scale?”

“To smash a cartel like this, don’t we need a hammer as massive as the United States?”

They wanted five billion dollars just for me to join the shipping alliance?

I’d sooner invest that money into America.

With five billion, I could definitely move the U.S. government—and seize control over the direction of the alliances.

“For now, we need to get in touch with David.”

“I’ll call him right away.”

Vice President Han dialed David, who answered with a drowsy voice.

[What is it? I’m exhausted—can’t it wait? I was drinking all night again yesterday.]

“Why on earth were you drinking so much?”

[Boss? Oh, I thought it was Vice President Han. Why do you think I was drinking? I was handling the task you gave me. I spent the whole night drinking with professors and researchers in gene-editing. I thought professors would be lightweights, but turns out their veins carry alcohol instead of blood.]

David was working hard to push forward the gene-editing technology.

He had drunk so much that I could almost smell the alcohol through the phone.

“You’ve been working hard. Any progress?”

[At first, everyone reacted negatively, but it’s not that bad now. I explained that Taewoo Group and Centurion are essentially one entity, and that Centurion is conducting large-scale research based on gene-editing technology. That seemed to pique some interest.]

Taewoo Group was globally renowned, but Centurion was not.

At best, the recent controversy over the diet drug had given it a bit more recognition.

“Do whatever it takes to arrange a visit to the Korean Centurion research lab. Once they see it with their own eyes, their perspective will change significantly.”

[I’ll make sure they can visit both the Centurion lab and the IIT research facility consecutively.]

“If necessary, we can even send a private jet, so don’t worry about the cost—just make it happen.”

[When have I ever worried about money when executing a plan? I’ve never lacked funds while working with you, boss.]

From lobbying funds to operational budgets, David provided whatever was needed.

That was one reason why the top U.S. lobbyist still remained at my side.

“I know you’re busy, but I have one more favor to ask.”

[If it’s something that can be handled within the U.S., it’s possible.]

“Recruit U.S. shipping companies. Also, meet with candidate Trump’s campaign and request that they consider policies to strengthen the U.S. shipping industry.”

[This time, you’re aiming to enter the U.S. shipping market as well? Well, the U.S. shipping industry is indeed weak.]

The largest market in the world was the United States.

A country that exported and imported massive quantities.

Yet, ironically, the U.S. shipping industry was not large.

To be precise, there were no shipping companies of significant scale.

You could see this just by noting that no U.S. carriers ranked in the global top ten.

“Appeal to their pride a little. Suggest that it’s unfair for the U.S. shipping industry to rely only on foreign countries.”

[That’s a message that will resonate with candidate Trump’s “America First” campaign. But won’t Korean shipping companies be affected?]

“Before any harm occurs, we can simply show goodwill. Say that five billion dollars will be invested in developing the U.S. shipping industry.”

[Good strategy. I’ll take responsibility and approach candidate Trump’s campaign. There are already murmurs about insufficient port-related policies, so this should have an impact.]

No matter how strong the shipping cartels were…

What could they do against the largest logistics market in the world, the United States?

The plan to ally with the U.S. shipping industry and create an entirely new shipping alliance had now begun.

***

Late at night.

Feeling the cool night air, I made my way to Myeongdong.

The owner of Myeongdong was already waiting for me at the entrance, and together we entered the mansion.

“Thanks to you, Chairman, we made a huge profit this time as well. Truly, I’m grateful.”

“I wanted to deliver as much profit as possible, but I also had to be mindful of government oversight, so the gains were somewhat limited.”

“No, not at all. With the land we bought for four trillion won, making seven hundred billion in profit is more than enough to be satisfied.”

Preparations were in full swing for the construction of Semiconductor City, District 1.

The work had begun right after President Choi Jae-seok’s election.

Considering that it had taken three years just to start the previous semiconductor complex, the pace was astonishingly fast.

This was thanks to the smooth progress of the land acquisition process beforehand.

Lee Young-han had used Myeongdong’s influence to secure the land, so there was no long delay for the groundbreaking.

Saving over two years of time, providing him with a profit of around seven hundred billion won was not at all excessive.

“I hear that construction workers from all over the country are flocking to the semiconductor sites. As you know, many small and medium construction company owners have connections to underground dealings, so word spreads quickly.”

“There’s still a shortage of manpower. Once it becomes widely known that semiconductor construction is lucrative, even more workers will flock in.”

“Already, it’s public knowledge that earnings are at least one and a half times higher than other sites. Especially nowadays, information spreads through the Internet. Young laborers are moving around more than ever due to the economy.”

The construction had only just begun.

Now was the time to secure more labor and acquire more land.

“Manpower is one issue, but land is also a problem.”

“We acquired as much land as possible just before the election. By investing over ten trillion won, the construction of Districts 2 and 3 should proceed without major difficulties.”

“Even so, it’s not enough. Land prices are high now, making acquisitions harder, but secure the surrounding plots as well.”

“This month alone, we’ve eliminated four obstinate groups blocking the land. We’ll do our utmost to ensure nothing interferes with your work, Chairman.”

How great would it have been to secure all the land and start construction immediately?

But considering the scale of Semiconductor City, that was practically impossible.

Even preparing the land for District 1 in advance was unprecedented.

“Proceed only enough to avoid creating too much noise.”

“That’s our specialty.”

“Handle troublemakers like the obstinate landholders aggressively if necessary, but treat existing residents with the utmost respect. And if you encounter anyone truly difficult to negotiate with, give me the list.”

Some people valued land more than money.

They had personal attachments to their land, and with the abilities I possessed, I could find a way to reach a solution.

“If there’s anyone particularly difficult, I’ll contact you. But for now, Myeongdong’s intelligence network alone is sufficient to manage everything.”

“That’s a relief. Once this Semiconductor City project is completed, let’s work on projects that yield even higher profits.”

“Whenever you call, Chairman, I’ll come immediately, regardless of the potential profit!”

The power of Myeongdong proved invaluable.

Useful resources needed to be nurtured, and when the era of COVID arrives, Myeongdong would have endless opportunities to generate profit.