CH142 | VOC

The battle for control of Daehoo, sparked by Chairman Kim Hoo-joong’s conflict with his son, Executive Director Kim Sun-yeop, raged fiercely. It was a grueling back-and-forth, with the balance of power shifting by a mere 1%. Neither side could be confident of victory.

Why was Executive Director Kim’s side, initially so confident of winning, now struggling to gain the upper hand?

There was one reason.

“Uh… I’m withdrawing the loan offer. Sorry.” Kim Min-sik said nonchalantly, picking his nose, as if he were returning a pack of gum.

“The negotiations are almost finalized! How can you do this now?!” Kim Sun-yeop shouted.

Kim Min-sik’s announcement came at the worst possible time. After Joongang Investment Corporation’s promise of a 10 trillion won loan, Kim Sun-yeop had been successfully persuading his father’s supporters, and victory was within reach.

“Well, I’m sorry. The Chinese investors have other uses for the money. What can I do?”

Kim Sun-yeop had suspected Kim Min-sik had ulterior motives for helping him, but he assumed those motives would be revealed after he became chairman. He had thought they shared the same goal of victory, regardless of whether the loan materialized. This was a betrayal.

He gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, “Do you think I’m a fool? I never expected much from the beginning. You could have just made the announcement after the shareholders’ meeting.”

Kim Min-sik’s eyes widened. “You’re asking me to lie?”

“I didn’t care if it was a bluff or not. But why are you revealing it now? Do you even want me to win?”

“Of course I’m on your side. But I’m a very honest person. I hate lying.” He shrugged. “I can’t deceive the shareholders with a fake loan offer.”

“Argh!”

Kim Sun-yeop, enraged, threw a chair, but Kim Min-sik continued to pick his nose nonchalantly.

“Why are you so angry? You wouldn’t have even come this far without my help. I practically saved your life, and you’re yelling at me? That’s not very nice.”

“You call this help?!”

“Anyway… I’m sorry about the bad news, but let’s keep fighting.” Kim Min-sik pumped his fist and chanted, “Fighting! Fighting! Fighting!”

Kim Sun-yeop wanted to punch him, but he knew he couldn’t win without Kim Min-sik’s support.

“Damn it!”

He endured it.

Kim Min-sik’s sabotage continued. He would support Kim Sun-yeop when his father seemed to be winning and then obstruct him when he seemed to be gaining the upper hand.

As the battle dragged on, both sides started buying shares on the open market.

“Gather all available funds! We’re buying shares!” Kim Sun-woong, the vice-chairman, shouted.

His secretary said in alarm, “Sir, we’re out of cash!”

“Just do as I say! I’m the future chairman, I can’t even control the company’s finances?! And there’s always more money if you squeeze hard enough! Find the money!”

Just then, the door to his office burst open, and Chairman Kim Hoo-joong entered.

“Ch-Chairman!”

“You can leave, Secretary.”

The secretary hurriedly bowed and left.

Chairman Kim sighed, seeing his son still fuming. “Sun-woong.”

His son was surprised by his father’s soft tone. He always addressed him formally at the company.

“F-father?”

“How about we stop this?”

His son’s face turned pale.

Was he asking him to concede to his younger brother?

“F-father!”

“The company is struggling. And the management, which should be focusing on the business, is preoccupied with a power struggle. How did things get this far?”

This sudden fraternal conflict… It usually happened when the chairman died or stepped down, but he was still alive and well, and he had no intention of relinquishing his position. This was all because of an outside force.

And it was tearing Daehoo apart.

“Let’s concede to your brother.”

“No, Father! It’s just a 1% difference! We can still win!”

“I know. But this is putting Daehoo at risk.”

“No, it’s not! We can recover if we win this!”

Chairman Kim looked at him with weary eyes. “Let’s stop this.”

His son, seeing his father’s resolve, suddenly knelt down. “Please, Father! I’ve always obeyed you, I’ve never disobeyed a single order.”

Chairman Kim was taken aback. “S-Sun-woong…”

“I know I’m not as capable as Sun-yeop. That’s why I’ve always been obedient. I thought you would acknowledge me one day if I just followed your orders! This position is my life!”

He clutched his father’s pants, his voice trembling.

“Just this once! It’s a small difference! We can win if we just acquire a few more shares! Please, Father. Just this once.”

“…”

“Father, I can’t give up so easily. Just once, please.”

Chairman Kim, seeing his son’s desperate plea, wavered. “…Alright. Just this once.”

His son’s face brightened. “Father!!”

“Sigh, damn it.”

His son, his eyes gleaming, said, “Thank you! Then do you have any funds set aside…?”

“No,” Chairman Kim said honestly.

He had used all his personal funds to acquire Chunha Trading’s shares. All he had left was his stake in Daehoo Group.

“Then…”

“We have to create some.”

“What?”

“I didn’t want to do this…”

His management motto had been aggressive expansion with integrity, but he had no choice this time.

“Let’s cook the books.”

“What?”

“That’s the only way. Not too much, just 500 billion won.”

It meant taking from Daehoo’s own flesh, not just its spare cash.

His son said, alarmed, “B-but that’s dangerous. If we’re caught…”

“I know. It’s just a temporary measure. We’ll fix it later.”

His son, touched by his father’s support, bowed repeatedly. “Thank you, Father! Thank you so much!”

Chairman Kim, his expression still grim, muttered, “…This has to work.”

The stagnant battle for control intensified, becoming even more bitter.

A little more, just a little more.

Blinded by the promise of victory, both sides lost their rationality.

The difference in their shareholdings was now down to 0.5%.

Kim Sun-woong, somehow finding more funds, continued to buy shares, and his younger brother, supported by his wealthy in-laws, matched his every move. Daehoo’s stock price continued to rise.

Once you started down the path of fraud, it became easier.

Kim Sun-woong, having easily raised 500 billion won through accounting manipulation, did it again, secretly taking another 500 billion won without his father’s knowledge.

And again, and again.

Kim Sun-yeop, investigating his brother’s source of funds, exclaimed in horror, “Is he cooking the books?!”

Although his father was the chairman, he still had considerable influence within Daehoo. It wasn’t difficult for him to uncover the unusual accounting practices.

“He’s insane!”

His eyes bloodshot, he shouted, “We have to expose him! Report him for accounting fraud!”

A shareholder said urgently, “Sir, we’ll be implicated too!”

Another shareholder added, “That’s right, Daehoo will be ruined!”

“Then should we just let him get away with it? We’ll lose if he keeps raising funds through fraud!”

Daehoo was a massive corporation with 70 trillion won in assets.

Although most of it was tied up in loans, there was still plenty to steal through accounting manipulation.

“Then should we do the same?” a shareholder suggested. “We control more shares in Daehoo Energy. We can use their funds.”

Kim Sun-yeop glared at him. “You’re suggesting we engage in the same illegal activities?”

“We can fix it after you become chairman.”

He would have rejected the idea without hesitation under normal circumstances, but after weeks of this grueling battle, he had lost his rationality.

He was so close to victory, so close to becoming chairman.

The power struggle, like a gambling addiction, had driven him to the brink.

“Fine. Do it.”

“Yes, sir.”

He gritted his teeth. “Once I become chairman…”

Meanwhile, Kim Min-sik was meeting with Kim Sun-woong.

Kim Sun-woong, his eyes bloodshot, growled, “Kim Min-sik of Joongang Investment.”

“It’s CEO Kim Min-sik. Hehehe.”

“What are you doing here?”

“Just a business proposition.”

Kim Sun-woong frowned at his informal tone. “You’re speaking informally to me?”

“You started it.”

“You bastard.”

Kim Min-sik waved his hands as Kim Sun-woong lunged at him. “Whoa, whoa, calm down. I’m here with a good offer. I’m leaving if you act like this.”

“What?”

“Don’t you need shares?”

He hesitated at the word “shares.” “What trick are you trying to pull now…?”

“Let’s see, Daehoo Electronics is currently at… 60,000 won?! It’s increased tenfold! I’m an investor. I have to sell when the price is high.”

“You’re selling your shares to me…?”

“Just 1%. You’re short on cash. 1% is a substantial amount, isn’t it?”

Kim Sun-woong, suspicious, asked, “Why are you selling to me, not to Sun-yeop?”

“Because he doesn’t have the money. Unfortunately.”

It was clearly not a legitimate transaction.

Kim Min-sik was his enemy, and his past was shady, so even the irrational Kim Sun-woong could see through it.

“Another one of your tricks…”

“I’ll give you half price.”

“What?”

“Half the current market price.”

He wavered at the offer. “Half price…?”

“Let’s see, 1% is about 2.5 trillion won at the current price? Wow, it really has gone up.” He clapped his hands in delight. “Half price is 1.25 trillion won. I’ll give you a discount. 1.5 trillion won. How about that?”

“What… what are you planning?”

He couldn’t understand Kim Min-sik’s motives.

“Does the reason matter? The shares are cheap, and you need them. Buy them if you want them.”

“1.5 trillion won…”

It was an incredibly low price, considering the current market value.

And if he bought the 1%, Kim Sun-yeop would lose 1%, a double benefit.

It was too good to be true, but the offer had come from Kim Min-sik.

“You’re insane.”

Kim Min-sik smiled brightly. “Thank you. I am.”

He had come here because Kim Sun-yeop was gaining a slight advantage over his brother, despite his financial difficulties.

He wanted to tip the scales slightly in Kim Sun-woong’s favor and force Kim Sun-yeop to spend more of his resources.

He smirked. “So, do we have a deal?”