CH140 | VOC

“W-wait! CEO Park! Please reconsider!” Kim Sun-yeop pleaded.

I said firmly, “I’m not making any decisions about the shares right now. I need time to think.”

―Then at least, could you talk to my father…?

“Goodbye.”

I hung up, a satisfied smile spreading across my face.

“A product is only valuable when there’s competition.”

My 2% stake in Daehoo was the key to victory.

If I had enough time, I could slowly acquire more shares through the stock market, but this was a race against time.

The moment I chose a side, either Kim Sun-yeop or his father, the other side would have no time to react.

“Any news from Chairman Kim Hoo-joong?”

Maru shook his head. “Not yet.”

I had orchestrated the breakup of the consortium with Kim Min-sik to create a close race between the two factions.

A 3% difference versus a 1% difference.

If the gap was too large, Chairman Kim might give up his position for the sake of the company, since his opponent was his own son. I had to make the race as close as possible, giving both sides hope of victory.

If there was a chance of winning, his eldest son wouldn’t just stand by idly, regardless of his pleas or anger.

“He wouldn’t concede to his second son after all this, would he?”

I couldn’t let that happen.

This was the perfect opportunity to hunt Daehoo, while it was weakened and vulnerable.

A wounded dinosaur and a hungry hyena circling it.

Maru and Park Jong-bum, sensing my mood, remained silent as I tapped my fingers on the table, lost in thought.

“If necessary, we can just refuse to side with either of them.”

Park Jong-bum said in surprise, “What? Then Kim Sun-yeop will win.”

“Yes. Then he’ll focus on consolidating his power and erasing his father’s influence. And that’s when we, as a major shareholder, can cause havoc.”

I could use my shareholder rights, such as access to their financial records, to leak information to the media.

Of course, that would lower the stock price, so it was usually used as an internal tactic during power struggles. But my goal was Daehoo’s downfall.

However, that was just a backup plan.

“Let’s wait one more day. If there’s no response, we’ll…”

Just then, my phone rang, and my intuition tingled.

I smirked. “He’s here.”

* * *

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Chairman. I’m Park Sol of Chunha Trading.”

I studied the old man sitting across from me.

Kim Hoo-joong, the chairman of Daehoo Group, a familiar face from countless news reports.

He was small in stature, but he had a commanding presence, befitting the leader of hundreds of thousands of employees.

But to me, he was just a wounded lion.

Past glory didn’t matter. He was just prey, vulnerable to my 2% stake.

“CEO Park Sol, it’s a pleasure to meet you too.”

We were at a yojeong, a traditional Korean restaurant known as a meeting place for politicians and businessmen.

I hadn’t experienced much of this high-class culture, as my wealth wasn’t as visible as others’.

I sat down and looked around the room. “A yojeong, huh. This is my first time.”

“Really? A wealthy man like you has never been to a yojeong?”

I shrugged. “A junkyard owner like me doesn’t belong in such a fancy place.”

“And yet, your junkyard is shaking the foundations of Daehoo Group.”

He poured me a drink.

“I was surprised. At first, I just thought you were a nuisance. But then you started chipping away at us, and now you’ve pushed us into a corner.”

“You’re too kind.”

“I’m being sincere. No one has ever caused me this much trouble.”

I smiled at his compliment. “You’re making me nervous with all this praise. What do you want?”

“Nervous?” He chuckled. “I’ve met countless people in my long career. You’re not someone to be afraid of, CEO Park. On the contrary, you’re a formidable opponent.”

I said with feigned surprise, “Formidable? I’m a law-abiding citizen.”

I was a law-abiding citizen.

Because laws were useless.

“Before meeting you, I had various plans. I was thinking of asking for your support, buying your shares, or even stepping down and handing over the reins to my second son.”

His eyes gleamed. “But no. You’re different from your public image, Park Sol. What are you after?”

I had to give him credit for seeing through my facade, at least partially. He was a chaebol chairman for a reason.

I smirked. “You’re impressive.”

“Your act of kindness was all a facade. Your eyes are the most sinister and ominous I’ve ever seen. But I can’t figure you out. What do you want? Are you really doing all this for revenge over a mobile phone?”

“A mobile phone? I’ve forgotten all about that. I…”

I made a circle with my fingers. “Money. Just money. Money is everything to me. It’s my identity.”

“Money. Is that all?”

There was no point in hiding anything now.

We were in a soundproof room, and both our entourages had checked for recording devices before we entered.

This was a private conversation between him and me.

“I love money. Society is built on money, and all human relationships revolve around it. Your loyal followers, for example. They’re loyal because you pay them well. And why are you so respected as a self-made man? Because you made a lot of money. That’s how the world works. And what’s the best thing in this world? Money! You need a lot of money!”

“…You’re a twisted man.”

“Twisted? How about ‘rational’?”

He took a sip of his drink and said with a sharp look in his eyes, “I was going to concede to my second son if you made any unreasonable demands.”

I felt a pang of guilt, but I maintained a nonchalant expression. “It wouldn’t have mattered to me.”

“But I’ve changed my mind. You’re too dangerous to keep around as a major shareholder if my second son takes over. I’ll buy your shares.”

“I haven’t said I’m selling.”

“You said you want money. I’ll give you money, so leave. You’re driving a wedge between me and my sons, manipulating everyone with a measly 2% stake. Daehoo will be dragged further into the abyss if I let this continue.”

“Hmm…”

I stroked my chin. “Do you even have the money?”

He said curtly, “I’m Kim Hoo-joong.”

“I see. So how much are you willing to pay?”

“You said you spent 2.5 trillion won? I’ll give you 3 trillion won.”

“3 trillion won.”

He still had that much hidden away, even in this dire situation.

But I couldn’t end it here.

“That’s not enough.”

“3 trillion won is not enough?”

“The price depends on the situation. Your second son desperately wants these shares. I’m sure he’ll offer more. He has his wife’s family’s wealth to draw on. He’ll find a way.”

He bared his teeth and said in a low voice, “I’m not making an offer. This is an ultimatum. If you don’t accept, I’ll use everything in my power to destroy you. This is not an empty threat like before. I’d rather cut off my own limbs than let you, a cancerous tumor, fester within Daehoo.”

Whoa.

Had I pushed him too far?

This was dangerous.

Even in the worst-case scenario, he was still capable of mobilizing 3 trillion won. He was a formidable opponent.

And Daehoo Group, with its hundreds of thousands of employees and dozens of subsidiaries, was a force to be reckoned with.

A hyena’s hunting strategy was to target the prey’s weaknesses and bleed it dry, not to engage in a head-on collision.

It wasn’t that I was afraid.

It was inefficient.

He had been tolerating my attacks like a wounded dinosaur swatting away a pesky hyena. But now he was declaring war, focusing all his energy on crushing me.

“That’s a terrifying threat, coming from the chairman of Daehoo Group.”

“So just sell your shares for 3 trillion won.”

I could guess his intentions.

This was different from when I had tricked him and made him lose money.

He wanted to buy my shares, crush his second son, consolidate his control, and eliminate any potential for further conflict.

“What if I sell the shares and then buy them back on the market?”

“If I defeat my second son this time, I’ll remove him from all positions and erase his influence within the group. I’ll eliminate all the traitors and prevent any further attempts.”

He had made up his mind.

If I continued to defy him, he would attack me with everything he had.

“3.5 trillion won.”

“What?”

“I’ll sell my shares for 3.5 trillion won and promise not to interfere further.”

He said incredulously, “You expect me to believe that?”

“I guarantee it. I always keep my promises. I can even write you a contract.”

“Do you think we need a piece of paper to establish trust?”

“Anyway, 3.5 trillion won, and I’m out.”

He thought for a moment and then said, his expression unchanged, “3.2 trillion won.”

My eyes gleamed.

He was actually negotiating the price.

I had finally found his breaking point.

I smiled. “Deal.”

* * *

“How did it go?” Park Jong-bum asked in the car on the way back.

“I sold the shares for 3.2 trillion won.”

He looked disappointed. “That’s a shame. You could have gotten more if you had played the two sons against each other.”

I shook my head. “No, it was enough. I pushed him too far, it was getting risky.”

“With our 2% gone, Chairman Kim now has 27%, and his second son has 26%, including Joongang Investment’s shares. Kim Sun-yeop will lose at the shareholders’ meeting.”

I chuckled. “Do you really think so?”

“What?”

“Chairman Kim’s strategy wasn’t bad. Buying me out to eliminate the internal conflict. It was the most obvious and effective solution. If he had conceded to his second son, I would have caused havoc within the company. It was a decisive and rational decision, just like him.”

I nodded. “But he made one mistake.”

I smiled. “He thought I was the only tumor. There’s another one, twice as big and twice as malignant.”

I looked out the window.

“Daehoo is finished.”