CH130 | VOC

“Let’s confirm this again. Exactly how much debt do you have?”

“About 10 billion won.”

I shook my head. “No, ‘about’ isn’t good enough. You have to be precise. Think of me as your lawyer. You have to reveal everything. Do you plan to come back and ask for more help later if you’ve forgotten something? Tell me the exact amount, down to the last won.”

Kim Yong-tae glanced at his father, who was sitting next to him, and blushed. He had clearly downplayed the amount. “Actually… I’m not sure, but it’s a little over 19 billion won.”

His father looked at him, dumbfounded. “It’s not 10 billion won, it’s 20 billion won!”

“I was too ashamed to tell you the truth.”

“But 19 billion won…”

I interrupted them before they could start their father-son drama again. “That’s not important right now. So, it’s over 19 billion won. How much is the monthly interest?”

“…It varies, but this month it’s about 4 billion won.”

I clicked my tongue at the astronomical 20% monthly interest rate.

No wonder he had considered suicide.

“We have to stop that first. Give me the creditors’ contact information.”

His father asked cautiously, “What are you going to do?”

“I’ll buy all of Kim Yong-tae’s debt.”

They looked at me with gratitude.

“CEO Park…”

“Of course, I’m not just going to pay off his debts with my own money. I’m doing this to stop the interest payments. Even for me, 19 billion won is a large amount.”

His father nodded vigorously. “Of course, just stopping the interest payments and the creditors’ harassment is a huge help. It gives us hope.”

“That should take care of the immediate problem. Mr. Kim,” I said to Yong-tae.

“Yes, CEO Park.”

“What do you want to do now? Your creditors have changed, but you still have a 19 billion won debt. How do you plan to repay it?”

He said with a determined expression, “I’ll do manual labor, anything, to repay it.”

I looked him in the eye. “Really? Manual labor? 19 billion won?”

“…”

“You’re willing to work and repay the entire amount?”

It was absurd. I took a sip of soju. “How was the mobile phone business?”

His eyes lit up. “It was good! I had a vision, and the sales were growing. If it weren’t for external factors, I’m confident I could have made it within two or three years.”

I cleared my throat at the mention of “external factors.”

“Hmm, is that so?”

I had initially thought about helping him simply out of guilt, but now I was wondering if his technology was actually viable.

In these times, even getting into debt was a sign of potential.

He had only 300 million won, his father’s retirement savings, but someone had lent him 19 billion won. It suggested that his technology had potential.

It was worth investigating.

“Do you still want to continue the mobile phone business?”

He glanced at his father and then said hesitantly, “…Yes.”

His father slapped him on the back of his head. “You idiot! You haven’t learned your lesson? How much more debt do you want to accumulate?! Do you want to reach 100 billion won?!”

I stopped him. “Sir, sir, it’s not his fault. Mr. Kim, let me ask you again. Are you confident in the mobile phone business?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Hmm.” I swirled my soju glass, deep in thought. ‘It doesn’t sound bad.’

My intuition hadn’t reacted when I first heard about his business plan, and it wasn’t reacting now either.

But I wasn’t worried.

I wanted to apologize for ruining his business, and I believed I had the power to make any business successful if I put my mind to it.

I controlled the supply of secondhand and defective semiconductors, the most crucial components in electronics, so I could provide them at a lower price than his competitors. And Chunha Trading had a global distribution network, albeit a small one.

Reviving a small electronics company wouldn’t be difficult.

“Alright, let’s do it.”

His face brightened. “Really? Thank you! Thank you so much!”

I looked at him with a serious expression. “But I’ll be treating you as an investor, Mr. Kim. I have a connection with your father, but when money is involved, I’m strictly business. Understand?”

“Of course! I’ll work hard!”

“First, how much funding do you need?”

He hesitated again at the mention of money.

His self-esteem had been crushed by the debt and the creditors, and he was probably hesitant to ask for more money after I had offered to buy his debt.

“I’m a businessman offering you an investment to recover your 19 billion won loss. Investment is essential in business. I’m willing to invest, as long as your request is reasonable. Tell me the amount.”

“About… 10 billion won.”

I scoffed. “Mr. Kim, are you joking?”

He flinched at my sudden change in tone. I tapped my finger on the table rhythmically.

“This is the mobile phone business. It’s a high-tech industry, even if you’re starting small. 10 billion won? If that was enough, why did you accumulate 19 billion won in debt?”

“…”

“If you’re not serious, just do manual labor and repay the 19 billion won. Last chance. How much do you need?”

He closed his eyes and said after a long hesitation, “30 billion won. I need at least that much for the facilities, the manufacturing equipment, and the research lab.”

“30 billion won.”

His father’s eyes widened at the astronomical figure, but I said calmly,

“I’ll add 20 billion won and invest 50 billion won.”

“50 billion won?!”

“Don’t be surprised. I believe in doing things properly. You’ll be the CEO, but I’ll handle the distribution, marketing, and overall business strategy. You’ll be the CEO and the head researcher, focusing on the internal aspects of the company.”

He nodded repeatedly. “I agree completely. I’ve learned from my mistakes that a good product isn’t enough for a successful business! I’m confident I can create a great phone if I can just focus on the research and development, without worrying about the external factors!”

He had been struggling with the business side of things, so he readily agreed to my proposal.

He was originally a developer at Daehoo Electronics, confident in his technology, who had left to start his own company.

And he was a prime example of what happened to a developer with no business experience who entered the cutthroat world of capitalism, relying solely on his product.

“Good. I like your attitude. And you should bring your team with you.”

He started listing the names of his colleagues excitedly, remembering the people who had followed him. “Of course! They’re like my family! Chief Researcher Choi Eun-ho and five other researchers, eight sales representatives, three accountants, and the production team…”

“Wait, wait.” I interrupted him, my face incredulous. “You want to bring all of them?”

“Well, they’re experienced and we work well together…”

I said firmly, “Only the research team. No one else.”

He hesitated and then protested timidly, “But they all have valuable experience in the mobile phone industry, and they followed me because they trusted me…”

I looked at him coldly. “Are you still not getting it? Who’s helping whom here? Did those employees share your debt? You’re 19 billion won in debt, and you’re worried about your employees? Accountants? Sales representatives? Production team? They’re replaceable. Am I wrong?”

His face turned pale at my harsh words.

“That’s…”

“Worry about your family and yourself before worrying about your employees. You’re acting spoiled, relying on my generosity.”

He lowered his head. “I’m sorry.”

“I understand your feelings, but you can do that after you’ve succeeded. Why are you using my investment for that? They might be your employees, but they have nothing to do with me.”

I deliberately scolded him harshly.

I avoided hiring acquaintances because I didn’t want them to exploit our relationship and negatively impact the company.

He might be acting humble now because of his circumstances, but researchers and academics were known for their stubbornness. And since he was CEO Kim’s son, I had to establish clear boundaries to prevent him from using our connection to push his own agenda.

“If you continue acting like this, there will be no investment. Just repay the 19 billion won.”

He lowered his head again. “I’m sorry. I was out of line.”

That was enough for today. He clearly wasn’t cut out for business.

I would break his entrepreneurial spirit and turn him into a pure researcher.

I had offered him the CEO position, but I would hold the majority of the shares, and all the key positions, except for the research team, would be filled with my people. He would be just a figurehead CEO, focusing solely on research.

“Alright, I’ll let it slide this time since you’ve apologized.”

Even CEO Kim, who had only seen my friendly side, seemed surprised by my harshness. He remained silent.

“Bring only your researchers. And…” I looked at Kim Yong-tae. “Go to China. Start over in China.”

“Ch-China?”

His father said, sweating nervously, “Park Sol, are you sending Yong-tae to China?”

“Yes, China is the land of opportunity, especially for manufacturing.”

“But it’s a communist country. And I heard it’s dangerous for foreigners… I know people who went to China and came back penniless. Are you sure it’s okay?”

I smiled. “Dangerous, you say?”

I shook my head. “I guarantee you, there’s no safer place for him than China, as long as I’m there.”