Chapter 161: Is It Full-Scale War Without Room for Negotiation?

A few days had passed.

Since Cheon Su-man entered the country, he had been busy, but he hadn’t come to see me even once.

“What’s Cheon Su-man up to these days?”

“After the petition for incompetency, he hasn’t shown any significant movement. The hotel he’s staying at is owned by Il-seong Group, making it difficult to approach him.”

“What about Chairman Seo?”

“I confirmed he entered Chairman Seo’s residence yesterday. He stayed there for quite a while.”

Manager Ma hesitated for a moment before continuing.

“But I got caught by the Il-seong security team while surveilling Cheon Su-man. Fortunately, there was no physical confrontation… For now, we retreated quietly.”

“How did you get caught?”

“The security around Chairman Seo’s residence was tighter than we expected.”

Among the subsidiaries of Il-seong Group was a security company called Il-seong SDI.

Though it posed as a legitimate security firm, it primarily managed most of Il-seong’s illegal activities.

Before my regression, Il-seong SDI was the number one security company in the country.

They hired former high-ranking police officers and retired generals, making it hard for the military and police to act recklessly. It was a mechanism used to maintain Il-seong’s power at the time.

It hadn’t grown to that extent yet, but its protective services were still excellent.

“Avoid any physical confrontation as much as possible. If you cause a commotion, it’ll only give them an opening. If close monitoring is too difficult, then just focus on tracking their movements.”

“Got it. I’ll make sure to follow that plan.”

Thinking about Cheon Su-man, who had now moved from under my grandfather’s shadow into the hand of Chairman Seo of Il-seong Group, made my irritation rise naturally.

“You have a complete grasp of Il-seong’s scholars, right?”

“Yeah. Most from the legal field are accounted for, and I’ve almost identified all the politicians being sponsored by Il-seong.”

“Chairman Seo probably gathered many of his people in preparation for me. Since there’s no longer a way to secure a stake at the top of the group’s hierarchy…”

The governance structure of Il-seong Group was intricately tangled like a spider web.

And the only ones who truly understood that structure were Chairman Seo and his long-time aide, Secretary Lee Seok-min.

Seo Yong-geon was looking to restructure the governance with his eldest son, Seo Jae-hoon, in line to inherit the management, but my stake in Il-seong Group made it difficult for him to proceed easily.

The likely goal of Chairman Seo of Il-seong Group would be to suspend or seize the effectiveness of the shares I received from my grandfather.

“You attempted to meet with Lee Seok-min but were turned down, right?”

“Yeah. He didn’t seem to have any intention of betraying Chairman Seo.”

“Even though you said it was a discussion about management rights?”

“He outright refused, saying it wasn’t worth hearing. That’s why someone like Chairman Seo keeps him around for so long, right?”

“He’s not someone who would be unaware that he could be discarded once Seo Jae-hoon’s era arrives. His loyalty to Chairman Seo seems higher than expected.”

Like Hyunhwa Group, if the stakes are intricately tied, methods could be used to recruit a few major shareholders, but Chairman Seo of Il-seong Group was a dictator.

Originally, Chairman Seo held 100% of the shares, but he gifted portions to relatives, and my grandfather’s conversion of convertible bonds to stocks had diluted them quite a bit.

Despite that, he still held 51% of Il-seong Corporation’s shares, putting him at the top of the governance structure.

It was a structure that could never be overtaken by conventional means.

“Let’s start by shaking a few subsidiaries. Since we let Yun & Jang handle the dispute with Cheon Su-man, we’ll focus on Il-seong.”

“Is it really full-scale war without room for negotiation?”

I answered Manager Ma’s question firmly.

“I have no intention of negotiating with Chairman Seo anymore. A one-sided surrender is a different matter.”

“Understood. I’ll prepare accordingly.”

Within the next decade, the phrase ‘South Korea is an Il-seong Republic’ would be thrown about as a joke, illustrating how immensely Il-seong Group would grow.

I intended to ensure that Seo Yong-geon, who would soon grasp Korea’s financial sector in one hand, was decisively eliminated before that happened.

“For now, go outside.”

“Yes. I’ll wait outside.”

After sending Manager Ma out, I called Eva first.

“Eva.”

― “Yes, Boss?”

“Slowly start selling the KOSDAQ shares.”

― “Didn’t you say to start sorting them out in early next year?”

“I need to prioritize this first. I have other tasks to handle.”

― “Are you finally going to take on Il-seong?”

Eva caught on quickly since I had already hinted at my intentions before.

“It’s a bit early to say, but we have to stir things up. Your role is vital from now on, you understand?”

― “Don’t worry, I’m a pro at this. But Il-seong Group is going to have a hard time; it’s too tightly woven. You know that, Boss? They couldn’t even parse the entire governance structure.”

“We’ll start by touching the weak points. Aside from Il-seong Life and Il-seong Card, which recently merged with Hyunhwa Group, which subsidiaries can we rattle?”

Without a moment’s pause, Eva’s voice came through the receiver.

― “Il-seong Heavy Industries, Il-seong Materials, Il-seong Motors. We can shake these three.”

“If we take that away, what do you think will happen to the governance structure?”

― “It’ll probably be tough to snatch it entirely. I’ll do my best, though.”

Even though she said it would be difficult, I could sense a hint of excitement in Eva’s voice.

― “But if we snag just one, it’ll be a headache. I already have the shares secured to prevent any paid-in capital increase.”

“Right. For now, sell all stocks related to KOSDAQ. Do it slowly, setting up sell walls instead of dumping them; there’ll be plenty of crazies wanting to buy, so it won’t take long.”

― “Okay, Boss. I’ll begin as soon as I finish sorting things out.”

Next, I called Han Gyeong-yeong.

On the other side of the line, there seemed to be a commotion.

“Hyung, how’s it going?”

― “Don’t even get me started. It’s chaotic due to Millennium and all that. I don’t know whose party is being held every day. I’m being dragged around all day. And the U.S. presidential election is coming up, right? Why do politicians insist on dragging me to charity events like it’s a must?”

“What can you do? Just be the face of it for a bit.”

― “I know. But why the sudden inquiry? Is there something up?”

“Cheon Su-man has come to Korea.”

I slowly explained to him that my grandfather’s health had deteriorated, that Cheon Su-man was in Korea, and that I planned to engage in full-scale war with Il-seong.

― “It sounds like the chairman isn’t doing too well. That’s serious. Is there anything worse?”

Han Gyeong-yeong set aside everything else to ask about my grandfather’s condition.

Well, anyone with a sound mind would react that way.

Cheon Su-man was the insane one, obsessed with the thought of inheriting wealth, speaking about when my father would die.

“Uh. I expected this would happen, but I didn’t think it would get this bad. But it’s fine for now.”

― “Yeah. He’ll be fine soon.”

“Thanks for saying that.”

― “So, what do you want me to do?”

“You don’t need to come to Korea. Just receive the voting rights for the publicly listed companies in the Il-seong Group that foreign banks hold in the U.S. If you can buy them, even better…”

― “I’ll try both to buy and transfer rights.”

Han Gyeong-yeong seemed to quickly understand my intentions.

He’d probably proceed to steer things favorably on his own.

“Make sure to snap up the shares of private equity funds, even if you have to pay a premium. Those hyenas will side against us the moment the war begins.”

― “That’s going to cost quite a bit, isn’t it?”

“We have enough money. Even if we have to take a hit, let’s just go ahead for now. And liquidate all shares held by Dream High, except for Apple.”

― “Understood. It’ll take about a month to sort it all out. I won’t cause a big impact on the market, so I’ll start quietly organizing everything.”

“Good job. I’ll contact you again.”

― “Yeah. Stay strong, Mu-hyeok. Take good care of the chairman too. He’ll get better.”

Han Gyeong-yeong’s unwavering support unexpectedly lifted my spirits.

Seeing him on the media before, he just looked like an excessively cold investor, but inside, he was truly a soft-hearted person.

Could gaining this person be the greatest luck of my life thus far?

As I lay on my bed with a smile, I fell into contemplation.

‘Unlike other conglomerates, it’s difficult to reform the governance structure of Il-seong Group as a holding company…’

After experiencing the foreign exchange crisis, most chaebols learned the drawbacks of circular shareholding firsthand.

They began to abandon the circular shareholding structure and improve their system to a holding company system.

However, at the core of Il-seong Group’s circular shareholding structure was Il-seong Life.

Due to the separation of finance and industry, if they started restructuring into a holding company, they had to recalibrate the shares held by each subsidiary of Il-seong Life.

This was an undertaking with uncertain costs.

‘If only I could just acquire Il-seong Electronics…’

Il-seong Electronics was the core subsidiary of Il-seong Group.

No, it was not only essential for Il-seong Group but also a key company in Korea.

If I could secure that, I wouldn’t mind who else held the rest.

If Il-seong Electronics were separated, the group would plummet to being just another chaebol.

“Boss, it’s time for our appointment.”

I got up at Manager Ma’s voice.

Without time to collect my thoughts, I had to move for the meeting with the president of Goryeo Daily.

* * *

“Secretary Lee.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“I mentioned that Kim Mu-hyeok approached you?”

Chairman Seo Yong-geon kept scrutinizing Secretary Lee Seok-min with a critical gaze.

Fearing that something different might come up, Lee Seok-min quickly bowed his head.

“Yes. I received the contact and reported it to you immediately.”

“Wasn’t it a good proposal? Why did you turn it down?”

Lee Seok-min was flustered by Chairman Seo’s blatant probing.

“I’m loyal to you, Chairman. I’ll never betray you.”

“I know that. But I’m curious. If you accepted Kim Mu-hyeok’s proposal, there’sa chance you’d end up sitting in my position, right?”

Unlike the way Chairman Seo nonchalantly said it, Lee Seok-min knelt on the spot, pale and terrified.

“I have never even thought about that, not once.”

“Why bow your head when we’re both aging together? Stand up, Secretary Lee.”

After looking at Lee Seok-min, who still maintained a stiff posture, Chairman Seo finally told him to sit.

“Sit.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“This matter must succeed at all costs.”

“I know. Chairman.”

“It’s time to prepare for the management succession.”

Seemingly lost in thought, Chairman Seo’s expression darkened.

“You know what happens if we wait too long, right? I could suddenly collapse at any moment.”

“…Chairman.”

“Just as I inherited this group from my father, Jae-hoon must take over this group. No matter what happens. That’s why Kim Mu-hyeok’s stake in Il-seongCorporation is a problem. You know better than anyone, don’t you?”

Since the time Chairman Seo took over Il-seong Group from his older brother, Lee Seok-min has led everything.

Lee Seok-min was the one who understood Il-seong’s governance structure better than even Chairman Seo himself.

It was only natural for Lee Seok-min to take charge of the management succession plan for Seo Jae-hoon.

“What’s the scenario?”

“We need to transfer the shares of Il-seong Life held by Il-seong Corporation to Il-seong Land. Then we’ll start the restructuring from Il-seong Land.”

The plan laid out previously flowed smoothly from Lee Seok-min’s lips.

“It will require a considerable amount of resources, but even so, compared to inheritance taxes, it’s a drop in the bucket.”

“This damn country rips off everything in taxes but still charges such outrageous inheritance taxes. I need to lower them before I die.”

Chairman Seo shook his head, frowning with displeasure.

“We plan to start our attacks on Kim Mu-hyeok from the outer edge. With the upcoming general election, it’ll be difficult for the political circles to protect Kim Mu-hyeok.”

“That’s the same case for us, isn’t it?”

“I think it would be wise for you to meet with President Kim Hak-gwon separately.”

“Kim Hak-gwon?”

“Yes, it would be good to make some time to meet him.”

“What am I going to do meeting with a president who’s about to face a lame-duck period?”

Chairman Seo Yong-geon’s indifferent response prompted Lee Seok-min to explain the reasoning.

“Even in a lame-duck period, he’s still a power at play. Though it’s different from military dictatorship times, he can still mobilize the law enforcement agencies.”

“Kim Hak-gwon is a slippery character, and I’d rather not meet him, but there’s no helping it. Set up an appointment.”

Lee Seok-min quickly took out a notebook and wrote something.

Chairman Seo, who gazed at it with indifference, asked.

“What am I meant to do when we meet?”

“First, say that we’ll provide support to the Progressive Party in this upcoming election…”

It seemed Lee Seok-min had a general framework of what to give and receive, explaining it in detail.

“Hmm… understood. Let’s go with that.”

“I’ll go out and schedule it.”

Lee Seok-min bowed deeply, then exited the room.

Inside the vast chairman’s office, only Seo Yong-geon remained.

Staring coldly at the door Lee Seok-min had exited, Chairman Seo’s gaze was chillingly frosty.