Chapter 284: I Don’t Threaten with Words

Murdoch’s phone kept ringing. I silently watched him, debating whether to answer as he wore a smiling face.

Soon, Manager Ma walked in. The look he gave me indicated that things had wrapped up well.

Once I confirmed that Manager Ma had quietly taken his place behind me, I subtly urged Murdoch on.

“It’s still ringing. Sounds important; you can answer it,” I said.

“…”

After a moment of hesitation, Murdoch finally pressed the call button.

He spoke on the phone for about five minutes, his face a mix of uncontainable rage and disbelief.

Once Murdoch ended the call, he asked me:

“Mr. Kim, was it you who did this?”

“I’m not sure what you mean. Is there a problem?”

“Hey!”

Ultimately, unable to contain his anger, Murdoch sprang up from his seat.

“How dare you do this to me in England!”

I looked up at him with eyes completely devoid of emotion. Perhaps taken aback by my gaze, Murdoch swallowed his words.

“Without telling me what’s going on, I can’t be of help. The world isn’t safe these days, is it? The U.S. and the UK have their hands full fighting in the Middle East, and the UK has seen a lot of Arabs entering. It’s a time when anything can happen.”

“…”

Saying this nonchalantly, I stood up and slowly approached Murdoch.

His bodyguards reached out to stop me as my own bodyguards moved as well.

Murdoch and I raised our hands, pushing the bodyguards back.

One step, two steps. I moved slowly until I stood directly in front of Murdoch, leaning in to whisper softly in his ear.

“I don’t threaten with words.”

Pulling away slowly, I observed his expression. The stiffness of his face was quite satisfying.

I smiled gently at him and extended my hand.

“Think it over, and reach out to me. We could be on the same side.”

Murdoch neither responded nor took my hand.

I lightly shook my hand before turning away.

“Let’s leave for now.”

Manager Ma and the bodyguards followed me out of the hotel restaurant.

After getting into the waiting car at the hotel entrance, I loosened my tie and asked Manager Ma.

“How did it go?”

“The chairman of The Sun’s eldest son is in the hospital.”

“What about the aftermath?”

“They said it was disguised as a traffic accident on the road.”

It was indeed a common way to cloak accidents. I nodded slightly, having heard the answer.

“Connect me with Alex.”

A moment later, Manager Ma turned and handed me the phone.

“Yes, Boss. Did you need something?”

Alex’s voice came through the receiver.

“Is anyone hurt?”

“No one was seriously injured. Such things aren’t uncommon.”

“The aftermath issues should be fine, right?”

“Yes, I’ll handle everything as if it were an accident.”

Alex’s confident voice reflected his years of experience in the field, getting things done swiftly.

“Sounds good. Still, we don’t know how Rupert Murdoch will react, so sever all ties with him.”

“Understood.”

“When everything is settled, come to my place. Please check into Philip’s movements as well.”

After ending the call, I handed the phone back to Manager Ma. Leaning my head back, I closed my eyes and fell into thought.

‘Rupert Murdoch…’

An unexpected heavyweight had entered the fray, causing friction bigger than I anticipated. How can I turn this situation to my advantage?

As my thoughts deepened, the car driving out of London sped through the thickening darkness.

* * *

Han Gyeong-yeong stepped into a shabby building on the outskirts of London housing the ARM Holdings office.

Upon arriving in the meeting room, guided by an employee, he found an Oriental man with a receding hairline waiting.

As Han Gyeong-yeong entered, the man stood, greeting him in fluent English.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Masayoshi Son.”

Han Gyeong-yeong shook hands with Masayoshi Son as he replied.

“Ah, nice to meet you. I’m Han Gyeong-yeong.”

The two held onto each other’s hands, subtly scanning one another as if assessing threats.

Masayoshi Son broke the handshakefirst, smiling.

“You look younger in person than in photographs. I’m a bit envious.”

“Haha, you also look younger than your age, Chairman Son.”

The two exchanged pleasantries to create a warm atmosphere before sitting across from each other.

With no other members of ARM’s management present, the room contained only the two of them.

Han Gyeong-yeong checked his wristwatch and muttered.

“These people…”

Even though it was past the scheduled time, he muttered with annoyance due to the unseen ARM Holdings executives.

Not only that, the way Masayoshi Son stared at him felt ntrusive.

“Ah! Are you talking about the executives? They’ll be here in about thirty minutes. I had a word with them because they wanted to discuss something with you, Representative Han.”

“It doesn’t seem very courteous. To change the schedule without seeking my understanding.”

Han Gyeong-yeong expressed his displeasure, but Masayoshi Son replied casually.

“Is there any reason to fight each other to hike the price? It’s just a matter of us reaching an agreement, isn’t it?”

“The person who jumped into something someone else has their eyes on is you, Chairman.”

“It’s common for deals to fall through in this business. Why are you acting like an amateur?”

There was a subtle hint of condescension in those words. Even Han Gyeong-yeong, usually patient, couldn’t help but feel anger rising.

However, suppressing his emotions, Han Gyeong-yeong looked him squarely in the eye and asked.

“So what are you suggesting?”

“The share you possess, is it 20%? No, 27%? I’ll acquire that from you. I’ll give you double the current stock price.”

Masayoshi Son spread two fingers s if to signify generosity.

A hollow laugh escaped Han Gyeong-yeong’s lips. What kind of nonsense is this?

Holding nothing back in his disdain, Han Gyeong-yeong responded sharply.

“Why should I?”

“Because the UK government won’t allow you to transfer ARM Holdings to anyone. I’ll make sure that happens.”

Han Gyeong-yeong scoffed at his confidence.

“How about you sell me the shares you own, Chairman? Wasn’t it 12%? I’ll give you triple the price.”

“Not everything can be resolved with money.”

“It’s the first time I’ve heard that money can’t solve a problem. I haven’t had a single instance where it couldn’t work so far.”

ARM Holdings was already a publicly-traded company.

As interest waned from many companies involved at the establishment of ARM, the founders chose to fully separate from them, going public to ensure survival.

Many major IT firms, like Apple, were early investors in ARM. However, they lost interest after Intel’s CPU monopoly began.

Han Gyeong-yeong couldn’t comprehend why Kim Mu-hyeok wanted to acquire tis semiconductor design company, which still lacked a concrete revenue model. But he was here because he trusted his judgment.

Kim Mu-hyeok had never been wron. Surely, he had a plan once again.

Having concluded his thoughts, Han Gyeong-yeong steadied his expression and said coldly.

“If it can’t be resolved with money, then I’ll make sure it can be. I’ve invested like this, and I’ve never failed once to date.”

“Hmm…”

Masayoshi Son remained silent, litening to Han Gyeong-yeong’s words.

“No matter how much it costs to acquire, I will not sell you my shares.”

“I can’t comprehend that. It’s not even a proper revenue-generating company, and to invest purely based on potential looks…”

Masayoshi Son trailed off, watchig Han Gyeong-yeong’s face. His expression remained chillingly nonchalant, showing no sign of change.

Seeing that expression, Masayoshi Son cleared his throat ightly before continuing.

“I too am someone who invests in the future, but I’m unsure if ARM is in a position to be acquired with any such urgency.”

“Then you can concede.”

“Concede without receiving anything? That kind of logic doesn’t exist in this world. If you want me to concede, you need to offer something in return.”

At last, Masayoshi Son’s true motives werelaid bare.

In the first place, ARM was a company he never had any interest in. The entire acquisition was merely a platform to gain something from Han Gyeong-yeong.

“Ha, this is absurd.”

Han Gyeong-yeong chuckled to himself, unconsciously muttering in Korean.

“I understand Korean somewhat.”

Whether he understood the meaning of those words was evident from the slight tension in Masayoshi Son’s face.

It was known that Masayoshi Son couldn’t speak Koren well.

He had hidden his Korean-Japanese roots during his childhood and rarely had the chance to learn Korean as he grew up in Japan.

“Oh? Really? Then let’s converse in Korean. Why should we talk in English when we’re both Korean?”

Having known Masayoshi Son was aware of his wek Korean, Han Gyeong-yeong provoked him. With the ongoing use of Korean, a look of tension formed on Masayoshi Son’s face.

“Why? Can’t you speak Korean?”

Han Gyeong-yeong asked again in English, the mockery evident in his smirk.

“…Please stop. I’m not in the best mood.”

Masayoshi Son clearly displayed hs discomfort towards Han Gyeong-yeong’s pointed remarks.

“What I did is now reminiscent of what you, Chairman Son, have done to me until now. If you hadn’t looked down on me, it wouldn’t have been this way. If you wanted a conversation or had something you wanted, there were many other ways to approach me. But the choice to act like this shows your blatant disdain for me.”

“…”

“If this is how you’ve been conducting business, I’m deeply disappointed. I expected a meeting where both you and I have overcome prejudices in the U.S. and Japan and succeeded. I had anticipated this encounter would be different, but you’ve shown yourself like this.”

Han Gyeong-yeong was sincere. Seeing his genuinely disappointed expression turned Masayoshi Son’s face red.

Just as he was about to speak, the door swung open, and ARM Holdings executives walked into the meeting room.

As the two men who entered the meeting room noticed the tense atmosphere between Han Gyeong-yeong and Masayoshi Son, they paused briefl at the entrance.

“What’s happening? You’re late.”

The first to speak was Han Gyeong-yeong.

“Ah, my apologies.”

One of the executives and developers, Hermann Hauser, quickly apologized to Han Gyeong-yeong.

“No problem. Let’s proceed swiftly.”

Han Gyeong-yeong waved off the apology, urging the executives to advance negotiations.

They hadn’t anticipated this reaction from him. Initially, it was Han Gyeong-yeong who expressed a willingness to acquire shares.

During the negotiations, Masayoshi Son had unexpectedly juped in, subtly relishing the increase in their value.

However, Han Gyeong-yeong’s demeanor was cold. They felt an overwhelming anxiety that they might not be able to secure a fair deal.

“We will acquire the 27% stake held by our company and the 14% stake owned by Apple.”

Their anxiety materialized into reality. Hermann’s expression turned pale, as he hadn’t anticipated that Apple would relinquish shares.

“I respect the beliefs of both of you present here. Of course, regarding your technical capabilities as developers. Even if I proceed with the acquisition, I intended to trust you to manage it.”

Han Gyeong-yeong continued to speak, ignoring the presence of Masayoshi Son.

“Thus, I hadn’t considered hostile takeovers. But your recent actions are changing my perspective.”

Observing the baffled expressions clearly on the two men’s faces, Han Gyeong-yeong contemplated Kim Mu-hyeok.

He was making full use of the gift Kim Mu-hyeok had given him befor arriving at the negotiation table.