Chapter 35: The Call from Grandfather

“Hey, you’re kind of scary, you know?”

U.S. citizen.

This was the key to everything I had planned.

“I’m the one who found where your brother was hiding. Do you really not know anything about him? Anyway, you still have it, right?”

Han Gyeong-yeong nodded.

“But why?”

“Let’s wrap up our time in Korea and head to the U.S. We can set up an investment firm there, and I need you to recruit some people for me.”

“An investment firm? Can’t we do that here in Korea?”

“We need to create the illusion that the funds are American. That’s why I need you there. You can establish a branch in Korea a few years later after settling in the U.S.”

“I don’t understand what you’re thinking…”

Han Gyeong-yeong shook his head, looking puzzled.

Right now, he wouldn’t get it.

I just smiled.

“Once we set up the company, around 400 billion won will flow into the corporate account.”

At that, Han Gyeong-yeong spat out the water he was drinking.

Fortunately, it didn’t hit my face.

“Cough, cough—four, four hundred billion?”

“Yeah.”

“Not five billion, but four hundred?”

I frowned at the table, now soaked with water, and added,

“With that, I can make several investments and the rest is up to you. The U.S. stock market is going to boom for a while, so if you don’t purposely try to make things difficult for me, you shouldn’t lose anything.”

Han Gyeong-yeong stared at my calm face, realizing I wasn’t lying, and let out a long sigh.

“…I can’t handle this. Four hundred billion is a lot! That’s over five million dollars! How am I supposed to deal with that? I get shaky just thinking about managing one million!”

“Don’t be scared. You can do this. If you bring in everyone I mentioned, they’ll do their jobs. Just keep an eye on the overall flow. I can’t be there myself.”

“…Is there a reason you trust me this much?”

Han Gyeong-yeong’s eyes reflected my image, shaking slightly.

I calmly shook my head.

“It’s not about trusting you; it’s trusting my judgment in choosing you. And… do you have the guts to think otherwise?”

My face, reflected in his eyes, was smiling.

But Han Gyeong-yeong shivered as if he’d seen something he shouldn’t.

“Whoa, that’s creepy. Don’t smile like that.”

“Hahaha!”

“Ugh… four hundred billion… I can’t even grasp how much that is.”

Han Gyeong-yeong shook his head as if trying to dispel the rising thoughts and smiled at me.

“Okay, so shall we wrap things up here?”

“No, I need you to do a few things before I leave.”

“What?”

“Use the current account for the investment firm’s setup costs when we get to the U.S., and open an account under your name.”

“My name?”

Han Gyeong-yeong grumbled, saying I was being vague.

“I’ll deposit 10 billion won into it. Starting from the 13th, all stocks are going to crash. You need to buy all the stocks of Il-seong Group that hit the price limit. It doesn’t matter if people sell or not; just buy them. Your purchase alone won’t drive the price up, so just buy everything related to Il-seong Group.””

“Il-sung? But why my name?””

“I’ll need it for later.”

“…So something is definitely happening on August 12th. You knew and then asked me to bet on it?”

I just smiled and didn’t answer.

Han Gyeong-yeong furrowed his brow and sighed.

“You would make an incredible con artist. You’re such a bad guy.”

“It’s Il-sung. Don’t worry about other stocks, just focus on Il-sung.””

“That sounds easy. I’m looking forward to August 12th. I wonder what will happen?”

I shifted the conversation as Han Gyeong-yeong laughed foolishly.

“Want to grab a drink? I’ll be really busy starting next week.”

“Sure, let’s drink after a long time.”

Han Gyeong-yeong stood up, following my lead.

Neither of us could imagine what would happen next.

* * *

In a dark nightclub in Haeundae…

Tap, tap, tap.

The sound of hurried footsteps on the stairs mixed with shouts from men, creating chaos in an instant.

“Hey! What’s going on?”

“What the hell are these crazy idiots doing here? Kill them!”

Amidst the chaos, there were people quietly passing by as strong men fought each other.

“What the hell! Get that guy!”

“Stop him!”

Ignoring everyone else, they pushed open the door to one of the nightclub rooms.

It was Park Dong-su, Yang Suhyeong, and Lee Sang-geun.

“What’s going on? Is that Dong-su?”

A sharp-eyed man seated at the head of the table glared at Park Dong-su. The other burly men beside him also glared at them.

Park Dong-su sighed and shot him a glare.

“Come on… I thought we agreed to keep this simple?”

“What a load of crap! Everyone knows you messed with Sa-seong. What kind of punk would turn on his benefactor?”

Park Dong-su let out a small laugh at those words.

At first, it stung, but hearing it from everyone made it seem ridiculous.

“Ah! This guy talks too much!”

Without warning, Park Dong-su charged at him. The burly men seated jumped up to stop him.

Meanwhile, Lee Sang-geun and Yang Suhyeong rushed in to help.

While they engaged the thugs, Park Dong-su leaped onto the table, aiming for the seated man.

“You bastard!”

The seated man pulled out a sashimi knife and shouted.

Boom!

In the blink of an eye, Park Dong-su crossed the table and struck the man holding the knife in the jaw.

The man staggered back, swinging the knife wildly.

The blade grazed Park Dong-su’s arm, causing blood to trickle down his suit.

But undeterred, Park Dong-su lunged at the man, throwing punches at him.

Boom!

He deflected the incoming knife with his left hand and delivered a powerful blow to the man’s face with his right.

Then, he grabbed a liquor bottle from the table and swung it down on the head of the staggering man.

Crash!

Blood spilled from the man’s head as the bottle shattered.

“If you’re going to act up, it would have been better to listen while I was talking, right? Manseok, you know? I’m in a hurry. If I mess around here, I won’t be able to face our younger brothers. That’s what I’m saying.”

As Park Dong-su threw the remaining liquor bottle, he turned back.

By now, Yang Suhyeong and Lee Sang-geun had subdued all the other men.

“Suhyeong, grab him!”

Yang Suhyeong came over and pinned the dazed Lee Man-seok to the table.

“Let’s wrap this up quietly. Retire peacefully. I’ll make sure you can keep drinking at one establishment, so be satisfied and keep your mouth shut, alright?”

That day, Park Dong-su eliminated all his opposing forces.

He made sure that no one could challenge him again by forcing all the mid-level bosses to retire.

“Phew… this should keep Mu-hyeok from being embarrassed, right? Isn’t that right, Sang-geun?”

“Yeah.”

* * *

It was the evening of August 12.

All regular broadcasts were interrupted for a live presidential address.

“At this moment, I solemnly announce the emergency fiscal and economic order regarding the ‘Financial Real-Name Trading and Confidentiality’ as per Article 76, Section 1 of the Constitution…”

It was an unexpected and sudden announcement of the financial real-name system.

“Dear citizens, we have finally implemented the financial real-name system. From this moment on, all financial transactions will be conducted under real names.”

This was the moment the financial real-name system was announced, something even the military regime hadn’t done.

“Huh…”

Chairman Cheon, listening to the announcement in his study, let out a hollow laugh.

“Chairman…”

Chief Ha, standing in front of him, looked grave.

“Did you hear from the economic secretary? What about the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs?”

“No contact yet.”

“Huh… they wouldn’t dare stab me in the back, would they? Check it out.”

Chairman Cheon watched Chief Ha dial a number, lost in deep thought.

‘Could it be that they’re acting this quickly? I can’t figure out the president’s mind at all…’

A moment later, Chief Ha ended the call and spoke.

“He said he didn’t know either.”

“What kind of nonsense is that? If the economic secretary doesn’t know, then who does?”

“He learned about the content of this announcement from the broadcast, just like everyone else.”

“What about the Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs?”

“He’s not answering his phone.”

“Huh…”

Chairman Cheon sighed, trying to suppress his anger.

“How much has been sorted out?”

“Fortunately, we started sorting things out early, so all accounts under Heo Mu-in’s name are settled. However, there’s roughly 400 billion won in the accounts under false names.”

“That’s smaller than I expected.”

“Most accounts were opened under Heo Mu-in’s name rather than false names, so we were able to settle most of them.”

“Can we find the false names?”

Chief Ha seemed to think for a moment before nodding.

“Half are mostly under the names of people from Myeong-dong, so it shouldn’t be a major issue. But the rest are under the names of debtors, so we need to sort them quickly before they start thinking other thoughts.”

Chairman Cheon frowned, clicking his tongue.

“Nonsense. No one can be trusted in front of money. For now, mobilize all personnel to retrieve the debtors’ bankbooks and head to the banks. I’ll personally call the branch manager, so don’t forget to take identification.”

“Yes, understood. But what about those who refuse…?”

“Refuse?”

A chilling smile appeared on Chairman Cheon’s face, one he had never shown in front of Kim Mu-hyeok.

“You handle that. After you take action, report back to me. Make sure it’s done by tomorrow. The longer you drag this out, the more they’ll think about it.”

“Yes, understood.”

“As you leave, contact Mu-hyeok and tell him to come home quickly.”

As Chief Ha left after paying his respects, Chairman Cheon’s face relaxed.

“Huh~ Did he really foresee this? What a character.”

* * *

“Hey… was this what you meant?”

I nodded nonchalantly.

Han Gyeong-yeong, watching the broadcast with me, struggled to find his words, his mouth opening and closing for a while.

“Wow… this is really staggering! Did you know about this?”

“Not exactly, but I picked up on the atmosphere.”

“You picked up on the atmosphere and precisely stated August 12th? How is that even possible? If you’re going to lie, at least make it believable. It’s clear that those who know the information are the ones making the money.”

His gaze, filled with awe as he looked at me, was unmistakable.

“So, you’re saying I should start buying shares in the Il-sung subsidiaries from ttomorrow?”

“Yeah, they’ll probably keep pouring in. Just watch for when they drop to the price limit, and start buying then. It won’t be long before the chaos settles and prices rise again.”

“A few days? Is that all?”

“That’s what I think. The turmoil will calm down quickly, and then a bull market will continue, so gather as much stock as you can before that.”

“Okay! If I had known this information, I wouldn’t have missed out on stock investing! Just wait! I’ll sweep it all up neatly.”

I nodded at his words.

Just then, my mobile phone rang.

“This is Kim Mu-hyeok.”

– It’s Ha Myung-hoon, Young Master. The Chairman requests your immediate presence at home.

“My grandfather? Understood, it’ll take about 30 minutes if I leave now.”

– I will inform him as you said.

A smile crept onto my face as I hung up the phone.

It was time to collect the bait I had dropped while discussing the financial real-name system.

“Hyung, then I’ll have to leave for home. I’ll call you when I get there.”

“Huh? You’re leaving?”

I waved as I stepped out of Han Gyeong-yeong’s house.

When I arrived at my house in Pyeongchang-dong, my grandfather was seated in his study with a stern expression.

“You called for me?”

“You called for me? Is that really what you’re saying right now? How did you know about the financial real-name system?”

I stifled a laugh at how my grandfather went straight to the point.

“I didn’t know for sure; I just predicted it.”

“Predicted?”

“Yes, I assessed the President’s character and his promises to make that judgment.”

“To call it a prediction feels off… it seems like you’ve been persistently appealing to me with opinions, almost like you already knew the financial real-name system would be implemented this year. Am I wrong?”

While speaking, my grandfather scrutinized my expression and actions.

I calmly smiled, meeting his gaze.