Chapter 74: The Quiet Exit

President Shim and I got into the car.

On the way to the Taeseong Chemical factory.

President Shim began to speak as he drove.

“I’ve completed all the tasks you requested, Young Master.”

That was the reason President Shim, who had fled to avoid bothersome questions, went out of his way to attend the unofficial board meeting.

“First, with the Chairman’s permission, I’ve been given full authority over the transfer of Taeseong Chemical.”

“Well done.”

“It was exactly as you predicted, Young Master. Even the Chairman’s final advice was the same.”

President Shim grinned.

“Don’t get sentimental, don’t drag things out, just hand it over cleanly and decisively! That’s what he said.”

Grandfather decided to yield Taeseong Chemical as compensation for breaking off the marriage alliance with Wookwang.

Dragging it out and causing a scene would only damage Grandfather’s reputation and do no good.

“Do you remember what Grandfather said to Chairman Kim of Wookwang when he brought up settling Taeseong Chemical?”

“He said he’d organize the shares.”

At the year-end party, Grandfather had said:

-So, what will you do? Will you take Taeseong Chemical if I hand over my shares, or do you want to give me your shares and get cash instead?

-Thanks to my son, your company can finally breathe a bit. Wookwang’s steel business has only been running at a loss, so you need money.

-Business deals take time. But remember this—this is already decided. When the situation changes, positions change. The faster you negotiate, the better for you.

Taeseong Chemical was a joint venture, half owned by Wookwang and Taeseong.

“If Wookwang wants to take over the company, they’ll have to buy Grandfather’s shares.”

“No matter what, they’ll buy them.”

Taeseong Chemical was a solid, profitable company, after all.

“There’s no way Wookwang would pass up the chance to acquire a company worth 30 billion won so easily.”

“But Wookwang doesn’t have enough liquidity because of their steel business losses.”

Wookwang Construction had made some quick money from apartment sales recently, but 15 billion won was out of the question.

“They’ve already maxed out their bank loans and are heavily using private loans. Where could they scrape together 15 billion now?”

“If they want the company badly enough, they’ll issue promissory notes.”

“Who’s going to accept promissory notes for 15 billion?”

“Well, that’s true… But would Wookwang really be shameless enough to stick someone with 15 billion in notes?”

Wishful thinking can kill.

This guy’s obviously never gotten burned by private loans.

“If the conditions get dragged out, negotiations will stall, and a year or two will slip by. President Shim, you wouldn’t mind that, would you?”

“To be honest, no, I wouldn’t. After all, Taeseong still holds management control over Taeseong Chemical.”

“There’s more to lose than to gain. The longer it drags on, the more employee morale drops, and Wookwang will interfere with everything.”

I shook my head.

“If we’re going to hand it over anyway, let’s do it quickly. Focus on the buyback negotiations instead.”

“The buyback negotiations… you mean?”

“We agreed to get Taeseong Chemical back. As promised, we hand it over for now and then buy it back. What choice do we have?”

“Wait, Young Master. Are you saying the plan is to buy back Taeseong Chemical, not just reacquire the shares?”

“Let me ask again. Will Wookwang try to give the shares back to Taeseong, or will they try to keep the company?”

“Of course… they’ll want to keep the golden goose that is Taeseong Chemical. Ah, I see. The idea of getting it back through share reacquisition was just my hope.”

If Wookwang ever wanted to hand back the shares, we’d gladly say, ‘Thank you!’ and scoop them up.

Thanks to the investment funds squeezed from underground financiers, we had plenty of cash on hand.

But Chairman Kim of Wookwang would stubbornly want to keep Taeseong Chemical, if only for pride and vengeance.

Besides, it was a company Grandfather had carefully built up over many years—it made more sense long-term to keep it.

‘Honestly, I had another card ready for renegotiation.’

But that method was too extreme and rough.

It was something you’d only use in the back alleys, so I decided to hold off.

Now that I was in the Taeseong family, I wanted to handle things in a more chaebol-like, legal, and reasonable way.

“Young Master, do you think Wookwang will accept buyback negotiations for Taeseong Chemical?”

“Of course.”

That was why I’d asked President Shim for full authority over Taeseong Chemical’s acquisition.

I took a neatly folded piece of paper from my coin pouch and handed it to him.

“Hand it over quickly, but make sure these special clauses are attached to the M&A contract.”

“What’s this?”

President Shim glanced at me through the rearview mirror.

“Don’t tell me you pulled the whole M&A contract out of that coin pouch?”

“How would I fit a whole contract in here? This is just a summary of the must-include clauses for the special terms.”

There were only a few lines written on the paper I handed him.







The light turned red just then.

“Ha, what unusual wording…”

President Shim read through the special terms and let out a hollow laugh.

“Wookwang will bring their legal team and nitpick every point. The buyback conditions are too favorable for Taeseong.”

“What if, in exchange for these clauses, we promise to hand over Taeseong Chemical within three days?”

“Excuse me?”

If the buyback terms favored Taeseong, the acquisition terms could favor Wookwang.

Either way, we’d already agreed to hand it over, so there was no reason to get attached.

“I must have misheard. How many days did you say?”

“Three days.”

“T-Three? Threeeeee?”

Just as President Shim was about to explode, the light turned green.

He had no choice but to focus on driving.

“You said Grandfather already gave permission. So what’s the problem?”

“That’s the problem! How are we supposed to hand over a 30 billion won company in three days? Does that make any sense?!”

President Shim, uncharacteristically, raised his voice.

“We wouldn’t even have time to stash away equipment or inventory! The less time to prepare, the bigger the loss for Taeseong! Who benefits from that?”

“If you think that way, Wookwang will think the same.”

If they could snatch up even the materials left behind in just three days, it’d be a tempting opportunity for Wookwang.

“Just say the special terms are the best we can offer in exchange for the rushed handover, to leave room for a buyback.”

“Will Wookwang buy that? And it’s me who has to handle the negotiations! Me, Shim Won-cheol!”

“Exactly. Don’t you think Wookwang knows that your position will be up in the air once Taeseong Chemical is gone? Just tell them you don’t care—let Taeseong go bankrupt for all you care.”

“Urgh…!”

Whether President Shim clutched the back of his neck or not.

“If you have to finish the transfer in three days, you’ll die from overwork! You’ll drop dead!”

“Take it easy. Just say you’re out of it. Just let it go! Got it?”

“Cough…!”

“Let Wookwang deal with all the tedious transfer procedures.”

It’s not like I didn’t know this was reckless.

But I had my reasons for wanting to hand over Taeseong Chemical as soon as possible.

‘The Taeseong Chemical fire.’

Whether it’s human error, a safety accident, arson, or a natural disaster.

If you can avoid it, avoid it. If you can prevent it, prevent it.

But I have no way to explain this.

‘Even if, by a stroke of luck, the fire at Taeseong Chemical doesn’t happen, it’s best to hand it over quickly. I can still drag Wookwang into the mud with money.’

Loan sharks are terrifying.

Promissory notes are dangerous.

Use them recklessly and you’re headed for a wave of bankruptcies.

Wookwang had already stepped into the steel industry and was teetering at the end of the domino chain.

‘Taeseong Chemical’s 15 billion won shares would be more than enough to topple that last domino.’

President Shim quickly regained his composure.

“The remaining inventory and raw materials at the factory alone will cost Taeseong at least hundreds of millions in losses. But if that can be minimized, it’s worth the effort.”

“How long did I promise it would take to buy back Taeseong Chemical?”

“…Two months.”

“If it’s a company we have to hand over anyway, why waste your precious time running around for two more months? Let Wookwang handle it. They’ll be so happy with their windfall, they’ll be running around with joy.”

I grinned.

“In return, I’ll handle bringing Wookwang to the renegotiation table.”

“…!”

“So, President Shim, just take care of the acquisition and renegotiation. Simple, right?”

“Ha…”

President Shim’s jaw dropped.

His face was turning all sorts of colors, his lips flapping noisily.

But the more he chewed his lips, the calmer he became, until finally he let out a long, hollow laugh.

“Ha, ha ha, the eight-year-old Young Master says he’ll bring Wookwang to the negotiation table himself… Ha ha ha! If it were that easy… Ha ha ha!”

When the second light turned red,

President Shim buried his head on the steering wheel and let out a sound from deep in his gut.

“I’ve never been called stupid before, but right now I feel like I’ve been toyed with by a ghost and turned into a total idiot. Do you understand?”

***

The car entered the industrial complex.

“President Shim, what about the employment of Taeseong Chemical’s staff?”

“Oh, I almost forgot to report that, being so shocked by the three-day handover. I’ve already discussed it with Young Master Seong-jun.”

I focused.

If Father refused, the Taeseong Chemical employees would be out on the street.

“To cut to the chase, Young Master Seong-jun has agreed to take on Taeseong Chemical’s workers at Taeseong Construction.”

Perfect!

Now I could relax a little.

“Just in time, Taeseong Construction was short on workers. It’s a win-win for both sides.”

“Yes, Taeseong Chemical’s employees won’t be laid off, and Taeseong Construction will fill its labor shortage.”

Father had not only the subway Line 2 construction, but also the Gangnam Seoul Express Bus Terminal road expansion and shopping center extension projects.

There was a pile-up of domestic construction projects left unattended by former executives, and even projects won in the Middle East needed to be completed.

They were so short on construction workers.

So with Taeseong Chemical’s workers coming in, it’d be a godsend for Father.

“I plan to talk to the factory workers about this once we get to the Taeseong Chemical plant.”

Just then, our car arrived at the factory.

***

‘Unbelievable!’

I was surprised when I looked over the Taeseong Chemical plant.

“They’re working hard even during the New Year holidays?”

“The cost of restarting the plant is quite high. That’s why we keep it running on idle, even at a loss.”

There seemed to be quite a few workers as well.

“The holiday bonus is significant. Workers who volunteer for extra shifts get plenty of bonuses and incentives.”

Having to work through the New Year holiday.

It wasn’t someone else’s problem.

I’d lived like that in the past, too.

For those without means, even holidays are a luxury.

[10 days]

Above the heads of the factory workers laboring hard, even giving up their holidays, sparkled some ominous letters.

That was the Grim Reaper’s countdown to the afterlife.

There were at least twenty people marked by it.