Chapter 85: The Same Incident, Different Response

According to the official statement from the Blue House, the chemical plant fire was leaning towards being classified as an 'industrial accident'.

The presidents of Taesung’s affiliate companies were all eager to voice their opinions.

"It was a work team made up of laborers recently dispatched from U-Gwang. Isn’t it likely their safety training was lacking?"

"They probably had to work in an unfamiliar environment, doing unfamiliar tasks. An accident can happen in an instant."

"It seems U-Gwang responded carelessly. I heard a large amount of flammable materials was found inside the factory."

Grandfather tapped his finger on the table.

"So, the cause of the fire isn’t being pinned on arson out of revenge, a North Korean explosive terrorist attack, or an air raid, right?"

"For now, that's correct. We’ll have to watch for the Blue House's next announcement."

Grandfather looked around at the presidents of the affiliates.

"How’s U-Gwang reacting?"

He wasn't asking out of ignorance.

He was asking just how serious the situation was.

"Everything from the U-Gwang headquarters to their affiliates is in chaos."

"It seems they've gathered all affiliate presidents and executives for an emergency strategy meeting."

"The U-Gwang secretary’s office has been bombarding Taesung with heated protests over the phone."

"Honestly, if they could, U-Gwang would love nothing more than to dump the entire responsibility for the industrial accident on us."

That's how serious the accident was.

After all, the total number of casualties was nearly two hundred.

That was why the presidents of Taesung’s affiliates all looked grim.

"There’s a chance Taesung, too, will find it difficult to avoid being held accountable."

"The chemical company was jointly established with U-Gwang from the start, and Taesung has been managing it all this time."

"It’s only been ten days since we handed Taesung Chemical over to U-Gwang. If there were issues with facility management…"

"Or if we stayed quiet about retaliatory issues to avoid problems during the process of losing Taesung Chemical..."

The voices of the affiliate presidents grew fainter.

They kept trailing off, constantly gauging each other’s reactions.

Finally, someone spoke up, bracing themselves.

"If U-Gwang pins this on Taesung, it's obvious the Chairman and President Shim will be in trouble. I believe we need urgent countermeasures!"

"Agreed. I’ll get in touch with the accident investigation team. We need to distance Taesung’s name from this as much as possible."

"I’ll put in a call to the Blue House secretary’s office too!"

"Then I’ll block the media…"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Grandfather struck the table with his palm.

"We haven’t done anything wrong, so why would we stoop to such shady tricks?"

"Chairman, just in case Taesung ends up involved…"

"Remember why U-Gwang Construction drew the ire of the Blue House last time, when they forcibly evicted residents from the shantytown in Guro-dong? It’s because they tried to cover up the aftermath by buttering up the press and silencing the police and prosecutors."

Only then did the affiliate presidents quiet down.

But they still seemed unwilling to abandon the idea of "stop it by any means necessary."

Grandfather clicked his tongue.

"It’s better to just bow down, admit our wrongdoing to His Excellency, and plead for leniency, than to use petty tricks to try to cover it up."

That was the method Grandfather had chosen in the past.

"The best way, of course, is to avoid getting tangled up in matters like this from the very start."

As if they didn't already know.

Second Uncle spoke in a low voice.

"If that had been possible, we wouldn’t be gathered here for an emergency strategy meeting, would we? Taesung is already involved, and the accident has already happened. What matters now is coming up with a response."

"Is that so? Who said Taesung was involved in the U-Gwang Chemical accident? President Shim!"

"Yes, Chairman."

Grandfather turned to President Shim.

"You answer directly. Is there any chance the Blue House will hold Taesung responsible for the U-Gwang Chemical fire?"

"Absolutely not. We can make it clear that U-Gwang Chemical has nothing to do with Taesung."

President Shim answered without hesitation.

"When we handed over Taesung Chemical, we handled all related issues thoroughly. Chairman Kim of U-Gwang signed and sealed the documents, and all the presidents of U-Gwang’s affiliates agreed to it."

The affiliate presidents of Taesung murmured in surprise.

"What do you mean by that?"

"When we transferred Taesung Chemical, from that moment, everything became U-Gwang’s property. We confirmed that all facility management and responsibility would fall to U-Gwang. Even the Taesung insurance was concluded and handed over."

"So you’re saying that every single link with Taesung was completely severed during the negotiations?"

"Yes. The moment we signed and sealed the merger and acquisition contract for Taesung Chemical, all Taesung personnel agreed to leave with nothing but their personal belongings. I couldn’t even take my nameplate with me."

Grandfather smiled in satisfaction.

"President Shim, your insight is truly remarkable. You couldn’t have predicted something like this would happen, but your handling of things was as if you’d seen the future. Well done."

"You flatter me."

"I was getting sick of the endless nerves over Taesung Chemical dragging on with U-Gwang. But you handed it over cleanly, set up the perfect bait and trap. That’s just like you, President Shim. You’ve more than earned my trust."

"Thank you, Chairman."

Aunt raised her hand.

"I still find it hard to believe. If U-Gwang bought Taesung Chemical’s shares, the banks and the loan markets would’ve been in an uproar. We’re talking about raising at least fifteen billion won. But not only are the markets quiet, there hasn’t been a single rumor."

Her sharp, piercing voice sounded almost accusatory.

The affiliate presidents all nodded in agreement.

"Surely you didn’t just hand over the shares because the engagement was called off? An engagement is an engagement, business is business. Besides, President Shim, you submitted your resignation right after the contract. Am I the only one who finds this suspicious?"

Aunt crossed her arms and snorted.

"You made a backroom deal with U-Gwang to push through a contract that was deeply unfavorable to Taesung. That’s how you were able to ram through a merger and acquisition that usually takes months, if not years, in a single day. Isn’t that so?"

The longer Aunt spoke, the colder the affiliate presidents’ eyes grew.

"I’m already wondering how someone who resigned as an affiliate president is even sitting at a Taesung board meeting. How do you explain that?"

"That's a reasonable question. But before I address that, let’s take a look at this."

President Shim rose from his seat and began distributing copies he had prepared.

"I thought we should clarify this issue, so I brought a copy of the contract in question. Please take a look."

The affiliate presidents of Taesung flipped through the documents with curious eyes.

"So this is the merger and acquisition contract President Shim handled with full authority?"

"They say the U-Gwang side gave an immediate okay, right then and there?"

"What sort of generous terms did we offer to get that meticulous, scrupulous man to agree… hmm?"

The affiliate presidents’ jaws dropped.

"A three-page contract? This... this is it?"

"What’s this? They took all of Taesung’s shares and in return gave us a promissory note for fifteen billion won…!"

"Ha, and the note was issued by U-Gwang Construction, not the U-Gwang Group holding company! Can that minor company even cover fifteen billion won?"

The affiliate presidents glared at President Shim.

"President Shim, what were you thinking when you signed this? What were you thinking, drafting a contract like this?"

"Taesung took a huge loss! The moment we signed, all real estate and property instantly became U-Gwang’s?"

"We couldn’t even properly settle the Taesung Chemical accounts and took a loss of several billion?"

"If this was going to happen, why did you even request full authority over the merger? Did you make some kind of secret deal with Chairman Kim of U-Gwang?"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Once again, Grandfather struck the table.

"The part you should be focusing on isn’t the front, it’s the last page!"

"The last page?"

"Everyone, look at the provisions for reacquisition negotiations before you say another word!"

"Reacquisition negotiations… huh!"

All the affiliate presidents turned their attention to the final page of the contract.



The final, added clause caught everyone's eye.



The affiliate presidents of Taesung involuntarily gasped.

For a moment, a hush fell over the conference room.

"This… is this… give up the flesh to gain the bone, right?"

"Chairman Kim of U-Gwang surely didn’t anticipate a fire at the chemical plant when he signed this contract…"

"Goodness, in trying to save billions in interest, he’ll end up losing even the U-Gwang Securities he put up as collateral?"

Everyone’s lips curled up in smiles, twitching with excitement.

In their heads, they were all rapidly calculating, some even taking quick notes with their pens.

"Well? Is it clear now?"

Grandfather waved the three-page contract and grinned.

"Chairman Kim of U-Gwang has just been summoned to the Blue House. What do you think the chances are that U-Gwang can pay off that note?"

The affiliate presidents of Taesung replied with broad smiles.

"Impossible."

"Do you think they’ll have the presence of mind to cover the Taesung Chemical promissory note right now?"

"At this very moment, U-Gwang’s affiliate stocks are plummeting."

"Rather than scrape together all their cash to buy Taesung Chemical, they’ll desperately try to rescue U-Gwang Steel from collapse."

Grandfather asked again.

"Now do you understand why I called you here today? We didn’t gather here to come up with countermeasures to escape the chemical plant fire incident."

Bang!

"We’re here to discuss how to win back Taesung Chemical in this opportunity!"

Bang!

"And to plan how to extend our reach and devour U-Gwang Securities!"

The affiliate presidents all shouted in unison.

"Yes, understood, Chairman!"

So, their real discussion was only now beginning.

"U-Gwang’s stocks are plunging. The shareholders won’t just sit and watch. I’ll quietly stir things up over there."

"I’m going to try and thoroughly choke off U-Gwang’s cash flow, which is already on the verge of a freeze. I’ll get in touch with the Federation of Korean Industries people."

"I’ll pick out some prime affiliates from U-Gwang’s group. There are a few subsidiaries that would be perfect for Taesung to acquire."

"Good idea. I’ll join in. U-Gwang will have to sacrifice a few limbs if they want to recover. We can’t miss this chance to grow Taesung."

"Taesung has just secured a huge investment at the Year-End Night. On top of that, we’ve been given the subway line 2 construction, so we can buy up land around the new stations and expect to make a tidy profit."

Bang!

Grandfather grinned broadly.

"Don’t even think about going home early tonight. Even if we have to stay up all night, we must finish our strategy session. Starting tomorrow, every affiliate must move in perfect sync toward the goals set today. Understood?"

"Yes, understood!"

"Before other companies pounce on U-Gwang’s vacant spots, we need to move even faster."

"Yes, Chairman!"

"I will not be satisfied with Taesung remaining only the fifth in the business rankings. We take opportunities when they come, eat when there’s food, and snatch away what can be taken!"

"Of course!"

Grandfather wore the eyes of a cold-blooded entrepreneur.

Words like forty years of friendship had no place here.

There were thirty-eight pairs of eyes, all belonging to the affiliate presidents who looked only to Grandfather.

They, too, were leaders of their own companies.

And their eyes gleamed with calculation, every bit as cold and ruthless as Grandfather’s.

At that moment, Father raised his hand.

"There were many casualties in the chemical plant fire. U-Gwang Hospital alone won’t be able to accommodate all the patients."

Father alone put forth a completely different opinion.

"I suggest Taesung Hospital provide medical support."

For a moment, all the affiliate presidents fell silent.

Grandfather was no exception.

"Before the seriously injured become fatalities, before the minor injuries turn serious, we need to save whoever we can. I’ll take charge of that."