Hanyeong Auto's Han Juhyeong (2)
Lee Jaseung carefully selected the list of attendees.
The three candidates he had chosen were as follows.
First, Hanyeong Auto Group and Hanyeong Heavy Industries Group.
Originally a single group, the two had split after a brothers’ feud, and relations had been poor ever since.
Pitting them against each other would be entertaining.
On top of those two, a private equity fund as well.
Yuseong Steel was an undervalued company. Acquiring such firms and flipping them for a profit was a private equity specialty.
After assembling the list of three, he rented a hotel suite.
The early arrivals were already playing at the billiard table set up in the spacious living room.
Seo Minjae approached Lee Jaseung, who held a cue, and whispered.
“You really need to watch that mouth of yours today.”
“I know.”
Jaseung answered as he lined up the white ball.
Seo Minjae had been fretting for days, but there was nothing for him to worry about.
He tended to be generous toward those who made him money, after all.
Around the time one game ended, Han Juhyeong walked in.
Jaseung set down the cue and smiled.
“Hello.”
The casual greeting, as if meeting an old friend after a long time, carried not a trace of past grudges.
That calm demeanor—as if the incident at the bar that night had happened to someone else—grated on Juhyeong’s nerves.
Juhyeong spoke with a sarcastic edge.
“A Yuseong Group heir throwing a grand opening party at a hotel? Outside, everyone’s in an uproar over your company—shouldn’t you be keeping a low profile?”
Jaseung gave a short laugh.
As if anyone had come for a real party—how picky.
But heeding his friend’s earlier warning, Jaseung said nothing further and simply raised the glass of sparkling water in front of him.
“That’s why I’m not drinking. You’re not still holding a grudge over that fight, are you?”
Juhyeong let out an exaggerated fake laugh.
“Ha! Me?”
“No? Then have a drink.”
With that he personally picked up a can of cola and held it out. The can, beaded with cold condensation, touched Juhyeong’s palm.
“……Alcohol?”
“There isn’t any. I told you. We don’t drink.”
Juhyeong’s mouth fell open.
It wasn’t that he himself didn’t drink—there was genuinely not a drop of alcohol at this non-alcoholic party?
Suddenly university days came back to him.
Even then Jaseung had pathologically hated alcohol and cigarettes…….
Swallowing a sigh, Juhyeong took the cola and grumbled inwardly.
Ah, what a total freak. If he doesn’t want to drink, fine—but why force it on me too.
Even if it was annoying, what could he do?
Jaseung was an unpleasant bastard, but the words that came out of his mouth mattered.
To escape this oppressively wholesome party, the smart move was to get the necessary information quickly and leave.
The moment he sat on the sofa, Juhyeong cut straight to the point.
“Yuseong Group is in chaos. Are you completely cutting ties with the group to start your own business?”
“That’s right.”
When Jaseung answered nonchalantly, the air in the suite changed in an instant. Every gaze fixed on him.
As if a signal flare had been fired, the conversation immediately shifted to Yuseong Group.
Juhyeong’s cousin, the third-generation heir of Hanyeong Heavy Industries, spoke up.
“By the way, did you see it today? The Yuseong Group chairman apologizing.”
“Yeah. I heard there was almost a riot in front of Yuseong Securities too.”
“Exactly. They need to resolve it quickly……. Lee Jaseung, what are you going to do now?”
A subtle mockery underlay the question, floating in the air.
With this incident, the downfall of the Yuseong family was already a foregone conclusion.
Expectant gazes turned to Jaseung, curious how the famously prideful man would react in this situation.
But Jaseung nonchalantly picked up the cue, aimed at the white ball, took a brief breath, and stroked smoothly.
The ball glided across the green felt, struck the first cushion, and with just the right force nudged the red ball free.
Then he leisurely leaned against the billiard table and took a sip of sparkling water. The clear sound of ice clinking filled the room.
“The important thing is this.”
Jaseung slowly looked around as he spoke.
“What assets will actually come up for sale from Yuseong Group. Right?”
Seo Minjae marveled inwardly.
Just as he had cleverly imposed his own rules by forcing cola instead of alcohol, Jaseung once again steered the flow of conversation exactly where he wanted it.
The only woman in the room, fund manager Chae Eunchae, her eyes gleaming.
“Jaseung oppa. Which affiliate are they selling?”
“What are you interested in?”
“Me? Yuseong Capital? It’s posting decent results as a lending firm. My grandfather’s curious about Yuseong Capital.”
Chae Eunchae’s grandfather had been a loan shark. Once she opened the door, others piled on with questions.
“How’s Yuseong Construction these days? Any plans to sell that too?”
“Or Yuseong Life? It’s insurance-based, so it’s stable.”
Having done their own analysis, they tossed out the names of the relatively solid affiliates.
After exchanging various opinions among themselves, the turn came back to Jaseung.
“So what are you going to do? Tell us a little.”
Jaseung set down his sparkling water and said calmly.
“Yuseong Steel.”
“……?”
A silence laced with bewilderment fell for a moment.
Jaseung’s lips curled upward as if amused.
“Why? Isn’t it a better asset than Capital, Life, or Construction?”
“W-well, yes, but……. It’s too good, that’s the problem. Wait—are they really going to sell Yuseong Steel? That cash cow?”
A voice barely recovered from the shock spoke for everyone’s feelings.
And for good reason.
Yuseong Steel specialized in specialty steel.
The specialty steel market was on a completely different level from ordinary steel. High technical expertise was required, so the barriers to entry were high.
In the case of specialty steel for automobiles, once selected as a supplier, it was not easily replaced—quality stability saw to that.
On top of that, profitability was outstanding.
Operating profit margins of 8–15 percent, far higher than the 3–5 percent of ordinary steel products.
Selling Yuseong Steel, a stable cash cow?
Could this be true?
They glanced at one another, exchanging looks. Then suddenly the faces of those gathered here came into focus.
Auto, heavy industries, private equity…….
“……”
In the silence that settled, everyone realized at the same time.
This bastard set us up!
Then Juhyeong asked in a voice full of suspicion.
“Is that accurate info? You’re not just throwing it out there?”
“Why do you think I’m just throwing it out?”
“Because Yuseong Securities is already fucked, and if they sell Yuseong Steel on top of that, there’s nothing left. If both securities and steel are gone, Yuseong Group……”
Unable to finish the last words and trailing off, Jaseung kindly completed the sentence for him.
“That’s right. It’ll be dismantled.”
A heavy silence descended.
Group dismantlement.
A word that had become trauma in the business world after the IMF foreign exchange crisis.
They said it was ruined, ruined—but deep down they had assumed Yuseong Group would go through some pain and then normalize.
It might shrink in scale, but in the end it would survive, they thought.
But what Jaseung was saying was completely different.
Yuseong Group would be dismantled.
So let’s trade on that information.
Crazy bastard.
Selling the information that his own group was being dismantled, of all things.
But no one could ignore his proposal.
It was that attractive.
With this, the rules had changed.
No one could leisurely enjoy the moment anymore, thinking of prying information out of Jaseung.
This was an auction hosted by Lee Jaseung.
The gathered people persistently demanded the reason.
“Just why are they trying to sell Yuseong Steel!”
“What kind of talk is going around inside Yuseong Group!”
To persuade management regarding the sale of Yuseong Steel, they needed proper grounds. So please tell us!
But Jaseung never revealed the exact reason to the end.
Of course.
He hadn’t come out for volunteer work.
The moment Jaseung stepped out, the grumbling poured out.
“Wow, Jaseung oppa’s no pushover.”
“I thought he’d be down, but he’s fucking lively.”
Even with his family completely ruined, Jaseung instinctively knew how to seize the initiative.
And they had no choice but to follow the flow he led.
Information on Yuseong Group was important, after all.
“What does that guy know to act like that? Or is he just testing the waters?”
“Looking at how he called us, he seems sure of something. Still, selling Yuseong Steel doesn’t seem likely……. That would be the complete end.”
“But what if, just in case, Yuseong Group goes bankrupt?”
Yuseong Group selling affiliates for survival and Yuseong Group actually going bankrupt were completely different stories.
Their gazes turned to Seo Minjae.
The illegitimate son of Seoseong Securities.
But at the same time he was also the representative of the creditor group. A position that could not be ignored.
“Minjae, I heard you became the creditor representative? Heard anything?”
“Actually, individual investors are involved in this too.”
“Right?”
There were a full forty thousand victims.
“So the government is on high alert too. If they keep dragging their feet without coming up with measures, the government will intervene directly. Then the creditors’ initiative will weaken. Our creditor group’s position is to sell off assets that can be turned into cash quickly before the government steps in.”
“And that’s Yuseong Steel?”
“You all know why, right?”
“Because it’s the most attractive affiliate in the group.”
Hearing that, the sale scenario Jaseung had thrown out suddenly felt realistic.
If things proceeded according to that scenario?
The people gathered here would become potential competitors.
Hanyeong Auto and Hanyeong Heavy Industries for vertical integration.
The private equity fund for financial returns.
Their hearts grew impatient.
They needed to find Jaseung faster than the others and dig out more information.
They gradually took the cue from one another and rose from their seats.
Where did Jaseung go?
Then they realized there was one more empty seat.
“Where did Han Juhyeong go off to now?”
On the terrace getting some air, Jaseung looked with interest at the person who followed him out.
“Han Juhyeong?”
Unexpected.
He’d thought the guy would stand on his pride, but maybe he wasn’t that type after all.
In his mind, his evaluation of Juhyeong rose a notch.
From half-wit to prospective client.
With a more generous heart, Jaseung spoke first.
“How have you been lately? I heard you’re taking management lessons.”
Juhyeong let out a long sigh.
If not for the bait of Yuseong Steel, he would never have sat face-to-face with Jaseung like this.
And he certainly would never have been the one to speak first.
Suddenly he craved a drink.
All there was was cola, though.
Juhyeong smiled bitterly.
“They want me to prove my ability. Otherwise they’ll just switch to a professional management system or something.”
“Then you just need to show ability.”
“So I’ve been thinking about it a bit.”
Jaseung propped his chin at an angle.
Juhyeong explaining in an enthusiastic voice reminded him of the time just before graduating from his MBA.
His eye for things wasn’t particularly excellent, but the fact that he still had money and passion left even after failing deserved high marks.
“……Anyway, since our group is auto-based, I thought maybe including a steel business. Achieving vertical integration, you know.”
“And then the Yuseong Steel talk came up just in time?”
“Right. So—are they really going to sell the steel division from Yuseong Group?”
Jaseung read the expectation in Juhyeong’s eyes.
Please say they’re selling Yuseong Steel, it said.
So he kindly shattered that expectation.
“No.”
“Huh? Hey, you said earlier they were selling! Did you lie to me?”
His voice immediately turned sharp.
Watching him panic was quite entertaining.
Feeling the reward for the time invested, Jaseung explained precisely.
He had to make clear that the seller would not sell immediately.
“My uncle doesn’t want to sell Yuseong Steel. If he sells that, Yuseong Group is finished. With his pride, he’ll hold out to the end.”
“Then why earlier……”
“But in the end, he’ll have to sell.”
“Have to sell?”
Jaseung leaned against the terrace railing and explained calmly.
“Simply put, Yuseong Steel is like having several gambling-addict relatives. Yuseong Steel itself is a solid company, but the relatives racked up gambling debts. So what do you do?”
“What do you mean what. The relatives have to pay their own debts. Sell the house, sell organs, whatever.”
“But what if Yuseong Steel guaranteed them?”
“You mean Yuseong Steel has to pay instead?”
“That’s right. And this way is better for you too.”
“What do you mean?”
“You have to prove your ability as the successor, right?”
Jaseung knew exactly the picture Juhyeong wanted.
“Then it’s better if the problem is difficult. Persuading a counterpart who doesn’t want to sell and bringing it in. The eldest son ran around this hard for the group……. Wouldn’t something like this look a bit more trustworthy?”
“Okay. I get what you mean.”
Chewing over his words, Juhyeong nodded. But a question still remained unresolved.
“But is it okay to open all this up?”
In truth, this was a problem anyone could solve once time passed and the outline of the incident became clear.
He’d acted expensive only to give a special quality to this relationship.
The sense of bond from sharing information he hadn’t told others.
That was the purpose.
At the same time, he also wanted to check how certain Juhyeong’s purchase intention was.
Strong desire was readable in Juhyeong’s eyes.
But Jaseung thoroughly hid his true feelings and smiled.
“Between us, this much is fine.”
This work is a fictional story. All characters, groups, place names, events, and other elements appearing herein are fictitious and have no connection whatsoever to anything that exists in reality. The professional knowledge described has also been reconstructed and adapted to fit the story and may differ from actual information.