The Hollow Shell
Tae Shin Mulsan Chairman’s Office.
Chairman Tae Geon-seung had summoned his sons, Tae Seok-hyun and Tae Seok-ho, and the three of them sat together.
“One of you is dissatisfied, the other full of questions. I figured you both had plenty to say to me, so I called you in.”
The recent activities of the TF Headquarters had sparked all sorts of rumors throughout the Tae Shin Group.
Tae Seok-ho seized the opening at once.
“From the sudden re-audit to the disciplinary suspension of duties and personnel transfers—every affiliate and subsidiary is calling it overreach.”
It was not an incorrect assessment. The presidents of each company had already lodged formal complaints with headquarters, so Tae Geon-seung could hardly pretend ignorance.
“Did Division Head Kang In-hyuk take issue with something that wasn’t a problem at all?”
“That… is not the case. However, when running and managing a corporation, complete transparency is impossible. You, Father—no, Chairman, know this better than anyone.”
Tae Geon-seung gave a slight nod, his expression stern.
“That is true. But there are limits to how much one can turn a blind eye.”
This time Tae Seok-hyun spoke up.
“Chairman, a re-audit has also been ordered for the electronics division. There were internal issues, of course, but the auditors are nitpicking every little detail, and both shareholders and executives are extremely dissatisfied.”
“So you intend to simply push forward with those problems as they are? Do you even know where and how those issues originated in the first place?”
The question was not directed at Tae Seok-hyun alone. Both men fell silent, as if their mouths were sealed with honey.
Tae Geon-seung, who had been quietly observing them, continued.
“While serving as president of Tae Shin Electronics and executive director of Mulsan respectively, the first words out of your mouths upon seeing this situation are ‘overreach’ and ‘excessive fines’?”
Within the Tae Shin Group, Chairman Tae Geon-seung held overwhelming shares and the loyalty of major shareholders, reigning as the true owner, while the actual operations had effectively been left to Tae Seok-hyun and Tae Seok-ho.
In a way, it had been an arrangement meant to clearly determine the next successor.
Yet the two brothers had run the group not for growth, but for factional interests, personal security, and immediate profit.
“Then, Chairman, do you truly believe that Division Head Kang In-hyuk’s tyranny is helping the group? Even though the TF Headquarters’ actions have caused our performance to decline?”
Tae Seok-ho’s voice had risen noticeably higher than before.
Tae Geon-seung, however, remained completely unmoved. Instead, he extended a hand to the side. Song Tae-ho, the bodyguard and secretary standing nearby, retrieved a thick stack of documents from the desk and handed it over.
“Do you know what this is?”
“…It appears to be something submitted by the TF Headquarters.”
The name on the first page made it impossible to mistake.
“It details the internal misconduct committed by the presidents and executives of each affiliate and subsidiary over the years. Embezzlement, accounting manipulation, false claims, fraudulent hiring, and so on.”
In an instant, both men’s faces hardened.
Tae Seok-ho then pulled the documents toward himself and began examining them. Just as Tae Geon-seung had said, the situations that had occurred at each company were recorded in meticulous detail.
“The TF Headquarters investigated all of this?”
What shocked him even more was that the TF Headquarters had uncovered this information without Tae Seok-ho noticing a thing. He looked to Tae Geon-seung, waiting for an answer.
“Why? Do you think the TF Headquarters fabricated the contents?”
“Isn’t the volume excessive compared to the time they’ve been active?”
“I wouldn’t know that far. And I have no intention of overlooking this matter.”
Tae Seok-hyun carefully interjected once more.
“If we proceed this way, Tae Shin’s position will be endangered. Is that what you want, Chairman?”
“Are you worried about your own positions being endangered instead?”
“I share the same view as my brother. Of course the problems within Tae Shin must be resolved, but the repercussions will be too great. The stock price is already falling, and if this leaks, the shareholders and the board will not stay silent. In the worst case, even your own position as Chairman could be at risk.”
Though he spoke of the group, it was ultimately their own safety that concerned them.
Tae Geon-seung, well aware of this, let out a dry chuckle, the wrinkles at the corners of his mouth deepening.
“I understand your concerns. But we cannot cover everything up. Once the full investigation is complete, we will have to weigh the consequences, so neither of you should even think of provoking the TF Headquarters.”
At the same time, the corner of Tae Seok-ho’s mouth twitched.
In the end, it had been a warning. Touching the TF Headquarters would bring consequences.
Yet Tae Seok-hyun and Tae Seok-ho had already taken the bait Tae Geon-seung had dangled before them.
If the two men tried to spit that bait back out, Tae Geon-seung could use the materials compiled by the TF Headquarters to turn the entire Tae Shin Group upside down.
At the same time, it would mean Tae Seok-hyun and Tae Seok-ho losing their footing within the group. And the position of the next chairman might no longer belong to the two brothers.
“Haa— Understood.”
The first to answer, accompanied by a sigh, was Tae Seok-hyun.
Tae Geon-seung then turned his gaze to Tae Seok-ho.
“Executive Director Tae?”
There was only one choice.
“I will do as you say.”
With that reply, the two men left the chairman’s office.
“Why is Father suddenly so desperate to push Kang In-hyuk forward?”
“……”
Despite Tae Seok-hyun’s grumbling, Tae Seok-ho kept his mouth shut.
Tae Seok-hyun’s brow furrowed even deeper.
“Why have you been so on edge since earlier? Did Kang In-hyuk get something on you?”
Perhaps he had wanted to twist the other man’s mood no matter what.
And this time it seemed to work—Tae Seok-ho’s brow also creased.
“Unlike you, I simply have more things to worry about.”
“What…?”
“Instead of wasting time here, wouldn’t it be better to deal with the problems the TF Headquarters uncovered at the electronics division first?”
“So you want to pick a fight?”
“Forget it. I’m leaving first.”
His bodyguard, Lee Jae-jun, followed closely behind him.
Once Tae Seok-ho entered his own office, he immediately gave orders.
“It seems there’s another TF Headquarters operating outside.”
“Did something happen?”
A long sigh escaped Tae Seok-ho’s lips as he sank into the sofa.
“The TF Headquarters has already uncovered most of the issues at headquarters and its subsidiaries.”
“…Pardon? But we never received any reports through the people we planted there.”
“That’s why I’m saying the manpower must be moving from somewhere else. Or perhaps they started their schemes even before the TF Headquarters was established. Otherwise, they couldn’t have conducted an investigation of this scale already.”
Lee Jae-jun’s expression also grew grave.
“However, we saw no signs of such activity within Division Head Kang In-hyuk’s movements. It would also be difficult for outsiders to mobilize that level of internal personnel.”
“Nothing is going according to plan. What about Warbon? When are they starting the operation?”
At Tae Seok-ho’s impatient question, Lee Jae-jun lowered his head slightly.
“They are currently preparing the estimate. It seems they are still trying to pinpoint the target because his movements are irregular.”
“Haa— I don’t care if you handle it violently, just finish it as quickly as possible.”
“But that could cause unnecessary noise… Are you certain?”
It was another question born of deep concern.
Tae Seok-ho did not hesitate.
“Handling him has already become impossible. If we leave things as they are, we don’t know what else might happen.”
“Understood. I will relay your instructions to Warbon immediately.”
“Ah, and tell them to proceed no matter what. Guarantee coverage even in the event of unavoidable collateral damage.”
It was difficult to worry about the direction or repercussions of the situation. Kang In-hyuk’s actions and the surrounding circumstances had already turned so unfavorable that Tae Seok-ho could no longer afford such considerations.
Lee Jae-jun quietly withdrew after receiving Tae Seok-ho’s orders.
─┼
Cheongju, Chungcheongbuk-do. Several cars pulled up in front of Texcellence’s headquarters and factory.
Stepping out of the vehicles were Kang Do-young, An Min-ki, and several employees from KQ Fabric.
Meanwhile, a middle-aged man and several men and women stood at the main entrance with dark expressions. They were Texcellence’s president, Park Sung-hoon, and his employees.
“Greetings, Division Head Kang Do-young.”
Kang Do-young responded to Park Sung-hoon’s greeting with a thin smile.
“Thank you for agreeing to meet first.”
“…Let us go inside for now.”
They settled into the conference room inside the building, the atmosphere heavier than before.
Park Sung-hoon spoke first.
“I have reviewed all the materials you sent. You wish to acquire our company through KQ Fabric?”
“That is correct. And I am considering an acquisition price of five billion won.”
Ordinarily, the market capitalization of a fabric company involved in the defense industry ranged from at least one trillion won to as much as several tens of trillions.
Yet Texcellence was still merely a small-to-medium enterprise.
They had hoped to expand the company’s scale based on the new material they had been developing until recently. The new material under development had been worth that much.
However, internal problems had arisen, and everything had gone wrong.
Even without those issues, considering their technological capabilities and productivity, Texcellence’s value was several times higher than five billion won. Kang Do-young of KQ Fabric had deliberately lowballed the offer.
Park Sung-hoon bit his lip lightly.
“Division Head, I understand better than anyone that our situation is not good, but isn’t that price far too low?”
“Surely you are not saying the price itself is excessive? I already offered a generous amount out of consideration for you, President.”
The question was clearly laced with intent.
Yet Park Sung-hoon could not push back strongly.
“That still seems excessive.”
“Are you saying there is anything worth more than that in a company that is nothing but an empty shell?”
Today’s meeting had been arranged after KQ Fabric shared what amounted to threatening materials with Texcellence.
The contents concerned the disappearance of Vice President Choi Jeong-muk and the possibility that the new material development technology had been leaked.
For Texcellence, none of it was light. Moreover, KQ Fabric had discovered that the internal figure Choi Jeong-muk was connected to the most critical issue—the technology leak.
“The matter of the technology leak has not been confirmed.”
“But Vice President Choi Jeong-muk disappeared with the development data, and we still haven’t found any trace of him.”
“It was still a technology with room for improvement.”
“Vice President Choi Jeong-muk contacted ReFiber Works in the United States. With their capital and technology, wouldn’t they resolve this more easily than you could here?”
The questions and counter-questions kept piling on.
Park Sung-hoon let out a low groan, knowing that Kang Do-young’s words were not wrong.
“Then why is KQ Fabric trying to acquire it at such a bargain price? If you already know where Vice President Choi Jeong-muk is, doesn’t that mean KQ Fabric is also involved in this leak?”
Just as Kang Do-young had said, without the new material technology, Texcellence was nothing but an empty shell.
Naturally, the coercive nature of the proposal made it suspicious.
“If we knew that, we would have simply paid Vice President Choi Jeong-muk several billion won and taken only the technology. Why would we bother acquiring Texcellence unnecessarily?”
In truth, Park Sung-hoon did not strongly suspect any connection between KQ Fabric and Choi Jeong-muk. After all, he had heard the rumor that Kang Do-young, the heir to the KQ Group, had caused a major incident and been demoted to KQ Fabric.
Because the situation did not seem premeditated, Park Sung-hoon’s worries only deepened.
“Ahem…”
“I understand how regrettable it must feel after all your efforts. But if this situation leaks outside, what will happen? You should also consider your employees. Even RSK, with whom you have been dealing all this time, has been unable to offer any help, has it not?”
That, too, was true.
Not long ago, RSK’s president Lee Hyun-geon had come in person to ask about Vice President Choi Jeong-muk. It was obvious where he had heard about the situation they had been desperately trying to hide.
Since it was not a lie, Lee Hyun-geon had left without giving a definite answer regarding the scheduled transaction.
“Even so…”
While Park Sung-hoon was muttering his reply, a knock sounded and a man entered.
It was the finance director who had been waiting outside for the meeting to end.
“President, a guest has arrived.”
“…A guest?”
The only guests scheduled for today were Kang Do-young and the KQ Fabric employees sitting before him.
“He says he is Division Head Kang In-hyuk of the Tae Shin Group. He wishes to meet with you, President, to discuss business related to the new material development.”
“…Tae Shin’s Kang In-hyuk?”
In that instant, Kang Do-young’s expression crumpled like a sheet of paper.