Coincidence
Tae Ju-ha couldn’t understand what Kang In-hyuk was thinking when he said those words.
“Did you just say… you’re handing over the H&T Fund data?”
“That’s correct.”
“Does that even make sense?”
“Executive Director Tae Seok-ho may have ordered me to do this now, but if I refuse, what method will he use next to obtain it? Can you guarantee that violence won’t be involved?”
In-hyuk asked in a deeply serious tone.
Tae Ju-ha couldn’t answer right away. Her expression grew complicated.
“…Are you saying I would be put in danger?”
“I can’t say that’s not the case.”
Tae Seok-ho had given In-hyuk this task both to achieve his own goals and to test him.
However, he had no way of knowing whether the original Kang In-hyuk had actually delivered the H&T Fund data. Judging from the situation, the probability that Tae Ju-ha had died in a traffic accident because he hadn’t handed it over was extremely high.
The problem was that In-hyuk also possessed a separate copy of the H&T Fund data.
What if the version he delivered was the one he already had, and in the meantime Tae Ju-ha triggered something else that provoked Tae Seok-ho…?
Through his conversation with Tae Ju-ha, the missing pieces of the puzzle were slowly clicking into place.
“Even so, I cannot hand over the H&T data.”
“Then what exactly do you plan to gain by attacking Executive Director Tae Seok-ho? Were you thinking of demanding shares in Taeshin Life, the parent company of Tae Shin Asset Management?”
At that moment, Tae Ju-ha’s expression hardened even further.
In-hyuk had simply inserted one of the puzzle pieces he hadn’t yet confirmed. Yet her reaction told him his guess had been correct.
“…How much do you already know?”
Her answer turned his hypothesis into certainty.
“If it’s not purely out of resentment, I simply considered what move would benefit you the most.”
“Just from that?”
“Considering who the opponent is and what they want, it wasn’t difficult.”
Tae Ju-ha stared at In-hyuk with an odd glint in her eyes.
“You… were always this quick with calculations?”
The original Kang In-hyuk had been extremely quiet, so her surprise was understandable.
“I’m not the type to miss the obvious. So, what will you do?”
“Are you ultimately telling me to hand over the H&T data?”
“If I can provide you with shares in Taeshin Life instead, without you having to use that data, what would you say?”
Tae Ju-ha’s face twisted slightly.
“Do you really believe that’s something you can accomplish with your abilities, Mr. Kang In-hyuk?”
The original Kang In-hyuk had lost his parents at birth. After growing up in an orphanage, he graduated from university with support from the Taeshin Education Foundation. He began his career with a public recruitment at Taeshin Mulsan, built experience in sales and the secretary’s office, and eventually married Tae Ju-ha.
He wasn’t incompetent, but he had never been particularly outstanding either.
It was only natural that she found his current words hard to accept.
“Instead, let me give you this until then.”
In-hyuk pulled an old smartphone from his pocket and held it out to her.
“…What is this?”
“Check the files inside.”
It didn’t take long before her eyes widened dramatically.
“This is also H&T Fund account data. How did you get this, Mr. Kang In-hyuk… Don’t tell me…!”
Her gaze instinctively flicked toward the room. She thought it was the copy she herself possessed.
“I secured this separately. However, there may be differences in the content, so please give me your copy, Ms. Tae Ju-ha.”
“…How did you obtain it?”
“I picked it up by chance.”
Honestly, he had no idea who had given it to him or why.
Perhaps because the explanation was too absurd, Tae Ju-ha frowned deeply.
“You expect me to believe that?”
“Think whatever you like. What will you do? If I fail to deliver the amount of Taeshin Life shares you want, feel free to use that data however you wish.”
Tae Ju-ha let out a sigh as she pondered her options.
“Fine. But you won’t mention the existence of the other file to Executive Director Tae Seok-ho, correct?”
“If you don’t trust me, do as you please. I’ll simply tell him I couldn’t find the data.”
If that happened, Tae Seok-ho’s attention would fall entirely on Tae Ju-ha. Moreover, since he already knew the data existed, she would face some form of restraint no matter what.
“Then…”
The next day.
After work, In-hyuk visited ‘Seunghwa’s Home-cooked Meals’ in Donui-dong once again.
Just like last time, Lee Jae-jun confiscated his phone and performed a body search before allowing him inside. Tae Seok-ho was once again seated at the center table, eating kimchi stew and drinking soju.
Does he only know that one menu…?
As In-hyuk approached with that thought, Tae Seok-ho turned his head.
“I saw you at the Chairman’s residence yesterday. I didn’t expect to see you again today. So, what’s the reason you wanted to meet? It had better not be that there’s a problem with the task I gave you.”
Along with the question, In-hyuk pulled a red OTG USB memory stick from his pocket and placed it on the table in front of him.
“I’ve brought what you requested.”
“…Already?”
At Tae Seok-ho’s glance, Lee Jae-jun moved, took out a tablet, and connected the memory stick. It didn’t take long to verify the contents.
“It matches the missing account data from the fund.”
Lee Jae-jun placed the memory stick back in front of him and returned to his position by the door.
Meanwhile, Tae Seok-ho picked up the memory stick and looked at In-hyuk.
“Where did you find it?”
“It was hidden inside a travel carrier.”
“And you found it this quickly?”
“I thought if I delayed, it might be hidden even deeper, so I checked beforehand.”
At In-hyuk’s explanation, Tae Seok-ho’s expression turned subtle.
“Not bad. But you didn’t do anything foolish, did you?”
He was asking whether In-hyuk had made a copy.
In-hyuk let out a small chuckle.
“Would I do something so obvious?”
“You never know.”
“If the file was that important, wouldn’t it have been better to entrust the task to someone other than me?”
At the question, Tae Seok-ho smiled.
“I’ll choose to trust you. Now, tell me what you want. Since you’ve resolved the matter, you deserve a reward.”
His tone was that of someone bestowing a generous favor.
In-hyuk didn’t think long.
“Nothing comes to mind right now. Would it be all right if I tell you the next time an opportunity arises?”
“…Do as you wish.”
“Then, since my business here is finished, I’ll take my leave.”
“You’re not even going to have a drink?”
“I have a lot of work to do.”
With that, In-hyuk gave a slight bow and left the restaurant.
Tae Seok-ho, who had been sitting quietly, immediately threw the memory stick on the table into the kimchi stew the moment the door closed.
“Huu—!”
By then, Lee Jae-jun, who had locked the shop door, walked over to his side.
The corners of Tae Seok-ho’s mouth, which had been slightly raised, settled back down after he finished sighing.
“I thought he might have some other scheme. I didn’t expect him to find the file and bring it so quickly.”
“…”
“Could he have realized from the beginning that this file was a fake?”
Tae Seok-ho’s gaze fell on the memory stick boiling together inside the kimchi stew.
In truth, the contents of that memory stick were a trap left by the H&T Fund to identify an internal traitor. The blonde Caucasian woman who had been photographed last time was the prime suspect.
Several intentional traces had been planted in the data so they could trace where it had leaked from.
“It contains the exact names of the paper companies used in the H&T Fund’s external ledger. Could Kang In-hyuk possibly know that?”
It was an opinion based purely on objective facts rather than speculation.
Tae Seok-ho pondered once more.
“Is he truly that clean… or is he just trying to appear that way…?”
“Should I assign someone to watch him?”
Until now, Tae Seok-ho had quietly observed Kang In-hyuk to gauge his character.
But from here on, the key would be what additional abilities he could demonstrate.
“No. If he moves openly and catches the Chairman’s eye, it could backfire. Leave him be. Besides… I already have plenty of eyes and ears inside Tae Shin Asset Management.”
“Understood.”
Tae Seok-ho narrowed his eyes.
“More surprising is that he didn’t state what he wanted. He even refused the Chairman’s offer to transfer him to Taeshin Mulsan.”
While it was technically a good thing, for Kang In-hyuk—who had been demoted to a subsidiary right after his marriage—it should have been an incredibly sweet proposal.
It seemed as though he had some other scheme in mind.
Still pondering, Tae Seok-ho poured the remaining soju into his glass and drank it down in one refreshing gulp.
A few days later.
February came to an end, and the fifth floor—home to the Equity Management Division of Tae Shin Asset Management—became noisy.
The previous month’s performance report had been shared with the team leaders. Loud voices rose from every corner.
“Team 3’s return last month exceeded 300%!?”
“Is that even possible?”
“It really hit 300%? Did the higher-ups feed them information to inflate the numbers?”
“That’s possible, but… if it was just favoritism, would they have pushed it this far?”
In the midst of this, the employees of Equity Management Team 3 also wore bewildered expressions. Their gazes were all fixed on In-hyuk, who sat quietly in the team leader’s seat.
Should I get going soon?
Completely unconcerned, In-hyuk put on his jacket and approached Deputy Director Jung Jong-hyun.
“Deputy Jung. I have an external client meeting this morning, so I’ll return after lunch.”
“…Ah, yes.”
A small voice answered.
In-hyuk walked past the people who had been staring at him and glanced at them once. They all flinched and quickly looked away.
The meeting place was a high-end Korean restaurant called ‘Hoam’ in Cheongdam-dong.
When he arrived after a thirty-minute drive, an elderly man with short white beard and completely white hair was already seated.
He was Jang Hyung-chul, In-hyuk’s A2 client.
“You arrived quite early for our appointment.”
The appointment was for eleven o’clock. Even though In-hyuk had arrived thirty minutes early, the old man was already there.
“When you’re old, all you have left is time.”
“It’s only a light meeting. Don’t you think this place is a bit too expensive?”
“I won’t ask you to pay, so just sit down.”
In-hyuk took off his jacket and sat across from him.
“What shall we do first? Eat? Or talk business?”
“It’s not a difficult topic, so let’s eat first. By the way… hasn’t your attitude changed completely since our first phone call?”
Back then, Jang Hyung-chul had immediately flown into a rage. Although In-hyuk had responded calmly, the contrast with his current demeanor was so stark that it remained memorable.
“Haha—! The person who makes me money is the one in charge, isn’t he? Naturally, the subordinate can’t throw a tantrum at the superior.”
“I’m grateful you see it that way.”
Soon, Jang Hyung-chul called over the staff outside and ordered them to set the table.
Before long, luxurious side dishes filled the large table, and the meal began in a quiet atmosphere.
After they had eaten a fair amount and each took a sip of water, Jang Hyung-chul finally brought up the main topic.
“So, what was the total return?”
“With Raison Energy currently trading at 76.55 dollars, the return is 223%. Excluding the 700 million won invested, the profit comes to approximately 800 million won.”
Jang Hyung-chul’s eyes widened.
“To earn that much in less than a month… Was it a highly confident investment?”
“To a certain extent.”
“Then why only invest 700 million instead of everything?”
At the question, In-hyuk gave a small smile.
“If I burned all 1.5 billion, I was afraid your heart might not survive, sir.”
At his answer, laughter burst from Jang Hyung-chul’s mouth.
“Hahahahaha—! You were worried about me?”
“You are the client who entrusted me with the largest amount among all my accounts.”
For a moment, the old man stopped laughing, his expression turning puzzled.
“With that level of skill… you’re saying I’m your biggest client?”
“It just turned out that way.”
Jang Hyung-chul let out a hollow laugh.