Chapter 123
Chapter 123
123.
The Sowing Ended Long Ago
【LAOJIA, the battery technology patent they claimed to have developed has been found to have been registered by MH Electronics nine months ago...】
【Did LAOJIA really steal the technology? Should we re-examine the design theft allegations? LAOJIA admits to the design theft allegations, refuting...】
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In just a few days, the tables had completely turned. All sorts of articles spread like wildfire.
While that was happening, Shinwoo was meeting with Amber Montgomery, the FEROX agent who had come to see him, in a quiet place near Incheon International Airport.
In the chilling wind, Amber Montgomery exclaimed in admiration.
"Just as you predicted, more mercenaries than the forces that were stationed there were deployed after we left."
The identities of those who raided Machala and Muisne in Ecuador were FEROX's mercenary unit. And it was Shinwoo who hired FEROX to move.
"Go Seok-ju and An Dong-won should be released in Zurich and Vladivostok at the appropriate time."
"What if they run away from there?"
Amber was aware of the current situation of MH Group. She was also well aware of how big a role the two played in the MH Group case, so she asked worriedly.
"They would have known what would happen to them since they were imprisoned in Ecuador. They will have no choice but to return to Korea if they don't want to die."
Go Seok-ju and An Dong-won clearly betrayed MH Group, hoping for a chance to turn their lives around.
But after experiencing a situation where they were shot and almost killed instead of succeeding, their state of mind was bound to change.
"Ah..."
"They will have a hard time doing anything reckless if they think about their families."
Amber then asked with a question.
"Shouldn't we publicize those we dealt with? Thanks to you, Director, we were able to bring the two and their families out safely without any casualties, but according to the unit members, their skills, manpower, and armament scale were no different from terrorist groups."
She was able to recognize the danger of the 666 Unit at once.
At this, Shinwoo chuckled.
"They have a larger force than you think. Rather, they will use the source of that information to track you down."
"You know more than I thought."
"Knowledge is power. And it's best to avoid things that will make each other uncomfortable, so I hope you will do your best to erase the traces."
A smile appeared on Amber's face.
"Don't worry. And the Silent Bomb you lent us worked well. It's a shame it's disposable... If it weren't for that, we wouldn't have been able to handle the job so well without any casualties."
The Silent Bomb was a frequency vibration grenade that intentionally overclocked the signal amplification effect of the R2ED (Radar Radiation Expansion Device) announced by MH Tech, giving a noise strike to wireless devices within a certain radius.
If you were wearing a walkie-talkie in your ear within that range, you would be unable to move due to momentary damage to your eardrums and nervous system.
Of course, such a Silent Bomb was Jang Man-soo's work.
"I'm glad the effect has been proven."
"I've never seen equipment like this before. You said it was a test product, is MH Tech developing it?"
Amber thought so because Shinwoo was affiliated with MH Group.
"You could say it's similar."
"If possible, FEROX would like to purchase it regularly. I'm not just saying that out of courtesy. These non-lethal incapacitation devices are very useful for corporate mercenary companies."
"I'll think about it."
"Oh, how are the team members doing? I heard they are living a very luxurious life."
At the same time, Mark Freeman and Lawrence Bird, who were standing behind Shinwoo, smiled slightly. The boast they had made to the FEROX mercenaries they were usually close to had become a rumor.
"I'm treating them as well as possible and exploiting them."
"So much so that they're wondering why KITE isn't hiring more external security guards internally. If that really happens, it will be difficult for us."
Shinwoo's laughter grew louder than before.
"It will be difficult to treat everyone else the same. So don't worry."
"You're not suddenly changing your mind, are you?"
They were saying it knowing it was a joke.
"Of course not."
"The higher-ups think highly of Baek Shin-woo's abilities, including the Silent Bomb. And then they found something interesting."
"Are you talking about my application to join FEROX?"
Shinwoo's actions were showing a great influence at a rapid pace. FEROX would have been watching closely, and the person in charge of managing personnel at the agency found the application Shinwoo had submitted.
Of course, FEROX would have confirmed whether Shinwoo was the same person as that Baek Shin-woo, so Amber must have brought it up.
"I was surprised when I first saw it. The person who applied for the FEROX enlistment test is now CEO Baek Shin-woo in front of me..."
"I couldn't go because of sudden circumstances. But you managed to find the application I only submitted."
"It must have been a very important matter. But it's also a shame. If you had come to FEROX as it was, many things would have changed."
Amber's expression was sincere.
"There will be many opportunities to help in the future. In addition to the Silent Bomb, there will be more equipment to test, so business cooperation for that is also good."
"We're happy because you're definitely taking care of the danger allowance. To be honest, I was a little worried about this job, but thanks to the perfect operation consulting, there were only injuries."
"It just so happened that I knew the place well."
Machala and Muisne in Ecuador.
Those places were safe houses used by the 666 Unit in his previous life as well.
Of course, just knowing the location didn't mean he could be sure that Go Seok-ju and An Dong-won were there.
The reason why it was possible to track the two was simple. It was thanks to Weisuan's men who followed them from their destination immediately after they left the country.
"Anyway, I hope the deal continues."
Shinwoo, who was about to finish the conversation with Amber's answer, spoke again.
"One thing I would like to ask is that if you receive a request to rescue a VIP who has been kidnapped to Yemen, I would like you to refuse."
At that moment, Amber's face hardened.
"I knew your information line was great... Were you looking through the request system in addition to our unit member information?"
This is because the request Shinwoo just mentioned was received recently. She shouldn't have revealed it, but Amber waited for Shinwoo's answer because the request was unusual.
"Please think of it as I have a wide network."
"What's the problem with that request?"
"Because it's a trap."
Currently, Yemen has been in a civil war between government forces and rebels for several years. In addition, the situation has become more complicated with the intervention of an international terrorist organization called Al-Kashad.
"Is the rescue operation itself a trap? Which side is aiming for it?"
"The information has already been passed on to Al-Kashad. If you have to do it, you will have to organize it completely differently from the original plan."
"Even our plan?"
"I don't think so, but the escape route options at the operation point are limited. Al-Kashad will probably know that too, so they will preemptively wait."
Amber was deeply troubled by such an explanation.
The amount of the request was 2 million euros. In Korean currency, it was about 2.8 billion won. It was by no means a small amount, so it became a problem to modify the operation or reject the request based only on Shinwoo's information.
"...Is that reliable information?"
"If you don't believe me, you can proceed as you originally planned."
"I'll have it reviewed internally."
"You should go back to France quickly. You could have told me about my work over the phone. I made it unnecessarily uncomfortable."
"It's okay because I was on my way to finish my work in Korea anyway. Then I'll see you next time. Mark and Lawrence are doing well too."
After finishing the conversation, Amber got into the car and left.
* * *
Myung In-chul learned about the battery technology patent that was supposed to be transferred to LAOJIA in China through an article, not the company.
He was so dumbfounded that he couldn't say anything at first. Then, when he contacted MH Electronics and asked, the atmosphere there was that they didn't know anything about it either.
"What's going on? Did Director Kwak make a mistake? No... He said he had been preparing for quite a while. Besides, just looking at how he took out Chief An Dong-won in advance at the right timing, it can't be a mistake."
He tried his best to figure out the cause of the current situation.
However, it didn't fit together as if the puzzle pieces were all different.
Then, Myung In-chul's gaze turned to Park Sang-gyu, who was standing quietly to one side.
"Does Secretary Park know anything about the current situation?"
"...I haven't received anything."
Myung In-chul's frustration only deepened from before.
He thought about going to see Kwak Chi-young first, but he hesitated because Myung In-chul himself was the most troubled in the current situation.
To think that the technology patent would be filed in the name of MH Electronics... He still hadn't figured out who did what.
But would Kwak Chi-young believe that?
"Who on earth did this?"
Buzzing— Buzzing—
While he was only worrying, Park Sang-gyu's cell phone rang.
"It's a call from Director Kwak."
"Answer it quickly."
At Myung In-chul's urging, who had become anxious, Park Sang-gyu carefully pressed the call button.
"I answered the phone. Director. Yes? Ah, I understand. He tells me to switch to the president."
Park Sang-gyu said that and held out the cell phone to Myung In-chul as if to tell him to take it.
Myung In-chul, who had a slightly surprised expression, cleared his throat.
"Speak."
[I couldn't reach you on your cell phone, so I went through Secretary Park.]
Myung In-chul rummaged through his pockets and remembered that he had put it in his jacket in the morning.
"Yes? Ah, I didn't know because I left my cell phone somewhere else."
[I see. It's just that things have gotten seriously twisted.]
It was about the battery technology patent.
"I know it's not very good."
[So... I'll ask you directly. Is it true that you didn't know anything about this situation?]
What kind of result would come out depending on the answer? Myung In-chul, who was starting to feel a little scared, said carefully.
"I didn't know anything about it. If I had known that, I wouldn't have said that about the technology patent issue last time."
[Isn't it possible that you knew and pretended not to know?]
"There's no reason to ruin our deal in the first place. Besides, I was kicked out of MH Electronics and Construction."
Just looking at the immediate gains and losses, Myung In-chul had lost the most.
[I understand what you mean. Actually, I didn't think President Myung would do such a thing either. You have nothing to gain from it.]
"Then why did you say it as if you were cornering me?"
Kwak Chi-young's faint laughter flowed from the receiver.
[Haha. I just needed to confirm a little. But the problem is not solved. As I said before, it's seriously twisted.]
"Does that mean the plan could be completely overturned? Even if MH Electronics has the technology patent, can't we continue the dispute? There's also the MH Foods issue."
From the beginning, the goal was to sweep up the shares of MH Group's three major affiliates to secure management control.
Kwak Chi-young knew that Myung In-chul's explanation was not wrong.
[LAOJIA needs to keep creating conflicts, but it seems that will be difficult because of this incident. They will buy time because of their pride for now, but it will be difficult to last long.]
Myung In-chul understood what Kwak Chi-young was saying.
"You need to buy time."
[That's right. So... Can you use MH Group's legal team to amplify the controversy?]
"Are you telling me to come forward? But I no longer have authority over MH Electronics' affairs. Chairman Myung might notice."
[You have executives, don't you? Even if you have stepped down from the position of president of the affiliate, I believe that President Myung's influence is still strong.]
After thinking for a while, Myung In-chul asked back.
"How much do you need?"
[Just drag it out for at least two months with a lawsuit. We'll try to move again during that time.]
Either way, Myung In-chul had no other choice. So he made a decision without thinking for long.
"...I understand. I'll try to do it."