Chapter 125
Chapter 125
125.
Tangled Harvest Festival (2)
Stepping out of the car was a woman with long blonde hair reaching her chest, large sunglasses, and a white blouse with a beige skirt underneath.
"Dorothy... McDaniel?"
Shinwoo recognized her and sat quietly.
At the same time, Weisuan was startled, knowing who that name referred to.
"Why is that woman showing up here?"
"Be quiet. Show as much official demeanor as possible."
Clack— Clack—
The sound of high heels seemed to echo through the tightly closed windows.
As Mark Freeman in the passenger seat tried to get out, Shinwoo stopped him.
"Stay still."
"Are you sure it's alright?"
"There are too many eyes watching. They won't do anything dangerous."
Dorothy, now right in front of them, knocked on the window on Shinwoo's side.
Knock knock—
Shinwoo quietly lowered the window and asked calmly.
"Did you get lost? Branch Manager Dorothy McDaniel of TSF."
Slightly surprised, Dorothy took off her sunglasses.
"You knew who I was."
"I'm acquainted with the Korean branch manager of TSF. And in this industry, one can't not know that the Chinese branch manager of TSF has recently changed."
Dorothy smiled.
"I wanted to meet you in person. Would you be available for dinner tonight?"
"Is this how Branch Manager McDaniel usually makes appointments?"
Horns blared from behind due to the cars stopped in the middle of the road.
But that quieted down as Dorothy's black-suited subordinates poured out, creating a menacing atmosphere.
Dorothy's smile deepened.
"I've had a lot of reasons to be aggressive lately because of someone. It's become a habit, I guess. How about it? Dinner tonight."
With the question, Dorothy handed over a business card she had been holding.
Shinwoo quietly accepted it and handed over his own.
"Alright. I'll see you tonight. Send me the location and time to that number, and I'll be there."
"Thank you. Then I'll see you tonight."
Dorothy took it, winked at Shinwoo, and returned to her car.
At the same time, Shinwoo said to Mark.
"Mark, catch Meian."
"Already on it."
Meian, who had been sitting in the driver's seat, was about to jump out. She had become enraged by Dorothy's actions.
"That bitch is flirting with Shinwoo!"
At the same time, Weisuan let out a long sigh.
Meanwhile, Dorothy's cars started moving, the traffic jam cleared, and Shinwoo's car could move as well.
"Are you really going?"
At Weisuan's question, Shinwoo nodded.
"What can I do? They invited me, so I have to go."
"Aren't they calling you knowing something? It could be a trap."
Shinwoo had considered that possibility as well.
"If they had figured something out, they wouldn't have invited me like this. And wouldn't they have targeted you first instead of me?"
Weisuan narrowed his eyes.
"Are you trying to get me killed or something?"
"Even if it's not that woman, any company would want to get close to me in my current position. Besides, I'm also related to Kwak Chi-young, so Dorothy McDaniel might want to probe me."
Of course, that was just speculation.
"You're really too bold. Your guts are not only hanging out of your stomach but dancing as well?"
"Aren't you being too scared? Your legs were shaking when McDaniel came earlier."
"If you knew how the Seven Circle Society was being crushed, you wouldn't be able to help it."
"Really? But it's not completely cleaned up, is it?"
He had heard that the size of the organization had been significantly reduced last time. But it was still being talked about.
"In their last struggle, the Seven Circle Society raised the white flag. But small forces have penetrated deeply, so it's almost on the verge of collapse."
"A meaningless white flag."
It was the same as the TSF China branch cleaning up the Seven Circle Society.
"The Seven Circle Society believed they could somehow recover. Besides, I also reduced my forces as I transitioned to a company, so the other guys must have thought it was a windfall."
"It must be chaos."
"Come to think of it, they were looking for Cui Xun."
"Huh? Cui Xun? Ah, is it because of that?"
Cui Xun was the former TSF China branch manager, killed by Shinwoo. However, Lillian disguised herself as her to embezzle Ray Sung Group's slush funds and deceived Lu Wens, the Macau branch manager of the Seven Circle Society.
"They seem to be searching under the assumption that Cui Xun is alive."
"They must have disposed of the body themselves, so didn't they even check properly?"
Shinwoo thought they would have found out even if it was late. But the fact that they were still looking for her seemed to indicate an unexpected situation was unfolding.
"That's the situation now. But we have to be careful because they might change direction at any time."
"Just don't shake like you did earlier."
"I wasn't shaking? But did you know that MH Group is taking a separate bidding route in this auction?"
At that question, Shinwoo could guess what situation he was talking about.
"President Myung Sung-chul got involved?"
"He applied through a company called NOA Fund, and when I checked, that person was there. But didn't he not have any funds there?"
"Myung In-chul's funds must have been invested. Myung Sung-chul is probably desperately trying to make up for his past losses."
"Do you have the expected funds?"
"About 800 billion won? That's about 4.4 billion yuan."
Weisuan exclaimed.
"Are you running a temple or something? But he's gathered quite a bit. Isn't that dangerous? How much are you thinking?"
"Should a person involved ask something like that? It's insider trading."
It wasn't wrong, but a smile appeared on Weisuan's lips.
"We're going to sell to the highest bidder anyway. What does it matter?"
"Forget it. Take me to the accommodation. Don't get caught in people's eyes."
The public bidding for Baeseong Corporation and its affiliates was after lunch tomorrow.
In the meantime, other bidders would be in Hong Kong. Of course, Myung Sung-chul might be among them, so it was best not to show any situations that could cause unnecessary misunderstandings.
The car headed towards the pre-booked hotel.
.
.
.
It was evening.
Shinwoo rested for a while and then went outside with his bodyguards. However, Meian was temporarily entrusted to Weisuan in case of any unforeseen circumstances.
He went out with the bodyguards and moved to the place he had received from Dorothy McDaniel.
It was the Lei Ching Hai Lan restaurant in Tsim Sha Tsui.
The top floor overlooked the sea stretching like a river and the night view of southern Hong Kong. When he arrived, Dorothy McDaniel was waiting with her secretary and bodyguard, Braden Cross.
However, unlike when he saw her on the road earlier, Dorothy was wearing a red, form-fitting off-shoulder dress.
"I'm glad you arrived right on time."
"I don't like being late."
"But I didn't expect you to bring all your bodyguards. You must be a cautious person."
It was a slightly sarcastic remark, implying that Shinwoo was a coward.
"There are many things to be cautious about these days. And it seems like you're more cautious than me, Branch Manager. I can see you've placed them here and there both outside and inside the restaurant."
Dorothy's expression momentarily hardened. She had tried to keep them on standby as discreetly as possible, but she had been caught right away.
"...You have a good eye."
"I haven't heard that I'm lacking."
There was a moment of silence before Dorothy continued.
"Do you like meat?"
"It's not bad."
"Their young lamb steak is a delicacy here. I'll order the same."
Shinwoo raised his hand in agreement. And soon after, the food came out, and the real conversation began.
"I've heard a lot about CEO Baek Shin-woo's reputation even in China. You've introduced a new distribution system through Livio Soft, and now you've come for the Baesung Distribution bidding, right?"
"The property came out nicely."
"I've heard that MH Future Security is amazing, but Baesung Distribution... I didn't know you had that much capital."
"I'm embarrassed to hear that from someone who's in charge of the TSF China branch."
The atmosphere was still calm.
There, Dorothy changed the subject as if wanting a twist.
"Did you trade with Branch Manager Kwak Chi-young of Korea often?"
"Not much. About two or three times? To be honest, it was more of a give-and-take than a trade."
"I heard you gave her information about Baeseong Corporation."
Was she talking about the information that the eldest son, Bae Sung-hwan, was not Chairman Bae Young-cheol's biological son?
However, Kwak Chi-young and Dorothy McDaniel were rivals. Naturally, Kwak Chi-young would not have told Dorothy that Shinwoo had provided that information.
'So they have people planted in each other's camps?'
It was a somewhat vague question from the start.
After thinking for a moment, Shinwoo looked at Dorothy and smiled.
"I'm not sure what kind of information you're talking about."
"I'm talking about the information about Bae Sung-hwan, who was Chairman Bae Young-cheol's eldest son."
Since Shinwoo didn't take the bait, she directly presented the question.
"If it's that, I'm responsible. Branch Manager Kwak Chi-young proposed a deal, so I gave her the information as a sign of trust."
"Was the Koga Pharmaceuticals case also for that reason?"
Both were information that Shinwoo had proposed. At this point, it was clear that Dorothy had been keeping Kwak Chi-young in check for a long time.
"I did give it, but you didn't trust me at the time and missed the information. But you seem to have frequent exchanges with Branch Manager Kwak Chi-young. You know even the very detailed things."
Dorothy gave a bitter smile for a moment.
"Please think of it as interest rather than exchange."
"So, what do you want to say to me that you asked to see me? You didn't call me just to check my homework, did you?"
Dorothy cut the meat into small pieces and put it in her mouth. It seemed like an action to deliberately buy time for an answer.
"...I'm curious about the source of that information, but you probably won't tell me. So I'd like to propose a deal like Branch Manager Kwak Chi-young."
In the end, Dorothy also meant that she needed something from Shinwoo.
"I always welcome deals that are win-win for each other."
"I thought you would hesitate a bit before answering. You're very quick. Honestly, aren't you guessing the relationship between me and Branch Manager Kwak Chi-young?"
"There are no eternal allies or enemies anywhere. Depending on the situation, timing, and interests, the position can't help but change."
At Shinwoo's serious answer, Dorothy smiled again.
"I heard you were from the military... You're more open-minded than I thought."
Dorothy, who answered in a subtle voice, slowly rotated the rim of the wine glass with her finger.
"Only in business."
"Does that mean you're not like that in romantic relationships? Are you perhaps the type who pursues pure love?"
Shinwoo knew that she was trying to shake his heart with a beauty trap.
Of course, an ordinary man would have shown interest in her. That's because Dorothy's appearance and voice were tickling his heart.
However, Shinwoo was filled with unpleasant feelings.
"I don't like looking around unnecessarily."
"You're very firm."
"I don't like unnecessary things. So, what kind of deal do you want?"
At Shinwoo's question, Dorothy's lips pouted as if she had lost her momentum.