Chapter 74
Chapter 74
Chapter 74. Mission CHINA (1)
Cheon Hye-rin was working in her mansion's study when she heard a knock.
The door opened, and Chae Min-ah, her maid and secretary, entered.
"Madam Chairman, the data on Raysheng Gold Money has arrived."
Chae Min-ah handed Cheon Hye-rin the stack of documents she was holding.
Cheon Hye-rin flipped through them one by one, asking, "What's the situation?"
"It's quite bad. It's been analyzed that there's a hole of about 60 billion yuan due to issues with financial products."
Cheon Hye-rin's brow furrowed. It was the exact amount Shinwoo had mentioned.
"Is it the two CEOs who are the problem?"
"They embezzled funds without the head office's knowledge and suffered significant losses from investments. In the process, they operated the funds by means of rolling them over, and the amount seems to have continued to increase due to interest rates and liquid profits within the financial products."
There was a subtle nuance in Chae Min-ah's explanation.
"Is there... perhaps more to it than that?"
"Circumstances have emerged indicating that Raysheng Group itself has been concealing a significant increase in debt related to real estate development."
She never imagined that Raysheng Group, in which she had invested with some trust, would have so many problems.
At the same time, Cheon Hye-rin's head began to ache.
"How much is it?"
"Current estimates are about 3.23 trillion yuan."
Approximately 600 trillion won in Korean currency. It was bound to be an enormous sum.
However, most companies start with debt due to the nature of business, so there was such a thing as a debt ratio.
Until recently, Raysheng Group's debt ratio was 141%. It was quite high, but there were no problems with business management because funds continued to flow in.
"What's the current debt ratio? Not the publicly disclosed one, but the properly assessed one. Including the reserve ratio."
Chae Min-ah hesitated for a moment before answering.
"The debt ratio is 342%. The reserve ratio is... 23%. And..."
"Is there more?"
"The People's Procuratorate is investigating Raysheng Group. It seems that Du Im-hwa, the CEO, and the group's executives will be arrested soon."
It meant that the problems festering within Raysheng Group would soon erupt.
"What's the estimated timeframe?"
"It should be revealed within a month at the latest."
"Recovering the investment is a matter of utmost urgency. Set up a legal team immediately. Also, check the timing for securing reserve assets and selling shares."
"The legal team is already prepared."
"Then proceed immediately. Ah, and call that guy too. If he's far away, send a private jet to bring him back."
Chae Min-ah didn't understand immediately and asked again, "Who... are you referring to?"
"Baek Shin-woo."
"Ah, I'll call him right away."
While Chae Min-ah left, Cheon Hye-rin picked up her phone and called Im Hee-yeon.
It was to explain the situation with Raysheng Group and ask her to visit the mansion.
.
.
.
Shinwoo was sitting in Huangpu River Park near the hotel where he had stayed for two days.
The leisurely (?) daily life he was having for the first time since his regression was filled with a quiet and heavy feeling.
"The last time I came to China... was it during the Hebei hostage rescue mission?"
It was a mission to find the daughter of a Chinese tycoon who had been kidnapped due to a business dispute. Of course, it was resolved quickly and without problems(?)...
As he muttered quietly, a worrying thought arose.
"I wonder if I'll get contacted after returning to Korea. I thought the Yaguza side would confirm things quickly."
Liwen and Huwan, Weisuan's closest aides, originally betrayed the organization in the future and sided with the Seven Circle Society. Due to that incident, Weisuan almost died and barely managed to survive, hiding deeper into the shadows.
Thinking that, Shinwoo leaned his arm on the bench and turned his gaze towards the forest at the 5 o'clock direction behind him.
"Those guys... can't even hide their presence properly and keep following me annoyingly..."
Two men who looked like thugs were there.
They were Yaguza Weisuan's subordinates. They had been following him from the electronics market two days ago to the hotel, constantly glancing at him.
"Well, if I don't get contacted, I'll have to return by plane tonight."
Vroom— Vroom—
At that moment, his phone rang in his pocket, displaying an unsaved number.
"Who is it?"
The only places that would call him now were Yaguza Weisuan and Cheongwoo Group.
He pressed the call button, and a familiar voice was heard.
[This is Chae Min-ah from Cheongwoo Group.]
"You're the secretary from back then. What's the matter?"
[The Madam Chairman wants to meet you now. If you tell me your current location, I'll send a driver.]
"I'm in Shanghai right now."
[Shanghai? You've gone far.]
From Qingdao to Shanghai, the straight-line distance alone was nearly 550km. Naturally, it would take over 7 hours by car, so Chae Min-ah couldn't help but be surprised.
"Even if you travel by plane, considering the time it takes to get to the airport by car, it'll take at least five hours at the earliest."
[If you tell us your exact location, we'll send a helicopter to a nearby location. If you transfer to a chartered plane after moving to the airport with that, it'll take about two hours at the latest.]
"Do you have to go that far?"
[The Madam Chairman has requested to see you as soon as possible.]
Chairman Cheon Hye-rin had found out about the Raysheng Group's problems.
Shinwoo then checked his current location on his phone and said, "Alright. I'm in Shanghai Gongqing Forest Park right now. The coordinates are 31.318238, 121.548231. There's a place nearby where a helicopter could land, but I don't know if permission will be granted."
[Thank you for the detailed explanation. And you don't have to worry about the helicopter landing. We'll make sure the helicopter arrives within 20 minutes.]
As the call ended, Shinwoo nodded.
"Someone like Chairman Cheon wouldn't have any difficulty with that. ...Huh?"
As he muttered that, he felt an eerie sensation from behind. At the same time, as he turned his head, a knife was flying straight towards him.
Thwack—
In an instant, Shinwoo barely managed to snatch the knife right in front of his face.
"What crazy bastard is this?"
It was the direction where Weisuan's subordinates had been hiding earlier. But next to them, a very young-looking woman was standing in a pose as if she had just thrown the knife.
She was Meian, Weisuan's adopted daughter.
'...Yaksa?'
Of course, Shinwoo knew who she was. However, their relationship wasn't very good in his previous life. Just from the fact that a knife had flown silently just now, it couldn't be said to be good this time either...
"Are you the guy called LOX?"
"Did the Yaguza send you?"
"Is this guy crazy... is our dad your friend?"
Meian strode closer and tried to grab Shinwoo by the collar.
But Shinwoo lightly dodged her hand and stepped back.
"It's troublesome to start a fight out of nowhere."
"Aren't you coming? Dad told me to bring you!"
"You could just contact me, why bother? And I have an important prior engagement right now, so it's troublesome."
"That won't do. Our dad comes first. So come with me."
Meian hadn't changed from before(?) or now. Rather, since it was an earlier period than when he knew her in the future, she was even more headstrong.
"That won't work."
"There's nothing that won't work. I'll have to drag you away. It's okay if you lose an ankle or so, right?"
With the question, Meian took out two Handaxes from behind her waist and gripped them. It was the first time in a while he had seen the Yaksa's Handaxes.
"Wow, she's going to chop off my ankles out of nowhere."
Shinwoo took out a die with his left hand and gripped the knife he had just caught in reverse with his right hand.
"I heard you crushed our guys? You don't think you can beat me with just that, do you?"
"Doesn't seem particularly difficult?"
"I want to cut off your tongue along with your ankles. But Dad needs to be able to talk to you, so I'll spare your wrists instead."
Meian charged while answering herself. The Handaxes with handles slightly shorter than her forearm were swung at Shinwoo's torso.
Whoosh— Whoosh—
'Her talent for wielding Handaxes is still the same.'
The trajectory of the Handaxes cutting through the air moved following the direction Shinwoo was dodging. That was impossible without having tremendous wrist strength.
Despite her seemingly slender physique, Meian was a woman born with such monstrous strength. With that talent, she had cut down countless enemies in the underworld fights.
That was why the nickname Yaksa became more famous than Weisuan's adopted daughter.
Whoosh— Whoo-oosh— Clang! Clang clang!
One strike led to two, and three continued without end.
Even so, Shinwoo dodged or deflected with the knife, once again confirming her talent.
'She's really amazing. Amazing. But at this time, she can't help but be lacking.'
Thud—
Shinwoo, who had been constantly retreating, was blocked by a tree.
At that moment, a chilling smile appeared on Meian's face, and the Handaxe flew towards Shinwoo's neck.
Whack—
But Shinwoo instead leaped forward in front of her face, then bent down and slipped away. The Handaxe passed over Shinwoo's head and became embedded in the tree.
It was a force that drove the Handaxe blade in nearly halfway.
"Weren't you only going to cut off my ankles and wrists? That last one was for my neck."
"Shut up!"
Perhaps because of Shinwoo's evasiveness, which dodged this way and that, Meian shouted in anger and lightly pulled out the Handaxe embedded in the tree.
"A super-powered girl is no different."
"Let's see how long you can keep dodging."
With the shout, Meian's Handaxes became faster, like wielding nunchucks. Filling the air with unpredictable trajectories, they drew closer to Shinwoo.
"Those aren't easy to dodge one by one."
In the meantime, Shinwoo's gaze briefly turned to the sky. He had spotted a helicopter approaching the park from afar.
'There's not much time left.'
Perhaps Meian had noticed that gap, she quickly charged and suddenly lowered her stance, aiming for Shinwoo's ankles.
"Got you!"
"Thought so?"
At the same time, Shinwoo kicked off the ground strongly and leaped into the air.
"Let's see if you can dodge in there too!"
As if she had been waiting for it, Meian threw the Handaxe towards Shinwoo.
Whoosh—
The Handaxe, which had begun to spin rapidly, drew closer to Shinwoo. In the air, he could no longer leap, so it was the same as being forced to take the Handaxe.
But Shinwoo twisted his body in the air and snatched the handle of the Handaxe that had flown right in front of him. The force of the Handaxe made his posture in the air even more unstable, but even so, Shinwoo tensed his abdomen and crouched his body, then spun around once and landed.
"Ouch, my stomach is cramping. I thought my abs were going to tear."
Meian was dumbfounded by the sight. Not only had he caught the Handaxe that she thought he could never dodge, but he had also corrected his posture in the air in a split second.
"...What are you?"
"What do you mean, what am I? I'm a person."
"If you were a person, you couldn't move like that, that's why I'm asking!"
"Enough. Let's stop here for today. Tell the Yaguza that the matter has been handled as I said, so please fulfill the request first."
"Who sent..."
Whoosh— Whack!
At that moment, the Handaxe thrown from Shinwoo's hand grazed Meian's shoulder and became embedded in the tree.
Meian didn't react at all to how fast it was and stood frozen.
"......"
"There won't be any leniency next time."
Shinwoo said that and ran towards the helicopter that had landed on the grass in the middle of the park.
Meanwhile, Meian, who had been standing quietly, muttered with her ears and face reddened.
"Finally... I found him."