Chapter 21
Chapter 21
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Boom (2)
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There were two main reasons I decided to park the money in Japan.
The biggest one was that just leaving it there would make it grow on its own. Plus, since it was money earned overseas, laundering it was a breeze, and I could even keep the family in the dark about how much I'd made.
Considering I was scraping together cash while watching my back because of their scrutiny, this was a bigger win than it might seem.
And... the second reason? It was that I'd been handed an even juicier prize—one so massive I didn't even need to hustle for more cash.
Semiconductors.
I could stick my spoon into Daeha Group's semiconductor business.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The Plaza Accord happened at the end of September. And time, as always, flows only forward.
As expected, it wasn't long before the season arrived when rustling fallen leaves mixed with the soil and turned to mush.
The time when all things freeze and people go hungry—the season commonly called winter.
But thanks to advancing civilization and the long-awaited boom layering a coat of tar over the dirt roads, the streets rarely saw the icy-hard ground anymore.
Fallen leaves settling demurely on the asphalt got to pile up under the cold snow for a little while, only to be crushed under rolling car tires soon enough.
-Screeech.
A gleaming luxury car crunched through heaps of leaves and pulled up to the mansion's entrance.
"We've arrived, miss."
A tall beauty in a suit opened the car door and held an umbrella over the child stepping out.
It was Yoo Ha-yeon, the youngest granddaughter of Daeha Group.
"Yeah, thanks. Si-hyeon, you're heading back to the Secretary General's office after dropping me off, right? It's been a while."
Time had flown once more—to December.
I was heading home for a family gathering.
"Yes, I'll see you all the way in."
In the past few months, Lee Si-hyeon had grown remarkably polished. Not the stiff, awkward politeness of a fresh grad, but something natural and refined.
If she used to look like a maid trailing behind me, now she felt like a proper part of nobility.
The feminine lines blending with the sharp suit gave her a boyish beauty that looked even more elegant. Servants who were too overtly feminine or flashy with masculinity just didn't fit the role.
Either way, they ended up stealing the master's spotlight.
'Picked a good secretary after all.'
Her elevated poise made me look pretty impressive too.
Being so young, I lacked personal charisma, but Si-hyeon propped it up just right, letting me pull off the young lady act decently.
Most people didn't dare approach me casually because of it.
"Hey, Yoo Ha-yeon. You made it."
Well, exceptions existed. Like the legitimate heir of the Yoo family and Daeha's firstborn son—he could talk to me like that.
He was a high schooler with a overall delinquent vibe. Not quite post-apocalyptic (still a decade away), but definitely the type who played around.
By chaebol standards of the era, his outfit was outrageously sloppy.
"Seon-jun oppa, what wind blew you in looking like... that?"
I naturally frowned. What was he doing eating dinner this late...
"Ah, spare me the nagging. Kids these days are such a pain. Stayed up gambling last night—happy now?"
Yoo Seon-jun, eldest son of Daeha heir apparent Yoo Jin-seok, plugged his ears and grumbled irritably.
"Puberty hitting hard?"
"..."
I couldn't fathom what this guy—who'd be chaebol chairman if he just sat tight—had to complain about to act so twisted.
Well... technically, I'd be snatching the chairmanship from him if he did, but no way he knew that.
I stepped closer. Cigarette smell wafted off him.
"...Smoking too, huh."
He shot me an incredulous look.
"What, cigs are fine, right? A guy's gotta smoke."
...Right, it was the '80s. The era where men weren't just encouraged to smoke—they got ostracized if they didn't. Lucky for me being a girl; one more perk besides dodging the draft.
"Fair enough, but stay off drugs."
I'd seen it on the news in my past life. This guy was a regular in those chaebol third-gen drug bust stories.
Yoo Seon-jun.
Rumor had it the stuffy atmosphere and family expectations drove him to booze, drugs, and especially gambling... I just didn't like him. I got the stress part, but...
Maybe it bugged me how his reckless, nuisance-causing lifestyle mirrored his dad's too closely.
"Hey, quit nagging. You're not my dad. Little brat's gotten mouthy since you shot up. And dude, I'm a senior now—even Grandpa cuts me slack. He won't smack around a college exam kid."
"...True enough."
"Anyway, spill it. Heard you raked in 100 billion gambling? How?"
...So that's why this idle bum showed up.
I sighed inwardly at my cousin shoving his face in mine, eyes gleaming.
"I didn't gamble. Hmph, it was all investments."
Yoo Seon-jun stared like I'd lost it.
"Zero if you lose, 100 billion if you win—that's investment? What else you call that but gambling? And you, a kid who's been at it since eight—telling me..."
Ha, couldn't exactly say I came from the future... No good comeback either.
Truth be told, weren't derivatives even more vicious than straight gambling? They wrecked my past life too.
Abysmal odds, but massive returns and thrills... Ruined countless lives, including mine.
Hard to deny the similarities. No wonder he said it. Wonder when he even studied that stuff.
"How'd you know anyway, oppa? You barely know stocks, let alone options. Saw you killing it at flower cards last time, but this is different. Hmm, studying for exams?"
He nodded.
"Yeah, aiming for business. Can't lose to a ten-year-old at gambling—that's ridiculous. So I started studying again after ages."
"...For real?"
"Gonna quit gambling for a bit next year. Last night was my blowout finale."
Daeha's gambling addict flashed a relieved grin. His good-looking, princely face made even dumb lines sound cool—typical heartthrob type.
Anyway, gambling maniac.
"...Good luck with that."
I nodded vaguely and headed inside with Si-hyeon. Best not to engage crazies.
Still, it worked in my favor. If he got his act together and charged ahead, he'd be a real threat.
He'd be thirty right before the IMF crisis—not old, but who knew what lucky break might screw me over.
Off the top of my head: With his dad Yoo Jin-seok freed up from cleanup duty on his kids' messes, he'd have more bandwidth to check me.
That was... why I didn't go all-out making bank. Scattering seeds quietly was fine, but building real power or flexing ability? That'd rile the family.
Like this—a simple butterfly effect could change anyone.
This time, in a weird direction.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The extended Daeha family tree was pretty simple right now.
Founder Chairman Yoo Seong-pil had no notable relatives. He wasn't always alone, but most kin died in the Korean War, and he cleaned up the rest later, or so I'd heard.
...No clue how. It was the main reason he was called iron-blooded, that's all I knew.
Point was, Daeha had surprisingly few people.
Chairman Yoo's kids were just eldest son Yoo Jin-seok, second son Yoo Jin-ha, and eldest daughter Yoo Seon-yeong. Down to third-gen including me? Eight total—not many.
21st-century folks might think that's plenty amid low birth rates, but this was the '80s, and a chaebol house.
Even broadening to "extended" family, just 11 across second and third gens. Rare, even accounting for our thin bloodline and Yoo Jin-cheol's early death.
Compare to Mirae Group—often pitted against us: six in second-gen alone, over twenty in third, straight line.
And Mirae's sidelines were active in politics and business, with their current chair already second-gen... Reincarnating there would've meant a headache-inducing family tree.
'No wonder Seon-jun gets it.'
Chairman Yoo, hating family infighting over rice bowls, preferred not growing the clan... but chaebol management had upsides too.
Top brass all being family made control easy.
Chaebols thrived on handing hats to kin for tribal rule—and we barely had enough takers.
Short on family for CEO spots? Organization weakens, or burdens one person too much.
Of course, Chairman Yoo picked the latter.
-"Hey punk, you even try? I did at your age—huh?"
The ultimate human potential evangelist had such an extreme mindset, he assumed everyone could match him.
Made it worse: he actually could. Without my reincarnation perks, I'd be drowning in question marks too.
Already, Yoo Jin-seok and Yoo Jin-ha shouldered heavy loads. Even daughter Yoo Seon-yeong and daughters-in-law fully in Daeha ran subsidiaries.
Minimal gender bias in Daeha—by era standards—was thanks to that. Women gained economic power WWII-style: sheer manpower shortage.
Manpower so short, no room for picky gender picks.
Still not enough, so they eyed underage Yoo Seon-jun too. Must be hell for him—straight to mismatched CEO play under Grandpa's iron fist post-college.
Whew...
With a cousin bro enduring such grueling life, how could I—famed for filial piety—not step up?
Guess I have no choice but to take it over, huh?