The Return of the Strategist

Even so, having returned to his senses, he adds with a scoff, "It’s not as easy as it sounds. Seventy trillion won... do you have any idea how difficult that is?"

"You could just ask Father for help, couldn't you?"

Right. Jia doesn’t understand what a governance structure is, nor the difference between cash and equity. That’s why she says things like that. I was a fool for having even a moment of expectation—

"What exactly is the problem?"

"Look closely. First off, 99.9% of my father’s assets are in stocks. That money, over two hundred trillion won? It’s all stock. Imagine trying to sell that on the market. When you trade stocks, if you dump ten thousand shares at once..."

"...The price usually drops. And they don't sell."

"Exactly. It’s the same principle. If a Chairman dumps seventy trillion won worth of his own company's stock, what do you think will happen? That’s why there’s no answer. The more you sell, the lower the price goes. To get seventy trillion in cold, hard cash, my father might have to sell off every single share of Doowon, the holding company."

"..."

And the management rights would be shaken to their core. All those elites—the ISG staff who worked themselves to the bone researching how to improve this tangled mess of a governance structure, the auxiliary office staff, the CRM team, the finance executives—they’ve all spent decades building this. They wouldn't just sell off the pinnacle of the holding company for the sake of selling ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠some oil—

"...It’s not just 'some oil,' Master."

"That may be true, but still. My father would never allow it."

Saying this, he stood up, walked slowly to the balcony, closed the door, and lit a cigarette. When his thoughts became too heavy, his head felt dizzy and unstable, and he felt exhausted. This was exactly one of those moments. A moment where he needed a cigarette. How long had it been? Three weeks since the last one? That sounded about right. As the fire burned from the tip of the cigarette to the middle, he felt as if his heart were burning at the same speed.

Until now, he had assumed there would be no future where he could take up the megaphone again and revive GPL, so he hadn't even prepared for what might come after. But now that the opportunity was suddenly presented—

"...A prepared person... turns opportunity... into success..."

Just as he muttered to himself, he, who was unprepared, lacked the ability, the confidence, and the possibility to turn this opportunity into success.

"Still, you should eat something delicious and keep your strength up, Master."

"...Yeah, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I’ll eat well."

"Would you like a drink?"

"No. I’m fine."

Looking at Jia’s expression, it seemed her only goal was to offer him a drink; there was nothing else behind it. That, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at least, was a relief. At least she wasn't pestering him for sex.

The meal was fine. Braised beef short ribs with the bones already removed, a carbonated drink, appetizing stir-fried bell peppers and onions, and white rice. Before he knew it, Jia was sitting next to him, eating a little bit herself. Right, it’s not good to just dwell on worries. Let’s try to change the mood by having a conversation.

"What did you do while I was at work?"

She says she finished the cleaning and was reading a book. She felt her French skills were lacking, so she was trying to improve them. He had nothing to say other than to praise her for doing well.

"Did you meet up with any friends?"

"They’re all working."

"...Ah, but why are you taking a break from work?"

"..."

Jia, who said she just didn't feel like working, added, "I think I should have listened to you and quit sooner. Now that I’m resting, I really have so much free time."

"Free... time?"

"Yes. Really. Compared to the old me, haven't I changed a lot?"

Hmm, now that she mentioned it, she really had. Well, since they were divorced, it was possible she had changed, but even setting that aside, her entire lifestyle, her expressions, her tone of voice, and her gestures had all become relaxed and gentle. In the past, every action had been frantic; she had the kind of expression that suggested she would throw things if she didn't get what she wanted immediately. Her language had been so harsh that it would have been better if she had just cursed; the newlywed home had been filled with words worse than profanity.

Now, she had practically become a different person.

He finished his meal, washed up, and fell asleep while watching TV with his hand clutching Jia’s breast. Of course, before drifting off, he had seen a terrifying KakaoTalk message from Eunbyul: *Since we didn't have any foreplay today, please do it tomorrow.*

"I’ve found a way."

She’s sitting at my desk again, this woman? ...But I’ll take any help I can get, even a cat’s paw.

"What is it?"

"We simply acquire Salaim, and while holding the voting rights, we transfer the GPL shares so that we can safely secure management rights."

Thinking about it now, her brain is exactly the same as Jia’s...

"I think that’s a decent opinion."

A woman’s voice came from behind. It was a voice I hadn't heard before. Is she a staff member from the Support Headquarters? No, even so, barging into the Senior Managing Director’s office like that...

"Hello, Director. I’m from the Legal Office."

What is this now?

"...? First of all, ah..."

His office didn't have a sofa or a table like the Executive Operations Manager’s office. At most, there was a tea table that Eunbyul had hijacked for her personal use. Other than that, there was just one desk, one chair, three bookshelves, and a place to hang clothes. He remembered when Jeong Hoseong, the President of Doowon Construction, had walked into his office and said it looked like a prosecutor’s office. That was how sparse it was.

"Let’s go to the conference room for now."

"Yes."

It was standard procedure to go to the conference room when a guest arrived. That was where they could have a proper discussion. The woman, who looked younger than Jia but older than her, sat down without being asked, and while she did, Eunbyul pulled the vertical blinds all the way down so the outside couldn't be seen.

"Ah, I’m late with my introductions. I’m Ju Arin, an attorney from the International Finance and Tax Department of the Legal Office. Nice to meet you."

"Yes... I’m Han Suhyun. What brings you here?"

"I’m visiting because of a request from President Kim Seok. There are many things we need to discuss, so I came to see you urgently."

It’s only 8:47 AM, not even business hours yet; I guess this is just the Legal Office’s style—he thought as he listened to the woman.

"My primary work involves reviewing contracts related to financial transactions, conducting reviews, and handling responses to litigation. In that regard, there are many problematic issues if you look at this document. I heard this was a contract you signed privately; was it not reviewed by a legal professional beforehand?"

This woman talks a lot. ...Still, she hit the nail on the head. She introduced her field of expertise by stating her duties, and then got straight to the point by thrusting the contract he had signed in the past in front of him.

"Yes. At the time, I had a lot of debt, so I had to sell the shares."

"...There are many unreasonable clauses. It even smells like a scam. I think there are problems here... and here."

"I was in a hurry at the time, so I had no choice. I didn't know things would turn out like this."

"That is not the issue. First of all..."

And this woman began to point out the unreasonableness of the contract, hitting only the key points.

"First. The act of investing can include losses, and when an investor makes an investment, they do so while bearing the risk of loss. There is no obligation for compensation, but because you signed this contract, you would likely have to compensate if a loss truly occurred. The investment amount at the time was 42 billion won... that might not be a large sum for you, Director."

"However, you cannot proceed by looking only at that amount. If a company specializing in corporate value analysis gives an opinion that GPL’s value is around 10 trillion won, then you might have to pay compensation amounting to 5 trillion won. Since it’s an agreed-upon content between the parties to the contract, we cannot argue its illegality, but..."

But?

"This clause, which prohibits management activities for everyone except the majority shareholder. This could invalidate the contract."

"...It’s a contract that has already been signed and sealed, how could..."

The woman let out a deep sigh, and Eunbyul turned her head to look at the lawyer, curious about what she would say next.

"At the time, GPL was a listed company. Because it was listed on the KOSDAQ under the venture special provisions, the Capital Markets and Financial Investment Business Act applies, so this must be fulfilled. There are several other things as well, let me tell you."

And the lawyer continued, "If you look at Article 147, Reporting of Large Holdings of Stocks, etc., Paragraph 1 states that if you hold 5/100 or more, you must report the holding status, purpose of holding, and major contract details regarding the held stocks to the Financial Services Commission and the Korea Exchange within 5 days from that date."

The public disclosure content that flashed through his mind at that moment. An unknown company that had written down 'simple investment purpose.' It had been scribbled in English, but looking at it now, it seemed to be a subsidiary of Salaim.

"This contract should have been attached as a major contract detail regarding the held stocks, but it was attached without that, and the Financial Services Commission’s approval was granted. In this case, we must proceed with legal proof of the existence of the contract."

"If legal proof is established, it’s one of two things. We can either invalidate the contents of this contract, or the Financial Services Commission could order a correction report."

....This is a golden opportunity!