On the Way to Raum Museum
The road to Raum Museum.
Si-woo’s mind was full of cold, exact calculations.
Chairman Lee Jae-yong asked to see me in person. He wouldn’t have called me over out of simple curiosity.
The head of the country’s top conglomerate.
The fact that he had made time himself meant he was serious about buying.
The real question, as always, was the price.
[Estimated value: at least 30 billion won]
The status window estimated the value of Geumgang Uuido at a minimum of 30 billion won.
But from everything he had learned so far, he didn’t blindly trust the numbers it gave him.
In the end, it was only an estimate.
Especially in the real world, where there was a barrier the status window couldn’t account for: the law.
The problem is that Geumgang Uuido is a cultural property on the level of a national treasure.
The Qianlong Emperor’s Nine-Dragon Ewer had been purchased legally overseas.
That was why it could be put up for auction in Hong Kong, where wealthy buyers from all over the world could compete for it.
When the market was global, the ceiling on the price was effectively gone.
But Jeong Seon’s Geumgang Uuido was different.
It was a masterpiece discovered in Korea.
The moment a work of that caliber appeared at a Korean auction, the government would designate it as a national treasure and immediately ban its export.
[Under the Cultural Heritage Protection Act, cultural properties on the level of national treasures cannot be exported overseas]
The ripple effect of that single line of law was enormous.
The deep-pocketed buyers from Sotheby’s or Christie’s.
The super-rich from China, the major museums of the world.
All of them would lose any reason to bid.
In the end, only Korean buyers would remain in the auction room.
When competition shrank, prices did not rise. That was simple market logic.
Where in Korea could you burn hundreds of billions on a single painting? There aren’t many places.
If he put it up for auction, foreigners wouldn’t be able to enter, and domestic buyers might end up circling each other warily until it passed unsold.
After fees, taxes would become a mess, and time would keep slipping away.
It’s better to settle this with Chairman Lee Jae-yong.
His palm on the steering wheel had grown damp.
By the time he arrived and parked at Raum Museum, he was already tense.
He went into the museum lobby.
Someone who had been pacing near the entrance spotted him and rushed over in a hurry.
"Appraiser Kim Si-woo!"
It was Park Sang-gi, the deputy director of Raum Museum.
The composed demeanor he usually wore was nowhere to be seen.
It made sense. The chairman of the group himself had come.
That was a perfectly natural reaction.
"Good afternoon, Deputy Director."
"The chairman is already waiting in the storage vault, looking at Geumgang Uuido. He arrived ahead of schedule. This way, please."
Park Sang-gi hurried him toward the vault, dabbing at sweat on his forehead with a handkerchief.
During the short ride down to the second basement level, he adjusted his tie several times.
When the elevator doors opened, a long corridor stretched out before them.
A special environment maintained at a constant temperature and humidity.
At the far end of the corridor, after passing through a double security door, the storage vault appeared.
Park Sang-gi opened the door and gave him a sidelong glance.
It was his way of saying he would step out here.
When Si-woo entered, a spacious vault opened before him.
Countless artifacts were displayed beneath soft lighting.
Celadon, white porcelain, Buddhist statues, paintings, calligraphy...
Even after donating so many cultural properties to the National Museum of Korea, there were still this many artifacts left.
Chairman Lee Jae-yong was standing in front of Geumgang Uuido, hung in the vault.
He had not moved a single step from the painting, simply standing there and looking at it.
Only after Si-woo came closer did he turn his gaze.
"Welcome, Appraiser Kim Si-woo. I’ve been waiting for you. Was the trip here comfortable?"
There was no way the trip could have been comfortable.
He was on his way to meet the chairman of the country’s top conglomerate. There was no way he could avoid being nervous.
But he couldn’t say that honestly.
"Thanks to your consideration, I came comfortably."
"I’m glad to hear that."
Special lighting along the wall cast Geumgang Uuido in a clear glow.
The rain-soaked peaks of Mount Geumgang drifted like mist rendered in ink.
The two stood side by side before the painting.
"I arrived a little early today, so I’ve been admiring Geumgang Uuido on my own."
Lee Jae-yong’s eyes remained on the rain-drenched mountains in the canvas.
His voice was low, but carried weight.
"Whenever I look at this painting, I feel as if the tangled mess in my mind slowly settles. When you run a business, dozens of reports come in every day, and you have to make decisions with the livelihoods of tens of thousands of people depending on them. The choice and responsibility are mine, even when they come from the judgments of the finest minds in the field."
Lee Jae-yong finally turned his gaze from Geumgang Uuido.
"When I was crushed under the weight of responsibility, my late father used to look at Jeong Seon’s paintings. As a child, I couldn’t understand why. But looking at this piece today, strangely enough, my mind has grown calm. Before a painting by Gyeomjae, the numbers and results we struggle to build up feel truly fleeting and trivial. In the face of vast nature and the depth of art, you come to realize how small human beings really are. Only after emptying the mind like that can a proper decision be made. I think I finally understand my father."
A relaxed smile touched the corner of Lee Jae-yong’s mouth.
"My father always said that before a true masterpiece, the noise of the world disappears. I think that’s why he cherished old works of art so much. Looking at this painting brings back a lot of memories of him. If he were still alive, he would have ordered us to get it by any means necessary. Haha."
The light in his eyes, which had been steeped in appreciation a moment ago, changed in an instant.
From the eyes of an art lover to those of a businessman weighing every gain and loss with ruthless precision.
"I won’t beat around the bush. Samjung wants to acquire this work."
At Lee Jae-yong’s slight nod, the chief secretary stepped forward and respectfully handed over a document.
"I understand the market estimates this work at 30 billion won. But expert evaluations and reality are never the same thing."
Si-woo swallowed dryly. Lee Jae-yong’s gaze seemed to pierce straight through him.
"So here is my offer."
[Sales Proposal]
Amount: 25 billion won
Terms: All taxes and associated costs to be borne by the buyer (Samjung)
Payment: Full amount transferred to the account the day after the contract is signed
"25 billion won."
The voice was firm.
Before Si-woo could even open his mouth, Lee Jae-yong drove the point home.
"Even if it goes to auction, the chances of it fetching more than this are slim. And once you subtract roughly 10 percent in auction fees, the amount that actually reaches Appraiser Kim Si-woo would be lower still. On top of that, if you factor in the risk of it going unsold, the time it would take for the payment to come through after a successful bid, and the public attention it would draw..."
Lee Jae-yong finished with absolute certainty.
"Cash worth 25 billion won, in your account tomorrow. That is the best offer Samjung can make."
25 billion won. A staggering sum.
His heart gave a jolt before he could stop it.
He ran through the numbers in his head at speed.
He completely agreed with Lee Jae-yong’s assessment.
The status window had valued it at 30 billion won or more, but that was only the price in theory.
Once real-world constraints and the various costs were taken into account...
25 billion was the safe and certain choice.
"It’s a good offer. I accept, Chairman."
At that, Lee Jae-yong smiled gently.
"Thank you for deciding so quickly. Our legal team will proceed with the contract immediately. And..."
Lee Jae-yong paused for a moment before asking in a very serious tone,
"Would you perhaps be interested in joining the Samjung Cultural Foundation?"
"Pardon?"
"I’m not speaking merely of some advisory role for Raum Museum. I’d like you to take a seat on the board of the Samjung Cultural Foundation."
Lee Jae-yong looked straight at Si-woo.
"It would be a waste to keep you within Korea alone. Why not work under the Samjung name on the global stage and plan something even bigger with us in the international art market? We’ll treat you at the level of a group executive, without compromise."
It was an extraordinary offer.
A top-executive position at Korea’s number one company.
The power to oversee the group’s cultural and artistic ventures.
An opportunity where wealth and prestige came rolling in together.
But Si-woo didn’t answer right away.
Instead, a cold tension ran down his spine.
A board seat at the Samjung Cultural Foundation.
It was certainly a sweet offer, one that would be hard to refuse, and the more he thought about it, the colder his reason became.
Too bad. I have to turn it down.
Lee Jae-yong had only seen the results Si-woo had produced so far.
He had no way of knowing the process by which Si-woo separated the genuine from the false and determined value.
Si-woo’s appraisal of artifacts did not come from logic or data, but from a special ability called the status window.
If he stepped inside Samjung’s system, he would have to prove that ability with hard evidence and data.
Any ability that couldn’t be explained to others would eventually create suspicion and problems inside an organization.
This is a refusal, then.
Even Si-woo himself did not yet fully understand how far his ability could extend, or how it might manifest.
He couldn’t afford to put on such a glittering set of shackles so recklessly.
More than anything, he was already tied to the Kim Hak-jun Foundation and Eterna Gallery.
He sorted his thoughts quickly and spoke.
"Chairman. I’m deeply grateful for such a generous offer."
"Then..."
"But I must respectfully decline."
Lee Jae-yong’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
It was the reaction of someone caught off guard by the refusal.
"May I ask why? If the treatment was lacking, I can certainly..."
"No. The conditions are more than enough. But this concerns my ability and my principles."
Si-woo spoke firmly.
"I currently serve as a director of the Kim Hak-jun Foundation, and I also have a partnership with Eterna Gallery."
Lee Jae-yong listened in silence.
Si-woo continued, his gaze unwavering.
"I can’t turn my back on the people who trusted me and move elsewhere just because I’ve been offered better terms. And honestly, the weight that comes with a board seat at the Samjung Cultural Foundation is too heavy for me."
His refusal was polite, but clear and rational.
"I still have too much to lack before I can wear the crown of an executive at the country’s top company. For now, I want to stay faithful to the role I’ve been given at Eterna Gallery and build up my footing steadily, from where I stand."
Lee Jae-yong fell silent for a moment at Si-woo’s respectful, reasonable refusal.
But there was not the slightest trace of displeasure.
On the contrary, a deep smile spread across his face.
"Haha. The more you answer like this, the more I want you. If you’d accepted on the basis of the terms alone, I might have been disappointed. Very well. I’ll withdraw the offer."
Lee Jae-yong rose and extended his hand.
"I’ll be watching Appraiser Kim Si-woo’s future closely. If you ever need help, don’t hesitate to call."
* * *
The next day.
Ping-
A notification appeared along with a phone vibration.
...
I need to let Manager Han know about this.
If I call right away, he’s going to be shocked.
He was staring blankly at the screen at the unreal amount when, less than a minute after the deposit notification arrived, a call came in from an unfamiliar number.
02-XXX-XXXX.
"Hello?"
From the other end of the line came the voice of a middle-aged man, oddly excited but extremely polite.
- Good afternoon! Am I speaking with customer Kim Si-woo?
"Yes, that’s right. Who is this?"
- I apologize for the surprise. This is Choi Young-hoon, center director of the PB Center at CB Bank headquarters. I’m calling because we’ve just confirmed that a large sum of money has been deposited into your account.
The bank systems were fast.
Then again, when 25 billion won from a corporate account had landed in an individual savings account, it probably would have set off alarms at headquarters.
- Since the sender is Samjung Cultural Foundation, the source of the funds appears to be clear. But because the amount is so large, regulations require us to ask about the nature of the funds. If it’s not too much trouble, could you tell us what the money was for...
The center director sounded careful.
He seemed to be nervously trying not to offend a customer who might become a VVIP at any moment.
Si-woo answered calmly.
"It’s the legitimate payment for an art transaction."
- Ah, a work of art. Then the other party in the transaction was...
"I dealt directly with Chairman Lee Jae-yong of Samjung. If you’re suspicious, you can call Samjung’s executive office and confirm it immediately."
At that moment, Si-woo heard a sharp intake of breath through the receiver.
- C-Chairman Lee Jae-yong of Samjung?
After that, there was no sound for a while.
Not even breathing.
For even the center director of a bank that made its money from the wealthy in Korea, the three syllables of the name "Lee Jae-yong" seemed to carry a shock beyond imagining.
The director’s heart was pounding.
The issue wasn’t the 25 billion that had come in.
It was that this man was doing direct business with the head of the country’s top conglomerate.
The other party’s young, steady voice only made him more flustered.
"...Hello? Director?"
When Si-woo called again, the man seemed to snap back to himself at last and answered in a flurry.
- I-I’m sorry! I was just so shocked...
The director’s voice had risen an octave from before.
It had gone beyond politeness and bordered on reverence.
- Customer. May we upgrade your account to our headquarters VVIP tier, the Honors Club? No, I should come to your home right now and explain it in person!
The amount, 25 billion won. The connection to Chairman Samjung.
The moment those two things were confirmed, the world’s attitude toward Si-woo changed by one hundred and eighty degrees.
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