Chapter 120: A Friend for Life
Chapter 120: A Friend for Life
I met many people while doing business in America.
Lawyers, financiers, Silicon Valley founders.
They were all incredibly eloquent, but even by objective standards, Han Chae-won was no slouch compared to them.
‘She was really good at arguing.’
She possessed the ability to blame me for everything, no matter the situation or what happened.
She was the kind of person who could make three or four mistakes and still manage to pin all of them on me.
So when I heard she had written a manuscript for a book, I expected it to be quite the story.
[The day I went to Kim Shin’s shabby studio, he made me doenjang-jjigae with plenty of clams and kimchi fried rice.
Kim Shin smiled happily and said,
“You know, clams. They’re delicious just boiled, but they’re also great in doenjang-jjigae or fried rice.”
He put the clams into the pot as if they were some incredible luxury ingredient.
Of course, living like this, I could see why he’d be so satisfied with just clams.
‘Haa. It’s not like his fridge has truffles or caviar. Looking at this dingy dump of a place, I guess I can understand.’
A semi-basement room that smelled of mold.
‘Surely that stain on the wall isn’t a dead cockroach, is it?’
I suppressed my irritation and ate.
He said he wasn't much of a cook, but his doenjang-jjigae and kimchi fried rice were delicious enough to open a restaurant with.]
‘Well. Living alone, I did make a lot of doenjang-jjigae and kimchi fried rice.’
Reading Han Chae-won’s manuscript brought back old memories.
I had only started adding clams to my cooking after I began working and had a little more financial leeway.
Before that, I would just mix seafood doenjang paste with water or simply fry some kimchi to eat with rice.
You could say my cooking skills were built from the very bottom.
I wasn’t good at many dishes, but I was definitely confident in those two.
Since Han Chae-won was the first girlfriend to visit my place, I had tried to treat her to my signature dishes.
‘I really did my best. But I guess it was still far from enough.’
With no lingering feelings for Han Chae-won, it became an opportunity to reflect on my past self, and I was able to skim through the manuscript with interest.
‘She used to compare me to her ex-boyfriends, talking about how they took her to hotel restaurants in Gangnam or brunch cafes.’
Even though I grew up without much money, I had lived a relatively happy life.
It was only after I met Han Chae-won that I truly felt the immense sorrow of being poor.
[The topic of divorce came out of Kim Shin’s mouth.
The moment I heard it, I was flabbergasted.
How dare he bring up divorce with me?
I had no intention of ever granting one, but if we were to divorce, this villa and the car bought on installments…
I’ll take them all. Let’s see if you can still leave me then.]
“……”
It wasn't that there weren't parts that infuriated me as I read the manuscript.
But because it was in writing, it was a much more sanitized version of reality.
When Han Chae-won had glared at me with daggers in her eyes and shrieked that I’d have to give her everything if I wanted a divorce, all I could think about was escaping.
A complete state of panic, you could say.
‘That place was like hell. I escaped just to survive.’
When I signed a new lease with the landlady of my old place and lay down in the semi-basement room.
What could ever replace that sense of relief and happiness?
A short while later, I was able to turn on my computer and check the price of Bitcoin.
‘The topic of crypto had come up quite a bit before that. My married life was so chaotic that I couldn't pay any attention to it.’
Looking back, I wasn't entirely blameless.
Even before the marriage, I kept thinking she wasn't the one, but she was my first girlfriend, and I couldn't bring myself to leave, if only out of a sense of loyalty.
Even as I held a bouquet and proposed, I felt like I was being sucked into a swamp.
Feeling that way and still confessing and getting married—I must have been out of my mind.
“Sir.”
“Hm?”
I looked up from the manuscript.
Lee Jong-yeop was staring at me with a curious expression.
“You’re reading it very intently.”
“Yeah. It’s bringing back memories of my married life with Han Chae-won, so I have a lot on my mind.”
“What should we do with this manuscript? I’ll leave the decision to publish it or not up to you.”
“Hmm…”
It contained a lot of my private life.
My time working at Arcor and my life after getting married.
I wondered if it was something I should reveal to the public, but I didn't feel the need to hide it either.
‘I’m being overrated by the public.’
Just a few of my investments had turned into massive successes.
The same went for Earth Resource’s business.
My own abilities were nothing special, but as talented people gathered, we were achieving incredible success.
To the point where we were frequently described as a first in Silicon Valley history.
‘I’m just an ordinary person, too.’
If people think too highly of me, won't the shock be greater when I eventually fall?
Honestly, I didn't really look at community posts anymore.
They were a great comfort back when my self-esteem was low, but now I felt I had moved past that stage.
“If you decide not to publish this manuscript, what method will you use?”
“We’ll have to demand that Han Chae-won revise the content.”
“And if she revises it?”
“We’ll demand it again. By finding fault with the content or demanding higher quality.”
“She might accept it once or twice. But knowing her personality, she’ll throw a fit.”
I imagined Han Chae-won would have a meltdown.
Even if I achieved tremendous success and the President of the United States had to walk on eggshells around me, would Han Chae-won still seem terrifying?
“Depending on the situation, we will pay her small amounts of money. It could be tens of thousands of dollars or more.”
“So you’ll just keep delaying it.”
“Short of using people to physically threaten her, this is the only way within legal bounds.”
The phrase “legal bounds” sent a slight chill down my spine.
It sounded like, if it came to illegal methods, they would stuff Han Chae-won into a drum.
For something like that, I wouldn't need to mobilize a Korean gang; I could just use my current security team.
Former special forces, intelligence agents.
I was under the thorough protection of people who had worked for private military companies in war zones.
Sending just a few of them to Korea would be enough to take care of Han Chae-won perfectly, but…
‘It’s not worth taking that kind of risk.’
I disliked Han Chae-won, but not enough to hurt or kill her.
The US government might be watching me, and creating such a massive vulnerability would be foolish.
“I have no intention of stopping the book’s publication.”
“But your private life will be exposed to the public.”
“Most people will probably find it amusing.”
The public is interested in the private lives of celebrities. But when you think about it, it’s nothing more than a fleeting curiosity.
There’s no need to get overly stressed about that kind of attention.
Honestly, I quite liked some parts of the manuscript.
[The thing I looked forward to most in my married life with Kim Shin was the night.
The time in bed.
I had been with a few men, but I had never imagined a feeling like this could exist.
I think I finally understand why women go crazy for men.]
* * *
Kim Shin’s movements were a matter of paramount interest to Wall Street fund managers.
“He’s selling off a large portion of the stocks he’s been buying since March.”
“But the stock prices are rising…”
“Is he planning to go against the Fed?”
“Probably. That must be what it means.”
The Federal Reserve.
The world considered it reckless to oppose the US central banking system, which issues the dollar and determines interest rates.
In 1994, when the Fed raised interest rates to 6%, a massive capital shift occurred, leading to the 1995 Mexican peso crisis.
Fueled by speculative capital, the crisis spread through Latin America and Southeast Asia, eventually leading to the IMF bailout in South Korea.
From 2004 to 2006, when interest rates were raised from 1% to 5.25%, the US housing bubble burst, triggering a financial crisis.
The entire world was thrown into tremendous chaos.
“The Fed doesn’t lose a fight.”
“The talk of a bubble isn’t entirely baseless. Still, considering the increase in financial institutions' assets…”
“The interest rate is 0%. If we don’t invest now, when will we?”
In the offices and coffee shops of Manhattan, everyone was talking about Kim Shin.
“It’s also noteworthy that Korean capital is moving to realize profits on a large scale.”
“It’s frightening to see tens of billions of dollars moving just like that.”
In the US, various pension funds were the big players in stock market investment.
The California Public Employees' Retirement System had assets of over $400 billion, but they were fundamentally long-term investors.
The sight of tens of billions of dollars held by retail investors moving in tandem with Kim Shin was, to Wall Street fund managers, a marvel.
“The sell volume from Goldman and JP Morgan has increased.”
“Looks like the managers over there also think the market is a bit overvalued right now.”
Those who worked on Wall Street possessed outstanding intelligence and judgment.
While confronting the Fed was reckless, they didn't think Kim Shin had no chance at all.
This year’s stock market surge was historically abnormal.
Kim Shin could very well be right… but the Wall Street fund managers solidified their positions.
“This is an opportunity to buy stocks.”
“Right. We need to buy the stocks Kim Shin is selling.”
“I heard he’s selling off Tesla.”
“Tesla’s stock price has soared this year. There’s still more to look forward to.”
Wall Street financiers received large incentives for achieving high returns.
With a lavish party in full swing, they were not about to avoid risk just to be cautious.
If a loss occurred, it was only the clients’ money that would decrease.
* * *
Channel 7.
The technical preparations for the Earth Channel video platform were complete.
“Vice President, what are your plans for advertising?”
“Television, newspapers, the internet. And outdoor ads?”
“Yes. Advertising using those types of media.”
The marketing department staff swallowed nervously as they looked at Oh Myeong-woo.
Finally, the reason for their existence had arrived.
“We’re not doing any of it.”
“Excuse me?”
“Just put up a small banner on Earth Channel. If it’s a good service, people will use it.”
The marketing staff retreated with slumped shoulders.
Oh Myeong-woo had no desire to use Earth Resource’s funds on unnecessary expenses.
‘We have so many places to invest and a game company to acquire. What’s the point of advertising?’
Spending billions of dollars on marketing costs—wouldn’t it be a waste to see all that money just melt away?
―Oh Myeong-woo: I’m not trying to rush things. We’ll start with an open beta and see if we can gather users.
―Kim Shin: Yeah. Good thinking.
His friend always believed in him.
There were times when Oh Myeong-woo felt burdened by the title of Vice President.
It might have been different in the early days of Earth Resource, but now it had become one of the top IT companies not just in Silicon Valley, but in all of America.
―Oh Myeong-woo: But how can you trust me so much? I’m sure there are more talented CEOs or vice presidents out there.
Oh Myeong-woo asked the question that had been on his mind for a while.
What gave his friend the confidence to entrust Earth Resource to him?
The online video market alone was worth tens of billions of dollars.
A reply came a moment later.
―Kim Shin: First of all, without you, Earth Resource would never have even started.
―Oh Myeong-woo: Uh… that’s true.
―Kim Shin: There might be more talented executives out there. But no one knows the projects started at Earth Resource better than you do.
―Oh Myeong-woo: That seems right, too.
―Kim Shin: I believe that you’ve grown just as much as the company has.
―Kim Shin: If it wasn’t you, I wouldn’t have been able to entrust the company to anyone with a peaceful mind.
“Wow…”
Oh Myeong-woo’s heart swelled with emotion.
They say a general will lay down his life for the one who believes in him; he never knew his friend trusted him this much.
“He’s a friend I can stick with for life.”