Just Because Lightning Strikes Doesn't Mean the Sun Won't Rise
The employees of Ilhyeon Distribution gathered on the rooftop, smoking and trading stories.
"You never really know with people, do you?"
"What are you talking about?"
"You know that Assistant Manager Kim who used to be in our sales department. The one who got picked by the royal family and shot straight up the ladder."
"Ah—Assistant Manager Kim Seong-ho?"
Assistant Manager Park, who had worked alongside Kim Seong-ho in Ilhyeon Distribution's sales division, spoke toward Assistant Manager Song smoking across from him.
"Who ever thought that guy would end up like this?"
Park shook his head, picturing the Kim Seong-ho who was now Head of the Restructuring Headquarters—the group's reaper.
Song nodded along in agreement.
"Tell me about it. Back when he was with us he barely talked. Quiet guy…"
"He's terrifying now, from what I hear. Not long ago he gathered all our executives for a talk, and people said he was incredible."
"What happened?"
Song, hearing this for the first time, kept the cigarette between his lips and asked for details.
"You know who our company's Vice President is, right?"
"Who doesn't? It's Vice President Lee Chang-jong."
"Exactly."
Song looked at Park with a face that said he had no idea why the man was dragging this out so long.
Park took a couple of deep drags, then spoke with a grave expression.
"That's why our executives walked around with their noses in the air. They had the Vice President backing them."
"Just the executives? Regular staff were the same. We were out meeting company presidents every day, so we couldn't exactly put on airs even if we wanted to…"
"Right. But…"
Park paused and glanced around the rooftop, half-afraid someone involved might be listening.
After a long look he confirmed no one from that meeting was present, then continued.
"They got completely wrecked by Director Kim."
"Completely wrecked? Who?"
"Who do you think? Managing Director Choi."
Park grew animated as he spoke, miming the act of hurling something to recreate the scene.
"He threw the report right in Managing Director Choi's face and told him to get out of the company."
"At Managing Director Choi? Director Kim did that?"
"That's what I'm saying—and that's not all. Executive Director Kim is about to get reported for misusing company funds."
"Executive Director Kim is getting reported?"
Song, startled by the unexpected news, stubbed out his cigarette and tossed it into the ashtray. Listening to Park mattered more than smoking right now.
"You know that operational support allowance the company gives us? Executive Director Kim was skimming it. Every time the monthly support money came out at a hundred thousand won, he always took twenty thousand off the top."
"Yeah. And then he still demanded results worth the full hundred thousand. Unbelievable."
"It would've been fine if it was just him. But it became custom, and for years now other executives have been eyeing that support money too."
Song frowned and nodded at Park's words.
"You're right. I got this month's support money not long ago and only received fifty thousand. I went to general affairs and asked why it was only fifty, and they couldn't even answer."
"Obvious, isn't it? One of the executives pocketed it."
Park snorted and looked as if everything now made sense. Then he spoke in an excited voice.
"Director Kim already knew all about it."
"Of course. He must've been on the receiving end himself."
"So he said he's going to clean the whole mess out. Tomorrow people from the Restructuring Headquarters are coming to our company to review every document. The general affairs staff are panicking right now trying to set up an office for them."
Song let out a low whistle.
"Whoa. There's going to be a mountain of dirt."
"A huge mountain."
When Park agreed, Song thought for a moment and then asked, puzzled.
"But our Vice President just sat there and watched? He's supposed to be the older brother… In the family hierarchy Director Kim is a step below him, and even by title Director Kim is only treated as a Managing Director. I know headquarters executives and affiliate executives aren't the same level, but this side is a Vice President…"
Park grinned as if he'd been waiting for that exact question and carefully edged closer to Song.
Song leaned away, staring at the man sidling up to him.
"What are you doing? Why are you smiling like that and creeping over?"
"Quiet."
Park covered his mouth with a finger and checked the surroundings once more.
Song watched him strangely until Park confirmed no one was near and spoke in a low voice.
"There's talk that the Chairman ordered the Restructuring Headquarters moved under his direct command."
"Isn't it already under the Chairman?"
"No. Right now the Restructuring Headquarters sits under the secretariat."
Park gestured to illustrate the chain—Chairman, then secretariat, then Restructuring Headquarters. Song listened and felt something was off.
"If it's under the Chairman's direct authority… the power would…"
"Become absolute. From now on everything Director Kim does is something the Chairman ordered. No middleman—he's the man who moves as the Chairman's direct proxy."
"But then the Managing Director–level title…"
"Doesn't fit. That's why there's talk he'll be appointed President when the new president roster is named. That's why the Vice President couldn't stop him."
Song finally nodded as understanding settled in.
"If turning Ilhyeon Distribution upside down is the Chairman's will, and if Director Kim is already a headquarters President in rank, then the Vice President can't block him. Older brother or not—this is a company."
"Exactly."
Park gave Song a look of pure satisfaction.
"How about it? Exciting, right? I hope the day Director Kim blows all those bastards away comes soon."
"Same here. I've been waiting for those old men sitting on top, sucking the juice out of everything, to get thrown out. I just want him to make this a real company so we can actually work hard. If he does that, I'll support Director Kim no matter what."
"I've never looked forward to the company like this before. I'm counting the days until the restructuring starts."
Park and Song finished their conversation hoping that day would arrive soon.
Just then Assistant Manager Choi walked over to them.
"What are you two doing up here? Haven't you heard?"
"Heard what?"
Choi pulled a cigarette from his pocket, stuck it in his mouth, and lit it.
Park and Song watched him light up, then asked,
"What is it that you're dragging it out? What's going on?"
"What's going on? Plenty."
The moment Choi finished speaking, people poured onto the rooftop like a flood.
Park and Song stared in bewilderment at the growing crowd, their faces turning strange. They had never seen the entire company surge onto the roof like this at once.
Still holding the smoke in his lungs, Choi looked toward the people they were watching and opened his mouth.
"Everyone came up because they feel like they're choking."
"Choking? On what?"
Choi turned back to Park and Song.
"Our country applied to the IMF for a bailout. They say the Republic of Korea is finished."
"What? It did what?"
Park and Song's faces went pale at Choi's words.
Then they saw every person who had come up to the roof lighting cigarettes with expressions full of rage and despair, and they knew Choi wasn't lying.
The bright expectation that had lit Park and Song's faces moments earlier drained away into shadow.
Without either of them speaking first, both men pulled out cigarettes, tilted their heads to the sky, and simply smoked.
Jo Chung-sep, whose hair was so overgrown he clearly hadn't found time for a haircut, paced around Kim Seong-ho, still sounding as if he couldn't believe it.
"Director, it really is the IMF. It really is the IMF."
He kept repeating himself toward Seong-ho as if the fact still refused to settle.
"Doesn't this mean the Republic of Korea is finished? How… how can something like this even happen?"
Seong-ho sat comfortably, watching Jo open and close his hands while staring at his own palms, and asked,
"Are you happy? Or sad?"
Still smiling at the man studying his hands, Seong-ho continued,
"From where I'm sitting you look happy. Like there's money sitting right there in your palm."
At those words Jo hastily brushed his hands clean and gave an awkward cough.
"Ahem. Happy? Of course not. How could anyone be happy when the country is collapsing? Absolutely not."
"Is that so?"
Seong-ho tilted his head and spoke again.
"If you'd made a huge amount of money, wouldn't you be happy? It's not as if the country has truly collapsed, after all."
"Director, please."
Jo hurried over in alarm, but Seong-ho never dropped his smile.
"All we did was ask the IMF to lend us money. Like taking out a bank loan. It isn't the catastrophe the media is making it out to be. As long as we pay back what we borrow, that's the end of it."
"Even so… it isn't just any lender. Borrowing from the IMF comes with all sorts of interference…"
"But it was a problem we were going to have to solve someday anyway. Opening the financial markets and making the stock market more favorable for investors—isn't that something you want as well, President Jo? Come to think of it, besides the money you've already made, there's another reason for you to be pleased."
Jo waved his hands theatrically and shook his head at Seong-ho.
"Director, stop teasing me. If anyone overheard, they'd think it was true."
"Still… Future Asset did make a serious profit, didn't it?"
Faced with Seong-ho's sly question, Jo scratched his head sheepishly.
"Our clients made the profit."
"A client's profit is Future Asset's profit, isn't it? The more money the clients make, the more fees you collect and the more new clients pour in."
Still seated, Seong-ho spoke to the awkward Jo.
"There's a rumor people are rushing in with bags of cash. Word got out that existing clients made an enormous amount of money."
"It's all thanks to you, Director."
"Thanks to me?"
"Yes."
The sheepish expression vanished; Jo nodded with a serious face.
"I simply followed the insight you showed me. I didn't do anything myself. Everything came from the direction you pointed out."
"That was still your judgment, President."
Seong-ho clasped his hands and looked at Jo.
"If my view had been absurd, would you have followed it? You sensed its validity and decided it was the profitable path, so you came along. It isn't thanks to me—it's thanks to your excellent judgment."
"When you put it that way, I don't know what to say. Thank you."
Jo bowed his head toward Seong-ho.
Then he slowly raised it again and asked,
"So… if I may ask… don't you feel it's a waste?"
"A waste of what?"
"The positions you're liquidating right now."
Jo looked down at the account statement lying on the desk in front of Seong-ho.
"I know you're doing it because the Chairman ordered it, but once the IMF bailout is confirmed the market will fall even further… don't you feel it's a shame?"
"From the beginning I said I would liquidate if the index broke four hundred. The index just broke four hundred, so even without the Chairman's order I would have closed the positions."
"But back then we didn't know the IMF would actually provide a bailout. Or even if we expected it, it was only a forecast—it hadn't actually happened yet… I was wondering whether your view might have changed…"
Seong-ho smiled and picked up the account statement.
He looked at the numbers printed inside and spoke.
"My view isn't going to change. Just because lightning strikes doesn't mean the sun won't rise tomorrow."
"Then…"
"Right now is the correct time to sell. When the market collapses one more time, that will be the correct time to buy. We're not moving one or two hundred million—we're moving hundreds of billions. We need a buffer, so move with room to spare."
"Sell now… and buy when the market collapses once more…"
Jo quietly repeated Seong-ho's words, working to absorb the insight.
Listening to him, Seong-ho silently read the figures on the statement.
Two hundred eighty billion… not bad.
Looking at an account that had grown from fifty billion to two hundred eighty billion, Kim Seong-ho felt a quiet satisfaction.