The Ministry's Shadow Power Broker (2)
Since the other side was offering to pour drinks as a sign of submission, I had no reason to refuse.
“Of course. You must be busy preparing for the confirmation hearing, so you’ll need to stay in close contact with the ruling party as well. I’ll accept first, then pour one for you in return.”
Glug, glug.
Once the two small soju glasses were filled, Im Su-chan quickly turned his head and emptied his in one go. Without any proper side dishes, knocking back that strong liquor so fast was bound to upset his stomach. Had he been that thirsty on the way here? Or was some fire burning inside him that demanded an urgent supply of liquid? Either way, it didn’t matter. All I needed to know was that Im Su-chan was sitting here with no composure whatsoever.
Only after setting his glass down and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand did he speak again.
“Before coming here, I heard from my foolish daughter and Dr. Shin Ho-jung why you wanted to meet me, Team Leader Kwon Ho-gyun. They said you were willing to show some leniency. I’m truly grateful.”
Since they had already decided on a strategy of total surrender, I wouldn’t have to waste energy dealing with tantrums the way I had with Im Yu-jin. As expected of a tenured professor at a prestigious university and a ministerial candidate, he knew exactly who held the knife.
“Yes. We’ve already discussed handling this in a way that causes no harm to President Shin Ho-jung, our company, or your future. However, I didn’t invite you here just to hear your thanks.”
“I’ve also been thinking hard about what I can do for you and QS within my own capacity. If I become Minister of Information and Communication, it would naturally benefit both sides, given that QS Group’s main pillars are electronics and telecommunications.”
Just vague talk of mutual goodwill and benefit? That was far too weak. No matter who became the next minister, who in their right mind would want to sour relations with QS Group? Im Su-chan had pulled himself together after his daughter’s call, but apparently not enough. Even knowing the hilt was in my hand, he was still playing it lukewarm. I had no choice but to draw the blade from its sheath and show him just how sharp it was.
“Shall we continue our discussion while looking over the materials I’ve prepared?”
Im Su-chan’s facial muscles twitched awkwardly for a moment, as if he were forcing a frown back into place, then settled.
“Of course. If you’ve prepared something, I should see it.”
Shff.
The documents slid out of my bag like a drawn sword, passed through my hands, and reached him. Since I’d deliberately kept it short—just a few pages—it didn’t take him long to flip through to the last sheet. The moment he finished, the facial muscles he had been struggling to keep composed twisted sharply.
What Im Su-chan now held was an audit report containing the “truth” of this hiring scandal. It detailed how, at his request, Shin Ho-jung had illegally hired Im Yu-jin, along with a terrifying outline of our planned response:
- A public apology and resignation from the President of QS Telecom
- Full disclosure of the scandal to the media as soon as possible
- Criminal complaints against all involved parties (including the one who requested the illegal hire, the executor, and the beneficiary) for obstruction of business, breach of trust, and other charges.
In short, I had just shown Im Su-chan that I could destroy not only him, but his student and daughter as well.
With trembling lips, Im Su-chan forced a crooked smile and poured another drink into my glass. Then, as if flames were roaring inside him, he filled his own glass to the brim with surface tension before I could even offer, and downed it in one gulp.
Gulp.
After emptying his glass so hastily once more, he barely managed to steady his quivering lips and speak.
“You mentioned preparing ‘materials’ earlier. Does that mean there’s more for me to see besides this?”
Oh. Even in this situation, he didn’t miss that detail. He wasn’t someone whose composure would crack easily.
“Yes. There’s more to show you.”
* * *
Just as hope began to spread across Im Su-chan’s face at my answer, the door to our room slid open and the waitstaff entered with a brazier and meat. I hadn’t planned this, but it gave Im Su-chan no choice but to fidget anxiously while the table was reset, waiting for the next document.
Sizzle.
While Im Su-chan voluntarily took up the tongs and placed meat on the brazier, I pulled the second audit report from my bag. As discussed with Shin Ho-jung, this one stated that the audit team had found no evidence of misconduct and concluded that Im Yu-jin’s hiring had been legitimate.
Flip, flip.
It wasn’t the sound of his mouth. Im Su-chan’s hands tore through the pages faster than an outsider’s tongue rapping. Then, as if he had grabbed a lifeline, color returned to his face in an instant.
Now that the ingredient named Im Su-chan was properly cooked, it was time to plate it. While he read the report, I picked up the tongs I had set down and placed a piece of meat on his plate, then one on mine. To celebrate the completion of our side dishes, I proposed a toast, and we both emptied our glasses.
“Which of the two audit reports you just saw will be officially released tomorrow depends entirely on your judgment, Professor Im.”
“Good heavens, of course I hope it’s the second one I read.”
“Then you’ll need to make a few promises.”
“Yes, of course.”
“Once you’re promoted to Minister, please pass along all confidential bidding information regarding projects commissioned by the Ministry of Information and Communication to QS Telecom. Since you have a close relationship with President Shin Ho-jung, I’m sure there are many discreet channels the two of you can use.”
As expected, Im Su-chan had already discussed this with Shin Ho-jung beforehand and had planned to hand over at least one major project to QS Telecom. But handing over all confidential bidding information was a level he hadn’t anticipated.
“If we do that, QS Telecom will naturally monopolize nearly all Ministry-commissioned projects. Won’t that draw unwanted attention from outside?”
“That’s something you and President Shin will have to manage discreetly. Still, I do have a plan.”
“You do? What kind of plan?”
QS Telecom securing a large volume of Ministry projects would simply grow the affiliate now under my control. The method I had in mind would also shrink the size of our rival.
“From the outside, people see QS Group as one entity anyway. They don’t distinguish between QS Telecom and QS Electronics.”
“That’s true.”
“So, you can also quietly award projects to QS Electronics at a level that doesn’t raise eyebrows. After President Shin took office, QS Telecom’s R&D capabilities have become quite solid, haven’t they? It wouldn’t look strange at all if a project that was supposed to go to QS Electronics ended up with QS Telecom instead.”
When I finished, Im Su-chan nodded deeply and respectfully placed meat on my plate with both hands. It wasn’t just because I could ruin his life—it was a gesture of genuine respect.
“Understood. I’ll proceed exactly as you’ve said, Team Leader.”
“And while you’re serving as Minister, may I contact you through President Shin whenever I need something from the Ministry?”
“Yes, yes, of course. You can go through Dr. Shin, or contact me directly. I’ll never ignore your calls again like I did today.”
“Then tomorrow, we’ll announce that no evidence of misconduct was found in the QS Telecom hiring case. You may take the report you’re holding now and submit it as evidence for your confirmation hearing.”
“Thank you very much.”
Heh. With this, I had not only brought QS Telecom—one of the Group’s three main pillars—under my influence, but also secured the position of the Ministry of Information and Communication’s shadow power broker, a role Seong-gyun and Je-gyun could only dream of.
* * *
Meanwhile, while Ho-gyun was drafting the two audit reports and meeting Professor Im Su-chan, Seong-gyun’s lunch with President Shin Ho-jung had stretched on. As Seong-gyun had hinted beforehand, the topic of conversation was Ho-gyun.
Originally, Seong-gyun had considered Ho-gyun nothing more than a troublemaking youngest brother who only burdened the Group and had no place in the succession race. At best, once the succession structure was settled, he had planned to give him QS Delivery or something similar, as per Chairman Kwon Byung-do’s wishes.
But after passing the bar exam, Ho-gyun had risen at a terrifying pace and had already entered the Central Management Division—a position both Seong-gyun and Je-gyun had been eyeing. That was simply Chairman Kwon Byung-do’s personnel style. He gave everyone a small opportunity. If they seized it, he gave them a bigger one. This cycle repeated until he decided to cast them out.
Presumably, the bar exam had been Ho-gyun’s first small opportunity. He had seized it, and ever since, he had been granted increasingly larger chances. How that good-for-nothing troublemaker kept exceeding Chairman Kwon Byung-do’s expectations was beyond comprehension.
Honestly, even Seong-gyun had to admit he had missed many of the opportunities the Chairman had given him. That was why, despite being the eldest son, he still hadn’t been recognized as the clear successor. If things continued this way, Ho-gyun might rise beyond being a team leader in the Central Management Division and become its director—the position directly beneath Chairman Kwon Byung-do in the Group hierarchy. If that happened, Ho-gyun would become a far more formidable rival in the succession race than Je-gyun ever was.
Seong-gyun had to cut him down now, while the sprout was still small, before an irreversible situation arose. After pouring out his frustrations to President Shin Ho-jung over lunch, Seong-gyun and the president moved to a quiet café.
“President Shin, I can’t afford to leave Ho-gyun alone any longer.”
Shin Ho-jung, knowing this was the conversation he had to hear, perked up and asked,
“Hearing you say that, Team Leader of the Audit Team at Central Management does seem too big a role for him. Do you have a plan in mind?”
“Exactly. And that very position as Audit Team Leader is going to devour him. I heard QS Telecom placed a main advertisement with the large portal Diver this time. How much was the budget?”
“Ah, that ad? It’s on both the web and app homepages with a fairly long run period. If it runs the full scheduled duration, the total spend will be a little over one billion won.”
Seong-gyun set down his coffee cup and nodded.
“With that kind of budget, you should be able to request one or two articles on the portal’s main page, right? If they refuse, you could also apply pressure by threatening to shorten the ad period.”
“Yes. It’s not ideal, but it’s something everyone does behind the scenes. What you’re asking should be entirely possible. Are you planning to bring down the third young master with an article?”
“Yes. Ho-gyun is going to deeply regret parading his face in the media to climb all the way to Audit Team Leader at Central Management.”