Let's Sell It Properly (1)

"Me? You mean, politics?" Choi Ki-hyun wore a look of profound bewilderment. But deep down, he was brimming with admiration for his grandson. 'My god. To think he even predicted this situation….' Yoon-gi had mapped out several scenarios for how JD would act after this incident. And now, one of them had hit the mark perfectly.

"Why are you so surprised? Ever since I became president, I have never seen anyone as loyal to me as Chairman Choi." JD took a breath and continued immediately. "Honestly, don't the chaebols in Korea all stick together to look after their own interests? But Chairman Choi is different. You truly think of the country, and you think of me. That is why I want you by my side. The position of chief of staff is currently vacant—how about it?"

"Hmm…." As Choi Ki-hyun let out a low hum, JD’s expression grew urgent.

"Does the position of chief of staff not appeal to you? If so, tell me what position you desire. I will arrange that position, or one equivalent to it, as best I can."

"Ah, it is not that I dislike the position." Choi Ki-hyun smiled softly and spoke as quickly as JD had just done. "To be honest, I am merely a merchant who knows nothing but how to make money."

"That cannot be! If a person of such upright conduct as Chairman Choi does not enter politics, who will?"

Choi Ki-hyun shook his head slightly. "The only reason I can conduct myself so uprightly is thanks to Your Excellency’s benevolent governance. And if I were to become a politician, it would become difficult for me to properly serve Your Excellency."

"What? What do you mean by that…?"

"It is a simple matter. Because I am currently an economic figure, I can support Your Excellency with both material and spiritual resources. However, if I enter the political sphere, the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠'material' part of that support will be lost. Therefore, I believe that maintaining my current duty, rather than stepping into politics, is the true path for Your Excellency’s benefit."

"Hmm…." With the other party refusing while maintaining such a humble posture, JD could not bring himself to press further.

"Your Excellency, and do you not still have many loyal subjects? Even just the Chief of the Presidential Security Service is renowned for his loyalty to you, and even excluding the former chief of staff and the Minister of Government Administration, there are plenty of people who offer you their loyalty. Please continue to exercise benevolent governance with them. This old man will assist Your Excellency’s economic policies as a merchant."

JD was deeply moved by Choi Ki-hyun’s words, yet he let out a slightly negative remark. "JSD has been… honestly, I’ve been worried lately. I wonder if that fellow has changed recently…."

It was an inner thought he would never share with anyone else. That alone showed how much JD had narrowed the distance between himself and Choi Ki-hyun.

"Haha, you may not trust others in this world, but you must trust the Chief of the Presidential Security Service. Have you not experienced what kind of person he is since the Vietnam War?"

At Choi Ki-hyun’s benevolent smile, JD sighed and nodded, thinking it was truly a shame to let such a man go.

"Well… I will handle that part myself. Anyway, I am truly disappointed. I wanted to keep someone like Chairman Choi ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠by my side…."

Choi Ki-hyun intentionally let out a light laugh. "Hahaha, can you not just think of me as your Minister of Economy? As I just said, I will assist Your Excellency’s economic policies."

"Yes. I don't know how reassuring it is to hear you say even that. I look forward to your continued support."

"Of course. I look forward to yours as well."

After a while of intimate conversation, Choi Ki-hyun left the office. And a moment later, JD shouted to his secretary.

"Call N."

The moment N, who had been relatively neglected, finally received attention. JD had already prepared a second talent in case Choi Ki-hyun could not be recruited. And JD’s plan was eventually discovered by JSD, though not in real-time. This was because JSD, as JD had said, had decided not to discriminate against his targets for inspection. Only Yoon-gi could predict what kind of results this would bring.

The losses Samwoo and YK suffered due to this incident were, frankly, not insignificant. They were at a level that could be called quite meaningful. Of course, they were partially recovered as Heo Cheong-won and Heo Do-il were ousted and their corruption was exposed under JD’s 'order.' However, once bad rumors are spread, they are not easily corrected, no matter how many correction reports are issued. Therefore, the perception of YK and Samwoo clearly carried more risk compared to before.

However, Yoon-gi did not care. Because Yoon-gi had set the sacrificial table, Choi Deok-bae asked with a satisfied expression and a full stomach.

"Can't you tell just by looking?"

Yoon-gi was leisurely enjoying a Super Genesis in his room. He wasn't even waiting for the opponent's response; he was truly enjoying his vacation. JD had met with Choi Ki-hyun one more time after that. It was regarding the recovery of the damages suffered by YK and Samwoo. Although Choi Ki-hyun refused, JD insisted that he could not allow that and told him to say what he wanted, and Choi Ki-hyun, as Yoon-gi had instructed, made an 'enormous proposal' to JD.

The Soviet Union would abandon its closed-door policy based solely on communism as early as next year. However, predicting that at this point in time was virtually impossible. Therefore, JD, who received Choi Ki-hyun’s proposal, was also quite flustered.

From JD’s perspective, it was a promise that required a major decision, but in a sense, it was a promise with no problems at all. In short, it was a promise that allowed him to show off his magnanimity while carrying almost zero risk. Therefore, JD made a verbal promise on the spot, and perhaps feeling that this alone was not enough, he also pledged to provide various tax benefits and priority rights regarding the management of insolvent companies in the future if desired.

To Choi Deok-bae, who looked slightly disappointed, Yoon-gi turned his head slightly and grinned.

"The 'exit' hasn't happened yet."

The main characters were the fox and the crane, and the central content was the soup called the presidency. The fox received the narrow-necked bottle, and the crane received the plate, and both were forced to 'exit' to the United States. At least the fox and the crane had the means to go to America; the fate of Kim Ju-ho, who was neither the fox, the crane, nor the soup, was even more miserable. While he wasn't dragged off to the ANSP, he was completely stripped bare from head to toe regarding the entertainment he had received from various companies while working at the National Tax Service.

Eradicating corruption in a dictatorship? This wasn't eradicating corruption; it was merely the process of weeding out someone who had aligned with the wrong side, using corruption as the excuse. Would the other guys in the JD regime who were weeding out Kim Ju-ho be any cleaner? Regardless of such inner workings, Kim Ju-ho was immediately dismissed, criminally charged, and left to wait for trial while confined in a detention center.

Since it had already reached JD’s ears that Kim Ju-ho had acted as a puppet for Heo Do-il and Heo Cheong-won, it was clear he would receive the maximum sentence and the maximum forfeiture. But what about the fox and the crane? Of course, it was different. If Kim Ju-ho were stripped, Heo Cheong-won and Heo Do-il would take a hit. But if Heo Cheong-won and Heo Do-il were dragged down as recklessly as Kim Ju-ho? That would be a direct hit to JD’s own image, so he stopped at 'de facto exile' to the United States.

Instead, the possibility of them returning to the presidency or Korean politics was effectively zero. No matter who took the next presidency, there was no chance for Heo Cheong-won and Heo Do-il to return. JD? JSD? N? A completely different new figure? The moment a new regime enters, it is natural for the influential figures of the previous regime to become 'cold rice' (outcasts). As such, the possibility of Heo Cheong-won and Heo Do-il returning to politics was lower than a camel passing through the eye of a needle.

"Sigh, I didn't want to come to America in this mood…." Heo Cheong-won muttered to himself. Then, Heo Do-il, who had taken the same flight, glanced at him.

"Hey, didn't you say you were going to retire from politics? Saying you'd be a kingmaker."

Because JD had personally bought their plane tickets and sent them off, they had to come to the U.S. in economy class. Having been beaten with a baseball bat by JD, their backsides were aching, and they were stuck in economy class on a flight to America. Heo Cheong-won walked limping toward Heo Do-il, who had spoken to him.

"You're the one to talk, pretending you weren't interested in the presidency while pulling every trick in the book behind the scenes. Remember what you said when you visited my villa? What? 'Are you crazy?' Oh my, how impressive."

At Heo Cheong-won’s biting sarcasm, Heo Do-il’s face flushed red. "Hey! Honestly, anyone would make that kind of arrangement. You, of all people…."

"Hey, enough." Heo Cheong-won cut off Heo Do-il and continued quickly. "What good does it do to talk about this and that now? If we decide whose fault is greater, does power just roll into our hands? It doesn't, right? We just have to live quietly in America now. There’s no answer. So, you go your way, and I’ll go mine. Okay?"

Heo Cheong-won shook his head left and right a few times, sighed, and left Heo Do-il behind to go his own way. In the past, Heo Cheong-won would have been surrounded by bodyguards and attendants. But now, there was no one around him as he left the airport. And Heo Do-il, watching that scene, was no different.

"…." He looked around at the emptiness, but as expected, there was no ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one around Heo Do-il himself either.

"Sigh… they say power doesn't last ten years…. Now that it’s come to this, there really is no one around me…." Heo Do-il also sighed and left the airport.

However, it wasn't that there was absolutely no one around them. Of course, they weren't right next to them. But in the future, people would appear around them to embrace them—or rather, pretend to embrace them.

'Looking at it, it won't be very difficult to put those two into the honey jar.'

The one watching them from afar with binoculars was none other than FBI Director Joshua. Joshua had been invited to Guster’s mansion and had seen with his own two eyes what kind of later years a 'Guster who made the right choice' was spending. Therefore, Joshua had aligned himself with Guster without hesitation and had promised to provide maximum support for his activities in the United States.

'Spit out all the secrets of Korea that you know. They will all become the bricks of my mansion.'

Joshua’s face, with his lips curled upward, was overflowing with the will to extract Korea’s classified information from the two by any means necessary.

As the National Tax Service quieted down, the public opinion that had been criticizing YK also began to subside as if nothing had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠happened. In the first place, unless it was a market with substitutes, it is difficult for the public to sanction a company in a market without them. The businesses YK is currently doing? They focus on luxury department stores and movies, and there is absolutely no place in Korea that can follow YK in these two fields right now. Furthermore, there is absolutely no company that can imitate them. Luxury department stores are entangled with powerful figures, and as long as Yoon-gi has a sense for future films, it will be a long time before other directors can catch up.

Therefore, Yoon-gi was attending the studio where 'God of Pachinko' was being filmed with a relaxed mind for the first time in a while, watching the filming.

'As expected, our Jung-ah has talent.'

Jung-ah, who was performing passionately as the protagonist’s daughter, didn't have many lines due to the nature of the film, but she was showing sensible acting and receiving praise from the director and staff. Furthermore, the lead actors were treating her very familiarly, as if they felt close to her. At that moment, a tremendous idea popped into Yoon-gi’s head.