CH124 | Heir

The day of the Russian presidential inauguration had arrived.

Until then, I had been staying at a villa in a resort town, so this was my first opportunity to meet many people, including those whose names I had heard countless times.

“I’m Kim Min-jae, Vice Chairman of Taewoo Group. It’s an honor to meet you.”

“I’m Roman, Governor of Chukotka. I’ve heard a lot about you. You have quite a deep connection with him, don’t you?”

It was my first time meeting Roman, who was more famous as the owner of an English football club.

He was one of Russia’s oil tycoons and had taken on the role of governor to support Putin.

Oh! And at this point, Roman hadn’t yet purchased his football club, so he wasn’t well-known to the public.

“It’s an honor to meet you. No matter how deep my connection with him is, it surely can’t compare to yours, Governor Roman.”

“No need to be so formal. Just call me Roman. It wouldn’t do for comrades in the same boat to be awkward with each other, would it?”

Roman approached me in a surprisingly friendly manner.

He must have been feeling uneasy.

Putin had declared war on the oligarchs, and Roman was one of them.

To survive, he had betrayed the oligarchs and aligned himself with Putin.

So how could he not be anxious?

He wasn’t exactly on good terms with the siloviki who followed Putin, yet he was also despised by the oligarchs.

“I heard you’re a football fan. If the opportunity arises, shall we watch a match together in England?”

“Oh! So you enjoy football as well?”

“I actually own a small club in South Korea.”

“A fellow club owner! It’s been a while since I’ve met someone who shares my passion.”

Is this why my grandfather runs a football club?

In an instant, the distance between Roman and me shrank.

We kept our conversation going about football until just before the inauguration ceremony began.

“The ceremony is starting. Let’s go together.”

Roman led me forward.

Since we were seated in the front row, we naturally attracted the attention of the other attendees—including some familiar faces from the South Korean delegation.

The ceremony concluded in a grand fashion.

Putin’s speech, emphasizing a strong Russia, was so moving that some officials even shed tears.

But unlike them, I felt a chilling unease.

Once again, I was reminded that I had shaken hands with the devil.

Thinking about the wars Russia would wage in the next ten, twenty years made it clear—aligning with him was a dangerous game.

But that was a problem for the future.

“Thank you for attending today. You and Roman seem to have gotten quite close. I hope you two meet often and discuss various matters.”

“We’ve already made plans to watch a football match together.”

“I’ll be counting on you.”

Putin stood by my side for a while, exchanging words, before moving on to another guest.

I could feel the burning stares on my back.

Officials from the South Korean embassy and the foreign ministry were watching enviously.

I hadn’t bothered to acknowledge them, yet the moment there was an opening, one of the foreign ministry officials rushed toward me.

“I didn’t know Taewoo Group was invited. If you were attending such a major event, you should have coordinated with the government first!”

“I coordinated my schedule with the Russian government.”

“Is Taewoo Group a Russian company? Of course, you should have consulted the South Korean government!”

What was this?

Was he reprimanding me right now?

There was no way he didn’t know I was the heir to Taewoo Group.

Or was he simply acting this way because I was young?

“I’ll be sure to consult you next time something like this comes up.”

“Of course, that’s how it should be. Now, lead the way. I saw you were close with some important Russian figures earlier—introduce me to them.”

He was so brazen that I almost agreed without thinking.

Was he a minister or something? I checked his information.

Choi Jong-min, Vice Minister.

An elite from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he had risen to the vice minister position at a record-young age.

He was even called the "Crown Prince of Foreign Affairs," a testament to how much favor he had within the government.

I could already see the bigger picture.

A man drunk on his own importance.

Someone I had absolutely no obligation to humor.

“My schedule is tight, so I need to return to Korea immediately. I apologize.”

“Come on, don’t be so cold. Let’s spend some time together.”

“Do you always behave this way? I’m a businessman, not one of your subordinates, Vice Minister. Please show some respect.”

“I’m trying to help you! Do you even know how much noise the media has been making lately? If you’re seen in photos with government officials, it could help improve your image.”

So the media was still attacking me.

But did he really think being photographed with the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs would somehow restore my reputation?

He was seriously overestimating his own importance.

“I’ll be leaving now.”

I gave a slight bow and walked away.

I had no intention of wasting my time on someone like him.

* * *

That same day, in the Chairman’s Office of Taewoo Group…

Jang Soo-young, the president of Taewoo Construction, was having a private meeting with Chairman Kim Tae-joong.

“Chairman, I’ve served you for over 25 years. Are you really thinking of discarding me?”

“Why would I ever discard you?”

"The personnel order that Vice Chairman Kim Min-jae sent to Taewoo Construction... Doesn’t that mean he’s telling me to submit my resignation?"

"Hmm, I’m not aware of such a thing. It seems Vice Chairman Kim Min-jae acted on his own."

Chairman Kim Tae-joong was already fully aware of everything.

He knew that his grandson had overstepped his authority by issuing personnel transfers at Taewoo Construction.

And he also knew exactly why President Jang Soo-young had come to see him.

But he pretended otherwise.

Because so far, everything his grandson had done had never been wrong.

Even though Jang Soo-young had been his right-hand man for years, if it came down to choosing between him and his grandson—the future leader of Taewoo Group—he couldn’t afford to take Jang’s side.

"Please stop this overreach. If the Vice Chairman can arbitrarily reassign personnel, what does that make me as the president? The employees at Taewoo Construction are already looking at me differently."

"This isn’t something I can intervene in. You’ll have to settle this directly with Vice Chairman Kim Min-jae."

"How can you do this to me? You know better than anyone what I’ve done for you."

Construction companies handled vast sums of money.

And they were also perfectly structured to generate funds with unknown origins.

That’s why, whenever political funds were needed, Chairman Kim Tae-joong had always turned to President Jang Soo-young.

"Are you threatening me right now?"

"How could I possibly dare to threaten you, Chairman? I’m simply asking you to recognize my efforts."

"My friend, how many more years do you think I have left to live? Min-jae will soon take over as the head of Taewoo Group. How could I possibly stand in his way?"

"So, you’re willing to sacrifice me to protect your grandson?"

"Why not consider a way for both of you to survive? If we all lower our heads just a little, we can get through this together."

Chairman Kim Tae-joong softened his tone as much as possible.

He wanted nothing more than to scold him harshly, but seeing how deeply hurt Jang Soo-young already was, he held himself back.

"I understand your decision, Chairman. I will submit my resignation soon."

"Oh, come now. Shouldn’t you at least have a conversation with the Vice Chairman before making your final decision? If you talk things through, you might find a solution."

"There’s no need. The answer is already clear. Vice Chairman Kim Min-jae wants me out of Taewoo Construction."

Jang Soo-young clenched his teeth.

He was suppressing his anger so fiercely that it seemed his molars might crack.

"Don’t think so drastically."

"I’ve already made up my mind. Please don’t blame me too much."

Suddenly, Jang Soo-young lowered himself and gave a deep bow.

Without saying another word, he walked out of the chairman’s office.

"He seems deeply hurt. I just hope he doesn’t do anything reckless."

Chairman Kim Tae-joong felt the pain of losing his right-hand man.

But since the arm had already been severed, he didn’t try to hold onto it.

Even if it were reattached, it wouldn’t function as it once did.

* * "

After completing my schedule in Russia, I returned to Korea.

Since it had been an exhausting trip, today, I decided to head home instead of going straight to the office.

Of course, going home didn’t mean I could rest—my grandfather would be waiting for me.

"You must be tired from your trip to Russia."

"I’ve brought back some good news to make up for it."

"Let’s hear it, then. I saw on the news that they aired quite a long shot of you shaking hands with President Putin."

I was the only Korean business leader invited to the inauguration.

But that didn’t necessarily mean it would greatly improve my public image.

Russia was struggling even more than Korea at the moment.

"I received a very promising offer. They want us to participate in the development of Russia’s natural resources."

"That’s great news for Taewoo Construction."

"A large-scale project is about to begin. On top of that, I secured a promise of various incentives if we build Taewoo Automotive and Electronics factories in Russia."

"Natural resource development and massive factory investments… It almost feels like we’re the ones giving them gifts, rather than the other way around."

Grandfather seemed concerned about the sheer scale of the projects.

He must have learned the hard way about the risks of aggressive investments, especially after the financial crisis.

"Since Russia’s economy is struggling, now is the perfect time to invest—we can maximize our returns."

"That may be true, but Taewoo Group’s current financial standing alone might not be enough to handle this. And it’s not appealing enough to take on debt for it either."

"That’s why I plan to secure investments from Wall Street. If Taewoo Group, Wall Street, and the Russian government join forces, the risks will be well distributed."

"Hmm… In that case, it might be a worthwhile endeavor."

Grandfather nodded in agreement.

But then his expression suddenly grew serious, and he let out a deep sigh.

"Sigh… But we did Jang Soo-young a great disservice."

"Are you referring to the personnel reshuffle? It was a necessary move for Taewoo Construction."

"Even so, you should have had sufficient discussions with President Jang. Just because you’re the vice chairman doesn’t mean you can treat subsidiaries as your personal domain."

"I’ll handle personnel matters differently for the other subsidiaries."

"…So, you’re admitting the reshuffle was specifically aimed at Jang Soo-young. Did you really have to disgrace him like that on his way out?"

Grandfather’s displeasure was evident.

It was only natural that I’d have to deal with the consequences—after all, I had just forced out someone who had been his right-hand man.

"What do you think would have happened if we had left Taewoo Construction as it was? The enormous debt would have been a massive burden on the group. Jang Soo-young should have taken responsibility and stepped down voluntarily."

"I won’t deny that thanks to you, Taewoo Construction survived. But Jang Soo-young was a man who deserved respect."

"If I hadn’t become vice chairman, Jang Soo-young would still be the president of Taewoo Construction. It was your decision to appoint me as vice chairman, Grandfather."

Grandfather gazed at the ceiling.

Had I been too aggressive?

Perhaps it was time to ease off.

"I’ll make sure President Jang is well taken care of. Aside from a generous severance package, I can even arrange for him to take over a subcontracting firm if he wants."

"No, let’s not stir up trouble unnecessarily. Just leave it be. I’ll take full responsibility for Jang Soo-young."

Grandfather then retreated into his room.

I did feel a twinge of guilt.

But if I wanted to build a new Taewoo Group, a shake-up was inevitable.