Chapter 042: A Path Different from One's Intentions (1)
Hee-soo could only give a bitter smile at Chief Jang's words.
"I'd like to, but I don't have much time right now, so I think it would be better to leave it to people who can already do it."
"Who are you planning to use?"
"The company we outsourced it to seems good."
"I want to work with them."
"Really?"
"It's urgent."
"They seem genuinely skilled."
"When I first received the face mask, I almost thought it was an existing commercial product."
"It was easy to program too."
"They are good."
"But are you planning to acquire that company?"
"I haven't thought that far yet."
"Is it a fairly large company?"
"Of course."
"It has annual revenue in the hundred-billion-won range. It's a mid-sized company."
"I want to ask them to make something to my specifications."
"Would that be possible?"
"You're not going to leave it to the research lab?"
"You don't trust them?"
"It seems like they don't understand why I need these things."
"But I'm still using what that outsourced company made without much complaint."
"Want me to look into it? Or do you want to go talk to them yourself?"
"Set up an introduction. I'll go myself."
"Where are they?"
"Hmm. It's a little far."
"Where? Daejeon?"
"No. They're in the Daebul Industrial Complex."
"What? That's unexpected."
"I didn't think Daebul specialized in that field."
"It's not completely unrelated."
"Petrochemicals are strong there, but there is plenty of technical ability in electronics and electrical engineering too."
Hee-soo looked surprised.
"I don't know enough about the company yet, so an acquisition is premature."
"For now, I think we should use them as a partner company for face masks and helmets."
"If I try to bring too many things inside the company right now, both manpower and time will become problems."
"That's for you to decide."
"Understood. Then please arrange a meeting."
"All right."
As if suddenly remembering something, Hee-soo slapped his knee.
Smack.
"Ah! Right. Yoo Min-hyuk."
"That young man? What about him?"
"He asked for your phone number."
"Can I give it to him?"
"Sure. But why does he want my number?"
"He said he wants to thank you."
"Me?"
"Yes. He thinks you were the one who arranged all of his treatment afterward."
"And he still doesn't know I'm a director."
"That guy really must live completely cut off from the world."
"I know. My name has been in the news every day."
"All right. I'll meet him."
"Yes."
Chief Jang started to get up, then remembered something and sat back down.
"Also, Assistant Yoo contacted me."
"What are they going to do?"
"They'll obviously take it."
"Of course. With bait this good, there's no way they wouldn't bite."
"Did you hand over all the documents?"
"I arranged for them to reach the Major Crimes Unit captain."
"That should work."
"Right. Get some rest."
The car arrived at Hee-soo's house.
Hee-soo said goodbye to Chief Jang and went inside.
Conference room at the Mokpo Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Hee-soo sat there with a bewildered expression.
For ten full minutes, the chairman of the Mokpo City Council and the presidents of major companies in the Daebul Industrial Complex had been coming over to greet him.
After the greetings ended, Hee-soo stood and returned the courtesy.
"Thank you for welcoming me."
"I didn't expect to see this many people, so I'm honestly a little surprised."
"I only came to discuss partnership contracts for Suseong Safety, so I'm grateful for such a warm reception."
He spoke politely, but he was already tired of the greed visible in their eyes.
Businesspeople all become slaves to desire sooner or later.
Finally, the mayor of Mokpo stood and greeted him.
"We were very happy to hear that Suseong came all the way to Mokpo to invest in the Daebul Industrial Complex, so I came personally."
"If there are any administrative obstacles to the investment, we intend to help with everything within our power."
"The chairman of the city council is also here, and both Mokpo City and the city council intend to actively support Suseong's investment."
"So I hope you'll speak openly with our business leaders."
Hee-soo put on a relaxed smile and gave a polite nod.
While the room briefly became noisy, Hee-soo quietly asked Chief Jang,
"Why did this become such a huge event?"
"I only wanted to meet the president of the company that made our helmet."
"They're all related companies."
"It wasn't made by only one company. The companies here formed a consortium."
"Even so, how much do they think I'm going to invest here?"
"Just the pre-production work you ordered already came close to ten billion won."
"About five billion won of that came here."
"If it enters mass production later, imagine how much more money could come."
"And now you've said you're setting up partner companies here."
"That's why they all came swarming."
"It's not that much money."
"Not to you."
"Even Tails Electronics, the main contractor, only makes about one hundred billion won in yearly revenue."
"The money you threw in this time was almost one tenth of that company's annual revenue."
"I understand."
"I just didn't expect the mayor and city council chairman to come too."
"They see this as one of the biggest recent investment opportunities."
"Local elections aren't far away."
"True."
"I did bring them good bait."
Hee-soo presented the materials he had prepared.
Along with their results so far, he showed a blueprint for what kind of investments could take place over the next three years.
He called it a blueprint, but the amounts were actually somewhat embarrassing by his standards.
He even worried that the people gathered there might be disappointed.
When the presentation ended, everyone waited quietly.
Hee-soo asked,
"Does anyone have questions?"
One person immediately raised a hand.
"Is Suseong's ultimate goal to acquire and merge with the companies gathered here?"
Hee-soo shook his head.
"No. I have no intention of merging with you."
"I simply hope each company grows into a business earning around one trillion won in annual revenue."
Another person raised a hand.
"Then if the project doesn't go well, you could cut us off without hesitation?"
"Correct."
"The reason I'm considering cooperation with partner companies like this is to reduce risk."
Murmurs spread through the room.
Another person raised a hand and asked almost confrontationally,
"If the business fails, do we receive no protection from Suseong?"
"I don't know which Suseong you're referring to."
"But Suseong Safety is an independent corporation with no connection to Suseong Group."
"The ownership structures do not overlap at all."
"It's closer to a venture company that could be shut down at any time."
Even the mayor and city council chairman looked unhappy at that.
But Hee-soo did not hesitate.
"I have ideas."
"I'm looking for companies with the technology I need."
"I believe the people here represent those companies."
"If you want to enter this business, shouldn't you naturally accept some risk?"
"Weren't you saying you would invest in the companies here?"
"I'll invest in companies willing to accept that risk."
"Of course."
"Equity will be divided, and if something is necessary, I'll invest assets I control."
"But the same applies to all of you."
The atmosphere grew even heavier.
The mayor's confusion was obvious.
Hee-soo was laughing inwardly.
Did these people think I'd just throw money at them and leave everything in their hands?
They seemed to have expected the standard arrangement where a large corporation provided funding, the companies divided it among themselves to run a project, and if it failed, the loss was simply written off.
Hee-soo had absolutely no intention of doing that.
The mayor asked,
"Then the investment amount you mentioned earlier..."
"To be clear, there will be no direct cash investment."
"I'm saying I'll invest equivalent value."
"I will not simply pour cash into these companies."
"If working with me can help a company acquire technology that takes it to the next level, then I intend to invest in that kind of thing."
Hee-soo openly addressed the mayor's awkward expression.
"Mayor, the number is what matters to you, isn't it?"
"'We attracted one hundred billion won in investment.'"
"'We attracted one trillion won.'"
"Numbers like those matter."
"Whether that amount came as physical assets, shares, equity, or technology isn't really what you're interested in, right?"
"No, that isn't..."
"I'll give you enough numbers to help with your reelection."
"The same applies to the city council members."
"I'll give you something you can call an achievement, that your efforts brought Suseong investment into the city."
"As Suseong's successor, I can do at least that much."
When he said it openly, the business owners clearly showed displeasure.
The mayor and council chairman looked flustered, but they did not seem to dislike the offer.
They merely coughed awkwardly as if Hee-soo had struck directly at their weak point.
Another company president raised his hand.
"Then what exactly are you planning to invest in us?"
"I intend to build fully automated factories operated twenty-four hours a day using AI and robots, to improve productivity and maintain quality."
The moment Hee-soo finished speaking, the atmosphere among the company presidents subtly changed.
More accurately, their eyes changed.
Hee-soo had touched the problem that worried every one of them.
They wanted factories that could operate twenty-four hours a day.
However, that required hiring enough skilled workers to run multiple shifts, and the labor costs could become greater than the benefit.
Yet introducing AI-based factory automation was technically difficult.
They were truly trapped between two bad choices.
Hee-soo had just declared that he would solve that problem.
Now it was the mayor of Mokpo who became even more flustered.
"But, well, local employment needs to increase for the regional economy to improve."
"Introducing AI..."
Hee-soo gave the mayor a cold smile.
"Do you think companies are charities?"
"If small companies hire unskilled workers and train them, those workers will eventually leave for large corporations offering higher salaries."
"Why should small and medium-sized companies be the ones forced to pay that cost?"
The company presidents gradually began moving to Hee-soo's side.
Unable to answer Hee-soo's question, the mayor finally said,
"Then... would you perhaps join us for lunch?"
"We prepared a luncheon."
Chief Jang politely declined with a smile.
"I'm sorry, but we have matters to discuss separately."
"If everything works out, Suseong will arrange a proper luncheon or dinner later."
The mayor looked disappointed.
The city council chairman spoke to the business owners instead.
"Director Choi may not be able to join us, but the rest of us should at least have lunch together."
"The city council prepared a luncheon."
He was clearly saying it for Hee-soo to hear.
But Hee-soo ignored it completely and left the conference room with Chief Jang.
Hee-soo and Chief Jang got into the car.
Chief Jang asked,
"Where should we go?"
"How about visiting the Daebul Industrial Complex ourselves?"
