201. Sampoong Department Store
“who···. ah! Mr. Yoon Ho-young!”
Kim Hwan recognized Hoyeong at once.
“You recognize me.”
“sure. If you don’t know the most popular and talented businessmen these days, write them. He is so talented and has so much information.”
There was bone in Kim Hwan’s words.
The information power he mentioned was with the evidence of corruption sent by Ho-yeong in mind.
“That’s about it. It was easier than I thought.”
Hoyoung answered in a very gentle and kind tone on the outside.
Seeing Hoyoung like that, Kim Hwan grinned and said to the man wearing glasses.
“ha ha ha! It’s fun. You go away.”
“Hoe, President, but what I mentioned earlier is an issue that needs to be decided as soon as possible. You have to make your decision now…”
Kim Hwan’s face, which had been smiling, was distorted in an instant.
“Didn’t you hear me say get out?”
“President···.”
“decision? I’ll drop you off. only do partial work. There is no holiday. get out!”
The man with glasses tried to say something, but gave up and trudged out of the meeting room.
“I didn’t mean to hear it, but from what I heard earlier, it seemed like something serious. Can we just let it pass?”
“What is serious? Our department store is collapsing. Don’t you have to listen to absurd words once or twice? Seeing that they insisted on doing the full-scale construction, it must be clear that it had something to do with the construction company.”
Hoyoung became interested in the man a little while ago.
‘There was someone who knew exactly the current situation of Sampoong Department Store.’
However, Kim Hwan’s thoughts were clearly different from Ho Young’s.
“You have to cut it or not. I picked it because it looked smart, but… So anyway, this isn’t important. You want to buy our department store?”
“yes. That’s how I contacted you.”
“Do you know what kind of department store our department store is? It is the second largest store in the country in terms of scale, and we can proudly say that it is the best in Korea in terms of luxury brands.”
Kim Hwan naturally began to treat Hoyoung badly.
He judged that he would be able to deal with him this way, since he was much older and Hoyeong was more docile than he thought.
“Why would I sell a department store like this if I was sane? Even if you give me 100 billion won, I can’t sell it.”
“Puhaha… Yes. I don’t think I can live with 100 billion won. I don’t think this department store is worth that much.”
“What?”
When Hoyeong laughed out loud, Kim Hwan’s eyebrows went up.
“The second largest in the country? Best luxury brands? That’s good too. Why are you omitting the statement that the store has been in the red ever since opening and that it is barely able to pay interest due to excessive debt? In 1993, sales were 130 billion won, but you suffered a loss of 20 billion won, and in 1994, sales were 150.5 billion won last year, but 25 billion won was the largest loss since opening.”
Kim Hwan’s eyes widened as if they would pop out.
The things Hoyoung just said were things that people outside the company couldn’t know, no, they shouldn’t know.
Externally, Sampoong Department Store is known to be making tens of billions of dollars in profits every year.
This is because he ordered the creation of double ledgers in consideration of the image of Sampoong Department Store.
He wanted to save Sampoong Department Store even by drawing the necessary funds from construction.
“How do you do that… There is an intruder!”
Kim Hwan said in an angry voice.
If there is a traitor inside, it is not too much of a stretch for Hoyeong to know this information.
His suspicions had some validity.
“It’s not my pain. This is a fact that I found out with the ‘great information power’ you mentioned earlier.”
Hoyoung replied with a smile.
Kim Hwan’s sarcasm was returned as it was.
Looking at his flawlessly bright face, Kim Hwan frowned.
“Are you threatening me now?”
“A threat?”
“Isn’t this a threat to eat my department store with just that kind of information?!”
Hoyoung’s eyebrows narrowed slightly.
I didn’t like Kim Hwan’s way of speaking, who had completely changed into a child, and I also didn’t like his carefree attitude.
He took a deep breath and said.
“What if that’s right?”
“What?”
“If it’s a threat, do you think it’s okay for you to stay that way now? Do you know that I only have information about you and Sampoong Construction right now? Can you properly teach me what blackmail is now?”
Hoyoung’s tone changed.
Hoyoung always has a relaxed and laid-back tone of voice, but right now, her tone is more determined than anyone else’s.
“Hey, do you have more information?”
“What are you going to say? I came just in case it could end well, but I wasted my time.”
“Anyway, this department store can’t sell it. Forget about making pointless threats with false information you have.”
“False information? ha ha ha. Okay. I’m an idiot for trying to have a conversation.”
Hoyoung stood up from his seat without hesitation.
“then. Look forward to it.”
“What, what?”
“Whatever you think, more than that.”
Hoyeong smiled and said, then left.
.
After leaving Sampoong Department Store, Hoyoung headed straight to the headquarters of Myungsung Group.
And I told the female staff at the desk on the first floor of the head office.
“hello.”
“hello? How can I help you?”
“I want to see the president.”
“Do you have any appointments?”
“I didn’t make any promises.”
The female employee put on a troubled expression.
“there···. I’m sorry, but I can’t see you unless we have an appointment.”
“Are you up there?”
“yes. It is, but…”
At that time, another male employee who recognized Hoyoung hurriedly cut off the female employee’s words.
His name tag had the title ‘Chief’ written on it.
“ah! Chairman Yun Ho-young! sorry. A new employee!”
“Oh, it’s okay, it’s okay. It could be.”
“I’m really sorry. I’ll take you to the president’s office right away.”
“thanks.”
The female employee who was responding to Ho-yeong for the first time opened her eyes wide at the name Ho-young and lowered her head in surprise.
“I’m sorry!”
“haha. You did a good job and there is no need to apologize.”
“Yeah, but…”
“To be honest, it was my fault for coming here without an appointment. I’m rooting for you. Even the headmaster shouldn’t say anything to this person.”
“Yep. Okay. come this way Mr. Yeongyeong, call the secretary’s office right away. Chairman Yun Ho-young said he was going up.”
“Yep!”
Hoyoung smiled at her and headed for the elevator.
“Cool, cool…”
Seeing Ho-young like that, the employee only calmed his beating heart.
.
“Chairman Yoon! How did you come without contact? haha.”
“Aren’t you busy?”
“Fortunately, I don’t seem to be busy. I don’t think I have any more work than when I was president of Myungsung Electronics.”
“haha. That is the position of the president.”
“The other day, after you congratulated me on my inauguration as president, you didn’t hear back. Is there anything I can do to help you?”
Hoyeong felt a new feeling and smiled.
Jo Jung-sik, despite the title of chairman of Myeongseong Electronics, was completely subordinate to Ho-young.
“Would you like to start a business together?”
“Business? Of course you should. The business that the chairman wants to do will surely succeed, right?”
Jo Jung-sik’s words may sound like a joke at first glance, but he was sincere.
Now he could believe Hoyoung even said he was making fermented soybeans with red beans.
“haha. It may not be a very profitable business right away.”
“What business is it?”
“Wouldn’t you like to try a department store?”
“A department store?!”
What Hoyoung said was unimaginable.
Of course, I thought they were talking about IT-related or facility-related businesses, but out of the blue, it was a department store.
“yes. There’s a department store I’m considering taking over.”
“You are not creating a new department store brand, you are trying to acquire it. What department store brand is it?”
“This is Sampoong Department Store.”
Jo Jung-sik was also familiar with Sampoong Department Store.
And I knew very well what kind of person Kim Hwan was and how he had expanded his business.
“Is there any reason why you have to take over the department store? As you may have noticed, the department store is not a very good seller, and the Sampoong Group will never try to sell it.”
“haha. You are cool.”
“yes. It’s a business.”
“good. In fact, it’s a good department store. Isn’t it something we can buy and make into a good department store? reputation department store. Doesn’t it sound good too?”
“Myungsung Department Store…”
Hoyeong tapped Jo Jungsik on the shoulder and said.
“Can you trust me and proceed with me this time?”
“Well···. Okay. But, as I said before, how are you going to buy a department store that is not on the market?”
Hoyoung smiled.
“Wouldn’t it be okay to make the owner disappear?”
Hoyoung handed over a file to Jo Jungsik.
“What is this?”
“Would you like to take a look?”
Cho Jung-sik took out the document and began to read it slowly.
The file was a booklet containing tremendous facts such as various corruptions and slush funds of the Sampoong Group.
“Hey, what is this? How does the president have these top-secret materials?”
Hoyoung replied with a smile.
“Will it be that important?”
“Ah, no… Then, using this material…”
“The current government of President Kim Il-sam is losing trust from the people. It was called the civilian government and it seemed like it would bring about huge reforms in the beginning, but it wasn’t reforming as easily as I thought.”
“So you mean to turn this data over to the government?”
“yes. You like the government, or you like the ruling party very much.”
Cho Jung-sik frowned slightly.
“It can be a bit risky this way.”
“It is not that we are unaware of the dangers. But it is because it is absolutely necessary.”
“Well···. All right.”
“I will contact the government side, so Chairman Cho, please target the ruling party lawmaker with whom you have a connection.”
“Yep. President.”
Hoyoung nodded and stood up from her seat.
“For detailed instructions, we will continue to contact you through our secretary.”
“yes. Please contact me.”
As Hoyoung left, Jo Jungsik felt goosebumps rising as he looked through the materials Hoyoung had given him.
“How did you get this information? It is a great information power. You must never become enemies with Yun Ho-young. after···. Should I say that I am fortunate to be on the same boat as Yun Ho-young?”
It was unintentional, but it became an opportunity for Jo Jung-sik to further strengthen his loyalty (?) to Ho-yeong.
.
a few days later
Hoyoung was meeting a man in a secluded coffee shop.
“Mr. Kyo Ki-yeop?”
“yes. you’re right. Chairman Yun Ho-young asked to see me… I don’t understand English.”
The man answered, raising his dripping glasses.
“Have we not seen each other before? When I stopped by the department store, he was talking to President Kim Hwan.”
“ah···! at that time.”
Ki Ki-yeop was an employee of Sampoong Department Store who had been ardently urging Kim Hwan to close the department store immediately and do a full-scale repair work.
He had forgotten how distraught he was at the time, and the fact that he passed by Hoyeong.
“I called you separately because I have a favor to ask you.”
“Are you asking me for a favor?”
“Could you tell me in detail about the current situation of Sampoong Department Store?”
“The situation at Sampoong Department Store…”
Hoyoung said with a firm expression.
“I will tell you straight forward. Sampoong Department Store. Isn’t that a very dangerous situation? To the point where it wouldn’t be strange if it collapsed tomorrow.”
“How can you do that…!”
Ki Joon-yeop spoke reflexively, but was startled and covered his mouth.
Seeing that, Hoyeong said meaningfully.
“I···. I am thinking of opening Sampoong Department Store.”
“yes?! uh, how?”
“There are many ways. But you’ll have to think carefully. Depending on how you say it now, the future of Mr. Ki Joon-yeop will change dramatically. Would you like to hold my hand? Or will you keep your loyalty to Sampoong Chairman Hwan Kim?”
Loyalty with Chairman Kim Hwan?
Ki Joon-yeop almost burst into laughter without even realizing it.
However, he soon opened his mouth with a firm expression.
“haha···. I was thinking of quitting anyway… If I can change this situation, I will tell you everything I know.”
Hoyoung’s smile deepened.