Episode 202
There were no allies for Haixin Group.
Normally, even the most powerful officials of the Communist Party would hesitate to target a company as large as Haixin. The resulting unemployment and economic disruption would be detrimental to China.
However, Chairman Wang’s eldest daughter, Wang Jin-mi, had exposed the company’s corruption, providing the justification for an attack. And her father-in-law, a high-ranking official, had spearheaded the assault, giving others the courage to join the fray. The politicians no longer hesitated to devour the weakened Haixin Group.
“It happened so fast.” It had only taken a week from the raid to the arrest of the Wang family. Their swift arrest, before they even had time to analyze the seized documents, showed their intention to prevent any further action and punish them severely. I chuckled. “It was a wise decision to ally with Wang Jin-mi.”
If I hadn’t sided with her, I would have surely helped Chairman Wang, offering him billions, even tens of billions of dollars to secure the successor position for Wang Jin-hee. I could have easily covered up the accounting fraud with my money, and unlike his sons, who were facing drug and other charges, he would likely have been acquitted.
Of course, Wang Jin-mi wouldn’t have stayed silent, and there was no guarantee he would have been able to defend against her subsequent attacks. But he would have survived the initial onslaught. “Well, it’s all hypothetical. A woman’s influence is truly terrifying.”
Wang Jin-mi wasn’t a high-ranking official or a billionaire. Her only power came from her father-in-law, who happened to be one of the most powerful men in China.
I chuckled. “A woman’s influence… not that I would know.” Wang Jin-hee was completely under my control. She was also facing charges, but they were minor, and Wang Jin-mi had some sympathy for her, so she would likely be released soon. And I would be working behind the scenes to ensure her release. “I have my wife wrapped around my finger, and Baek In-hwi has a powerful backer. Perfect!”
Haixin Group would be torn apart, and those corrupt officials would pocket the most valuable pieces, but it was still a 50 trillion won company. I had a deal with Wang Jin-mi, and there would be plenty of scraps left for me. I was so happy I could dance.
“Another successful operation,” I said with a smile.
“Congratulations, Chairman.”
“Congratulations, sir.” I smiled, receiving their congratulations. “Thank you.”
Park Jong-bum said with admiration, “You actually brought down Haixin Group. As expected, sir.”
“I just helped. Wang Jin-mi was the mastermind.”
“But you orchestrated the final stage, didn’t you?”
It was true that I had removed myself as a variable from Wang Jin-mi’s plan, playing into her hands.
But from her perspective, it was Baek In-hwi’s actions that had ensured her success.
“Let’s just say I did. Anyway, thank you for the congratulations. How are things in Korea?”
I had been focusing on Haixin Group, leaving the Korean operations entirely to Park Jong-bum and Maru.
“Everything’s under control,” Maru said confidently.
“We’re not amateurs anymore.”
“Good, good. Thank you for your hard work.”
I was planning to take a break after the Haixin Group situation was resolved. Maybe a vacation.
“By the way, Chairman…”
“Yes?”
“Are you still planning to continue those attacks?”
Baek In-hwi had been attacking Chunha Group’s businesses in both Korea and China. “Hmm, there’s no need to continue now that Haixin is gone.”
“Then how about we stop?” Park Jong-bum said with a troubled expression, “Those attacks are damaging our reputation, even if they’re staged and we’re compensating the victims. The used car dealerships are suffering the most.”
I nodded. “That’s true. I’ll tell them to stop. And prepare a promotion to attract customers, discounts, package deals, whatever. We need to recover our losses.”
“Yes, sir.”
“When was the last attack?”
He smiled wryly. “Today.”
I had been pushing it, trying to create a sense of danger and instability.
“The customer complaints have been a nightmare…”
I chuckled. “Thank you for your hard work, Director Park.”
“Now that they’re stopping, we can finally…” His phone rang, and he hesitated, glancing at me.
“Answer it. It could be important.”
“Thank you.” He took out his phone. “This is Park Jong-bum… yes… what?!” His face hardened. “I understand. I’ll try to stall them.” He hung up the phone and stood up abruptly. “Sir, I have to go.”
“What happened?”
“The heihaizi who attacked the used car dealership today… we’ve apprehended them, as usual.” He said in a tense voice, “We were about to release them, but a prosecutor showed up and wants to arrest them for assault.”
My eyebrows twitched. “A prosecutor? Not the police?”
“Yes. I’ll go and handle it.”
“Wait.” I thought for a moment. “Isn’t it a bit… unusual for a managing director from headquarters to get involved in such a minor incident? It might arouse suspicion. And after dozens of similar incidents, why would a prosecutor suddenly decide to press charges? It might make them think the attacks were staged.”
I said to him, thinking quickly, “Just hand them over.”
“What? Hand them over?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”
“…But what if the prosecutor investigates and traces it back to us?”
I smirked. “I wouldn’t be so careless as to let a mere prosecutor catch me. Just do as I say.”
“Please, Prosecutor, can’t you wait for instructions from our superiors?” the security chief of the Chunha Used Cars dealership said, sweating profusely. “It’s a bit… irregular for you to take them away without our permission…”
The prosecutor said with a stern expression, “That’s irrelevant. I’m here to arrest them for assault. Chunha Group should be thanking me. This is obstruction of justice, you know.”
The chief, intimidated, fidgeted nervously, and the prosecutor said sharply, “Assault and battery. This is not something Chunha Group can interfere with. I’m being lenient because I have a good impression of your company. Step aside.”
As he pushed the chief aside and approached the apprehended attackers, a man came running.
“Prosecutor! Prosecutor!” The man, panting, said, “Greetings! I’m Lee Sang-hyuk, section chief. Huff… huff…”
The prosecutor glared at him. “If you’re here to obstruct me…”
“Obstruct you, sir?! Of course not! We wouldn’t interfere with your duties! Huff… huff…”
“This man was trying to stop me.” He pointed at the security chief.
Lee Sang-hyuk smiled slyly. “He was just following procedure, sir.”
“Then why didn’t Chunha Group report these attacks to the police before?”
He said with a forced smile, “Our internal investigation revealed that these men were just hired thugs, unaware of the true nature of their actions, so we decided to be lenient. Our chairman is a kind man…”
The prosecutor shook his head. “There are limits to kindness. Anyway, I’ll be taking them with me.”
“Of course, sir. But I doubt you’ll find anything. They don’t even know who hired them.”
“That’s our job, not yours.”
The prosecutor’s name was Yoo Ho-chan, an ordinary prosecutor at the Seoul District Prosecutors’ Office.
“Talk! Who sent you?!” He glared at the apprehended men. “Tell them if they want to avoid prison, they have to tell us who hired them. We’ll let them go if they cooperate.”
The men shook their heads after the interpreter relayed his message. “They… they don’t know.”
“They don’t know?! Bring them to me one by one. Request arrest warrants, analyze their phone records, investigate their activities since arriving in Korea. Don’t miss a single detail. This is just the beginning.” He ripped off his tie. He gritted his teeth. “Baek In-hwi is behind this.”
“They arrived in Korea and went straight to the Chunha Used Cars dealership.” They had arrived the day before the attack, which meant they had been hired and dispatched from China.
“Damn it.” Investigating China was beyond his authority as a mere prosecutor. “What about their phone records?”
“They’re all burner phones, and although one of them has frequent contact with a suspicious number……” the investigator hesitated “…it’s currently turned off.”
“Damn it, they’ve covered their tracks.” He now understood why Chunha Group hadn’t reported them to the police. “This isn’t over. We have to dig deeper.” His motivation wasn’t just about enforcing the law. It was personal.
“I won’t let him get away with this, harming Korea and then leaving scot-free.” Joongang Investment Group, after orchestrating the IT bubble burst, which was practically financial fraud, was withdrawing its investments from Korea.
They had already sold most of their assets and were in the process of liquidating the rest. If this continued, Baek In-hwi would leave Korea without facing any consequences, laughing all the way to the bank, while Korea’s reputation suffered
. “We have to keep digging, find a lead, anything…”
Any evidence of Baek In-hwi or Kim Min-sik’s involvement in the fraud or the attacks would be enough to halt their withdrawal and launch a full-scale investigation.
“Let’s move!”
As the investigators were busy working, an employee entered the room. “Prosecutor Yoo?”
“Yes?”
“Senior Prosecutor Oh wants to see you.”
“Come and have a seat.” He sat down. “You called for me, sir?”
“Yes, have some tea.” He poured him a cup and started sipping it. “I’m in the middle of something important. Can you tell me what this is about?”
The senior prosecutor paused and then said, “Something important, you say?”
“Yes.”
“What is it?” He was getting annoyed by his evasiveness. He said, trying to control his temper, “I’m investigating the Chinese nationals who attacked Chunha Group.”
“Assault?”
“Yes.”
He took another sip of his tea. “Assault… That should be a simple case.”
“It’s not that simple,” he said with a serious expression. “These men are just pawns. Someone hired them. We have to find the mastermind.”
The senior prosecutor put down his teacup.
“Who do you think it is?”
He chuckled.
“Baek In-hwi?”