After that, Seo Seung-hyun subtly folded the corners of his eyes and gave a silent smile.
“Instead, let’s talk about Itco Mulsan. President Lee handed over a troublesome task to them. The drug deal.”
“President Lee doesn’t usually get involved in that area, does he?”
“Well, it’s either a one-time thing, or he’s planning to get involved more actively. We’ll have to wait and see.”
“You mean it’s a scam?”
“For now.”
Jang Young-hee’s lips trembled. The steadfast secretary replied in his usual unemotional tone.
“It’s complicated and risky.”
“I know.”
Seo Seung-hyun responded calmly. For a brief moment, the ends of his thick eyebrows raised slightly, then returned to their usual tranquility.
“With the previous resort deal and now this, it’s my responsibility to handle it.”
After that, he playfully tapped his own knee with his finger.
“Starting with that fussy old man and all those board members who are all ex-Yakuza from the construction industry. I know their backgrounds, so how can I pretend not to be able to handle it?”
“Sigh. When you go to Itco Mulsan, make sure to bring at least five bodyguards, that’s what I advised…”
“Okay, got it, Secretary Jang Young-hee.”
Jang Young-hee’s lips trembled again, but he remained silent.
“It’s about 2 billion yen worth, so roughly a little less than 10 kilograms, I suppose.”
Seo Seung-hyun leaned his body diagonally towards the door, resting his arm on the armrest of the seat, lost in thought.
“Let’s make the deal in Manila. Prepare the dollars. Reserve a spot on a container ship going from Manila to Incheon Port and arrange a meeting with CI Yun Jae-won.”
“Where should we arrange the meeting?”
“Samjeong.”
“Okay.”
The limousine joined the congested traffic line on the Seongsudaegyo Bridge. After barely passing through the hellish congestion zone connecting Gimpo IC to Olympic-daero and Seongsudaegyo, the limousine turned onto a road lined with well-maintained parks on both sides.
The discussion about business momentarily ceased.
Taking advantage of the moment, Jang Young-hee asked a question.
“By the way, did you have a meal?”
“I had something light on the plane.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to have a proper meal before going in?”
“Well….”
Jang Young-hee’s suggestion triggered a sudden thought about Lee Young-jin, who had spent 2 nights and 3 days guarding the house alone, and it expanded into a rather accidental train of thought.
Seo Seung-hyun nodded his head.
“No, let’s eat at home, Young-hee.”
“I will contact Manager Yoon. I already informed him that you would be returning today, so he must have prepared everything.”
“Tell Manager Yoon not to bother coming over and just have someone send the food there.”
“Understood.”
Jang Young-hee immediately found the familiar name in his phone’s contacts and pressed the call button. The call was short and clear. Beyond the blunt but courteous voice, a faint sound of acknowledgment was heard.
As Jang Young-hee ended the call, the limousine came to a stop almost simultaneously.
It was the end of a 2-night 3-day trip.
Inside the elevator that went directly to the penthouse floor, Seo Seung-hyun received the awaited phone call. In fact, the timing was not particularly great.
“Yes, this is Seo Seung-hyun.”
Seo Seung-hyun answered the call with a cheerfully nonchalant voice, pretending not to know who was on the other end.
A few kilometers away, through the electric signals mediated by electronic waves, a response came.
[Kwon Shin-woo speaking.]
On the other end, the response was equally composed, pretending not to know either.
“Ah, Director Kwon. It’s been a while. How have you been?”
The conversation about the uninteresting weather and holiday talk passed briefly.
“Director Kwon, aren’t you busy these days? What made you call me?”
[CEO, I won’t take much of your time. Please look into Haeju Forwarding.]
“Haeju Forwarding?”
[Yes, it’s a logistics company based in Incheon, around seven years old.]
“When did I become Director Kwon’s secretary?”
After a momentary pause, before Kwon Shin-woo could respond, Seo Seung-hyun quickly continued.
“Director Kwon, let’s be clear about one thing. I am here to help you with this.”
[Of course. We are always grateful for your assistance, CEO.]
“Oh, I see. I thought you didn’t know.”
The elevator reached the top floor. Ding dong. With a gentle chime, the elevator doors slid open on both sides. Seo Seung-hyun stepped out confidently.
“Whatever happens, I already said I will help, and I’ve received the down payment, so I’ll finish the job. But it’s awkward for me to act like Director Kwon’s subordinate. If you keep doing this in the future, please ask someone below Director Kwon to handle it. I’ve received the clean one hundred billion won in advance, and I’ll do my part.”
[Regarding that matter…]
A dry voice replied from the other end of the phone.
[First, investigate Haeju Forwarding, then we’ll talk further.]
“Haha, damn it. You asked about Haeju Forwarding as if it’s something incredibly impressive. Fine. I’ll purchase one hundred thousand shares of the car stock this week, another one hundred thousand shares next week, and then assess the situation for an additional fifty thousand shares after that.”
Jang Young-hee went ahead and opened the front door. Seo Seung-hyun put his phone to his ear and quickly entered the entrance. Behind him, Jang Young-hee gently closed the door. As he took off his shoes and slipped into the indoor slippers neatly arranged, something suddenly popped out from the corridor leading to the inner dining area.
Jang Young-hee’s eyebrows shot up, and he let out a startled gasp.
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