novelraw Chapter 49 : I had to handle it myself
Chapter 49 : I had to handle it myself
Chapter 49: I had to handle it myself
I had paused to catch my breath at Noh Gi-tae’s sudden interrogation. Then I replied calmly.
“Why do you think that, Deputy Director?”
“When you were dragged into the KCIA’s underground interrogation room, that bastard Choi Min-jun said you’d been playing games with KEPCO stock. At the time I thought it was nonsense and let it wash over me….”
The tail of his sentence trailed off and Noh Gi-tae’s eyes flashed with a chilling light.
“Looking at the way the KCIA has been operating lately, it seems that Chief Choi’s speculation was probably true.”
“Do you really know nothing at all?”
Was this man truly uninterested in the course of power, or was he feigning ignorance while knowing more than he let on?
Though he would later be pushed aside by Jeong Tae-soo, the look in his eyes now was by no means stupid.
“What? That this securities upheaval was an unfortunate consequence of the KCIA’s operation? Or are you talking about the dirty power struggle between Director Kang and Deputy Director Jeong?”
Ah — so he did know. He was only pretending to probe by acting ignorant.
Noh Gi-tae scoffed and, with a nonchalant tone, said,
“I don’t want to get involved in that kind of brawling. I only want to do what I have to do. That’s a basic virtue a soldier should have.”
I thought the military had already fulfilled that role the moment it seized power in the coup, but I didn’t bother saying that foolishly out loud.
Noh Gi-tae pressed me again. The pressure was so blatant I wondered if this meeting had been for that very purpose.
“So, what’s your answer?”
“I did intervene to some extent.”
When I admitted it honestly, Noh Gi-tae raised one eyebrow as if surprised.
“But I wasn’t the one who engineered the incident, right? I rode the coattails of the power players’ fight and reaped a small benefit… I think that description would be fair.”
Noh Gi-tae narrowed his eyes and regarded me as he swallowed.
“Hmm…. There always seems to be something more to what you say.”
“Isn’t that irrelevant right now?”
I cut off his questioning and steered the conversation to the main point.
“What about the favor I asked of you, Deputy Director?”
I had asked him to find one person in exchange for telling him the whereabouts of Park Geon-sik, whom Noh Gi-tae had long sought.
A comrade who had once died bleeding on a cold floor in my stead, my only family and sole friend in the world — Kang Hyeok.
Before my return to this life, I had met him more than ten years later than now. Of course I had rough information about where and how he was living, but nothing definite.
I handed the small pieces of memory I had to Noh Gi-tae, and he had met me at this tea room today to hand me his answer.
Instead of replying, Noh Gi-tae pulled a small envelope from his pocket and plopped it onto the table.
He said nothing and his face was blunt, but I could tell from his eyes. There was a confident look in them, as if this settled his debt.
My hands trembling, I opened the envelope. Inside were a few photographs and an investigative report on Kang Hyeok.
[Gang Hyeok (姜赫), 18 years old. Current residence: Yeongdo District, Busan. Under the care of his mother…. Living alone with his grandmother. Working as a dock laborer to support himself.]
The moment I read the first line of the report, I breathed a sigh of relief.
He was alive.
In this life, too, he had been living sturdily on that harsh land.
And… thankfully, his grandmother was still alive.
When I had first met Kang Hyeok, he had lost his grandmother and been living under thugs, leading the life of a gangster.
“Thank you, Deputy Director. I owe you a great debt.”
“What debt? Thanks to you I felt a relief that had been stuck for decades — I should be the one thanking you.”
Noh Gi-tae said as he took a sip of his coffee.
“By the way, who exactly is this friend of yours? Since you moved me during such dangerous times to find him, it doesn’t seem like an ordinary connection.”
“He’s an old benefactor to whom I once owed my life.”
I answered briefly.
There were many oddities, but Noh Gi-tae didn’t pry further. Instead, he gestured at the report.
“But this friend of yours — his situation doesn’t look very good.”
I flipped hastily to the next page at his words. It described Kang Hyeok’s current situation.
[Though nicknamed a ‘boy brawler’ for his strength, he became a target of the local violent organization Yeongdo-pa because of his grandmother’s medical bills. Yeongdo-pa is forcing him to join the organization on the condition of debt forgiveness and assistance with his grandmother’s hospital bills. When Kang Hyeok refused, they came to his home daily to harass and pressure him. They have collusion with the local police, so Kang Hyeok could not respond rashly……]
“Those sons of bitches…!”
I cursed without meaning to. The hand that gripped the document trembled with rage.
“He was said to be known for his strength even when he was a child.”
I calmed down with difficulty at Noh Gi-tae’s matter-of-fact voice. He continued.
“The Yeongdo-pa want that strength. They’re scheming to shackle him under the pretext of his grandmother’s debt. And with the police covering for them, your friend is caught in a desperate situation with no way out.”
He was right. Given Kang Hyeok’s straightforward nature, he wouldn’t choose to become a thug to protect his grandmother.
But if he tried to use force to beat the thugs, he would instead face the hammer of state authority.
They were cunningly exploiting his goodness and strong sense of responsibility.
“Should I help?”
It was a subtle offer, but utterly tempting.
“With my name, I could easily deal with most gangsters and crooked cops in Busan.”
“……No. I must solve this problem myself. But later, please make a single phone call for me.”
Normally I would never have asked such a thing. Small favors like this turned into debts later.
But since the Yeongdo-pa had the police behind them, I also needed the strength to suppress them.
Although the military controlled all power in Seoul, in the provinces the police were serving that role.
The police wielded state authority and indulged in all sorts of corruption, but because of limited administrative strength, things could not be resolved.
That was why the thugs swaggered about backed by the police.
“Hmm…. You chose the hard path when an easy one was available.”
He said it with his mouth, but a smile tugged at the corner of Noh Gi-tae’s lips.
It seemed my choice pleased him.
“Don’t rush. The people you’re dealing with aren’t just a few local punks. They’re the ones who control rough Busan. Contact me whenever you need my help.”
His tone was rough, but the advice was practical. He wanted me to recognize that my opponents weren’t small fry and to prepare thoroughly.
“I will keep that in mind.”
I gathered the documents and rose from my seat. After bowing my head to Noh Gi-tae one last time, I left the tea room.
‘Wait a little longer, Kang Hyeok. I’m coming.’
Although I wanted to run to Busan this instant, I still had matters to finish in Seoul.
* * *
The office of the Chairman of the Supreme Council for National Reconstruction was as cold as thin ice.
After the collapse of the stock market, an emergency countermeasure meeting was convened under the direct supervision of Chairman Han Gi-jun himself, to calm the enraged public and deal with the situation.
Inside the room sat government officials, including Minister of Finance Kim Do-hoon, along with the heads of the Securities Association who bowed their heads like criminals, and major securities company presidents such as Cheon Sang-do of Mando Securities.
“So, the securities industry’s so-called self-rescue plan amounts to nothing more than asking the government for more money?”
Chairman Han’s voice was cold. Disappointment and anger were mixed in his tone.
“Your Excellency, that’s not what we mean, but at the moment we…”
The head of the Securities Association tried to explain while sweating profusely, but Chairman Han raised his hand to silence him.
“Enough. I’ve heard enough from you already. You people created this mess, and now you think you can hide behind the government and dodge responsibility? I can see right through your ploy.”
At Chairman Han’s icy words, suffocating silence fell over the meeting room.
Then, an unexpected person opened his mouth.
It was none other than Cheon Sang-do of Mando Securities.
“Your Excellency, we of the securities industry will take responsibility first.”
All eyes turned to him. The other securities company presidents looked bewildered at his sudden declaration.
“For all ordinary transactions due for settlement in June affected by this incident, how about we, the securities companies, bear the losses and carry out a ‘Haeok (解玉)’?”
“Haeok? President Cheon, have you lost your mind?”
“You realize what prices we sold at? And now you want to void those trades?”
Angry protests broke out from every direction. Especially from the presidents who had made huge profits under Park Jeong-ho’s line — their objections were fierce.
“This is suicide! You’re killing all of us just to save yourself!”
“Who are you to speak for all of us!”
The presidents hurled accusations at Cheon Sang-do all at once. The meeting room turned into chaos.
“Can’t you all be quiet!”
Chairman Han’s thunderous shout erupted. The sharp authority in his voice instantly silenced the room.
Surveying the room with disapproval, Chairman Han asked,
“Your affiliation and name?”
“I am Cheon Sang-do of Mando Securities, Your Excellency.”
“President Cheon. Tell me in detail about this ‘Haeok.’”
“The Ministry of Finance has already asked us to consider it once before, but…”
After listening to Cheon Sang-do’s long explanation, Chairman Han turned to Minister Kim Do-hoon.
Minister Kim cleared his throat before answering.
“As reported earlier, at first we requested banks and insurance companies to underwrite 570 million shares of Daegung stock at the premium public offering price of 14 hwan 50 jeon, but…”
The Ministry of Finance had tried to shift responsibility onto the banks and insurance companies, but the financial sector fiercely objected.
In the end, Chairman Han personally summoned the Director of the Banking Supervisory Office to ask his opinion. Even before the chairman, who was said to be powerful enough to make birds drop from the sky, the director stood firm and spoke his mind.
As a result, the plan for the financial institutions to underwrite the Daegung stock fell through.
“I heard from Director Han that the securities firms tried to band together and force 550 million shares of Daegung stock onto the financial institutions…”
Chairman Han’s steely gaze swept across the room where the securities company presidents sat.
Those who met his eyes flinched and lowered their heads all at once.
Clicking his tongue softly, Chairman Han asked Cheon Sang-do again.
“President Cheon, what do you propose we do then?”
“Voiding all contracts entirely would be unrealistic. Mando Securities could do it, perhaps, but if we asked all the others to do the same, most of them would go bankrupt.”
At his words, the other presidents finally lifted their heads and listened closely to Cheon Sang-do.
“So, if we set the price at half of the original contract price and execute Haeok under those terms, I believe both the buyers and sellers could share the losses evenly.”
Chairman Han looked again at Minister Kim Do-hoon. After a short thought, Kim swallowed dryly and answered.
“Your Excellency, at half the price… it might be possible to stabilize the situation.”
“You’ve all heard. Execute the Haeok at half of the contracted price. Any objections?”
Though phrased as a question, it was practically a command.
When none of the securities presidents answered and only exchanged glances, Chairman Han slammed his hand on the desk with a loud bang.
“It’s because of greedy men like you that this nation ended up in this state! Answer me! Or should I take this opportunity to thoroughly investigate who bears the greater fault?”
At the chairman’s threat, the terrified presidents shouted in unison.
“N-no, Your Excellency! We will comply with your orders!”
Thus, in that day’s meeting, all trading contracts scheduled for settlement at the end of June were officially subject to Haeok, and sanctions were placed on those responsible for the May crash. Plans to normalize stock market operations were also decided.
Everything was according to Cheon Sang-do — or rather, the will of Baek Min-woo behind him.
Late at night.
When I pushed open the creaking wooden door of the Jingogae Tavern, the familiar smell of makgeolli welcomed us.
Cheon Sang-do and I sat facing each other at the same shabby table as before.
Draining a bowl of makgeolli in one gulp, Cheon Sang-do spoke in a voice drained of energy.
“Heh, I really sweated buckets today.”
“Did the meeting end well?”
I poured cloudy makgeolli into his empty bowl as I asked.
“Of course it did. It wrapped up cleanly, just as the young president said.”
Cheon Sang-do paused and stared blankly into the air, as if replaying the earlier events.
His eyes trembled slightly. On his usually sly face lingered a complicated emotion that was hard to describe.
“Young president, today I saw with my own eyes what true power really is.”
“Are you talking about Chairman Han?”
“Yes, Han Gi-jun, the chairman.”
Cheon Sang-do’s voice sank low.
“That man is no ordinary one. Just by sitting there quietly, the atmosphere in that huge meeting room completely changed. His gaze too — it brushed past me only once, but I felt a chill down my spine and my knees went weak. I’ve met all kinds of people in this business, but…”
Cheon Sang-do shook his head, trailing off. For a while, he only moved his lips, as though struggling to find the right words, before finally speaking again.