novelraw Chapter 68 : In the End, There Was Nothing We Could Do
Chapter 68 : In the End, There Was Nothing We Could Do
Chapter 68: In the End, There Was Nothing We Could Do
After a night of chaos, a gray dawn broke. From early morning, the first floor of Deokhwa-ru was in utter pandemonium.
Late into the night, through the radio or word of mouth, the Chinese residents of Chinatown who had heard the grim news all flocked to see President Wang.
The restaurant was packed to the brim, leaving not a single space to stand. The usual lively atmosphere was gone, replaced only by despair and fear.
“President Wang! What on earth is going on here? Are last night’s announcements true?”
“What? You’re telling me all the money I’ve saved my entire life is now just scraps of paper? That’s absurd!”
Shandong dialect, Beijing Mandarin, even the Fujian dialect—every possible Chinese dialect erupted all at once.
At this point, it was hard to tell whether this was Busan, South Korea, or a crowded marketplace somewhere in China during wartime.
But they all shared one thing in common—an overwhelming fear that they might once again lose everything in a foreign land.
“What does Master Yang say……? Did he say there’s a plan?”
Their final hope rested solely on Yang Sobo. But even as they pleaded with him, President Wang only shook his head grimly.
He, too, had sensed through a late-night call with Yang Sobo that there was no clear way out.
I quietly watched the entire scene below from the red railing on the third floor of Deokhwa-ru.
The main point of this emergency financial measure wasn’t just the change of currency.
It was to force every citizen to deposit all cash into banks and then use that massive sum as funds for industrial development.
“Does this make any sense? They’re saying they’ll use people’s property however they please—what else could this be but outright robbery!”
At an old man’s furious cry, the other Chinese merchants also exploded in outrage.
They were furious at the government’s declaration that it would take control over the wealth they had sweat and bled to earn throughout their lives in a foreign land.
“What are we supposed to do now, President Wang!”
Everyone’s desperate eyes turned toward him, but of course, there was no clear answer he could give either.
He, too, must have been agonizing over the enormous amount of funds that had now been frozen by the reform.
Looking down at the chaos that had swallowed the restaurant, I muttered coldly,
“In the end, there’s nothing we can do.”
Leaving the turmoil behind, I went back into my room.
Yang Sobo’s office.
The shocking news of the currency reform had brought together all of his closest aides.
Yang Sobo sat at the head of the table, his face as cold as ice.
Standing beside him like a shadow was Zhang Wei.
Across from them sat Jin Deok-su, better known as Accountant Jin, who managed the organization’s funds, and Woo Geon-woong, known as President Woo, who oversaw their business networks—both men wearing grim expressions.
“How much damage are we looking at?”
After a long silence, Yang Sobo finally spoke, his tone heavy.
Accountant Jin opened his ledger. Even amid the confusion, his voice remained calm.
“Master…… Of our liquid assets, about five billion hwan remained unconverted into physical assets. If we add the loans we’ve extended to the merchants in Myeong-dong and Incheon, the losses will snowball rapidly.”
Before he could even finish, President Woo slammed the table and cursed.
“Damn it! The government bastards stabbed us in the back, Master! At this rate, the entire Chinese business district will collapse!”
“Calm yourself, President Woo. You’re standing before the Master.”
Zhang Wei’s low voice tried to restrain him, but President Woo, unable to contain his anger, only raised his voice further.
“How can I calm down! All the money I’ve earned my whole life is about to turn into trash overnight!”
“Is there no solution, Accountant Jin?”
Yang Sobo turned his gaze toward him again. Accountant Jin bowed his head.
“……My apologies, Master. Once all funds are deposited into the bank, we can no longer hide their sources. We’ll be hit with massive back taxes, and in the worst case, accused of illicit enrichment and have a large portion of our assets confiscated. It’s a trap—plain and simple.”
The powerful empire they had built over decades was now on the verge of collapsing helplessly due to a single surprise move by the government.
Caught between a rock and a hard place, Yang Sobo finally raised his voice, unable to suppress his frustration.
“But we can’t just lose all that money!”
“We don’t yet know the exact criteria, so this might be premature to say, but……”
After swallowing dryly, Accountant Jin continued in a steady tone.
“My estimate is that any deposit exceeding one hundred million hwan will automatically be treated as illicit wealth and investigated for source of funds.”
His projection aligned perfectly with Yang Sobo’s own thoughts. Gesturing with his chin, he urged him to continue.
“If all our operations had been legitimate, we could have negotiated to minimize the losses. However……”
There was no way all the businesses run by the Chinese community were completely legal. Yang Sobo shook his head, exhaustion etched deep into his face.
“It’s already too late. I’ve tried reaching out to every connection I have, but no one is answering my calls.”
There were ledgers recording bribes, but those were unusable cards.
The moment he revealed them, both sides would go down together—that much everyone understood perfectly.
“How much has already been deposited into the banks?”
“Roughly three billion hwan. Among them, there are four accounts exceeding one hundred million hwan—about 1.2 billion in total. The rest is divided among multiple accounts, each with less than ten million hwan.”
“……Then we have to assume that 1.2 billion is lost?”
“Since it’s not under your name, Master, it won’t directly affect you—but freezing those accounts is inevitable.”
Letting out a faint groan, Yang Sobo closed his eyes. 1.2 billion hwan—it was no small amount, even for him.
“What about the money we’ve circulated in the private loan market?”
“By your order, we retrieved about half, but the sudden currency reform halted everything.”
“Can we recover the rest?”
“They’re probably in trouble themselves. They might use this opportunity to sever all ties with us entirely.”
“You mean we won’t be able to collect it?”
“Legally speaking…… it seems impossible.”
If despair were to take physical form, it would probably look like this.
Not a single piece of good news existed.
“So, we’re just supposed to give it all up? Is that the plan you’re offering?”
President Woo shouted, unable to restrain himself. Accountant Jin, at a loss for words, kept his mouth shut.
Yang Sobo opened his eyes and looked straight at him.
“Recover it somehow. It’s too large a sum to simply abandon.”
“Their accounts will also be frozen. For now, there’s nothing we can do, Master.”
“Ha…….”
Letting out a deep sigh, Yang Sobo turned to President Woo.
“How are the merchants reacting?”
“What do you think? It’s like a funeral out there.”
“And the money we lent them?”
“If we try to recover it now, they’ll revolt. Besides, even if we collect it in hwan, it’s meaningless now. It’s better to wait and retrieve it slowly after the new currency is issued.”
Even a rat bites when cornered—how much more desperate would people be? Yang Sobo nodded slowly.
“They must be frustrated too. We’ll proceed with gradual recovery, then.”
“Yes, Master. But…… are you really just going to let this happen without doing anything?”
“‘If we don’t stay quiet? You want us to wag our fingers at those thugs with guns?’”
“‘Still…!’”
“‘When a typhoon comes, you first hunker down and wait for it to pass. If you try to fight it half-heartedly, you’ll lose everything you have.’”
“‘I’m frustrated because I’m desperate! Frustration, that’s why!’”
President Woo leapt to his feet. His face had flushed crimson with rage and a sense of injustice.
“‘Do you know how hard we worked to settle in this strange land after leaving the continent? We endured being called devils and commies and built this empire. And now they ostracize us like this! If I’d known, I’d have set up elsewhere!’”
President Woo hammered his chest as his anger boiled over, continuing his bitter speech.
“‘Master! We followed and trusted you because we believed you would stop such injustice! And now you tell us to just take it?’”
“‘President Woo.’”
“‘What? Did I say something I shouldn’t, Mr. Zhang!’”
At the sharp retort, Zhang Wei glared at President Woo with a murderous look.
But President Woo met that gaze squarely, showing no flinch. There was a lethal resolve in his eyes — it didn’t matter how he died, he seemed to say.
An insubordination that would never normally occur was growing loud enough to crack the golden empire Yang Sobo had built.
“‘President Woo! Are you really looking to die?!’”
Finally unable to hold back, Zhang Wei stepped forward and blasted out a killing intent.
“‘Yes! If you want to die that badly, go ahead and try—dying this way or that is the same anyway!’”
President Woo wouldn’t yield either; he thrust his chest out and met him.
A savage atmosphere settled between them. It felt like an explosion could happen at any second as their fierce energies clashed.
“‘Stop it.’”
Yang Sobo spoke softly. His voice wasn’t loud, but its weight could not be ignored.
At that brief admonition, the two men — who had been growling as if about to plunge a knife into each other’s throats — both froze.
“‘President Woo.’”
When his name was called, President Woo lowered his eyes.
“‘I know your anger and your sense of injustice. But now is not the time to point knives at each other.’”
This time he slowly turned his gaze to Zhang Wei.
“‘Zhang Wei, I know your loyalty as well. But President Woo’s words have merit. I… failed to live up to your trust.’”
“‘Master!’”
For the first time, Yang Sobo admitted his mistake as he looked at the two men in turn.
“‘I suppose I had grown old and my judgment blurred. Hunkering down isn’t always the best tactic in front of a typhoon. I lost my reason for a moment.’”
The taut air slackened. President Woo sat back down, calmer now, and Zhang Wei retreated a step.
A heavy silence settled over the office. After pressing his temples for a long while, Yang Sobo finally broke the quiet.
“‘Zhang Wei.’”
“‘Yes, Master.’”
“‘Contact Baek Gun.’”
At the unexpected name from his mouth, Accountant Jin and President Woo both showed puzzled expressions.
“‘You mean that bloody kid you took in, Master?’”
“‘Yes.’”
At President Woo’s question, a bitter smile tugged at Yang Sobo’s mouth.
“‘Perhaps that kid saw all of this coming. Now I understand why he clung to dollars and gold and land so obsessively. I had given enough hints, yet… it was my failing.’”
“‘But, Master. When we contacted him yesterday, he also…’”
“‘A day has passed. He may have already prepared countermeasures.’”
“‘Shall we summon him to Seoul?’”
“‘No. I can’t order you to abandon that kid and come. I couldn’t treat him so. Tell him to give me a card I can use to strike back.’”
Though his face bore deep fatigue, befitting the founder of a golden empire, Yang Sobo quickly mastered his expression.
“‘It took just one day to topple the empire we’d built for decades. But rebuilding the fallen is also a task for human hands. Accountant Jin, think immediately of ways to minimize losses, and President Woo, calm the unsettled merchants.’”
“‘Yes, Master!’”
“‘Understood.’”
“‘And Zhang Wei. Tell Baek Gun this—’”
Yang Sobo looked at the dark sky beyond the window. The moonless night seemed to mirror his heart.
“‘We need the wisdom of the young tiger.’”
Late at night.
Zhang Wei’s phone rang.
“‘…Did the Master really say that? That he needs the wisdom of the young tiger?’”
— He did.
Zhang Wei’s voice was much heavier than usual. From the weight of it alone, I could guess what kind of conversation had taken place.
“‘It seems the situation is very bad.’”
— It’s the worst.
“‘I don’t have any sharp measures either. I’d like to hear what plans the Master has prepared first.’”
Zhang Wei spoke of several measures Yang Sobo was currently preparing.
Listening to him, I could roughly understand how, before my return, Yang Sobo had painfully overcome similar chaos.
“‘Not bad. Dispersing funds through the Chinese merchant network…’”
In the days before financial real-name systems, one could open accounts not only under borrowed names but even under nonexistent, ghost names.
Yang Sobo was planning to exploit that.
“‘But banks will be extremely reluctant to open new accounts for about a week.’”
— The heads of our main banks already showed reluctance. They said existing accounts might be OK, but new accounts are absolutely impossible.
“‘Then securing as many existing accounts as possible will be key. If we collect accounts already issued through the Chinese network, that wouldn’t be bad.’”
But there was a fatal flaw. If too large a sum was deposited at once, that information would be reported to the government in real time.
“‘Did any banks mention an exact deposit limit?’”
— They said they didn’t know; they hadn’t been informed yet.
I slowly organized Zhang Wei’s words in my head.
The government was freezing accounts with a progressive differential. Past Yang Sobo, unaware of this, had been spreading funds around and had placed too large sums in some accounts, becoming a government target.
Even if account freezes were lifted after about a month, large deposits would still face source-of-fund investigations; unable to prove those sources, he would have had massive assets seized.
“‘No matter how you split accounts, do not exceed 2 million hwan per account. If that amount is exceeded, the government will likely conduct focused investigations.’”
— Where did you get that figure?
“‘It’s my estimate. And if deposits exceed 10 million hwan, the joint investigative task force will likely come out to investigate personally.’”
— …Are you sure?
“‘Yes. I’m 99% confident.’”
Silence flowed over the line. It was clear they were curious why I was so certain, but they didn’t press.
— After discussing it with the Master, we’ll proceed that way.
“‘And one more thing. Use the global Chinese network to shape international opinion. Especially moving influential overseas Chinese in the U.S. and Europe will be most effective.’”
— Do you think those thugs with guns care about that?
“‘Trying something is better than doing nothing. Even a military government cannot entirely ignore international opinion. In fact, a junta that seized power by coup will be even more concerned about legitimacy.’”
— I will convey that to the Master.
“‘Finally…’”
To preserve the bones, sometimes flesh had to be surrendered.
Sometimes a swift, decisive sacrifice opened the way to survival.
“‘For existing deposits over 100 million hwan that are already in banks… donate them generously to the government for national modernization before investigations begin.’”