Chapter 67: Choose: The Land or the Group

Let's go in for now."

It was an absurd situation, but this was reality.

I swallowed a bitter laugh as I climbed the stairs.

Reaching the third floor, I saw a large glass door. Next to it was a sign that read 'Hyeonbo Group' in big letters, with the names of Hyeonbo affiliates listed below.

It looked so ordinary that I might have walked past it if not for the sign.

A man inside the glass door saw us and came out.

"What brings you here?"

"I have an appointment with the Chairman."

"With the Chairman?"

He looked me up and down, as if thinking, 'What business does a young person have with the Chairman?'

"I'm here from Myeong-dong."

"Just a moment."

The man shouted towards the inside.

"Hey, Han! Contact the secretariat and check if there's an appointment scheduled for the Chairman!"

I suppressed another laugh.

The inside looked quite spacious, but to think this was the 18th largest company in Korea, which had once risen to 14th place before nearly going bankrupt…

Even seeing it with my own eyes, I couldn't believe it.

"Please come in."

The employee's demeanor was amusing, but I kept a straight face as he guided us to the Chairman's office.

Passing through just one door, we entered a completely different world.

'How much money did they pour into this place?'

The Chairman's office was a stark contrast to the outside.

The paintings on the walls looked expensive even to my untrained eye, and everything from the interior decorations to the sofas was top-of-the-line.

"Are you Chairman Cheon's representative?"

Chairman Jang looked at me from his seat on the sofa. He appeared slightly younger than Grandfather or Chairman Song, with dyed hair and no grays.

It was quite an experience to see in person the face I'd only seen on the news before.

But my first impression of him was…

Zero points.

"Yes, I'm Kim Mu-hyeok."

"I heard you're the grandson, but how old are you?"

Inwardly laughing, I replied,

"I'm 22. By the way, is this how Hyeonbo treats its guests? It's my first time being questioned without even being offered a seat. Even Chairman Song of Daehyeon wasn't like this."

"What? Hahaha! You're an interesting young man. Alright, have a seat."

Right, let's see how long you can keep laughing like that.

I sat down without another word.

Manager Ma handed me an envelope from behind.

Chairman Jang, watching Manager Ma stand behind me, asked probingly,

"Why did you want to meet? Where's Chief Ha? Why is a young man here instead?"

He kept trying to establish dominance, but I ignored it due to his age.

"I handle most things now. Anyway, Chairman, about the convertible bonds… We're thinking of settling them."

He didn't seem surprised, showing little reaction.

"We've been paying the interest regularly, haven't we?"

"We're in the process of restructuring assets, so it can't be helped. Other companies are already recalling their investments."

"Hmm…"

Chairman Jang stroked his chin, deep in thought.

I didn't bother saying more.

I already knew he was in no financial position to repay, so his answer was predetermined.

"It's difficult right now…"

His final answer matched my expectations.

Why did he waste time pretending to think when he was going to say that anyway?

"Then we'll convert them to stocks. Or we could add a premium and transfer the bonds to another company."

"What?"

There are times when the debtor becomes the upper hand in a debt situation.

For small debts like 1 or 2 million won, the creditor has the advantage. But as the amount grows larger, the debtor gains the upper hand.

The creditor ends up having to coax and persuade the debtor to recover as much money as possible.

Knowing Grandfather's fearsome reputation, they'd been paying interest without fail, but if these bonds fell into someone else's hands, it could shake their management control. No, it definitely would.

They probably borrowed money urgently during the difficult times of the 80s, never imagining it would come back as a knife at their throat.

I had no intention of receiving cash anyway.

"If I convert the bonds to stocks along with the Hyeonbo shares I already own, well, we'd have to calculate, but I think you'd face significant difficulties in managing the company. Would that be alright?"

My real target was the land where Eunmi Apartments stood.

That land which the National Tax Service had tried but failed to recover after he fled overseas.

Of course, I also planned to claim the real estate Chairman Jang owned, with a hefty premium added to the principal.

"You…"

Chairman Jang's face flushed red and pale.

"Chairman, if you thought you could underestimate me because of my age, you might want to reconsider. Grandfather's blood runs through my veins, doesn't it? I'll do anything that benefits me."

Speechless, he opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water.

A cold smile crept onto my face.

"As a businessman, I'm sure you're quick with numbers, so I'll keep it simple. If you want to redeem these bonds, you'll need to pay the amount specified plus a premium. Otherwise, I'll convert them to stocks."

While the stock wasn't publicly traded and thus lacked an exact price, controlling shares always commanded a premium.

Chairman Jang spoke with an agitated voice,

"I had an agreement with Chairman Cheon never to convert these to stocks. Do you have the authority to change that?"

Once again, I felt a renewed respect for Grandfather.

He never sold such bonds to others, regardless of interest rates, maturity guarantees, or yields.

"Sigh… Look here, young man. There's such a thing as business ethics. Even so, isn't quadrupling the amount too much? I'll give you double. 10 billion won. If you can wait a month, I can return it."

He's probably thinking of getting another loan.

Just a thug doing things in the name of a company that even a loan shark wouldn't do, like bribing for illegal loans.

It wasn't worth negotiating any further.

"Then our negotiation is over. Once I leave this seat, I won't be meeting you again, Chairman."

As I stood up without hesitation, Chairman Jang hurriedly grabbed me.

"No, why is such a young person so impatient? Wait a moment."

Chairman Jang picked up the phone and called someone.

Shortly after, a man entered.

Chairman Jang moved to a corner with him, discussing out of my earshot.

After a long conversation, the two approached me.

"This is our CFO. He says immediate repayment is difficult. Couldn't you wait just a month?"

"If we don't settle this today, I'll transfer this to someone else. All the Hyeonbo stocks and its subsidiaries' stocks together."

If I sold all the Hyeonbo-related stocks I owned on the market, it would be about 10 billion won.

But with this bond for Hyeonbo Co., Ltd., I was confident I could command a hefty premium anywhere.

The CFO, who had been listening, spoke up.

"Please tell us what you want. You seem to know everything already, so why drag this out?"

As someone who handled money, he seemed to have caught on to my intentions.

The CFO didn't avoid my gaze.

"Let's calculate 50 billion won for all my Hyeonbo-related stocks and this bond combined. You know the number of shares I own."

"Hah… That's quite a premium."

"I think it's a fair valuation. You understand what I'm saying, don't you, Director?"

The CFO glanced at Chairman Jang, then sighed and nodded.

"You know we can't come up with the cash right away. So what are you proposing in exchange?"

"There's about 600 pyeong of land inside Eunmi Apartments, right? The unregistered one."

At those words, the CFO was visibly shocked.

Chairman Jang also looked surprised.

"How do you know about that?"

"That's not important. And there's also that plot in Daechi-dong, right? About 1000 pyeong, the land owned by Hyeonbo Construction, left idle for building construction."

"…"

The CFO was at a loss for words.

Frustrated, Chairman Jang spoke up.

"How do you know our company's internal affairs so well? Do you have an insider?"

I smirked and replied,

"I'm Chairman Cheon's grandson. Is that answer enough?"

"…"

"Even at current market rates, I believe it's worth about 40 billion won. But I've added a premium for the land inside Eunmi Apartments."

The land inside Eunmi Apartments would complicate its redevelopment.

The tax authorities would register and seize the property to recover national taxes from Chairman Jang, who had fled abroad, and push for a public sale.

However, some residents, including the Eunmi Apartment Reconstruction Promotion Committee chairmen, filed lawsuits, dragging out the process.

Even by 2020, redevelopment hadn't started.

I planned to build my kingdom on the 1000 pyeong plot in Daechi-dong. It was enough space for several buildings.

"Now, make your choice: the land or the group. I can even set a condition to sell everything else to others and just sell that land to me."

This was all I wanted from the Hyeonbo Group.

The two men looked at each other, sweating profusely.