CH89

The chairman of a conglomerate being investigated by the prosecution is a natural occurrence. On the contrary, it is extremely rare for it not to happen.

Among the top 10 group chairmen in Korea, how many do you think have no criminal record?

However, because the absence of conglomerate chairmen for a long time could make the Korean economy difficult, they are usually given a three-year prison sentence with a five-year probation.

The prosecution only comes up with charges to that extent, and the courts make decisions accordingly.

If the embezzled amount is too large, there is a legal minimum threshold, so there are cases where one must serve a prison sentence.

In such cases, they are usually granted amnesty. SSK Group Chairman Chae Tae-an was released a few months ago as a special presidential pardon.

Nevertheless, even though OTK Company may not directly operate, they have various subsidiary companies. Just in the sectors they are currently involved in – such as finance, automotive, entertainment, cryptocurrency, internet retail, gaming, adult entertainment, etc.

They are expanding their business like conglomerates. I thought to myself that since I am the chairman of OTK Group, I might be investigated by the prosecution someday.

"I didn't expect it to come so soon."

After entering the prosecution, apart from eating and being questioned, there was nothing much to do. You can't even use your phone or the internet here.

I've been kept so busy all this time, and suddenly finding myself with nothing to do feels strange. If I feel anxious about not working, am I becoming a workaholic like my noona Hyun-joo?

I recalled all the things that happened during that time.

It still doesn't feel real to me.

It's unbelievable how just glimpsing into a few potential futures brought me to this point. I was broke when I was discharged from the military, and now I am the CEO of a company worth more than 50 trillion.

There is still a long way to go. The game has just begun with Eunsung-cha.

"Come to think of it…"

I guess it's time to start counting the votes.

I'm not as nervous as I was during Brexit.

Back then, it was truly a gamble with everything on the line. But this time, it's not that extreme. Even if Diane gets elected, things won't go to the worst-case scenario. I might lose some money, and things might get a bit messy in the future.

Every action has its consequences.

Usually, people identify the cause and derive the results accordingly, but I was different. I first discovered the results and then analyzed the probable causes backward.

I remembered the first time I met Ronald. Even though he has an image of speaking bluntly, surprisingly, he says some things that make sense.

Unlike the financial and IT industries that have recovered from the financial crisis, the manufacturing industry in the United States has continued on a path of decline.

Although the recent economic growth rate has reached 3%, and stock prices and urban real estate prices have risen, laborers have hardly benefited from these.

Unlike Diane, an elite politician who mainly represents white-collar workers, Ronald delved into the sentiments of marginalized areas.

He cleverly tapped into the anxiety of white Americans about being pushed out of mainstream society. For this, he created a public enemy in illegal immigrants – portraying them as drug addicts, criminals, or even terrorists.

Whether it was true or not didn't matter. Anyway, they were seen as villains taking away jobs from white Americans.

Ronald promised to build a large and beautiful wall along the border with Mexico to stop illegal immigrants.

It may seem like empty promises, but there was a hidden political calculation behind it.

Most people of color support the Democratic Party. So, flipping them as opponents wouldn't matter since they would vote for Diane anyway.

Interestingly, some of them also support Ronald.

Ronald assured to prevent future illegal immigrants, not to deport legal immigrants who have settled in (and have voting rights). Who would be most at risk if illegal immigrants flooded in? It would undoubtedly affect the immigrants who arrived and settled first.

Ronald comforted those engulfed in anger and helplessness, voicing what they wanted to hear. Whether it was insults or plain talk didn't matter much.

While Diane advocated abstract goals like peace, justice, and welfare, Ronald straightforwardly focused on creating jobs and reducing taxes.

What results will these differences bring about? If we wait a little longer, we will know if the predictions are correct or not.

***

The counting of votes has begun.

Diane smoothly started by securing a large number of electoral votes in California and New York. One after another, the coastal areas in the East and West were covered in blue representing the Democratic Party.

Meanwhile, Ronald received the second-largest number of electoral votes from Texas. While Diane painted the coastal areas blue, Ronald painted the inland areas red.

As expected, Michigan, with Detroit, lit up in red. However, as the blue light shone in Illinois, cheers erupted from the Democratic Party.

"Wow!"

Diane also breathed a sigh of relief. Just winning a couple of places in the Rust Belt would push her over the magical number of 270.

By around noon, the results should be out.

CNN reported Diane's victory as certain, and the Democratic Party's election camp felt like they had won it all.

Diane, making an effort to control her expression, quietly instructed Joel, "Please review the acceptance speech one more time."

Joel nodded.

"Understood."

***

The global financial institutions all held their breath as they watched the election broadcast.

As Diane's victory became certain, everyone cheered. The stock market rose steadily, and the foreign exchange market showed a stable trend.

Oh Hyun-joo kept her eyes glued to the monitor, monitoring stock markets and foreign exchange markets around the world.

"How's the election going?"

Henry skimmed through the real-time data from CNN's election coverage and Golden Gate.

"Illinois has shifted towards Diane's side."

Ellie quickly added, "Oregon and Washington too. The West Coast has swept the board."

It was a fact reflected in the polls that areas with high-income levels and population density tended to favor the Democratic Party.

"What about the Rust Belt?"

"The Democratic Party is leading in a few states, but it's within the margin of error."

Regions like Washington DC or Wyoming, where there was a significant gap in votes, had results within an hour of counting. However, in areas where the race was close, it would take until the end of counting to know the results.

OTK Company had invested 2.5 billion dollars and still had over 0.5 billion dollars in cash reserves. K Company also held 4 billion dollars.

While securities firms, private equity funds, and hedge funds were cautious of excessively leaning towards one side, they were enjoying the rare relief rally.

OTK Company, on the other hand, had already placed bets in the opposite position.

Currently, K Company is handling the trades. Park Sang-yeop took advantage of the relief rally to continue pouring out sell orders. Oh Hyun-joo furrowed her brow and lit a cigarette.

"It's frustrating not being able to reach Jin-hoo."

Oh Taek-gyu replied calmly, "No need to worry. After all, Ronald is the president."

"Why do you think so?"

"If you had met him in person, you would have thought the same, Sis. He's not your average person."

Oh Hyun-joo nodded.

"That's true."

In the first place, if he had been an ordinary person, he wouldn't have made it to this position.

Henry shouted urgently, "Ronald has taken the lead in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania!"

"What?"

Oh Hyun-joo turned her gaze to the TV. Even the anchor conducting the election broadcast looked flustered. It was understandable as until just a moment ago, they had been reporting confidently on Diane's victory.

Ellie exclaimed in surprise, "Wait a minute! Florida has also reversed within the margin of error."

Oh Hyun-joo turned her gaze back to the monitor. The steadily rising global stock market began to plummet in an instant.

Oh Taek-gyu burst into laughter, "See, Jin-hoo was right."

***

The Rust Belt was turning red.

They already knew Michigan would go to Ronald. They thought either Pennsylvania or Ohio might follow suit. Even if a couple of Rust Belt states flipped, it wouldn't disrupt the overall trend. That was the judgment.

But…

Illinois was the only one that held, the rest was a wipeout. Democrats lost in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Indiana. Most of these were regions that had previously supported the Democratic Party.

It wasn't all over yet. Diane watched the election broadcast with a glimmer of hope. However, when even Florida, the final battleground, fell to Ronald effortlessly, the spark of hope died out.

Ronald easily surpassed the magic number of 270, securing 306 electoral votes, while Diane fell short with only 232. The public opinion that Diane would win by securing at least 300 or more electors turned out to be completely wrong.

It was a complete defeat.

Someone muttered as if they couldn't believe it.

"This is unbelievable…"

It was something that couldn't be logically possible.

There was no other way to explain it except as a miracle.

The election camp was engulfed in silence by the completely unexpected results.

In reality, she had over 3 million more votes than her opponent. However, the number of secured electoral votes differed by a staggering 74.

How did this result come about?

In short, it was a revolt of the alienated regions and the white working class. But that alone couldn't explain it. There must be other reasons…

"OTK Company!"

Joel recalled the young Asian man he had met.

If OTK Company hadn't joined hands with Ronald and invested $2.5 billion in the Rust Belt, would this result have happened?

***

When Ronald entered the Republican primary, many thought it was a joke. His chances of winning the primary were not even 2%.

But he defeated all the leading Republican candidates and was nominated as the Republican presidential candidate. And he caused a revolution in the main election.

The political rookie real estate tycoon Ronald Stamper defeated veteran politician Diane Underwood, who came from a political dynasty and had served as a senator and secretary of state!

Who could have imagined such a result?

Even Ronald himself couldn't believe the outcome. Watching the vote count broadcast with anticipation, he rose from his seat with both arms outstretched when the hope turned into reality.

The Republican politicians watching the broadcast together cheered.

"Wow!"

"Hahaha!"

Ronald laughed heartily and shook hands with members of his campaign team.

***

The unexpected results shocked not only the United States but the entire world.

President Park Si-hyeong, who was watching the election broadcast, was at a loss for words. He had maintained a close relationship with the current US ruling party, the Democratic Party, and implicitly supported Diane.

As no one knew how the election results would turn out, it was wise not to take sides. However, indirectly supporting Diane was the choice made by other countries as well. Everyone thought Ronald had no chance of becoming president.

But then, this unexpected outcome occurred.

The issue arose not only from supporting Diane but also from disturbing OTK Company, which strained relations with Ronald.

Even though the Korean president could wield supreme authority, they were not comparable to the US president. A worst-case scenario seemed to be unfolding.

President Park Si-hyeong felt his throat go dry. "W-what should I do?"

No one could deny that OTK Company played a kingmaker role in Ronald's election. The person who made that investment decision was Kang Jin-hoo.

Although there were suspicions, keeping Kang Jin-hoo in custody when the major charges turned out to be baseless was unreasonable. Despite no specific instruction from the Blue House, Hong Man-ho called the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office.

"Drop the charges, release Kang Jin-hoo."

He leaned back in his chair, exhaling a long sigh. "Haa."

Simply releasing him now wouldn't end the matter. Stripping a few low-level executives of their titles wouldn't cover it either.

The question remained: To what extent should responsibility be taken by the prosecution, the National Intelligence Service, and the Blue House?

TL/n - 

SSK Group's chairman, Kim Seong-kyu, was arrested in 2023 on charges related to financial misconduct, including embezzlement and breach of trust. His arrest sparked significant media attention and raised concerns about corporate governance and accountability within South Korea's chaebols.

* * *

Donald Trump's victory in the 2016 election, despite losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by about 2.9 million votes, is primarily attributed to the U.S. Electoral College system.

Here's how it works:

Electoral College System

Electoral Votes: Each state has a certain number of electoral votes based on its population. There are a total of 538 electoral votes, and a candidate needs 270 to win.

State-by-State Voting: When citizens cast their votes, they are actually voting for a slate of electors pledged to that candidate. Most states use a winner-takes-all system, meaning the candidate with the most votes in that state gets all of its electoral votes.

Key States: Trump won several critical swing states (like Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania) by narrow margins. These states, despite having fewer total votes, provided him with the necessary electoral votes to secure the presidency.

Rural vs. Urban Voting: Trump's support was particularly strong in rural areas, while Clinton garnered more votes in urban centers. This discrepancy meant that Trump could win key states with fewer total votes by focusing on areas with higher electoral votes.

Strategic Campaigning: Trump's campaign focused on appealing to voters in battleground states, which proved successful in clinching the needed electoral votes.