As the eldest, Kim Tae-hyun quickly summarized the “Lee Hyun-woo utilization strategy.”
First, from this moment on, everyone can receive advice from Lee Hyun-woo.
Second, since an unfair closeness could occur, make sure to inform Lee Hyun-woo about the competition.
Third, the number of meetings with Lee Hyun-woo should be fair, and everyone should be informed. If not informed, automatic disqualification occurs.
At the last part, Kim Ah-young spoke up.
“Fair number of meetings? Then I can’t purely date Hyun-woo.”
“You’re openly saying you’re dating Hyun-woo now.”
“Well, there’s no need to hide it from oppa and Ah-jin.”
“Haha, I see. Anyway, if you date during that period as you said, we’ll also need to meet Hyun-woo once more.”
“What’s all this? Besides, that period is ambiguous.”
“It’s not ambiguous. It’s until the 21st Century Venture Business Meeting. We’ll decide on the investment that day, so it’s not long.”
The 21st Century Venture Business Meeting was scheduled for two weeks later.
However, Kim Ah-young felt weighed down as if sandbags were tied to her ankles.
If the number of meetings was to be matched, the time to meet Lee Hyun-woo would naturally decrease.
Yet, Kim Tae-hyun’s arrangement was oddly rational, so there was no room to refute it.
“Well, it can’t be helped. Got it.”
“Our unnie is so mature. I couldn’t have done it.”
“Shut up. It’s all because of you.”
“Alright, I won’t mind if you get annoyed in the future.”
Seeing Kim Ah-jin grinning, she felt annoyed for no reason.
But since it was already decided, she didn’t bring it up again, and as it was close to working hours, she had no choice but to get in the car.
Meanwhile, watching the conversation between his two younger sisters, Kim Tae-hyun also got in the car and took out his phone.
Of course, it was to inform Lee Hyun-woo of the rules he had just organized.
(Hello?)
“Hey, Hyun-woo, it’s me.”
(Yes, hyung.)
“I have an interesting story, but… check your email later. Okay?”
Originally, he was going to say to meet briefly, but recalling the rules he just set, Kim Tae-hyun thought.
‘If I meet once, it gives my two sisters an opportunity to meet once as well.’
Since the rules were hastily made, they were quite flawed.
They set the number of meetings but not the duration.
Naturally, Lee Hyun-woo would spend more time with the one he felt closer to.
‘To eliminate Ah-young’s advantage, it’s important to minimize the moments of meeting.’
So, telling Lee Hyun-woo that he would send the details via email, he noticed Hyun-woo was quite curious.
(What is it? Is it about the data center? No, it can’t be that fast. Then the PDA operating system? That seems a bit early too… Ah, the MP3 mobile phone you mentioned last time is developed, isn’t it!)
“Huh? Oh, that’s right, but the email content isn’t about that. Anyway, I’ll send you an email as soon as I get to work, so just know that.”
Talking made him realize how much he was entangled with Lee Hyun-woo.
Data centers and PDA operating systems came up instantly, and 【Jungle Japan】 was also not unrelated to Lee Hyun-woo.
Even the MP3 mobile phone, which was finally developed, had to collaborate with 【Jungle Music】.
The head of the development team had already gone to 【Jungle】 several times for advice.
Moreover, servers and cloud businesses were not entirely unrelated, making Kim Tae-hyun’s eyes waver.
‘There are so many areas I am in charge of that received Hyun-woo’s advice.’
Once again, he realized how competent Lee Hyun-woo was.
‘Ah-jin mentioned competition fairness for a reason.’
Lee Hyun-woo had to make another phone call.
This time it was Kim Ah-jin.
She said she would visit soon.
The reason was gratitude.
Thanks to Lee Hyun-woo’s advice, the fashion mall of 【First Woolen】 played a decisive role in reducing inventory.
It was as expected.
Fashion conglomerates needed to sell new and seasonal clothes offline, while inventory items could succeed if used online with increased discounts.
But it seemed she wasn’t visiting just to express gratitude.
After the call with Kim Ah-jin, he received a call from Kim Ah-young and understood clearly.
(Oppa and Ah-jin’s competition has intensified.)
The competition Kim Ah-young mentioned was related to the upcoming 21st Century Venture Business Meeting.
They planned to select an appropriate venture company to invest in, and the one with the highest return would receive a gift from Chairman Kim Sung-moo.
‘Wow, this is a game that only third-generation chaebols would play.’
He thought it was childish inside, but it wasn’t bad, so he welcomed it.
In the past life, didn’t many conglomerates tightly bind their money just before the foreign exchange crisis, causing a liquidity shortage?
This blocked the financial veins of numerous small and medium-sized venture companies.
This intrigued him, so he asked her.
“How much are they investing?”
(The investment amount doesn’t matter.)
“How many companies?”
(That’s not decided either. Since it was hastily made, it’s quite sloppy. But since there’s not much time until the investment date, we can’t help if there are holes.)
“Indeed, it’s a bit sloppy.”
He could see that Chairman Kim Sung-moo intended it as a playful activity.
He wanted to see how his children’s returns fared without clearly setting the investment amount or number of companies to invest in.
‘This is a test to see how sharp their business acumen is.’
Not wanting to fuel Kim Ah-young’s competitive spirit, he kept that thought to himself and tried to wrap up the conversation.
“Got it. See you later then.”
(Later? That might be difficult.)
“Huh? Why?”
(Ah-jin objected to me and oppa meeting you easily for advice. She said it’s quite unfair.)
Kim Ah-young briefly explained the rules this time too.
He couldn’t stop laughing inside as he listened.
‘This is truly a game only third-generation chaebols can play.’
After hanging up, he laughed again upon reading Kim Tae-hyun’s email.
“Such rules. Interesting.”
This time, he could see beyond Chairman Kim Sung-moo’s playfulness.
It seemed he didn’t want his son to feel assured in the succession race and wanted his daughters not to give up either.
‘Anyway, I’m getting the best of both worlds.’
If the information and communication companies’ activation grows, it creates a rich ecosystem.
In that ecosystem, 【Jungle】, which had already secured a high position, couldn’t help but succeed more.
Thus, the sooner Lee Hyun-woo retired, the better for everyone.
Moreover, it was very welcoming for money from the 【Guseong】 family to be invested in information and communication companies.
Historically, when 【Guseong】 got involved, the industrial structure of the country changed.
‘I should utilize this news.’
The way to utilize it was simple.
He had a persona called Nostradamus.
Coincidentally, an article appeared in 【Sejong Daily】.
『Government and large corporations to selectively invest in information and communication companies』
The article detailed the purpose of the upcoming ‘21st Century Venture Business Association Meeting.’
In other words, numerous small and medium-sized venture companies would set up booths to promote their items and content, and major investors, including the government and corporations, would come forward to invest.
It was also mentioned that the likelihood of foreign investment companies participating was high.
Knowing this much meant that information had leaked from somewhere.
‘It could be the professor, someone from 【Guseong】, or somewhere I don’t know about.’
What was important was that it was all what Lee Hyun-woo desired.
If rumors spread and more investors came, the chances of participating companies receiving investment increased.
As he thought this, another call came in.
Thinking he was really making a lot of calls today, he quickly answered, this time it was Professor Geum Sang-joon.
He confirmed that the investment division of our country’s national policy bank would participate in the 21st Century Venture Business Association Meeting, and public enterprises such as 【Korean Telecom】 and 【Korean Electric】 were also considering joining.
‘The scale of investors will be much larger than I expected.’
Now, the concern was whether the demand for investment and supply would be balanced.
In other words, he worried that while there were plenty of investors with money, there might be a shortage of quality small and medium-sized venture companies.
‘Then I should advertise.’
Lee Hyun-woo quickly called Woo Sang-won.
Knowing that when Lee Hyun-woo got directly involved, it wasn’t a small matter, Woo Sang-won was on high alert.
“We need to advertise on portal sites. Encourage many small businesses to participate in this 21st Century Venture Business Association.”
Lee Hyun-woo reiterated the previous contents, adding that if the information and communication industry’s ecosystem grew rapidly, it could become a growth engine for 【Jungle】.
Woo Sang-won understood immediately.
Then he suggested,
“Should we start TV and radio media advertisements soon?”
“Sounds good. It’s about time.”
Although new media like portal sites had grown, the mainstream media still held the dominance.
So, it seemed better for 【Jungle】 to actively use those media more than before.
This would speed up the public’s acquisition of information about 【Jungle】.
In fact, the foundation of the ecosystem he mentioned earlier was the general public.
The faster they integrated into the information society, the stronger the roots and pillars that formed the ecosystem would become, so Lee Hyun-woo readily accepted Woo Sang-won’s suggestion.
And shortly after.
After Woo Sang-won left, Lee Hyun-woo began writing the column for Nostradamus that he had been planning.
The title was unusual from the start.
『Rapid Industrial Structure Transformation, Turning Korea’s Crisis into Opportunity』
The title mentioned Korea’s crisis, but the content contained the crises of numerous small and medium-sized enterprises.
It also stated that now could be an opportunity.
- If the government and large corporations cut spending during an economic crisis, small enterprises and households will face financial arteriosclerosis. However, it seems that this time the government and large corporations are eager to invest in small and medium venture companies. And this investment can increase employment and profit for those companies, creating new items and content, thus turning a crisis into an opportunity.
At the end, he boldly mentioned the companies that decided to invest,
- 【Guseong Group】 and 【Aejeong Group】 etc…
As he paid attention to another ringing phone.
(Hyun-woo, it’s me.)
It was Kim Yoon-soo’s voice.
(You know my brother started a fund company, right? It’s called 【Future Asset】, and it seems they will also participate in the 21st Century Venture Business Association Meeting.)
Naturally, he included 【Future Asset】 in the list of companies he was already writing about.
And after including the already confirmed Son Jung-yi, the lineup became formidable.
A satisfied smile appeared on his lips.
‘This will certainly reduce the damage from the foreign exchange crisis we will face compared to the previous life.’
