The following conversation between key members of Jungle to prevent Lee Hyun-woo’s early retirement is nothing short of captivating.
“So, for now, we hold out with Jamie Wang next week, set the mood with the web browser war until the end of the year, and then meet Steven Job to get into the portal site war?”
“That’s likely. It seems like the portal site fight has already begun. He’s been emphasizing design to me, preparing for the war with 【Pineapple】.”
“That war is going to be intense.”
Following Jang Yoo-chul and Woo Sang-won’s statements, Oh Min-woo spoke up.
“The opponent isn’t planning to just take it quietly. Neither 【Macro Soft】 nor 【Pineapple】, and even 【Give and Take】, are just sitting still.”
Everyone turned their eyes to his face at the mention of the three companies.
Oh Min-woo’s expression conveyed that something significant was happening.
Acknowledging this, Oh Min-woo brought up a recent chat he had with Mikhail Pace.
Woo Sang-won tilted his head and asked, “Mikhail? You mean Mikhail Pace, the founder of 【Give and Take】?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Damn, what did that guy say? Because of him, our 【Jungle Music】 revenue is dropping.”
Jang Yoo-chul, who is obsessed with MP3s, got agitated.
In fact, P2P sites were being created in Korea these days, and due to the ‘Give and Take’ that originated them, illegal uploads and downloads were increasing.
Oh Min-woo calmed his excitement and continued.
“Just hold on. I need to tell you something. That guy declared war on us.”
“What kind of declaration?”
“Don’t be surprised. To defeat 【Jungle】, three companies have united. 【Macro Soft】, 【Pineapple】, and 【Give and Take】.”
“What?”
“……!”
“No way…”
Woo Sang-won also seemed surprised.
He asked again to confirm.
“Is that true?”
“Yes, it’s true. It’ll be in the news soon. They’re challenging the 【Jungle】 and 【Yaho】 alliance with a jointly developed search engine.”
“Alliance? It’s just that 【Yaho】 is using our search engine.”
“Still, the official announcement said we’re joining hands to research a better search engine together.”
Han Se-jin, always polite, rarely spoke informally. This was no exception.
He continued, eyes sparkling as he discussed joint research.
“Why don’t we join forces this time?”
“With whom? Jamie Wang?”
“Yes, if those three companies unite, it’ll be no joke. Honestly, we need allies too.”
“You mean a strategic alliance. Not a bad idea.”
“What’s the use if only we think so? The CEO hyung has to think the same.”
“Strength in unity. If we all advise him together, even the stubborn hyung will surely accept.”
Indeed, after the weekend, they all went together on Monday to talk to Lee Hyun-woo.
They said that if the three companies united, there would be tremendous synergy, so they should join hands with 【Yaho】 for a joint response.
Lee Hyun-woo raised his eyebrows.
“Joint response?”
“Yes, we need to join hands with Jamie Wang. It’s a crisis situation.”
“Also, the mood isn’t bad. Last time in Taiwan, we agreed on a cooperative competition, and in Hong Kong, Jamie Wang promptly accepted our search engine. She will surely accept our proposal.”
“We can’t fight alone. We lack the capital.”
“Yes, I 100% agree with the directors’ thoughts.”
Finally, Woo Sang-won declared, and Lee Hyun-woo kept his mouth shut for a moment.
‘Originally, I planned to guide Jamie Wang on a tour to places like Gyeongbokgung Palace when she arrived.’
Of course, Jamie Wang had her 【Yaho Korea】 promotional duties, but as she had already entrusted Lee Hyun-woo with her daily schedule, it was possible.
Talking business while there?
“I’m saying this to avoid misunderstanding, but I don’t mean to meet just for business. I heard from the two secretaries that you planned to go to Gyeongbokgung that day, right? You can discuss it while touring the palace, and then join hands to respond to the 【Macro Soft】 alliance. We came to you together because we thought it wouldn’t be bad. If it was too sudden, we’re really sorry.”
As expected, the position makes the person; Woo Sang-won not only organized well but also gave Lee Hyun-woo justification and relaxation.
With no choice, Lee Hyun-woo smiled.
“Alright. I’ll talk to her.”
The four people left the CEO’s office with satisfied smiles on their faces.
After work that day.
“I feel like something has reversed between me and the employees of our company.”
Lee Hyun-woo lamented with a smile to Kim Ah-young.
“Reversed? Why?”
“They keep bringing work to me. They’re pushing the company into a tense atmosphere.”
“Something happened?”
When she asked, Lee Hyun-woo told her about the three companies uniting to block 【Jungle】.
“Wow… really?”
“Yes, that’s how it’s gone. But even if those three unite to co-develop a search engine, the end is already set.”
“The end is set?”
“What I mean is, the level of technology will become similar, and it’ll eventually be a content battle.”
As usual, Lee Hyun-woo’s voice had a hint of leisure and confidence.
If they catch up with technology, he’ll win with content.
“Oh, it’s not that I don’t want to discuss business with Jamie Wang. Of course, joining hands with 【Yaho】 would be better.”
“But?”
“What people want is to win in the web browser war, portal site war, search engine war, etc.? But as you know, there’s no end to such wars. Won’t there be another war after that? Isn’t it the same with your 【Guseong】 and 【GB】? You’ve been at it for quite a while.”
“That’s right. But do you hate fighting? Are you afraid you’ll lose?”
It felt like Kim Ah-young was provoking him, but Lee Hyun-woo shook his head after choosing his words.
“No. The chances of me losing are close to zero. But I don’t know if you know me, I’m the type to finish once I start. But as I said, there’s no end to such wars. Winning the web browser war, then the search engine and portal site battles? Another war will be waiting for me…”
“……”
“When can I retire…”
“Didn’t you set a standard last time? To be number one in the information and communication industry, nurture a successor, and hand over the company?”
“Yes, that’s right…”
“Then just draw the line there. Achieve your goal quickly. Isn’t that right?”
Simple but clear.
It was the answer Lee Hyun-woo knew too.
“Should I?”
“If you can’t avoid it, enjoy it. Didn’t you tell me that sometimes?”
“Right, I should enjoy it. Okay, then it’s decided. Be number one in the information and communication industry and retire early. Wait, I should set a standard for this too. Should it be by market capitalization, sales, or profits? Which one?”
“Of course, all three.”
Kim Ah-young didn’t hesitate.
There was a reason.
- Sister-in-law, Hyung keeps talking about early retirement, can you stop him? Companies can fall as fast as they grow, right? Especially these days, companies are collapsing one after another.
Before coming here, she had received a call from Lee Jung-woo.
But even without his request, Kim Ah-young wanted to keep Lee Hyun-woo in the field a bit longer.
She had her ambitions too.
‘Market capitalization, sales, profits.’
She knew well how hard it would be to beat 【Macro Soft】, which is number one in the industry, in these three aspects.
Yet Lee Hyun-woo nodded with a confident smile.
“Alright, then I’ll be number one in the shortest time and retire.”
Lee Hyun-woo spoke as if he was fetching an item he had left behind, showing his confidence.
It’s quite amazing.
When he says such things, it really feels like he’ll achieve it.
Two days later, a major article came out in the United States.
『Three IT Companies Jointly Research Search Engine!』
The mentioned companies were 【Macro Soft】, 【Pineapple】, and 【Give and Take】.
Also, the person most surprised by this article was Joe Murphy of 【Jungle USA】.
‘They’re joining forces? To challenge us?’
Of course, they joined forces to compete against the technically superior 【Jungle】 search engine.
As a result, the stock prices of 【Macro Soft】 and 【Pineapple】 were hitting their upper limits.
Although the main products of the two companies were operating systems and computers, the market saw them as clearing the portal sites with a technically strong search engine.
Even Joe Murphy’s former company, 【Natural Standard Fund】, contacted him.
(Joe, the company is looking to add more investment in 【Give and Take】, do you think it’s a good idea?)
The question itself was extremely difficult.
If he said it was okay, it would feel like admitting that 【Jungle】’s search engine might be surpassed.
‘If I say it’s not okay, it would affect the investment.’
Joe Murphy gave a vague answer and hung up.
Then he contacted Korea.
The recipient was, of course, Lee Hyun-woo.
Although 【Jungle】 and 【Jungle USA】 are not a headquarters and foreign branch concept, if the origin responded clearly to this matter.
‘There’s no reason for us to lose.’
Joe Murphy’s trust in Lee Hyun-woo was solid.
As expected, Lee Hyun-woo wasn’t even surprised.
No, it seemed he already knew.
(It’s finally in the news.)
“You knew?”
(Yes, somehow, I heard about it.)
“How should we respond?”
(There’s no need for a big response. Just give an interview. Or subtly leak something to be reported.)
“Like what…”
He spoke as if it was nothing, but why did it create anticipation?
Lee Hyun-woo’s voice was heard again.
(The fact that three companies had to unite shows how great 【Jungle】’s search engine is. If we just imprint this image in people’s minds, we’ll get more than our money’s worth, right? Hahaha.)
Joe Murphy’s eyes widened.
And he found himself laughing along with Lee Hyun-woo’s laughter.
“Hahaha, that’s true. Three companies are paying attention to how great 【Jungle】’s search engine is!”
One of them is the world’s top information technology company, 【Macro Soft】; another is the past symbol of innovation, 【Pineapple】, and the last is the recent P2P service sensation, 【Give and Take】. If such companies join hands and shout ‘Down with 【Jungle】,’ the company’s value will undoubtedly rise.
It was a moment when Lee Hyun-woo’s confidence was contagious to Joe Murphy.
