A few days later.
I was waiting for a call from Chairman Jin Ho-gyun, but I ended up hearing from someone
entirely unexpected.
The call came from Jin Dong-gu, the younger son of Chairman Jin and one of the vice chairmen of Charlotte Group.
He requested to meet somewhere quiet, so I arranged a dinner at a restaurant in Cheongdamdong, managed by Captain Kang.
"It's a pleasure to meet you. I should have reached out first — apologies for being late. I'm Kim Min-jae from Taewoo Group."
"No, thank you for agreeing to meet me. I'm Jin Dong-gu."
His Korean was slightly awkward.
Born and raised in Japan and educated there, Vice Chairman Jin Dong-gu was more comfortable in Japanese.
Even after graduation, he worked for a financial firm in London, so his Korean remained quite limited.
"If it's easier, we can speak in Japanese or English. Would you prefer Japanese?"
"No, I couldn't possibly do that while conducting business in Korea. It may not be perfect, but I'd prefer to speak in Korean."
Speaking in Japanese would have made the conversation flow more smoothly, but Vice Chairman Jin politely declined.
His pronunciation was a bit rough, but he showed a genuine effort to improve his Korean.
"I'm not sure if the food here will suit your taste. It's a place I frequent often."
"Thank you for introducing me to such a great place. I had no idea there was such a quiet and
cozy restaurant in Seoul."
We enjoyed a light conversation as we dined.
Once the initial awkwardness had passed, Vice Chairman Jin finally brought up the real reason for our meeting.
"I heard you met with my father, along with Chairman Kim Tae-jung."
"We did try to keep it quiet, but I guess word got out quickly. Both chairmen are towering figures in the business world, after all."
"My ears are quite sharp when it comes to such rumors. But… may I ask, did the topic of
succession come up during that meeting?"
As expected, the reason he reached out was related to the matter of succession.
Though he held the same title of vice chairman, Jin Dong-gu was already in his fifties.
An age at which he could have already started his own family — naturally, he was sensitive to the topic of succession.
"We didn't discuss the matter in detail. All I heard was that Chairman Jin already has someone in mind for the next head of the group."
"He said he already has someone in mind, huh…"
Vice Chairman Jin fell into deep thought.
Then, perhaps realizing he had drifted off while I was sitting right in front of him, he snapped
back to attention and asked another question.
"Would it be alright if I asked what else you and my father talked about?"
"I proposed purchasing the Gangnam land owned by Charlotte Group. I offered a 50% premium over the current market value, and also pledged to help the Arnault family's brand enter the Charlotte duty-free store."
"Did my father accept the offer, by any chance?"
"He only said we should continue the conversation another time."
I told Vice Chairman Jin Dong-gu everything except the part about the succession.
Because what mattered to him right now wasn't the prime real estate — it was the position of the next group chairman.
"Thank you for answering such a sensitive question. But may I ask again — do you truly wish to purchase the Gangnam land?"
"I do. Would you be willing to speak to the chairman on my behalf?"
"That's not something I can influence. How could I possibly urge him to sell land he's protected with his life?"
It was an expected response.
As a son and a vice chairman of Charlotte Group, telling his father to sell the crown jewel of their assets would be tantamount to betrayal.
But what if something even greater could be gained?
No one knew what might become of the Gangnam land in the future — but the chairman's seat of Charlotte Group? That was different.
"If you join hands with me, I can help you be appointed as the next chairman of Charlotte Group. I apologize if that sounded impudent."
"That is a bit presumptuous. But… I will consider your proposal."
And with that, the conversation ended.
Vice Chairman Jin Dong-gu, cautious by nature, did not accept my offer outright.
But I knew the hesitation wouldn't last long.
He must know that I might make the same proposal to his older brother, Vice Chairman Jin Dongoh.
***
The Next Day.
As expected, I received a call from Jin Dong-oh, the eldest son of Chairman Jin and also a vice chairman of Charlotte Group.
I invited him to the same restaurant where I had met with Jin Dong-gu. He greeted me in
noticeably poorer Korean.
"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Jin Dong-oh."
"I'm Kim Min-jae from Taewoo Group. If you don't mind, shall we continue in Japanese?"
"Of course! Thank you."
Not just awkward — his Korean was practically insufficient for conversation.
Vice Chairman Jin Dong-oh's Korean was so poor that switching to Japanese was the only option.
"May I ask why you wanted to see me?"
"Your Japanese is quite impressive! Haha. Well, I've been hearing that Vice President Kim has recently been meeting with the chairman and the vice chairmen of Charlotte Group in
succession."
"The chairman met with me at my request, but in your brother's case, he reached out to me first."
"May I ask what you discussed with him?"
It was exactly as I'd expected.
At fifty, it was only natural to be highly interested in succession rights.
Especially for Vice Chairman Jin Dong-oh, the eldest son — his interest in taking over the group was bound to be even greater.
"We discussed the land owned by Charlotte Group. On behalf of Taewoo Group, I offered to
purchase the property with a 50% premium."
"Was that all you talked about?"
"Are you referring to the succession issue?"
" Ahem , yes, that's right."
"I simply mentioned that Chairman Jin seemed to have already decided, in his heart, who the next chairman should be."
I repeated the same story I'd told his younger brother.
But the reactions couldn't have been more different.
Vice Chairman Jin Dong-gu had responded with caution, while Jin Dong-oh immediately grabbed my hand.
"Can you truly help me become the next head of Charlotte Group? If you can make that happen, I'll arrange for the property to be sold without any premium."
"Would that really be possible for you?"
"If I become chairman, who would dare oppose me? If you want it in writing, I can provide a
contract."
Vice Chairman Jin Dong-oh was coming on very strong.
It was clear he was more openly ambitious than his younger brother.
Still, I couldn't rush into holding the eldest son's hand just yet.
It wouldn't be too late to choose sides after I confirmed who held the stronger cards.
"I'll be meeting with Chairman Jin again soon. I'll be able to give you an answer after that."
"Please speak well of me to my father. He's always had a favorable impression of you."
"What can I really say? I'll simply try not to let anything negative be said."
"Haha, that alone is more than enough."
The eldest son — who had offered his hand first.
The younger son — to whom I had offered mine.
Which one should I side with to gain the most?
It had been a while since I'd faced such an entertaining dilemma.
After finishing the meal with Vice Chairman Jin Dong-oh, I returned home.
As always, my grandfather was waiting for me, watching the news.
"Don't you ever get tired of Korean set meals? Seems like you're always eating them."
"It just turned out that way."
"So, how were the Charlotte Group heirs? Did you find anyone to your liking?"
"They're nearly thirty years older than me — how could I possibly judge them? I'll just say
they're all highly capable individuals."
"You're holding your tongue even in front of your grandfather now? You rascal!"
He feigned a bit of anger.
I casually approached him and began massaging his shoulders.
"I'm still deciding. If I side with the eldest, things might proceed easily. But if I side with the
younger, I think things will go more securely."
"Don't always look for the easy path."
"Sounds like you favor the younger son, Grandpa."
"It's not about who I like or dislike. They're successors to another group, after all. I just think the younger son seems to have more managerial competence than the elder."
"In that case, shouldn't we support the elder brother? That way, Charlotte Group won't grow too strong."
" Tsk tsk , that's how you would've thought five years ago. But now, I don't think that's
necessary. For Korea's economy to flourish, other large corporations need to grow too."
Ah, the dignity of being number one in the business world.
It was a sentiment made possible because the gap between Charlotte Group and Taewoo Group continued to widen.
"I think the same way, Grandpa. If we're just talking about business sense, the younger son
definitely seems stronger. And he seems to have more affection for Korea, too."
"Charlotte Group really is an unusual company. It's both a Korean and a Japanese corporation."
"They claim the Korean and Japanese branches are independent, but that's just putting on
blinders and pretending not to see."
"Well, it's kind of ridiculous for us to even be talking like this, since helping him doesn't
guarantee he'll actually become the next head."
"In the end, it'll be whoever Chairman Jin wants. All we can do is help solidify that position for him."
"We also have to consider the possibility that Chairman Jin might not want our help."
"In that case, we just abandon the Charlotte Group land and aim for the golden land owned by KEPCO."
Every business move needed a backup plan.
That way, I could think more flexibly, make better judgments, and avoid being forced into a bad deal.
"There's been talk for years about KEPCO relocating its headquarters, but nothing's happened yet."
"With real estate prices rising in Seoul, staying in the city must be becoming more burdensome for them. I expect they'll relocate within the next ten years at the latest."
"Ten years is too long."
"Can't we just bring the timing forward? If the political sphere starts pushing for regional
balanced development now, we could accelerate the relocation."
"Hmm, still, moving the headquarters will take at least a few years."
"It's the same for the land Charlotte Group holds. Getting the necessary permits takes at least a year. There's no need to rush. If we do the groundwork slowly but steadily, that land will
eventually come into our hands."
Before the regression, the KEPCO site had been transferred to Hyundai Motor Company.
For a whopping amount exceeding 10 trillion won.
But Hyundai Motor did not have nearly as much cash on hand as before the regression.
Especially now, ten years earlier, their cash reserves were quite tight.
Of course, the land price of the KEPCO site wasn't even half of what it was before.
Still, it would take at least 3 to 5 trillion won to purchase the site, and only groups like Taewoo Group and Samsung Group could afford to pay that amount in cash.
"You've got quite the appetite. Are you planning to take both the Charlotte Group land and the KEPCO land?"
"Grandpa, you can't fool me. If I get the chance, I plan to take both. It'll require a lot of capital, but Seoul real estate prices tend to rise more than bank interest rates, even if you just hold onto them."
"Just try to buy them by any means. I'll take care of what comes after."
"Then I'll trust you, Grandpa, and move a little more aggressively."
Two remaining golden pieces of land in Seoul.
Though I'm usually not very greedy about land, these plots made my mouth water on their own.