1953 Bare-handed Tycoon - Chapter 391



Only Krnovel

391 – First Encounter

The day after I finished discussing the public meeting with Kim Young-sam.

The keynote speech was taken from Gimpo Airport to Mokpo on Cho Joong-hoon’s Korean Air air taxi.

I was close to Kim Young-sam, so I could persuade him with just a phone call, but I couldn’t with Kim Dae-jung.

I saw his face at the funeral of Kim Young-sam’s mother, who was assassinated by a spy, but we never said hello to each other.

If I wanted to convince him, I had to meet him in person and talk to him.

While flying to Mokpo in a four-seater Cessna, Kijo thought about Kim Dae-jung.

In Yuan history, he was one of the most oppressed politicians, having suffered several life-threatening injuries during the military regime.

However, I had only met Chairman Park once in person, and even then, I only spoke to him briefly in person, so I had no relationship with him.

The keynote did not ignore the tendencies of the original history.

Kim Young-sam had a connection with Chairman Park to the point of having a meeting with the leaders of the ruling and opposition parties, but he did not.

He believed that this trend would still be in effect in the era he had returned to.

The plane carrying Gijo landed at Mokpo Naval Air Station.

I asked Chairman Park to allow me to use the nearest airfield where I could meet Kim Dae-jung, and I was able to use a military airfield.

Kijo took a taxi that he had previously reserved and headed to downtown Mokpo.

On the way, I was able to chat with the taxi driver about various things.

“You came to the military airfield by plane, sir. You’re a new officer.”

*CIA – A colloquial term for the Central Intelligence Agency.

The taxi driver misunderstood the tone.

“No. I came here to do business. Since it was a military-related business, I was able to use the military airfield.”

The keynote was given.

“Oh, really? I see you came all the way to Mokpo on military business. I see you’re in the ship repair business.”

The taxi driver continued to show curiosity towards Kijo.

“I’m working on shells. I’m developing shells for naval guns.”

The keynote speaker never told lies that were completely out of line.

Cheongsan had a military-related business department, and the domestic production of shells was a long-term project.

“You are a patriot. We need to have the shells and ships we made. If the North Koreans invade, we can fight back.”

“sure.”

Kijo arrived in front of a hotel in downtown Mokpo, made the taxi driver wait, unpacked his luggage, and went out again.

“Would you like to go sightseeing in Mokpo?”

The taxi driver asked.

At the time, taxis were also used as a means of tourism by the wealthy, so it was a natural question.

“I would like to go see where Mr. Kim Dae-jung is giving his speech today. Can you take me there?”

“Oh, right. Mr. Kim Dae-jung’s speech is really great. Once you listen to it, you won’t know how time flies. People in Seoul don’t often get a chance to hear it. Come on, let’s go. I’ll give you a discount.”

The taxi driver took Gijo to the playground of Mokpo City’s elementary school.

Kim Dae-jung was giving a speech to a large audience already gathered.

The keynote speaker took a seat on one side and listened to his speech.

Kim Dae-jung’s clear voice was heard from the podium.

“Right now, today, we have overthrown the immoral Syngman Rhee regime and, through shedding blood, have barely established a democratic government, but the military is suddenly rising up with guns and swords, ousting Prime Minister Chang Myon, dissolving the National Assembly, and forcing President Yun Bo-seon to leave the Blue House. They are saying that if a conscientious politician emerges, they will hand over power and return to the military.

He said something like this. Do you believe it?

Then why did they create a party?

What are you going to do by creating the Democratic Republican Party?

If the Republican Party wins this election, Chairman Park, who has said that he will not participate in civilian affairs, will also run for the election, and if the military takes power, they will hold power for a thousand years and never let it go.

Because for soldiers, giving up power means defeat. For soldiers, defeat means death, so they have no choice but to do so. That’s what I’m saying.”

Kim Dae-jung’s bold speech was met with applause from the audience.

“If you look at the entire history of the East and the West, there is no history of soldiers carrying out a coup and establishing democracy. Soldiers have never practiced democracy since ancient times! The military itself is not a place to practice democracy, so what do they know about democracy? Napoleon of France did it, and in no country in the world where a coup took place has soldiers practiced democracy! This is not something Kim Dae-jung is making arbitrary claims about. This is the historical truth and the way of the world.”

The audience laughed and applauded.

The keynote speech also applauded Kim Dae-jung.

If the world had gone according to its original history, his assertion would have been absolutely correct.

As the taxi driver assured, Kim Dae-jung’s speech was captivating.

A good dose of humor and a powerful, clear voice.

His speech, full of confidence and knowledge, seemed to hit the audience’s hearts like a snowball flying during a snowball fight.

When the speech was over, Keynote moved behind the podium and met with Democratic officials.

I showed my Hankook Ilbo press ID and requested an interview with Kim Dae-jung.

After a while, Kijo was taken to a tent, where he met Kim Dae-jung.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Kim Dae-jung. This is Lee Ki-jo from the Hankook Ilbo.”

As the keynote speaker greeted, Kim Dae-jung spoke.

“If your name is Lee, Gi-ja Jo-ja, aren’t you not just a reporter but the president of Hankook Ilbo?”

Kim Dae-jung’s name was used to determine the tone.

“Yes, that’s right. May I request an interview?”

“You must be freezing from listening to my speech. Why don’t you have some warm tea first?”

There was a stove inside the tent, and a kettle was placed on the stove.

Someone offered Kijo a cup of hot tea.

Kijo drank the hot tea from the porcelain bowl little by little, blowing on it.

The suggestion to meet Chairman Park was made in front of many people.

The keynote speech was to meet with Kim Dae-jung privately and ask him for his opinion.

“When did you come to Mokpo?”

Kim Dae-jung asked.

“I just arrived.”

“You’ve come all the way to Mokpo, so why don’t we have a meal together?”

Kim Dae-jung happened to make a suggestion that would allow him to get out of crowded places.

“I’ll buy you a meal. I have enough money for reporting.”

“That can’t be. How can you get food from a guest who came from far away? Mokpo isn’t that kind of rude place.”

The keynote speech went to a restaurant with Kim Dae-jung.

The attendants ate in the hall, and the keynote speaker ate alone with Kim Dae-jung in a small room.

Maybe because it was Jeolla-do, there were a lot of side dishes on the table.

After finishing his speech, Kim Dae-jung felt empty and ate a lot of food.

While eating and talking about the election, Kijo brought up the main topic to him.

“Would you like to meet Chairman Park in Seoul?”

Kim Dae-jung answered the keynote question without a moment’s hesitation.

“That would be difficult. I would have to get permission from the party elders, and I would be able to meet with him all of a sudden when I went around badmouthing Park Chung-hee while campaigning.”

The keynote speaker nodded.

Kim Dae-jung was still small in political stature.

Unlike Kim Young-sam, who started out as the youngest member of the National Assembly and had quite a long history in the National Assembly, Kim Dae-jung would have limited room for maneuver within the Democratic Party.

In the 1961 Gangwon Province by-election, he barely managed to enter the National Assembly by wearing the National Assembly badge, but his election was cancelled due to a ‘revolution’ that occurred just three days after his election.

If he wanted to talk to Chairman Park, he would have to get permission from the party leader or a senior member.

“Do you have any intention of meeting him?”

When asked about the keynote speech, Kim Dae-jung officially answered yes.

Although I was a little disappointed, I wasn’t too disappointed because I expected that Kim Dae-jung would be the most difficult person to hold a meeting with.

“But why does Mr. Park Chung-hee want to meet me?”

Since he had arranged the meeting with Chairman Park, he thought that in Kim Dae-jung’s eyes, he would be seen as no different from Chairman Park’s messenger.

However, Kijo was not a person who was bound by camps. I wanted to make it clear that I was.

“He said he would meet me if I persuaded him to do so.”

Kim Dae-jung laughed heartily at Kijo’s honest words.

“Then why did this boss ask me to meet him?”

In response to Kim Dae-jung’s question, Kijo recalled Kim Dae-jung’s difficult political life.

Kim Dae-jung always wanted to run for the National Assembly in his hometown of Mokpo, but he was unable to do so because fellow party veteran Rep. Jeong Jung-seop had monopolized Mokpo.

Then, the Inje-gun constituency in Gangwon-do happened to be vacant, so I applied for nomination.

But the road ahead was a thorny one.

At that time, in order to run for election, you had to get the recommendation and consent of the residents, but when I went to Inje, I found that the Liberal Party had taken all the seals of the village residents.

Kim Dae-jung tried to get recommendations by giving new seals to residents, but the police interfered with the seal sellers and prevented them from making the seals.

Then, one of my close associates happened to see a pumpkin and had the idea to carve a stamp out of it and use it as a stamp. I was able to run for office after receiving a recommendation for a pumpkin stamp.

However, the Liberal Party again objected and claimed that the recommendation letter was invalid because it was not stamped with a wooden seal, and so the candidate registration was cancelled.

Kim Dae-jung, frustrated by this, went to see the commander of the 7th Division in charge of the Inje region and tried to appeal his grievances.

I went to the division commander’s residence near Inje County Office, but Division Commander Park Chung-hee was out.

If the two had met at that time, Kijo thought, history might have been a little different.

At that time, Kim Dae-jung, who was 34 years old, and Park Chung-hee, who was 41 years old, had a common perception.

Both were lamenting that the corruption of the Liberal Party was so severe that the country was in dire straits.

If those two had a drink together and discussed current affairs, modern history might have changed.

“Did you go to meet Division Commander Park Chung-hee before?”

When asked about the keynote speech, Kim Dae-jung nodded his head in agreement.

“At that time, I went there to complain because I had been treated unfairly. But how did you know about that?”

“The guard on duty at the official residence remembered candidate Kim Dae-jung. Of course, he reported that the candidate had come to visit.”

“Oh, right. Of course it was.”

Kim Dae-jung agreed.

“I think Chairman Park is also feeling frustrated right now. That’s why I recommended that you meet with the candidate.”

“How can I help you? I am against military involvement in politics.”

The keynote speaker smiled at Kim Dae-jung and said:

“Didn’t Chairman Park say that in his revolutionary pledge number 6? He said he would hand over power to a conscientious and innovative politician and leave himself. I saw candidate Kim Dae-jung as exactly that conscientious and innovative young politician.”

Kim Dae-jung burst into laughter at the keynote speech.

“Being a conscience that acts is my life motto, but I think this is excessive praise for someone who is not that great.”

Kijo tried to calmly persuade Kim Dae-jung, but Kim Dae-jung did not budge.

Unlike Kim Young-sam, who had experience as a member of the National Assembly and could perform a one-man show without hesitation, Kim Dae-jung was still tied down to the party.

But the keynote speaker, who had not completely given up, told Kim Dae-jung:

“I will have the plane on standby at Mokpo Naval Air Station.”

“Airplane?”

“Yes, if you ever want to meet and talk with Chairman Park, just take that plane and come to Seoul.”

“No, even the plane… .”

Kim Dae-jung looked bewildered.

He looked like he didn’t understand why he was waiting for the plane to arrive.

Kijo smiled as he looked at him before he became a big shot.

The basic belief was that Kim Dae-jung would not turn away from someone who showed sincerity.