1953 Bare-handed Tycoon - Chapter 393



Only Krnovel

393 – Sky Kong Kong

Two days before Chairman Park’s multilateral talks.

Kijo was spending time with his children in the yard of his house.

The eldest son, Youngsu, rode the ‘Sky Kongkong’ that Gijo had given him as a gift.

Kijo watched the scene with pleasure.

Since the development of train springs in the 1950s, steady technological development has been producing results.

Kijo instructed Cheongsan Heavy Industries to develop a spring that could smoothly withstand a load of 100 kg, and once it was completed, he sent the design to Kia Industries and asked them to manufacture Sky Kong Kong.

Kia had sent a Skykong Kong made with a bicycle frame and springs, and Kijo was testing it with his son.

The long-term plan was to develop technology to manufacture springs for multi-links that would be used in automobiles.

After a few trials and errors, Youngsoo began to master the Sky Kong Kong.

“… 98, 99, 100!”

Yeongsu rode the train 100 times and got off at ‘Kongkong’.

“Good job, Youngsoo. How was it riding it?”

“It was a little scary at first, but once I got used to it, it was fun. Once I understood the spring recoil, it wasn’t difficult at all.”

“Wasn’t the spring stiff when you jumped?”

“No, it was fine.”

Yeong-eun, who saw Yeong-su having fun riding the Kongkong, urged Gi-jo to ride it too.

“Dad, I want to ride it too.”

Thinking that it would be too much for the young Yeong-eun to ride, Gi-jo put Yeong-eun on the step and rode with her.

“Be careful, honey.”

Pilgrimage, who had been watching, said with anxiety.

“Hold on tight to the handle, Yeong-eun.”

Kijo tested the spring’s performance by carefully riding Kongkong with Yeong-eun.

The springs recovered well even when crushed by an adult’s weight, and the steel frame and welded parts made by Kia Motors also felt sturdy.

“Dad! Me too! Me too!”

Youngjun couldn’t stand it anymore and asked to be picked up too.

After giving Yeong-eun a lift, Ki-jo also gave Yeong-jun a lift on Kong-kong.

While Youngjun was having fun and being excited, there was a knock on the door.

-Is this teacher here?

Kijo got down from Sky Kongkong, dropped Youngjun off, and went to the front gate.

When I opened the door, Kim Dae-jung and his wife Lee Hee-ho were standing there.

“Hello, sir. Nice to meet you, ma’am.”

Kijo exchanged greetings with Kim Dae-jung and shook hands with Lee Hee-ho.

Lee Hee-ho, like other new women who were active in the women’s movement at the time, was wearing glasses with sharp frames that were popular in the 1960s.

Pilgrimage also stood behind the welcoming guests and bowed politely to the two people.

“This is my wife.”

When Kijo introduced Pilgrimage, Lee Hee-ho shook Pilgrimage’s hand and greeted him.

“Nice to meet you, ma’am.”

Kijo guided the two people who had suddenly arrived into the house.

The children of Kijo, who had been absorbed in Sky Kong Kong, also stopped playing and stood in a row to politely greet the guests who had come to their house.

Because the Kijo couple gave their children thorough home education, the children would greet adults even when they were sleeping.

The pilgrimage was busy welcoming guests.

The keynote speaker took them to a room with a glass door and a fireplace, and sat them down on chairs together.

“I’m sorry for coming so suddenly.”

Kim Dae-jung said.

“I came here because they said that the expensive chartered plane couldn’t even take off from Mokpo Airport because of me.”

Kim Dae-jung laughed heartily.

“Thank you, Candidate Kim. I appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedule during the final days of the election.”

“This teacher is this teacher, but he also came to Seoul because my wife wanted to see me. When my wife can’t see me, she gets sad.”

At Kim Dae-jung’s joke, Lee Hee-ho pushed her husband’s arm and made a face as if telling him to stop joking.

“Oh, why is that? Isn’t that true? The man who married me just because of my handsome face.”

Lee Hee-ho laughed as if he found it ridiculous. Ki-jo also laughed along.

The keynote speaker was certain that he had decided to meet with Chairman Park and had flown to Seoul, so he asked before Pil-seong set up the tea table.

“Wasn’t there a lot of opposition from those around you?”

I asked because I thought the Democratic Party elders might have opposed his trip to Seoul.

“I didn’t say anything. I knew that he would be against it. No matter how much I thought about it, I thought it was right to meet with Mr. Park Chung-hee, so I came on my own.”

“I see. Thank you.”

When the keynote speaker expressed his gratitude, Kim Dae-jung pointed to his wife and said:

“He is the only person I have ever consulted with, and I will tell you to meet him right away. Mr. Park Chung-hee said, ‘Why are you avoiding me because you are afraid? If you call me because you have something to say, go and meet me.’ I do whatever my wife tells me to do.”

Lee Hee-ho looked as if she had given up, seeing Kim Dae-jung keep mentioning her.

Then Kim Dae-jung smiled and said,

“Oh, did I say something that I didn’t say? You said it yourself. Don’t run away and hide like Prime Minister Jang. The opposition party should be confident. The Democratic Party shouldn’t keep showing weakness in front of Park Chung-hee. You said it yourself.”

Lee Hee-ho said to Kim Dae-jung, who was laughing heartily.

“Yes, yes. I did. That’s right. It’s true.”

The keynote speaker also expressed gratitude to Lee Hee-ho, who has been by her husband’s side for over 40 years and helped him make his decision.

“Thank you, ma’am.”

“No. I just told my husband to do what he wanted to do. If he didn’t want to talk in the first place, he wouldn’t have called me to ask.”

Pilgrimage brought in a tea table, and the Gijos had an unexpected couple meeting.

Seol-ryeol and Lee Hee-ho, who had been talking to each other, left the room, telling the men to talk among themselves.

The two talked while watching children playing with Sky Kong Kong in the yard.

Kijo, who was left alone on the floor, asked Kim Dae-jung.

“Candidate Kim, Chairman Park was also pleased to receive the letter you sent me at that time.”

“I also received a letter from that gentleman and thought I should meet him sometime. There was a strange power in his handwriting. They say you can know a person by looking at their handwriting, and I thought there might be a side to him that I didn’t know.”

It seemed that exchanging letters had the effect of opening up our hearts.

The keynote speaker told a story about Chairman Park looking at his handwriting.

“Chairman Park said that. He said that the font is elegant and skillful. He also put emphasis on the fact that Candidate Kim’s nickname is Halo.”

“What did Mr. Park Chung-hee say?”

Kim Dae-jung showed curiosity.

“He said, ‘This person has a halo, so I think he will be successful when he gets older.’”

“Is that so? I also heard that Mr. Park Jung-hee’s nickname is Jungsu (中樹). What does it mean? I tried to interpret it.”

This time I was curious about the keynote.

“How did you see the meaning of the favor?”

“The character ‘中’ is the same as the character ‘中’ in my name. Then we should have something in common. Yes, we did.”

Kim Dae-jung joked, laughed, and then said,

“People are given three names when they are born. Name, character, and nickname. Name is the name you are given when you are born, and nickname is the name given to you after your coming of age ceremony, which is given to you by your parents or teachers. However, nickname is the name you give yourself, the name you give yourself as an adult, so doesn’t it contain your philosophy on how you want to live?”

He said, reflecting on the meaning of the lake.

“Jungsu (中樹) means middle, and the number of trees, so if you interpret it literally, it can be interpreted as a medium-sized tree and used in a humble way, but I don’t think so.”

“Then what do you think?”

“I interpreted it as meaning that it is in the center. I thought it would be the most important tree. I thought that would be closer to Chairman Park’s true intentions.”

The keynote speaker nodded.

“But what does Candidate Kim’s nickname, ‘Hugwang’, mean?”

“My name is Hoyo? I was born in Hoguang-ri, so I was named Hoguang. It doesn’t have any special meaning.”

The keynote speaker laughed with Kim Dae-jung.

And he explained about the meeting that was to take place in two days.

It was a joint meeting between Representative Kim Young-sam and Professor Jang Jun-ha, and the location was the Hankook Ilbo building. When I told him that both public and private meetings would be held, he nodded.

He was silent for a moment and then asked.

“Then, the conscientious and innovative future leaders that this teacher sees are Kim Young-sam and Jang Jun-ha, including me?”

Kim Dae-jung had a good memory.

He did not forget that the person chosen by the keynote speaker would participate in the meeting.

“Yes, I have high hopes for all three of you. You are all young and capable.”

“Of the three, I should be the one who is most grateful. I am the one with the lowest reputation among the three.”

“But you are the most handsome.”

When Kijo took the joke as a joke, Kim Dae-jung was very pleased.

Kijo, who had met with Kim Dae-jung and his wife, was relieved that the meeting two days later was a success.

* * *

Two days later, at the Hankook Ilbo building.

The keynote speaker prepared a meeting place at the Hankook Ilbo building and stood in front of the building’s entrance.

Jang Jun-ha arrived first.

“Thank you for coming, Professor Jang Jun-ha. The editor-in-chief will show you around.”

Jang Jun-ha entered with the editor-in-chief, followed by Kim Young-sam and Kim Dae-jung.

The keynote speech notified the Blue House that all three had arrived, and at the end, Chairman Park visited the Hankook Ilbo.

Kijo personally guided Chairman Park into the meeting place.

The three people who had been sitting there before stood up and saluted.

Chairman Park also shook hands with the three and took his seat.

There was a tense atmosphere in the conference room.

The moderator, who was in charge of society, looked at the attendees one by one.

Kim Young-sam had a determined expression on his face, as if he had made up his mind about something.

Kim Dae-jung seemed to be trying to keep a calm expression on his face, but he also seemed a little nervous.

Only Jang Jun-ha had a relaxed expression on his face, as if he was pleased that such a place had been prepared for him.

Chairman Park was looking at no one with his characteristically sharp and expressionless face.

As the moderator of the meeting, Kijo spoke first.

“First, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the four of you who attended the current affairs discussion hosted by the Hankook Ilbo.”

All four of them looked at Kijo with friendly eyes and smiled.

The person who brought the four together was Kijo, and although they were all close to Kijo, they were not close to each other.

“I believe this meeting is the beginning of a dialogue that will continue in the future. The meeting will begin with Chairman Park Chung-hee listening to the stories of those present.”

“I’ll go first.”

Kim Young-sam stepped forward.

Chairman Park nodded, and the keynote speaker gave the first floor to Kim Young-sam.

Then, Kim Young-sam took out the manuscript he had prepared from his bosom and began to read.

“I view the May 16 coup as an unacceptable coup, and I directly reject the idea of ​​calling the May 16 coup a revolution.”

Chairman Park’s expression hardened coldly at Kim Young-sam’s strong remarks from the beginning.

Kim Dae-jung and Jang Jun-ha also looked embarrassed as they watched Kim Young-sam pounding Chairman Park hard.

But the tone was expected.

I think Kim Young-sam must have had this picture in his head when he readily accepted the meeting.

Kim Young-sam, who had the longest political career and was the most ambitious, could not miss the opportunity to attack Chairman Park.

He would have wanted to make a clear impression on the opposition-leaning public.

The first words he said to show his potential as a future leader were the denial of May 16.

“The military has been lying from the beginning. They say that they stepped in because the Chang Myon government of the Second Republic was making mistakes, but I heard that they had been trying to seize power even before that.”

The level of speech was gradually rising.

“The military coup is an event that turned back the hands of history and an atrocity that destroyed the liberal system. I am certain that the coup forces will one day be condemned before the people as criminals of history.”

Kim Young-sam read out the statement he had prepared, and Chairman Park showed patience.

Keynote hoped in his heart that Chairman Park would hold on a little longer.

At that time, Kim Dae-jung interrupted Kim Young-sam as he read the statement and asked:

“What are you doing now, Representative Kim?”

Kim Young-sam looked up from the statement and at Kim Dae-jung.

Naturally, the reading of the statement stopped and the auditorium became quiet.