1953 Bare-handed Tycoon - Chapter 396



Only Krnovel

396 – The end of 62

The 6th general election held at the end of 1962 ended in a landslide victory for the Democratic Republican Party, as history would have it.

The only difference from the original history was that the Democratic Republican Party won 115 of the 175 seats, an increase of five seats.

The 1962 general election was a battle between reform and conservatism.

The Democratic Republican Party, which later became a conservative force, was a reformist force that wanted to change the world in this election, while the pan-Democratic Party force was a conservative force that wanted to return the world to the way it was before the May 16 Revolution.

The victory of the reformist forces in the general election, which served as a preliminary battle for the 1963 presidential election, was significant.

It was a revelation of the desire of the majority of the people for the country to change.

The keynote speech was that the structure of the reformist ruling party and the conservative opposition party would continue in the presidential election, and the current appearance of the Democratic Republican Party as a national party was considered significant.

The Democratic Republican Party received balanced support from the Yeongnam and Honam regions.

I thought it was a noble time when regionalism did not appear in politics.

In a country with such a small landmass, the sight of regions being divided into east and west and north and south and fighting each other was what Gijo found most regrettable.

I hope that the days when we can choose candidates without regionalism like now will last a long time.

While Gijo was checking the general election results in the newspaper at home, his eldest son, Yeongsu, was solving mock middle school entrance exam questions published in the Kyunghyang Shinmun at home during the vacation.

When Youngsoo finally came out of the room, Seol-rim asked.

“Have you graded it?”

“Yes, Mom, you were right.”

Yeongsu smiled as he showed me the newspaper he had graded.

“Good job, Youngsoo.”

Pilgrimage, holding a mock exam newspaper with circles drawn all over it, couldn’t hide his joy.

Kijo also looked over the Korean language, math, life, science, practical arts, and art problems that Youngsu had solved and praised him.

“If you keep doing what you’re doing now, Youngsu, you’ll be able to go to the school you want, so don’t push yourself too hard.”

“Yes, father.”

The entrance exam was scheduled to be held in February 1963.

“You worked hard, so drink this. Honey, have some too.”

Pilgrimage dried ginseng, ground it into powder, dissolved it in hot water with honey, and gave it to Gijo and Yeongsu as ginseng tea.

Kijo looked at Pilgrimage, who had now become a parent at the age of thirty-two.

It made me proud to see Seol-hae, who had been doing all kinds of odd jobs in her previous life and had no time to take care of her children, now worrying about her son’s college entrance exams.

“Please share it with me. I don’t think I can handle ginseng well, so I’ll just drink half.”

The keynote speaker shared a cup of pilgrimage and strong ginseng tea.

“Mom, I want to drink it too. Just give it to my brother… … .”

Yeong-eun and Yeong-jun were jealous of the ginseng tea that Yeong-su was drinking and whined, asking for some for themselves too.

When Seol-rim smiled and made Yeong-eun drink ginseng tea, Yeong-eun frowned after taking a sip and said,

“Ugh… It tastes weird. It’s too bitter.”

“I thought so, Mom didn’t give it to me.”

Pilgrimage said with a smile.

Youngjun also tried the ginseng tea out of curiosity and got goosebumps just like Youngeun.

Looking at that sight, Kijo and Pilgrimage laughed for a long time.

After spending the morning at home, Kijo went to work at the Cheongsan headquarters.

Arriving in front of the headquarters, Kijo thought that the four-story headquarters building had become too small.

But, considering the upcoming investment in Vietnam and the construction of a steel mill, there was no money to invest in building a headquarters building.

I thought about moving Cheongsan Construction and Transportation, which had grown to a considerable size, out of the headquarters and renting a building to give them an independent office building.

With that thought in mind, I entered the 4th floor representative’s office, and there was a familiar person sitting in the secretary’s office.

Before Daeik and Hyeon-gyeong could introduce him, Ki-jo approached him first and greeted him warmly.

“Hello, Mr. Cho Hong-je.”

“Hello. You remember me.”

Kijo had seen him briefly when he visited Samsung C&T.

I always kept him in mind because he was the one who would create Hyosung Group in the future.

“Please come into my room.”

The keynote speaker guided Jo Hong-jae to the CEO’s office.

He was betrayed by Lee Byung-chul and kicked out of Samsung C&T, and was building his own business. It was clear that he had come to see me for business reasons, but he did not show his true intentions.

I treated him like I was just meeting a nice person.

“My son was working on his mock exam for middle school this morning, so I was a little late getting to work to check the results. I’m sorry for keeping you waiting so long.”

“I didn’t even tell you that I would come to see you. And I didn’t keep you waiting long. Your son is taking the middle school entrance exam this year.”

“Yes, seeing my son grow up makes me realize that time really flies.”

While Kijo and Jo Hong-jae were talking about this and that, they ended up talking about the general election results.

“Anyway, I’m glad that one major election has ended safely. The Democratic Republican Party should also run the National Assembly well without internal strife….”

Kijo also agreed with Jo Hong-je’s words.

In the history of the Democratic Republican Party, the founder of the party, Kim Jong-pil, had a tight grip on the party and there was relatively little internal strife, but this time, it was unclear what would happen.

After the conversation turned to social issues, Jo Hong-jae brought up the reason he had come.

“I left Samsung and started a company. It’s called Hyosung Trading, and although it’s a small company, I built it up with talented employees.”

“Was that so?”

The keynote speech was ambiguous, neither congratulating nor comforting him.

Cho Hong-jae demanded severance pay considering the amount he had invested while growing the company and working with Lee Byung-chul, but the amount he received was 300 million won, less than a tenth of the amount he demanded.

Even that was not received in cash, but as a 30% stake in Hankook Tire and Hanil Nylon, insolvent companies under bank management.

At the late age of 56, Cho Hong-jae left his company after acquiring shares in two insolvent companies and founded Hyosung Trading with only 15 employees.

So, Kijo had nothing to say.

In fact, I wanted to congratulate him on his new beginning.

As the saying goes, the Hyosung Group, which he founded after being kicked out of Samsung, was ranked among the world’s top 500 companies in 1981.

But right now, I couldn’t congratulate him as I was overcome with a sense of betrayal and desperation.

“Last October, we leased Chosun Flour Mill, completed facility maintenance, and started operating the factory.”

‘You came to Cheongsan to sell flour… .’

The keynote speech could guess the intention of Jo Hong-je’s visit.

But even if they didn’t necessarily sell flour to Cheongsan, they would have enjoyed a huge boom thanks to the government’s strong ‘promotion of snacks’ campaign.

“I will supply flour 10% cheaper than the flour supplied by Cheil Jedang.”

Jo Hong-jae suggested it.

The keynote speech was that Cho Hong-jae had begun his revenge against Lee Byung-chul.

It seemed like he had the intention of cutting off CheilJedang’s business partners, one by one, which were no different from the ones he had established.

He was the person who provided the funds for Lee Byung-chul to establish Cheil Jedang.

Cho Hong-jae, who was vice president of Samsung C&T at the time, was so good at trade that he was called the ‘encyclopedia of trade’. He exported seafood to Hong Kong, received cotton yarn as the export proceeds, and resold it at a huge profit, making a fortune.

In just two years since its establishment, Samsung C&T earned a whopping 4.8 billion won, which was used to establish Cheil Jedang.

“Even if you supply like that, will there be anything left over?”

“Yes, we can lower the price if you sign a long-term supply contract with Joseon Flour Mills.”

The keynote speech was that Jo Hong-jae had made up his mind.

“I will arrange a meeting with President Lim Dae-hong of Cheongsan Foods. Please discuss practical matters with President Lim Dae-hong.”

There was no reason to turn down a favorable offer.

However, I hoped that the person in charge, Lim Dae-hong, would compare the wheat flour of Jeil Jedang and the wheat flour of Chosun Flour Mills and make a decision.

Lim Dae-hong is so picky that he won’t do business with flour that is of poor quality, no matter how cheap it is.

Jo Hong-jae’s expression brightened as Kijo showed a positive attitude toward the deal with Hyosung.

“And this month, Hyosung completely acquired Hankook Tire from Samsung.”

Jo Hong-jae proposed another deal.

“People say that domestic tires are useless, but I don’t think the future of domestic tires is bleak.”

“I think so too.”

The keynote speech was strongly positive, knowing that Jo Hong-jae would create the world’s number one tire cord manufacturer.

“Cheongsan is currently using tires for bicycles and tractors, and he thinks he will need tires for his cars in the future.”

Cho Hong-jae seemed to have heard rumors that Kia Industries was disassembling and studying Japanese automobiles.

“I would like to ask for your cooperation in joint development of tires with Hankook Tire.”

“Okay, let’s do that.”

The keynote speech agreed and asked about tire research and development costs.

“What about the joint development costs…?”

“Hyosung will take care of everything.”

Jo Hong-jae’s will was strong.

It was the will to surpass Samsung.

Kijo didn’t worry about Hyo-seong growing up.

Hyosung was a typical B2B* company.

*B2B – Business to Business (business-to-business)

As Hyosung grew, it was also good for liquidation, as it was a company that manufactured goods needed by businesses and traded with businesses rather than selling goods to the general public.

And it was a company that contributed to the development of basic materials in Korea.

“Are you interested in the textile business like Cheil Industries? I have been involved in Samsung’s Cheil Industries business, so if Cheongsan enters the textile business, I can help you.”

It seemed that Cho Hong-jae had a plan to pressure Samsung from all sides.

He expressed his willingness to provide all the know-how he had accumulated at Samsung.

The keynote speaker gently declined his offer.

“Cheongsan has no plans for the textile sector yet. If we plan to enter the market later, we will seek the advice of President Cho Hong-je.”

Kijo knew that President Cho Hong-jae was entering the nylon business in 1966.

Korea Nylon (Kolon) enters the nylon business, which was virtually monopolized, and establishes a large-scale factory in Ulsan.

In line with Hyosung’s B2B corporate philosophy, it produces industrial nylon rather than nylon for clothing.

Looking at Cho Hong-jae, Kijo felt that most of his business aspirations stemmed from his desire for revenge against Lee Byung-chul.

It is more than understandable.

However, I thought that one day, his feelings would cool down and he would think positively that his separation from Lee Byung-chul had actually enabled him to establish Hyosung.

As we were talking about business and the conversation was coming to a close, Jo Hong-je told me the news he had received from Japan.

“Hyosung has some information networks in Japan and Hong Kong, and there are rumors that Kim Jong-pil, who went abroad, is meeting with politicians and businessmen in Japan.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, I think Mr. Kim Jong-pil might bring in funds from Japan… That’s my guess. If the government brings in Japanese capital, wouldn’t it open up opportunities for Hyosung and Cheongsan to enter new businesses?”

The keynote speaker nodded.

Jo Hong-jae’s information was half right and half wrong.

Kim Jong-pil would be in Japan right now, meeting with Japanese government officials and negotiating hard to normalize diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan.

There was nothing he could do as he had no choice but to leave Korea due to the four major suspicions.

If we could obtain compensation from Japan for the damages inflicted on it by colonial rule and secure the funds necessary for national economic development, we could use that achievement as a stepping stone to get back on our feet.

“I look forward to working with you in the future, President Cho Hong-je.”

The keynote speaker bowed his head to Hong-Je Jo, who was much older than him, and asked for a favor.

When Jo Hong-je, the head of the Cheongsan clan, who had a much larger influence, bowed his head first, he also bowed his head and spoke.

“I am the one who needs to take good care of you.”

Kijo sent off Jo Hong-jae, sat in his office, looked out the window, and thought that the eventful year of 1962 was slowly coming to an end.

Next year, there would be Kim Jong-pil’s comeback, Chairman Park Chung-hee’s presidential election, and many other things would happen.

In a time when politics and economics could not be separated, political events inevitably had a serious impact on Gijo’s business.

The keynote was that no matter what happened, he would respond appropriately.