1953 Bare-handed Tycoon - Chapter 409



Only Krnovel

409 – The worsening situation in Vietnam

The Cheong San Consortium delegation arrived in Saigon and moved to a hotel in downtown Saigon.

It was a hotel located in the heart of the city, bigger and fancier than the one Kim Tae-seong had previously reserved.

There was a police escort during the transfer from Tan Son Nhat Airport to the hotel.

The keynote speaker watched the changing situation closely.

“It seems like Godinnu is trying to protect his business.”

Kim Tae-seong, who was sitting on the bus next to Ki-jo, said.

The keynote speaker nodded.

President Ngo Dinh Diem’s ​​younger brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, was the head of the South Vietnamese secret police.

It seemed that the Cheongsan Consortium was careful not to have any problems with the business, as it would become theirs 15 years after the national road and port were completed.

When we arrived in front of the hotel, the streets were controlled by the South Vietnamese army.

Soldiers with guns stood guard, stacking sandbags on the side of the road.

“In early January, the Viet Cong won against the South Vietnamese and American forces and gained momentum. The protests by monks and students also intensified. That’s why we have this situation now.”

Kim Tae-seong explained the circumstances.

The Cheongsan Consortium people who got off the two buses diligently entered the hotel.

After unpacking in the room, Kijo went out of the hotel with Chae Myeong-shin.

Chae Myung-shin expressed serious concern at the fact that security in Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, had deteriorated to the point where it had to rely on the military.

“It’s worse than I expected. It’s like watching the 6.25 war.”

Chae Myeong-shin said, looking at the street controlled by the military and police.

Kim Tae-seong approached the two who were having such a conversation and asked.

“Would you like to take a walk around the street?”

“Is it okay?”

When Kijo asked, Taesung smiled and said.

“If we move, plainclothes police will follow us. And it’s not as dangerous as it looks. I commute from my house to the Shinheung Yanghaeng building every day. Well.”

Chae Myeong-shin looked at Kijo with an expression that said he wanted to do that.

“Then, shall we take a look around?”

Kijo, Chae Myeong-shin, and Kim Tae-seong left the hotel and started walking down the street.

As Kim Tae-seong said, two plainclothes Vietnamese police officers wearing sunglasses followed him.

As I left the heavily controlled street in front of the hotel and entered the market street where Vietnamese people came and went freely, I felt a much more human atmosphere.

A variety of people were doing business, and the smell of exotic food wafting from here and there stimulated my nose.

The three looked around while drinking Vietnamese coffee sold on the street.

Chae Myeong-shin tried to buy coffee for Ki-jo, Tae-seong, and the plainclothes Vietnamese police officers accompanying him, but they refused to accept it.

Chae Myeong-shin said as he took a sip of the cold, sweet coffee with ice cubes floating on it.

“Oh, this is so sweet it makes my head hurt.”

“Once you get used to it, you’ll find yourself thinking about it more and more.”

As we were drinking coffee and chatting with each other, I heard shouting nearby and saw a young man desperately running through the crowd.

The man was being chased by two men, while the plainclothes police officers protecting the group watched the situation with their pistols drawn.

“It happens all the time.”

Kim Tae-seong said it as if it were a common occurrence on the streets of Saigon.

The man who was running away was caught by the men who were pursuing him, beaten on the street, and dragged away with his hands tied behind his back.

The idea was that the secret police would put the man in a car and take him somewhere, but they instead dragged the man they had captured into a narrow alley.

I had a bad feeling.

Suddenly, two gunshots were heard and two secret police officers emerged from the alley.

“The Vietnamese police are a bit scary. They are ruthless.”

Kim Tae-seong, who was shown the dark side of Vietnam, said with an embarrassed expression.

The keynote speech brought to mind the Bodo League massacre and the people’s trial that took place during the Korean War.

The same thing happened in Vietnam, where people did not trust each other, chose targets of hatred, and took lives.

Chae Myeong-shin also seemed to be in a bad mood after seeing that sight, and did not even bring the sweet, cool coffee in his hand to his lips.

“Even if that young man is a communist, if they execute him in front of everyone and leave the body there, there will be a backlash from the people… … This is too much.”

Chae Myeong-shin criticized the attitude of the South Vietnamese police, who did not care about public sentiment.

“Let’s go back to the hotel.”

The group stopped sightseeing and returned to the hotel.

The first day in Vietnam was spent resting at the hotel, and the next day, a full-scale business exploration began.

The place they arrived, divided into five minibuses by company and escorted by police and military, was Cam Ranh Bay, where Chung Ju-young had wanted to visit.

Chung Ju-young rented a boat, put one of his employees on it, and had him poke the water’s surface with a long pole made by connecting two bamboo sticks.

Watching the scene from afar, Chung Ju-young roared like a tiger.

“Hey! There! Stab it there! Stab it down, you punk! What kind of punk is this weak!”

A Hyundai Construction employee pulled a bamboo pole out of the water to check the depth of the mud.

The bamboo poles had grooves dug at regular intervals to hold mud and act as a stool.

When the employee who checked the depth of the mud told him the results, Chung Ju-young laughed heartily and said:

“There’s a lot of mud in Kamran Bay. It’s all money! Money! If you just dig it out, you can make money.”

After taking care of business in Cam Ranh, the group headed to Quinhon.

While heading to Qui Nhon, the five company staff closely examined the road conditions and surrounding environment in Vietnam.

Sometimes, I would park my car in a place where construction seemed difficult and look around the site.

After arriving in Quinon and inspecting the proposed port construction site, the employees exchanged opinions.

Chae Myeong-shin also toured the proposed port site and expressed his opinion.

“I think it would be better to use former Navy underwater demolition team members rather than regular divers during the construction of Quinon Port.”

“Are you talking about UDT?”

“That’s right. You know it well. If communist guerrillas raid during construction, the UDT members will be able to respond well. The problem is getting guns. I don’t know if they will allow you to carry guns for defense in Vietnam.”

I thought that the keynote would work out somehow.

The powerful man in South Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Nu, was holding the line behind them, and the South Vietnamese military was so corrupt that they were selling weapons provided by the United States to the Viet Cong.

If you bribe them, you can somehow get a gun locally and even use it.

Or, General Cha Myung-shin, who will become the commander of the ROK Forces in Vietnam, will take care of it.

Although the keynote speaker, Chung Ju-young, Cho Joong-hoon, Kim Jong-hee, and Park Hee-joon had already been there once and were indifferent, the employees who had arrived for the first time this time seemed different.

Some of them were terrified of the situation in Vietnam.

Kim Seo-kwang said so.

On the way back to Saigon, Kijo heard the staff talking from the back of the bus.

“Ah… Vietnam doesn’t seem to suit me. The mountains along the road are a bit gloomy and the people here are a bit scary.”

“Seo-kwang, how can you not be afraid? You are a great man who avoids even dog poop on the street because it scares him.”

“No, that’s not it. It’s just that the people here don’t seem to welcome us very well. Hey, Hansoo, how are you? And Wangcheol?”

Hansoo’s voice was heard.

“I had that same feeling. But when I came here and checked it out myself, the scale of the construction was so huge that I felt like I couldn’t be there without them. Haha.”

Wang Cheol’s voice was also heard.

“Oh, Manager Kim, what’s so gloomy about this place? The Vietnamese women are all slim and pretty.”

“Huh? Wangcheol, you’ve become a bit more reserved since you became the CEO. Don’t you want to call me ‘hyung’ like before?”

“Okay, Seogwang. You’re nitpicking over everything.”

“Not to nitpick, but Inma, I have a bad feeling about this. Last night, when I was sleeping at the hotel, my family came to me in a dream and cried, telling me to hurry up and come back to Seoul. I feel uneasy… .”

“When you say you’re happy to be on a plane, you’re always complaining about your family at home. We don’t need a loser like you. Stay safe in Korea, wrapped in your wife’s skirt.”

“Ma-ryang, are you done talking? Why don’t you age? As men grow older, they gain experience like me. It’s normal for them to be polite and reserved, but why are you still the same? Is it because you live with a young wife?”

When Seo-kwang brought up Sun-young’s age, Ma-ryang got angry.

The keynote speech was that Ma-ryang, Han-su, and Wang-cheol were prepared to work in Vietnam.

On the other hand, Seo Gwang, who did not like Vietnam, was planning to take it out as he wished.

* * *

The day after returning to Saigon after completing the field investigation, a construction contract signing ceremony was held at the hotel where Kijo was staying.

He met and greeted high-ranking Vietnamese officials and signed contracts for road and port construction.

We took a commemorative photo and had a brief interview while Vietnamese reporters were covering the story.

The press saw Frank among the Vietnamese reporters.

After the business contract signing ceremony, Kijo approached Frank.

“Congratulations. Cheongsan has finally become an international company.”

Frank congratulated the keynote.

The keynote speaker did not forget Frank’s words that he would introduce him to someone in Vietnam.

Frank, who took the keynote to a coffee shop, introduced an American man.

“Greetings. This is John Richardson.”

“Nice to meet you. Please call me Jocko.”

“Nice to meet you. I am Lee Ki-jo from Cheongsan Group.”

Richardson threw the short cigarette he was holding into an ashtray, stood up, and shook Gizo’s hand.

Keynote was surprised that Frank introduced him to the big shot.

His full name was John H. Richardson, and ‘Jocko’ was his nickname.

He came to Vietnam after serving as the CIA station chief in Greece, and later became the CIA station chief in Seoul.

He was a figure who influenced Korean history, including his involvement in the July 4th South-North Joint Statement.

But despite his abilities, he was a small, friendly-looking man with a round face, bald head, and horn-rimmed glasses.

After shaking hands, Richardson said:

“I’ve heard a lot about you. You’ve been working with us for a long time and we’ve always had a good relationship.”

“I also received a lot of help.”

“I don’t need to tell you who I am, right?”

“Of course.”

Richardson didn’t bother to identify himself.

“If you have any problems while working in Vietnam in the future, please contact us. We can help you quickly and easily.”

“Thank you, Mr. Joko.”

In response to the keynote speech, Richardson smiled and pretended it was nothing.

“But please proceed with the construction as quickly as possible. The situation here is not very good.”

The keynote speech saw two situations in which Joko was not in good health.

First, Viet Cong, communists, and anti-government figures were running wild in Vietnam.

The second was the situation of Ngo Dinh Diem.

Ngo Dinh Diem was losing not only the support of the people, but also the trust of the U.S. government.

It was a time when talk was going around in the White House about whether or not the government in Vietnam should gradually change.

Meanwhile, CIA Saigon chief Richardson was a supporter of Ngo Dinh Diem.

He was a strong advocate of Ngo Dinh Diem, judging that the fall of Diem would lead to greater chaos in Vietnam.

That is probably the reason why he is asking the government to complete the Vietnam National Highway No. 1 early.

It seemed that one way to protect Ngo Dinh Diem was to improve road conditions to increase the speed of movement of troops and thus speed up their response to the Viet Cong.

“Frankie, give Mr. Lee your business card.”

Frank handed Richardson his business card.

“Don’t contact the US embassy, ​​contact me.”

The business card Frank handed over was from an American company that had expanded into Vietnam.

It seemed like a front company for the CIA.

Keynote seemed to know why Frank had told him not to contact the American embassy.

If the CIA in Saigon was supporter of Ngo Dinh Diem, the US embassy under Kennedy’s orders was supporter of Ngo Dinh Diem.

Henry Cabot Lodge, the current US ambassador to Vietnam, met with South Vietnamese generals to help oust Ngo Dinh Diem and search for a new leader.

The keynote speaker replied that he would do so without asking why.

“Don’t worry about the cost of construction at all. The South Vietnamese government won’t be able to play with American money. And pave the branch lines connected to the road. We will provide separate funding for that.”

The keynote was promised support from the CIA.

But Key knew that in turbulent Vietnam, the CIA’s promises would not last long.

Richardson, who opposed the removal of Ngo Dinh Diem, was recalled to Vietnam this year, where a coup occurred and Ngo Dinh Diem was brutally murdered.

And next year, General Maxwell Taylor, a former commander of the US 8th Army who was close to Kijo, would come to Vietnam as ambassador.

The keynote was that he would not take sides with either the CIA or the US embassy.

The general approach was to take sides.