1953 Bare-handed Tycoon - Chapter 410



Only Krnovel

410 – The value of Korean life

The keynote speaker saw that Richardson’s reason for wanting to meet with him was not simply because of the road paving.

To that extent, it would have been sufficient to inform Frank.

I felt like there was something you wanted.

They were not people who gave unilaterally.

The keynote speaker wondered what he would have to pay for.

“I heard that Korean air transport companies also entered Vietnam as Cheongsan advanced into the market.”

Richardson got lucky.

“Yes, Mr. Joko. Among the companies participating in the liquidation consortium, there is a company that is in the air transportation business.”

“This is a good thing, as I was just looking for a company to entrust the work to.”

At Richardson’s words, Keynote recalled the company name on the business card he had received from Frank.

[ HOUSE 10 ]

As far as the keynote is concerned, the CIA trained “native soldiers” in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia until 1964.

A representative example was the Mong people, a hill tribe in Vietnam.

The Mong suffered a lot of discrimination from the Vietnamese and did not hesitate to fight them.

Moreover, since the CIA provided them with material support, they considered fighting the Vietnamese as their profession.

The Mong soldiers were known to number 18,000 at their peak.

The training of irregular forces using ethnic minorities was also attempted in Laos and Cambodia.

And it was reported that such special missions were carried out at a place called ‘Villa 10’ or ‘Safe House in Saigon’, and it seemed that the company called ‘HOUSE 10’, where Kijo received his business card, was also related to that.

“We are looking for a company that can transport supplies to remote locations.”

Richardson said.

“The job is simple. Just drop supplies from the sky.”

It seemed like the right thing to do to provide supplies to ethnic minorities living in mountainous areas.

The CIA knew that they were running a company called Air America and deploying them on special missions.

But I wondered if they were looking for a company that had lower operating costs than Air America and fewer problems in case the plane crashed or the pilot was captured.

“I will try to contact Air Korea.”

The keynote speech was not definitive because of the risk involved in the CIA’s proposed mission.

If an accident occurred while transporting ‘goods’ to Laos or Cambodia, it would be difficult for the pilot to return alive.

“Of course. That’s a matter for Hanjin Shipping’s CEO Cho Joong-hoon to decide.”

Richardson even knew Cho Joong-hoon’s name exactly.

“Please tell Mr. Cho that working with HOUSE 10 will make it a lot easier to import used aircraft from the US. We know where to find cheap, good used aircraft. And let him know that we can help you in Vietnam better than the Korean government.”

The keynote speaker felt that his proposal would sound very attractive to Cho Joong-hoon.

Throughout history, Cho Joong-hoon has never used any shortcuts or unlawful means in his business in Vietnam.

That was the case for Korean businessmen who advanced into Vietnam at that time, including Chung Ju-young of Hyundai Construction.

Korean companies that advanced into Vietnam did not hesitate to use any means necessary to earn even just one more dollar and bring it back to Korea.

“I have a question.”

“Please tell me.”

“If an Air Korea aircraft crashes or the pilot dies while performing the work assigned to it by HOUSE 10, I would like to know what the compensation will be.”

At the keynote question, Richardson exchanged glances with Frank, smoking a cigarette.

Frank answered for him.

“The lost aircraft will be compensated with aircraft of the same level. And the death benefit will be paid in two pieces.”

Chapter 2 seemed to mean 20,000 dollars.

Still, I needed to confirm whether it was $2,000 or $20,000.

“Are you saying the death benefit is 20 thousand dollars?”

Frank nodded.

“If an American dies, how much will his or her family receive?”

The keynote question was a very tricky one.

When Frank gave him a puzzled look, Richardson nodded. It seemed to be a signal for him to answer.

“It’s one hundred thousand dollars.”

Frank’s answer made him think that the value of a Korean’s life was only one-fifth of that of an American’s.

‘In fact, the cost of Korean life was the cheapest in Vietnam… … .’

The keynote brought to mind the salaries of South Korean soldiers deployed to Vietnam.

The salaries of Korean soldiers deployed to Vietnam were covered by the United States, and privates received between $37 and $54.

Combat pay was $1.60 for a sergeant and $1 for a private.

The combat pay was less than a quarter of what American soldiers were receiving, and was lower than what South Vietnamese soldiers were receiving at the time, or even the Philippine or Thai soldiers deployed to Vietnam.

It was a ‘price’ determined based on Korea’s per capita national income and prices at the time, and it may have been because Koreans’ income was lower than that of the Philippines or Thailand, but the basic idea was that they did not want to sell Koreans’ lives at such a cheap price.

“Please give me 60 thousand dollars.”

The keynote speech was to raise the ‘price’ significantly in place of the central government.

For some reason, it seemed like Joong-Hoon wouldn’t care much about the death penalty.

It wasn’t because Joong-Hoon was bad, but because at the time, receiving $20,000 in compensation for a Korean who died was considered extremely generous.

Frank was taken aback by the keynote’s demands.

Richardson also smoked a cigarette and stared intently at the keynote.

Frank spoke persuasively in a low voice.

“Keynote, I’m sorry, but there are set standards.”

“Who sets the standard? Can’t the person who gives his life decide the price of his own life? Should I accept whatever you give me?”

Frank was embarrassed by the keynote speech.

“Look, Keynote. Wouldn’t there be people who want to work for that level of guarantee? And the contract is going to be done by Hanjin anyway… … .”

Frank tried to appease Kijo and said that if the CIA and Hanjin could come to an agreement, it would be fine.

Kijo also knew that he was a third party. However, he did not want Korean lives to be treated so cheaply.

There was also a hope that if he protested even just once, they might raise the bar a little bit when negotiating with Hanjin.

“If Koreans do their jobs better than Americans, why are they treated like that? Koreans also have families to take care of. And who would do their best on a mission if they knew their lives were being treated cheaply?”

When the keynote speech did not back down, Richardson stepped in.

“You’re not as easy-going as I’ve heard. Okay. Then let’s do this.”

Richardson proposed four chapters.

It was 40% of the value of American life.

“You have to give me 60 thousand dollars.”

The keynote was that he wanted to be recognized for at least half of the value of American lives.

When the keynote speaker persisted, Frank took out a cigarette and lit it, and Richardson also puffed on his cigarette without saying a word.

Richardson, who had been silent, asked.

“Mr. Lee Ki-jo, do you think we discriminate only against Koreans? To be frank, we discriminate against people from all countries except Americans. Greeks don’t get paid as much as Americans, and the same goes for Vietnamese people.”

“Okay, I understand. Then, please use a company from another country, not a Korean company. I won’t even tell President Cho that I received the request.”

The keynote speaker thought it was okay not to receive an assignment from the CIA.

It didn’t matter that the branch road connecting to National Highway 1 in Vietnam couldn’t be paved because of this incident.

Richardson will be recalled home this year anyway.

Next year, the CIA’s ‘native soldier’ ​​training program will also be transferred to MACV (Military Assistance Command, Vietnam).

And General Maxwell Taylor, who has ties to the United States, will be taking up the post of US Ambassador to Vietnam.

At that time, we can win the US military’s air transport project and also win additional road paving projects.

Kijo first apologized to Frank, who had tried to help him.

“Frank, I’m sorry. You came all the way to Vietnam to introduce me to Mr. Joko, and this is what happened.”

Frank nodded and looked okay.

The keynote also spoke to Richardson.

“Koreans will work harder than any other country that comes to Vietnam. Just wait and see how Koreans work in Vietnam. It was nice to meet you, Mr. Joco.”

When Keynote stood up to signal that he would abandon all business the CIA had proposed, Richardson stopped him.

“Excuse me. Mr. Lee Ki-jo, please sit down again.”

Richardson’s attitude changed.

Richardson, who had previously treated Frank indifferently and left the explanations to him, began to look at him with serious eyes.

Since the 1950s, the keynote speaker has felt that in order to be respected, one had to be assertive and demanding when dealing with the American military.

And here we are again, confirming it.

“I like you. People who only care about money don’t care about the lives of the people they command.”

Richardson praised the keynote.

“And subordinates tend to follow superiors who value their lives.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Joko. Air Korea is not my company and I was just a third party, but I think I got too worked up. I was just upset that Koreans were treated so inferiorly.”

“Of course. It would be stranger if you didn’t feel that way when your own people were treated poorly. I wish you were running an airline.”

“Me?”

“We will help you introduce the aircraft. Just find reliable Korean pilots. You must keep your mouth shut. You will have to keep quiet about what we do for 20 years.”

Kijo had no intention of taking away Jo Joong-hoon’s business.

“I am not in the airline business. Airlines are my business partner, Mr. Cho Joong-hoon’s business.”

When the keynote speaker refused, Frank looked defeated and tried to stop him.

“Accept it. Keynote. If you refuse this project, it will go to Japan or Taiwan.”

“but….”

“Is it because of loyalty to your business partner? He doesn’t even know that this business exists.”

“If I run an airline in Vietnam, my friends will feel betrayed. Mr. Cho Joong-hoon is my friend before he is my business partner.”

When Keynote refused, Richardson stepped forward.

“Air Korea will never enter Vietnam. Whether you work with us or not.”

It was something like an ultimatum.

The decision was either to accept the terms he had proposed or to lose all opportunities.

If the CIA station chief in Vietnam wanted to block Air Korea’s advance into Vietnam, he could do so.

But the keynote was that we should not give in to such threats.

Giving in to threats seemed like a worse thing to do.

“I see. I understand. I will keep quiet about what I hear here until I die.”

The keynote speaker gave up everything and stood up.

Then Richardson shook his head and laughed.

“Okay, let’s revise the proposal. Let’s make the death benefit five. But we’ll increase the pilot’s salary. We’ll bring it up to the Australian level. It’s much higher than Southeast Asia or Japan.”

It was said that Koreans would be treated like white people.

The keynote speech acknowledged reality.

No matter how hard they tried, the value of a Korean’s life would never surpass that of an Australian.

“I heard about you and from the beginning I was thinking of entrusting you with the job. But now that I’ve seen you in person, I feel like I can’t trust anyone else to do this job. Should I say I trust you? You seem like someone who would never betray.”

“If you leave it to Air Korea, they will do a good job. I guarantee they will never betray you.”

Richardson chuckled at the keynote speech.

“Okay, I’ve lost. I’ll give the job to Air Korea, but only if you’re the co-president of that company.”

Frank chimed in too.

“Accept it. Keynote. This is an offer you can’t refuse.”

The keynote speaker sat down again.

And then he said to Richardson.

“Okay, Mr. Joko. I’ll consult with my partner and let you know through Frank.”

For Air Korea to succeed in Vietnam, it had to have Korean pilots willing to risk their lives to meet the conditions set by the CIA.

But with a $50,000 death benefit, a $1,000 base salary, and a mission success bonus, it seemed likely that there would be a line of pilots willing to come to Vietnam.

The monthly salary of a Korean general dispatched to Vietnam was $177, and the combat pay was $300, so even if you add them together, it didn’t even amount to $500.

The salary of a company employee working in Korea was around 50 dollars or less, so a monthly salary of over 1,000 dollars was a huge amount.

But that would mean keeping quiet for 20 years and risking flying over North Vietnam, as well as over South Vietnamese airspace, into Laos and Cambodia.

Richardson said, shaking hands with the keynote speaker.

“We don’t work with people who have no loyalty. Only fools buy people with money.”

The keynote speech agreed with his words.