The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 471



Only Krnovel

471. Buy at the low point (1)

I wasted all my time entertaining Roman during the day.

Taewoo Group made it clear that it was not selling the factory in order to withdraw from Russia, and did its best to leave a good impression on Roman.

There was a reason for doing this.

This was because they had to squeeze out as much of the Russian market as possible before the war broke out.

That’s why I called in a vice president this morning and talked about the matter.

“Mongolia’s natural resources have begun to be transported in earnest through China and Russia. In particular, it has become possible to import large quantities of rare earth elements and iron ore, which China has a monopoly on.”

“Fortunately, both paths are available.”

“It was a business that was not only invested by Taewoo Group, but also invested by multinational financial companies in the financial tower, so it was able to be free from the THAAD sanctions. And in the case of Russia, there is absolutely no reason to oppose it.”

Taewoo Group has invested a lot of money in developing Mongolia’s natural resources.

Only now have they begun to extract natural resources in large quantities and transport them through China and Russia.

But it is true that both paths were unstable.

China is in conflict with the United States.

In Russia’s case, the road was likely to be blocked by war with Ukraine.

To prevent that from happening, Taewoo Group’s power had to become stronger than it is now.

“For the time being, we should be able to transport resources without any problems.”

“We are supplying Mongolian resources primarily to Korea, and exporting the rest to the US and Europe. Since the primary processing has been completed, we can get a fairly high price. Of course, secondary processing is required, but the value is still much higher than if it had not been refined.”

Mining resources didn’t end there.

Mined resources must go through a refining process before they become commercially viable.

However, it was difficult to build refining facilities in Korea due to environmental pollution and other reasons.

“We may need to further expand primary processing infrastructure, including refining facilities, in Mongolia.”

“We are continuing to expand our facilities. Up until now, we have only mined the ore and handed it over to Chinese companies at a low price, but now we are carrying out even the primary processing in Mongolia.”

“If we were to build a refining facility in Korea, there would be a huge uproar, but it seems that in Mongolia, permission was granted easily.”

“Of course, the Mongolian government would want to sell its resources at a fair price. Now that the opportunity has finally arrived, they probably don’t want to waste time with regulations or permits.”

Mongolia’s GDP was only about $3,700.

Although it possessed a blessed territory rich in natural resources.

Mongolia was a country that was unable to develop properly due to being blocked by the powerful countries of Russia and China.

“Now that the blocked road has been opened, Mongolia will grow more than before.”

“It’s still early, but if we can sell resources at a fair price for just five years like we are doing now, it has the potential to grow into a pretty big market.”

“Please pay some attention to the Mongolian market as well.”

“Taewoo Corporation and Taewoo Construction are paying a lot of attention to Mongolia. In particular, Taewoo Construction is carrying out various projects, including apartments, with local Mongolian construction companies.”

The construction project in Mongolia was not actually very profitable.

It would have been more profitable to build apartments in Seoul or other metropolitan cities.

However, the entry into Mongolia was for the future and also for the purpose of strengthening the relationship between Mongolia and Taewoo Group.

“We can delay the Russian issue for at least five years, so there won’t be any problem if China blocks our way.”

“But the withdrawal of the Chinese factory is becoming a bit of a problem.”

“I just got a call from Secretary Li Gang. He told me to come to China as soon as possible.”

“He really has changed since he became a secretary. No matter what, he asked the chairman to come to China.”

Lee Kang, who was growing up.

However, Lee Gang had been promoted twice in a row and was now in the position of Seongwi Secretary.

The position of Seongwiseo was one that could be seen as that of a feudal lord.

It was also a position that only the current administration’s closest associates could reach.

That meant that Secretary Li Gang was favored and that he had become someone who could wield a lot of power.

“Even a Chinese feudal lord has the same level of power as a president of a decent country.”

“The power of Taewoo Group is also not insignificant. If you don’t want to, I will go to China. Wouldn’t that be more appropriate?”

“There’s no point in fighting back yet. Just wait patiently until the decisive moment. There aren’t many years left.”

Now it took time.

The moment when the US-China trade hegemony war begins in earnest.

The importance of the Taewoo Group was bound to increase, and the opposite situation could have occurred.

“It certainly doesn’t seem like the US will sit still. There have been several warning statements from the White House. In particular, it seems like they are very restrained in their one-on-one policies.”

“Since China is openly trying to advance into the West, the United States cannot help but check it. It will cause enormous problems both militarily and economically.”

One-on-one business.

It was a project to create an economic belt connecting China and Europe.

A policy was also being implemented to connect China and Europe by sea.

Because the goal was to create an alliance centered around China, it was not an issue that the United States could just sit back and watch.

“We just need to buy time. Vice Chairman Han, while I’m in China, just focus on the Japanese steel company. It won’t cause any problems with China or Russia right now.”

“All preparations have already been completed. As soon as the chairman returns, we will disclose the data on Japanese steel companies.”

There were two ways to increase market share.

One was how to capture the hearts of customers by creating innovative products.

Another was when a competitor made a fatal mistake.

But there was no rule that said you had to use only one method.

Taewoo Motors planned to increase its market share by using both the innovative product of the electric car and the fatal mistake of manipulating data from a Japanese steel company.

***

Arrived in Beijing to meet Secretary Li Gang.

It was Li Gang who settled in Beijing thanks to two consecutive promotions.

Maybe that’s why he greeted me with a more relaxed attitude than before.

“Is Chairman Kim here? It only takes two hours to get from Korea to Beijing? It shouldn’t be that hard. Hehe.”

“It’s close by, but I’m sorry I can’t visit often.”

Arrogance was evident from his tone of speech.

They say a position makes a person, but now Lee Kang exudes the aura of a powerful person.

“But why did you bring so much?”

“You have reached the position of Seongwiseo, so how could I come here empty-handed? I have prepared just enough so that it will not be a burden.”

“Hehe, I’m not the type of person who feels burdened by just any gift. Should I just take a look?”

I opened the presents one by one, making a lot of noise.

Although the price was expensive, Lee Kang’s face brightened because it was a gift that felt sincere.

“I don’t know if you’ll like it.”

“How could I not like Chairman Kim’s gift? It would be enough if he just brought a basket of fruit, but it’s annoying when he always does this. Hehe.”

What a hassle.

I would really appreciate it if you brought a basket of fruit.

“The relationship between me and the secretary is so good, but the relationship between China and Korea continues to get worse, which is a real problem.”

“If a small country understands the will of a large country and acts on its own, then relations will improve. Isn’t that right?”

It was a high-ranking Chinese official who would often talk about becoming a great power.

This may mean that they have a strong sense of pride in China, but that doesn’t mean they need to necessarily disparage the other country.

The belief that we will soon surpass the United States and become the world’s number one country.

The resulting arrogance was spreading not only among the Chinese upper class, but also throughout China.

“It’s frustrating because there’s nothing we can do at the Taewoo Group level.”

“That’s true. But I heard that there is a move to withdraw from the Chinese factory. What’s going on? Are they trying to withdraw from China?”

In fact, it was a situation where it wouldn’t have been strange if they had withdrawn.

Due to the THAAD ban, sales of Korean companies were getting worse day by day.

Because the damage from excessive regulation and technology theft was also accumulating.

“We are going to close down businesses that are not making money and start new ones. We are absolutely not planning to withdraw from the Chinese market.”

“As for the management part, Chairman Kim is the expert so he will take care of it, but what I am worried about is whether the donations coming into the party will decrease.”

It was called a donation, but it was closer to a bribe.

He was paying bribes in various ways to enter the Chinese market and build relationships with high-ranking officials.

Manufacturing plants, transportation companies, resource development companies, etc.

I was paying a portion of the profits from here, and it could be said that it was thanks to the money I was giving that Lee Gang was able to rise to the position of secretary.

“You don’t have to worry about donations. On the contrary, it is expected to increase significantly every year. The sales of transportation companies traveling between Mongolia and China are increasing significantly.”

“Since we are talking about Mongolia, there are voices of concern coming from high-ranking officials. There are quite a few people who claim that Mongolia’s resources, which could be monopolized, are being given away to others.”

It was Li Gang who talked about Mongolia’s resources as if they were China’s.

That is understandable, because before Taewoo Group intervened, China had purchased more than 90% of Mongolia’s resources.

Buy resources cheaply and use them for domestic consumption.

It was understandable to feel it was a waste, as they were exporting it at a high price after processing to make a profit.

“In the grand scheme of things, it’s not a loss at all. Mongolia is said to have a lot of resources, but they haven’t been properly developed until now. But now that they’re starting to be fully developed, more of them will be transported through China.”

“Is it true that you get more for your money by collecting transportation costs than by monopolizing resources?”

“At least the donations going to the party will certainly be much higher than before.”

It was definitely a loss for China.

However, he emphasized that if you look at the party or individual, you can get a bigger bribe.

“I will try my best to block it, but if the donations decrease, there is nothing I can do.”

“We will manage it carefully to prevent such incidents from happening.”

Now he pretended to bow down.

But in just a few years, the situation was set to change.

And what if the Chinese government blocks Mongolian shipping routes?

Financial institutions around the world that own shares in the transportation route will rise up simultaneously.

The Chinese government could never block the Mongolian shipping route unless it wanted to turn not only the United States and South Korea, but the entire world, into its enemies.

Of course, that couldn’t happen right away.

This was a possible scenario only after the transportation route was stabilized and the power of the Taewoo Group was further strengthened.

“And how about a technology agreement? Semiconductors, automobiles, batteries. Just these areas should be enough for a technology agreement.”

“If we formally sign a technology agreement, we may face litigation or regulatory action in the United States. It is a very sensitive issue, so we have to proceed slowly.”

How did Taewoo Group acquire this technology?

They are trying to eat away at the technological prowess that they have acquired by spending money, time, and manpower.

Of course, I had no intention of just giving it away, and even if I received money, I wouldn’t hand it over.

“There are many ways to share technology without formal agreements, right? Let’s find ways to do that step by step.”

“Won’t time heal everything?”

“If the Korean government takes care of it on its own, Chairman Kim will also be able to move with ease.”

How does the flow of thought come to be like this?

Lee Kang believed that Korea would naturally become stronger as time passed.

That will never happen.

Because time was on the side of Taewoo Group, not China.

If things had gone according to the scenario I had planned, there was a higher chance that the opposite would have happened.