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CH142 | GSI
🕑 Added 2025-02-18 05:45:55 +0000 UTCAfter putting down the receiver, Choi Ho-geun turned his slightly stiffened face toward the monitor on his desk.
[Boseong Telecom 26,300 ▲ 1,860]
As the operation forces drove the stock price up again through coordinated trades, retail investors who had been shaken out earlier jumped back in, pushing the stock into a full-fledged uptrend.
"It feels a bit early, but even selling here means doubling our profits. Nothing to regret."
Muttering to himself, Choi Ho-geun swept his gaze across the team, watching his subordinates intently trading at their desks. Then, he stood up and walked over to Jung Hwan-yeop, who was seated nearby.
"What are you up to?"
Jung Hwan-yeop, surrounded by three bulky CRT monitors cluttering his desk, looked up and replied,
"As you can see, I’m working hard."
"Not slacking off?"
"Come on, do I look like I’m just killing time here? Why are you always on my case?"
Jung Hwan-yeop pouted in mock protest.
Choi Ho-geun smirked briefly, then suddenly lowered his voice and spoke in a serious tone.
"You remember what I told you last time?"
"Which one? You give me so many orders, it’s hard to keep track."
Jung Hwan-yeop replied lazily, idly tapping his keyboard.
"Boseong Telecom."
"……!"
His face stiffened immediately.
Choi Ho-geun, maintaining an air of casual indifference, continued,
"Sell it all. Right now."
"……Everything?"
"Yeah. Dump it all."
"Understood."
"Report back to me when you’re done."
"Got it."
Choi Ho-geun gave Jung Hwan-yeop a light pat on the shoulder before heading back to his desk.
To an outsider, it looked like just another casual conversation between colleagues.
Indeed, their teammates, Hong Jae-hee and Yoo Seok-hyun, paid no attention, too absorbed in their own work.
After glancing around the room, Jung Hwan-yeop turned back to the stock chart and stared intently at Boseong Telecom’s price movements.
He was waiting for the right moment—the instant the operation forces executed a prearranged trade to artificially inflate the stock price through coordinated transactions, known as wash trading.
Having already studied their patterns under Choi Ho-geun’s instructions, he quickly spotted the signal.
"Bingo."
His eyes lit up as a buy order flashed from the operation forces’ accounts.
Without hesitation, his fingers flew across the keyboard and mouse, executing the sell orders at lightning speed.
His rapid-fire execution rivaled even Choi Ho-geun, a master of scalping.
In an instant, the orders were executed ahead of the opposing side, and all of the Boseong Telecom shares held in the borrowed-name account were successfully sold.
***
"What the hell?!"
Jo Cheol-rae, a section chief in the operation, shouted in shock as an unknown entity had suddenly intervened in their wash trade, intercepting the orders and preventing them from offloading their shares.
The other employees around him widened their eyes, startled by his outburst.
"Section Chief, is something wrong?"
A colleague seated nearby asked.
Jo Cheol-rae quickly forced a casual response.
"Oh, it's nothing."
"Really?"
"Yeah, it's fine."
Though he managed a forced smile, he couldn't completely hide the stiffness in his expression.
Feeling the curious gazes on him, he hurriedly checked his monitor. The sight made his stomach twist—his sell orders remained unexecuted.
To make matters worse, the stock, which had been climbing steadily, began to falter due to the sudden large-scale sell-off.
A sinking feeling crept in. Something had gone terribly wrong.
"Damn it."
Cursing under his breath, Jo Cheol-rae abruptly stood up and stormed out of the office in a hurry.
"What’s up with him?"
"Beats me…"
His subordinates exchanged puzzled looks as they watched him rush out.
BANG!
A loud slap echoed as Woo Ho-geun slammed his palm against the desk, his face twisted with fury.
"What the hell is going on?!"
His enraged voice made Son Oh-seung, the department head, and Jo Cheol-rae, the section chief, flinch and shrink back.
"Sir, we're still in the office. Please calm down," said Oh Sang-hyun, Woo Ho-geun’s close aide.
"Haah, damn it."
Woo Ho-geun let out a rough sigh before slumping into his chair. Agitated, he yanked at his tie knot, loosening it, and shot a piercing glare at the two men standing before him.
"Explain what happened. Again."
Son Oh-seung hesitated before finally speaking up.
"While we were executing the wash trade, someone cut in and dumped their shares onto us."
"Who the hell did it?!"
"We… we don’t know yet…"
Before Son Oh-seung could finish, Woo Ho-geun's eyes burned with rage as he raised his voice again.
"Are you screwing with me right now?!"
"W-We’re sorry!"
Department Head Son Oh-seung quickly bowed his head in apology.
Before Woo Ho-geun could explode again, Oh Sang-hyun, his trusted aide, stepped in to calm him down.
"Things didn’t go as planned, but the operation isn’t completely ruined."
"That’s right!"
Seeing an opportunity, Son Oh-seung hurriedly chimed in.
"If they had hijacked our stocks entirely, it would’ve been a disaster. But since they only dumped their shares and disappeared, it won’t cause a major disruption to our plan."
"Exactly. In fact, this could even turn out to be a blessing in disguise."
Section Chief Jo Cheol-rae eagerly nodded in agreement.
Woo Ho-geun narrowed his eyes. "A blessing in disguise?"
"Yes. We may have been forced to buy at a higher price, but that also means we’ve secured additional shares."
Woo Ho-geun crossed his arms, watching them in silence as if telling them to continue. The violent fury in his eyes had subsided slightly, though the dangerous glint remained.
Jo Cheol-rae straightened his posture and continued, forcing confidence into his voice.
"If we push the stock price high enough and sell everything—including the extra shares we just acquired—we’ll end up making even more profit."
Sensing a shift in the atmosphere, Son Oh-seung quickly jumped in.
"Jo is right. We ran into an unexpected issue, but we can recover from it. Please trust us."
Woo Ho-geun leaned back in his chair and gave them a chilling stare.
"You’d better. Because if you don’t, I won’t let it slide."
His tone was calm, but the weight of his words was anything but.
Son Oh-seung and Jo Cheol-rae instinctively swallowed hard, their throats suddenly dry.
Woo Ho-geun tapped his fingers against the desk. "The original plan was to raise the price over the next two months, correct?"
"Yes."
"Move the timeline up. I want the stock at 80,000 won by the end of this month."
Son Oh-seung’s eyes widened in alarm.
"But sir, the stock has already surged significantly, and it’s drawing attention. If we triple the price in just two weeks, we’ll undoubtedly attract the Financial Supervisory Service’s scrutiny."
"Exactly. It’s too risky."
They had originally planned a gradual two-month rise to avoid suspicion. Even though it was a blatant pump-and-dump scheme, they had at least maintained the illusion of natural market movement.
But now, Woo Ho-geun was demanding they cut that timeline in half and push the stock even higher. It was reckless—borderline suicidal.
Woo Ho-geun’s expression turned ice-cold. "If you had done your jobs properly, we wouldn’t be in this situation."
The two men fell silent, unable to argue. Their mouths snapped shut like clams.
Woo Ho-geun narrowed his eyes. "So, are you saying you can’t do it?"
"No, sir. We’ll get it done."
His gaze, sharp as a snake’s, flicked between the two men, sending an unmistakable chill down their spines.
"There won't be a second chance, so make sure you don’t disappoint me again."
"Yes."
"I’ll remember."
Both men answered stiffly.
"Now get out."
They both bowed their heads and immediately left the room.
As the door closed, Woo Ho-geun clicked his tongue in frustration and scowled.
"Useless fools."
Oh Sang-hyun, who had been standing nearby, cautiously spoke up, trying to gauge Woo Ho-geun’s mood.
"I understand you're angry, but don't you think we’re rushing things a bit?"
"I know rushing isn't good."
"Then why…"
Woo Ho-geun looked at him with a skeptical expression and muttered, almost in disgust.
"Something feels off."
"What do you mean?"
"This whole situation. It doesn’t feel right."
"..."
"They know the operation’s on the line. If it’s just about money, they could’ve held onto the stock, waited for the price to go up, and sold it directly in the market for a higher profit. It would’ve been easier and more profitable."
After a moment of reflection, Oh Sang-hyun nodded slowly, realizing that Woo Ho-geun was right.
"Now that you mention it, you're right."
Leaning back in his chair, Woo Ho-geun's eyes flashed with suspicion.
"But they sold it off in a hurry, almost like they were trying to get rid of it quickly. That tells me there's something else going on."
Finally understanding the situation, Oh Sang-hyun felt a strong sense of unease.
"What do you think they’re after?"
"I don’t know. That’s what bothers me."
Oh Sang-hyun paused, trying to figure out the other party’s intentions, but like Woo Ho-geun, he had no clue what they were after.
"So, you're accelerating the plan to wrap it up quickly?"
Woo Ho-geun gave a small nod, confirming the thought.
"We can’t afford to back out now. Too much is at stake. There's only one way forward."
"I see."
It made sense—if he pulled out now, the other parties involved would surely raise a commotion. Woo Ho-geun had no choice but to go ahead.
In a cold, measured tone, Woo Ho-geun gave his next order.
"Find out who the hell thinks they can meddle in my business and start messing with my plans."
"Understood."
Despite the passage of time, Woo Ho-geun couldn’t shake the lingering, unsettling feeling. His face remained contorted in discomfort.
***
Beyond the large glass windows, a breathtaking view unfolded as the red sun set behind towering buildings.
Seok-won stood by the window, watching the scene, while holding his phone to his ear, speaking to someone.
[Before the market opens tomorrow, the trade suspension will be enforced, and we’ll begin the raid immediately.]
As Seok-won relayed the information that Chief Investigator Choi Bok-rak of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had requested, a faint smile appeared on his face.
“You must have had a tough time getting both approvals at once. You’re truly impressive.”
Though Seok-won tried to flatter him, Choi Bok-rak's response was indifferent.
[You’ve delivered the perfect evidence on a silver platter. I’m not foolish enough not to take it.]
“Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have sought you out.”
[Hmm... I can’t quite tell if you're complimenting me or mocking me.]
Choi Bok-rak chuckled dryly.
“You’ll be busy handling this for a while, but please clear your schedule for the third Friday evening of next month.”
[......]
“There will be a 25th anniversary celebration for the Ubo Foundation, which is run by my family. I’ll be sure to send you an invitation.”
Seok-won adjusted his grip on the phone and continued.
"Vice Minister Choi Jin-woo will also be attending and is scheduled to give a congratulatory speech. So, as promised, I will introduce you when he arrives."
At that, Section Chief Choi Bok-rak, who had been silent for a moment, responded in a low voice.
[Your skill in handling people is no ordinary talent.]
"I’ll take that as a compliment."
Choi's tone had a subtle edge to it, but Seok-won simply shrugged it off.
[Since you’re expecting a show, I’ll make sure it’s worth watching.]
"I'll be looking forward to it."
Ending the call, Seok-won slipped his phone into his inner pocket and gazed at the nearly setting sun beyond the high-rise buildings.
Tomorrow, when the trading suspension is enacted and the SEC storms the brokerage, he wondered what kind of expression Woo Ho-geun would make. He was already curious.
“It’s a shame I won’t be there to see it firsthand.”
Once the trading is suspended, the operation that had been carefully orchestrated would collapse in an instant. At the same time, the raid would deal a severe blow to Donghae Peregrine Securities.
Even if Woo Ho-geun got a tip-off beforehand, it would be too late. The market would have closed, and there would be no way to sell off the shares he had hoarded before the suspension.
“By tomorrow, he’ll be stuck holding all the shares I dumped on him, and he’ll sink straight down.”
