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CH48 | VOC
🕑 Added 2025-02-16 04:55:01 +0000 UTCMy plan was simple.
They were worried about getting caught because the stolen scrap metal would create a discrepancy in the inventory records? Then we just had to replace it.
Not all scrap metal was the same.
There were countless grades of scrap metal, categorized by weight, composition, and alloy content, each with a different price.
The price difference depended on various factors, such as the presence of impurities and the type of alloy. This gave me an idea.
The scrap metal piled up at the steel mill was already the highest grade, having been processed by junkyards, brokers, and wholesalers to remove impurities.
The core of my plan was to swap this high-grade scrap metal with low-grade scrap metal of the same weight, containing impurities and alloys.
The cleanup would be simple.
Once the steel mill resumed operations, 200,000 tons of scrap metal would only be a month's worth of inventory.
If the union leader used his influence to prioritize using the existing inventory, the evidence would disappear, creating the perfect crime.
Of course, using low-grade scrap metal would significantly reduce the efficiency of steel production, but we could just blame it on the previous management.
That's why I needed the help of a high-ranking official like the union leader.
"He still hasn't called."
I returned to the company after my encounter with Kim Chan-gil and waited for his call, but there was still no response.
Maru asked curiously,
"What if the union leader doesn't contact us?"
"What else can we do? We give up. It's a shame, but it can't be helped."
If we successfully swapped the entire 200,000 tons, I estimated a profit of about 15 billion won.
After sharing it with the union leader and others, I expected to make about 10 billion won. It wasn't a small amount, but it wasn't worth the risk.
"I can't just sit here and wait. Is there anything we can do?"
"How about targeting his family?"
I smiled at Maru's suggestion.
"You've grown up, Maru. You're even thinking like a villain now. I'm proud of you."
"Do you want to get hit?"
"Sorry, sorry. Anyway, his family, huh. Hmm."
***
"You're back? Good work."
Kim Chan-gil greeted his wife, Kim Young-sook, who entered the makeshift tent with his lunch.
"I packed your favorite seasoned vegetables. Eat up and regain your strength."
"Thank you. I'll enjoy it."
As Kim Chan-gil started eating, Lee Young-sook hesitated and said,
"Honey."
"Yes? What is it?"
"This month will be tough too, right?"
Kim Chan-gil stopped eating and said,
"Are we out of money?"
"Yes…"
"Sigh."
Although Kim Chan-gil was the union leader, he didn't have much savings.
The Hanbo Dangjin Steel Mill was a newly built factory, so they had only hired employees about a year ago, and the union had only been formed six months ago.
He had received many tempting offers and bribes during that time, but he had rejected them all.
"I'm sorry, honey. The company is bankrupt… Just wait a little longer. The government will appoint a new management company soon, and then we'll get our salaries and things will be okay."
"Okay. Good luck."
Kim Young-sook left the tent, and Kim Chan-gil muttered,
"Damn it. I wish I hadn't heard that."
The words of Park Sol from Chunha Trading kept echoing in his mind.
Clean money, dirty money, luxury… He shook his head vigorously, trying to erase Park Sol's words.
"Nonsense. I'm Kim Chan-gil. I won't sell my conscience."
"Sigh."
Lee Young-sook sighed deeply as she walked home.
"Should I ask my brother again? Or should I sell something?"
She couldn't bring herself to tell her husband, who was already struggling, but they had run out of money a month ago.
They had some savings, but buying the apartment before his wages were withheld had been a blow.
It was their first home, bought after years of saving, so she was attached to it. She had even borrowed money from her brother to hold onto it, but they were reaching their limit.
"It'll be okay, right?"
She tried to sound hopeful, but the reality was that they didn't even have 100,000 won to pay for their son's cram school tuition.
"Excuse me, are you Mr. Kim Chan-gil's wife?"
Lee Young-sook was startled by the sudden question.
"Oh my! You scared me. Who are you?"
She looked up and saw a large man in a black suit getting out of a luxury car.
"Hahaha, hello. Nice to meet you. I'm Park Sol."
Lee Young-sook, intimidated by his size, shrunk back.
"W-what do you want?"
"I received a favor from Mr. Kim Chan-gil, and I wanted to repay him. I heard you're going through a tough time."
Lee Young-sook said hesitantly,
"Yes, well, everyone is struggling these days."
"I brought a small gift, hoping it would help you with your living expenses. Just a moment."
Park Sol took out a shopping bag from his car and handed it to her.
"I bought it on my way here. It's cosmetics and school supplies for your children. I hope you like them."
"Oh, no, it's okay. I don't need…"
Park Sol interrupted her.
"Please accept it. Goodbye."
"Wait! Sir!"
He ignored her calls and drove away.
Lee Young-sook was flustered. She couldn't just throw away the bag, and she started to worry.
"I do need cosmetics…"
But she couldn't just accept them without her husband knowing.
She was worried about what her husband, who had a strong sense of justice and had always lived an honest life, would think.
"These are expensive brands."
The cosmetics were luxury brands sold only at department stores.
Even Lee Young-sook had a desire to look good.
She admired the expensive cosmetics and then found an envelope inside the shopping bag.
"Money?"
***
[Are you insane?! You're bribing my wife now? I told you I didn't want to see you again! Should I report this to the company?]
Kim Chan-gil called me shortly after I gave the shopping bag to Lee Young-sook.
"Calm down, it was just a gift."
[There's no such thing as a "just a gift"! You're a scumbag through and through. I don't accept this kind of money, take it back!]
He was as stubborn as ever.
He was stubborn, strong-willed, and had a strong sense of justice, just like my father.
I personally thought he was a good person, but those types of people often made those around them unhappy.
My father had given up his entire inheritance to his older brother just because he was the eldest son and responsible for carrying on the family line. He had lived a life of stubborn principles.
He might have upheld his beliefs, but it was his family who suffered.
My brother was a lost cause, but my mother had to scrimp and save every penny, searching for the cheapest grocery stores. I had given up on college, and my younger sister had matured too quickly, never asking for anything.
Were beliefs that important? Did honesty put food on the table? Couldn't he just compromise for once, for the sake of his family's happiness?
"Did you even look at your wife's face?"
[What?]
"She wasn't even wearing any makeup. Women, even in desperate times, at least wear basic makeup. Unless your wife is exceptionally low-maintenance, of course. Don't you think it's a sign that there's something wrong at home if she can't even afford basic makeup?"
I had been waiting near the protesters, hoping to catch Kim Chan-gil's wife and slip her an envelope of money.
But when I saw a haggard-looking woman with no makeup, presumably his wife, entering the tent with a lunchbox, I immediately went to a nearby department store and bought some cosmetics.
I almost missed her, but fortunately, she left the tent shortly after I returned.
[What are you…]
"I believe it's good to uphold your beliefs, but you shouldn't harm your family in the process. That's not conviction, it's arrogance. Why do you take your family's sacrifice for granted for the sake of your beliefs? Can't you sacrifice your beliefs for your family?"
[What are you…]
"Alright, I won't try to persuade you anymore. Let's just give up. But please keep the money. It's only 1 million won. I'm giving it to you because I feel sorry for your wife, so don't think of it as a bribe. Just use it."
***
"Hello? Hello? You…"
Park Sol hung up before Kim Chan-gil could finish his sentence, and he exploded in anger.
"Who does he think he is! Telling me what to do? Beliefs? What the hell is he talking about?"
Lee Young-sook, who was standing next to him, flustered, said,
"Honey, I'm sorry. I didn't want to accept it, but he forced it on me and drove away."
Kim Chan-gil looked at his wife.
Her face was bare, with dark circles under her eyes. He hadn't paid any attention to her appearance while he was preoccupied with the protest.
In his memory, his wife was a woman who always wore makeup, cheerful and full of smiles.
"Honey, is there something you're not telling me? Why aren't you wearing makeup?"
"I just… I didn't have the time or energy. Don't worry about it."
Kim Chan-gil just bit his lip, unable to say anything.
Just then, a union member entered the tent and said,
"Chairman Kim! One of our members saw Managing Director Kim Dong-jo heading to the office building with some employees!"
Kim Chan-gil's eyes widened, and he stood up.
"Really? Managing Director Kim Dong-jo is back?"
"Yes!"
He had so many questions.
What was happening with the company? Which company had been chosen as the new manager? What would happen to the employees?
"Let's go. I have a mountain of questions to ask."
"Hurry up, let's go."
***
Dozens of employees were frantically searching through the office under Kim Dong-jo's instructions.
"Destroy everything. Especially any documents related to Sehan Shipping. We have to get rid of them all."
"Yes, sir!"
"If this goes wrong, not only me, but you guys are all screwed. You know that, right?"
The employees were reviewing documents, searching for the ones they had been instructed to destroy. They fed the documents into the shredder, watching them turn into confetti.
Kim Dong-jo chewed his fingernails anxiously.
"We're running out of time. It'll be over if the government and those POSCO bastards show up."
As they were ransacking the office, Kim Chan-gil and the union leaders barged in.
"Managing Director Kim Dong-jo, what are you doing here?"
"Ah, Chairman Kim, what brings you here?"
"What do you mean, 'what brings me here'? I came to ask what's happening with the company, but this…"
Kim Chan-gil was confused, seeing the employees destroying documents. Kim Dong-jo approached him and said,
"Let's go outside. I'll explain everything. Let's talk outside."
"Let go of this. What are you doing here?"
"Come on, I said let's talk outside."
Kim Chan-gil shook off Kim Dong-jo's hand and snatched a document from an employee who was about to feed it into the shredder.
"Sehan Shipping…?"
"Ah, come on, you should know better than this. Let's go outside."
Kim Dong-jo tried to stop him, but Kim Chan-gil's eyes were already wide with suspicion.
"Isn't Sehan Shipping the company owned by the chairman's brother-in-law? Why are you destroying these documents?"
"Well, it's because…"
Kim Chan-gil snatched another document.
"This is a sales invoice? January 15th…?"
He remembered that date clearly because it was the day they started the protest, and it was one of the few days they hadn't shipped any products.
"There was a shipment on that day? And it was worth 10 billion won?"
Kim Chan-gil glared at Kim Dong-jo with a hardened expression.
"Are you destroying the fabricated records? Because you're afraid they'll be discovered when the new management company takes over?"
"…"
"What about Sehan Shipping? Is it a slush fund?"
"Stop it. This is the chairman's order."
"The chairman, my ass! He's already been kicked out by the creditors!"
Kim Chan-gil trembled with rage.
"We're struggling, fighting for our survival, and those bastards who ruined the company with their incompetence are busy destroying the fabricated records to save their own skins? Are you even human?"
"Hey, Chairman, your words are a bit…"
Kim Chan-gil ignored Kim Dong-jo and shouted,
"Give me an explanation then!"
"…These records aren't fabricated. They're legitimate transactions. But the chairman will be summoned by the prosecution soon, so we're just taking precautionary measures to avoid any misunderstandings. There's no need to be so angry. Just go back and wait. Hanbo will rise again."
Kim Chan-gil exploded.
