Chapter 503

Although not as severe as in China, Europe also suffered from the chaos caused by this crisis.

The threats facing Europe were largely two-fold.

One was a political crisis, and the other was a military crisis.

As Russia declared war and the standoff between NATO and Russian forces surrounding Ukraine continued, there were even fearful predictions that another world war could break out in Europe.

But this problem naturally resolved itself as fears of a financial crisis subsided.

The world found new growth engines in space development and the JN Battery. The fate of nations would be decided by how they acted on this opportunity, and neither the EU nor Russia were in a situation where they could afford to be leisurely fighting a war.

The countries that could immediately benefit from the space development boom were the United States, China, and Russia. Russia, which had engaged in a space race with the United States during the Cold War, also showed strong confidence in lunar resource mining.

There was much talk that their technology had fallen behind as they had not been able to invest properly in basic industries due to economic sanctions, but know-how is just as important as technology. And Russia possesses know-how in the space field that is second to none.

The EU felt the need to join hands with Russia rather than engage in war or sanctions.

But no matter how much the reason for war had disappeared, Russia could not back down without justification once war had been declared.

Eventually, under NATO mediation, Ukrainian President Anatoly Borisov apologized for the terrorist attack in Crimea, promised compensation to the victims' families, and issued a statement that he would not claim sovereignty over Crimea.

Although he did not officially give up Crimea, it was a statement acknowledging Russia's occupation.

"Ukraine has surrendered. This is a victory for the great Russia!"

President Vysotsky defined this as a Russian victory, and Ukraine and the international community did not bother to dispute it.

The EU President, the Ukrainian President, and the Russian President met in Helsinki, Finland, to discuss the withdrawal of troops and sign an agreement.

After signing, they shook hands affectionately, as if they had never intended to fight.

The second threat was the division of the EU, represented by Brexit.

As fears of a financial crisis grew, voices in the UK calling for leaving the EU to find a way to survive grew louder, and the same was true for Greece and Italy.

But the financial crisis did not happen. Although not as much as Wall Street, financial companies in the City of London had also participated in the speculation. The British financial market was devastated, and funds and banks went bankrupt one after another or had to rely on the government for handouts.

To prevent the division of the EU, even Kang Jin-hoo lent his support.

"OTK Company will discuss future economic cooperation with the EU. The agreement signed between OTK Company and the EU will apply equally to all EU member states."

The European Space Agency announced a plan to launch a lunar probe in cooperation with NASA and Roscosmos. Now, the role of the EU has become very important in the industrial changes that space development and the JN Battery will bring.

Prime Minister Boris Kane and the Conservative Party members stated that even if the UK left the EU, there would be no disruption to cooperation with the European Space Agency, but no citizen believed this at face value.

According to a recent survey, more than 75 percent of respondents wanted to remain in the EU. As the situation turned out like this, the British Parliament narrowly rejected the hard Brexit led by Prime Minister Boris Kane and the Conservative Party.

Several countries, including Greece and Italy, which had been pushing for withdrawal from the EU amidst the crisis of national bankruptcy, also fell silent as if nothing had happened.

***

I visited the Golden Gate China branch. The employees there applauded when they saw me.

Henry, who had arrived first, welcomed me.

We exchanged greetings warmly.

"Thank you for your hard work."

"You too, Henry."

In the meantime, he had been traveling between the US and Europe, relaying various information.

I greeted each employee individually. Their eyes were filled with respect and amazement as they looked at me.

When we were alone, Henry said with a smile.

"You've become a hero in China following the US."

It is a well-known fact that I fought against speculative forces in the Chinese market with all my might. Thanks to that, the favorability towards me and Korea skyrocketed.

Considering that I was once pointed out as the main culprit of the US-China trade dispute and publicly shamed, it feels like a lifetime ago.

I realize anew the saying that there are no eternal enemies or allies in the market.

"Today, the People's Bank of China lowered the reference rate to 7.03 yuan per dollar. There was pressure from the US and the international community, and the Chinese economy was also suffering from the excessive overvaluation of the yuan."

"That could be considered an appropriate level."

I was able to hear about what happened in the financial world from him.

"Rothschild pulled out just before the situation turned around. It was astonishing to see them change their strategy in an instant and retreat while minimizing losses."

I was genuinely impressed.

The hardest thing in investing is cutting losses. But to liquidate a position as soon as they judged it wasn't working...

Should I say, as expected of Rothschild?

On the other hand, those who participated in the offensive did not return unscathed. Albert Management, Schnitz Investment, and others went bankrupt, and Redstone, KKR, and others lost more than half of their market capitalization.

There are rumors that the blind fund created by the Canline Group suffered losses amounting to 95 percent, and that J.P. Morgan will apply for a bailout.

"Wall Street is practically a funeral home. Because giant capitals all jumped on this speculative bandwagon."

This is even before the exact losses have been announced. Once the earnings are released later, wailing will be heard from all over.

"Fortunately, Golden Gate responded well."

Henry nodded.

"My brother-in-law said this. A person has to line up well."

I burst out laughing.

"That sounds like something Taek-gyu would say."

While most Wall Street IBs were jumping into speculation, Golden Gate waited calmly and moved opposite to them before the change began.

"They say Carl Singer shot himself in the head in his office."

I nodded.

"I heard that too."

Albert Management was famous for making money by any means necessary. Is this the end?

It's not widely talked about, but there were more than a few investors who took their own lives. Stories of people jumping from skyscrapers in Manhattan were not uncommon.

The public reaction was mostly that they reaped what they sowed.

But whether earned honestly or dishonestly, money is just money. And the reason they died was simply because their investments failed.

"Is there a need to take one's own life because of money?"

"Because money must have been everything to them. Investors who fight to make money must be careful not to make money the purpose of their lives."

Henry added jokingly.

"Because if you gaze long into the market, the market also gazes into you."

I chuckled.

For some reason, those words resonated with me.

***

The market, as always, feeds on hope.

People watched with anticipation to see what results the reignited space race and the JN Battery would bring in the future.

The money earned by OTK Company through this crisis is estimated to be about $1 trillion.

Even more, this amount was not an increase in corporate value or expected future profits, but money earned in cash immediately.

While hedge funds and private equity funds that participated in speculation went bankrupt one after another, unable to repay their short sales, their losses were recorded as OTK Company's profits.

Koreans were astonished by the fact that Kang Jin-hoo had earned an amount exceeding half of Korea's annual GDP in just two or three months.

It was the result of plundering global speculative capital entirely.

OTK Company has pursued several projects so far. The most expensive projects among them are the VRMMORPG and the Saemangeum New City.

While the VRMMORPG is still in the preparation stage, the Saemangeum New City was already underway.

Previously, everyone had tried to get a piece of the pie by following OTK Company, but as the fear of a financial crisis deepened and the flow of funds became tight, the companies that had decided to participate began to pull out one by one.

But overnight, the situation reversed.

OTK Company secured enough capital to proceed alone. Even if all other companies pull out, OTK Company alone will be able to build the city.

Concerns that Saemangeum would become a ghost town disappeared, and a rosy prospect that it would be reborn as the best city in Asia unfolded.

What will a city created by the world's largest company, where future core industries will gather, look like?

Companies that had been hesitant, making various excuses, turned around again and jumped into Saemangeum. Disney and Universal decided to start construction of theme parks in Saemangeum immediately, and other companies also rushed to build factories and buildings.

Since there was plenty of land anyway, additional construction plans were also announced.

The Korea Aerospace Research Institute decided to build a launch pad in Saemangeum in cooperation with Roscosmos, and OTK Company, Seosung SB, CL Chemical, and SSK Innovation signed an MOU to build the world's largest JN Battery production facility in Saemangeum, following the OTK Battery production facility.

This was a golden opportunity for the Korean economy to take a leap forward.

Korea was classified as the country that would benefit the most from future industrial changes, and capital flooded in.

The market effectively treated the won as a semi-key currency, and the Korean financial authorities were in a situation where they had to worry about the value of the won soaring too high.

- Kang Jin-hoo saved the economy that Heo Chang-min ruined.

- LOL, this is real. If it weren't for Kang Jin-hoo, the Korean economy would have been doomed.

- Truly, he's the one who makes things happen.

- It's a stroke of luck that President Heo met Kang Jin-hoo~

- If you made that much money, distribute 1 million won to every citizen.

- F***, I thought that was crazy talk, but that's only 50 trillion won. It's pocket change for Kang Jin-hoo.

- Heo Chang-min not messing with Kang Jin-hoo was a godsend.

- Everyone! Let's not forget His Excellency who messed with Kang Jin-hoo and got screwed!

- When I think of His Excellency in prison, stomach churning while watching Kang Jin-hoo succeed, my hands and feet tremble and tears come to my eyes ㅜㅜ

- It's raining. I can't sleep. At times like this, I really think of His Excellency~

- Release His Excellency Park Si-hyung!!

- Yeon Nakyeong, let's go for another hunger strike!

***

The Chinese state-run media was busy praising President Zhang Pinghua's achievements every day.

Within the Communist Party, the voices of discontent that had existed before disappeared, and everyone praised him as a great hero who saved the Chinese nation.

Chairman Zhang Pinghua personally showed himself taking care of the economy, emphasizing the stability of the Chinese economy at home and abroad.

I attended a meeting with businesspeople and met Chinese entrepreneurs. Top Chinese entrepreneurs, including Ma Huateng, CEO of WeChant, gathered in one place.

Here, I was also able to meet Xiao Min and Yao, who founded Tenway, for the first time in a while. The reason they were invited here must be because they are a company invested in by OTK Company.

I greeted several businesspeople.

Chairman Zhang Pinghua gave the keynote speech himself. He first started with the opening line of Charles Dickens' novel 'A Tale of Two Cities'.

"The past few months have been the best of times and the worst of times for China."

The words that followed were a warning against speculative forces.

"Next to the character for profit, a knife is leaning. If you covet what belongs to others, you are bound to harm yourself. The global financial crisis has been proven to be not an inevitable product of globalization, but an act caused by greedy speculative capital. If we gather our strength and respond, there is nothing we cannot overcome, and if many gather their wisdom and act, there is nothing we cannot achieve."

Finally, he mentioned the direction the Chinese economy should take.

"There has been no smooth path in human history, but it has not stopped the progress of humanity. Now we stand before a new path. No matter what difficulties come, we must not resent ourselves, blame others, lose faith, or evade responsibility. History is created by the brave."

When the speech ended, everyone stood up and applauded.

After the event ended.

I had a private conversation with Chairman Zhang Pinghua over tea. He put down his teacup and said.

"One person really changed the world."

I thought for a moment and then shaken my head.

"It was not something I did alone."

It would have been impossible if people hadn't believed.

The market is not something that can be moved by one or two people.

Except for a few who tried to profit from the crisis, everyone hoped that the global economy would not collapse.

In the end, it can be said that those beliefs gathered to create the current situation.

I recalled the news I saw before coming here.

Fortunately, the Hong Kong protests are subsiding. The Chief Executive announced that there would be no hard-line suppression and that some of the protesters' demands would be accepted.

The reason for this is that the Chinese economy has found a new growth engine.

As the Communist Party system and Chairman Zhang Pinghua's power became solidified again, there was no need to take a hard-line stance on Hong Kong and cause trouble.

But it's too early to be relieved.

China is a country that will do anything for its national interest. Although the degree may differ, the US and Russia must be the same.

Anyway, the "one country, two systems" policy ends in 2047. When that time comes, it is possible for the Communist Party to rule Hong Kong directly.

A promise doesn't end when it's made; it requires continuous effort to keep it.

You must have power to make promises kept. As long as I have the power called capital, China will surely keep its promise.

Chairman Zhang Pinghua looked at me and asked.

"What are you going to do now?"

There have been so many things happening in a short period of time. I will be busier in the future than I am now. There are many people to meet and many things to do.

But what I want to do most right now is...

I thought of the people I wanted to see one by one and said.

"I should go back home."