Chapter 317: Something’s Off Here

“Hmm... Something’s off here,” Chairman Zhen Weiliang muttered as he lowered his phone onto the table.

Vice Chairman Wei Chen looked at him in confusion.

“Chairman Zhen, what exactly seems suspicious to you?”

“You know how ambitious Politburo member Liu Peiqi is, don’t you?”

“Of course I do. But he couldn’t find the money to buy the gold from you.”

“You know his nature as well as anyone. And yet that man suddenly asks me to sell the gold to Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan?”

“Did he really ask you to do that?” Vice Chairman Wei Chen asked, genuinely unable to understand the logic.

“Exactly. But there’s something else bothering me.”

“Something else?”

“Think about it. What kind of state of mind would a man be in after just giving up a seat on the Standing Committee?”

“If I were in his shoes, I’d either be burning with rage or walking around looking darker than a storm cloud.”

“That’s exactly what I thought. But he was laughing loudly and insisting he was in a wonderful mood.”

“Hmm... That really is very strange.”

“Should we ask Director Cha what he thinks?”

However, Vice Chairman Wei Chen had a different opinion.

“Chairman, before calling Director Cha, why don’t we check one thing first?”

“Go ahead. What exactly do you want to check?”

“If Politburo member Liu really gave up on the Standing Committee seat, then he no longer needs the fourteen tons of gold he was trying to obtain.”

Chairman Zhen Weiliang immediately understood what his deputy was getting at.

To buy the gold, Liu Peiqi had borrowed three billion dollars from Wei Chen and four and a half billion from Secretary Deng Zhiping. If he had truly abandoned his bid for power, the best way to repay those debts would be to sell the gold.

Would he ask for it to be sold?

If he did, they could conclude that he truly had dropped out of the struggle.

If he didn’t, then some hidden scheme was at work.

To confirm his suspicion, Vice Chairman Wei Chen asked the question directly, and Chairman Zhen Weiliang agreed.

“You’re right. We need to find out what that fox is planning.”

With a gleam in his eyes, Chairman Zhen Weiliang reached for his phone again.

***

At the same time, I was in my office speaking with Vice President Cho Myeongsu.

“Vice President Cho, how much freely available operating capital do we have left right now?”

“About forty-eight billion dollars, but...” He hesitated and left the sentence unfinished.

I understood perfectly well why he was hesitating and continued.

“We’re planning to invest in gold futures together with Korea Investment, Hangang Group, and Bongard Investment Group.”

“What is the investment amount, target return, and time frame?” Cho Myeongsu asked in exactly the same words Chairman Bongard had used.

Financiers’ brains all worked the same way.

“The amount is forty-eight billion dollars. The time frame is within this week. As for the return, that depends on the market, but we’ll make at least thirteen and a half percent.”

Cho Myeongsu’s heart began pounding wildly.

Cha Jiham was a man who never spoke lightly.

If he gave a number like that, then the target was as good as guaranteed.

With KBH Investment putting up forty-eight billion dollars, the minimum profit would be at least six and a half billion dollars.

Where else could you make that kind of money in a single week?

Taking a deep breath to calm his rapid breathing, Vice President Cho continued.

“I understand. What are my tasks?”

“You won’t be able to handle that volume of trades alone.”

“I completely agree, Director Cha.”

“What do you think about forming a separate task force that will deal exclusively with gold futures?”

“I fully support the idea.”

“And make sure Tracy is included in that group.”

Tracy had graduated from a prestigious American university, but her field of study was linguistics.

Objectively speaking, assigning her to financial operations like this did not seem particularly sensible.

Cho Myeongsu directly asked me why I had made that decision.

“Tracy personally received business-management training from Chairman Bongard himself. That background is more than enough for her to handle gold-futures operations.”

“I understand, but we have plenty of highly skilled investment experts on staff.”

“I know. Also, Tracy will serve as a liaison.”

Only then did Vice President Cho understand my intention.

Bongard Investment Group was also participating in the gold-futures investment.

Doing business directly with someone on Chairman Bongard’s level was extremely difficult and could easily lead to complications.

Having a personal intermediary on hand would make communication considerably easier.

Cha Jiham had thought of everything.

“Ah, now I understand what you had in mind.”

“We’re starting the futures trades today, so form the group as quickly as possible.”

“It will be done.”

“One more thing. Under no circumstances can the task force’s purpose leak outside.”

“You can rest easy on that. I won’t waste any time. I’ll get to work.”

Creak—

The moment the door closed behind Vice President Cho, the phone lying on my desk buzzed.

When I looked at the screen, I saw Chairman Zhen Weiliang’s name.

“Chairman Zhen, I’m listening.”

“Director Cha, I just spoke with Liu Peiqi.”

“Is that so? What did you talk about?”

“He said he couldn’t find the money and suggested that I sell the gold to Deputy Secretary Zhang Jinan.”

“What? He really said that?”

“Does it seem strange to you too? But there’s something even more suspicious.”

“I’m listening.”

“He decided to give up the struggle for a seat on the Standing Committee...”

Things were taking a strange turn.

Liu Peiqi was locked in a vicious power struggle with Zhang Jinan.

If he surrendered the Standing Committee seat, Zhang Jinan would devour him whole.

Liu Peiqi understood that perfectly well, and yet he was giving up?

On top of that, he desperately needed to sell the gold in order to repay his debts to Wei Chen and Deng Zhiping.

And yet he had openly told Zhen Weiliang that he would not sell it.

Taking all of that into account, there was only one possible conclusion.

He had not given up on the power struggle.

While I thought about his true motives, Chairman Zhen Weiliang reached the end of his explanation.

“...What kind of game is he playing?”

“Before I share my thoughts, I’d like to clarify one thing.”

“Ask away.”

“What excuse did Politburo member Liu give for refusing to sell the gold?”

“He said gold prices keep rising, so he’ll sell it at the end of the year.”

“Vice Chairman Wei lent him three billion dollars for three months interest-free. After that, the rate is four percent per month. If Liu waits until the end of the year to sell the gold, that adds another twelve percent.”

I paused to catch my breath and continued.

“And when he borrowed four and a half billion from Secretary Deng Zhiping, he promised enormous interest payments. Under those circumstances, the most natural thing for him to do would be to sell the gold right now.”

“You’re saying he lied?”

“Exactly.”

“But he clearly has a plan. Do you have any idea what it might be?”

At that moment, a thought flashed through my mind.

But for now, it was only a theory.

There was no reason to rush to a conclusion.

“Chairman Zhen, keep in mind that this is only speculation on my part.”

“I’m listening. Go ahead.”

“It looks like Politburo member Liu has no intention of giving up the Standing Committee seat.”

“You mean he’s going to give the fourteen tons of gold to Chairman Xi Jinping?”

“That amount wouldn’t be enough to earn his favor.”

“But he doesn’t have the money to buy any more!”

“He doesn’t have money, but there are other ways to get his hands on gold.”

“Could it be...”

Chairman Zhen Weiliang faltered as though he had just realized something.

Naturally, I understood what he was thinking.

“There are plenty of people in China who own gold.”

“You’re suggesting that he isn’t targeting my gold, but someone else’s?”

“Exactly. If Vice Chairman Wei is there, put him on the phone.”

“One moment.”

A moment later, Wei Chen’s voice came through.

“Director Cha, I’m listening.”

“Vice Chairman Wei, from now on, put Director Liu Haoran under close surveillance.”

“Liu Haoran? Not Liu Peiqi?”

“Liu Peiqi is a politician. He won’t dirty his own hands.”

“Hmm... That makes sense.”

“Watch Liu Haoran. If you notice anything suspicious, call me immediately.”

“Understood. I’m busy, so I’ll hand the phone back to Chairman Zhen.”

A couple of seconds later, Zhen Weiliang’s voice came through again.

After exchanging a few more words, we ended the call.

“Why can’t I ever just sit quietly?” I sighed and dialed Director Eddie Griffin.

After several rings, his sleep-roughened voice came through the phone.

“...Director Cha? Did something happen this early?”

“Sorry for waking you.”

“My phone is on for you at any hour.”

“Good. It looks like serious trouble is brewing in China.”

“Tell me.”

The sleepiness vanished from Director Griffin’s voice instantly.

He had immediately sensed an avalanche of problems coming his way.

“I just spoke with Chairman Zhen and Vice Chairman Wei.”

I relayed the entire conversation to him without leaving anything out, then made my request at the end.

“...I need you to wiretap Politburo member Liu Peiqi’s phone.”

“That’s impossible. Liu Peiqi uses a device protected against interception.”

“I see... What about Director Liu Haoran?”

“He’s a civilian. There shouldn’t be any problem with him.”

“Good. How quickly can you get the wiretap running?”

“Taking preparations °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° into account, it’ll take at least twenty-four hours.”

“Understood. Let me know as soon as you start recording his calls.”

“Will do.”

Knock, knock, knock.

I had barely hung up when, after a brief knock, the secretary opened the door.

“Director Cha, Managing Director Heo Yeongjin and Team Leader Woo Changhun are waiting to see you.”

“Send them in. And bring some cold drinks.”

A moment later, Heo Yeongjin and Woo Changhun entered the office.

They bowed slightly to me as I sat at the head of the table, then took seats on the sofa.

After taking a sip of the juice the secretary had brought, I addressed Heo Yeongjin.

“How is recruitment progressing?”

“There are too many applicants. It looks like we won’t finish until next month.”

“How many is too many?”

“For six hundred experienced-specialist positions, we received forty-five thousand applications. For one hundred entry-level positions, ten thousand five hundred.”

“What? Why is there so much interest?”

Heo Yeongjin himself seemed baffled.

KBH Investment had been founded less than a month ago.

Hardly anyone knew much about the company, so receiving fifty-five thousand five hundred applications seemed abnormal.

But even stranger was the fact that around twenty-three thousand of them were foreigners.

“I have no idea.”

“Could it be because of the high salaries?”

“Our salary level is comparable to Bongard Group headquarters.”

So it wasn’t about the money.

“Still, having a flood of applicants is a good thing. No point overthinking it.”

“As you say.”

“With this many applicants, maybe we should expand the HR department?”

“I fully support that!” Woo Changhun immediately cut in, as if he had been waiting for exactly this moment.

“Managing Director Heo, get approval for it from Vice President Cho Myeongsu.”

“I will.”

“And one more thing. Let’s not limit the company to seven hundred employees.”

Heo Yeongjin fully agreed with that idea.

There were plenty of applicants with outstanding backgrounds.

“Director Cha, how many more people should we add?”

“Let’s hire another two hundred experienced employees and one hundred newcomers. That’ll bring us to an even thousand.”

“It will be done.”