The next day,
"I'm going to Busan for a bit, Sambok."
"Busan? Oh! Are you going to Daese Construction? It makes sense, Manager Kim has been desperately asking for more people lately. Hurry and ring the bell a couple more times."
What? Did my father say to send more people?
"What are you talking about? Before I went to the US, I sorted out 300 skilled workers and sent them."
"He says that's not enough. He took on the work at the airport and also Da Nang and Cam Ranh? Anyway, he said he needs about 500 more skilled workers and engineers."
Wow, my father is really capable.
He must have secured a lot of work.
In three years, we should be able to earn a billion dollars easily.
"Really? Got it. I'll gather people from Jeonpo-dong and send them, so get the government to help with the visas."
"Alright, got it. 500 people!"
If Daese Industries says they're sending people, passports and visas to Quy Nhon come out immediately.
Each skilled worker sends at least $300 per month, so the government wants to send as many as possible.
It's not hard to find workers either.
Jeonpo-dong is already full of subcontractors of Daese Industries, like container manufacturers and plywood suppliers, so there are a lot of skilled workers.
Not only Daese Industries, but any decent manufacturing company hires skilled workers from Jeonpo-dong, so all the top skilled workers are drawn there.
It's natural because if you're recognized in that alley, you can get a job anywhere.
Occasionally, if I ring the bell, a great job offer comes out.
Somehow, Jeonpo-dong feels like a training school for skilled workers.
Now that I think about it, I can leisurely recruit skilled workers for the Ulsan petrochemical complex, hire the ones that stand out as regular employees, and send them to Quy Nhon.
Thinking about recruiting in Ulsan and sending them as regular employees to Quy Nhon seems like a pretty good system.
In about three months, my ships will be back in Korea, and then I won't need to rely on the navy's LST. I can transport them to Quy Nhon with my own ships.
Just thinking about it made me proud.
I headed to Busan immediately.
***
Busan Yeongdo Market.
"Where on earth is this guy?"
I had rung the golden bell in Jeonpo-dong to gather people and sent them to Ulsan, then headed straight to Yeongdo Market.
I came because I heard a rumor that the mastermind who disguised our products as Japanese smuggled goods was at Yeongdo Market, but finding someone was really difficult.
All the police had was a name, Gi Duseok, and the information that he was 175 cm tall with a small mole on his left cheek.
If I couldn't spot him, there was nothing I could do, but he seemed worth investing half a day to find.
"Come on, come on! Selling socks cheaply. Check out the gold skin socks. Two pairs for 30 won! Three pairs for 40 won!"
Huh? Gold skin socks?
When did we make gold skin socks?
And gold skin itself wasn't even released in the domestic market?
"Choose, choose. Daese Industries' premium socks. Check out the gold skin. Three pairs for 40 won!"
Following the sound, I went to a corner of the market and found a cart piled high with Politech socks.
There wasn't a lot of gold skin, but in the center, there was a mannequin with just the lower body, wearing our gold skin stockings.
How did he get them?
"Excuse me, how much are those stockings?"
"Oh, those aren't for sale. That's my bread and butter. Just take a look, haha."
Wow, he's not lying.
Come to think of it, he said to look at the gold skin, not that he was selling gold skin socks.
"How did you get the gold skin stockings? I heard they were all exported to the US."
"I got them from the textile research institute. It cost me a lot of money. Come on, choose. Three pairs of socks for 40 won."
What a cunning guy.
He must have taken the samples sent to the research institute for customs clearance and used them to attract customers.
The socks he was selling were genuine Politech.
His claim that they were Daese Industries' socks wasn't a lie either.
"Hey, Mr. Gi Duseok. Let's have a chat."
"Huh? Who are you?"
When I said his name, he was startled.
Even though he was wearing a hat, his tall height and the small mole on his left cheek were clearly visible.
"Who do you think I am?"
I felt playful.
"I haven't done anything wrong. It wasn't smuggling. I just brought the goods from Japan and laid them out. I didn't say anything, but the merchants just bought them up on their own."
"Who asks if something's smuggled when buying smuggled goods? If you unload the goods like that, it's almost certainly smuggled."
He must have thrown the goods in front of the merchants, and seeing that the samples were good quality as expected from Japanese products, they bought them by the box.
He seemed perfect for tasks that couldn't be done openly.
If he proves his ability and character through this incident, I could use him for other tasks that need to be done discreetly.
"I'm sorry, officer. But I even paid the fine. Isn't it too much to keep chasing me when no one really got hurt?"
Gi Duseok, thinking I was an officer there to extort him, laughed nervously and complained.
The market merchants quietly watched, worried the trouble might spill over to them, and an old lady selling herbs across the street gestured for me to let him off.
'I'm not an officer. Just watch.'
"Huh! Are you... Daese Industries' President?"
I lifted my fedora slightly to reveal my face.
Apparently, he watched TV news because he recognized my face right away.
"Why would the president come for something like this? No, no, I admit my fault. But I didn't steal the gold skin. I bought it. Same with the Politech."
Gi Duseok looked like he was about to cry again.
The 1960s were a barbaric time when even a slight offense against someone powerful could get you dragged off somewhere.
"I'm not here to arrest you. I came to make you an offer. How about working for me? If you keep working like this, you'll only be seen as a scammer."
"Huh! You're offering me a job? I'll do anything. Just tell me what to do. I'll even write a pledge in blood."
He pushed me into an alley, avoiding the merchants' eyes, and bowed deeply, repeatedly.
He was really quick on his feet and perceptive.
"No need for a blood pledge. Anything else?"
"I was born poor, with nothing learned and nothing to my name. But I have a mother who believes I'll return with money and a younger sibling to support. I promise to do my best in my family's name."
In the name of family, I couldn't refuse such a guarantee.
I handed him paper and a fountain pen.
Gi Duseok wrote that he would do his best in any task and put his fingerprint on it, using the fountain pen ink as a substitute for an ink pad.
His resourcefulness in using the fountain pen ink to seal his promise was impressive.
'Hmm... Not bad.'
I felt good about him.
His face, once dressed in a suit, would look respectable enough, and most importantly, he didn't seem deceitful.
"Take this."
I handed him a bankbook and a stamp.
"Whoa, President... What is this..."
Gi Duseok looked like he might foam at the mouth in shock.
No wonder, the bankbook contained a large sum of 20 million won.
"This isn't a gift; it's for business expenses. Use it to buy a pair of shoes, a suit, and a car, then head to Ulsan."
"To Ulsan?"
"Do you know how to drive?"
"Yes, I can even drive a boat."
A man of many talents for this era.
He must have drifted from place to place, doing whatever he could.
"Go to Ulsan and buy all the land around Mipo in the name of Daese Industries. Here's a map. Report the purchased land to me by telex every day."
"Land around Mipo?"
"With 20 million won, you should be able to secure a decent amount. Don't pay more than 50 won per pyeong. We'll pay the balance from Daese Industries, so just bring me the contracts."
Mipo was originally a good place for shipyards, as proven by the historical site of the Hyeonsan Shipyard.
The synergy with the petrochemical complex was good, and it was advantageous for raw material supply due to its proximity to the future Pohang Steelworks.
Moreover, having built Ulsan Port in the 21st century, I planned to create not only a shipyard but also a private dock for Daese Shipping in Mipo.
Right now, money was tight, so it would take some time, but in the long run, it would be a tremendous asset.
Investing my money in buying land in Mipo to mess with speculators and providing it to the American joint venture might seem like a loss at first, but buying up all the surrounding land would make it a huge asset in the long term.
Moving the core of the Ulsan industrial complex to Mipo, and later building the shipyard and private dock I would operate, would lay the foundation for dominating a massive industrial cluster encompassing the entire southern coast.
To connect Quy Nhon and the US, I
needed at least one base on the southern coast. Is Mipo part of the East Sea?
"President, even if we buy rural land at 50 won per pyeong, what if there's a house on the land?"
"A house, huh..."
As I was lost in thought, he asked another question.
"Even if it's a rural house, we can't just forcibly evict people. And would people with nowhere to go want to sell their house and land?"
Surprisingly reasonable words, considering he had been punished for fraud.
"In such cases, include the cost of a house on the outskirts of the city and moving expenses in the purchase contract."
Most would prefer a house closer to the city, even if it's on the outskirts, rather than in a rural area like Mipo.
"Ah, I understand. Just give me one month."
"No, finish it in two weeks."
No matter how cautious we are, speculators will soon catch wind. We need to buy up Mipo before they do.
"Got it."
"See you in Ulsan then."
"Wait, President."
"Why? Is there more you want to ask?"
"Yes, there is. How can you trust me with such a large sum of money?"
"If you run away with that money, it won't be good for you. Living on the run is no life. But if you do this job well, you understand, right? I know you're not a fool."
"President! Thank you."
Gi Duseok prostrated himself on the ground in gratitude. Before I could lift him up, he sprang to his feet.
He was facing the opportunity of a lifetime.
Even being under the president of Daese Industries was a huge honor, but as time passed, he would realize just how fortunate he was.
"Let's get to work. Report to me every evening at Daese Chemicals in Ulsan."
"Yes, President."
I hurried to the Ulsan petrochemical complex.
"Grandma, you can have this cart and these socks. Sell them for 20 won per three pairs, and you'll sell out by noon."
"Oh my, why are you giving me this?"
"You gave me a rice ball the other day and sided with me. This is my way of repaying you."
"But if you give me the cart, what will you do?"
"Don't worry. I just got an amazing job."
"Congratulations on your job."
"Take care, Grandma."
Gi Duseok gave the cart to the street vendor grandma and followed me.
He bowed deeply until my car was out of sight, then disappeared from view as I glanced back in the rearview mirror.
His quick actions left a good impression.
Judging by his actions, I should call him Secretary Gi.
****
「Ulsan Petrochemical Complex Promotion Committee」
I drove to the promotion committee office.
The office signboard was beautifully written in Chinese characters, but the office itself was just a temporary building with a tin roof.
It seemed like the place where the president had held the groundbreaking ceremony, as seen in the black-and-white documentary during my plant division training in my past life.
Being in such a historic place made me think again about getting off to a good start.
"Oh, you're finally here, President Woo. No, special advisor."
To my surprise, Vice Minister Yeom Won-chul ran out of the office building to greet me.
"What's this? Why is someone who should be in Seoul in Ulsan?"
"Hahaha. An urgent order came down from the Blue House. I'm the deputy head here. The Minister of Commerce and Industry is the head of the committee, so I ended up being the second-in-command. Please guide me well, special advisor."
This guy knows how to secure a position.
Well, as a public official, you need to grab positions whenever you can to get promoted.
If the vice minister is the deputy chairman of such a large project, he must already be thinking about his promotion.
He's not scheming anything bad, just diligently doing the job assigned to him.
As long as I keep an eye on him, he'll be predictable and easier to manage.
The office was already filled with people.
They pretended to look at the chart with the project schedule, but their eyes were glued to the industrial complex land.
"President Woo, I was wondering when you'd arrive."
"President Wang, what brings you here? Shouldn't you be in Thailand?"
I wondered when President Wang would return.
Since he took on the Thai highway project for only $5.22 million, the deficit must have ballooned.
I told him to spend an additional $1 million, but he didn't listen.
"Haha, President Woo. It's so good to see you again. The Thai highway is on track, and the Ulsan project is bigger, so I hurried back. This project came to fruition thanks to the large-scale loan you secured. You're amazing."
I'm glad to see you too.
I just thought of where to place Chairman Wang.
It wasn't just Chairman Wang who welcomed me.
"Nice to meet you. I knew we'd meet eventually, but here we are. I'm Do Byung-chul from Suseong."
"Nice to meet you, Chairman Do."
It was a bit unexpected.
Chairman Do Byung-chul appearing in such a hands-on setting. Isn't he the type to delegate tasks?
"Chairman?"
"Since you own more than two companies, I thought Chairman suits you better than President."
"Haha, I thought you were only a top expert in technology, but you're quite good with words too. Impressive, young man."
Chairman Do tried to assert dominance by referring to me as a young man.
It was obvious he came because of the fertilizer plant.
It must be quite profitable.
He probably brought in Japanese funds through a Korean-Japanese intermediary.
No need to guess.
"I'm Eun Jun-yong from Dorim Construction."
"Nice to meet you. All the top construction companies are here."
"I'm Je Gal-gung from Korea Shipbuilding Corporation."
"Nice to meet you."
I was going to meet these people eventually.
Alright, let's give them a lesson in 21st-century capitalism.