A quiet villa near Gyeonggi Province.
I had come here to meet Governor Choi Jaeseok of Gyeonggi.
"I'm sorry, Chairman Kim. I should have come up to Seoul, but I feel bad for making such a busy man come all the way to Gyeonggi," he said.
"What are you apologizing for between us? And honestly, meeting here is far better than in Seoul, where everyone's eyes are always watching. Besides, how far is it from Seoul to Gyeonggi? It's practically next door," I replied.
Meetings with Governor Choi were always delicate.
Our relationship wasn't one to be broadcast, and there was no need to create gossip, so meetings had to be held in places like this.
"As a fellow citizen of South Korea, I want to express my gratitude. I've heard that you, Chairman Kim, put a lot of effort into this recent currency swap," he said.
"Is that the rumor going around? It's all nonsense. How could a single businessman possibly be involved in negotiations between countries?" I replied.
"The Chief of Staff of the President's Office mentioned it. Those who needed to know already do," he said.
"Even if everyone knows, I must pretend otherwise. The moment Taewoo Group steps forward to announce anything, we'll be labeled as a group friendly to this administration," I explained.
Governments changed every five or ten years.
Nowhere in the world, aside from the United States, saw such frequent political shifts.
So if a group gained the reputation of siding with a particular administration, that image would become a vulnerability the moment a major opposition party took power.
"It's really a difficult country to do business in. Still, I want to thank you once again. The government expected a $30 billion currency swap, but an astonishing $50 billion was actually secured."
"When the currency swap announcement came out, the exchange rate fell by more than ten percent in a single day," he said.
"And the KOSPI index also recovered significantly. We almost got swept up in another IMF crisis, just like during the Lehman shock. Phew."
Governor Choi let out a sigh of relief.
I understood his concern for the country, but he was worrying unnecessarily.
"The IMF won't come back. If such a crisis were about to happen, Taewoo Group would have stopped it. Even if it meant bringing more dollars into Korea than the country's foreign reserves," I explained.
"That's something only Taewoo Group could do. No one worries about the country as much as you do, Chairman Kim," he said.
"I'm not worried about the country as much as I am about Taewoo Group. If Korea's situation worsens, Taewoo Group would take a huge hit as well," I replied.
In the past, the IMF crisis had been an opportunity.
Back then, Taewoo Group was expanding purely in scale and lacked technology, so it was a perfect chance to fill those gaps.
But the situation is different now.
We already have a solid foundation, so any disorder in the country would only slow Taewoo Group's growth.
"Wouldn't it be enough if everyone just said they were working for Korea's sake?" I asked.
"I appreciate you thinking that way," he replied.
"And the Blue House and the ruling party are preparing to pass a Special Act for Future Industries. It will ease or remove various regulations related to future industries and provide benefits to promote their growth," I continued.
This administration, at the very least, hadn't broken any promises.
Well, they had secured a $50 billion currency swap, so it was only natural for them to show this much effort.
"Governor Choi, do you think the Special Act for Future Industries looks promising?" I asked.
"It's a perfectly sound bill. Artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, robotics—these industries are still unfamiliar, but if even one of them succeeds, Korea could advance significantly," he replied.
Governor Choi believed that the success of just one future industry would suffice.
But I wasn't aiming for just one; I intended to succeed in all of them—and the groundwork was already laid.
"Did the People's Economic Party also agree to this bill and adopt it as a party stance?" I asked.
"Yes. There was some discussion about focusing on industries that generate immediate revenue, but since the Special Act for Future Industries doesn't provide direct funding, it was easy to unify the party stance," he said.
"I hope the opposition will agree as well. If it passes unanimously, wouldn't that give a strong boost to the development of future industries?" I added.
In reality, opposition votes weren't strictly necessary.
The ruling party combined with the People's Economic Party had enough seats to pass the bill. But if the opposition deliberately stalled, it would take far longer to get it through.
"That's why the People's Economic Party will lead the legislative effort on this bill. If the ruling party pushes it, the opposition might oppose it for the sake of opposition. But if we take the initiative, they won't have a reason to block it," he explained.
"Even if the People's Economic Party leads, the opposition could still vote against it if the ruling party supports it," I noted.
"That's why we plan to give the opposition something in return. But we haven't decided exactly what yet," he said.
The ruling party was focusing on development and growth.
The opposition, on the other hand, prioritized social responsibilities, such as welfare and environmental issues.
"Wouldn't it be enough to give them one environmental bill?" I suggested.
"Would that really be acceptable? If an environmental bill passes, large corporations would bear the greatest burden," he cautioned.
"That may be true, but an environmental law is necessary, even to ensure corporate social responsibility. Something like the carbon-reduction laws currently being implemented in Europe should suffice," I replied.
"Are you referring to a carbon tax bill?" he asked.
By then, the concept of a carbon tax had already emerged in Europe.
Of course, it wasn't as fully established as before my regression, but efforts were being made to reduce carbon emissions.
"Even if it's not a full carbon tax, wouldn't a bill that gives benefits to companies striving to reduce carbon emissions gain approval from both the ruling and opposition parties?" I asked.
"From the opposition's perspective, it's a bill that lets them save face, and the ruling party wouldn't lose much either," he replied.
Carbon and electric vehicles were deeply connected.
The more laws like the carbon tax were enacted, the faster the electric vehicle market could grow.
Unlike internal combustion engine vehicles, electric cars produced zero carbon emissions, making them eligible for subsidies or other carbon-related benefits.
Of course, we couldn't implement a carbon tax immediately.
The moment anyone proposed a carbon tax, large corporations would revolt.
But a carbon reduction bill wouldn't punish big companies—it would simply provide modest benefits to exemplary firms—so it was relatively easy for them to accept.
"We can't push too hard from the start. We need to gradually reshape the structure. This isn't about creating a system favoring Taewoo Group; it's about aligning with global market trends," I explained.
"I don't misunderstand your intent, Chairman Kim. I'm well aware that Europe and the U.S. are enforcing strict environmental regulations," he said.
"Regulations may slow industry growth, but to target overseas markets, it's only natural to follow the times," I replied.
Honestly, following the trend was already late.
To gain a significant advantage, I had to lead the trend, and Taewoo Group was already prepared to do so.
"We will also support you greatly from the People's Economic Party's side," he said.
"But isn't it about time you decided your next move?" I asked.
"My term as Gyeonggi Governor still has plenty of time left. It's far too early to decide my next step," he replied.
"Perhaps in another position, but if you're preparing for the presidency, you need to start planning now," I noted.
"To be honest, it's not yet the time to pursue the presidency. I need to fulfill all my promises as Gyeonggi Governor first. Only then will the people trust and support me," he said.
So he had no intention of aiming for the next presidency.
That didn't bother me at all.
The People's Economic Party had no other presidential candidates besides Governor Choi, so it was better to cultivate a successor before challenging for the presidency.
"Then, instead of aiming for the next presidency, focus more on nurturing talent. If Governor Choi becomes president, won't many capable people be needed?" I suggested.
"Hmph, please refrain from saying that I'll become president," he said.
"For the future of the People's Economic Party, we need more talent. In five years, there should be at least two or three people with the same recognition as Governor Choi if the party hopes to become the ruling party," I emphasized.
A negotiating-party-level political group could never function properly as the ruling party.
Becoming president was important, but the People's Economic Party had to grow to a scale comparable to the major parties. Only then could it effectively govern the country once its candidate assumed the presidency.
"We are already making efforts to cultivate talent. We also provide various benefits to nurture young politicians," he said.
"That's not enough. At the very least, in the next parliamentary election, you need to secure a number of seats comparable to the major parties. I've prepared several strategies to achieve this. First, why not increase recognition through social media and video platforms?" I suggested.
"If you provide that kind of support, we couldn't ask for more," he replied.
For the People's Economic Party to stop being swayed by the political establishment, it had to grow.
At first, I had thought it was enough for the party to merely act as a buffer, but now my ambitions had grown. And the People's Economic Party was fully capable of achieving them.
***
A few days later.
Team Leader Chun Minjung came to the chairman's office.
It seemed to be her first time seeing the office in detail, as she skipped formal greetings and simply wandered around, her mouth slightly open in awe.
"I never knew you had this taste, Chairman. I thought you preferred something simple, but you surprisingly like a more extravagant style," she said.
"Hm. The interior was entirely decided by the Honorary Chairman. My preferences weren't considered at all. I actually think it was done deliberately in the complete opposite style of what I like," I replied.
"Ah, I see. It's not that—I came to report that one of the projects has been completed," she explained.
The number of projects Chun Minjung managed was immense—artificial intelligence, social media algorithms, autonomous driving, and more.
Since it wasn't clear which project had been completed, I asked for more details.
"Which project has been completed?" I asked.
"The game developers you personally invited to Korea to form a team have finished an AOS game. They've even named it 'League of Champions,'" she said.
The AOS game was finally complete.
It was a game capable of dominating the industry for at least twenty years.
Was a game-related project also under Chun Minjung's management? Well, given her love for games, it made sense that she would be in charge.
"When will beta testing begin?" I asked.
"We're planning to start beta testing in North America by the end of this year at the latest," she said.
"I'd like the beta test to run in Korea as well as North America," I said.
"At the moment, it's only in English. To run a beta test in Korea, we'll need to translate it into Korean," she explained.
"So it can't be done?" I asked.
"No, that's not what I mean. It just means that translation will require additional costs. I also want to run a beta test in Korea—it's the only way I can play it too," she clarified.
I had misunderstood her at first.
Chun Minjung had come to me because she wanted the beta test to be conducted in Korea.
"Don't worry about development costs. Make sure the beta test runs in Korea as well," I said.
"Thank you! We've completed an initial translation using an AI system, but there were still many shortcomings, so we need professional translators. I'll start the translation work immediately!" she said.
The launch of the AOS game meant that Taewoo IT had gained another cash cow.