Soho

Chapter 30: < Protect – Episode 29 – Do Min Ho [1] >

From a broad perspective, when yielding was necessary for a negotiation, it was always the one with less authority who did. Ahn Soo Ho was having a private conversation with CEO Kim Yoo Seon. Shinhwa Entertainment had been completely bought, and the negotiation with FNB Entertainment had started, so all that was left for them to do was surrender. Since he was going to add a premium too, they shouldn’t be sad about it.

“No, they have plenty of reason to be pissed.”

They felt insulted and anxious that an external person was going to buy their perfectly good company.

“How are you going to manage it?”

“Even though I’ll be the CEO, I’ll get someone else to do the management. Why? Are you interested?”

“I’m always willing.”

“Then please take care of that with Kim Woo Jung.”

“Kim Woo Jung? Oh, Team Leader Kim? He’s... not bad either.”

Jang Seol Hyun’s manager, Kim Woo Jung was very famous for his skills in the harsh entertainment business, but most people thought of him as a psycho. Kim Yoo Seon was showing an awkward smile. It hurt his pride to think about discussing management matters with a team leader, but Ahn Soo Ho’s words would become the company’s rules and orders soon.

Kim Yoo Seon, who got all the profits from selling premium stocks, didn’t want to lose this opportunity. He was ready to lick the foot of even a newbie to the entertainment industry. The reason why rich people didn’t invest everything in the entertainment market wasn’t because of uncertain profits, but because of the image.

Shinra Group got rid of that stereotype.

But Shinra Group didn’t manage the entertainment agency themselves. They first invested in subcontractors related to management and elaborately expanded their business over time. They invested in cable broadcasting, radio, movie theatres, festivals, concerts, music streaming services, drama production companies, and film academies, and before they knew it, Shinra group was in full control of Korea’s entertainment industry.

Kim Yoo Seon thought Ahn Soo Ho was an advanced guard who was employed to suppress Shinra Group’s ambitions. Everyone knew that Shinra and Daesan were on bad terms.

“Is it going well with Jung Hoon?”

“Oh, yes”

“Please work hard on him. I’m worried because he’s still too clueless about the world.”

“Team Leader Lee will take good care of him. Don’t worry.”

He might think his request was a joke. After that, they had a briefing session about the business’ current state of affairs and vision, which he hadn’t even asked for.

“Typical businessman.”

A good way of putting it would be that he had a good spirit, and a bad way of putting it would be that he was a thorough opportunist. He had no attachment to the business, nor was he interested in people who were managing it, philosophy, welfare, support, or social activities. One couldn’t judge if Kim Yoo Seon was a good person or a bad person. He had a rational point of view that allowed him to see his celebrities as just commodities.

“He’s the complete opposite of Kim Woo Jung.”

Jang Seol Hyun’s manager, Kim Woo Jung treated every employee like family. It was hard to judge whether Kim Yoo Seon or Kim Yoo Jung was better. That was because FNB and Shinhwa had completely different standards and plans for their stars.

“They’re two extremes.”

In contrast to long-term careers like acting and singing, idols were very short-lived. So there was the pressure of always needing to come up with new groups. Shinhwa Entertainment were always casting models who had looks, and they did everything they could to raise their profits.

They didn’t have a top Korean star like Seol Hyun, but they still had many solid stars. That was how they were able to build a company building in Gangnam. Whether an entertainment agency was doing well or not was evident by whether or not they had a building in Gangnam or not. Shinhwa Entertainment was able to build a 5-story building in Apgujeong while FNB had been an influential company in Cheongdamdong for over ten years.

Ahn Soo Ho, who finished his matters in Apgujeong, headed to Cheongdamdong. FNB Entertainment had an 8-story building and another 5-story annex. In terms of scale, it was 3 times bigger than Shinhwa Entertainment. He didn’t know how to take over and merge companies in Korea, but he wasn’t interested in finding out either.

“I can just ask professionals to take care of that.”

Besides, Vice-Chairman Kim Dae Chan was making it so that Daesan Group’s legal team was going above and beyond to follow Ahn Soo Ho’s orders.

“Park Ok Nam and Lee Hyo Geun are now legally strangers.”

“Great.”

How they dealt with Lee Hyo Geun’s bastard son was a mystery, but the consensual marriage had finally taken place. A bigger charge could have made things more complicated, but Daesan was the absolute best. While he listened to Oh Joo Kyung’s explanation, the head of FNB appeared.

Ahn Soo Ho was reminded of when they passed each other back when he went to Hollywood to cheer Jang Seol Hyun on.

“Long time no see, CEO Shim.”

“I’m not the CEO... I’m going to be unemployed soon. Mr. Ahn...oh, should I call you Director Ahn?”

“Whatever you’re more comfortable with.”

Shim Il Kwon talked with a smile, but there were thorns in his words.

Ahn Soo Ho’s first impression of him was a yellow-spotted serpent, similar to CEO Kim Yoo Seon. Well, only people like that could survive in the entertainment industry. And as they climbed higher to the top, it was more beneficial to not reveal what they were really thinking inside. It was no comparison to Daesan Group, but FNS was very high up in the entertainment industry.

“Since we’re both busy, let’s get straight to the point. What do you want?”

“I heard you’re going to merge us with Shinhwa Entertainment after you take over. I want in.”

Shim Il Kwon decided not to fight Daesan Group. He could have used her connections to fight back, but they didn’t stand a chance anyway.

“You want in?”

“I want to participate in the equity.”

“That’s not possible. I’m going to delist it as soon as I get all the shares.”

“Pardon?”

Shim Il Kwon was stunned. What did he just hear? The reason why FNB and Shinhwa did so well was because they floated their companies in the stock market. Of course, once Ahn Soo Ho bought all of it, it was up to him whether or not he delists it or uses it as toilet paper, but it was difficult to understand why he would do such a crazy thing.

“It’s impossible to know what the rich are really thinking.”

Shim Il Kwon thought he was hiding it, but Ahn Soo Ho could clearly see what he was thinking.

“I’m not rich.”

“Oh, okay.”

‘Am I supposed to believe that?’ That was what Shim Il Kwon’s eyes were saying.

A bell rang. Since he received business calls through Oh Joo Kyung, it had to be a personal call. Ahn Soo Ho, who took out his phone and checked the caller, looked puzzled as he excused himself to answer the call. Yoon Chul’s unhappy voice could be heard.

“What nonsense did you say to our Soo Jung?”

“Whoa! Our Soo Jung? You’re just going to preserve her with salt, huh?”

“Stop the nonsense! What did you say to make her dig dirt on people in power?”

The fact that Kim Soo Jung was digging dirt on powerful people which Yoon Chul was surprised about means she was going in the right direction.

“Do you remember the serial rape and murder incident in Namsan-dong?”

“Yeah.”

Yoon Chun groaned to what Ahn Soo Ho said.

Namsan-dong Serial Murder Incident

The arrest rate of Korea’s crimes was at 90%, and that was an alarming number. However, the police tried to stay quiet about many cases, and when it came to dreadful crimes, the arrest rate really depended on the area. When the Namsan-dong serial murder incident was happening, Yoon Chul worked in the investigation headquarters.

He kidnapped, confined, and killed 9 women over the course of three months, which received a lot of attention in the media, and the public rebuked over the fact that the police couldn’t catch him. There were police officers who couldn’t handle the stress and pressure and killed themselves, as well as those who resigned from their posts.

“Some incidents are planned out for one huge objective.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m saying not everything is as it seems.”

Yoon Chul wasn’t very surprised.

During military dictatorship, the police and prosecution frequently fabricated and concealed incidents. The issues that were planned according to what the ones in power wanted blind the public’s eye and prevent them from knowing what was right or wrong. It was very common to carry out political maneuvering, targeted investigations, plant traps, and made up evidence that fits the rest.

“Do you think Korea National Association dominated this country overnight? With the little money they have? No way. They have a secret that must never be revealed. And they’d probably even kill to keep that secret hidden.”

That was why Korea’s democracy had no choice but to be abnormal.

“On the outside, Korea is very democratized. But if you look closely, you see a lot of rotten areas.”

That was because the mistakes that were made in the past weren’t properly judged and dealt with in a careless manner. The bad guys were still living great lives as they always had.

“It’s become easier to divert the public’s attention by using celebrities and entertainment through the internet and media. Then what method do you think they used back in the day?”

“Crimes?”

“That’s right.”

The considerate number of violent crimes that made the public shocked was planned out from the very beginning.

“It’s not just our country. It’s not uncommon for the crime rather than the profit to be the end objective.”

“That’s a dangerous idea.”

“I agree.”

If one went a little further out from crimes, it would become terror.

“It’s not just a blessing that globalization and the internet developed so much. Now, anyone can hide a truth within a lie.”

“Did you ask Soo Jung to do that knowing it’d be dangerous?”

“Don’t worry. She won’t’ get hurt.”

Since Cranky was monitoring Kim Soo Jung, anyone who tries to commit a crime against her would be detected. Yoon Chul didn’t like it, but he didn’t argue anymore.

“Did you look into it?”

“Yeah. There’s an inside story like you said.”

Yoon Chul dug up dirt on Han Kyung Il, Kim Min Shik, and Jung Sol Ji. No matter how split the group was, it was not favorable to dug up dirt on friends. But the circumstantial evidence they found surprised them.

“All three of them are involved in something weird.”

“What’s the evidence?”

“I don’t have it yet. That’s just how it seems. The way I see it...it wasn’t Lee Kyung Joon or Lee Ji Heon’s doing. If it was them, I wouldn’t have found something so quickly.”

“Keep digging. I’ll do some digging too.”

“I’m hanging up.”

Ahn Soo Ho folded his hands.

“They weren’t aiming for me.”

If that was the case, they wouldn’t have been so sloppy that Yoon Chul caught them. However, it was too elaborate to call it a coincidence. It didn’t seem like they were going to say anything even if he went to them in person. But he couldn’t bully his friends either, so he had no choice but to wait for Cranky’s call.

“Sorry.”

Ahn Soo Ho returned from the special guest room and hesitated. Jang Seol Hyun and Kim Woo Jung were sitting across from Shim Il Kwon. Jang Seol Hyun saw him and flashed him a refreshing smile.

“Oh my! When did you get here?”

Others might see her smile as refreshing, but Ahn Soo Ho only saw it as a ticking time bomb. Sure enough, she confidently confronted Shim Il Kwon.

“I really like Soo Ho.”

A girl in her 20s was much scarier than a killer troop sent from the enemies.

“So please let us pursue our love.”

Was she filming a commercial? Huh?

< Protect – Episode 29 – Do Min Ho [1] >