CH122 | Heir

I entered the conference room without knowing the results.

As soon as I opened the door, a wave of applause erupted.

I could guess the outcome from the way President Woo Sung-il spread his arms wide in celebration.

“I appoint Director Kim Min-jae as Vice Chairman. Since 90% of the board members have approved, I trust you’ll accept it humbly.”

My grandfather patted me on the shoulder as he spoke.

Wait, 90% approval? That was unexpected.

I thought there would be a significant faction opposing me, but that didn’t seem to be the case.

Or perhaps the opposition wasn’t well-coordinated, leading individuals to vote based on personal decisions rather than factional loyalty.

But if 90% approved, that meant only about three people voted against me.

Unconsciously, I turned my head toward the board members and spotted three individuals with awkward smiles.

Jang Soo-young, the president of Taewoo Construction, and his right-hand man, Park Hyuk-soo, the president of Taewoo Engineering.

Even without checking the details, I could easily tell they were the ones who cast the opposing votes.

Jang Soo-young had maintained a sizable faction.

However, with this vote, his faction was effectively dismantled.

I looked straight at them as I contemplated my acceptance speech.

How should I begin?

Should I act humbly since I became Vice Chairman at such a young age?

After a brief moment of thought, I spoke my first words.

“Taewoo Group is like a frog in a well. Even if we are ranked No. 1 in Korea, on the global stage, we wouldn’t even make the top 100. To break through this thick wall, every employee of Taewoo Group must unite as one.”

In other words, I was telling them to stop engaging in factional conflicts.

Or, to put it another way, I was indirectly telling them to fall in line under my leadership.

Since I deliberately looked at Jang Soo-young, who had cast a dissenting vote, my message must have been clearly conveyed to everyone.

“To survive on the global stage, we need overwhelming technology and skills. Therefore, I plan to reform the HR system to ensure that personnel evaluations are based solely on competence. There may be unexpected personnel changes, so I ask for your understanding.”

I had become the Vice Chairman of the group.

Now, I had the authority to control the HR department as I saw fit.

I planned to review the detailed profiles of all employees and reorganize personnel accordingly.

Those who rose through the ranks based on connections or political maneuvering would be better off submitting their resignations.

Unless, of course, they wanted to be reassigned to a remote overseas branch.

But… was I being too harsh?

As I continued speaking, I noticed the expressions of the board members growing stiffer.

Since I had wielded the stick this much, I needed to throw in a carrot as well.

“I cannot elevate Taewoo Group to the No. 1 global company through my efforts alone. I need the support of all my esteemed seniors, and in return, I promise you appropriate rewards. As Korea’s top corporation, we can’t afford to offer salaries lower than those of other companies, can we?”

“Hahaha!”

As soon as I mentioned salaries, laughter spread throughout the room.

After all, isn’t making money the ultimate reason people work for a company?

I planned to provide executives with salaries and bonuses on a completely different level than before.

That way, it would be easier to weed out the useless ones.

“This concludes the personnel announcements. The Chief Secretary will now take over the responsibilities previously handled by the Head of Headquarters.”

“I will inform the media about Vice Chairman Kim Min-jae’s appointment. We will flood the news with articles emphasizing his past achievements to prevent any backlash.”

“There’s bound to be opposition. South Korea is still too rigid to readily accept a Vice Chairman in his twenties.”

“We will do our best to suppress it.”

A Vice Chairman in his twenties.

It was the perfect title to attract jealousy.

No matter how skilled I was, the fact remained—I was the Chairman’s grandson.

It was undeniable that my appointment at this age was due to my lineage.

“Don’t try too hard to suppress it. Overdoing it might backfire. If criticism is inevitable, it’s better to take it all at once and get it over with.”

“But it could leave a lasting negative impression.”

“If we deliver results, those negative perceptions will fade away, won’t they?”

For a businessman, results were everything.

With the IT bubble bursting, the stock prices of several subsidiaries were plummeting.

In this situation, even just stabilizing the stock price would earn me significant credit.

“I agree with the Vice Chairman. Don’t overexert yourself—just offer some light support to guide the media narrative.”

“Understood.”

“Now, everyone, return to your offices. There’s too much work to be done to waste any more time here.”

The emergency meeting concluded.

The board members still looked bewildered as they stood up from their seats.

Seeing them like that, my grandfather turned to me and winked.

They say people become more childlike as they age.

Lately, my grandfather’s playful side had been getting out of hand.

* * *

A few days later.

I moved into the newly established Vice Chairman’s office at the group’s headquarters.

As I absentmindedly fiddled with the nameplate engraved with Vice Chairman, the Head of Planning entered.

“The backlash is stronger than we expected.”

“I saw it myself in the newspapers this morning. There was even an editorial claiming that I’m putting Taewoo Group at risk.”

Taewoo Group was a major advertiser for various media outlets.

Because of that, it was rare for them to publish anything that could harm the company.

However, the appointment of a Vice Chairman in his twenties was such a massive issue that even media outlets that depended on our advertisements couldn’t ignore it.

“I will reduce the ad budget for certain media companies.”

“Don’t.”

“But we can’t just sit back and watch publications comparing you to the Kim family!”

Some articles had drawn parallels between North Korea’s hereditary succession and Taewoo Group’s leadership structure.

The media outlets that were generally critical of conglomerates had framed the story in the most provocative way possible.

Still, it wasn’t entirely untrue.

“Leave it alone. More importantly, how are the preparations for the appointment ceremony in Russia coming along?”

“All preparations have been completed in secret. Flights, accommodations, and security personnel have all been arranged.”

“Looks like I’ll be heading to Russia before I’ve even unpacked my bags.”

There were five days left until the appointment ceremony.

Since it was such a massive event, I had to arrive in Russia at least three days in advance.

“I will finalize the personnel transfers before you return from your trip.”

“It’s going to get noisy. Especially since we’re dealing with Taewoo Construction, not just any subsidiary.”

For the past few days, I had been reviewing the employee roster of Taewoo Construction.

I meticulously checked their skills, detailed information, and any notable points—so much so that I thought my eyes might fall out.

Still, it wasn’t boring. Finding hidden gems among them made it worthwhile.

Of course, I also felt nauseated when I came across people who were absolute garbage. But the thought of getting rid of them kept me going through the long nights.

“I’m concerned that President Jang Soo-young will strongly oppose this.”

“Well, it is borderline overstepping my authority.”

The authority over personnel decisions in a subsidiary belonged to the President of that company.

Even as Vice Chairman, directly ordering personnel transfers was a stretch of my power.

They would see it as a declaration of war.

Not that they’d be entirely wrong. But Taewoo Construction was such a vast organization that pruning was necessary.

“I expect they’ll either resign or refuse the transfer orders.”

“Either way, it doesn’t matter. If they step aside on their own, that would actually be more convenient.”

“By the time you return from Russia, we should have a clear outcome.”

“I’ll leave the hassle of dealing with the fallout to you, Director.”

With that, I left for Russia without a second thought.

Getting rid of people like President Jang Soo-young was no longer a major ordeal.

Now that I was Vice Chairman, I could remove him whenever I wanted.

* * *

The next day.

I arrived at Moscow Airport.

As soon as I stepped off the plane, David and Captain Kang were waiting with dozens of security personnel, along with Russian police and military officers providing additional protection.

“Isn’t this a bit excessive? Even if the President were visiting, I doubt they’d go this far.”

“Russia is still not entirely stable. There are reports that oligarchs who refuse to acknowledge Putin are regrouping.”

Oligarchs.

Should I call them power-hungry tycoons?

These were individuals who had accumulated immense wealth with the backing of the government or military.

They controlled state-owned enterprises and made astronomical amounts of money.

Putin had been purging the oligarchs.

In their place, the siloviki—former KGB officers and other military figures—were taking control.

The war between the oligarchs and the siloviki.

It wasn’t impossible for me to get caught in the crossfire, which was why David and Captain Kang had deployed such a large security force at the airport.

“The security detail isn’t going to follow me all the way to my hotel, are they?”

“The military will be guarding the area around the residence. Now, please get in the car.”

With Captain Kang escorting us, David and I boarded the vehicle.

It was an armored car, the kind you’d expect to see in the military, surrounded by heavily armed security vehicles.

“Boss! The Kremlin says you’ll be staying at a villa in a resort area tonight.”

“A villa instead of a hotel? I guess they want me to stay somewhere quiet for security reasons.”

“I didn’t get many details. They just sent an address—nothing more. The person I spoke with was incredibly rigid. Seemed like a military man, no doubt about it.”

“Well, if the host says I should stay at the villa, I suppose I have no choice.”

Without even getting a proper look at Moscow, we headed to a quiet rural village.

It took nearly four hours to reach the villa, and soldiers were stationed all around the area.

“Well, at least security won’t be an issue. Feels like we just walked into a military base.”

“Our security team isn’t even allowed inside the villa. The Russian government insists on handling protection themselves, so we have no choice but to comply.”

Only David, Captain Kang, and I were permitted to enter the villa.

Despite its slightly aged exterior, the interior was extravagantly decorated.

“So, we’re just supposed to wait here until the appointment ceremony? If I’d known, I would’ve arrived a few days later.”

“Exactly! I still don’t understand why they insisted you come to Russia this early.”

I wasn’t the one who set the schedule for this trip.

The Russian government dictated the itinerary, and I was simply following their lead.

“Well, we might as well unpack and have a drink. Looks like we’ve got some unexpected downtime.”

“Since we’re in Russia, we should have whiskey! I’ll get everything set up.”

David excitedly started pulling out the liquor.

At that moment, soldiers stationed outside suddenly stormed into the villa and began patting us down.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Before we could even resist, they thoroughly searched every inch of our bodies.

Only after confirming that we weren’t carrying any weapons did they step back.

A few minutes later, someone completely unexpected entered the villa.

“I apologize. I told them not to, but they never listen to me.”

It was Putin.

He walked in with a smile and, with a simple hand gesture, dismissed the soldiers who had filled the villa.

“A pleasure to meet you. I’m Kim Min-jae, Vice Chairman of Taewoo Group.”

“Is a formal introduction really necessary between us? And shouldn’t you be introducing yourself as the CEO of SAVE Investment instead of Taewoo Group? Ha-ha-ha.”

Putin’s words sounded like a joke, but there was an undeniable edge to them.

As a former KGB officer, he was a man who knew his information well.