CH42 | MCT

Meeting the Bedouins (1)

Jang Mal-dong had no choice but to answer.

"He used Park Tae-jong."

"Is there a possibility that Park Tae-jong is the one backing him?"

"It's highly unlikely," Jang Mal-dong stated firmly.

"As Park Tae-jong moved down to Pohang, he distanced himself from Park Jung-hwan’s policy discussions. He was completely unaware of the emergency 8.3 private loan freeze measure."

"Hmm... Kang Tae-soo’s backer won’t be easy to uncover."

Indeed, that backer was a difficult one to track down.

They had spent half a year searching meticulously, yet they hadn’t even caught a glimpse of his shadow—no leads at all.

It was as if he were a powerful figure who didn’t exist in this world.

"A force operating even more secretly than us... and someone lurking right beside Park Jung-hwan while maintaining ties with Kang Tae-soo. Who could he be?"

This was someone they had to catch.

Now that they knew such a hidden force existed, they had to eliminate the threat before it became a bigger problem.

"This isn’t looking good for my reputation as an information broker."

A bitter feeling settled in.

The man in the hanbok took another sip of tea.

The aroma was unpleasant, not to his taste.

"Even the meticulous Park Jung-hwan has ended up playing into Kang Tae-soo’s hands. I didn’t expect that."

Park Jung-hwan was, in many ways, a formidable figure.

That was why he had been able to maintain his dictatorship for so long.

He never easily let go of power once it was in his grasp, nor was he easily swayed by those around him.

That made him a difficult opponent.

And yet, Kang Tae-soo had managed to manipulate such a man?

It was hard to believe.

"Park Jung-hwan is even backing him through Chief Secretary Kim Jeong-rim? That’s unheard of."

"That part surprised me as well."

It was news from the Blue House.

Jang Mal-dong reported on everything that had happened in Pohang.

The man in the hanbok listened intently.

The more he heard, the more intrigued he became.

"What about the bribe?"

"There was nothing. He clearly went in empty-handed. Besides, Park Jung-hwan isn’t the kind of man who would be swayed by something as petty as a cash-stuffed envelope."

"Of course not. That guy wouldn’t even flinch at a box full of cash, let alone a mere envelope."

This was a man who could seize corporations at will, carve them up, and redistribute them as he pleased.

How could he possibly be shaken by a trivial sum of money?

The cash boxes that Han Cheong-ho from Cheongil handed over every time he visited Park Jeong-hwan were nothing more than a token of respect.

And Park Jung-hwan, seeing the effort, merely accepted them as a formality.

"He’s truly something else. Park Jung-hwan isn’t the type to sit back and let this happen without a fight."

"I was so shocked and dumbfounded when I first heard the report that I had to double-check it multiple times. Ugh!"

Jang Mal-dong clicked his tongue in frustration.

"What kind of nonsense did that lunatic feed Park Jung-hwan to win him over? I’m dying to know."

"Same here. It must have been no ordinary trickery."

Judging by Park Junmng-hwan’s actions, it was clear something had managed to sway him.

But whatever Tae-soo had said to manipulate Park Jung-hwan remained a mystery.

No one had managed to get close to the Pohang Steel president’s office during the crucial meeting.

And with good reason—the people in that room were not ones to be taken lightly.

"Why was Kang Tae-soo even in that meeting?"

"From what I’ve heard, Park Jung-hwan personally requested his introduction."

"Park Jung-hwan asked for him first?"

That didn’t make sense.

Why would someone like Park Jung-hwan go out of his way to meet that guy?

Kang Tae-soo was nothing more than the owner of a mine in Gangwon Province and the head of a small construction firm that handled school building contracts.

"Hard to believe, but it seems to be the truth."

Jang Mal-dong relayed the details of the situation.

The man in the hanbok let out a dry chuckle.

The more he listened, the less sense it made.

There was no end to the absurdity.

"Unbelievable."

"Yes, I feel the same. And I’m dying to know how things will unfold in the Middle East."

"Hmm..."

The man in the hanbok tapped his fingers on the table, lost in thought.

"These scattered bits of information aren’t enough. I need something more detailed, something vivid. I want to see how that fascinating bastard handles this."

Deep in contemplation, the man in the hanbok suddenly broke into a grin.

A brilliant idea had just struck him.

* * *

The air in Saudi Arabia was dry and hot.

Since there were no direct flights from Korea to Saudi Arabia, they had to travel via Bangkok.

For Holjjuk, who was stepping onto foreign soil for the first time, it was an unforgettable moment.

"Tae-soo, it's late winter in Seoul, but it feels like summer here."

"It's still winter, though."

"How can it be winter when it’s this hot?"

"Even in winter, the temperature here stays around 20 degrees. And the humidity is low."

Typically, winter temperatures in Saudi Arabia range from 14 to 23 degrees Celsius.

With most of its land covered by deserts and grasslands, it was far drier than Korea.

Holjjuk looked around in fascination.

"When I think of the Middle East, I imagine palm trees, camels, and Persian carpets everywhere. But this place feels barren. Just a lot of sand."

"Well, it is the land of the desert."

Saudi Arabia in the 1970s wasn’t as developed as it would be in the 21st century.

It was nothing like Dubai, which was built with an endless stream of oil money.

Right now, it looked just like one of those desert towns straight out of an Indiana Jones movie.

Though technically, the Indiana Jones setting was Jordan.

But Jordan, Saudi Arabia—it was all the same to him.

Holjjuk let out a sigh.

"I heard Middle Eastern women are supposed to be voluptuous, but why is everyone so covered up?"

The miners around him also glanced around, making similar remarks.

Even Song Jin-gu, who already had a naturally rough expression, frowned even more.

"Collecting debts, handing out loans, buying land, running errands all the way to Gangwon Province... And now, of all things, I’m sent to the Middle East to work as a miner? Damn it."

No one knew exactly what he had said to the elders to end up getting dispatched to a labor job in the Middle East.

"Our elder isn’t someone who’s easily swayed. That guy really knows how to get things done."

Just then—

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Kang Tae-soo?"

A man in his late 30s, dressed in a gray suit, spotted Tae-soo and approached him.

He had a lean build, tanned skin, and an intelligent look about him.

His Korean was fluent—clearly, he was Korean.

"Yes, that’s me. And you are?"

There were only two types of Koreans who would come all the way to the airport in Saudi Arabia to meet Tae-soo.

Friend or foe.

If Jang Mal-dong had sent someone to hand over the goods, Song Jin-gu would have recognized him.
That means… is this guy sent by Kim Jeong-rim?

Tae-soo stepped forward.

"I’m Kang Tae-soo. Are you Korean?"

"Yes, I work at the South Korean Embassy in Saudi Arabia. My name is Song Chang-jun, Second Secretary."

"Nice to meet you."

Tae-soo extended his hand, and they shook hands.

"What brings a Second Secretary all the way here?"

"I was given orders from above to assist you."

Song Chang-jun pointed toward the sky with his finger.

"I see. What kind of assistance can I expect?"

"I was instructed to support you in every way possible—interpreting, guiding, sending telegrams, handling luggage, and even arranging accommodations and meals."

"That’s more help than I expected. I appreciate it."

"Think nothing of it."

Song Chang-jun gave Tae-soo a peculiar look.

"Your connections are quite something. The order to assist you came from His Excellency, the President himself, but strangely enough, the directives were all different."

"Is that so?"

"How did you manage to get three powerful figures to each send separate orders to the embassy?"

"Three powerful figures?"

Tae-soo was puzzled.

Aside from Chief Secretary Kim Jeong-rim, who else made contact? And what kind of instructions did they give?

Secretary Song Chang-jun studied Tae-soo with a peculiar expression.

"Chief Secretary Kim Jeong-rim, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Choi Jang-gil, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Sang-seop.
The orders came down with a 2-to-1 split, and they were quite different."

"What do you mean by 'different'?"

"Exactly as I said. To put it simply, the instructions were completely opposite—one side wanted to obstruct you, while the other called for full cooperation."

That was unexpected.

Song Chang-jun smiled meaningfully.

"Now, can you guess which side I'm on? Just considering my affiliation should make it clear."

Of course, Tae-soo understood his meaning immediately.

So, it wasn’t Chief Secretary Kim Jeong-rim who had the stronger influence here—it was the Vice Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In hindsight, it made perfect sense.

After all, the embassy itself was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"Thank you. Seems I’m quite lucky. I look forward to working with you."

"Likewise. The ambassador has high expectations as well."

Tae-soo pondered for a moment.

"His title might be Second Secretary, but in reality, he's the ambassador's trusted aide."

Otherwise, there was no way someone in his position would have access to such high-level information.

"It must have been difficult to outright reject an order from the Presidential Secretariat."

As if he had read Tae-soo’s thoughts, Song Chang-jun gave a knowing nod.

"Fortunately, there’s been some tension between the Foreign Ministry and the Presidential Secretariat lately. You happened to get lucky."

Then, almost casually, he dropped a hint about his direct connections.

"Our ambassador is quite close with the Vice Minister. Also, he's very interested in the progress of Pohang Steel’s construction."

A subtle but clear indication of where his orders were coming from.

"So, it was Park Tae-jong who sent him."

Tae-soo hadn’t expected him to reach out to the Foreign Ministry so proactively.

He had met Park Tae-jong’s office before.

At the time, Park Tae-jong had been on the phone with Vice Minister Choi Jang-gil.

That was how they had quickly learned about the U.S. halting molybdenum extraction.

"Pohang Steel is developing rapidly. At this rate, we might even finish construction ahead of schedule."

"Our ambassador is very interested. He would like to attend the completion ceremony."

It was a sign that he wanted to transfer from the Saudi Arabian embassy and return to Korea.

That wasn’t something Tae-soo could arrange, but Park Tae-jong might be able to.

"I don’t have that kind of influence yet, but I can subtly suggest sending an official invitation to the ambassador for the completion ceremony."

However, it was Park Tae-jong who had already made the request through the Vice Minister.

That meant the ambassador’s wish would likely be granted.

"If you could do that, the ambassador would be delighted."

"By the way, who was behind the Foreign Minister’s involvement?"

Once again, Song Chang-jun responded with subtlety.

"We received word that a ship from Geumsan Shipping and Geumsang Refinery has arrived at the port."

That meant Jang Jun-yong of Geumsan had also acted in Tae-soo’s favor, influencing the Foreign Minister.

"I expected it from Park Tae-jong, but I didn’t think Jang Jun-yong would move for me as well. Hmm."

Well, so be it.

It didn’t matter why or what his intentions were.

For now, Tae-soo was clearly benefiting from it.

"He has shown goodwill first, so I’ll repay it with goodwill later. If not, I’ll return the favor with something even greater."

However, there was something puzzling—something that didn’t quite add up.

"A ship from Geumsan? It’s still a few days early, isn’t it?"

Tae-soo had deliberately scheduled his trip to the Middle East to coincide with the ship’s arrival.

After all, construction couldn’t proceed properly without heavy equipment and water.

"They pushed full speed ahead without stopping. Upon checking, the shipment matches the official documents exactly—water, heavy equipment, and everything else. The ambassador moved swiftly to clear all customs and port clearance procedures in advance."

Tae-soo then made a request to Song Chang-jun.

"Could you arrange for the heavy equipment unloaded from Geumsan’s ship to be transported here?"

"It's already on the way. Geumsan emphasized that time was of the essence."

That was even better than expected.

"Geumsan is handling things quite efficiently."

Tae-soo grinned.

"I’ll have to personally thank the ambassador for all his help."

"The ambassador hopes the Samwon Construction issue will be resolved as soon as possible."

"Of course. That’s exactly why I came all the way here."

Song Chang-jun extended his hand.

"Looking forward to working with you."

"Likewise."

Tae-soo took his hand and shook it firmly.

Song Chang-jun smiled.

"The ambassador has been deeply concerned about this unfortunate situation. Naturally, his staff has been quite busy as well."

"If I want to properly express my gratitude, I’ll need to resolve the issue as quickly as possible."

"I’m sure the ambassador would be very pleased to hear that. I’ll do my best to support you."

That was perfect.

"I was planning to find someone familiar with the local scene anyway, but this just saved me the trouble."

Now, he had a well-vetted Foreign Ministry official acting as his interpreter and guide.

Not only that, but Song Chang-jun had been very clear—he wasn’t aligned with the Presidential Secretariat and was fully committed to helping him.

There was no better ally to have in an unfamiliar country.

"This is a promising start."

He had a strong feeling that things would go smoothly.

"Follow me. I’ll take you to your accommodations."

"Hold on. I have someone to meet first."

He was supposed to receive something from Jang Mal-dong here.

Vroom.

Just then, a vehicle kicked up a cloud of dust in the distance, speeding toward them across the desert.