Story of a Big Player from Gangnam

Chapter 70: New Start in Korea (2) – PART 1

Gun-Ho had early experience investing in stocks. He invested all of his money that he had saved up during his work in factories and a sunshine loan of 10,000,000 won he received, in stocks.

It took six months to lose everything he had invested in stocks at the time. He was left with the sunshine loan of 10,000,000 won and he spent his early 30s in paying off the debt.

“I shouldn’t repeat my early mistake.”

Gun-Ho, let out a deep sigh.

Afterwards, while he was working at YS Tech in Dunpo, Asan, Gun-Ho used the company’s money to invest in a waste management company’s stocks and made 520 million won.

“I know I shouldn’t have used the company’s money, but the money I made from it became my seed money. Using that seed money I started my first business in Noryangjin—a Vietnamese noodle soup restaurant. It didn’t work out well, but I made a significant amount of money from the subsequent investment in real estate in China.”

Gun-Ho reminisced about the stock investment of InsunENT.

“Little people like me can’t possibly have any inside information about a company to determine which company to invest money in. I just heard from Chairman Lee who I met at a fishing site that a waste disposal business would have a bright future, and I subsequently invested in the waste management company believing what Chairman Lee said.”

Gun-Ho blamed himself for the recent failure with his stock investment. He should have focused on the company’s business and its potential, rather than analyzing stock charts and the trading volume to produce profits in a short period of time.

“Whew, I still have a lot to learn to be a big player in the business field. Even Chairman Lee who is loaded with extensive life and business experience doesn’t do stocks without knowing the other player’s cards!”

Well, Gun-Ho missed him.

“I haven’t thanked him yet. I’ve been too busy after I returned from China. As a matter of fact, he sort of guided me in the direction of working in accounting and investing in the InsunENT stocks!”

Gun-Ho made a phone call to Jong-Suk.

After a few ringing, Jong-Suk picked up the phone.

“What were you doing? Why aren’t you picking up the phone quickly?”

“Oh, bro. How’s your auction school thing?”

“It’s okay. Are you still going to the fishing site?”

“Nah, I haven’t been there lately. I am going to mountain climbing instead of these days, because of my team leader at work. He loved it, so I follow him to a mountain.”

“You haven’t seen Chairman Lee recently then.”

“Right, I haven’t.”

“Hey, do you want to go fishing this Sunday?”

“This Sunday? I will have to get back to you on that. Our factory is expecting new machine equipment and I have to see how it goes. I will let you know tomorrow.”

“Okay. Make it work, okay? I will buy you lunch, nice one.”

“Bro, did you buy a car?”

“No, not yet. I will rent a car.”

“Take the subway. I will pick you up.”

“I can’t bring my fishing gears to the subway. I will rent a car. I can afford it.”

“Okay. I will talk to you soon.”

Jong-Suk called, and he said that he could go fishing on Sunday.

It was spring. Magnolia flowers were in full blossom. The weather in China was gloomy, but the weather in Korea was bright and mild. Gun-Ho and Jong-Suk met at the Pocheon fishing site.

“Hey, Jong-Suk. Good to see you!”

“Bro, are you done with the auction course?”

“No, not yet.”

“Complete your learning on auction as soon as possible and become a real estate mogul.”

“Save it. You have to have something, to begin with in order to become a mogul.”

“Grab some land here in Pocheon by auction. I heard a lot of factories here are selling at an auction because they are not doing well these days.”

“Haha. I don’t have enough money to buy a factory. I’m thinking of buying a townhouse.”

“It seems that Chairman Lee didn’t come fishing today. I don’t see Manager Gweon either.”

“Does Manager Gweon still assist Chairman Lee? That man who was discharged from the military. He said he was a lieutenant colonel, right?”

“Oh, that man? Yes, he is still with Chairman Lee. Haha. He was actually not a lieutenant colonel, but a major. Chairman Lee was just making a joke about it.”

“Right. That’s more like it. He was too young for a lieutenant colonel. He seemed to be loyal though.”

“Yeah. He doesn’t talk much. When I met them last year, he told me that he was related to Chairman Lee. He said Chairman Lee is his second cousin. Chairman Lee had helped him a lot since he was a student.”

“Really?”

Gun-Ho and Jong-Suk had a lot to catch up while fishing. Jong-Suk was an outgoing person and he seemed to be still in touch with friends from Incheon and Bucheon; he knew how those friends were doing these days.

“You are in the know and nosy!”

“I am different from you, bro. You don’t go out a lot. It has always been that way. When you were in high school, I once went to your home. Do you know what your mom told me at that time?”

“What did she say?”

“She said, her son was a homebody and he always stayed home reading cartoons.”

“Haha, was I? Hey, let’s have sashimi. I’m treating you. I saw a big sashimi restaurant around Millak Town in Uijeongbu City on the way here. They have a spacious parking lot too. Let’s go there.”

“Sounds great. Let’s go!”

Gun-Ho was really hoping to see Chairman Lee that day. Since he didn’t see him, he decided to come to the same fishing site the following Sunday.

On the following Sunday, Gun-Ho decided to go to the fishing site by himself.

“I can’t ask Jong-Suk to come with me every time I want to go fishing. Jong-Suk is now Assistant Manager and he must be busy with his work.”

Gun-Ho rented a car.

“I want to stop by the Kyobo bookstore before going to the fishing site. I want to read the book, ‘Power Shift’ and ‘Source of Wealth.’ I can’t use the money invested in QM Steel anyway to invest in some other stocks. Let’s read books and try to have inner peace.”

Gun-Ho stopped by at Kyobo bookstore on the way to the Pocheon fishing site to buy books. He was heading out when he saw heavy traffic on the road.

“Huh? What’s going on? The road is covered with combat police. There must be a protest march today.”

Gun-Ho craned his neck out of his car window.

“No Four Major Rivers Project!”

“It will kill the environment. We are against the Four Major Rivers Project!”

“No to Myung-Bak Lee!”

The year when Gun-Ho returned to Korea from China was the presidential election year. One of the presidential candidate—Myung-Bak Lee’s campaign promise was the Four Major Rivers Project. The opposing side attacked his campaign vigorously. People from the environmental organization came out on the street with placards showing their opposition to the project.

Protesters ranted with a megaphone, and the combat police were trying to block them with shields.

“I’m not very interested in protesting. Let’s get out of here quickly!”

Gun-Ho didn’t have experience of protesting since he didn’t have a real college campus life. He graduated from a cyber college which evidently provided no campus life and when he went to Zhejiang University in China, he couldn’t fully enjoy his college life because of his age.

“The protest will go on until the presidential election is over.”

Gun-Ho headed to Pocheon by taking a different route from what he originally planned, while passing Donam and Ssangmun Town instead of the riverside road.

“Here is a paradise. It’s so quiet here. Even though the world is noisy, I can have my peace of mind by looking at the quiet river.”

Gun-Ho walked down to the reservoir while carrying his fishing rod.

It was a fine sunny day with some clouds in the sky. This was the Peach Blossom Land.

Gun-Ho saw two men fishing. They looked like Chairman Lee and Manager Gweon. Gun-Ho approached them and it was them.