Money Keeps Piling Up No Matter How Much I Spend

Chapter 116

Translator: Dreamscribe"......."

With the sound of flashes going off, light exploded everywhere.

Didn't celebrities say something like this?

That when they are first bombarded with camera flashes, it feels like a panic attack and their mind wavers.

"Chairman Choi Hyun-tae, please say a word about the current situation!"

"......."

In the blinding light that made it difficult to even open his eyes, Choi Hyun-tae lowered his head.

"Everything is due to my negligence. And it is also my responsibility. I will reveal everything at the hearing."

Chairman Choi answered like that and entered the hearing room.

"......."

Inside was calmer than expected compared to the outside.

Even the lawmakers from each party made eye contact with Chairman Choi with gentle gazes.

Maybe... it’s okay to be a little relieved?

"We will begin shortly. Everyone, please take your seats."

But no sooner had the chairperson finished speaking than the lawmakers’ expressions changed.

"Chairman Choi Hyun-tae of the National Pension Service. Please begin with the oath."

"Ah, yes."

As soon as the oath was completed, reproachful questions from the lawmakers began.

"Short selling using the 700 trillion won of the National Pension is unprecedented! Though it may have generated massive profits, operating the people's retirement funds in such a risky manner goes against the purpose of establishing the National Pension!"

"The goal of the National Pension is stable returns, not ultra-high-risk investments, correct? To invest all of the people’s hard-earned retirement funds into short selling is akin to gambling, and if it had failed, the people's livelihoods would have collapsed!"

Everyone was in agreement.

That’s why Chairman Choi didn’t even try to argue back.

He simply nodded, accepting his wrongdoing.

"However... it's not right to only criticize. Wasn’t it thanks to Chairman Choi’s bold decision that the National Pension’s assets grew from 700 trillion to an astounding 1,500 trillion?"

"Are you trying to justify it with that?"

"That’s still equivalent to gambling with the people's money!"

The National Pension’s capital had increased from 700 trillion to 1,500 trillion.

The key point was that this was achieved in a short period, an unprecedented feat in financial history.

But even so, that didn’t erase Chairman Choi’s wrongdoing.

Even if the outcome was good, the fact remained that he used the people's money at his own discretion for speculative investments.

"Therefore, feeling the full weight of my responsibility, I will step down from the chairman position as of today. I dared to engage in speculation with the people's money, so I have no intention of making excuses or returning to public office. And all of this was solely my decision. No one else is to blame, so I earnestly ask the honorable lawmakers to please remember that."

To others, it may have seemed Chairman Choi had reason to feel wronged.

Thanks to the growth in the National Pension, there was no longer a need for the older generation to argue over the future. For the time being, there was no more worry about the pension running dry.

"Chairman, we heard that the funds of the National Pension currently in the U.S. will soon be moved to Europe at the EU’s request. What will happen with that?"

More importantly, the 1,500 trillion figure was still not fully confirmed.

"That was an official request from the government level. This is not a decision I will make on my own this time. And this matter will likely be handled by my successor. I will now step away from all affairs related to the National Pension."

It was hard to keep pressing someone who had declared they would step down.

And so, after a few more questions and answers, the hearing concluded.

"Are the cameras off?"

"Yes. The broadcast has ended."

At those words, the lawmakers who had been grilling him moments ago approached.

"Chairman, you’ve worked hard all this time. Though I was strict in my questioning, you understand, right? It had to be done."

"Ah, yes."

"Chairman, you made a truly bold decision for the country. On behalf of the people, I’d like to thank you."

"Thanks to you, it feels like a heavy burden has been lifted. Though the method may have been wrong, the future generations of South Korea will remember your achievements for a long time."

Just moments ago, they were ready to tear him apart.

As expected, this must be why people say politicians are different when the cameras are on and when they're off.

“Yes. Thank you all.”

But receiving such words of gratitude didn’t mean Chairman Choi’s life had improved.

He stepped down from his chairman position, and his decades-long public service career came to an abrupt end.

What was fortunate, at least, was that the government let the matter slide, even though he could have faced harsher punishment for overstepping his authority.

“.......”

After the hearing, passing through the cluster of reporters, the chairman returned to his office and sat blankly at his desk.

Ah. This isn’t the time to be like this.

Since it was no longer his workplace, he had to leave quickly.

Only then could his successor come in.

“Chairman.......”

“Chairman? I’m just an old man now. No, wait. I’m a civil petitioner now. Haha.”

“.......”

Even with his attempt at a joke, the somber atmosphere among the gathered staff didn’t lift.

“Everyone, raise your heads. I’m the only one who made the mistake. So there’s no need to look sorry. All of you here opposed it, but I pushed forward anyway. So when I leave, send me off with a smile. This is the last time we’ll see each other like this, isn’t it?”

Only then did the staff start to smile one by one.

After exchanging final farewells with the staff, the chairman left the office.

“.......”

His heart felt unsettled.

Thanks to the tremendous returns of the National Pension, future generations no longer needed to worry. But in the end, the chairman had to shoulder all the responsibility and resign alone.

Still, he didn’t regret it.

It was something someone had to do, and if sacrifice was required, he was willing to bear it.

However, now he honestly had no idea what to do next.

Before this incident, he had never once imagined stepping down in disgrace.

“Chairman.”

At that moment, he turned his head at the voice from behind.

“Ah, no... CEO Jung?”

Someone he hadn’t expected was standing behind him.

“Shall we ride together?”

“Huh? Ah... yes.”

Why is he here...

Though they hadn’t met often, every time he did see Jung Jin-ho, he could never figure him out.

He always wore a gentle smile, yet there was something heavy pressing down beneath it. That indescribable, mysterious aura made one feel constantly tense around him.

“I watched the hearing. It was painful to watch. I could feel your pain.”

“No, it’s fine. It was all my fault.”

“That’s not true. It must have been an incredibly difficult decision. Thank you for trusting me and putting your entire career on the line.”

With that, CEO Jung handed him a document.

“This is...”

“We’ve just established Kwangwoon Asset Management, and coincidentally, there’s an open advisor position. Given your level of experience and competence, we believe you’re a perfect fit, so I’m offering you this position.”

“Yes?”

What’s the most important thing in a contract like this?

It’s the salary.

And upon seeing the figure written there, Choi Hyun-tae’s eyes widened.

“Are... are you really offering this to me?”

Eventually, even his hands started to tremble.

“Yes. There’s absolutely no pressure to accept. I’m not giving this with any ulterior motive. Think of it as a small gift for the sacrifice you made for the National Pension and the future generations of Korea. You wouldn’t have to suffer at work, either.”

After the hearing, many offered him words of comfort.

But that was all.

No one had stepped forward to offer any real help.

Because Choi Hyun-tae was no longer a chairman.

He had fallen to being just an ordinary man, Choi Hyun-tae.

But it seemed the world wasn’t entirely cold yet.

“Is it really okay for me to accept something so undeserved...?”

“You more than deserve it. Chairman, you’re a hero of this nation.”

“.......”

A second life after a disgraceful resignation.

Maybe he was getting old.

For some reason, tears welled up at the corners of his eyes.

***

Following the KW Exchange, I also took on the role of CEO for the newly established Kwangwoon Asset Management.

However, there wasn’t anything in particular that required my attention.

Unlike typical asset management firms that gather funds from the general public, our asset management firm primarily formed its fund tailored to the nature of the National Pension.

In other words, it wasn’t yet a company accessible to ordinary individuals.

“What about Chairman Choi? Did he accept the position?”

“Yes. He signed the contract last time, and he’s been coming into work regularly. We told him he didn’t need to come in every day, but he still works diligently.”

He was no longer a chairman, but had become an advisor at our Kwangwoon Asset Management.

Since we were now fully managing the National Pension’s funds, and Advisor Choi had worked in that field for a long time, we thought it would be easier to communicate with people from that side if we scouted him.

But it wasn’t a position offered with the expectation of any results.

It was just that it kept bothering me, seeing him take full responsibility and leave all alone. So I prepared it as a small gift.

“Yeah. Good job. Advisor Choi is still young for his age. He should definitely continue working. And considering he spent his whole life working his way up to that position, suddenly telling him to do nothing might be the hardest thing of all.”

“Yes. And since our asset management firm is currently only handling the National Pension’s funds, he understands that system better than anyone else.”

“So how did you decide to run things?”

“I’ll be deciding the overall investment direction, and the vice president said he would handle all the other subsidiary tasks.”

Just like what we were doing at Kwangwoon Securities, once I set the overall investment strategy, the vice president would take care of everything else.

“Good. Either way, I’m glad things worked out. I was really worried because this COVID situation didn’t seem like a joke. Is vaccine production going well?”

“Yes. Starting next month, vaccines will first be distributed in Korea and the UK, and then a few days later to every country we’ve signed contracts with. We’ve already secured both production lines and supply chains.”

Vaccines are drugs that go into the human body.

Because of that, testing must be extremely thorough.

However, with governments around the world panicking over the speed of the outbreak, they eased all regulations to ensure the vaccines could be distributed as quickly as possible.

“Good. That’s going well too. Then, Doo-young, how about the shipping side?”

“No need to worry about shipping, CEO-nim. Everything is progressing very smoothly. We’ve been reacquiring the companies we lost to the EU one by one, and at bargain prices. Of course... there is a shipping company in the Middle East that's been expanding its influence with the help of sovereign wealth funds, but we’ll work hard to reclaim leadership in global shipping.”

With that, CEO Kim Doo-young turned to look at me.

“Ah, right. CEO Jung, did you hear the news about oil prices?”

“Ah, yes. It’s because of COVID, right? Oil prices crashed.”

Originally, oil had been close to 60 dollars per barrel.

But as COVID became a full-blown pandemic, the price dropped to 40 dollars and was now heading toward 30.

Economic contraction had halted all shipping and air traffic, and even city cars came to a stop, causing oil to overflow.

“Because of that, Russia and Saudi Arabia are negotiating a production cut. Most people believe they’ll reach a smooth agreement. If so, then the oil price, which hit 39 dollars, is expected to rebound.”

With oil prices having dropped by 50%, Russia and Saudi Arabia, unable to take further losses, were likely to finalize the agreement soon.

If everything went as expected, oil prices would rise again.

“You’re suggesting we buy oil before that happens?”

“Yeah. Buy it while it’s cheap and use it over time. This is the report we’ve prepared. Just take a look, even if briefly.”

It didn’t seem like I needed to examine it in detail.

The agreement between Russia and Saudi Arabia would definitely happen, and prices would rise.

If we could stockpile some oil now and reduce shipping costs...

“!?”

But it was right then.

The moment I looked at the report, a powerful jolt surged through my entire body, and a vision unfolded before my eyes like a scene from a movie.

A mountain of oil drums piled high.

There were so many barrels that people were even throwing them into the sea.

Not because oil was scarce, but because there was too much of it, like a vision of hell caused by excess.

“.......”

“CEO Jung?”

I snapped out of it and blinked.

My eyes were dry.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah, yes.”

That vision just now, what was it...

“CEO Kim.”

“Hm?”

“Could you look into large-scale storage facilities where we can buy and store oil? The more the better. Purchase all of them.”

“What? All of a sudden?”

My intuition had clearly shown me through that vision.

Mountains of oil.

And people discarding it.

What could that mean?

It meant a world was coming where even if you paid people, they wouldn’t want to buy oil anymore.

***

"Rank reversal?"

“Yes. Kwangwoon is now the largest asset management company.”

Chairman Kang Sung-ho had just received an interesting report.

Asset management was something Kangseong Group also operated.

They had always been competing neck and neck with KS for the number one and two spots, but as soon as Kwangwoon entered the race late, it shot to number one.

And it was because they were now handling all the assets managed by the National Pension.

“Our asset management company originally aimed to manage 1,000 trillion won, but Kwangwoon took over the full 1,500 trillion won from the National Pension and became the overwhelming number one.”

“Isn’t the National Pension caught up in a scandal right now?”

“Yes. After the recent hearing, Choi Hyun-tae has become something of a superstar. Sure, it was wrong to use public funds for short selling, but the result speaks for itself. He increased the assets to 1,500 trillion won. Now the future generations don’t have to worry anymore.”

Even upon hearing it again, it was an astounding feat.

The National Pension is a Pandora’s box that all politicians avoid.

Because one wrong move can end their political career instantly.

That’s why it had been passed down again and again to the next generation until it reached its current state, and yet, it had all been resolved in one move.

Through an insane short sell of 700 trillion won.

“But after Chairman Choi resigned, he immediately joined Kwangwoon Asset Management as an advisor.”

“What? Wait. Then this means...”

“Yes. Chairman Choi was with Kwangwoon from the beginning. That’s why he suddenly shorted 700 trillion won. He was originally one of their people.”

So it really was that.

Come to think of it, there’s no way Kwangwoon would have offered an advisor position just out of kindness.

He had to have been one of their people from the start, receiving a promised seat afterward only confirmed it.

“No other noise about it?”

“No. The results were too good. The National Pension, which was supposed to run out by 2050, now has its life extended significantly. Of course, no one can say anything negative. Even the U.S. isn’t making any criticisms about the National Pension right now.”

The funniest thing was Trump’s reaction.

No one knew what his original intention was, but with the National Pension completely reviving the U.S. stock market, he went as far as to openly praise it.

“Wasn’t the U.S. the one sharpening their knives the most?”

“We thought so too... but judging by current U.S. public opinion, and how even the White House is thanking the National Pension’s decision and effort, perhaps the conspiracy theories going around are true.”

“Conspiracy theories?”

“Chairman, you also mentioned several times that it was strange, how could Korea’s National Pension intervene in the U.S. stock market to that extent?”

Kang Sung-ho also found that the strangest part.

Trump is extremely sensitive to foreign capital.

That senile old man believed America could only become great again by indiscriminately raising tariffs, blocking foreign capital, and boosting only domestic production.

And yet that very man had suddenly funneled the Korean National Pension into the U.S. stock market.

“On the surface, it looked like the National Pension’s money would be completely incinerated, but instead, the U.S. stock market recovered, and they ended up making money. It was a different story from the first bailout.”

“So that’s why the rumors started?”

“Yes. Trump, who despises foreign capital, brought in massive overseas funds in the form of the Korean National Pension and Kwangwoon. As a result, both raked in a fortune. All the criticism toward the Korean National Pension and Kwangwoon for the 700 trillion won short disappeared. It’s almost as if Trump personally stepped in and laundered their image. And they profited too.”

At this level, it would be strange if conspiracy theories didn’t emerge.

“Wait a minute. Then what... if that theory is true, then Kwangwoon... no, CEO Jung is...”

And Kang Sung-ho instantly grasped what the conspiracy theory was implying.

“He’s in a team with the President of the United States!?”

*****

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