Chapter 43: The End of the 80s (2)

September 17, 1988.

The highly anticipated ’88 Olympics opening ceremony took place.

Yu Jinseok, who had secured many construction projects before and after the Olympics, aggressively expanded his business, and thanks to its success, he received praise from Chairman Yu Seongpil at the end of the year.

Jinwoo’s face contorted subtly that day. That was why he hadn’t done anything domestically despite the huge opportunity presented by the Olympics.

Anyway… the Olympics were more exciting and fun than I expected. I wasn’t very sociable, so I had neglected networking, but it was easy to talk to people during the Olympics season.

Because the conversation topics were mostly predetermined. I realized the impact of soft power once again, and I started preparing to go abroad gradually.

‘Things are progressing faster than expected.’

[Securities Transaction Act significantly relaxed… Ministry of Finance declares it will attract foreign investment before and after the Olympics]

I sipped my coffee while reading the morning newspaper. The article came out a few months ago, but the bill was passed the day before yesterday.

Because the smart people didn’t die in the bombing, things are moving quickly.

Although it said “significantly relaxed,” only a few regulations were actually loosened… but it was fortunate that I could at least establish a framework.

In this area, the laws were relaxed much faster than expected. I think this is because the people working in finance lacked motivation. Even if the investment banking regulations were loosened, they weren’t interested in doing it, so there was no reason for the law to change.

Or perhaps, their economic foundation was stronger than before, so they decided they could afford to take more risks.

As a result, I used Daeha Securities to actively demand changes from the Ministry of Finance, and the government, which didn’t feel the need to be strict during the Olympic season, permitted the establishment of an investment bank, also to improve Korea’s external evaluation.

It was almost unbelievable.

‘Is this even allowed?’

Even though I knew that the traditional opposition party’s pledges would easily pass in the minority-majority situation once the government approved them, I couldn’t help but be amazed to see the obstacles in front of me disappearing so easily.

The influence of the Daeha Group wielded under my grandfather’s support, without worrying about the family… is this the power of a chaebol?

I crumpled the newspaper and handed it to my secretary, who had just arrived. Sihyeon naturally took it and threw it in the trash, then delivered the news.

“Missy, President Ha sent a message. He said the preparations are complete.”

‘Finally…’

I smiled brightly and patted my secretary’s shoulder.

“Oh, Sihyeon. Good job.”

Ha Jusung finally established the foundation of the investment bank and completed the front office. Since the law wasn’t fully open yet, a separate corporation had to be established, which took some time.

This was possible because Korea’s credit rating had risen significantly due to the Olympics, and Hayeon was doing well on Wall Street.

“By the way, Sihyeon, have you decided where you’re going on vacation? Your sister’s wedding, you should rest too.”

Sihyeon awkwardly smiled and shook her head.

“No, it’s fine. Isn’t Daeha Securities hiring new employees? I should still serve you, missy.”

“I won’t hire your sister just because of that.”

I was startled to see the name “Siwoo Lee” on the job application. I wondered if Sihyeon was still trying to stab me in the back.

“Aha, I’ll keep that in mind.”

…She’s doing it again.

I put on a serious expression and touched Sihyeon’s cheek. It was warm and soft, and undoubtedly attractive… but if you ask if I can’t let it go, the answer is no.

The most important thing in the world is myself.

“Sihyeon, do you know about the dialectic of master and s*ave? Even if you don’t know Hegel’s philosophy… this story is famous.”

“…What?”

If a master always depends on the s*ave, it is not the master but the s*ave who is truly free. Because the master can do nothing without the s*ave.

“Sihyeon, I’m fine without you.”

My eyes curved softly. Smiling, I patted Sihyeon’s head… then, I brushed and gently tugged on her ponytail.

Good handle.

“Oof!”

Sihyeon looked at me with slightly trembling eyes. I whispered in her ear.

“So don’t try anything funny and quietly go on vacation. I’m giving you a warning.”

How dare she try to get her sister into my company.

No way.

I won’t accept her unless she legally changes her name.

Actually, there are several reasons why I sent Sihyeon on vacation so abruptly.

I looked at another secretary I hired from Daeha Securities, Seo Ju-eun. Unlike Sihyeon, she was someone with a clean background whom I chose directly.

Yes, she’s the one I said was a little worse than Sihyeon. But what can I do? I need a substitute.

“Jueun, Sihyeon’s siblings… just coax them and send them away. Got it?”

“Yes.”

One of the things I need to handle while Sihyeon is away is… Sihyeon’s so-called siblings.

A cold sneer touched my lips.

‘Just because she treats them like real siblings doesn’t mean they are.’

After doing some background checks through Sihyeon’s friends, I found out quite a bit.

Fortunately, Sihyeon’s real younger sister, whom she raised herself, grew up well enough to apply to Daeha Group, but the ‘siblings’ she had under her… were honestly quite ordinary.

They might act like meek lambs in front of Sihyeon…

But some of them, like those living a life on the bottom, turned into ordinary gangsters. They came to extort money after hearing that their acquaintance had become successful.

I have to take care of such dregs. Or I’ll make them work for me, cleaning up their pasts and doing dirty work.

If I enjoyed noir, I might have handed Sihyeon a knife and told her to do it herself.

But that’s not my style. For the sake of my poor subordinate who doesn’t even know she’s being used, I have to put in this much effort.

A method that doesn’t damage Sihyeon’s loyalty.

Yeah.

“Seo Ju-eun, gather those kids and prepare to manipulate the incident subtly. Do your best to make sure Sihyeon doesn’t notice. And make sure no one knows who’s getting framed.”

“…Yes.”

-Clap clap.

After adding a few more instructions, I smiled brightly and clapped my hands.

“Okay, let’s stop here for now. Why are you so stiff? We’re not doing anything bad.”

If Sihyeon knew how much I was working hard, she’d be moved to tears.

Tch, her reaction is unsatisfactory.

That’s why I like Sihyeon.

Slightly annoyed, I hurried to the mirror to fix my messy hair. …Looking at the mirror like this, it reminds me of Snow White.

I hummed a familiar melody.

Of course, no one asked who was the prettiest in the world. Because I’m obviously the prettiest.

“Mirror, mirror, don’t you have any special abilities? I’m suffering because of you.”

If I had used some points to get a magic mirror like Aladoress when I was reborn, it would have been much easier.

…I seem to hear people muttering that I’m a witch, but it’s probably a delusion.

Among Daeha Securities employees, there’s this slang term.

‘Your Witch’s Day.’

It’s the day when the expiration dates of stock index futures, stock index options, and individual stock options overlap, combined with Yu Hayeon’s ‘that day.’

This term, which appeared 14 years earlier than in the original history, was a common joke among Daeha Securities employees. They say that the market volatility goes wild on the Witch’s Day.

…Yu Hayeon felt a bit wronged but didn’t deny it.

Thanks to that, at Daeha Investment Bank’s historic first meeting, few were surprised when Yu Hayeon said this.

“I’ve developed a new financial product. Let’s do something else soon.”

Silence. Then, concerned voices… and cheers.

“…Oh.”

“As expected! Truly, Miss Hayeon!”

“What kind of product is it?”

Ah, that’s right.

This is the reaction I wanted.

Except for the name change, the people at Daeha Investment Bank were originally from Daeha Securities. Therefore, not a single person looked down on me because I was young.

When the mood was appropriately heated, I smiled brightly and started to explain.

“You all read the news, right? The Brezhnev Doctrine was abandoned in March last year… and Eastern European countries are showing signs of opening up…”

Mikhail Gorbachev, the General Secretary of the Soviet Union, advocated for reform and opening up to save the slowly sinking Soviet Union.

And the start of this was the New Belgrade Declaration. The Soviet Union would no longer interfere even if communist countries turned to capitalism.

“Hmm, then… we should buy bonds?”

A tall managing director stroked his chin and asked for my opinion, and I slightly nodded, raising the corners of my lips.

“That’s right, let’s see the skills of the newly formed front office. Short sell Eastern European bonds at the right time… then buy them back when they plummet.”

A change in a country’s ideology is a huge deal. Naturally, the credit rating plummets, and the bonds issued by the country also plummet in price.

Knowing in advance that they will become cheap, you can short sell and profit, then long sell and profit twice.

“…You seem to be quite positive about Eastern Europe. What if Eastern Europe completely collapses?”

Another managing director wearing glasses expressed concern. He was a managing director who had always questioned my opinions, but he wasn’t opposed to my opinions, so I kept him in an important position.

It’s better to have someone pretending to oppose me so that I can shine more.

“It won’t collapse. Ah, but Albania and Yugoslavia feel a bit fishy, so let’s only short sell those. Still, the economically stable countries in Eastern Europe will quickly recover.”

Of course, there’s one problem.

“But can our investment bank do this…? We don’t have enough money to invest our own capital.”

We have little capital to operate.

“It can’t be helped. There aren’t many deals we can conclude now, and there’s no other investment bank in Korea except us, so our clients don’t know our company? We’re not short on money, we’re just setting up a framework.”

Having a lot of money but little usable capital may seem contradictory, but it’s because of government regulations.

“Right… the Alpha Fund you set up is raking in money, so it’s fine. What’s important for our company isn’t money, but experience.”

He stroked his glasses and nodded. As if agreeing with my reasonable explanation.

Thus…

I started the meeting by announcing the news about the Eastern European revolution, and time passed as we had smaller meetings.

Legal issues related to the investment bank, where to build the new investment bank building, how much to bribe the government, what to eat for lunch…

As the managing directors gradually sorted out these minor issues through heated discussions, they suddenly realized something.

“Come to think of it… Miss, so what is the new financial product you mentioned?”

Managing Director Choi, who was the first to realize this in the quiet meeting room, asked me.

“Aha, I haven’t completely created the portfolio… but I’ll tell you the name.”

With a bright smile, I introduced the advanced financial product I brought from the future. One of the great products of financial engineering.

“I’ve decided to name it ‘Credit Default Swap.’ The English abbreviation is CDS.”

“…Earlier, you said Eastern Europe wouldn’t collapse. The name is quite unsettling.”

I smiled brightly and clapped my hands softly.

“That’s right. Eastern Europe won’t collapse. But, I predict…”

After a three-second pause, I prophesied before the managing directors.

“The Soviet Union will collapse. Within two years.”

After the end of the 1980s, the beginning of the 1990s will come with the collapse of the Soviet Union.