The humid heat of August pressed against the black windows of the funeral hall. Inside, the air was chilled to a sterile frigidity. White chrysanthemums filled the room, their scent cloying and heavy. A portrait of Chairman Jin Seok-hoon, draped in a black ribbon, looked down at the mourners with stern, lifeless eyes.
The Tiger of Construction was dead.
Jin Seo-yoon stood at the receiving line. She wore a traditional black hanbok, her face pale and devoid of makeup. She had been standing there for ten hours, bowing to politicians, rival Chaebol heads, and ministers.
She was alone. Usually, the Chief Mourner would be the eldest son. But the eldest son, Jin Hyuk-jae, was a fugitive with an Interpol Red Notice, hiding somewhere in Southeast Asia.
"My condolences," the Chairman of Samsung murmured, bowing slightly. "He was a giant of the industry."
"Thank you, Chairman," Seo-yoon bowed back, her voice raspy.
Next came the Chairman of SK, then Hyundai. The elite of Korea moved in a solemn procession. They offered sympathy, but their eyes were calculating. They were looking for weakness. Daegwang is headless, their eyes said. The heir is gone. The daughter is weak. The vultures will come.
Then, a hush fell over the room. A young man walked in. He wasn't part of the "Old Guard." He didn't have grey hair. He walked with a quiet, terrifying confidence. Kang Min-jun.
He wore a plain black suit, but the cut was impeccable. He approached the altar, burned incense, and bowed twice to the portrait. He turned to Seo-yoon.
"You look tired," Min-jun said softly.
"I am," Seo-yoon whispered, breaking her formal posture for a second. "The NTS sent the preliminary inheritance tax bill this morning. Before the body was even cold."
"How much?"
"The Chairman's personal stake in Daegwang Corp (Holding Company) is valued at 4 Trillion Won. The tax rate is 60% because of the controlling shareholder premium. We owe 2.4 Trillion Won."
Seo-yoon looked at the flowers. "I don't have 2.4 Trillion, Min-jun. Hyuk-jae drained the family's cash reserves. I have Daegwang Construction stock (which is illiquid private equity now) and some hotel shares. I can't pay the tax."
"If you can't pay?"
"I have to sell the Daegwang Corp shares to the market. Or pay in kind (stock). Either way, the Jin family loses control. The Group dissolves."
She looked at him with hollow eyes. "My father built this for 50 years. And it ends because of taxes."
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Min-jun stepped closer. He stood beside her in the receiving line, a breach of protocol that sent whispers rippling through the room.
"It doesn't have to end," Min-jun said. "You can't pay the tax. But I can."
Seo-yoon froze. "You? 2.4 Trillion?"
"I have 1.2 Trillion in liquid cash. And I have credit lines with every global investment bank from here to New York. I can underwrite the tax bill."
"In exchange for what?"
"For the shares," Min-jun said calmly. "You transfer the Chairman's 40% stake in Daegwang Corp to Nemesis Capital. I pay the tax. You keep your personal 5% and remain as the Group Vice-Chairman."
"You want the whole Group? Electronics, Insurance, Chemical?"
"I want the Sovereignty, Seo-yoon. I want the chair."
Seo-yoon looked at the portrait of her father. If she sold to Min-jun, the Jin family dynasty was over. It would become the Kang dynasty. But if she didn't, the government would take it, or a foreign vulture fund would break it up.
At least Min-jun had saved the Construction arm. He was competent. He was ruthless. He was the son her father wished Hyuk-jae had been.
"Stand with me," Seo-yoon said suddenly.
"What?"
"Stand next to me. As the Chief Mourner."
Min-jun looked at her. It was a symbolic declaration. By standing in the son's place, he was claiming the succession publicly.
He stepped into the line. He bowed to the next guest—a Cabinet Minister. The Minister looked confused, then realized what was happening. He bowed back to Min-jun deeply.
The torch had passed.
September 1, 2022. Yeouido. Daegwang Group HQ (The Tower).
The nameplate on the door of the Chairman's Office was being changed. Kang Min-jun.
Min-jun sat in the chair. It was leather, worn by decades of use. From here, he controlled a conglomerate with 50,000 employees. Construction. Hotels. Retail (what was left). Insurance. Chemical.
He picked up the phone. "Ye-eun. Come in."
Hong Ye-eun walked in. She was now the CEO of Mirue Partners, managing 500 Billion Won in AUM. "Chairman Kang," she teased. "It fits you."
"It's just a chair," Min-jun said. "The real work starts now. We need to restructure. Daegwang Corp is a mess of cross-shareholdings."
"What about the 'Inheritance Deal'?"
"Signed. The NTS accepted the payment plan. I paid 1 Trillion won upfront in cash. The rest is a 5-year installment plan backed by the dividend flow of the Group."
Min-jun swiveled the chair to look at the view. He saw the National Assembly. He saw the KDB Bank. He saw the Prosecutor's Office. In his past life, these buildings were prisons. Places where he went to beg or be interrogated. Now, they were just neighbors.
"Min-jun," Ye-eun asked, her voice serious. "You have everything now. Money. Power. Revenge. What's left?"
Min-jun touched the scar on his chest—a phantom pain from a fall that hadn't happened in this timeline. "Survival," he said.
"Survival? You are the safest man in Korea."
"No. The cycle is turning. Interest rates are rising. The asset bubble we rode for 10 years is popping. 2023 will be the year of the Project Financing (PF) Crisis."
He stood up and walked to the map of Korea. "Real estate prices are going to crash. Construction companies will default. The bond market will freeze. It will be 1997 all over again."
"And us?"
"We have cash," Min-jun smiled. "Daegwang Construction has zero debt and 1 Trillion in cash. When the other builders collapse... we are going to buy them for scrap metal."
He looked at Ye-eun. "The war isn't over, Ye-eun. The battlefield just got bigger."
[TRANSACTION LOG]
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Date: Aug 2022
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Action: STRATEGIC ACQUISITION (The Crown Jewel).
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Asset: Daegwang Corp (Holding Company) - 40% Controlling Stake.
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Cost: Assumption of 2.4 Trillion KRW Inheritance Tax Liability.
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Payment Structure:
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1 Trillion KRW Cash (Down Payment).
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1.4 Trillion KRW Debt (5-Year Installment @ 3% Interest).
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Source of Funds:
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Crypto Liquidation Proceeds.
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Dividends from Daegwang Construction.
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Dividends from Toss/Hermes Exits.
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