Chapter 370 |
Only after Assemblyman Myeong Jin-wook announced his resignation did Kang Jin-hoo halt his offensive.
The announcement of the 1 billion won payment meant he had obtained evidence that could strip Myeong of his parliamentary seat.
Various theories circulated about this: that Myeong had accepted bribes, that hidden assets under borrowed names had been discovered, that it involved a woman, or that he had an illegitimate child.
However, since Kang Jin-hoo never publicized the details, it remained a mystery.
The politicians who witnessed this incident were aghast.
By scattering billions in reward money, he had ultimately brought down a key figure in the New Politics Party's mainstream, a lawmaker even considered a potential next presidential candidate!
Assemblyman Myeong Jin-wook was a prominent member of the pro-Heo faction, a key figure linking the Blue House and the ruling party. His forced retirement from politics immediately caused a significant shift in the party's internal power dynamics.
Key figures in the Blue House expressed their discomfort, and the New Politics Party worked hard to prevent internal strife. However, everyone refrained from making direct comments about the matter.
Although Kang Jin-hoo's actions were arguably illegal, it was Assemblyman Myeong Jin-wook who had started it all.
Moreover, if he and his family had truly been above suspicion, this wouldn't have happened in the first place—though one might wonder if such a politician even exists.
Many people found it satisfying, but there were also significant opposing voices. One political expert expressed great concern, asking, “Who in Korea can criticize Kang Jin-hoo now?”
In any case, this incident taught both the political sphere and the media one clear lesson: you could mess with Kang Jin-hoo, but you absolutely could not mess with the people around him.
Media outlets simultaneously halted any attempts to publicize the identity of OTK Company's vice president, investigate Kang Jin-hoo's mother, or write sensational articles about Ellie Kim.
The internet also cleaned up. Swear words, lewd remarks, ridicule, and criticism directed at those around Kang Jin-hoo completely vanished.
***
After visiting my mother at the hotel, I walked outside with President Im Soo-mi, drinking coffee.
“You handled this really well. The chaebol women trying to get close to Madam must have come to their senses a bit too.”
Thanks to President Im Soo-mi and Ellie soothing her, my mother had regained her spirits. Recently, she had even reluctantly gone golfing, dragged along by those around her.
“I’m indebted to you again.”
At my words, she sipped her coffee and said,
“Don’t say that. I did it for myself, not for you, CEO Kang. At this age, it’s not easy to find like-minded friends.”
As we walked, we arrived in front of an M Pizza store.
It wasn't as bustling as when it first opened, but it was still doing well. I had spoken to Kim Jae-hak recently, and he said the Paju branch was also doing well. He had almost paid back all the money he borrowed for the opening.
“It’ll be quiet for a while. Though there’s no guarantee something similar won’t happen again later.”
These things kept repeating because politicians weren't particularly quick learners. Once they held power, they tended to delude themselves into thinking they could do anything.
I gave a bitter smile.
“Well, if that happens, we’ll have to assess the situation and respond accordingly.”
***
We relaxed leisurely over the weekend.
I sat on the sofa and looked through the accumulated mail. Ever since we moved into this house, all sorts of VIP invitations had been flooding in.
These were for events where hotels or department stores gathered VIPs to unveil new products or new lineups.
Even if the economy was struggling, the gap between rich and poor was widening, and the wealth of the rich was increasing further. That's probably why products targeting the upper class kept pouring out.
Ellie said,
“They say a new Birkin bag is coming out.”
“Oh, really?”
I took the invitation.
It was its first unveiling in Korea, and apparently, only those who attended the event could make priority reservations. The price was $30,000.
Taek-gyu was astonished.
“Wow! A single bag costs as much as a car?”
“What’s more absurd is that it’s hard to buy even if you have the money.”
The waiting period could be as short as six months or as long as two to three years. Nevertheless, everyone was desperate to buy one.
“Why? Wouldn’t they make a fortune if they produced a lot and sold a lot?”
“It’s a kind of hunger marketing. If something is rare, you somehow want it more.”
When VIPs buy up the limited quantity first, the product itself becomes a symbol of wealth. Then, the general public with purchasing power rushes to buy it.
However, if it becomes too common, its image might suffer, so luxury brands control the quantity appropriately when selling.
“Isn’t it because skilled leather artisans make them by hand, stitch by stitch, so it takes time?”
“That’s just marketing.”
They were all standardized manufactured goods anyway. Adding a handmade image was just a ploy to justify the high price.
“In the first place, there’s no guarantee that human hands are better than machines, so what’s the point of people sewing them?”
Taek-gyu thought for a moment and then said,
“Still, isn’t a Japanese sword better if a master craftsman hammers it out?”
“That’s also an illusion created by subculture. No matter how much you hammer and fold the steel, would it be better than good steel produced by a machine and rolled?”
Taek-gyu was surprised by my words.
“What? Was that all a lie?”
“Well, if made that way, it might have value as a cultural asset. But it wouldn’t be practical for real combat.”
“True, it’s not like you’d take it to a battlefield for a banzai charge.”
Somehow, it felt like Japan might actually do that, though.
I asked Ellie,
“Don’t you want a Birkin bag?”
Ellie shook her head.
“Wouldn’t Mother like it more than me?”
“Should we buy one for now?”
It was a hassle to go in person, so should I ask Sang-yeop sunbae? He frequented these kinds of events, so he’d probably be happy if I asked.
There were also many invitations from car, watch, and jewelry brands.
Ellie picked one out from among them.
“How about this one?”
It was a jewelry brand called Piohr.
“The date is today. Let’s all go for a change of pace.”
***
We changed into suits. In the meantime, Ellie, who had changed into a pale yellow dress, twirled in front of me.
“How do I look? Does it suit me?”
I nodded.
“You’re beautiful.”
Even though I saw her face every day, my heart seemed to pound. It was a fresh realization, but Ellie was truly beautiful.
After getting ready, we drove to a hotel in Cheongdam-dong.
The event manager, who had been notified of our attendance in advance, came out to the hotel main entrance to greet us.
“Thank you so much for attending, CEO Kang Jin-hoo.”
“Thank you for inviting us.”
I took Ellie’s hand and entered the hall. Many people had already gathered inside. At our appearance, those who had been chatting among themselves were startled into silence and turned their gazes towards us.
Jewelry was displayed in various places throughout the hall. The gems sparkled under the lights.
Taek-gyu glanced around and said,
“Anything I can buy for my sister?”
He was a good brother for thinking of his sister, but...
“How about buying something for Min Ha-young?”
“Why?”
“Well, as a congratulatory gift for her webtoon launch, or something.”
“That sounds good.”
“Buy one for Yang Ha-na too.”
“Why?"
“Just a gift. Does a gift need a reason?”
Ellie chimed in from the side.
“That’s right. She’ll definitely be happy to receive a gift. I’ll help you choose.”
As we were talking, familiar faces approached us one by one to greet us. Among them, however, was an unexpected person.
It was none other than Princess Anneke.
Wearing a casual dress, she greeted us happily upon seeing us.
“Fancy meeting you here. I was actually planning to visit your company to say hello.”
Ellie shook her hand warmly.
“Nice to see you again, Princess.”
“Please, just call me Anneke.”
Princess Anneke bowed her head towards me.
“Hello, sunbaenim.”
Now that she was at Korea University, did that make her my junior?
“How are your studies?”
“Yes. It’s fun. I’ve made many friends, and I’m studying Korean hard.”
Taek-gyu said,
“If you’re good at Japanese, Korean comes quickly.”
For reference, she apparently learned Japanese by playing games. Just how much gaming do you have to do for that to happen naturally?
Taek-gyu and Princess Anneke talked as if they were old friends meeting after a long time.
Watching them, I asked Ellie in a low voice,
“Did you know Princess Anneke would be here?”
Ellie smiled.
“Of course.”
“How?”
“Piohr is a historic Norwegian jewelry company, isn't it? So I thought the Princess, being in Korea, would also be invited.”
“Ah…”
So that was it. I wasn't very interested in this area, so I didn't know.
I let the two of them talk and said to Ellie,
“Ellie, pick out something you like too. I’ll buy you anything.”
“Aren’t you overdoing it? This brand’s products are quite expensive.”
“Don’t worry. I’m making good money these days, so it’s fine.”
***
CarOS continued its driverless car experiments centered around Detroit. It also began trial operations of driverless taxis with permission from the state government.
When a customer made a request, a vehicle was dispatched to take them to their destination, and the fare was automatically paid through an app.
To prepare for any eventuality, a driver was initially present in the vehicle, but they performed no operations or conversation, only collecting various data.
If the trial operations confirmed no issues, it could be officially launched within the year.
Some raised safety concerns, but it was already a confirmed fact that autonomous cars had a lower accident rate than human-driven cars. Moreover, as more autonomous cars traveled the roads, they could share information via communication, assess the overall road situation, and further reduce the accident rate.
When CarOS skipped the existing ride-sharing stage of connecting drivers and passengers and went straight to driverless taxis, ride-sharing companies became extremely nervous.
Iver, the world's largest ride-sharing company, decided to collaborate with other companies to launch a similar service.
As competition ignited, various countries began reviewing the issue of allowing driverless cars. Korea, too, were deep in thoughts.
The government's basic stance was that even if autonomous driving was permitted as a driving aid, it was too early to allow driverless cars. The biggest problem, as always, was opposition from the transportation industry.
Unlike the United States, where the re-employment of laid-off workers was happening quickly thanks to booms in the construction and manufacturing industries, Korea lacked the capacity to absorb the unemployment of a large number of transportation workers.
If they became unemployed due to the allowance of driverless cars, who would they vote for in the next election?
Lawmakers, regardless of party affiliation, were all thinking about the next general election. Well aware of this situation, the freight, taxi, and bus industries pressured the government to guarantee employment.
This was less about industry selfishness and more due to the severe lack of jobs and a weak social safety net. Once a job was lost, it was hard to recover, so they opposed it first and asked questions later.
However, such opposition might slow down the changes of the era, but it couldn't stop them. It would only be a difference of leading or following.
Another piece of news was that FaceIt's sales had once again hit an all-time high. This was largely due not only to the growth of existing OTT services but also to the launch of RealDoll Annie.
RealDolls sold like hotcakes. Users expressed extremely high satisfaction and continuously purchased related content.
Just as it had done in the pornography market, FaceIt pushed out other companies and set out to dominate the global RealDoll market.
It exported not only within the U.S. but also to foreign countries, and among these, the country with the second-highest sales after the U.S. was, unsurprisingly, Japan, often called the "land of advanced adult entertainment."
Even anti-Korean sentiment towards me couldn't curb the desire for RealDolls. In the first place, the general public, excluding right-wingers, didn't pay much attention to such things.
Korea was excluded from this Annie craze because RealDolls were banned from import.
In this situation, an incident occurred.
A group attempting to smuggle Annie dolls disguised as mannequins was caught by customs. Upon discovering the smuggling attempt, customs immediately conducted a full inspection of items declared as mannequins.
Surprisingly, besides Annie, various other RealDolls were found, and some were confirmed to have already been distributed in the market.
This incident threw customs into an uproar and even led to an investigation into adult shopping malls.
The smugglers who were arrested pleaded their innocence.
“We admit our wrongdoing a hundred times over for falsely declaring the items for import. But why on earth are RealDolls illegal?”
In fact, unlike drugs or firearms, there were no clear regulations explicitly prohibiting the import of RealDolls.
To this, the investigative authorities replied:
“Because there is a high concern that they will harm the good public morals and customs of society and significantly stimulate women's sense of shame.”
It was hard to understand what this meant, but in any case, that was their stance.
This incident led to a sharp division between those who argued that RealDoll imports should be permitted and those who insisted they absolutely should not.