Chapter 1587: Plutocracy

The phrase 'overnight return to the pre-liberation days' is used to describe someone suddenly becoming poor, with decades of hard work reduced to nothing.

Liang Jingyu couldn't even imagine what it would be like if he himself were to return to the pre-liberation days overnight.

He couldn't accept it, nor could he bear it.

So, he quickly arranged new translators and assistants for Zhao Fusheng and the others.

Jiang Wen was somewhat surprised by his attitude; he hadn't expected that Liang Jingyu, a figure akin to a regional governor within the Future Group, would be so terrified of Zhao Fusheng, the chairman.

"You're really something!"

After dinner that evening, Jiang Wen casually praised Zhao Fusheng while chatting.

Zhao Fusheng smiled, picked up a piece of fruit, ate it, and then said to Jiang Wen, "What, surprised by Liang Jingyu's performance?"

"Yeah, he's that afraid of you."

Jiang Wen nodded. "It's only now that I realize you're not just my friend, but also a super-rich man."

Zhao Fusheng rolled his eyes, too lazy to retort. "Why do you care so much? He's the person I placed here, my subordinate, so naturally he has to be responsible to me."

Jiang Wen was taken aback and asked casually, "Then how can you ensure he won't have problems over here?"

"No one can guarantee that."

Zhao Fusheng shook his head. "Decisions can only be made through effective monitoring and judgment of the person."

"Judgment?"

Jiang Wen looked at Zhao Fusheng suspiciously, clearly not quite understanding his words.

In his view, what Zhao Fusheng said was somewhat hard to grasp.

Zhao Fusheng laughed heartily. "Nothing special, just personality analysis. A person's character determines their choices. Bold people like to take risks and surprise others. Timid people choose the safe route. Character decides fate; character decides choices."

"Ha, that's very much in line with psychology. So you have to study this too?" Jiang Wen's eyes lit up as he smiled at Zhao Fusheng.

"Of course."

Zhao Fusheng's gaze was calm, completely unchanged, as he said flatly, "People are the carriers of all wisdom and action, and also the most primitive source of creativity. Understand a person thoroughly, and you can accurately predict all their behavior."

He paused, then suddenly smiled. "Actually, you should know, this is business."

Jiang Wen simply shut his mouth, deciding not to continue this topic with Zhao Fusheng, because he couldn't quite understand what the guy was saying.

"By the way, do you think I should go to Busan first or to the Baeksang Awards first?"

Jiang Wen didn't want to talk about business, so naturally he turned to film matters.

"Doesn't matter."

Zhao Fusheng shook his head. "Go see Song Kang-ho tomorrow, talk about the film, then take a look around. It was an unexpected bonus anyway. Best if you can sell the rights; if not, you lose nothing, right?"

Jiang Wen paused, then nodded. "Alright, I'll follow your advice."

...

...

The night passed without incident. The next morning, Jiang Wen took his translator and assistant to visit Song Kang-ho, while Zhao Fusheng himself went to the office building of Hanxing Future Investment.

The building Zhao Fusheng had insisted on buying years ago had now appreciated by twenty percent. In other words, the value of the building alone had already yielded profits exceeding ten billion Korean won.

On this point alone, Liang Jingyu and others regarded Zhao Fusheng's judgment as extraordinary.

After all, in business, the most important thing is vision.

After meeting with several major shareholders of the company and listening to reports from Liang Jingyu and others, Zhao Fusheng went to Liang Jingyu's office.

"Have a seat."

He asked everyone else to leave, and he and Liang Jingyu sat facing each other on the sofa.

"Chairman, about yesterday's incident, I..."

Liang Jingyu opened his mouth, his face full of apology. Clearly, he was still troubled by what happened yesterday.

Zhao Fusheng laughed heartily and waved his hand. "It's not your fault. Subordinates trying to guess their superior's intentions is normal."

He wasn't the kind of rigid person. What happened yesterday was definitely not instigated by Liang Jingyu; it must have been arranged by his subordinates. But they meant well. Refusing was enough; if he went after anyone, it would seem too petty.

As a boss, one must learn to turn a blind eye to some things. 'Water that is too clear has no fish'—Zhao Fusheng understood that principle.

If he took everything seriously, business couldn't go on.

"Thank you, Chairman."

Liang Jingyu let out a long sigh and sincerely thanked Zhao Fusheng.

He had already scolded Director Kim harshly yesterday, but even so, he was still a bit nervous inside, knowing well his boss's methods. This man was not comparable to those Korean chaebols who could be easily fooled.

Speaking of which, Liang Jingyu truly admired Zhao Fusheng's methods. When he first opened the Korean market, he followed Zhao Fusheng's plan exactly. At the time, he found it somewhat puzzling, but now, seeing Korea's development, he realized how far-sighted Zhao Fusheng's decisions had been.

"Tell me, what are your views on the current Korean economy?" Zhao Fusheng smiled and asked Liang Jingyu.

Balancing kindness with authority was the way to manage subordinates. For him, a gentle reprimand to this subordinate in Korea was enough; after all, he was a smart man who knew what to do.

"Chairman, the current Korean economy is in a very peculiar state..."

Liang Jingyu was prepared. Upon hearing Zhao Fusheng's question, he immediately organized his thoughts and spoke eloquently.

The Korean economy was heavily influenced by the US economy. To put it bluntly, compared to China's economic system, which still had some resistance in the face of a global economic crisis, Korea would be greatly affected at the slightest sign of trouble from the US.

The subprime mortgage crisis had erupted in the second half of last year, and Korea naturally felt its impact.

"In the second half of last year, the overall growth rate of the Korean economy dropped sharply, hitting new lows in recent months," Liang Jingyu said seriously to Zhao Fusheng. "I predict it might get even worse this year."

"You mean South Korea might be on the verge of an economic crisis?"

Zhao Fusheng frowned and asked Liang Jingyu.

Liang Jingyu nodded. "The news I've received is that the Hanjin Group has fallen into trouble. I suspect it might not be able to hold on past next year."

"That serious!"

Zhao Fusheng was quite astonished. Hanjin was one of the top conglomerates in South Korea—was it really coming to an end?

Struggling to recall memories from his own impressions, Zhao Fusheng finally shook his head. "Old Liang, don't underestimate these South Korean chaebols."

"What?"

Liang Jingyu was taken aback and looked at Zhao Fusheng with surprise.

Clearly, he didn't understand what Zhao Fusheng meant.

"You..."

Zhao Fusheng sighed. Looking at Liang Jingyu's expression, he knew that Liang Jingyu might have gotten carried away because of the smooth development of Hanxing Future's investments in recent years.

Of course, this complacency didn't mean he had forgotten his roots, but rather that he had overlooked certain dangers that could fatally harm the company.

In other words, Liang Jingyu hadn't realized that South Korea was different from most countries.

"Chairman, please enlighten me." Seeing Zhao Fusheng's reaction, Liang Jingyu knew he must have done something wrong, otherwise the chairman wouldn't be like this. So he quickly asked Zhao Fusheng.

"Do you know about the chaebol economy?"

Zhao Fusheng wasn't in a hurry and asked Liang Jingyu slowly.

Liang Jingyu was startled but still nodded. "It's a unique economic state in South Korea. Most of the power in this country is actually in the hands of the chaebols."

"Yes, ridiculous, isn't it?" Zhao Fusheng smiled and said to Liang Jingyu, "Speaking of this chaebol economy, we all know that South Korea's economy took off during Park Chung-hee's presidency, the so-called Miracle on the Han River. After World War II, few countries successfully transitioned from low income to high income. South Korea is truly an exception."

"Do you know how a low-income country becomes a high-income country?"

As he spoke, Zhao Fusheng looked at Liang Jingyu and asked.

Liang Jingyu laughed. He had graduated with a degree in economics; how could he not answer this question? He replied, "Of course, by developing industry, especially heavy industry. That's the only way to boost the national economy."

Zhao Fusheng nodded with satisfaction. "Yes, developing heavy industry. How is it usually done? We know that most countries have actually failed, because they lack sufficient capital, manpower, and technology.

In our country, it's relatively successful. After all, given the nature of the state, we can concentrate resources to accomplish major tasks, use the price scissors between industry and agriculture, and sacrifice the income of one or two generations to build a solid industrial foundation.

South Korea is different. As a capitalist country, it doesn't have that capability. So what did South Korea choose?

South Korea chose a chaebol economy.

What is a chaebol economy?

At the national level, the government selects one or more relatively strong enterprises, provides them with state credit backing, and gives them substantial funds and bank loans. At the same time, the state grants them a highly monopolistic position, allowing them to grow rapidly. Once they outgrow the South Korean market, state credit helps them go abroad and compete in other countries.

In this competitive process, in name they are private enterprises, but in reality they are South Korea's state monopolies competing overseas. This state of affairs allowed the South Korean economy to stand out in just a few decades and quickly reach the level of high-income countries."

Liang Jingyu was dumbfounded. He never expected Zhao Fusheng to have such a thorough understanding of South Korea's chaebol economy, far more than he himself knew.

Seeing his expression, Zhao Fusheng knew what he was thinking and continued, "It should be said that South Korea's economic development over the past few decades has been very successful. It truly carved out a unique path, using the chaebol economy to rapidly elevate the entire national economy.

How powerful is South Korea's chaebol economy?

Let me give you an example: Hyundai Group, one of South Korea's top five chaebols. Before Park Chung-hee became president, it was just a small factory with over a hundred workers. Because its founder, Chung Ju-yung's father was a former teacher of President Park, the two families connected. The Park government injected massive funds into Hyundai and restructured it, allowing Hyundai to quickly stand out."

Then Zhao Fusheng looked at Liang Jingyu. "What do you think? Sounds like a joke, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it's too..."

Liang Jingyu was at a loss for words.

Zhao Fusheng shrugged and didn't continue.

In fact, he still had more to say.

Is the chaebol economy good?

Yes, during the takeoff phase of the economy, it really helped South Korea a lot.

But does the chaebol economy have problems?

It does, and big ones!

You see, choosing which enterprise to inject capital into and which to support is entirely a government act. In China, that would be fine—full support for state-owned enterprises, and the money earned belongs to the people. That makes sense.

But from Samsung to Hyundai to Hanjin, these large enterprises are all private chaebols, private companies. And unlike the United States, where most large companies are publicly listed and the founding families no longer hold many shares,

Samsung, Hyundai, and these big companies are genuinely private or family-owned companies. In other words, they use the nation's financial resources to support the growth of a single family!

Therefore, the chaebol economy has led to an extremely close integration of politics and economy in South Korea, which later generations call crony capitalism.

In short, Zhao Fusheng believed in Liang Jingyu's foresight regarding Hanjin Group's predicament.

But in his view, Hanjin could not possibly go bankrupt and collapse completely in a short time!

Some things are not necessarily bound to happen just because they appear to be so.

"Chairman, do you mean Hanjin won't go bankrupt?"

Liang Jingyu wasn't stupid. After Zhao Fusheng wasted so much breath explaining South Korea's chaebol politics, if he still didn't understand the boss's meaning, he would be not just foolish but stupid.

Zhao Fusheng nodded. "It's not that it won't go bankrupt, but not now, or in the short term. It's impossible."

Liang Jingyu frowned slightly. "Then what do you mean? Shouldn't we take the opportunity to do something?"

"Haha, you."

Zhao Fusheng laughed and pointed at Liang Jingyu. "I've noticed you seem quite greedy, always wanting to stir up trouble in South Korea. Remember my words: be patient, understand?"

Patient?

Hearing Zhao Fusheng's words, Liang Jingyu was startled. Intuition told him that his boss seemed to have something in mind, and that something was clearly aimed at the South Koreans!