Chapter 1625: Zhao Fusheng, the Deep One

For Lee Jae-yong and Lee Boo-jin, their father Lee Kun-hee was not only their father but also the ruler of the Samsung empire.

What did his disappointment in them mean?

It was a terrifying thought, so both Lee Jae-yong and Lee Boo-jin were afraid.

To be precise, they did not want to lose their father's trust.

"Study hard."

Lee Kun-hee looked at his son and daughter and said slowly.

Hearing this, Lee Boo-jin and Lee Jae-yong exchanged glances; clearly, they did not fully understand their father's words.

"Do you think Zhao Fusheng agreed to sell Alibaba shares to our Samsung Group because he cares a lot about Alibaba's equity?"

Looking at his two children, Lee Kun-hee spoke slowly.

Lee Boo-jin nodded; she indeed thought so.

Lee Jae-yong thought the same, only he felt that Zhao Fusheng did this to win over Samsung, after all, his Hanxing Investment had many businesses in Korea.

"You two, too naive."

Lee Kun-hee shook his head gently: "That young man, not yet thirty, started from scratch to get where he is today. Do you think he would make a losing deal?"

"Hanxing Investment is indeed his business, but it's only part of his ventures. Don't forget, before he came to Korea, Hanxing Investment's partner was Jae-hyun's CJ."

The siblings exchanged a look but had to admit their father was absolutely right.

They actually knew this fact but hadn't paid attention, after all, compared to Samsung, CJ was just a group split off from Samsung, with no ability to compete. The reason CJ Group managed to survive until now was more because Lee Kun-hee was constrained by various forces and couldn't wipe them out completely.

It was a sad story...

Prince Lee Jae-hyun, bent on revenge, was also well aware that compared to his uncle Lee Kun-hee's power, everything he now possessed meant nothing.

That's why in recent years he had desperately tried to have his father Lee Mong-hee, despite his illness, continue the inheritance lawsuit with Lee Kun-hee.

Even though his father's cancer was gradually entering its terminal stage.

Because he knew this was his last chance; if he didn't act now, once his father died, he would never be able to defeat his uncle.

"Father, why doesn't Jae-hyun try to win over Zhao Fusheng?" Lee Jae-yong hesitated but still asked quietly. This was what he was most curious about, after all, Zhao Fusheng's potential or his assets were now definitely no less than his father's personal wealth. Such an important ally, and CJ hadn't made a move—that was strange.

"Because he knows very well that I won't allow it."

Lee Kun-hee chuckled, revealing a chilling smile, and said slowly.

No way!

What Lee Jae-hyun could think of, Lee Kun-hee would have thought of too.

For Lee Kun-hee, an ally like Zhao Fusheng was something he would never allow Lee Jae-hyun to have. The internal relationships among Korean chaebols were complex; Lee Kun-hee could promise to leave Lee Jae-hyun a way out, but he would never allow CJ Group to have a strong ally like Future Group.

This was a tacit understanding, a kind of unwritten rule.

"Father, you haven't told us why you think Zhao Fusheng wouldn't make a losing deal?" Lee Boo-jin frowned slightly; she finally realized she might have misunderstood something earlier.

Lee Kun-hee gave his eldest daughter a deep look. The worldly-wise man vaguely guessed something, though it was absurd, but on second thought, it was possible.

Shaking his head, Lee Kun-hee didn't dwell on it and said, "In fact, I tell you, he cares more about Facebook's shares, so he will only sell you one percent of the shares, and the value of that share won't be less than several hundred million dollars."

That much?

Lee Boo-jin and Lee Jae-yong gasped, never expecting such a thing.

"Facebook's current valuation has exceeded three billion dollars."

Lee Kun-hee said slowly: "I had someone estimate before; after it goes public, the value of this internet company will exceed one hundred billion dollars, maybe more. So tell me, what return will that one percent of shares yield?"

The Lee siblings exchanged glances, completely unable to imagine such a thing.

"Then what about the Alibaba shares?"

Lee Jae-yong thought for a moment and asked his father.

"Alibaba..."

The smile on Lee Kun-hee's face faded, and his expression gradually turned cold: "That's a bait."

"Bait?"

Lee Jae-yong was startled, not quite understanding his father's meaning.

Lee Kun-hee said indifferently: "Go investigate who Alibaba's current shareholders are, and you'll understand why Zhao Fusheng is willing to cooperate with our Samsung rather than with Boo-jin alone."

Lee Kun-hee's words stunned Lee Jae-yong. Before he could speak, he saw Lee Boo-jin's expression change slightly.

Compared to her uninformed brother, Lee Boo-jin, because she had planned to cooperate with Zhao Fusheng, knew more about his situation.

She remembered clearly that Alibaba's equity structure was very complex; Sequoia Capital, SoftBank Asia, Yahoo, and Future Investment all held shares in the company, and there had even been disputes among them for a while.

In other words, it was a trap.

And now, obviously, Zhao Fusheng's goal was to lure Samsung into the trap.

"Understand?"

Lee Kun-hee glanced at his eldest daughter and asked calmly.

Lee Boo-jin quickly nodded: "Father, I'm sorry for disappointing you."

Waving his hand, Lee Kun-hee said, "Don't overthink it. Zhao Fusheng's purpose is simple: he wants to see me."

"See you?"

Hearing this, Lee Boo-jin and Lee Jae-yong were both stunned, looking at their father in confusion, completely unable to understand why he made such a judgment.

"Heh..."

Lee Kun-hee waved his hand: "Don't worry about it. Boo-jin, call Zhao Fusheng. He's been waiting for me."

The siblings exchanged glances, bewildered.

Yes, exactly.

Although they were now over thirty, in front of Lee Kun-hee, they were still like children.

"Alright, that's it. Boo-jin, make the call. Jae-yong, wait here." Lee Kun-hee made the decision, waving his hand to instruct Lee Boo-jin and Lee Jae-yong.

The siblings nodded, and Lee Boo-jin got up to call Zhao Fusheng.

A moment later, Miss Lee returned with a strange expression.

"What's wrong, sis?" Lee Jae-yong quickly asked.

Lee Boo-jin smiled bitterly: "Zhao Fusheng agreed to meet Father and is coming over now."

Lee Jae-yong was dumbfounded, never expecting that his father had predicted it.

……

……

"Old fox, not easy to fool."

Sitting in the car, Zhao Fusheng looked at the street scene outside and muttered to himself.

"Chairman, are we going to see Lee Kun-hee?"

Park Sun-young sat beside Zhao Fusheng and asked softly.

Zhao Fusheng nodded: "Yes, what's your impression of this Samsung chairman?"

Park Sun-young smiled bitterly: "Chairman, that's Lee Kun-hee. How could I have an impression..."

She meant it. What Samsung meant to Koreans, only Park Sun-young, as a Korean, could understand.

For Zhao Fusheng and Hu Donghai, Samsung was a huge multinational group, and Lee Kun-hee was an economic powerhouse. But for Koreans, Samsung was the shadow looming over the entire country.

And now, Park Sun-young suddenly realized she might be about to face that Korean economic emperor.

Nervous!

Really nervous!

Thinking this, Park Sun-young couldn't help but look at Zhao Fusheng. She found it hard to imagine that her boss, not yet thirty, was about to confront that great figure head-on.

No, to be precise, the confrontation was the result of Zhao Fusheng's deliberate scheming step by step.

This guy, from the moment he first met Lee Boo-jin, had been planning today's meeting.

And it had to be admitted, he really pulled it off.