Chapter 2143: The Collaborator

It must be said that Zhao Fusheng's attitude had some influence on Lee Boo-jin.

Although Lee Boo-jin was quite puzzled inwardly, she was even more aware that Zhao Fusheng was not the kind of person who easily changed his mind.

"Fusheng, I think you should still consider it carefully."

Despite being tempted by Zhao Fusheng's proposal to collaborate on a private equity fund, Lee Boo-jin still spoke to him.

Clearly, she valued the Hanjin Shipping matter more.

Zhao Fusheng frowned slightly; Lee Boo-jin's reaction caught him off guard.

"Sister Boo-jin, you..."

Looking at Lee Boo-jin, Zhao Fusheng asked slowly.

Lee Boo-jin gave a bitter smile but said nothing.

In that instant, a flash of insight struck Zhao Fusheng, and he suddenly realized a problem.

A problem he had inadvertently overlooked before.

Why was Lee Boo-jin so enthusiastic about the Hanjin Shipping matter, even bringing it up on her own initiative?

After all, she had once told Zhao Fusheng that compared to some domestic industries in South Korea, she was actually more interested in internet industry projects.

Yet now, she was thinking of investing in a physical enterprise.

There was a lot to unpack there!

Perhaps it wasn't her own idea?

The thought flashed through Zhao Fusheng's mind.

Thinking carefully, if the decision on the whole matter wasn't made by Lee Boo-jin but by her father, Lee Kun-hee, behind her, then perhaps it all made sense.

After all, as two of the top chaebols in South Korea, although there was a significant gap between Hanjin Group and Samsung Group, if they could instigate Hanjin Shipping to break away from Hanjin Group and weaken its power, Lee Kun-hee would surely be happy to do so.

This would also explain why Lee Boo-jin was so passionate about this matter.

With that thought, Zhao Fusheng sighed helplessly and looked at the silent Lee Boo-jin: "Sister Boo-jin, why must you do this?"

Seeing his expression, Lee Boo-jin knew that Zhao Fusheng had probably guessed her difficulty.

Shaking her head, she said softly, "I have no choice. After all, I am a member of the Lee family."

Sometimes, being in a big family could ensure a life of comfort and place one at the top of society, but it also required paying a corresponding price.

Things like arranged marriages were minor matters.

What was more troublesome was that children of big families often had no friends of their own, because they had to consider the family's interests.

Such was the relationship between Lee Boo-jin and Zhao Fusheng.

Originally, their relationship was quite good, but due to their positions, Lee Boo-jin could only choose to follow her father's advice.

"How about this: I'll give Mr. Lee Kun-hee a call."

Zhao Fusheng thought it over and finally made his decision.

Regardless, his cooperation with Samsung was still going smoothly. Since he didn't intend to participate in the Hanjin Shipping project, he had to give a reasonable explanation.

He believed Lee Kun-hee knew that Zhao Fusheng had his own ideas.

That was why he sent Lee Boo-jin to communicate with Zhao Fusheng, hoping she could use their good relationship to persuade him, rather than having his heir, Lee Jae-yong, negotiate with Zhao Fusheng.

Because Lee Kun-hee knew that Zhao Fusheng was not fond of Lee Jae-yong, and Lee Jae-yong himself also disliked Zhao Fusheng.

The reason Zhao Fusheng looked down on Lee Jae-yong was simple: he thought the man had great ambition but little talent, was unremarkable, and was only born into the right family to become Samsung's heir.

And Lee Jae-yong's dislike for Zhao Fusheng was rather laughable.

Because he felt that Zhao Fusheng was too outstanding—how could someone younger than him be so excellent? It was simply incomprehensible.

In short, it was jealousy!

That was human nature.

Hearing Zhao Fusheng's words, Lee Boo-jin thought for a moment and finally nodded: "Alright then."

She could now see that Zhao Fusheng had truly made up his mind not to participate in the Hanjin Shipping project. Since that was the case, she might as well let him communicate with her father directly.

…

…

Leaving the Shilla Hotel, Zhao Fusheng's expression was quite interesting.

Feuds among the wealthy!

He wasn't stupid. Although Lee Boo-jin hadn't shown it too obviously, Zhao Fusheng could clearly sense that she was very happy when he mentioned collaborating on a private equity fund.

But when it came to the Hanjin Shipping project, she was very reluctant.

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Fusheng said to Liu Yiming, "Yiming, do you think Lee Boo-jin or Lee Jae-yong is more suitable as Samsung's heir?"

"Huh?"

Hearing Zhao Fusheng's question, Liu Yiming was startled and somewhat surprised.

He never expected Zhao Fusheng to ask him such a question.

After all, this matter had nothing to do with him.

And this was Samsung, South Korea's top chaebol. Could a mere secretary decide on the heir?

"Just say what you think. I'm just listening."

Zhao Fusheng said to Liu Yiming with a smile.

Liu Yiming nodded cautiously and said, "I think perhaps Ms. Lee Boo-jin would be more suitable."

"Why?"

Zhao Fusheng continued to ask.

"Because she is more familiar with us."

Liu Yiming said matter-of-factly.

Perhaps encouraged by Zhao Fusheng, or perhaps since he had already started speaking, he might as well be frank, he didn't hold back.

"Whether in terms of personal relationships or other reasons, Ms. Lee Boo-jin is more familiar with us and has a better personal friendship with you. If anything comes up, we can discuss it. But as for Lee Jae-yong, we don't know him at all, and I think he is a bit too arrogant."

Liu Yiming said to Zhao Fusheng.

He had seen some materials about Lee Jae-yong before and always felt that this Samsung crown prince was not a man of much substance. Compared to his own boss, he was far inferior, and even compared to his own sister, Lee Boo-jin, he was far behind—not even on the same level.

"Indeed."

Zhao Fusheng smiled, but a plan had already formed in his mind.

As Liu Yiming said, his friendship with Lee Boo-jin was at least better than with Lee Jae-yong.

Since that was the case, some things needed to be prepared in advance.

…

…

Returning to his residence, Zhao Fusheng did not immediately contact Lee Kun-hee.

Instead, he first called Liang Jingyu and Wu Sijie over.

"We won't get involved in the Hanjin Shipping matter."

Zhao Fusheng said to Liang Jingyu and Wu Sijie: "Also, our cooperation with Samsung should be moderated. We don't need to let them invest in every project. For some projects, we can do them ourselves, or we can choose other Korean chaebols. Understand?"

The two exchanged glances. Although they didn't fully grasp Zhao Fusheng's true intentions, since the boss had said so, as subordinates, they could only obey.

Moreover, Zhao Fusheng's order did align with the thoughts of Wu Sijie and Liang Jingyu.

As co-representatives of Hanxing Investment, they were also aware that the cooperation between Hanxing Investment and Samsung CJ had been a bit too frequent.

There were naturally benefits to this: relying on these relationships, Hanxing Investment had expanded rapidly in South Korea and developed quickly.

But there were also drawbacks: in the eyes of many, Samsung and Hanxing Investment were tied together.

After all, although Samsung was the largest chaebol in South Korea, it was not the only one. Having friends naturally meant having enemies.

Some liked it, and some didn't.

A tall tree catches the wind—that described a company like Samsung.

Although Liang Jingyu and Wu Sijie had differences on certain matters, they had long reached a consensus on this issue. In their view, Hanxing Investment needed to shake off this image as soon as possible.

In short, Hanxing Investment was Hanxing Investment, and Samsung Group was Samsung Group. They should not be conflated.