Chapter 146: The Third Company

“Cheol-jin?”

Department Head Jeong furrowed his brow, a puzzled expression crossing his face at the unfamiliar yet somehow familiar name.

Then, as if a thought suddenly struck him, his eyes widened.

“Wait… You don’t mean… Could this Cheol-jin be CEO Park Cheol-jin?”

Jeong pressed, but I simply stared back, offering no explanation.

And before even a few minutes had passed, Park Cheol-jin appeared on the scene.

“CEO, what brings you here?”

Department Head Jeong, looking flustered, alternated his gaze between Park Cheol-jin and me.

But Park Cheol-jin ignored Jeong’s words and walked straight toward me.

“What’s the sudden issue?”

I pointed to the problematic site with my hand.

“They’re installing tension cables here, but the supervisor is trying to pour concrete while the formwork is misaligned.”

Park Cheol-jin’s expression turned cold as he inspected the area I had indicated.

Uncle Yu and the other workers were forcibly adjusting the misaligned cables, but it was clear they weren’t doing it properly.

“What’s the point if it’s useless? Stop and come up.”

Uncle Yu hesitated at my words but stopped working and climbed back up.

“……This won’t work. Forcing it will only cause problems later……”

Uncle Yu trailed off, noticing the atmosphere around him, and quickly closed his mouth.

He had recognized CEO Park.

“Department Head Jeong, were you really planning to proceed with the work in this state?”

“Well… If we redo the formwork from the start, it’ll be difficult to meet the schedule……”

“And what were you planning to do if the walls shrink or crack after the concrete is poured?”

“……”

Given Jeong’s personality, he would likely have blamed the workers.

Uncle Yu spoke up in place of Jeong, who couldn’t give a proper answer.

“If we proceed as is, the tension won’t distribute properly, and problems are bound to arise. Even if it takes more time, it would actually save time to dismantle all the formwork, realign the tension cables to their original angle, and then pour the concrete.”

Park Cheol-jin nodded in agreement with Uncle Yu’s words.

“Even the site workers know this, yet you, as the supervisor, were going to force the work? I’ll definitely hold you accountable for this. Return to the company and wait.”

“CEO…”

Department Head Jeong tried to say something more.

But anything he said would only sound like an excuse.

After Jeong left, Park Cheol-jin looked at me with an apologetic expression.

“I’m sorry. I lacked judgment in appointing someone like him as a supervisor……”

“How is that your fault? Jeong knew and still tried to force it through.”

“I’ll replace the supervisor here with someone else as soon as I get back to the company……”

“No, don’t do that.”

I looked at Uncle Yu standing beside me.

“Why not hire this man as the site supervisor?”

“What?”

Park Cheol-jin looked at Uncle Yu with a bewildered expression.

A day laborer in shabby work clothes and a helmet pressed down on his head.

But I wasn’t judging by appearances—I was proposing this based on his skills.

“You want to hire him… as the site supervisor?”

Park Cheol-jin looked back at me.

I nodded and asked Uncle Yu,

“Where did you work before, Uncle?”

Uncle Yu—no, Yu Seong-bok hesitated for a moment.

He seemed unaccustomed to talking about his career in front of strangers.

But soon, as if making up his mind, he opened his mouth.

“I worked as a site manager at Daegun Industries. I oversaw bridge construction projects in the Middle East. Then the company went bankrupt…… and somehow, I ended up here.”

Park Cheol-jin’s expression changed.

“Daegun Industries? Wait…”

“You’re probably thinking of the right thing. I was the site manager for the team that built the Falcon Arch, the super-long bridge in the Middle East.”

Park Cheol-jin nodded vigorously.

The Falcon Arch, constructed by Daegun Industries in the Middle East, had been a hugely talked-about project at the time.

It was a structure installed with concrete and tension cables—

Similar technology to what was being used at this site.

Then a question suddenly occurred to me.

“Someone with your level of skill could easily work at another company. Why are you working as a day laborer here?”

Yu Seong-bok removed his helmet and rubbed it in his hands.

After lowering his gaze for a moment, he answered in a low voice,

“When Daegun Industries went bankrupt, some executives were arrested for embezzlement, and our entire team, which had worked on the same project, was labeled as immoral……”

It was the obvious answer—no construction company would take them.

I added,

“But you were innocent.”

“What good is innocence? The industry had already labeled our entire team as villains.”

Uncle Yu’s lips quivered slightly.

I patted his shoulder.

“Then work here and shed that image.”

Uncle Yu looked at me with surprised eyes.

“Kang… no, just what are you……”

Park Cheol-jin spoke up in my place, his expression serious.

“If you’re willing to work at our company, I’ll hire you as the site supervisor here.”

“Really…?”

“How could I joke in front of our CEO?”

“The CEO? The CEO of Dojin Construction is……”

Uncle Yu seemed confused by the complex situation.

Park Cheol-jin clarified it for him in one sentence,

“I am the CEO of Dojin Construction, but the CEO of Dojin Group is Mr. Kang Tae-joon here.”

“……!”

＊＊＊

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“It’s fine. While you were at the site, I was able to get some work done here.”

The site office had an intranet connection, so Executive Director Oh Seong-hak said he had no trouble working.

Then, looking me up and down, he smiled.

“I’ve been meaning to say this—dressed like that, I really couldn’t tell you were the CEO.”

Covered in dust.

Even I could see how I could easily be mistaken for a site worker.

“That’s why people call me Kang.”

Actually, being called that wasn’t so bad.

It felt like I was playing the role of a hidden expert.

Anyway.

“……Should I report on the hedge fund establishment here?”

“There are too many people here, so let’s go back to the company. Seong-hwan needs to know too.”

“Understood.”

As soon as we arrived at Dojin Industries,

a world map and the status of hedge fund establishments in various countries were displayed on the monitor installed on the conference room wall.

“As you instructed, we’ve completed the establishment of a total of 50 hedge funds. They’ve been set up as independent corporations in major tax havens and financial hubs worldwide, including Hong Kong, the Cayman Islands, the Virgin Islands, Luxembourg, Singapore, the UAE, Panama, Switzerland, Belize, and Malta. Each has been designed with different investment targets and characteristics.”

Executive Director Oh manipulated the remote control,

and the screen filled with details of each hedge fund.

Hong Kong – BlueWave Capital
- Main Investment Assets: Asian IT and semiconductor companies
- Initial Assets Under Management: $500 million
- Features: Focused on China and Southeast Asia, identifying promising local startups
Cayman Islands – Marine Hedge Capital
- Main Investment Assets: Global bonds and foreign exchange
- Initial Assets Under Management: $700 million
- Features: Arbitrage based on exchange rate fluctuations and leveraged investments
Virgin Islands – Nexus Capital
- Main Investment Assets: Real estate development and infrastructure projects
- Initial Assets Under Management: $400 million
- Features: Developing country infrastructure investments and large-scale redevelopment projects
Luxembourg – Zephyrus Capital
- Main Investment Assets:……

5.……

Malta – Trinity Holdings

Main Investment Assets: Undetermined
Initial Assets Under Management: $500 million
Features:……

Seong-hwan looked slightly surprised as he reviewed the list of 50 funds.

“That’s a lot. Is there a need to establish them with such granularity? Couldn’t we reduce it to around five? That would be enough.”

“If we did that, it would quickly draw attention, just like DJ Capital.”

Even now, in just five years, DJ Capital’s assets had grown thousands of times over from the initial investment.

If the assets grew another tenfold, it was likely that all global investors would become aware of DJ Capital and take an interest.

‘If they suspect I’m investing with future knowledge, explaining it won’t be easy.’

“Are you trying to keep the investment status completely hidden?”

“A sharp stone attracts the chisel. If we achieve too much success, we’re bound to face scrutiny.”

“True. Even with Lunar and KTalk, there are already moves to restrict them in various countries.”

Of course.

Knowing that monopolies generate profit,

Few would simply stand by and watch.

That’s why I’ve been striving to set the standard, even if it means knowing and being unable to act.

“However, the fee for asset allocation within DJ Capital might be higher than expected.”

If DJ Capital were to invest in newly established companies, the fees wouldn’t be significant.

But since the plan was to obscure the connection between DJ Capital and the newly established hedge funds by routing DJ Capital’s assets through them,

The process could incur substantial fees.

“But if we establish hedge funds through such circumvention, could that cause problems later?”

Seong-hwan looked at me with a worried expression.

I shook my head.

“No, it won’t. What we’re doing is entirely within legal boundaries—it’s just structural design.”

Executive Director Oh added an explanation.

“The CEO is right. Establishing hedge funds in tax havens is a common, legal asset management strategy used globally in the financial sector. The goal is to optimize taxes and distribute asset flows to avoid specific national regulations.”

Especially the last part aligned perfectly with my objective.

“Moreover, since each hedge fund’s investment strategy is designed differently, from the outside, the flow of funds will appear inconsistent. If there’s no discernible investment pattern……”

Seong-hwan nodded at Executive Director Oh’s explanation, but his expression remained uneasy.

“But if we fragment the assets like this, won’t we have trouble using the money all at once later? Since each hedge fund operates independently, pooling the funds would require complying with regulations in each country.”

It was a sharp question.

However, having used this method frequently as the head of strategic planning at Ahsung,

I knew exactly how to resolve it.

“That’s why we’ve established an overarching holding company for all the hedge funds—a completely separate third-party company unrelated to DJ Capital.”