Genius Grandson Of The Loan Shark King

The party convention, often called the flower of party politics.

A party convention was held to elect party leadership, amend party bylaws and regulations, or gather consensus on party positions such as selecting a presidential candidate.

This Centrist Party convention had drawn considerable public attention, as it was being held for the first time in quite a while.

I arrived at COEX, where the convention was taking place.

COEX was already packed with people.

The convention, which had begun in Busan and traveled nationwide, was concluding today.

With today marking the end of the long journey, new party leadership would be elected, and they would lead the party forward.

After stepping out of the car with Manager Ma, I immediately called Myungsoo.

— Hey, Muhyuk. You get home okay last night?

Myungsoo’s voice came through the receiver, mixed with the surrounding noise.

“I just arrived at COEX. Should I just go in?”

— Wait a moment. I’ll send someone right away. Where are you exactly?

I glanced at Manager Ma, and he told me our current location.

I relayed it, and Myungsoo responded cheerfully.

— Okay. I’ll send my aide over immediately.

After ending the call, I looked around.

Police were controlling the area, and charter buses from across the country kept unloading people.

It was a scene that made it clear why party conventions were called the flower of party politics.

After a short wait, a man wearing glasses came hurrying toward us.

“President Kim Muhyuk.”

“Aide Han Seokjin. Long time no see. You’ve been well?”

I extended my hand to shake his. Han Seokjin grasped it with both hands.

After the brief handshake, he turned first.

“I’ll escort you this way.”

“Thank you. Sorry to trouble you.”

“Not at all. It’s an honor that you’re attending the convention.”

“That’s a relief. I was worried I’d be cursed as an uninvited guest, not even being a party member.”

“Haha. You may not be a member, but isn’t there anyone who loves the Centrist Party more than you?”

I had been concerned he might hesitate because I wasn’t a party member, but instead Han Seokjin joked lightly.

He had once been stiff and formal, but spending time with Myungsoo had clearly made him more easygoing.

I followed Han Seokjin toward the convention hall.

He collected two access badges from the part-time staff verifying party members and distributing passes.

“Please wear these around your neck. Let’s go inside.”

Manager Ma and I put on the badges and entered.

“It must have been difficult to secure COEX. Impressive that you managed to rent it.”

“Haha. We prepared months in advance, so we were able to hold the convention without much trouble.”

I had heard that booking COEX wasn’t easy. It seemed the Centrist Party had gone all out in preparation.

The vast convention hall was already filled to the brim.

The heat from the crowd made it almost hard to breathe.

“There are so many people.”

“It’s been a long time since the last convention, and today’s the final day, after all. People came from all over the country. The new party leadership will be announced today.”

“I see.”

“Then, to your seats...”

Han Seokjin tried to guide us to seats at the front.

Too conspicuous.

I shook my head slightly.

I had no desire to push through the crowd.

“Aide Han. I’ll just watch from the back. I’m not fond of crowded places.”

“Ah...”

“Don’t worry. Manager Ma is here, so there won’t be any issues. Just let Myungsoo know my location. He probably understands my temperament better than anyone.”

“Understood.”

“You must be busy. Please go ahead.”

After sending Han Seokjin off, I moved to the farthest corner and sat down.

There weren’t many people around.

I passed the time talking quietly with Manager Ma.

“President Kim Muhyuk.”

Someone called my name.

I turned and saw a familiar face.

“Assemblyman Lee Giho. No, I suppose I should call you Chief of Staff now.”

“Haha. Thank you.”

After the recent bloodshed, the Blue House had carried out a sweeping cabinet reshuffle to calm public sentiment.

The man now standing before me had been appointed Chief of Staff in that reshuffle—Lee Giho.

The positions of Chief of Staff and National Assembly member could not be held concurrently. Lee Giho had relinquished his Assembly seat without hesitation to take the Chief of Staff role.

Lee Giho glanced around and spoke in a lowered voice.

“The President would like to meet quietly.”

“Has he arrived already?”

“He has just departed. I arrived earlier to wait for you.”

“You could have summoned me to the Blue House.”

“Well...”

Lee Giho hesitated, scanning the surroundings. Something was clearly weighing on him.

“If it’s difficult to say here, we can speak later.”

“Thank you.”

I stood up.

There was no reason for the President to meet me in a public setting unless necessary.

“Let’s go. Where should I wait?”

“The President will meet you in his waiting area. I’ll escort you.”

Lee Giho had been President Yoon Changho’s classmate at the Judicial Research and Training Institute.

He had entered politics before Yoon Changho, but he had never been a heavyweight.

However, after Yoon Changho was elected President, the situation changed. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm

Now called the President’s closest confidant, he had steadily grown in stature.

That he would abandon his Assembly seat at the President’s instruction spoke volumes about both his ambition and loyalty.

As I mentally reviewed what kind of person Lee Giho was, I followed him out of the convention hall.

Staff from the Presidential Security Service were already inspecting the President’s route.

“Please wait here.”

“Very well.”

“I’ll go greet the President.”

After Lee Giho left, I sat on the sofa.

Something felt off.

“There’s something going on... but I can’t tell what.”

At my mutter, Manager Ma replied quietly,

“We currently have no grasp of the internal atmosphere at the Blue House. The people we had placed there were all removed in this reshuffle.”

“Really? It’s unlikely they knew they were ours...”

“I’ll look into it further.”

I nodded and waited for President Yoon Changho.

Soon, the door opened and President Yoon Changho entered with Lee Giho.

After confirming his face, I stood up.

“President Kim. Long [N O V E L I G H T] time.”

“It has been. The Japan schedule ran longer than expected.”

Yoon Changho nodded and extended his hand. I grasped it with a smile.

“You’ve lost quite a bit of weight.”

“My wife says I look better.”

“For your health, you should lose more. If the President collapses—”

“Ah, that’s enough. Don’t start nagging me too, President Kim. Sit down first.”

As soon as he sat, Yoon Changho explained why he had called me.

“Sorry to summon you like this. But I had no choice but to ask the Secretary-General to arrange it. I wanted to meet quietly.”

“I could have come to the Blue House.”

“That would be difficult. Even if we met in secret, rumors would spread.”

With the recent bloodshed and China’s pressure, Yoon Changho had taken damage as well.

Given the circumstances, it was understandable that he would want to avoid gossip.

“As you know, with this reshuffle, the Blue House staff have been replaced on a large scale.”

Even though most of the staff had been replaced, he still hadn’t summoned me to the Blue House. freewebnøvel.com

That meant he still couldn’t trust everyone.

“And besides, it’s been a while since I last saw your face. I wanted to speak to you in person rather than over the phone.”

As if trying to lighten the now-heavy atmosphere, Yoon Changho added the remark casually.

I gave a small nod with a faint smile, and he continued more gently.

“At the convention hall, it doesn’t matter who I meet. No one will even pay attention to me. Everyone’s focused on who’ll become the new leadership.”

“You should have carried out the reshuffle with people you could trust.”

“It was a rushed reshuffle. Nothing much I could do. Public opinion was quite bad, wasn’t it?”

Seeing the bitterness on his face, I offered a light reassurance.

“It’s settling down now. Your approval ratings will rise again.”

“They should. The reason I called you today is China. A few days ago, China sent an unofficial letter to the Blue House.”

“An unofficial letter?”

I found myself asking back. Yoon Changho nodded grimly.

“They said that if we do not repatriate their nationals involved in this incident to China, they will disadvantage Korean companies operating there. They warned of various other possible repercussions as well.”

“...Is that true? China would suffer losses too.”

That’s stronger than I expected. China hasn’t fully grown yet.

In time, it will become an economic superpower following the United States, but for now, it is still in its growth phase.

Later, it would use economic sanctions as a weapon to pressure other nations. But at this stage, it lacks that strength.

If such measures were implemented, Korean companies would take a hit—but China would suffer even greater damage.

“That’s why it was unofficial. Officially, they’ll deny everything.”

“Bastards.”

“I think so too. And the fact that there are already signs worries me more.”

“They’re coming out quite aggressively. I’ve also heard they’re pressuring North Korea under the pretext of aid.”

“North Korea?”

Yoon Changho asked in surprise. So he didn’t know that part.

“Why North Korea? China has no reason to abandon them.”

“It seems they’re afraid of losing influence on the Korean Peninsula as the South and North grow closer and even cooperate with Russia on various projects.”

“Ha! Arrogant bastards. Who are they to talk about influence...”

He clicked his tongue in irritation, but his face was clouded with concern.

“Mr. President. If their warning materializes, Korean companies will suffer significant damage. We cannot abandon the Chinese market.”

China was Korea’s largest trading partner.

One reason Korea had been able to escape the foreign exchange crisis quickly was the surge in exports alongside China’s growth.

With a small domestic market and heavy reliance on exports, any obstruction in trade with China would be a severe blow.

“That’s why there are continued arguments to send the Joseonjok back.”

“Even if we send them back, they won’t stop. That’s merely a pretext to tame Korea. If we comply, they’ll find another excuse.”

This was not something that could be resolved simply by returning ethnic Koreans who committed crimes in Korea.

“I know that. But even so, shouldn’t we at least try to appease China? We need to show some gesture that we don’t want to fight them.”

“If we step back once, next time they’ll make even more unreasonable demands. Can you bear that?”

At my words, Yoon Changho pressed his lips together. Something was weighing on him.

After a moment, he looked at me seriously.

“President Kim. Let me ask you one thing. Answer me honestly.”

“Please.”

“As I understand it, you’ve made substantial investments in China. And Joongwoo Group is building several factories there as well.”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

“The one who would take the biggest hit isn’t me—it’s you. And yet you’re saying we shouldn’t step back?”

I hadn’t expected that question.

For a moment, I hesitated, unsure if he was serious. Yoon Changho urged me on.

“Are you worried about me? You, of all people, who know me better than most?”

“I know you well. But this won’t be easy. China isn’t a country where common sense applies. You could end up in serious trouble.”

I looked straight into his eyes. There was genuine concern in them.

“It’s fine. I’m not entirely free of responsibility in this matter. I didn’t expect it to escalate this much, but even if it hadn’t been this incident, something like this would have happened eventually. We’re dealing with China, after all.”

“That’s true. But perhaps not during my term. Very well. Even if we must endure losses, we’ll refuse China’s demands.”

“Yes. Please do. We’ll expand and accelerate our projects with North Korea to minimize the impact. We’ll prioritize companies that suffer losses this time.”

At my words, Yoon Changho let out a quiet sigh of relief.

“You’ll do that? I was worried about the companies. If you take the lead, I can be somewhat reassured.”

“And I’ll move separately to resolve this. Don’t worry too much. In the short term, Korea may suffer, but in the long term, China will lose more than we do. This isn’t a sustainable strategy for them.”

“Understood. For now, we’ll hold our ground.”

Yoon Changho nodded stiffly.

Even if the President had made his decision, this was an issue that would continue to shake him from all sides. He would need firm resolve.

“Mr. President. It’s about time.”

“Already?”

“Yes.”

At Lee Giho’s words, Yoon Changho nodded and rose.

“There’s another reason I didn’t summon you to the Blue House. Information from the Blue House keeps leaking outside. And it’s going to China.”

“Mr. President.”

Lee Giho urgently tried to stop him.

But despite the restraint, Yoon Changho continued.

“Are you saying there’s a Chinese spy inside the Blue House?”

“Yes. They’re seeing our hand as if it’s laid out before them. Because of that, I believe there’s a spy at the senior secretary level. That’s why I’m meeting you like this.”

“If there’s a Chinese operative among the senior secretaries... then it must be one of the newly appointed ones.”

Yoon Changho nodded with a troubled expression.

“That’s not certain. It could be among the existing ones as well. Will you dig into it? It’s difficult for me to move directly.”

“I understand.”

“Thank you. I’ll trust only you on this.”

With a faint smile at last, Yoon Changho left the room to attend the convention.