I Became Park Jeong-ui’s Nephew - Chapter 323



Only Noblemtl

He became Park Jeong-ui’s nephew. – (323)

“Your Majesty, the guests have arrived.”

“Tell them to come in.”

This is Geumneung,

I secretly invited politicians and some businesspeople.

Lianxiang is a hot potato in the world economy right now. It would be a burden to eat it, but it would be a waste to let others eat it.

The middle class in Lianxiang is about 40 million people, but only about 5 million of them live in Yan’an, and the rest are stationed along the Korean border and earning income.

A structure that, logically, cannot be helped,

The middle class supported by Lianxiang accounts for less than 20% of the entire middle class in Yan’an.

How did Lianxiang achieve a middle class of 40 million in this structure?

All of these figures were built up through economic exchanges with Korea. The economic center of Lianxiang is not Yan’an, but the border close to Korea.

Considering the fact that 35 million inland people depend on Korea for economic activities, it is likely that the inland economic center will not be Yan’an, but rather Henan-Shaanxi Province in the future.

This becomes even clearer when we look at new hires. Looking at the statistics from January to October, 8 million of the 11 million inland employed people found jobs in Henan and Shaanxi provinces.

This is an increase of 300,000 people compared to last year.

This is why the Wang family of Lianxiang is becoming increasingly anxious.

The power of the outlying cities is growing greater than that of their home base, Yan’an, and if the current trend continues, the power of the provinces will surpass that of the center within the next 10 years.

Will Lian Xiang be able to reign as the ruler of the inland even then?

Now that he realizes that it is impossible, he wants to pursue annexation with Korea and secure his own position and power.

The problem is that Korea is not in a position to just take this on. It is already responsible for the livelihood of 35 million people living inland, so why should it take on an additional burden here?

It is inevitable that you will be worried.

‘If we continue like this, we won’t lose anything, right?’

I honestly hope the status quo remains.

If the current trend continues, Korea’s national power will further widen the gap with the inland, and at that time, it will be able to eat up the inland without any worries.

However, if the United States intervenes in Lianxiang in the meantime, things will only get more complicated, so if that’s the case, it would be a good idea to push things a bit and hurry up and merge with Lianxiang.

The question is how much debt to take on and how to invest.

Economic experts took a cautious approach.

“Lianxiang’s total investment in GDP is about 42%, but total savings are 46%. In addition, household consumption accounts for only about 37% of the economy, and this excessive saving phenomenon is slowing down the inland economy.”

“Wait a minute, let me get this straight. Do inlanders really save a lot or do they just not have money to spend?”

“Well… that’s true too.”

Korea’s investment rate and savings rate are almost the same at 40% and 41% of GDP, respectively.

But more important than that is the share of the economy that household consumption accounts for; in Korea, consumption accounts for 53% of the entire economy.

Why is this important?

Last year, Korea recorded an economic growth rate of 4.0%, 92.8% of which was due to the expansion of the consumer economy.

The United States is no different. Last year, the United States recorded an economic growth rate of 2.8%, 94.8% of which was due to the expansion of the consumer economy.

In the end, it means that the economy will turn around and the country will grow only when the people have money to spend.

Considering this background, the inland simply has no money to spend. The savings rate is said to be 46%, but do you think that is because they save a lot of money to spend?

That’s an illusion, given that consumption accounts for 37 percent of the total economy.

And the lack of consumption means that it is difficult to expect economic growth effects even if companies invest.

What’s the point of companies printing products if people aren’t consuming them?

In the end, although Lianxiang has a population of 400 million, the number of people actually engaged in economic activity is less than 60 million.

In this situation, can the United States simply increase its investment?

Already, Korea has taken over Lianxiang’s economic population of 35 million, and the United States and other countries are fighting over the remaining 25 million.

Korea already has an inland advantage without any additional investment.

In that case, there is no need to go out of your way to support Lianxiang. Rather, the urgent thing is Lianxiang, and the conclusion is that pouring 18 trillion won into China is unreasonable.

This is why people shouldn’t be impatient, but if Korea doesn’t provide support, it is certain that Wang Guiying and Wang Huizheng will be in trouble.

Thanks to the cooperation of the two rich men, Korea has gained hegemony in the interior, so will it now be thrown away as if it is no longer needed?

As the economy of Henan and Shaanxi provinces grows rapidly, we need to support Yan’an as well to achieve balance between the central and local governments.

I decided to support Yan’an with 2 trillion won.

The centrist party claimed that 30 trillion won should be invested, but that was too much. They maintained control over the inland region by investing only 2 trillion won.

***

“You said you would provide 2 trillion won in support?”

“Yes, father.”

“Haa~ As expected, the enemy is not an easy opponent.”

This is Yan’an, the capital of Lianxiang.

Wang Guiying met her son who had returned from Korea.

The gap between the central and local governments is narrowing.

To solve this problem, money had to be brought in from Korea, but the Korean leader did not concentrate the money in one place.

If the Korean government had provided 30 trillion won in support, Wang Guiying would have grown to the point where he could suppress the local economy.

But the Korean leader chose checks and balances.

By keeping the middle class of Henan and Shaanxi provinces, which number 35 million, on one’s side, and also investing in Yan’an, the central and local governments created a structure in which they check each other.

We brought China under control with minimal investment.

If the Korean enemy had wanted to devour the inland, he would have done so already. Can a person be this calculating and cold-hearted?

Wang Guiying acknowledged that the Korean enemy was an unbeatable entity.

“I honestly wish the enemy would have been impatient and provided more investment funds. If he had, we could have received investment from both the US and Korea and grown faster….”

“That’s true. To be honest, I was a little excited too. The world really isn’t that easy.”

“Yeah… I guess we won’t be able to leave this narrow land in the end.”

Lian Xiang is in a position where he can never escape Yan’an.

So, should I give up everything and just focus on accumulating wealth?

Embezzling the 2 trillion won in aid from Korea would make them fat, but that would only bring forward the time when Yan’an would be taken over by local forces.

Investing in economic development is the only way to extend Lianxiang’s lifespan.

The Wang family was forced to focus on economic development.

It was decided to abolish consumption tax to stimulate consumption and lower the total savings rate to 42%, resulting in the average disposable income of Yan’an citizens increasing to 3.3 million yuan.

Considering that the average disposable income in Henan and Shaanxi provinces, which border Korea, is 2.8 million won, this is a surprising achievement.

In this way, the inland region grew rapidly amidst the competitive structure between the central and local regions.

Lianxiang’s total GDP increased to 58 billion dollars,

Just 10 years ago, the country’s GDP was just $30 billion, but it has been growing at an annual rate of nearly 9 percent.

***

“Is Lianxiang developing well?”

“Yes, next year, the GDP is expected to exceed 60 billion dollars.”

“Okay, that’s right.”

This is Geumneung,

I monitored the global economic trends in my office.

If Lian Xiang embezzled 3 trillion yuan in investment funds, the inland economy would have moved to the Henan-Shaanxi region, which would mean the collapse of the inland.

Wang Guiying massacred citizens in order to establish dictatorship. Do you think the citizens have forgotten that?

The democracy movement that took place in Yan’an three years ago put a huge burden on Lianxiang, resulting in a large number of middle-class people moving to Henan and Shaanxi provinces.

What would happen if a dictator in this situation were unable to achieve economic development?

So I gave Wang Guiying a choice: if he quietly focuses on economic development, he will survive and the economy will thrive.

Fortunately, Wang Guiying was a leader with that level of discernment, and although he committed the crime of massacring civilians, he was able to stabilize public order in Yan’an while growing the economy.

That’s what I was hoping for,

What’s the point of vaguely demanding loyalty to Korea?

The stabilization of the inland economy means that Korea’s hegemony in East Asia is maintained. What I want is not loyalty, but this kind of result.

As the inland middle class swells to 60 million, Korea’s economically active population increases to 200 million.

If a company sells just 10,000 won worth of goods to each person, its sales will be 3 trillion won.

With such a huge market, why can’t we attract companies? This time, there are 117 foreign companies listed on the Korean stock market, with a total size of 17.2 billion dollars.

$17.2 billion was absorbed directly into Korea, resulting in the national average income exceeding $45,000.

What else could these numbers possibly give to justify dictatorship?

I must have already signed all the documents. I sat by the window and stared into the distance.

‘How long must I live?’

Honestly, I think my role is over now.

If you’ve come this far with a country divided in half and 20 million desperately poor people in your arms, haven’t you done enough?

If my role is over, I think it would be okay to leave now, but I can’t tell when that would be the right time.

Great Exit? Holy Death?

Honestly, I don’t even want that.

A person who left a mark on the world ends his life dramatically.

You could die from a stroke like Stalin, or you could have a hole in your head while parading in public like Kennedy.

It wouldn’t be bad to go quietly rather than die loudly. I wonder if such luck will come to me.

Maybe it’s because I’m getting older, but I’ve been having a lot of useless thoughts lately, and then one day, I got some surprising news.

“Your Majesty!! Your Majesty!!”

“What’s going on? What’s all the fuss?”

“Something terrible has happened. Wang Guiying, the leader of Lianxiang, has died.”

“No… What are you talking about? You don’t have any chronic illnesses, do you?”

“That… He fell and hit his head a while ago, and it seems like it led to a cerebral hemorrhage. They say he died in his sleep.”

A death literally in vain,

To summarize the incident at the time, Wang Guiying reportedly stumbled on the stairs and suffered a minor bruise on her head.

They say there were no major injuries, but the problem is that the head cannot be opened.

Wang Guiying brushed it off and got up, saying it was nothing serious. Even his close associates thought it was nothing serious, but the cerebral hemorrhage had already begun.

He died quietly in his sleep (aged 63).

Yan’an residents mourned the death of the great leader who led economic development.

The problem is that when Wang Guiying died, a festival was held in the Henan-Shaanxi region to mock his death.

People celebrated for days on end, saying that the person who suppressed democracy and massacred citizens was dead.

Wang Huizheng, son of Wang Guiying, declared war on those who mocked his father’s death.

The people of Henan and Shaanxi Provinces continued to provoke Lianxiang by surrendering to the Korean government and saying, “Come on, come on, come on.”

Something that would not have happened if Wang Guiying was alive.

I mourn the death of such a useful leader.