The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 307



Only Noblemtl

307. Recombination (1)

This was not the first time that the U.S. ambassador visited the Taewo Group.

However, as the regime changed, the US ambassador to Korea also changed, and Catherine, a Harvard graduate, became the new US ambassador to Korea.

“Nice to meet you. I’ve seen you from afar a few times, but this is the first time seeing you this close.”

“You speak Korean well. I’ve never seen an American with such good pronunciation.”

“If you want to be an ambassador for that country, shouldn’t you be able to speak this language?”

Ambassador Catherine is tall, over 180cm tall.

She had excellent linguistic skills and had no problem communicating in Korean.

“I understand that you are a senior at school.”

“I studied public administration at Harvard. It’s nice to meet a Harvard alumnus in Korea.”

Korea was not the only country that considered academic ties.

Rather, there were more cases of academic ties being considered in the United States than in Korea, and there was a strong bond between alumni of the same school.

“I should have visited you first, but I was late in greeting you.”

“Isn’t it all right that we met like this? Chairman Kim’s tastes are a little more unique than that.”

As expected, it was Ambassador Catherine who pointed out the interior of the president’s office.

It was a natural point to point out that the interior was not only extravagant but reminiscent of a medieval royal palace.

“My grandfather did the interior work like this to make fun of me. Thanks to this, I get compliments from customers every time.”

“It seems like you have a very good relationship with your grandfather.”

“We are the only blood relatives, so we can’t help but get along well.”

We had an ice-breaker time talking about interior design.

After talking about school a little more, Ambassador Catherine got to the point.

“I heard that a pharmaceutical company under Taewoo Group is producing Tamiflu in large quantities. Could you supply it to the U.S. government? Of course, we plan to purchase it at a higher price than the market price.”

“If the U.S. government makes a request, of course we must comply, but the Taewo Group will have to bear a large loss. We can only deliver to the U.S. government if we cancel the contract with the company we have already signed and pay a penalty.”

Of course it was a lie.

However, if you offer to give them porridge from the beginning, they will not feel grateful.

So, while expressing regret, they began a plan to raise the price of Tamiflu.

“If there is a country or company that puts Taewo Group at a disadvantage because of this incident, I promise to take retaliatory action at the White House level.”

“What’s the good of making a lot of enemies? I don’t mind if Taewoo Group gets all the criticism.”

“So you want different compensation. America is ready to accept any conditions.”

A kind of blank check.

However, even though it was a blank check, the amount could not be written down randomly.

I had to write down the amount based on common sense as much as possible in order to continue the conversation.

“How can I ask the U.S. government? All I want is for a cleaner world.”

“A clean world? You’re not talking about corruption, are you?”

“I’m very interested in environmental issues.”

“It’s surprising to hear that Taewo Group, which has a manufacturing affiliate, is very interested in the environment.”

“We are trying to implement many eco-friendly policies to solve the global warming problem. Electric vehicle production is also part of our eco-friendly policies.”

I wrote down electric vehicles on a blank check.

However, I had no intention of receiving all policies and benefits related to electric vehicles at once.

“You are asking us to implement policies that will help produce electric vehicles. I have already heard that politicians these days are saying that electric vehicle subsidies should be provided.”

“Electric vehicles that do not emit carbon dioxide are products that must be developed for the environment. Of course, if their performance is poor, they will be ignored by customers, but shouldn’t we create an environment that will attract interest?”

The choice ultimately depends on the customer.

However, if I received a grant, I could break down the mental barrier.

“Environmental issues are a topic of great interest not only to the White House but also to the ruling party. It is not difficult to implement a subsidy policy, but can electric vehicles be commercialized if only subsidies are provided when no infrastructure has been built?”

“That’s why I’d like to get help with the electric vehicle charging station issue as well.”

“Are you asking us to also support the cost of electric vehicle charging stations? Or should we just provide policy help?”

The cost of building an electric vehicle charging station has never been cheap.

If 100 to 200 million won was needed to build a major station, the cost of an electric vehicle charging station was more than 500 million won.

Of course, it is said that a home electric car charger can be purchased for less than 20 million won, but purchasing both the electric car and the charger costs too much.

“Taewoo Group plans to join hands with several companies to build electric vehicle charging stations in major U.S. cities. However, we need the U.S. government’s help to install electric vehicle charging stations in places such as public institutions, large villas, and apartments.”

“I can help you with that. Let’s create a bill to allow electric vehicle chargers to be installed in public institutions and large buildings, and allocate a budget so that the government subsidizes part of the cost of the chargers.”

Is it because you speak Korean well?

I felt like I communicated very well with Ambassador Catherine.

“Of course, I know that it is difficult for the U.S. government to take active action right now, but several companies are scheduled to release electric vehicles simultaneously at the end of this year.”

“If the response to electric vehicles is good, the government promises to provide more subsidies and benefits. However, it will be difficult to win the American people’s choice right away. The United States is a country with many secretly conservative people.”

That would have been known when electric vehicles were released.

First, they were promised the benefit of a first subsidy, and depending on the popularity of electric vehicles, they were even promised a second subsidy.

“Then we will send 50% of our inventory to the US government and 50% of our production to the US.”

“It’s a little short. Can’t you send 70% of your inventory to the US?”

“We have started additional production of Tamiflu at our new factory. Even 50% of the amount produced in the future is not a small amount.”

“I will report that to the White House. We will set the amount so that you will not be disappointed, so you don’t have to worry.”

We got up and shook hands.

Ambassador Catherine was not only the same height as me, but also had a bubbly personality, so I could easily call her a mistress.

I would see her off to the elevator.

I returned to the president’s office and immediately called David.

“David, how’s things going in Europe? We just concluded negotiations with the U.S. government.”

[We have almost reached Europe. We decided to receive support for charging stations in exchange for supplying Tamiflu to major cities. Electric vehicle subsidies were previously promised.]

“The electric vehicle subsidy problem was solved more easily than I thought.”

[They probably think that even if they make an electric car, it won’t sell.]

“It seems like the decision to apply for the subsidy was easy because the amount of money going out as a subsidy would not be much.”

My thoughts will change when electric cars are released at the end of this year.

Of course, even if the mind changed, it would not be possible to reduce the electric vehicle subsidy.

[And started a shared mobility business. We have installed electric bicycles and kickboards in major cities, including Paris, and are seeing pretty good results. Even if I can’t do it, I think I’ll make up for it within 3 years.]

“Hasn’t it been approved in the US yet?”

[Currently under review. I think I can get permission next month at the latest.]

“Permission will soon be granted in Korea, so the shared mobility market will begin in earnest next month.”

Shared mobility market for the battery industry.

It was a desperate measure to make up for the deficit in the battery industry even while electric vehicles were being produced.

[The shared mobility market seems to be doing better than expected. Of course, it is a small market for Taewoo Group to operate, but it is an attractive market in its own way.]

“We’ll just get our money’s worth and sell it after that.”

[Are you saying we are abandoning this precious market?]

“It’s a wasteful market, but it’s also a risky market. So there’s no need to hold on for a long time.”

The shared mobility problem was bound to explode within a few years.

It was a really good business for those who had to travel the last mile, but it was also the worst business for pedestrians and drivers.

Of course, it would make some money, but there was no need to get criticized for no reason, so it was better to dispose of it quickly.

[I need to create a very nice sales structure in preparation for when I sell it.]

“Dimon will take care of that, so don’t worry. What’s the atmosphere like on GM’s side?”

[It’s not really a joke. There are many people saying that the devil was sent as a manager.]

“He was called a devil both in Japan and in Korea. But no one is as good at reviving a broken car company as he is.”

As the representative of GM, I sent Carlos, CEO of Kai Motors.

Known as the devil from France, he quickly normalized Kai Motors, and this time, he was entrusted with normalizing GM.

[It is said that he walks around the factory every day and curses at anyone who takes even a little break. And there is also a story about treating people like complete machines.]

“If we want to save GM from hell, wouldn’t we have to send the devil? We will never be defeated in a power struggle with the union.”

[Once the work in Europe and the US is roughly completed, I will visit Korea once.]

“I’m busy, but there’s no need to do that. I’ll go to the US when electric cars come out, so we’ll take a look at it then.”

Preliminary work for the success of electric vehicles was being carried out simultaneously in many places.

Even when Tamiflu was in short supply, it was used for preliminary work on electric vehicles.

* * *

It was a time when Tamiflu production became very important.

Since the US and European governments were our customers, we had to deliver the correct quantity on the correct schedule and without defects.

Therefore, I visited Centrian in person and inspected the factory operation status.

Perhaps because CEO Seo Jeong-jun clearly possesses S-level abilities, the factory was operating without any problems.

“I plan to stay at the company and inspect the factory in real time until the new flu subsides.”

“Not only the CEO, but the employees are also having a hard time. We should pay generous bonuses this Chuseok. If it is not enough, Taewo Group will provide support.”

“No. It is no exaggeration to say that we have already generated a year’s worth of sales in just one month.”

As soon as they were made, they were all sold out.

So, of course, sales rose significantly, and Centrian’s corporate value rose more than 20 times compared to a month ago.

“As the company grows, there will be more to manage.”

“We have already requested help from Taewo IT for network security. Not only security experts but also IT experts are here to supplement the company site.”

“Security is the lifeblood of pharmaceutical companies.”

As we talked, we naturally moved to where the IT team was located.

It was to encourage Taewoo IT employees working in the IT team.

However, the computer team discovered an unexpected face.

“Team Leader Cheon came in person? I don’t ask people below me to do things like this.”

“I applied myself for a change of pace. The security was much laxer than I thought. As you can see, important data can be accessed very easily.”

She was speaking while looking at Centrian’s main data.

However, they were not only looking at security loopholes, but were also looking through the contents of key data.

“Looking at the data, it seems like there are quite a few areas that can be combined with artificial intelligence.”

“Did you have any knowledge in the pharmaceutical industry?”

“Of course, I don’t know the parts that require specialized knowledge, but in the case of simple repetitive experiments, I was able to roughly draw the situation even without specialized knowledge.”

Cheon Min-jeong is trying to do something again.

The integration of artificial intelligence and pharmaceuticals was supposed to start after the swine flu crisis was over, but Cheon Min-jeong was already starting before I even spoke.