Chapter 80
Friday came around .
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Gun-Ho wore a suit and went to Hannam Town . The sunset was early these days because it was wintertime . It was dark outside, but the lights from the stores illuminated the street .
"This neighborhood has a romantic vibe . "
There were many single houses in the neighborhood along with several foreign embassies of various countries such as Switzerland, Thailand, Cambodia, etc . That was why the road in front of Soonchunhyang Hospital was called the Embassy Road .
"Mr . Gun-Ho Goo, over here!"
It was Manager Gweon who had been assisting Chairman Lee .
"How have you been, Manager Gweon?"
"Long time no see . I'm so glad to see you again . "
After shaking hands with Manager Gweon, Gun-Ho followed him to a quiet alley in the neighborhood . When they arrived at a single house with a landscaped yard, Manager Gweon asked Gun-Ho to get in there . There was no restaurant sign . Gun-Ho could only see a small acrylic sign on its brick wall next to the front door .
"Pine tree?"
The sign said 'pine tree,' and below the word 'pine tree', it said 'restaurant' in a small font . Gun-Ho thought that no pedestrian would be able to see the small-font restaurant sign and recognize the house as a restaurant .
"Welcome . "
A young man in a suit came out of the house and greeted Gun-Ho . He didn't let Gun-Ho in the house though; instead, he led Gun-Ho to the back side of the house . There was another door leading to the house next door . The house next door was also a single house with a yard .
"Come this way . Watch your steps . They are stone stairs . "
Following the young man, Gun-Ho passed by the quiet yard which had a big pine tree in it and entered the front door .
"Welcome . "
A lady who looked like in her 50s wearing a traditional Korean dress came out to greet Gun-Ho . Even with her mature age, she was very beautiful . The lady showed Gun-Ho into a room where Chairman Lee and Master Park were . The room was decorated with an embroidered folding screen, and the two old men were sitting at a floor table . Chairman Lee was wearing a vest without a jacket .
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"Hello, I am honored to meet you . " The lady said to Gun-Ho .
"Ms . Jang, why don't you bring a floor cushion for him?"
The lady whose name was Ms . Jang brought a floor cushion embroidered with a crane .
"Have a seat . "
"I initially suggested going to a puffer fish restaurant in the vicinity, but Master Park insisted that we should come here . "
Chairman Lee seemed to be concerned that Gun-Ho might find it uncomfortable being in a rather unique restaurant setting . Master Park stuck his head out to Gun-Ho .
"ShinWangJaeWang young man! You became rich, right? I told you that you would become rich when you reached the age of 35 . Am I right?"
"Right, I think you told me that . You have a very good memory, sir . "
"I memorized all about your fate . It's very unique! Your fate is to become dirty rich!"
Chairman Lee seemed to be embarrassed by his friend, Master Park's choice of words .
"What is dirty rich? Rich is rich . "
"Young man! I was right, wasn't I? You made billions!"
"Oh, umm, yes, I… I did make money . "
"Then you can treat us here . Ms . Jang, bring us the table!"
Ms . Jang smiled elegantly and stood up from a sitting position .
"Mr . Gun-Ho Goo, do you recognize this lady?!"
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"Umm, I don't know…"
Gun-Ho looked at Ms . Jang's face again . She surely looked familiar .
"Probably you are too young to recognize her . She is a famous actress, Mi-Hyang Jang in our old days . "
Gun-Ho now recognized her face . He might have seen her in a magazine .
"Oh, really?"
After a moment, two young men in a white shirt brought a big floor table . The table was already set with all kinds of Korean food and liquor; there was Sinseollo* as well .
Ms . Jang entered into the room and served liquor in a gold-colored pot .
"It seems like you are reversing your age . How come you're not aging at all and keep a resilient young skin?"
"Hahaha, are you saying I should age with all those wrinkles like you do, Master Park?"
"I don't have that many wrinkles . I am still a young guy . Listen to what this woman says . "
Master Park didn't seem to be a gentleman when he was talking with a woman .
The door was opened and two young ladies who were also wearing a traditional Korean dress entered the room . Those women sat next to Chairman Lee and Gun-Ho to serve them .
Gun-Ho looked at the profile of the lady sitting next to him . She looked like in her mid-20s and she had very long eyelashes . She had a different vibe from the girls Gun-Ho saw in the room salon . This lady seemed to be more cultured and refined .
"Hey, you women! Drink it!"
Master Park handed a glass of liquor to those two young ladies . The ladies sipped the liquor while turning their heads slightly to the side and covering their mouth and the glass .
"Ms . Jang, pay attention to this young man right here . He will become very very rich soon . "
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"I just heard he made billions already . He is already rich then . "
Ms . Jang said while putting a piece of Galbi-jjim* on Gun-Ho's plate .
"We don't call a person with several billion won rich . You have that much money, Ms . Jang . Then you are rich too . "
"I am not rich . "
"You are! When you were younger, you made money by mesmerizing men, and now you are making money by running this secret bar . "
"Don't say that, Master Park . I am not doing well these days because you haven't come here as often as before anymore . "
"President Goo, let's drink . "
Chairman Lee called Gun-Ho President Goo . The lady sitting next to Gun-Ho poured more liquor in his glass .
"So, how did you make the money?"
"I invested in real estate and the stock market . I invested in real estate when I was in China, and this time I invested in the stock market . "
"You probably invested in the stocks related to the Four Major Rivers Project . "
Gun-Ho smiled without saying a word .
"The real estate investment is good . However, you shouldn't cling on stocks for too long . Once you make money from stock investments, you should get out of there right away unless you have some kind of certainty to continue to invest . "
"I will take heed of what you said, sir . I think you are absolutely right . "
"In this country, the insiders share information exclusively within their inner circle . They establish some investment company, issue stock to raise money, and then make a short sale of the stock so they can make more money once the stock prices go down . As long as short-selling is allowed in our stock exchange system, little people can hardly make money by investing in the stock market because they don't have the necessary information . The recent stock hike involved with Four Major Rivers Project was a special case influenced by politics . You shouldn't expect to make money again in the stock market like that case . You shouldn't invest in the stock market without certainty . "
"I will keep that in mind . "
"Once the stock prices go up, the insiders will issue a CB (convertible bond) . Bastards!"
"Oh, I see . "
Gun-Ho thought he was getting more than he would have to pay today . The advice that Chairman Lee was giving to Gun-Ho was so valuable that what he had to pay for today's dinner and liquor seemed nothing .
"The stock market will shrink in the future unless the problem in the stock exchange system that I just mentioned is resolved . If an alternative investment option emerges, the investors will move there rather than the stock market, virtual money for example . "
"Virtual money?"
"Haha . I am just thinking since we are living in the digital age . "
Gun-Ho later was stunned when the Bitcoin storm arrived . When Chairman Lee had mentioned about digital money, no one even thought of the very idea . Gun-Ho thought later that Chairman Lee was indeed an incredibly wise man . He was absolutely different from the old men in the subway, who were raising voices saying the younger passengers must give up their seats to them .
"What's your plan now?"
"I am thinking of acquiring real estate and rent them out for now, and then I'll start running a business when I see a good opportunity . "
"Hmm…"
Master Park got annoyed while hearing the boring conversation between Gun-Ho and Chairman Lee .
"Stop talking about money . We are here to have fun, right? Then let's have fun! Hey, you girls! Sing a song or play a musical instrument or do something . "
Note*
Sinseollo – It is also called the royal hot pot . All sorts of vegetables and meat in a rich broth .
Galbi-jjim – Korean style beef short ribs dish .