Reboot the heyday

Nothing happened that night.

Because something serious happened at the company.

It's not XB Entertainment's situation, but rather a series of problems arising in Cornerstone Industries' logistics industry.

The newly integrated logistics sector under Cornerstone Industries has begun full-scale operations. With the capital injected by Wang Taika and an operating model that sometimes operates on the edge of the gray area, it has quickly made inroads in several key routes and niche markets.

In this respect, it did meet expectations, but it also attracted the attention of relevant companies.

I'd been paying attention for a while, but I didn't expect Cornerstone Industries' logistics business to progress so quickly. So, the subsequent targeting was a natural consequence.

In a small place like South Korea, every sector has long been dominated by large and small interest groups. Cornerstone Industries initially thrived because of its status as a "Samsung Lee family illegitimate son." But now that it's in Wang Taika's hands, many things will no longer be so lenient.

Wang Taika's logistics company has encroached on the territory of industry giant Hanjin Group. Hanjin Group is one of the top ten conglomerates in South Korea, on par with Samsung, and is mainly responsible for logistics, transportation, and shipbuilding.

So when Hanjin Group started to take action, the pressure came in waves, one after another.

First, there's the issue of business competition: losing bids, losing customers to higher discounts, and having warehouse leases at key points suddenly raised or terminated.

The tactics then escalated. First, Cornerstone Industry's transport fleet was frequently subjected to unusual scrutiny by unidentified road administration officials on the highways, resulting in vehicle impoundment, fines, and delays, all with flimsy reasons despite having complete documentation. Next, several small subcontractors were simultaneously subjected to tax audits, with the shadowy figures pointing to certain departments that had made prior arrangements. Furthermore, the heads of two of its logistics transit stations received anonymous phone calls with veiled but threatening language, implying things like "this isn't how business is done" and "you have to follow the rules."

But this matter is not over yet; the Hanjin Group has also influenced the Samsung Group.

Lee Jae-yong is currently embroiled in legal troubles and may even have to spend some time in prison. His proxy, Shin Moon-sung, had been trying to acquire Cornerstone Industries, but Wang Tai-ka had no intention of handing it over. Shin Moon-sung hadn't made any moves recently, leading many to believe he had temporarily abandoned his plans. However, he unexpectedly joined forces with Han Jin to launch a coordinated attack.

Because Cornerstone Industries originally relied on its relationship with Samsung, the pressure from Samsung has quietly increased. Several supply chain service projects that Cornerstone Industries had stable partnerships with Samsung-affiliated companies were suddenly suspended or placed under indefinite review for various plausible reasons. Some approval processes that were previously smooth began to experience inexplicable delays.

Everything happened so smoothly and seamlessly. And it was as if they were holding back, determined to unleash everything simultaneously within a few hours. Many things that could have been tackled quickly were deliberately delayed until today to coincide with the explosion of other projects.

At the same time, rumors circulated in the market that "Cornerstone Industry's equity structure has historical problems" and "its expansion of new logistics businesses is too aggressive, and its capital chain may be in danger." The source of these rumors is difficult to trace, but they have begun to accurately affect the credit assessment of some financial institutions on Cornerstone Industry.

This was the first time in Wang Taika's life that he had encountered a business battle of this magnitude.

"The stage was just set up over there when someone set fire to the backyard." Duck King frowned. "Han Jin's reaction was expected, but the timing and the targeting were so precise. It seems that old dog Shen Wencheng doesn't intend to let you digest the business left by Li Zailie peacefully."

Wang Taika looked at the documents on the table, his expression somewhat grave. Being targeted by both a logistics giant like Hanjin and a super conglomerate like Samsung, the pressure was like a tangible tide surging from all sides. His logistics business was still in its infancy, and its foundation was far from being strong enough to ignore this level of suppression.

"How's things going with the entertainment industry?" Wang Taika asked. "Everything's going smoothly, exceptionally smoothly," Duck King said. "Even CJ Group, which has ties to Samsung, is very proactive in the cooperation, even a bit overly enthusiastic, and is even offering concessions. Could there be something fishy going on here?"

Wang Taika thought for a moment and then laughed: "In ancient times, when besieging a city, they would leave one side open. The fear was that the enemy would be pushed to the brink and fight to the death, so leaving them an escape route could demoralize the enemy. It's similar now. I guess they want me to only develop the entertainment industry and not be allowed to get involved in other industries."

The Duck King nodded: "I understand now, so this is looking down on you!"

“Actually, in their eyes, they already think highly of me,” Wang Taika said. “So these people don’t want to fight me to the death, and they want to give me a place in the entertainment industry. If I give it up, then they will really accept me, and I will really become a member of the vested interest groups in South Korea.”

Wang Taika sighed, "If only this had happened a few years earlier, I would have definitely retired while I was still at the peak of my career. But now that things have come to this, there's no way to retire."

Confronting either side head-on would be tantamount to throwing an egg against a rock. But sitting idly by and waiting for death is not Wang Taika's style.

"By the way, what advice did Mr. Li's consulting firm give?" Wang Taika asked.

"The consulting firm didn't offer any advice, but that former president did send you a message privately, just one sentence, and it was in Chinese!" the Duck King said. "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush."

Wang Taika laughed in exasperation: "He has indeed been educated, but this principle is easy to say, but can he actually do it? If he could, he wouldn't be in so much trouble now."

Ultimately, you can't count on South Koreans.

Wang Taika said, "Don't panic, it's not hopeless yet. Don't forget, we're not fighting alone. Those big domestic companies have been eyeing this land for a long time. When I went back to China before, I also negotiated a lot of cooperation. Now that this problem has arisen, we should all give them our support. At worst, we can just talk about profit sharing."

Ultimately, it's about dividing the cake; everyone wants a piece, and the bigger the better.

The most disgusting thing about Wang Taika is that sometimes he doesn't actually want to eat cake; he just wants everyone else to miss out. Or he might make sure a whole group of people miss out, so that some unrelated people can get some.

“We need to ask our partners for help, but we also need to find a way ourselves.” Wang Taika pondered, “Samsung is a powerful and deeply rooted company. Shen Wencheng is just an obedient dog that Li Zairong released. It’s easy to deal with him, but directly hitting the dog is like provoking the master. Now is not the time. So, we should take them down one by one, starting with Han Jin and Zhao’s family.”

Just then, a scene suddenly flashed through Wang Taika's mind.

Time, going back a while, no, a long time ago.

While Lee Jae-yeol was still alive. (End of Chapter)