Financial freedom starts from graduation

Chapter 626 Strategy and...

As the president of one of the three major entertainment companies in South Korea, Kim Ji-jae is a big shot who can shake half of the entertainment industry with a stomp of his foot. He just turned forty-five this year.

Forty-five years old is a distant age for a young person who can still be described as youthful, but to reach this position at this age, Jin Zhijie can be described as "spirited and promising" in the eyes of outsiders.

Despite being surrounded by admirers wherever he goes, and having the power to determine the fate of most people with his words and actions, only he himself knows how precarious his position is.

YG Entertainment, as a publicly listed company, currently has a total market value of over 3000 billion Korean won, which is equivalent to over 10 billion yuan.

But if you look at the other two of the three major entertainment companies, you'll see that SM Entertainment, which ranks second, has a market value of nearly 20 billion RMB, while HYBE Entertainment, which ranks first, is the undisputed leader in the Korean entertainment industry, with a market value of over 60 billion RMB, far ahead of the competition.

HYBE, needless to say, has been a dominant force in the entertainment industry for a long time, backed by the Samsung Group. YG Entertainment's initial goal wasn't to surpass it, but the problem is...

SM Entertainment wasn't as good as YG Entertainment at the beginning.

When Kim Ji-jeol took over YG Entertainment, it was ranked second in the entertainment industry. However, after three years in that position, YG Entertainment slipped to third.

Kim Ji-jeol felt it had nothing to do with him, because the two core reasons for YG Entertainment's declining market value were Bigbang's nominal "disbandment" and BlackPink's contracts expiring two years ago. Although they renewed their group contracts, their individual contracts had ended, and they had each established their own studios...

In a sense, this is one of the reasons why Jenny and Rose are not so wary of Zhou Wang.

After all, BlackPink's fame has already spread far and wide, and they don't do as many activities as a group anymore. Even if Zhou Wang wants to sideline "BlackPink," what does that have to do with Jenny and Rose?

But Jin Zhijie felt he was also wronged.

Bigbang's "disintegration" had nothing to do with him; it happened right after he took over. As for "BlackPink," they were the company's mainstays, and Kim Ji-jeong never had any say in the matter. Major decisions concerning them required board approval, and Kim Ji-jeong was at best a puppet responsible for signing documents.

When things went wrong, YG Entertainment's market value declined, but he was forced to take the blame. Isn't that ridiculous?
Although Kim Ji-jeong found it ridiculous, it didn't stop him from frequently reviewing the situation at board meetings and expressing his determination to bring YG Entertainment back to its peak.

However, no matter what happened in the past, he always had the strong support of his former chairman who admired his talent, so life wasn't too difficult.

He still remembered a week ago, when the former president and he were sitting around a stove at a late-night food stall, drinking and chatting, and the former president was patting him on the shoulder and saying:
"Zhijie, keep up the good work. I've already started lobbying the board, and after the annual meeting, we'll draft an equity incentive agreement with you..."

Even if it's only 1% of the shares, once he crosses that threshold, Jin Zhijie will no longer be a mere employee, but a capitalist who has transcended base desires.

But Jin Zhijie was so excited all night that the next day, before he was even sober, he received the news that the chairman had been replaced.

A conglomerate that was originally the largest shareholder behind YG Entertainment transferred more than 60% of its shares to an unknown Chinese man in just two hours.

...At least before that day's media frenzy, Jin Zhijie had never heard of Zhou Wang's name.

He was wondering if this was some kind of acquisition tactic, where one had to tarnish their own reputation before becoming chairman, making the acquisition easier.
But whatever the truth may be, Kim Ji-jeong knows his fate has reached a crossroads. Whether he can continue to shine as the president of YG Entertainment, or even step down from that position peacefully, now depends on the whims of that Chinese man…

As Jin Zhijie was lost in thought, the door to the tea room was pushed open. The first thing he saw was the beautiful secretary who had led him in. Her natural and graceful beauty, unique to Chinese women, left a deep impression on Jin Zhijie.

However, he didn't dare to look any longer and immediately looked away. When he caught a glimpse of a pair of slippers in his peripheral vision, Jin Zhijie immediately bowed deeply.
"Good evening, President!"

Zhou Wang raised his hand, signaling Jin Zhijie to get up. After Zhou Wang sat down, Jin Zhijie sat down next to him, and before Xu Wenqian could even start, he quickly began brewing Kung Fu tea.

While the tea ceremony doesn't hold the same prestigious status in South Korea as it does in Japan, it's still a required course for those above a certain social class. Jin Zhijie seemed quite adept at it, and after a moment, he placed a cup of fragrant hot tea in front of Zhou Wang, and then brewed a cup for Xu Wenqian who was standing next to him as well.

During the tea-making process, Zhou Wang remained silent, observing Jin Zhijie's demeanor. Seeing his respectful manner and cautious movements, Zhou Wang could roughly understand his mindset, so he gently tapped the table.

Jin Zhijie immediately sat up straight, keeping his eyes fixed on the ground, and adopted a listening posture.

"I want to take complete control of YG Entertainment in the shortest possible time. What's your plan?"

These words were spoken by Zhou Wang, but translated by Xu Wenqian.

Back when she was Zhou Wang's personal customer service representative, Xu Wenqian had told him that she was fluent in Japanese and Korean... Well, Zhou Wang had occasionally asked her to perform in bed, but this was the first time he had asked her to use her skills in a formal setting. However, Xu Wenqian was clearly very professional, sitting upright and speaking without any hesitation.

Jiang Qingkui had originally arranged for a professional translator, but since Sura and Xu Wenqian both speak Korean, it seemed redundant, so Jiang Qingkui sent them to run errands with the legal team.

Jin Zhijie was taken aback for a moment, probably not expecting Zhou Wang to get straight to the point, but he quickly understood.

Thinking to himself, "Since Zhou Wang has guessed my purpose for coming, why should I bother with pretense?"
Fortunately, Jin Zhijie had indeed come with sincerity, so after a moment's thought, he immediately spoke:

"Chairman, your methods are extraordinary. You have already taken over all the shares from the previous chairman. However, because you are an outsider, Vice Chairman Jiang Xin and Vice Chairman Park Jung-woon are wary of you, so they are currently adopting a strategy of non-cooperation and non-confrontation..."

"Another force that cannot be ignored comes from the mother of BlackPink member Jennie. Her CJ Group has many business collaborations with our YG Entertainment. In addition, she has also secretly acquired a portion of YG Entertainment's shares, making her a fourth force."

"As for Vice Chairman An, who holds the fewest shares, although he appears to be a shareholder, he is actually just a fence-sitter. As long as you can get the support of the other shareholders, he will definitely not have any ideas to go against you."

Zhou Wang listened to Xu Wenqian's simultaneous translation and hummed in agreement, indicating that he already knew all of this. Jin Zhijie then continued:

"So my advice to you, Chairman, is very simple: win over Vice Chairman Kang Shin and Vice Chairman Park Jung-woon. Once you have their support, the obstacles to your control of YG Entertainment will naturally disappear."

"To win over?"

Zhou Wang smiled. "So, what exactly do you think should be done?"

Hearing that Zhou Wang seemed to have taken his words to heart, Jin Zhijie perked up and immediately revealed his pre-thought-out plan:

"The way to show goodwill to Vice President Jiang Xin is actually very simple... Vice President Jiang comes from a triad background and used to have the title of 'Red Pole'. He has a strong sense of江湖 (jianghu, the underworld) and is quite concerned about his reputation. As long as you take the initiative to invite him out for a meeting, host a banquet, and promise to protect the interests of the Nine Star Group, Vice President Jiang should be willing to maintain the status quo."

"As for Vice Chairman Park Jung-woon, things are a bit more complicated. He only took over the Park Group last year and is the younger brother of the current president. He's eager to prove himself and achieve something. Meanwhile, the Park Group has been wanting to increase its influence within YG Entertainment for a long time, and the previous chairman encountered many difficulties when he took office..." At this point, Kim Ji-jae glanced at Zhou Wang, and seeing that Zhou Wang's expression remained unchanged, he continued:

"So if you want to satisfy Vice Chairman Park's appetite, you may have to make some concessions. I think if you are willing to give up some shares, Vice Chairman Park should be able to receive your signal."

After saying that, Jin Zhijie immediately shut his mouth.

The tea room fell silent. After an unknown amount of time, Zhou Wang finally spoke slowly, with the click of a lighter.
"So you mean I have to bow down to them?"

"President, you're joking."

Kim Ji-jeong was startled and quickly stood up. "You are the head of YG Entertainment, how could you possibly need to bow down to anyone..."

"Oh, so you knew I was the chairman of YG Entertainment!"

Zhou Wang's tone turned cold. "I don't care how the previous president weighed the pros and cons or how willing he was to give them face, but now that I'm in this position, even if someone has to bow down... it should be them."

Jin Zhijie maintained his bowing posture, but his tone became urgent.

"Chairman, I know that your ability to acquire YG Entertainment's shares across borders overnight is enough to be described as having extraordinary power, but this is, after all, South Korea. Compared to the Nine Star Group and the Park Group, YG Entertainment is too small. And Vice Chairman Kang and Vice Chairman Park are not to be trifled with..."

Jin Zhijie phrased it tactfully, but his meaning was clear: no matter how powerful you are in China, this is, after all, South Korea, and you still have to consider regional differences.

Hearing Jin Zhijie's advice, Zhou Wang didn't say anything more, but instead said:

"You only mentioned Jiang Xin and Park Jung-woon, what about Jenny's mother?"

Seeing that Zhou Wang seemed to be giving up, Jin Zhijie breathed a sigh of relief and quickly explained:

"If we can gain the support of the two vice presidents, CJ Group will probably stop opposing the president. As long as you stop pursuing Jenny's rudeness, Jenny's mother should also be willing to show some goodwill. I can make the contact for the president; you don't need to get involved at all..."

"I see."

Zhou Wang glanced at his phone and suddenly stood up. "It's getting late. President Jin should go back and rest."

Jin Zhijie was somewhat confused, because Zhou Wang hadn't said anything and he didn't know if Zhou Wang had listened to him. But since Zhou Wang had already shown him the door, Jin Zhijie couldn't say anything more. He could only leave the room with trepidation, accompanied by Xu Wenqian.

A short while later, Xu Wenqian returned and saw Zhou Wang sitting in the living room, seemingly lost in thought. She went over and gently massaged his temples while saying softly:

"Boss, is this too troublesome? How about I have the company's think tank analyze it for you again..."

"Think tank?"

Zhou Wang asked in surprise, "When did our company have this department?"

"It was just set up recently. Sister Qingkui said this is the standard setup for a large group. I sent you an email about it..."

Xu Wenqian pursed her lips and glanced at Zhou Wang.

Zhou Wang coughed lightly to cover his embarrassment, then shook his head and said, "Not for now, let me try my own method first."

"Boss, do you have any ideas?"

Xu Wenqian was genuinely curious because she knew that given Zhou Wang's personality, it was impossible for him to take Jin Zhijie's advice.

"His approach was to go through the upper echelons, but who's to say you can't just cut off their supply lines from the ground up?"

Zhou Wang didn't explain much, but after saying something casually, he thought for a moment and then instructed, "Have Yun Shangyun investigate Jin Zhijie's background more thoroughly, the more detailed the information the better."

"So, boss, you still intend to let him continue as the president of YG Entertainment?"

"Although I don't like his suggestion, I can tell he's really trying to gain my trust, and he seems quite capable. I can't find a suitable person to take over YG Entertainment in a short time, so giving him a chance isn't a bad idea..."

Zhou Wang gently ruffled Xu Wenqian's hair. "You've had a long day, go and get some rest."

Although Xu Wenqian really wanted to stay and keep Zhou Wang company, she was indeed a little tired, so she obediently agreed and went back to her room across the corridor.

There was originally a guest room in the suite, but Xu Wenqian knew that it was for Zhou Wang's newly hired bodyguards, so Xu Wenqian had to book another room.

Zhou Wang remained sitting quietly in the living room. After smoking a cigarette for about an hour, the door was gently pushed open. Sura, who had disappeared for the entire afternoon, peeked in and, seeing that Zhou Wang was the only one in the living room, gave him a questioning look.

After Zhou Wang nodded, Sura pushed the door open a little more and stepped aside.

Accompanied by hesitant footsteps, a beautiful woman with slightly curly hair and a face that was both cute and charming moved in slowly, wrapped in a coat.

Sura silently withdrew, and with the door tightly closed, seeing only Zhou Wang sitting in the living room, the woman became noticeably more nervous.

"Yes, President..."

"Hello, would you like me to call you by your real name, Larima, or... just call you Lisa?"

(End of this chapter)