Hong Kong: Rise of the Kings.

Chapter 1074: 1060 [Gathering of Heroes]

Boom boom——
A Mercedes was driving steadily in the traffic on the streets of Seoul. Inside the Mercedes, Du Yongxiao, who had just left the hotel for a date, leaned on the large leather seat with his eyes slightly closed to rest.

The driver was Kim Jong-ki, a technical talent who had just been recruited by Yan Xiong and would be known as the "Godfather of Korean Semiconductors" in the future.

Kim Jong-ki is 39 years old this year, a man in his prime, but due to his hard work, his black hair has already turned gray. He has a thin face and wears glasses, but his eyes are stealing glances at Du Yongxiao who is resting in the back through the rearview mirror.

Jin Zhongji originally thought that Du Yongxiao would invite him into the room, and then the two sides would have a detailed conversation, give him encouragement like Yan Xiong, and invite him to join the Du Group.

Unexpectedly, Du Yongxiao directly asked him to act as a driver and help drive. What does this mean?
Even though Kim Jong-ki is extremely smart, he cannot figure out Du Yongxiao's thoughts.

After getting in the car and driving away, Kim Jong-ki thought that Du Yong-xiao would chat with him in the car, talk about family matters, and then say some words of encouragement, but Du Yong-xiao just closed his eyes and fell asleep, which again broke Kim Jong-ki's perception.

Before Kim Jong-ki came to meet Du Yongxiao, he had already designed many scenes and speeches, but now none of them can be used.

Sitting in the passenger seat was Yan Xiong. Yan Xiong thought the same as Jin Zhongji, and also thought that Du Yongxiao would talk to Jin Zhongji in the car, but now-——
Yan Xiong knew that his godfather was always mysterious in his actions, so he said nothing and remained silent.

The vehicle was driving smoothly. Seoul in this era was still bustling with traffic, but most of them were not particularly good luxury cars, but Hyundai sedans produced in South Korea.

In fact, there is fierce competition among Korean car companies in this era. Not only Samsung Group and LG Group hope to enter the automotive industry and break the monopoly of American vehicles in South Korea, but even Lotte Group, which is engaged in department store trade, and Elephant Group, which is engaged in hotel business, also want to get a piece of the pie in the automotive industry.

But what, technology!
It's a problem!

Neither Samsung nor other groups could overcome this hurdle, and in the end only Hyundai succeeded.

Hyundai's founder Chung Ju-yung is a business legend.

Chung Ju-yung's hometown is Tongcheon City, North Korea. He grew up in a poor family. In order to make a living, he went south from North Korea to Seoul to work. At that time, there was no demarcation line between North and South Korea and people from both sides could move freely.

Chung Ju-yung started out in the rice business. In 1940, he acquired a repair station and started repairing vehicles for the US military. Later, he began to get involved in civil engineering.

At that time, the Korean War had just ended, and South Korea invested a lot of money in civil engineering. The US military also established many bases in South Korea. These base construction projects were basically taken over by Chung Ju-yung, who made a lot of dollars.

At this time, South Korean President Park Chung-hee wanted to build a highway from Seoul to Busan, but the treasury had no money, so he found the chaebol Samsung Group.

Samsung believes that the country is so poor that even if the highways are built, there will be no cars running on them, so they believe this is a losing business.

At this time, Chung Ju-yung discovered this business opportunity. He believed that "it's not that there are no cars running on the highway, but that there is no highway so no one needs to buy cars." He persuaded his family to invest all their money in the highway project.

Two years later, the highway was completed, the logistics industry began to develop rapidly, the demand for vehicles soared, and with the strong support of the government, Hyundai Motor was officially established in 1967. It initially cooperated with Ford of the United States and introduced American cars for assembly. In 1975, it began to independently produce commercial and passenger vehicles.

Until now, Hyundai Group has been promoting the "Hyundai Motors are completely domestically produced" banner and relying on buying off patriotic thoughts to vigorously monopolize the Korean automobile industry. Even Samsung has to give up and stay away from it, leading the way in the automotive field.

Du Yongxiao closed his eyes and pretended to sleep, but he was actually thinking about how to enter the Korean automobile industry. If he wanted to break Hyundai's monopoly in Korea, he must have a strong man like Quan Douguan to back him up.

Since Quan Douguan invited me to a meeting, it seems that what I mentioned to him last time, that I wanted to establish the Du Group's automobile production line in South Korea, has come to fruition.

The place where Quan Douguang lived was the famous "Seoul First Military District Compound" in South Korea! It was known as the "Second Blue House"!
The security here is very strict, and there are soldiers on duty. Because it involves many military secrets, the control here is even stricter than that of the Blue House in some aspects.

Du Yongxiao has become a frequent visitor here these days. Not only does the military officer on duty know that Du Yongxiao is Major General Quan's distinguished guest, but even the soldier guarding the gate knows that the only one who can ride in this car and drive straight into the courtyard is this unnaturally handsome Chinese young man.

Kim Jong-ki is an intellectual who usually works in a company. He has never been to such a heavily guarded place. When he saw the armed and majestic guards, he felt a little scared.

After finally stopping the car, he hurriedly opened the window and was about to say a few nice words to the guard who came to check, but he saw the guard looked inside the car, and after seeing Du Yongxiao, he immediately changed his arrogant attitude and led his subordinates to salute Du Yongxiao.

When Kim Jong-ki saw this, his heart started beating wildly and he was so excited that he could hardly breathe. He had never been so excited in his life.

Since Kim Jong-ki is known as the godfather of Korean semiconductors, he is not a fool. On the contrary, he has a very high IQ.

When he came into contact with the Du Group, Kim Jong-ki privately inquired about all kinds of information about Du Yongxiao to judge whether he should rely on him and join his camp.

The information obtained was that Du Yongxiao was not only the Commissioner of Police of Hong Kong, a very formal official, but also a first-class earl of the British Empire. From the perspective of the West, he was a typical aristocrat.

These are not all. In terms of business, Du Yongxiao founded the Du Group and became a world-renowned super-rich man. He was also a close friend of the American tycoon Rockefeller.

Of course, these are the reputations that Du Yongxiao has earned abroad. Maybe he has exaggerated in some places. As for in South Korea-——
First, Du Yongxiao acquired Daehan Bank, one of the four largest banks in South Korea.

Second, Du Yongxiao is plotting against Samsung Electronics and intends to use money to control the management rights of Samsung Electronics.

Third, Du Yongxiao has close contacts with Samsung Group’s big company Lee Mengxi and the third young master Lee Jianxi, and their relationship is very ambiguous.

Fourth, and the biggest legend recently, Du Yongxiao established a close friendship with Quan Douguang, the most shining star in the Korean military.

This has led people to believe that this Chinese man’s tentacles have penetrated from the Korean business community to the Korean military!
Originally, Kim Jong-ki, an intellectual, was still skeptical about this.

But now——
Jin Zhongji saw with his own eyes that Du Yongxiao came and went freely in this heavily guarded military compound. It was another matter to see with his own eyes the solemn dignity that emanated from him. In particular, Du Yongxiao did not avoid him, which made him feel that Mr. Du had already regarded him as his own, which was undoubtedly the best recognition for him.

In other words, from beginning to end, Du Yongxiao didn't say a few words to Jin Zhongji, and had no way to win him over. Just the current scene was enough to make Jin Zhongji feel Du Yongxiao's trust in him, and he even had a vague sense of belonging.

Looking at the dozing Du Yongxiao through the rearview mirror, Jin Zhongji smiled and said, "Mr. Du, we've arrived! The guards outside are greeting you!"

Du Yongxiao shook his hands gently without opening his eyes.

Kim Jong-ki said nothing more, stepped on the accelerator, and drove into the military compound.

From behind, we could still see the officers and guards standing there, saluting towards the shadow of the vehicle, appearing very respectful.

Kim Jong-ki's heart was burning with excitement. Even though he had been with the Samsung Lee family for so long, he had never seen such a scene.

Yan Xiong, who was sitting in the co-pilot seat, had been flipping through the documents in his hands, apparently preparing materials for the meeting that was about to begin.

The Mercedes-Benz drove unimpeded through the military compound, passed several checkpoints, and soon arrived at Quan Douguang's residence.

At the spacious and bright entrance, Quan Douguang, his wife, and several military leaders were waiting. When they saw the Mercedes-Benz approaching, Quan Douguang led his men to greet them.

Yan Xiong got out of the car, walked quickly to the back, and helped Du Yongxiao open the door.

Kim Jong-ki then realized what he had to do and hurriedly got out of the car.

Quan Douguan glanced at Jin Zhongji who was coming down, and was surprised why it was not Zhuang Dingxian, the bodyguard beside Du Yongxiao, but someone else?

But he immediately recovered his composure and walked towards Du Yongxiao who was getting off the car with a big laugh.

"Mr. Du, you are finally here! Hahaha! It's cold, I'm sorry to have you come all the way here!" Quan Douguan was extremely enthusiastic and shook hands with Du Yongxiao.

Three military leaders nearby also shook hands with Du Yongxiao. They were the future President of South Korea, Roh Tae-woo, Zheng Gaorong, Sun Yong-gil and others.

If I remember correctly, these people, led by Chun Doo-gwang, formed a secret group called "Seven Stars Society". Later, this group expanded into "One Heart Society" with Chun Doo-hwan as the president.

"Yi Xin Hui" implies that members should "dedicate themselves to the country and to their friends", and places special emphasis on mutual solidarity and brotherhood among members.

The "Issin Society" is centered around the 11th class of the Army Academy, and strictly selects students from all classes of the Army Academy, especially those who are from Gyeongsang Province (South Korea's "Lingnan region"), are loyal and can stick together. Thus, a power group has gradually formed within the South Korean military through a combination of academic ties, geographical ties, brotherhood, and personal ambitions.

In 1973, another leader of the "Il-Shin Society", Capital Guard Commander Yoon Pil-yong, was investigated for making irresponsible remarks about the presidential successor to the Minister of the Central Intelligence Agency Lee Ho-rak, which led to the "Il-Shin Society" surfacing. Chun Doo-hwan also faced the crisis of being forced to retire, but was spared due to the strong protection of Park Jong-gyu, the then Chief of the Security Office. Park Chung-hee also allowed the "Il-Shin Society" to continue to exist, making the "Il-Shin Society" Chun Doo-hwan's direct subordinates and the basis for seizing power.

Among these people, the one Du Yongxiao paid the most attention to was Lu Taiyu. He was also considered a hero. Although his methods of ruling South Korea were not as ruthless as Quan Douguang, he knew how to control his subordinates and helped South Korea gain international status. He was also considered a very capable commander-in-chief.

This was not the first time that Lu Taiyu and Du Yongxiao had met. He had met Du Yongxiao twice through Quan Douguan, and this was the third time. Compared with Quan Douguan's boldness, Lu Taiyu seemed taciturn, or not good at speaking, but Du Yongxiao knew that the more such a person was, the more unpredictable his heart was, otherwise he would not have stepped on his good friend Quan Douguan to get to the top in the future.

Everyone exchanged a few words at the door, and Quan Douguan invited Du Yongxiao into the house.

Yan Xiong followed Du Yongxiao, but Jin Zhongji was not qualified to enter.

General Quan Douguan’s mansion is not big nor luxurious, it is just a courtyard attic with a very classical Korean feel.

In a quiet courtyard, there stands a small wooden building. This building is where Quan Douguan often meets guests and it is also the gathering place for members of the Yi Xin Society.

When Du Yongxiao walked in, there were four military leaders waiting in the room. They were of lower military rank and were not qualified to accompany Quan Douguan to personally greet Du Yongxiao.

Seeing Du Yongxiao and others coming in, the four of them hurriedly stood up and saluted to Du Yongxiao, Quan Douguang and others.

Looking at the seven people in front of him, Du Yongxiao knew that all members of the Seven Stars Society, the predecessor of the Yi Xin Society, should be present today.

It seems that Quan Douguan attaches great importance to today's talks. It will be a bit difficult for him to break Hyundai Motor's monopoly in South Korea.

Sure enough, as soon as everyone sat down and tea, fruit, and cakes were served, Quan Douguang got straight to the point and said to Du Yongxiao: "Mr. Du, you should know that although Hyundai Group's cars are now sold under the banner of domestic production and patriotic marketing, they have always been supported by the American consortium behind them, to be more precise, by Ford Industries of the United States. If Mitsubishi Motors in Hong Kong wants to enter, I'm afraid--"

Quan Douguan touched the teacup, looked at Du Yongxiao's eyes, and seemed to be hesitant to speak.

Du Yongxiao smiled slightly: "I know this is very difficult. To be honest, if it wasn't difficult, I wouldn't ask General Quan and you guys for help!"

Quan Douguang nodded and said, "In fact, South Korea's Samsung Group has always been eyeing the automotive industry, but unfortunately--" He glanced at Lu Taiyu next to him.

Lu Taiyu slowly said: "It's a pity that Samsung and the Blue House didn't have a good relationship before, so they missed this bonus."

Du Yongxiao certainly knew that when the Blue House approached Samsung to build the highway, Samsung refused, which was tantamount to not giving face to President Park Chung-hee.

It is also because of this that when Samsung Electronics encountered a crisis this time, its leader Lee Byung-chul went to the Blue House to ask Park Chung-hee for help and wanted to borrow money from the three major banks. The Blue House agreed verbally, but delayed the process for so long.

To put it in a common saying, face is given by the other party. If you didn't give me face before, why should I care about you now?

"General Quan, since I have come to you this time, I think you must have a way, right?" Du Yongxiao took a sip of the teacup and said with a smile.

Quan Douguang also smiled. "Indeed, we have a solution! Our military purchases a large number of vehicles from Hyundai every year, including jeeps, cars, and military trucks. If Mr. Du is willing, we can compete with them in terms of price and quality."

Du Yongxiao smiled and said, "The price is easy to negotiate!" He thought, isn't it just a kickback for you? I understand. "We can discuss the specific price later."

Quan Douguan and others smiled knowingly, thinking that Mr. Du was a wonderful person who understood things at a glance.

"As for the quality, our cars are just as good. You can check them out when the time comes!" Du Yongxiao was very confident about this. Mitsubishi's technology was no worse than Ford's.

If this entry into South Korea is successful, then their Du Group will be able to leave Mitsubishi aside and officially develop its own cars to supply South Korea and the world.

"Haha, Mr. Du is really a quick-witted person! Then let's talk about the conditions!" Quan Douguan no longer hid and prepared to put forward his request directly.

Lu Taiyu and others looked at Du Yongxiao with serious expressions.

Du Yongxiao smiled slightly: "I'm all ears!"

(End of this chapter)