The president's office was decorated simply but with an understated elegance that reflected the owner's taste.
Seok-won sat behind a large L-shaped desk, wearing a white dress shirt with a gold pin securing his silk tie.
As always, the desk was covered with monitors displaying a tangle of graphs and numbers. Sunlight streaming through the window highlighted the contours of Seok-won's high nose bridge and sharp eyes.
Leaning back against the plush chair, Seok-won was flipping through a thin booklet—the weekly newsletter sent by Lee Cheol-gyun.
Hired from the police intelligence division, Lee gathered information from politics, economics, and even entertainment gossip, then carefully filtered, edited, and delivered it exclusively to Seok-won. Unlike other private intelligence reports, this one was made solely for him.
As Seok-won turned the pages carefully, he noticed something that made him narrow his brows slightly.
[Seoul Seed Company in Negotiations for Sale to Swiss Multinational]
Tapping the desk lightly with his fingertips, Seok-won pondered for a moment before reaching for his phone on the side. He dialed the familiar number, lifted it to his ear, and soon Lee Cheol-gyun's voice came through.
[Yes. Go ahead.]
Seok-won kept his eyes on the newsletter as he asked,
"Is it true that Seoul Seed is going to be sold to a foreign company?"
[Yes. Negotiations are ongoing with the Swiss multinational company, Novartis, which specializes in chemicals and agricultural products.]
Seoul Seed was one of Korea's top five seed companies by revenue, holding over 200 patents.
"Is the sale finalized?"
[Not yet. But Novartis has been aggressively pursuing the deal, so an agreement is likely soon.]
"Hmm. I see."
Seok-won rubbed his clean-shaven chin with one hand as he organized his thoughts, then spoke again.
"Can you find out exactly how far the negotiations have progressed and what the terms are?"
[Of course.]
"Then find out as quickly as possible and report back."
[Understood.]
Ending the call, Seok-won set his phone down and muttered to himself in a slightly low voice.
"Come to think of it, that was when most domestic seed companies ended up in foreign hands."
During the financial crisis, local seed companies, unable to withstand the financial pressure, were sold off one after another—and it all started with Seoul Seed.
Out of the five major seed companies, four were sold, leaving the domestic seed market effectively under foreign control.
"Now, if Koreans want to grow and eat the cheongyang chili peppers they love, they have to pay a considerable sum to foreign companies. Enough said."
Despite decades of effort, the domestic vegetable seed gene resources and advanced breeding know-how built up over sixty years had all been transferred entirely to foreign ownership.
"And it was done at absurdly low prices in the middle of the financial crisis."
Through these sold seed companies, foreign corporations earned over 800 billion won in seed royalties in the ten years following the IMF crisis.
While such a drain of national wealth was alarming, the real danger was the potential complete loss of seed sovereignty.
As the global population grew and food issues became increasingly serious, losing control over seeds was directly tied to national food security.
"Plus, it's a profitable business too."
As mentioned, if seed royalties alone could bring in tens of billions of won, it was not just a matter of patriotism but also a business opportunity too good to miss.
"Even just holding onto it lets you collect a sweet stream of revenue. There's no way I can just watch it be taken away."
Seok-won decided that he would buy the seed companies that were about to be sold to foreign corporations himself.
Negotiations were already underway elsewhere, but when it came to a money fight, he had no intention of losing—and he wasn't worried in the slightest.
"Let's see if anyone dares to challenge me."
***
Seoul Seed Headquarters, Yeoksam-dong, Seoul.
"Novartis has sent the final offer."
Executive Koo Gi-hoon set the proposal on the desk and spoke, while Gong Hyun-woo, president of Seoul Seed, sat with a troubled expression.
"How much did they offer?"
"$32.67 million."
"Hmm."
Hearing the figure, Gong Hyun-woo let out a low, involuntary sigh.
He had poured his youth and sweat into building this company from the ground up, nurturing it like his own child. Now, thinking he had to hand it over to someone else left him hollow.
Despite his desperate efforts to keep the company afloat during the massive financial turmoil of the IMF crisis, he had reached his limit.
With liquidity dried up and banks demanding repayments, the company's finances were driven to the edge in no time.
Even putting in his own money had not been enough. Things were only worsening. In the end, swallowing his pride and tears, he decided to sell.
It was a choice to at least protect his employees' jobs before declaring bankruptcy.
The numbers on the single proposal lying on his desk stabbed at him.
Staring at the document for a long while, Gong Hyun-woo finally looked up at Executive Koo Gi-hoon, who was standing in front of the desk.
"There's no other way, is there?"
"If the bills due next week aren't paid, avoiding bankruptcy will be nearly impossible."
Executive Koo nodded gravely.
"Ha…"
Gong Hyun-woo exhaled deeply, letting go of the last of his regrets.
"If it has to be sold, I had hoped a domestic company would take it, but unfortunately…"
He was about to reluctantly instruct that the contract proceed when—
"Sir!"
A sharp knock on the door was followed by Deputy Director Choi Mu-yeon rushing in, breathless.
"I have urgent news to report!"
"What is it?"
President Gong Hyun-woo slightly furrowed his brows.
"W-well…"
Catching his breath after sprinting over, Choi Mu-yeon spoke with effort.
"D-Daehung Venture Capital has submitted a proposal to acquire the company!"
"What?"
Gong Hyun-woo blinked in disbelief at the sudden news.
"What do you mean by that?"
It was understandable—negotiations with the current buyer were already complete, and all that remained was signing the contract, yet suddenly another bidder appeared.
Executive Koo Gi-hoon was equally taken aback.
Choi Mu-yeon then extended the document he was holding and continued.
"At first, I wasn't sure if it was real, but they even sent the acquisition proposal by fax, so it seems genuine."
"This isn't just some random surprise…"
Unable to hide his astonishment, Gong Hyun-woo took the proposal and read it, eyes widening immediately.
[Letter of Intent for Acquisition
Proposed Purchase Price: 55,000,000,000 KRW
Payment Method: Full cash payment upon contract
Other Conditions: Employment guaranteed for all current staff]
"...!"
The offer was not just extraordinary—it was almost too good to believe. Gong Hyun-woo leapt to his feet, rubbing his eyes to make sure he wasn't mistaken, then checked the proposal again.
Seeing that every detail was exactly as first read, he lifted his head, visibly excited, and looked at Executive Koo Gi-hoon.
"What did Novartis propose the final purchase price again?"
Unlike a moment ago, when he had seemed slumped and dejected, Gong Hyun-woo now suddenly looked energized, and Executive Koo Gi-hoon responded with a puzzled expression.
"It's 32.67 million dollars," he said.
"In Korean won, that's roughly 49 billion won," Gong Hyun-woo calculated.
"There may be slight fluctuations depending on the exchange rate, but that's about right," Koo Gi-hoon added.
Gong Hyun-woo looked down at the proposal in his hand once more and made up his mind immediately.
"There's a difference of 6 billion won. No need to hesitate."
He then looked at Koo Gi-hoon and said,
"Tell Novartis either to raise their offer by 6 billion won or that we won't sign the contract."
Koo Gi-hoon's face betrayed his shock. He had expected Gong Hyun-woo to accept the offered price without issue.
"If you demand 6 billion more, the contract could actually fall through," he cautioned.
"I don't care," Gong Hyun-woo replied, completely at ease.
Seeing this, Koo Gi-hoon became even more bewildered.
The company's cash reserves were nearly depleted, and they would struggle to cover the 2.9 billion won in bills coming due next week. Without that, bankruptcy was inevitable.
In a situation so heavily stacked against them, Gong Hyun-woo's sudden boldness made Koo Gi-hoon feel a burning anxiety.
"Sir…" Koo Gi-hoon began.
"Look at this," Gong Hyun-woo said, holding out the proposal he had received.
It was the very document Deputy Choi Mu-yeon had rushed in with moments ago, saying it came from Daehung Venture Capital.
Koo Gi-hoon took it, wondering what could possibly be written that would provoke such confidence.
When he saw the proposed purchase price, his jaw dropped.
"This is real? 55 billion won?"
"Yes," Gong Hyun-woo said, a smile tugging at his lips.
"Since Daehung Venture Capital is willing to pay more for the company, there's no reason for us to sell it cheaply, is there?"
"Y-Yes, that's true," Koo Gi-hoon stammered.
Executive Koo Gi-hoon nodded, still looking visibly shocked.
"So, we ask Novartis to raise their offer, and if they refuse, we go with Daehung Venture Capital."
"Ah, yes," Koo Gi-hoon replied.
"Just to be safe, contact Daehung first to make sure they actually intend to buy the company."
"Understood."
Since walking away from the deal with Daehung before confirming their interest would make them look foolish if Daehung later backed out, verifying their intent was essential.
"If possible, it's better to sell to a domestic company rather than a foreign one, isn't it?"
"You're absolutely right," Koo Gi-hoon agreed.
"We don't have much time if we want to complete the sale this week, so move quickly."
"Yes, sir."
Koo Gi-hoon and Deputy Choi Mu-yeon hurried out.
Once the door closed, Gong Hyun-woo sat alone, visibly relieved, muttering to himself with a brighter expression.
"Seems like luck isn't completely against me."
It was good that Daehung Venture Capital was a domestic company and willing to pay significantly more.
But what truly appealed to him was that, unlike Novartis, they had formally guaranteed the employment of all employees.
The regret of selling a company he had nurtured remained, but at least now he could let it go with a lighter heart.
Sitting back at his desk, Gong Hyun-woo picked up the proposal once more and whispered, almost in prayer,
"Hopefully, this contract goes through as is."
***
A few days later.
Articles about the sale of Seoul Seed Company appeared in the business sections of several newspapers:
[Seoul Seed, Once Set to Be Sold to Swiss Company, Suddenly Acquired by Third-Generation Daehung Group Heir!]
[Daehung Group Ventures into Seed Business? Seoul Seed Acquired for 55 Billion Won]
[Following Seoul Seed, Heungnong, Joongang, and Nongwoo Also Join Daehung Group]
[Four Major Seed Companies Merged, Holding 60% Market Share—New Domestic Seed Giant Emerges]
[Newly Formed Blue Bio Brings Fresh Change to Domestic Seed Market Following Acquisition and Merger]