Chapter 21: I Will Deposit Money If You Give Me The Mushrooms Smoothly (1)

“I’m sorry but aren’t you an investment company? Makemira Investment or something like that…”

– “Yes, we are an investment company. A Japanese company primarily engaged in real estate investments. We have also entered Korea.”

“But why would a real estate investment company want to buy 400kg of songi mushrooms?”

– “Our company owner likes songi mushrooms very much.”

This made me trust them even less. No matter how rich the company owner was, why would they want 400kg of songi mushrooms?

– “And it isn’t just 400kg.”

They intended to export 400kg every month from Korea to Japan. Their company planned to purchase all these quantities going forward.

“Even if it is a real estate investment company, isn’t this too much of a waste of money? Do you know how much premium quality songi mushrooms sell for per kilogram in Japan? They go at auction.”

-The highest bid I heard was around 2,110,000 won. We will purchase them at that price as well.

Are these people crazy? Or do they have so much money to burn?

For a moment, Jeon Sung-ryeol truly believed this to be true.

“I don’t understand. Why would a real estate investment firm go through such lengths to buy songi mushrooms? Even if your owner likes them, paying 2,110,000 won per kilo means monthly sales amounting to 844 million won.”

There was a slight chuckle over the phone line, and Jeon Sung-ryeol felt slightly annoyed by it.

Of course, this was before he heard what came next.

“Our company has net assets worth 500 billion yen.”

“F-fifty billion yen?”

“As we aren’t listed on any stock exchange, and President Makemira owns 100 percent of our shares, I apologize, but less than nine hundred million won per month is like pocket change to him.”

“Naturally, he doesn’t consume it all by himself. He gifts some here and there, supplies his restaurants or hotels, and uses them for various purposes.”

“But how do you know about our Songi…?”

“We received deliveries from your company at the West Sea Hotel, no? Our president is a VIP customer at their Korean restaurant.”

“Oh!”

Finally comprehending the situation, Jeon Sung-ryeol let out a low exclamation.

“But Songyi won’t be entering West Sea Hotel anymore.”

-“That’s why she is currently staying long-term at Baekdu Hotel.”

“I see.”

-“Exporting goods can be quite complicated. You need insurance, you have to sell the packaging, and you must arrange for transportation. Do you know how complex Japan’s distribution network is? If you try to enter it directly, you will end up paying exorbitant auction fees. However, if you sell exclusively to us, things change significantly.”

“I understand what you’re saying. But our plan to expand into Japan is based on a long-term perspective. We cannot entrust everything solely based on your owner’s preferences…”

“We will preemptively buy one year’s worth of Songyi mushrooms from you upfront and pay you in advance.”

“Yes! Let’s sign the contract right away.”

This was too good to pass up!

After wrapping up the rest of the conversation, Jeon Sung-ryeol hung up the phone with glee.

“2,110,000 won per kg. How much is that for 4,800kg? Is it slightly over 10 billion won?”

Sungyul Logistics’ annual revenue was approximately 9 billion won. Of course, this was just their gross profit, and their net income was less than 1 billion won.

Suddenly, they stood to gain a net profit exceeding 4 billion won overnight. (Half of it would go to Ha So-young.)

“This isn’t the time to celebrate.”

Jeon Sung-ryeol hastily prepared to leave, as he had promised to meet his counterpart immediately. He also felt anxious about the possibility of them not showing up, given the massive deal worth over 10 billion won. A verbal agreement alone wasn’t enough to ease his concerns.

He was anxious about what would happen if she didn’t show up. Since this deal involved more than 100 billion won, he couldn’t feel secure relying on just a verbal agreement.

Until his counterpart arrived at their meeting place, Jeon Sung-ryeol used his smartphone to search for information related to Makemira Investments.

“The rich truly get richer.”

As explained by his counterpart, it was a well-known Japanese real estate investment company.

“They have so much money.”

He scrutinized the picture of President Makemira as well. In around twenty minutes, he became an expert on Makemira Investments.

“Are you president Jeon Sung-ryeol?”

“Yes, I am Jeon Sung-ryeol.”

Two men appeared, and one of them brightly smiled while asking for a handshake.

The face of Makemira seemed familiar to Jeon Sung-ryeol. He was lost in thought for a moment before he exclaimed with delight:

“Ah, perhaps you’re President Makemira?”

“Oh, have we met somewhere before?”

“I’ve seen your picture on various internet articles. As someone who has amassed wealth as a Japanese immigrant, I’ve always admired your legendary story.”

Jeon Sung-ryeol displayed the excitement of a die-hard fan meeting his superstar idol.

“It seems like I possess some charm after all. It’s quite surprising to receive such admiration from someone who didn’t know me just an hour ago.”

Jeon Sung-ryeol paused briefly but then grinned widely in response.

“How could a small business owner like myself resist the allure of ten billion won? If I had a time machine, I’d go back 23 years and become your biggest fan right from the start.”

“Oh, why specifically 23 years ago?”

“It is because that was the year Makemira Real Estate was founded.”

A small smile spread across Makemira’s face.

If it had been anyone else, such excessive flattery might have been off-putting. However, Jeon Sung-ryeol had caught Makemira’s attention, so these grandiose words sounded pleasing to him, despite their slight embarrassment factor.

“I first tasted your company’s Songyi mushrooms at the West Sea Hotel. They were far more delicious than any other Songyi I’ve had before.”

“Haha, we proudly claim our Songyi as the finest premium quality available.”

“I wondered if they were frozen or fresh. How could you supply Songyi out of season?”

“I have a friend who owns a mountain where Songyi grows regardless of the season. We source them from this friend.”

“Ah, so it isn’t farmed?”

“No, it isn’t farmed. If my friend had developed a farming technique for Songyi mushrooms, he would already be rolling in money.”

While Makemira’s secretary prepared the contract, Makemira and Jeon Sung-ryeol engaged in light conversation.

“I guess you won’t supply them to West Sea Hotel anymore?”

“Yes, Baekdu Hotel offered me very good terms, so I decided to go with them.”

“That is unfortunate. The head chef at West Sea Hotel has exceptional skills when it comes to preparing Songyi mushrooms.”

“My apologies. There were business reasons behind this decision.”

Makemira didn’t delve deeper but understood the general situation.

“If the conditions are right, would you consider supplying West Sea Hotel as well?”

“As long as the conditions align, why not?”

“Director Kim.”

Makemira glanced to his side, and his secretary promptly responded.

“Yes, President Makemira.”

“Find a way to influence the management of West Sea Hotel.”

“Understood.”

The casual manner with which the order was given and received left Jeon Sung-ryeol deeply moved. He had endured so much hardship just for one supply contract, but this man…

“I didn’t expect you to personally handle such a small agreement.”

“It’s because I enjoy your cuisine. Naturally, I wanted to meet you myself. Isn’t that right?”

“Oh, I understand now.”

With a positive atmosphere, the contract was signed on the spot, and Makemira immediately transferred the payment to the company’s account.

When Jeon Sung-ryeol confirmed exactly 10,200,000,000 won credited to their account, he was once again overwhelmed by emotion.

Originally, it was supposed to be 101 billion and 28 million won, but Makemira gave him more than what was agreed upon.

“Then I’ll leave this matter in your hands.”

Jeon Sung-ryeol accepted Makemira’s business card as if it were precious.

As soon as he left the meeting place, he called Ha So-young. He exaggerated his tale of selling Songyi mushrooms for one year at 2,110,000 won per kilogram to a Japanese real estate mogul, with payment made upfront. At the end, he cautiously added:

“We originally agreed to split the profits equally, right? However, handling such large sums makes me feel too embarrassed.”

“No, sir. It is due to your achievements.”

“I want our relationship to last long term. I don’t want you feeling like you’re losing out because of me. That would truly harm both of us.”

“What do you mean?”

“I originally bought it from you for 450,000 won/kg and sold it to the hotel for 800,000 won/kg. I made a profit of 350,000 won/kg. Of course, this time, I did some work too, so how about we make my margin 500,000 won/kg? Instead of receiving 4 billion won, I will only take 2.4 billion won.”

When they decided to split things equally, Jeon Sung-ryeol’s share came out to be around 4 billion won. Now, he was saying he would reduce his portion to 2.4 billion won.

–“As expected of President Jeon Sung-ryeol. From the beginning, I believed you weren’t that type of person.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”