I Became the Youngest Daughter of a Chaebol Family-Chapter 119: Hobby Life (4)

After the Seongsu Bridge collapse, I stayed home for almost the entire month of October.

I didn’t care much about the continued downturn in the bond market. I had already made plenty of money, and the directors of Daehwa Securities were coming to my house on their own anyway.

Since my mansion was far too large for just one person, it didn’t matter if I had a lot of visitors. In fact, if not now, most of the rooms would go unused, which was a shame.

—Knock knock.

The door opened, and a male student approached cautiously.

“Ah..., senior. I came to visit you.”

Yes, he’s finally here.

A first-year junior from the stock club. He’s the one Seo Ji-yeon mentioned last time.

You know, that impudent little brat who dared to reject me. Honestly, who said I’d be your girlfriend?

‘I need to make sure I hear a confession from him before I graduate.’

“Mm, I’ve been waiting. This is good.” freewebnσvel.cøm

I forced a smile to greet the junior. Whatever he read into my expression, he approached me very meekly.

“Ah... are you in a lot of pain?”

“Hmm, not really. I’ve recovered, so it doesn’t hurt that much. But I haven’t been able to wash for two days, so I feel gross. Do you want to help me bathe?”

I playfully tapped my collarbone with my finger and smiled sweetly.

—Fwoosh.

“T-That’s a bit....”

His face turned red. Maybe it was because he was three years younger than me, but to me, he was just a kid.

“Ahaha! I’m joking, joking. You really are a greenhorn, huh? Have you ever even dated someone?”

“No....”

Yeah, to be honest, I haven’t either.

But at least I’ve gotten a lot of confessions.

Let’s see how long you can hold out.

***

[Seongsu Bridge Construction Officials Disciplined... Construction Industry Reeling]

[Daehwa Construction Enforces Drastic Safety Measures... Pushback from Small Firms Crushed]

[Experts Condemn Industry-Wide Negligence. ‘Seongsu Bridge is Just the Beginning’—The Dark Side of Korea’s Rapid Construction Boom]

“S-Senior... w-when can I stop...?”

The junior, gripping one corner of the newspaper, was sweating nervously. It was lunchtime, yet his hands were full, and his mouth kept moving.

I smiled softly and held out a spoon.

“Here, say ah. I’ll feed you.”

“I’m not a baby.... Uh, mph!”

—Poke.

“You earned three points in the stock club, right? You gotta at least do this much.”

Granted, I did force-sell those products, but it was still in the club rules. For the record, a date with Yoo Ha-yeon was also redeemable with points—usually around 4 or 5.

‘Though, other than Seo Ji-yeon, no one ever earned a date....’

Most of the others exchanged the points for cash, the ungrateful bastards. One point equals one million won, maybe I priced it too high....

A meal with me costs three million won, and a date is five million—how could they just give that up? It made me reappreciate why Ji-yeon was in my inner circle.

Sorry about that, Ji-yeon....

.

.

.

And so, I dragged that junior around for a few months and naturally grew close to him.

“Ah, senior. Hello!”

I waved at him as he greeted me diligently.

“Yeah, hey. You came to the club again today? What about class?”

He scratched his head awkwardly.

“Haha, Ha-yeon senior’s classes are more useful than school lectures.”

Objectively speaking, that was true. Though, the gender imbalance in the stock club was starting to tell a different story.

“Alright, I’ll teach you diligently again today. The topic’s ‘U.S. Interest Rates and the Global Economy.’ Did you do your prep?”

Maybe he’d gained confidence over time, because he smiled faintly and nodded.

“I did... but, could you help me with the review?”

“Of course. If you earn one more point, that makes five, right?”

—Tap tap.

[Yoo Ha-yeon Date Ticket: 5 points]

I winked with one eye.

“Mm, I’ll be looking forward to it, okay?”

And then...

December 25, 1994. Christmas Day.

Daehwa Middle School was unusually packed with spectators.

Students had gathered from all around to witness a grand Christmas confession event. I merely smiled faintly as I watched them.

Thanks to my months-long campaign to break him down, the final affection event had finally triggered.

I never thought much of female-targeted games, but I could absolutely go along with one if it meant screwing over a junior who wounded my pride.

“H-Ha-yeon senior.”

“Yeah? Why’d you call me?”

I blinked innocently with a ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) bright smile. My soft eyes curved gently, and I let my fluttering heart show.

He was popular with girls thanks to his good looks and sociable nature, but he hadn’t dated anyone until now. That, of course, was thanks to me.

And then—

“Senior, I like you. Will you... go out with me?”

He stammered a little as he handed me flowers. Maybe he thought this was a 100% success confession, or maybe he believed I had already fallen for him—either way, it was a very confident display.

Squeals echoed around us, and I was filled with satisfaction.

Ah.

Finally.

I smiled radiantly and whispered to him.

“Sorry. I’m rejecting your confession.”

Let’s just stay friends.

“...What?”

Mhm, and what came after was positively delightful. The stunned look on his face after his failed confession—absolutely hilarious.

***

1994 passed peacefully, but 1995 was different.

The year began with the Kobe Earthquake.

[Breaking News: 7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Kobe, Japan... Damage Assessment Underway]

[Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Death Toll Already in the Thousands... Hundreds of Koreans Feared Dead]

[Property Damage from Kobe Quake Estimated to Exceed $100 Billion]

[Kobe City Paralyzed... Fires Break Out Simultaneously, Rescue Efforts Struggling]

“...This is serious.”

Ha Joo-seong, sunk deep into the sofa, stared at the screen without blinking.

His once-black hair was now streaked with grey, and his firmly pressed lips let out faint, quiet breaths. He was now in his late 50s, and his normally composed face was instead filled with thought and sorrow.

Perhaps because he had once lived in Japan, he seemed to grasp just how catastrophic this quake truly was.

The news anchor’s urgent voice cut through the silence of the office.

“The confirmed death toll has already surpassed one thousand, and injuries are expected to number in the tens of thousands. Due to the high proportion of foreign residents in the port areas, there is serious concern that hundreds of Korean nationals may be among the casualties. Most local communications are down, so compiling accurate data will take considerable time.”

On one side of the screen, an estimated damage figure scrolled across the bottom: “At least $100 billion.” That’s over 100 trillion won—a mind-boggling amount.

It meant an entire city’s infrastructure and countless people’s property had turned to ashes in an instant.

Ha Joo-seong finally spoke, his voice lower and slightly trembling.

“When I was young, I worked at Nomura Securities. Kobe was... the kind of place I’d visit on weekends, just for tea or to stroll around the port... I never thought it’d end up like this.”

He paused and bit his dry lips. Seeing familiar street names and scenes now rendered unrecognizable stirred a complicated expression on his face.

“Let’s stay calm. Natural disasters are beyond our control anyway. Someday... maybe things will be different. But until then, we need to keep growing our power and money.”

“...True. A lot of money’s about to evaporate. I bet anyone invested in the Nikkei or Japan either hit the jackpot or got totally wiped out....”

Actually, the original timing for Barings Bank’s collapse wasn’t in 1992—it was supposed to happen now. With the Nikkei plummeting and the yen spiking, there aren’t many who could handle the volatility.

Even after saying that, Ha Joo-seong remained silent for a long time.

“....”

“Are you done mourning?”

He finally exhaled slowly, touching his chin. Then he nodded. The sharpness and hunger had returned to his gaze.

“...Yes. I’m ready, Miss.”

He stood up and straightened his clothes.

“First, we need an accurate assessment of the local situation. If we have any contacts near Osaka... I’ll send them some funds in case they can help. If they’re still alive, that is.”

His last words carried bitterness, but he forced his expression back into composure.

“Do you have any instructions—”

“Prepare a short-term economic impact analysis of the Japanese earthquake. I’ll handle the long-term. Include projections for Nikkei volatility, yen/dollar exchange fluctuations, and the potential movement of Japanese capital at home and abroad. Get the team working immediately. I want a draft by tomorrow morning.”

“Yes, understood.”

If it’s Ha Joo-seong, the capable executive, he’ll handle it well.

—Pause.

“...Miss. Would you be able to share your long-term forecast... right now?”

Normally, that would be impossible. No one can pull that out on the spot just from a breaking news segment.

But I could. And Ha Joo-seong knew that perfectly well.

“The yen’s shot up too high. A weak yen policy will return. I think the Japanese government will intervene. And the U.S. isn’t planning to end its high interest rate policy anytime soon.”

“Meaning...”

I smiled serenely. It was like the smile I used to charm clueless boys at school—but with a darker edge.

A colder, more sincere, greed-tinged smile bloomed on my face.

“Japan’s economy will crash again. And the East Asian companies that borrowed yen to invest will collapse along with it.”

Simple logic.

When interest rates rise, the economy contracts. Borrowing becomes more dangerous, so investment dries up.

And the global key currency is the dollar.

Regardless of a country’s internal situation... just the rise of U.S. interest rates can shift entire economies. Just like the bond market crash that continued all year.

I stared at the newspaper I’d jokingly read back in December at school.

[Mexican Peso Crisis! Mexican Government Abandons Exchange Rate Defense... Clinton Administration Pledges $20 Billion in Emergency Aid]

The signs were already more than clear.

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