WeTried Translations
Translator: NEET_Romulus
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Dropped into the Ending of a Trash Show as an Extra ◈
Chapter 15: The Hunt (1)
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[The won-dollar exchange rate is soaring, pushing market fear to its peak. With the prime ministerial appointment delayed, analysts say the continuing political instability is accelerating the flight of foreign capital.]
[As concern spreads that the government has lost control, experts warn that unless the current instability is resolved, the country could face a situation comparable to a foreign exchange crisis...]
[With damage to the real economy unavoidable, concerns are growing over household debt and soaring prices for ordinary people...]
“The exchange rate is climbing dangerously.”
“Indeed. Ah, how will His Sagacious Majesty respond?”
Though executives had been swept into custody like autumn leaves before the Joint Investigation Headquarters’ merciless blade, JD Group launched a full-scale counterattack under the leadership of the released Kim A-ra.
The reports never attacked the Imperial House outright, but their underlying message was clear. Wasn’t the current crisis caused by an Emperor trying to reshape the political landscape around himself?
Kim Yang-han had ordered it, but was it because she wished to dispel her father’s suspicions, or because of the hardship she had suffered after being dragged before the Joint Investigation Headquarters, that Kim A-ra seemed more hard-line?
This was what Kim Yang-han had wanted as well.
The Emperor had tried to strike at JD halfheartedly, only to get his hand bitten instead.
This was why some provocation was necessary. It was how those beneath him developed the venom to fight.
The families with foolish sons or grandsons who had caroused shamelessly with collateral imperial relatives were much the same.
Even if they had cast those children aside, they did not hide their displeasure at seeing them arrested by lowborn soldiers.
The Emperor likely believed he had drawn his sword to overturn the political narrative, but that too was something Kim Yang-han could use to rally the gentry[1] around a common cause.
The result was a massive capital strike.
They withheld export earnings from repatriation, preventing dollars from being exchanged, while buying up foreign currency in the domestic market under the pretext of overseas investments and raw-material payments. Even approved investments were announced as postponed in the name of watching the political situation.
After throwing in such powerful fuel, the media controlled by the aristocratic clans all stepped forward at once to stir up anxiety.
That was how the current situation came to be.
“His Imperial Majesty has issued one thunderous command after another. How can we stop the market from trembling before His Majesty’s authority?”
“Even exhausting the foreign currency reserves would only be a temporary measure. What will become of the country?”
Terrestrial broadcasters, general programming channels, and newspapers alike had plastered themselves with reports of political instability, so the people were closing their wallets of their own accord.
Not even the Emperor could possibly stop the flow of this capital.
Kim Yang-han slowly opened his mouth.
“Since the concerns of so many scholar-officials[2] are one and the same, I have invited an honored guest today.”
Kim Yang-han lightly turned his head toward one corner of the room.
The waiting head of the Financial Supervisory Service bowed deeply.
“Chairman, have you been well?”
“Welcome, Director Kwon.”
Kim Yang-han addressed the head of the Financial Supervisory Service.
“The market is in considerable turmoil.”
“Yes, yes! It is, Chairman.”
The director answered with a start.
“We too have devoted all our resources and efforts to national stability. That is why we have gathered here today.”
At Kim Yang-han’s signal, a document was distributed to everyone present.
[Proposal for a Nationwide Gold Drive to Overcome the Economic Crisis]
“Chairman. This is...?”
Kim Yang-han answered coldly.
“Isn’t the country in such a crisis? Gentry families like ours must take the lead and help.”
“Ah...”
“Most true. If elders of old families such as yourself do not step forward, how can the country be set right?”
The director immediately bowed his head to the floor.
“We must unite the people’s patriotism. We must gather the gold ornaments sleeping in their wardrobes, repay foreign debt, and use them to defend the exchange rate. I too intend to contribute my private wealth without reserve and begin a major campaign through JD Media.”
On the surface, it was the noble decision of a venerable elder statesman devoting himself to the country, and everyone took the lead in praising his lofty intent.
But no one believed that was the truth.
No one voiced it aloud, but everyone gathered here could see as clearly as the palm of their hand how it would unfold.
‘A fine pretext.’
They had already created an atmosphere of national crisis to attack the Emperor.
In that case, should they not make use of everything they could?
The vast assets held under other names that the capital’s great clans[3], led by the Kim clan, had spread everywhere.
Among them, their hidden funds worth trillions of won, piled up as gold bars, were their greatest headache.
In truth, through this national campaign platform, they could deposit it in banks without anyone questioning its origins, attach the label of patriotism, launder it into legal and transparent financial assets, and easily funnel it into nominee accounts.
That was the main objective, but there was also a rather tasty side profit.
“Scholar-officials are not the only ones who can worry for the country. Those commoners below us will surely be no less loyal than any gentryman.”
At the same time, they would gather up the scraps of gold collected by the commoners through the gold collection platform and the banks.
Trading companies controlled by the aristocratic clans, including JD Trading, would handle the exports. A few rounds of indirect remittances and reported “adjustments” to export prices would make it easy to slip the profits into their pockets.
Of course, several regulations stood in the way, but the head of the Financial Supervisory Service understood perfectly.
“Half-hearted crackdowns are worse than doing nothing. I will gather support for temporarily easing gold export regulations. With exchange rates swinging as they are now, would it not be treasonous to deny even a little convenience to such distinguished elite clans working for the country?”
That made three birds with one stone. They could pressure the Emperor, launder slush funds, and earn additional profits.
Naturally, the head of the Financial Supervisory Service and all the capital’s great clans gathered here would get their hands dirty in this business.
They did not worry about the aftermath. Such matters were for servants, not nobles.
And above all, if the Emperor gave up his intentions under this pressure, every troublesome matter could be crushed by the power of authority.
It did not matter if Kim Yang-han did not become prime minister.
The Emperor was alone. Once he bent even once, it would be the aristocratic clans’ world again.
They would choose a daughter from a good family to place at his side, offer the Emperor every pleasure in the world, keep him comfortably secluded within the palace, and let the ministers handle the bothersome affairs of state.
That was the beautiful world of sovereign and ministers ruling together to which they wished to return.
* * *
I never understood why Kim Yang-han only used Kim A-ra in the drama.
Even when she got thoroughly thrashed, Kim Yang-han would just let her recover and put her back to work, like a villain in a Sentai show who kept using the same underling no matter how often they came home beaten.
Aside from the character cast as Kim Yang-han’s chief of staff, there probably was no one suitable to serve as his hands and feet.
It must have been better to go all in on Kim A-ra, who filled the villainess role, than to awkwardly insert another character.
But now that it was real, I understood. Kim A-ra was certainly... capable. In every sense.
“They’re ruthless.”
I had felt it during the scheme to push Kim Yang-han into the prime minister’s seat, but this woman’s ability to control the media exceeded my expectations.
That was probably why there was an episode where the heroine became a bitch everyone wanted dead and got hunted down like a rat for a while.
Anyway, if you watched JD Broadcasting, it felt as though the country might collapse at any moment.
She probably had no choice if she wanted to fool Kim Yang-han... Then again, it wasn’t as if she and I owed each other anything. She had a pretext, so of course she was enjoying hitting me hard.
She wasn’t hitting me even harder because she was embarrassed, right? Surely not.
“The exchange-rate defense line has been breached.”
In a single day, the exchange rate against the dollar had surged by fifty won. As soon as the stock market opened, foreign capital flowed out like an ebb tide, the KOSPI plunged, and a sidecar[4] was triggered.
It meant Kim Yang-han had begun moving in earnest.
“Capital held under other names by the Kim clan, most likely, is buying dollars all at once and driving down the value of the won. At the same time, they appear to be colluding with foreign hedge funds to unleash a barrage of short selling against the Korean market.”
“And even the Financial Supervisory Service says nothing.”
“There may not be conclusive evidence, and its director is also a member of the capital’s great clans.”
Seo Yu-jin continued.
“Despite our economy’s strong performance, this is a short-term exchange-rate instability manufactured artificially. Once we resolve the underlying issue, public sentiment will return to Your Majesty.”
“And if we fail to resolve it, I’ll have no choice but to make the decision for political stability that they want so badly.”
Fortunately, the government was not truly paralyzed by an administrative vacuum, as the media claimed.
It was true that the current administration was operating like a “government of vice ministers,” but rebuilding the Secretariat to serve as a control tower was largely complete.
“The Secretariat that was empty overnight seems to be functioning quite well. It looked rather busy outside on my way in.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. We have temporarily completed the Secretariat’s reconstruction, centered on working-level staff.”
Temporary... but I doubted much would change from here.
From the moment we entered Gyeongbok Palace, Seo Yu-jin had gathered the surviving Secretariat staff and rebuilt the chain of command to some extent, having state affairs reports submitted to me through the second-ranking personnel of each ministry.
Now the Secretariat’s work had fully returned to normal.
Her direction differed from Kim A-ra’s, but this was another level of competence that made me click my tongue in amazement.
“As ordered, we have formed a dedicated task force under the pretext of responding to the current economic situation.”
Since Seo Yu-jin had taken charge, people relatively free from the capital’s great clans’ influence would be chosen.
“What about security?”
“Only the formation of the task force has been made public. The personnel and its work have been kept strictly confidential.”
But forming a task force was only the first step.
After all, foreign currency was leaving and the market was panicking because vast sums of capital were vanishing.
We needed to send the market a clear signal.
A signal that the Republic of Korea’s fundamentals were solid, and that there was no need to worry about a funding squeeze.
That was why they kept attacking us in the media, claiming political stability was necessary. Their conclusion would be to appoint someone from the capital’s great clans as prime minister.
Wasn’t that what they wanted most?
But if I were going to compromise like that, we would never have come this far.
“JD Broadcasting is leading a nationwide gold drive, isn’t it?”
This was not an IMF-level crisis[5], so how many people would participate?
The whole thing smelled fishy, trying to create a national event like this as a smokescreen.
But whatever their true objective, they would use the jab of, “We’re gathering our jewelry to resolve the current exchange-rate crisis, so what is the government doing?” against us.
It was a tactic worthy of Kim Yang-han, who cared especially about his image.
Of course, from my perspective...
“They’re walking straight into the tiger’s jaws.”
Resting my chin on my hand, I spoke.
“Call the U.S. Ambassador to Korea.”
Footnotes:
[1] Gentry: a hereditary elite whose status traditionally centered on learning and public service.
[2] Scholar-officials: members of the traditional scholarly elite who served in government.
[3] Capital's great clans: powerful hereditary elite families centered in the capital.
[4] Sidecar: a Korean stock-market safeguard that temporarily halts program trading during sharp price moves.
[5] IMF crisis: in South Korea, this refers to the 1997-98 financial crisis, when the country sought assistance from the International Monetary Fund.
- A Sentai show is a Japanese team-superhero genre. The narrator compares Kim A-ra to a villain's underling who is repeatedly defeated and sent back out.
- The nationwide gold drive recalls South Korea's public gold-donation campaign during the 1997-98 financial crisis.
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