Chapter 469 No Wall Is Too Hard to Break Through: Priorities Matter

Over the next few days, regardless of his popularity, Wang Xiao made a point of visiting all the semiconductor companies in South Korea and tirelessly gave speeches to the protesting crowds.

Fortunately, the semiconductor industry has high barriers to entry. Because it's so capital-intensive, those involved in South Korea's semiconductor sector are mostly large conglomerates. These conglomerates have numerous hiring standards, which directly stifle the spirit of those working in the semiconductor industry.

In layman's terms, they believe in using words rather than fists, and they practice nonviolent non-cooperation. They protest, but they won't directly resort to violence.

Therefore, although Wang Xiao was hated and extremely unpopular, he was still able to deliver his speech surrounded by bodyguards.

Unfortunately, perhaps because the winters on the Korean Peninsula are too cold, the revolutionary spark, instead of being blown into a fireball by the strong winds and burning all over the mountains and fields, was extinguished with a "whoosh".

The panic she imagined, the fear of unemployment, did not spread at all, and did not even cause any ripples.

Wang Xiao couldn't understand it at all. Why weren't these people panicking?

She tried to put herself in the other person's shoes and felt that she should be terrified no matter what.

Of the millions of laid-off workers, only 1% would want to start a business and make a fortune, while the remaining 99% would prefer a stable job.

After all, only a small percentage of people actually make a fortune in business; countless others drown in the sea of ​​commerce.

Tang Yicheng sighed: "They've had too much of a good life. The real big conglomerates and top conglomerates have a different status in South Korea."

That's right, 11 conglomerates in South Korea went bankrupt or went out of business last year, but they weren't the top ones. The largest of them, Kia Group, only ranked eighth.

Moreover, it was on the verge of bankruptcy and should have gone bankrupt and closed down, but last summer, the South Korean government intervened again and managed to prevent it from going bankrupt directly.

If someone ranked eighth can receive such preferential treatment, how could employees of top-5 South Korean conglomerates easily fall into panic?

Tang Yicheng continued to ramble on: "It's only human nature. In China, the focus is on large enterprises and small ones are left to their own devices. Don't those large state-owned enterprises still think that layoffs are the responsibility of other small factories?"

Wang Xiao wandered around the room for a while, then turned to Tang Yicheng and asked, "Didn't these companies talk to the union? Don't they mention the group's current operating status at all? If they can't make it, everyone will leave together, and they won't say a word?"

She gave seven speeches, which were like roadshows.

Even if it's hard to bring up the topic, wouldn't Representative Cui and the others seize the opportunity and continue the conversation based on what she started?

Family members, please understand, what does 300% debt mean? Insolvency is a distant, unattainable goal for them!

Tang Yicheng shook his head: "South Korea follows the Japanese model, where the lifetime employment system of large corporations is deeply ingrained, and no one is willing to be the bad guy."

So the situation remained strangely deadlocked. Fewer and fewer cars were on the street, and the commercial street was deserted. Everyone knew that their company was in a bad situation, but as long as no one spoke up to expose it, everyone could pretend that nothing had happened.

After all, South Korea is a large corporation. How could the country truly go bankrupt? As long as the country exists, the top 5 companies will endure.

Wang Xiao couldn't help but rub the bridge of his nose, and finally concluded through gritted teeth: "If anyone ever tells me that people in science and engineering are particularly rational, I'll smear them in the face!"

From Russia to South Korea, she felt that these people were all very stubborn.

Many of those working in finance, including those on Wall Street, have backgrounds in science and engineering.

Before she transmigrated, she had read some data. According to statistics from the University of Science and Technology of China, among the more than 500 alumni of their school who work in the financial industry on Wall Street, 90% of them are from the disciplines of physics, mechanics, and mathematics.

Have we become rational?

Looking at the madness on Wall Street, how rational do you think they can be?

They were all incredibly stubborn, each clinging to their own delusions, which was truly remarkable.

Tang Yicheng was also helpless.

He hadn't expected that the semiconductor company's acquisition plan would be stalled by an employee's disagreement.

Based on his life experience, workers in socialist countries are expected to obey all commands.

When the Third Front construction was carried out, the factory was moved to a remote mountain forest thousands of miles away. Didn't the workers still reluctantly go with them?

In capitalist countries, you get paid to work for a boss. The company belongs to the boss, and the boss can do whatever they want with it. At most, if you lose your job, you'll get unemployment benefits. Do you expect to be in control of the boss's life?

Get this straight, what gives you the right to dictate other people's money?

South Korea is truly a fascinating country.

"Let's eat first." Wang Xiao grabbed Liu Ba's hand, glanced at his watch, and finally had a change of heart. "We'll talk after we eat."

As the boss, if she doesn't say she wants to eat, even if her subordinates are starving, they won't dare to bring it up, for fear of being caught in the crossfire and getting scolded—"You're really thick-skinned, thinking about food at a time like this? All you ever think about is food!"

Actually, Wang Xiao really doesn't have much of an appetite right now. When a person has something on their mind, their stomach feels blocked, and eating is just a mechanical exercise.

Besides, the food in Korea is mostly the same, enough to fill your stomach, but it doesn't really have much to do with delicious food.

She mechanically stirred the rice, but the combined flavors of kimchi, tofu, and soybean paste soup failed to revitalize her taste buds.

Wang Xiao felt she should reflect on her actions; she had made a mistake based on assumptions. Thinking she possessed a time-traveling cheat code, she arrogantly refused to truly understand South Korea. Having money, she recklessly came to acquire it, and deserved her disastrous defeat.

Ha! After reflecting for three minutes, Wang Xiao gave up.

When people are rich, they can be so willful. Instead of reflecting on their own actions, they might as well act crazy in public.

Stop trying to instill values ​​in her. Is this the time for South Korea to start instilling values? Right now, South Korea is focused on surviving.

Money is the only thing that matters right now!

Wang Xiao took a sip of the Korean ginseng chicken soup. Was it good? It was just so-so, mainly for replenishing qi.

She started chatting with the translator: "Mr. Cao, how many people are in your family? Do you have any siblings?"

The translator didn't know what she wanted to do, but given how generous the boss was with tips, he honestly replied, "There are ten people in my family, including my siblings and me, making five in total."

Oh, that must be a very large family.

Wang Xiao asked questions bit by bit, about the occupations of family members, the academic situation of children, and everything in great detail, much like a matchmaker conducting a background check on a client.

This made Xiao Gao and Xiao Zhao secretly wink at each other, seriously suspecting that their boss had suddenly decided to introduce someone to a potential partner.

As for why she introduced people to potential partners? Sigh! Nothing a boss does is surprising; there's always a reason behind it.

Wang Xiao really does have that ability; if she wants, she always has a way of making people feel like they're basking in a spring breeze when they talk to her.

With a beaming smile, she asked Mr. Cui, a soon-to-be graduate student, "Are you planning to pursue a master's degree or take the civil service exam directly? I see that it's very popular for university students in Japan to take the civil service exam now. The salary is high, the benefits are good, and there are many perks. I wonder if it's popular to take the civil service exam in South Korea now? Your brother-in-law is a civil servant, right? Your parents must really like him."

The translator blurted out, "That's not necessarily true now."

Wang Xiao asked with a face full of curiosity: "Why? Aren't the benefits for civil servants in South Korea good? Although the benefits may not be as good as those of large companies, they're not that much worse, right?"

The translator had drunk quite a bit of sake and got a little tipsy talking to the boss, so he started complaining: "Things are different now! Things used to be good, not the best, but not the worst either. But now, my brother-in-law's colleagues are all worried about losing their jobs."

oh?

Wang Xiao was genuinely surprised: "Civil servants can lose their jobs? Isn't it a secure job?"

The translator shook his head: "The government is going to reform. New broom sweeps clean. A new president is coming soon, and a new government team will be formed. Everyone's saying there will be government downsizing and streamlining. The IMF is giving aid to South Korea and providing loans, but they're asking us to spend less. Civil servants will inevitably be criticized for only spending money."

He sighed, "That's how it is when you're asking people for money with your palm facing up."

There are now rumors circulating in South Korea that President Kim is planting seeds of trouble for the next president, and since he can't do anything about the other side, he's turned to the IMF as a "mother-in-law."

When the next president takes office, no matter what you want to do, the IMF's economic control stick will be hanging over your head, making you feel uneasy about doing anything.

Seeing that his boss seemed lost in thought and was becoming increasingly quiet, Tang Yicheng quickly took over the conversation and continued chatting with the translator.

Wang Xiao really had no interest in chatting anymore, because she suddenly realized that she had found a breakthrough point, which was the gap between the old and new regimes.

There's a Chinese idiom, "a rumor can spread from nowhere."

She clearly remembers that when she was in middle school, her Chinese teacher emphasized that there must be an opening for wind to be generated; otherwise, how can air convection be formed if it is completely closed?

Now, isn't the gap between the old and new regimes a ready-made hole?

She pressed the translator, "When will your new president take office? This month?"

“No.” The translator shook his head. “Although he was elected on December 19th, he will not be sworn in until February of this year.”

He sighed again, "It won't be long."

During the New Year's Day holiday, his brother-in-law, who is a civil servant, asked his other brother-in-law, who is a teacher, if there were any job openings.

Wang Xiao nodded, but his words were insincere: "Gold shines wherever it is, things will definitely get better."

It just doesn't need to get better so quickly. If she really got better in a flash, what would be left for her?

The meal, which included drinking, lasted a full hour.

The translator, who was quite drunk, was sent back to his room to rest, while the rest of the team followed the boss to the large room to prepare for a meeting.

Sure enough, as soon as the door closed, Wang Xiao spoke up: "Start with the unemployment panic among civil servants."

She had previously believed that the collapse of tens of thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises and the resulting mass unemployment would quickly spread panic to large corporations.

As a result, there is a complete barrier between the two; large corporations live in another world and are completely unaware of external pressures.

Therefore, she had to adjust her approach and use another group of workers—civil servants—as the topic, which seemed quite stable to outsiders.

"An important requirement of the IMF's aid to South Korea is to tighten monetary policy and spend less money. The civil service will be restructured, the government will be streamlined, and government spending will be reduced. Large corporations and banks will also undergo restructuring. The IMF is not a charity; you will have to repay every penny it lends, even if it has to pay you back double."

"Why did large corporations have such an easy time in the past? It was because the government used South Korean money to support them. They could easily get loans and various preferential policies. Small families with parents taking care of their children, and parents even giving them their savings for their funerals, naturally had an easy life. The remaining small families, unloved by their parents, had no support from their elders and had to rely on themselves for everything. Not only did they have to hand over their earnings to their parents to support them, but they were also ridiculed: 'Look at you, how incompetent! Why can't you make big money like everyone else?'"

Tang Yicheng clapped his hands, enthusiastically echoing his boss: "That's right! The problem is that we can't let them continue to whitewash the situation; we need to make them face reality and let the country treat them fairly!"

Oh, back when big corporations were taking out loans and living a life of extravagance, burning through any amount of money and borrowing whatever they wanted, there was nothing for the rest of us to do.

Now that big corporations have racked up huge debts, it's us, the people who have always been exploited, who are paying out of our own pockets to clean up their messes.

On what grounds?

What's so great about big corporations being arrogant?

The old government itself couldn't survive and was slunk out of the Blue House.

A new emperor brings a new court; what makes you think the new government will continue to protect you?

Economic reform should begin with these large conglomerates. They are the real vampires, constantly sucking the blood out of South Korea!

Tang Yicheng spoke fluently, as if he were giving a speech.

Xiao Gao and Xiao Zhao both laughed and teased, "Brother Tang, you're even better than the South Korean presidential election. You should run for Chief Executive of Hong Kong."

Tang Yicheng shook his head seriously: "No way, I'm a new Hong Konger, with a mainland background. Hong Kong people are very sensitive now. If someone like me from the mainland were elected Chief Executive, it would definitely cause a public uproar and strong social resistance."

Xiao Zhao shrugged it off: "Let them make a fuss for a couple of days, what can they possibly do? It's all back now, they're under whose jurisdiction they're working for. If they keep causing trouble, just give them a couple of slaps and make them understand they're no longer a British colony, and they'll behave. What kind of spoiled brats have they been spoiled with?"

Wang Xiao was overjoyed. "Well, what Xiao Zhao said makes sense."

That's the flaw in human nature: a thousand words are less effective than a slap in the face.

Once they've been beaten into submission, they'll be able to understand reason when you try to reason with them.

Tang Yicheng waved his hand: "Don't talk nonsense. Don't you know what time it is? Our country still wants to join the WTO and integrate into the world economy. If Hong Kong causes trouble now, Britain will have a lot to complain about. It was given the status of a world financial center by the United States. If it complains, it will cause a big problem. The United States would love to take the opportunity to trip it up."

He said meaningfully, "A small act of impatience can ruin a great plan; at this time, we can only endure."

Wang Xiao, a man without principles, found this reasonable and nodded in agreement.

Xiao Zhao had a much stronger stance than her boss, and pressed on, "What if they take advantage of your kindness and cause trouble? Brother Tang, let me tell you, this is how you win over prisoners. You have to win them over from the start, otherwise they'll get more and more aggressive once they calm down."

"So what?" Tang Yicheng said dismissively. "At most, it will ruin a generation. As long as the land is still there, does it matter who is in charge? Back then, the Northeast was mostly inhabited by Manchus. Later, a lot of people from Shandong and other places went to the Northeast to make their way in the Northeast. Didn't that still not hinder the development of the Northeast? As long as you stay long enough, you can call it your hometown and you can call it your local."

Wang Xiao almost clapped his hands in agreement. It made perfect sense, absolutely perfect sense!

People are important, but not that important.

Because there are plenty of people in this world.

That very evening, South Korea's largest online forum erupted in chaos.

When the financial crisis hit, everyone's focus shifted to the economy and jobs.

Those who lost money in the stock market and cried their hearts out were undoubtedly the most lively group on the forum.

However, South Korea has fewer than 1.5 million stock market investors, accounting for only 3% of the population, and their heartache cannot be shared by everyone.

On the forum, the vast majority of netizens were more concerned about work-related issues.

College graduates who are about to graduate are worried about not being able to find a job, and employees of companies that have gone bankrupt are wondering where they should go to find a new job.

Some civil servants sighed and said that they had finally passed the exam last year, but just as they were getting used to their jobs, they were already prepared to be fired.

Amidst the bleak wind and rain, a conspicuous figure suddenly appeared, mocking the civil servant: "Only unambitious people would want to be civil servants; he deserves to be laid off. Because civil servants don't create any wealth for the country. Only employees of large corporations like him, always at the forefront of the global economy, creating wealth for conglomerates and the nation, never worry about unemployment because they are constantly striving and progressing."

Those were really harsh words. The civil servant couldn't take it anymore and immediately retorted.

War is something that always involves give and take.

When someone attacks and someone resists, war naturally breaks out.

Both sides used keyboards as weapons and the forum as their battlefield, engaging in a war of words and exchanging greetings in Korean.

The onlookers began to take sides.

It is well known that civil servants are not a well-regarded group in any country, because they live off the national treasury and the public feels that they are supporting them, so they naturally have the right to criticize them.

Therefore, many netizens sided with the engineer from the large conglomerate who launched the attack.

However, with more people taking sides, there's bound to be a mixed bag, and some netizens are saying particularly harsh things, even expanding the scope of their attacks.

One commenter wrote: Only those who are fully aware that they cannot create any wealth for the company or the country, and who have never actually created any wealth, worry about losing their jobs because they know they have no social value.

These words offended everyone on the forum.

Immediately, some people launched into a tirade, attacking the employees of the large conglomerates: What makes you so great? If the government hadn't been so biased and always favored these large conglomerates, would they be living such comfortable lives? And how did South Korea's financial crisis even happen? You large conglomerates have a mountain of debt, you can't pay it off yourselves, and you expect the government to help you pay it off? Why should you?

Some chimed in: "Exactly! None of the government's functions involve making money; all its funds come from the people. When it comes to spending money, we ordinary citizens don't get a share. Why should we be the ones to pay back the money?"

The argument on the forum got more and more heated.

Thanks to South Korea's rapid economic growth over the past 30 years, and thanks to the rise of South Korea's electronics industry, the proportion of South Korean households owning computers has increased significantly.

The burgeoning online community erupted into a chaotic debate. Eventually, the main argument shifted to: large conglomerates must restructure their debts and find their own ways to repay them; the South Korean people don't owe them anything!

Ha! When the big conglomerates are reorganized, they'll see if the employees of these arrogant conglomerates are really as good as they claim, possessing such a strong ability to make money for the country that they will never be laid off.

They really are afraid of their tongues getting caught in the crossfire.

Which of these unemployed individuals, or those worried about losing their jobs, wasn't an indispensable talent in their former workplaces?

A financial tsunami is sweeping across the Han River; who can escape this calamity?

South Korean forums were abuzz with heated debate, and offline, financial officials from both Russia and South Korea were also arguing fiercely.

Both sides had already agreed on the general direction: South Korea was willing to convert one-third of its GKO holdings into three-year Russian oil and gas bonds and the other one-third into five-year Russian government bonds, provided that Russia redeemed one-third of its GKO government bonds as scheduled.

What everyone wants to discuss are the specific terms, such as oil and gas prices, payment mechanisms, and the right to dispose of assets in the event of default.

But at this critical juncture, things suddenly took another turn.

It's not that the new president is dissatisfied—he hasn't taken office yet, his new government hasn't been established, and he can't control the current government's financial arrangements.

Instead, the IMF stepped in.

Since the South Korean government signed an aid agreement with the IMF in early December last year, South Korea's financial situation should have improved in theory.

Unfortunately, instead of stabilizing, the situation has only gotten worse.

In particular, on December 22, Moody's downgraded the long-term sovereign debt ratings of Indonesia, South Korea, and Thailand to below investment grade. Standard & Poor's also took action, downgrading South Korea's foreign currency long-term sovereign debt rating to below investment grade.

The direct consequence was that on December 23, the Korean won fell below the psychological threshold of 2,000 won to 1 US dollar, the Korean stock index also plummeted by more than 7%, and market interest rates soared to 40% in an instant.

In this situation, the IMF was also caught off guard and had no choice but to urgently agree to advance the loan on December 24.

In early January this year, the IMF will transfer a $10 billion loan to South Korea's account.

This is definitely not a small amount of money, so IMF officials naturally had to come to South Korea to oversee the entire process.

Upon arriving in South Korea, he discovered that Russia was discussing debt issues with South Korea, and he immediately became furious.

Are you kidding me? Is South Korea's money still South Korea's money? No, accepting IMF aid means that every penny South Korea spends, how it is spent, and where it goes, is subject to IMF oversight.

Otherwise, do you think that a huge sum of 57 billion US dollars was issued by Tiandi Bank?

The purpose of IMF lending is to protect the interests of private creditors, ensuring that debtor countries that receive loans are not bankrupt and can continue to raise funds from international capital markets to develop their economies.

Now, South Korea is converting its holdings of Russian short-term government bonds (GKO) into longer-term bonds, which is a de facto debt default.

It could lead to panic selling by other creditors, triggering a new round of economic turmoil and contradicting the IMF's goal of maintaining stability.

The IMF will absolutely not tolerate this kind of thing happening!

The IMF project manager, who had just arrived in South Korea, was furious and yelled at the South Korean Minister of Trade and Industry: "Minister Lim, what exactly are you trying to do? Only the IMF can save South Korea right now!"

Previously, when Minister Lin was negotiating with the IMF, he had played tricks in the agreement text, leaving a loophole for South Korea's future transgressions. On December 1st, when President Contesu arrived in Seoul again, he discovered the trick and firmly blocked the back door. The two sides were deadlocked for a day, and on December 2nd, South Korea reluctantly agreed to the new text.

It's only been a month, and the South Koreans are already making the same old mistakes again? How come this outwardly strong but inwardly weak country still doesn't understand its own capabilities?

Are they only happy when South Korea goes bankrupt and collapses completely?

Minister Lin was reprimanded and felt humiliated, but he had no choice but to swallow his anger for the sake of the country's interests.

He knows South Korea's economic situation all too well. If South Korea offends the IMF, it will be completely finished!

Ivanov listened to the whole thing and knew perfectly well that the American was making veiled attacks.

It's obvious to anyone with eyes to see that the Russian government was the one truly pushing for the financial agreement between Russia and South Korea.

Otherwise, it wouldn't have been him, the First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, who flew to Seoul to negotiate with people.

Instead of criticizing him, the Americans vented their anger directly on the Koreans, for the sole reason that they were bullies who preyed on the weak.

Since the agreement is being negotiated by two parties, why offend the stronger party? By attacking the weaker party and forcing them to give up, the agreement will naturally become a worthless piece of paper without a signature, and the IMF's goal will be achieved.

Why offend him, the Russian deputy prime minister?

Ivanov, of course, wanted to facilitate a financial agreement between Russia and South Korea, so he couldn't just stand by and watch while the South Koreans were being criticized.

He spoke up first: "Mr. Steven, the reason why Russia took the initiative to approach South Korea and propose this agreement is precisely for the sake of the stability of the international financial market."

He looked at the other person with a serious expression. "Please don't blame Russia. Our economy does have problems, and we are working hard to correct them, but the panic is not caused by us. It's a massive flu that has spread from Southeast Asia to the rest of the world. All we can do is stop it from spreading further."

“Mr. Steven, you are a financial expert. You should know that no bank in the world can withstand a collective bank run. This is because banks will take depositors’ money out to make loans and invest it. Otherwise, money kept in a vault will not generate money on its own and will naturally not generate interest.”

"No bank in the world can recover all the money it has lent out at once. If it could, it would inevitably cause the collapse of the entire financial market."

"The situation in Russia is the same now. Without a financial crisis, it can function normally. Its biggest problem now is to prevent a large-scale bank run, which is a problem for all countries."

"We took the initiative to talk to South Korea in order to find a way to stabilize the financial markets of both countries, restore the economy as soon as possible, and repay the IMF loan on schedule."

Mr. Steven was not going to be led by the nose by the Russians. He firmly shook his head: "No, sir, any private agreement between your two countries is a breach of contract and an infringement on the interests of creditors. This is absolutely not allowed in the international financial market. We must protect the integrity of the financial market."

Ivanov smiled meaningfully and said, "Is that so? I always thought the mission of the International Monetary Fund was to prevent the complete collapse of the global financial system and to maintain world financial order."

He sighed, "I didn't expect I misunderstood. The IMF's purpose is simply to protect the absolute interests of creditors, Wall Street creditors."

Steven sensed that the other party was setting a trap for him, but he couldn't back down: "Sir, these two things are not contradictory. If the interests of creditors are not guaranteed, then once trust is lost, the international financial market will inevitably collapse."

Ivanov raised his eyes slightly, staring intently at the other person: "No, there is a difference in importance and urgency between the two, and there is a sequence to them."

Who calls the shots at the IMF? The United States.

With the US mired in a stock market crash and engulfed in a financial crisis, protecting the profits and losses of a few Wall Street hedge funds' overseas investments is far less important than preventing a global banking crisis that sweeps across the US and Europe.

This is what is truly important and urgent.

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[I'm sorry I'm late.] It took me a long time to check some data. [Let me see]