At the very mont Kim Muhyuk was enjoying the pre-match festival in England,
Han Kyungyeong was buried under a mountain of paperwork in his Moscow hotel room.
He kept clutching his aching head, flipping through docunts, sighing over and over again.
Then his phone rang loudly. When Han checked the na on the screen, a small smile appeared.
He turned to the staff who were just as stressed-out and exhausted as he was.
“Let’s take a break and head to the negotiation.”
Holding his phone, Han rose from his chair and went into his room.
“Ailee.”
― Jas. Are you busy?
“No, I can talk. I just sat on the bed to rest a bit.”
― Charlie arrived and he’s drinking with my dad. It would’ve been nice if you ca too...
There was clear disappointnt in Ailee’s voice. Han’s smile deepened.
“Do you miss ? Then why don’t you co to Russia once the final match is over and your schedule clears?”
― No... it’s not that I miss you. It’s the final match, so it’d be nice if you ca to see it.
“I’ll go next year. I’ll co for next year’s Champions League final. Think you guys can even make it there?”
― Is that sothing I control? It’s up to the players.
Her voice was snappish, but Han only found it cute.
― You said you could take a vacation after this job, right?
“How did you know that? I was gonna surprise you. Ah, and without any sense, you just said it.”
― Surprise my foot. If Charlie doesn’t give you ti off, that’s gone too.
“Haha, true enough. Anyway, let’s go on a trip then.”
― I’ll look forward to it. Ah, I sent you a video. Check your email, Jas.
Because they were in a long-distance relationship, Ailee would sotis send photos.
But a video was a first. Han asked in a puzzled tone:
“What video?”
― Should I call it a pre-match festival? It’s completely like a party here right now. Fans are dancing and singing in the streets. It feels like Leeds City has co alive again. I wanted you to feel it too, so I sent it.
Leeds United was about to win the Premier League for the first ti since its inception.
No wonder everyone was excited. Thinking that, Han answered readily:
“Okay.”
After the call ended, he opened his laptop and checked his email.
While the attached video was downloading, he read the ssage Ailee included.
Leeds in the video was exactly as she said—a festival.
People marched through the streets with beer in hand, singing the supporter chants in unison, reveling together.
A smile naturally spread across Han’s lips as he watched.
“President Jas. It’s ti to head out.”
A knock ca with the staff’s voice just as he was watching the video.
Han closed the laptop and stepped outside.
“Alright. Let’s go.”
There wasn’t a trace of the earlier smile left on his face.
Han and the staff headed toward Yukos headquarters.
When they arrived at the eting room, Yukos executives and governnt officials were already seated.
“Nice to et you. I’m Jas Han, CEO of Dreamhigh Investnt.”
One of the executives stood up.
“I’m Steven Teede, CEO of Yukos.”
Teede held out his hand first. Han shook it pleasantly.
“I’ve long heard of Dreamhigh’s legendary investnt performance. I didn’t expect you to be interested in oil as well.”
It sounded like praise, but there was a hidden barb.
Han, however, kept his relaxed smile.
“We invest wherever there is sothing worth investing in. That is Dreamhigh’s motto. Yukos is a good company. The problem is simply that the man at the top is a criminal.”
“...A verdict hasn’t been reached yet.”
“Yes. We know there’s no verdict yet. But it’s also a fact that Yukos cannot operate normally because of him. Oil prices are going insane because of that.”
Teede opened his lips but failed to form a proper rebuttal.
Han did not miss the opening and pressed further.
“A company with owner risk is the most dangerous kind. And isn’t the tax bill Yukos was hit with so massive that the company has no choice but to sell?”
“...”
At that mont, another man stood up—big and imposing, exuding subtle pressure.
“Starting a power struggle before negotiations even begin? This may be difficult today. Co now, both of you should ease your shoulders.”
Han released Teede’s hand and looked toward the speaker.
“You must be Minister ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) Viktor? A pleasure.”
“Haha, you know ?”
“Of course. How can anyone doing business in Russia not know the Minister?”
“Yes, nice to et you. Let’s sit and talk.”
Han shook Viktor’s hand and sat down.
The room naturally split into three groups:
• Yukos executives
• Russian governnt officials
• Han Kyungyeong and the Dreamhigh staff
Han’s team began placing all their prepared docunts on the table.
“We have no intention of acquiring complicated parts of Yukos as a whole. We will acquire the subsidiary Yuganskneftegaz first, then absorb the rest afterward.”
“What! What are you saying? Do you think that makes any sense?”
“The tax Yukos owes exceeds its asset value. You think that makes sense? No. Impossible. We don’t want to complicate matters.”
After Khodorkovsky’s arrest, the governnt had demanded USD 3 billion in back taxes for evasion.
But that was just the beginning.
The Russian tax authorities imposed USD 27 billion in tax penalties on Yukos and its three core subsidiaries for the past three years.
Even selling Yukos outright wouldn’t cover the full amount.
“We’ll acquire Yugansk first and use the acquisition funds to pay the penalties.”
Teede shook his head violently.
“No, that’s outrageous.”
Selling only the subsidiaries that Yukos owned 100% ant Yukos itself would be forced into bankruptcy.
Which also ant Teede’s own shares would turn into scraps of paper. Of course he rejected it.
“If you want to acquire sothing, you must acquire all of our Yukos shares held by managent! There’s no such thing as what you’re suggesting. We will never sell that way!”
“Understood. Then I’ll acquire all your shares for one dollar. Will you accept?”
“What? What kind of bullshit is that!”
Han sent a signal with his eyes. A staff mber rose and distributed the prepared docunts to each group.
The executives and officials began examining them.
The docunts were filled with Dreamhigh’s own investigative findings.
For a while, the only sound in the room was the turning of pages.
Occasionally soone swallowed dryly, but Han remained silent, waiting until they finished.
“H-How did you gather all this...?”
Teede spoke with a trembling voice, placing the papers down.
“As you can see, Yukos’s total asset value doesn’t even reach USD 30 billion. And the tax penalties are USD 27 billion. Even if we bought it for one dollar, it would be a loss. I understand you inflated the valuation with all sorts of tricks, but we’re not sloppy. Every company we’ve faced so far has been bigger than Yukos, not smaller. Finding out this much is nothing.”
Dreamhigh’s valuation: USD 15 billion.
Yukos’s valuation by its own executives: USD 30 billion—double.
Ridiculous.
“Let repeat. Even if we buy it for a dollar, we lose money. And you don’t even hold 100% of the shares. That’s why we intend to acquire Yugansk first. There is no room for negotiation. If you don’t like it, say so. We’ll leave right now.”
Han drew the line cleanly.
Dreamhigh does not intend to acquire Yukos.
No negotiations.
If you dislike it, walk away.
If talks failed today, the Russian governnt would have no choice but to move to a public auction.
And that was sothing they wanted to avoid—dragging out the Yukos crisis served no one.
“May I speak?”
A man next to Minister Viktor raised his hand and stood.
Viktor nodded, and the man began speaking.
“I am Deputy Minister Ian Materov of the Ministry of Industry and Energy. First, regarding Yukos’s asset value, the governnt estimates it at USD 15 billion.”
Exactly matching Dreamhigh’s valuation, and still higher than the USD 8 billion in taxes Yukos itself owed.
“And Yugansk’s estimated sale price is USD 12 billion. But Dreamhigh’s valuation of Yugansk is USD 10 billion.”
Han had valued 100% of Yugansk at USD 10 billion.
Han nodded.
“USD 10 billion is already a generous valuation.”
“Ten billion... If put to auction, it may fetch far more. Yugansk is the core subsidiary responsible for over 60% of Yukos’s total oil production.”
“That is why we set the acquisition amount at USD 10 billion.”
A fierce debate erupted between Han and Deputy Minister Materov.
Minister Viktor observed quietly, and CEO Teede could not enter the conversation at all.
This alone made it obvious: the real decision-makers here were the governnt officials.
The difference between the two n was not narrowing.
Materov insisted on USD 12 billion.
Han refused to go beyond USD 10 billion.
Then—the eting room door opened, and dvedev entered with his aides.
At the appearance of Russia’s No. 2, everyone except the Dreamhigh group stood at once.
Viktor spoke first.
“Chief of Staff dvedev. What brings you here...?”
dvedev responded lightly.
“Haha, Minister Viktor, why the surprise? The Kremlin is monitoring the Yukos sale closely. I ca to see how things are progressing, with my own eyes.”
dvedev looked around with a gentle smile.
“Don’t mind . Continue as you were. Pretend I’m not here.”
He sat beside Viktor.
His tone was friendly, but no one dared speak.
After a long silence, dvedev broke it.
“Why are you all so quiet? Weren’t you negotiating? How far did things go?”
Materov answered.
“We were discussing the sale of Yugansk. The parties differed on the sale amount.”
“I see. And what amount do you have in mind?”
“We believe the governnt must receive at least USD 12 billion.”
“Twelve billion... And Dreamhigh’s offer?”
This ti Han answered himself.
“USD 10 billion.”
dvedev’s aides showed visible displeasure.
“Ten billion...”
A USD 2 billion gap—hard to bridge.
“President Jas.”
One of the n accompanying dvedev spoke.
“Even USD 12 billion is a bargain. But USD 10 billion? Are you toying with Russia?”
“Do you not understand what the word ‘bargain’ ans? And who are you? You should introduce yourself first. I don’t know everyone here.”
“I am one of the President’s economic advisors—Andrei Illarionov.”
“Ah... so you’re the economic advisor. My apologies for not recognizing you.”
His tone was polite, but a smirk touched Han’s lips.
Andrei saw it and flushed with anger.
“Jas! What is the aning of that smile? Are you mocking ?”
Han shrugged and lifted his lips even higher.
“I’m not mocking you. I just find this amusing. If not for President Kim Muhyuk’s orders, I wouldn’t even be sitting here. If you don’t like our offer, find soone else. We won’t cling.”
Han’s words were effectively a final warning.
To every person gathered in the room.
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