"What do you think?"
At Jeong Gyu-cheol, president of Bluehole Construction, question, Seok-won—dressed in a cashmere coat—stepped down from the cart, removed his sunglasses, and slowly looked around.
On both sides stood dense forests of old, towering trees, and between them stretched a wide, open fairway.
With nothing obstructing the view, the expansive fairway was covered in meticulously maintained grass, trimmed so finely and evenly that it resembled a luxurious carpet laid out with care.
"It's been quite a while since it opened, from what I know, but the maintenance doesn't seem bad."
"It opened in 1971, so this year marks its 32nd anniversary."
Seok-won moved forward and stood on the tee box of the first hole, located right in front of the clubhouse. With his hands tucked into his coat pockets, he spoke.
"What's the total land area?"
"The site alone measures 968,466 square meters."
"Then that's a little over 290,000 pyeong."
"To be exact, it's 293,475 pyeong."
As expected of a full-scale golf course with all 18 holes, the land area was considerable.
"If you take the Gyeongbu Expressway, you can reach Seoul in about 20 minutes by car, and as you can see, the land is spacious enough that using a private helicopter wouldn't pose any problems."
Surrounded by dense forests and with residential areas far away, it was possible to clear a section of the fairway and easily create a simple landing site anywhere.
That meant even late at night, or early in the morning, one could freely use a private helicopter without causing inconvenience to nearby residents.
Noticing the pleased expression on Seok-won's face, President Jeong Gyu-cheol added,
"On top of that, Taebong Mountain and Eungdal Mountain stand behind it on both sides like folding screens, and with Unjung Stream flowing in front, it has the classic feng shui layout of mountains at the back and water in the front—making it an exceptionally auspicious site."
"Is that so?"
When Seok-won showed interest, President Jeong Gyu-cheol cautiously gauged his reaction before speaking again.
"Some people may not like this sort of thing, but since this is where your residence will be built, Chairman, we brought in a renowned feng shui expert to check whether there might be any negative energy."
At that, Seok-won asked with an intrigued expression,
"What did he say?"
Seeing that Seok-won did not seem particularly bothered, President Jeong Gyu-cheol continued with a more reassured look,
"They said it resembles a golden rooster incubating its eggs, waiting for them to hatch for the prosperity of its descendants—a highly auspicious formation known as the Geumgye Poran-hyeong."
"That's a relief."
While many people did not believe in feng shui, it was still far better than being told the land carried negative energy, so Seok-won found himself in a better mood.
Looking out over the grass, yellowed by winter, and the patches of snow that remained unmelted here and there beneath the shade of trees, Seok-won asked,
"The owner of Nam Seoul Country Club is Owon Construction, right?"
"That's correct."
Though a slightly cold wind was blowing, President Jeong Gyu-cheol continued speaking as he watched Seok-won standing on the grass without concern.
"Recently, they've been struggling due to financial difficulties, and they're willing to sell if they receive 5 billion won per hole."
"Then that comes to 90 billion won."
"Since the golf course won't continue operating, if you factor in the compensation that must be paid to members holding memberships, you should expect to budget around 150 billion won to be safe."
"How many registered members are there?"
"There are 980."
"That's quite a lot."
"Since it's a long-established golf course with a deep history and is also close to Seoul, making it highly accessible, that seems to be the reason."
Seok-won nodded as if in agreement.
"Given the location, there really isn't a better place than this."
"That's right."
Considering that land prices in the Seongnam and Pangyo areas would skyrocket without limit in the future, 150 billion won was practically a bargain.
'Not in ten years—even in five, this will be land that would be difficult to buy even for 200 billion won. Buying it now is a gain.'
From an investment standpoint alone, it was land too valuable to pass up, but more than anything, Seok-won was particularly fond of the natural environment—close to Seoul and surrounded by dense forests of old trees.
Although a separate wall could be built later, the forest itself served as a natural screen, making it appealing that he could live freely without worrying about outside eyes.
Having made up his mind, Seok-won turned his head and looked at President Jeong Gyu-cheol.
"Since we'll need to change the land use if we're going to get rid of the golf course and build a house, will that be an issue?"
"It seems we can make a public contribution in the form of land or fees, and in return obtain approval for the change of use."
"Then let's handle it cleanly in cash, purchase the land, and build the residence here."
"Yes, understood.'
After taking one last look around, Seok-won put his sunglasses back on and got into the cart.
As he sat side by side in the back seat with President Jeong Gyu-cheol, Manager Han Ji-seong drove the cart back toward the clubhouse visible beyond the tall pine trees.
***
January 8, 2003, Tokyo, Japan.
From early morning, the trading floor of Eldorado Fund's Japan branch was already bustling with activity.
"Keep checking the situation in the Sydney session!"
"Sell orders for the yen are pouring in!"
"Short-term Japanese government bond yields are continuing to rise!"
Although the Japanese stock and foreign exchange markets had not yet opened, the frantic activity was due to an article published the previous day by The Wall Street Journal.
It reported that, following a sharp plunge in the Tokyo stock market during the fourth quarter, the valuation losses on shares held by major Japanese banks and life insurance companies could reach as much as 5 trillion yen.
Under accounting standards, Japanese financial institutions were required to mark their equity holdings to market each quarter and recognize the losses on their books.
In other words, already forced by government policy to write off massive amounts of non-performing loans, they now had to shoulder enormous stock valuation losses as well—placing both major banks and life insurers in a situation where deficits were unavoidable.
John Porter, the branch manager, his hair neatly combed back, stood with one hand in his trouser pocket and spoke as he looked at the large market display board in front of him.
"Following New York, there's an enormous wave of yen sell orders pouring in from the Sydney foreign exchange market as well."
At that, Ryder, who served as the chief trader, responded from beside him,
"The Wall Street Journal report about Japanese financial institutions posting massive quarterly losses is acting as a negative factor. On top of that, the Bank of Japan's announcement after yesterday's market close regarding government bond and stock purchases is further fueling investor anxiety, prompting them to sell off the yen."
"The scale of short-term funds the Bank of Japan said it would supply to the market was 1 trillion yen, right?"
"That's correct. In addition, they also stated they would operate the cap on current account balances held by commercial banks—currently set at 20 trillion yen—with more flexibility."
After hearing this, Branch Manager Porter let out a faint chuckle and replied.
"With such a massive amount of funds being released into the market all at once, it would be strange if the value of the yen didn't fall."
"That's right. That's why investors are rushing to dump it before the yen becomes even more worthless."
From the perspective of the Eldorado Fund, which had already placed short bets, the more the yen depreciated, the greater the profit, so there was nothing unfavourable about the current situation.
"With this kind of atmosphere, the Nikkei is bound to take a significant hit as well."
"Considering the weight that major banks and life insurance companies carry in the Japanese stock market, there's a high likelihood that additional investment funds will flow out of the market, making a decline hard to avoid."
Unlike the chaotic foreign exchange market, Branch Manager Porter nodded with a composed expression.
"It won't be long now before the Tokyo foreign exchange market opens."
After checking the watch on his wrist, he spoke.
"Judging by the current atmosphere, even if Japan's foreign exchange authorities intervene to suppress the exchange rate, it will be difficult to easily curb the upward trend."
"I think the same."
At that moment, Philip Joro, a Latino, sprang to his feet, leaning over his monitor as he shouted,
"A massive sell-off just hit, and the yen has broken past 140 per dollar!"
When Branch Manager Porter lifted his head to look at the large market display installed in front of him, the yen had indeed reached the target price.
[USD/JPY: 140.04 (11.98)]
"Waaah!"
"That's it!"
"I had a good feeling about this! I knew it would break past 140 yen today!"
As the exchange rate barrier that the Bank of Japan and the government had tried so hard to defend was breached, the traders who had come in early to monitor the Sydney foreign exchange market let out cheers.
Amid the staff clenching their fists in celebration, Branch Manager Porter also burst into hearty laughter as he watched the exchange rate hold firmly in the 140-yen range without falling back down.
"This turned out just as the boss said."
Standing beside him, Chief Trader Ryder wore a deeply impressed expression.
"Honestly, I thought it wouldn't be easy to reach the target price. I never imagined it would actually hit 140 yen."
"When we first placed the short bet, the exchange rate was just under 119 yen. Makes sense."
Branch Manager Porter let out a dry chuckle and shook his head as if in understanding.
At that, Chief Trader Ryder asked with a slightly flushed expression,
"Shall we start closing our positions right away?"
Porter did not answer immediately. He stroked his chin with one hand, pondering for a moment before speaking.
"No. Let's wait and see a little longer."
Then he raised his head and continued, looking at the dollar-yen exchange rate displayed on the large market board in front of him.
"If we start unwinding our positions right now, the sheer volume we release will push the exchange rate back down below 140 yen."
Considering the size of Eldorado Fund's position, that outcome was highly likely.
"Let's wait until the Tokyo foreign exchange market opens and confirm that the rate firmly settles above 140 yen. After that, we'll start unwinding our positions in portions."
At Branch Manager Porter's composed instruction, Chief Trader Ryder also calmed his previously impatient excitement.
"That's true. If we rush to close positions now, the upward momentum could break."
"The Bank of Japan and the government will definitely take some kind of action to push the rate down, so keep a close watch on the movements."
"Understood."
After briefly replying, Chief Trader Ryder relayed the instructions to the traders on the trading floor.
Porter watched for a moment before shifting his gaze back to the large market display.
[USD/JPY: 140.00 (11.94)]
Sure enough, as the resistance level was broken, large buy orders came in—likely due to intervention by the Japanese government—causing the upward momentum to falter.
"I knew this would happen."
A deep smile spread across Branch Manager Porter's face as his prediction proved accurate once again.
Had they acted hastily and closed their positions without caution, the upward trend would have collapsed, helping the Japanese government stabilise the exchange rate.
With his arms crossed, Porter let out a scoff as he watched the dollar-yen rate on the large market display.
"That's not going to happen."
As the exchange rate broke through the resistance line, just as Porter had anticipated, the Bank of Japan and the Ministry of Finance hurriedly stepped in to defend it.
They sold a considerable amount of dollars and bought yen, striving to push the rate back below 140 before the Tokyo foreign exchange market opened—but they were unable to overcome a market that had already tilted decisively toward a mass exodus from the yen.