Restart life

Chapter 526 0514 [Anything can happen in the Cosmic Kingdom]

A villa in South Korea.

Chen Guiliang wanted to host a dinner party in a very expensive and private place, and Wu Zhenhao immediately recommended the club here.

The so-called "expensive" price is only around 1.5 RMB per person. The cost of banquets here seems far lower than in China.

Chen Guiliang had absolutely no trust in this private club, which was disguised as a large mental hospital in South Korea.

He and Wu Zhenhao sat chatting in the garden, while Yang Shuo went to check each room. This country was notorious for its secret filming, to the point that the entire population was involved.

“The chairman is being too cautious,” Wu Zhenhao said with a smile. “There are banquets for political and business people here every week, so the privacy is absolutely top-notch, and there is no way that there would be any secret filming or surveillance.”

Chen Guiliang said, "It's not that I don't trust Mr. Wu, I'm just a bit suspicious."

Since Yang Shuo became Chen Guiliang's driver and bodyguard, he no longer spends all his time waiting to accompany his boss. Chen Guiliang even enrolled him in related courses.

Just over ten minutes later, Yang Shuo came over with two miniature cameras.

Chen Guiliang smiled.

Wu Zhenhao's expression changed drastically, because he had been here before when he was a senior executive at Blizzard Korea!

Wu Zhenhao quickly took out his phone and called the friends who had previously hosted him for banquets.

Chen Guiliang asked in a low voice, "How did you find out?"

Yang Shuo said, "It's not well hidden; it was probably placed there by an ordinary person. Anyone with a little professional knowledge could find it. There might be more in other rooms. Should I go look for them again?"

Chen Guiliang said, "No need."

This lousy place hosts at least three parties for political and business figures every week.

In a few months, this place will be the site of South Korea's biggest scandal this year, involving 25 political and business tycoons, including Kim Hak-eui, the Vice Minister of Justice (the second-in-command of South Korea's judicial system).

They engaged in prostitution, gambling, and drug trafficking, and all sorts of illegal transactions, all of which were secretly filmed by the club owner. One of them even used the videos to blackmail the Vice Minister of Justice of South Korea.

It's outrageous that a country is run like a gang; calling them a makeshift operation wouldn't be an exaggeration.

“Chairman, I’m very sorry, I really didn’t expect there to be hidden cameras here,” Wu Zhenhao said. “This is truly the most private high-end club I’ve ever been to.”

Chen Guiliang smiled and said, "I believe it."

Shortly after, Wu Zhenhao's two friends arrived and their expressions changed drastically upon seeing the camera. They then called other people.

……

SKT's team leader Choi Sung-han and vice-team leader Park Jae-hyuk were both invited to the banquet.

Halfway there, I received a call saying that the dining location had been changed to a more mainstream restaurant.

Choi Sung-han was very unhappy, feeling that he had been slighted, but he still suppressed his anger and went to the appointment.

He arrived at the restaurant's private room after the location was changed and said to Park Jae-hyuk, who arrived later, "This Chinese chairman is very impolite."

“We still need to cooperate with him, so let’s just bear with it for now,” Park Jae-hyuk said.

These two are not only the heads of esports clubs, but also the acting secretary-general and head of the planning support team of KeSPA.

KeSPA stands for Korea Professional Esports Association, and all esports events are managed by this organization.

If you want to play professional esports in South Korea, you must first pass the exam of this organization.

If Chen Guiliang wants to organize the "Oracle Era" league in South Korea, he must cultivate a good relationship with this organization. Otherwise, even if they don't intentionally obstruct your events, they can easily make things difficult for you through some underhanded tactics.

The two waited for a long time, their patience almost worn out, before Chen Guiliang finally appeared in the private room.

Wu Zhenhao walked over and whispered a few words. The two men were stunned, and their displeasure vanished instantly.

They were now only thankful: thankfully, Chen Guiliang's bodyguards discovered the camera!

Cui Chenghan even looked around, observing and scrutinizing the private room. He was paranoid, feeling that there were cameras everywhere.

Yang Shuo is also searching around, much like 007 in the movies.

Park Jae-hyuk asked curiously, "Chairman Chen's bodyguards were previously members of a special department?"

Chen Guiliang smiled but said nothing.

Park Jae-hyuk took this as an admission and instantly felt that Chen Guiliang was incredibly mysterious and must come from some big family in China.

The group stopped eating and sat there watching Yang Shuo search for the security cameras.

Yang Shuo searched for a while and then said to Chen Guiliang, "It shouldn't be there."

"Let's serve the food," Chen Guiliang said with a smile, though he was starting to have some doubts.

The main problem is that South Korea is such a strange place.

Before all the dishes were served, while waiting for the waiter to leave, Wu Zhenhao began to introduce the identities of both parties.

The significance of appointing Wu Zhenhao as CEO of Youke's Korean subsidiary became apparent at this time—before joining Blizzard, he was an executive at SK Telecom.

KeSPA, which manages South Korean esports, is currently controlled by five major conglomerates, and all leadership positions are held by these five conglomerates.

In recent years, SK Telecom has held a dominant position in KeSPA. The chairman comes from the top echelons of SK, while the secretary-general and head of the planning support team come from the SKT club. As a result, SK has been jointly marginalized by the other four major conglomerates.

Wu Zhenhao said, "Chairman Lee has already been forced to resign, and you two are probably in a very passive position as well. Especially Samsung and KT, they must be putting a lot of pressure on you, right?"

Cui Chenghan didn't treat Chen Guiliang as an outsider, and while drinking, he declared, "Let's keep fighting them!"

Wu Zhenhao said, "Therefore, SKT can cooperate deeply with us. Games like StarCraft and Warcraft 3 have lost much of their influence. Our Oracle Era, on the other hand, has great potential and has already defeated League of Legends in China and Europe. As long as SKT fully invests in developing the Oracle Era esports scene and makes the game popular with players, SK's representatives can regain their voice in KeSPA."

The past two years have been a low point for global esports events, with older games experiencing a sharp decline in influence while new games haven't yet gained widespread popularity. There's a generational gap.

The more the industry is in a downturn, the more intense the internal conflicts become for KeSPA, the organization that manages esports events.

Two years ago, they even clashed with Blizzard, wanting to gain more profits from esports events, which angered Blizzard so much that they withdrew the license for StarCraft 2.

It's all because of poverty.

KeSPA is currently in a state of internal division, with the other four major conglomerates joining forces to oust and control SK, the chairman. However, their alliance is not truly united.

Neither side would yield to the other, so what was the final outcome?

Then no one should be allowed to be the president. Next year, we might as well invite a member of parliament to serve as the president.

Well, that chairman, who came from a political background, later went to work as a sewing machine operator during the heyday of esports.

We put you in this position as president just as a temporary measure, and you're really going to stay? If you don't want to be respectable, then don't be respectable at all!

Choi Sung-han said, "When we met last time, we agreed to form the Oracle Era team within SKT. Could we possibly go even further in our collaboration?"

“Yes,” Wu Zhenhao smiled, “Our Chairman Chen flew all the way from China specifically to handle this matter. Game Science will sponsor KeSPA with a sum of money.”

Choi Sung-han asked, "How much?"

Wu Zhenhao said, "$500 million. The chairmanship position is currently vacant. If you bring in $500 million in sponsorship, it will be enough for you to secure your position at KeSPA. You might even gain more power!"

Currently, none of the five major conglomerates are willing to invest in KeSPA, given the sluggish state of the esports industry.

$500 million is a huge sum for KeSPA.

“We will definitely give our full support to the development of Oracle Era in South Korea,” Choi Sung-han stood up to toast. “Chairman Chen is a truly generous entrepreneur. The Korean e-sports industry cannot do without your help.”

"Easy to say."

Chen Guiliang downed the drink in one gulp, while inwardly complaining: Korean soju is fucking awful.

In his capacity as Chen Guiliang, his personal appearance was merely to demonstrate his concern for the matter and to cultivate relationships with high-ranking officials of the South Korean esports management organization.

Even if money is given, it must be a legal and compliant sponsorship fee.

As for shady dealings, Chen Guiliang won't touch them; someone else will do them in the future. Even if they're discovered, it won't be Chen Guiliang's responsibility.

In a crappy place like South Korea, it's hard to develop smoothly without resorting to crooked methods.

With this $500 million sponsorship, Choi Sung-han's position as acting secretary-general will surely be secure, and he may even be able to drop the word "acting" altogether.

And since that congressman is the president of KeSPA, he certainly can't personally manage the association; the one truly in charge of daily operations will still be Choi Sung-han.

Chen Guiliang essentially spent $500 million to acquire the qualification for in-depth cooperation with the Korea eSports Management Association.

Furthermore, there was a "personal friendship" with the association's secretary-general.

After drinking a few cups of liquor, Chen Guiliang chuckled and blurted out, "Originally, I had invited a popular girl group to perform for you two at a private club today. Alas... now we have to cancel it."

Hire a girl group like that?

Choi Sung-han took it seriously and asked curiously, "Which girl group?"

Chen Guiliang smiled but said nothing.

Wu Zhenhao obviously didn't know which girl group it was, so he didn't say it directly. Instead, he asked, "Which girl group is the most popular right now?"

"Could it be Girls' Generation?" Park Jae-hyuk guessed.

Choi Sung-han said, "I think it's Wonder Girls."

Park Jae-hyuk said, "It's definitely Girls' Generation, they're the most popular right now."

Choi Sung-han was probably drunk. When Park Jae-hyuk argued back, he slammed his fist on the table and said angrily, "I said it's Wonder Girls, so it's definitely Wonder Girls!"

Park Jae-hyuk was taken aback and quickly corrected himself: "The Secretary-General is right."

Choi Sung-han was relieved and then said to Chen Guiliang, "Please make sure to attend this year's G-STAR (Korea International Game Show). We cordially invite you to be our special guest."

"I will come," Chen Guiliang readily agreed.

Although G-STAR is not hosted by KeSPA, KeSPA is responsible for all aspects of its esports-related activities.

After everyone had drunk their fill, Chen Guiliang ended the banquet.

The next day, Wu Zhenhao saw Chen Guiliang off at the airport to return to China. On the way to the airport, he said, "Chairman, I received more than ten phone calls last night. Some of them, who wished to remain anonymous, expressed their gratitude for your discovery of the security camera in the villa. They are not available to show their faces right now, and we will talk about it after this matter has passed. Next time you come to Korea, Chairman, they would like to invite you to dinner."

"Hehe." Chen Guiliang chuckled.

(End of this chapter)