chapter 32.2

Quodu’s Infancy (2)

“But I think it might have started sometime last year. The Guma Gang came in contact with a Chinese syndicate. Then the Guma Gang said that since the other organization was able to bring drugs over the border, and Korean women were so popular overseas, why not make a trade for them as well…”

So it was the Guma Gang who had taken the first steps.

If they had only made a fully-fledged entry into the Chinese market just last year, then Quodu really was in its infancy.

“So what next? You just started regularly sending girls over to China? So is the organization that the Guma Gang got their drugs from the same organization that you sent your girls to?”

“Th-that’s right. This sort of thing is also a type of business deal, so if you try and shop around then you’ll only lose your reputation. Especially if you’re trying to break into the overseas market, you’ll need to rely on a firm connection to make that crossing.”

“Just business? Bullshit. What’s the name of the Chinese Syndicate?”

“It’s the Cheonyonghoe (千龍會). With the characters for a thousand dragons.”

From the name, it looks like there are roughly a thousand members in their organization.

In any case, it seemed that this syndicate in China had agreed to this deal with their local client to trade in Korean women.

I pressed down on Myeong Bo-Hoon’s head even harder.

“Keep going. Just where does the Joongmae gang come into this?”

“Aaargh! I really don’t know how it started. But once the guys from Guma Gang were all caught and thrown in prison, someone came to me personally.”

“Where were they from?”

“F-from Mainland China. They said that they’ve found someone else to sell their drugs to in place of the Guma Gang. Since they already found someone to fill in the missing gap, they told me that we should just keep our usual deals running smoothly.”

“So the Joongmae Gang just stepped into the spot left by the Guma Gang without any issues?”

“If I had to say, that should be the case.”

Now I got it.

It felt like someone had replaced a car’s wheel immediately after the tire had popped, without even turning the engine off.

But for a Chinese organization who didn’t even have any local roots, could they really have taken care of it all so quickly?

“Did they say anything else?”

“Just… something about the Joongmae Gang taking over the old smuggling routes and controlling the market… things like that. Also that the business was doing well these days. Thanks to that, I’ve also been pretty busy. Since the number of girls I have to send over has increased all of a sudden…”

Could that be the reason?

The sudden increase in missing persons reports, so it was all because Quodu needed supplying.

“Where’s the Joongmae Gang’s base?”

“I really don’t know. We’ve only just started doing business with each other, so I haven’t even gotten to see their faces. And since they aren’t really involved with the nightlife industry, I don’t even know when or if they’ll hold the same sort of parties. But I’m begging you, can’t you please ease up just a little?”

At these words, I casually released my hold on him.

Like he had said, it would be difficult for the Joongmae Gang to attract VIP customers and hold drug parties like the Guma Gang had.

Should I call this an ‘end of an era’.

Since these guys mainly made their money from smuggling, they probably wouldn’t dabble in the luxury nightlife industry.

But if things go wrong, we could see drugs that were formerly catered exclusively to high-class clientele being popularized on the street-level at much cheaper prices.

I just thought it was a bit unfortunate.

If I had only come here a bit later, I might have been able to find out where their base was right away.

Meanwhile, Myeong Bo-Hoon was stretching his head and shoulders, working out the kinks.

“Ah, one more thing.”

I had almost forgotten.

“Where can I find Hae-Soo’s sponsor?”

Myeong Bo-Hoon seemed puzzled by me suddenly bringing up her name.

“Hae-Soo? Why are you asking about her all of a sudden?”

“Do you need me to massage your head again?”

“No! It’s not like that, but…”

Myeong Bo-Hoon fiddled with his collar as he hesitated.

Could it be that he was more wary of a powerful force in the same country than he was of a Chinese syndicate that was based overseas?

I held up the golf club and swung it threateningly in his direction.

Even without me saying a word, it was enough to get him to spill.

“Hae-Soo’s former sponsorship was- shit- it wasn’t quite like average.”

“You’re saying that their relationship broke the mold?”

“It was a bit more personal than your usual sponsor relationship. You might even say that they were in an ambiguous boundary between being lovers and business partners. Although, it wasn’t like Hae-Soo was only seeing just one man.”

“So where did this sponsorship come from?”

“It came from Gunbaek Construction.”

I was left speechless at this name cropping up so unexpectedly.