Chapter 38

The Bear Republic is Now Mine Chapter 38

038 Apartment Benchmarking / Changed Newspaper. Gazprom

Before leaving for St. Petersburg, Nikolai firmly established the hierarchy.

"Alex will be in charge of this site until I return. So from now on, Alex is the boss."

Kirill and Dima frowned at the way Alex was looking at his prey.

"If you have any complaints, speak up now. Don't cause problems later."

"…How much of what Alex says do we have to follow?"

"How much of what I say do you follow?"

"All of it."

"Same thing. Follow all of it."

If he hadn't insisted on this confirmation, they could have gotten away with it.

Kirill glared at his brother with intense eyes.

"Alex, deliberately leave out 100 units and only sell them to the Korean staff at the industrial park. And don't transfer ownership to people who want to sell for a profit before moving in."

After moving in, it's up to the owners, but before that, the sales office won't transfer ownership.

There are no laws in Russia regarding the resale of pre-sale rights, so if the sales office says no, that's it.

And for the future apartments, he plans to build them all first and then sell them.

He will propose this to the government to make it a law.

After coming out, Nikolai headed to the industrial park with Alex.

"Hello, Mr. President."

"Did you come to work right away without going to the office?"

This director, who is now the head of the Korean branch, used to work for a large domestic company but is now happier as an employee of the Unicorn Group.

"Companies that want to move into the industrial park have contacted us."

"How many?"

"Seven. From the atmosphere, it seems like more will come. Should we start building the factories in advance?"

This is why he was chosen as the head of the Korean branch.

Not only is he smart, but he also understands how Nikolai wants to run the business.

"I agree with your thinking. Since there's enough land, let's proceed with expansion."

"Yes. By the way, how is the export of products to the independent states coming along?"

Even more reliable, knowing he thought this far.

"My father is handling it. Since there are many places we used to trade with during the Soviet era, contracts have already been signed."

After supplying to Russia, the goods will also go to those countries.

"And there's news in the domestic media about Future Motors building a factory in St. Petersburg."

"That's why I was planning to go there now."

He had to stop by there before heading to Moscow.

Because he received a call from Ilya.

- Mr. President, Yandex is complete.

He was so happy when he received that call.

He wanted to go immediately, but Ivan had something to discuss, so he was about to head to St. Petersburg.

"By the way, these are the Future Construction employees I mentioned on the phone."

At the branch manager's introduction, a middle-aged man with glasses bowed slightly and extended his hand.

"Hello, Mr. President."

"Nice to meet you."

"You look even more handsome in person."

He must have seen it when the Bohai relics were broadcast on Korean TV.

"You said you want to benchmark our apartments?"

"Yes, to our knowledge, such apartments don't exist in any country in the world. They are the future apartments that Korean construction companies dream of. After seeing it on TV, the company deliberated and sent us."

It was definitely a compliment, but it felt a bit uncomfortable.

'This is an apartment you'll build 30 years from now. Of course, I came up with many of the ideas.'

So what? Just because you know doesn't mean anyone can do it.

Nikolai decided to take pride in the fact that he had accomplished it.

"You'll see later, but our apartments have very thick inner and outer walls. We used the best insulation and windows."

Everything else is also top-notch.

Thinking it would be the face of Unicorn Construction, he put in the best of everything.

But can Korean construction companies, who try to cut costs like squeezing a dried squid, follow this?

Nikolai knew it was impossible.

"The biggest problem with building like this is the land. Not only is the land expensive, but there isn't enough of it. I don't know what you plan to learn."

"Due to the land issue, it might be difficult to replicate the spacing, but we plan to apply other advantages."

"I won't stop you from learning."

"Thank you."

Still, he should leave a word for the future.

"If your company comes up with good technology later, please share it. I plan to keep upgrading Russian apartments."

"Of course."

"If you need anything, just tell this person."

"Understood."

Even 30 years later, Korean apartments had many problems.

Noise between floors, leaks, cracks.

Worse, they were built with cement mixed with used Japanese tires.

Many collapsed multiple times due to these issues.

"Since you're here to learn, can I give you a piece of advice?"

"Please do."

"Don't use cement mixed with industrial waste to cut costs."

"…What do you mean?"

"There are occasionally such construction companies in Russia."

Of course, there are no such construction companies in Russia.

"Even knowing that using trash cement to build apartments increases the risk of cancer, they still do it."

"We would never do such a thing."

Not now, at least.

After the 1997 IMF crisis, Korean construction companies started building apartments with cement worse than trash to cut costs.

After that, the cancer rate among Koreans sharply increased.

However, various media outlets claimed it was because Koreans eat spicy food.

Nikolai, who used to work in the media, knew a lot about these unethical practices.

"If such a thing happens in the future, I hope the people here will step in."

"Yes, we will."

He hopes these people will learn properly and contribute to the development of Korean apartments.

* * *

On the way to the Bohai relics excavation site, he stopped briefly.

Then, when he showed them the land he had previously bought, the three of them shook their heads in amazement at its vastness.

"We've bought all the land in this area, so there's no more to buy."

Since a theme park and various commercial facilities were also needed, he bought all the land.

The money for the land was covered by the sale of the relics.

"Did you buy that much?"

"You have to buy when it's cheap. It will be harder if the price goes up. Alex, have the workers put up some red flags."

Upon arriving at the excavation site, he saw a familiar face.

"Hello, Dr. Kim."

"You're here."

"Is the accommodation in Ussuriysk inconvenient?"

"It's bearable."

"It will be more comfortable once the apartments are finished."

There were 20 Koreans at the excavation site.

With five 45-pyeong apartments, four people can live in each, each with their own room.

They must be holding on with that hope.

"Look at their faces. They don't seem to be struggling at all."

"That's true."

"They don't see this as work. They are people who are united with pride in reestablishing history. A little inconvenience in accommodation is nothing to them. Oh, by the way, is the sale complete?"

"Yes, even though we've only built up to the 8th floor, it's already sold out."

"Selling 5,000 units so quickly is impressive. Where are you going?"

He always wore work clothes on site, but now he's in civilian clothes, so he's asking.

"I'm going to St. Petersburg. Future Motors is planning to build a factory there."

"Ah, so Future Motors is also coming to Russia. That's great."

When Nikolai heard about Future Motors from Ivan, he made a decision.

'I need to create a second industrial park in St. Petersburg.'

Ussuriysk is a food industry park.

St. Petersburg will be an automotive industry park.

A car has over 30,000 parts.

Future Motors can't make all of them, so many suppliers are needed.

'If those suppliers also move in, St. Petersburg can become a renowned automotive industry park. It will also create a lot of jobs.'

Since it already happened in the original history, Nikolai is even more confident.

Filling in the gaps will make it even better than the original history.

"How is the situation in China?"

"Don't even get me started. Academics there are continuously protesting."

"Even with clear evidence?"

"Chinese people don't really value evidence. If it's something they need, they'll even fabricate it."

He knows what kind of people the Chinese are.

Nikolai didn't like the Chinese, but he didn't like Korean academics either.

Most of them were taught by people who received distorted education during the Japanese occupation.

Their historical consciousness was so skewed, almost brainwashed.

Because of this, they didn't actively protest against Japan and China's absurd claims and even defended them.

Nikolai felt bitter when he saw that even pro-Japanese media didn't actively protest.

"President Yeltsin supported Korea. Was that helpful?"

"Of course. President Yeltsin's statement was so powerful that the Chinese Communist Party couldn't directly protest to the Blue House."

"Since this place is close to the Chinese border, there are many Chinese people coming and going. You should be careful. They might do anything."

"Actually, I was going to ask for that. I hope you can patrol this area as well."

At Dr. Lee's request, Nikolai slowly turned his gaze to the side.

Kirill then stuck out his tongue as far as possible to point to the left.

There, Dima was deep in thought, contemplating his future.

"Dima, this is as far as you go. I'll assign someone to help you patrol."

"…Are you serious?"

"Aren't you going to patrol?

"…"

"The Korean government and people entrusted this to us. They even paid us. Don't you think we should repay their trust?"

Nikolai pointed to Dima and said to Dr. Lee.

"Don't worry. This person will take responsibility for patrolling."

Dr. Lee, who didn't understand Russian, believed it and smiled brightly at Dima.

"Thank you, Mr. Dima."

"…"

"How long do you think it will take to excavate this site?"

"Since the excavation area is larger than initially thought, it will take at least four years."

Four years is a good estimate.

In the past, excavations were completed in a few weeks, causing damage to artifacts.

After further discussion about the site, Nikolai said goodbye to Dr. Lee and boarded a flight to St. Petersburg.

* * *

After listening to Nikolai's story, Ivan asked.

"Are you talking about making St. Petersburg an automotive industry park?"

"Yes, what do you think, Father?"

"It sounds good."

"Since we already have a lot of land here, we can lease it to Future Motors."

"Good idea."

They had many more conversations, but the core was about making St. Petersburg an automotive industry park.

This idea was also conveyed to Yuri Yuspov, and it was eventually approved.

"If many jobs are created, it would be a great thing. Since the automotive business is already under your responsibility, I'll talk to the higher-ups to ensure good cooperation with Future Motors."

After resolving the St. Petersburg issue, Nikolai's final destination was Moscow.

Nikolai's steps were lighter than ever as he entered the company renovated from the GUM department store.

"Have you been well?"

"Yes, Mr. President, you look even better."

He was thin before, but he gained weight from eating mostly Korean food while at the industrial park.

Nikolai was surprised every time he looked in the mirror.

It was so different from how he looked when he first opened his eyes in this world.

"If Yandex is complete, the next step is the internet network, right?"

"Yes, take a look."

Ilya started Yandex, entered a search term, and hit enter.

However, the operation was very slow.

"As you can see, the search works, but the speed is lacking."

"Is it because there isn't much search information yet?"

"We're hiring a lot of people to work on it, so it will improve soon."

The main issue was the speed.

Although they were setting up base stations and laying internet networks throughout Moscow, only 65% was complete.

"I didn't mention this, but the internet network is already in place here. What you saw earlier was without it."

Ilya connected the line and started it again.

"How is it?"

"Oh, there's a clear difference."

"Yes. At this speed, there's no problem using the computer. Employees are already working at this speed, and productivity has increased significantly."

It's good.

Even though only 65% is complete, there's hope.

Seeing is believing.

Nikolai decided to invest more funds in laying the internet network.

* * *

A few days later, at Yuri Yuspov's house.

Nikolai was having dinner with Yuri.

Although only two people were sitting at this large dining table, it was full of food.

"The person Alex introduced me to is a great cook. I've been enjoying Korean food a lot lately. I feel healthier too."

"Korean food seems to be more prevalent?"

"I've cut out a lot of greasy foods. I tried bibimbap and soon dubu jjigae for the first time yesterday, and they were delicious. Ha ha."

Yuri wasn't just saying it; he was really into Korean food.

He had forgotten the taste after eating it a few times when he visited Korea long ago, but he became hooked after trying it again.

The conversation, which started with food, naturally shifted to business.

"As you said, St. Petersburg will develop into an automotive industry park. I've already discussed it with the government. However, we need to think carefully about how to secure Gazprom's shares."

"…?"

"When President Yeltsin was impeached, there were several people who supported him besides us. Of course, they supported him much later than we did."

Nikolai knew this part.

In the original history, Yeltsin regained power with the support and funding of oligarchs.

So, there were quite a few people who supported him.

"One of them is closely related to Gazprom. I'm looking for a way, so let's wait a bit longer."

Even while eating, Gazprom was on Nikolai's