Chung-seop Jo, having come into the office, glanced back at the door and asked,

"What business brought President Jin and Vice-President Hwang here? Has word come, by any chance?"

Ordinarily Chung-seop Jo would not have asked about company matters, but as he too now knew of the relationship between Inmos and Ilhyeon Electronics, he simply could not refrain from asking.

Seong-ho Kim smiled faintly toward him and nodded.

"There's to be an official announcement from Inmos shortly."

"So word did come after all."

Chung-seop Jo took joy in it as though it were his own affair.

"Ah! Vice-Chairman. My apologies. Let me make a telephone call for a moment."

Seong-ho Kim laughed without a word at the sight of a Chung-seop Jo who looked to be in a hurry.

Because he knew what it was for.

"Please do."

When Seong-ho Kim answered, Chung-seop Jo drew out his mobile phone as though he had been waiting and made a call.

"Yes, it's me. Buy Ilhyeon Electronics aggressively. No. Not at the level of buying a little more — pile the lot in."

Chung-seop Jo, worried that with the words "buy aggressively" his meaning might not be properly understood, made his intent plain in the barest terms.

And with a final word that if his instructions had not been carried out by the time he got back they had best be prepared, he hung up.

"My apologies. I've behaved disgracefully in front of you, Vice-Chairman."

"Disgracefully? Not at all."

Seong-ho Kim, having said it was quite all right, threw out a remark to Chung-seop Jo in a lightly joking tone.

"But Future Asset already holds a great deal of Ilhyeon Electronics stock — if you buy more from here, people will misunderstand, won't they? That Future Asset may be trying to take over Ilhyeon Electronics."

"That's rather how I feel, if it could be managed."

Yet Chung-seop Jo took this in earnest.

"With you leading Ilhyeon Electronics, Vice-Chairman, what is there to worry about? Doesn't this business prove it well enough? If it could only be done, I should like to put…