"It's been a long time."

Su-byeong Han, the Party Leader of the Mincheong Party, came over to where Seong-ho Kim and Gyeong-eun Lee stood.

He was beaming, and he greeted Seong-ho Kim warmly.

"I've been wanting to see you, but it never worked out, and I was just regretting it — so you can't imagine how glad I am to run into you here like this."

"I'm glad to see you as well, Party Leader Han."

Seong-ho Kim returned Su-byeong Han's greeting and looked around.

"So many people have come today. Somebody who didn't know would think this was the National Assembly."

"Why wouldn't they? There are twenty assemblymen here from my party alone."

"Does my brother have deep ties with the Mincheong Party?"

Seong-ho Kim asked it as though he didn't know.

Su-byeong Han forced back a laugh and said,

"What ties would Chairman Lee have with our party? With the Shinpyeong Party, maybe. Isn't that so?"

At that, Seong-ho Kim made a small sound of understanding.

Su-byeong Han waved a hand at him and said,

"What would be the point of hiding it from you, Vice-Chairman?"

Su-byeong Han came closer to Seong-ho Kim with his glass still in his hand.

And, covering his mouth with the glass, he spoke in a voice only Seong-ho Kim could hear.

"President Lee… no. The Chairman is putting up a factory in the Kaesong Industrial Complex, isn't he?"

"What does that have to do with the assemblymen gathering here today?"

"It looks as though the Blue House means to appoint Chairman Lee as a special envoy."

"My brother, a special envoy?"

"Yes. An economic special envoy. And from the look of it they mean to make Chairman Lee their channel for talking with the North."

Seong-ho Kim tilted his head with a puzzled look.

"What connection does my brother have with the North?"

"He's going into the Kaesong Industrial Complex, isn't he? The first conglomerate to move in. Well, of course the Solar Group is too shabby a thing at the moment to be called a conglomerate, but people think of it…