43: Chapter 43 Spying

The price war entered its third week, and the activity from Jins Foods had noticeably subsided.

A procurement manager from GS25 called to say that Jins Foods had removed their promotional posters from the end-caps, changed their discount labels from yellow to white, and used a smaller font size.

"I guess they can't hold out anymore." The procurement manager laughed on the other end of the line, his tone carrying a hint of schadenfreude.

Chairman Wang Shunyi hung up the phone without feeling particularly happy.

He hadn't met Kim Dong-hyun, but judging by these moves, he wasn't a pushover.

The price war was just a probe on the surface; the real knives were often hidden in the dark.

February 17th, Thursday, and Seoul was still experiencing a cold snap.

When Chairman Wang Shunyi arrived at the company, Jun-ho was already waiting at his office door, holding a cup of barely touched coffee, looking grim.

"Sunyi, there's something up."

"Come in and talk." Chairman Wang Shunyi opened the door and tossed his bag on the table.

Jun-ho followed him in, closed the door, and pulled up a chair to sit.

He took a sip of coffee and frowned—it was cold.

"A few people have been targeted these past few days." He lowered his voice. "In-pyo, Xiuzhen, and Dong Xu have all been approached privately."

Chairman Wang Shunyi paused while untying his scarf. "What do you mean?"

"The night before last, when In-pyo was getting off work, a man stopped him at the company entrance. The guy claimed to be from a headhunting firm, saying a food company was hiring an R&D supervisor with double his current salary, and asked if In-pyo was interested. In-pyo refused, but the guy left a business card and said he could be contacted at any time."

"It's the same with Xiuzhen; she was approached in a coffee shop yesterday afternoon. They said there was a better platform and asked if she would consider it."

"Same for Dong Xu; he got an unfamiliar call last night. The other party said they had reviewed his resume and wanted to meet for a chat."

Chairman Wang Shunyi draped his scarf over the back of the chair and sat down.

He stared at the dying potted plant on his desk for a few seconds and said: "It's not headhunters. Headhunters wouldn't poach for three different positions at once, and they wouldn't pick a time when our company is just getting hit by a price war."

"I'm thinking the same thing." Jun-ho pushed the cold coffee aside. "It's highly likely Jins Foods. Since the price war isn't working, they've started poaching. It weakens us and lets them get our internal information."

"What about the suppliers? Any movement?"

"Yes. People from Jins Foods have approached our konjac flour supplier, offering an exclusive supply agreement with better terms than ours. But the supplier didn't agree, saying their partnership with us has always been stable and they don't want to switch."

Chairman Wang Shunyi nodded.

That konjac flour supplier had a long-standing relationship with Gyeongnam Ingredients, and Choi Jae-hoon had put in a good word; it wouldn't be easy to poach them.

"What about the channels?"

"GS and CU ignored them. Jins Foods's relationship with those two was never great to begin with; they squeezed prices too hard previously, and the channel distributors remember that."

"That's good." Chairman Wang Shunyi leaned back in his chair. "But this poaching matter can't be taken lightly. In-pyo, Xiuzhen, and Dong Xu are all core members; losing even one would be painful for a while."

"What are your thoughts?"

"First, stabilize our own people." Chairman Wang Shunyi stood up and walked to the whiteboard. "Adjust the salaries. Raise core employees' pay by 20%, add a month's year-end bonus, and give some equity. Where will the money come from? Squeeze it from the budget saved from the acquisition and integration."

Jun-ho frowned. "20%? That's several hundred million more a year."

"A few hundred million more is better than having people poached. If In-pyo leaves, new product development will stop for at least three months. How much can Jins Foods do in three months?"

Jun-ho didn't say anything else and noted it down in his notebook.

In the afternoon, Chairman Wang Shunyi called Cha In-pyo into his office.

In-pyo was a bit nervous when he entered, thinking he had done something wrong. Chairman Wang Shunyi asked him to sit and poured him a glass of water.

"In-pyo, has anyone approached you about job hopping recently?"

In-pyo was stunned for a moment, then nodded. "The night before last at the company entrance, a man stopped me and said he was a headhunter. I didn't agree, President."

"I know you didn't agree." Chairman Wang Shunyi sat opposite him. "I'm not here to blame you. I want to ask you—are you happy working at Shunyi Foods?"

In-pyo opened his mouth and was silent for a few seconds. "President, to be honest, it's quite tiring sometimes. The R&D cycle for new products is short, and the pressure is high. But it's worth the fatigue because people buy what we make, and people online praise it. When I was at a big company, I'd develop one new product a year, and after it launched, no one would discuss it, and I wouldn't even know if consumers liked it or not."

"And the salary?"

"The salary... is a bit lower than at big companies, but I don't care much about that." In-pyo lowered his head. "What I care about more is whether people eat what I make."

Chairman Wang Shunyi looked at him, feeling a bit more at ease. "In-pyo, I will adjust your salary. From now on, you have the final say on R&D. As long as the quality is up to standard, I won't interfere with your direction."

In-pyo looked up, his eyes brightening. "Really?"

"Really. I keep my word."

After In-pyo left, Chairman Wang Shunyi called in Jin Xiuzhen and Li Dongxu.

Xiuzhen was straightforward; as soon as she entered, she said: "President, I know someone is trying to poach me. I didn't go. Not because of money, but because the atmosphere at Shunyi Foods is good; everyone is like a family."

Li Dongxu was similar, saying: "A company like Jins Foods treats you like a cog in the machine if you go there. Here, I can make my own decisions; it's refreshing."

Chairman Wang Shunyi had a clear idea.

When he was having dinner with Minji that evening, he mentioned the matter. She picked up a piece of kimchi, chewed it slowly, and said: "How you treat your employees usually determines the return you get at critical moments. If you acted high and mighty every day, they would have run away long ago."

"I know." Chairman Wang Shunyi took a sip of soup. "But you can't keep people on sentiment alone; you also have to rely on money."

"I'll give you the salary adjustment plan tomorrow."

"Good."

Meanwhile, Jun-ho was also conducting a reverse investigation.

Having been in the food industry for so many years, he had plenty of connections. Through a few old friends, he found out that things weren't very stable inside Jins Foods recently. To fight the price war, Kim Dong-hyun had cut a lot of R&D budget, and the R&D department was full of resentment. In the procurement department, because Kim Dong-hyun was forcing prices down, several old suppliers had stopped accepting orders.

Jun-ho organized the news he heard and reported it to Chairman Wang Shunyi the next morning.

"The internal conflict at Jins Foods is quite severe. R&D Supervisor Lee Chang-ho, who has worked at Jins Foods for fifteen years, is at odds with the new Vice President and has argued in meetings several times. Marketing Deputy Supervisor Park Sun-young, who has worked for ten years, has no hope of promotion and is looking for other options. Production Supervisor Kim Tai-won also has conflicts with the Vice President and is rumored to have already been marginalized."

"Lee Chang-ho?" Chairman Wang Shunyi repeated the name. "R&D Supervisor?"

"Yes. Jins Foods's product R&D is basically led by his team. If he is willing to come over..."

Chairman Wang Shunyi thought for a moment and said: "Make arrangements; I want to meet him. Don't go through a headhunter; it's too deliberate. Find an industry event, the kind where we can 'bump into' each other."

Jun-ho nodded. "As it happens, there is a food industry technology exchange meeting next Wednesday in Gimpo. Lee Chang-ho goes every year. You should go too; I'll arrange for someone to introduce you."

Next Wednesday, Chairman Wang Shunyi wore a dark gray jacket without a tie, looking like an ordinary technical staff member.

The venue was at a convention center in Gimpo; it wasn't big, and most of the people who came were R&D personnel from food companies. Lee Chang-ho was sitting in the third row, with an empty seat next to him. Chairman Wang Shunyi walked over, sat down, and pretended to look at the agenda.

After a while, the intermediary arranged by Jun-ho came over. It was a technical consultant Chairman Wang Shunyi had worked with before, surnamed Park, who also knew Lee Chang-ho.

"Dr. Li, this is President Wang of Shunyi Foods." Consultant Park introduced them, turning slightly. "President Wang, this is Dr. Lee Chang-ho of Jins Foods."

Lee Chang-ho turned his head, looked at Chairman Wang Shunyi, and nodded slightly. "I've heard of you."

"Dr. Li, hello." Chairman Wang Shunyi reached out his hand.

The two shook hands. Lee Chang-ho's hands were very thin, with distinct knuckles and neatly trimmed nails.

Consultant Park found an excuse and left, leaving the two of them sitting there. Someone on stage was talking about optimizing the rehydration of instant noodle cakes; the content was boring, and no one underneath was listening carefully.

"Dr. Li, you've been at Jins Foods for many years, right?" Chairman Wang Shunyi asked in a low voice.

"Fifteen years." Lee Chang-ho looked at the stage without turning his head.

"Fifteen years is not easy. Staying in one company for so long, the emotional attachment must be deep."

Lee Chang-ho didn't respond.

"But sometimes, sentiment can't be eaten as a meal." Chairman Wang Shunyi's voice was still low, but every word was delivered clearly. "You know Jins Foods's recent actions better than I do. Cutting R&D budgets, fighting price wars, poaching competitors' people. These things save a little money in the short term, but in the long term, it's consuming the company's future."

Lee Chang-ho finally turned his head and looked at him. "What does President Wang want to say?"

"I want to say that Shunyi Foods needs an experienced R&D leader. If you are willing, you have the final say on R&D, and I won't interfere. You decide the budget, direction, and team."

Lee Chang-ho was silent for a few seconds. The speech on stage ended, and scattered applause rang out.

"I'll consider it." He stood up, patted the non-existent dust off his pants, and left.

Chairman Wang Shunyi didn't chase him. He sat in his original seat, waiting for the next speech to begin.

Three days later, Lee Chang-ho took the initiative to call. On the phone, he spoke very briefly: "President Wang, I've considered what you said last time. I'm willing to come over."

"Welcome."

The day Lee Chang-ho joined was March 1st.

The office at Shunyi Foods was crowded again; Kim Tae-min added a desk in the hallway, and Lee Chang-ho sat next to the printer. Every time someone printed, paper would drift onto his desk. He didn't say anything, folded the drifting paper neatly, and put it aside.

Chairman Wang Shunyi introduced him at the morning meeting. "This is Dr. Lee Chang-ho, former R&D supervisor of Jins Foods, who has worked in the food industry for fifteen years. From today on, he is the R&D Director of Shunyi Foods. In-pyo, you will report to Dr. Li from now on."

In-pyo stood up and shook hands with Lee Chang-ho. The two were more than a decade apart in age, but after chatting about R&D for a few sentences, they found their philosophies were very compatible.

When the news reached Jins Foods, Kim Dong-hyun was furious. According to people inside Jins Foods, Kim Dong-hyun slammed the table at the meeting, saying, "This brat Chairman Wang Shunyi dares to poach my people." Someone advised him to retaliate and go poach people from Shunyi. Kim Dong-hyun calmed down and thought about it, but didn't do it. Because he knew clearly that what Jins Foods could give, Shunyi could also give; and what Jins Foods couldn't give, Shunyi could still give.

When Lee Chang-ho left, he took away three key members of the R&D department. The R&D department of Jins Foods was suddenly half empty, and several projects under development were forced to pause. Kim Dong-hyun asked the Vice President to fill in temporarily, but the Vice President didn't understand the technology and couldn't reach a conclusion after several meetings.

When Chairman Wang Shunyi heard these reports, he was at the factory watching the debugging of new equipment. Jun-ho stood by, flipping through the news he had just received on his phone, and read it to him in a low voice. After listening, he didn't say anything, bent down to pick up a screw that had fallen on the ground, and threw it into the nearby waste bin.