<h4>Chapter 168: Eb (11)</h4>
There was a very bizarre and unusual situation going on in Kivu, which was located in eastern Congo. Government soldiers, rebels, and foreigners who hade to loot resources were lying side by side in the temporary treatment centers: government soldiers who had gotten Eb aftering here to subdue the rebels, rebels who had gotten Eb while forming an organization to carry out a terrorist attack, and smugglers from neighboring countries who copsed due to Eb before getting home.
Rosaline was right when she said Eb was fair and equal. Ideologies and greed were weakened in the face of death. People who were in excruciating pain and coughing up blood due to Eb showed up to the government’s temporary treatment centers one by one.
“We surrender... Please help us...”
“I’m from Uganda... I’m sorry. Help me...”
The news of cured patients and free treatment spread quickly here. The virus of death that had infected and defeated so many people had ironically created a ceasefire in this region. Unamu, a child soldier from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, found this unfamiliar peace a little baffling. He didn’t have to walk through the jungle in fear of being shot or stepping onndmines anymore. He thought that he would be executed by the government if he was captured, but the government army was surprisingly merciful.
“You will be tried in a court-martial, but child soldiers don’t usually get time nowadays And the president... Well, I guess he’s not the president anymore, or he could be again... Anyways, President Phillip emphasizes harmony, so there won’t be any rebels that get executed.”
This was what the soldier with the mustache said to Unamu when he was helping him back to the tent. Unamu was given a certain amount of freedom at the base, but he didn’t run away or fight back.
It had been four days since Unamu had been in the government’s temporary treatment center. At noon, Unamu, who had eaten his share of the rations, was sitting on the dirt floor, throwing stones at the tree.
“Hey, kid,e here!”
The doctor from the government’s army called Unamu.
“Yes!”
Unamu quickly scrambled to his feet and ran to the doctor.
“Come here. What did you say your dad’s name was?”
“He wasn’t my dad. His name was Toba.”
The doctor went inside the small tent and went to the man who wasying on the bed that was furthest from them.
“Mr. Toba, I have the kid you were looking for.”
A young soldier was lying in bed. He also had a mustache. It was Toba from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda.
“Oh...”
Toba got up right away when he saw Unamu.
“Oh, thank you God,” Toba said quietly as he hugged Unamu.
“You should be thanking me. I was the one who fixed you,” the doctor said yfully.
“Thank you so much, Doctor.”
“And be thankful to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, too. He’s the one who made this unbelievable treatment.”
“Yes, I will pray for Lui Yeon-Joon.”
“... And this kid left without you because he thought you were dead.”
The doctorughed.
“It’s okay. Unamu, are you okay?”
“Yes.”
“That’s good. That’s such a relief.”
Toba hugged Unamu close.
“Is this the Treatment Test Seven?”
A crowd of soldiers swarmed inside. There was a man in his fifties who was wearing a military uniform that didn’t have a single crevice; he was the deputymander of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo. He had a lot of military officers and soldiers beside him.
Toba froze. His arm tightened around Unamu.
“Are you a rebel?” the deputymander asked.
“... Yes...”
“Alright.”
Toba thought themander would transport him to Kinshasa and either put him in jail forever or execute him, but he didn’t care.
The deputymander walked past Toba and Unamu. Leaving them confused, the deputymander went to the patient who was lying next to them.
“Are you a rebel, too?”
“Pardon? No, I’m a Rwandan citizen.”
“How did a Rwandan citizen get here?”
“...”
“Please show me your passport.”
“That is...”
“Did you go to a rebel-held gold mine here and make a contract with the rebels to smuggle gold?”
“... Yes...” the man replied timidly.
“Are there any other foreigners here?”
“I am the only one in this tent.”
“Alright. You will be arrested by the military police and go to Kinshasa. Please understand that the military police are arresting you because this is a civil war zone,” the deputymander said. “Arrest him.”
The military police ran out when themander ordered.
“Wait.”
The doctor stepped in front of him. “Sir, he is still a patient that needs treatment.”
“How long until he is fully healed?” the deputymander asked.
“He needs to take medication for about four more days.”
“Then I will transport him four dayster.”
The deputymander turned to the smuggler.
“Don’t worry too much. We’re just gathering evidence and witnesses. Your punishment won’t be severe if you cooperate.”
“...”
The deputymander chuckled when he looked at the smuggler, who looked extremely nervous.
Neighboring countries asked Congo to sell the treatment they had. The Congolese government nned to use this opportunity to make a strong argument with the arrested smugglers.
* * *
It had been a week. The first wave of the Eb epidemic had subsided. Themotion was dying down.
“First of all, I would like to give Secretary Michelle the credit for the rapid response to the Eb epidemic,” Phillip said in a statement to the public. “Secretary Michelle was the first person who predicted the start of this outbreak. Since the first confirmed case in Maibi, she has done considerable and in-depth research into the transmission routes of the Eb virus and realized that it can spread through anthracis.”
Phillip went on.
“And Secretary Michelle brought Doctor Ryu Young-Joon here, one of the brightest stars in the scientificmunity. We were able to get his help and develop a treatment and vine for Eb in time. I would like to extend a special thank you to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon.”
It was still a little early to im victory. Michelle’s perfectionist nature urged Phillip to dy the announcement, but Phillip thought it was the right time, because it was the government’s job to calm people’s fears.
“This was a dangerous disaster that could have cost a huge number of lives across the entire country, but were were able to catch it thanks to the efforts of Secretary Michelle, Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, and the great scientists in our country, as well as the public’s quick recognition and active cooperation,” Phillip said. “Our country is facing a huge change. Thisnd is as big as all of Western Europebined. It’s ten times the size of Korea, Doctor Ryu’s country. We have trillions in underground resources. Thisnd was once called the heart of Africa.”
Phillip squeezed the microphone.
“Over the years, ournd has been in fear and confusion from dangers like civil war, terrorism, dictatorships, and disease. We have hated each other due to shing ideologies. But look, we endured a major epidemic caused by abination of the two deadly diseases.”
The people listened to him silently. Phillip had polished and read this speech many times, but at this moment, he felt genuinely choked up.
“From the first case until now, no one has died from Eb in this great heart of Africa. We have saved everyone.”
Phillip stopped himself from choking up.
Africa, an underdeveloped and impoverished country: Phillip knew how Congo was perceived by the internationalmunity. He also knew how difficult the conditions actually were. But they overcame a serious catastrophe that was put onto them.
“Of course, the Eb epidemic hasn’t been eliminated yet, and it needs to be managed. But folks, you can go back to normal now. The government has Eb under control. Go back to work and catch up, and enjoy a peaceful weekend with your families,” Philip said. “The Congolese government will not allow Eb to threaten your lives. Just as we have ovee such a huge disaster, we will be able to ovee all future problems. We can ovee anything: the civil war with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, conflict between ethnicities, looting of resources by powerful countries. We are strong. Let’s move forward to the future together.”
* * *
Two men were standing in the garden of a luxury apartmentplex in Seocho-gu, Seoul. They had an employer-employee rtionship, but they were also father and son. It was Yoon Dae-Sung, the CEO of A-Gen, and Yoon Bo-Hyun, his son. Yoon Bo-Hyun was respectful to Yoon Dae-Sung at A-Gen because they had a huge difference in rank as a manager and a CEO, but not at home.
Yoon Dae-Sung taught Yoon Bo-Hyun the ways and charisma of a chaebol[1], a king who ran argepany.
And Yoon Bo-Hyun mastered it perfectly. He was naturally savvy in business, and he was strategic. He was able to read the market and people’s minds with keen insight. When all the executives at A-Gen were idly standing by and observing Young-Joon, Yoon Bo-Hyun was the first one to recognize his growth and threat. Yoon Bo-Hyun was also the one who used Ji Kwang-Man as a pawn and tried to get rid of Young-Joon when he was still nothing.
<i>‘He’s better than me now.’</i>
Yoon Dae-Sung already thought Yoon Bo-Hyun had surpassed him years ago. Yoon Bo-Hyun was the perfect sessor. They were father and son, not an employer and employee; Yoon Dae-Sung saw him as another businessman. As such, they sometimes smoked cigarettes together in private.
“What did you just say?” Yoon Bo-Hyun asked as he put out his cigarette on the ashtray.
“I’m going to step down from A-Gen. I’m thinking of merging with A-Bio and handing over the control to Doctor Ryu,” Yoon Dae-Sung said with a tense face.
“Father, are you serious?”
“And I am going to turn myself in for developing the anthrax bioweapon.”
“...”
Yoon Bo-Hyun stared at Yoon Dae-Sung.
“Father, I have studied and worked since I was in high school with the goal of inheriting yourpany. I’ve dedicated more than a decade of my life to A-Gen.”
“I know.”
“You know that, and you’re still going to give everything to that bastard?”
“<i>Sigh...</i>”
Yoon Dae-Sung sighed.
“You’ve dedicated ten years to thispany, but I’ve dedicated my entire life to it, Bo-Hyun,” Yoon Dae-Sung said. “But that’s why I need to give it to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon. He’s not just some adequate businessman or a bright scientist. He’s not like us criminals. This is apany I care about, and I want it to seed after I leave, too.”
“I can do a good job, too! You were supposed to give it to me!” Yoon Bo-Hyun shouted, grabbing Yoon Dae-Sung’s arm roughly.
“You can’t,” Yoon Dae-Sung said firmly. “You can’t win against him.”
“...”
“I can’t win against him either. Even David can’t win against him. When a genius like him exists, criminals like us have to live in his shadow. If you try to run A-Gen, you’ll sh with Doctor Ryu, and you will be the one who is destroyed.”
“Father!”
“Stop. This is good for everyone. Even if we give A-Gen to Doctor Ryu Young-Joon, we will be the same. We will just sell our shares to Doctor Ryu. That alone will give you enough money to livefortably until you die.”
“...That’s not what I want. What I want is ownership.”
“Yes, and that’s a dream I instilled in you. I’m sorry, but you have to give up on that dream now.”
“...”
Yoon Bo-Hyun took out a cigarette. He lit it up and took a deep breath.
“Father,” he said. “I knew that this might happen. If I were to take over A-Gen, I would have had to make an affiliatepany in my name, but A_Bio was the one that started growing. I was expecting this.”
“...”
“You pretend to be a businessman, but deep inside, you’re still a scientist,” Yoon Bo-Hyun said. “But I was never a scientist. I am a businessman.”
“Bo-Hyun, please.”
“Why do you think I let Ryu Young-Joon go wild?” Yoon Bo-Hyun asked. “Do you think I was scared because Ji Kwang-Man failed?”
Yoon Bo-Hyun shook his head.
“No, I let him be because I didn’t think it was time to strike yet. You are right, Ryu Young-Joon is not just some bright scientist; he’s a genius, and he’s a rampaging beast with an obsession with research ethics.”
“...”
“You said I can’t beat Ryu Young-Joon? You’ll regret that you said that,” Yoon Bo-Hyun said. “Because when everyone was scrambling to get something out of Ryu Young-Joon, I’ve been working on ways to overturn it and grab him by the neck.”
“Bo-Hyun, stop. I’m begging you. You’re no match for him!”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Yoon Bo-Hyun said. “Ji Kwang-Man failed, and so did Schumatix, but not me. You’ll see how I am going to take him down.”
“...”
Yoon Bo-Hyun leaned closer to Yoon Dae-Sung.
“Then you’ll have to give me thepany and apologize.”
1. arge family-owned business ?