Empire of the Ring

Nursultan Nazarbayev was the current president of Kazakhstan.

He was born in the biggest city of Kazakhstan, Almaty. He was a self-made man who once worked as a steelworker and later received a doctorate degree in economics. He served as a secretary during the time of the Soviet Union and was elected as the first president of Kazakhstan and had been in power ever since.

The president looked like a traditional Asian and in Youngho's eyes, he was just like a common Korean old man in the countryside.

He received Youngho in a quite straight posture for his age, which was seventy-eight.

Youngho only had twenty minutes with the president since the meeting should not interfere with the president's dinner meal time. In such a short time, Youngho had to show him the vision of Arirang Farm and how it would be helpful for the country's economy.

Arranging the meeting with the president was not easy but it seemed that his idea for the farm had intrigued the president's curiosity.

"Oh! How did you learn to speak in Russian? You're quite fluent."

"I've learned it through a friend, Mr. President."

"Do you mind if I talk to you comfortably?"

"Of course. I'm about your grandson's age."

'Oops.' Youngho made a slip of the tongue because he was nervous.

"Are you saying that I'm your grandfather?"

It was a mistake but the president smiled as if it was funny. The heavy atmosphere was lifted after exchanging a few small talks.

"It's true that we have a huge territory but we only give permission to foreign investors t develop land for farmland development. You're saying you want to utilize some part of it as a light industrial complex."

"In the future, food will be a strong weapon. The world is, in fact, suffering from the shortage of food."

"That had been a problem for a long time. I already know that grain is a resource."

"To maintain this size of farmland, mechanization farming is a must. I received immigrants for farming but mechanized farming will leave half of the people without a job. To utilize the idle manpower, I'd like to begin light industry that's labor-intensive and pollution-free. However, the development condition is holding it back."

"If that's what you wanted, you could've asked the regional governor and he would've easily helped you."

Knowing that many Kazakh officials would overlook unlawfulness for a little bit of bribe, the president did not think that what Youngho asked was a big deal.

"I know that well, Mr. President but I don't want an unlawful business in my farm."

Youngho waved his hand saying that he wanted to keep the country's law but the president already knew how things worked in the country.

"Okay, then. Why don't we skip the introduction and proceed to the main issue? I heard that you wanted to see me in private. Feel free to speak your mind."

"Mr. President. Forgive me if I'm being rude but I'd like to suggest something. Don't you want to be free from Russia's or China's pressure?"

Youngho carefully worded his thought. For today's meeting, he had to make an impression that he was a polite young man and that he was not a dangerous person to the country.

"I assume that you know why I'm insisting a prolonged one-man rule."

The president implied that he was only in power to free the country from surrounding nations. However, he must have a personal desire for power as well.

"I have a random idea. If things work out as I planned, Kazakhstan would be gaining more power and that's why I asked to see you badly."

"It seems that you have such confidence in what you're about to say."

Just when Youngho thought that he had exaggerated too much, he could see the president's intrigued eyes. He was curious about what Youngho was going to say about a means to protect Kazakhstan from other countries' influences.

"Well, the time has passed this much already. Mr. Lee, how about joining this old man for supper? My supper is quite boring."

"I assure you that today's supper will be refreshing for you, Mr. President. I've brought the very own wine that I produced. Would you like to try some?"

***

As they had supper together, Youngho wittily talked about the stories that he had been through in the Caucasus region and about how he came this far. It seemed that he had told about all of his past excluding the story about the CIA and gold mines.

The old president was pleasantly amused by Youngho's stories.

Their conversation continued even after the supper was over and as they walked to the president's study. It was when the tea was served and no one was around them.

"What you're saying is accepting Serbian immigrants can be used as measures to fight against Russia's influence."

"Indeed that's true. The Serbian immigrants submit themselves to my wife calling her the Archduchess. I'm also planning on holding a coronation for her in the right time. It's rare to find people who are loyal to their last Archduchess wishing for the re-establishment of their kingdom's glory. The Serbian descendants only desire to make their own small kingdom and live in peace."

"And when they gain power, they'd try to declare independence and oppose the government's policies."

The president's concern was reasonable but Youngho kept on talking.

"Mr. President. I heard that there are a hundred and twenty ethnicities in Kazakhstan. Some of them received their own autonomy but I've never heard those minority people revolted against the government. I think they rather worked hard diligently and played a role in Kazakh economic growth."

"That's true."

"Through my experience with the Serbian descendants, I know for a fact that they are diligent and dexterous people. If I give them a little support, they'd be developing surprising products."

Knowing that the president would be eager to hear more about the story, Youngho paused for a while.

"Phew, why don't you keep talking already?"

Although the room was warm, the tea had been gone cold a while ago. There was a silence for a short while and the president finally opened his mouth.

"I wouldn't have listened to a young man like you a decade ago but as I'm planning to resign in the future and normalize the political situation I now tend to listen to others."

"…"

"You have such a grandiose vision for such a small piece of land. If you wish to be in power, you should seek to control the whole country."

"Well, what I'm saying is…"

"Hear me out. Your suggestion is intriguing but how would you be able to fight against powerful nations with such little population? Do you think the world powers would stop bothering our country just because some decayed European kingdom had established their new kingdom?"

"…"

"…but if little influences are unified, the story might be different. And as you said, Kazakh will gain high status if the high-tech industry you mentioned produces worldwide products."

Youngho, who was devastated to think that the president was rejecting his request, regained his hope.

It was time for the old president to make a decision.

Youngho straightened up his posture. He was ready to listen.

"How many Serbians can you gather?"

"I can't possibly bring all of them in one day but I think over 30,000 people would be possible in time."

It was a number that could be only achieved when he included newborn babies.

"Alright. Try making visible achievements when I'm still in power. Then, I'll grant you autonomy as a reward by the time I retire. But, you can't take in other minorities in Kazakhstan. If you can keep that condition, I can you a certificate by tomorrow for my promise."

It seemed that the president would not stand the expansion of the farm's influence. He was worried about Koryoins since there were 100,000 Koryoins residing in Kazakhstan. It looked like he would have to give up receiving Koryoins at Arirang Farm.

"Thank you very much, Mr. President. I have friends in different countries. I'll convince them to draw in investments to benefit Kazakhstan."

"That's exactly what I want. I don't trust poor Serbian immigrants. I only trust your business ability, so don't disappoint me."

The president was giving a subtle pressure but Youngho was confident in his business. If he had a problem drawing investment from foreigners, he was willing to invest his funds under a third party's name.

"First, I'm going to begin with the drone business, which is gaining popularity recently. I'd greatly appreciate if you could exempt the duties for product parts."

"Oh, you've already chosen the production item. What if I refused your request?"

"Well, I was going to make a secret factory underground."

"Hahaha…"

He laughed out loud. He seemed to be genuinely entertained or he must have seen Youngho as an inexorable young man.

"You, you are hilarious. This is why having youth is great. I like your passion to live hard in a foreign country. Please keep it up."

***

Jongil was surprised to see the certificate that had the president's official seal.

Although it was a conditional autonomy, it would be a powerful certificate for the farm. Now Youngho could start any business he wanted at the farm.

"Alright. You deserve to be the boss. You can now…"

"Okay, I'll go down the mountain now."

Jongil's joke was a different way of saying that his friend had done a great job.

"Since he doesn't want Koryoins to move in, he must not want us to become a new power influence to the country."

"Yeah, that's something I can't help with. We should be thankful that we can have this status in a foreign country. Who knows, there might be a Kazakh new leader from our descendants."

"Man, we should raise them tough."

The spring had come to Southern Kazakhstan but it was still mid-winter at the farm.

Since there was nothing to do for the Serbian descendants during the harsh winter, Youngho acted fast to prepare for the drone production business. It was something that Youngho already discussed with Park Youngsun.

Due to the development of techniques related to sensors and communication, drones usage nowadays was quickly expanding in various fields of transport, security, farming, and construction. The core techniques of making GPS, accelerometer, and lightweight clearance that went into smartphones also applied to drone development.

Since the drone industry had great potential, Park Youngsun wanted to start the drone factory. For now, the farm would form a technical partnership with corporations that had software and core platform and focus on simple assembly production and later when the technical skills were accumulated, the farm would be able to produce its own drones. It was a business worth trying.

As Kim Chun's condition was improved a lot, everyone went to visit him at the hospital. Youngho thought that he would be spending his time sleeping in his room but he was talking on the phone.

"I said, my boss had taken care of everything. The president agreed to his new business."

He was bragging to somebody. As he saw the group of people walking into his room, he gestured everyone to wait for a moment and kept on talking.

"Why would we pay port dues to the port that we paid to make? Yeah, that's right. Of course, we should report to the Maritime and Port Administration and since the ships would be coming from overseas, we should also make a customs declaration. Okay, let's drink together sometime soon. I'll treat you big!"

After hanging up, Kim Chun greeted the group and made a fuss to take out some beverages to serve the group. He was in a condition to lie down on his bed but he could not sit still.

"Mr. Kim, please stay in your bed. You need to rest, so you can go home even quicker."

"Boss. I can go home now. Please let me out of this place."

"Oh yeah? If only you hadn't decided to drive in that hour…"

"Boss. How many times should I admit? It was my bad. I don't know what was with me but I insisted to return to the farm that day."

Then Kim Chun went on and told the story of that night to the whole group. He was such an energetic patient. Thankfully, as his condition was recovered, he was able to work on the phone.

He probably had made countless drink meetings with business-related people.

He would have to fear that he would be summoned to the hospital again later for alcoholism.

"Mr. Kim, I've assigned a light armored vehicle for you. You can go anywhere at any time freely now."

"Thank you, boss. You can even put the machine gun on its roof."

Kim Chun was still furious about what happened that night. Then he went back to the story of that night. He was talking everyone's ear off.

He was such a cheerful person. If Youngho had lost him, he would have lived in regret for the rest of his life.

"Boss, I've already taken care of the Koryoin problem. They can't live on our farm but they can live nearby. So, I assigned a residential place for the workers at about an hour distance from the farm and told them to commute. The government won't make this a problem."

That was a great solution. Youngho would have to use local people's manpower anyway for the establishment and maintenance of the farm, town, and factory and if the manpower is from Koryoins, it would be the best.