Houston, Texas, United States.
Under a dark, ash-gray sky, a black limousine slid to a stop in front of Enron's headquarters.
"There he is!"
At someone's shout, dozens of reporters who had been camped out in front of the main gate since early morning surged forward like a swarm.
A secretary who stepped out of the passenger seat and security guards who rushed over formed a human wall, but they were no match for the reporters charging in like a pack of hyenas that had spotted their prey.
"Don't come any closer!"
"Step back!"
"Move out of the way!"
"Why are you blocking us?"
"Stop pushing and move back!"
Reporters desperate to get closer clashed with security guards trying to hold them back, the shouting growing louder on both sides.
Amid the chaos outside, some time passed before the heavily tinted rear door of the limousine finally opened and Jack Haywood, Chairman of Enron, emerged.
The confident air he had carried until recently was nowhere to be found. His face, noticeably gaunter after just a few days, was drawn tight, his lips firmly pressed together.
The moment Chairman Haywood lifted his head after stepping out of the limousine, brilliant camera flashes erupted from all directions at once, the raucous clatter of shutters pounding his ears.
Chra-ra-ra-rack!
Blinded by flashes bright enough to wash his vision white, Haywood turned his face slightly to the side and closed his eyes.
At that, reporters forced microphones and voice recorders through the gaps between the security guards, unleashing a storm of questions.
"Do you admit to the accounting fraud allegations raised by the Eldorado Fund?"
"Is it true that revenue was deliberately inflated?"
"Your stock price is plunging sharply because of this incident. Do you have anything to say about that?"
"There are claims that there was organized collusion with Arthur Andersen, the firm in charge of your audits. Is that true?"
The reporters lunged forward viciously, as if determined not to let their prey escape.
Faced with a scene seething with malice, ready to tear into him at the slightest opening, Chairman Haywood looked at the reporters and spoke in a firm, resolute voice.
"There was absolutely no accounting manipulation or improper internal transactions! I can state clearly that Enron is growing more soundly than ever."
"Then are you saying there was absolutely no accounting fraud, as claimed by the Eldorado Fund?"
At the question from a white reporter with a mustache, Chairman Haywood lifted his chin.
"The greed-driven Eldorado Fund is engaging in despicable acts to drive down our stock price!"
The moment he raised his voice in anger, reporters' phones began vibrating all at once, as if on cue.
"?"
"What is this? What's going on all of a sudden…?"
The reporters pulled out their phones to check the messages, their eyes widening as a murmur rippled through the crowd.
As Chairman Haywood's eyebrows twitched at the sudden turn of events, the same white reporter who had asked the earlier question raised his head and spoke in a sharp voice.
"Just moments ago, the Eldorado Fund released additional allegations, stating that Enron created four special purpose entities called Raptor and used internal transactions to falsely inflate revenue by billions of dollars while hiding its debt."
"...!"
"They also say they have submitted evidence to the Securities and Exchange Commission. How do you respond to that?"
The moment the word "Raptor" left the reporter's mouth, Chairman Haywood's eyes wavered violently.
Raptor was essentially a dumping ground where Enron had hidden massively inflated fictitious revenue and debt in order to make its financial statements appear sound.
If the true nature of that entity were exposed, it would only be a matter of time before the long-concealed accounting fraud came to light.
As the thought reached that point, Chairman Haywood's expression collapsed, revealing the anxious fear of a hunted animal.
The reporters, quick to catch that change, immediately pounced, clawing at him from all sides.
"Please comment on the new allegations raised by the Eldorado Fund!"
"Does a place called Raptor really exist?"
"Do you still believe this is just another smear attempt by the Eldorado Fund? Answer us!"
Unlike moments earlier, Chairman Haywood offered no response. His face stiffened as he clamped his mouth shut and hurriedly moved away.
To anyone watching, it was clear he had been struck at the core and was fleeing, which only made the reporters cling to him more fiercely.
"Chairman Haywood!"
"If you leave like this, it will be taken as an admission that the allegations are true. Are you all right with that?"
Security guards trying to force a path through with brute strength became entangled with reporters desperate to squeeze out even one more answer, plunging the scene into chaos.
His face drained of color, Chairman Haywood pressed forward toward the revolving doors of the lobby, leaving behind the blinding flashes and the reporters' shouts, and squeezed his eyes shut, feeling as though he were falling into a bottomless abyss.
***
A few days later, the West Wing of the White House.
In an elegantly furnished waiting room, Seok-won sat with Landon. He had arrived in Washington, D.C. the previous day aboard a private jet.
Landon glanced around before lowering his voice.
"The Enron situation has put President Bush in a very foul mood."
Seok-won was dressed in a bespoke suit handcrafted by an Italian tailor. The fine fabric caught the light with a soft sheen, and the crisp collar of his shirt was perfectly set, making his appearance naturally eye-catching.
With one leg crossed, Seok-won spoke.
"President Bush has been close with Chairman Haywood for a long time, and Haywood even donated a massive sum to the campaign during the last presidential election. It puts him in an awkward position."
"If that were all, it might be manageable," Landon replied. "But Democrats are already moving to turn this into a political issue, pointing out that many people tied to Enron are embedded within the White House and the administration."
Because Enron was headquartered in Texas, President George W. Bush's home state and political base, not only the president himself but also his close associates were bound to have direct or indirect ties to the company.
Even his closest aide, Chief of Staff Nick Watt, had been listed as a member of Enron's board until a few years earlier.
On top of that, several figures within the administration were former Enron executives, giving the opposition Democrats even more ammunition as the controversy grew.
"On top of everything else, the Bush administration's energy and oil industry policies were already suspected of favoring Enron," Seok-won said.
Landon's expression tightened with concern.
"Now that accounting fraud allegations have exploded, there's no way the Democrats will let an opportunity like this slip by."
"Of course," Seok-won replied. "If they play their cards right, they can seize control of the political narrative and even drag the issue all the way into the midterm elections to gain an advantage. There's no chance they'd pass that up."
In short, the Enron scandal had put the Bush administration at risk of becoming a lame duck almost as soon as it had taken office.
And the one who had triggered this situation was Seok-won himself, making it inevitable that he would incur President Bush's resentment.
It was a situation where his relationship with President Bush, the most powerful man in the world, could easily sour. Yet, for some reason, Seok-won remained perfectly calm.
"There won't be any issues with the president, so there's no need to worry."
Seok-won's sheer confidence made Landon look at him with puzzlement. Just as he was about to ask what he had in mind, the wooden door opened, and a female staff member from the secretariat stepped in.
"He's ready to see you."
At her polite words, Seok-won rose from the sofa where he had been sitting.
Landon followed suit, swallowing his questions as he stood up and buttoned his jacket, straightening his attire.
Passing through a short corridor lined with thick carpet, the two were escorted into the Oval Office, the president's office.
Inside, two men were already seated on a sofa, their backs to three large windows that framed the tranquil view of the Rose Garden behind the Resolute Desk, made of oak.
They were the owner of this room, President George W. Bush, and his Chief of Staff, Nick Watt.
President Bush did not rise when he saw Seok-won enter.
Remaining seated on the sofa, he merely turned his head and spoke briefly in a low, dry voice.
"You're here. Come and sit."
In President Bush's gaze, Seok-won sensed resentment and irritation rather than welcome.
The tightly set line of his mouth and his cold, rigid expression made it clear just how angry he was about this affair.
"Yes."
Having never expected a warm reception, Seok-won replied without changing his expression and sat on the empty sofa to the left.
But unlike Seok-won's calm demeanor, Landon, seated beside him, felt as though he were sitting on a bed of needles, constantly gauging President Bush's mood.
Once the female aide closed the door and left, President Bush, dressed in a white dress shirt and a burgundy tie, leaned back and stared at Seok-won in silence.
When Seok-won did not avert his eyes and met the blatant stare head-on, President Bush let his displeasure show openly.
"Do you have any idea how much trouble you've been causing me lately?"
"I'm sorry. But I never intended to put you in a difficult position, Mr. President."
President Bush rested his hands on both armrests and clicked his tongue in irritation.
"Of course not. But as a result of this, my administration is at risk of losing its momentum before it's even properly begun. How do you intend to take responsibility for that?"
Crushed by the atmosphere, Landon glanced to the side with an uneasy look.
Seok-won, however, responded with the same calm expression.
"I wasn't the first to raise suspicions about Enron's accounting practices. They were already reported last year in a Wall Street Journal article."
"...!"
"Granted, it was published only in the Texas regional edition, not nationwide."
President Bush furrowed his brow at this new information.
"Moreover, you may not be aware, but Chairman Haywood and other insiders have been selling off large amounts of their Enron shares since the year before last."
"..."
"If, as they claim, the company's future outlook were truly bright and the stock price was expected to keep rising, they would never have sold their shares."
Watching President Bush grimace and let out a low, troubled sound, Seok-won continued.
"And the fact that they acted this way means they never had any intention of correcting the accounting fraud and restoring the company in the first place. It suggests they were only concerned with lining their own pockets, without a thought for the countless employees and shareholders."
Despite having maintained a close relationship with Chairman Haywood for many years, President Bush found himself unable to offer any defense in the face of such pointed criticism.
"On top of that, Fortune magazine was already conducting an investigative report, harboring doubts about Enron's explosive growth."
At that, Chief of Staff Nick Watt, seated across from them, frowned.
"So even without the Eldorado Fund, this was bound to blow up sooner or later?"
"That's correct."
Even so, President Bush still looked far from appeased, snapping back curtly.
"Then you should have at least tipped me off beforehand so we could prepare a response before things escalated."
"I sincerely apologize for that. But if I had consulted you in advance and word had leaked outside, it could have sparked even greater misunderstandings, so there was no other choice."
"Even so, informing me right before the short-selling report was released was going too far."
President Bush's irritation clearly had not faded, and a note of hurt crept into his voice.
"If the Enron issue had broken later, when the midterm elections were close next year, it would have dealt a serious blow to the election."
"That's no different from now. The opposition is already trying to seize on this and drag it all the way into the midterms."
President Bush replied curtly.
"I've also heard that the opposition intends to turn Enron's accounting fraud into a full-blown political power scandal."
"That's exactly why this has been giving me such a headache lately."
"You won't need to worry about this matter any further, Mr. President."
President Bush narrowed his eyes and snapped back.
"Are you saying you're going to stop this incident from turning into a political issue?"
"That's right."
The unexpected answer startled not only President Bush, but also Chief of Staff Watt and Landon, who all turned to look at him.
"And how exactly do you plan to do that?"
As President Bush leaned forward from the sofa, Seok-won spoke with a serious expression.
"Have you ever heard the name Jackie Chung?"
At the unfamiliar name, President Bush tilted his head.
"Who is that?"
"He's a lobbyist who secretly funneled money from Beijing to former President Bill Clinton and Democratic lawmakers, pushing them to enact policies favorable to China."
"...!"
TL/n -
Johnny Chung was a Chinese-American political fundraiser involved in the 1996 U.S. campaign finance scandal during Bill Clinton's presidency.