I Became the Youngest Daughter of a Chaebol Family-Chapter 66: Collapse of the Soviet Union (4)

True to his ties with the conservative faction of the Communist Party, he didn’t think too highly of Gorbachev’s talk of reform and openness.

So why was he taking my gold, you ask?

Well, that’s that, and this is this. That’s how it works. The communist aristocrats of the Soviet Union would, after its collapse, rapidly embrace capitalism and evolve into the Red Mafia or oligarchs.

Of course, right now, they’re not especially wealthy—not for people supposedly at the top of a communist society. That’s exactly why he’s this delighted by my “little gesture.”

Stroking his elegant mustache, the colonel gave me a nod.

“I accept your goodwill. I can’t promise you the world, but... I’ll make sure one of your business ventures gets real backing.”

“That’s great to hear. It’s reassuring to have someone like you on our side. I know it’s sensitive for a foreigner to say this, but the political climate these days... it’s not exactly stable, is it?”

The colonel gave a bitter laugh and nodded.

“Phew, you’re right. My nephew acted rudely the other day, didn’t he? I’ll apologize for that. But... embarrassingly enough, Yuri’s actually one of the more decent young men in the Soviet Union these days. So the rest... well...”

Can’t blame him.

His voice trailed off into a mutter. His eyes had drifted to the bottle of vodka sitting on the table.

Vodka left out despite the ongoing prohibition. Proof enough that he was involved in smuggling.

“Haha, well, let’s wrap things up for today. I’ll come see you again—with a new gift in hand—for our next conversation.”

“Very well. Take care.”

With a satisfying deal secured, I walked out of the communist aristocrat’s mansion smiling.

***

I strolled through the streets, humming a Russian folk song.

There was a heavy, melancholic air hanging over the streets of Moscow.

A young man nervously glancing around. A drunk sprawled on the pavement. A tourist staring in awe toward the Kremlin.

The summer sunlight reached everyone equally, sharing its warmth without prejudice, but each person responded to it differently.

Some squinted and raised their arms to block the light, while others tilted their heads back and basked in it.

Passing them all, I observed the Soviet Union.

The end of an era was being crystallized in this very moment.

‘Honestly, there’s never been a better time to build connections on the cheap.’

Here’s a truth that self-proclaimed realists often overlook: ideology is far more powerful than they think.

Even now, with the Soviet Union on the verge of collapse, many of the communist aristocrats would scoff at the idea of economic inequality within their society—but they wouldn’t outright deny it.

To this day, the Soviet Union’s economic inequality index is about on par with South Korea’s in the 21st century. The mere sight of a homeless person in Moscow caused massive public shock.

They believed homelessness and unemployment were things that only existed in capitalist countries.

That was the last vestige of pride for the Soviet Union—the heart of communism, the self-proclaimed leader of the movement. Even though they were forced to watch the communist bloc crumble like sand slipping through their fingers...

The Soviet Union was a communist state. That’s what they believed.

This was it. This place. This moment.

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

It was the ideology that dominated the 20th century, the state that defined it, and the era itself.

The power of ideology kept the collapsing Soviet Union propped up with the illusion that it still stood strong. The country had already lost. It was dead. But its people were still here, clinging to the corpse and trying to pump electricity through it.

A delusion, yes—but also a very real belief.

Free healthcare, free housing, free education—gone. State-run enterprises privatized. Bootleg liquor openly traded. McDonald’s entering Moscow. Homelessness and unemployment turning into visible social issues. Three General Secretary changes in three years, an era of extreme political chaos.

And yet, the Soviet people still believed the USSR had fight left in it. That the world’s last remaining superpower couldn’t possibly collapse so easily.

Even the ones who believed in capitalism kind of believed that, too.

This was six months before the collapse of the Soviet Union.

About a month after I returned from Moscow to Korea—

The August Coup happened.

The Soviet people, still dreaming of past glory, chose to remain Soviet citizens until the bitter end.

***

[Breaking News: Soviet General Secretary Gorbachev Ousted... Suspected Communist Party Coup]

[State of Emergency Declared in the USSR, Power Transferred to the State Committee on the State of Emergency]

[NATO Convenes Emergency Meeting, Global Uproar Over Soviet Coup...]

[Boris Yeltsin Urges Nationwide Strike Across Former USSR]

“Oh—what do we do?”

Choi Yeon-ha, who had stayed in the USSR until early August to coordinate negotiations, had rushed back after my emergency call and now looked at me with trembling eyes.

A Communist Party-led coup against the Soviet Union had turned the political landscape on its head.

But my focus was elsewhere.

“What about the financial markets? What’s happening with CDS premiums?”

“Huh? The st—stocks? Isn’t the Soviet situation way more important right now? Even the KGB is said to be involved in the coup...”

I smiled gently and patted her on the shoulder.

“That matters too, but it’ll be fine. The colonel was a pretty pragmatic guy. I doubt he’d be actively involved in the coup. That’s why I sent you there in the first place.”

Even within the KGB, there were voices opposing the August Coup. The communist aristocrats who had the most to lose from the reforms supported the coup, but—

Not the colonel. Not anymore. I had already introduced him to the taste of capitalism.

People think all kinds of things when they’re starving. But once the colonel’s belly was full, he could finally see the future clearly.

A coup? Why bother? I’ve already adjusted to the capitalist market.

The colonel had cleanly let go of his attachment to the Soviet Union and assumed a safe, middle-ground stance. The fact that Choi Yeon-ha came back alive was proof of that.

If the colonel had thrown himself into the coup, there’s no way he would’ve let a capitalist lapdog go home unharmed.

“This coup’s going to flop, judging by how things are unfolding. Then the radical reformists will tear the Soviet Union down.”

I’d hammered this point so many times that Choi Yeon-ha accepted the collapse of the ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) Soviet Union with eerie calm.

“The Soviet Union... how... how could it...”

Her eyes glazed over slightly as she stared off into the distance. Maybe she still couldn’t believe everything I’d warned her about was actually coming true.

“The KGB’s huge. They’re going to be a solid asset for us going forward. Once the USSR collapses, where do you think all those skilled people will go? It’s a win-win—they’ll need reliable friends in the West.”

“Do you think... there’ll be purges?”

“Hm? You really think so? Nah, they’ll just pin the blame on a few scapegoats and call it a day.”

As a South Korean used to military coups, Choi Yeon-ha unfortunately understood that all too well. The purge of the Hanahoe faction hadn’t happened yet, after all.

“Ah...”

I shrugged.

“Well, that’s how it goes. Once the Russian government forms, Yeltsin’s going to back the communist aristocrats.”

Ironically, they would embrace capitalism faster than anyone. They were never the proletariat—just the entrenched elite.

“Anyway, more importantly—what’s the state of the financial markets?”

“Huh? Oh, right! I’ll pull up the report now!”

Yeon-ha scrambled to the desk, brought up several screens, and showed them to me.

Markets around the world, including Wall Street, were crashing in unison. The CDS premiums on Soviet debt were skyrocketing.

Naturally, I wasn’t taking any serious losses. I’d kept a wait-and-see position, under every excuse I could think of.

Inside the Alpha Fund, they probably assumed I’d secretly invested in Eastern Europe. Lately, I’d needed heavy capital to build a proper banking enterprise in Germany.

“Mm. Not bad.”

Though it hadn’t existed two years ago, Yeon-ha had learned from documents that I had created CDS instruments and planned something major through Daehwa Securities. She asked cautiously.

“I heard you were planning to buy a huge amount of CDS before the Soviet collapse... Should I start purchasing now?”

“No, not yet. The premiums are way too high right now. Wait until the coup fails—buy in around early September. That should be a good window.”

Once Gorbachev is reinstated, they’ll fall quite a bit. Still ridiculously high, but easy money.

I glanced at the TV and confirmed that history was unfolding as expected, then laid back comfortably in my seat.

“Have the rest of the tasks carried out according to protocol... and tell Si-hyun to track Nick Leeson’s activities, focusing on his derivatives trading volume. If possible, probe Baring’s headquarters for inside intel.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Sending my secretary out with a mix of awe and reverence in her eyes, I smiled faintly and looked out the window.

The fish was getting desperate—and it was about to bite.