Episode 29
“Are you going to pay a hundred million won?”
“Of course! I have to give it after seeing something like that. I may be picky, but I have a sense of conscience.”
Cheon Aram lightly brushed her hair back and said.
“I need to show my face to those smelly ones after a long time… Should I at least buy some motion sickness pills?”
“Thank goodness. I really hope those two get a little compensation.”
Seeing Seo Soo-yeon look relieved, Cheon Aram playfully said.
“But first, let’s check what Team Leader Seon has prepared. It would be a waste otherwise, considering how far we’ve gone with this.”
Seo Soo-yeon realized Cheon Aram was up to something again and frowned.
“Do we really have to participate in this noise marketing? I’m skeptical about its effectiveness.”
“Well, nobody can be sure… But it’s definitely worth trying. Considering the completeness of the first song, it will definitely create a buzz, right? They’ve even started filming over there.”
“Why don’t we just pay the money directly instead?”
“No way. I want to see it. I want to see what Team Leader Seon is envisioning.”
After failing to persuade her, Seo Soo-yeon sighed softly.
“President Cheon, I sometimes feel like you might be a bit grumpy?”
Cheon Aram smiled at her.
“Not a bit, but a lot.”
*
The performance continued for over two hours, mixed with a bit of communication.
As I carefully watched Gaeul’s throat condition, I told her that the next song would be the last.
Though she looked a bit disappointed, Gaeul understood it was time to wrap up the show.
And just like that, Gaeul, who had been juggling the roles of daily MC, vocalist, and guitarist, announced the end of the busking.
“I think it’s about time for the last song.”
As Gaeul announced it was the final song, the audience erupted.
They were shouting for one more song or already calling for an encore—chaos ensued.
“…Honestly, I’m really really grateful. I will never forget this moment for the rest of my life.”
Gaeul said with a slightly choked voice as she took in the scene.
“I’m going to gift you the best song I can sing so that you all feel honored to stay.”
Gaeul leaned towards the microphone and whispered to me.
“Team Leader Seon, I want to do ‘Last Concert’ for the finale. Is that okay?”
“Of course! It’s a perfect fit for the grand finale.”
It was a legendary song by Lee Seunghyun, known as the number one track from a legendary rock band in Korea. It was a song everyone here, regardless of age, would know.
Gaeul’s song selection sense was truly commendable.
Without hesitation, I started the intro for ‘Last Concert.’
As the gentle piano sounds echoed, Gyeoul brightened up and supported the intro on the guitar.
As the seemingly short intro came to an end, Gaeul began to sing.
*
The song ended.
But the crowd didn’t disperse and continued to cheer for an encore.
Gaeul, watching this scene, was holding back her overflowing emotions.
I was tightly holding it in.
I wanted to ask her again right now.
“Gaeul-ssi.”
“…Yes, Team Leader Seon.”
“You like songs, right?”
That was the question I had ultimately failed to ask back at the rice soup restaurant.
Gaeul looked at me wide-eyed as if she had never expected such a question.
And then, as if that question had triggered her, her bottled-up feelings burst forth like an overinflated balloon popping.
“…It’s not that I just like them. I love them.”
Gaeul was shedding tears.
“Really, really! More than anyone else in this world!”
That was Gaeul’s pure heart.
The main purpose of stirring up this situation was to draw out that emotion.
Of course, I wasn’t satisfied with just achieving one goal.
“Then why don’t we do idol activities together? I’ll make sure you can sing on a stage more glorious than this.”
“I want to too! …But I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“If I chase my dreams like that, Gahyeon’s dreams will come crashing down!”
I forced a smile as I said.
“So, it’s about the money in the end, right?”
“Yes. That’s right. It’s about the money. I don’t have any.”
“Then, if that money gets sorted out, we can do this together, right?”
Gaeul looked up at me and spoke weakly.
“If that were possible, I wouldn’t have any wishes left.”
Permission was granted.
“Then please stick around a little longer.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s make some money.”
I shouted loudly.
“It seems you’ve waited long enough, so please step forward. President.”
It was time to achieve my second goal.
The crowd parted like the Red Sea.
And she appeared, crossing the path among the crowd.
Next to her was a woman walking behind her in a neat suit with a bob cut, like a secretary.
That woman was likely Seo Soo-yeon, whom Cheon Aram had mentioned.
I briefly exchanged glances with her, my future colleague, and spoke to Cheon Aram.
“How was the stage, President?”
“Well…, honestly, I can’t say I don’t want to downplay it, given my position. But I have to acknowledge what deserves acknowledgment.”
Cheon Aram said while clapping energetically.
“It was excellent PR, Team Leader.”
“So, are you accepting it?”
“Well, let’s see how Team Leader Seon wraps this up. There must be a reason you gathered all these people, right?”
“…If it goes that far, won’t President Cheon have to join as well? Are you okay with that?”
“Yeah, even if that’s the case, I need to see it, don’t I?”
“Then we have to do it. Whatever.”
The stage was performing better than I expected, but it seemed like it wouldn’t be easy to navigate.
Then I had to show them. The essence of my 10 years of experience in drawing in crowds, raising the C-grade agency Flower up to A-grade.
Gaeul grabbed the standing microphone in front of her and said.
“The person here is our President from TwoBear Entertainment. And the kid taking on vocals, guitar, and MC for the band is a trainee trying to join TwoBear.”
“The one standing here is none other than our TwoBear Entertainment’s President. And the kid responsible for vocals, guitar, and MC duties in the band is a trainee aiming to join us at TwoBear.”
“Character establishment.”
“This busking is actually our final exam here at TwoBear. It’s about proving your talent in front of everyone.”
And now for some storytelling.
With the atmosphere shifting, Cheon Aram appeared uncomfortable.
“Isn’t this a bit unfair? It turns me into the bad guy.”
“That’s the only role left for you. Plus, it’s an unparalleled PR opportunity for TwoBear Entertainment. It’s not every day a new agency gets a chance to make a name like this in front of a massive crowd, right?”
“If you can’t handle this, then step down as President. I don’t want to share my fate with someone like that.”
“It’s also about considering the President who can smell the stench when surrounded by people. We should hurry and move to a place with fewer people.”
“If you thought about that, you shouldn’t have called me to this kind of occasion at all.”
“As a CEO of an entertainment company, you’ll have to deal with this kind of situation often. Just consider this a practice session.”
“…Team Leader Seon, looking at you again, your personality really stinks.”
“The smell of sweat doesn’t just appear for no reason.”
We shared a small laugh. There was a mutual understanding of humor between us.
But the laughter faded quickly. This wasn’t a place for smiling faces.
In the end, I was an employee trying to push through the President’s intentions, while Cheon Aram was the President who had to stop an employee challenging authority.
This was a conversation that would shape our future relationship.
“Yeah, if you’re someone who wouldn’t even try for such an opportunity as a new company, then you shouldn’t be in business… Alright, let’s give it a shot then.”
She looked at me with a provoking smile and said.
“I’ll believe that you’ve prepared well enough.”
And then Cheon Aram detached the microphone from the standing mic I was holding and held it in her hand.
“You all need to know something important. The amount of money we’d need to bring the incredible vocalist Yoo Gaeul here is one hundred million won.”
Her demeanor was so skilled, it was as if she had experience in this kind of situation.
But the crowd’s reaction was frigid. They couldn’t understand why Cheon Aram was holding back on that amount for the genius vocalist, Gaeul.
The backlash was immediate.
“I understand your feelings. I’m one of the audience members who watched this stage, after all.”
Cheon Aram spoke skillfully, as if she was familiar with such situations.
“As a fan, I can assure you that Yoo Gaeul is worth much more than that amount… However, as a businessperson and representative of TwoBear Entertainment, my views are different.”
With that, she shifted the atmosphere in her favor.
“How much do you think it costs on average to run a girl group?”
At her sudden question, the crowd began to buzz.
After giving the crowd a moment to ponder, Cheon Aram answered herself before the boredom set in.
After giving the crowd a moment to ponder the question, I answered it myself before the boredom set in.
“It’s 300 million won over two years.”
The audience began to stir at the explicit figure.
“And to pay Gaeul 100 million won, you’d have to carve out a third of that. 100 million won is that kind of money.”
That was a violent metaphor.
The 300 million won was closer to the amount just for lodging, meals, coordination, and music video activities.
Just calculating how much Cheon Aram invested in the company already surpassed that amount.
But I couldn’t point that out.
After all, I didn’t come to engage in truth wars or hate speeches with Cheon Aram.
I shouldn’t even do that.
“Do you think it’s right for you, as businesspeople, to pay Gaeul that amount?”
People murmured.
Once they heard the actual investment costs, the weight of the 100 million hit them directly.
Of course, some thought that payment was absolutely necessary, but within the atmosphere Cheon Aram had created, no one dared to voice that opinion.
“As a businessman, I believe that cost is excessive. It’s not that I don’t think Gaeul has that much value.”
Cheon Aram’s resonant voice echoed.
“When thinking about the performance of a 12-member girl group, you can’t spend that much on a single trainee. Especially since we haven’t even decided how many members or what the concept will be.”
It seemed that gathering the audience to shape public opinion and showcasing her talent wasn’t quite enough.
The opponent was a businessman. Ultimately, I had to transcend the logic of money.
I wasn’t oblivious to this. That’s why I had prepared a card to persuade that troublesome boss.
So from here on out, it was time for some slander.
“Soo-yeon.”
I called out to Seo Soo-yeon, who was guarding Cheon Aram’s side.
“Could you create a bit of a distraction?”
“…A distraction?”
“It’s a bit personal for the audience, so just grab the mic and say something random to drown it all out.”
“But how am I supposed to…?”
Ignoring her response, I tossed the mic that Cheon Aram had been holding toward her.
Startled, Seo Soo-yeon instinctively grabbed the mic and, with her eyes squeezed shut, began to talk about her background in accounting.
She proudly boasted of graduating from a top-notch institution and being scouted by a leading investment firm, but the audience was unimpressed, heckling her to get back to the audition stories.
Then, sweating and flustered, she shouted as if to make sure everyone remembered:
“With this background, let me give you tax evasion tips that won’t break the law during this intermission!”
The hecklers fell silent.
“If you don’t get caught, it’s tax savings! If you do get caught, it’s tax evasion! I’m handing this simple truth over to you for free!”
…What a brilliant distraction.
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