strictlysupreme Chapter 218: Colleague
Chapter 218: Colleague
Chapter 218: Colleague
"What? They're really going to buy that?" I asked in shock.
"Yes. They’re offering a hefty price too," Kim Mi-Hye replied. ViiSiit for latest novels
Miso's mammoth fishcakes were listed at a whopping 1 million won while her T-rex fishcakes were listed at 500 thousand won.
Yoo-Jin made the post just to have fun with the fans, but it seemed like they took it seriously and were naming prices. However, if Yoo-Jin made a post saying that it was for jokes, that would be awkward in its own way.
“What should we do...”
Although the fishcakes wouldn't go bad for a while since they were stored in an acrylic case with desiccants, the legal issue bothered me.
At that moment, a solution suddenly came to mind.
I clicked on Samjin King Fishcake among the comments on Instargem and managed to find the company's official Instargem account.
“Is Samjin King Fishcake really going to buy Miso's fishcake?”
“Yes, and they even asked if we’d like to shoot a commercial with them.”
“Then let’s sign a contract with them.”
Even though it was a joke, Yoo-Jin had planned to sell Miso’s fishcakes and donate the proceeds anyway. So if we received a little more than the fishcake price as advertising fees, we could donate the extra money and solve the problem.
Feeling relieved, I asked Kim Mi-Hye. “How much are they offering for the commercial fee?”
“They offered 50 million won for Miso. It's a one-year contract and if we renew the contract for another year, they’ll add an extra 20%. If Miss Yoo-Jin joins, they'll match the same amount for her. That makes a total of 100 million won.”
The fishcakes were meant as gifts for the elderly at the senior center, but to land a commercial deal like this was unbelievable.
“Miso is our lucky charm.”
“Indeed.”
But that's when Kim Mi-Hye received a call.
“Yes. You're calling from Whale Whale Fishcake? How much? 70 million won each for Miss Yoo-Jin and Miso? And you're willing to buy all the fishcakes too?”
The entire team members burst into laughter at the absurdity of the situation.
After that, numerous calls came from Midorak Fishcake, Fantasy Fishcake, and every other fishcake company in Korea as they all wanted to sign contracts with us.
At the same time, 'Miso's Fishcake' became the top search on portals.
***
When we mentioned that other companies had contacted us, Samjin King Fishcake offered double the original advertising fee.
In the end, we decided to film the fishcake commercial with Samjin King Fishcake which had promised 100 million won each for Yoo-Jin and Miso.
Additionally, Samjin King Fishcake bought Miso’s Mammoth fishcake for three million won, the T-rex fishcake for two million won, and the rest combined for one million won. When Yoo-Jin said she would donate the fishcake sales proceeds, Samjin King Fishcake’s president offered a higher price.
After finalizing the contract, everyone burst into laughter.
“I can't believe this really worked out.”
“Right? This is so unexpected.”
As soon as Yoo-Jin was informed, she posted a comment on Instargem saying she would donate the earnings to the senior center and a single-mother facility.
Thanks to this, the noisy matter was neatly resolved leaving behind the incredible results of topping the live time search rankings, today’s news, and securing a CF contract.
“Good job, everyone,” I said with a smile.
Lee Yung-Jin smiled. “Mr. Jung, then how about a team dinner tonight? Deal?”
I agreed without hesitation. “Deal!”
“Yay~. We’re having a nice dinner all thanks to Miso~”
At that moment, a cheerful voice was heard.
“Hey~ Why is everyone in such a good mood? What's up with the nice dinner thanks to Miso?”
Jang Jun-Hyuk, who previously had a heart attack while driving but survived, appeared at the office accompanied by his personal Talent Agent Lee Seung-Hoon, and his new Talent Agent Park In-Ki.
"Oh? Mr. Jun-Hyuk?" I said in a surprised tone.
"Oh, come on! I told you to call me hyung. You're hurting my feelings!" Jang Jun-Hyuk replied.
"Jun-Hyuk hyung-nim, how has your health been recently?"
Jang Jun-Hyuk shook his head. "I’m exhausted because of Team Lead Park here. He visits every day to control my diet and even forbids me from drinking... There’s no one more annoying than him."
Knowing it was a joke, Park In-Ki played along. "You should quit smoking too."
"That’s not happening! I'd rather skip meals," Jang Jun-Hyuk protested.
Lee Seung-Hoon burst into laughter watching the two. He said it was a relief that Park In-Ki had come for help since he used to struggle managing the very stubborn Jang Jun-Hyuk alone until now.
Even though Hong Jang-Mi received a 20 billion won investment from Han Se-Hwa, her work was highly likely to be overshadowed by In the Name of God.
Jang Jun-Hyuk, who had been listening quietly, nodded. "I should follow if that's what Star Jung the Fortune Teller says."
Park In-Ki fell in deep thought for a moment before nodding as well. "Yes, the appearance fee can always be raised later. Let’s go with that."
They would never have agreed so easily if it had been the past. However, they both seemed willing to heed my words despite their disappointments.
"Alright then. I’ll go ahead and tell President Han Se-Hwa that we’re not doing it."
Jang Jun-Hyuk stood up while trying to force a smile. "Let’s stop with the gloomy talk and have an awesome team dinner today, shall we? I haven’t treated the Actor Division 2 to a meal yet since joining Hoop Entertainment."
Jang Jun-Hyuk announced that he would treat the entire Actor Division 2 to a barbeque in celebration of his return.
At that moment, I said with a smile, "Why don't we do that a little later?"
"Why?"
I asked them to wait a moment, then called Kang Ji-Yung on speakerphone. "Ms. Kang, would you be able to have a drink with the KBC executives tonight? Yes, yes. Jun-Hyuk hyung-nim, Talent Agent Lee Seung-Hoon, and Team Lead Park In-Ki will be joining as well."
-Why would I do that? Did something happen?
I explained what Choi Eun-Ho in charge of The Wife's Secret was up to.
-What? 60 million won per episode? Is he out of his mind? He offered Mr. Jang Jun-Hyuk that little for the appearance fee?
I also mentioned the ‘rumor’ that Choi Eun-Ho was skimming off actors’ appearance fees, to which Kang Ji-Yung replied in a cold voice,
-Do you have any evidence?
"I’m sorry, but I don’t have any concrete evidence."
-So there's no evidence but there are rumors at the filming site, huh?
"Yes. If the KBC executives conduct an audit, they’ll likely find out."
No one had questioned Choi Eun-Ho yet because he was a CP who had successfully led five consecutive projects. But everything had a limit. This time, he had definitely pushed too far.
-Then you attend the meeting tonight as well, Team Lead Jung.
"What? Me too?"
-Well I can’t go alone not knowing what might happen. You should come with me.
At that moment, I turned to look at Park In-Ki beside me. He nodded continuously, signaling me to go instead of him. However, I declined Kang Ji-Yung’s request.
Despite Park In-Ki's lack of experience, he too had survived in this harsh industry. If I stepped in again, it would undermine the meaning of entrusting Jang Jun-Hyuk to him and the significance of going together.
"Ms. Kang, isn’t it Mr. Park who manages Jun-Hyuk hyung-nim? I don’t think this is something I should step into."
-Pardon me?
"And I believe Mr. Park can handle this situation with no problem."
Then I spoke to the flustered Park In-Ki. "Mr. Park, why would you leave this to me when you can handle this on your own? You should be the one taking care of Jun-Hyuk hyung-nim now."
Most of the talking during the meeting would undoubtedly be done by Kang Ji-Yung anyway. By subtly suggesting that he use this opportunity to prove his worth to Jang Jun-Hyuk, I saw Park In-Ki harden his resolve.
"Ms. Kang, I'm confident I can handle this myself. And I’ll make sure Mr. Jun-Hyuk’s appearance fee goes back to 100 million won. Just give me a little support," said Park In-Ki confidently.
Kang Ji-Yung responded favorably to Park In-Ki’s confident words.
-Alright. Then Team Lead Park will join me instead of Team Lead Jung. Come to my office right away.
"Yes, Ms. Kang."
Park In-Ki ended the call decisively.
At that moment, Jang Jun-Hyuk looked at me intently and said, "Yoon-Ho, you're quite something."
"Huh? What do you mean...?" I asked.
Jang Jun-Hyuk patted my shoulder without a word. Then he turned to Park In-Ki and said, "Then I'll leave it to you, Mr. Park."
"Of course. You can count on me, Mr. Jun-Hyuk," Park In-Ki said with a smile.
That's when I realized what Jang Jun-Hyuk meant—he saw firsthand how much I trusted Park In-Ki to manage him. If I didn’t trust Park In-Ki, I wouldn’t have entrusted him with Jun-Hyuk. If I didn't trust him, that alone could give Jang Jun-Hyuk the right to reject Park In-Ki. But Jang Jun-Hyuk also showed his trust in Park In-Ki after seeing my full trust in him.
'What a relief,' I thought.
It was a great relief that I decided to leave it to Park In-Ki. If I had stepped in again, Jang Jun-Hyuk might have asked me to manage him instead of Park In-Ki.
The beaming Jang Jun-Hyuk spoke to everyone, "Alright then. Why don't we postpone the dinner since today will be busy?"
"Sounds good. I'll see you later."
"Alright, take care!"
Jang Jun-Hyuk waved and left the meeting room with Park In-Ki.
But a moment later, I received a sudden KkTalk message from Park In-Ki which made me smile without realizing it.