Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 438

440

“You said you’d marry me…….”

“Pardon? I did?”

“Yes, don’t you remember?”

“Haha… I said that to you, Chairwoman? Really?”

“I was twenty-eight back then. I may be like this now, but I was quite something back then… Hoho, I don’t know what I’m saying. Anyway, who knew that little kid would save our village like this.”

Lee Soon-ok finished speaking and continued to look at Hyun-sung with a satisfied expression.

Hyun-sung still found it amusing that he would ask to marry Lee Soon-ok, who was twenty years older than him, out of gratitude.

That’s how grateful he was to Lee Soon-ok back then. Even though it was a memory from his past life, it was because of Lee Soon-ok that he wanted to give her full authority over the farmers market operations.

Hyun-sung continued.

“Now, back to reality, you know that I have no intention of firing you, right? So, please stop saying things like that and help me express my gratitude, even if it’s late. Okay?”

“Hmm… Do I really deserve it?”

“Of course. No one is born with qualifications. You learn as you go. The important thing is not to make the same mistake again.”

“… Yes, I understand.”

Lee Soon-ok nodded with difficulty.

Hyun-sung sighed in relief as he watched her.

It was fortunate that she was acknowledging her mistake, even if it was late. If she had stubbornly refused to admit her fault, using her age as an excuse, there would have been no solution.

“Then, just put everything back to normal.”

“Yes, I understand. I’ll restore the prices to their original levels and take measures to have the poor-quality items taken back home.”

“No.”

“No? What do you mean by that? Isn’t that what we should be doing?”

Lee Soon-ok tilted her head, puzzled. She couldn’t understand what Hyun-sung meant by ‘no’.

Then, Hyun-sung continued.

“I heard you’re short on products?”

“No, are you saying we should sell poor-quality items? You called them trash earlier…”

“Lower the prices instead.”

“Lower the prices?”

“Yes, if the quality is poor but the prices are the same, people will complain. But if you lower the prices, no one will complain, even if they are B-grade items. After all, there won’t be any problems with eating them.”

“Ah, so you’re saying we should divide the products into A-grade and B-grade and sell them separately?”

“Yes, that’s exactly it. What people want is a fair price. It’s not that they won’t buy something just because it’s expensive. If the quality matches the price, they’ll buy it, no matter how expensive it is.”

Hyun-sung took a breath and spoke again.

“If the quality is poor and the prices are high, people will turn away. The important thing is that once someone gets that impression, they’ll stop coming. Then, the more people there are, the more the village’s image will decline.”

“Village image?”

“Yes, that’s image marketing. That’s why the third condition I mentioned was the village’s conscience. Once that’s tarnished, no matter how hard you try, people won’t trust you.”

“Ah, that’s what that meant.”

Lee Soon-ok nodded, acknowledging Hyun-sung’s words.

“And for the shortage of products, get help from the men at home.”

“You mean our husbands?”

“Yes, tell them to go to the mountains and gather *sannameul* [wild mountain greens/vegetables]. There are *sannameul* everywhere in the mountains anyway. If you sell fresh ones right away, the customers who come will be very happy. It might sound a bit much, but when people from Seoul see fresh *sannameul*, they’ll probably go crazy.”

“Did you say people from Seoul?”

Lee Soon-ok tilted her head. She couldn’t understand how people would know to come all the way here from Seoul, considering the distance.

Hyun-sung continued.

“People from Seoul will probably come down a lot in a week or ten days.”

“From Seoul? How would they know?”

“It’ll be on TV. You know ‘6 O’Clock My Hometown’?”

“‘6 O’Clock My Hometown’? Of course, I know it. It goes around to rural villages and… Oh? Does that mean our village is going to be on it?”

“Yes, I got a call this morning. They’re coming to film in two days. And it’ll be broadcast a week later.”

“Really?”

Lee Soon-ok’s eyes widened. She had seen firsthand how scary the power of broadcasting was a few years ago.

That was Hyun-sung’s *ramen* [instant noodles] shop. One day, the *ramen* shop was featured on a food program, and she went to the *ramen* shop a few days later, just in case.

100 meters. That was the length of the line at the *ramen* shop. Even in a small rural village, people flocked to it out of curiosity when it was on TV.

And this time, it’s ‘6 O’Clock My Hometown’. The program with the highest viewership in that time slot. If that happens, there will be no need to worry about advertising effects.

Lee Soon-ok asked immediately.

“Did you say the broadcast is next week?”

“Yes, they said they’re filming in two days and broadcasting a week later, so that would be nine days from today. They said it would be broadcast in nine days.”

“But how did the broadcasting station know about this place and come to film… Could it be?”

Lee Soon-ok looked at Hyun-sung. The reason was obvious.

Hyun-sung smiled and nodded.

“Yes, I sent a package to the PD [Producer] of ‘6 O’Clock My Hometown’ three days ago. I gathered pictures and various materials and sent them.”

“Wow! Our boss is really amazing. How did you think of that… I’m ashamed of myself.”

“Why are you bringing that up again all of a sudden?”

“Well, the young boss is running around trying to save this town, but the *Buneo-hwejang* [women’s association leader] was doing useless things. I think I was possessed by something back then. How could I have thought of that…”

Lee Soon-ok shook her head as if she was pathetic.

Hyun-sung chuckled at the sight and continued.

“Stop it now.”

“I’m just too pathetic.”

“As I said a little while ago, just don’t make the same mistake twice. And by the way, about the food menu…”

“Menu?”

“Yes, I think you should add more items to the menu. In about ten days, customers will be flocking in, and the current menu won’t be enough.”

It would probably exceed expectations. Hyun-sung knew that there were many people in Korea who went on *kkotnori* [flower viewing outings] in the spring, so he thought it was the right thing to do.

But Lee Soon-ok said something unexpected.

“Would that be okay?”

“Pardon? What do you mean?”

“For the boss, I mean. From our perspective, increasing the menu would increase sales, which is good, but wouldn’t it affect the boss who will be starting *yeong-eop* [business operations] next year?”

“Are you worried about me now?”

“Of course. It’s good for us if the boss’s business is doing well. So, the boss comes first.”

Hyun-sung couldn’t help but smile.

It’s basic and natural for people to think of their own interests first. But Lee Soon-ok is thinking about Hyun-sung’s position first, not her own.

In fact, it was something he wanted to ask from the beginning.

The reason was that he thought the menu was too small.

But he didn’t ask because he thought it would be rude to interfere when everything had been delegated.

But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t help but ask because he didn’t think this menu would work when people started flocking in.

But the answer he got was something he had never imagined.

Hyun-sung asked immediately to confirm.

“Chairwoman, let me just confirm one thing. Did you decide on the menu from the beginning with me in mind?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

“Pardon? Obvious?”

“Of course. Who is it that’s changing our village like this? How could we ignore the boss and make menu decisions only for our own benefit? Don’t you think so?”

“Pardon? No, but…”

Hyun-sung stopped himself from saying something. He knew what Lee Soon-ok meant.

After thinking for a moment, Hyun-sung asked again.

“So, you reduced the menu from the beginning because of me?”

“Yes, even though we look like this, the average age of our *Buneo-hwe* [women’s association] is 50. How could we not think that much…”

Lee Soon-ok’s explanation continued.

The explanation was long, but the conclusion was one:

Consideration!

From the beginning, their minds were filled with consideration for Hyun-sung when selecting the menu. They thought that if the *Buneo-hwe* increased the menu, it might interfere with Hyun-sung’s business.

So, they selected a menu that was appropriate so that it would not interfere with Hyun-sung’s *yeong-eop* [business operations].

“…….”

Hyun-sung couldn’t say anything for a moment after Lee Soon-ok’s explanation.

It was something he had never thought of.

He thought that they had selected the maximum number of menus after discussion, but that was not the case. They made that choice because of Hyun-sung, not anyone else.

Hyun-sung looked at Lee Soon-ok and slowly opened his mouth.

“So, that’s why the menu was small?”

“I thought that was normal.”

“Normal……?”

Lee Soon-ok was saying that it was normal to think of Hyun-sung’s interests before their own.

Sigh.

Hyun-sung wiped his mouth and organized his thoughts.

‘How can I not do anything for these people!’

After organizing his thoughts, Hyun-sung immediately opened his mouth.

“Chairwoman, can I exercise my authority just once?”

“Exercise your authority?”

“Yes, I’ve delegated the operation of the *gongpanjang* [farmers market] to you, so if you allow it, I’d like to exercise my authority just once.”

“No, what kind of… Yes, go ahead. Tell me.”

Lee Soon-ok nodded and looked at Hyun-sung.

Then, Hyun-sung immediately opened his mouth.

“Increase the menu infinitely.”

“Pardon? What do you mean by that?”

“Huh? I clearly spoke in Korean. You don’t mean you don’t know the word ‘무한대’ [infinity]…”

Hyun-sung pretended not to know on purpose. Of course, he didn’t think Lee Soon-ok wouldn’t understand the word. But he wanted to create a natural atmosphere even if it was like this.

“No, I mean, you’re saying to increase the menu, right? Infinitely, regardless of the type.”

“That’s right. That’s exactly what I mean. Don’t ever consider my situation and make as many menus as the *Buneo-hwe* [women’s association] can sell.”

“No, there’s no such thing as…”

“No, this is mandatory. I’m sorry, but I won’t accept any other answers. And as I said before, a lot of people will be flocking in after the broadcast. So, increase the menu as much as possible for the next ten days. Got it?”

“…….”

Lee Soon-ok couldn’t answer.

After a short time, Hyun-sung 벌떡 일어났다 [suddenly stood up] from his seat and continued.

“Now, I’m done talking. I’m leaving…”

“Wait a minute!”

Lee Soon-ok 가로막았다 [blocked] Hyun-sung’s path. Then, she immediately continued.

“What am I supposed to do if you leave like this?”

“I’ve already said everything I have to say. From now on, you can decide.”

“Are you really okay with this?”

“I don’t mind at all. And what if there’s a little impact? You’re doing it for our village anyway. And Chairwoman!”

Hyun-sung suddenly called Lee Soon-ok. Then, after thinking for a moment, he took out ten 10,000 won bills from his wallet and handed them to Lee Soon-ok.

“Use this to have a *hwoesik* [company dinner] with the *Buneo-hwe* [women’s association] members today. Have a glass of *makgeolli* [Korean rice wine] and decide on more menus. And practice *insa* [greetings/bowing] with each other. Got it?”

“…… Ah, *insa* [greetings/bowing]. Yes, I understand. I’ll start by going out and cleaning. And just ten more menus… But really, is that okay?”

“I’m leaving now.”

Hyun-sung left the office after saying that. Otherwise, he thought the conversation would get longer again.

Lee Soon-ok was left alone after Hyun-sung left.

“…….”

After sitting and thinking for a while, Lee Soon-ok 벌떡 일어났다 [suddenly stood up] from her seat.

“Okay, first, cleaning…”

Lee Soon-ok ran to the *maedae* [stall] of the *gongpanjang* [farmers market].

“Everyone, 주목 [attention]! 영업 [business] is over here today.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“No, why?”

“Did the boss say something?”

The *Buneo-hwe* [women’s association] members who were guarding the store all started to say something as if asking what was going on.

Then, Lee Soon-ok continued.

“The boss said if we’re going to do business like this, we should just 때려치우래요 [quit].”

“…….”

The *Buneo-hwe* [women’s association] members who had been saying something a little while ago only looked at each other in turn, and no one opened their mouth.

Then, Lee Soon-ok continued.

“Just kidding, he said there’s too much 먼지 [dust] and we should start by cleaning. And he said we don’t do *insa* [greetings/bowing] enough and we should practice *insa* [greetings/bowing] again. So, we’re going to start a 대청소 [big cleaning] from now on. And after cleaning, gather again at the 회관 [community center]. We’re having a *hwoesik* [company dinner] today.”

“*Hwoesik* [company dinner]? Suddenly?”

“The boss gave us 100,000 won. Gather and have a glass of *makgeolli* [Korean rice wine] and practice *insa* [greetings/bowing]. So, finish cleaning from now on and see you again at the 회관 [community center] in two hours. Okay, let’s start!”

When Lee Soon-ok finished speaking, the *Buneo-hwe* [women’s association] members nodded as if they understood and started to 정리 [organize/clean up].

Hyun-sung, who was 바라보던 [looking at] the 모습 [scene] from afar, smiled.

Cleaning can be done from now on, and *insa* [greetings/bowing] can be practiced from now on. 물건 [goods] and 가격 [prices] will also return to normal.

Thinking about them being 정신없이 바쁠 [incredibly busy] in ten days, a 미소 [smile] began to 번지기 [spread] on Hyun-sung’s face.