Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 101

Filming started at eleven in the morning at the Euljiro woodworking shop. The air was dusty, filled with the smells of sawdust and cut wood. Now, the clock on the workshop wall showed nine in the evening – ten hours later.

Ten hours of non-stop work.

Every member of the cast and crew was completely worn out. Their backs ached, their hands were tired, and all they wanted was to sit down.

Today was more than just a ten-hour shoot; it was a very busy day with only one hour for dinner.

Even after all that, Woojin hadn’t finished half of what he planned.

‘No, not even half… Is this just one finished piece?’

The one piece of furniture they finished was a bookshelf for Jaeyeop’s study.

It was a clean, simple wooden bookshelf with a modern design, without any fancy decorations.

If Woojin had made it himself quickly…

He could have finished it in three or four hours.

But teaching the cast each step meant they spent the whole day making just one bookshelf.

‘Still, it’s good. The result isn’t bad.’

It wasn’t exactly what he expected, but Woojin was happy with it.

It took a long time, but that meant everyone put their heart into it.

It wasn’t just pretending for the cameras; it was a piece of furniture made with the team’s hard work and effort.

So, when the last piece was in place, the cast was deeply moved.

Even Jaeyeop, who was usually joking around, said in a serious voice,

“Wow… We really made this?”

Then Suha and Ria, with tears in their eyes, said,

“Wow, it’s really pretty.”

“I want to take one home.”

They couldn’t stop looking at the bookshelf, happy with what they had made.

“Sis, should we make a small bookshelf together sometime and each keep one?”

“Really? Should we? It looks better than buying one.”

Woojin smiled as he watched them admire their work. A warm feeling spread through Woojin as he watched them. *They really did it,* he thought, feeling proud of their hard work.

‘They really are innocent sisters when I see them like this.’

Seeing their genuine excitement, Woojin, with his experience as a carpenter, found it endearing. He remembered his past life, and Suha and Ria seemed like cute younger siblings.

‘If you were to buy a bookshelf this size, made well with hardwood… it would easily cost a million or two won.’

Woojin looked back at the bookshelf, a satisfied look on his face.

Even though you could see the marks of beginners here and there, Woojin, who was almost a master, had done the finishing touches.

It was a beautiful and well-made piece of furniture.

‘The cost of the good quality wood used here is less than two hundred thousand won…’

It wasn’t very profitable if you included Woojin’s time, but it saved a lot of money for the TV show’s set design.

Woojin smiled to himself after thinking about the costs.

The production team filmed every detail of the bookshelf, and the cast took a break.

When the filming calmed down, Jaeyeop stood up and asked,

“So, PD Gong, are we done filming for today?”

PD Gong, the show’s producer, smiled mischievously and replied,

“Weren’t we supposed to make all five pieces of furniture today?”

Suha and Ria shouted at the same time,

“Huh?”

“What did you say?”

They looked truly scared at what the producer said.

No matter how fun the filming was, it was only fun when they had energy.

As soon as they finished the bookshelf, the cast relaxed and didn’t have the strength to do anything else.

“Haha, just kidding. If I asked for more filming, even the cameraman would probably refuse.”

PD Gong, noticing the cold looks from the crew, laughed and scratched his head.

“So, that’s it for today. We’ll decide how to film the rest while watching the footage at tomorrow’s meeting.”

“Waaah…!”

“Thank you for your hard work!”

The filming with Jaeyeop and the team, which was more energetic than ever, ended well again today.

“It’s late, so only come to the dinner party if you want to!”

That day, everyone from the cast and crew went to the dinner party.

Wednesday was spent in a dusty workshop all day.

Thursday and Friday passed quickly.

Between school, meetings, and working on the Cheongdam-dong reconstruction design…

Time flew by.

Even though he was busy all week…

Woojin had to go to the office on Saturday morning because he had so much to do. Running your own business meant that work and life became the same thing.

Today, Woojin was working on the plans for the Cheongdam-dong reconstruction design.

“I have to finish the first draft today, no matter what.”

Woojin spread out the hand-drawn plans on his desk and started using the mouse and keyboard.

As Woojin worked, the computer design program filled with white lines.

Turning the sketches into detailed plans using computer design software.

Once you were good at it, drawing plans was like doing physical work.

But Woojin wasn’t just copying plans, so it wasn’t completely mechanical work.

He had to turn the rough ideas he had sketched on paper into plans that could actually be built.

Often, things that looked good as sketches didn’t work as well in real life.

‘The Cheongdam-dong people will like the special design. Like the sky bridge or curtain wall that worked well in Mapo Clio… I need to make it a special design that people will recognize for the Clio apartments.’

To fully design an apartment complex, you need many, many blueprints, more than a hundred.

Woojin wasn’t doing all of them himself.

Woojin worked on the most important parts, like the special designs, the overall layout, and the main idea. Then the design team would finish it.

Cheonung would help from this point on.

The people from Woojin’s company who are working on the design contest would normally finish everything up to the first design stage, but…

Park Kyungwan was helping WJ Studio, which didn’t have enough resources yet.

Of course, he only helped because Woojin’s concept design was excellent.

‘Ugh, I really need to get a special design team together by next month. I’m going to die if I try to do it all myself.’

Woojin had learned a few things in the past six months of running his business.

A company needs many different things to run, and…

If he tried to do everything himself, he might die from overwork before the company became successful.

‘I know now that it’s important to have a good team.’

Even while complaining, Woojin’s hands were moving quickly on the keyboard.

He didn’t have enough staff, so he had to do the work himself.

After working through lunch…

Around four in the afternoon, Woojin finished what he wanted to do.

“Done! This should be enough…!”

He had planned to finish it by Thursday or Friday, but he finished it on Saturday afternoon instead…

It didn’t matter.

The important thing was that he finished it well.

Woojin looked at the clock and started to clean his desk.

‘I have some time to spare.’

Woojin saved the design files, put on his coat, and grabbed his bag.

He was leaving the office because he had a dinner appointment.

Woojin opened the door to his office and looked at Jintae, who was working alone.

Jintae was also working on Saturday, probably because of the meeting next week.

“Hyung, are you leaving work?”

“I’ll leave after I finish writing the proposal.”

“I’m leaving first, then.”

“Okay, good work.”

Woojin waved his hand and then stopped.

Looking back at Jintae, he added,

“Hyung, don’t look for me on Sunday!”

“Hey. I should be saying that.”

“Let’s rest well tomorrow and come to work ready on Monday.”

“Please, let’s do that. CEO-nim.”

“Then I’m really going now!”

Woojin hurried out of the office and went to the parking lot.

Tonight’s appointment was with someone important.

Maybe the most important person in the world to Woojin.

‘If I leave now, the timing will be perfect.’

Today was his dinner date with his mother, Lee Joohee, after a long time.

“Yeongdong-daero will probably be busy with traffic.”

Woojin took out a paper bag from his coat pocket and put it on the dashboard.

It was a high-end dining coupon from Kang Seokjung.

[Woojin, do you have a girlfriend?]

[Why do you ask like it’s obvious?]

[What, a university student hasn’t dated anyone? What have you been doing?]

[I know, right…. ]

[Your department is art, so there must be a lot of girls.]

[There are many women, but none of them are my girlfriend.]

[Hmm. Then this coupon is useless to you.]

[…! What is it, hyung-nim?]

Seokjung was the heir of NA Group, a top food company in Korea.

NA Group had many fancy restaurants.

He gave Woojin a discount coupon for a high-end Korean restaurant that NA Group had just opened.

The coupon gave 85% off, so Woojin quickly took it.

[You said you don’t have a girlfriend, so who are you going to eat with?]

[I’m going to take my mother.]

[Oh…! You’re a good son who cares for his mother?]

Woojin checked the coupon again and smiled.

Even if you eat the same food, it tastes better if it’s cheaper.

Woojin felt good about having a nice meal with his mother, hummed, and stepped on the gas.

The traffic wasn’t as bad as Woojin thought.

It was early evening, so the road to Gangnam wasn’t too busy.

Woojin arrived a little early, parked the car, and walked to his mother’s restaurant.