Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 107

October was drawing to a close, the air crisp and cool. Woo-jin arrived in Garosu-gil, a famous street in Seoul known for its trendy shops and cafes. He was meeting Yuria, or Ria as everyone knew her – the most famous actress in Korea right now. They had become friends while working on the Café Fresco project, exchanging messages about work, but this was their first time meeting alone, outside of filming. Even this meeting, though, was still about business.

“Wow, this is the building, Ria?”

“That’s right. It’s a little hidden on a side street, which isn’t perfect, but it’s in a great shopping area on a corner. I knew I had to get it.”

The meeting place between Woo-jin and Ria was right in front of the building she had bought in Garosu-gil.

As soon as he arrived, Woo-jin’s eyes scanned the building automatically. *Corner location, good street flow… this is smart.* Real estate analysis was second nature to him now.

When analyzing real estate, there are parts that are not visible on the map, such as the commercial district, the shape of the land, and the age of the building.

Of course, even after a few years, the amount of information that can be viewed as a cyber site visit will increase as road views and aerial views are shown as amazing images. At least in 2010, it was still something that needed a little more time.

‘She really bought well. I think it will be more profitable than most buildings on the main street?’

Following Ria, who was wearing a hood as deeply as ever, Woo-jin entered the building.

The building was only finished with the exterior construction, so the interior was empty, but there were tables and chairs for the two to sit facing each other, old furniture left behind by the business that used the building before. It seemed that the workers who were remodeling the exterior used it during their break time.

“Is this place too shabby? Should we go to a nearby cafe?”

At Ria’s words, Woo-jin shook his head. He knew very well why she came inside.

“Shabby? It’s a Garosu-gil building worth billions.”

“Billions or trillions, it’s still a mess right now!”

“It’s okay, Ria. It’s easier for me to talk here where there are no people. There’s no quiet place in Garosu-gil Cafe.”

Even with her hood, Ria knew she couldn’t stay in one place for long. People would recognize her. She was the most famous face in entertainment right now. If her identity was known, fans would crowd around. Then it was clear that she wouldn’t be able to talk about work.

“By the way, did a real estate consultant find this building for you?”

Ria nodded and replied.

“Well, something like that. I was briefed on about five properties, but this one was the most appealing to me.”

Woo-jin nodded. It was a coveted building in a coveted location that Woo-jin would have bought right away if he had the money. In addition, he roughly knew how much Ria had purchased this building for, and the price was very reasonable.

‘I will soon…….’

And at the same time as thinking this, Woo-jin thought that Yuria’s eye for things was quite good. Even if a real estate consultant brought in the property, she had to have the insight to choose such a good property herself. In the first place, if you don’t have the insight, it’s really easy to get ripped off in real estate.

‘Is this what they call a sense? A sense of finding money-making places.’

However, no matter how good your sense is, there is a limit to investing based solely on your sense. So Woo-jin decided to give her a tip.

“Ria.”

“Huh?”

“Later, when you have some spare money, buy a building on the main street on the opposite side.”

“The main street?”

“Yeah. The one with its back to this building.”

“Hey, the main street is too expensive! The price range is different again.”

Ria joked, thinking that the words were a joke.

Woo-jin didn’t just say that. So he added some more explanation.

“If you buy it in this size on the main street, it will naturally be three times more expensive.”

“Then?”

“I saw it on my way here, and there was a small building with only about 130 square meters of land attached to Ria’s building.”

“Really? You want me to buy that?”

“Yeah. It’s probably cheaper than Ria’s building because the area is small.”

“I guess so, but……. Why?”

Woo-jin took out a pen and started drawing on the back of the paper on the table. He was going to tell her in more detail since he had decided to tell her one thing.

“This is Ria’s building, and this is the small building on the main street.”

“Hmm……?”

“If Ria buys this small property, tears it down, and builds a ㄱ-shaped [similar to an L-shape] building.”

“Huh?”

Woo-jin added an arrow in the direction of the main street where he drew the small building.

“And if you put the main gate on the main street side…….”

”
……?!”

“Do you get the idea now?”

Ria, who was listening to Woo-jin, widened her eyes. The moment she saw it in the picture, Woo-jin’s stories, which had been vague, became clear.

“If you connect it like this……. Ria’s building is no longer a back street building. If the entrance is only on the main street, that’s a main street building.”

Ria was shocked by Woo-jin’s unexpected story. If she really bought a building on the main street and combined it into one building as Woo-jin said, the value of the building would skyrocket. This was too obvious even for Ria, who was not familiar with real estate.

While Ria was surprised, Woo-jin continued to speak.

“Ria’s building has a large lot, so the price was low because it’s on a back street, and the building I’m talking about is on the main street, but the area is so small that it will be cheap. No matter how good the location is, there are almost no businesses that can move into that area.”

Woo-jin, who had taken out a can of coffee that Ria had brought in advance and took a sip, slowly continued.

“If things go the way I said……. The building price will go up to about three times the money Ria put in? This is also a very conservatively estimated price.”

“Of course, apart from being a sure investment, it’s not an easy task. First of all, the owner of that building may not want to sell it, and if they know what Ria is thinking, they may try to rip you off. Even if you buy it smoothly, it will take quite a while to evict the tenants who are moving in.”

Woo-jin’s words ended here. He thought that Ria would have understood if he had explained it this much, since she didn’t have no knowledge of real estate. And Ria, who understood all of his words as Woo-jin thought, could not help but exclaim.

“You’re really crazy. How do you come up with these ideas?”

At Ria’s admiration, Woo-jin smiled and shook his head.

“Anyone who hears it will think that I’m the only one who knows.”

“Then, does everyone know? These things?”

Woo-jin nodded.

“Of course. The consultant who introduced the building to Ria probably knows this much.”

“That person is an expert.”

“I’m also an expert?”

“Ha, you’re making me speechless.”

Woo-jin and Ria each took a sip of their coffee cans and had a pleasant conversation. It started with a story about Ria’s building. From everyday life to filming, they laughed and chatted about trivial things. But in the end, the two people’s story had no choice but to return to work. They were both busy people, so they couldn’t just meet up and chat and then break up.

Ria turned to Woojin as they stood in front of the old building. Sunlight glinted off the dusty windows of the five-story building. “So,” she asked, her eyes bright with anticipation, “Now that you’ve seen it up close, what do you really think?”

Woojin circled the building slowly, his notepad in hand. He tapped the brick wall thoughtfully. “Hmm,” he said, finally turning back to her. “I told you on the phone, it’s good. Solid.”

Ria laughed, a short, impatient sound. “Solid is not what I’m going for, Woojin! You’re the design genius, remember? Can you make this place feel as magical as Samsong Station Branch Number One?” She looked at him, her expectations clear in her sparkling eyes. “Can you make people fall in love with it, just like they did with Samsong? Samsong Station Branch No. 1, Woojin’s most famous and loved design, was known for its warm and welcoming feeling.”

Woojin, who had been listening to Ria’s story, chuckled dryly. The way her eyes sparkled as she spoke revealed her considerable expectations.

“Of course. Honestly, the building is in better condition than I expected.”

“Really?”

“Since it’s about 20 years old, I didn’t really expect much from the building itself.”

“I told you I’m having it remodeled.”

“I’m talking about the structural aspects.”

“Structure?”

“Even if you remodel, the frame doesn’t change.”

“Ah.”

“I thought the structure would be bad since it’s an old building.”

“But, it’s okay?”

“Yeah. Honestly, I’d believe it if you told me it was less than 10 years old.”

Woojin wasn’t just trying to flatter Ria. Even as he said this, he kept scribbling something in his notepad.

“How long will the construction take?”

“About… a month?”

“You did the Samsong one in three weeks, though.”

“Your building has more floors, though.”

“Hmm… I guess so?”

“To do all five floors, we need to set aside a month.”

Woojin examined the building here and there, continuing to take notes. And he often asked Ria for her opinion on the design direction.

“Ria, what about the rooftop?”

“The rooftop?”

“I mean the roof.”

“Hmm….”

“There are two options.”

“What are they?”

“One is to add some landscaping and decorate it like a peaceful, green garden. The other is to put up a screen over about half of it, increasing the number of seats. It would be a terrace with a half-outdoor feel, with nice chairs and a great view.”

Whenever Woojin presented a design, he meticulously showed Ria the reference images he had brought. And Ria was quite satisfied with Woojin’s attitude. Just because they were friends didn’t mean he lost his professionalism.

“Wow, it’s so hard to choose! A rooftop terrace is nice, but I’m also drawn to a garden.”

“Actually, in terms of practicality, a terrace is better than a garden.”

“Why?”

“First of all, the number of seats increases… and it’s easier to manage compared to a garden.”

“Isn’t there already enough seating? There are five floors, after all?”

“Ria, didn’t you see Samsong Station Branch No. 1?”

“Well….”

“Besides, this is Garosu-gil. Even if I don’t know for sure, more people will flock here than to Samsong, right?”

Woojin took Ria from the rooftop to the first floor, meticulously briefing her on the design. And by the time Woojin had finished speaking, it was gradually getting dark outside. Partly because the days were getting shorter as the weather turned chilly, but also because Woojin and Ria had been meeting for over four hours. They moved from room to room, discussing each detail.

“So, is that a wrap?”

“Okay. That’s enough.”

“More beautiful than Branch No. 1. Got it?”

“Earlier, you said to make it just as good as Branch No. 1.”

“I changed my mind.”

“Hehe, alright. I’ll try my best.”

“Don’t smile like Jae-yeop. It’s cheesy.”

“That’s too much. Are you treating me like an old man like Jae-yeop hyung?”

“Yes.”

“……”

Woojin and Ria, exchanging playful talk, came back down to the first floor and gathered their belongings, which they had left in a corner.

Then, as Ria was about to head out of the building, she suddenly turned back to Woojin and asked,

“Woojin, where did you park the car?”

“Ah, in the public parking lot behind here. What about you?”

“My manager is coming to pick me up.”

“Ah, I see.”

But then…

Grrrrumble-

Ria’s stomach rumbled loudly in the quiet atmosphere. Ria’s hungry organs screamed from within her stomach as she was dieting in preparation for her next album comeback. The stomach rumble echoed so loudly, especially since their conversation had stopped, that it was hard to pretend not to notice.

Ria, who smiled awkwardly for a moment, asked Woojin,

“Do you have any plans afterward?”

“Me?”

“Is there anyone else here besides you?”

“No. I’m off work today.”

“Then… shall we have dinner together?”

At the unexpected suggestion, Woojin paused slightly. It wasn’t a big deal to have a meal with Ria, but it was the first time they would be eating together alone without anyone else.

“Your manager is coming to pick you up, though?”

“I haven’t called him yet.”

But Woojin was also hungry, so there was no reason to refuse. In fact, if you were a strapping adult male living in 2010, there would be no one who would refuse Yuria’s offer to have dinner. If it were an ordinary man in his twenties instead of Woojin, who had already become friends with her… He would probably have followed her eagerly, even if he had just eaten a filling meal.

“Well, sure. But where? We should go somewhere a bit private, shouldn’t we?”

At Woojin’s question, Ria chuckled and tugged at his sleeve.

“Of course. Follow me.”

“You don’t have a car, though?”

“We’re going in your car. I’ll guide you, so you drive.”

“You’re paying, too.”

“Deal.”

The restaurant that Ria took him to, her favorite, was, of course, delicious. Rather than feeling like a hidden gem, it was more like fine dining that was worth the expensive price. The restaurant was fancy and modern, with a great atmosphere.

And so, Woojin’s day ended with Ria treating him to dinner. From Professor Yoon Chi-hyung’s unexpected proposal to a free, expensive dinner from a beautiful woman. In Woojin’s opinion, today seemed like a truly flawless day.