Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 224

Kim Jin-soo, the planning director at Paramount company, felt very happy these days.

Compared to when he became the planning director last year, his position in the company had completely changed.

When Kim Jin-soo was first appointed as planning director, he felt lost.

He was promoted quickly for his age, going from team leader to director.

The planning department, where he was assigned, felt like a battlefield, especially since he was used to a smooth career in the business division.

The planning department was in trouble. Some teams were almost shut down because of problems with building projects.

Amidst the chaos, Kim Jin-soo took over as director, which was a test for him.

If he could fix the situation, he would be on a path to higher positions. But if he failed, he might have to quit.

Kim Jin-soo was good at his job but careful and didn’t like changes. So, he wasn’t happy about this new job at first.

‘I really sighed a lot back then.’

But this new job turned out to be a great opportunity for Kim Jin-soo.

Parafield was much more successful than the company expected. Kim Jin-soo was a key part of this success.

Of course, Kim Jin-soo was able to regain control and reorganize the planning department.

However, the public’s positive reaction to Parafield was mostly due to luck.

The buildings were designed by Bruno, a very famous architect. His design was amazing, and people said it was the best ever.

The pavilion in the main lobby was also beautiful. It fit in so well that people around the world noticed it.

Kim Jin-soo couldn’t control these things with his own skills.

‘Also, I didn’t expect that young CEO to become so popular.’

Kim Jin-soo thought about the person who contributed the most to all of this, and he hummed a tune as he walked.

Today, he was out shopping with his wife for the first time since Parafield opened.

“This place is really great, honey.”

His wife, who had bought a dress from a famous brand store, smiled happily and linked her arm with his.

Jin-soo smiled back at her.

“Really?”

His wife nodded again.

“There are so many different brands, and the restaurants have nice franchises that are well-organized… I think it would be nice to bring our Ji-yul here next time.”

Jin-soo thought of his five-year-old son and nodded.

He agreed with his wife.

‘The outside is nicely designed, and the inside is also very efficient. It’s a great place to spend time with the kids…’

Jin-soo was in charge of planning the Parafield Wangsimni branch, but he wasn’t an architect.

So, he couldn’t explain why Parafield was so convenient and comfortable, or why he liked the space so much.

But he knew one thing for sure.

The finished space was much better than he had expected during the planning stage.

Parafield Wangsimni changed his mind. He used to think that beautiful places were not comfortable, but Parafield was both.

“Our company really put a lot of effort into this.”

“Honey, you must feel rewarded.”

“Yeah. Because this place is doing well, I’m doing well too.”

“Hee hee. So, is your promotion confirmed again this year?”

“I don’t know yet. The company is doing great these days, but it’s not easy to get promoted again this year after being promoted last year.”

“That’s too bad.”

“But maybe I’ll get a big bonus?”

“Oh… Really?”

“Maybe…?”

Jin-soo finished shopping and headed to the lowest level lobby after having a pleasant conversation with his wife.

Even though the mall had air conditioning, he was getting tired and hungry from walking around. There were many places to rest, including the restaurants on the lowest floor.

“Let’s take the elevator here.”

“Okay.”

The two went to the open lobby atrium and got on the transparent elevator.

The entire lobby came into view through the glass walls. His wife looked around, pointed somewhere, and exclaimed.

“Wow, honey. What is that?”

“Huh?”

“There’s a big sculpture over there. Wow…! It’s amazing!”

Jin-soo looked in the direction his wife was pointing and was surprised.

He understood why she was so impressed.

‘Ah, right, that’s right. That was here.’

Kim Jin-soo had helped plan all of these spaces, so he knew what the sculpture was.

Seo Woo-jin was the top contributor to Parafield’s success and a popular architectural designer.

It was Seo Woo-jin’s work, the Pavilion.

Jin-soo had seen the pavilion’s designs several times during meetings with WJ Studio, so he knew what it looked like.

Or so he thought.

Until he saw the real thing for the first time.

“Wow……”

Jin-soo couldn’t help but exclaim.

It was the same sculpture he had seen in pictures, but seeing it in person was completely different.

Even if you ignore how big it was, the way light fell down and around the hall was amazing. It looked like a huge, bright chandelier.

It was as if a skilled jeweler had carefully carved a large mass of light, piece by piece.

His wife looked at him, surprised by his admiration.

“Wasn’t this a work you planned?”

“Well, it is, but……”

“Anyway, what is this? Is it a work by a foreign artist?”

Jin-soo told his wife what he knew about the sculpture.

His wife listened and asked with wide eyes.

“That Seo Woo-jin. Is he the Seo Woo-jin who was on that TV show, ?”

“Huh? You know him?”

“Of course! I was a huge fan of that show!”

“It’s easier to explain since you know him. Anyway, that’s the pavilion he designed. It’s been featured in foreign magazines and is really popular these days.”

The elevator doors opened, and Jinsoo and his wife stepped out, blinking. They paused, just staring. Even from high up, the Pavilion had looked special. But standing right at its base, it was breathtaking. It soared above them, a tower of gleaming glass and silver metal that seemed to touch the sky. Sunlight flashed off its curved surfaces. Jinsoo felt a sudden tug in his chest as he looked up. It wasn’t just impressive; it was beautiful. And as that thought settled in his mind, a wave of guilt washed over him.

He thought to himself, “How could I have had such bad thoughts, even for a moment, about the person who created this amazing thing? I feel ashamed now.”

Jinsoo remembered the meeting with Woojin from a year ago.

It was the meeting where Woojin had first suggested the deal: the rights to design the Pavilion in exchange for allowing Café Fresco to open a branch.

At the time, Jinsoo had suspected Woojin was trying to use the popularity of ‘Café Fresco’ to get a good deal.

Woojin, as if reading his mind, had offered him an unusual offer where they could decide their own price.

A completely blank check for the design fee, no less.

Jinsoo had been surprised. “Does this mean… we can set the design fee as we wish?”

Woojin had replied, “Exactly. We will provide receipts for the actual building costs separately. Just make sure the receipts for the actual building costs are correct, and Paramount will pay whatever design fee you write down.”

At the time, he had wondered what Woojin was trusting in to make such an offer, but now he thought he understood clearly.

It was almost a strong belief in himself.

“Come to think of it,” Jinsoo thought, “isn’t the final payment date coming up soon?”

Parafield was finished and open to the public. All the costs for building it, even the design fees, had been paid.

However, the contract for the Pavilion wasn’t finalized yet, and the reason was that unusual agreement where they could decide their own price.

Because it was such an unusual contract, people in the company had different opinions on how much money to set aside.

“So, how was that contract matter decided?” Jinsoo wondered.

Kim Jinsoo was in charge of this project, but he was the Planning Director, not the finance manager.

So, he had only heard that the amount for the contract had been decided to be quite generous, but he didn’t know the specific details.

His wife said, “Honey, my feet hurt.”

Jinsoo replied, “Oh, really? Should we take a break at the café?”

“Great. There’s a Café Fresco over there, let’s go there,” she said.

“Alright,” Jinsoo agreed.

As he walked with his wife, he thought, “When I go to work tomorrow, I should ask the finance team.”

He wondered exactly how much had been set aside in their company for this unusual contract that he had started.

And whatever that amount was, he wondered if he could use his influence to make it even more.

“Wow, it’s Café Fresco alright. So many people. Amazing,” his wife exclaimed.

“There’s a seat over there,” Jinsoo said.

“Where? Oh…! I’ll go grab the seat first. You can order,” she replied.

“Okay.”

Frankly, as someone who wasn’t an expert, Kim Jinsoo had no idea how much this Pavilion was worth.

He simply wanted to repay the debt he felt he owed Woojin, doing his best.

He thought, “Well, I won’t make a big deal out of using my influence… but I did benefit a lot from CEO Seo.”

That’s how life is.

If something comes, something must go.

Thinking that way, Jinsoo felt a sense of relief wash over him.

Woojin was surprised.

No, he was so surprised that he found it hard to stay calm.

“Um… this statement of accounts. So… this is finalized?”

Today, Woojin was having his final meeting with Paramount.

He was there to receive the final payment for the Pavilion he had built.

So, the head of Paramount’s finance team was visiting WJ Studio today, and Woojin was finalizing the payment amount with him.

If it were a normal contract, this wouldn’t even be needed.

As stated in the contract, the company would simply deposit the funds.

However, because of the unusual agreement where they could decide their own price, the head of the finance team had come to visit Woojin in person.

“Yes, CEO. Is there perhaps a problem with the contract…?” the finance head asked.

There was, of course, no problem with the contract.

There was no way a large company like Paramount would make a mistake on such an important document.

What surprised Woojin, however, was that the amount was huge, easily more than five times what he had expected.

“They didn’t accidentally add an extra zero, did they? But then again, that would be too little….”

Woojin, having checked the design fee again, which was well over a billion won, cautiously asked the head of the finance team.

“The design Fee here is set at 1.97 billion won. Is that correct?”

The head of the finance team, finally realizing why Woojin was so surprised, nodded with a pleasant smile.

“Haha, yes, CEO. Do you think we would make a mistake in the amount?”

Hearing that answer, Woojin spoke honestly.

“It’s a bit more than I expected… I was just asking to be sure.”

For WJ Studio, which already had annual sales of over ten billion won, 1.9 billion won wasn’t a huge amount.

However, this wasn’t the total amount including costs, which meant that everything left after taxes was pure profit.

It was an amount that was definitely significant.

If Woojin hadn’t offered an unusual offer where they could decide their own price at the start, the amount he could have asked for as a design fee wouldn’t have been more than 100 million won, no matter how much he asked for.

That was why Woojin had asked, and the head of the finance team smiled and spoke again.

“The work that you have created, CEO, is now something Paramount owns. Isn’t that so?”

Woojin nodded.

“Of course. I received the job and created it for you.”

The head of the finance team continued.

“It wasn’t the case at first, but now you have brand value, CEO.”

“Brand value, you say…?”

“We didn’t simply ask for a pavilion; we came to own a piece of work by the architect Seo Woojin.”

“Ah.”

Woojin, understanding what he was saying, nodded with an intrigued expression, and the head of the finance team spoke again.

“Anyone can set a price for something ordinary. But for art, its value is really decided by the person who owns it, by how much it means to them.”

The head of the finance team added with a pleasant voice.

“We simply thought that the value of the work we got was worth this much.”