Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 456

“How many people did you say?”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh asked again.

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young repeated the exact number, speaking clearly. “Exactly 2,532 people visited.”

“Last time we talked, you said it would be a little over 2,000. Why did it suddenly increase by 500?”

“There was a variable.”

“A variable? What variable?”

“Initially, President Kim only invited students and those over 60, but a significant number of people under 60 also came.”

“Heh….”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh let out a hollow laugh, seemingly dumbfounded.

Of course, it wasn’t entirely incomprehensible. There must be many people who were just a year or two shy of 60. So, they probably thought, ‘What’s the harm in one more?’ and that’s how the number increased by 500.

It wouldn’t have been possible to check everyone’s ID, either.

But the number 500 was still questionable.

Even if some people under 60 came, it was hard to understand how the number swelled by 500.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh pressed again. “Still, I don’t understand how 500 *more* people came.”

“I found it strange too, so I looked into it further, and something interesting turned up.”

“Interesting? What is it?”

“Regular tourists.”

“Tourists?”

“Yes, people who were sightseeing in the area flocked to the restaurant around lunchtime, assuming it was operating normally.”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh nodded.

It was an understandable situation. The villagers already knew that the restaurant wasn’t operating normally and was only receiving invited guests, but visitors from other regions wouldn’t know that and would naturally head to the restaurant to eat.

“So, what happened?”

“You can probably guess the rest, Chairman. You know President Kim better than anyone.”

“President Kim would have accepted them, of course. He might have been a little taken aback, but he wouldn’t have turned away people who came all that way to the restaurant.”

“Yes, that’s right. In the end, those people got a free lunch. That number was about 450. They will probably remember today fondly for a long time.”

“That’s right. No one dislikes free stuff.”

That’s obvious. They went in expecting to pay and were treated to a free meal because it was the opening day, so they would remember that stroke of luck for a long time.

Of course, that wouldn’t have happened under normal circumstances.

Usually, establishments don’t operate without charging customers on their opening day. It’s natural to try to attract as many paying customers as possible on opening day.

This could only happen because Hyun-sung is different from others.

Then, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young tilted his head, looking puzzled, and asked, “Chairman, there’s something I don’t understand.”

“What don’t you understand now?”

“The people who came for sightseeing.”

“What about them?”

“If we exclude the villagers, about 450 people came to sightsee there. That’s how many people ate there.”

“And?”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s gaze focused on Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young’s mouth. He was curious about the point he was trying to make.

Sensing Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s gaze, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young continued immediately. “As you know, Chairman, the cherry blossoms won’t bloom for over a month.”

“Of course.”

“That’s what I don’t understand. The cherry blossoms won’t bloom for another month and ten days, so why did people come to that rural area? I can’t wrap my head around it.”

Pfft.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh chuckled lightly. Now he understood Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young’s confusion.

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young couldn’t understand why people would visit when the cherry blossoms were still so far from blooming.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh asked again, as if to confirm Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young’s thoughts. “You don’t understand why people would come to visit when the cherry blossoms aren’t blooming?”

“Yes, that’s right. Doesn’t it seem odd? It’s not like one or two people, but 450 people came to sightsee there.”

“Hmm….”

After thinking for a moment, Chairman Shin Chun-oh spoke. “Why do you assume they came for sightseeing? What if they *didn’t* come there for sightseeing?”

“What do you mean by that? If not for sightseeing….”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young couldn’t understand what Chairman Shin Chun-oh was implying, even after a moment’s thought. If not for sightseeing, why else would people come to that rural area?

Chairman Shin Chun-oh elaborated. “Did you check?”

“Yes? What are you talking about?”

“Where those people mainly came from. If you checked the car license plates, you could find out their general origin. I’m willing to bet they’re mainly from the Seoul metropolitan area, not the provinces. Am I wrong?”

“No, you’re exactly right. I received that report as well. More than 60% had Seoul license plates, 30% were from Gyeonggi and Incheon [provinces surrounding Seoul], and the remaining 10% were from other regions.”

After hearing Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young’s words, Chairman Shin Chun-oh nodded and continued. “60% from Seoul and the remaining 40% from Gyeonggi, Incheon, and other regions… Do you know what that means?”

“What does that mean?”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young looked at Chairman Shin Chun-oh, genuinely puzzled.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh immediately continued. “It’s the distribution of wealth.”

“The distribution of wealth….”

“It means that people living in Seoul are more financially well-off. They have the financial means and the *mental yoyu* [mental余裕, a Japanese loanword meaning ‘余裕’ or leeway/disposable income] to travel around. In fact, after the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the wealth of Koreans, especially those living in Seoul, increased significantly.”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young nodded. He had heard that sentiment expressed occasionally on TV.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh continued. “And I’m sure the average age of the people who came there was in their 50s or older. Isn’t that right?”

“Yes, that’s right. Most of them were in their 50s and 60s.”

“That’s right. Now, let’s go back to the beginning. Do you still not know why those people went there?”

“That’s….”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young couldn’t easily answer. No matter how much he pondered, he couldn’t figure out why those people went there if not for sightseeing.

As if anticipating Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young’s hesitation, Chairman Shin Chun-oh immediately continued. “It’s simple. It’s the food.”

“The food?”

“That’s right. Those people needed a meal.”

“Surely not….”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young couldn’t quite grasp the situation.

Could it really be that simple? Traveling that far just for a meal?

No matter how he considered it, it seemed improbable.

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young carefully ventured, “Chairman, I’m sorry, but I can’t understand it at all. How could anyone go to that remote rural area just for a meal?”

“Those are the kind of people they are.”

“What kind of people?”

“Yes, you may not understand, but those people are the type who would go to even greater lengths if it meant satisfying their desires.”

“……”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young was speechless.

It was difficult to comprehend fully, but he recognized that there was some truth to it.

He had heard similar things on TV before – that there are people who travel anywhere in the country for a particular culinary experience.

Another consumption pattern exhibited by people with money and leisure time.

It might be a somewhat disheartening perspective from his point of view, but it was a reality he had to acknowledge.

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young slowly nodded.

Then, Chairman Shin Chun-oh immediately asked, “Do you understand now?”

“Honestly, I don’t fully understand it, but that’s just my perspective. I suppose people with money can do anything. In fact, I heard about it on TV recently.”

“It might be a bitter pill to swallow, but it’s true. Those people consider that to be happiness.”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young nodded once again.

Isn’t that how the world works? People without money worry about affording one meal a day, while people with money travel across the country to find that perfect meal.

Perhaps that’s just another facet of capitalism.

Tsk.

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young clicked his tongue, suppressing his feelings.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh continued. “Now that I think about it, maybe President Kim was targeting these people from the beginning.”

“From the beginning?”

“That’s right. I didn’t consider it that deeply at first, but now that I see the results, I suspect President Kim was targeting this demographic all along.”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh nodded.

To be honest, when he first heard that Hyun-sung was running such a large restaurant in the countryside, he was worried even while offering his congratulations. The reason was that he had never seen a restaurant that big anywhere in Korea.

But now, in retrospect, he realized that his worries were unnecessary.

Even today, with the cherry blossoms still over a month away from blooming, 450 people traveled to the restaurant to eat.

Did those people just happen to be passing by?

That was highly unlikely. They went all the way there specifically to have a meal.

Reason?

It would be surprisingly simple: the symbolism of the place.

The best.

Anyone can see that there is no restaurant in Korea as large as that one. That’s why people feel compelled to go there.

One of the fundamental aspects of human nature:

Ostentation [the desire to display wealth and impress others].

The desire to show off or boast. People will go there to satisfy their desire to appear superior to others. That’s how they will fulfill their need for validation.

Of course, Hyun-sung would have aimed for that from the start.

A smile was already spreading across Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s face. He was once again impressed by Hyun-sung’s foresight.

He then called out to Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young. “Chief Secretary.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“How many wealthy individuals are there in the country?”

“Why are you asking that all of a sudden….”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young couldn’t understand the purpose of Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s sudden question. So, naturally, his gaze turned to his face, curious about his next words.

“From now on, those people will start moving.”

“Those people?”

“The affluent people in the country.”

“Ah, so you mean those people will flock to President Kim’s restaurant from now on?”

“If my prediction is correct….”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh smiled.

Then, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young immediately asked, his curiosity piqued, “Is there a specific reason for that?”

“People inherently want to show off. As you know, President Kim’s restaurant is the largest in Korea, right?”

“Yes, of course. I’ve traveled all over the country with you, but I’ve never seen such a big restaurant.”

“That was President Kim’s intention.”

“You mean….”

“People inherently have a desire to show off. So, from now on, wealthy individuals will rush to that place as if competing with each other.”

“Ah, yes….”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young nodded, as if he finally understood Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s reasoning.

Seeing that, Chairman Shin Chun-oh asked again, “Do you get a sense of it now?”

“Yes, so you mean that affluent people in the country will flock to President Kim’s restaurant, which is the largest in the country, to satisfy their desire to show off?”

“That’s right. It’s a bit childish, but that’s the nature of those people. Of course, the majority will come from Seoul initially.”

“And over time, it will gradually spread to the provinces.”

“That’s right!”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh clapped his knees and smiled.

Then, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young continued. “And President Kim was aiming for this from the beginning?”

“That’s right. To be honest, I didn’t realize it at first. But after seeing today’s results, I realized that President Kim knew that from the beginning and deliberately built such a massive restaurant.”

“Indeed….”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young had no choice but to nod.

Until recently, he was honestly worried. He had heard there were 1,000 employees and was concerned about how Hyun-sung would manage to feed so many people.

But after hearing Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s explanation, he realized that his worries were unfounded.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh continued. “But you know, there’s still something I don’t understand.”

“What is it?”

“It’s the trail he created behind the restaurant. Actually, I first heard about the trail from President Kim, but I can’t understand who would travel all the way there just to walk around the mountain.”

“I feel the same way. I don’t know what he’s planning by creating a *trail* [pathway] that doesn’t even exist as a common concept.”

“Hmm….”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh was silent, as if deep in thought.

After a minute, he spoke again. “I don’t think we can leave this to chance. We’ll have to activate that team.”

“That team?”

“Contact those friends at the research institute I mentioned. Give them exactly one month to analyze what economic effect the trail will have.”

“Yes, I understand. I’ll give the instructions right away.”

It was at that moment that the ramen research institute was tasked with researching the trail instead of ramen.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh remained unaware that his planned project would be scrapped due to today’s somewhat absurd instructions.

459

Becoming a Building Owner After Regression