Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 712

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“Welcome!”

As Hyun-sung and Oh Myung-hwan opened the door to the real estate office, a broker who looked to be in his mid-50s greeted them warmly.

“Please, have a seat over here.”

The broker led them to a sofa, and Hyun-sung and Oh Myung-hwan sat down. The broker then took out two bottles of Bacchus [a popular Korean energy drink] from the refrigerator and offered them.

“First, have one of these.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Oh Myung-hwan lightly bowed and took a bottle of Bacchus, opening the cap. He immediately handed it to Hyun-sung.

“Hyung-nim [older brother or respected male figure], have one.”

“Oh, sure. Thanks.”

Hyun-sung naturally started drinking the Bacchus.

Others might think differently, but Hyun-sung had lived over 50 years in his previous life, so he felt no awkwardness in his actions.

However, the broker, unaware of this fact, was puzzled.

‘What’s this?’

Something seemed off.

Clearly, there was at least a 10-year age difference between them. Yet, strangely, the older one was calling the younger one ‘Hyung-nim.’

And the younger one was drinking the offered Bacchus as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

It was an odd situation to anyone watching.

But he couldn’t exactly ask about it.

The broker simply watched, pretending not to notice.

Just then,

Oh Myung-hwan finished his Bacchus and immediately spoke.

“Mr. Broker, do you have any vacant commercial spaces near the school?”

“Of course, we do, but may I ask what kind of business you are planning to open?”

“We’re planning to open a Janchi Guksu (Banquet Noodles) restaurant.”

“A Janchi Guksu restaurant?”

The broker looked at Oh Myung-hwan, surprised. Oh Myung-hwan immediately asked.

“Why? Is it strange?”

“No, it’s not strange, just unusual. No one has ever opened a Janchi Guksu place near the school before…”

The broker trailed off, chuckling inwardly.

He had been working as a broker here for over 10 years. He had handled countless commercial spaces, but these were the first people to say they wanted to open a Janchi Guksu restaurant.

But he couldn’t show it.

The broker immediately focused on his job.

“Alright, what size are you looking for?”

Instead of answering the broker’s question, Oh Myung-hwan looked at Hyun-sung and asked.

“Hyung-nim, bigger is better, right?”

“Of course. We need to accommodate as many people as possible at once.”

After hearing Hyun-sung’s words, Oh Myung-hwan nodded and said to the broker.

“The bigger, the better. Please find us the largest vacant space, and of course, close to the school.”

“Yes, I understand!”

The broker’s voice was brighter than before.

When they said they were opening a Janchi Guksu restaurant, he naturally assumed they were looking for a space around 20 pyeong (approximately 720 square feet). But since they wanted it as big as possible, how could his voice not brighten?

The reason was simple: the larger the space, the larger the transaction amount, and the larger the commission.

But the problem was that since it was a Janchi Guksu restaurant, he couldn’t just recommend a large space.

After all, they were just selling Janchi Guksu.

The broker had no choice but to double-check.

“Are you sure you want it as big as possible?”

“Of course. As I said before, the bigger, the better. Over 100 pyeong (approximately 3,600 square feet) would be even better. But do you even have anything that big?”

“Yes, of course!”

The broker’s voice was even brighter than before.

He thought 30 or 40 pyeong would be enough, but they wanted even more.

But his joy was short-lived, and the broker’s expression quickly darkened.

The reason was that the space was too big, and it was located in the basement.

In fact, it was one of the most troublesome spaces.

After hesitating for a moment, the broker subtly glanced at Oh Myung-hwan. Then, he cautiously asked.

“Mr. President, about that space… it’s 200 pyeong (approximately 7,200 square feet). Would that be alright?”

“How much? 200 pyeong?”

Oh Myung-hwan couldn’t believe his ears.

Of course, he thought bigger was better to accommodate more people at once. But he thought 100 pyeong would be enough. Now, the broker was mentioning an unbelievable size.

Oh Myung-hwan looked at Hyun-sung.

“Hyung-nim, what should we do? He said it’s 200 pyeong…”

“Hmm…”

Hyun-sung couldn’t answer immediately either. When Oh Myung-hwan mentioned 100 pyeong, he thought it would be manageable.

But suddenly, the broker said 200 pyeong.

He knew all too well that the difference between 100 pyeong and 200 pyeong was not just a matter of numbers.

The problem was operation.

Could they really operate such a large place properly?

Hyun-sung was deep in thought when suddenly,

‘Oh? If it’s that place…’

A commercial space came to mind.

The only 200-pyeong space near the school was that one.

Hyun-sung looked at the broker and immediately asked.

“Is the space you’re talking about in the basement?”

“Yes, that’s right. Do you know the place?”

“Is that the billiard hall?”

“Yes, it is. But it closed down a month ago and is now on the market.”

Hyun-sung’s expression brightened.

Even if it was the same 200 pyeong, the difference between being in the basement and above ground was significant.

Of course, Hyun-sung was worried about operating costs.

Namely, the rent. The rent difference between above ground and basement was enormous. And if the space was 200 pyeong, the difference would be even greater than expected.

Especially since rent was important here because they were targeting students.

The special characteristic of school breaks.

They could never ignore the special characteristic of school breaks. Especially since it was a university, the breaks were long.

If it were above ground, it would be impossible.

But if it were in the basement, things would be different.

Hyun-sung had to ask the most important question.

“How much is the monthly rent?”

“3 million won.”

“And the deposit?”

“50 million won.”

Hyun-sung nodded. As expected, it was incomparable to above ground. If it were above ground, it would be at least three times that amount.

Then, Oh Myung-hwan turned to Hyun-sung and asked.

“Hyung-nim, is it okay to have a restaurant in the basement?”

From Oh Myung-hwan’s perspective, the basement was more concerning than the size.

But Hyun-sung thought differently.

“It doesn’t matter.”

Hyun-sung answered immediately without hesitation. He thought there was no problem with running a Janchi Guksu business in the basement.

But Oh Myung-hwan still seemed uneasy and asked again.

“Are you sure it’ll be alright?”

“I don’t see any problem with it. As Oh CEO knows, there are plenty of restaurants operating in basements, right? Do you think they’d be doing business in the basement for no reason? Right?”

In fact, there were many restaurants operating in basements. There was no reason for it to be a problem.

After thinking for a moment, Oh Myung-hwan nodded and said.

“Listening to Hyung-nim, I guess that’s true. There are many restaurants in the basement even in downtown Gangneung.”

Hyun-sung then looked at the broker and asked.

“Why did the billiard hall close down?”

Hyun-sung couldn’t understand.

The billiard hall had been there since Hyun-sung entered school in 1988. That’s why the billiard hall was named ’88 Billiard Hall.’

Of course, it was the only billiard hall near the school, so business was good. Even until he graduated. Of course, this was from his past life’s memories.

The broker looked regretful and said.

“It’s all because of the IMF crisis [International Monetary Fund bailout, a major economic crisis in South Korea] that broke out two years ago. After the IMF, students suddenly started flocking to the library instead of the billiard hall because they couldn’t find jobs. The number of customers gradually decreased from then on, and they eventually closed down this summer break.”

“Huh…”

Hyun-sung could only laugh in disbelief.

Of course, the IMF crisis had a huge impact on South Korea, but he never thought it would affect even this place.

Oh Myung-hwan looked at Hyun-sung and asked.

“Hyung-nim, what should we do?”

“I know that building well. This might be a stroke of luck for Oh CEO.”

It was a somewhat ironic situation.

Oh Myung-hwan had said that he lost all his assets due to the IMF crisis. Now, a store that closed down due to the IMF crisis was going to be in his hands.

But Oh Myung-hwan didn’t seem to have thought that far, and he was more interested in Hyun-sung’s words ‘stroke of luck.’

“Luck?”

“Yes, not only is there no other space of that size here, but it’s also close to the school.”

“Then should we sign the contract right away?”

Oh Myung-hwan’s eyes sparkled. But Hyun-sung shook his head, looking at him.

“No, not yet. Decide after seeing it with your own eyes, Oh CEO. My memories are quite old, after all.”

Hyun-sung was only relying on his past life’s memories. It was absurd to sign a contract for a commercial space based solely on those memories.

“Then should we do that?”

After answering Hyun-sung, Oh Myung-hwan turned to the broker and immediately said.

“Mr. Broker, can we see the place right now?”

“Of course. I’ll take you there in my car right away!”

The broker’s voice was full of energy.

It was a commercial space that had been causing him a lot of trouble because of its size. He was naturally happy to be resolving it.

But he still couldn’t understand these people’s choice.

Why did they need 200 pyeong to sell Janchi Guksu?

But what did it matter to him?

He just had to introduce them in the middle.

A little later.

The broker parked the car in front of a three-story building next to Gangsang University.

The three got out of the car and headed to the building.

The broker and Oh Myung-hwan went straight to the basement, while Hyun-sung remained on the first floor, looking at the building.

The sign ’88 Billiard Hall’ still remained at the entrance.

Memories of his past life came flooding back.

Back then, this place was almost his hideout.

It was a carefree time, but it was fun.

But that was only for a while. After serving in the military, he hardly ever went there.

While reminiscing about his past life, Hyun-sung went down to the basement at Oh Myung-hwan’s call.

“Hyung-nim, it’s cleaner than I thought.”

As soon as Hyun-sung went down to the basement, Oh Myung-hwan said as if he had been waiting. His face was satisfied.

“Let’s look around a bit more.”

“Yes, Hyung-nim.”

Hyun-sung and Oh Myung-hwan began to examine the interior of the commercial space thoroughly.

The store was generally in good condition, as it had been operating until a month ago.

He was worried about the basement, but there were no drainage problems.

About 10 minutes passed.

Oh Myung-hwan spoke again.

“Hyung-nim, there doesn’t seem to be any problem with the commercial space. Despite being in the basement, there’s no moisture. If we just build the kitchen, we can start doing business right away.”

What Oh Myung-hwan said was true. The ceiling and floor were in such good condition that there was no need to redo them.

But Hyun-sung was worried about something else.

He wondered if there would be anyone to operate this 200-pyeong space.

Hyun-sung called Oh Myung-hwan.

“Oh CEO.”

“Yes, Hyung-nim.”

“If we open this place, who will operate it?”

“Of course, it will be the second youngest, Hwang Seung-il. We decided to open in reverse order from the youngest anyway.”

Oh Myung-hwan answered immediately without hesitation, as if it were obvious.

But Hyun-sung couldn’t easily agree. He wasn’t sure if the young Hwang Seung-il could handle this 200-pyeong space.

But it wasn’t easy to talk about that. After all, that part was up to Oh Myung-hwan to decide.

“Alright, I understand. Discuss that well with the employees, and for now, it seems like we can sign the contract for the commercial space.”

“Yes, I understand. Then I’ll go sign the contract right away.”

Oh Myung-hwan nodded to Hyun-sung and said to the broker behind him.

“Mr. Broker, let’s go to the office now.”

“Have you decided?”

“Yes, I’ve decided. Let’s write the contract right away.”

“Yes, I understand. Then I’ll contact the building owner right away.”

The broker immediately took out his cell phone and started making a call.

An hour later.

Hyun-sung and Oh Myung-hwan finished the contract and came out of the real estate office, getting into the car.

Oh Myung-hwan had a satisfied expression.

“How do you feel?”

“It’s amazing.”

“What is?”

“The fact that we’re finally going to do business in a 200-pyeong space. It feels like a dream. Something I couldn’t even imagine a year ago…”

Oh Myung-hwan paused for a moment and continued.

“Hyung-nim, just watch. I will never disappoint you. Even though it’s just a 1,000-won Janchi Guksu, I’ll find another path in life here. Of course, all of this is thanks to Hyung-nim.”

“Alright, old man. Enough with the flattery…”

Hyun-sung smiled, and Oh Myung-hwan suddenly bowed his head to Hyun-sung.

“Hyung-nim, I’m uneducated, so I don’t know how to flatter. I’m just telling you my sincere feelings.”

Hyun-sung nodded and smiled.

Even so, one worry still remained. Who would properly operate this 200-pyeong space?

If they could make this a hit, Oh Myung-hwan would definitely find another path in life.

Of course, that would be his responsibility, no matter what anyone said.

Hyun-sung could only watch and cheer him on.

“Hyung-nim, let’s go to my office now. I’ll write the promissory note right away.”

“Do you really have to write that?”

“Why are you being like this? I’m a man of my word. I’ll even give you the interest rate of a loan shark.”

“Alright, let’s go. Thanks to you, I’ll try my hand at loan sharking.”