Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 730

Swoosh!

Hyeonseong, who was resting on the sofa, turned his head and glanced at the clock.

“Hmm, it’s time.”

Hyeonseong got up, put on his cardigan, and left the house.

He was just coming down from the second floor when the cafe door opened, and his wife, Yoon Jisu, came out.

“Are you leaving now?”

“Yes, if I leave now, I should arrive around the same time as Chairman Shin.”

“Where are you meeting?”

“At a gopchang [Korean grilled small intestines] restaurant.”

“Huh? Gopchang restaurant?”

Yoon Jisu tilted her head, puzzled by the choice of venue. Hyeonseong immediately asked,

“Why? Is a gopchang restaurant strange?”

“No, it’s not strange, but I was wondering if the chairman might be trying gopchang for the first time.”

“Surely not?”

Hyeonseong replied with a smile.

By now, Chairman Shin Min-gi’s age would be roughly in his early 50s. Hyeonseong figured that someone who had lived that long would have eaten gopchang at least once.

“Well, gopchang is more of an acquired taste than you think… Okay. You take care of it, Hyeonseong.”

“If it’s his first time, it wouldn’t be bad to try it today. Gopchang is so delicious. Should I pack some gopchang to bring when I come back?”

“Hmm…”

Yoon Jisu seemed to think for a moment, then touched her stomach and said,

“Our twins, do you want to eat gopchang?”

“Yes~ Mommy, I want to eat gopchang~”

Yoon Jisu imitated the children’s voices as she answered. Hyeonseong, who was watching, smiled and immediately said,

“Our twins want to eat lots of gopchang~~?”

“Yes~ Daddy~.”

“Okay~ Daddy will buy gopchang when he comes~~.”

“Yes~ Daddy, come quickly~~ Hehe…”

Yoon Jisu couldn’t help but burst into laughter before she finished answering. Hyeonseong also laughed loudly.

The two of them laughed as they looked at each other.

They sometimes play like this.

At first, it was embarrassing, but after doing it a few times, it was quite fun.

It was another kind of happiness that he had never felt in his previous life.

Yoon Jisu gently stroked Hyeonseong’s shoulder and said,

“Have a good trip.”

“Yes, you too. I’ll be back soon, so see you later.”

“Yes, I understand. By the way, I’m curious about why the chairman asked to see you.”

“I’m wondering the same thing. Well, I guess I’ll find out when I meet him. Okay, then I’ll be going.”

Hyeonseong waved his hand and came down the stairs.

Ten minutes later.

Hyeonseong arrived in front of a shopping district.

[Yeontan Grilled Gopchang]

Hyeonseong looked at the sign and went straight into the restaurant.

“Welcome. Oh? Boss, you’re here!”

The restaurant owner greeted him casually, then recognized Hyeonseong and greeted him happily. They lived in the same neighborhood, but there was also a special connection between the restaurant owner and Hyeonseong.

A year ago, a big fight broke out inside the restaurant.

At that time, Hyeonseong happened to be eating gopchang with an acquaintance inside the restaurant.

Inevitably, the police were called, and thanks to Hyeonseong’s help, the restaurant owner was found not guilty.

Since then, the two have become close.

Hyeonseong smiled and said,

“How have you been?”

“Yes, I’m always the same.”

The restaurant owner spoke as if nothing had happened, but his expression looked somewhat dark.

Hyeonseong noticed this and immediately asked,

“Why? Is something wrong? You don’t look so good.”

“No. Nothing’s wrong.”

“Why are you being like this? It’s written all over your face. I don’t know what it is, but would you like to tell me about it?”

“Well, that’s…”

The restaurant owner couldn’t speak right away and just moved his lips. Hyeonseong spoke again.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s not that, but the landlord here is raising the rent…”

“Are they asking you to raise the rent?”

In response to Hyeonseong’s question, the restaurant owner nodded slightly instead of answering. Hyeonseong immediately asked again,

“How much?”

“200,000 won [approximately $150 USD].”

“How much is it now?”

“500,000 won [approximately $375 USD].”

“These crazy bastards…”

A curse immediately came out of Hyeonseong’s mouth.

Of course, rent can be raised. But there must be some standard. Usually, it’s about 5-10% of the existing rent.

But now, the landlord here is trying to raise it by 40%.

The important thing is that there is no Commercial Building Lease Protection Act at this time. There are still two years left before the Commercial Building Lease Protection Act is enacted.

In the end, for now, you have no choice but to do as the landlord asks. Otherwise, you will have to vacate the commercial building.

The restaurant owner said in a weak voice,

“So I’ve been worried these days. They told me to make a decision by the end of this month.”

“I see. That’s why you look so worried…”

“Honestly, isn’t this too much! How can they raise it by 200,000 won at once!”

The restaurant owner’s voice suddenly became agitated. Fortunately, there were no customers in the hall during the day, so he could raise his voice.

It was at that moment.

Something began to emerge from Hyeonseong’s memory.

Come to think of it, this restaurant had suddenly disappeared in his previous life.

At that time, he didn’t know the reason, but now he knew.

In the end, the restaurant owner couldn’t afford the rent increase and decided to close down.

But the important thing is what happens next.

This building will be demolished in a year. Not only this building but all the buildings in this line will be incorporated into the road.

Hyeonseong urgently called the restaurant owner.

“Boss!”

“Yes?”

The restaurant owner was surprised when Hyeonseong suddenly called him and looked at Hyeonseong. Hyeonseong immediately said,

“Please raise the 200,000 won.”

“Yes? Raise it?”

“Yes, that’s right. If you wait just one year, you’ll be able to receive several times more than the raised rent.”

Hyeonseong was aiming for business compensation. Either way, if it is incorporated into the road, business compensation will be paid. It ranges from a few hundred to several thousand, depending on various factors, including sales.

The important thing is that business compensation is always paid.

The increased rent is 200,000 won. Even if it’s just one year, the total increase is 2.4 million won [approximately $1,800 USD].

But the business compensation is at least two or three times that amount.

That was why Hyeonseong told him to raise the rent.

But unlike Hyeonseong, the restaurant owner, who had no way of knowing that fact, was simply dumbfounded.

“Boss, what are you talking about? Did you say I could get several times more?”

“Yes, that’s right. So trust me and don’t worry about anything, and raise the rent.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about…”

The restaurant owner didn’t know what he was talking about and was at a loss. Hyeonseong, seeing this, opened his mouth again.

“Do you accept cards here?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Then do you include cash sales in your monthly sales? When you pay taxes, I mean.”

“That’s a bit…”

The restaurant owner couldn’t answer right away. Hyeonseong, who couldn’t possibly not know what that meant, immediately said,

“From now on, include all cash sales without exception.”

“Yes? What does that…”

“The more taxes you pay, the more money will come back to you. The most important thing in business compensation is the sales of the previous year.”

“Yes? Business compensation?”

The restaurant owner still tilted his head as if he didn’t understand.

Hyeonseong had no choice but to whisper in the restaurant owner’s ear.

After a while, the restaurant owner’s expression changed drastically after hearing Hyeonseong’s story.

“Is that really true?”

“So don’t worry about anything, raise the rent, and then do business as you’ve been doing.”

“Of course. But how did you know that, boss…?”

The restaurant owner had an incredulous expression.

Perhaps it was a natural reaction. It would be difficult to believe that the building would be incorporated into the road in just one year, not several years later.

But Hyeonseong had no way to explain it any further.

Either way, the choice was his.

“It’s up to you whether you believe me or not. If you trust me, do as I say, and if not, make your decision as you see fit. But remember that I clearly told you. It’s no use regretting it later. Then I’ll stop here.”

“…”

The restaurant owner couldn’t say anything and just stood there blankly.

It was at that moment.

Clang!

Someone came in as the restaurant door opened.

Hyeonseong could immediately tell who it was. After all, he had seen him a lot on TV.

“Have you arrived?”

Hyeonseong greeted him first. But Chairman Shin Min-gi had never seen Hyeonseong before, so he had no choice but to ask cautiously.

“Are you… Mr. Kim?”

“Yes, I’m Kim Hyeonseong. Nice to meet you.”

“Ah, yes, nice to meet you. I’m Shin Min-gi.”

Chairman Shin Min-gi revealed his name and extended his hand. Hyeonseong also immediately took his hand.

At that very moment, Hyeonseong unknowingly touched his right chest with his left hand.

‘What?’

Hyeonseong was startled. He felt pain in his right chest the moment he shook his hand.

But he couldn’t react right away.

Hyeonseong shook hands as naturally as possible and sat down.

Of course, Shin Min-gi couldn’t notice anything strange about Hyeonseong’s behavior at all. The reason was that Hyeonseong’s behavior seemed to be shaking hands politely.

Shin Min-gi spoke first.

“I don’t know if I’ve been rude by suddenly asking to see you.”

“No. I was resting at home because it’s my day off anyway.”

“Then I’m even more sorry if I’ve been rude…”

“No, it’s okay. So you don’t have to worry about that anymore. I’m honored to meet the chairman like this.”

Hyeonseong said politely.

To be honest, he was a bit surprised when he first received the call. But it wasn’t like he felt upset or uncomfortable while resting.

Shin Min-gi immediately said,

“Honored? That’s not true. Anyway, I want to thank you for saying that.”

Just then, the restaurant owner came with gopchang on a tray.

Hyeonseong immediately said,

“I don’t know if you like gopchang.”

“Ah, that’s… actually, today is my first time. Haha…”

Shin Min-gi smiled awkwardly as if he was embarrassed.

At that moment, Hyeonseong remembered his wife’s words when he left the house a little while ago, ‘I was wondering if the chairman might be trying gopchang for the first time.’

He had doubted it at the time.

Even though gopchang is a matter of taste, he wondered if someone who had lived for over 50 years had never eaten gopchang.

But what he had doubted actually happened.

Hyeonseong thought for a moment and immediately opened his mouth.

“Shall we go somewhere else then?”

“No. I’m just going to try gopchang for the first time today thanks to Mr. Kim. Actually, our Director Yoon asked me earlier, but I just said I was okay.”

“Oh, is that so?”

Hyeonseong nodded and immediately asked again,

“By the way, where is Director Yoon? Why isn’t she coming in?”

“Ah, yes. She’s in the car with Mr. Kim.”

“Huh? In the car?”

Hyeonseong was momentarily dumbfounded. According to Kim Min-gi’s words, the two people who came with him were not coming into the restaurant and were staying in the car.

‘What? This guy?’

Hyeonseong felt a surge of anger. Even if he was the chairman, was it right to have the people who came with him wait in the car?

But he couldn’t call those two people in this situation.

‘Is this the kind of person he is?’

He judged Shin Min-gi’s character with this one action.

It was clear how Shin Min-gi usually thought of his subordinates.

Hyeonseong’s expression inevitably changed from before.

Did Shin Min-gi notice it?

“Why? Your expression suddenly doesn’t look good.”

“Ah, no. I was just thinking about something else for a moment…”

Hyeonseong started flipping the gopchang on the grill as if nothing was wrong. But that didn’t make him feel any better.

Hyeonseong didn’t say anything and just flipped the gopchang.

Since Shin Min-gi was the one who wanted to meet first, Hyeonseong had nothing to lose.

On the other hand, Shin Min-gi was different.

After all, he was the one who was in need.

He came to check a few things. But the atmosphere suddenly became strange.

The person who had been treating him with a bright face until just now suddenly changed his expression and now wasn’t saying anything or even looking at him, so he was frustrated.

‘What went wrong?’

Shin Min-gi shook his head from side to side as if he couldn’t figure it out after thinking for a long time and looked at Hyeonseong. Then he immediately asked,

“Mr. Kim, wouldn’t you tell me what’s wrong? I don’t have the personality to endure for long, so I’m not comfortable in this kind of situation…”

“Nothing’s wrong.”

Hyeonseong said indifferently.

Because he knew that time was on his side.

Shin Min-gi immediately opened his mouth.

“I may not know anything else, but I’m quick to notice things. Don’t do that and tell me what’s wrong? At this rate, I feel like I’m going to get indigestion from eating gopchang for the first time.”

“…”

Hyeonseong quietly flipped the gopchang and didn’t say anything. Shin Min-gi couldn’t stand it any longer and called Hyeonseong again.

“Mr. Kim!”

“Then… can I say just one thing?”

Hyeonseong slowly opened his mouth. He thought that anything should be done in moderation. He thought that it would be one way to back down at this point since he was a chairman.

“Yes, of course. Just say anything…”

“I don’t know about anything else, but this doesn’t seem right, at least in front of food. Wouldn’t everyone have a mouth, not just a snout?”

“Ah… Yes, I understand.”

Shin Min-gi thought for a moment, then jumped up from his seat and went outside.