Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Will This Be Fun?

The empty lot near Jin Myeong Gak.

“Okay okay, push the lighting tower truck close over there! Set the cameras in the center!”

Large trucks with broadcasting station logos attached pushed into the empty lot in a row.

The staff moved in unison heating up the outdoor set.

Already from a few days ago large-scale promotion had been scattered on various SNS and online communities.

[‘Chef’s War’ ultra-special blockbuster! Emperor Palace! The masters of real Chinese cooking come!]

People began flocking to the empty lot in front of Jin Myeong Gak from early morning.

On the cooking station in the center of the set chefs in cooking clothes stood majestically with arms crossed.

They were the head chef and his elite elite team members that Seo Tae-jin had cast from Seoul’s highest-grade Chinese restaurant for this plan.

People watching that appearance murmured.

“Hey, did you see the promo post that floated on SNS now? Those chefs standing in the middle there, affiliated with a Seoul 5-star hotel Chinese restaurant!”

“Eh? Wait. That chef standing in the middle, didn’t he come out on survival cook?”

“Ah! Right, right! That chef who went up to the finals there!”

“Wow, jackpot. To eat that chef’s cooking once you have to reserve from months ago at the hotel restaurant, such a person here?”

Exclamations continuously burst from the mouths of people who confirmed related articles and SNS with smartphones.

Moreover what captured people’s gazes wasn’t only the chefs.

“Jackpot! Isn’t that main MC Choi Ji-hoon there?”

“Wow, crazy, crazy! Next to him Luminous A-young and Ji-su are there too!”

When famous broadcasters and trending idols hard to see in such a province appeared on the entertainment set people’s heat reached the peak.

And across the street.

In front of Jin Myeong Gak that would have been crowded with lined-up customers if usual.

Customers who came early were making dejected expressions.

[Due to internal circumstances closed for three days from today.]

Sighs burst from the mouths of customers who saw the paper stuck on the glass door.

“Ah, what! I even used annual leave today and it says resting?!”

“Why rest from today of all days? Until yesterday it was doing business fine!”

The gazes of murmuring people naturally headed toward the noisy broadcasting station set across the street.

“Hey··· by any chance resting a few days because of that?”

“Right, right. Famous chefs even came right in front and doing broadcast, how can a neighborhood Chinese restaurant hold out?”

“Even so! Shouldn’t you row when the water comes in?”

“Aei, just looking it seems aimed here. Then avoiding is right.”

“Right. Even if Jin Myeong Gak is a famous restaurant, if the counterpart brings a bunch of big-shot chefs like that and does business blatantly right in front comparison might not even happen.”

“Anyway will the rest end in three days?”

“Huh? What do you mean? Then it might not end in three days?”

“That broadcast. After today’s opening the MCs might not come out, but the restaurant itself seems trying to do business every day for a while.”

“Huh? Every day?”

Surrounding people asked back as if puzzled at someone’s words.

“Every day? Aei, does it make sense for a broadcast? At most a few days. Doing business every day at a place like this doesn’t make sense.”

“I also thought so at first, but this project is really no joke. The main camera filming goes out as main broadcast, and on non-filming dates it does real-time streaming business every day on YouTube. Even articles floated.”

“No, expanding the scale this much? Why on earth? What’s here?”

“That I don’t know either.”

Deep surprise spread on people’s faces.

At the same time their gazes headed toward Jin Myeong Gak again.

“Wow··· if pushing large-scale like that···.”

“If this situation continues Jin Myeong Gak, not the problem of resting three days but might really close the door and go bankrupt like this. How can a neighborhood restaurant hold out against that tremendous quantity offensive?”

“Aigo, a neighborhood real famous restaurant about to disappear unfairly. Tsk tsk.”

“Really delicious here...”

People clicked their tongues as if sincerely regrettable.

At that time.

Seueuk.

One highest-grade sedan slid into the alley entrance and stopped in front of the set.

Seo Tae-jin who got out of the car made a satisfied smile looking at the onlookers filling the surroundings and the grand set.

“Heuum, the picture is very good. Articles all scattered?”

“Yes, director! Exposed on the portal main in real time.”

Seo Tae-jin who was nodding at the secretary’s answer slowly headed his gaze toward Jin Myeong Gak across the street.

And discovered the closure notice stuck on the closed glass door.

“······What?”

Seo Tae-jin’s eyes widened, then soon his lips twisted and laughter burst as if he couldn’t endure.

“Puhahahaha!”

Seo Tae-jin held his stomach and heaved his shoulders.

“What, boasting pride so much. Tucked the tail and ran away before even starting?!”

“Seems so, director. Completely scared by the broadcasting station’s scale and Seoul’s best chefs’ momentum and seems to have done a night escape.”

The secretary also laughed matching the mood beside.

Seo Tae-jin looked at the empty front of Jin Myeong Gak with a gaze mixed with mockery and acted high-handed.

“Tsk tsk. Kicked away my proposal. In the end that spirit was also just bluff.”

The counterpart who lay flat on its own before he properly dealt a blow.

A sense of victory and pleasure tingling rose in Seo Tae-jin’s chest.

The secretary who noticed his mood was heightened to the fullest approached lightly and carefully asked.

“But director. Was there a need to build even the broadcast set complicatedly like this? Just buying that Jin Myeong Gak building entirely and kicking them out to the street...”

In an instant, Seo Tae-jin’s smile completely disappeared and he frowned and got irritated.

“Hey.”

“Ye, yes! Director.”

“Am I some back alley thug?!”

Seo Tae-jin raised his voice as if displeased.

“Ah··· sorry. I thought short.”

The secretary hurriedly lowered his head.

‘No, what’s with making this fuss just to torment one neighborhood Chinese restaurant?’

Seo Tae-jin regained leisure again and raised the corner of his mouth with a seuk.

“Well, thanks to that it ended blandly. Good! Anyway that brat bastard wasn’t in my mind from the beginning. The real purpose is to make that human Namgung Wi a laughingstock.”

Seo Tae-jin hummed a tune and walked toward the center of the set with proud steps.

*

“Standby! 3, 2, 1, cue!”

With the main PD’s loud shout a red light came on the camera of the flashy outdoor set.

“Hello! The best chefs gathered to revive the Republic of Korea’s alley commercial district! <​Chef’s War> special plan! Starting now!”

The opening comment of veteran famous MC Choi Ji-hoon who led numerous entertainments echoed.

On both his sides members of the trending girl group ‘Luminous’ A-young and Ji-su who were raising stock price freely on music broadcasts and entertainments these days gave a fresh greeting with bright smiles.

“Everyone, hello! We are Luminous! Looking forward to lots of delicious cooking today!”

At the appearance of the famous MC and trending idols the neighborhood was instantly crowded with people who flocked with no room to step.

It was a recording broadcast not live, but the opportunity to directly watch large-scale entertainment filming in such a provincial small city not Seoul was rare.

Thanks to that numerous personal broadcasters and YouTubers who ran hearing the rumor added heat while filming holding up smartphone gimbals.

After successfully finishing the opening, while the camera went around to sketch the chefs’ flashy cooking appearances for a moment.

MC Choi Ji-hoon slightly lowered the mic and lightly spoke to the idol members standing beside.

“Wow, really many people gathered. But you guys must have suffered a bit coming down all the way here from dawn?”

“Au! Don’t even say, senior. After stopping by the shop riding the car coming down all the way thought my waist would break.”

When A-young made a coquettish complaint, Ji-su also looked around as if curious and whispered small.

“But senior, the chefs are also very famous people··· why are we filming in such a province?”

At Ji-su’s question Choi Ji-hoon chuckled and lowered his voice.

“I also lightly asked the main PD, the main sponsor of this broadcast insisted it has to be done here unconditionally. Well, I don’t know what scheme there is but for us as long as we eat deliciously as given and do reactions well it’s enough.”

At Choi Ji-hoon’s words lightly passing the situation like a pro broadcaster, the two idols nodded and equipped bright business smiles toward the camera again.

But the main PD’s expression watching the monitor wasn’t entirely bright.

‘Will this be fun.’

The main PD watching the monitor swallowed a deep sigh inwardly.

No matter how much he thought the picture didn’t fit.

Mobilizing tremendous production cost and top-star level MC, trending idols and even famous hotel chef corps and what they’re doing is just ‘observing the reaction of neighborhood people who tasted high-grade Chinese food’.

Rather if it were the middle of Seoul or a hot place where foreigners flock maybe.

Pushing a outdated format used only in past overseas location broadcasts into a provincial small city with no topicality to be found was something to be dumbfounded.

“...”

The place the PD glanced his gaze was Seo Tae-jin looking down at the set with a satisfied smile.

Seeing that face the brow furrowed on its own.

Because of his unilateral notice a few days ago to overturn all the fine plans and film that bizarre broadcast here right away.

Matching that absurd forced schedule the PD and writers stayed up several nights with open eyes.

Making the script hastily and forcibly fitting the cast’s schedules in a short period literally blood dried.

‘He himself is mistaken for planning some tremendous entertainment. Honestly who besides the people of this neighborhood will watch this kind of thing.’

Moreover even after main broadcast filming ends turning on YouTube live streaming and doing business every day.

Where are viewers who will watch selling jajangmyeon every day live in such a provincial small city.

From above they were pecked saying match unconditionally as the main sponsor does so they were dragged, but the surging irritation couldn’t be helped.

He suppressed the irritation and turned his gaze to the monitor again.

At that time.

“Order came in! Five jajang, three jjamppong!”

With the chef’s loud shout the chefs began moving in unison.

“Ooo!”

“The smell is no joke?”

Exclamations burst from the mouths of people watching.

Certainly skilled head chef and elite team members so hands and feet matched perfectly.

Cooking speed was also fast, and above all the smell was amazing.

But compared to the crowd filling around the set, the people who could actually taste this cooking were extremely limited.

The number of outdoor dining tables prepared for the broadcast was limited, and even if hotel chefs with fast hands there was a limit to the cooking that could be pulled out at once.

In the end only a few lucky people who stood in the front line among the numerous crowd could sit at the table and receive jajangmyeon and jjamppong.

“Wow, look at the chewy noodles. Indeed hotel chef class is different.”

“The jjamppong broth is also really delicious!”

Pouring high-grade ingredients without sparing, and adding first-class chefs’ skill so it was strange if there was no taste.

People’s reaction was good, and the camera diligently captured those expressions in the video.

On the other hand, the majority of people who lined up late or were completely pushed out had to only smack regrettable mouths.

“Ah, the smell is going crazy. The line is too long so can’t eat today. Just give up.”

“Still saw the celebrities appearing on TV, and directly saw the hotel chefs’ cooking so it’s enough. When would we see such a sight in our neighborhood?”

Most people gave up tasting the food early and had to be satisfied only with watching the broadcast filming site.

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