Vol. 1 - Ch. 13 - An Unprecedented Launch Method

“Mr. Park, when will you be coming in? Ah, okay. Then, I will head up to the rooftop. Please take your time coming up.”Kim Tae-Hyeong printed out the documents. He was not mistaken. What on earth was that CEO up to? More importantly, he had actually secured MilkBot.

He recalled their past attempts. The General Team had visited MilkBot twice before. The first time, when they suggested lowering the price, they were turned away without a chance to speak, and the second, they were scolded when they proposed including it in a spring special appliance lineup.

They must not have any more cards to play. The situation was getting interesting.

Five minutes later, Team Leader Park leisurely showed up. As Park Choong-In put a cigarette in his mouth, Kim Tae-Hyeong quickly held out a lighter. The wind was blowing hard on the rooftop today. He had to try lighting it four or five times before he finally got it.

Then, Deputy Manager Kim quickly handed over the documents.

[ 2023 May Programming Schedule ]

Park Choong-In’s eyes stopped at a certain spot as he read through the documents. It was the exact spot that Kim Tae-Hyeong had been surprised at.

“MilkBot? Min Ho-Jun got his hands on it?”

A smile spread across the face of Team Leader Park, who had been calmly looking through the documents.

Instead of answering, Deputy Manager Kim Tae-Hyeong shook his head and leaned against the railing, looking out at the 63 Building in the distance. He did not seem surprised, instead, he was making such a strange smile.

“Aren’t you surprised?”

“I am. I am really surprised. Can’t you see how surprised I am? Wow. Min Ho-Jun’s got some skills.” Sᴇaʀᴄh the Nʘvᴇl(F)ire.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Park Choong-In roughly stubbed out the cigarette he was smoking on the ground. Then, he took out another cigarette; he just held it in his mouth. This time, Kim Tae-Hyeong did not take out his lighter. Park Choong-In was not the type to smoke one cigarette after another. Kim Tae-Hyeong knew that it was a habit that came out when his leader had something deep in his mind.

“Anyway, isn’t it funny that he brought in MilkBot?”

“Funny? It’s just one step away from going bankrupt trying to find something funny. Mr. Kim, you’re still a long way off, judging from the way you’re talking about having fun.”

Kim Tae-Hyeong pretended not to notice the way Choong-In clicked his tongue in disdain and asked, “How do you think he got it? Do you have any idea, Mr. Park?”

“You’re talking nonsense this early in the morning. Money talks, that’s an unchanging truth, right? You bring money, and even a goody-goody scholar would take the bait if it’s attractive enough.”

It wasn’t like Jeong Do-Jun was having a one-on-one meeting with a partner company. Plus, he did not seem like the kind of person who would change his mind for a few bucks. At least, that was how it seemed to Deputy Manager Kim Tae-Hyeong.

He looked back at the documents.

A product that the CEO himself was launching? Had there ever been anything like that in home shopping before? There was no team name. The person in charge was CEO Min Ho-Jun. It was an unprecedented launch method.

“Yes, well, the CEO must have had something in mind. I’m just curious.”

“Don’t worry about it. Why think about it? He must have something to show us since he went through all that trouble. In this business, results are what matters. That guy is stubborn, too. Who wouldn’t think he has Min blood in him?”

“Yes, you’re right. Results... Results are important.”

“Look at the broadcast time. 3 p.m. It’s obvious. It’s the perfect excuse. The price is high, the timing is awkward. Can this even work?”

This time, Kim Tae-Hyeong took out a cigarette and lit it, instead of answering.

This is not an ordinary product that he brought in without a plan. If it were, there would definitely be a hidden secret weapon.

No matter how much Tae-Hyeong racked his brain, he could not figure it out. Bringing in a 900,000 won small and medium-sized enterprise product against a product that wasn’t even 200,000 won meant only two things: One, either Min Ho-Jun was ignorant and stubborn, or two, he was confident that he could pull it off no matter who he was up against or when.

While he was thinking about this and that, Team Leader Park patted Kim Tae-Hyeong’s back and said sarcastically, “Our Tae-Hyeong still has a long way to go. Don’t worry about everything that the CEO does; you’ll get gray hairs. Whether the CEO is digging around on his own or throwing money away on the street, we should just worry about our own business.”

But, now is not the time to worry about our own business.

Team Leader Park was the only one who was pretending not to know. Just launching the MilkBot was an unusual thing to do. If the competition found out, they might come after them with a vengeance. A chill ran from his lower back up to his neck.

“Man, stop thinking about this and that. It’s a disease, you know? Better press the Marketing Team. Make sure they’re on top of their game for the community work.”

Team Leader Park arrogantly raised his right hand and headed for the stairwell.

Deputy Manager Kim Tae-Hyeong suppressed the chill and calmly watched Team Leader Park’s back. His broad shoulders looked awkward today. He should keep that attitude until the end. He was strangely anxious.

“Mr. Min, I’ve prepared the documents you requested.”

“Thank you. You’re always so quick, Mr. Lee.”

“The HR team leader and I are the same age. More importantly, shall we have lunch together today? I may be just a section chief in name, but I should show you what it’s like to have lunch as the CEO.”

“Then, let’s head down,” Jae-Yoon answered absentmindedly, his eyes still fixed on the documents that Lee Hyun-Woong had handed him. It was a document that briefly described the profiles of each team’s PDs.

Section Chief Lee Hyun-Woong did not mind Jae-Yoon’s behavior. Even if he was just a shell of Min Ho-Jun, he was the CEO of It’s Home Shopping. He had shown nothing but a perfect image so far, to the point where the last traces of doubt that had lingered deep in his heart had disappeared. Gradually, to Lee Hyun-Woong, it was not the fake Min Ho-Jun persona that became of interest, but the actions of the actual Lee Jae-Yoon.

“Let’s go somewhere nicer than the company cafeteria.”

“Really? Okay, if I go down, everyone will probably choke on their food, right? Let’s go. I have something to ask you anyway.” Jae-Yoon got up and put on his jacket.

Section Chief Lee Hyun-Woong looked at the nameplate on his desk, then at Jae-Yoon. “The position suits you quite well.”

“I’m good at anything I do once I put my mind to it.”

“It seems like you’ve learned everything I told you well, and the work suits your personality.”

“Were you worried?”

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t.”

They sat down at a nearby restaurant. A bowl of galbitang was placed in front of each of them, and they ate in silence.

After ten minutes, Jaeyoon tore open a wet wipe and asked, “What kind of person is the team leader of Content Team 1?”

“Someone not particularly interested in the line?”

“More than that. Their work style; do you know anything?”

“They’re sensible. I don’t have much interaction with the Content Team, so I’ve only heard bits and pieces from the HR team.”

The Content Team, belonging to the Broadcasting Department, was where the PDs were based. Currently, It’s Home Shopping was divided into five teams, from Content Team 1 to Content Team 5. Jae-Yoon was particularly interested in Team 1. There was no specific reason.

It was noticeable that they did not rely exclusively on the Planning Team and took on a variety of responsibilities. This could mean that either they did not get along well with the Planning Team, or they were a team that focused on products over people.

“The PD assignment hasn’t been decided yet. What are you planning to do?”

“Who would want to take it? It’s a project where the responsible person basically becomes the CEO. I would refuse too.”

“Wouldn’t they want to stand out by competing for it?”

“Probably not. It’s too much pressure.”

Jae-Yoon shivered and continued, “If it succeeds, it’s just breaking even.”

“That can’t be. It would be a huge gain for them, a good opportunity to make an impression on the CEO.”

“The risk is too high. That’s how regular team members are. They don’t want to take unnecessary risks. A simple mistake could lead to unwanted attention. It’s not easy to step forward rashly.”

“So, you’re going to choose the person in charge yourself? Ha, that’s an interesting idea. So, that’s why you asked for the PD profiles.”

“If the bait isn’t biting, I have to dive into the water myself. Mr. Lee, please convey to Content Team 1 that I’ll be coming down.” { E/N: I love that. ‘If the bait isn’t biting…’ }

“Who wants to take on MilkBot?”

At the team leader’s sudden question, Content Team 1 became a little noisy. Soon, the murmuring voices stopped as if they had been muted.

“It’s been assigned to our team?”

“Yeah. Probably? Let’s see, the CEO will come down in ten minutes. We need to listen to what he says to know for sure, but since the broadcast is soon, he would not come down for nothing.”

“Who is the person in charge? Was it decided?”

“Mr. Kim, will you do it?”

“Ugh. This is no joke. The May programming schedule. I won’t be able to go home for Parents’ Day.”

“Then how about Mr. Yang? No, you’re not good with home appliances.” Sigh. “Is there really no one who can do it?”

Manager Kim and Manager Yang, they both just looked into the distance. The CEO was coming down in person. It was indigestible. More than half of the team members were patting their chests.

Team Leader Ha Ji-Woon walked between the team members at a brisk pace and said, “Everyone except the PD who’s on air right now, sit down and wait. I got a call from the secretary’s office, so he’ll be down soon. Should we be happy about this, or should we be worried about our lives? Huh? Mr. Kim, what do you think?”

At the team leader’s question, Manager Kim answered coquettishly, “We’re the team that revives dead products. You know exactly what you’re looking at.” He had to give this kind of answer so that the team leader wouldn’t force him to do it.

“You know it well. If you do it wrong, you’ll have to find out the bitter price.”

Even with the team leader’s joke, the atmosphere sank. It was best to just keep an eye on things without saying anything. If you accidentally made eye contact with the team leader, you might end up doing something stupid.

At that moment, the youngest PD got up with a sly smile. “Why don’t you just do it yourself, Mr. Ha?”

“If I do it, will that make you guys feel less pressured?”

“Of course, it would be better than us, right? What’s wrong, Mr. Ha? Are you not confident?”

“Look here. Think about it. Does it make sense for the team leader to take it directly? If the team leader takes it just because a new CEO has taken office, it will look really good. Do you want to be that obvious?”

“That’s true, but…”

“Really? No one? Ah, these guys.”

The employees did not even pay attention to the team leader’s question and just stared at their monitors. For some reason, Excel was displayed on all the monitors. There was nothing to do at a time like this except pretend to work.

“Just assign it somehow to the junior.”

“Are you crazy? Ah, the CEO’s coming here personally, so we can’t just say no.”

Team Leader Ha Ji-Woon took off his hat and ruffled his hair. He had come down after taking a short nap in the duty room after the broadcast in the afternoon. It was rare for the CEO to come down personally. And just his luck to be wearing a cap that day. He felt awkward for no reason.

“The product is right. It’s the one that appeared on the programming schedule this morning. Heh. But it’s great that the CEO is good. The PD hasn’t even been assigned yet, but he’s already set the time.”

“By 3 p.m., not even a golden time slot. It should not be difficult. The important thing is who will be in charge. He said he would come down after 1:30 p.m., so he probably has his schedule organized. Mr. Choi, please print out a simple summary of our team’s schedule.”

Content Team 1 Team Leader Ha Ji-Woon sighed as he looked at his diary. Who should he assign? If he assigned the most senior member, that person would complain; but if he assigned the youngest, he would be worried.

It would be better if the CEO came and picked someone. Since he was the one who kept singing the song of responsibility, he would take care of the employee he chose until the end and finish the broadcast properly.

“Here you go, Mr. Ha.”

“Thanks.”

While the team leader was looking over the documents, the front of the team room became noisy. It seemed like the CEO had arrived.

“Let’s do it as usual. Don’t make it awkward by overdoing it.”

“Mr. Ha, you should hide your expression well, too.”

In the meantime, Jae-Yoon knocked on the team room that said Content Team 1. The door opened, and as Jae-Yoon entered, Content Team 1 Team Leader Ha Ji-Woon greeted him warmly. He had an awkward smile, but his expression was polite.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Min. To have such an esteemed guest in our humble place… Please, take a seat here.”

“I’m sorry to visit you so suddenly. Have a cup of coffee while you’re here.”

The expressions of the employees who saw the Starbucks coffee softened a little. They received a cup of coffee each and sat down at the table.

Jae-Yoon, who picked up the last remaining iced Americano, asked leisurely, “Now, as you might have heard, I’m just checking in case, is there anyone willing to work with me?”