After hearing that reporters had shown up outside the production press conference venue, I left the grand ballroom with Secretary Chief Yoo Ye-Sung from the secretary's office. About thirty reporters were arguing with hotel staff in the corridor leading to the ballroom.
"How dare you block reporters? Do you think you'll get away with this?"
"Hey, move aside while we're still asking nicely! Huh?"
The reporters' behavior was more like that of gangsters than journalists, and the Daechon Hotel employees, most of them in their early twenties, looked thoroughly uncomfortable.
"You still can't go inside."
At that moment, the oldest member of the group, Entertainment All Times reporter Baek Sung-Beom, forty-five years old this year, spotted me and shouted, "Huh? It's Chief Jung!"
Only then did the reporters stop arguing with the staff and turn toward me.
"Hey, Chief Jung! Get these out of the way."
'Did they just call the employees 'these' as if they're some kind of object?'
The absurdity of it made me let out a dry laugh.
I said, "I heard everyone was busy eating galbitang and couldn't make it. Did you all finally finish your meals and come over?"
Baek Sung-Beom answered on behalf of the group. "Come on, the galbitang thing was just an excuse. We got held up at another press conference and only managed to get here now. We ran all the way over without even a chance to catch our breath, but we ended up later than expected. Sorry about that."
'What a shameless lie.'
The excuse was so ridiculous that I got straight to the point. "The only people I invited here today were 'real' reporters who would stand their ground and do their jobs without bowing to outside pressure. So I'd appreciate it if all of you turned around and left."
The reason these entertainment reporters, who hadn't shown up earlier, had suddenly appeared now was simple. The production press conference for Land of Happiness had become such a hot topic that they were willing to ignore orders from their newspaper owners, who in turn answered to media conglomerate shareholders.
Even so, I had no intention whatsoever of letting people who had already become my enemies into the venue and helping them boost their article views.
At that moment, Do Jin-Beom, a forty-three-year-old reporter from Sunday Top News, realized that I regarded them as trashporters rather than real reporters and shouted angrily, "Hey, Chief Jung. You just called us trashporters, didn't you? Didn't you?"
I shrugged. "Do you really need me to confirm it for you? That's a strange hobby."
"You little punk! I told you we were late because we were covering another press conference! Didn't you hear me?"
"It's currently 8:20 p.m. This event was originally scheduled to start at seven. And you're calling that 'a little late'?"
"W-Well... yeah!"
"Let's be honest. You didn't want to come. Then it became a hot topic, and you showed up hoping to suck some views out of it. Like leeches."
"Hey, Jung Yoon-Ho. You're really running your mouth now. Don't cross the line."
"You're talking about crossing the line when you're the ones who crossed it first?"
"You little—"
As the argument escalated, Baek Sung-Beom stepped in and stopped Do Jin-Beom. "Reporter Do, calm down first. Now that I think about it, we should apologize for what we did wrong."
"Sunbae!"
"Tsk."
When Baek Sung-Beom frowned, Do Jin-Beom clenched his fists and stepped back. "Damn it. Fine!"
Baek Sung-Beom nodded before turning to me. "Chief Jung, I'm sorry about this. Trashporters, leeches... yeah, fine. I'll admit that much."
Even after his apology, I said nothing.
Yet Baek Sung-Beom tried to smooth everything over as if it were no big deal. "So let's leave it at that. I'll write a favorable article for you."
I let out a scoffing laugh at his offer to write a favorable article in exchange for letting them inside. Baek Sung-Beom had spent twenty years working in entertainment journalism. More than anyone else, I knew he was a master of stabbing people in the back.
"Mr. Baek. Did you think I wouldn't know what happened after you came to the Hwaranjeon production press conference, enjoyed all the hospitality, and then turned around and stabbed us in the back?"
Shortly after attending the Hwaranjeon press conference, Baek Sung-Beom had published three articles.
[Jung Yoo-Jin's Sophisticated Appearance. Is She Really Suitable for a Historical Drama Lead? (Reporter Go Song-Jung, Entertainment All Times)]
[Jung Miso Cast as Young Princess Yu-Hwa. Allegations of Special Treatment During Auditions. Are Stage Mothers Influencing Child Actor Auditions? (Reporter Bae Yoon-Taek, Entertainment All Times)]
[Hwaranjeon. A Rookie Writer's Reckless Distortion of History. Historical Dramas Are Not Fantasy. (Reporter Oh Chil-Myung, Entertainment All Times)]
The articles had been published under other reporters' names, but I knew very well that Baek Sung-Beom had written every one of them. That was his usual method. He would publish articles under the names of junior reporters, accept hospitality from entertainment companies, then quietly take the articles down afterward.
"W-What do you mean I stabbed anyone in the back?!" stuttered Baek Sungk-Beom.
"Everyone already knows, so you can stop the act. Besides, the MeTubers inside the ballroom will give far more professional reviews than the people standing here, so you can all head back."
Having his value as a reporter openly denied, Baek Sung-Beom began trembling with rage. "Hey! No matter what, those bastards are just amateurs fooling around alone in their rooms! We're professionals!"
Just a moment ago, the MeTuber Drama Teller, who had 2.02 million subscribers, had shown up with a broadcasting PD who had ten years of experience, along with a full team of television writers. If anyone deserved to be called professionals, it was those people, practically running a one-person broadcasting station. The idea that these tabloid writers were the professionals was laughable.
Unable to hold back, I quoted a famous phrase. "Have you ever heard of 'Video Killed the Radio Star'?"
It was the title of a song released by the British new-wave band The Buggles in the 1980s, a historic song that played during the launch of Hong Kong MTV. The phrase itself symbolized the end of old media brought about by the arrival of new media.
At that moment, Baek Sung-Beom realized exactly what I meant—that the era of people who only pushed pens around was over—and his expression darkened. "So we're the radio stars, and the MeTubers are the video stars? You little punk... Are you calling us relics?"
'Relics? That would've been a compliment.'
Lately, people had taken it a step further and were saying, "MeTube killed the video star." These days, everyone watched MeTube videos on their phones. Compared to that, reporters from the radio-star era were closer to stagnant, rotten water than seasoned veterans.
In any case, when I didn't bother refuting his accusation, Baek Sung-Beom growled. "Damn it. Fine. Let's see how this plays out. I'll show you—no, we'll show you—just how terrifying the pen of a veteran can be!"
He glared at me as if he wanted to kill me on the spot, but that wasn't how threats worked.
I said nonchalantly, "There's something far scarier than a pen. Apparently you don't know that."
"And what's that?"
"Information."
"What information?"
I immediately turned toward Yoo Ye-Sung from Daechon Inc.'s chairman's office, who had come out with me. "Mr. Yoo. Mr. Baek Sung-Beom is an assistant department head at a media company, right? Daechon Hotel sends him complimentary hotel vouchers every month, doesn't it?"
Yoo Ye-Sung nodded. "Ah... yes, that's correct."
"And other hotels offer similar perks too, don't they?"
"Yes. Someone at his level in a media company is generally treated on par with a department manager at a major corporation. Naturally, other hotels provide complimentary stays and discount vouchers as well."
"And the person who receives those gifts can give them to anyone they want?"
"Of course. They're free to share them with anyone."
Upon hearing our conversation, the hoobae reporters who had followed him immediately began murmuring among themselves.
"Wait. The hotel discount vouchers he gave me were free?"
"And then he made me buy him drinks?"
"What a scumbag... Is he really our sunbae after pulling that?"
"Baek sunbae. Don't tell me that hotel voucher you sold me was one you got for free?"
In an instant, Baek Sung-Beom found himself cornered. "N-No, that's not..."
As Baek Sung-Beom stumbled over his words, Do Jin-Beom, who had stepped back earlier, jumped in to stop the hoobaes. "Hey! This isn't the time for us to start fighting among ourselves! You'll all get those perks once you've put in enough years, so just wait your turn!"
"Mr. Do. Even so, this isn't right!"
Do Jin-Beom shouted, "You little shits! Can't you read the room? I'll make sure it's handled fairly, so shut your mouths!"
The hoobae reporters were clearly unhappy, but faced with their sunbae's overbearing attitude, they reluctantly fell silent.
After forcefully suppressing the situation, Do Jin-Beom turned away from me and looked at Yoo Ye-Sung. "Mr. Yoo, you better think carefully. If you handle this like this, you'll be making enemies of all us reporters."
Yoo Ye-Sung asked, "Are you... threatening Daechon right now?"
"It's less of a threat and more of some friendly advice. If reporters turn against you, wouldn't Daechon Inc.'s succession process become a little noisy? Local elections are coming up soon too. If things start making headlines, Chairman Kim Ae-Ryeon could have a difficult time."
Normally, entertainment reporters didn't deal with social or political issues. However, Sunday Top News, where Do Jin-Beom worked, was different. It was a weekly magazine published every Sunday, covering entertainment, rumors, politics, and corporate scandals. Which meant Do Jin-Beom was openly threatening them. He was threatening to interfere with Daechon Inc.'s succession plans.
Yoo Ye-Sung looked at Do Jin-Beom as though he were ridiculous. "So what you're saying is that if our chairman wants a smooth succession process, we should cooperate with you?"
"More or less. But if you simply open the doors to the press conference hall, we won't cover the succession process too aggressively either. So make your choice. Is it Chief Jung, or is it us?"
At that moment, Yoo Ye-Sung took a deep breath and suddenly roared, "Are you out of your damn mind?! Huh?!"
The forty-three-year-old Do Jin-Beom's eyes widened at the informal tone coming from the thirty-eight-year-old chief secretary.
"Excuse me?"
"Mr. Jung is going to become a major shareholder of Daechon Media! And you're talking about making a choice? We treated you people like reporters, and now you think Daechon is some kind of joke, huh?"
"Chief Jung is... a shareholder of Daechon Media...?"
"That's right! And what was that about sabotaging the succession process? Fine! Go ahead and try! I'll sue every last one of you trashporters and make sure you're eating prison food!"
The previous night, all of the directors who had supported former Chairman Sung Hak-Soo had already been arrested. In other words, the opposing faction had effectively disappeared, so there was little that could seriously disrupt Daechon Inc.'s succession process. The reporters, unaware of that fact, had only succeeded in provoking Yoo Ye-Sung's fury.
As the reporters hesitated awkwardly, Yoo Ye-Sung finally turned toward the security team lead who had just arrived. "Team Lead Park. Sweep all these trashporters out of here."
"Yes, sir!"
Park Hoon-Sik, the security team lead, and the suited men lined up behind him quickly surrounded the reporters.
"Please follow instructions and leave. If you refuse, you'll be removed by force."
The reporters instinctively clustered together and backed away as though being driven by hunters.
Do Jin-Beom made one final desperate attempt. "Mr. Yoo! Are you really going through with this?"
Yoo Ye-Sung answered without even blinking. "Yeah. Go ahead and try me. And remember this, Reporter Do. The moment you walk out that door, I'm calling the owner of Sunday Top News. If they don't fire you, every Daechon advertisement will be removed from that magazine."
"W-What kind of..."
"You wanted to go all in, didn't you? What, you weren't prepared for this?"
"That's..." Do Jin-Beom's face turned pale as he frantically searched for a way out. But after realizing there wasn't one, he clenched his fists and bowed ninety degrees. "I'm... sorry. I got carried away and couldn't tell the difference between what I should and shouldn't have said."
"If you're going to bow this easily, why pick a fight in the first place?"
"I'm... sorry."
After that, Do Jin-Beom didn't say another word.
Yoo Ye-Sung clicked his tongue and said, "What a spineless bastard. You're an eyesore, so get out of here."
With his head hanging low, Do Jin-Beom was escorted away along with the other reporters.
After taking a moment to calm himself, Yoo Ye-Sung turned to me with an apologetic expression. "I'm sorry, Mr. Jung. I accidentally mentioned your stake in Daechon Media."
I shook my head. "It's fine. The amount was large enough that it would've been disclosed anyway. Besides, thanks to that, dealing with the reporters ended quickly."
"No. You'd already done all the work. I just finished things off. But what are you going to do now? The reporters backed off for the moment, but they'll keep causing trouble."
"I have a solution."
I smiled and called Han Yoo-Sik, the president of Mirinae Productions.
"Mr. Han. You're watching the Land of Happiness production press conference, right?"
-Yeah, I've been watching.
"I'm thinking of running tomorrow's event online as well. Would that be alright with you?"
-So you're saying we should boycott the reporters from our side too?
"Yes."
-Okay. Let's do it. I'll handle persuading KBC.
"Thank you."
After ending the call, I turned to Yoo Ye-Sung. "I'm planning to exclude those trashporters from every event until they surrender completely."
'Video Killed the Radio Star? No. Jung Yoon-Ho Killed the Trashporters.'
***
It was Saturday morning. Less than twenty-four hours had passed, yet we had already comfortably surpassed the viewership number I promised President Kim Gab-Soo.
Even so, the overwhelming majority of reporters involved in the boycott were still completely ignoring Land of Happiness. As a result, only Reporter Choi So-Hye was writing articles about the drama on the entertainment section of the portal sites.
[Land of Happiness Online Press Conference Surpasses 200,000 Live Viewers! (Star Exclusive Reporter Choi So-Hye)]
[Jung Miso's Possessed-Level Performance as a Paralyzed Character! Viewers Captivated by Footage of Her Dragging Her Motionless Body While Crying Out in Despair!]
[Land of Happiness Press Conference Videos Surpass 2.2 Million Combined Views!]
[Jung Miso's Limited-Edition Doll Revealed in Full!]
...
Fortunately, all five of Choi So-Hye's articles about Land of Happiness had made it into the portal entertainment Top 10 rankings. That was thanks to the links shared by MeTubers.
[Drama Teller (2.12 Million Subscribers)]
[Land of Happiness Press Conference]
Views: 723,000
(Content)
-Exclusive Reveal of Jung Miso's Audition Footage for the Role of Yoon Kkot-Nim!
-The Incredible Acting Skills of Child Acting Prodigy Jung Miso.
(Link: Article) Land of Happiness Online Press Conference Surpasses 200,000 Live Viewers!
(Link: Article) Jung Miso's Possessed-Level Performance as a Paralyzed Character! Viewers Captivated by Footage of Her Dragging Her Motionless Body While Crying Out in Despair!
...
Most of the major MeTubers had focused their reviews on Miso's audition footage, causing her acting ability to become a hot topic with the public once again. On top of that, viewers who had fallen in love with Miso had started flooding the comments section of an article that repeated Writer Nam Jong-Ok's ridiculous remarks, despite nobody asking them to.
[Writer Nam Jong-Ok: "Even for Jung Miso, portraying the complex emotions of Yoon Kkot-Nim would likely be difficult." (Sunday Top News, Reporter Do Jin-Beom)]
-Given the fast-paced production schedule of daily dramas, demanding such a high level of acting from a child performer is little different from abuse by the production staff and writer Lee Ji-Yeon.
The script should be revised immediately...
(Comments)
-What is this old lady talking about? Doesn't she watch MeTube? She should watch Miso's acting before giving interviews. The kid's doing great.
-Writer Nam Jong-Ok, a typical makjang writer who constantly relies on rushed scripts, has some nerve judging others...
-Maybe focus on your own work first, Mrs. Nam Jong-Ok.
-This reporter must be an anti-fan of Nam Jong-Ok. LOL. Publishing an article like this right now?
...
The reach was insane. The audience was even defending the comments section for us.
Just as I was feeling pleased that inviting major MeTubers instead of reporters had been exactly the right decision, the sound of crinkling packaging came from beside me, followed by Ju Yung-In's exhausted voice.
Rustle. Rustle.
"Oppa, help me out here."
At seven o'clock that evening, KBC's Haze would be holding its production press conference. Unlike yesterday, this time we had excluded reporters from the start and invited only major MeTubers.
Today, we were planning to give away two commemorative gifts: a hanbok-clad girl doll modeled after Illyeong, and a cute hanbok grandfather doll representing Wolryeong. After hearing about it, Ju Yung-In had come over to help with the packaging.
Wearing pajama pants, she sat on the first-floor living room of my house, helping wrap the gifts. It was partly because she had to include her autograph on the signed cards being packaged with them.
When Ju Yung-In asked for help, I tilted my head. "You want me to help too?"
"Yes. Three hundred of these is way too many."
At that moment, Miso firmly objected from beside her. "Auntie Yung-In! No. You have to wrap them yourself for them to count as gifts!"
"Miso, it's okay to get a little help from talent agent oppa for things like this."
"No! That's cheating."
Faced with Miso's unwavering stance, Ju Yung-In turned toward Park Sang-Gyu, who played Wolryeong. "Sang-Gyu oppa, say something, please. Come on."
Park Sang-Gyu simply smiled and increased the speed of his wrapping.
Rustle. Rustle.
Watching him, Ju Yung-In let out a deep sigh. "Seriously, why is everyone so inflexible? Am I the only one suffering here? Really?"
I swallowed the words, 'Yeah, you're the only one,' and replied instead. "Then just stop helping. Why come all the way here and make yourself suffer?"
"Can the lead actress really skip out? Besides... if I quit, Miso would probably take my autograph out too."
Miso nodded as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Yep. Then it wouldn't be a gift Auntie prepared."
"See?" Clicking her tongue, Ju Yung-In returned to wrapping.
For about two minutes, everyone worked in silence. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, Ju Yung-In looked at me.
"By the way, oppa. Are you really going to let those reporters keep publishing nonsense articles?"
"No. I'm waiting for them to come crawling back on their knees first."
"The reporters? On their knees? No way. Those people are unbelievably stubborn."
"I'm even more stubborn than they are, so it'll happen. Besides, they should be contacting us to negotiate any time now..."
Buzz.
No sooner had I finished speaking than my phone rang.
[Caller ID: Chairman Kim Ae-Ryeon, Daechon Inc.]
Ju Yung-In glanced at the screen. "What? It's Mrs. Chairman."
I chuckled and put the call on speaker so Ju Yung-In could hear. "Hello, Mrs. Chairman."
-Chief Jung, are you busy by any chance?
"Not at all. Things are fairly relaxed right now. I'm supervising the packaging of gifts for the Haze press conference."
-Supervising the packaging?
Ju Yung-In froze with an incredulous expression. Pointing at the dolls, I mouthed silently, 'Get back to work, Ju Yung-In.' Her eyes widened as if to say, 'Am I some kind of slave?'
'Well, voluntarily, maybe.'
Ignoring her entirely, I answered Kim Ae-Ryeon. "It's a long story. Anyway, what did you call about?"
-Oh, the media owners want to have lunch with you and me together today. Do you have time?
"Are they planning to apologize?"
-No, they didn't say anything like that.
So this wasn't a declaration of surrender over yesterday's incident. It sounded more like they intended to make me kneel. Unfortunately for them, I had no intention of kneeling before anyone. Because I was the only regressor in the world. And I knew their futures better than they knew them themselves.
'The ones who'll be kneeling... are you, you media tycoons!'