One Hundred Million Won a Potato
"C-Cough. Ji-on, about your posture... maybe sit up a bit..."
Ms. Park Ye-ji carefully interjected, clearly reading the room with extreme anxiety.
Right... this really is awkward, isn't it.
There was no reason to tarnish my homeroom teacher's reputation in front of the superintendent of education. I straightened my back slightly and spoke.
"I was called here without even getting to eat lunch, so I'd like to get to the point quickly."
"Ahem, ahem."
At my words, the woman who was apparently the superintendent's wife cleared her throat several times. At that, the principal grabbed Ms. Park Ye-ji by the sleeve and rose from his seat.
"W-well, it's our lunch hour, haha... We'll step out so you can talk. We'll be right back."
"I'm sorry? Still, we can't just leave Ji-on alone—"
"Tsk. Come on, Ms. Park. Quickly."
Ms. Park Ye-ji watched my condition until the very end. Only after I gave a slight nod did she finally leave the principal's office completely.
Only the two of us remained inside: the madam and me.
Now this makes talking a whole lot easier.
The madam seemed to relax as well, leaning back into her chair. But her gaze was as sharp as her meticulously pressed outfit.
"I'm also someone whose time is valuable, so I won't beat around the bush."
"Please do."
"I came across a certain post on a moms' community forum."
Just as I thought.
She'd come after reading the post Lee Dae-kyung's mother had uploaded.
"There wasn't much to go on, so it took me some time to find you."
That was why she'd shown up nearly a full week after the post had been published.
The woman recalled the post she'd seen a week ago. It mentioned no specific region or person, yet contained some very provocative content. The gist of it was that there was no point being active in that cafe anymore and that she was leaving—but it was a different part that had caught her attention.
A potato that awakens wisdom.
Under normal circumstances, she would have snorted at such nonsense and scrolled right past. But this was the woman whose husband had recently come home with a gift a few weeks ago—Muscle Strengthening Sweet Potatoes.
If there were sweet potatoes that strengthened your muscles, then surely potatoes that made you wise were entirely plausible. And while everyone else laughed and dismissed it, what if she was the one who tracked down that potato first?
...The future of my son and me would open up wide!
From that moment on, she began digging through every trace of the post's author. And she found it.
The author was a parent at Oksoo Middle School in Songgye-eup—and the farmer who had grown the Muscle Strengthening Sweet Potatoes belonged to the very club her son was part of!
She'd wanted to summon the farmer on the spot and demand he sell her potatoes immediately. But the other party was a student, and she was the wife of the education superintendent. A scandal was absolutely out of the question. She had to approach with caution. That was why she'd chosen to be introduced through the principal.
Students usually felt intimidated by their principal or vice principal, so she'd assumed going through him would give her the upper hand.
She realized right now that that assumption had been a complete miscalculation.
"You have an interesting way of saying you did a background check on me."
"...Hoho. It is a rather important matter, after all."
A matter far too important to concede to anyone else. Her son becoming smarter than the other children—that was a crucial step toward better admissions prospects, a better life.
"So. How much will you sell me those potatoes for? I want to buy every single one you've produced so far. And if possible, everything you grow going forward, too."
Monopoly comes first. Growing potatoes took three months, so she could always make more money in the meantime—and her son would grow smarter ahead of everyone else.
But once again, she had misjudged.
"Everything going forward, too. That's quite bold of you."
"So name your price and let's end this conversation."
"I agree on that point, but there's a problem."
"A problem? If it's something trivial, I'll fix it no matter what—"
"It's not trivial."
I responded with easy composure. Whoever got impatient here, it wasn't going to be me. Besides, she seemed plenty greedy herself. In other words: bad at negotiation, and accustomed only to giving orders and barking commands.
A snort of laughter escaped me. The madam's brow furrowed.
No matter how hard she scowled, nothing about the situation would change. This game had been won before it even began. The only question was whether it would be a grand victory or a mediocre one.
And I had no intention of settling for a mediocre result from a match I'd already won.
"First, these aren't potatoes I grew alone, so selling you everything is difficult. Second, our potato seeds are rather special—they only come into production once a week, and I'm not sure you'd be able to pay every single time."
"...!"
"You don't even know the scale of our field's production. Isn't it a bit rash to promise to buy everything that comes out in the future?"
"Th-that's..."
It was a fair point. The funds she'd prepared were limited, and she didn't yet know the scale of the deal.
Mrs. Kwak, wife of the superintendent, bit down on her lip. This insolent brat. The longer they talked, the more she felt like she was being strung along—a far cry from what she'd expected walking in.
Just as Mrs. Kwak's temper was reaching its peak, the boy seated across from her suddenly changed his demeanor and spoke carefully. He leaned forward, stretching his upper body out, and murmured as though sharing a deeply confidential matter.
"That reminds me—actually, today is day one of the harvest."
"...So?"
"I was suggesting you come along and see the scale for yourself. All the club members are planning to gather there too. Besides, inspecting the goods in person before making a deal is just common sense, isn't it?"
"..."
"We can't keep having this conversation with the teachers hanging around. Let's talk properly there."
Once again, it was a reasonable point. Mrs. Kwak let out a deep sigh and rose from her seat.
"What time, and where do I go?"
"So that madam chased you all the way here? For real?"
Choi Seo-dan whispered right up against my ear.
Ugh, that tickles.
"Hey, back off a little when you talk."
I pushed her away and looked over the other kids. Ever since they'd learned that the sharp-featured madam trailing right on their heels was the wife of the Jeonbuk education superintendent, they all seemed distinctly uncomfortable.
Park Chi-woo, tense beyond all reason for some unknown reason, was swinging his left arm and left leg in perfect sync.
"So what are you going to do? Sell or not?"
"We haven't even set a price yet. Why are you already deciding?"
"Oh, right. You don't even know how much you're selling for yet."
After a long stretch of whispering back and forth, we arrived at the field. The madam looked worn out from walking so long in her heels. I glanced at her, then spread out my hand and gestured toward the field.
"Well, here it is."
Spread out before us was a field of roughly 300 pyeong. And every last patch of it was planted with potatoes. Perhaps because it was harvest season, the potato leaves—greener than usual—glistened in the sunlight.
At the sight, the madam's footsteps came to a brief halt.
"...This whole place is a potato field?"
"There's more farmland behind that warehouse."
It wasn't planted exclusively with potatoes, but I hadn't lied either. At my answer, Mrs. Kwak sucked in a breath.
How many plants is that, all told...?
And each of those plants would be bearing multiple potatoes. Mrs. Kwak decided to cling to her last hope: the price, still undecided, since they'd never been officially sold before. The unit price that this child, knowing nothing, would decide on right here and now!
"H-how much were you planning to sell them for?"
"...Hmm."
I took my time, looking over the club members. The kids were discussing among themselves how much they ought to charge. That was only because none of them yet knew the potatoes' true value. The only people here who understood what these potatoes were worth were me and Lee Dae-kyung—and we were also the only two who'd actually eaten them.
"I've sold other farm produce before, so I'll decide the price. That okay with you?"
Lee Dae-kyung nodded at my words.
"Of course."
"Mm, that's better. So how much are you selling for?"
Choi Seo-dan chimed in as well. I could feel Mrs. Kwak's gaze on me, her breath held tight.
Goodness, she's so eager she's about to pass out.
I flashed her a smile and spoke.
"Hmm, let's start at 100,000 won a potato?"
"Gasp."
"Whoa-hoo..."
The other kids clapped their hands over their mouths. Choi Seo-dan looked a little startled too. The only ones who found the price agreeable were Lee Dae-kyung and the madam.
100,000 won. For an ordinary middle schooler, that was money you'd hardly see outside of the holidays. But as the value of a potato that made you smarter? Different story entirely. Cheaper than the Chongmyeongtang herbal brain tonic they brew at traditional medicine shops, at least.
That's a deal I could live with, no?
The madam's face turned triumphant, and she let out a small, satisfied laugh.
Mm. Not happy with that.
"150,000 won."
Being treated like some naive country bumpkin—Choi Seo-dan handled that job for me just fine. I had zero intention of being generous to anyone who looked down on me.
At the sudden 50,000-won jump, the madam's face twisted.
"Excuse me, Seo Ji-on. This isn't a joke."
"200,000 won."
"...Ji-on!"
"Oh dear, my mind just changed again."
Raising your voice at me, are we?
I beamed broadly. Anything I grew with my own hands was worth every penny, no matter how steep the price. The flustered madam stammered.
"Wh-what do you mean, your mind changed?"
"I don't feel like selling anymore."
"Are you messing with me?!"
"Messing with you? I'm dead serious. If you've come to do business, you should fix your attitude first. Who's the one here who came wanting to buy, madam?"
Grrind—
I could hear her teeth grinding. She must be quite furious. I surveyed the field. More flowers than this morning had bloomed and already begun to fall.
"Selling to you started feeling like a waste."
"...How many people do you think can actually afford 200,000 won a potato? No—even 250,000?"
Oh, she's dropped the honorifics now.
"Hmmmm..."
I drew out my response, pretending to weigh her words. The madam smiled as though she'd won. I've been waiting for this moment.
"I suppose it is a bit pricey, isn't it? The private-education craze is absolutely insane these days—and I'm one of them, so I'd know better than anyone, you see?"
"You—!"
The madam sucked in a sharp breath.
This is where I drive in the wedge.
"One hundred million won a potato. Or something of equivalent value would work too."
"...What?"
The club members chattering quietly behind me went dead silent in an instant.
One hundred million won. What is this—not the name of the neighbor's dog? 100 million??
It sounded exactly like this: no matter how much money she brought, he had no intention of selling the potatoes willingly.
"Hey!!"
Unable to contain her anger, Mrs. Kwak shouted.
"If you don't want to sell, just say so!"
"I do want to sell, though? Ideally, I'd love for you to buy plenty. Money would work, or land, for that matter."
That way I could use the money to buy more fields and grow even more potatoes, after all.
"Ha—so this was the real point all along?"
"Nope. What kind of money-grubber do you take me for? Oh! There's always the option of experiencing the grueling farm work yourself. Once you understand just how hard these kids worked to grow them..."
"You're telling me, right now, to get my hands dirty with filth and labor?"
Wow. How can one single sentence be that outrageously disrespectful?
"Would it be alright if I took that as a remark insulting every member of our club?"
"...Wh-what? That's not what I meant!"
Mrs. Kwak began to babble incoherently. If those kids took offense—if even one of them decided to throw down a stubborn "I'm not selling, then!"—
I can't believe I have to pander to these little brats!!
Creeeak.
She seethed. But she had to hold it in, for now. She had to get those potatoes!
I can see every single thought going through your head.
How can someone's inside and outside match up so perfectly?
I put on the most innocent expression I could manage and asked,
"Since you feel that strongly about it, I'll give you a chance to prove it."
"P-prove it?"
"Yes. Dig up the potatoes you want to buy yourself. The 100 million won apiece stays the same."
What kind of nonsense is that?!
It was the exact moment Mrs. Kwak was about to scream it aloud.
"Otherwise, no sale. So what'll it be? Are you buying, or not?"
"You little...!"
Mrs. Kwak squeezed her eyes shut and then spoke.
"L-lend me a shovel..."