Chapter 62
Chapter 62
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: That Person Can't Be Edited Out
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“Hmm...”
The Beasts' leader, Park Chan-su.
He frowned slightly as he skimmed through the documents placed in front of him.
Documents for the program he was serving as a judge on.
Child Star.
At a glance, there were no issues with the contents of the documents themselves, but Chan-su, who knew the inside story, was well aware that they were merely superficial decorations.
'The intent itself wasn't bad... but the problem is that too many leeches got attached during production.'
To produce a program, money was needed first and foremost.
As such, broadcast stations covered the necessary funds through so-called sponsorships, providing advertising and various other perks in return.
In that regard, Child Star had also secured a significant amount of sponsorships to prepare the program, which was nothing out of the ordinary and not worth criticizing on its own... but the issue was that the process had ended up compromising the program's fundamental purpose.
'The investors started shoving their kids in, and things got seriously tangled. The PD should have stepped in to block it beforehand...'
However, the PD who should have prevented the situation was blinded by the massive sums offered by the investors, resulting in Child Star devolving from a program for discovering promising talents into a stage for rich parents to show off their children.
Even before the official auditions had begun, more than half of the finalists were already locked in, and the winner was predetermined.
If word got out that a terrestrial broadcast—not some cable channel—was pulling this stunt, the entertainment industry would erupt in chaos, but it seemed the money-crazed PD's head was too clouded for such concerns.
Nevertheless, despite having grasped all these facts,
Park Chan-su was pretending not to know for now, quietly doing his job and maintaining silence.
At this point, any attempt on his part would only lead to him being ousted as a judge.
To change this absurd situation...
He had no choice but to bide his time a little longer.
'Please... our little one has to do well...'
“Yes. Yes, of course. Don't worry, President. I'll make sure to take good care of your daughter.”
A man ended the call with a polite voice, bowing at the waist.
His gaze then turned to the set in front of him.
The venue prepared for the auditions.
Gazing at it, the man frowned slightly.
'Damn... things are going south right from the start...'
Child Star's PD,
Ma Joo-seok.
In front of his eyes were gathered numerous children for the auditions and their parents.
This should have been a moment to rejoice over the attention his broadcast was receiving, but...
The current situation only filled Ma Joo-seok's heart with deep discomfort.
'Way too many showed up. Even after controlling the announcement like that. Parents are all the same...'
Ma Joo-seok, who had accepted huge sums from investors and decided to rig the results.
He had already bought off the production staff and judges, so if things proceeded as planned, there would be no hitches.
The problem was the eyes of the public watching.
Audition programs were already drawing massive interest, and on terrestrial TV no less, so once it aired, there would be an enormous audience.
In such circumstances, if the rigging was too obvious, it could lead to serious backlash, so Ma Joo-seok had taken various measures from the outset.
Deliberately delaying the audition announcement to minimize participants was one such effort, but
regrettably, the number of people gathered here was substantial—far from few.
Even with that short announcement period, hyenas who sniffed out the opportunity had flocked in.
And among them, there was a good chance that truly talented children were mixed in, not just those dragged along by deluded parents.
That was supposed to be what this program was for—discovering such kids—but
in the current situation, they were nothing more than impurities to be filtered out as much as possible.
Feeling inwardly irritated that his plans were already warping from the start,
Ma Joo-seok subtly pulled out his phone and sent a message.
– Proceed as planned.
Now that they were this far, there was no intention of turning back.
Life was all about that one big break anyway.
Driven by greed to grab a hefty share this time, he pushed forward with the plan, bracing for the noise it would cause from the outset.
But then...
– PD, there's a bit of a problem...
– What?
– Over at the entrance...
A message from one of the bribed judges.
Ma Joo-seok PD turned his gaze toward the spot in question,
and the wrinkles on his already furrowed forehead deepened further.
'No way... why is that person here...'
The numerous people gathered at the set.
Each one holding a child in one arm as they took their seats, their faces etched with intense tension.
A rare big opportunity prepared by MBS.
If they did well here, it would bring their child's dream of becoming a singer one step closer, so the people's eyes—especially the parents'—burned with fierce determination.
'We have to win.'
'Can't win, but at least make sure everyone sees the face...'
'It's okay... she'll do great. Our daughter's a genius.'
Waiting anxiously for the auditions to begin amid the tense atmosphere.
At that moment—
“Huh?”
“Wh-what?”
“That person... no way?”
A bewildered murmur escaped someone's lips.
Peoples' gazes began to converge in that direction...
And immediately after, expressions of 'surprise' appeared on their faces.
At this instant, a mother-daughter pair entering through the audition venue's entrance.
Despite their unassuming, everyday clothes,
they emanated a sparkling aura as if haloed in light, instantly capturing the attention of everyone present.
The mother and daughter who completely shifted the audition hall's atmosphere just by appearing.
The momentary silence that followed ended with slightly noisy voices.
“Oh my goodness... isn't that her?”
“Yeah... Queen Dowager.”
“Han-seo Big Brother!”
“The princess next to her... right?”
“No way they're auditioning too...”
The Queen Dowager, Sovereign of Deception, now known to every drama fan.
Especially among the drama's core audience of middle-aged women, Han-seo and the Queen Dowager remained vividly etched in their minds even half a year after the finale.
Particularly Han-seo's utterly sweet acting still stirred strange tremors in their hearts to this day.
The fact that the person responsible was here, right before their eyes—
For some, it sparked slight excitement as fans before parents;
for others, deep wariness.
'How... seeing real Han-seo Big Brother...'
'Should I get an autograph?'
'Sigh... up close, the face is just different. Healing just looking, unlike my husband.'
'...Feels like a massive rival just showed up...'
'Even with bribes... isn't this dangerous?'
If it were someone unknown, it might be different,
but at present, the weight of the name 'Chae Soo-jeong' was anything but light.
Of course, separately from that, it was her daughter 'Chae Seon-hwa' auditioning,
but she too had already shown her face in short but impactful supporting roles in The Queen Dowager, Sovereign of Deception and Reply 1989, so she was somewhat recognized.
And this fact naturally forced Ma Joo-seok and the production team into one essential concession.
'Cutting Chae Soo-jeong here would be insane.'
'She's a hot actress right now. Editing her out is basically saying we're done with broadcasting...'
Honestly, most situations could just be edited out.
Even if a real dark horse appeared, not airing it at all would bury them.
Parents might complain, but ordinary people ranting on broadcast had minimal impact.
If noise grew, edit to paint them as troublemakers.
However, this method was unusable against Chae Soo-jeong and her daughter, who already enjoyed overflowing recognition in the industry.
No matter how rotten things were, as program producers, they couldn't spit out such prime material.
Besides, stations were already glaring with envy, desperate for even one interview with Chae Soo-jeong,
and a single misstep from her could plunge the situation into the abyss.
A precarious spot where rival stations could pounce.
Amid the gut-wrenching tension from this unexpected nuclear bomb,
Ma Joo-seok and the others could only cling to one other fact.
'Well... no matter what, how well can a kid like that sing.'
'Have to air it, but what matters is vocal skill.'
'Depending on how it goes, might even help our fair image...'
Kids' singing skills were all middling unless a true genius.
Thus, they decided to eliminate this burdensome lump with the strictest, fairest judging here.
And right after.
“Alright, let's begin! We'll proceed with auditions by the numbers distributed earlier, so please come forward in order.”
With the host's energetic declaration,
the main auditions commenced.