The Day He Left LK Electronics
“Next, I'd like a report from the Tea Team Leader.”
At Young-hoon's call, Yoon Jong-ho, the manager in charge of the tea division, rose from his seat and began his report.
“We've run a number of experiments using the herbal powder you gave us, sir. The results confirmed that it produces exactly the same effect as it does with coffee.”
“Hmm, is that so? There are quite a few different kinds of tea out there. How are you planning to blend the powder in?”
“Broadly speaking, tea can be divided into green tea, black tea, and dried whole-leaf tea. Of course, there are many other varieties beyond those, but at this stage our research has focused on just these three representative types.”
“Really? I honestly thought tea was just one thing… Please, go on.”
“Let me start with green tea, the most widely consumed tea in the world. When the freshly picked leaves are heat-treated, blending the herbal powder in at that stage should pose no problems. As for black tea—the favorite of the British—mixing the powder in during the fermentation process works perfectly well.”
Yoon Jong-ho paused briefly to gather his breath before continuing.
“The real challenge is the naturally dried whole-leaf tea. Mixing the powder with leaves in that raw state is the tricky part. We're still searching for the optimal method, but the most promising approach looks to be laying the tea leaves out on a conveyor belt and spraying the herbal powder over them.”
“Couldn't you just add the powder to the leaves and mix it in directly?”
“We considered that too, but the leaves crumble and break apart, which hurts the product value considerably.”
As befitted a genuine tea expert, Team Leader Yoon's answers came without the slightest hesitation.
“Would it be possible to create tea products tiered by price as well?”
“Absolutely. We can easily split the lineup from premium to budget. That said, we haven't yet done the detailed market research to support it. Once the preparations are complete, we'll report back with our findings.”
“Then… does tea also require one kilogram of herbal powder per ten tons?”
“Green and black tea will likely need amounts very similar to coffee. For the naturally dried teas, we don't have precise figures yet. Once the research institute opens, we plan to study that in earnest.”
“Understood. Keep up the good work.”
Young-hoon believed that the success or failure of the beverage business hinged entirely on how, and in what quantity, they secured their raw materials. The ingredients for the magic seasoning were available in unlimited supply, and a blending ratio of one kilogram per ten tons wasn't bad at all.
Now it was time to hear from the raw material sourcing team.
“Then let's move on to Raw Material Sourcing.”
Like the sourcing manager for the liquor division, the man heading up tea ingredient procurement was someone Young-hoon had never met before, in his early fifties.
“I'm Team Leader Lee Geon-mok, and I'll be overseeing sourcing for both coffee and tea. Let me start with coffee. Currently, global supply of coffee beans exceeds demand, so procurement poses no problems. However, premium beans are in short supply, so we're drawing up plans to secure them in advance.”
“So for coffee, all we need to worry about is locking down the high-end beans?”
“Yes, that's correct.”
“And what about sourcing for tea?”
“In the case of green and black tea, supply far outstrips demand—coffee has simply crowded it out of the market—so sourcing won't be an issue at all. The one exception is when we import raw leaves from China, Japan, Vietnam, or other countries for reprocessing and export. In those cases, we'll need to secure our suppliers well ahead of time.”
“As I mentioned earlier, the big Chinese buyers have said they can supply raw materials as well, so reach out to them. And keep in steady contact with suppliers in Japan, Vietnam, and the other sourcing countries too. Plan ahead and move proactively so that the supply chain runs smoothly from day one.”
“Understood. We'll do exactly that.”
One of the things Young-hoon considered most important right now was bundled products—coffee cup sets and tea sets. Korea had boasted the finest reputation in ceramic craftsmanship since ancient times, and he was confident that pairing cups or teaware with the coffee and tea itself would sell beautifully.
“Managing Director Kim, how goes the search for those bundled products I mentioned before?”
“We're in talks with the ceramics complexes in Icheon, Gwangju, and Yeoju in Gyeonggi Province. The workshops based in those complexes seem to be feeling the economic downturn, because they're responding to our proposal very enthusiastically. Rest assured, we'll do everything in our power to have samples ready for you by February of next year at the latest.”
“Please expedite it as much as you can. I intend to feature the tea sets and coffee cup sets as product placement in the drama I'm producing.”
“Understood. We'll move as fast as possible to meet that schedule.”
“On top of that, I'm also envisioning a high-end, luxury kitchenware set. Our drama has a very strong chance of being exported overseas, which means our on-screen exposure through television will rise accordingly. I want you to create a luxury kitchenware set so breathtaking that foreign viewers, seeing our products on their screens, feel their souls leave their bodies.”
“We hadn't thought that far when we discussed it internally. We'll consult with the ceramics complexes as quickly as we can.”
“No—don't rush. I have no intention of using the luxury kitchenware as product placement in this particular drama, so you can take a more measured approach. Still, I'll need to see some tangible results by the first half of next year.”
“Understood. We'll spare no effort in our preparations.”
“Research team—share the same laboratory as the liquor business team. They say the facility will be fully operational starting in February, so look into moving in together.”
“Yes, sir.”
Chairman Choi offered one final word of encouragement.
“Chairman Jang and I will only be sitting in on these meetings until Kim gets his feet under him. So let's all prepare thoroughly, just as Kim says, to have new products on the market within a year.”
As it had the day before, the meeting stretched on and on. It might have grown a touch tedious, but showing favoritism to anyone was simply not an option. And so, once again, the day's proceedings concluded at the samgyeopsal house.
The delicious pork belly vanished amid happy chatter, and when the meal was over, everyone parted ways wearing contented smiles.
When Young-hoon finished dinner with the beverage team and got home, Hee-joo and Su-jin were in the middle of a full-blown gossip session.
“Young-hoon-ah, you're just now getting home?”
“Yeah. What brings you up here, Noona?”
“Came to watch TV.”
“You have a TV at your own place, don't you?”
“Your brother-in-law insisted on watching sports, so I got kicked out.”
“Huh? Isn't control of the TV channels after dinnertime supposed to belong to the woman of the house?”
“That's what I'm saying! Do you know who the king of our house is these days? Your brother-in-law is strutting around like a total tyrant. And it's all your fault.”
“Oh-ho~ If it's my fault, does that upset you, Noona?”
“Whatever~ Thanks to you, I get to watch TV with Su-jin.”
“So what are you two planning to watch tonight?”
“Love After Separation on MBS. You have no idea how gorgeous Seo Jae-won looks in it. Right, Su-jin?”
“Totally. Jae-won oppa is exactly my type.”
Young-hoon suddenly found himself curious about the reaction to the OST he'd written.
“And how was the music in it?”
“You mean the song Five Girls sang? That song is killer. Hye-in's days of suffering are over—happiness from here on out.”
Just then, Su-jin abruptly cut into the conversation.
“By the way, Unnie, Big Brother's been acting strange lately.”
“Ooh, what? What is it?”
Hee-joo's curiosity flared instantly.
“This morning too, the moment he woke up, he asked me about Love After Separation. I think something's going on between him and Hye-in. And that's not all—Hye-in's mother apparently bought our mom a designer handbag. What do you think that means? She's paying her off, hoping Hye-in will marry into the family. Am I right, Unnie?”
“Whoa, is that so? Then shall the sister detectives step in?”
Women, apparently, never ran out of things to talk about.
Sensing that any further development might hand them ammunition to use against him, Young-hoon decided it was time to shut this down.
“Ladies, keep this up and there'll be no more wine for you. Think it over carefully.”
“Oh, please~ The whole neighborhood knows there's nothing going on between you and Hye-in. Su-jin-ah, are you going to keep spouting nonsense?”
“What's that supposed to mean, Unnie? Whose side are you on?”
“I'm not on anyone's side. Strictly neutral.”
“Brother-in-law will probably be up soon, so wrap up your teasing and head back down.”
“Fine, fine. I'll watch the drama and go.”
“Well then, I'm off to bed. Noona, enjoy the show.”
“Goodnight, sleep well.”
Young-hoon slipped into his room, dodging the suspicious gaze Su-jin was leveling at him. But the thought that tomorrow he would finally be leaving LK Electronics left his heart in a swirl, and sleep would not come easily.
He tossed and turned this way and that, and only after two in the morning did he finally drift off.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Today was the day Young-hoon would effectively leave LK Electronics.
He was scheduled to meet Department Head Kim and the others at eleven in the morning to collect his personal belongings, so there was no need to rush out the door as usual.
First, Young-hoon checked the viewer ratings for last night's episode of Love After Separation.
It had climbed slightly to 31.7 percent, and if the numbers held through episodes three and four, even a 40 percent rating didn't seem out of reach.
He sent congratulations to PD Shin Hye-yoon and PD Lee Hyo-young—and almost in the same instant, his phone rang. It was PD Shin.
“PD Shin, I just sent you a text.”
“I saw it. That's exactly why I'm calling. Well—there's another matter too.”
“Of course. At this pace, I'd say we could hit 35 percent within ten episodes. So what can I do for you?”
“Wang Mimi called me yesterday. She says she's coming to Korea in two weeks. Does CEO Kim know anything about that?”
“She called me yesterday too. Sounds like it's about the drama. When I was on my business trip to China, I left her a copy of the script. I think she's coming to push for a pre-contract. She's so relentless that frankly, I'm exhausted.”
“So Wang Mimi is flying all this way over just that? Because that's not how I read it… Honestly, enemies on every side—I hardly know how to fend them all off.”
At Hye-yoon's loaded sigh, Young-hoon worked up a little courage.
“PD Shin… do you, by any chance, like me?”
“……”
Click.
The call abruptly went dead.
Did I come on too suddenly? Maybe she hung up because she was offended. I'd better not ask things like that again.
Such was Young-hoon—nailing the crucial moment, then fumbling the follow-up yet again.
When Young-hoon had thrown that fastball out of nowhere, Hye-yoon had been so startled that she'd hung up before she even realized it.
Has all the effort I've put in finally paid off? she wondered.
He noticed. He actually noticed.
Just a little more pursuit, she thought, and the final winner would be her.
All the while, utterly unaware of what Young-hoon might be thinking about the call she'd cut off without meaning to.
The fates of the two still glided past each other, missing by inches.