Chapter 140
Chapter 140
Did You Have a Change of Heart?
< Did you have a change of heart or something? >
“Hey, over here.”
Yu Yeon-seo waved at Park Seung-hwan, who was shuffling over from a distance. With a face that screamed ‘I drank way too much last night,’ he squinted at the ever-handsome Yu Yeon-seo, who showed no signs of fatigue.
“Hey, you don’t even have a hangover?”
“I didn’t drink that much.”
“What do you mean, you didn’t drink that much?”
Someone had kept refilling his glass whenever it was empty. He’d downed every one, yet everyone else had been practically dragged home by their managers.
‘It must be the soul’s influence.’
In exchange for his enhanced strength and heightened senses, it was a bit of a shame that he couldn’t get drunk even if he wanted to. But thinking back on the scene his acquaintances had made early that morning, he figured it was probably better not to get drunk after all.
“Let’s go in.”
As he was about to follow Park Seung-hwan into the restaurant, Yu Yeon-seo took a step back.
“Is this really the meeting place?”
“Nothing beats hot soup for a hangover. It might not look like much, but this place is a hidden gem.”
Park Seung-hwan went inside and sat down in front of a man who already had his head buried in an earthenware bowl, eating heartily. The man took a large gulp of broth and let out a refreshed sigh.
“Ahhh, did you drink a lot yesterday?”
“Yeah, totally.”
“I figured. There’s an article out about you being wasted at the pub.”
“What?”
Park Seung-hwan hastily picked up his phone, and Yu Yeon-seo craned his neck to glance at the screen.
The ‘Guest House’ Members Reunite at BIFF
[★SNS] Choi Jun-yeong Flaunts Enduring Friendship with ‘Guest House’ Members, “I-jun, we miss you!”
└ Ugh, you can practically smell the booze from the picture.
└ Ah, these old guys reek of alcohol LOL
└ How is Yu Yeon-seo the only one who looks sober? Is it ’cause he’s young? ㅋㅋ
└ They’re still hanging out, that’s cool. They must be really close.
└ Guest House Season 2 pls
└ What, Yu Yeon-seo promised to be a guest at a concert? So he’s going to sing?
└└ Ugh, getting concert tickets is already a bloodbath...
“How does this even make the news? This is all your fault.”
“Well, my face is rather hard not to photograph. Hello, Director.”
Ignoring Park Seung-hwan’s blame, he smiled and greeted the director. The director wiped his hands on his thighs and respectfully extended his hand. Yu Yeon-seo politely shook it.
‘He should have told me it was Director Kim Jae-ho.’
Among Park Seung-hwan’s three films that had surpassed ten million admissions, one was directed by Kim Jae-ho. He was a director who delivered both box office success and solid filmmaking. To get his hands on an unreleased synopsis from him was an unexpected windfall. The more connections, the better.
“First, let’s eat. We’ll talk after.”
“Okay.”
As soon as the food arrived, Park Seung-hwan began to inhale it without a word. Since Yu Yeon-seo didn’t really need a hangover cure, he struck up a conversation with Kim Jae-ho.
“I’ve seen a few of your synopses, Director, but this is the first time I’m seeing ‘Filicide’.”
Usually, when a script like this is circulated, it’s not just sent to a few specific actors but to all the agencies in the country. There aren’t that many acting agencies in Korea, even including those that also manage singers who act.
“Actually, I only showed it to Seung-hwan, and he insisted he would do it and told me not to show it to anyone else. That was a year ago.”
“Oh, really?”
“At first, I thought he was trying to throw his weight around. You know, things like that happen from time to time.”
Besides the abuse of power from production companies that people like Lee Jeong-hun experienced, there was also abuse of power by actors.
For example, a script would be sent to a top star like Park Seung-hwan or an actor with a lot of investor backing. The actor would say they’ll review it and then not give an answer for years.
The script couldn’t be left to gather dust, so it would be offered to another actor, which could also cause problems if they accepted.
If the original actor heard the news and said something like, ‘I told you I was reviewing it. Why did you give it to someone else? That hurts my feelings,’ the director’s position for their next project would become precarious. They obviously couldn’t cast that actor, and they wouldn’t get funding either.
This was how top actors could tie up a good script for years and then drop it if the timing wasn’t right—another hardship faced by independent directors like Lee Jeong-hun.
That was why scripts were circulated to all agencies at once.
‘Could there be synopses that I tied up in the past?’
Before the possession, he hadn’t been a top-tier actor of that caliber. But given his background, he must have received a lot of scripts. I should deal with that later before it becomes a problem.
“You’re not someone who would put up with that, Director.”
“That’s true. But he’s capable of it.”
“You two must be very close.”
It was obvious they were good friends. That’s why they could attack each other with such insincere words.
Park Seung-hwan, gulping down the broth as if it weren’t even hot, muttered a small protest that his schedule had been tricky back then. Yu Yeon-seo held back a laugh. His first impression had been of a polished senior actor, but after last night’s get-together, he’d become just a comfortable neighborhood guy.
“You have so little faith in me? Anyway, I told you I’d take care of everything.”
“And ‘taking care of everything’ means dragging someone else into it?”
“Why? If we get him on board, we’ve got investment, production, and distribution all lined up. It’s perfect. You said yourself that Yu Yeon-seo would be great for the role of Min-jae. That you’d welcome him because his acting has been great lately.”
Cornered by Park Seung-hwan’s counterattack, Kim Jae-ho cleared his throat. To be honest, with all the alcohol in his system at the time, he had been a bit more enthusiastic than that.
By now, Yu Yeon-seo had a pretty good reputation for providing funding without any interference. Plus, with his improving acting skills, giving him a lead role in exchange for solid investment was a profitable deal.
“To be honest, I don’t have a good eye for production companies, and I’m not good at attracting investors.”
It was only thanks to Park Seung-hwan’s help that he’d reached the status of a ten-million-viewer director. Otherwise, he might have given up filmmaking and pursued a different path.
“Ah, but that’s not to say I’m only interested in the side benefits. I like your acting too, Yeon-seo.”
“Yes, it’s fine.”
In any case, it didn’t feel bad to be approached because of his background. That was why he had gratefully accepted the title Choi Yu-jin had given him. It allowed him to get his hands on good synopses like this.
The film industry was said to be full of small companies hoping for a big break. That meant if one hit it big, it could rake in a fortune. And Yu Yeon-seo had good instincts. His keen senses seemed to be telling him this project was a moneymaker.
“The synopsis looked good when I read it.”
“You can’t let him drag you around already. You’ll be in big trouble.”
“It’s fine since it’s you, hyung.”
“Hey, I can see why you like him.”
Kim Jae-ho smiled and looked at Park Seung-hwan. Park Seung-hwan laughed, patting Yu Yeon-seo’s shoulder.
“Anyway, I’d welcome you, Yeon-seo. In fact, you’re more than we could ask for.”
He leaned back and scanned Yu Yeon-seo’s upper body. His striking looks seemed out of place in the shabby soup restaurant, and even his clothes exuded a sense of luxury. Yet, strangely, he blended in well with the space.
‘How strange...’
He had researched every actor in the right age range to find someone for the role of Min-jae. Yu Yeon-seo had been among them. Although his age was a bit off, he could have pulled off a student role with a change in styling.
‘Now, he seems... quite good?’
But at the time, there was this innate chaebol aura about Yu Yeon-seo, or to be more precise… he had felt a dissonance between the actor and his surroundings, making him think that despite some similarities, he didn’t fit the character of Min-jae in Filicide. But now, it was different.
“Honestly, I was a bit unsure at first. There was such a gap between you and Min-jae. But seeing you like this, it’s a different story.”
“Min-jae’s background is very different from mine, that’s true.”
“Yes. Of course, I know you’d portray that with your acting skills, but there’s such a thing as a natural aura, you know?”
Director Kim Jae-ho made a rectangular frame with his fingers, capturing Yu Yeon-seo within it.
“But... I think you’ll be a good fit. Did you have a change of heart or something in the last year?”
“Of course not.”
In truth, he had been through a lot in that year. His memory synchronization had passed 50%, and he’d been entangled in various incidents. Was that the reason? Yu Yeon-seo smiled faintly.
“Then shall we move somewhere else to discuss the details? This isn’t the place for it.”
“Okay.”
With the screech of chairs, they headed outside. Yu Yeon-seo called out to Im Seung-hyeon, who was already waiting by the restaurant.
“Mr. Im.”
Im Seung-hyeon, who had been staring blankly into space as if possessed, snapped his head around at the sound of his voice.
“Is there a problem?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
“Did you hear from Baek Seo-jun?”
“No, it was nothing important.”
He slipped the phone in his hand into his inner pocket and followed behind Yu Yeon-seo.
‘Something seems to be going on...’
He was suspicious, but that wasn’t the priority right now. He let Kim Jae-ho and Park Seung-hwan go on ahead and called Cha Yun-ho.
“Secretary Cha, do you have a contract with you?”
Now that the topic was out in the open, he had to lock it down with a contract before they could say anything else. Cha Yun-ho, awakened by Yu Yeon-seo’s sudden question, answered in a groggy voice.
(Sir? Yes. I have one. What’s going on?)
“You know Director Kim Jae-ho, right? I think I’ll be in his next film... and it looks like we’ll have to handle the production.”
(D-Director Kim Jae-ho? If you tell me your location, I’ll be right there.)
Cha Yun-ho, who had also gotten to leave work early thanks to Yu Yeon-seo’s gathering, quickly sobered up. Our Director is so good at snagging these jackpots, he thought as he hurriedly changed his clothes.
“Mr. Im, what happened with So Dong-hyeon?”
“He’ll be dismissed soon. Turns out he was involved in a lot of shady business.”
He handled the work well... but there was something vacant about him that was suspicious. As Yu Yeon-seo narrowed his eyes, Im Seung-hyeon gave an awkward smile.
“Shall we go? Aren’t they waiting for you up ahead?”
“...Yes. This will probably take a while, so find somewhere to rest.”
“Understood.”
After confirming that Yu Yeon-seo had followed the two men into the café, Im Seung-hyeon mulled over his recent phone call.
He had remembered the suspicious shadow he’d seen at Choi Nam-yun’s funeral and had asked Baek Seo-jun if he could check the CCTV footage. The video he had just received confirmed his suspicions.
(I checked the CCTV. You were right.)
“...It was there?”
(I’ll send you the video, check it out.)
Im Seung-hyeon immediately played the video Baek Seo-jun had sent. Comparing it with the agency’s CCTV footage, he noticed something peculiar. The distinctive walk that Yu Yeon-seo had pointed out. It seemed to be the same person.
Lost in thought for a moment, Im Seung-hyeon made another call.
“Detective.”
(Yes?)
“If this person thinks we’re on the Young Master’s side, how do you think they’ll act?”
(No way, you don’t think they recognized us, do you? We were far away. Besides, how would they know? We’re just a detective and a secretary.)
“Just suppose.”
Baek Seo-jun hummed, trailing off as he thought. Lee Tae-gyeom’s drunken words had been bothering him as well.
(If that’s the case... they’d try to stand out more, wouldn’t they? If what Tae-gyeom said is true, that they’re obsessed with Yeon-seo.)
“...I suppose so.”
(But why do you ask?)
Im Seung-hyeon didn’t satisfy Baek Seo-jun’s curiosity. He simply said thanks and ended the call. On the day Yu Yeon-seo was rushed to the emergency room, more people had started recognizing him from the photos.
‘My face was well-known enough for even fans to recognize me.’
If so, couldn’t that person have recognized him too?
‘No, it can’t be.’
Still, he thought he should be on his guard as he got into the car.