While I was lost in a trance of self-absorption…
“No, no, wait a second, Owner!”
Choi Jin-woo waved his hand in a panic.
“Owner, what are you doing right now?”
“An interview… did I do something wrong?”
“No, it’s not that… why are you so good at this?”
Min-jae was staring with his mouth wide open. He must have been surprised by this side of me he’d never seen before. It was the same for my father. He looked bewildered, as if the son he had raised for over thirty years suddenly seemed like a stranger.
“Brother, what gives? Who are you?”
“Jun-ho, do you have experience being on TV?”
“No, this is my first time…”
Choi Jin-woo scratched his head. He clearly didn’t believe me.
“Your first time? Look at how you’re matching the camera angle. You’re even standing in a position where you’ve calculated the key light hitting your eyes!”
“Is that so?”
“It’s not just ‘is that so’… Ah, wait.”
Choi Jin-woo checked the camera again.
“I’ve been on YouTube for eight years, but I’ve never seen someone this natural. You said ‘Hello, viewers’ as soon as we started, right? Most people stutter and go ‘Uh… um…'”
“It just came out naturally.”
“Ha… Owner, you can’t do this.”
Choi Jin-woo laughed as if the situation was absurd. It was a predicament because I was too good.
“If you’re like this, the subscribers will say, ‘Hey, isn’t this staged?’ If you’re too good, it actually looks fake.”
“Then what should I do…?”
“You need to make some mistakes, stutter a bit, so it looks real. Got it?”
Min-jae snickered.
“Brother’s getting scolded for being too good. What kind of situation is this? Haha.”
“I understand. I’ll… try to be bad at it.”
“No… not ‘bad,’ just natural!”
Choi Jin-woo sighed and turned the camera back on.
“Going again. This time, please act like a regular person.”
“Uh… um… Hello? I’m… the… one… running the… butcher shop…”
I intentionally stuttered a bit.
“No, that’s so obviously fake!” Choi Jin-woo cried out in despair. “Earlier you were like a professional announcer, and now you’re at the level of an elementary school talent show. Can’t you find a middle ground?”
Laughter filled the shop. Who knew that being bad on purpose would be harder?
“Owner, just do what you did before. It’s better to just be good. I’ll handle it somehow in editing.”
“Alright, I understand.”
I continued the interview naturally again.
“We only handle the highest quality pork, personally selected from Brother Clean Farm in Icheon.”
“Right, this is enough…”
My father spoke with a smile.
“It seems my son had a hidden talent.”
Choi Jin-woo spoke as if he had given up.
“It’s fine. I’ll just keep filming. I bet the comments will be full of things like ‘greatest interviewee ever.'”
***
The interview proceeded smoothly.
“Last question. Aren’t you afraid of competing with a large corporation like Mega Meat? Now that I’ve come here myself, I see the shop is threateningly close.”
“It’s more about confidence than fear. I believe consumers will eventually recognize good meat.”
“Oh, that’s cool! And… cut!”
Choi Jin-woo turned off the camera with a satisfied look.
“That was perfect. I think this might get some views.”
He asked as he packed his equipment.
“Ah, Owner. If the response to the video is good after I upload it, could I come back one more time?”
“Of course. Come whenever you like.”
“Really? Actually, besides the blind test, I’d like to film things like a farm tour or a market tour.”
Min-jae answered quickly.
“Brother Clean Farm? That place is really clean! And our shop has a lot of regulars from Majang-dong, too.”
“Oh, that would make for great content as well.”
Choi Jin-woo added one more thing as he put on his bag.
“Ah, and Owner.”
“Yes?”
“If things go well later, please come on my channel as a guest.”
“Me? As a guest?”
“Yes. How about content on how to choose proper meat? I think you’d be great at talking about meat.”
Choi Jin-woo gave a thumbs up.
“Your broadcast skills are perfect, you’re handsome, and you have professional knowledge. The subscribers will love it.”
“No way… surely not.”
“It’s not ‘no way.’ I’m serious. I felt it during the interview today—Owner, you’re a natural-born broadcaster.”
My father laughed from the side.
“Is my son really that good?”
“Yes, truly. I was startled seeing him in front of the camera earlier.”
Choi Jin-woo said one last thing as he opened the door.
“I’ll edit the video tonight and upload it immediately. The title will be… ‘Mega Meat vs. Neighborhood Butcher Shop, the Shocking Blind Test Result Is?’ How’s that?”
“Sounds good.”
“I’ll contact you again after seeing the comments. Ah, and…”
He poked his head back in.
“Just in case, prepare some meat for tomorrow. People might come after seeing the video.”
“Do you think so?”
“In my experience… things like this explode all at once. Especially when there’s a charming person appearing, like you.”
Choi Jin-woo waved and left. Min-jae spoke in wonder.
“Brother, aren’t you going to become really famous?”
“I don’t know… I just hope the meat sells well.”
But inwardly, I was slightly expectant. In 2157, I had gained quite a bit of popularity through broadcasting; could I do the same in this life? My father patted my shoulder.
“Jun-ho, I was really surprised. I didn’t know you’d be so natural in front of the camera…”
“Oh… it just happened somehow… it’s fine.”
***
The next afternoon.
I headed to Hidden Gem Butchery at the appointed time. Today was the day Chef Park Seong-ho promised to come in person.
“The Chef is here!” Min-jae said, looking out the window.
A black Mercedes stopped, and Park Seong-ho got out along with an employee who looked like his sous-chef. The door opened, and he walked in.
“It’s been a while, Proprietor Jung.”
“Welcome, Chef. I’ve been waiting for you.”
Before the greetings were even finished, Park Seong-ho spoke up.
“I saw a very eye-catching banner as I passed by Jun-ho’s Butchery earlier.”
“Ah, you saw it.”
“The Mega Meat receipt event. It’s a brilliant idea. Very much like you, Proprietor Jung.”
I remembered the bad blood between Park Jeong-nam and Park Seong-ho that Min-jae had mentioned before. That might be why he looked at the banner with even more interest…
“Going head-to-head with a large company… you certainly have guts.”
There was an indiscernible, strange emotion mixed in his voice.
“No, Mega Meat started it first—”
Min-jae tried to cut in, but I stopped him with a look.
“That man, Park Jeong-nam, won’t be as easy as he seems…”
Park Seong-ho smiled meaningfully.
“Now, let’s get down to business. I have to prepare for a VIP event this weekend.”
“Yes, I heard from your employee. A group of fifty?”
“Exactly forty-eight. There’s a meeting of business executives, so I have to be especially careful.”
The sous-chef pulled out a tablet and showed me the menu.
“We plan to prepare a Hanu course as the main dish. Ribeye, striploin, tenderloin, and a tomahawk as a showpiece.”
“Understood. I have prepared the very best for you.”
As we moved to the aging room, Park Seong-ho spoke.
“Thanks to you, Proprietor Jung, Nayeon’s meat menu has completely changed. Customers have been praising the taste of the meat.”
“That’s thanks to your cooking skills, Chef.”
“No. I’ve visited butcher shops all over the country, but you’re the first person I’ve met who sees meat so accurately. I really felt it once we started dealing directly.”
When I opened the aging room door, the dry-aged meat came into view.
“This is what I’ve prepared specifically for your event.”
Park Seong-ho examined the meat closely. His gaze was serious. As expected of a two-star Michelin chef, his eye for ingredients was extraordinary.
“The marbling is truly excellent. The aging period?”
“Between three to four weeks. It varies slightly by cut.”
“It looks perfect. The VIPs will be satisfied with this.”
Park Seong-ho picked up a hunk of Hanu.
“This ribeye is in particularly good condition. How did you acquire this?”
“I went to the auction with Proprietor Choi and bought it myself. I verified the individual identification number and checked the entire farm history.”
“As I thought… your ability is truly remarkable, Proprietor Jung.”
Just then, the sound of the door opening came from outside.
“Hello! Is Proprietor Jung Jun-ho here?”
I turned around to see Choi Jin-woo, who had come yesterday.
“Ah, Mr. Choi!”
“Proprietor Jung! I went to Jun-ho’s Butchery and your father told me you were here, so I came over. The reaction to the video I posted yesterday is insane! The views are already at 100,000—”
Choi Jin-woo stopped mid-sentence and froze like someone who had seen something he shouldn’t have. He had discovered Chef Park Seong-ho standing next to me.