Chapter 38: The First Transaction Is the Most Important

I quickly hid myself in the gap between the building where the Megameat store was located and the building next to it.

As a car stopped near the store, Park Jeong-nam stepped out. He was holding a cell phone to his ear, talking to someone.

“Check every store nationwide! Verify everything that could possibly become an issue.”

Park Jeong-nam continued his conversation as he walked toward the store.

“Yeah, that’s right. There’s no need to worry about every little detail like that. We just need to do our jobs properly.”

After hanging up, Park Jeong-nam paused for a moment. Then, he turned to look toward my shop. As if to mock him, the banner I had hung was fluttering gently in the breeze. His gaze remained fixed on the banner for quite a while.

At that moment, Store Manager Kim Jin-soo came running out and bowed deeply.

“CEO! What brings you here so suddenly…?”

“How is the product replacement process going?” Park Jeong-nam’s voice was calmer than I expected.

“Yes, we have replaced all the display items as per the headquarters’ instructions.”

“Did you do it thoroughly?”

“Yes, we swapped them with the items that were just delivered. However, the previous products still had time left before their expiration date—”

“That’s enough. It’s not something you need to worry about.”

Park Jeong-nam nodded and scanned the inside of the store. His gaze shifted back toward my shop once more.

“That butcher shop over there… how old is the owner?”

“Late twenties? At most, he looks to be in his early thirties.”

“That arrogant little brat… even dragging in Park Seong-ho.” Park Jeong-nam clicked his tongue. “Run a promotion for the next week. Thirty percent off pork belly.”

Kim Jin-soo nodded hurriedly.

“And… keep tabs on that shop. See who goes in and out, and how much they’re selling. A large company can collapse because of one small thing. Don’t ignore it just because it’s a mom-and-pop shop… when you step on something, you have to crush it completely. Get your head in the game!”

“Yes, I understand.”

Park Jeong-nam headed back to his car. The vehicle carrying him glided smoothly away from the front of the store.

Watching that scene, I felt a whirlwind of complex emotions. That man had already established countermeasures while I was still agonizing over how to stand against him. Park Jeong-nam was calm. He didn’t seem rushed or flustered. He was simply checking what needed to be done, giving orders, and inspecting the system. He acted like a man who had a manual for this exact situation written in his head.

What about me? I was shocked after seeing the farm, running around trying to gather evidence, and worrying about how to fight… I was acting based on my emotions. I finally realized that the ‘difference in class’ President Yoon mentioned wasn’t just about the size of the company.

Park Jeong-nam must have experienced this dozens, if not hundreds, of times before. He was a person who knew exactly how to react when a problem arose and what order to handle things in. To him, this was just routine business—just one of the many tasks he had to deal with every day.

But for me, this was everything. It was a fight I had started by staking my life. That was why I was more desperate, but at the same time, more amateurish.

This was the true difference in class. The difference in experience, the difference in systems, and above all, the difference in composure.

***

When I entered the butcher shop, my father was sitting in a chair. He looked very exhausted.

“Father, are you okay?”

“Ah, Jun-ho. You’re back?” My father rubbed his forehead with his palm. “Another wave of customers rushed in and left before you got here. I’m just now catching my breath.”

“It must have been hard. I’ll look after the shop for a bit. Go get some rest.”

“You must be tired from going to the farm, too. It’s okay. Your father can handle it.”

Just then, the shop door opened, and Choi Jin-woo walked in.

“Hello!” Choi Jin-woo greeted us brightly and bowed to my father.

“Ah, Mr. Jin-woo. Welcome.”

“Mr. Jung, you were busy today too, weren’t you? I came because I wanted to do one more interview…” Choi Jin-woo saw me and paused for a moment before speaking again. “By the way, Mr. Jung, would you be interested in appearing as a regular on my channel?”

“A regular appearance?”

“Yes. We could have a segment called ‘What Are You Eating?’ where you deliver proper knowledge about meat.”

I shook my head. “I’m sorry, but I’ve been so busy lately that I don’t have any free time.”

“Ah, then let’s do it once a week. And I’ll come directly to the butcher shop, so I won’t take up much of your time,” Choi Jin-woo persuaded me earnestly. “You have a lot of pride in the quality of your meat, don’t you? But that’s only possible when people know about it. No matter how good the meat you sell is, if consumers don’t know its value, it’s meaningless.”

My father leaned forward as if interested. “Jun-ho, I saw you on the broadcast last time; you were quite good at it.”

“And you can decide the materials or the themes yourself,” Choi Jin-woo said, trying to ease the pressure. “Whatever you thought about during the week, what you experienced, what you want to tell customers… you can do anything. For example, today could be ‘How to Choose Good Pork,’ and next week could be ‘How to Store It in the Refrigerator,’ things like that.”

Choi Jin-woo continued his explanation. “That’s what viewers are really curious about. What to look for when buying meat at a grocery store, how to store it at home, what to watch out for when cooking… practical information like that.”

My father nodded and said, “If it’s that kind of stuff, I have plenty to say. I’ve worked in this field for over thirty years, and there isn’t just one or two things I’ve wanted to explain to customers.”

“Exactly!” Choi Jin-woo’s eyes sparkled. “How about it? If it feels like too much, it would be fine to just try it for a month first.”

I looked back and forth between my father and Choi Jin-woo. Looking at my father’s expression, it seemed like he secretly wanted me to do it.

I fell into thought for a moment. No matter how much I acted like a big shot on my own, it would just be a hollow echo if no one was listening. Choi Jin-woo’s channel might not be world-class, but it was currently a hot topic.

Most importantly, after observing this guy, I had confirmed that he didn’t care about Megameat’s opinion. He had followed his own convictions even when dealing with Megameat’s meat.

People like Park Jeong-nam already had the media, distribution networks, and capital. All I had was honest meat and the ability to judge it. However, if there was no way to make that known, it was all for nothing.

“Alright,” I said. “Let’s do it. But I have a condition.”

“What kind of condition?”

“I must be able to speak my mind freely. Without interference in the editing or the direction.”

“Of course. That’s the core of it. People need to hear your true voice.”

“Then let’s start tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? Already?”

“Yes. It’s better to start everything quickly. The timing is good since interest is focused on us right now.”

Choi Jin-woo pulled out his phone with an excited expression. “What time would be good for you tomorrow?”

“How about around 3:00 PM? Things should settle down a bit after the lunch rush.”

“Great! Then I’ll head over to Hidden Gem Butcher Shop. I’ll bring some simple equipment so it won’t be a burden.”

My father spoke with a worried expression. “Jun-ho, will you be okay? If we do it suddenly tomorrow, you won’t even be prepared.”

“It’s okay, Father. I can just start with the things I usually think about.”

Choi Jin-woo stood up and said goodbye. “Alright. Then I’ll see you tomorrow at 3:00 PM at Hidden Gem Butcher Shop.”

Even after he left, I sat in my seat for a while longer.

From Choi Jin-woo’s perspective, the goal was likely just to promote his channel, but my thoughts were different. I intended to turn this channel into my weapon.

Park Jeong-nam had already built a perfect system. A system where he could achieve all the results he wanted while remaining legally untouchable. To face such an opponent, I needed a weapon too.

Simply exposing things or making accusations had limits. As I saw at the farm, all responsibility lay with the farm owners or the distributors, and Megameat had created loopholes to escape cleanly.

However, the story changes once consumers learn the right information. If they learn how to distinguish between good and bad meat and start caring about which farm a pig was raised on and how, I believed they would naturally become interested in the reality of places like Megameat.

“Jun-ho, what are you thinking about so seriously?” my father asked.

“Oh, it’s nothing. I’m just organizing what I’m going to say tomorrow.”

“Don’t think too hard about it. Just comfortably say what you know and what you want people to find out.”

My father was right. There was nothing difficult about it. Since it was work I had already been doing in 2157.

***

The next morning.

As soon as everyone arrived for work, we started packing without anyone having to say a word. We began organizing the orders that had come in overnight.

And yet… Ji-eun’s hand movements were truly amazing. While I packed one, Ji-eun easily finished two or three. I finally understood why Min-jae called her a master of the craft.

“Ji-eun, what kind of meat do you like best?”

When I asked while packing, Ji-eun answered with a smile. “Me? Hmm… pork belly! It has the best cost-performance ratio.”

“You’re doing triple the work, so even if I can’t give you triple the hourly wage, I’ll have to give you a lot of pork belly. Haha.”

“Really? You’re the best, Boss!”

Giving a thumbs-up, Ji-eun got even more excited and picked up her packing speed. Every movement of cutting tape and attaching labels was as natural as flowing water. At this rate, it seemed like we would be finished in no time.

“Ji-eun, what year are you in?”

“The first semester of my third year,” Ji-eun replied without pausing her hands. She didn’t find it difficult at all to have a conversation while working. Her focus and multitasking abilities were incredible.

“Where is your home? Have you done a lot of part-time jobs?”

“Hongcheon, in Gangwon Province. It’s a bit tight for my parents to send me money… so I’m in a situation where I have no choice but to work part-time.”

“Ah, but why are you so good at packing? It’s truly impressive.”

Ji-eun stopped her hands for a moment and laughed. “Ah, that? My mother and father were farmers. I was an elementary school student back when they said they were going to do direct sales, and I helped with the packing all day after coming home from school. All the way until my third year of middle school.”

“Ah, so that’s why.”

“Yes. I hated it so much back then that I used to run away on purpose, but looking back now, even skills like these are helpful.”

“But why do you like meat so much? Your eyes completely sparkle when you talk about pork belly.”

Ji-eun hesitated for a moment before answering honestly. “Actually… our family situation was always bad. Since there were four siblings, it was really hard to eat our fill of pork belly. I felt bad for my parents… so I think I became obsessed with meat. I originally ate a lot too… haha.”

I felt sorry for asking for no reason. Noticing this, Ji-eun let out a chuckle and joked.

“Isn’t this a story you rarely hear from someone my age? It sounds like one of those old-school stories from the ‘Black Rubber Shoes’ era, doesn’t it?”

It was her way of being considerate so as not to create a heavy atmosphere. Just then, my phone rang.

“Guys, hold on a second while I take this call.”

The number started with 051, the area code for Busan.

“Hello?”

“Hello, this is Kang Min-seok from Busan.”

“Ah, Chef Kang Min-seok! Did the meat arrive safely?”

Min-jae and Ji-eun stopped their work and leaned in to listen.

“It didn’t just arrive… I was truly shocked. I just received it and tested it immediately.” Kang Min-seok’s voice sounded slightly excited.

“How was it?”

“First of all, the aging is perfect. The meat is really tender, and the umami is alive. Especially the marbling distribution is so even that the juices come out uniformly when grilled.”

My heart rate began to pick up at the thought of expanding into Busan.

“And above all, the aroma of the meat was completely different. It’s definitely distinct from other aged Hanwoo. Now I know why Chef Park Seong-ho praised it so much.”

“Ah, really? Thank you for the compliment.”

“I did a tasting with my staff, and everyone said it was their first time eating meat like this. Would a regular transaction be possible?”

“Of course! Now that the delivery issue is resolved, it’s possible at any time.”

“Haha, that’s great then. But… actually, the transaction volume might be a bit high; will you be okay with that?”

“How much are we talking about?”

“You just need to supply it to three locations in Busan.”

For a moment, I was speechless. “Three… three locations?”

“Huh? Is this your first time hearing this? Didn’t Chef Park Seong-ho tell you?” Kang Min-seok asked as if surprised.

“Yes, the details… I only heard that you were opening a place.”

“Ah… I see. We received investment to open premium dining for Japanese tourists in Busan. We’re planning to open simultaneously in three locations: Haeundae, Gwangalli, and Nampodong.”

“Japanese tourists?”

“Yes. The number of Japanese tourists is steadily increasing. Especially their interest in our country’s premium Hanwoo is immense. We are targeting that market.”

Min-jae saw my expression and his eyes went wide.

“What would the volume be?”

“First, we’re thinking of 30kg per store, twice a week. Since there are three locations… a total of about 180kg per week? If the response is good, we plan to gradually increase it.”

I tapped on a calculator. One month would be 720kg.

“But there can be absolutely no compromise on quality. You can maintain it at the level of what I received today, right?”

“Of course. Naturally.”

“Ah, and by the way, are you going to keep using the delivery company that came today?”

Suddenly, I grew worried. Did something go wrong during the delivery process?

“Huh? Was there perhaps a problem with the delivery?”

“No, it’s not that. It’s because the delivery condition was so good. The packaging was perfect, and the temperature management was flawless. But especially, there was a small USB-like thing inside the box? They said it was a temperature logger…”

“Ah, yes…”

“When I plugged it into the computer, the temperature changes during the delivery time were all displayed in a graph. I’ve only seen this kind of service when receiving imported tuna or Wagyu, but it’s my first time seeing it done for domestic delivery.”

Since it was my first time hearing about it too, I didn’t have much to say in response. To think he even included a temperature logger…

Details like these were the most certain way to build trust.

The first transaction is like a person’s first impression. President Yoon was someone who knew that. And he also knew how important that first impression was. The reason Chef Kang Min-seok acknowledged me wasn’t just because of the quality of my meat, but likely because of President Yoon’s meticulous delivery service.