Big Life

Chapter 239: Dignity Is Important Too (1)

“No, I’m fine. Yes, I’m still enjoying myself while doing research. My schedule is tight enough just touring Beijing alone.”

It was a bright morning, and Ha Jae-Gun started the day with a phone call with Lin Minhong, head of Teencent’s strategic planning department.

Ha Jae-Gun felt thankful and burdened at the same time. Lin Minhong had just said that they would send Ha Jae-Gun on a special trip to Hainan, introduce him to people at key government posts, and they would even treat him to a luxury dinner.

Ha Jae-Gun had been refusing their offers, but the offers kept pouring in.

“I can feel the kindness you’re expressing, but I am enjoying my current pace. I’m not here on pure leisure as well; I’m here to learn and look up information required for my novel.”

— Is that so…

Lin Minhong’s voice was filled with deep regret. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke once more.

— Advisor Li Zihe mentioned that he would like to have dinner with you one of these days.

“Advisor Li Zihe?” Ha Jae-Gun’s eyes shone for the first time. Things would have been different if they had been talking about Teencent Literature’s Advisor Li Zihe. The man’s other identity was Li Ziting, the author of Bull, which was a novel that won him the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Ha Jae-Gun had become familiar with Li Zihe on the latter's recent visit to Korea.

“You’re referring to Mr. Li Ziting, right?”

— Ah, come to think of it, you do know him.

“Yes, I met him on his recent visit to Korea. We had a great time together. He’s a wonderful person.”

The respect Ha Jae-Gun had for Li Ziting was making him act like a little boy. “I’d definitely like to meet Mr. Li Ziting. I’d appreciate it if you could make arrangements for the meeting in Beijing after all my schedules here before I fly to Shanghai.”

— I understand, Mr. Ha. I’ll contact you again when I have more news for you.

“Ah, Mr. Lin. Please wait a moment.”

Ha Jae-Gun belatedly recalled something and added, “About setting the male lead of Records of the Modern Master as a Korean…”

— Mm… Yes, Mr. Ha.

“I recalled that you would be discussing this with CEO Mao Yen. Can I check how that went?” Ha Jae-Gun bit his lips gently.

It was the first obstacle he had to overcome so that he could recommend casting Park Do-Joon as the male lead. He was anxious, although not as much as Park Do-Joon himself. To make matters worse, Teencent hadn’t mentioned anything about actor Park Do-Joon.

— We’re still discussing it. I think CEO Mao Yen will be contacting you personally as she has something else to say to you. Of course, I’ll let you know immediately when the situation arises.

“Thank you, Mr. Lin. I’ll leave it in your hands.” Ha Jae-Gun hung up and went to have breakfast with Kwon Tae-Won. During their meal, the topic of their conversation naturally turned to what gift they should prepare for Li Ziting.

“I feel that I’ve owed him so much as a writer. I would like to prepare a gift for him when meeting him this time. What do you think is suitable?”

“Hmm, a present…”

“Would a watch be good?” Ha Jae-Gun wondered out loud. He looked down at the watch that the other writers at the office had got for him by pooling money together and recalled the watch that he had gifted Nam Gyu-Ho; would a watch be appropriate?

“No, I don’t think that’s appropriate.” Kwon Tae-Won objected, shaking his head. “The Chinese don’t particularly like gifting or getting clocks or watches as presents. The word in Mandarin is pronounced as Zhong, and there's another word with the same pronunciation but means end.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, that’s why gifting a watch could be actually disrespectful, especially to the elderly. It has the same pronunciation as Song Zhong, which means to send one to their deathbed. I learned that when I was in Star Books.”

Ha Jae-Gun nodded, fascinated at the newfound information.

Kwon Tae-Won then added with a smile, “Of course, there’s also the word Biao, which refers to the wristwatch. But it also shares the same pronunciation as the word prostitute, which would be disrespectful to women. Anyway, I don’t recommend gifting watches.”

“I’d be in a huge pickle if it weren’t for you. I don’t have a knack for choosing a suitable gift, so I might have just gone with gifting a watch.”

“Even if you did get a watch or clock, I don’t think Mr. Li Ziting would feel disrespected. He would have understood your intentions.”

The two men finished their breakfast but did not come to a consensus on what gift would be appropriate. The moment they decided to have some tea to help with their digestion, a call came in for Kwon Tae-Won.

“Mr. Ha, it’s Ms. Yang Ying’s manager,” Kwon Tae-Won said upon picking up the phone. He had declined their offer for a meal before, but they were calling once more. As Ha Jae-Gun felt distraught, Kwon Tae-Won added softly, “They would like to send you a gift.”

“A gift?”

“Yes, they’re happy to be able to act in a movie of yours and are earnestly asking for my help to save face. What should I do? They are already at the lobby, too.”

Ha Jae-Gun and Kwon Tae-Won exchanged looks in silence.

Rejecting a gift after rejecting a meal invitation made Ha Jae-Gun feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, he couldn’t guess what their motive was, so he felt both burdened and hesitant at the same time.

“Tell them that I’ll accept it with much gratitude,” Ha Jae-Gun concluded. He made the decision thinking that it wouldn’t look nice to reject them when they had already made their way to the lobby.

Kwon Tae-Won then conveyed Ha Jae-Gun’s words and hung up the phone.

After a while, Yang Ying’s present was delivered by a hotel staffer. Kwon Tae-Won tipped the staff and rolled his tongue as he looked at the elegantly wrapped present that was unique to the Chinese.

“I’m not sure what it is; it’s so light and small.”

“Let’s open it.” As Ha Jae-Gun tore the wrapping, Kwon Tae-Won’s phone rang once more.

While in China, Kwon Tae-Won was acting both as the CEO of Laugh Books and Ha Jae-Gun’s manager, which increased his workload significantly.

“It’s a call from Laugh Books. I’ll step out for a while. Yes, hello? Ah, Deputy Jung? What is the matter?”

Kwon Tae-Won disappeared into the room next door. Meanwhile, Ha Jae-Gun tore open the wrapping and opened the box that had the gift enclosed. Inside it was a fountain pen.

‘Wow, this fountain pen looks gorgeous.’

The barrel of the pen was covered in gold. Its elegant exterior was a stark contrast in comparison to Seo Gun-Woo’s fountain pen. Dazzling jewels were embedded all over the cap and its body, which made it hard for Ha Jae-Gun to tell whether they were cubic zirconias or diamonds.

‘They look like real diamonds.'

Ha Jae-Gun hadn't received any training in appreciation or recognizing diamonds, but he knew the actress Yang Ying. Ha Jae-Gun admired the fountain pen in hand and opened the cap before pulling a nearby notepad.

‘Wow, it feels so smooth when writing.’ Ha Jae-Gun exclaimed as he wrote his name on the paper. The nib of the pen rolled smoothly on the paper, and the stability of the pen was pretty consistent as well. It felt like the fountain pen was adjusting itself to Ha Jae-Gun’s writing.

Ha Jae-Gun then wrote a poem that came to his mind. The pen felt so good to write with that Ha Jae-Gun couldn’t stop himself. After writing that last period on the notepad and putting down the pen, Ha Jae-Gun grinned.

‘How much is this? Probably a few million won?’ Ha Jae-Gun could only estimate its price based on what he saw. It did look good, but he didn’t think that he would use it often, as he had Seo Gun-Woo’s fountain pen, which was the best pen he ever had.

Just as Ha Jae-Gun put the cap back and put the pen back into its case, Kwon Tae-Won finally returned after the call, but he looked quite stiff.

Ha Jae-Gun asked, “Did something happen? It sounded like a call from Ms. So-Mi.”

“I’m not sure if I should call this 'something' or not,” said Kwon Tae-Won before holding out his phone for Ha Jae-Gun to see.

“...!”

Ha Jae-Gun’s eyes widened as he read the content on the screen. It was a post that Park Do-Joon had uploaded on his social media.

[My best friend and writer’s martial arts novel has recently been printed in hardcover. But I’m not buying it, as it was printed without his knowledge and notification. The company printed a huge number just before the license agreement ended. If the publisher were ethical and moral, wouldn't they discuss and come to an agreement with the writer before trying to milk any more money out of them?]

‘I shouldn’t have told him…!’

Looking back, Park Do-Joon would always support him and send him encouragement through his social media whenever Ha Jae-Gun suffered any injustice from others.

Park Do-Joon had done the same this time.

“Writer Ha, look at the comments.”

“The comments? Wait, why are they acting this way?”

People who were familiar with Ha Jae-Gun shared Park Do-Joon’s post far and wide. It started with Lee Chae-Rin, Han Yu-Na, Hong Ye-Seul, and a few other actors, then to Directors Yoon Tae-Sung and Lee Eun-Ha. Even the writers from the office and the names of other writers had shared Park Do-Joon’s post.

‘Wait, what? Even my brother-in-law?’ Ha Jae-Gun’s leg almost gave way when he saw the name Nam Gyu-Ho. Numerous prominent figures had shared Park Do-Joon’s post, and it was too late to make Park Do-Joon take his post down.

“Haha…” Kwon Tae-Won burst into laughter.

Ha Jae-Gun stared blankly at Kwon Tae-Won.

Kwon Tae-Won explained, “I laughed because of Mr. Do-Joon. I think he’s pretty bold.”

Ha Jae-Gun responded with silence. Seeing how Kwon Tae-Won had shrugged it off with a laugh meant that it didn’t pose much of an issue, but he still didn’t feel comfortable about it.

“Wow, this fountain pen… You received a good one, huh?” Kwon Tae-Won belatedly noticed the gift from Yang Ying, his eyes ogling at it.

Ha Jae-Gun picked it up and asked Kwon Tae-Won, “Do you know this brand?”

“Aigoo, don’t give it to me. I’m afraid I might just ruin something as expensive as this.” Kwon Tae-Won waved his hand profusely, refusing to take it from Ha Jae-Gun.

Ha Jae-Gun spun the pen with his fingers and grinned. “You’re acting out of your usual self again. What fountain pen is this that made you act this way?”

“It’s the same brand that CEO Ren Xue is using. It’s a limited edition, Duofold Giant, made for their 125th anniversary. They only made 125 pieces of it, and according to my knowledge, only one of these has been imported into Korea.”

Ha Jae-Gun’s jaws dropped. It was completely different from his guesses.

“It costs slightly over forty million won, I think.”

“Wait, what?”

“Forty million won. I think it should be around that price point.”

“How can a fountain pen cost forty million won?”

Even though Ha Jae-Gun knew that Kwon Tae-Won wasn’t the type of person to joke about something like this, Ha Jae-Gun still couldn’t help but ask once more. He just couldn’t understand how the value of such a small item that fits like a glove in his hand was equivalent to a car.

“Every single gem on it is a diamond, and the body is made of gold. Why are you so surprised, Writer Ha? You can afford to buy one of these pens yourself.”

“I feel like I’m still a long way away from it. I’m really unaware of how big the world is…” Despite replying with a joke, Ha Jae-Gun looked back down at the fountain pen, hoping that this expensive gift would be the last to make up for Yang Ying’s face.

***

“I can refund this, right? I brought along the receipt.”

“I bought this the day before, but I want a refund for it.”

“I lost the receipt, but can I get a refund for this?”

The female staffer at the large bookstore near Ha Jae-Gun’s house was busy accepting refund requests from their customers. The number of cases had exceeded dozens even before lunchtime, and all of them were refunds for the hardcopy of Records of the Murim Master.

‘What’s with the sudden surge of refund requests for the same book?’

The female staffer was a reader of Ha Jae-Gun, and she also loved his works. She had even received his autograph a long time ago. Although Records of the Murim Master was a martial arts novel that she didn’t have much interest in, she still bought the hardcopy set.

“Yes, please wait a moment. I’ll proceed with the refund for you soon.”

The female staffer had been busy the last few days and wasn’t updated on news circulating on the Internet. In other words, there was no way she would be happy about the countless refund requests for her favorite writer’s book.

Meanwhile, the line in front of the counter grew longer and longer.

Other bookstores were experiencing the same situation. The large bookstores in Korea had a shelf exclusive for Ha Jae-Gun’s novels. Of course, the most recent hardcopy version of Records of the Murim Master had a spot on it to attract the attention of readers.

However, the hardcopy version wasn’t selling at all. Ha Jae-Gun’s other novels were selling as usual—selling like hotcakes, but the hardcopy of Records of the Murim Master was the only one left cold on the shelves.

Hundreds of copies of the book were sold when it first went on the shelves, but they could barely sell three or four copies. On top of that, more than half of the initial sales they had made had been refunded. However, this wasn't exclusive to offline retailers, as even online platforms experienced the same phenomenon.

The sales numbers for the hardcopy of Records of the Murim Master weren't increasing at all. However, it was bizarre that there were hundreds and thousands of comments on the books when no one was purchasing them.

- No, I’m not buying it~ ^^ Have a taste of a reader who doesn’t buy books although I like Ha Jae-Gun ^^

- Kekekekeke I like Ha Jae-Gun too, and I’m not planning on buying this time. I think the book will be published according to his wishes after the existing license expires?

- I trusted Star Books, but they’ve turned weird now. Did they earn too much from Ha Jae-Gun and forget everything, including basic manners?

- There must be a good reason why Ha Jae-Gun isn’t extending his contract with Star Books. I read a few novels from other writers signed with them, and I can tell why.

The comments were all criticisms from the readers. It didn’t take long for Star Books’ CEO Park Jae-Gook to yell in anger after reading the comments.

“Just what the hell is this?!”

Clang!

The cup that Park Jae-Gook had thrown at the wall shattered into pieces. His son, and editor-in-chief, Park Kyung-Wook was shivering in fear, afraid to even lift his head. It was his first time seeing his father so angry.

“How could you do something so atrocious while I’m away tending to my frail body?! You foolish rascal! Incompetent and incapable!”

“Sob…!” Park Kyung-Wook cried at the insults hurled toward him by his father. Still, he could only shed tears with nothing to rebut. There was nothing he could say despite his brazen nature. He finally realized the weight of the mistake he had made.

“T-the…” Park Kyung-Wook barely managed to speak after a while. However, when he couldn’t continue speaking, Park Jae-Gook raised his hand in anger, about to slap Park Kyung-Wook as he yelled, “Speak properly if you have something to say!”

“T-the…! We’re still getting sales from distributors! From the bookstores, too…! It’s a problem for the readers to decide on…!”

Slap!

“ACK!”

Park Kyung-Wook screamed in pain and held his cheek.

Park Jae-Gook panted as he pressed on, “What nonsense are you spouting?! You atrocious punk; this is what the readers have decided?! 50,000 copies? You’re crazy! We have to pay Ha Jae-Gun his due royalties as well! How are you going to cover this loss?! It’s at least 380 million won! You pathetic rascal isn't even worth that much!”

“Sob… Father, you’re too much…!” Park Kyung-Wook forgot his age and cried loudly.

Park Jae-Gook clenched his fist in anger. If Park Kyung-Wook weren’t his son, he would punch the latter's face into a pulp.