***
“This video is an unedited version of the footage that was excluded from the edit. As you all know, I never accept any kind of advertising, but when I went to edit it later, it seemed too much like an advertisement... I didn’t know it would be used like this. This is the unedited version. Please watch it and judge for yourself.”
The video began with a short introduction.
Dae-Jang, who had been concentrating on his food, looked up at the PD after glancing at the part-timer.
“PD Kim. Did you see that plate? It came back completely empty. Not a drop of sauce left?”
“Ugh. Our plates are the same.”
“What?”
The cameraman cleverly lowered the camera to the empty plate.
Indeed, their plates were also empty, as if they were new.
It’s not easy, even for a popular restaurant.
There are likes and dislikes when it comes to food, and no matter how popular a restaurant is, there’s always something that people don’t like.
But here, there was none of that. Not only was the composition of the dishes rich, but the taste of each dish was so good that it was a shame to leave even a drop of sauce.
It seemed that the other customers felt the same way.
“Should we ask to film their kitchen?”
“Why the kitchen all of a sudden?”
“Isn’t it strange? A restaurant that does so well, but how much food waste do they produce?”
“That would be interesting.”
The head chef walked into the kitchen and said something politely. A moment later, he walked back with an okay sign with his finger, looking pleased.
The kitchen they entered was the epitome of cleanliness. Some of the equipment looked old, but it was neatly maintained, and the food waste, which was the most curious thing, was close to zero.
“This is crazy. The food waste bag for the restaurant is only 2 liters. Wow.”
“Well, of course. There’s nothing to throw away.”
“That’s right.”
The video that the head chef uploaded ended there.
The comments below were all in support of Hae-jun and Sunflower.
“Huh? Boss. Look at the comments on the Jewel Dream window. There’s a new tip comment.”
Min-ju pushed another phone into Hae-jun’s field of vision.
Comments running in real time.
-The Meokbo guy came to the store and tried to bully the boss, but he got kicked out. How polite, my ass. They were so confident that I thought he was the boss.
-I was there too. Meokbo was talking down to the part-timer, so the boss came and blew his top. He was so cool at that time. The female part-timer’s eyes were fierce.
-Watch this video. Isn’t that Meokbo in the background? If you zoom in and look closely, you can see him looking around and then quickly putting something in.
Someone had filmed Meokbo, following the Sunflower mascot Mongchi around, and in the background of the video, someone who appeared to be Meokbo was seen. He sat with his back to the corner, looked around the corner of the ceiling and the surroundings, and then took something out and quickly put it in.
-He put it in. He put it in!
-ㅋㅋㅋ Of course. That’s how all the fabrications are.
-Meokbo’s comment channel is in danger of exploding with protest comments!
The situation was reversed in an instant.
The arrows of criticism that had been directed at Hae-jun were now turned back on Meokbo.
‘Thank goodness. Now I can rest easy.’
He wasn’t worried about losing customers.
The fact that Min-ju and Dong-sik hyung wouldn’t blame each other for this made him feel relieved.
In the two months that he had been running the store, he had made as much money as a mid-level corporate employee’s annual salary. To Hae-jun now, the two of them were more precious than anything else.
“What are you going to do now?”
Ho-cheol asked.
He hadn’t had any thoughts about what to do from the beginning.
He just wanted to clear up the misunderstanding caused by the video.
“I’ve cleared my name from the false accusation, so it’s fine.”
“No! Absolutely not.”
“The boss was lucky and got away with it, but if we just leave that bastard alone, he’ll just go somewhere else and do it again, right?”
“Then what should we do?”
Hae-jun looked around for opinions.
“Should we mobilize the Jwel Dream hyungs and go to that bastard’s house to protest?”
“That’s a good idea. He’ll be scared.”
“No, we need a more definitive solution than that.”
Lawyer Kim In-chul, who had been watching the situation from behind, spoke up.
“Are you saying we should beat him up? If we use physical force and he sues us in return...”
“There’s a more effective treatment than physical therapy.”
“?···”
Question marks appeared on the faces of Hae-jun and the others.
What could be a more effective treatment than instilling fear and using physical force?
“It’s financial therapy. Let’s go through the legal process. From criminal to civil. We’ll charge him with defamation, violation of the Information and Communications Network Act, and anything else we can, and we’ll sue him for damages and compensation.”
“Oh~!”
“Wow.”
***
“Fuck, this is totally fucked.”
After checking the community and channel comments, Hyung-soo hurriedly locked the comment section on his channel and took down the video that had attacked Sunflower.
However, the fabrication incident had already become an issue and was spreading through various communities.
It had even been reported in some internet media outlets.
Anxious, Hyung-soo bit his nails and clicked the mouse meaninglessly.
“What should I do?··· Right, an apology video.”
The best thing to do in times like this is to quickly upload an apology video.
Anyway, he had already gotten the views, and the number of subscribers had increased to 200,000 in an instant, so there was nothing to lose.
He could just say something like, ‘There was a small misunderstanding, but I didn’t know it would turn into such a big deal. I’ll be more careful about making videos from now on.’
Hyung-soo stood in front of the camera in a simple white shirt and black background, looking as haggard as possible, and filmed an apology video.
He didn’t forget to leave a message saying that he would like to meet the boss and clear up the misunderstanding between them, if given the chance.
Anyway, it was an incident that would become an issue for a day or two and then be forgotten.
Sunflower would suffer, but Hyung-soo’s channel would increase its views and revenue, along with its 200,000 subscribers, by at least double.
“I guess that’s enough for now, right?”
Hyung-soo, who had uploaded the video, reassured himself for the time being.
But what is this?!
The comment reaction was not good.
-I knew it. (A meme from the movie ‘Crime and Punishment’ by Choi Minsik)
-Passing the buck. He’s saying sorry after killing someone.
-Bring in the pitchforks. Didn’t you learn that you’ll get your ass kicked if you play around and get caught?
-You made a huge profit off of someone else’s business, and you’re trying to get away with it with an apology video?
He faced a backlash.
“Damn it.”
***
[Mr. Hae-jun. You’re really hardworking.]
Pote said in admiration as he flew over to Hae-jun, who was working hard in the field.
[I didn’t know Mr. Hae-jun would think of me like this.]
“Huh? You?”
[Yes! Isn’t this why you’re working so hard to restore my lost ability? I’m touched. Sob···.]
“Ah··· well, yeah.”
There was no reason to deny it if Pote thought so.
It was the truth, after all. However, there was another reason why Hae-jun had become so much more diligent lately.
He was working hard to harvest crops at Pote’s request, but since the Meokbo incident, there were more customers, so he had to work non-stop, even without time to sleep, in order to get the ingredients.
‘I thought I had a little breathing room, but it’s gotten worse.’
It got busier after the Meokbo incident.
He had to increase the number of morning set meals sold in the morning by 50 because there were so many customers, and there was a line of customers at lunchtime as well.
As a result, he was even getting threatening(?) requests to open for dinner.
It was nice to have so many people visit, but,
‘I can’t handle it.’
He felt the need to hire more employees.
The restaurant, too.
And here, too.
“Oh! I’m late. Pote. I’m going back.”
Hae-jun checked the time, took the ingredients out of the warehouse and loaded them onto the cart, and hurriedly left the farm.
[You’ve worked hard taking care of the crops. Get some rest and come back refreshed!]
Pote waved goodbye.
‘Ah··· right. I want to rest, too.’
.
.
.
After returning from the dimensional farm, Hae-jun hurriedly started preparing lunch.
He had just come back from the farm to get the ingredients he needed after a short break in the morning.
Pote told him to get some rest, but far from resting, the real battle was about to begin. He needed two bodies to handle everything.
“Meow~.”
Mongchi meowed as if to encourage him.
Hae-jun gently stroked Mongchi’s fur.
“Thank you.”
Haejun wiped his hands clean, put on his apron, and made up his mind.
“Boss. When did you come out··· Huh? When did the groceries come in?”
Dong-sik, who was taking a break, tilted his head as he looked at the ingredients piled up in the kitchen.
“Just now. I took care of it.”
“Why didn’t you tell me to do it?”
“Who cares who does it? More importantly, wash the newly arrived salad vegetables. And prepare the ingredients for the omelet rice.”
“Yes, boss.”
He gave him work to do before he could ask any more unnecessary questions.
As 11:30 approached, the front of the store became noisy.
In the morning and at lunchtime, customers wait in the yard, but during the break, the front door of the yard is locked, so this is what happens. As a result, the quiet residential neighborhood alley at 10am was noisy.
‘I need to figure something out about that too. It’s a nuisance to the people living nearby.’
He resumed business on time.
Ho-cheol came rushing in with his office colleagues.
“Boss. We’re here.”
“You’re here? Sit over there.”
“Wow, manager. You’re close with the boss, too?”
“Of course. I’m a regular here. It was a hidden gem that I wanted to keep to myself, but it’s all ruined because of my post.”
“I wondered where you disappeared to every lunchtime. Tsk, we should have come with you.”
“That’s why I brought you today. I’m paying today, so order whatever you want.”
“Nice~! But the boss is even more handsome in person than in the video. He’s totally my type.”
The female employee who came with Ho-cheol complimented Haejun.
Hae-jun, embarrassed, just smiled, and Min-ju, who appeared behind him, narrowed her eyes.
“Boss. I’ll take the orders, so you go back to the kitchen.”
“Ah, I got it, so stop pushing me.”
“Hurry. Hurry.”
Min-ju pushed Hae-jun into the kitchen and returned to Ho-cheol’s table.
Unlike before, she set the table politely and served the complimentary lemonade.
“Have you decided on your menu?”
“I’ll have the pork cutlet.”
“Me too.”
“Don’t say that. Since there are five of us, let’s order 2 tonkatsu, 2 cheese katsu, and 1 omelet rice and share them.”
“Okay. Oh, but what drinks do you have?”
The customer that Haejun said was his type asked Minju.
“We don’t sell drinks separately. We do have goat’s milk, but it’s only available in the morning.”
“Really? Not even cola or cider?”
“No.”
“I guess we have no choice. Just give us that.”
“Please wait a moment.”
Min-ju served soup and bread before taking orders and headed to another table.
As the real lunchtime began, customers poured in, and within 5 minutes of opening, the hall was full.
“Did you see that video?”
A group of women sitting at table 3 whispered to each other in very small voices.
“What? That 100,000-subscriber fabrication YouTuber?”
“The law firm next to us is representing him.”
“Kim In-chul’s law firm?”
“Is he going to sue for defamation?”
“I think so. And he’s going to add more charges. The boss here said it was okay, but Lawyer Kim said he’s going to go all the way, even without getting paid.”
“Why?”
“The lawyer is a regular here.”
“Wow. He’s in big trouble.”
It’s not just defamation. In this case, given the nature of YouTube, he could be charged under the Information and Communications Network Act and face up to 7 years in prison or a fine of up to 50 million won. He could also be charged with obstruction of business. And, based on these criminal charges, he could face a civil lawsuit.
“He’s going to get a heavy dose of financial therapy this time.”
“If he gets hit with fines and civil lawsuits, it’s going to be a big blow. There’s nothing worse than financial therapy for guys like that.”
“Heh heh heh.”
***
Ding-dong-
“···.”
Knock, knock, knock-
“Are you home?”
“···.”
Knock, knock, knock-
Hyung-soo, who had been woken up by the loud knocking on the door, got up.
As he lowered his feet to the floor under the bed, he stepped on an empty bottle that was rolling around. He moved his feet around to get the bottle out of the way and got out of bed.
The room, filled with the smell of cigarettes and empty bottles of alcohol, was a complete mess.
Even then, someone kept knocking on the door.
“Who is it this early in the morning.”
Hyung-soo, who was getting annoyed, opened the door irritably.
It was the mailman who had knocked on the door.
“What is it?”
“Registered mail.”
“Registered mail? From where?”
“The prosecutor’s office. Sign here, please.”
The mailman, who seemed uninterested, handed him the envelope and disappeared in an instant.
“The prosecutor’s office? What the hell.”
The alcohol he had drunk yesterday suddenly wore off.
It had finally come.
He opened the envelope with trembling hands.
The YouTube channel he had been operating because of the Sunflower boss had been shut down, and he was now facing a lawsuit.
“I’m ruined. Fuck.”
***
“This video is an unedited version of the footage that was excluded from the edit. As you all know, I never accept any kind of advertising, but when I went to edit it later, it seemed too much like an advertisement... I didn’t know it would be used like this. This is the unedited version. Please watch it and judge for yourself.”
The video began with a short introduction.
Dae-Jang, who had been concentrating on his food, looked up at the PD after glancing at the part-timer.
“PD Kim. Did you see that plate? It came back completely empty. Not a drop of sauce left?”
“Ugh. Our plates are the same.”
“What?”
The cameraman cleverly lowered the camera to the empty plate.
Indeed, their plates were also empty, as if they were new.
It’s not easy, even for a popular restaurant.
There are likes and dislikes when it comes to food, and no matter how popular a restaurant is, there’s always something that people don’t like.
But here, there was none of that. Not only was the composition of the dishes rich, but the taste of each dish was so good that it was a shame to leave even a drop of sauce.
It seemed that the other customers felt the same way.
“Should we ask to film their kitchen?”
“Why the kitchen all of a sudden?”
“Isn’t it strange? A restaurant that does so well, but how much food waste do they produce?”
“That would be interesting.”
The head chef walked into the kitchen and said something politely. A moment later, he walked back with an okay sign with his finger, looking pleased.
The kitchen they entered was the epitome of cleanliness. Some of the equipment looked old, but it was neatly maintained, and the food waste, which was the most curious thing, was close to zero.
“This is crazy. The food waste bag for the restaurant is only 2 liters. Wow.”
“Well, of course. There’s nothing to throw away.”
“That’s right.”
The video that the head chef uploaded ended there.
The comments below were all in support of Hae-jun and Sunflower.
“Huh? Boss. Look at the comments on the Jewel Dream window. There’s a new tip comment.”
Min-ju pushed another phone into Hae-jun’s field of vision.
Comments running in real time.
-The Meokbo guy came to the store and tried to bully the boss, but he got kicked out. How polite, my ass. They were so confident that I thought he was the boss.
-I was there too. Meokbo was talking down to the part-timer, so the boss came and blew his top. He was so cool at that time. The female part-timer’s eyes were fierce.
-Watch this video. Isn’t that Meokbo in the background? If you zoom in and look closely, you can see him looking around and then quickly putting something in.
Someone had filmed Meokbo, following the Sunflower mascot Mongchi around, and in the background of the video, someone who appeared to be Meokbo was seen. He sat with his back to the corner, looked around the corner of the ceiling and the surroundings, and then took something out and quickly put it in.
-He put it in. He put it in!
-ㅋㅋㅋ Of course. That’s how all the fabrications are.
-Meokbo’s comment channel is in danger of exploding with protest comments!
The situation was reversed in an instant.
The arrows of criticism that had been directed at Hae-jun were now turned back on Meokbo.
‘Thank goodness. Now I can rest easy.’
He wasn’t worried about losing customers.
The fact that Min-ju and Dong-sik hyung wouldn’t blame each other for this made him feel relieved.
In the two months that he had been running the store, he had made as much money as a mid-level corporate employee’s annual salary. To Hae-jun now, the two of them were more precious than anything else.
“What are you going to do now?”
Ho-cheol asked.
He hadn’t had any thoughts about what to do from the beginning.
He just wanted to clear up the misunderstanding caused by the video.
“I’ve cleared my name from the false accusation, so it’s fine.”
“No! Absolutely not.”
“The boss was lucky and got away with it, but if we just leave that bastard alone, he’ll just go somewhere else and do it again, right?”
“Then what should we do?”
Hae-jun looked around for opinions.
“Should we mobilize the Jwel Dream hyungs and go to that bastard’s house to protest?”
“That’s a good idea. He’ll be scared.”
“No, we need a more definitive solution than that.”
Lawyer Kim In-chul, who had been watching the situation from behind, spoke up.
“Are you saying we should beat him up? If we use physical force and he sues us in return...”
“There’s a more effective treatment than physical therapy.”
“?···”
Question marks appeared on the faces of Hae-jun and the others.
What could be a more effective treatment than instilling fear and using physical force?
“It’s financial therapy. Let’s go through the legal process. From criminal to civil. We’ll charge him with defamation, violation of the Information and Communications Network Act, and anything else we can, and we’ll sue him for damages and compensation.”
“Oh~!”
“Wow.”
***
“Fuck, this is totally fucked.”
After checking the community and channel comments, Hyung-soo hurriedly locked the comment section on his channel and took down the video that had attacked Sunflower.
However, the fabrication incident had already become an issue and was spreading through various communities.
It had even been reported in some internet media outlets.
Anxious, Hyung-soo bit his nails and clicked the mouse meaninglessly.
“What should I do?··· Right, an apology video.”
The best thing to do in times like this is to quickly upload an apology video.
Anyway, he had already gotten the views, and the number of subscribers had increased to 200,000 in an instant, so there was nothing to lose.
He could just say something like, ‘There was a small misunderstanding, but I didn’t know it would turn into such a big deal. I’ll be more careful about making videos from now on.’
Hyung-soo stood in front of the camera in a simple white shirt and black background, looking as haggard as possible, and filmed an apology video.
He didn’t forget to leave a message saying that he would like to meet the boss and clear up the misunderstanding between them, if given the chance.
Anyway, it was an incident that would become an issue for a day or two and then be forgotten.
Sunflower would suffer, but Hyung-soo’s channel would increase its views and revenue, along with its 200,000 subscribers, by at least double.
“I guess that’s enough for now, right?”
Hyung-soo, who had uploaded the video, reassured himself for the time being.
But what is this?!
The comment reaction was not good.
-I knew it. (A meme from the movie ‘Crime and Punishment’ by Choi Minsik)
-Passing the buck. He’s saying sorry after killing someone.
-Bring in the pitchforks. Didn’t you learn that you’ll get your ass kicked if you play around and get caught?
-You made a huge profit off of someone else’s business, and you’re trying to get away with it with an apology video?
He faced a backlash.
“Damn it.”
***
[Mr. Hae-jun. You’re really hardworking.]
Pote said in admiration as he flew over to Hae-jun, who was working hard in the field.
[I didn’t know Mr. Hae-jun would think of me like this.]
“Huh? You?”
[Yes! Isn’t this why you’re working so hard to restore my lost ability? I’m touched. Sob···.]
“Ah··· well, yeah.”
There was no reason to deny it if Pote thought so.
It was the truth, after all. However, there was another reason why Hae-jun had become so much more diligent lately.
He was working hard to harvest crops at Pote’s request, but since the Meokbo incident, there were more customers, so he had to work non-stop, even without time to sleep, in order to get the ingredients.
‘I thought I had a little breathing room, but it’s gotten worse.’
It got busier after the Meokbo incident.
He had to increase the number of morning set meals sold in the morning by 50 because there were so many customers, and there was a line of customers at lunchtime as well.
As a result, he was even getting threatening(?) requests to open for dinner.
It was nice to have so many people visit, but,
‘I can’t handle it.’
He felt the need to hire more employees.
The restaurant, too.
And here, too.
“Oh! I’m late. Pote. I’m going back.”
Hae-jun checked the time, took the ingredients out of the warehouse and loaded them onto the cart, and hurriedly left the farm.
[You’ve worked hard taking care of the crops. Get some rest and come back refreshed!]
Pote waved goodbye.
‘Ah··· right. I want to rest, too.’
.
.
.
After returning from the dimensional farm, Hae-jun hurriedly started preparing lunch.
He had just come back from the farm to get the ingredients he needed after a short break in the morning.
Pote told him to get some rest, but far from resting, the real battle was about to begin. He needed two bodies to handle everything.
“Meow~.”
Mongchi meowed as if to encourage him.
Hae-jun gently stroked Mongchi’s fur.
“Thank you.”
Haejun wiped his hands clean, put on his apron, and made up his mind.
“Boss. When did you come out··· Huh? When did the groceries come in?”
Dong-sik, who was taking a break, tilted his head as he looked at the ingredients piled up in the kitchen.
“Just now. I took care of it.”
“Why didn’t you tell me to do it?”
“Who cares who does it? More importantly, wash the newly arrived salad vegetables. And prepare the ingredients for the omelet rice.”
“Yes, boss.”
He gave him work to do before he could ask any more unnecessary questions.
As 11:30 approached, the front of the store became noisy.
In the morning and at lunchtime, customers wait in the yard, but during the break, the front door of the yard is locked, so this is what happens. As a result, the quiet residential neighborhood alley at 10am was noisy.
‘I need to figure something out about that too. It’s a nuisance to the people living nearby.’
He resumed business on time.
Ho-cheol came rushing in with his office colleagues.
“Boss. We’re here.”
“You’re here? Sit over there.”
“Wow, manager. You’re close with the boss, too?”
“Of course. I’m a regular here. It was a hidden gem that I wanted to keep to myself, but it’s all ruined because of my post.”
“I wondered where you disappeared to every lunchtime. Tsk, we should have come with you.”
“That’s why I brought you today. I’m paying today, so order whatever you want.”
“Nice~! But the boss is even more handsome in person than in the video. He’s totally my type.”
The female employee who came with Ho-cheol complimented Haejun.
Hae-jun, embarrassed, just smiled, and Min-ju, who appeared behind him, narrowed her eyes.
“Boss. I’ll take the orders, so you go back to the kitchen.”
“Ah, I got it, so stop pushing me.”
“Hurry. Hurry.”
Min-ju pushed Hae-jun into the kitchen and returned to Ho-cheol’s table.
Unlike before, she set the table politely and served the complimentary lemonade.
“Have you decided on your menu?”
“I’ll have the pork cutlet.”
“Me too.”
“Don’t say that. Since there are five of us, let’s order 2 tonkatsu, 2 cheese katsu, and 1 omelet rice and share them.”
“Okay. Oh, but what drinks do you have?”
The customer that Haejun said was his type asked Minju.
“We don’t sell drinks separately. We do have goat’s milk, but it’s only available in the morning.”
“Really? Not even cola or cider?”
“No.”
“I guess we have no choice. Just give us that.”
“Please wait a moment.”
Min-ju served soup and bread before taking orders and headed to another table.
As the real lunchtime began, customers poured in, and within 5 minutes of opening, the hall was full.
“Did you see that video?”
A group of women sitting at table 3 whispered to each other in very small voices.
“What? That 100,000-subscriber fabrication YouTuber?”
“The law firm next to us is representing him.”
“Kim In-chul’s law firm?”
“Is he going to sue for defamation?”
“I think so. And he’s going to add more charges. The boss here said it was okay, but Lawyer Kim said he’s going to go all the way, even without getting paid.”
“Why?”
“The lawyer is a regular here.”
“Wow. He’s in big trouble.”
It’s not just defamation. In this case, given the nature of YouTube, he could be charged under the Information and Communications Network Act and face up to 7 years in prison or a fine of up to 50 million won. He could also be charged with obstruction of business. And, based on these criminal charges, he could face a civil lawsuit.
“He’s going to get a heavy dose of financial therapy this time.”
“If he gets hit with fines and civil lawsuits, it’s going to be a big blow. There’s nothing worse than financial therapy for guys like that.”
“Heh heh heh.”
***
Ding-dong-
“···.”
Knock, knock, knock-
“Are you home?”
“···.”
Knock, knock, knock-
Hyung-soo, who had been woken up by the loud knocking on the door, got up.
As he lowered his feet to the floor under the bed, he stepped on an empty bottle that was rolling around. He moved his feet around to get the bottle out of the way and got out of bed.
The room, filled with the smell of cigarettes and empty bottles of alcohol, was a complete mess.
Even then, someone kept knocking on the door.
“Who is it this early in the morning.”
Hyung-soo, who was getting annoyed, opened the door irritably.
It was the mailman who had knocked on the door.
“What is it?”
“Registered mail.”
“Registered mail? From where?”
“The prosecutor’s office. Sign here, please.”
The mailman, who seemed uninterested, handed him the envelope and disappeared in an instant.
“The prosecutor’s office? What the hell.”
The alcohol he had drunk yesterday suddenly wore off.
It had finally come.
He opened the envelope with trembling hands.
The YouTube channel he had been operating because of the Sunflower boss had been shut down, and he was now facing a lawsuit.
“I’m ruined. Fuck.”
