The Famous Millionaire

At that moment, Hyunwoo’s face brightened.

Chan Yun wanted to see Hyunwoo not just because of the contract on the story contest. Just like Hyunwoo had an expectation of his meeting with Chan, he had the same expectation.

Hyunwoo bowed to him quickly and said, “It’s an honor to meet you. I respect you.”

“It’s an honor to me, too. As a matter of fact, I have wanted to meet you. Looking at Ani & Funny and KOVE DREAM, I thought your companies were a lot different from other companies.”

“I’m flattered by your compliment.”

“I’m not just saying that for no reason. I think the most excellent business is investing in men, not making money. When I looked at you, I thought you fit that kind of businessman perfectly.”

Hyunwoo thought Chan was the very businessman that fit that type as well.

“Please excuse me for saying this, but can I call you as my brother? I’m younger than you and respect you sincerely. If you are available, I’d like to meet you often and learn about your life a lot.”

“Hahaha. I stopped growing old since I was 39. So, if you call me a brother, I feel I can come back to 38. I feel very good about it.”

Hyunwoo quickly stood up and bowed to him, “Then, I would like to treat you as my elder brother.”

Chan also stood up and held his hands tightly.

“I can reassure you this. You will be a more successful businessman than me in about 10 years. I won’t even dare to look at you then. I think I’ve dreamed a dragon dream as I have someone like you as my brother.”

“Phew, I’m so flattered. Please talk down to me, brother.”

“Okay, then. Hahaha.”

Chan didn’t let go of his hold until the meeting was over. Though they didn’t talk a lot because of the appointment time was short, they felt as if they were close friends who had maintained their friendship for decades.

Hyunwoo felt that was the power of Chan Yun. Chan made Hyunwoo his man in about 26 minutes.

“It looks like 26 minutes is 26 seconds. Time flies so fast!”

“Though I would like to contact you first, you’re so busy… Please let me know when you are available anytime. I’ll come running to you.”

“Well, I’m relatively free during the weekends. Why don’t we meet then? Can I call you at the number here on your business card?” said Chan, raising his card a bit.

Bowing to him, Hyunwoo said, “Yes, please. Anytime.”

Chan then took his leave, saying he was sorry.

Hyunwoo felt as if he was walking on air. The idea of the story contest was already erased from his brain, which meant that his meeting with Chan was impressive.

Kyungsu and Jonghyon felt the same way. They accompanied him to help him out when he was discussing with Chan about the contest but didn’t say any word.

Still, their hearts were full like Hyujnwoo’s.

In particular, Chan’s praise kept ringing in their ears.

<You will be a more successful businessman than me in about 10 years. I won’t even dare to look at you then.>

They felt Chan’s prediction would come true.

Yea, Hyunwoo has that capability. We can grow when he grows to be a big businessman.

Both of them clenched their fists strongly at the same time.

Several days later Hyunwoo received a call from Chan. He proposed a lunch on Saturday.

“Yes, I’ll see you then.”

On Saturday, Hyunwoo went to the appointed place. It was a quiet sushi restaurant.

Hyunwoo and Chan came without any attendants. Thanks to that, they could have a frank exchange of personal things with each other.

Even today Chan praised Hyunwoo, which was not just a figure of speech. He knew a lot about Hyunwoo, which suggested that he was interested in Hyunwoo a lot and did some research on him, too.

At some point in their conservation, they talked about their dreams.

“What is your dream, brother?” asked Chan.

Whenever someone asked that kind of question, Hyunwoo didn’t tell them about his real dream because they couldn’t empathize with it. He might be misunderstood even as a smooth talker without showing any substance.

But he felt he needed to tell Chan about his real dream frankly. To him, Chan seemed to dream a similar dream.

“My dream is to be the light of the world.”

Hyunwoo felt bashful after confiding it to Chan.

He continued, “It’s a bit ridiculous, isn’t it? Haha”

But Chan didn’t think that way at all. He tilted his body as if he was seriously interested.

“Light of the world? I’m curious what it is.”

“In fact, I’m all just slick talk, but there is nothing particular. If I may say, it is to give everyone who lives life fully a chance to succeed or help the students realize their dreams.”

The more he talked about his dream, the more he felt bashful. In the end, all that was for the sake of Hyunwoo’s own interests. For he wanted to develop others’ talent and make them his assets.

What he felt more burdensome was the way Chan looked at him. The more Hyunwoo talked, the more Chan seemed to be drawn to his talk.

Hyunwoo stopped talking with a hearty laugh, as if he couldn’t continue any more.

“Haha, brother. You don’t have to take me seriously. In short, my dream is like a cunning trick to develop good talented men and raise them as the means of my business.”

“No, you can’t say it is a cunning trick,” said Chan, shaking his head strongly.

And he continued, “Of course, it is indeed good to help somebody by sacrificing oneself. But personally, I think your idea is much more commendable because it encourages common prosperity.”

Hyunwoo scratched his head at his praise, but Chan was serious. It seemed he was touched by Hyunwoo’s vision.

“I think one’s mindset is more important than money. One’s donation through one’s sacrifices makes the beneficiaries feel a certain burden. Because they feel they have to repay when they achieve success. But I think those who receive your favor don’t feel that way because the more they succeed, the more you also succeed. In that sense, their success means repaying your favor, doesn’t it?” said Chan.

“Really? Hahaha” Hyunwoo said, smiling awkwardly.

But Chan didn’t smile, but continued to say, “In fact, I had the same dream when I was young, and I thought I realized that dream.”

He then told Hyunwoo about his story.

His dream was to open the opportunity for talented writers to develop their creative ability freely and establish a system for that.

And its fruit was Story Mecca.

Story Mecca was not simply a website to host serials. Actually, it invested several billion won per year in discovering and helping new writers.

In some respects, there was something in common between Chan’s dream and Hyunwoo’s. For the revenue of Story Mecca would increase as the writers achieved success. When that kind of virtuous cycle continued, Story Mecca expanded rapidly.

Telling his story, Chan tilted his head, saying, “In fact, you can’t have such a dream without a special occasion. In my case, I cultivated that dream, looking at those writers struggling financially. How did you start having such a dream?”

Hyunwoo never gave it a thought, but in retrospect, it was natural that he had that dream.

“Well, I was badly in need of such help. I was desperate at that time. So, when I saw those in need, I could naturally read their minds.”

And then Hyunwoo told him about his hard times as a child. He had to bend over backwards to work hard to overcome the tough reality.

But poverty was like shackles. No matter how hard he tried to get out, he couldn’t.

In that process, he could watch those who were in a situation similar to his. In his eyes, they were all excellent men with real talent.

But their less fortunate situations denied them the chance to develop their ability. Rather they had to learn how to be trampled upon and succumb. At some point, they felt they were like bad products.

“I don’t think there are bad products in the world. They just can’t find their proper use. That’s the same case with men.”

Hyunwoo continued, “I would like to find the good and strong points of men and shed light on them. Then, their despair could change into hope, and their hope can breed their passion for success. It is my dream to change them like that.”

Chan nodded his head and looked him quietly.

Then he approached him and grabbed his hands abruptly.

With a surprised look Hyunwoo stared at him.

Chan began to speak in an emotional tone.

“As for your dream, brother, can I share it?”

“What?’

“Let’s work together.”

Hyunwoo felt a sting in the heart to hear that. Though he respected and loved his Story Mecca, he set up the plan which was opposite to what Story Mecca was now pursuing.

His vision was to build an animation Story Mecca. Hyunwoo’s new business was a potential rival from Chan’s perspective.

Hyunwoo asked with a curious look, “I don’t get what you are trying to say.”

“In fact, I had only half success of Story Mecca and failed in the other half. I made a grave mistake,” said Chan.

It was hard for Hyunwoo to understand what he said. How can he say he had only half success of Story Mecca that dominated the online genre novels in the world?

Chan continued, “Originally, Story Mecca should have focused on genre novels. It should not have dealt with webtoons and animation. Its efficiency dropped drastically when it began to accept them.”

Hyunwoo’s eyes opened wide at that. It seemed as if Chan was reading his mind accurately.

“So, I’m thinking of splitting my business. In other words, I’m going to set up a separate site for webtoons and animation.”

At that moment, Hyunwoo felt frustrated. If Story Mecca found such problems for itself and solved them, there was no reason for him to build an animation Story Mecca.

Suddenly, he recalled what Chan had told him a moment ago, namely his proposal to work together.

Hyunwoo cautiously asked, “Was the reason you have said that to me …?”

“Can you take care of the animation site?”