After seeing Song Ha-min off, Park Geon-ho called Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju.
She had stepped down as Jo So-hee's dedicated manager for personal reasons, but Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju still remained by Jo So-hee's side.
-So you want to grow So-hee's NewTube channel, right?
"Yes. I think she has too little interaction with both the public and her fans. I want to make the most of her existing NewTube channel."
-Hmm....... So while you were at it, you even found a NewTube editor.
"She's an editor with good reviews on ClipForge, a site for finding NewTube editors. She also graduated from a theater and film department, so she understands the work well."
-You want to try her as a freelancer for three months and then decide whether to hire her permanently.......
"If the cost is a burden, I'll speak with the Division Director and arrange for the Actor Division to hire her as an outside contractor."
Jo So-hee technically belonged to Team 5, but she had a separate dedicated team assigned to her.
A personal stylist.
A personal road manager.
And a principal manager to oversee her schedule.
Wooju Entertainment had promised to form a dedicated team when it signed Jo So-hee, so they could recruit any staff they needed on their own.
The company was obligated to cover all resulting expenses.
But given Jo So-hee's personality, she would never demand that the company even pay her personal NewTube editor's salary.
-No. We can cover that much ourselves. The problem is how you'll do it.
"You don't think growing the channel will be easy."
-I've tried a few times myself, but So-hee isn't very cooperative. She doesn't like being forced to film things.
Park Geon-ho knew Jo So-hee at least as well as Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju did.
Once the cue came during a shoot, she devoured the camera, but in everyday life, she hated having one follow her around.
But Park Geon-ho had experience coaxing and cajoling that same Jo So-hee until her channel reached 1,000,000 subscribers.
"I'm against forcing her to film videos too. But she can't communicate with the public solely through her projects forever."
-I agree with that. So-hee needs to appear on variety shows too, but.......
"I judged variety shows too difficult for her for the time being, which is another reason I want to grow her personal channel. If she broadens her interactions through her NewTube channel, her aversion to variety shows might ease."
Around the time Jo So-hee swept the youth acting awards from all three major broadcasters.
She had briefly appeared on an observational variety show.
The producer in charge had been filming another actor and captured Jo So-hee without asking permission.
The broadcast showed her failing to greet the actor because she was engrossed in her script, sparking controversy over her character.
After that incident, Jo So-hee had rejected every variety-show offer.
'In the past, she focused on acting because the public came to see her as someone who didn't do variety shows, but there's no reason for that now.'
If he wanted to get Jo So-hee to the top faster, he needed to seriously consider variety appearances as well.
And he needed to start growing the NewTube channel he hadn't touched until the SH Entertainment days much earlier this time.
-If you've thought that far ahead, Geon-ho, then go ahead. I'll explain the editor situation to So-hee.
"Yes. Thank you, Deputy Team Leader."
-There's nothing to thank me for. We're on the same team now, so you don't have to be so formal. More importantly, about that Drama Weekly article yesterday. You handled it, didn't you?
"Ah, yes. I forgot to report it."
-Goodness, don't report every little thing like that. Just keep telling me what I need to know, the way you are now. You're the one in charge of So-hee, after all, aren't you?
"Thank you for understanding."
-And since we're talking, I have a favor to ask.
"Yes. Go ahead."
He braced himself, wondering if she was about to say something about his hiring an editor without consulting her first.
But Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju had no intention of getting in the way of someone who did his job well.
-It's nothing like that. Have you heard of the Love for Children with Heart Disease Association?
"It sounds like an organization that helps children with heart disease, but I've never heard the name before."
-It isn't a government agency, but they keep contacting us.
"Are they asking for a donation?"
-We've already donated. But this time, they want So-hee to enter a marathon.
"A marathon?"
-They must have heard that So-hee likes running, but running on a treadmill and running a marathon are different, aren't they?
"Of course. If she says she challenged a marathon because she likes running, marathoners will tear her apart."
-Exactly. They're seizing on something she said in an old interview....... They'd gone quiet for a while, but now they're calling again.
He would need to look into the details after the call.
But if they kept calling and harassing her even after she had donated, it seemed necessary to draw a firm line.
"Understood. Please send me their contact information. If they call again, transfer them to me."
-I'm sorry it feels like I'm dumping the dirty work on you, Geon-ho.
"Don't say that. We're on the same team now, aren't we?"
-That's right. We're on the same team. Thank you for understanding.
Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju was genuinely sorry, but Park Geon-ho was grateful that she had entrusted him with a difficult task.
Even if it was hard, cutting the fuse was far better than cleaning up after the bomb exploded.
"Should I find that interview first?"
He opened a web portal and searched for Jo So-hee & heart disease.
Had he flipped through about three pages?
Then one headline caught his eye.
Jo So-hee Declares, 'I'll Run for Children with Heart Disease.'
"This looks like it?"
When he clicked the article, a photo appeared of Jo So-hee visiting a heart disease center.
She had played the heroine Choi I-seo, who had a younger brother with heart disease, in the recently filmed <Our Year>.
That connection seemed to have led her to volunteer at a heart disease center.
Unlike the body of the article, however, the headline was rather excessive.
"So she said it because she felt sorry for children suffering from heart disease, and they twisted it like this?"
There was no way to know what the reporter had intended with that headline.
But the Love for Children with Heart Disease Association seemed to be using the article as an excuse to keep contacting her.
Park Geon-ho searched for the Love for Children with Heart Disease Association again.
Something felt off when he opened its website.
"Is this a legitimate organization? Why is the site so bare-bones?"
Organizations funded by donations usually paid particular attention to their websites.
If the website looked shoddy, people might suspect the organization wasn't legitimate.
"Something smells fishy......."
Park Geon-ho clicked the notice for the Children with Heart Disease Charity Marathon.
"Friday, April 18. That's only two weeks away."
Since this would be the fifth event, he looked up the previous races.
Celebrities had participated in both the third and fourth events.
But it wasn't a race a celebrity of Jo So-hee's caliber would run in.
"Why do they want Jo So-hee? Are they short on donations? Or is there some other reason?"
Just then, his phone buzzed with a KkaeTalk message.
< Team Leader Jeong So-min, Love for Children with Heart Disease Association. 02-XXX-XXXX / 010-XXXX-XXXX
< Please take care of it, Geon-ho.
Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju apparently wanted him to turn them down tactfully.
But they didn't seem likely to give up easily just because the new manager refused.
"If I draw too firm a line, they may resort to media spin. Should I feel them out first?"
He called the number Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju had sent him.
A businesslike woman's voice came through the phone.
-Yes. Love for Children with Heart Disease Association.
"Hello. Is this Team Leader Jeong So-min?"
-It is. Who's calling?
"This is Manager Park Geon-ho from Wooju Entertainment."
-Wooju Entertainment?
"I'm Jo So-hee's manager."
-Ah, yes! So-hee? I've been waiting to hear from you.
The woman's tone changed the instant he introduced himself.
At the same time, a red warning light flashed in Park Geon-ho's mind.
A third party called an organization that Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju had deliberately avoided, and they were this delighted?
It was far too suspicious.
"I only recently took over, you see. I'm sorry, but could you explain in detail why you've been contacting us?"
-Ah, Jo So-hee must have gotten a new manager. I think the last one was a woman. Am I right?
"Yes. Her manager was changed in accordance with company policy."
-Then I'll have to explain it again. You see.......
Team Leader Jeong So-min's explanation wasn't much different from what Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju had told him.
She padded it with plenty of unnecessary detail, but the conclusion was that they wanted Jo So-hee to participate in the marathon.
"The marathon is on the eighteenth, correct?"
-Yes. There are a little over two weeks left.
"I don't know if you're aware, but Jo So-hee will begin filming soon. She's currently keeping herself in condition."
-Oh, I see. But she did say what she said before, so why not participate, even if only briefly? As I mentioned last time, many famous people have taken part since the third event.
"Then I assume celebrities have agreed to participate this year as well?"
-Of course. I can't disclose their names, but there are about four.
"If the purpose is publicity, wouldn't those people be enough?"
-Even so, Jo So-hee should come and grace the occasion. Do you know how many people are waiting for her?
The call dragged on, but the conversation went nowhere.
Even when he explained that her schedule would make it difficult, the answer never changed.
"Is there some reason So-hee absolutely has to attend?"
-Of course! The children adore So-hee.
"Then we'll make time to visit once her current project is over."
-Wouldn't it be better for her to participate while such a meaningful event is being held? She said it in the article too. That she would run for patients with heart disease.
"So-hee has never formally run a marathon."
-There's nothing special about a marathon. She won't be running all 42 km. It's only a shortened 10-km marathon. And running is So-hee's hobby, isn't it?
"So-hee generally uses a treadmill to stay in shape. She doesn't run actual courses because of the risk of injury."
-You don't need to worry about that either. Our course is flat, so anyone of any age can participate.
Now that the woman was clinging this stubbornly, Park Geon-ho wanted to know the real reason.
He probed her a few more times, but she merely repeated the excuse that the children liked Jo So-hee.
So Park Geon-ho played his last card.
"Then could you send an official letter to the company?"
-An official letter?
"Jo So-hee is an artist under special management at Wooju Entertainment. I believe we'll need to hold an internal meeting."
-We've already been talking for almost twenty minutes. Is an official letter really necessary? She only needs to show her face for a moment.
"Jo So-hee belongs to Wooju Entertainment, so she can't schedule activities on her own. I'll send you my business card. Please send the official letter to the contact listed there."
-Sigh. Fine. I'll send the letter, so please make sure she attends.
This wasn't some tiny agency. A major company like Wooju Entertainment had no reason to entertain such an unreasonable demand.
The publicity benefit wasn't substantial, the race wasn't hosted by a prominent organization, and only two weeks remained before the event.
"They won't send it. No, they can't."
He assumed it would end with the company taking some criticism and went to the restroom. When he returned, an official letter was sitting on his desk.
"What's this?"
"It came by fax? Isn't it for you?"
"What the hell? They actually sent it?"
Park Geon-ho was dumbfounded when he read the official letter.
Sending it at all was ridiculous, but the contents were even more absurd.
"Based on our previous discussions, we have decided to invite Actress Jo So-hee as a special celebrity guest? And you're asking us to reconfirm her attendance? Are you insane? When did we ever say she would attend?"
The letter was filled with nothing but the Love for Children with Heart Disease Association's unilateral claims.
It was so brazen that Park Geon-ho didn't even need to confirm the facts separately with Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju.
"This isn't going to end if I simply ignore it, is it?"
After thinking for a moment, Park Geon-ho opened his notebook.
He had separately saved the names and contact information of reporters he could ask for help in situations like this.
Of course, he had used a tablet and a phone back in his SH days.
But he figured the all-purpose notebook would somehow give him the information he needed.
Sure enough.
When he flipped back a few pages, a neatly organized spreadsheet of contacts appeared with a pop.
"Right. Now I know how to use you."