19: Chapter 19 I Want Nine Girls

February 2009, morning in Cheongdam-dong felt chilly. In the temporary meeting room of Sky Entertainment, curtains half-drawn, the 10 AM sunlight sliced diagonally into the room, casting a clear dividing line across the sleek, long conference table—one half bright, one half in shadow.

Song Tianhao sat at the head of the table, the sunlight landing just on the back of his hands resting on the surface, his knuckles well-defined. Several documents were spread out before him, and he toyed with a black fountain pen.

Jang Se-hoon sat behind him to the side, his expression serious. The meeting room was quiet, with only the faint hum of the central air conditioning.

As the appointed time arrived, a rhythmic knocking came from outside. The door was pushed open, and Kim Taeyeon walked in.

She was wearing a black casual suit today with a simple white T-shirt underneath, hair tied in a low ponytail, face bare. Her complexion was paler than it had been at the banquet the night before, with distinct dark circles under her eyes.

She walked in with steady steps, but Song Tianhao noticed that her fingers gripping her black clutch were trembling slightly from the force.

Kim Taeyeon's nails were trimmed neatly, but in the cuticle of her left hand, there seemed to be a trace of dried dark red, like blood left from unconsciously picking at her skin when nervous.

"Song Tianhao, hello, sorry to disturb you." Kim Taeyeon walked to the conference table and stopped opposite Song Tianhao. She didn't sit immediately, but bowed respectfully first. Her voice was slightly hoarse, but she tried to keep her tone calm.

"Kim Taeyeon-xi, please sit." Song Tianhao gestured for her to sit, his gaze landing calmly on her face, without showing any surprise or inquiry about her arriving alone or her haggard state. "Coffee, or tea?"

"No thank you, President." Kim Taeyeon sat in the chair opposite Song Tianhao, happening to sit right on the dividing line between light and shadow, half her face illuminated, half in darkness. She placed her clutch on the table, folded her hands on her lap, and sat with her back straight, like a taut string.

"And Im Yoona-xi?" Song Tianhao asked casually, while signaling to Jang Se-hoon.

Jang Se-hoon understood and left the meeting room. A moment later, he returned with a steaming cup of milk, placing it gently in front of Kim Taeyeon. The milky liquid swayed slightly in the light, emitting a warm fragrance. Next to the cup was a box of stomach medicine.

Kim Taeyeon's gaze lingered on the milk and the medicine for a moment, her body stiffening almost imperceptibly, her clasped fingers tightening slightly.

She didn't answer the question about Im Yoona, but instead took a deep breath, lifted her eyes, and looked directly at Song Tianhao. Her eyes, usually filled with sweet smiles or the determination of a leader, were now filled with unfathomable exhaustion and a kind of desperate resolve.

"President," she began, her voice still hoarse but exceptionally clear. She didn't engage in any pleasantries, cutting straight to the core, as if every wasted second was agony. "After returning last night, the company... President Lee Soo-man gave me an instruction, and also... a choice."

She paused, appearing to be organizing her thoughts, or rather, suppressing some emotion.

"S.M. Entertainment is willing to transfer the contracts of seven members of Girls Generation." She listed the names, her voice devoid of any inflection, like reading a shopping list. "Kim Taeyeon, Sunny, Tiffany Hwang, Kim Hyoyeon, Choi Sooyoung, Im Yoona, Seohyun."

She did not say the names of Jessica Jung and Kwon Yuri.

"Package price, 30 billion won."

After stating the number, she locked her gaze onto Song Tianhao's face, not missing any flicker of expression, as if evaluating a commodity for sale, and she herself was part of that commodity. "They asked me to ask you, Song Tianhao of Sky Entertainment, what is your offer?"

30 billion, seven people. For Girls Generation, who had just ignited a craze with "Gee" and had limitless future potential, this price was ridiculously low, even insulting.

But combined with S.M. Entertainment's usual style and the coldness felt at the banquet last night, this "quote" felt more like a probe, or... a carefully designed trap.

The contract provided by S.M. Entertainment included a gambling agreement: if Girls Generation did not achieve expected results at Song Tianhao's company, S.M. Entertainment could reclaim the group for free.

According to Lee Soo-man's plan, once Girls Generation achieved certain results, he would instruct certain members to secretly drag the group down, ultimately allowing S.M. Entertainment to reclaim the group for free.

And for Kim Taeyeon, this felt more like a cruel multiple-choice question: take some of her sisters and jump under a new president who was unknown but had at least offered a hot soup, or stay at S.M. Entertainment and continue to endure everything?

Splitting the group, selling only seven, leaving Jessica Jung and Kwon Yuri behind, would weaken the integrity of Girls Generation, create internal conflict, and allow them to cash out.

The meeting room was quiet for a few seconds, with only the steam from the milk rising.

There was no expression on Song Tianhao's face to suggest he was surprised by this "quote" or Kim Taeyeon's directness. He didn't even look at the thin letter of intent that Kim Taeyeon had taken from her clutch and pushed to the center of the table.

He simply placed the fountain pen he was toying with gently on the table, making a faint "click" sound.

Then, he reached out and pushed another thick folder he had prepared toward Kim Taeyeon, stopping it next to the warm milk.

"I don't buy parts." Song Tianhao spoke, his voice calm but carrying an unquestionable force.

Kim Taeyeon's gaze shifted from the milk to the folder, then raised to look at Song Tianhao, confusion flashing in her eyes.

Song Tianhao looked at her and stated his conditions clearly:

"I want nine girls."

"Kim Taeyeon, Jessica Jung, Sunny, Tiffany Hwang, Kim Hyoyeon, Kwon Yuri, Choi Sooyoung, Im Yoona, Seohyun."

"All members of Girls Generation, not one less."

He paused, then stated a number:

"Package price, 50 billion won."

Kim Taeyeon was completely stunned. She had anticipated that Song Tianhao might bargain, question S.M. Entertainment's motives, or even reject this deal that seemed like a "hot potato."

But she hadn't expected the other party to not only accept it all, but to buy all nine, and even offer a price nearly double S.M. Entertainment's quote! This was completely beyond her and S.M. Entertainment's expectations.

"President..." Kim Taeyeon's voice wavered from shock. She looked at Song Tianhao in disbelief, as if looking at a madman. "Do you know... do you know what buying us now means?

"Gee" is popular, but the Black Ocean... the Black Ocean incident last year, do you know about it? We are boycotted by fans all over South Korea! S.M. Entertainment is offloading bad assets! You are spending 50 billion to buy us, it's a losing business! Is this charity?"

Her emotions were a bit agitated, and the composure she had been feigning showed cracks.

She didn't understand what this man in front of her was after. Just because he saw their embarrassment at the banquet and sent a bowl of soup?

Song Tianhao didn't answer her question immediately. He reached out, picked up the tablet on the side, unlocked it, operated it a few times, and then turned the screen toward Kim Taeyeon.

A video began to play on the screen. The footage was shaky, the light dim, and the noise chaotic. But that scene was one Kim Taeyeon would never forget: the 2008 Dream Concert, known as the "Black Ocean." The fans below the stage collectively extinguished their light sticks, staying silent in protest.

On stage, nine girls in performance outfits stood before that darkness symbolizing the boycott, their faces pale, eyes filled with panic, fear, and suppressed tears, but they did not fall, nor did they flee.

The music started, they picked up their microphones, and amidst the silence and faint boos, they began to sing.

The audio in the video was poor, the singing barely audible, only their figures visible as they tried to sing and complete the dance moves in the darkness.

Their eyes, from initial panic, to later bewilderment, and finally, turned into a kind of numb, yet unyielding stubborn persistence that refused to admit defeat.

They relied on each other, encouraged each other with their eyes, and completed that long, agonizing performance in the boundless darkness and hostility.

The video ended on a frame where the stage side-lighting swept across, nine girls holding hands, bowing to the area where their fans were.

When she looked up, there were dried tear tracks on Kim Taeyeon's face, but her eyes were exceptionally bright. She locked eyes with Im Yoona beside her. In that look, there was despair, but also an unbreakable bond.

Only the faint electrical hum remained in the meeting room after the video ended. Kim Taeyeon stared blankly at the frozen frame, looking at herself in the video crying but refusing to bow her head, and Im Yoona beside her with red-rimmed eyes trying to smile at her.

The coldness, fear, and humiliation she had deliberately suppressed and forgotten surged back at this moment, making it almost impossible for her to breathe. Her body began to tremble slightly, her clasped fingers digging deep into her palms.

Song Tianhao turned off the tablet. He picked up the fountain pen and used the end of the cap to tap gently on the frozen frame of Kim Taeyeon and Im Yoona locking eyes on the tablet screen.

"Here," his voice sounded in the quiet meeting room, calm, but with a strange penetrating power, pointing to that brief second of eye contact in the video, "This one second where you encouraged and supported each other in desperation is worth 10 billion."

He lifted his eyes, his gaze like a torch, looking at Kim Taeyeon, who was pale and had eyes full of tears.

Kim Taeyeon's tears finally couldn't be controlled, rolling down in large drops, hitting the back of her hands on her lap, and hitting the sleek table.

She lowered her head sharply, her shoulders trembling uncontrollably, but she bit her lip hard to keep from crying out. It wasn't just the grievance of having her pain brought up, but a kind of... shock at having her most wretched, yet most real side seen without reservation.

He wasn't buying the name of the popular group "Girls Generation," not the short-lived heat brought by "Gee," and not even their future "profit potential."

He was buying the persistence of when the whole world turned its back on them during the "Black Ocean" incident and they still didn't put down the microphones; the spark that hadn't been extinguished when they looked at each other in the abyss of despair; the soul called "team" that the nine girls hadn't scattered even in adversity.

"What I am buying is what lies behind the name 'Girls Generation.' It is the backbone you showed when everyone said 'Girls Generation is over,' yet you could still stand on stage and finish a song."

Song Tianhao's voice continued, unhurried, yet every word struck Kim Taeyeon's heart, "It is the loyalty that you nine had, not abandoning each other and running away under those circumstances."

He looked at her trembling shoulders, slowing his tone, but remained firm:

"So, make your offer, Captain Kim Taeyeon."

"With what you believe the nine members of 'Girls Generation,' plus this backbone and loyalty, is worth 50 billion?"

Just then, the meeting room door was pushed open silently, and a middle-aged man in a suit with a serious expression walked in. It was the lawyer from S.M. Entertainment's legal department who had accompanied Kim Taeyeon, who had clearly been waiting or listening outside the door.

At this moment, his face wore an undisguised sneer as he said: "President Song is truly... generous. No, should I say a philanthropist. Spending 50 billion won to buy a girl group boycotted by the entire nation, and all nine packed together? If President Lee knew you appreciated our 'bad assets' at S.M. Entertainment so much, he would be very gratified."

These mocking words were like a basin of ice water, causing Kim Taeyeon, who was immersed in a huge emotional shock, to suddenly wake up, and also feel a bone-chilling embarrassment and anger. This was how S.M. Entertainment saw them: bad assets.

Song Tianhao didn't even look at the lawyer. His gaze remained on Kim Taeyeon, but his words were for the lawyer, his tone flat and without a ripple:

"At least, better than some companies that treat living people like disposable chopsticks, using them and discarding them, and feeling smug about it."

The lawyer's face turned ugly instantly.

Song Tianhao ignored him, pushing the thick contract folder closer to Kim Taeyeon. Then, he did something that surprised both Kim Taeyeon and the lawyer: he flipped directly to the last page of the contract, the signature line.

There, the words "Song Tianhao" were already signed in a clean and slightly cold handwriting.

In other words, this man in front of her had long since prepared this contract, written his own name, and set the price of "50 billion won for all nine."

This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment charity, nor was it a grudge against S.M. Entertainment. This was a gamble... a high-stakes bet he had quietly placed during their darkest hour. Betting they could get back up, betting they were worth it.

Kim Taeyeon's mind went blank, the massive amount of information and emotional impact making it almost impossible for her to think.

She looked at the already signed contract, looked at this man in front of her who looked calm but seemed to see through everything, looked at the cup of milk that was no longer piping hot but still warm, and the small stomach medicine next to it...

Her hand trembled as she reached for the black fountain pen Song Tianhao had just placed next to the contract. Her fingertips were cold, and when they touched the warm pen body, she flinched imperceptibly.

Just as her fingers were about to grip the pen barrel, the meeting room door was pushed open violently from the outside, slamming against the wall with a loud bang.

"Bang!"

A figure stumbled in.

It was Im Yoona.

She wasn't wearing makeup today, her hair was a bit messy, her eyes were redder and more swollen than the night before, and tear tracks crisscrossed her face. She had clearly cried again before coming, and might even have been crying the whole time.

She was wearing a simple hoodie and jeans, and even wearing indoor slippers on her feet, clearly having run out in a hurry.

She was panting, her chest heaving violently, her red eyes staring fixedly at Kim Taeyeon's hand reaching for the fountain pen, then suddenly turning to Song Tianhao, her eyes full of despair, struggle, and a glimmer of final hope.

"Unnie—!! Wait a moment!!!"

Im Yoona shouted with a hoarse voice, her voice cracking from crying and excitement, carrying a heartbreaking tremor.

She rushed forward two steps, but then stopped by the conference table as if drained of strength, supporting herself on the table to barely stand steady.

She raised her head, tears surging out again, looking at Song Tianhao, asking word by word with all her strength:

"President-nim, your acquisition of Girls Generation..."

"Is it really just to spite S.M. Entertainment, to prove you are richer and 'kinder' than President Lee Soo-man..."

Im Yoona paused, tears flowing into her chapped lips.

"Or do you really think..."

Her voice dropped, carrying endless exhaustion and a glimmer of hope:

"Those of us who have experienced the Black Ocean, been abandoned by everyone, and now internally are also... a mess..."

"Are still... worth you spending 50 billion? Still worth... being saved?"

After Im Yoona finished asking, it was as if she had exhausted all her strength, her body swaying, but she still stubbornly, with teary eyes, looked at Song Tianhao, waiting for an answer.

Her gaze seemed to say that if the answer was negative, then this "rescue" was just jumping into another carefully whitewashed trap.

A meaningful, almost triumphant sneer appeared on the face of the S.M. Entertainment lawyer.

In the meeting room, the sunlight shifted, and that dividing line between light and shadow landed precisely on Im Yoona's tear-stained face.