15: Chapter 15 Turning Point

Chapter Fifteen: The Turning Point

On the first night of collaborating with Sister Jin, Chairman Wang Shunyi felt uncertain. Although Sister Jin had confidently assured him there would be no problem, he was still a bit nervous when it actually came time to start selling.

Sister Jin's stall was already bustling. Oil sizzled on the iron plate for spicy rice cakes, and the fish cake soup bubbled with rising steam; the line of people never broke. Chairman Wang Shunyi set up a small table next to her, displaying fire chicken noodles and river snail rice noodles, and even prepared several bowls as samples in thermal containers.

"Boss, what kind of noodles are these? They look so spicy!" A girl in a hoodie leaned in, her eyes fixed on the bright red bowl of noodles.

"fire chicken noodles, they're super spicy." Chairman Wang Shunyi handed her a pair of disposable chopsticks. "Try some, it's free."

The girl took them, picked up a mouthful, slurped them down, and after a couple of chews, her face turned red.

"Wow—it's really spicy!" she hissed, sucking in air, but her chopsticks didn't stop. "It's delicious! Give me five packs!"

"Sure thing, that'll be ten thousand won."

The five packs were bagged, and the girl scanned the code to pay. Before leaving, she took a photo to post on social media. Seeing this, several customers waiting for spicy rice cakes also came over to inquire. By the end of the night, he had sold over fifty packs of fire chicken noodles and more than thirty packs of river snail rice noodles at Sister Jin's stall alone. The payment notification on Chairman Wang Shunyi's phone pinged countless times, but he didn't even have time to check it.

When it was time to close up, Sister Jin took off her apron and patted him on the shoulder. "Well? Didn't I say it would be fine?"

"Sister Jin, thank you so much," Chairman Wang Shunyi said, wiping away sweat.

"No need for thanks. Your product is good, and I make money alongside you; it's a win-win." Sister Jin calculated the day's split and transferred it to him immediately.

It was nearly eleven o'clock by the time he returned to the office. Zhang Junhao was still there, munching on bread in front of his computer.

"You're back? How did it go?"

Chairman Wang Shunyi showed him the payment records. Jun-ho leaned in for a look and nearly choked on his bread. "This much? In just one night?"

"Sister Jin's stall is very popular," Chairman Wang Shunyi poured a glass of water and took a few gulps. "Plus, many people were trying it for the first time; they bought it right after tasting. This kind of offline experience is much more effective than dry pictures online."

Jun-ho nodded and took another bite of bread. "Then should we look for more stalls like that?"

"That's exactly what I was thinking. But we can't just pick any stall; we need to find ones that are popular, have a lot of young people, and match our product's vibe." Chairman Wang Shunyi sat down and thought for a moment. "The night markets in Hongdae and Myeong-dong are quite large. Why don't you go check them out tomorrow?"

"Sure."

Over the next few days, several things moved forward simultaneously.

On Lee Soo-yeon's end, the "Spiciness Challenge" was officially launched. She posted the event announcement on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. The prizes were quite substantial: first place received a year of free fire chicken noodles plus one million won in cash; second place received half a year plus five hundred thousand won; and third place received three months plus three hundred thousand won. Everyone who participated received a coupon. Within half a day of posting the announcement, several small influencers had shared it, and the comments were piling up fast.

"I've already bought a case; I'm filming tomorrow!"

"Last time I ate fire chicken noodles, they almost finished me off. This time, I'm getting my revenge."

"To the person above, remember to @ me."

Zhang Junhao wasn't idle either. He spent his days in Hongdae and nights in Myeong-dong, carrying a notebook to record the foot traffic, locations, and what each stall sold. When he reported back to Chairman Wang Shunyi, he had a list of several interested stall owners and analyzed them one by one.

Chairman Wang Shunyi himself was busy as well. Han Xiuzhen from Seoul Venture Capital sent a message, essentially urging him to make a decision. He didn't rush to reply but first gave Park Min-ji a call.

"Minji, let me ask you something. Do you know any other investment firms? I want to explore more options."

There was silence on the other end for two seconds.

"I know a few. But their investment focuses are different—some lean toward tech, others toward consumer goods. I can ask around for you, but I can't say if they'll be interested."

"Thanks for the trouble."

"It's no problem. By the way, have you considered—not taking any investment and just growing slowly on your own?"

"I have," Chairman Wang Shunyi leaned back in his chair. "But Chan-hyeok's side is putting on a lot of pressure. They have the channels and resources. If I'm too slow, I'm afraid I won't even be able to keep the business I have now."

"I understand your concern," Minji's voice was soft but clear. "But you have to think it through; taking the money doesn't mean everything will be fine. Once investors come in, the company's direction won't be entirely up to you anymore. If your visions clash, it'll be more troublesome than having no money."

Chairman Wang Shunyi didn't respond. He knew she was right.

After hanging up, the office fell silent again. Outside the window was Seoul's night view, with dense lights stretching to the horizon. He remembered how just a few months ago, he was still hunkered down in a semi-basement, worrying about a job that paid less than two million won a month. Now, ironically, he was worrying because people wanted to throw money at him.

He gave a bitter smile, picked up his phone, and sent a text to his mother.

"Mom, I'm doing well lately. The business is facing some difficulties, but I can handle it. You and Dad don't worry; I'll take good care of myself."

A few minutes later, his mother replied.

"Sunyi, Mom believes in you. No matter what difficulties you face, you must persevere. Your father and I will always support you."

He stared at those words for a long time, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.

He put down his phone and reopened his computer. On the screen were today's sales figures—an average of 180 packs of fire chicken noodles, 90 packs of river snail rice noodles, and 40 self-heating pots. The online store's monthly sales reached 18 million won. Although it hadn't returned to its peak yet, the downward trend had finally been halted.

He scrolled through the event data sent by Lee Soo-yeon; the number of participants had already exceeded two hundred.

There was a mountain of things to do tomorrow.

He shut down the computer, stood up, and turned off the lights. The motion-sensor light in the hallway flickered on, then went out.