49: Chapter 49 Farmer's Heart

The food safety crisis at Jins Foods was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, the ripples spreading outward in circles. By mid-October, it had evolved into an industry-wide earthquake.

First, several large supermarkets removed Jins Foods products from their shelves, followed by e-commerce platforms taking down all links to Jins Foods products. Finally, even GS25 and CU issued internal notices: "Suspend the sale of all Jins Foods products, pending investigation results."

Kim Dong-hyun sat in his empty office, a barely touched bottle of red wine and several cold takeout meals on the desk. His phone rang incessantly, but he didn't answer. The television was on, muted, showing the gates of his factory. Reporters were holding microphones, blocking the entrance, while security guards held out their arms to hold them back.

"Chairman, people from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety are here." The secretary pushed the door open, his face pale.

Kim Dong-hyun stood up, straightened his tie, and walked out. The corridor was long, and the sound of his leather shoes hitting the floor echoed with every step, like a heartbeat.

Chairman Wang Shunyi watched the live news broadcast on his phone. Kim Dong-hyun stood at the factory gate, saying to the camera, "Jins Foods has not used any inferior ingredients; this is malicious slander."

But his voice was trembling, and his eyes didn't look right. Chairman Wang Shunyi put down his phone and said to Zhang Junhao, "Jins Foods is finished—not right now, but soon."

Zhang Junhao nodded. "The market has opened up. Who's going to fill it?"

"Us." Chairman Wang Shunyi stood up and walked to the whiteboard. "But we aren't going to fight for those low-end customers. Jins Foods has two types of customers: those looking for cheap prices and those loyal to the brand. Those looking for cheap prices will go to the low-end products of Nongshim and Samyang; we can't compete with them there. The customers who are loyal to the brand are now disappointed in Jins Foods and are looking for alternatives. These people are our target."

"How do we do it?" Minji asked.

"Three things. First, make our production process public so consumers can see how Sunyi products are made. Second, open up the factory and invite the media and consumer representatives to visit. Third, increase our marketing efforts and tell everyone: Shunyi Foods is safer and tastes better than Jins Foods."

Minji nodded and opened her notebook to take notes.

On the evening the open letter was sent out, Chairman Wang Shunyi personally supervised the film crew at the factory. The cameraman carried the equipment from the raw material warehouse to the production line, and then to the testing room, filming every step clearly. The purchase orders for konjac flour, the process of boiling chili sauce, and the microbial test reports for the finished products were all displayed on camera. After the video was edited, Minji watched it once and said, "This is too honest." Chairman Wang Shunyi replied, "Honesty is our selling point."

The video was posted on social media, and in less than two hours, it had over 500,000 views. In the comments section, someone said, "Wow! This is a company with a conscience." Someone else said, "I feel reassured after seeing the production process." Others tagged the official Jins Foods account, saying, "Learn from them, damn it."

The best part was when a food blogger compared the test reports of Sunyi with those of a certain competitor; Sunyi's metrics were all superior to national standards, and the comments section exploded.

Over at Jins Foods, things were getting harder day by day.

The inspection results from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety came out: most products were compliant, but two products had issues with "incomplete packaging labeling" and "unknown sources for some raw materials." The problems weren't fatal, but what was fatal was that consumer trust was gone. Jins Foods recalled the two products and paid the fines, but the "Jins Foods is toxic" topic on social media had already hit the third spot on the trending list.

Zheng Junhe slammed the table for the second time during the board meeting. "How many times have I said that quality cannot be compromised! What do we do now? The brand is ruined; it can't be saved just by changing the packaging!"

Kim Dong-hyun sat at the head of the table, saying nothing. His nephew, Kim Seong-jun, had already been kicked out of management, and his younger brother, Kim Dong-chul, had voluntarily resigned. The power of the Kim family was shrinking bit by bit, while the shares held by Choi Jae-won remained unmoved, like a stone pressing on his chest.

Choi Jae-won called Chairman Wang Shunyi, his voice very calm. "Jins Foods's market value has already dropped by 40%. If it continues to fall, I will consider transferring my shares to you."

"It's not the right time yet," Chairman Wang Shunyi said. "Wait until Jins Foods hits rock bottom, then we'll make our move."

"Aren't you afraid someone else will beat you to it?"

"This mess that is Jins Foods—no one dares to take it on except for me."

Choi Jae-won laughed on the other end of the line and said nothing more.

On an afternoon in late October, an unexpected guest arrived at Shunyi Foods.

When Kim Tae-min ushered the person in, Chairman Wang Shunyi was reviewing next month's marketing plan. The man was around fifty, with a sturdy build, wearing a dark blue custom suit, polished shoes, and his hair combed meticulously. He swept his gaze across the office upon entering, then smiled and extended his hand.

"President Wang, I've heard much about you. I am Park Jung-chul, Vice President of Nongshim."

Chairman Wang Shunyi shook his hand, his heart skipping a beat. Nongshim, the hegemon of the Korean instant noodle market, with a market share of over 50%. What were they here for?

"Vice President Park, please have a seat." Chairman Wang Shunyi pointed to the sofa and sat down opposite him, without asking anyone to pour tea.

After Park Jung-chul sat down, he took a document out of his briefcase and placed it on the coffee table but did not push it across. "President Wang, you should be very clear about the situation with Jins Foods. Their market share has dropped from 5% to 2%. If it continues to deteriorate, they will soon exit the market. For the entire industry, this is an opportunity."

"What do you mean?"

"Nongshim hopes to cooperate with Shunyi Foods to jointly divide the market left behind by Jins Foods." Park Jung-chul pushed the document in front of Chairman Wang Shunyi. "The cooperation plan is simple: Nongshim will focus on the mid-to-low-end market, and Shunyi Foods will focus on the high-end market; we won't interfere with each other. Regarding distribution channels, Nongshim can help Shunyi Foods enter some large supermarkets and convenience stores; in exchange, Shunyi Foods will make certain concessions on product pricing."

Chairman Wang Shunyi didn't look at the document. He leaned back on the sofa and looked into Park Jung-chul's eyes. Those eyes were very bright—bright in a fake way, like glass beads.

"Vice President Park, what if we don't accept this cooperation?"

Park Jung-chul's smile didn't change, but the corners of his mouth pressed down slightly. "President Wang, Nongshim holds a 50% market share; we have many ways to handle competition. Cooperation is beneficial for both sides; I suggest you consider it carefully."

"Vice President Park, is this a threat?"

"It's not a threat; it's a suggestion." Park Jung-chul stood up and straightened the hem of his suit. "You are young and driven, but the food industry is deep waters. Nongshim has been operating for fifty years; we didn't survive until today by luck. I will wait for your reply."

He extended his hand, and Chairman Wang Shunyi shook it. His grip was strong, as if he were trying to outdo him.

After seeing Park Jung-chul out, Chairman Wang Shunyi called Zhang Junhao and Minji to his office and closed the door.

"Nongshim wants to cooperate with us, on the condition that Shunyi Foods cannot touch the mid-to-low-end market and must let them control our distribution channels." He repeated what Park Jung-chul had said. "What do you think?"

Zhang Junhao spoke first: "It's a trap. They don't want to cooperate; they want to lock us in a cage. How big is the high-end market anyway? 10% at most. If we don't touch the mid-to-low-end, it's equivalent to giving the remaining 90% to Nongshim."

"And if the channels are controlled by them, in the future, if we want to launch new products, we have to look at their expressions first." Minji continued, "We cannot accept this cooperation."

Chairman Wang Shunyi nodded. "I feel the same way. But what does refusing mean? It means that from today on, Nongshim is our opponent. They will use price wars, channel blockades, advertising bombardment—they will use every method available. Can we withstand it?"

Zhang Junhao was silent for a few seconds, then said, "We have to withstand it, whether we can or not. If we can't, we close down."

Chairman Wang Shunyi smiled. It wasn't a lighthearted smile, but the kind of smile that said, "Since we can't hide from it, let it come." He picked up his phone and dialed Park Jung-chul's number.

"Vice President Park, I have reviewed your proposal. Thank you for Nongshim's good intentions, but Shunyi Foods does not intend to accept this cooperation."

There was silence on the other end for two seconds. Park Jung-chul's voice was still polite, but there was a coldness in that politeness. "President Wang, are you sure?"

"Sure. Shunyi Foods will continue to walk its own path. We will do the high-end market, and we will also do the mid-to-low-end market. As for distribution channels, we will pave them ourselves; no need to trouble Nongshim."

"Very well." Park Jung-chul said only that one word and hung up.

Chairman Wang Shunyi placed his phone on the table and looked at Zhang Junhao and Minji. "From today on, Nongshim is our opponent. Not an opponent on the level of Jins Foods, but a true behemoth. They have money, channels, a brand, and people. What do we have?"

Zhang Junhao thought for a moment. "We have products. Products they can't make."

"And," Minji said, "we have consumers. Those who are used to eating Sunyi products won't switch just because Nongshim lowers their prices."

Chairman Wang Shunyi stood up and walked to the window. Outside was the gray sky of Seongdong-gu, and in the distance, tower cranes were turning slowly. He remembered two years ago, when he was running a stall at the night market, the people from Nongshim wouldn't have even glanced at him. Now, they were sending a vice president to talk to him about cooperation, and when that didn't work out, they were prepared to turn hostile. What did this mean? It meant that Shunyi Foods was no longer that insignificant little brand.

"Jun-ho, notify all departments; we'll have a strategy meeting next Monday. We need to reformulate our plans for next year." He turned around and looked at them. "If Nongshim wants to fight, then we'll fight."

He walked to the whiteboard, picked up a marker, and wrote four big characters on it: "Direct Competition." Then he drew a thick horizontal line underneath.