Chapter 259: Preparing (4)

Choi Yeon-Ha smiled softly at Park Yu-Min's question. “I figured I wouldn't be able to enter unless it was this late.”

“Well, that is true, but...” Park Yu-Min looked unconvinced.

For now, Park Yu-Min ignored the reason Choi Yeon-Ha would want to come here, but he still couldn't quite understand why someone as busy as her would come here around midnight.

Choi Yeon-Ha took off her sunglasses and strode confidently inside to reach the table where Kang Jin-Ho and Ju Yeong-Gi were sitting. She pulled out a chair for herself and sat down. “So? How was it? I was right, wasn't I?”

"Yes, you were." Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded, his expression less-than-pleased while staring at how triumphant Choi Yeon-Ha looked.

“I told you that things will soon become very hectic for you, didn't I?”

“You did. And I still can't understand what is going on here.”

"Mister Jin-Ho, you are probably the only person in the entire world who doesn't see what's going on here. Everyone else should already know what kind of a situation this is."

Kang Jin-Ho groaned. “Then, tell me. Why is everyone acting like this?”

Choi Yeon-Ha chuckled at that. “Can't you tell? It's because you're too good-looking, Mister Jin-Ho.”

“She's right, but why do I feel so... offended listening to her?” Ju Yeong-Gi suddenly chimed in.

“Yeah, me too,” said Park Yu-Min.

The duo tried to jeer from the sidelines, but Choi Yeon-Ha ruthlessly shot them down. "You should have thought about improving your looks, then."

“Holy cow. Now that totally shattered your image, Miss Yeon-Ha. I had no idea you were this kind of a person.” Ju Yeong-Gi narrowed his eyes in disapproval.

Park Yu-Min also chimed in. “I've always loved your TV shows, you know?”

Choi Yeon-Ha tutted loudly at the duo. "You shouldn't mix up the characters I portray in those shows with who I really am. You two probably have no idea just how many people are forced to bear the brunt of that mindset. One of the girls I know is a genuinely nice person in real life, but aunties still insult and lecture her for starring as a bad character once. People even whisper behind her back if she drops by at a cafe, too."

“We aren't at that level, Miss Yeon-Ha,” said Ju Yeong-Gi.

Choi Yeon-Ha ignored him and shifted her attention to Kang Jin-Ho. "You have a guest visiting your establishment, so aren't you going to offer me something? Or should I just keep drinking the free air?"

Kang Jin-Ho tutted. “We’re closed, and we've already killed the oven's fire.”

“Then, at least offer me a can of Coke or something. Where are your manners as a man?”

“...”

“Mister Jin-Ho, you were thinking about how annoying I was, weren't you?”

“Urgh...”

Choi Yeon-Ha burst into a peal of laughter as if this whole thing was too entertaining for her. “Mister Jin-Ho, you still have a lot to learn, don't you? At the very least, you should be thankful that a woman like me is trying to get close to you. Don't think most women would tell you things like this to your face. Someone like you will gain infamy about how uncultured and uncouth you are in less than one day after going out on a terrible date just once, but I'm here to save you from that fate.”

Kang Jin-Ho tutted. “You don't have to bother. I'm not going on a date any time soon, anyway.”

“Good. You pass in terms of modesty.” Choi Yeon-Ha grinned deeply back at Kang Jin-Ho, prompting him to shake his head in defeat. “In any case. You’re still happy about the improvement in your business, yes?”

“I do believe it's better than not having any customers.”

“And that's exactly why I decided to help out. Here, take a look.” Choi Yeon-Ha presented her phone to Kang Jin-Ho.

"Mm?" Kang Jin-Ho cocked an eyebrow and stared at the phone's screen. It displayed a social media account with a selfie of a certain someone enjoying a slice of pizza. Below that post was a friendly explanation of how this pizzeria was run by the actor portraying her ex in the latest show, as well as the store's name.

Kang Jin-Ho's brows rose up after confirming all this. "...!"

Choi Yeon-Ha continued while withdrawing her phone. “Did you know that business is all about timing? You should be making a LOT of hay while this sun is still shining.”

Of course, she was right. And Kang Jin-Ho should be grateful to her for this potential boost to his revenue. However, the mischievous smirk on Choi Yeon-Ha’s face wiped out pretty much any positive thoughts in Kang Jin-Ho’s mind.

“You'll have even more customers from tomorrow. You know I still have some box office draw left, don't you?”

Park Yu-Min and Ju Yeong-Gi gasped at the same time. “Oh god, no.”

“Dear Lord...”

Choi Yeon-Ha glanced at the trio. "Don't be a bunch of wusses, guys. At the longest, this streak will continue for another two months, tops. People's attention span is pretty short nowadays, so I bet things will revert back to how they used to be after two months of intense sunshine."

“Two months, you say...”

"Yes. Two months, and you'll be back to chasing flies again. Which will be good for me since I can enjoy Mister Jin-Ho's delicious pizzas in peace and quiet."

Park Yu-Min suddenly raised his hand up high.

Choi Yeon-Ha nodded. “Yes, Student Park. You may speak.”

“You said the store will revert to being totally empty in two months, yes?”

“I did...”

"I'm really, genuinely curious about this, but why do you think our store has no customers? I've eaten a few pizzas in my life, and that's why I can confidently say Jin-Ho's pizzas are really delicious. Even so, we don't have customers at all. Why is that?"

Choi Yeon-Ha's eyes widened in dismay as she stared at Park Yu-Min. She shifted her gaze to Ju Yeong-Gi and Kang Jin-Ho to see what kind of faces those two were making. And the result made her facepalm. "Hang on... Did you open this store to make money?"

“Of course. Who would open a store to play around?” Ju Yeong-Gi retorted sourly.

"But I thought that was your intention. No matter how I look at it, I thought the original purpose wasn't to make a profit. Like, none at all! Since I heard Mister Jin-Ho is loaded, I figured he opened the store as a distraction, a pastime."

“Sure, this guy has a tendency to chuck money around sometimes, but it's not as serious as you think.” This chapter made its debut appearance via N0v3lB1n.

“Goodness me. You really thought you'd make money this way...?” Choi Yeon-Ha sighed loudly. She couldn't even begin to figure out where to start her explanation.

Park Yu-Min grew a little more desperate. “If you know something, please tell us. Why don't we have customers?”

“Isn't it obvious?” Choi Yeon-Ha reached out to grab a menu resting on the table, then spread it open. “Look! What do you have on your menu?”

“Uhm... Pizzas?”

“Do you guys deliver? Are you a part of a franchise?”

“No, we don't deliver, and we aren’t a part of a franchise.”

"In that case, tell me: which pizzeria under the sun that relies solely on sit-in customers will keep surviving by offering only pizzas and nothing else?!"

Park Yu-Min and Ju Yeong-Gi stared at each other after hearing Choi Yeon-Ha's yell.

'What is she talking about?'

'No clue.'

Choi Yeon-Ha noticed the duo's reaction and groaned loudly before turning her head to stare at Kang Jin-Ho. However, even he was sitting there in a daze, with his eyes wide open and his face dumb looking. Kang Jin-Ho had failed to understand her as well.

Choi Yeon-Ha nearly threw her hands in the air. “Seriously? Birds of a feather supposedly flock together, but how—how could you three be this similar?”

The trio could only smile awkwardly at that.

"Are you a group of virgin losers? Is that it? Guys who have never been on a single date?!"

“You're crossing the line there!” Park Yu-Min responded unhappily, his expression stiff.

Choi Yeon-Ha gasped after realizing her slip of the tongue, and she hurriedly looked at Park Yu-Min. Even she could tell that her words had gone a bit too far this time. However, just as she started thinking about how to apologize, Park Yu-Min beat her to the punch. “Both Jin-Ho and Yeong-Gi had girlfriends before, you know! I'm the only virgin loser here!”

“That's.. nice.” Choi Yeon-Ha sighed loudly again.

It seemed that these three were simply unsalvagable. If there were only one of them, he could have ridden on the coattails of 'normal' people around him and lived a sensible life. Since that was the case, how unfortunate it was for them to come similar to a package deal like this!

Choi Yeon-Ha held her head as he continued her explanation, “In any case! What kind of a pizzeria doesn't even offer pasta or risotto? It's not like you offer specialized dishes, either. And you don't even sell salads! All you sell are pizzas, so who would come back here again?”

Park Yu-Min cautiously raised his hand. “Uhm... We also have pickles?”

Choi Yeon-Ha retorted sarcastically, “Wooow, what an amazing side dish you have there!”

“...”

"It's the same story for drinks, too! Couldn't you mix mojitos or some kind of juice? Lemonade? Anything? You brazenly put only Cola and cider on the menu, and you thought your business would make money?!"

Park Yu-Min muttered in a daze, "Huh? So, it wasn't the interior decoration after all?"

That was when Ju Yeong-Gi yelled, "I told you, didn't I?! I told you it wasn't the interior's fault! I keep saying my interior idea is the best, so how dare you spit on the face of my sharp intuition!"

But then, Choi Yeon-Ha coldly rained on Ju Yeong-Gi's parade. “No, we all should keep spitting on that face.”

“...!”

"In any case... So, uh... Mm... Urgh, damn it!" Choi Yeon-Ha suddenly spat a cute-sounding curse in frustration.

Ju Yeong-Gi's crumpled face softened into a brief chuckle at that.

'Huh. I get to see all sorts of things by being next to Jin-Ho, eh...'

When would he ever get to witness a top actress in the country hurl insults like this aside from here?

Choi Yeon-Ha blew her top. "I just don't know where to even begin! No, this won't do! Mister Jin-Ho!"

“...Yes?”

"Close your store for a day. You need to watch and learn how other pizzerias operate first. And get a better understanding of what a real menu looks like, too! I'll personally take you to a well-known establishment and show you how it's done!"

“I'm sorry?”

“Haven't you heard about how imitation is the mother of all inventions? You gotta understand how successful stores operate before you can figure out what to do for your own business!”

Kang Jin-Ho was rendered speechless just then. He opened a pizzeria because that was what he wanted to do, but now, he had to offer something else extra?

“Wait, does a pizzeria need to offer stuff like that in the first place?”

“Of course! Haven't you eaten in other pizzerias before?!”

“I only ordered takeaways before, so...”

Park Yu-Min chimed in. “Yes, me, too.”

Ju Yeong-Gin sagely nodded. “Me, three.”

Choi Yeon-Ha scanned the trio in pure stupefaction before yelling in anger, “What the hell is up with you three?! Are you ETs or something?!”

***

Cai Kechang couldn't dare to raise his head.

The Crimson King didn't say a word, but his silence was far scarier than any words at this point. Eventually, though, he did break his silence. “You told me to leave it to you.”

Cao Kechang flinched nastily.

“And so much time has passed since then, yet I haven't received any reports regarding that matter yet.”

“My sincerest apologies, my lord.”

“It's not uncommon to taste failure. Succeeding certainly is wonderful, but failing isn't necessarily bad. However, what is truly unacceptable is—watching nothing happen. You can analyze the reasons for your failure, thus turning it into an opportunity to build a firmer path to success. But constant delays won't lead to benefits for the parties involved. Do you understand what I mean, Cai Kechang?”

“Yes, my lord!” Cao Kechang prostrated even deeper as he silently gnashed his teeth.

'Those stinking bangzi bastards...!'

He had left the matter to the hands of some lowly punks, but to think that they still couldn't handle it properly and only ended up creating this unpleasant situation! Cai Kechang swore that, as soon as this meeting ended, he would rip those Korean idiots a new one!

The Crimson King continued in a grave voice. “Cai Kechang. The Luminous King has made a move.”

Cai Kechang's head shot up. “My lord?! The Luminous King is on the move?”

“That's right..” The Crimson King nodded briefly.

Cai Kechang clenched his fists tightly. For some reason, the Luminous King had made a move. Even though he was well-known for digging in and never budging from his spot! The implication behind it was significant, to say the least. Maybe the frontal warfare they had been worried about might break out for real.

“However, the reason the Luminous King decided to move was rather amusing. It seems he has noticed that demonic arts practitioners are getting more active.”

"Demonic arts practitioners!" Cai Kechang's eyes grew wider as the thoughts in his head started to race at a million kilometers an hour.

If all unnecessary hyperbole and modifiers were removed from the description of Cai Kechang's current assignment, it would simply be about hunting down a single demonic arts practitioner. The purpose of mobilizing the Yeongnam Group was to deal with that demonic cultivator named Kang Jin-Ho, after all!

But now, Zhongyuan's demonic cultivators were also making a move?

'Is this merely a coincidence?'

Demonic arts practitioners were like cockroaches. They were cockroaches that would keep on crawling out of dark corners despite stomping on them so many times. It wasn't strange for cockroaches to appear from here and there, but...

'I'm not getting any good vibes from this.'

Cai Kechang frowned deeply. And it seemed that Crimson King shared that opinion, too.

"Whether the demonic arts practitioners are really on the move, or it's just a nice-sounding pretext cooked up for their own convenience, I do not know the truth yet. However, now that the Luminous King has made his move, the peace we have been enjoying so far will be broken pretty soon. And... if the Dark King also decides to join in, a storm of blood and cruel slaughter will beset Zhongyuan once more."

“That's correct, my lord.”

“I do not fear them, Cai Kechang. I am the Crimson King. No one can oppose me.”

Cai Kechang hurriedly planted his forehead on the floor. That was right; the mighty individual before him was none other than the Crimson King! One of the only three martial artists in Zhongyuan to have legitimately earned the title of 'King,’ and he was someone Cao Kechang firmly believed to be an extraordinary and peerless cultivator!

“However, Cai Kechang!”

“Yes, my lord!”

“A general always secures his rear first before heading toward his warzone. I won't be able to focus on the Luminous King or the Dark King with that demonic arts practitioner business in my rear. Do you understand?”

“My lord! This Cai Kechang will answer your call and eliminate that pesky demonic cultivator no matter what it takes!”

“Good. You can leave now.”

"By your will!" Cai Kechang prostrated once more before cautiously exiting the throne room. He sucked in a deep breath while wiping his forehead. “Bloody Korean bastards...”

Just how long had it been since he left this matter in their hands? Yet, they still couldn't finish the job properly?

Cai Kechang gnashed his teeth while yanking out his phone. “This can't go on...”

This would be their last chance. He had to urge the Koreans to get a move on for one last time, but if they still failed to finish the job, then...!

Cai Kechang made up his mind to personally get involved, and then he coldly eyed his phone. If he were forced to move, his target wouldn't just be Kang Jin-Ho anymore. No, he would definitely teach the Yeongnam Group and the Korean martial artists what it meant to fail him in this manner.

Indeed, he would teach those weak Koreans what real martial arts were like. The real martial art techniques that were abundant in Zhongyuan, not the fake ones found in Korea!

Cai Kechang's cold and withdrawn eyes were fixed on the phone's screen as he tapped on the call icon.

1. In Korea, 'cider' isn't an alcoholic drink but a fizzy drink similar to Sprite.