Chapter 122 : A Talent You Must Never Let Slip Away
Chapter 122: A Talent You Must Never Let Slip Away
How many times in life does someone get gifted a wild ginseng?
I could say with certainty that today was probably the first and last.
‘I'm supposed to be happy about this… right?’
There was a reason I could immediately tell that it wasn’t just ginseng or cultivated ginseng—but actual wild ginseng.
A face flushed with excitement.
Eyes full of anticipation.
Lips twitching endlessly.
Anyone seeing that would have had the same thought as me.
I just stared quietly down at the wild ginseng.
Because it was amusing, and kind of fascinating.
As I did, Tae Junggi suddenly asked,
“You don’t exercise, do you?”
“Gasp. No.”
“Music requires stamina too, you know. You often stay up late, and it takes a lot of brain power.”
That, I agreed with.
I’d been feeling my stamina decline lately.
But exercise, well…
I was barely managing breathing exercises these days.
“They all say it—stamina isn’t something you can buy with money.”
True. People who work out are admirable.
They deliberately make time to sweat and build endurance.
But Tae Junggi was talking about something a bit different.
“But, you can buy it. As long as you get your hands on this.”
Hmm. Was he saying this stuff was that powerful?
It couldn’t be some kind of magical elixir, could it?
Whether I answered or not,
Tae Junggi launched into an enthusiastic explanation of wild ginseng’s effects.
“Technically, wild ginseng is still ginseng, but it only counts if it’s been growing wild in the mountains for at least several decades. It’s the best among all herbal tonics. Restores vitality, relieves fatigue, strengthens the immune system. It even clears your head.”
Saying all that with such a serious face—that took some talent too.
He had to be joking. Surely.
“Since ancient times, wild ginseng was a rare medicine for kings. You’ve seen historical dramas, right? People risking their lives to find it.”
“……”
I almost burst out laughing.
Well, it wasn’t wrong.
And with how serious he looked while explaining it, I didn’t dare interrupt.
“Try it once. Eating it raw is best.”
“Ha ha. Okay.”
Was I really the right person to eat this?
Hearing how rare it was, a bunch of people came to mind.
Mom, Dad, Hyung...
And our UTAR members.
Before I knew it, I blurted out,
“I’ll share it with the good people around me.”
Then Tae Junggi snapped his fingers and said,
“As expected!”
Huh? Another box appeared.
This time, he opened it himself and held it out.
…He’s crazy.
A few smaller roots than the first.
Ones that looked a bit less luxurious.
“I prepared a few more. The big one’s for you, Writer Stay. The smaller ones you can share.”
My goodness. How thoughtful.
I couldn’t possibly refuse.
That’s what a gift is, right?
You’re thinking of someone even as you pick it out.
Moreover,
If eating this helps me write even better songs, then it’s a win-win, isn’t it?
So I answered with sincerity and respect,
“Thank you! I’ll enjoy it well.”
Tae Junggi smiled in satisfaction.
This had to be a decent way of showing gratitude too.
When Hyung came home from work, he looked at me with wide, startled eyes.
He must’ve seen the wild ginseng box on the table.
“Hey, hey, Seo Taeyoon. What is this?”
“CEO Tae Junggi gave it to me…”
I gave him a brief rundown of what happened today.
Including how I just couldn’t turn it down.
Because this was the same Hyung who always warned me not to accept things from the entertainment industry guys too lightly.
But—
“That’s just like our CEO. Good job accepting it.”
“Really?”
His reaction was unexpectedly calm.
“He’s always been good about looking after people—like making sure they take supplements and stuff. But wild ginseng? That’s a whole different scale. As expected of Stay.”
“Right? Isn’t it cool?”
“Yeah. CEO Tae Junggi has this unexpectedly warm side to him. He gives good gifts, too. Back in the day…”
Hyung started sharing a few stories about “what happens when you get in CEO Tae Junggi’s good graces.”
Honestly, it was more like he was reminiscing than explaining.
It’s his own company he’s talking about.
So why did it sound like he was telling someone else’s story?
It felt more like narration than a conversation.
“That’s why, even when it was tough, I stuck it out.”
Still…
Why were his eyes glued to the wild ginseng while he was pretending to be indifferent?
I quickly grabbed the biggest root and held it out.
“Let’s try it together.”
“Huh?”
“He gave me a whole extra box to share.”
“…Oh?”
We sat side by side at the table and munched away on that precious wild ginseng root.
I didn’t even really know how you were supposed to eat it. But isn’t raw always best?
A real man doesn’t bother Googling stuff!
Anyway—
As for how the wild ginseng tasted...
Bitter. So bitter.
Still, chewing on wild ginseng made me feel like I had become some kind of mountain sage.
I even thought I could feel a bit of energy rising up.
Some for Mom and Dad.
Some for the UTAR teachers.
I roughly divided them up, then was about to head into my room when—
“Hey, Seo Taeyoon. Sit down for a sec.”
Hyung called out to me in a low voice.
Saying that right after eating wild ginseng, and in such a weak tone? Really?
Still, if I picked a fight about it now, I’d just get scolded for no reason.
So I put on my “good little brother” mode, sat at the table, and straightened my back.
“Thanks to you, work’s actually been enjoyable lately.”
“Oh, of course. I mean…”
Who, me? Stay?
Tae Sihyun’s album was doing great!
And Electric Party was climbing back up the charts!
I was about to brag a little, just for fun—
But when I looked at Hyung’s face, I couldn’t.
Why did he look so serious all of a sudden?
While pretending to drink some water, I glanced up at him.
Then Hyung suddenly dropped a bombshell.
“I’m thinking of quitting.”
“Pfft—What?”
Quit? Out of nowhere?
Did he eat something bad?
…Was this a side effect of the wild ginseng?!
From what I’d heard here and there, my brother had been doing pretty well lately.
People were talking about promotions, bonuses, things like that.
Shouldn’t this be the time to focus more on work?
I’d never worked at a company, so I didn’t really know.
All I knew was that it was tougher than I could imagine.
So for now, I just decided to listen quietly.
“…Why?”
“I just want to try doing what I really want.”
“Weren’t you already doing that?”
“To some extent?”
“You’re doing well at the company though. You even said you might become a team leader.”
“That’s not everything.”
Hyung downed the cold water in front of him.
He was always calm, the kind of person who acted like an adult, at least in front of me.
So seeing him like this felt unfamiliar.
If that wasn’t everything—then what was important?
I wanted to ask what had happened.
I was dying to know.
But I didn’t ask.
Just like Hyung had always done for me, I simply trusted him and waited.
Someday, he’d tell me.
That was my way of cheering him on.
So I just said this:
“You always said your dream was to not go to work and take it easy. So take this chance to rest. Listen to all those CDs you bought but never opened. Come hang out at our club. Go on a few dates. Work out a bit. Just don’t ask me to do it with you.”
Was that too light-hearted of me, when Hyung was being so serious?
Still, I couldn’t start giving out advice like I knew anything.
To me, Hyung was the coolest, most dependable person I knew.
He spoke softly.
“I’ll finish what I started first. But, Seo Taeyoon. Man, it’s nothing big, but I suddenly feel really motivated. Thanks to you, I got some courage.”
“I’m glad.”
“Can I really come hang out at your club?”
“Of course.”
“What if I can’t pay my share once I’m unemployed?”
“Come on. It’s me. Stay.”
After everything I’d received from him, what was that much, really?
If it was Hyung, I could even give him an allowance!
As I was drawing up some vague plan in my head,
he got up and patted my shoulder with a smile.
“Seo Taeyoon, you’ve grown a lot.”
…Don’t say it like that, so wistfully.
I’m serious!
Tae Sihyun’s new album.
Some called it a transformation, others an awakening.
Those who knew the story behind it called it liberation.
But Taeyoon thought a bit differently.
It wasn’t so much change as recovery.
She had simply found her voice again.
And that was why Taeyoon was more than happy to see the reactions.
[ (Video) Whoever planned Tae Sihyun’s album, please accept my bow ㅠㅠ ]
– Her singing is insanely good and she’s gorgeous too. How did they draw out this kind of charm? I’ve been listening all day.
↳ Listening at the gym gives me so much energy ㅋㅋㅋ
↳ No but seriously ㅋㅋㅋ it’s not a music show, it’s a revival meeting ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
↳ Did they plan to show just one song on purpose?
↳↳ Yeah, since it’s just “ASHes,” it stands out even more.
↳ What’s with that vocal range… I gave up halfway trying to sing along;;
↳ Everyone sings this at karaoke nowㅋㅋㅋㅋ
↳↳ When the audience sang along on the music show, I legit got chills. It felt like a concert ㄷㄷㄷㄷㄷ
The song was praised as great.
Her transformation was called perfect.
Those comments were nice too.
But what Taeyoon loved most was that the public had noticed the change inside Tae Sihyun.
[ Didn’t Tae Sihyun used to seem kind of timid? ]
– When she rapped, she seemed kinda withdrawn. Like, her rap was fine, but it lacked soul… But now singing “ASHes,” she’s super confident.
↳ Her expressions are insanely cool.
↳ Techno rock? That could’ve been tacky, but because the stage and styling were so trendy, it stood out even more.
↳ Doesn’t it make you feel like “I’m going to destroy the stage!!!”? It’s legendary, seriously ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
↳ She looks like the leader of a new religion ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ What’s with her expression ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
↳ Tomorrow Entertainment is finally doing some work.
↳↳ So good. Let’s stick with this concept for Taeshi! Let’s make Taeshi happy!!!
↳ She’s in her early 20s and already so seasoned ㄷㄷ
↳ Overflowing with confidence! Sihyun-ah ㅠㅠ But I can’t follow along with the song ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
↳ Stay is a freaking genius. Can’t believe he pulled off a song like this with Taeshi.
↳↳ Seriously, who knows what Stay will surprise us with next. Is there anything he can’t do;;;
And as everyone expected, Tae Sihyun’s ASHes flipped the whole high-note challenge on its head.
These days, no matter which karaoke you went to, this was the only song you heard.
Didn’t matter if it was a singer or just a regular person.
Imitating the high notes in ASHes spread like a trend.
Not to mention the short-form platforms and SNS.
ASHes covers were dominating the charts on YouTube variety shows and vlogs too.
[ High-Note Challenge – Tae Sihyun ASHes Cover ]
– 1.36 million views, 3 days ago.
[ I Tried It Too. ASHes Half-Step Lower Version ]
– 910K views, 1 day ago.
What was even more inspiring—
was that the guide version sung by Han Yujin had been released, and it brought about an unprecedented unification in K-pop.
Kwak Youngho willingly gave permission for the release of Han Yujin’s guide.
He didn’t love that it was Tomorrow Entertainment on the receiving end, but he knew that doing this meant there might be another chance to work with Stay.
And Kwak Youngho’s guess was pretty spot on.
Stay promised a B-side track for Han Yujin.
– “A song? That’s not hard……”
– “Keh heh heh! Call Junggi-hyung at Tomorrow Ent right now! Hell, tell them to release Yujin’s guide! Tsk, I wish Yujin could’ve sung it herself, but it is what it is. We’ll go with an even better song!”
The response was explosive.
[ ASHes Guide Version by Han Yujin ]
– 5.82 million views, 2 days ago.
↳ Are you kidding??? Han Yujin sang the guide??? For real???
↳ No, but what is Stay’s network even ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
↳ Han Yujin is seriously so likable. That must’ve stung her pride, but it’s not even a cover—it’s a guide ㄷㄷㄷ
↳ Tae Sihyun’s version is heavy, but Han Yujin’s is sharp and clear.
↳ Her pronunciation is super precise……. Han Yujin is good at everything, huh.
↳ Please release another song like this next timeㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
↳ How did Stay even convince Youngho-chan??
↳↳ I’m curious about that too. Isn’t his pride crazy strong?
↳ But it actually made me like Han Yujin more. She works without prejudice.
↳ Tomorrow Ent x ToMe Ent killed it~~~
The “Tae Sihyun Project,” which began with the so-called “Stay Sophistry Incident” claiming that Easy Listening was basically Easy Singing—
was now successfully wrapped up.
Even Bellis, Seo Dongyoon’s painful project, was starting to gain recognition.
“Hoo, did we finally pull it off…?”
That’s what Dongyoon was thinking.
Then Team Leader Bang came holding a file and called for Dongyoon.
“Hey, Deputy Seo. Got a sec for the conference room?”
Team Leader Bang smiling from ear to ear.
No one pointed it out, but everyone knew.
‘It’s the performance bonus.’
‘Looks like he’s getting a raise.’
‘Must be a promotion letter.’
There wasn’t a single jealous glance anywhere.
Just a quiet acknowledgment that the day had finally come.
[Who wants to join Deputy Dongyoon’s team?]
[Hoo… it’d be intense, but fun, right?]
[Me!]
As the two walked into the conference room, their backs to everyone, the group chat started heating up.
And inside that conference room, during the meeting with Team Leader Bang Hyunwoo—
Seo Dongyoon pulled out the resignation letter he had been carrying.
“…Deputy Seo, what is this about?”
Seo Dongyoon’s resignation threw Tomorrow Entertainment into chaos.
It took less than ten minutes for the news to go from the team leader to HR, and from HR to Director Han Ji-hyuk.
“Do whatever it takes to convince him. No—I'll meet him myself.”
Han Ji-hyuk adjusted his collar and waited for Seo Dongyoon in the HR conference room.
This was a talent they absolutely could not lose.
Sure, corporate life could be tough.
A month off might change his mind.
A big bonus was a given. A new team just for Seo Dongyoon was already lined up.
They’d prepared a full deck of irresistible offers.
But—
“Deputy Seo, did I hear that right?”
“Yes, sir. I’d like to use the free pass you gave me.”
It wasn’t Seo Dongyoon who couldn’t refuse—
It was Han Ji-hyuk.