Big Life

“My legs are hurting. Shall we rest for a bit before continuing?”

“Sure, hmm? What movie is that?”

A pair of Chinese university students walking down the streets of Beijing stopped in their tracks. They clapped their eyes on an advertisement board attached to a high-rise building, which was playing a movie trailer. It was the movie trailer for Records of the Modern Master, which was scheduled for release all over China.

[Jin Cheon-Wi: You’re quite tall. Kneel.]

“Ah, it’s the movie that Park Do-Joon appears in.”

“Yeah. We watched Storm and Gale together. The one that Yang Ying appeared in.”

Park Do-Joon appeared as the main character, Jin Cheon-Wi, traversing the world. As the video was played on an advertisement board, no sound was being played. Frustrated, the couple whipped out their phones and looked up the movie trailer on the Internet. Soon, the fast-paced trailer played splendidly on the small screen.

[Jin Cheon-Wi: The two pillars of energy that had been supporting the world have combined, creating what is called the Pillar of Dragon King Pungdo. Will you know how much anger I have in me if you count these?]

[Narration: Original novel written by Korea’s monstrous writer, Ha Jae-Gun, who even received France’s Prix Goncourt award; best-selling author of The Breath and the Records series trilogy!]

“Ah, so this is written by that Writer Ha Jae-Gun.”

“I saw on YouTube that both he and Park Do-Joon are close friends. What do you think? Is it true?”

[Jin Cheon-Wi: Everyone, come and accept a drink from me and put the tab on Donghwangru.]

[Narration: Starring world star Park Do-Joon from There Was A Sea and Storm and Gale]

[Narration: Premiering all across China. Invested and Distributed by Teencent Pictures]

[Jin Cheon-Wi: ...Long time no see.]

“Wow! That gave me goosebumps. This trailer alone tells me that the movie is amazing,” the man of the pair murmured and shuddered all over.

It was an intense reaction from a trailer less than thirty seconds long. Before he even realized it, the man had gathered his hands before his chest like what Park Do-Joon had done and murmured, “Long time no see...”

“What are you doing?”

“How is it? Did I look like Park Do-Joon?”

“Stop saying nonsense. We should read the novel first, so the movie will be much more entertaining when it's out.”

“I thought you dislike martial arts novels because they’re a mess?”

“It’s different when Park Do-Joon is the main lead.”

The pair weren't the only ones. Many Chinese citizens in major cities across China soon learned of the imminent release of Records of the Modern Master. Teencent Pictures, led by Mao Yen, boasted immense firepower. In addition to TV and radio, they had even employed internet portal sites, ad balloons, and a variety of outdoor advertisements for their relentless marketing efforts.

It didn’t take them even a day and a half for the movie to go on the top keyword search in the movies section.

On the evening before the movie’s release in China, Mao Yen was enjoying a glass of wine with Lin Minhong in her penthouse. They were already on their second bottle of wine, and they had just emptied it.

Lin Minhong was worried as Mao Yen was drinking at a faster pace than usual. “Everything is going according to plan, CEO.”

“Yes, I know. Are you worried, Department Head Lin?”

Lin Minhong nodded instead of replying. It was hard for him to say it, but he believed that Mao Yen looked quite nervous. Of course, he understood where her anxiety was coming from. They had overcome many obstacles throughout the period of revising the original and movie before they agreed on using Park Do-Joon for the role of the main character.

Fortunately, she was able to persuade the executives with sufficient justification, and now, what was left was for the movie to become a box office hit.

“The wine tastes great today.” Looking down at the spectacular night cityscape, Mao Yen said, “I have no confidence to wait for heaven’s will with a sane mind. So don’t nag at me tonight.”

“I understand. I will stand by your side until the end.”

“...We need to get good results before inviting Mr. Ha over to China...”

“We will definitely obtain them.”

Mao Yen raised her glass for a toast. Lin Minhong clinked her glass in response. But before he took a sip, he recalled something of importance and said, “Come to think of it, I talked to Mr. Ha earlier on the phone, and he said something like this...”

“What...?”

“He said there’s no need to invite his entire family since he’s indebted to you on several occasions. If it’s needed for work, we could invite him whenever needed.” Lin Minhong then added as Mao Yen stared blankly at him, “He said it’s hard for him to tell you personally since he thinks that it’d be disrespectful, so he asked me to convey the message.”

“Ah... I see.” Mao Yen nodded, and a smile tugged at her lips. The scene when she met Ha Jae-Gun for the first time in Korea popped into her mind. She found him impressive; he was always gentle and determined without feeling the least bit daunted.

Ha Jae-Gun had never been the type to take sides, and he had always dealt with everyone harmoniously and equally. He was very much similar to Li Ziting, whom she respected.

“He’s a really good person.” Mao Yen put down her wine glass. “I think I know now, looking back. He was trying hard to repay someone while minimizing his pride and stubbornness as a writer. It mustn’t have been easy for him.”

“I agree. He’s filled with personality not just in his professional career but also in private. I think that Teencent Pictures has developed a relationship with a great writer.”

Just then, Mao Yen’s phone rang on the table. The alcohol influence disappeared without a trace the moment she saw the name on the screen. It was a call from Liu Bao, head of the Central Publicity Department.

“Hello, this is Mao Yen. What brings you to call me at this hour? Yes, we’re planning to invite Mr. Ha to China sometime next week. Yes, ah, you’ll be joining us? Pardon? The Standing Committee member as well?” Mao Yen asked, shock painting all over her face.

Seated next to Mao Yen, Lin Minhong narrowed his eyes and perked his ears, trying to listen in to their conversation.

“Yes, I understand. You’re saying that it isn’t an official visit. Yes, I will make the necessary preparations. Yes, have a good night. Goodbye.”

Mao Yen hung up the phone and looked out the window, letting out a long sigh. The burden she felt only grew with the appearance of some unexpected guests.

***

The decision she had made came apart in a week. Mao Yen realized that the worries she had in mind were groundless. No, she realized not just that but the fact that she had also achieved the greatest feat of her life. Mao Yen believed she needed to celebrate it with a resounding salute.

[The box office success of Records of the Modern Master is unusual. This is the first movie made from Korea’s bestselling author Ha Jae-Gun’s trilogy. The movie’s cumulative sales have surpassed a billion Chinese yuan in just one week.]

[Produced and distributed by Teencent Pictures, Records of the Modern Master is breaking records in China’s film history. It rose twice as fast as the previous movie that took second place in record-history, Storm and Gale, which also starred Park Do-Joon as the main lead.]

[There were concerns when news of Park Do-Joon taking on the role of the main character was released right until the movie’s premiere. After the premiere, however, public opinion has changed drastically. Despite being Korean, they've been endlessly praising Park Do-Joon for his amazing acting skills.]

News of the explosive success in China soon traveled to Korea. The premiere of the movie was released a week later in Korea, and the expectations of the audiences in Korea were relatively high.

Moreover, the reviews left by movie critics only made everyone's expectations grow even more.

[Martial arts was not painted as a method of fighting but as a way of life. The key scenes described in the novel masterpiece were displayed in the movie exactly, and discovering actor Park Do-Joon’s hidden side was a great bonus. - Movie Journalist, Lee Ji-Hyun]

[The light actions and heavy lingering emotions, Park Do-Joon will become an actor that lasts through eras with this movie. - Movie Journalist, Park Paeng-Shik]

[Jin Cheon-Wi’s actions tangled with an entirely different world and cause and effect, the imperativeness suppressed with his crude hands, the transitive editing that hits at the concise points, the sharp directing, and wrapping up with actor Park Do-Joon; it was a feast for the senses. - Cine2000, Kim Hyo-Sang]

[Did my absentmindedness grow worse? I had forgotten for a while that there’s an actor called Park Do-Joon in Korea. - Movie Walker, Kang Hyung-Suk]

[A spectacular revival of Chinese martial arts movies! Jin Cheon-Wi, who only existed in words, was now perfectly depicted on the screen! Mr. Park Do-Joon, it has indeed been a long time! - Movie Light, Han Jae-Rim]

The words of the movie critics, who had the privilege to watch the movie before its premiere, were enough to spread and hype up everyone throughout Korea.

There was not a single line of negativity found in those reviews; every single review was filled with words of praise. The excitement had also spread to the writers in the Bucheon office. The office was in a frenzy from the positive reviews of Records of the Modern Master.

“Wow, looks like this movie is going to be a huge hit again. Park Paeng-Shik just gave 9 points for it.”

“Isn’t that guy really stingy with his points? Even my father knows about him.”

“But he’s still adamant on not giving 10 points. I wonder if there’ll come a day when I can see him give a movie 10 points in this life.”

"If it’s that huge of a success in China, then it’d be the same results in Korea, right? But they’re all praising Do-Joon hyung. Just how great is his acting?”

Beep, beep, beep!

Moments later, the door opened. The writers hurried over to help Ha Jae-Gun upon seeing that his hands were full of shopping bags.

“Wow, Jae-Gun hyung. Why did you drop by out of the blue today?”

“I thought of having dinner with everyone tonight, so I bought some meat back. I’m not sure what my schedule will be after I fly to China tomorrow.”

“Please hand it over, hyung. I’ll help put them away.”

Lee Yeon-Woo and Yang Hyun-Kyung both helped Ha Jae-Gun move the bags into the kitchen. Ha Jae-Gun then patted Lee Yeon-Woo’s shoulder after he returned and said, “I heard that the essay is doing well?”

“Heheh, it’s all thanks to you. The editor-in-chief said that it wouldn’t be a problem hitting 100,000 copies in sales.”

“Congratulations. It’s great to hear that.”

“Hyung should receive my congratulations instead. Even if my essay did sell 100,000 copies, it’s only slightly over a hundred million, but hyung—” Realizing that he had said something wrong, Lee Yeon-Woo covered his mouth in a hurry and changed his words. “Ah, hyung. I’m not saying that a hundred million is little.”

“You don’t have to worry about anything. Why are you being so cautious these days? You don’t sound like Yeon-Woo at all. Just say whatever you want.”

“Ah, was I so reckless before?”

“You were. Didn’t you ask if I was a writer on hiatus when you first came to the office?” Yang Hyun-Kyung chimed in.

“I never meant it that way. Hyun-Kyung hyung always remembers such useless information.”

The writers burst into laughter.

Ha Jae-Gun looked around the office. He was thankful to see everything going well. The writers who had been crying and laughing together had developed a strong relationship with each other, all thanks to this place.

‘Many things have happened now that I look back on it.’ Ha Jae-Gun grinned as he looked at his own wrist. As usual, it was the wristwatch that he had received from the writers as a gift. The color had faded over time, but the happiness he felt back then only shone much more brilliantly than ever.

“It’s almost time for dinner. Shall we start grilling the meat?”

“Sure. There’s no one else absent so we can start eating too. Ah, let me answer this call first.” Ha Jae-Gun headed to his room and answered the phone.

“Yes, Madam.”

— Ohoho, Mr. Ha. How have you been? It’s time for you to have dinner, right?

Ha Jae-Gun chuckled as he closed the door behind him. Chae Yoo-Jin’s cheerful voice always lifted his mood.

“I’m about to start grilling meat with the other writers in the office now, actually. I have to fly to China tomorrow, so I thought of holding a simple get-together dinner with them.”

— I see. Should I not have called you then?

“I’ve become a senior to them, so the younger ones are grilling the meat now. I’m not busy at all, so feel free to speak.”

— Huhuhu, I see. It’s nothing much actually, just that The Malice has been nominated for the international category for the Man Booker Prize.

“Ah, I see...” Ha Jae-Gun scratched his nose, answering in an awkward tone.

The Man Booker Prize was the most prestigious literary award in the U.K., and it was one of the top three literary awards along with France’s Prix Goncourt.

The Man Booker Prize was originally awarded only to writers from the UK and members of the Commonwealth. However, a few years ago, the award had been extended to all writers with English novels. The Malice was nominated in the international category for the Man Booker Prize for non-commonwealth writers and translators.

— The media is going to go crazy with this news, since we can’t use the name Eden Smith like how we did for the Prix Goncourt back then.

“I know.”

— I’m nervous when it’s your novel, Mr. Ha. I’m not sure if I can even wait until the results get announced in May. If it wins the Man Booker Prize, that’d be two crowns for The Malice. The entire Korean literary world is going to go crazy again, right?

Chae Yoo-Jin’s voice sounded as excited as a child.

Ha Jae-Gun frowned slightly and chuckled as he replied, “I’m satisfied with just the Prix Goncourt alone. Of course, it’d be great if I could also win the Man Booker Prize. However, I won’t expect anything; I'll just forget about it.”

— You’re right, Mr. Ha. It’s better to forget about it. I apologize for making you feel uneasy about this.

“No, it’s alright. Anyway, how is your son? I’ll buy a fitting gift for him and visit you once I return from China.”

— You don’t have to prepare a gift but feel free to visit anytime. The chairman has retired and has been holed up in his study writing. You should drop by; I'm sure he’d be glad to see you.

“I understand. I’ll drop by one of these days.”

Ha Jae-Gun hung up the call and stretched lazily. His eyes somehow landed on the full-length mirror, and he recalled that he was heading to China, where he needed to speak a short greeting, even if it were just a few words.

“Mm... Jiàn dào nǐ hěn gāo xìng (I’m happy to see you). Ah, the tone is so hard...” Ha Jae-Gun grumbled at himself, but he still continued with his practice. The smell of delicious meat soon wafted through the gap in the door. However, Ha Jae-Gun didn't stop practicing until Lee Yeon-Woo ran over and knocked on the door.

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