GIJS

Chapter 130 Clearing Doubts

"...Well, it doesn't seem like it's at a kid's play level. Hm-hm."

Clearing his throat, Jeong Yoon-cheol fiddled with his chin, showing that he had at least a small sense of propriety. He couldn't belittle such action acting as mere child's play.

However, Jeong Yoon-cheol remained confident.

No matter how much the action scenes soared on the rooftops, in the end, the traditional costume videos would likely get higher view counts.

Video quality and view count are not always proportional. Jeong Yoon-cheol knew this well, which is why he opted to recruit high-impact influencers rather than focusing on improving video quality.

"Still, I think the view count will be higher for the traditional costume videos."

"Why do you think so?"

"No matter how good the video is, if there's no channel to upload it, what's the use? We've signed contracts with influencers who have millions of subscribers."

"Hm, I see."

"Their channels get views in the tens of millions. The impact is enormous. You know how much we public officials love numbers. In the end, view count is everything."

"Aha."

However, Gong Yoo-min smiled at the statement that view count is everything, as if it was a good thing.

"In that case, it's even better."

"Hm?"

"Our videos... I mean, the Chillin videos, do you know how they perform?"

"Haha, how much do they get?"

"We're talking about billions, billions."

"W-what?"

"Sir, I don't know which influencers you've signed with, but I think Chillin is much more famous."

Upon hearing the word "billions," Jeong Yoon-cheol hurriedly searched YouTube again, and his mouth dropped open in disbelief. Gong Yoo-min's words were utterly truthful.

* * *

The subsequent filming proceeded smoothly. Despite the anticipated difficulties due to the complex action scenes, Gun-ja displayed exceptional skill in all action scenes, quickly getting approval.

In contrast, he struggled more with the regular acting scenes.

"Cut! Gun-ja, you're hugging your husband way too toughly!"

"I-is this the right feeling?"

"Hahaha, yes, now it looks like soccer players celebrating after scoring a goal."

"I see."

"Think about it like when you met the geomungo after a long time."

"You mean during the A-yuk-si period."

"Yes. After not touching the geomungo for three years, suddenly meeting it again."

"That must have been both pleasant and touching!"

"Hahaha, it might be better for Gun-ja to be directed by the present moment."

With the persistent efforts of Si-woo and Hyun-jae, Gun-ja's acting gradually improved.

"Here comes the meal."

"Wow, the smell is amazing!"

The meal was prepared by Solar System. Typically, time constraints on set meant eating quick meals like packed lunches or burgers, but since Gun-ja had saved a lot of time with the action scenes, everyone could enjoy a leisurely meal.

The menu featured a six-dish Korean lunchbox with Unyang-style bulgogi. It was a lunchbox prepared by Solar System based on the dish Gun-ja had showcased in his live broadcast.

"Wow..."

To actually eat Gun-ja's dish, which had only been seen on live broadcasts. Gong Yoo-min took dozens of photos without even picking up her chopsticks.

Click, click—.

"Ms. Yoo-min! You need to eat!"

"Oh, Mr. Tae-woong, you took off your bald cap."

"Yes, I just took it off for a moment! Eating Unyang bulgogi in monk's attire isn't quite right, haha."

"Oh, right..."

"If you haven't eaten yet, would you like to join us over there? Gun-ja and Yu-chan are with us."

"C-can I really do that!?"

While it was a dream-like meal time for Gong Yoo-min, Jeong Yoon-cheol found no pleasure in it. To be honest, he had no intention of eating, but the smell was too tempting to ignore.

"...How did you know I like Unyang bulgogi..."

Honestly, it was delicious. Very much so.

He heard it was made using that Yu Gun-ja's recipe. To think he could cook so well too.

Looking at Gun-ja smiling brightly from a distance, Jeong Yoon-cheol couldn't help but think of his own son. If he were a real woman, it would have been great to have her as his daughter-in-law...

But soon Jeong Yoon-cheol shook his head vigorously, pulling himself out of such thoughts. A daughter-in-law? He's a key figure in a competing project. Now was the time for vigilance.

After finishing his meal, Jeong Yoon-cheol, holding an Americano from the coffee cart, wandered around Gun-ja. Coincidentally, Gun-ja was studying English while listening to a song with many English lyrics.

[I be like hold up wait a minute girl-.]
"Is it about taking care of your father and grandfather... Hm, Jay Park, such a filial person."

Gun-ja, who was reinterpreting the lyrics with filial piety, was approached by Jeong Yoon-cheol.

"Ahem, Yu Gun-ja?"

"Yes, hello."

Gun-ja greeted Jeong Yoon-cheol with a polite bow. Jeong Yoon-cheol was almost tempted to smile at the unusually courteous behavior of the young man but managed to suppress it.

"I saw your acting. You were flying high in the sky."

"I'm glad you think so, thank you."

"Wow, I really thought you were Jackie Chan. Hahaha."

"Did you mean the late Ryu Seong-ryong?"

"Hmm?"

"You flatter me. Hehe..."

Gun-ja smiled brightly, as if he had received high praise. Jeong Yoon-cheol felt a strange sense of being slowly worn down by Gun-ja.

"No, that's not it... Anyway, seeing you handle your body so well, it seems like you're quite good at fighting."

"No. I've only developed enough strength to protect my loved ones."

"Haha, with that much strength, you'd be able to knock down everyone, not just protect anyone."

"Well..."

"You're big and good at fighting... You weren't a bully in school, were you? Hahaha."

"..."

"Is that a sensitive topic? Just kidding, just kidding, hehe."

Despite Jeong Yoon-cheol's blatant provocation, Gunja remained completely unfazed.

The term "iljin" (school bully) was familiar to Gunja, especially from the time when the controversy with Park Young-jae arose. Gunja knew it well, having been repeatedly subjected to such terms.

However, Gunja was confident. Both he and the former owner of this body were far removed from being school bullies.

Team Leader Seo Eun-woo had advised that such matters, especially for idols, should be clarified immediately to avoid misunderstandings.

It seemed necessary to clear up Jeong Yoon-cheol's misunderstanding.

A person with nothing to hide should speak with confidence.

Gunja cleared his throat and spoke to Jeong Yoon-cheol with a firmer tone.

"It seems there is a misunderstanding. I am not a school bully."

"···Uh, uh···."

The term "iljin" drew the attention of those around them. Jeong Yoon-cheol looked increasingly uncomfortable.

He had intended just to make a bit of a fuss with a joke, but now it seemed that only he was coming off poorly.

However, Gunja appeared intent on dispelling the misunderstanding completely.

"Please, follow me."

Gunja grabbed Jeong Yoon-cheol's hand and walked briskly toward where the Solar system team was. The crowd's attention grew more focused.

"No, it's fine now···."

"No, this misunderstanding must be clarified properly. Not long ago, I had a similar issue with a friend named Park Young-jae."

"Let's just put this aside for now—"

"No. Since there were people from the company who helped me back then, we can get this notarized."

Gunja was resolute in addressing the iljin controversy. Holding Jeong Yoon-cheol's hand, Gunja walked straight to Team Leader Seo Eun-woo.

"Gunja, what's the matter?"

"Ah, nothing important···."

"Team Leader, Mr. Jeong Yoon-cheol believes that I am a school bully."

"Yes?"

The gaze of contempt from all around was fixed on Jeong Yoon-cheol. His face turned beet red in an instant.

To be scolded by a twenty-year-old after being over fifty years old was deeply embarrassing for Jeong Yoon-cheol, who found himself at a loss for how to escape the situation.

"Team Leader, you mentioned that iljin controversies should be addressed immediately."

"Yes, that's right."

"That's why I came to you. Since he might not believe my words, if you are not too busy, could you clarify this directly?"

"Of course."

Despite being a superior, Team Leader Seo Eun-woo's gaze was filled with disdain.

"Mr. Jeong Yoon-cheol, I don't know why you misunderstood Mr. Gunja, but he is not a school bully."

"Ah, I understand, just···."

"No, since this is a serious issue for us, we need to clear it up thoroughly."

"!"

"You might not have been aware, but until recently, Mr. Gunja was embroiled in a school violence controversy. Although he was actually a victim, he was wrongly accused and suffered mental distress for a long time."

"Ah, oh···."

"Fortunately, he was able to clear his name with evidence. Conversely, Park Young-jae, who falsely accused Mr. Gunja, is currently under investigation by the prosecution."

"I see···."

"Since you work in content, I thought you would be aware of major news in this industry... but perhaps you were not interested."

"Well, that's···."

"It would have been better if you had not suspected him if you were unaware."

"It was just a joke, just a joke."

"Yes, I apologize if I seem unamusing. However, the issues of school bullying and violence are not something we can take lightly."

Jeong Yoon-cheol, sweating and unable to offer any rebuttal, had effectively lost this round.

"···Yes, I'm sorry···."

With a diminishing voice, Jeong Yoon-cheol apologized and turned away with slumped shoulders. Team Leader Seo Eun-woo, who had previously been harsh, now spoke to Gunja with a kinder tone.

"Well done, Mr. Gunja. If anyone else harbors such suspicions in the future, please bring them to me. I'll handle it..."

"Handle?"

"Handle... with all my might."

"Thank you!"

It seemed that Jeong Yoon-cheol's misunderstanding had been definitively cleared up. It was truly a relief. Seeing Jeong Yoon-cheol looking so subdued, Gunja smiled kindly.

* * *

"Thank you for your hard work—!!"

"Yes, thanks to everyone—!!"

The filming continued smoothly after the meal. With only the second round of shooting remaining, although Gunja found acting challenging, he was beginning to enjoy it more and find it appealing.

"Hyun-jae, how was my acting?"

"Still pretty bad."

"What? But you said I was a bit better at the end···."

"That's because Si-woo hyung was trying to finish quickly and was being overly encouraging."

"Si-woo, is that true?"

"Hahaha~"

"Why are you just laughing!"

"Hahaha~"

"Seriously, Gunja, your acting is really bad."

Gunja's shoulders drooped under his colleagues' harsh criticism. It seemed that more training and practice were needed.

Back at the accommodation, Gunja opened his SNS to catch up on the posts he had missed earlier.

"Hey, are you posting on SNS?"

"Yes, I didn't get a chance earlier. The fans will be waiting."

"That's a good attitude, but don't use those weird words again."

"Haha, don't worry. I won't be using those terms anymore."

"Ugh, don't use that word!"

"What? Gunja is not doing what? Are you talking about something inappropriate?"

"Gunja, I am Gunja!"

"Hahaha~"

Ignoring the noisy colleagues, Gunja started writing his message.

With a pretty selfie from earlier.

"Gunja... bad acting... please view it kindly..."

Shortening the first line.

"Girl... Gunja..."

Shortening the second line as well.

After finishing the SNS post, Gunja cheerfully pressed the upload button.

"Done!"

[(Photo)] [#Gunbaali] [#FemaleSoldier]

The next day, it was only natural that the members and fans were in an uproar.