Episode 33. Ill-fated Relationship (3)
When Kang Yera was affiliated with LBH.
She was active in It’s Bean, a 7-member girl group.
It had been 5 years since their debut.
Nevertheless, they weren’t a very well-known girl group among the public.
Rather, they were close to unknown.
If they continued like this, the group It’s Bean itself would disappear into the entertainment industry’s back alleys without ever truly making it big.
So, CEO Ryu Hwangjin devised an idea.
He summoned all project stakeholders, including the producer in charge of It’s Bean.
One day, the producer, who had received a special order from the CEO, gathered It’s Bean in the dance practice room.
They already knew that the producer had held a long meeting with CEO Ryu Hwangjin and then summoned them.
Was it because of this fact?
They had no choice but to gather with vague fear and dread.
Because there were no results.
Perhaps.
“They’re not telling our group to disband, are they…?”
Disbandment.
It was the word they feared the most at the moment.
Kang Yera shook her head, reassuring the members that it couldn’t be.
“We’re working hard, aren’t we? The producer-nim and the staff members. They all acknowledge it, so even if the CEO tells us to disband, they’ll surely ask him to reconsider.”
Kang Yera believed that.
As soon as she heard that, the expression of another member, Choi Hana, changed.
“You have a tendency to trust people too much. That’s a really bad habit.”
At the criticism from her, who was 2 years older than Kang Yera, Kang Yera momentarily flinched.
Nevertheless, Kang Yera continued with a firm expression, as if she had to say what she wanted to say.
“It’s the same with what we do. To achieve something, isn’t it fundamentally possible only when there’s a foundation of trust?”
“That’s just what you think.”
“……”
Conflicts of opinion between the two had frequently occurred since the group’s inception.
However, because they both knew very well that creating rumors of discord among group members would gain them nothing, it always ended at an appropriate point, as usual.
It was the same at this meeting today.
Moreover, it was a tense situation where they didn’t know what the producer would say, so they had to be especially careful.
Because it was obvious they would only hear harsh words from the producer if they caused a conflict over something trivial like this.
Not long after.
The producer in charge of It’s Bean appeared in the dance practice room with LBH staff members.
As soon as they saw them, the It’s Bean members simultaneously sprang to their feet and bowed 90 degrees towards them.
“Hello, producer-nim!”
“Everyone’s here, right?”
“Yes!”
For someone bringing serious news, the producer’s expression seemed rather indifferent.
Perhaps it was because his affection for It’s Bean had completely waned.
The CEO’s message that the producer brought to them was this:
“The CEO said it seems the problem is trying to highlight all seven members.”
“What do you mean by that…?”
The members looked at the producer with bewildered expressions.
The producer told them bluntly.
“He said that when scheduling, we should pick one main member and focus on promoting only that member first.”
For idol groups, especially those with a large number of members like It’s Bean, rather than a small scale, it’s impossible for everyone to receive equal attention, as the producer said.
Since people’s tastes vary, there was a tendency for some members to be perceived as mainstream among fans, while others were seen as niche.
Among these, Choi Hana and Kang Yera. The two belonged to the popular member line.
It was safe to say they were the top 2.
The producer was also well aware of this.
So, as a result of his deliberations.
“I’m thinking of giving the majority of work to either Hana or Yera for the time being.”
At this moment.
Kang Yera strongly opposed the producer’s words, saying it made no sense.
“Producer-nim! What about the others? We all came this far to become singers together, so it’s not fair to only push one person now!”
“When did I say I’d only save one person? I just said it earlier. Let’s first create at least one star-level individual rather than focusing on the entire group. Then it will be easier to raise It’s Bean’s recognition than starting from scratch. Isn’t that right?”
“But…”
“And frankly speaking. What hope is there if we keep the same strategy as it is now? Am I wrong? Huh?”
“……”
Perhaps the alternative the producer brought could serve as the only hope for It’s Bean.
The It’s Bean members were that desperate.
How precious each stage opportunity was to them.
To seize this opportunity.
There might be no other way than to follow the strategy proposed by the producer and CEO Ryu Hwangjin.
In the end.
“……Yes, I understand. I’ll follow producer-nim’s and CEO-nim’s words.”
Kang Yera had to kneel before the wall named reality.
With the statement that either Kang Yera or Choi Hana would be put forth as the main member, an internal meeting began.
Who to choose between the two.
Kang Yera didn’t like this method itself, but since it had come to this, she strongly wished that she would be chosen rather than Choi Hana.
This was because Kang Yera knew Choi Hana’s personality well.
If it were her.
She might abandon the entire group as soon as she gained recognition, just as the producer and CEO Ryu Hwangjin had aimed for.
She had that kind of personality.
But perhaps because many people still didn’t know Choi Hana well?
Or perhaps because Choi Hana thoroughly hid this aspect of her personality from the staff?
CEO Ryu Hwangjin summoned the It’s Bean members again with the producer and said this:
“Both of you came out almost tied.”
It wasn’t just asking one or two people. It’s never easy for a tie to appear in a survey asked to an unspecified number of people within the company.
However, ultimately, one person had to be chosen.
CEO Ryu Hwangjin looked at the remaining members, excluding Kang Yera and Choi Hana, and said:
“Those who know these two people best are probably you, their fellow members. And conveniently, excluding the two candidates, there are exactly five of you. Since it’s an odd number, there won’t be a tie, and the result will come out immediately. So, let the members choose directly.”
Kang Yera, or Choi Hana.
It was a truly cruel command.
However, since CEO Ryu Hwangjin had given the direct order, there was no one in It’s Bean who would openly defy his words.
In the end, according to CEO Ryu Hwangjin’s directive, the remaining five It’s Bean members were given a cold and cruel voting right.
Kang Yera, on the contrary, thought it was a relief internally.
This was because the members, unlike the company staff, were well aware of Choi Hana’s malicious and extremely selfish tendencies.
Kang Yera, who had always insisted that they should all coexist with the members, was confident that she would win this vote.
The members usually respected Kang Yera’s opinions a lot and empathized with her.
Kang Yera decided to wait comfortably for her unnies’ and dongsaengs’ decisions, but.
She didn’t realize it at the time.
That a meaningful smile was spreading across Choi Hana’s lips.
“Those who wish for Hana to be chosen, raise your hands.”
The openly started vote.
At this moment.
All five members raised their hands high.
In front of their movements, devoid of any hesitation, Kang Yera doubted her eyes.
“Unnies… why…?”
Kang Yera trembled in the face of the surging betrayal.
However, whether they knew Kang Yera’s feelings or not, they explained why they had decided to support Choi Hana.
“We thought that only someone with Hana’s level of assertiveness would have a unique presence when appearing on a program alone.”
“Unnie, you’re right.”
“And Hana… her family has a lot of money, right? So, maybe they know people working in the entertainment industry over there. We thought those things might help… that’s why we voted for Hana.”
“Let’s be realistic, us.”
At the word “realistic,” Kang Yera almost exploded.
Why the members started siding with Choi Hana.
Kang Yera could roughly guess.
Solicitation.
Choi Hana usually didn’t care about the means or methods to achieve her goals.
She had actively leveraged the fact that she was from a wealthy family.
“In the end… it’s about money?”
Kang Yera asked the members with a dazed expression.
However, none of the members tried to meet Kang Yera’s gaze.
Because they were feeling at least a minimal pang of conscience.
CEO Ryu Hwangjin lightly shrugged his shoulders.
“The fundamental element that moves the world is money. Of course, it can even move people’s hearts.”
“……CEO-nim, you already knew.”
Kang Yera realized that Ryu Hwangjin already knew that the members had been bought off by Choi Hana.
That’s why he had intentionally instructed the members to raise their hands and state their opinions right there.
To explicitly let Kang Yera know that Choi Hana would be pushed.
How much Ryu Hwangjin might have received from Choi Hana’s parents as well.
Kang Yera didn’t really want to think about that.
Instead.
All she wanted was to get out of this dirty place as quickly as possible.
Everything was according to the plans of CEO Ryu Hwangjin and Choi Hana.
Kang Yebin, who had informed Kang Dae-oh and Min Seung-yeon about what happened to Kang Yera, also couldn’t hide her distress.
Although it was something that happened in the past.
It was because of this incident that Kang Yera began to feel deep disillusionment with idol activities.
From a younger sister’s perspective, it was naturally a regrettable story.
Min Seung-yeon also couldn’t speak for a while.
“To think that Yera had such a story…”
She was such a bright and charming daughter usually that she had never imagined Kang Yera would have such a dark past.
Kang Dae-oh, at least, had a vague inkling.
But hearing the details of the story directly from his other daughters made his teeth chatter.
If Kang Dae-oh had been in a position to hit it big with the coffee business like now, even before his regression.
Then his family wouldn’t have been scattered.
And Kang Yera wouldn’t have suffered such humiliation because of money.
Everything felt like his fault.
As if she had noticed Kang Dae-oh’s true feelings, Kang Yebin looked at her dad and said:
“As I keep saying, it’s not your fault, dad. People with money are always a minority. And becoming that minority is a very difficult thing.”
“That’s true. But…”
Kang Dae-oh took out CEO Ryu Hwangjin’s business card.
“It’s not about money. No, even without money. Becoming a father that your children can rely on is something you can always do if you set your mind to it. It’s not some privilege of the minority.”
Riiip!
Kang Dae-oh, who tore up CEO Ryu Hwangjin’s business card, said this:
“As much as I couldn’t protect Yera back then, this time, I will definitely protect her.”
That was Kang Dae-oh’s way of atonement.
