Chapter 18: The Broker

The plan was perfect, but when it came time to act, Gu Cheng suddenly remembered: his acquaintance with Kwon Soonwoo was nothing more than a chance encounter teaming up in an online game. Back then, he hadn’t even bought a cellphone and thus never got Kwon Soonwoo’s contact information!

It was already April 29th, a Saturday. Gu Cheng hurried to the internet café in Gangnam where he’d first met Kwon Soonwoo, hoping for a stroke of luck. But Kwon Soonwoo was hardly the sort to while away his days gaming; he had business, he had studies, and only played occasionally. If circumstances hadn’t lined up as they did that day, Kwon Soonwoo might not have set foot in the café at all.

Gu Cheng searched the café but found nothing. Not willing to give up, he approached the owner, laying a ten-thousand-won bill on the counter.

“ID card,” the owner grunted, not looking up.

“I’m not here to go online—I just want to ask about someone. I have a friend I used to play games with here, Kwon Soonwoo, but I forgot to get his contact. Do you have it?” Gu Cheng described Kwon Soonwoo’s appearance as he spoke.

The owner shot him a contemptuous glance. “Why would I have that? And even if I did, I’m not in the business of selling customers’ information.”

“Has he been here recently?”

“Haven’t seen him this week. He only comes two or three times a month.”

Disappointed, Gu Cheng fumbled with a few more bills, unsure what to do with them. The owner, eyeing the money, licked his lips and added, “When he comes, he’s bragged to me a few times about running a company. That’s how I know the name—you can probably find his office number through the company.”

“That works. Tell me everything you know,” Gu Cheng said, tossing the bills onto the counter.

The owner obligingly wrote down the company’s name and even looked up the address. Unfortunately, Kwon Soonwoo’s company had no official website or public contact number—clearly the kind that only did business with connections who came to them.

Leaving the café, Gu Cheng bought a small gift and set out for Kwon Soonwoo’s company, determined to try his luck.

“Nonhyeon 6-dong, Gangnam… Seems like a spot with a lot of film companies,” he mused. The place wasn’t far; since it was all within the same district, he decided to walk.

Twenty minutes later, Gu Cheng found the address—a typical shell company with just a single office, much like his own. Luck was on his side: Kwon Soonwoo was there.

Through the frosted glass door, Gu Cheng could make out a man at a desk—and a petite figure flitting about nearby. The glass obscured the upper half of her body, revealing only a pair of slender legs. He could also hear the sounds of affectionate teasing.

This unexpected scene made Gu Cheng withdraw his hand from the doorbell.

Could Kwon Soonwoo, with his privileged background, have developed some unsavory habits before making it big? Was he a lolicon, indulging in questionable “unspoken rules”? If Gu Cheng rang the bell now, would he interrupt something illicit?

He hesitated. If he stumbled upon a scandal, any business partnership would surely suffer. Better to feign interest in the scenery, he decided, pacing the corridor for a few minutes to give them time to finish. After all, there was only one exit—he had them cornered.

After a while, the playful sounds from inside stopped. Someone must have noticed him lingering, for footsteps approached the door.

“It’s you?” Kwon Soonwoo peered through the glass and instantly recognized Gu Cheng. After all, someone as ruggedly handsome and distinctive as Gu Cheng was a rare sight in Dongyi. You could use a scalpel to carve out a Lee Junki, but you’d never create a Takeshi Kaneshiro.

Gu Cheng felt a little awkward. “Kwon, it’s been a while. I came to talk business, but it seems you’re… busy.”

“Business? No trouble at all, come in.” Kwon Soonwoo showed no embarrassment, his expression sunny as ever. He opened the door, ushered Gu Cheng in, and had him sit on the couch. “I’m impressed you managed to find this place.”

Gu Cheng glanced around. The petite girl he’d seen through the door had disappeared inside. He silently congratulated himself for not barging in at the wrong moment.

But his relief was short-lived. The girl soon emerged from the inner room, carrying a tray with two cups of tea, which she set before Gu Cheng and Kwon Soonwoo.

“It’s you?” Both Gu Cheng and the girl exclaimed simultaneously when their eyes met.

Gu Cheng realized in shock that the girl was Kwon Boya—the very same girl he’d met before his escape from S-M Company.

“Xiaoya? Weren’t they preparing to debut you at the company? Why are you here…?” As he spoke, an inexplicable pain twisted in his heart, his expression a mix of sorrow and frustration.

“You’ve really let me down!” “You’ve really let me down!” The words burst out from both of them at once, their tone heavy with disappointment.

“I let you down?” “I let you down?”

“Take your gift with you! Who wants anything from someone who beats up colleagues?”

“Hey, now—that’s not the point! Do you know how rare debut opportunities are? Yet here you are, ruining your reputation, and you’re only thirteen.”

“What are you going on about? He’s my brother. I’m off today—why can’t I visit? You’re the one with a dirty mind… Ugh! So gross!”

The misunderstanding only deepened, until Kwon Soonwoo stepped in, exasperated.

“Gu Cheng, enough. Xiaoya is my little sister! And Xiaoya, you never mentioned you knew him that well.” He looked his sister over, suspecting she and Gu Cheng had become friends during her time at S-M Company.

Kwon Boya, hands on hips, pouted angrily. “Who’s friends with him? Idiot! Always resorting to violence over little things and got himself expelled. He pretended Miss An was giving me a gift from the company, but who’s dumb enough to believe the company would give me a Siemens magnetic therapy device? I don’t want favors from someone who makes a show of generosity!”

Despite his life experience, Gu Cheng could hear in her tone that she was more upset by his being expelled for losing his temper than truly angry at him. Like Miss An, she was simply disappointed—she hated that he failed to live up to his potential.

Knowing this, Gu Cheng couldn’t argue with a girl so young and inexperienced.

“Forget it. I’m not going to explain myself. I was impulsive—that was wrong. If you think I’m not worthy of your friendship, I have nothing to say.” He sighed, burdened by sorrows he couldn’t share.

“But don’t harm yourself out of spite. That device is genuinely good for you. You don’t shop on eBay, so if you really don’t want my kindness, just pay me back at cost.”

At this, Kwon Soonwoo’s face darkened. “You’re still taking gifts from him? Didn’t I tell you not to accept things from others?”

Kwon Boya protested, “I didn’t want it—he left it with Miss An when he ran off, thinking I wouldn’t notice. I haven’t even had a chance to return it!”

Kwon Soonwoo scratched his head. “I’ll handle this. I’ll pay for it.”

Gu Cheng didn’t fuss over the matter and accepted the offer. He explained the situation, making it clear that he was only acting on principle, with no hidden motives.

Kwon Soonwoo paid him, then poured tea. “So, what brings you here today? Now that the misunderstanding’s cleared up, let’s drop it.”

Gu Cheng gathered his thoughts. “Right, almost forgot the main reason—I’ve got a few deals lately, selling web traffic. The payments have to cross borders, but there’s no physical goods to declare. I was hoping to use your company as a front—would you take this kind of job?”

“Of course. Two percent handling fee, six percent tax. I’ll disguise it as a copyright transaction. If your traffic has a legitimate source, you can even deduct some tax.”

Gu Cheng was frank: “No, the source can’t be revealed.”

Kwon Soonwoo shrugged. “Then no choice—eight percent total, business as usual.”

Meanwhile, Kwon Boya was completely lost, unable to follow their discussion. But even from the snippets she caught, she was astonished: since when had Gu Cheng become a businessman? Wasn’t he just a trainee, only good at singing and dancing? Where did he get the capital?

She couldn’t help but ask, “You…”

“Some things are too complicated to explain now. Maybe I’ll tell you one day—if you’re still interested then,” Gu Cheng replied gently, seeing her confusion and deftly steering her away.

Left in the dark, Kwon Boya could only sulk and find something else to do.

Kwon Soonwoo and Gu Cheng discussed business details, and upon learning Gu Cheng’s client was Huang Yi, Soonwoo was secretly impressed by Gu Cheng’s nerve. Of course, Gu Cheng didn’t mention that he was generating daily active IPs through a botnet—that was his trade secret. In all other aspects, he was candid to win trust.

With the deal struck, Gu Cheng said, “In a few months, once I’ve made enough selling traffic, I plan to buy the rights to Legend. I probably won’t be coming to Dongyi much after that. I’ll leave the paperwork in your hands—here’s to a long collaboration.”

“Absolutely. I like working with straightforward people.” Kwon Soonwoo, pleased to have found a business partner who gamed with him, couldn’t help but feel a twinge of youthful reluctance to part.

“How about this—let me treat you to a nice dinner tonight, as a send-off. May your negotiations with Huang Yi go smoothly.”