An Advertising Genius Falls into the Joseon Era - Chapter 10

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 10
“Ha Yun!”
Spotting Ha Yun in the distance, Ok Bun rushed out in urgency.
“Oh my goodness! Honey! Come out here a moment! Ha Yun has come back!”
“What did you say?”
Hearing her cry, Mun Sik dropped his axe and firewood without a second thought and bolted outside.
“My heavens! Is that really you? It’s Ha Yun, isn’t it?”
Mun Sik’s face flooded with disbelief. His eyes reddened in an instant.
Seeing the two of them, Ha Yun felt an overwhelming surge of emotion.
“Uncle! Aunt!”
“How is this possible? How did you come to be here—”
“Fortunately, everything worked out well. There won’t be any more trouble over the Status Issue.”
“Well, that’s wonderful news!”
The three of them, reunited after so long, shared a moment suspended in joy. Their affection for one another was palpable—the bond of true family.
“Do you know how afraid we were? Every day I feared something had happened to you…” Ok Bun’s voice cracked.
She wiped tears from her eyes.
Since the day Ha Yun was taken away, Ok Bun hadn’t slept properly once.
Every day she hurried to the magistrate’s office, pleading and begging for news.
She’d pressed money into the hands of constables, desperate for any word, but all she received were cold refusals.
Now that Ha Yun had returned safe and sound, this childless couple felt as though their dead daughter had come back to life.
“You’re not hurt anywhere?”
“No, I’m fine. Really.”
“Oh, such a delicate thing enduring a cell… I can only imagine what you suffered.”
“I’m sorry for worrying you both so much.”
“Sorry? Don’t be. The fact that you’ve returned safely is blessing enough.”
Mun Sik and Ok Bun heaved sighs of relief, seeing Ha Yun unharmed.
Then, sensing the peculiar emptiness within the tavern, Ha Yun asked hesitantly.
“But where are all the customers?”
Just days ago, this place had been so crowded you couldn’t find a spot to stand. Now the tavern sat eerily vacant.
Mun Sik offered a bitter smile.
“Ah, that? Don’t worry about it. The important thing is that you’re back—does business matter now?”
“Yes, we’ll build up our customers again soon enough.”
Ha Yun’s absence had inevitably disrupted the Innsaeng Tavern’s operations.
They’d lost all the customers they’d worked so hard to attract—to the Sanmaru Tavern.
Dal Jae, once he returned to the Sanmaru Tavern, had simply copied the entire system from the Innsaeng Tavern and implemented it in his own establishment.
At considerably lower prices.
Without Ha Yun, the Innsaeng Tavern couldn’t bridge that gap in price.
As a result, only a handful of quiet diners remained. Everything had reverted to how it was before.
Mun Sik laughed awkwardly.
“We tried managing without you, but it didn’t go well.”
“It’s only natural. Without you, there’s nothing we can do—the customers ask for you.”
“Uncle, Aunt…”
As worry clouded Ha Yun’s face, Mun Sik patted her shoulder.
“Don’t concern yourself with the tavern’s business. We’ll manage everything.”
“Come, go inside and rest. It’s hardly proper to keep someone who’s been through so much standing here like this.”
With that, Mun Sik took Ha Yun’s arm and led her forward.
“Oh…”
Then he paused and glanced to the side.
Standing beside Ha Yun was a middle-aged man he didn’t recognize.
Only now did he truly notice.
“Who is this person?”
“Well, you see…”
In truth, Ha Yun didn’t know much about the middle-aged man herself.
Only that he shared her surname, and little else.
As Ha Yun hesitated, the man introduced himself.
“I am Ha Yun’s uncle, if you will have it.”
“My uncle?”
“You had an uncle?”
Ha Yun stared at the middle-aged man in surprise.
A playful smile crossed his face.
Ha Yun let out a short sigh before answering.
“Yes. It just happened that way, somehow.”
“That means… your memory has come back?”
“Yes. I remember everything now. Where I lived. My parents’ names.”
“Well, that’s wonderful! Simply wonderful!”
“What a blessing to hear such news!”
Mun Sik and Ok Bun rejoiced at Ha Yun’s recovered memory as though it were their own fortune.
Then Mun Sik asked, “But it’s that awkward time between breakfast and lunch—have you eaten?”
“No, not yet.”

Ha Yun shook her head.
“Then you must be hungry. Come, sit right here. I’ll have a bowl for you in no time.”
“Thank you.”
Ok Bun turned to the middle-aged man and asked politely, “Will you have the same?”
“That would be most welcome.”
The middle-aged man smiled softly.

While Mun Sik and Ok Bun went to fetch the Gukbap, Ha Yun and the middle-aged man took their seats at an empty table.
“Hmm.”
The middle-aged man began to survey the Innsaeng Tavern methodically, missing nothing.
From the sign hanging at the entrance to the murals, every piece of decoration.
His eyes observed each corner with meticulous care, as though appraising the place.
After a moment, the middle-aged man turned to Ha Yun and asked, “Did you arrange all of this yourself?”
Ha Yun scratched her head, looking embarrassed.
“It’s nothing special. Just humble Craftsmanship, that’s all.”
“Nothing special, you say.”
The middle-aged man shook his head.
“I’ve traveled through taverns across all eight provinces of Joseon, yet I’ve never seen a place like this before.”
His words rang true.
For decades, he had wandered throughout Joseon.
From the upscale establishments of Hanyang to the shabby country inns—he had visited countless places.
But never one quite like this. A jolt of fresh wonder struck the middle-aged man’s mind.
“Mm.”
He then picked up the Menu Board before him.
“A curious thing. Did you make this as well?”
“Yes. I thought if we made a Menu Board like this, customers would find it easier to see what we offer, so I tried it.”
“Ho.”
The middle-aged man examined the Menu Board from every angle.
The names of the dishes and the illustrations drawn beside them.
Prices clearly marked.
And even set combinations, like pairings for two.
His gaze returned to the Innsaeng Tavern as a whole.
“The characters written at the entrance have real skill to them…”
He had grasped at once the power in Ha Yun’s brushwork.
Though it appeared carelessly scrawled, there lay a subtle mastery of pressure and a grace that emanated from every stroke.
Only someone who had wielded a brush for at least several years could achieve such a level.
“But most of all, this.”
Then the middle-aged man’s gaze shifted toward the kitchen.
“I like how the kitchen is left open, fully visible. You can see at a glance what the proprietress is doing—it inspires trust.”
“…!”
At his words, Ha Yun could not hide her astonishment.
The very first thing she had done when renovating the tavern was to remove the kitchen door.
‘He noticed that?’
The Open Kitchen was a concept only brought into practice in modern times.
By leaving the kitchen visible, it dispelled the boredom of waiting customers and allowed everyone to see how the tavern’s operations flowed.
And so, no matter how rushed things became, no patron ever complained.
Seeing the kitchen at work, customers naturally thought, ‘Ah, they must be quite busy,’ and understood.
It was a trifling thing, yet no one had ever noticed it before.
No one, except the middle-aged man standing before her now.

His eyes gleamed with a brilliant light, as though he had just discovered a precious gem.
“You devised this yourself, didn’t you?”
“…Yes.”
Ha Yun nodded carefully.
“Quite skillful. Where did you learn such Craftsmanship?”
“It’s something I was born with, sir. Isn’t the Im family known for their Craftsmanship?”
“Hah-hah, that’s true enough. Our Im family has earned quite a reputation for such talents.”
At Ha Yun’s jest, the middle-aged man burst into hearty laughter.
That was when it happened.
“Here you are, sorry for the wait. Please, eat your Gukbap while it’s hot.”
Ok Bun appeared with steaming bowls of Gukbap, the broth clouded white and heaped generously with meat and scallions.
“I’m grateful for this meal.”
“Much obliged.”
Both Ha Yun and the middle-aged man hurried to lift their spoons, eager for their late dinner.
Slurp!
Having gone so long without it, the Gukbap tasted all the more delicious—nothing like the prison food from the past few days.
Yet Ha Yun focused less on eating and more on observing the middle-aged man.
Someone with his sharp insight would surely have something to say about the Gukbap itself.
But as he ate, his expression grew complex.
“Hmm…”
It was delicious.
Truly delicious.
And yet.
Not quite the sort of excellence one might praise as truly exceptional.
The kind of restaurant you’d find two or three of in any provincial town.
If it were nearby, he’d visit a few times, but he wouldn’t make a special journey for it.
There was certainly no reason to queue out the door for it.
‘And yet the customers came in droves…’
The middle-aged man’s mind continued working as he ate. For someone whose business was evaluating goods, finding reasons for everything was second nature.
Clink.
A moment later, having polished off his bowl, the middle-aged man offered his assessment.
“You’re the one who brought this place back to life.”
The middle-aged man regarded Ha Yun directly.
“The flavor is excellent, but by itself it’s insufficient.”
Ha Yun offered no reply to his words.
Because he was right.
Flavor alone could never have achieved this level of success. It was a law that held true even in modern times.
To make a restaurant succeed required more than taste—it demanded diverse Marketing techniques.
Ha Yun had woven such devices throughout every corner of the establishment, devices that made customers feel compelled to return of their own volition.
All of these elements combined had given birth to something called the Innsaeng Tavern—a sort of Brand.
Upon grasping this truth, the middle-aged man could not contain his admiration.
“It would be a waste to let such talent rot away.”
At his praise, Ha Yun lowered her head, flustered.
“You’re too kind.”
“I’m not being kind.”
The middle-aged man’s expression was utterly sincere.
At this point, Ha Yun herself had begun to grow curious—about the true identity of this man.
Unable to bear the suspense any longer, she ventured carefully, “But then, who are you, sir? What exactly is your station?”
“Hm, only now does it occur to you to ask?”
Witnessing his niece’s belated curiosity about her uncle’s identity, the middle-aged man let out a quiet chuckle.
Then he revealed his true name at last.
“I am Im Sang Ok, Master Merchant of Mansang.”
“M-Mansang!”
“I-Im Sang Ok?”
While Ha Yun, still baffled, tilted her head in confusion, both Ok Bun and Mun Sik’s knees buckled.
Mansang.
Mansang was one of the greatest merchant houses in all Joseon, with its base in Uiju.
It dealt in every manner of goods—ginseng, textiles, grain, dried seafood—and conducted trade across the sea with the Qing Dynasty itself.
It maintained branch offices throughout all Joseon, and thousands of merchants belonged to Mansang’s network.

The head of Mansang was none other than Im Sang Ok himself.
“We need talent like yours in our organization.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Im Sang Ok, the proprietor of Mansang, posed the question with an earnest gaze.
“What do you say? Won’t you work with me?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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