NIS Agent Reincarnated as a Genius Actor - Chapter 121

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 121. Variety Show Selection

 

“How is it?”

 

“The structure is quite different from house to house.”

 

 

 

We came to see a house that was listed for sale in the adjacent building, and the structure was considerably different from Son Jin-wook’s house.

 

 

 

“Since this is the top floor, if you practice acting in this house’s duplex floor, there won’t be any noise concerns at all.”

 

“That’s good. I’m glad I contacted you, hyung. I’ll go with this one.”

 

 

 

The real estate agency representative who had been watching from behind approached with gleaming eyes.

 

 

 

“As expected, the actors have excellent judgment. Will you contract this house?”

 

“Yes, please proceed with this house.”

 

“Then as I guided you, I’ll take care of all the other miscellaneous matters myself.”

 

 

 

The man smiled and bowed his head politely.

 

 

 

 

 

Indeed, the person Son Jin-wook introduced was different from ordinary real estate agents.

 

 

 

As someone who mainly dealt with political and business figures or celebrities who valued privacy, all Yeon-woo had to do was look at the house and decide whether he liked it.

 

 

 

The man handled everything efficiently and cleanly, from contracts and acquisition tax processing to even taking care of the moving process.

 

 

 

A few days later, after receiving the settlement payment from 「Sketch」 and paying the balance, the agency completed everything perfectly from cleaning to arranging suitable furniture so he could move in immediately.

 

 

 

“Is this the power of money?”

 

 

 

The day after the move was completed, Yeon-woo opened the door and entered his new house, his head nodding involuntarily.

 

 

 

He had moved dozens of times, not only when living domestically but even when stationed overseas.

 

 

 

‘Living in designated safe houses was actually more convenient.’

 

 

 

If surveillance was detected after entering a country, he couldn’t enter the safe house and had to rent short-term housing like a normal international student or businessman, so he knew the complexity of the moving process better than anyone.

 

 

 

“Still, this is the first time I’ve had such a comfortable move.”

 

 

 

Yeon-woo passed through the modernly decorated living room and went up the stairs.

 

The first place he checked before the master bedroom was the acting practice room installed on the duplex floor.

 

 

 

He rarely felt envious of anything, but he was honestly envious when he saw the acting practice room installed in Son Jin-wook’s house.

 

 

 

Opening the transparent door and entering, there were sound-absorbing walls and a white horizon that could only be seen in studios installed in front of them.

 

And simple video equipment for recording and even field monitors he had seen on filming sets.

 

 

 

“Perfect.”

 

 

 

With this level of equipment, it seemed he could easily check his acting practice in real-time afterward.

 

 

 

Yeon-woo smiled with satisfaction, opened the door, left the acting practice room, and went downstairs.

 

 

 

After looking around every corner of the house that would become his new home, Yeon-woo sat on the sofa and browsed through his smartphone.

 

 

 

“Hmm, even if it’s not a grand housewarming party, I should at least invite family and friends.”

 

 

 

Come to think of it, in his previous life, he had never once invited anyone to his house.

 

 

 

“Well, of course. My residence was classified information.”

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

“PD Kim. How’s the casting going?”

 

“Oh, Department Head. I’ve already put in requests several times. It’s not just us, other broadcasting stations are all targeting him too, but he’s not appearing on anything right now.”

 

“Geez, what’s this young guy acting so expensive for? Take this opportunity to threaten his agency. Where was it? LN Enter? Tell them if they don’t want to make an enemy of Han Young-hoon in the industry, they should get Ryu Yeon-woo to appear once.”

 

 

 

Team Leader Kim sighed deeply after hearing Department Head Han’s words.

 

This was the problem with Department Head Han who was getting angry in front of him.

 

Having started his PD career from the era when terrestrial broadcasting stations had a tight grip on the industry, he looked down on celebrities.

 

 

 

Team Leader Kim sighed involuntarily at the thought that such a person might soon rise to the position of variety show director.

 

 

 

“These days, with OTT services and internet platforms becoming popular, our influence has decreased a lot. Even if we do that, they’ll just snort at us. And with Ryu Yeon-woo’s current momentum, what would his agency be afraid of?”

 

“Hey. I’m telling you to push that hard. It’s meaningless unless it’s his first appearance.”

 

 

 

Even if they cast Ryu Yeon-woo, it actually wouldn’t be his first appearance.

 

He had filmed a variety show after 「Summer’s Closet」 ended.

 

 

 

After 「Sketch」 succeeded in becoming a huge hit, JNBC’s sub-channel has been re-airing 「Summer’s Table」, which was the follow-up variety show, filling up regular programming and reruns.

 

 

 

It was actually becoming an annual event. Last year when 「Master Plan」 and 「Stars Beyond Garam」 were hits, they had reorganized the dramas and variety shows Ryu Yeon-woo appeared in just like now.

 

 

 

「Summer’s Closet」 and 「Summer’s Table」 were aired with An Jun-ho’s scenes edited out, as he had dishonorably suspended his activities due to involvement in a drug case.

 

 

 

Nevertheless, with the name value of Son Jin-wook and Han So-hyeon who were the lead actors at the time, and Ryu Yeon-woo who had the third-largest role growing into a named actor, it was natural that the ratings came out despite being a reorganization.

 

 

 

The situation at other broadcasting companies wasn’t much different.

 

May is a month with many holidays and is Family Month, so despite organizing various specials, it’s a month that inevitably struggles with ratings.

 

 

 

At this timing, if they could cast the big fish Ryu Yeon-woo, any variety show could guarantee ratings, so it was natural in a way that they were rushing into a casting war with fire in their eyes.

 

 

 

It wasn’t just broadcasting officials who wanted Ryu Yeon-woo’s non-work activities, but fans as well.

 

 

 

– 사료를보면짖는개(dancin***) : 연우 형! 스케줄 딱 하나만 해주세요. 덕질에도 사료가 필요해요 멍멍

 

└ 예지연Woos(dPwlxx3***) : 우리 오빠 대학교 복학해서 공부하느라 바쁘실 텐데 좀 참아요.

 

└ 삼도수군통제사(leesoons***) : 심지어 그 대학교가 한국대학교임.

 

└ 그냥레알키키해(fdzzfdz***) : ㄹㅇㅋㅋ

 

 

 

– 우즈초기회원임(wkdwod***) 생각해보면 울 배우님 완전 열일했지. 데뷔 3년 차에 작품 4개 했고 전부 다 흥행함. 이건 미친 수준 아닌가요 ㅜㅜ

 

└ 스피드왜건(sppee***) : 예능이랑 카메오 합치면 6개입니다.

 

 

 

 

 

Meanwhile, Yeon-woo’s smartphone rang while he was looking around the house and unpacking his few belongings.

 

 

 

“Yes, Team Leader.”

 

– Ah, Yeon-woo. Are you at school by any chance?

 

“No. I finished all my classes today. I was unpacking some things.”

 

– I see. I heard you moved. Congratulations.

 

 

 

Yeon-woo chuckled softly and looked around at Team Leader Jeong Hyeok’s voice coming through the phone receiver.

 

It was definitely a luxurious house he hadn’t been able to enjoy even in his previous life.

 

 

 

“Thank you. Thanks to your hard work helping me, I achieved my dream of owning my own home.”

 

– Oh, don’t mention it. The reason I’m calling is about the additional shooting for the Ihan Technology advertisement I mentioned last time.

 

“Ah, you said you’d release a new version to coincide with the Patriots and Veterans Month. I remember.”

 

– So while we’re doing the advertisement shoot, I’d like to proceed with just one other schedule. Preferably something variety-related.

 

 

 

Yeon-woo nodded after hearing Team Leader Jeong Hyeok’s words.

 

 

 

After entering the filming of “Sketch,” he hadn’t done any activities outside of the work, and after that he returned to school, so there had been no activities except for filming music shows in between.

 

 

 

There were fans eagerly waiting for him, so it seemed good to do some activities.

 

 

 

“That sounds good. My university midterms just ended, so it seems like perfect timing.”

 

– Then if you have time now, would you like to attend a meeting? Manager Kim Min-su will be there soon.

 

“Yes, understood.”

 

 

 

After hanging up, Yeon-woo quickly prepared to go out.

 

Since he didn’t have much luggage to bring, there wasn’t much more organizing to do around the house.

 

 

 

Perhaps because his new home was closer to the agency’s office building, Manager Kim Min-su called soon, and Yeon-woo went down to the front of his house.

 

 

 

“Min-su hyung. You really came quickly.”

 

“It’s nice that it’s close. I often drove you when you visited Actor Son Jin-wook’s house, so congratulations on moving.”

 

 

 

Yeon-woo got in the car with a smile, and soon Min-su’s car arrived at the office building.

 

They took the elevator and headed to the Planning Team Conference Room he had visited before.

 

 

 

When he opened the door and entered, the Planning Team employees who were having a meeting in a relaxed atmosphere welcomed Yeon-woo warmly.

 

 

 

“Yeon-woo. It’s been quite a while since we’ve seen you in person, hasn’t it?”

 

 

 

Yeon-woo smiled at Team Leader Jeong Hyeok’s greeting.

 

 

 

As Team Leader Jeong said, the last time they met was when he saw Director Hwang Min-kwon and Director Jung Yo-han in the CEO Office after returning from Berlin, so three months had already passed while he was living his university life.

 

 

 

Of course, they had just been on the phone, but he asked about their well-being out of courtesy.

 

 

 

“That’s right. You’ve been well, haven’t you?”

 

“Me? Well, haha. Please sit over here.”

 

 

 

When Yeon-woo sat down, a PR Team staff member displayed materials on the screen containing introductions to several variety programs.

 

 

 

“First of all, it’s not an exaggeration to say that casting offers have come in from almost every variety program.”

 

“I see. There are quite a lot.”

 

 

 

Yeon-woo nodded.

 

The screen was densely filled with program names.

 

 

 

“Still, after internal meetings, we’ve narrowed it down to a few.”

 

 

 

When the PR Team staff operated the remote control, the screen moved to the next page and only four items remained.

 

 

 

1. SBC – Surprise Attack

 

2. KBC – Today’s Cooking

 

3. JNBC – Yeo-reum’s Dining Table Beyond

 

4. Other Production Company – Fan Detective Agency

 

 

 

“The first is SBC’s flagship variety show, Surprise Attack.”

 

 

 

He was familiar with this program.

 

It was a long-running program that had been airing for over ten years, where guests and cast members split into two teams to compete in predetermined variety games and sports events.

 

 

 

“So are the other guests who will appear together already decided?”

 

“If you appear, you’ll probably be cast as a solo guest.”

 

 

 

Yeon-woo nodded and fell into thought.

 

It was a program with good ratings and countless guests had appeared on it, so it wasn’t bad.

 

 

 

However, considering the purpose of communicating with fans, which was the reason he decided to do activities outside of his work in the first place, it wasn’t quite suitable.

 

 

 

“There are too many cast members and it’s too chaotic, so I’ll need to think about it.”

 

“Then the second is ‘Today’s Cooking,’ which KBC recently launched and is doing well.”

 

 

 

It was a program where they follow a chef who is a big name in the restaurant industry and a famous figure, performing cooking missions.

 

 

 

“The part where you cooked on the island in your previous variety show is still circulating a lot as clips. So we selected this thinking it would be good to show more of that as an extension.”

 

 

 

They could certainly produce various clips that fans would love like a magic hat.

 

 

 

But Yeon-woo scratched his head as if troubled.

 

 

 

“I was able to cook before because it was cooking I do occasionally, but I’m actually not into cooking as a hobby and I’m not that skilled either.”

 

 

 

Living alone overseas for many years naturally led him to learn a few dishes, but he wasn’t as proficient in cooking as the image the public had of him.

 

 

 

“Come to think of it, there are no MBS variety shows?”

 

 

 

At Yeon-woo’s question, Team Leader Jeong Hyeok tilted his head and answered.

 

 

 

“After the CEO spoke with MBS officials last time, he got a bit angry and said there are stubborn old-timers in their variety department who won’t listen to reason, so he told us to remove them all from the list.”

 

“Hmm, the CEO did?”

 

 

 

It was hard to imagine CEO Kim Ju-seong, who was usually cool-headed, getting angry.

 

 

 

“And the third option is a three-episode variety show that JNBC proposed as a short project, a follow-up to 「Summer’s Dining Table」.”

 

 

 

「Summer’s Dining Table Beyond」

 

 

 

Regarding this project, Son Jin-wook, Han So-hyeon, and Yeon-woo had already finished their discussion.

 

Yeon-woo opened the messaging app on his smartphone and touched the group chat.

 

 

 

 

 

– Son Jin-wook, Han So-hyeon, Ryu Yeon-woo (3)

 

 

 

– Han So-hyeon: You received the variety show proposal called 「Summer’s Closet Beyond」, right?

 

– Son Jin-wook: Yeah, what do you think about it, So-hyeon?

 

– Han So-hyeon: I’m worried about Jun-ho.

 

 

 

– Son Jin-wook: I actually met with Jun-ho last month to talk, and it was such an unfair situation. All he did was drink the champagne they were handing out at a party he was invited to.

 

– Ryu Yeon-woo: How did Jun-ho hyung seem?

 

– Son Jin-wook: He was doing better than I expected. He went down to the countryside where his parents live and is helping them with farming. Maybe because some time has passed, he seemed at peace.

 

 

 

– Han So-hyeon: Then should we decide not to do this project? I feel uncomfortable about filming a sequel just among ourselves, and if it becomes a topic of discussion, it’ll only bring up Jun-ho’s incident again.

 

– Son Jin-wook: I agree.

 

– Ryu Yeon-woo: I agree as well.

 

 

 

After reading the message content, Yeon-woo put down his smartphone.

 

 

 

“We’ve decided with actors Son Jin-wook and Han So-hyeon not to proceed with 「Summer’s Closet Beyond」.”

 

“Ah, I see. Understood.”

 

 

 

Team Leader Jeong Hyeok seemed to roughly guess the reason and didn’t ask further.

 

 

 

– Son Jin-wook: The address is here. Hwachon-myeon, Hongcheon-gun, Gangwon Province···.

 

 

 

Yeon-woo looked again at An Jun-ho’s address that he received from Son Jin-wook.

 

 

 

‘I’ve figured out Baeksol’s identity to some extent, and for An Jun-ho’s sake too, I should start investigating that incident soon.’

 

 

 

Yeon-woo looked back at the screen and tilted his head at the last item.

 

 

 

“What does ‘other production companies’ refer to?”

 

“Ah, number 4 is a NeTube channel. It’s a corporate channel run by a program production company, with a hidden camera concept where stars visit fans directly to grant their wishes.”

 

 

 

After hearing the explanation, Yeon-woo smiled brightly.

 

 

 

“Number 4 is what I want to do most.”

 

 

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