Both Gu Seong-Cheol and Oh Duk-Gu tried to maintain a bright facade, hiding their irritation. However, this opened up an opportunity for me to easily bring up the topic of recruiting Lee Tae-Poong. I cautiously broached the subject with the two who were trying to smile through the awkwardness.
"Mr. Gu, have you considered giving Kim Dong-Soo a taste of his own medicine?" I asked.
Their expressions brightened as if they had been waiting for such a suggestion. "Do you have a good idea, Yoon-Ho?"
"What is it? Tell us!"
Curiosity was evident on their faces.
***
Last year, after the third-ranking Stepping Stone Entertainment and fourth-ranking Louis Entertainment went bankrupt, every entertainment company was vying to sign their celebrities. Of course, our Actor Division 2 had also been making attempts to recruit these celebrities and had created a recruitment list. I suggested adding one more name to that list: Lee Tae-Poong.
"Lee Tae-Poong?" Gu Seong-Cheol tilted his head in thought before nodding as he remembered. "The guy from Beautiful Farewell?"
"Yes, that's him."
Lee Tae-Poong, who debuted in high school through street casting, quickly rose to stardom with his sculpted looks. However, his acting skills were severely lacking and earned him the nickname 'Lacking David'—implying he was as good-looking as the David statue but had no substance. His good looks had sustained him through commercials, but even those had dwindled over the past year.
As expected, Gu Seong-Cheol reacted negatively. "But he's got nothing. Bad acting, poor vocalization, poor everything. He's just a good-looking face who has already hit rock bottom as an actor. Why would we recruit him?"
Oh Duk-Gu chimed in. "Mr. Gu is right. He used to appear in many ads for a while, but he's not getting any these days due to image overuse."
In the entertainment industry, one could easily become indifferent to good looks because everyone was pretty or handsome. A statue was merely decorative in this industry.
'But what if someone took interest in this decorative piece?'
That could create value where there was none.
"Kim Dong-Soo is eyeing Lee Tae-Poong," I revealed.
At that moment, Gu Seong Cheol and Oh Deuk-Gu's eyes sparkled with interest.
"Are you sure?"
In my future planner, there was an entry about Kim Dong-Soo meeting Lee Tae-Poong for recruitment.
[Everyday V10]
[Date: January 14, 2020]
-01:00 PM Cheongdam-dong H Villa, Lee Tae-Poong recruitment meeting.
"Yes, I'm certain."
"Hmm…"
The fact that Kim Dong-Soo, who was known for his keen sense for profitable ventures, had his eye on Lee Tae-Poong grabbed Gu Seong Cheol and Oh Duk-Gu's attention because this meant there was something they were unaware of.
Gu Seong-Cheol pondered for a moment but soon shook his head. "Still, I'm against it."
"Huh? But why?"
"Yoon-Ho, I don't want to follow in Kim Dong-Soo's footsteps. He has a keen eye for money, but I don't. What will we do after bringing in a ruined actor? We might not have the means to revive his acting career."
Gu Seong-Cheol was concerned with how to revive an actor with a severely damaged image and who was lacking in his acting skills.
But I knew exactly what problem Lee Tae-Poong had—and I knew how to resolve it.
***
Lee Tae-Poong's issue was dyslexia, which made reading scripts extremely challenging for him. However, in my past life, he overcame his dyslexia and displayed remarkable acting skills with my help.
Despite having this knowledge, I couldn't disclose Lee Tae-Poong's condition to just anyone for the time being because it was a major insecurity for him, considering how long he had kept his condition hidden.
After some thought, I decided to lie to convince Gu Seong-Cheol and Oh Duk-Gu without exposing Lee Tae-Poong's actual condition.
"Not many people know this about Lee Tae-Poong, but as far as I've heard, he has something akin to camera shyness," I explained.
"Camera shyness?" they echoed.
"Yes. As you know, camera shyness can easily be overcome. Plus, I'm confident I can persuade him. Just leave it to me."
"An actor with camera shyness, huh..."
"That does make some sense. His acting always seemed a bit awkward."
Finally, the two nodded, seemingly convinced by my explanation. They were probably thinking that if I was right about Lee Tae-Poong, recruiting him could be worth a try.
"This is tricky. But still…moving ahead with a contract without confirmation is a risk."
Of course, it was a challenging task. That's why I needed to take an active role in making it happen. It was a deal that wouldn't be possible under normal circumstances.
"How about proposing a short-term contract, and if certain conditions are met, we would automatically extend it to a long-term contract?" I suggested.
Gu Seong-Cheol listened attentively as if my proposal seemed plausible. "Let's think it over and come to a decision tomorrow morning. It's a bit complicated since we're not just bringing in an actor but a talent agent as well. It might not be easy."
My suggestion to bring in Lee Tae-Poong's talent agent made them hesitant to give a firm answer on the spot.
"I understand."
But I was sure they would be convinced.
'How could they not be? If 'Lacking David' turned into 'Brilliant David', wouldn't it be akin to getting a free pass to an expedited journey to stardom?'
***
The next morning, I checked the schedule for Blue Sky's first script reading which was to take place the day after tomorrow.
Yoo-Jin was focused on the script despite knowing that Ju Yung-In had secured the lead role. I gave her a thumbs up, admiring her dedication to doing her part well. Then, I approached Miso, who was lying on the floor while kicking her feet and coloring.
This time, she was coloring the gingerbread house from "Hansel and Gretel." However, the colors she used for the candies were not something humans would typically eat.
'Does she not have enough crayons?'
I wondered if she was short on crayons, but a quick glance showed all 36 colors were present.
'Oh. I guess she's just a creative spirit.'
Nonetheless, I kept my honest thoughts to myself and praised her coloring. "Wow, Miso. You color so well."
Miso lifted her head and smiled. "Really?"
"Yeah, you're the best six-year-old artist I've ever seen! Miso is the best!"
Miso beamed with joy. "Hehe. I'm seven years old now."
She wriggled her fingers, showing seven to emphasize her age.
"Ah, sorry, I forgot."
"And next year, I'm going to school!"
"Already? Wow!"
"Yes!"
Miso's face brightened even more. Looking at Miso's smile, I suddenly remembered her previous dilemma about a love triangle with two boys from her kindergarten.
Thinking that I should give her the answer I had been mulling over, I slowly opened my mouth.
"Miso, about what you mentioned before... ah."
No matter how much I thought about it, there was only one answer to her question about love.
'She's too young to be thinking about love!'
I was about to give my well-considered advice that it was too early for her to think about love and that I would personally intervene if those boys mentioned anything like that again. But before I could say anything, she interrupted me.
"Oh, that? It's okay now."
Miso quickly turned her head away, saying she didn't need an answer anymore.
'What? Why? What happened, Miso?'