Chapter 136
“It’s difficult to explain all the details right now, but... I think there may be a way.”
“As expected.”
At my words, all three of them immediately looked encouraged.
For now, I reassured them by asking them to trust me and wait a few days.
Then I got to work.
Back when Music Director Yoo Jaehan had been caught up in a legal battle over plagiarism allegations surrounding I’m Not Superman, suspicions had also been raised that the music from the film That Summer, We Loved and the drama Chocolat at Bongbong might have been plagiarized as well.
And the person who first raised those suspicions was nothing more than an ordinary movie fan who posted reviews on his personal blog.
Apparently, when That Summer, We Loved first came out, he had already written a review saying he suspected the film score had been plagiarized.
But no one paid any attention to it.
Right. First, I need to find that blog.
Fortunately, there weren’t that many reviews of That Summer, We Loved.
So I found the blog without much difficulty.
“Listen carefully.”
I met the blogger in person, and he played two pieces of music for me.
“This one is from a 1994 German short film called Night in the City.”
“Now listen to this section, and then this part from That Summer, We Loved.”
He looked at me.
“What do you think?”
“They’re practically identical, right?”
After listening myself, I had to admit the two pieces were almost the same.
But this still isn’t enough.
I need a more definitive verification.
Without hesitation, I called Reporter Goo Yangmo from Hanju Daily.
There was no one better suited for handling something like this.
And even if I didn’t say anything, I knew Goo Yangmo would turn it into an article on his own.
After several rings, his voice came through the phone.
“Hey, Team Leader Min. Long time no see.”
“Yes, Reporter Goo. Have you been well?”
“Why are we exchanging greetings? What do you want?”
“Seriously, that personality of yours.”
I smiled.
“Anyway, do you happen to know any music critics?”
“A music critic?”
His tone immediately changed.
“Why do you suddenly need a music critic?”
“Well...”
I deliberately dragged out my words.
“I thought someone who reviews music would probably know a lot about plagiarism.”
Silence fell on the other end.
I couldn’t see his face, but I could picture it perfectly.
A hyena that had just spotted prey.
Yes.
Reporter Goo Yangmo was definitely making that exact face right now.
After a short silence, he spoke again.
“Why are you suddenly talking about plagiarism?”
“Did someone plagiarize something?”
He was trying to sound calm.
But he couldn’t hide the curiosity and excitement in his voice.
I smiled.
“There’s someone I think we need to verify properly.”
Six hours later...
I arrived at a university in Seoul with Reporter Goo Yangmo.
We were there to meet Professor Oh Sehwan, a practical music professor who was also actively working as a film and popular-music critic.
“If Professor Oh says it’s plagiarism, you’re giving me the exclusive.”
I chuckled.
“What’s with that?”
“You sound like you’re hoping it turns out to be plagiarism.”
“Come on.”
Goo Yangmo cleared his throat.
“Don’t say things like that where people can misunderstand.”
“As a journalist, I’m simply fulfilling the public’s right to know.”
“Sure, sure.”
I laughed.
“As if.”
“And honestly, Team Leader Min.”
Goo Yangmo grinned.
“The fact that you called me in the first place means you were already aiming for something like this, weren’t you?”
His expression clearly said, We both know how this game works, so stop pretending.
“Ah, you know you have a duty to protect your source, right?”
“Of course.”
“And I decide when the article goes public.”
“Got it?”
“That’s fine too.”
Together, we went to Professor Oh Sehwan’s office.
I asked him to compare part of the OST from That Summer, We Loved, which Yoo Jaehan had worked on, with the soundtrack of a German short film made in 1994.
After listening, Professor Oh Sehwan spoke without hesitation.
“This is obvious plagiarism.”
He pointed to the two pieces.
“The melodic lines are almost identical.”
“The harmonic progression is the same too.”
“This is very difficult to dismiss as coincidence.”
At the words obvious plagiarism, Goo Yangmo’s eyes instantly lit up.
“Professor, when I publish this article, may I quote you by name?”
“Of course.”
Professor Oh nodded.
“I’m one hundred percent certain.”
Then he frowned.
“But I’m honestly shocked that Yoo Jaehan would plagiarize in this way.”
I bowed my head politely.
“Thank you.”
Then I straightened.
“Now... I suppose it’s time to move.”
After getting confirmation from Professor Oh Sehwan, I told Baek Seonghan what I had found.
“What did you just say?”
Baek Seonghan stared at me.
“Plagiarism?!”
I explained that part of the OST from That Summer, We Loved, one of the films Yoo Jaehan had worked on as music director, appeared to have been plagiarized.
Baek Seonghan looked completely stunned.
“So when you said you thought there was a way to solve the Golden Sound problem...”
“This was it?”
I nodded.
He immediately asked,
“But how the hell did you find out about this?”
“Oh, that.”
I answered casually.
“I happened to come across a movie-review blog.”
“The similarities were too obvious to just ignore.”
Baek Seonghan fell into thought for a moment.
Then he spoke.
“Yeah.”
“With this, we definitely have a justification for rejecting Yoo Jaehan.”
Then he frowned.
“But why didn’t you tell Golden Sound about it from the beginning?”
“First, I needed an expert to confirm whether it really was plagiarism.”
I continued.
“And there was also a chance Golden Sound could simply cut him loose and end it there.”
Baek Seonghan’s eyes widened.
“Cut him loose?”
Then realization hit him.
“Ah.”
“That’s possible.”
“They could just get rid of Yoo Jaehan and put forward another music director.”
“Exactly.”
I nodded.
“And if we reveal the plagiarism issue first, Golden Sound might think we’re using it as leverage to threaten them.”
At the word threaten, Baek Seonghan’s expression became serious.
“If that happens, they might really come after us for breach of contract and demand the penalty.”
“Ha...”
He sighed.
“Then what do we do?”
I explained that the best possible scenario was to somehow force them into withdrawing from the investment contract on their own.
“But how?”
Baek Seonghan looked frustrated.
I answered,
“For now, we pretend to go along with what they want.”
“We act like we’re willing to sign with Yoo Jaehan.”
“Then we make absolutely sure the contract includes a clause saying that if Yoo Jaehan causes any problem, Golden Sound will quietly withdraw from the investment.”
Baek Seonghan looked skeptical.
“But would Executive Director Cheon accept something like that?”
“The contract with the music director and the investment contract are technically separate matters.”
I smiled slightly.
“If you help me, PD Baek, I think we can make it work.”
The moment I said that, Baek Seonghan’s eyes lit up.
“If it’s something I can help with, of course I’ll do it.”
He leaned forward.
“What do I need to do?”
I grinned.
“PD Baek.”
“Can you act?”
“Act?”
The next day, Baek Seonghan and I headed to Golden Sound’s office in Gangnam.
When we arrived at Golden Sound, Manager Kim Buseong, whom we had met earlier at Big Picture, came out to greet us.
“The executive director is currently in the listening room.”
Following Manager Kim’s guidance, we headed to the listening room in the basement.
The moment we entered, the atmosphere felt different.
The floor was covered in thick carpet, while acoustic material lined every wall.
Gray panels patterned with rows of square blocks seemed designed to keep even the smallest sound from escaping.
At the front stood a pair of thick, wood-toned speakers.
Several unfamiliar pieces of equipment sat on a table, with chairs arranged in front of them.
Cheon Giseok had been sitting in the center chair.
When we entered, he stood to greet us.
“Welcome.”
“I had some work to handle, so it was difficult for me to leave the building.”
“That’s why I asked you to come here.”
“No, it’s fine.”
Cheon Giseok looked around us.
“By the way, only the two of you came?”
“What about Director Song?”
“Ah, he’s tied up with post-production.”
“It was difficult to match schedules, so the two of us came instead.”
“I see...”
Cheon Giseok looked slightly dissatisfied.
I quickly continued.
“Anyway, the result is obvious.”
“As long as the person signing the contract is here, isn’t that enough?”
At the mention of signing a contract, the corner of Cheon Giseok’s mouth rose in satisfaction.
“Oh?”
“Then has it been decided that you’ll work with our affiliated Music Director Yoo Jaehan?”
“Well... about that...”
I glanced carefully toward Baek Seonghan.
Baek Seonghan immediately spoke in a cold, forceful tone.
“Why?”
“If it’s difficult for CEO Min to say, should I say it for him?”
“N-No.”
I quickly shook my head.
“I’ll say it.”
“I will. Ahem.”
The tense atmosphere between Baek Seonghan and me made Cheon Giseok look at us curiously.
I turned toward him with an awkward expression.
“Well...”
“We’ll sign with Music Director Yoo Jaehan as Golden Sound requested.”
Then I hesitated.
“But there’s one condition.”
Cheon Giseok’s brow tightened for a moment.
Then he changed expressions and smiled.
“A condition?”
“Fine.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“What condition?”
I kept glancing nervously toward Baek Seonghan, who was maintaining a deeply dissatisfied expression.
Then I continued toward Cheon Giseok.
“Well... if, by any chance, Music Director Yoo Jaehan causes some kind of problem that damages the film...”
I paused.
“We want a clause added to the contract stating that Golden Sound will take responsibility and withdraw from the investment.”
Cheon Giseok stared at me in disbelief.
Then his expression turned outright offended.
“What are you talking about?”
“Withdraw from the investment?”
He frowned.
“The investment agreement and the contract with our affiliated music director are completely separate matters.”
“And if we withdraw our investment, your side will suffer too.”
I deliberately lowered my voice and made myself sound hesitant.
“Well... the truth is...”
I kept acting awkward and uncomfortable.
Then, as though I had no choice, I explained.
I told him that Song Jaehyun had insisted he would never replace the existing music director, even if it meant paying the penalty.
And in order to persuade him, I had made Song Jaehyun a promise.
Cheon Giseok gave a disbelieving laugh.
“So the promise was that if something goes wrong with Yoo Jaehan, you’ll make us put in writing that we’ll withdraw our investment too?”
Before I could answer, Baek Seonghan suddenly raised his voice, his face filled with irritation.
“Since we’re being honest, Director Song was willing to pay the penalty just to keep the current music director.”
“We’re only moving forward with this because we managed to break his resolve and get him to compromise.”
“In practical terms, Director Song is swallowing his pride as a director and taking a step back.”
Baek Seonghan glared at Cheon Giseok.
“If we’re giving you that much, shouldn’t your side at least accept this condition?”
“To be honest, neither Director Song nor I would ever have agreed to this contract if it weren’t for CEO Min!”
Cheon Giseok, seemingly overwhelmed by Baek Seonghan’s unexpectedly strong attitude, instinctively leaned back.
Oh.
PD Baek is actually a better actor than I expected.
In truth, Baek Seonghan was doing exactly what I had asked.
He was putting pressure on Cheon Giseok and deliberately shaping the atmosphere.
