Producer with no Regrets - Chapter 574



Only Noblemtl

Episode 574

Plekhanov looked up at the sky.

It’s blue and sunny at the same time.

I frowned and placed my palm on my forehead to block out the light. Only after shadows formed around my eyes could I open them properly.

Plekhanov looked around.

It was a ruin.

“Get on quickly, kids.”

I looked where the voice was coming from.

His colleagues were loading prisoners into the back of a truck. They had rags over their eyes and their hands were tied.

The truck carrying a dozen or so prisoners raced off toward an unknown destination.

Plekhanov tightened his grip on the gun for no reason. After walking a few steps, he looked up at the sky again.

A two-story house that looked perfectly normal, not in keeping with the ruins. An old woman was leaning against the second-floor window. She was looking down at Plekhanov with helpless eyes.

Plekhanov looked like he was having a staring contest with her. Soon, he was the first to lower his gaze. He lowered his gaze and turned his head to where her eyes were directed.

Behind Plekhanov, there were several corpses covered with dirty cloths. The corpses were left in that state.

“Plekhanov.”

Someone touched Plekhanov’s shoulder.

It was Major Axelrod. He followed Plekhanov’s gaze. His eyes stopped on the corpse and he spoke calmly.

“For the country, for the people.”

If it had been a normal hierarchical relationship, Plekhanov would have nodded briefly. But since Axelrod was his old friend, he said something he normally wouldn’t have said.

“Is this what my country and my people are doing?”

“Yeah, that’s what we did.”

In war, everyone is a perpetrator.

There are no excuses.

Plekhanov’s unit captured several tanks and Humvees, then burned any resources that might be of use to the enemy.

The unit leaves.

Plekhanov sat in the back of the transport vehicle, watching the scenery passing by quickly. Then, unconsciously, he began to sing the lyrics.

“We are immortal as fire, calm as stone… … .”

The colleagues nearby followed suit.

“Each platoon and company stands at its outpost.

We are the army of the country, the army of the people.

“Our great achievements… … .”

Plekhanov recited the last verse.

But the songs of my colleagues did not stop.

“History bows.”

The war was surprisingly short.

The war was an overwhelming victory for Russia, Plekhanov’s proud homeland and people.

* * *

Plekhanov opened his eyes. As soon as he opened his eyes, he jumped out of bed and stretched.

I walked over to the CD player and looked at the shelf. Okay, let’s start with this today.

As he put the CD in, a cheerful sound flowed from the speakers.

“Hehehehe.”

Plekhanov hummed as he poured himself a cup of coffee. It was “Arabesque,” the first track and title track of Girls’ Union’s first full-length album.

The space he lived in could be seen as a combination of kitchen and bedroom.

He received his coffee and placed it on the bedside table, then took out the leftover sandwich from the refrigerator and enjoyed his breakfast.

He hummed the melody of ‘Arabesque’ and nodded his head, pronouncing a faint Korean sound.

I think it’s pretty plausible Korean.

“Even if we get hurt, we stand up, we push through the thorns, even if we have to crawl with our hands tied.”

The more you savor the lyrics, the warmer your heart becomes.

Even thinking that it was girls (not girls anymore) who were saying these lyrics, I felt an endless surge of courage.

The music video automatically comes to mind.

Dancers who risk their lives fighting in the flames of revolution to protect culture… … .

“Shut up.”

After finishing his meal, Plekhanov got up from bed groaning like an old man.

After washing the dishes, showering, and cleaning, he opened the front door. The first thing he saw was the bar table of the cafe he runs.

As soon as I leave the house, I go to work.

Plekhanov turned on the computer and turned on the cafe BGM. The Girls’ League’s music flowed from the uselessly expensive speakers installed throughout the cafe.

It wasn’t just Girls’ League music.

It was a playlist of Girls’ League songs arranged into a jazz version by a certain capable person.

‘Well, today too… … .’

Plekhanov scanned the quiet cafe.

It’s an ordinary cafe with nothing special about it.

If I had to point out something special, it would be the Girls’ League goods that were placed there as interior elements, seemingly out of place.

‘Should I try to live hard?’

The first customer was an elderly regular.

After ordering a simple breakfast, he sat down in the corner and read the newspaper.

As time goes by, housewives with nothing to do gather to gossip, or students wander around looking for a place to kill time.

Students occupy their seats for a long time. They also tip poorly. But Plekhanov is generous.

I know that college students have no money thanks to a friend I made by chance.

Housewives tend to tip generously.

“Mr. Plekhanov, you look even better today!”

Apart from the fact that they grope for your arm or give you a coquettish smirk every time you bring them a menu, they are very good customers.

Between 3 and 4 o’clock, the cafe becomes quiet.

Plekhanov went to an empty table and sat down to rest for a while. He closed his eyes and listened to the Girls’ League song flowing from the speakers.

The moment when humming lingered on the corner of my mouth.

“Plekhanov!”

The cafe door opened wide and Rosa appeared.

She approached me briskly, carrying a thick textbook under one arm, as if bragging about the fact that she was a college student.

“I have some great news!”

“Are you going to Paris Fashion Week again?”

Rosa’s modeling career, which she started out with to earn extra money, is unexpectedly bringing in a lot of money. She even walked the runway at Paris Fashion Week, so it can be said to be a huge success.

But her life’s achievement wasn’t Paris Fashion Week. It was being featured on the Girls’ League concert VCR that she was most proud of.

“Huh.”

Rosa cast a contemptuous glance as if to say, ‘How long can you keep your composure?’

Plekhanov felt happy every time he saw her innocence.

“Yeah, tell me anything. I wouldn’t be surprised if you were dating an American tech mogul.”

“There’s a K-pop dance cover contest. Let’s go together.”

“what?”

No matter how much Plekhanov loved the Girls’ League, she had no intention of entering the cover dance competition.

It’s probably a paradise for teenagers and those in their twenties, but what’s the point of a mean old man named Plekhanov leaving? It’s a good thing the kids don’t get scared and run away.

“I’m not going.”

“Please go! I don’t have anyone else to go with besides you guys!”

“Don’t you have any friends?”

“They all say they won’t go out. My friends aren’t really interested in K-pop in the first place.”

“You knew we were going to go?”

“We are the people!”

Plekhanov groaned.

Rosa usually achieves what she sets her mind to. She really wants to participate in the dance cover competition, and this will be achieved with the participation of Plekhanov and other people.

That means Rosa will be suffering for the next few days.

“Struggle! Liberation! Girls! Federation! Victory! Where has our International gone!”

“That and this are different.”

“Please put it on the official international agenda!”

International is the name of the Girls’ League fan club formed in this cafe.

Rosa, a latecomer, quickly rose to the position of an International executive with her characteristic energy and drive. Incidentally, she herself called herself an executive, not a separate title.

“Of course it makes sense, but I don’t think it’s a place for guys like us to go.”

“No, Plekhanov will leave.”

A confident smile spread across Rosa’s lips.

* * *

The news from Russia came from the Korean government rather than the Russian government.

No, it was also ambiguous to say that it came from the Korean government.

Because it was a proposal from a private foundation under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

“You’re saying you’re going to call the Girls’ League to another country… … .”

Han Gu-in couldn’t hide his embarrassment as he read the proposal from the foundation.

“Money… is this all you can give me?”

“I guess that’s because it wasn’t a plan directly implemented by the government.”

In Seongpil’s opinion, if it had been the Korean government that directly pushed for it, they would have paid the cost according to commercial ethics.

However, the amount of money called for by the foundation under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism was embarrassing.

Seongpil said calmly.

“I have to reject this.”

“But, even if it is indirect, it is something that involves the country… … .”

Han Gu-in expressed his concerns.

“Of course, what Director Park said is true. But this country is so full of things that I don’t spend my own money on… … .”

If I say I’m not paying for it, it means the government is drafting people without fair compensation and against their will.

It goes without saying that civil servants, medical personnel, military personnel, private businesses, etc. are all subject to this rule. The UN International Labor Organization has been pointing this out for decades, but nothing has really changed.

Because it has become a uniquely Korean tradition.

It is not particularly strange that this tradition extends to the cultural world.

“What if you think, ‘I have to do it because the country tells me to do it’? What if I refuse and a retaliatory tax investigation comes up?”

As Han Gu-in drew a dark future, Seong-pil suddenly began to feel worried.

Seongpil looked through the proposal again.

“So, this is a cultural exchange project with the government behind it. It was first proposed by the Russian… … Moscow city government. It is being carried out in consultation with the Cultural Exchange Center… … .”

No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem like the Korean government was directly involved.

But as the Korean said, if this matter is being watched by some high-ranking person, what if I refuse and get into trouble?

“Director Han. Do you happen to know anyone in politics?”

“Are you asking me now whether my family is involved in politics or business? Of course not, and even if it is, I won’t tell you.”

“That’s not what I meant… … .”

“Probably not.”

“Why is the answer ambiguous?”

“What are you two saying!”

Min Kyung-seop, who had been listening silently, exploded. He had been watching their conversation with anxious eyes since a while ago, but he finally exploded.

“Of course I should! The government is involved, either directly or indirectly!”

Min Kyung-seop didn’t seem to be saying this out of patriotism. He was afraid.

“Kyungseop, you still… … .”

Seongpil was dumbfounded.

Min Kyung-seop has been secretly afraid of the Girls’ League for quite some time because of its concept.

The abbreviation Soviet Union and the fandom name People’s have caused unnecessary controversy for Girls’ League. This happened at the beginning of Girls’ League’s debut, and everyone suffered a lot because of it.

If that were all, Min Kyung-seop wouldn’t have done this.

“We must prove the purity of ideology!”

After seeing SNS using North Korean language to praise the Girls’ League, Min Kyung-seop began to become fanatically obsessed with the purity of ideology.

I almost fainted when I found out that the SNS account was not a Korean account that was caught up in the concept, but a real foreign account.

Because of that, in their first year since debut, Girls’ League went to perform at military bases several times. They even went to an island where transportation wasn’t very convenient.

It was all because of Min Kyung-seop’s paranoid worries.

“Kyungseop, stop doing that and think about it seriously. You’re the head of management. You shouldn’t be making decisions about the kids’ schedules based on your personal concerns.”

“Aren’t you scared, hyung? What if the National Intelligence Service or something starts monitoring our radio waves because of this incident?”

“Are you serious?”

“Every government in this country has, without exception, conducted surveillance on civilians since the first generation! There’s no way we wouldn’t do the same!”

“… … .”

Seongpil looked at Han Gu-in and Min Gyeong-seop alternately.

The fear they both had was transmitted to Seongpil.

Seongpil asked cautiously.

“Is that true? Do all regimes really spy on and monitor civilians?”

“… … Actually, I don’t know. I saw it a long time ago in a community or something.”

“Director Han, is this real?”

“I don’t know.”

“So is there really such a thing as a retaliatory tax audit?”

“I wonder if there is a country that doesn’t have that.”

“No, there’s no way this could happen because of something like this… … .”

Is there a company being investigated by the tax authorities for refusing to participate in a K-pop dance cover contest?

Seongpil took a deep breath.

The ominous futures depicted by Han Gu-in and Min Kyung-seop were creating synergy and eating away at Seong-pil’s spirit.

“Just ask.”

“Where are you talking about?”

“Here. Cultural Exchange Center. The organization in Moscow and this Cultural Exchange Center are carrying out the plan, so let’s contact them first and hear the situation.”

“And then what if someone very high up comes and threatens you?”

“Kyungseop, please be careful.”

Seongpil found Min Kyungseop annoying, but he also felt sorry for him because he saw him genuinely scared.

One of the management team’s duties is risk management. Min Kyung-seop is doing risk management, but he is doing it excessively.

Seongpil called the number of the person in charge of the exchange program written on the documents.

“Yes, this is Park Sung-pil, director of Garo Entertainment. I’m contacting you about the Moscow K-pop dance cover contest.”

Min Kyung-seop and Han Gu-in stared at Seong-pil without making a single sound.

“Yes, I understand. I’ll transfer you to the person in charge.”

10 seconds waiting for the planner.

Min Kyung-seop felt like it was an eternity.

Soon Seongpil resumed the conversation.

“This is Park Sung-pil, Director of Garo Entertainment. I have something to ask you about this matter. Yes, yes, ah, yes. Yes? Oh, uh, yes, I understand… … .”

The call ended much faster than I expected.

Seongpil looked at his phone blankly.

“What, what are you talking about? From your side?”

“You’re saying you’re going to send… someone?”

“It’s a threat!”

Min Kyung-seop fell into a state of frenzy.

* * *

Surprisingly, the person who came to Garo Enter was a Russian government official.

She looked to be in her 30s, and as she entered the building, she glanced around nervously. Then, realizing that this might be rude, she quickly straightened up.

“Z, zudrastbuyche.”

Seongpil used the Russian he had picked up from Son Hyebin.

“hello.”

But what came back was in Korean.

Although he had the unstable accent typical of foreigners, there was no problem at all in understanding him.

“I am Mayer Axellot, a civil servant from the Tsentralny District of Moscow.”

It was a fluent self-introduction, as if it had been memorized in advance.

Seongpil asked with a little relief.

“Don’t you need an interpreter?”

There are two Russian speakers on Garo Enter: Han Gu-in and Son Hye-bin.

“It’s okay. My minor is Korean.”

“Oh, really?”

Seongpil guided her to the reception room on the second floor.

On the way to the reception room, I noticed Han Gu-in and Min Gyeong-seop hiding in the corner of the hallway and watching.

Not only them, but also Garo Enter’s Jeonseogu and Rikado heard the news.

“ah.”

Seongpil wasn’t the only one who saw them.

Meyer paused for a moment as he saw the three suspicious figures. Immediately, the three disappeared into the corner of the hallway.

“Rika… … .”

“Do you know Rika?”

Meyer suddenly came to his senses.

“Yes, I know. I like the Girls’ League.”

“Is the Girls’ League famous in Russia too?”

“They are the most popular girl group in Russia.”

“Do they do such surveys in Russia?”

“I did it on Twitter.”

“ah…….”

Then, I wonder if it is considered reliable.

If it was on Twitter, people who knew each other would have retweeted and voted.

The vote would have been circulated only among those with similar tastes, rather than across the entire Russian K-pop fandom.

The Russian people were probably the main target. That’s probably why the Girls’ League was chosen. And I doubt there was a significant number of voters.

Probably not.

“Eat.”

Seongpil offered her tea and sat down across from her, slightly nervous.

‘It’s a threat!’

Min Kyung-seop’s maddened cries linger in my head.

Although it was not some high-ranking person who came to Garo Enter, it was a more heterogeneous person who came.

He was said to be a Russian civil servant. I thought he was probably affiliated with a local organization similar to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Korea.

Or, you said earlier that you belong to a certain administrative district, so are you a city official?

anyway.

“Can I hear the story first?”

“yes.”

Meyer moistened his lips with tea as a courtesy and sat up straight. Honesty seemed to be read from his attitude and expression.

“There will be a K-pop dance cover competition in Moscow. I would like to invite the Girls’ League as a judge, or at least one person if not the group.”

We invite idols as judges for a cover dance competition… … .

If we look for examples, there are cases where idols are called as judges for overseas audition programs, although the scale varies.

Aside from that, the most direct example of this is… … .

“Have you been to WTP before?”

“yes.”

Meyer’s face brightened.

WTP was once called as a judge for a K-pop dance competition held in Russia.

Of course, at that time, WTP’s recognition was not as high as it is now. At its current status, it would be impossible to even invite them as judges for a dance competition.

As Min Kyung-seop said, if there was direct pressure from the government, then that might be different.

“I hope it will become a regular cultural event in Moscow.”

So, that’s how you found WTP while looking for cases.

However, since the current WTP is impossible to call, the Girls’ League was chosen as a substitute.

The context fits.

‘If there’s a problem, it’s money.’

It’s not like you can just cross the country as if you’re doing charity.

If the Girls’ League just picks one suitable event in Seoul and performs there, they can immediately receive tens of millions of won.

But then you get paid much less than that to be a judge at a dance competition across the border?

If the math doesn’t add up, it doesn’t add up at all.

“Why?”

Seongpil asked.

If money can’t be the reason, then you have to find another reason.

Examples include sponsored concerts or charity performances featuring pop stars or rock stars.

K-pop idols also perform at youth culture festivals and public service projects for almost nothing, similar to how companies establish charitable foundations.

It’s not entirely impossible for the Girls’ League to go to Russia.

‘but.’

Seongpil looked straight at Meyer.

‘If you are just trying to use our children to improve your performance as a civil servant… … .’

I have absolutely no intention of allowing it.

Meyer also showed signs of tension as Sungpil’s gaze became sharper. She fiddled with the topmost button of the code as if she was frustrated.

Then, he flinched and placed his hands, which had been moving wildly, back on his knees.

“Russia.”

Meyer barely opened his mouth.

“It’s at a standstill.”

“… … .”

“… … Sorry. I have to organize the sentences in my head to speak in Korean.”

“Oh, that’s okay. Please speak slowly.”

Meyer tried to appear composed, but his hands kept moving around in all directions as if he was having trouble doing so.

He twisted his hair, then looked away, then fiddled with the hem of his coat.

Seongpil stared at her calmly until she opened her mouth.

‘Surprisingly, your skin isn’t that white.’

All the Russian beauties I saw in pictures had skin as white as porcelain. These pictures were probably retouched.

Kolberger, a Polish trainee from Garo Enter, is whiter than her.

What stands out compared to Koreans is her hair color. It is a natural, easy-on-the-eyes golden color, as if she claims it is not dyed.

“Russia is a country of art.”

Meyer finally opened his mouth, as if he had finished thinking.

“Many artists were born here. Stars that decorated history flow from their hands. All Russians are proud of it. Classical ballet and classical music are famous.”

Seongpil nodded his head.

Surprisingly, Russia has a large share in the world’s cultural industry, thanks to the dazzling achievements of its ancestors, classical ballet and classical music.

Russia’s high culture (mainstream culture as opposed to subculture, but not a word that implies superiority) infrastructure is incomparable to that of other countries.

“Ballet and classical music were for the royal family and the nobility. However, the Soviet Union overthrew the old system and changed it. Ballet and classical music served the people. It was the Soviet Union’s achievement that people of all ranks, regardless of position, could enjoy culture.”

The ballet and orchestra companies that had dominated the world with the full support of the Russian imperial family surprisingly did not disappear after the revolution.

They were able to survive by changing their name to cultural heroes who served the people of the Soviet Union.

According to her, the fact that the classical art industry currently holds such a large share in Russia is due to a tradition that has continued since the Soviet era.

“But that’s all.”

“That’s all?”

“Russian children aspire to be pianists and ballerinas. If they learn to play the piano, adults praise them. If they learn ballet, they are called the future Nureyev. But if they learn to sing or street dance, they are looked at strangely.”

This is… …similar to a story I heard from the Polish trainee Kolberger.

“Russia is a difficult environment for pop culture to develop.”

That’s right. In short, there is a lack of a youth system for POP.

The youth system does not simply mean academies or schools. It also includes the social atmosphere.

Even in Korea, if you learn to sing, you won’t be looked upon so favorably.

Dancing is treated more harshly than that. Since most of the kids who dance during school talent shows are kids who are just having fun, there is a perception that kids who learn to dance are punks.

If even Korea is like this, Russia will be even worse.

But Korea has idols.

Idols who dance and sing on stage make children learn to dance and sing. In that sense, Korea’s youth system is excellent.

“Few people worry about that. I think Russia is great as it is. I also think Russian culture is great. But if things continue this way, there will be no progress. Russia has lost its old spirit of challenge. Do you know Nijinsky?”

“Yes. The god of dance. Vaslav Nijinsky.”

“The Ballets Russes that Nijinsky belonged to was a group of innovative artists. They didn’t stop at mastering classical ballet, but developed it and exported it to foreign countries. Because we had an inferiority complex, we desperately copied foreign things, and with their help, we created a Russian culture, and instead made it popular abroad.”

It was a story that also connected with K-pop.

In the past, Korea copied from the US and Japan. Over time, something Korean emerged, and it was given the name K-pop, and now it has become globalized and is traveling the world.

In the past, Russian ballet was like that.

Russian culture, once called the cultural outskirts and the land of barbarians, took the world by storm.

“Now… … .”

Meyer said in a bitter voice.

“There is no such thing.”

The castle built by their ancestors is so splendid and grand that Russians are content to guard and boast of it.

Everyone wants to get into that castle.

I don’t want anything new. Even if I do, it’s shabby compared to what my ancestors accomplished. That’s why I rarely go to new places.

The Soviet Union deeply rooted high culture among the general public, an achievement made possible by the determination to make culture accessible to all people.

At the same time, the Soviet Union suppressed and repressed new cultures. The only thing new for the Soviets was art based on ‘socialist realism’.

And all art based on political purposes disappeared. When the Soviet Union collapsed, all Russians had in their hands was the culture and art of 100 years ago.

That was the only pride.

“Russia needs pianists. It needs ballerinas. But it also needs pop stars. What I want to do is to plant a spark in people’s hearts. No matter how small it is, even in a small number of people. And above all, I want to give that spark to children. Then Russia will… … .”

10 years later.

If that doesn’t work, then 20 years later.

If that doesn’t work, then 30 years later.

Even if it takes 50 years, 100 years.

“I want to create that spark, and even if it is dangerously close to breaking, I want to pass that spark on to the future and create a future that is different from the present.”

I hope the Girls’ League will come for that.

So that at least one more person can become interested in modern dance and song.

“Of course, this is a small event. I don’t know what will happen. I know it’s far-fetched. But I would like to ask you a favor. I would like to ask the most popular girl group in Russia, Girls’ Union.”

Please come to Russia.

Seongpil stared deeply into her face.

Meyer met his eyes nervously, but soon lost confidence and lowered his head.

“under.”

Seongpil let out a short laugh.

Meyer flinched and shook his shoulders. Then he looked up anxiously.

Seongpil was smiling.

It wasn’t a laugh as it sounded.

“Alexander Melnikov… … .”

Seongpil told an anecdote about a Russian pianist that he had heard from Hanguin.

“I came to perform with the Korean Broadcasting System Symphony Orchestra. That’s what I heard. I would be happy if even one more person could hear this music. If that could happen, it wasn’t that far away… … .”

A smile spread across Meyer’s lips.

Seongpil nodded.

* * *

Rosa shouted at the indifferent Plekhanov.

“The Girls’ League is coming!”

“what?”

“Dance Cover Contest, Girls’ League is coming as judges!”

Plekhanov jumped to his feet.

The chair he was sitting on rolled across the floor with a loud crash.

“Federation of Russian International, assemble!”

“Kiyatho!”

The two burst into laughter and raised their fists high.

They weren’t the only ones who were happy.

The Russian people were all excited. The name of the Girls’ League remained on Twitter’s real-time trends for a long time.