Time Mansour - Chapter 59



Only Noblemtl

Episode 59 My ears are ringing

Beyond the narrow window.

The endless sky.

As the plane takes off, my heart flutters along with it.

I sway along the current, my emotions of fear and excitement mixed together.

‘My ears keep ringing.’

As soon as we took off, my ears started to get blocked.

I tried forcing myself to yawn a few times, but I still couldn’t hear very well.

I looked down at the clouds under my chin in that dazed state.

It felt like I was dreaming.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport. For your safety, please wait until the aircraft comes to a stop and the seat belt sign turns off.”

An announcement was made, and the passengers began to take notice and slowly unbuckle their seat belts.

When one person hit their buttocks on the seat like that, everyone around them got up from their seats as if it was contagious.

After the plane stopped, each person grabbed their carrier from the overhead compartment.

I too stood there awkwardly, and then, as people started to leave in a hurry, I joined the line.

This is my first time in a foreign country. I am pushed by the people behind me and step onto an unfamiliar land.

I don’t really like crowded places.

Still, I don’t feel bad.

So, I just pass through the baggage belt and go outside.

I was looking around just in case.

-Welcome Jung.

I found my name at the arrival hall. He said he was coming, and he really did. I felt grateful and waved my hand vigorously toward the card.

“I’m Jeong-i. You must be busy. Thank you for coming out to meet me.”

“No, we’re free these days, so we have a lot of time. My name is Siriu. I’m the CEO of Mint Market. It’s really nice to meet you.”

When Siriu put her hands together and bowed her head slightly, I followed suit and put my hands together.

“What did you just say your name? Sorry, I can’t hear you very well right now.”

“Siriu! Sirius!”

Ah! Siriu. What a cool name. I nodded and left the airport. A hot wind blew. Wow, the weather is no joke. The hot heat gently embraced my body.

I think I spent a few hours just watching videos of people catching taxis at the airport.

It was all in vain.

I just followed Siriu and a taxi was automatically caught.

Automation is the best, I muttered to myself as I pushed myself into the back seat.

Siriu sits in the passenger seat. After telling the taxi driver the address in Thai.

Right away.

“Have you ever been to Bangkok before?”

He turned his head towards me.

“No. This is my first time.”

“Oh really? I hope you had fun.”

“Thank you. But where are we going now?”

“Ah. I didn’t tell you. It’s called Ekkamai. Near our company.”

Ekkamai. Where was it? I think I’ve heard of it. I tilted my head like that.

Suddenly, the scenery outside the window catches my eye.

A well-paved road. Tall buildings line both sides.

It’s not a street tree or a palm tree.

Apart from the fact that there were a lot of motorcycles, it didn’t feel particularly exotic.

now.

In fact, it feels more unfamiliar than downtown Bangkok.

“I think our business will be successful. Jeong-i came to visit us shortly after we opened.”

It was Siriu’s reaction. She was particularly excited about me.

“Oh. Have you eaten?”

Siriu turned her head back again.

Suddenly, he raises his thumb and asks a question.

“Uh. Airline meal. But I’m a little hungry.”

“Do you like noodles? Would you like to have a quick meal near the office and come up?”

“Noodles are good.”

“That’s great,” he replied, giving me a thumbs up again.

I don’t know why liking noodles is such a big deal.

Anyway, the reaction is good.

As we were talking like that, I kept hearing people say that I was amazing.

Before I knew it.

Creak.

The taxi slowly stepped on the brakes. The scenery outside the window, which had been flowing like a video, gradually slowed down and changed into a photograph with a thud.

“They’re all here. Here. No. Okay. I’ll pay.”

When I held out my hand, Siriu shook her head.

After arguing for a while about who would give it to them.

The taxi driver glanced at us.

“Then I’ll buy food.”

I barely managed to reach a compromise and got out of the taxi.

like that.

“It’s over there across the street.”

Following Sirius’s fingertips, we cross the crosswalk without a traffic light.

I slowly crossed to the other side, looking left and right.

“How is it? Isn’t it great?”

At the entrance to the restaurant, a huge pot was boiling.

I screamed without realizing it when I saw that sight.

“Huh? Galbi noodles!”

Although it was my first time, I was happy and swung my sword at the pot.

It’s a place I’ve seen several times in videos.

“know?”

“Oh, I saw it on YouTube.”

He nods and pulls his chair back. He sits down and orders. He says the portions are small so he should order two.

He pointed to the menu with one hand and made a V sign with the fingers of the other hand.

“You must be very hungry.”

Siriu laughs at the sight of me ordering two servings from the beginning.

As we stood there facing each other and exchanged a few more words, the noodles were soon brought onto the table.

The noodles were served in a rich meat broth with cilantro, dumplings, pork, and pickled vegetables.

Knock. Knock. I picked up the meat with my chopsticks. The well-cooked meat fell apart in my mouth. After clicking my teeth a few times, it disappeared in an instant.

“Is it really delicious here?”

“Is that okay? We come here often to eat. The company is right in front of here.”

I nodded and then put the meatball in my mouth. The meatball bursts in my mouth. I can taste the rich meat broth.

I emptied the bowl in a hurry. After I finished eating all the noodles, I held the bowl with both hands and drank the soup.

After wiping the oil off your lips with a tissue.

Only then, belatedly, did I raise my head.

“You eat really well.”

I saw Siriu smiling brightly on the other side.

“That’s great,” he says, and gives another thumbs up.

**

A small office inside the building.

At most, there are about forty employees? No, I don’t think it’s even that many. In any case, it’s a small startup.

“Oh! Here we come!”

“You really came?”

“Wow! It’s true. True.”

As soon as I entered, the staff started to chatter. They all looked at me and pretended to know me.

“Nice to meet you all.”

When I said hello, everyone gathered around me.

Suddenly, I took out my cell phone. When a few employees asked me to take a picture with them, I nodded absentmindedly.

“Okay. Just look here.”

Raise two fingers toward the camera. Straighten your index and middle fingers.

While taking pictures like that, I felt like I was in Jaeshirong’s shoes for a moment.

“So what kind of business do you guys do?”

I asked a question because I was curious about what kind of company it was.

The staff members were younger than I thought. Just looking at their faces, they all looked younger than me.

At first, I only did simple tuning. I didn’t know the exact details. Looking at the market, it seemed like some kind of buying and selling application.

“It’s a second-hand trading app.”

After listening to Siriu’s words, I take a moment to organize my thoughts. It’s a small startup with mostly young employees.

Because there is no way a company like this would enter the market as a latecomer.

maybe.

“I guess there is no second-hand trading app in the Thai market right now?”

“Yeah, that’s right. Thailand doesn’t have a second-hand trading app yet. They’re trading through SNS right now. The market isn’t that big either.”

I nodded to Siriu’s words. It’s literally an empty house. It’s not a completely new market. It’s a market that’s already been proven in other countries. The selection of items wasn’t bad.

“The second-hand market will definitely grow in the future. Especially in these times when the economy is not doing well, the growth will accelerate even more.”

Siriu speaks with emphasis on each word.

I took a quick look around.

The eyes of the employees sparkled. The small office was filled with big dreams.

But Siriu continued to tell more hopeful stories after that.

however.

‘Things in this world don’t always go as planned…’

Without realizing it, negative thoughts came to my mind first.

When I see those friends smiling brightly.

Suddenly, a story I heard before came to mind.

**

80 Market is one of the top three open markets in Korea.

We entered the Southeast Asian online shopping business early in 2014.

At that time, Southeast Asian markets such as Thailand and Indonesia had a culture that preferred individual SNS transactions over open markets.

Thai people trust products sold on social media more than those sold in open markets.

SNS has personal photos of the person, so it’s somewhat trustworthy.

The reason was that the open market seller was someone unknown.

So, 80 Market initially launched an aggressive marketing campaign with the intention of dominating the market. They mobilized a large number of Hallyu stars and aired TV commercials.

After that, as expected by 80 Market, consumers moved from SNS to open markets.

However, the expanded market was shared between the latecomers, Singapore’s Showpan and China’s Lajietta.

And 80 Market withdrew from all Southeast Asian countries in 2019.

This is a story my former coworker told us when I asked him why I failed.

“timing.”

The colleague answered.

80 Market started its aggressive marketing too early.

By 2019, when Southeast Asian consumers began moving to open markets, it was already too late.

80 Market was unable to survive due to its deficit and decided to withdraw from the market.

On the other hand, the latecomers suffered less losses because they started late, so they were able to endure somehow.

Even 80 Market, which had been holding onto the strings of major companies, could not endure that period and eventually closed down its overseas business.

But these guys seem to have obvious capital.

I’m a little worried that this might be too much of a wish list.

“How much investment did you receive? How many years do you think you can sustain a deficit in the future?”

I asked a potentially sensitive question cautiously.

“Not much yet. But that’s okay. This is a business with a future. I’m sure we’ll be able to get more investment.”

Siriu answers with a nonchalant smile, and gives a thumbs up again.

Did I hear wrong? My ears are still ringing. From what I heard, it seemed like he wouldn’t last even a few months, let alone a few years.

I bit my lip to control my expression. Well, my thoughts aren’t right either.

Also, engineers like me usually tend to have a negative view of new businesses.

I was worried that I might make a mistake in what I said. I was thinking about it for a moment.

“You don’t have any plans today?”

Siriu asked me, putting her arm around my shoulder.

“Oh, right. I’m just going straight to the dorm.”

“Then before we go to the lodging, let’s stop by the temple for a bit.”

“Temple? Why?”

“It’s the first day, so I should make a wish.”

Today is a good day. Let’s go and pray that our business will prosper and that your work will go well. While saying this, he put his arm around my shoulder and went out with me.

okay···

I think this is better.

The reason why 80 Market failed in the overseas market was because of bad luck.

The prayer meta might be the answer.

I nodded my head inwardly and left the building.

to be honest.

Even though I don’t understand it at all.

On the other hand, I’m a bit envious of that reckless courage.

Well, that’s what I felt.

**

“Sorry. My ears are still ringing. Where am I?”

“Wat Arun! It’s Wat Arun. Wat is the temple. Arun is the name of this place.”

Then he points to the ground with his finger.

It’s a Buddhist temple.

On one side of the wall sat a row of golden Buddha statues, surrounded by elephants.

There were also many small statues here and there. It was definitely an exotic sight.

Foreign tourists walk around wearing traditional Thai clothing.

A magnificent tower when seen from afar, huge when seen up close.

Tourists are taking pictures with the tower in the background.

It’s bigger than I thought. I think it’s worth the 4,000 won admission fee.

I followed after Siriu, secretly admiring her.

As you go further, the smell of incense becomes stronger.

“Hold the incense like this. Yes. That’s right.”

As instructed, hold several candles and incense sticks in both hands and put your hands together.

Then he bowed and made a wish in a small voice.

Me too.

“Please save them.”

I prayed sincerely in Korean.

Not me, but them. It really seems like there’s no solution.

like that.

I hope my prayers reach heaven.

He mumbled the same sentence over and over again.

**

After finishing all the schedules, I went back to my accommodation and unpacked my bags late.

Even if you call it luggage, it’s just a backpack.

dump.

I just take out my toiletries from my bag and throw them back on the floor.

“iced coffee!”

I still couldn’t hear very well. This is taking longer than I thought.

I hold my breath and then breathe in again. Ah. Ah. I make a sound to the air by myself.

But the sound continued as if it was blocked by a wall.

My pride is hurt. I’ve lived in the mountains for half my life.

My mother lived in Dal-dongnae her whole life. I thought that half of her blood flowed from the Gosan tribe.

I can’t believe my body is this weak. I start brushing my teeth with doubts about my body.

I looked into the mirror with foam at the mouth.

I was smiling with my teeth showing.

There was a smile on her lips along with toothpaste.

**

The next morning.

Even though the day had changed, my ears were still ringing.

‘I wonder if it’ll be like this until I go to Korea.’

I picked up the phone, touching my ear with my finger.

-Are you very busy?

The message I sent.

There is no reply from Siriu.

It’s already half past ten.

I would have gotten up and gone to work.

“Is everyone busy?”

If you’re busy with work, you should take a trip alone today.

I went out and caught a taxi.

I should just show my face for a moment and then go right away. With that in mind, I stopped by the Mint Market office.

The moment I open the office door.

The air feels different than yesterday. The air pressure has definitely changed.

“Bujay! Bujay!”

A busy office. Everyone seemed completely out of their minds.

Siriu is holding the phone without even knowing I came in.

I don’t know what you’re saying because I don’t speak Thai.

I thought I had a rough idea of ​​what the situation was.

“Something went wrong.”

There’s a strong smell of gunpowder. No, it could be incense.

Anyway, Thai, which is so incomprehensible, can be heard everywhere.

Only then did my numb ears open up.

It’s only now that it feels a little bit real.