Cheat day

Takers, Matchers, Givers (2)

The fifth episode of “Han Cuisine Praise” aired.

I thought the pacing was faster than usual, but as expected, the last 10 minutes featured discussions between the production team and the contestants.

They emphasized Lee Chan-seok’s excessive remarks and actively showcased the participants’ protests in response.

Even though they hadn’t edited for about six months, I thought the editing skills of the production staff were quite different.

The camera capturing the dialogue didn’t move at all, making it appear like raw footage.

However, they actually tightened the gaps between words and sentences, making the original conversation seem more passionate.

I wondered if the reason they only showed Producer Choi Young-moon and Lee Chan-seok was a result of this editing strategy.

In any case, as per Producer Choi Young-moon’s intentions, Lee Chan-seok became a perfect villain.

Like a small dog barking loudly, the fearful Lee Chan-seok was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a sinister and crazed version of himself.

He transformed from a top student who ignored his classmates into a delinquent who engaged in all sorts of mischief.

As a result, the scene where viewers demanded his exit provided a sort of catharsis for the audience.

Following this, the feelings expressed by Producer Choi Young-moon through the Han Cuisine Praise bulletin board and his personal social media accounts also garnered significant support.

“I am Han Cuisine Praise PD Choi Young-moon.

Many have expressed concern and criticism regarding the content of the fifth episode aired today.

Our production team also feels a sense of responsibility to respect and protect the participants striving to achieve their dreams.

We feel a heavy heart for the participants who may have suffered during the judging process, as well as for Judge Ban Chan-yong.

I apologize for my personal inadequacies that prevented this incident from being avoided.

We will do our best to ensure that the remaining week goes smoothly from the participants’ perspective.

Thank you.”

***

└Why is Choi Young-moon apologizing? Shouldn’t there be someone else to apologize?

└Hang in there!

└The production team says they support the participants, but they take personal responsibility for this incident. It’s not easy to say that due to their careers.

└So they’ve become decent people.

└But why is the person at fault not saying a word of apology?

└Seriously, why is that?

└What does Lee Chan-seok mean by “real Korean cuisine”?

└Is anything expensive considered Korean cuisine?

└This is why people with a sense of superiority can’t be trusted.

└Great! I used to frown every time I judged, but now I can watch comfortably.

└LOL, I wondered if there was a real reason for him acting like that, but he just flipped out after getting into a fight with Ban Chan-yong?

└Is Ban Chan-yong really such a big deal that he controls a program funded by Otu-gi and produced by WTV? LOL

└I guess he is; a YouTuber with 1.3 million subscribers is no joke.

└It’s impressive that Ban Chan-yong didn’t show any signs after going through this.

***

└While one side is busy tearing down, Ban Chan-yong is supporting the participants, saying he hopes they do well, even inviting them to his show for promotion.

└Lee Chan-seok thinks he must win in “Paldo Jinmi,” but when Park Jung-ah, with a lower academic background, wins with her soybean paste stew, that’s when it all went wrong for him. LOL

└For real, if you look at his judging comments so far, they’ve all been about how the ingredients don’t fit the occasion, how ordinary they are, or how basic they are. LOL

└Even if Lee Chan-seok speaks rudely, isn’t the content accurate? Who wants to see ordinary food in a competition like that? Don’t you want to see dishes you wouldn’t normally come across?

└Who decides that? LOL Isn’t it a matter for the eaters?

└Exactly. So it wasn’t ordinary to him. Given the menu at the restaurant run by Bae Seung-ho and Lee Chan-seok, it’s not hard to understand.

└Isn’t it true that unless it’s an expensive meal costing 200,000 won per person, it’s not considered Korean cuisine?

└I’m not trying to shield Lee Chan-seok; from his perspective, the best Korean cuisine is the food he makes.

└I wonder? How many people in Korea have actually dined at Bae Seung-ho and Lee Chan-seok’s restaurant? Even if they make it lavishly, if few people eat it, can that still be called Korean cuisine?

└It is Korean cuisine. But calling it representative of Korean cuisine is a stretch.

└Korean cuisine is what ordinary people eat. Just because it’s been elevated doesn’t mean it’s the real Korean cuisine, and it doesn’t mean we can ignore other foods.

└What’s ridiculous is that Shim Dong-pal graduated from ICIF in 1999, while Lee Chan-seok graduated in 2007. LOL It’s absurd that he ignores someone who became a judge by casually competing and learning from Bae Seung-ho, treating him like a senior. LOL

└Hahaha, crazy!

└That little brat is so caught up in authority, thinking he can bully others.

└We can’t just let someone like that go unchecked.

└He’s already done for. LOL Just two weeks ago, Lee Chan-seok’s restaurant had a rating of 4.9 stars, but now it’s down to 2.7. LOL

└If it dropped that much in just one day, there probably weren’t many ratings to begin with. LOL

└Since the fourth round ended, it’s been continuously dropping for a week. Looking at its state, it seems like it will drop even more. LOL

└But only people who have eaten there can rate it, right? Like verifying with a receipt?

└People are apparently going there just to lower the ratings on purpose. LOL

└Justice has been served.

└You can’t even make reservations now? It’s closed.

└Looks like they caught on. Should’ve gone earlier; what a shame.

└Yeah, you can just go.

└LOL, Lee Chan-seok must be freaking out. He has no idea who among the customers might be there to bomb his ratings. LOL

└He deserves it. The apology he posted was all about shifting blame. LOL Ban Chan-yong seems to feel wronged, too, thinking there’s something between him and the production team.

└Still making excuses until the end. LOL

└But why isn’t Bae Seung-ho apologizing?

└Why should Bae Seung-ho?

└Why isn’t he saying anything when his protégé is causing this kind of trouble?

└That’s a bit…

└LOL, go check out the Bae Seung-ho restaurant website. Many people are demanding an apology, not just you.

└LOL, yeah, that’s right. LOL

“Hmm.”

While checking public opinion on my phone, I heard a noise and turned my head to see Mukunji waking up.

“Huh?”

I couldn’t quite understand what he said, but it was probably something like “What are you doing?”

“Sorry, I was just sleeping.”

When I turned off my phone, Mukunji rolled over and snuggled into my arms.

It had been a while since we started eating, but his body was still slender. The long time he had spent struggling with an eating disorder had weakened his stomach significantly.

Because of that, it was difficult to increase his food intake.

I was just glad he was able to find some appetite and didn’t feel repulsed by the act of eating.

I believe that gradually increasing healthy food will improve his condition further.

“……”

I’m hungry.

Since I had dinner at 7, it had been about seven hours of fasting, a time long enough to feel hunger.

I’ve come to realize why it’s important to sleep early and deeply.

Enduring the seemingly endless and arduous time until breakfast is incredibly tough.

“……”

I’m really hungry.

The thought of the watermelon-flavored Choco Pie I had bought earlier comes to mind.

Since I’ve been managing my diet steadily, having one shouldn’t be a problem, but I know all too well that it would only be the start of a slippery slope.

“……”

But I’m just too hungry.

I gently pulled my arm away from Mukunji, laid him down flat, and carefully got out of bed.

When I arrived in the kitchen, I hesitated again.

I pondered multiple times whether I really needed to eat the Choco Pie at this hour, then checked the fridge and cabinets to see if there was anything else.

There was one package of buckwheat noodles left.

It seemed to be the leftover from last summer. The expiration date isn’t far off, and with November approaching and the weather getting colder, I needed to eat it soon.

I filled a pot with water and turned on the induction cooker.

As I tossed in the noodles and dissolved the liquid soup and block in the boiling water, I rinsed the noodles in cold water and gave them a twirl.

Once I plated them, it looked quite decent.

Just as I was about to eat, I took out the last of the young radish kimchi from the fridge, and I heard the sound of water flushing from the bathroom in the main room.

I was startled and paused with my chopsticks.

Holding my breath, I waited for Mukunji to fall back asleep. Then she came out.

“What are you doing?”

She asked, barely able to open her eyes.

“……I’m going to eat buckwheat noodles.”

Mukunji blinked a few times and then sat down across from me.

I placed the chopsticks and a plate in front of her, but it seemed she had no intention of eating.

“Can’t sleep?”

“I feel a bit strange.”

Mukunji looked at me with sleepy eyes.

“It’s about Lee Chan-seok. I don’t know why I’m acting like this. It just doesn’t feel right.”

“Since he harmed many people, it’s only right that he receives the same in return.”

“That’s true. Now that everything’s come to light, it feels refreshing. But still, there’s this unsettling feeling.”

Mukunji served me some young radish kimchi.

After eating the buckwheat noodles and young radish kimchi, I asked,

“Clearly, what was wrong is now heading in the right direction. The viewers raised concerns, and the production team is eliminating the problem.”

“Then why do you feel this way?”

“Is it something related to the parties involved? I think that might be it.”

Only now did I realize what that unsettling feeling was that I couldn’t understand.

“In reality, Mukunji and I are the victims, while Lee Chan-seok is the perpetrator.”

“Correct.”

“But the apology Lee Chan-seok posted was directed at the public, and neither I nor the other contestants received a direct apology. However, since he’s been dismissed anyway, we kind of wrapped things up amongst ourselves. It feels like it’s a settled matter between us, but somehow it feels like it has gone beyond that?”

Mukunji served me more kimchi.

“It’s become something that’s not my concern anymore.”

Lee Chan-seok’s restaurant wasn’t just suffering from rating attacks.

Restaurants friendly with him were also under attack, and there were even posts on social media and community sites showcasing how they were receiving “real education.”

People acting as if everyone close to Lee Chan-seok must apologize for his wrongdoing resembled a fanatical group.

With thousands and tens of thousands engaging in this form of terrorism, those who knew Lee Chan-seok were forced to either unfollow him on Instagram or declare that they had no connection to him.

Even Bae Seung-ho, known as a godfather of Korean cuisine along with Ham Seok-ho, was seeing his restaurant’s ratings drop steadily.

Having run a business, even on a superficial level, I understand.

Ratings are directly linked to the restaurant’s revenue, which affects not just the owner but also the livelihood of those working there.

“Lee Chan-seok did wrong. I genuinely despise him to the point of never wanting to see him again, but does it have to go this far? The real victims were satisfied just by being dismissed from the program, yet it feels like unrelated people are taking it too far.”

Mukunji only listened to my words.

“If this is a result of the broadcast network or PD Choi Young-moon being conscious of the viewership ratings for ‘Han Cuisine Praise,’ then that’s genuinely frightening.”

“Chan-yong should just receive an apology, but the perpetrator has no intention of apologizing. Do some people think it’s necessary to torment Lee Chan-seok more than needed?”

“Yes. To be honest, I felt really grateful when viewers criticized Lee Chan-seok. I was quite excited because I couldn’t express it openly. But it feels like we’ve crossed a line.”

“For instance, with Bae Seung-ho’s restaurant?”

“Exactly. Well, I’ve never talked to him, so he might be just like Lee Chan-seok, but it’s unfortunate what’s happening.”

Mukunji nodded.

“Do I live a really complicated life?”

“If you mentioned it on the show, I wouldn’t be surprised if people reacted with frustration.”

It seems that’s how it appears.

As I stirred my buckwheat noodles with a bitter feeling, Mukunji spoke up.

“But from my perspective, it’s very reasonable.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I can’t express how lucky I feel to have met you, Chan-yong.”

I smiled brightly, and Mukunji opened her hands and folded them one by one.

“You’re funny, warm-hearted, sincere, kind, capable, fit, and you don’t smoke or drink. There’s no one like you.”

When I waver for a moment, Mukunji offers me such extravagant praise.

It simply warms my heart to hear her acknowledge me.

The fact that she sees me makes my heart swell with happiness.

“That’s true.”

“As you said, this matter has already left our hands. It may be distressing, but we still have things to do, right?”

That’s right.

Even if the participants of “Han Cuisine Praise” don’t win, we promised to support each of their lives.

Just two days from now, we plan to invite contestant number 6, Yuk Hye-rin, to the studio.

Next week, we have one or two participants scheduled every other day.

I’ll just do what I need to do.

My life is far too precious to let it be shaken by people like Kim Seo-jin and Lee Chan-seok.