Chapter 152: Artillery Fire (7)
Translator: Dreamscribe
In the early afternoon.
After finishing the opening and meal filming at a spacious bunsik restaurant, the ‘Our Dining Table’ team had scattered. The filming team was divided into teams: An Jong-hak and Yeon Baek-kwang, Ha Gang-su and Hwalin, Kang Woojin and Hong Hye-yeon.
Since the mentor and filming locations were different.
Among these three teams, PD Yoon Byung-seon, the general director, joined the kitchen team. That is, the Kang Woojin and Hong Hye-yeon side. Given that the theme of ‘Our Dining Table’ was cooking, it made sense visually for the main, PD Yoon Byung-seon, to be involved.
Anyway.
“Alright, let’s get ourselves organized!!”
It was natural for Kang Woojin’s team to go to a filming studio, but it wasn’t just any place. It was a kitchen studio. Since it involved cooking, it was only logical. A sufficiently decorated spacious kitchen, dining tables set in front, various dishes, several kitchen tools, refrigerators, etc.
Except for the lighting and the feel of a filming set, it was exactly like a kitchen.
Into such a studio, the ‘Our Dining Table’ team began to settle. Since it was already rented, the filming setup was almost complete, and it was all done once the lights and compact cameras were placed.
Around this time.
“Woojin~ssi, Hye-yeon~ssi, we’re done!!”
The kitchen team of two, who had finished their makeup outside, entered the studio. Hong Hye-yeon, who tied her long hair, and Kang Woojin were handed transparent masks, and Woojin, slowly putting on his mask, quietly surveyed the kitchen studio.
‘Ah- so food-related shootings are done in places like this.’
Well, it was obvious, but it was a new world to him. However, he didn’t show his fascination. Microphones and then ‘Our Dining Table’ exclusive aprons were handed to both of them. The aprons were beige-toned with the ‘Our Dining Table’ logo on them. Soon, PD Yoon Byung-seon, who had settled around the dining table, began explaining with a smirk.
“I know both of you have cooked before- hmm, if we proceed too blandly, it might not feel like practice, right? So, let’s try running it like a real restaurant. We’ll be the customers and you take orders and cook. Hye-yeon~ssi, you’re good at making wine appetizers, right?”
At the thrown question, Hong Hye-yeon, who was tightly holding her apron, answered a bit awkwardly.
“No? It’s not that I’m good, but I can make it edible for people.”
“Hmm. That’s enough.”
“Enough?”
“You can learn, right? Then, let’s start with Hye-yeon~ssi’s cooking test. Woojin~ssi, you’ll take orders and assist in cooking.”
Woojin, who had been sneakily enchanted by the sight of Hong Hye-yeon wearing an apron, barely responded.
“Do I just take orders and assist in cooking?”
“Yes, let’s start right away?? Everyone, please take your seats!”
Dozens of staff members, including the writers, rustled to the provided dining tables. Soon, as the main cook, Hong Hye-yeon entered the kitchen, she was bewildered.
“Th-this suddenly??”
Hong Hye-yeon was clearly flustered. Her experience as a top actress was nowhere to be found. Of course, she was already being filmed, and Woojin admired her internally.
‘Shouldn’t it be illegal to be pretty in such a situation?’
Regardless, among the dozens of staff members who had taken their seats, PD Yoon Byung-seon suddenly raised his hand towards Woojin.
“Order here-”
Pretending to be a customer. To this, Kang Woojin approached him with an indifferent face.
“Yes, what would you like?”
“Please give us kimchi pancake.”
From the back of the kitchen, Hong Hye-yeon’s voice was immediately heard.
“Ki-kimchi pancake?? I’ve never made that!”
PD Yoon Byung-seon, acting as a customer, responded.
“You can take your time, you can even search and make it. Anything’s okay!”
Hong Hye-yeon quickly took out her phone. However, the orders from the customers weren’t just for kimchi pancakes.
“Us here! Please give us ramyeon, tteok-ramyeon!” (TL: Tteok-ramyeon = Ramyeon with rice cake)
“Is pasta possible? Aglio e Olio pasta!”
“I thought the concept was Korean cuisine?!”
“If not, then please give us bibimbap-”
Orders flooded in all at once. Hong Hye-yeon bit her lower lip slightly, confused, and Woojin, who had calmly taken the orders, handed the bill to the chef.
“Kimchi pancake, tteok-ramyeon, aglio e olio pasta. If pasta is not possible, then bibimbap.”
The chef, upon seeing the bill handed over, panicked.
“I, I don’t know. I’ve never made any of those.”
Kang Woojin calmly said.
“Take your time. It’s okay to be a bit late.”
“Huh?”
“It’s okay if we get a bit of complaints.”
“Woojin~ssi?”
Kang Woojin pointed to one of the dishes with his index finger as Hong Hye-yeon forced a smile.
“Tteok-ramyeon. It seems like you could start with the ramyeon.”
“Right. Ramyeon.”
“Try the rest after you’ve made the ramyeon.”
“Got it!”
Having made up her mind, Hong Hye-yeon rummaged around the kitchen and pulled out a pot that seemed suitable, but it was a bit too big. Woojin pointed it out in a low voice.
“It’s too big.”
“Ah, it is? Then.”
“Down there. Use the concave one.”
She quickly switched pots like an avatar. However, her movements were generally clumsy. Whether she was opening the ramyeon packet, filling the pot with water, or taking out rice cakes from the refrigerator. She was just a beginner through and through. This satisfied PD Yoon Byung-seon and the staff.
“It’s good, isn’t it?”
“Right? It has a good feel.”
Despite being full of mistakes, it was exactly the scene they loved.
“But Woojin~ssi, you’re really not helping at all? I mean, I did say that, but I didn’t expect you to just watch.”
“Maybe it’s because they’re both clumsy, he doesn’t want to make a bigger mess?”
“Well, it might just add insult to injury.”
About 15 minutes later?
-Thump!
With a solemn face, Hong Hye-yeon placed the finished ramyeon in front of Woojin.
“Tteok-ramyeon is complete.”
Woojin, who had been looking at her face indifferently, slowly shifted his gaze down to the ramyeon. Then, he didn’t say anything.
“……”
Well, he did silently judge it.
‘It looks like you could swim in it.’
Unaware of this, Hong Hye-yeon grumbled for no reason.
“What. Why?”
“No, I was just thinking about how to handle it.”
The tteok-ramyeon she made was literally brimming with broth, looking like it might overflow. The bowl was too small to contain all of Hong Hye-yeon’s ambitions. Nonetheless, the ramyeon somehow made it to PD Yoon Byung-seon. Soon, he and the writers began to move their chopsticks.
-Slurp!
The expressions were ambiguous, especially Yoon Byung-seon’s. He then extended a pair of wooden chopsticks to Woojin.
“Woojin~ssi, would you like to try?”
“Ah- yes.”
As Kang Woojin picked up the ramyeon, Hong Hye-yeon also moved next to him. Soon, with widened eyes, Hong Hye-yeon asked Woojin, who was slurping the ramyeon.
“How, how is it?”
Woojin, who swallowed the ramyeon without much reaction, answered briefly.
“It tastes like ramyeon.”
The staff tried to hold back their laughter. Conversely, Hong Hye-yeon furrowed her brow.
“…Since it’s ramyeon, of course, it tastes like ramyeon. I was asking if it’s good or not?”
“It’s somewhere in the middle in terms of ramyeon taste.”
“Ha, what’s that supposed to mean? Then this time, Woojin~ssi, you go into the kitchen. I’ll take the hall.”
As if waiting for it, PD Yoon Byung-seon allowed it.
“Player change!”
Woojin walked into the kitchen calmly but was honestly a bit nervous. It was his first time cooking in front of so many people.
‘Ugh, am I nervous? My stomach feels gassy.’
The writers chuckled softly at his demeanor.
“Look at Woojin~ssi, so solemn.”
“Is it just me, or does it seem like he’ll end up making another broth-filled ramyeon?”
“But Woojin~ssi seems somewhat cynical even when cooking, kind of cute in a way.”
“At least we’ll get to see Woojin~ssi flustered today.”
As soon as Kang Woojin entered the kitchen, Hong Hye-yeon took the order. The order was the same as what she had received.
“Kimchi pancake and tteok-ramyeon! Aglio e olio pasta, and if pasta isn’t possible, then bibimbap. Woojin~ssi, you’re starting with the ramyeon too, right?”
However, the first words from this kitchen’s chef were instructions.
“No. Hye-yeon~ssi, come in and take out the ingredients, please.”
“Uh- uh? Ingredients?”
“Yes. We’re going to make all the menu items at once. First, kimchi, green onions, sausages, Cheongyang chili peppers, red chili peppers……”
While speaking, Woojin quickly set up several pots. One for frying, one for ramyeon, one for pasta. Something about Kang Woojin’s gaze changed.
“And the pasta noodles too. They’re down there.”
“Ah… Yes. Here.”
“Slice the garlic thinly. Take your time.”
Soon, Hong Hye-yeon, without realizing it, kept glancing at Woojin while slicing the garlic.
‘What, what?? How does he know how to make it??’
From the preparation of ingredients, Kang Woojin’s expert aura was so palpable that even the VJs, PD Yoon Byung-seon, and the writers were murmuring among themselves.
“Woojin~ssi isn’t just boiling ramyeon, is he?”
“Noodles? Is he making pasta too??!”
“Whoa, Woojin~ssi has picked up a knife.”
That’s when it happened.
-Tak tak tak tak tak tak tak tak tak!
The sound of Woojin’s dazzling knife skills filled the entire studio.
“Wow?”
Everyone’s eyes widened.
A few dozen minutes later.
Before long, the entire studio was filled with the aroma of various foods. And then.
-Swish.
“Here’s the last tteok-ramyeon.”
The tteok-ramyeon, decorated with rice cakes and green onions, was placed in front of Hong Hye-yeon. Or more precisely.
‘He really made everything at once??!’
All the ordered foods were completed. From kimchi pancakes to pasta, bibimbap, and the current tteok-ramyeon. It hadn’t taken long at all. Although Hong Hye-yeon had helped a bit, it was almost as if Kang Woojin had done it all by himself. Yet, Woojin, washing his hands, was.
“……”
Utterly cold. In contrast, PD Yoon Byung-seon and the writers, having checked up to the tteok-ramyeon, blinked in surprise. Actually, all the dozens of staff in the studio did.
“The smell is so good?”
“Exactly. Why does it smell so good?”
“More than that, the way Woojin~ssi was cooking just now… it wasn’t like some amateur home cooking.”
“His knife skills… were so sexy, right? And the way he handled the ingredients was so smooth.”
“PD-nim. Why is Woojin~ssi so good at cooking?”
How would I know? PD Yoon Byung-seon was just as baffled. Around that time, Hong Hye-yeon, with a somewhat flushed face, came over with chopsticks and quickly approached.
“Ah, what’s everyone doing? It’ll get cold. Can I eat first?”
Woojin, indifferently drying his hands, forcibly calmed his wildly beating heart.
‘It’s going to be good, right? Yeah, it’ll taste good. Wow- shit. It’s kind of nerve-wracking that so many people are eating my food??’
At the same time, Hong Hye-yeon, holding her long hair back, put the pasta in her mouth. And then.
“!!!”
Lightning struck in her eyes.
“……Eh?”
“What, what??”
Startled, PD Yoon Byung-seon also quickly tore off a piece of kimchi pancake and put it in his mouth. The interesting part was.
“Wow!”
The reaction was the same. From there on.
“Ah, forget it. I’ll try the ramyeon first!”
“I’ll have the pasta!”
“Can I have a spoon? I’ll mix the bibimbap!”
The writers and all the staff rushed to the food, and the main writer, after slurping the pasta, covered her mouth with both hands and exclaimed.
“Ah! What is this?? It’s so delicious!!”
Like a contagion, exclamations of amazement poured from the mouths of other staff members. Watching silently, Woojin felt satisfied inside.
‘Nice.’
At that moment, the main writer whispered to PD Yoon Byung-seon by his side.
“PD-nim… we might not need a cooking master at this rate?”
“Right, right. Why is everything so delicious?”
Just then, a radio call came through.
“Chef Lee Yang-woo has arrived!!”
The signal that the master had arrived. Behind them, Chef Lee Yang-woo, with a protruding belly, appeared in the studio.
“Good day to you all- Oh my, it smells good here? Have you already started cooking?”
He was smiling brightly, and PD Yoon Byung-seon and the staff stood up to greet Chef Lee Yang-woo first. Soon, a brief time for greetings. Of course, this included Kang Woojin and Hong Hye-yeon as well.
Then.
“Wow- kimchi pancakes and pasta?? You’ve done a lot of cooking?”
The chubby Chef Lee Yang-woo, who was attaching his microphone, noticed the dishes laid out on the table. PD Yoon Byung-seon was slightly embarrassed, as were the other writers. Regardless, Chef Lee Yang-woo.
“Huh? But the presentation of the food… it doesn’t look like practice.”
He strides towards the table to inspect the dishes. Then, for some reason, he furrowed his brows slightly and said.
“Excuse me, PD-nim. This is.”
He grasped something, then suddenly picked up chopsticks and lifted the bowl containing the pasta. First, he smelled it. Then, his brow furrowed even more. However, instead of speaking, he put a spoonful of pasta into his mouth and chewed.
Just a few seconds later, he let out a scoff.
“Ha- PD-nim.”
He murmured, looking at PD Yoon Byung-seon and the writers.
“This wasn’t for practice but for demonstration, wasn’t it? Did you invite another chef besides me?”
“What?”
“No, we didn’t have such a conversation. Is there a competition among chefs to decide on a mentor or something? That would be problematic.”
At this moment.
“……”
“……”
“……”
The gazes of PD Yoon Byung-seon, Hong Hye-yeon, the writers, and others all turned towards Kang Woojin, who was wearing an apron. Among them, PD Yoon Byung-seon, scratching his head, murmured.
“This is awkward. Kang Woojin~ssi made that.”
Then, Chef Lee Yang-woo, who had been staring blankly, stammered as he looked at a poker-faced Woojin.
“Kang Woojin made this? Not another chef?”
It was as if he had admitted it himself.
***
The next day, around noon.
A Korean restaurant located in a forest in Gangwon-do. The restaurant had an overall traditional house vibe. What was unusual was that today, the area around this restaurant was bustling. Not just with filming equipment and many staff members running around.
But also with numerous onlookers.
Today, they were planning to film the ‘Our Dining Table’ one-day restaurant at this traditional house. Hence, the signboard was different for the day.
-<Our Dining Table (One-Day Restaurant)>
The interior of the Korean restaurant was spacious. It was divided into a main hall and a sub-hall. There were at least 10 tables in total, and small cameras and VJs were positioned all around the hall.
And.
“This place is beautiful.”
“Definitely Instagram-worthy.”
The hall was bustling with guests who had already been invited.
“Hwalin… her beauty is insane.”
“I almost screamed when she passed by earlier. She’s too pretty.”
“Yeon Baek-kwang has such a small face.”
“Look, there’s Ha Gang-su! Wow- actors are really different. I’m just amazed.”
Meanwhile, an energetic Yeon Baek-kwang entered the kitchen and came out with food. It was kimchi pancakes. The kimchi pancakes were served to a table with two women.
“Enjoy your meal!”
“……Thank you.”
The women, mesmerized by Yeon Baek-kwang’s appearance, barely managed to eat the kimchi pancakes. Soon, their eyes widened.
“Wow- it’s delicious.”
“Right? It’s crispy and perfectly seasoned. Absolutely delicious.”
“Who’s in the kitchen? Is there a separate chef cooking for us?”
Yeon Baek-kwang, placing soy sauce on their table, smirked and threw in his answer.
“Our main cook in the kitchen is Woojin hyung. No, Kang Woojin-nim!”
Meanwhile, in Da Nang, Vietnam.
The chaotic forest shooting site for ‘Island of the Missing’. However, now that the morning shoot was over, about a hundred staff and actors were resting in their respective tents.
Naturally.
-Flap.
Director Kwon Ki-taek, sipping coffee and checking the shooting script, was no exception. Suddenly, he turned his head and called over the assistant director.
“Is it tomorrow? When Woojin returns.”
The assistant director quickly responded to the calm inquiry.
“Yes, Director. He’s taking an early morning flight tomorrow and should arrive by noon.”
“Hmm.”
“The shooting is scheduled for early afternoon.”
“Leave out a few scenes. Let him rest and then shoot about one scene in the evening.”
“Understood.”
At that moment.
-♬♪
Director Kwon Ki-taek’s phone rang. He picked up the phone nonchalantly but paused for a moment.
‘Director Ahn again?’
The caller was Director Ahn Ga-bok, who had contacted him recently. Though slightly puzzled, Director Kwon Ki-taek stepped out of the tent and answered the phone respectfully.
“Yes, Director~nim.”
From the other side of the phone, Director Ahn Ga-bok’s elderly voice was heard immediately.
“Director Kwon, it’s still hot in Vietnam, isn’t it?”
****
