Cheat day

Epilogue

[Achieving 100 Franchise Stores: How Did Night Snacks Grow?] [Night Snacks Maintains 1% Commission Fee] [Recognized as a Good Company for Three Consecutive Years] [Emerging Startup Item] [CEO Ju Ji-seung: “Isn’t this something we’re all doing to succeed together?”]

Night Snacks has achieved 100 franchise stores in just six years since its opening.

The company adopted a model where the fixed commission is set at 1% of store sales, with the headquarters not profiting from advertising and interior costs. Initially, there were many concerns, but eventually, people began to take notice.

In franchise businesses, various fees such as the initial franchise contract fee, royalty, advertising fees, and interior costs are typically required from branches. However, Night Snacks aimed to minimize these costs while focusing heavily on training for branch managers to improve product quality and service standards.

Branch managers also found the training to be valuable as they learned operational know-how and cooking skills, which justified the training fees they paid. As a result, Night Snacks built a solid reputation that it was impossible to fail when starting a franchise.

Currently, the company is generating an annual profit of 3.7 billion won from the 1% commission fee collected from each branch, training fees, raw material supply, and direct store operations.

“This is Ju Ji-seung speaking.”

During the celebration for achieving 100 franchise stores, Ju Ji-seung grabbed the microphone.

The lively atmosphere, filled with branch managers and their families, quickly quieted down.

“Achieving 100 franchise stores wouldn’t have been possible without all of you. I sincerely thank everyone for providing healthy and delicious side dishes, even when it’s tough and you earn a little less.”

The audience applauded.

“Let’s be smart about this.”

Ju Ji-seung said emphatically.

“Customers know when you use cheap ingredients and sell side dishes that have been made for a long time. We must not do something foolish that will cost us customers just to save a few bucks right now.”

The branch managers nodded in agreement.

“I also feel the same. If I increase commissions, charge advertising fees, and cut costs while leaving a large margin when I supply you with ingredients, would you still be with me today?”

It’s a difficult situation.

If everyone acted according to principles and common sense, we could all thrive, but there are always those who let greed get the better of them.

Ju Ji-seung and I remind ourselves every day of the driving forces behind our success so far, keeping ourselves in check.

“I promise. Night Snacks will continue to grow alongside all of you.”

The branch managers and their families cheered enthusiastically.

It was a natural response when the CEO promised in front of everyone that there would be no increase in commission fees in the future.

When it was my turn to speak, I went up to the podium.

“Hello, this is Ban Chan-yong.”

Thankfully, everyone was in a listening mood.

“Although I look this good now, I was extremely overweight back in the day.”

It was a joke, but nobody laughed.

I felt embarrassed.

“While working various jobs, I found I didn’t have the time or energy to prepare meals. So I ended up relying on delivery food, which you know is loaded with sugar.”

Several branch managers nodded in agreement.

“It’s no surprise I gained weight and lost my health. From that point on, I started thinking little by little about wanting home-cooked meals. It would be great to have a place that sells healthy and delicious side dishes.”

I looked around the room.

“I don’t see Night Snacks as just a simple side dish store. Night Snacks should be the home-cooked meals of the community. It should become like a parent to the young people living in the area.”

Memories of my twenties came flooding back.

“It should be a place where young people can stop by after a hard day’s work and buy food they can safely give to their children. It should be a place where older people can come without hesitation when they have trouble digesting food.”

The branch managers began to applaud.

“If we can achieve that, it’s not just about celebrating the 100th store; we could have celebrations for the 200th, 300th, or even 1,000th store.”

Seeing the pride in the branch managers’ faces, I continued, “Moreover, the existing branch managers can pass on their know-how to newcomers and earn extra income from teaching fees.”

“Ooh.”

“If the headquarters can’t manage everything, we’ll need to appoint regional managers for specific areas, and who better than the people here? Naturally, additional income will come from that.”

“Ooh?”

“What does this mean? The more stores we open, the more your income will grow!”

The atmosphere was getting charged with excitement.

“So actively recruit anyone who’s considering starting a business! I will grant a diamond rank to anyone who brings in three new people! This is what true economic creation is all about!”

Ju Ji-seung covered my mouth.

“The words spoken by Ban Chan-yong are unrelated jokes. Our Night Snacks does not engage in multi-level marketing.”

The presenter rushed in to manage the situation.

“Are you crazy? What if they actually believe that?”

“Sorry. I just can’t help it when I grab the microphone.”

“Help what? You know exactly what you’re saying!”

Seeing Ju Ji-seung, who usually looked serious, flustered and shouting made the branch managers and their families burst into laughter.

“I thought the atmosphere was too stiff, so I tried to lighten things up. It’s not multi-level marketing.”

Everyone was smiling broadly.

“As I mentioned earlier, Night Snacks has been my long-time dream. Now, you have all become part of that dream. I will do my best to ensure everyone here can fulfill their dreams through Night Snacks. Thank you.”

I bowed my head in gratitude as all the guests applauded.

***

Sunday.

I was in the kitchen sipping on tea with some aged kimchi when Ban Eun-seong approached.

“I’m going out to have some fun.”

“In the morning?”

Ban Eun-seong nodded.

“I’m going to read dinosaur books with Yuna and then have cup noodles before playing Pokémon.”

“That sounds fun.”

Since they’re the same age, Ban Eun-seong gets along well with Baek Yuna, the daughter of Baek Woo-jin and Lee Ji-hye. They’ve been meeting every weekend to hang out.

“No cup noodles, though.”

When Mom said no to cup noodles, Ban Eun-seong was shocked.

“But Dad said Sundays are for eating Jjapagetti.”

That was a somewhat logical rebuttal.

“But you promised that since you wanted to eat Jjapagetti on Wednesday, we wouldn’t eat it on Sunday, right?”

“…That’s true.”

“If you can’t have noodles, how about eating pork cutlet instead?”

At my suggestion, Ban Eun-seong beamed.

“Do you have any allowance?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Have fun!”

“I’m off now.”

Ban Eun-seong kissed my and Muk-ji’s cheeks and left through the front door.

“Lately, I’ve been liking outside food too much. What are you going to do about this?”

Muk-ji scolded me.

“At Eun-seong’s age, it’s okay to eat what they want.”

“What if they end up with diabetes? That would be a big deal.”

“Then we’ll just help them out. I’m sure they’ll overcome it just fine. After all, they’re smart, just like you.”

“I’m worried because they inherited your sweet tooth.”

“Hehe, I’m worried about your way of speaking.”

“It’s polite, and that’s good.”

“I think I was a talking monkey when I was seven.”

Muk-ji chuckled softly.

“Since Eun-seong is out, how about we do something together after a long time?”

“We don’t have to overdo it. Aren’t we flying out in the evening?”

“We still have plenty of time.”

After some hesitation, Muk-ji nodded, pretending to be reluctant.

She seemed eager to play the newly released board game, and before long, she had set everything up in the blink of an eye.

***

September 20, 2032.

I was in Berlin, Germany, for the filming of Season 6, Episode 3 of Cheating Day.

As usual, the production crew dumped me in the middle of the city, urging me to find some great restaurants.

It’s not enough that they want me to search for hidden gems around the world; they also expect the cast to handle store searches themselves. They sure have a comfortable way of working.

“What are you going to eat?”

PD Park Sang-cheol asked.

“Ha. You always ask such difficult questions so easily. What am I supposed to eat?”

“You have to think about that.”

Having gone through six seasons, I still found it just as perplexing each time.

Since I had to search on foot without any help, directly interacting with the locals or looking for advertisements, I started wandering aimlessly.

“Germany. When you think of Germany, you think of sausages. Since I’m here, I have to eat sausages, but this stupid program forces me not to do the obvious.”

PD Park Sang-cheol chuckled.

“Remember when Woo-jin brought back that thing called Baumkuchen? It was delicious.”

“Oh.”

“They pour batter into a rotating wooden cylinder, cook it, then pour more batter and cook it again to create layers for the cake.”

“Where’s a good place to get it?”

“I wouldn’t know.”

“If you don’t know, then what am I supposed to do?”

“Normally, the production team would find out beforehand, right?”

His audacity was the same now as it was back when he was part of Baekban.

“I thought about it, and since I’m also in the content-making position…”

“Yeah?”

“Your work is too successful compared to what you do.”

“Ha ha ha!”

“It wouldn’t hurt to be a little less successful, you know.”

“You shouldn’t say that.”

“Hehe.”

Sugar Man Entertainment had been producing video content every year for eight years since successfully launching its first variety show, Sugar Man Project, including shows like Confident Guys, Extreme Humans, Calorie Games, and Dessert Buffet.

Extreme Humans, planned by Cha Ji-chan and Ahn Sang-kyu, featured individuals with exceptional physical abilities overcoming extreme situations.

It topped Netflix for two consecutive weeks, solidifying Sugar Man Entertainment’s success.

The following year, Calorie Games, a four-part documentary that I planned with Baek Woo-jin and Song No-eul, delved deep into calories and obesity, earning positive reviews.

After building that foundation, the Dessert Buffet, created by recruiting world-famous chefs, featured various desserts from different countries, judged by a panel of citizens, and it became a global hit.

Two years ago, this was pivotal in Sugar Man Entertainment’s IPO.

As a result, Ju Ji-seung, Cha Ji-chan, Baek Woo-jin, and I attained true financial freedom.

“But how do you spell Baumkuchen?”

“I’m not sure.”

“Can I just walk into any bakery and find it?”

To find a place that sells Baumkuchen, I at least needed to know how to spell it in German, but I had no clue.

I’m not clever enough to remember the German words from the cake packaging I had a few months ago.

“Look, there’s a big one. Shall we check it out?”

As I walked, I spotted a rather large shop.

Seeing the bustling interior filled with people, it looked like a popular place.

“Is this it?”

There was a cake with a hollow center in a paper box.

I picked one up, purchased it, and settled down in a nearby park.

“Now you can buy things well even without an interpreter?”

“There’s some experience now.”

After six years of traveling around the world, I had picked up a bit of English through trial and error.

Out of fear of starvation rather than embarrassment, I had gotten used to speaking as best as I could.

In fact, in a place like Germany, where English is commonly spoken, people generally understand you even if you can’t form sentences properly.

I had no fork or knife, so I tore into it with my hands.

“Hmm.”

“How is it?”

“It’s a bit different from the one I had before. It’s drier than I expected. It’s similar to pound cake, but not quite as much. The glaze is a stroke of genius. It’s delicious, right?”

“I found out it’s one of the most famous places in Berlin.”

PD Park Sang-cheol said while looking at his smartphone.

“The building is huge.”

Not all great eateries are large, but if a place is big and has been around for a long time, it’s likely to be well-regarded in the community.

After finishing the Baumkuchen, I found myself with nothing to do again.

Usually, I would use this time to chat about various things, but today, PD Park Sang-cheol initiated the conversation.

“I picked out some questions sent in by the viewers; listen to this.”

“Okay.”

“First, why don’t you go to South America?”

“Good question. Why haven’t we gone to South America?”

“Because it’s far.”

“Ah, because it’s far. Right. It’s not an easy journey. Everyone, the Cheating Day production team is so ruthless that they’ve set the filming schedule to just one night and two days. Wherever we go. They’re trying to save production costs.”

“Next question.”

“The story’s not over yet!”

“Next question. Are there any plans for Sugar Man members to appear?”

“Hmm.”

The only show where all four of us gather is the mukbang we do on Saturdays at the Banya Sikgyeong studio.

Except for Cheating Day, where I appear alone, there are many programs where one or two members join in.

So it makes sense that viewers would be curious.

“It’s a bit difficult for all four of us to gather since we each have our own things going on. Plus, it’s a bit burdensome since it’s overseas filming. Ji-chan might be okay with it.”

“Isn’t Ji-chan busy?”

“He’s been bored to death lately.”

The successful man who is the CEO of a solid company worth 300 billion won, a YouTuber with 4.2 million subscribers, and owns a building each in Yeouido and Sadang, as well as four gyms, is currently going through severe depression.

He seems lonely.

“Let’s invite Ji-chan next time.”

“Sounds good. But his appearance fee…”

“Oh, he’ll probably come right away! He’s just holed up at home playing with Legos.”

“What about Woo-jin?”

“Speaking of Woo-jin, he should be in Germany right now.”

“Germany?”

“He has a lot going on. I heard he took on another project in the classical music sector.”

“Oh, a lot of people want to see Woo-jin and Baek Ban-dor discuss things.”

“Ugh.”

I’ve heard a lot about the Baek Ban-dor talks.

It ended in 2028 due to a depletion of material and ideas, but since then, I’ve received countless requests to bring it back.

“Do you know what the last video of Baek Ban-dor was?”

“What was it?”

“Cow Tongue vs. Cow Penis.”

“Ha ha ha! I remember now.”

“Just how out of ideas were we that we ended up debating cow tongues and penises? We can’t do that anymore. There’s nothing left to discuss.”

Thanks to that last video, Baek Woo-jin became known as the man who liked cow genitals, while I became the man who wanted to kiss cows.

That segment was both the biggest contributor to the side dish shop reaching 5 million subscribers and a massive source of trauma in the end.

“It’s a shame. There were so many fresh and interesting stories.”

“Woo-jin suffered a lot.”

In the Jin-soon vs. Jin-mae episode, he mentioned he hated spicy food, saying he didn’t like red food in the first place, leading to questions about whether he was referring to a specific political party.

In many ways, I put him through emotional turmoil.

“But hey, we could still do a special event one day.”

“That’s true.”

“Next question.”

“Is there more?”

“There are a lot. I’m going to keep asking until you find a restaurant.”

“I need to find one quickly, then.”

“Is Sweet Guy based on true events?”

Sweet Guy is a movie adapted from my essay How to Live Sweetly.

I had some hopes since the book sold a bit, but it barely made enough at the box office to recoup production costs.

I’m relieved that I wasn’t the one making it.

“It’s my story, so it’s based on my experiences. But I have something to share. I also act occasionally.”

“Right. You’ve done dramas too.”

“When they talked about making Sweet Guy, I thought, ‘Oh, so I’ll be acting as myself?’ since it was my story.”

“Were you looking forward to it?”

“…A little. When would I ever get to be the lead in a movie?”

“Ha ha ha!”

“But I didn’t say anything when Ko Il-kyu got the lead role, but then the director asked me what I thought about playing Baek Woo-jin. Like, what? Is this even possible?”

“Ha ha ha ha!”

“I can’t do it. I said I could take any other role, but I just can’t play that one. I have my pride. But Haim did a great job with it.”

“They’re totally alike, though.”

“As I walked along the park, I felt like I was slowly getting away from the city.”

“I think we took a wrong turn.”

No matter how I looked around, it didn’t seem like there would be any restaurants in the area.

I wondered if we should head back, but then Park Sang-cheol brought up the next question.

“Some people are asking for more personal broadcasts.”

“Oh, I want to. As my activities increase, I genuinely want to do it. I used to enjoy casually chatting with the viewers and broadcasting comfortably.”

Now I had two regular broadcasts a week.

Those who remembered the days when I used to broadcast every day often expressed their regrets, and I sometimes missed those times too.

“Not that I always have things to do. If things don’t go well, I might have to go collect on debts, so save up a lot.”

“Ha! Are you really going to air this?”

“Go ahead. I don’t have an image to maintain. I’m just a guy who wants to kiss cows.”

As we laughed and walked, a quaint wooden building came into view.

Deep in the forested park was a house with a chimney puffing out smoke, making it feel like we had stepped into a fairy tale.

“What is that?”

“I’m not sure.”

As we got closer, there was no sign, just a menu board in front of the door.

“Curry? Kare?”

“It’s a restaurant?”

“Wow. This really has a vibe. A wooden building in the middle of the forest with no sign? I can’t resist this.”

As I looked around and opened the door, a wave of curry scent hit me, accompanied by Beethoven’s piano sonata playing in the background.

“Hello.”

When I greeted in English, a familiar face turned to me.

“Huh?”

“How did you end up here?”

Baek Woo-jin blinked his round eyes in surprise.

“Oh, is it Cheating Day today?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow. You’ve really caught the perfect timing for a broadcast. Come in.”

“Where is this? Isn’t it a curry shop?”

As I followed his gesture, I saw a man stirring curry in the kitchen.

“Crazy.”

****

Afterword

Hello, this is Woo-jin.

Thank you for joining me.

In this piece, I tried incorporating music, and in another, I played around with font colors to create gradients. I enjoy attempting things that others don’t.

I also experimented a lot with comedy, daily life, actual restaurant photos, GIFs, and charitable acts.

That process was incredibly enjoyable.

The joy of adding stories to photos of my favorite restaurants and the excitement of seeing your reactions all made me happy throughout the writing period.

I was quite confident in Baek Ban-dor.

I worried about whether it would be possible to create one or two episodes’ worth of content just from the jokes, and whether what I wrote would actually be funny, but after pulling my hair out and writing, I ended up with episodes that I really liked.

Episodes:

022 – Mul Naengmyeon vs. Bibim Naengmyeon

024 – Candy vs. Chocolate

035 – Vanilla vs. Mint Chocolate Chip

046 – Flounder vs. Rockfish

059 – Octopus vs. Squid

073 – Tteokbokki vs. Stir-Fried Pork

095 – Bossam vs. Jokbal

126 – Berry vs. Pineapple

152 – Udon vs. Hot Bar

169 – Kookdas vs. Chocoheim

199 – Carrot vs. Cucumber

207 – Bulgogi vs. Dipping Sauce

227 – Rice Cake vs. Bread

Looking back on those 13 episodes, I realize how hard I worked.

My favorite was the Vanilla vs. Mint Chocolate Chip debate, and I’m curious which discussion resonated with you the most.

Returning to the topic of my works, while Baek Ban-dor was written to make people laugh, I wanted to write a story about good people succeeding in the Sadang Family series.

I really like themes of the future, dreams, seriousness, challenges, efforts, passion, courage, and love, but at some point, it feels like those words have lost their power.

People who try their best are often treated as fools, and those who help others are seen as stupid and labeled as cringe-worthy for genuinely caring.

I detest such cynical perspectives, but I also feel pity for the reality that has created them.

I know how terrifying it is to lose faith in the belief that loving and trying will lead to greater happiness.

So, I wanted to write about young people who hold onto hope even in desperate situations.

And I wanted to tell the story of those successful young people helping others in similar circumstances, growing through that experience.

Why do I write?

Ultimately, it was a reflection on why I live.

The reason I live is to enjoy a meal with my beloved family, to eat pecan pie at a café I discover while taking a walk with my fiancée, and to savor a piece of sizzling pork belly with a friend I haven’t seen in a long time.

Even when work is exhausting and the future seems unclear, I can gladly persevere if I can share laughter and delicious food with the people I cherish.

In fact, on October 29, despite having contracted COVID-19, I continued to publish without a single break, which must make me superhuman.

Moreover, my perfect ability to manage the amount of content meant I ended exactly at 250 episodes, just as I had announced.

I am surely both superhuman and a genius.

As long as there is love in my heart, there is nothing I cannot achieve.

And I know there are people who recognize that.

Your reading of this until the end is proof of that.

Thank you.

As I have always said, I sincerely appreciate everyone who has added meaning to my story.

I hope you have many days where you can share a warm meal with your loved ones, or that day arrives soon.

With that sentiment, I will conclude this work.

Thank you.