Chapter 88: The Best Birthday Gift

"What, not accepted?!"

The Ministry of Commerce returned the retailers' complaint, simply stating "not accepted." This left the retailers feeling disheartened, but they were still unwilling to give up.

One of the retailers, who owned a large store in Lotte Department Store, personally made a second trip. However, he was told that the leaders were in a meeting. He waited at the Ministry of Commerce all morning, seeing many employees come and go, but no one paid him any attention or accepted his complaint. In the end, he had to return with his head hanging low.

Another retailer, who refused to believe it, also went to the Ministry of Commerce. He was told the same thing: the leaders were in a meeting and to come back another day. He insisted on waiting until the meeting was over. So, he spent the entire afternoon, drinking four cups of coffee and five cups of green tea, but still did not see a single leader. He did not dare to barge in and could only continue waiting. Suddenly, he felt a reaction in his lower body and rushed to the restroom in three steps.

At this moment, the retailer perked up his ears. A gust of wind carried a conversation to his ears.

"Hey, why aren't you accepting that retailer's complaint... He's come here twice today. The leaders are all in their offices, aren't they? How can they be in a meeting?!"

"Are you stupid... If it weren't for the leaders' instructions, would I dare say that?!"

"Oh, what's going on? Tell me!"

"Ah... What's there to say? A bunch of idle, profit-driven merchants who dug their own graves. If they hadn't collectively pulled LOEN's albums, would LOEN have been forced to such a point? Now that LOEN is selling albums online and doing well, they can't sit still and are filing complaints to have LOEN regulated."

"Ha... Are their brains rusted? Regulate LOEN? Are they crazy... LOEN can sell whatever they want, however they want. Who can stop them? They boycotted LOEN themselves, and now that LOEN is retaliating, they come to the Ministry of Commerce to complain. They're just being childish and petty!"

"Who says not... But who dares to accept or regulate LOEN? Don't those retailers know that LOEN has the backing of SK Telecom? These big companies care more about face than money. If we help the retailers regulate LOEN, we'll offend SK Telecom, and in the end, it won't be the retailers who suffer, but us!"

"SK Telecom won't be that petty, right? They won't come after us? They dare to cause trouble for the Ministry of Commerce?"

"How can you be so naive... Although SK Telecom isn't that petty, they control over 80% of South Korea's communication network, almost a monopoly. If they want to retaliate, they can just order their subordinates to give us special treatment, and our families too... Do we still want to make phone calls or use the internet...?"

"Then we can sue SK Telecom if they really do that!"

"Sue? Sue you a big head... Do you have any evidence?"

"My phone doesn't work, and the internet is down. Isn't that evidence?"

"Everyone else's internet works fine, and their phones are fine. Is it your phone or computer that's broken, or is SK Telecom secretly causing trouble? A normal person would think it's your problem, not SK Telecom's."

"What about these retailers?"

"What can we do? (A cold snort) Just ignore them. Since they want to use us as a pawn, we'll play them around... Let's see who can outlast who! For them to dare to confront SK Telecom head-on is like an egg hitting a stone or lighting a lantern in a toilet!"

"Heaven's curse can be survived, but self-inflicted curse is a death sentence..."

The retailer, who was using the restroom, felt a sudden pain in his testicles, zipped up, and quickly left the Ministry of Commerce. If even the Ministry of Commerce couldn't do anything to LOEN, what could they do?

Thus, the retailers' complaint against LOEN was quelled in less than a day. In that time, online orders had already exceeded 240,000. By 6 PM, group purchases reached 102,000, and regular orders grew to 138,000.

In just over two days, 240,000 albums were sold, an incredible number. Of course, fans in Seoul had only placed orders and would have to wait a day to receive the albums, while those in other regions would have to wait two to three days.

For a newcomer, 240,000 was an unattainable number, and it was still growing. Would it double by the fourth day? By the eighth day? The employees of LOEN were all speculating. Most importantly, Lee Yunjae hadn't even performed live yet. After seeing his live show, they believed it would cause another wave of sales. Although the entire LOEN company had been in chaos, with early starts and late finishes, working over 15 hours a day, it was all worth it. Everyone was suffering but happy.

Before they knew it, it was February 14th, Lee Yunjae's birthday, a day that was important to him beyond just being his birthday.

At 12:30 PM, at LOEN Company.

"Here, take a look at this!" Bae Song-in handed an envelope to Lee Yunjae. When he opened it, it was an invitation from SBS for a Valentine's Day concert special.

"They specifically asked for you... What do you think? Should you debut today, or on music shows like Music Center, Music Bank, or Inkigayo?"

Lee Yunjae agreed without hesitation. Today was a special day for him, and if he could debut on his birthday, it would be the best birthday gift he could receive.

"Alright, since you've decided, let's go now!" Bae Song-in didn't object.

"What?!" Lee Yunjae was taken aback.

"The concert starts at 6 PM. Don't you need to practice?" Bae Song-in rolled his eyes. "The limousine is downstairs. Have Yang Hao take you there and see if he has the makings of a good agent!"

"Alright, I'll go first!" Lee Yunjae bowed to Bae Song-in and left the office. Many people gave him the eye as he walked by. Due to Lee Yunjae, LOEN had been in chaos, and he had become a celebrity within the company, from the cleaning ladies to the top executives.

After getting into the limousine, agent Yang Hao was already waiting in the driver's seat, serving as both his agent and driver.

Lee Yunjae didn't head straight to Seoul Stadium but first went to a beauty salon for a haircut, makeup, and styling. At 2 PM, he officially set off for Seoul Stadium.

In the limousine, Lee Yunjae's usually calm heart was unusually stirred.

"Brother, who else is performing at today's concert?" Lee Yunjae asked Yang Hao, looking out the window.

"You're really asking if S.M. artists are there... Don't worry, most of your friends will be at the concert, like Girls' Generation, TVXQ, BoA, and even H.O.T...."

With each name Yang Hao mentioned, Lee Yunjae's heart beat faster. These familiar faces, whom he hadn't seen in four years, were still deeply tied to his heart. Those familiar faces, his former partners, had grown up, some becoming superstars, others on their way to stardom. He was closely following in their footsteps, step by step, catching up to their shadows.

"BoA, are you doing well in Japan? Suzy, did anyone bully you after I left? YoonA, are you still a sly foodie? Hyoyeon, practicing alone must be tiring! Yuri, are you still as clingy as before? Seohyun, I didn't expect you to join S.M. too. I'm sorry I couldn't see you. How have you been all these years? Sooyoung, you finally debuted and realized your dream... Yunho... Changmin... Yoochun... Junsu... Jaejoong... Leeteuk... Siwon... How is everyone doing?!"

The car was silent. Lee Yunjae quietly watched the scenery fly by outside the window, and in his mind, those young, familiar faces flashed one by one.

Half an hour later, Yang Hao drove the limousine to the parking lot of Seoul Stadium. There were already dozens of similar limousines, indicating the number of artists who would perform today.

"Yunjae, we're here... Let's get out!" Yang Hao called softly, and Lee Yunjae snapped out of his thoughts, nodding. After taking a deep breath, he resolutely opened the car door.