21. Riding the Wind
1962 was a year of record-breaking poor harvests.
It had always been a country short on rice, and with the poor harvest on top of that, it had become a time when citizens struggled to eat even one meal of white rice a week.
In contrast, flour was overflowing in the United States, the aid provider, so it was only natural that it was supplied in abundance to Korea, its allied nation. Of course, even that flour was not exactly overflowing by absolute standards.
The government's launch of a large-scale "Mixed-Grain and Flour Diet Promotion Campaign" as November began was an inevitable turn of events.
Moreover, though it was called a promotion campaign, it was actually semi-compulsory enforcement. It couldn't be helped that the government couldn't afford to focus solely on rice consumption, so one could hardly blame them entirely.
"Director Bak. I trust you heeded my advice?"
"Haha... Indeed. I suppose I should stop trying to judge the President with my own limited perspective."
"When will the two new lines of ramyeon equipment we ordered arrive?"
"They should arrive within this week."
Bak Minseok, answering my question, couldn't hide his excited expression.
"President. And take a look at the back page too. This is the real deal!"
Factory manager Gim Chunsam turned a page of the newspaper he had brought and handed it to me.
[Due to the unprecedented poor harvest this year, rice production has plummeted and rice prices have surged by 400%. Accordingly, the government has implemented a large-scale Mixed-Grain and Flour Diet Promotion Campaign. Flour is an excellent food that can replace rice, and the reason Westerners are taller and larger than Easterners is largely that they subsist on flour. Recently, Yeongdong Foods has released Yeongdong Ramyeon, which uses this flour as its main ingredient while being tailored to the taste of us Koreans......]
What was this?
Following the government's large-scale policy implementation, an article covering our Yeongdong Foods' ramyeon had taken up nearly an entire page.
Of course, it wasn't flour that made Westerners physically large, but for the Mixed-Grain Diet Promotion Campaign of this era, the government and the press had begun aggressively promoting the idea that flour was better than rice.
As a collateral benefit, our Yeongdong Foods' ramyeon had gained tremendous promotional effect.
Now, even I couldn't hide the smile tugging at my lips.
The farming disaster had been something I couldn't intervene in, and it was undeniably tragic. But thanks to having prepared in advance, it seemed Yeongdong Ramyeon would be able to give the people the strength to endure, and a joyful laugh escaped me before I knew it. The pleasure of a businessman was only natural as well.
Rather than lamenting over the inevitable, I should do what I could. Thinking this, I spoke to Bak Minseok and Gim Chunsam.
"I'll make sure the employees receive generous overtime pay, so let's run night shifts for the time being. To be precise, you must confirm that they are volunteering of their own accord."
At my words, Bak Minseok and Gim Chunsam rushed out of the office, as if competing to be first. They probably wanted to be the one to deliver this joyous news to the people.
I had been certain because I knew the future, but the employees had been unable to hide their anxiety for over a month.
*
"Whew, good thing I didn't move to the wig factory."
"That's right. I was so anxious, but now I can speak loudly at home."
"Aren't they hiring more people here?"
"Why do you ask?"
"You know Mija who went to the wig factory last time? She asked if there were any places hiring, saying it's too hard there, they make her work overtime constantly, and don't even pay properly."
"The young president will take care of things. I'll subtly ask the factory manager."
The workers in the factory brimmed with vigor in their voices. Their expressions, too, had regained their liveliness.
After watching the female employees chat, I shifted my steps toward the warehouse.
"Line up! Form a line!"
A line of people stretched before the warehouse where boxes of finished ramyeon were stacked.
Bak Minseok stood guarding the warehouse entrance, ledger in hand.
Merchants from Seoul and nearby areas had flocked to receive ramyeon even a little faster.
For over a month, products hadn't been selling properly, so not only Yeongdong Foods' warehouses but even the idle warehouses at the Yeongdong Agricultural Research Institute had been packed full.
"No post-payment!"
"Hey! President Gim over there! You already took some earlier!"
"Ah, come on! Director Bak, what's with you between us!"
Bak Minseok's voice brimmed with energy.
Even though just a short while ago, all his energy had been drained.
"President... Is it really okay for us to just keep producing?"
"These have expiration dates. What if they don't sell within a few months?"
Bak Minseok's deflated voice was still clear in my ears.
Watching him now shout amidst the crowd as he distributed ramyeon, and comparing it to how he had been then, a wave of satisfaction washed over me.
As expected, humans are creatures that live on hope.
Though things were far more arduous and difficult now than when sales were dead, they had become more vividly alive instead.
Mid-December, 1962.
I had accelerated the launch and popularization of ramyeon by nearly a year compared to my original life. Having prepared in advance, we avoided the initial trial and error that Samyeong Industries had gone through at the time, so ramyeon began appearing on people's tables as often as rice.
In Japan, too, Nissin Foods, which had first developed and sold instant ramen, had grown so rapidly that it succeeded on ramen sales alone in just one year.
If Japan, which had been relatively richer in food and easier to live in than us, had done so, then Yeongdong Foods' success in Korea was already a foregone conclusion. Using the special circumstances of the era as a springboard, its growth rate was even faster than Nissin Foods.
More than anything, what mattered was that we had properly ridden the wave of special demand. The fact that due to the unprecedented poor harvest, rice was extremely difficult to obtain and expensive.
People who had initially shown some resistance began seeking out ramyeon for its taste after trying it once or twice.
It was still a time when logistics and distribution were not properly established, so ramyeon hadn't spread to every corner of the provinces, but that was only a matter of time.
Above all, I was an expert on ramyeon taste having eaten countless varieties in the future, and Yeongdong Ramyeon was delicious even to my palate.
The years when I had eaten a packet because cooking was a hassle while living alone, another packet when I was hungry but out of money, and even younger, when my mother had cooked rice but I had fussed over side dishes and eaten a packet instead—those years were shining through at this moment.
Seeing the people doing their assigned work and the company operating even without me, I turned my steps toward the home I hadn't visited in over two months.
*
"Father, Mother, I've returned."
When I gave a deep bow to my parents in this life, their faces were filled with joy. Though I hadn't visited, they hadn't been without word of me, so they already knew of Yeongdong Foods' blockbuster success and beamed with pride.
"Suho. What about Gyeongsuk and Junho?"
When I came outside, Suho was waiting for me, eyes sparkling.
"They're both studying these days, so they're swamped."
"Studying?"
Surprised by the unexpected answer, I looked at Suho.
"Yeah. Gyeongsuk took an interest in studying. At first I tutored her, but now Junho does."
"Where are they studying?"
"You know that real estate owner? The village chief. They say he was a teacher during the Japanese colonial period. But he said he couldn't teach in Japanese, so he quit. These days the two of them go there every day to study."
A mother who was studying...
It had been Mother's lifelong regret...
I wanted so badly to see that sight, but I held myself back. Knowing she was doing well was enough. This felt different from when I was her son and hadn't visited Mother. Now, my desire to avoid disturbing my younger sister while she focused on her studies was stronger. And besides, I would have to leave again soon anyway.
Just as my younger sister—my mother—had taken a step toward her own dream, I too would take another step toward mine.
I had to prepare to move on to a second business with the money earned from the ramyeon venture.
"Hyungnim. But is that car really yours?"
"Yeah."
Suho asked subtly, pointing to the car I had driven.
"Really?!"
"Yeah. I didn't plan to buy a car, but it was just too inconvenient to get around otherwise."
I had tried to put off buying a car, but transportation was so inconvenient that I purchased one on Bak Minseok's recommendation.
Sibal Automobile.
It was a jeep-style vehicle and by no means comfortable. In terms of comfort, the sedan from Saenara Automobile—which had directly imported the Nissan Bluebird—was far superior.
In my previous life, I had worked at an automobile company, and it had been a humble dream I had vaguely harbored then. Strangely, not a single Sibal Automobile car had remained by the time I was alive.
Having only been able to see photos and replica models, I had wanted all the more to ride in an actual Sibal.
I had finished greeting my parents and was about to leave when someone shouted from afar.
"Huh? What's that car?"
It was Junho's voice.
"It's big brother."
"Oppa!"
I had been planning to leave just like that, but it seemed the timing overlapped.
A few months made a clear difference in a child.
My sister running from afar seemed to have grown by a finger's length.
How did I know?
It was the opposite.
How could I not know?
"Oppa!"
She flew to me like the wind, beaming brightly, and leaped into my arms.
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