Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 572

A rest stop on the highway connecting Seoul and Gangwon-do.

SBC Sunday entertainment, [Working Man!] was filming.

“Do we have to cook now?!”

“Oppa. Take this.”

Park Young-jin shouted at the production staff while holding a large ladle, and Choi Soohee moved the ladle dripping with sauce back to the boiling sauce pot. Park Young-jin stirred the sauce vigorously and said.

“But do they really sell this for money?”

“Why? Don’t you think it’s delicious? I think it’s good.”

Jung-hoon, who had emptied three plates of the pork cutlet they were selling today, tilted his head and asked.

“The taste is fine since it’s the chef’s recipe, but… we’re the ones making it.”

“…That’s true.”

The members and the production staff nodded in unison.

“And I’m not sure if the food will be done properly when the customers come in.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll keep an eye on it with my eagle eyes.”

The chef who taught them the recipe for pork cutlet and spicy pork today, who was in charge of the five-star hotel kitchen, smiled reassuringly and said.

“They said there aren’t many people at the rest stop when we start selling because it’s an awkward time.”

“Then that’s a relief.”

At the words of PD Jeon Min-jae, the pork cutlet team and the spicy pork team sighed in relief and started preparing for the sale again.

Thus began [Working Man! – Rest Stop Restaurant Battle Edition].

“…But isn’t it too empty?”

The [Working Man!] members, who had tightened their aprons and waited with determination, were speechless at the sight of the empty rest stop. There was always a car passing by on the highway, so there should be someone who stopped by in the middle, but there was not a single car in the parking lot. It was completely barren.

“Isn’t there even someone who goes to the bathroom?”

“That’s right.”

Even after 20 minutes, there was no sign of a customer.

The production staff was also flustered by the situation that was completely different from what they expected. They came at an awkward time between lunch and dinner, fearing that they would cause trouble to the customers who would flock in at lunchtime and to the other restaurants that were selling. They didn’t expect this to happen.

“There were quite a few when we came last time, right?”

“Yes. There were more than we thought.”

There were plenty of customers when they came for the survey. Enough for the members to handle.

“The manager said this is the first time he’s seen such a lack of people here.”

At the words of the assistant director, PD Jeon Min-jae frowned for a moment and opened his mouth.

“Then for now… let’s announce on SNS that we’re filming here. Then people nearby will come.”

“Yes!”

It was a pity for the production staff who had hoped that the fact that [Working Man!] was filming would be spread by the customers who came by without knowing anything, by their mouths and SNS.

But it was better to promote it from the production side and have people come than to keep filming this empty rest stop.

“Make sure to write the opening hours and the last order time clearly.”

“Yes!”

“Tell the members too…”

“PD-nim!”

The PD Jeon Min-jae and the writers who were having a meeting turned their heads at the voice calling them. It was the camera director who was filming the entrance of the rest stop with a drone camera.

“Customers are coming! They seem to be a group. One tourist bus, one truck, one van!”

“Oh!”

It was good news.

PD Jeon Min-jae, who brightened up, made a quick decision.

“Let’s inform the members right away and start filming.”

“Uh, what about SNS?”

“Did you post it?”

“Yes.”

“Then that’s fine. This team alone will be enough for the reaction.”

“But a bus, a truck, and a van, that’s a weird combination.”

“That’s right.”

It would be a group trip if it was a tourist bus, a work in progress if it was a truck, and a family trip if it was a van. They couldn’t tell what kind of people they were with these three vehicles together.

“It’s better if it’s unusual. It’s good for broadcasting too.”

While the production staff was having a brief meeting, the [Working Man!] members who heard the news started preparing for the sale.

“A group of customers from the start!”

“Prepare the side dishes!”

As the rest stop became noisy, the drone camera in the sky showed the three different vehicles entering the rest stop and parking along the white line.

Hwang Ji-yoon, who was in the van, contacted Kim Se-yeon, who was in the bus.

“It’s awkward, but let’s eat here and go.”

“Okay!”

The door of the bus opened. The team members started to get off one by one. Some talked about the voice they heard earlier, and some stretched out. They naturally looked up at the sky.

“Huh?”

“What’s wrong?”

“There’s a drone up there.”

The team members’ heads turned to the sky in unison. There was a black machine flying in the sky, not a bird.

“Is that not a toy?”

“Uh, it looks like it has a camera attached.”

“Judging by the size and shape, it seems like a quadcopter…”

“Why are you analyzing that?”

The art students looked at the film students who were talking about what kind of drone it was with trembling eyes. They had already mentioned the detailed model name.

“What are they filming here?”

“Oh, is that why there’s no one here?”

“Wow. Then should we just go?”

If it was a movie or a drama filming, it would be a hindrance to be standing here. It would be a nightmare if they were outsiders (and a group) who intruded during the filming.

“We can’t help it. Let’s eat at the next rest stop.”

“Let’s do that, yeah.”

At the words of the fourth-year film team, they all started to get back on the bus.

Seo-jun and Hwang Ji-yoon, who were about to get off the van with their coats on, and the other team members also sat back in their seats after receiving the contact.

The fourth-year film team, who had a good heart and hoped that the people in the same industry would film well and safely, smiled contentedly and got on the bus.

“Huh? Huh?! Those customers are getting back on the bus?!”

Contrary to their good intentions, the startled production staff jumped up. What the hell was going on!

The members who were ready to greet the customers were also surprised and ran outside.

“What? They’re just leaving?!”

“Why! Why all of a sudden!”

“We don’t know either! They saw the drone and suddenly got back on the bus!”

“Hyung! Young-jin hyung! Hurry up and bring the customers!”

“Huh? Huh? Me?”

The most famous person here is you, oppa! Hurry up!"

“We won’t have any footage for today at this rate! Hurry!”

The members who didn’t know about the SNS promotion news desperately looked for Park Young-jin. As a national MC, he could easily bring in any customers of any age group like a pied piper.

The members’ enthusiasm made Park Young-jin rush out of the rest stop with an apron on. Park Young-jin’s camera man followed him, and PD Jeon Min-jae and the writers also followed him. They hoped that some customers would see the SNS and come, but this scene was not bad either.

“Customers! Customers!! Have a meal before you go!! Meal!!”

“The pork cutlet is delicious!! We also have spicy pork!!”

Jung-hoon, who had followed him out, shouted until his veins popped.

The van and the truck that had not unloaded anyone were moving to the exit, and the bus was also about to have the last person get back on.

At the familiar voice, the film student who was about to get on the bus turned around. The team members who were on the bus also wondered what was going on and stuck to the window.

“We’ll give you a lot of meat!!”

“And side dishes!!”

The two familiar people in white aprons waved their arms in the air and cried out in a pitiful voice. Cameras were also visible behind them.

“…Oh…”

It must have been an entertainment show filming, not a movie.

***

“The water is self-service!”

“Anyone want a drink?”

“Can we buy snacks outside?”

“If you can eat it!”

The rest stop restaurant, which was quiet as a mouse, was crowded with students.

“Twenty pork cutlets! Thirteen spicy porks!”

“Yeap!”

“Okay!”

The kitchen also became busy. The [Working Man!] members and the production staff smiled brightly at the lively rest stop.

“Yeah! This is the atmosphere I like!”

“Young-jin hyung! Sauce!”

“Noona! Is the setting done?”

“Yeah! We just need the spicy pork!”

Thanks to their hard preparation, the food came out quickly.

“Four pork cutlets! Here they are!”

“Spicy pork too!”

Maybe it was because they were a group, but they were well organized. There was no interruption in the flow, and the trays with food were quickly moved to the table. The trays that were transferred to the team members’ hands were captured by the production cameras.

“The last pork cutlet is coming out!”

After the last dish came out, the [Working Man!] members sighed. Their faces were red from the heat of the kitchen.

“Wow, this is no joke.”

“That’s right. It’s winter, but look at the sweat.”

“Do you want some water?”

It was hard because they had a group of customers from the start. They almost forgot that it was an entertainment show filming and focused only on cooking.

“I feel like we only cooked, is the footage okay? Or should we do some interviews?”

“Yeah. Hyung. Ask them that. Why they tried to leave earlier.”

At the words of one member, they all nodded their heads.

Park Young-jin took off his apron and went outside, and the other members also went outside to catch their breath. The cameras followed them.

“Hello. We made it ourselves, how does it taste?”

“Ah! Yes. Hello! The spicy pork is delicious!”

“I made the pork cutlet.”

“…Ah…”

The team member who was embarrassed by the familiar voice made the team members sitting next to him laugh.

The conversation went back and forth in a relaxed atmosphere. The [Working Man!] members also gathered around the team members.

“I’m a real fan!”

“Oh! Do you want an autograph…?!”

“Soohee noona!”

“Hahaha.”

They all laughed at the sullen member. The production staff smiled brightly at the students’ cheerfulness.

“You thought it was a movie filming?”

They also found out why the students tried to leave as soon as they arrived at the rest stop.

“Yes. There was a drone, but no people, so we thought that.”

“So we tried to get out of the way of the filming.”

“Right. Controlling people is the hardest thing when filming. But we didn’t know it was an entertainment show filming.”

“I see.”

They understood the reason and nodded their heads. Choi Soohee sparkled her eyes and asked.

“Why are you all going together? A group trip?”

“We are on our way back to Seoul after finishing the movie filming.”

Kim Se-yeon’s answer made them go wow! The members and the production staff exclaimed. The production staff’s eyes sparkled. A movie filming team. It was not easy to meet such a unique group by chance.

“That’s amazing, you’re all college students, right?”

“Then these people are professors!”

Jung-hoon’s words made Kim Sung-sik and Jung Eun-mi widen their eyes and laugh.

“They’re students, but we’re actors.”

“Ah! Sorry.”

“No, it’s okay.”

“We only appear in independent films, so hardly anyone recognizes us.”

Jung-hoon was embarrassed and didn’t know what to do. Should he edit this out? PD Jeon Min-jae scratched his chin.

“You came from Seoul to Gangwon-do for filming?”

“Yes. We needed snow.”

“Snow is definitely Gangwon-do.”

The members asked the team members what they were curious about, hearing that it was a movie filming. The production cameras filmed it, thinking that they could use the necessary parts later when editing.

“How long did you film?”

“We started in early November.”

“Wow. You’ve been there for almost a month. Wasn’t it hard?”

“It was hard, but it was also fun. It felt like an MT…”

“We couldn’t drink much because of the filming.”

“But we also played with the jindo dog raised by the village elder.”

“Kuuh. I miss Baekgu. Ah, do you want to see the picture?”

Park Young-jin suddenly blurted out something that came to his mind.

“But early November, that’s the day of the accident, right? The nine-car pileup accident.”

“Oh, right?”

The tunnel nine-car pileup accident in early November.

It was a miraculous accident that no one died, but it was still a big accident.

“You students must have been shocked too.”

It was an accident that had nothing to do with the students here, but they must have been surprised when they saw the news.

The [Working Man!] members and staff who were listening to the students’ stories doubted their ears.

“That’s right. You have no idea how shocked we were that day.”

“Even now, I feel my heart sink when I think about it.”

“You guys were really lucky. You could have been swept up in the accident.”

“We were totally surprised too.”

‘…?’

The [Working Man!] members and staff blinked their eyes. The conversation had a strange sense of realism.

“…What do you mean?”

“Oh, our advance team was near the scene of the accident at that time.”

“We were heading to that tunnel.”

‘…!’

A sound of someone gasping for breath was heard.

“When I think about how the three tourist buses that were passing by got caught up in the accident… It was a close call.”

The advance team and the art team members who were shaking their heads nodded in agreement. The PD Jeon Min-jae and the writers who were stunned came to their senses and looked up the details of the nine-car pileup.

“Gasp! It’s here. Three tourist buses…!”

The writer’s voice sounded like a scream. The [Working Man!] members were speechless as well.

“Fortunately, we had to stop for a while because of something that came up, so we were able to avoid the accident.”

“Wow…”

Choi Soohee, who was sighing in admiration, suddenly remembered something. She gasped, took out her phone, and tapped on it.

“By the way, advance team, did you ride a nine-seater van?”

“? Yes.”

“Did you have blankets and heat packs in the car?”

“Yes.”

“The place where you stopped for a while… Was it Goyeon?”

“Huh? How did you know?”

Choi Soohee, who looked more surprised than the team members, held out her phone with trembling hands.

“This post… Isn’t this about you guys?”

The team members who saw the phone screen widened their eyes.

[Title: Looking for the people who helped my wife and child in Goyeon.]