Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 86

[KBC’s The Royal Physician Production Press Conference Interview!]

[The Royal Physician, first broadcast on Wednesday at 10 p.m.!]

-Only one day left!

-Only 10 hours left, but time is not passing. It feels longer than two months.

-Off work! Only 3 hours left!

-I still have an hour left, but I turned on KBCㅋ I haven’t watched the 9 o’clock news in a long time.

***

The actors and staff gathered at the barbecue restaurant they had reserved while waiting for the first broadcast of The Royal Physician.

The appointed time was 9 o’clock, but they had already taken their seats and the grill was full of meat.

“It was a good idea to book from 8 o’clock. Why did you come so early?”

“Well, we knew that Writer So would book early. We only see each other once or twice a day, right?”

The camera director said, and Writer So Eun-jin laughed and looked around the noisy restaurant.

Everyone had a bright smile on their face and a drink in their hand.

“This is the first drama that I don’t have to worry about the ratings.”

“They said the ads were sold out, too?”

“Yes. They sold out so much, so eat as much as you want!”

They still had a lot of filming left, but they had two days off, so they all drank and ate heartily.

PD Choi Min-Sung was at the broadcasting station to see if the first episode of The Royal Physician was broadcast properly.

Writer So said to eat comfortably, so everyone was really eating comfortably.

“They said the ads were so competitive that they bought other time slots, too. From what I heard, they were all huge companies, and the rerun ads would be no joke, either.”

“Of course, Lee Seo-jun! His first drama after a year of hiatus is our drama, so we can’t miss it! By the way, did Seo-jun come today?”

“I don’t know. He’s still in elementary school, right? Isn’t it his bedtime now?”

“Is it?”

The staff looked disappointed, and the door of the restaurant opened. Writer So Eun-jin, who turned to see who had come, shouted.

“Seo-jun is here! I didn’t think he would come!”

“Hello! Writer-nim! I got permission from my mom and dad!”

The staff who were busy grilling meat greeted Seo-jun. Seo-jun also had an excited expression on his face as he greeted the staff. It was his first time attending a dinner at such a late hour.

Just one day! He begged his parents to let him come in late for just one day, and Seo Eun-hye and Lee Min-jun smiled and agreed.

“Hello! Ji-seok hyung, Do-hoon hyung, Jong-ho uncle!”

The three people who were sitting at one table waved and welcomed Seo-jun, then got up from their seats. Seo-jun tilted his head as he headed for that seat.

“Seo-jun, let’s sit over there.”

“Huh? Okay.”

The three actors moved to a new table.

There were plates and side dishes already prepared on the table.

What? Seo-jun blinked his eyes and sat next to Lee Ji-seok. Lee Ji-seok picked up a pair of tongs and put a juicy piece of beef on the hot grill.

Sizzle-

He heard the sound of the meat cooking and wondered what the difference was between this table and the previous one. Seo-jun asked Lee Ji-seok, who was deep in thought.

“Hyung. Why are we sitting here?”

“Oh, that side is for the people who drink alcohol.”

Park Do-hoon said, and Seo-jun looked again and saw that the tables were divided in half, and the other side was full of bottles of alcohol.

The table where the three actors were sitting also had bottles of soju and beer.

This side only had bottles of soft drinks.

“People who have work tomorrow or don’t drink alcohol can eat here. If you don’t want to drink on that side, you can come here, too.”

Seo-jun was a child, so he moved to this side. He heard that Jong-ho uncle really liked alcohol, was he okay?

“I see. But hyungs and uncle don’t have to drink?”

“We came early and drank. It’s the first broadcast, so we have to watch it with Seo-jun with a clear mind. When Seo-jun goes home, we can drink then.”

“Ugh. Uncle, are you going to drink more?”

“Seo-jun, let’s eat meat. Jong-ho hyung grills it really well!”

Lee Ji-seok handed the tongs to Kim Jong-ho.

Kim Jong-ho flipped the meat without paying attention to Park Do-hoon, who was looking at him with a sour expression.

The cooked beef looked very delicious.

“Do you always have to make hyung do it?”

“Didn’t you say that Seo-jun loves beef? You said you would grill it for him until his stomach burst if you ever met him?”

“I know. I know!”

He said that, but Kim Jong-ho grilled the meat for Seo-jun with great care. He only ate a little for dinner to prepare for the dinner. He also had [Precedence] Slime’s Digestive Ability! Seo-jun picked up a piece of deliciously grilled meat with his chopsticks.

“They must have sold a lot of ads. Eating beef for a dinner.”

“They said that other broadcasting stations scheduled low-budget dramas because they promoted it in advance. It’s obvious that the viewers will flock to our drama. Look over there. They’ve been showing ads non-stop.”

Kim Jong-ho said, and Seo-jun, who had filled his stomach, looked at the television in the restaurant.

The restaurant they had carefully chosen seemed to have a large television that could be seen from most tables.

As Kim Jong-ho said, the ads went on for a long time.

“The internet is going crazy, too. Why are there so many ads?”

“It’s a historical drama, so they can’t do PPL, so they should at least watch the ads.”

“It feels like they’ve gathered all the top 10 companies in the ad rankings, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

The long and lavish feast of ads, but there was an end to it. The noisy restaurant quieted down as the OST of The Royal Physician played.

Boom-boom- The heavy sound of drums was heard, and Seo-jin hyung’s voice was heard.

“Good music!”

“Good screen!”

Lee Ji-seok’s face, Kim Jong-ho, and Lee Ji-hye’s face passed by. Park Do-hoon and other actors’ faces, too.

It was amazing to see familiar faces on television.

It was a different feeling from movies.

It was different from Reinvestigation, which he watched when he only knew Lee Ji-seok.

“Seo-jun’s face doesn’t appear in the opening, either.”

“They’ll put it in after he appears in the drama.”

“It’s going to be a riot again.”

There was nothing special about the first episode.

They had seen it all while filming, so they didn’t pay much attention and drank and ate.

Writer So Eun-jin was so nervous at the broadcasting station, and PD Choi Min-Sung worked hard to edit it, so they wanted them to watch it a little.

“Oh, well. I don’t know.”

“Haha. Writer So, please understand. We’re watching it well!”

Lee Ji-seok said with a laugh. The people who were drowsy ate moderately and looked at the television.

“Honestly, you can’t eat comfortably on the first broadcast because you’re worried about the ratings. Where else can you find such a comfortable first broadcast dinner?”

The art team staff said, and everyone nodded.

As the staff said, no one was worried about the ratings.

Even if it didn’t do well now, it was obvious that it would skyrocket from the place where Lee Seo-jun appeared.

“It’s all thanks to Seo-jun!”

“Right! Seo-jun, drink more soft drinks… You’re watching the drama.”

He wasn’t noisy, and Seo-jun’s eyes were fixed on the television. Everyone quieted down at his focused expression.

“Didn’t you watch the filming scenes before? You must have read the script, too…”

“It must feel different from that. Besides, seongnyeong Daegun doesn’t appear until the fourth episode, so Seo-jun didn’t see what he filmed. He only saw the large-scale shootings like the coronation ceremony and the funeral.”

“I see.”

Everyone nodded at Lee Ji-seok’s explanation.

Ahn Da Ho, who had to abstain from drinking because of driving, was sitting at the manager’s table and suddenly looked at Seo-jun, who had quieted down.

Oh dear. Everyone was keeping their mouths shut out of consideration for Seo-jun, who was engrossed in the drama. Ahn Da Ho took out his earphones and phone from his bag and headed towards Seo-jun.

“Seo-jun, listen to this.”

“Okay!”

He felt sorry already, but it worked out well. Seo-jun put on the earphones that Ahn Da Ho gave him with a bright face and looked at the big television screen in the store.

The sound and the screen were not in sync, but it was not too uncomfortable.

‘It’s better than the phone screen.’

Ahn Da Ho moved Seo-jun, who was wearing earphones, to another table so that he would not be disturbed.

Seo-jun sat right in the middle of the people who were drinking and those who were not. The staff, who could finally open their mouths a little more comfortably, smiled without realizing it.

“Ah, isn’t Seo-jun so cute?”

“Manager, can I take a picture of Seo-jun and post it on SNS?”

“Yes. It’s okay because I already posted that he’s participating in the dinner.”

At that, everyone took out their phones and took pictures of Seo-jun. The picture of Seo-jun, who was immersed in the drama like a cat looking at an aquarium, was uploaded on SNS.

[(A picture of Seo-jun engrossed in the drama during the dinner)]

#RoyalPhysicianEpisode1 #LeeSeoJun #RoyalPhysicianDinner

“Seo-jun must be watching The Royal Physician at the dinner place.”

“Really?”

Seo Eun-hye showed the phone picture to Lee Min-joon. Seo-jun’s side profile, looking at the television, was captured.

Even through the picture, one could tell how focused he was on watching the drama.

“His eyes are sparkling.”

“Right?”

It was not because of the reflection of the light.

Seo-jun always had a happy face when he was acting and when he was watching a work.

His black pupils sparkled like stars and his soft cheeks turned red. He smiled happily as if he had everything in the world.

“I feel like I did a really good job of supporting him when he makes that face.”

“I was a bit disappointed that I didn’t see that face for a year.”

“Yeah. Me too.”

Seo-jun was not particularly unhappy or sad during the year of rest, but he looked the happiest when he was acting.

“Ah, we should watch the drama too. So we can talk to Seo-jun tomorrow.”

“It must have passed a lot by now.”

The couple sat on the sofa and turned on the television.

The Royal Physician Episode 1 was the story of Heo Dae-gam’s son, heo Yu-seon.

Heo Yu-seon introduced his childhood with a cold and ruthless monologue.

Heo Yu-seon, who was kicked out of Heo Dae-gam’s house, learned medicine from the village physician. Heo Yu-seon filled his shortcomings with books and improved his skills, and made a living by receiving medical fees from people.

“Did the princess mama pass away?”

“Yes. That’s why all the physicians in The Royal Physician were kicked out!”

That conversation lit a fire in Heo Yu-seon’s heart. If he became a physician, he could get revenge on Heo Dae-gam and his wife, who killed his mother.

There were many ways. He could also reveal his dark past to the king when he became a physician and received the king’s trust, and get him punished.

“I could also poison the king’s medicine and pin the treason charge on Heo Dae-gam.”

Heo Yu-seon, who was willing to give up his life for revenge, had a cold gaze that reached the palace.

The screen stopped and the The Royal Physician OST played. Seo-jun, who was listening to Seo-jin’s voice, took off his earphones.

It was fun. It was fun to read the script, but it was more vivid and better to watch it on the screen.

‘Ah. When will I appear? I really want to see it!’

His heart was pounding for some reason. PD Choi said that Seongnyeong Daegun would appear in episode 5. They would air episodes 1 and 2 this week and episodes 3 and 4 next week, so there were still two weeks left. Ah, how can I wait! He felt like he knew how the fans felt.

Seo-jun smiled brightly and looked around the table where Lee Ji-seok was.

“Ji-seok hyung, your acting was awesome!”

“Seo-jun, shh!”

Huh? Seo-jun’s eyes widened.

He was so excited after watching The Royal Physician that he didn’t pay attention, but the store was quiet.

The people who were drinking and laughing happily, and the people who were filling their stomachs with expensive beef, were all looking at one place.

“Yes. Yes.”

It was So Eun-jin, the writer, who had been holding her phone since before The Royal Physician ended.

Seo-jun tilted his head and looked at So Eun-jin.

What? He couldn’t figure out why, and Seo-jun blinked his eyes.

“Yes?!”

Wow!

A voice came from somewhere. No matter how you look at it, that ‘Yes?!’ was a ‘Yes?!’ of joy and astonishment! Someone, with years of experience, raised a toast first.

“Writer So! So how much is it?!”

So Eun-jin, who was talking to PD Choi Min-sung at the broadcasting station, shouted. She was surprised even as she spoke. Her mouth was wide open.

“21%! 21%! The highest rating was 22.3%!”

“Woah!”

The adults, who jumped up and cheered, made Seo-jun realize why. It was because of the ratings!

“Our Seo-jun is the best!”

“Hahaha. 21% on the first episode, I never expected that!”

Surrounded by laughter and cheers, seo-jun also became happy, and smiled broadly and raised a cup of soda.

21%!

The amazing record made cheers erupt everywhere.

[Lee Seo-jun hits again! The Royal Physician Episode 1 ratings 21%!]

[21% from the first episode! Is it the power of actor Lee Seo-jun?]

[Is there a fusion historical drama craze? The Royal Physician ratings first!]

[The Royal Physician Episode 1, Lee Seo-jun did not appear!]

-Oh my! The first episode rating is 21%? How many people are watching it again?

-The Wednesday 10 p.m. drama ratings are about 34 combined, 21 lol

-If the first episode is like this, it will be no joke from the episode where Lee Seo-jun appears!

-But Lee Seo-jun doesn’t appear, so it might decrease from episode 2.

[The Royal Physician Episode 2, ratings rise! 22%!]

[He still didn’t appear this time!]

[Seongnyeong Daegun appears! A familiar face? Child actor, Park Do-hoon!]

-Ah! I don’t know when he’ll appear, so I keep watching!

-But it’s still fun. Trying to assassinate the king by entering The Royal Physician lol

=It’s an ‘attempt’ to assassinate. Heo Dae-gam was involved in a conspiracy and wants to get revenge, but if the king really dies, it’s a big deal.

=Why? There’s a crown prince, right? Can’t the crown prince handle the conspiracy?

=The crown prince is Yangnyeong now. If Yangnyeong becomes king, seongnyeong Daegun can’t be king. There’s no King Sejong. That’s not history distortion, it’s history destruction.

-It’s Park Do-hoon. I enjoyed that drama.

-Now I’m not worried about The Royal Physician ratings. Oh, no. There’s one thing. That thing.

=‘That thing’ lol You can’t say that, right?

=But it’s amazing that I can understand what you mean by ‘that thing’ lol