Real Man - Chapter 451:

The two people who had been following him for a few days had disappeared, but he didn’t have time to feel empty.

As soon as he got in the car, Yoo-hyun received a call from Brian Chesky.

His voice was very excited, perhaps because of the unexpected success.

-The Airbnb app response is unbelievable. The app transactions surpassed the web transactions overnight. Do you know how amazing that is…

Yoo-hyun smiled and replied as he listened to his long speech.

“It’s because you made the app so well. Give some praise to Nathan.”

-Don’t worry. I just gave him a pat on the shoulder.

“Good. Take care of him well. It will be busier when the iPhone 4 comes out. And don’t overwork yourself.”

-Okay. I’ll take advantage of the opportunity you created and expand the market.

“That’s great. I’m looking forward to it.”

After the enthusiastic Brian Chesky, he also got calls from the remaining two members.

They had different reactions to the same phenomenon.

Joe Gebbia was more concerned about the host management issues than excited about the soaring response.

Nathan Blecharczyk was also the same.

He rather talked about the parts that needed to be added or improved in the interface.

Yoo-hyun thought to himself as he listened to the different voices of the three people.

‘It can’t go wrong.’

He was secretly worried that the future he changed would have a negative impact on Airbnb.

But seeing the reliable appearance of his colleagues, he felt like he could throw away that worry.

Yoo-hyun smiled as he imagined the soaring image of Airbnb.

That’s when it happened.

Ding-dong-ding-dong.

The ringtone sounded in his earphones, and an unknown American number appeared on the phone screen.

Yoo-hyun answered the phone without much thought.

“This is Steve Han.”

-This is Bill Graham.

Yoo-hyun was startled by the heavy voice and straightened his posture.

“It’s an honor to receive your call.”

-Oh, do you know me?

“Of course, you are a great supporter of Airbnb.”

As Yoo-hyun said, Bill Graham was an investor of Airbnb who ran the investment company Y Combinator.

But that was just his hobby in his old age, the more amazing thing was his past.

He was the godfather of the American consulting industry and a big shot in the investment world, and he was called the person who brought the boom of the American industry.

He had no direct connection, but he was someone Yoo-hyun wanted to meet at least once.

He spoke to Yoo-hyun in a friendly voice.

-Haha. Thank you for knowing me.

“You’re welcome. What can I do for you?”

Yoo-hyun politely asked his purpose, and Bill Graham revealed why he called.

-I heard from Brian. You convinced Steve Jobs this time, didn’t you?

“It’s thanks to the members who prepared well.”

-Hehe. It was very impressive. To be honest, it was completely out of my expectation.

“I was lucky too.”

Bill Graham laughed loudly at Yoo-hyun’s modesty.

There was a lot of affection in his voice.

Hehehe. When can I see your face?

“I’d love to meet you too. Can I contact you when I visit next time?”

-Sure. Call me on this number. I’ll answer your call anytime.

“Thank you.”

Yoo-hyun exchanged a few more words and hung up the phone.

He put down his phone and looked bewildered.

“What a surprise.”

It was a moment when an unexpected connection was made.

Soon, Yoo-hyun’s car arrived at his destination, Palo Alto.

Stanford University was located in this place, which was also the starting point of Silicon Valley.

Yoo-hyun recalled his memories of doing MBA here as he passed by the school.

It was a tough and hard life, but he learned a lot.

There were so many famous companies in the area that it was a great stimulus to experience them indirectly.

Among them, there was a company that gave Yoo-hyun a lot of insight.

Kikik.

It was Instagram, the company that was located at 1601 California Avenue in Palo Alto.

He still remembered the CEO of this company, which grew explosively in a short period of time.

He was a tall man who was almost 2 meters tall, and he was called a genius even in Silicon Valley.

He felt his greatness just by exchanging a few words.

Yoo-hyun recalled the meeting at that time and got out of the car.

Was it because Instagram hadn’t come out yet?

There was no large camera-shaped sign or flashy headquarters building on the site where Instagram was.

Instead, there was an old three-story building.

It was the building where Hyun Jin-geon Geon’s JK Communications was located.

‘Was it on the second floor?’

Yoo-hyun entered the building, looking forward to meeting Hyun Jin-geon Geon.

As soon as he stepped on the long corridor, a tall man passed by.

“Huh?”

Yoo-hyun’s head turned involuntarily at the familiar face.

He was wearing glasses and his hair was longer than before, but Yoo-hyun couldn’t miss his face.

He was Kevin Systrom, the CEO of Instagram.

He blinked for a moment, then followed him out of curiosity.

He walked a few steps and stopped, talking to someone inside the room marked as a lounge.

His voice was so excited that it could be heard even from a distance.

“Thank you. I really owe you one.”

He wasn’t just saying it, he was also bowing his waist.

It was an unusual sight of the genius CEO who made the company worth 100 billion dollars in eight years after going public.

That wasn’t the end of it.

“I’ll definitely pay you back for this.”

Kevin Systrom kept thanking the other person in front of the door.

Who was the other person that Kevin Systrom was so humble and grateful to?

Yoo-hyun approached a few more steps out of curiosity.

Then, a man’s voice came from across the door.

“That’s enough. What are you going to pay me for?”

“No, I would have been lost for a long time if you hadn’t pointed it out.”

“I know, so go ahead. Let me know if you need anything.”

Yoo-hyun doubted his ears at the familiar voice.

It was English, but it was definitely a voice that Yoo-hyun knew.

Could it be?

Yoo-hyun looked inside the door with disbelief.

As expected, Hyun Jin Gun was there.

He looked very relaxed with his hair neatly parted to the side.

Instead of feeling happy, a sarcastic smile came out first.

“Huh.”

Hyun Jin Gun, who noticed Yoo-hyun, raised his hand.

“Oh? Yoo-hyun. You’re here already?”

“How have you been?”

Yoo-hyun raised his hand too, and Hyun Jin Gun quickly apologized to Kevin Systrom.

“Of course. Just a moment. Kevin, let’s talk later.”

“Okay. Thank you so much.”

Kevin Systrom kept expressing his gratitude until he left.

Yoo-hyun asked Hyun Jin Gun as if he didn’t know.

“Who is he?”

“A friend who is trying to start a business.”

“Really? What does he do?”

“He’s developing a photo-based SNS called Instagram.”

It was exactly as Yoo-hyun remembered.

But how did they get connected?

Yoo-hyun glanced at Kevin Systrom’s back as he walked away.

“He seemed very grateful to you.”

“Ah, I helped him a little with programming. It’s nothing, but he’s making a big deal out of it.”

“Good friend.”

“He’s a business major, so his programming skills are not that great, but he’s passionate.”

The only person who could say that Kevin Systrom’s skills were not that great was Hyun Jin Gun.

Yoo-hyun suppressed the laughter that came out and shrugged his shoulders.

“I see. Hahaha.”

Hyun Jin Gun looked at Yoo-hyun strangely.

“What? Why are you like that?”

“I’m just so happy to see you. Nice to see you, buddy.”

Squeeze.

Yoo-hyun grabbed Hyun Jin Gun’s hand and smiled.

“Me too. You’ve worked hard to get here.”

His amazing friend hugged him with his other hand.

Yoo-hyun decided to have lunch with Hyun Jin Gun at a nearby restaurant.

After a simple meal, Yoo-hyun went up to the second floor office that he was curious about.

The office was empty because it was lunchtime, and the atmosphere reflected the culture of Silicon Valley, which was free and casual.

It was impressive that they decorated the 50-square-meter space like a cafe.

Yoo-hyun looked around the whole space and approached a large whiteboard in the corner.

On it, there were schedules and tasks lists densely written.

Yoo-hyun was dumbfounded as he looked at Hyun Jin Gun’s handwriting.

He could clearly picture how Hyun Jin Gun had worked just by looking at this.

Hyun Jin Gun handed him a coffee.

“Here, drink this.”

“Thanks. But are you doing all this by yourself?”

“The staff handles the contact with the companies.”

“That’s obvious. Hey, who does the chip design and verification by themselves?”

Yoo-hyun snapped at him, and Hyun Jin Gun pointed to the side.

“Let’s talk about that outside. The terrace here is nice.”

“Fine. Lead the way.”

Yoo-hyun sighed and followed him.

Hyun Jin Gun’s explanation continued on the outdoor terrace connected to the office.

“I thought about collaboration too. But it actually took more time.”

“What’s the problem?”

“It wasn’t easy to work with the engineers I hired…”

The employees who came to the nameless small company couldn’t match Hyun Jin Gun’s level.

It took time to teach them, and sometimes they quit.

Yoo-hyun nodded, understanding the problem.

“I see.”

“It’s not easy to deal with people.”

“No, that’s not your problem.”

“Then what?”

“The problem is that you can’t find employees who match your level right now.”

It was a problem that occurred because he had to teach them while he had a tight schedule.

If he had outstanding talents coming in, this problem would be solved.

Hyun Jin Gun shook his head at Yoo-hyun’s words.

“Those employees won’t come to our company.”

“Why?”

“Why would they come to a company with no name and no results? I have to make the results first.”

Yoo-hyun smiled inwardly at Hyun Jin Gun’s determination.

He always tried to solve everything by himself, whether in the past or now.

He looked proud and amazing, but he didn’t want to leave him alone to suffer now that they were partners.

Yoo-hyun suggested a different way with his heart.

“No, there’s another way.”

“What is it?”

“You can get investment from a famous place. Then people will flock to you.”

Hyun Jin Gun waved his hand at Yoo-hyun’s unexpected suggestion.

“Hey, that’s even more ridiculous. It’s already a miracle that we got support from Han Sung.”

“Wait and see. I’ll look into it.”

“Fine. Thanks for the words.”

Hyun Jin Gun seemed to ignore it, but Yoo-hyun was serious.

He wanted to make him fly as soon as possible.

Yoo-hyun changed the topic with determination.

“But are you really okay? Your body must be exhausted.”

“I’m fine. Jin Soo is helping me a lot with accounting and contracts, so it’s a relief.”

“Oh, is Jin Soo adjusting well?”

Yoo-hyun asked about the name that came up.

Hyun Jin Soo was Hyun Jin Gun’s younger brother, and he had a deep connection with Yoo-hyun.

“He’s trying hard by himself. He has pride, so he never asks for help.”

“He also tries to find the answers by himself when I video call him.”

“He’s a bit stubborn.”

“Like you.”

“More than me.”

Yoo-hyun chuckled at Hyun Jin Gun’s answer.

Yoo-hyun was reminded of Hyun Jin Soo’s face for a moment.

Buzz buzz.

He turned his head to the outside of the terrace at the noise.

In front of the building, there was an Asian man surrounded by three big foreigners.

It looked like they were arguing, and the Asian man’s face was familiar.

“Hey, isn’t that Jin Soo over there?”

“Yeah. He must have gone to Justin TV bastards today.”

Hyun Jin Gun answered calmly, following Yoo-hyun’s gaze.

It was not the attitude that he would expect from someone who cherished his brother.