Become A Star

Chapter 88

“Nevertheless, didn’t it help to improve your image?”

“My image wasn’t exactly bad before, right?” After hearing Kang Goo-Ra use the word ‘improve,’ Woo-Jin laughed and made a rebuttal. Meanwhile, Berry Rose agreed with Woo-Jin and nodded enthusiastically.

“It’s underhanded to make use of the elderly to boost one’s image. I’m not that kind, but I wouldn’t stoop so low to do such a thing.” Woo-Jin dismissed the rumors that had been circulating about the encounter being scripted. Nobody knew how accurate the lie detector was, but at the very least, it didn’t get triggered. Kang Hee-Joo quietly listened to what Woo-Jin said and raised her hand.

“I was going to ask you in private later on, but after listening to this conversation, I want to ask it right now. If I’m not allowed to, please edit it out later.” Kang Hee-Joo asked Woo-Jin, while looking at the production director, seeking approval from him.

“It’s embarrassing to talk about it here but I’ve been making small donations to a foundation for youth victims of violence. The head of the foundation told me that a person named ‘Chae Woo-Jin’ is on the list of donors, so I wanted to ask if he’s the said donor. They said it’s been a little over three years…”

The people managing the foundation didn’t remember or pay attention to all the names that were stamped periodically on the donation bankbook. However, there was a particular name which they happened to remember, and they chanced upon the same name elsewhere. Thus, they couldn’t help but be curious. The management team wondered if their donor was the same person as the well-known actor. Since Kang Hee-Joo had been donating to their foundation for a long time and had done volunteer work with them, they decided to ask her to find out if Woo-Jin was indeed their donor.

If the person that donated to their cause a few years ago had become a celebrity, the foundation wanted to support them too. Most of the time, they didn’t know who their donors were. If they managed to find out, they would try their best to express their gratitude one way or another. Thus, Kang Hee-Joo wanted to quietly ask Woo-Jin about it in private, but after hearing the story about the Slipper Young Man, she wanted to ask him openly in front of everyone. In truth, Kang Hee-Joo brought it up because she thought it would be good to let everyone know about Woo-Jin’s good deed.

“Oh…”

Woo-Jin was caught off guard by the sudden question and didn’t know how to react. He was suddenly reminded of the reason why he had decided to donate to a youth foundation for victims of violence. Back then, his mind and body had been in a mess. Rather than wanting to help someone else, Woo-Jin had sought comfort from the fact that there were other people in this world who were struggling just like him. It had been a consolation to him that he was not the only one struggling in the world and that he was still better off than them.

“So they were right huh.” Kang Hee-Joo nodded with a satisfied look on her face after hearing Woo-Jin’s response. She couldn’t hide her joy from finding out that she had a comrade who shared the same intentions as her.

“I… I don’t know if there are other people who shared the same name as me, but I had only donated a very small amount. Back then, I saved the money I had earned from private tutoring bit by bit and donated them. I didn’t earn much back then; even now, I still don’t earn a lot. It’s not exactly worth mentioning…”

Woo-Jin’s first donation was an act of impulse. After donating some of his savings, he had completely forgotten about it. Woo-Jin had only remembered it after updating his bankbook at a later date. However, he felt bad for pretending that it never happened, especially after donating once for his own selfish reasons.

When Woo-Jin was having a hard time, he tried to find comfort anywhere he could. But when the difficult times were over, Woo-Jin brazenly went back to his daily life and casually forgot about it. Hence, Woo-Jin felt obligated to continue donating a certain amount of money to the foundation up until now. Just like how he escaped from hell, he felt that it wouldn’t be a waste if his donations could bring hope to someone else.