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Chapter 35




“Let’s have a drink with Soobum.” Jang Gwangchul said to Woosung.
A conversation with Hong Soobum. He couldn’t miss it, but…He looked at his friends who were expecting more answers from him.
“I need to go somewhere…How about you guys?”
Yoon Chanjong hesitated.
“Didn’t you say you were going to buy us lunch?” Park Jonghyun answered instead.
Woosung grinned. “I didn’t mean you.”
This did not discouraged Park Jonghyun. “Whatever. We’re all friends here. If you’re going to buy Chanjong lunch, then I should come along too.”
“Haha, you haven’t changed.”
“Obviously. So what about that lunch? Oh! You said Yeoreum can join too, right?”
Park Jonghyun looked at Cha Yeoreum, who nodded in agreement. Then suddenly, Yang Jungsuk offered.
“Haha, I think he must be busy. How about I buy you guys lunch instead?”
Woosung smiled and murmured. “This guy is making things awkward.”
“Hmm?”
Woosung answered. “I can’t today but call me anytime and we’ll meet up soon.”
Woosung then left with Jang Gwangchul. Yoon Chanjong and Cha Yeoreum looked at him wistfully while Yang Jungsuk glared at him.
‘Who the hell does he think he is?’
***
A warm spring day.
It was only 5PM, but Jang Gwanchul took them to a bar and ordered drinks. Hong Soobum, Woosung, and Jang Gwangchul drank together.
“Hahaha! Cheers!” Jang Gwangchul snickered. “So you guys have already met each other. It’s all meant to be. Oh, and Woosung, you could’ve told me you were going to speak today. I would’ve come to watch.”
“I figured you must be busy.”
“Not for you guys, so don’t ever hesitate to call me.”
Woosung bit into a piece of apple and asked. “And how many people have you charmed like this?”
“Hahaha! Don’t be jealous! It’s not me who charms, I’m the one who gets charmed.”
Woosung ate the rest of the apple and replied. “Whatever you say.”
“You don’t believe me? Come on, Soobum. Defend me.”
Hong Soobum wiped his fork and cup several times and answered. “He’s right. Most people ask to meet Jang Gwangchul.”
“See?”
“Fine, fine.”
“Now how should I address you? Team leader?” Woosung turned to Hong Soobum and asked with an aura of seriousness.
“That would be fine.”
Woosung continued. “I would like to learn about what you’re working on.”
Hong Soobum looked at Jang Gwangchul for an approval. When Jang Gwangchul nodded, he answered carefully.
“The keyword in this mobile era is ‘Connection.’”
As soon as he heard the word, Woosung remembered how Coconut worked. He murmured.
“Connecting people. You mean online chat.”
Hong Soobum paused. Jang Gwangchul looked at him knowingly. Hong Soobum continued.
“Current text messaging system isn’t great. It takes too long and limited UX (user experience) makes it feel like you’re getting a notice rather than conversing. I would like to change that.”
Woosung nodded. Everything the man said was true. His heart pounded. He wanted to be part of this project.
“Just like you said at your presentation, you want to make something like iPhone.”
“Not necessarily…I just want to create a smoother and faster service.”
“And if you want that, you’ll have to minimize the amount of necessary data.”
“Yes. I need to find something faster than HTTP or socket. A method specialized for mobile phones.”
Woosung had to refrain himself from spilling the beans. By 2018, there was such a technology. He was dying to tell him, but Woosung asked instead.
“So how far are you thinking to go? Just chat app?”
“I want to connect everything. Not just person to person, but to stores, products, and so on.”
“Hahaha. Soobum thinks big. I love it.” The now excited Jang Gwangchul added.
“iPhone hasn’t even been released in Korea yet. Many people are still unfamiliar with the concept of mobile phones. Don’t you think you are way too ahead?”
“It would be too late if I develop it after it becomes popular.”
He was right. Jang Gwangchul emptied his cup again and asked Hong Soobum.
“So the problem is that socket and HTTP are too heavy, too slow, and use up too much data.”
“That’s right.”
Jang Gwangchul turned to Woosung with excitement.
“What do you think? You think you can fix this problem?”
Woosung nodded, which made Hong Soobum flinch. Woosung’s eyes sparked as he added.
“But I would like to get a slice of this company.”
“Hahaha, you’re so fierce.”
Hong Soobum filled his cup and replied.
“If you can really fix this problem, then I will give you some shares. We’ll have to discuss on how much though.”
Woosung answered posthaste.
“MQTT. You can use the ultra light Pub/Sup format message protocol.”
Hong Soobum frowned. “MQTT? I’ve never heard of it.”
It was because MQTT was not available in the mainstream market yet.
“Really? Haha. Well I know of it, and you need it. Now, let’s talk about my shares.”
Jang Gwangchul laughed again, but Hong Soobum remained stiff.
***
MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport).
It was first suggested by IBM in 1999. Later, Facebook used it for its messaging app. The two advantages of MQTT were its minimal battery and data usage and mobile phones needed these advantages badly. It was a perfect solution.
However, in 2008, it wasn’t yet a popular technology, so it was not a surprise Hong Soobum didn’t know about it yet. Woosung explained the system to him, who understood the concept right away. Even Jang Gwangchul nodded as if he understood as well, which was a surprise to Woosung.
“Do you understand all of this?” Woosung asked Jang Gwangchul.
“Of course. I never invest in things I don’t understand.”
“Oh?”
“I may be a daytime trader, but after the market closes, I study. That’s why Soobum accepted my investment.”
Hong Soobum nodded. “You’re not quite there yet.”
“Well, I’m not the developer, so I think I know enough.”
Jang Gwangchul.
He surprised Woosung, and it was a pleasant surprise. Woosung felt like he could trust him a bit more now.
“So what do you think about my solution?”
“If you can achieve what you just described, it would be perfect for my project.”
Woosung knew the final decision was Jang Gwangchul’s.
He turned to him and asked. “So my share would be?”
Jang Gwangchul looked at Hong Soobum for his opinion.
“If what Woosung said is true, then it will be crucial for our project. If he is not successful, then we will have to continue to look elsewhere or release an imperfect product.”
“Did you hear him? He said crucial.”
Woosung quipped.
“Hahaha! Fine, 10%…no I will give you 15%, but you need to come up with perfection, not some shabby product.”
15% of Coconut stocks.
In 2018, Coconut was worth 10 billion dollars. 15% would be 1.5 billion dollars.
“Haha, of course. Now as a shareholder, could I give you a suggestion?”
Woosung raised his glass.
“Let’s name it Coconut. The chat app could be called Coconut Talk!”
Hong Soobum agreed. “That’s a great idea.”
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Jang Gwangchul had no objections either. Woosung felt excited to be the one naming this incredible product. However, Jang Gwangchul gave Woosung a stern warning.
“But everything depends if you can deliver, Woosung. Remember that.”
“Haha, of course. I understand.”
Woosung’s eyes glinted.
‘Wait for me, Choi Gichul.’