Chapter 91: Half a Person

pronounce their names correctly.After the meal, the two people who hadn't said much before had grown more familiar with each other. For Ji Jingyuan, Kong Shengyan was an independent individual now,...“Every time you cry like this, Ji-hyeon xi, are you really a female idol”

With questioning and interrogative words, he spoke relentlessly from his mouth. Although the other party still buried their head in their legs and couldn't be seen, he clearly saw that Bae Joo-hyun's left hand holding the wet towel tightened a little.

Pei Zhuhyun, obviously angry, reached out with her left hand, a wet towel clenched in it, trying to hit him. However, she missed her target and struck the air. As if unwilling to let go of her anger, she continued to punch the air forcefully several times before angrily retracting her hand.

Then, Pei Zhuhyun reached out and tightened the loose hoodie hat covering her head. She opened the wet wipe package, took out two wipes, turned her head to the right, facing away from Ji Kyeong-won, and hurriedly wiped her face lightly with them. After a few wipes, she felt that two weren't enough, so she continued to take out several more to wipe her face.

Every time she made a move, she was careful not to let her face be seen. She feared that if Jingyuan saw it, he would see the mixture of tears, snot, and chocolate crumbs on her face.

At this time, her legs remained still and together on the chair, but her upper body turned sideways like a puppet. This awkward movement made her look like a gymnast at that moment.

This moment, Pei Zhuxuan's aura had completely vanished compared to her earlier domineering posture of lifting her chin and challenging the other party with "Is it ugly". Her usual straightforwardness was replaced with something more artificial.

Perhaps she herself knew that Chi Jingyuan wasn't lying, it was indeed hard to look at.

Looking at Bae Joo-hyun with her back turned to him, and the obvious bulge of her hoodie hat being pushed out by her braids, he couldn't help but chuckle inwardly. Especially when he saw the other party carefully wipe for a while, then take out her phone from her pocket while facing away from him, taking two careful glances at the black screen before settling down with peace of mind.

He couldn't help but mutter a complaint in his heart.

Is it useful What were you doing just now

That means he didn't react just now, or else he would have definitely taken a picture of that crying face of Pei Zhuhyun and used it as his screensaver.

Then take a screenshot and show it to her.

After wiping her face clean, Bae Joohyun turned around. However, maybe because she felt a little cold, or perhaps just wanting to cover herself slightly, she didn't take off the hoodie hat. Instead, she actively pulled the drawstring of the hoodie collar longer and tighter. A fairly large head was tightly wrapped inside the slightly small hat, her cheeks surrounded by the brim, and the back of the hat bulged out into a big lump, looking rather comical.

But just now, the low pressure she had all over seemed to have vented out a lot in her crying, at least now she looks much more energetic. Her face without any makeup is either because she cried too hard, or because she rubbed it too hard that it looks red, and her nostrils and eyelashes are still trembling slightly, showing the ups and downs of her emotions.

He glanced at the scenery of the pool and then retracted his gaze. His posture relaxed a little as he looked at the distant lights. Bae Joo-hyun also stopped looking down, she shot him a glance and then lifted her head, following him to look into the distance.

Two people sat silently, gazing at Seoul's dazzling cityscape. The relentless evening breeze suddenly realized it could no longer dispel the rising temperature in this place.

Mingming and Gang were just as they were when they first arrived, no one spoke. However, the atmosphere had clearly changed drastically.

For a while, Bae Joohyun reached out as if she wanted to smooth her hair, but when she touched it, she realized her hair was already covered by the hat. She pretended nothing happened and withdrew her hand, glanced at Park Jungwon, then turned her gaze back, looking into the distance and taking the initiative to say: "The other day when my mom called me, she said that my family also saw some of the nasty comments about me online."

Her voice was a little hoarse, but it sounded very pleasant.

"I know they are all angry and sad, but they still cared about me on the phone... Although I'm really grateful to them, what I feel more is embarrassment. I really don't want my family to see these things... I don't know what to say, and I'm not very good at expressing my emotions."

He nodded lightly, but Chi Jingyuan remained silent.

After a while, she turned to look at Ji Jingyuan and asked: "Was XO attacked very badly when he first debuted Have your family seen those comments"

"I've definitely seen them, after all, they are family, they all care about me."

When XO debuted, Park Ji-won was the member in the best situation and the most popular one. However, under the bad online environment, it's impossible to stay out of harm’s way. Although he might not be criticized as much as others, there were still quite a few people who attacked him.

There aren't many people who attack someone's appearance. Most of them say that their makeup is bad-looking and then make up some outlandish rumors.

Pool Jingyuan looked at her and, after a moment's thought, nodded and said: "They didn't mention it, but my parents have been living in America for years, Nu Na and my second brother are also very busy..."

But they all know this was my own choice, and they should believe me on that.

He looked into Pei Zhuxuan's eyes and added, "But I agree with you. I don't want our family to know about this either. I understand how you feel."

"... She blinked, then nodded silently while pursing her lips. After a few seconds, she suddenly became interested and asked, “Do you have an older brother and sister Are you the youngest in your family”

Her eyes sparkled, she seemed quite interested.

"I'm the youngest and they are all much older than me. I was born when my parents were middle-aged, so I've always been very pampered." Chi Jingyuan didn't hide it and said it casually, then looked at her and asked, "What about you"

"I also have a younger sister, who is 5 years old younger than me."

"Isn't that two years younger than me"

“What” Jimin gave him a glare, his lips twisting in displeasure.

Knowing he doesn't like to talk about age, this person keeps bringing it up on purpose. It's really annoying.

Chi Jingyuan secretly smiled, but he still took the initiative to change the topic: "Has red&vet not had any activities recently"

"Who said that Also!"

As soon as she heard it, Bae Ju-hyeon frowned and looked at him. Pride got the better of her, and she instinctively retorted, but her voice was noticeably softer when she added, "A little."

"..."

Feeling the other person's half-smile, a blush crept onto Pei Zhuxuan's face. Unable to bear being looked at any longer, she turned away as if defeated, muttering, "… Almost gone."

"Don't worry too much, after all, Le Sserafim is **'s first girl group in a long time, the company will definitely put effort into promoting them."

Although Pyo Ji-hyun tried to put on a brave face, which was quite adorable, Ki-won didn't mean to mock him. Instead, he naturally began expressing his opinion on Red Velvet: "And I've seen all four of your stages, both your skills and individual charisma are actually not a problem. The current situation isn't mainly your fault, it's more influenced by other factors that have dragged you down. It's definitely not good that your debut was pushed forward like this."

“I guess the company's plan for you guys is probably similar to how EXO was back then. First, a period of dormancy, then maybe at the end of the year, you could make a comeback at an award show like MAMA or Seoul Music Awards, aiming for a rookie award. Then next year, return with a style change, create some buzz, and pour more resources into it.”

"Many passersby who don't truly dislike you from the heart won't keep blacklisting for so long. By then, this year's hype will probably be over, and things might improve for you a lot."

When it came to this, Bae Ju-hyeon listened intently to Park Ji-won's opinion, nodding in agreement from time to time. Her expression looked a little better.

Although this is only Ji Jingyuan's personal opinion and does not represent ** company's stance, due to her trust in the other party and her understanding of Ji Jingyuan's status within the company, she felt that what the other party said was still credible, at least she was willing to believe it.

Pei Zhuhyun has always had a strong sense of ambition and self-respect. After practicing for so long, she debuted like this. Besides feeling sad and wronged, she also feels deeply unwilling. As long as there is hope, she will definitely put in the greatest effort to change her current situation.

After thinking for a while, she suddenly remembered what Chi Jingyuan had said to her when she was crying just now. She looked over with great concern: "What about XO now So many people have left..."

Member departures are a huge issue for any idol group on the peninsula. Look at Kara, after someone left, their current situation speaks volumes. After Sooyoung's departure from Girls’ Generation, the SONE fandom is now directly split and remains in a state of extreme discord.

And EXO isn't just leaving one member at a time, they're leaving every other day. Members are constantly leaving one after another.

This situation causes significant harm to devoted fans, and the more loyal they are and the more they like XO, the greater the harm.

"I estimate that the results will come out in the next two days. It's either running away like the previous two, or opening their own studio. From now on, they will focus on domestic itineraries within Xia. There shouldn't be any other options."

Chi Jingyuan looked at the river surface, let out a breath of air, and remained silent for a few seconds before answering: "The damage to our fans is indeed great. Even some of my die-hard fans have been affected by those rumors. As for the group, it goes without saying... We're kind of like red&vet in that we don't know what our future holds yet. It all depends on next year's comeback. The company is currently working on a plan, and I should be involved."

After thinking for a moment, he added, "But we should still release a single in December."

"An EXO winter special" Bae Joo-hyun asked at the right time.

"Did you know"

He gave her a sideways glance, and then Pei Zhuxuan pursed her lips.

Nonsense.

"Although it's still a winter special, this year might not be like last year with a mini album. It's probably just going to be one single song. The previous projects were kind of rushed, I fought with the company about it and things should be better this time, but the song hasn't been chosen yet and I don't have much of an idea."

Seeing that even the usually composed and confident Ji Jingyuan looked a little downcast, Pei Zhuxuan suddenly broke into a bright smile and made a fist gesture towards him: "!"

Just like every time they met before, Ji Jingyuan was encouraging him.

Seeing her like this, Ji Jingyuan suddenly laughed and gestured: "!"

Let's cheer each other on, we'll see what next year brings.

“In.”

After venting to each other, the two seemed much more energetic and relaxed, as if the successful return of both groups next year was already a certainty.

Unconsciously, we sat a little closer together, watching the horizon. We saw the dazzling cityscape reflected on the rippling surface of the river, and finally, we looked up at the misty night sky.

A cold wind blew past, and Chi Jingyuan, noticing the current state of the two people in the remaining light, couldn't help but smile when he thought of something. Feeling Pei Zhuxuan's puzzled gaze, he pointed at the sky: "Don't we look like we're watching the sunrise right now"

"Snort..."

Pei Joo Hyuk burst into a smile, revealing her pearly white teeth that glistened under the moonlight. On her plain face, a smirk of disdain appeared as she said in an unamused tone: "Who goes out to watch the sunrise at midnight You must be a real pabobo..."

As she spoke, she also looked up and gazed at the silvery moon with Chi Jingyuan. As they watched, the laughter in her mouth gradually subsided, and her whole person fell silent.

It seemed as if she had sensed something in this quiet night sky, and suddenly Pei Zhuxuan became a little dazed.

They both stared up at the dark sky, eagerly awaiting the sunrise, as if the next moment a terrible moon would be replaced by a great fireball, and the sky would brighten.

One was half-reclining against the wooden chair back, the other with both feet on the chair and hands clasped around it. Their postures were completely different yet somehow harmonious.

"Now our situation is kind of like what you just said, and also similar to the scene before us. The sky is overcast and we can't see the light... But it will be better once the sun comes out."

Chi Jingyuan began to tell the story in a serious manner, but what he said sounded somewhat immature and childish.

"How are you talking to me like you're comforting a child" She glanced at him, her lips pursing.

"A little romantic, isn't it What else could I say Besides that pimple on your lip"

"Ugh..." She hit him angrily while glaring at him with a threatening look. Pei Zhuxuan looked up at the sky, as if she had also gotten into the mood and played along: "The sunrise must be very beautiful and bright, it would definitely illuminate us all."

"Inside, first illuminate the light of Park Soo-hyun xi, and then you reflect the light to illuminate me."

"...hahaha..." Upon hearing this, Bae Joo-hyun pushed Lee Ji-yeong's shoulder repeatedly with her hand, muttering sound effects as if reflecting light. But after just a few pushes, she couldn't help but burst into laughter. After laughing for a moment, she quickly covered her mouth, but the laughter continued to echo around them.

At last, she stared blankly at the sky and asked hopefully, “When will the sun rise”

"It's a little past twelve now, about six hours before sunrise." Ji Jingyuan took out his phone to check the time, then pursed his lips and replied solemnly: "Calculating this way, it would be about six months in reality."

"Is that so" With a look of complete belief and no hint of doubt, Bae Joo-hyun nodded in agreement.

They looked at each other and both felt that they were being childish. They smiled at each other and burst out laughing, “Haha…”

"Anything else" He smiled, pointing at the chocolate bar wrapper in her hand with his chin.

This bag was the only snack he had with him. He hadn't even taken a bite after opening the package when it was snatched away by Park Chae-young.

"There should be, right" She only just noticed the tightly clenched package in her hand and after muttering uncertainly to herself, she quickly opened it to take a look.

It's a pity that most of them were probably crushed because I used too much force when I picked them up just now.

"Such a waste,前輩." Ji-won looked at the crumbs in the bag and muttered sarcastically.

"There's one more!" After searching for a while, Bae Joohyun finally found the last complete chocolate bar, her eyes sparkling as she took it out and presented it to Jiyeong like a treasure. "Do you want to eat it"

He glanced at the chocolate bar, then back at Pei Zhuxuan, and Chi Jingyuan blinked as if considering it for a second:

"

Half each then.

"

"Well, then half for each of us."

……

Bye bye.

As Pei Joo-hyuk waved goodbye with a smile, turning back to leave the car, Ji Kyeong-won rolled up his window and lazily reclined in the backseat, looking tired.

It was so late, of course, it was impossible to let the other party go back alone. Coincidentally, Ji Jingyuan had made arrangements beforehand for Park In-hwan to drive and park nearby. Finally, after dividing up the loot and finishing the last chocolate bar, they got straight into the car and sent her back.

RedVelvet's dormitory is actually quite close to EXO's, both located in an area of Gangnam that's relatively close to the company. The distance to the office isn't far, and compared to other areas in Gangnam District, the rent and housing prices are much cheaper. ** really thought this through.

"Shall I rest for a bit" asked Park Jae-hyun from the driver's seat.

"Well, you should go back now."

"Pool-side view source stretched lazily, half squinting in reply."

Today was indeed quite tiring. I woke up early this morning and filmed for the entire morning. In the afternoon, I received news that Tao had left the group and rushed back to attend a meeting. Afterwards, I chatted with Lee Soo-man about the comeback schedule and received several assignments. Then, I returned to the film set to shoot until the evening. Immediately after, I went back to the company to write a business plan report. Just as I was about to leave the company and go home to sleep, I met Seulgi who came out for a walk and we chatted until now.

Today was really a fulfilling day.

But the harvest wasn't small either. At least Senior Bae Joo-hyun, who had a lot of negative emotions bottled up inside her, seemed to have calmed down a bit and it was somewhat comforting.

Just as the nanny car had started moving, Ji Jingyuan's phone buzzed. He let out a breath and opened his eyes to look. Bae Joo-hyun had sent him a selfie.

She's probably back in her dorm already. In the photo, she seems to have just washed her face, with water droplets still on her eyebrows and hair. She's standing in front of the bathroom mirror holding her phone, taking a selfie from bottom to top. Her pale face looks pretty good, but her nostrils are quite noticeable.

She probably wanted to tell Chi Jingyuan that she had already arrived at the dormitory.

Pool Jingyuan chuckled lightly and didn't say much, just replied with a 'disapproving' expression.

Míngmíng just now when we first met, her complexion looked a bit sallow, clearly not in good spirits. Now, in the photo, her face is fair and radiant with a rosy glow.

Can washing your face have such a big effect

Damn, she even turned on the beauty filter. So full of tricks.

As a rookie girl group, returning to the dormitory this late would definitely result in criticism from their manager. However, as captain and the oldest member, Bae Joo-hyun wouldn't be scolded too harshly. Besides, she'd probably come up with some excuse to fool the manager.

But to be honest, Pei Zhuxuan's face is pretty good looking, I don't know how she came up with those lies.

You should be pretty familiar with it, right

After returning to his dormitory to wash up, Chi Jingyuan fell asleep headfirst. The next morning, he got up early and rushed to the film set to continue filming.

Just as Pooling and I expected, there were many EXO fans outside of the Seoul Square entrance hoping to hear Kai's comments about Tao leaving the group yesterday. Some media reporters were also mixed in with them.

After the start of filming for "Produce 101," this place has become the most accurate spot to find Park Ji-sung. It's even better than ** Company and the EXO dorm. Just by hanging out here, you almost feel like you can find him.

Unfortunately, Chi Jingyuan is unlikely to respond to this kind of thing.

Besides, to be honest, he didn't really have much to say.

Under the protection of his assistant and manager, after greeting fans, Chi Jingyuan quickly walked in without stopping for a moment.

After arriving at the set, both the actors and staff were very discreet. They had all read the news and knew about EXO's latest issue, but unlike the previous time when Girls' Generation's Jessica Jung left the group, not many people approached Ji Chang Wook to ask about gossip or insider information this time. Instead, everyone avoided bringing up the topic when greeting each other, with no one proactively mentioning it.

That's pretty considerate, isn't it

And yesterday, while he was preparing a plan in the music room at ** Company, episode six of "Unnie's Live" aired on schedule.

But when I arrived at the set in the morning and saw the viewership statistics, I couldn't feel too happy about it.

After the impressive 5.3% increase in the fifth episode, the sixth episode not only failed to maintain the previous pleasing growth but instead went down, even dropping below the 5% threshold, with only a 4.9%.

However, this decline is also within a normal range. Moreover, the surge in the fifth episode was indeed a bit high and abnormal. It's understandable that it wasn't retained due to various reasons afterward. As long as the overall trend shows growth, people will be satisfied.

Although the ratings have dropped, everyone wasn't too concerned. However, the atmosphere on set today was a bit more tense than the past two days.

Actually, the increase in viewership may be within a relatively normal range. However, online reviews have been noticeably improving day by day. Whether it's the overall shooting, camerawork, storyline setting, or the actors' performances, everything has received a lot of praise and acclaim.

Many white-collar workers in the Peninsula have become loyal viewers of this drama, and has become a hot topic of conversation among them in their daily interactions.

The viewership is not yet significantly apparent due to the inherent limitations of cable television, but its popularity and buzz have already surpassed those of other terrestrial television dramas in the same period. It has a very clear momentum, and its influence is gradually spreading.

Today is November 2nd. At the Busan Asiad Main Stadium, which hosted the Asian Music Festival in the evening, EXO-K performed three songs on stage. However, Park Kyung-won was allowed to be absent due to his filming schedule and the performance was attended by the other five members of K team.

Chi Jingyuan originally didn't want to miss it, but this kind of large-scale evening party performance required rehearsals beforehand. He had to go to the scene for dress rehearsals the day before or on the day itself, which would take up most of the day. However, during this period, "The Untamed" was gradually reaching its peak, and the shooting tasks were becoming increasingly heavy. It was difficult for him to spare so much time for rehearsals or dress rehearsals.

** also didn't want to delay the performance due to the show, and after a short consideration, they decided to let Park Ji-won not come, focusing on filming the drama.

Fortunately, EXO-K had already practiced many songs in a five-member formation before, so they didn't have to spend the night revising the choreography.

And among the K team members, Pool Kyung-won has one of the largest parts. If he is absent, the share and screen time of several other members will increase considerably, but the most added, and the most important task still falls on Doh Kyungsoo and Kim Junmyeon.

Even if Ji Jingyuan's part was distributed, Wu Shixun didn't get many lines.

Because, to be honest, some of the vocal parts would be beyond him even if they were given to him.

Besides today's Asian Music Festival, ** also directly caused Ji-sung to miss several recent EXO-K stage performances, including the "Lotte Family Concert" on the 9th and M Countdown - Mexico Special on the 11th.

This treatment is indeed good, but ** has always paid attention to the acting development of its idols. Previously, there were cases like Sulli, Choi Siwon, Yuri, and even Yoona who missed important stages or family concerts because of filming. It's not too unusual for Ji-sung either.

However, it was actually a blessing in disguise that he didn't have to participate in this "Mexican Special." He heard that just the flights and layovers would take almost forty hours round trip. If he had gone on such a journey, he wouldn't even be left with half his life!

After finishing a day's shoot, Ji Chang-wook returned to the company's music room once again. Lee Soo Man had given him quite a hefty task, and unless something unexpected happened, he would be working overtime here every night for the time being.

After he arrived today, he didn't immediately start thinking about the proposal report. Instead, he put on his headphones, turned on his computer and mixing board, and tried to input a melody.

After a moment of silence, he opened a document and closed his eyes, recalling the scene from last night when he was with Jennie by the river. His mind replayed some of the words they had shared.

What the other party said left a deep impression on him, and it still vividly resonates in his mind, gently echoing in his ears.

He couldn't help but think of EXO and the current situations of the two groups, red&vet. Although their circumstances were different, the prospects at this time seemed equally bleak.

After a moment of reflection, he let out a soft breath and began to type on the keyboard:

"It'll get easier, again,"

"...

" Let me know if you have any other text you'd like me to translate!

It'll pass, it'll pass.

"..."

First published on繁體小說網eback should be in April" 。Even though Girls' Generation is still at its peak and hasn't shown a significant decline, Taeyeon is confident about their comeback. However, no idol on the peninsula would...