wavenovel Chapter 1272 Implicated!
Chapter 1272 Implicated!
Chapter 1272 Implicated!
Although Bae Joo-hyun's tone carried a hint of nonchalant laziness, Ji Kyung-won could read her true state of mind from her slightly taut lips and the seriousness that flashed in her eyes.
In the video, her small face, no bigger than a palm, was still as delicate as a porcelain doll. Even without makeup, she looked even more radiant than when she first debuted, with her skin glowing with a luminous sheen.
But it's really different from before.
Compared to the girl who used to feel awkward and hurt when Chi Jingyuan took care of her, she has really matured a lot now.
The entertainment industry is truly a place that hones one's skills.
This change isn't necessarily good or bad; it's simply a necessary part of everyone's growth, like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon—a painful process that every dreamer must endure.
However, Ji Jingyuan felt that compared to before, even after experiencing so much, Bae Joo-hyun's gentle and delicate nature had never changed. She was still as considerate and gentle in private as ever, occasionally letting out some rustic country accents and the kind of slang that only an aunt would use.
But at the same time, she now has an extra layer of resilient armor in her heart, retaining her original purity while learning to deal with the world gently.
This state of being true to oneself, yet having become stronger and more mature, is truly captivating.
...Especially now, her looks seem to be at their peak.
Looking back now, when I think about how Bae Joo-hyun was suddenly added to the company's debut group because of him, I feel both sour and jealous. I can't help but laugh when I see Ji Kyung-won giving him attitude and being unhappy with him.
...The girl used to be incredibly naive and cute.
After chatting with Bae Joo-hyun for a while and hanging up the video call, Ji Kyung-won felt a little unsatisfied. Although it was already late, he wasn't sleepy at all.
He thought for a few seconds, then simply turned on his computer and, taking advantage of the free time, played a game of "League of Legends".
In the past few months, he has been traveling back and forth between Japan and South Korea, with his schedule packed full of various activities. He hasn't even had time to play game consoles like the Switch much, let alone computer games like League of Legends. The days when EXO members would play together in the dorm are long gone.
Chi Jingyuan quickly opened the game, rubbing his hands together with great anticipation.
I just happened to get interested today, so I'm going back to my old hobby!
only……
"Ding Ding Ding!"
"Does Xiba Li Qing even know how to play?"
"%￥#%……&"
Perhaps because he hadn't played for a long time and his hands were a bit cold, or perhaps there were some issues with his teammates' coordination, Chi Jingyuan's performance in the first game wasn't very good. After feeding three times in a row and causing two lanes to fall behind, he seemed a bit lost and stayed in the jungle farming.
However, his teammates didn't give him a chance to reflect on his mistakes. After the game was lost, his own top laner started nagging him nonstop, typing incessantly.
Seeing a string of question marks following Lee Sin as he farmed in his jungle, Chi Jingyuan felt a little annoyed.
However, it's true that he didn't play well, so he didn't say anything. These superficial insults weren't enough to make him angry. Compared to those haters and antis, these are child's play.
However, that teammate seemed genuinely angry. After yelling at Chi Jingyuan for a while without getting a response, he took a different approach. Instead of talking about in-game matters, he started targeting Chi Jingyuan's ID.
"You fans are really brain-dead. What does Yoona have to do with the Blue Dragon Film Award winner?"
"Are you voting for her in the jungle?"
"Idols of Yoona's caliber are only fit to act in daily dramas."
"The King in Love is a huge flop, hahaha."
"Don't even mention Bae Suzy, she can't even compare to IU."
Suddenly, the ID "Blue Dragon Film Queen Lim Yoona" that Ji Jingyuan was using became the target of his teammates' mockery and angry attacks. This person probably recognized his true identity as a Yoona fan, and instead of criticizing him for playing poorly, he started to attack Lim Yoona, trying to hit her where it hurts.
But to be honest, no matter how his teammates were cursing him, Chi Jingyuan was completely unfazed. But now, seeing him suddenly start criticizing Yoona, Chi Jingyuan was stunned for a second before finally losing his temper.
But when he pressed enter to retaliate, his hands hovered over the keyboard for a while before he suddenly realized he didn't know what to say...
Hey, what this person said actually makes some sense, and for a moment he didn't know how to refute it!
"Your trash jungler skills are on par with your idol Yoona's acting skills."
"Yoona will never win the Blue Dragon Film Award for Best Actress!"
The troll's final words blatantly tore through Chi Jingyuan's facade, causing a sharp, piercing pain that finally broke him down, and he clicked "surrender" without hesitation.
He grumbled and shut down the computer, still feeling resentful even as he lay in bed.
After a long while, Chi Jingyuan finally let out a deep sigh.
When idols underperform, their fans are also subjected to criticism and can't even retaliate.
…………
The next morning, just as Chi Jingyuan finished breakfast and was about to go to the company for a meeting, the phone suddenly rang.
"Yo-bu-se-yo~"
"What's wrong with my brother?"
He glanced at the caller ID and answered the call immediately, greeting them in a familiar tone.
The caller was Jang Yong-woo, the deputy director of the television production department at tvN. Ji Kyung-won had met him quite a few times before, and they were fairly familiar with each other.
However, apart from occasionally exchanging greetings and meeting up for drinks when they have time, they haven't had much contact lately. So when Chi Jingyuan suddenly received his call so early in the morning, he could roughly guess what was going on.
"Brother, you're so well-informed. I just signed the contract myself."
"Yes, we've already reached an agreement with Netflix."
"The script isn't finished yet, but it's confirmed to be a suspense thriller, inspired by a case from this year, and it's very likely to be rated 19+..."
As expected, after a brief exchange of pleasantries, Zhang Longyu asked about Chi Jingyuan and Netflix's "Mouse," sounding somewhat anxious and seemingly very interested.
Many actors have collaborated multiple times with various television stations, and Ji Kyung-won's relationship with tvN is truly extraordinary.
Ji Kyung-won's drama resume can be described as a "living chronicle" of tvN. Since his debut in "Reply 1997", which made him an instant sensation, all of his drama works except for "The Heirs" have been deeply associated with tvN.
Each of them achieved great success, including the highly influential "Misaeng," the record-breaking "Signal," and the massively popular "Goblin."
It can be said that almost all of tvN's hit dramas in recent years, or even all of them since the station's inception, are related to Ji Kyung-won. According to media statistics, Ji Kyung-won's works occupy three of the top 10 spots in tvN's ratings since the station's inception, leading some to call him the "crown prince" of tvN.
Through so many collaborations, Ji Kyung-won has already built an extraordinary network of connections with tvN and is very familiar with everyone there. From the head of the drama department to the PDs of various teams, there is no one he doesn't know.
He even knows the top executives of tvN, the station manager, and CJ ENM, the parent company.
While outsiders might look at Ji Kyung-won with more respect because of his successful dramas, tvN actually values him even more, and there's even a strong sense of "if Yuan comes, he'll definitely succeed" about him.
They were even more confident than Chi Kyung-won himself...
After "Goblin" ended, tvN wanted to strike while the iron was hot. Several PDs invited him with the script several times, but Ji Kyung-won made excuses to turn them down. After that, they would contact him from time to time to ask about his schedule and talk about the script, and the meaning was very clear.
It was unexpected that Chi Jingyuan had actually reached a cooperation agreement with Netflix. Zhang Longyu had obviously received the news and wanted to know some inside information so that he could find an opportunity to get involved.
"Yes, it's being spearheaded by Netflix, so it probably won't be broadcast on television..."
"Haha, then it's settled. Let's get together again when I'm free."
Although Zhang Longyu was somewhat surprised by Ji Jingyuan's sudden collaboration with Netflix, he didn't say anything. He just asked about the show in general, without even inquiring about the plot or script. After confirming that Ji Jingyuan would be starring, he smiled and said he would go and talk to Netflix.
Ji Kyung-won was quite pleased with the other party's enthusiasm and high regard, but unfortunately, based on his understanding, tvN would probably have a hard time getting involved in this collaboration.
After hanging up, he thought for a moment and then called Park Jae-hyun again to tell him about the call.
"Director Zhang called you? It seems the news has already spread." Park Jae-hyun said knowingly after hearing this.
"Didn't they say they wouldn't announce it for the time being?"
"That's what they say, but a lot of people in the industry are watching you. Your next show is like a guiding light. Besides, Netflix isn't a monolithic entity. News about setting up a production team and doing some preliminary preparations will also leak out. There are no secrets at all."
Park Jae-hyun chuckled softly: "Besides, Netflix probably won't hide it from us. They spent a lot of money to get our contract, so of course they want to show off."
"hehe."
Upon hearing this, Chi Jingyuan shrugged and smiled, "It doesn't matter, it's nothing shameful anyway."
"This is just news. Once your salary gets out, Jingyuan, those actor agencies will definitely be shocked, and there will be a lot of people talking about it."
"whatever."
Chi Jingyuan didn't care about this; the fact that others were willing to give it to him only proved that he had value.
Moreover... Ji Kyung-won had already realized the truth of Bae Joo-hyun's remark last night, 'Living in other people's envy makes you younger,' back in high school.
"It seems that Director Zhang is interested in this Netflix series."
Speaking of the phone call just now, Chi Jingyuan asked tentatively.
"Yes, it's quite obvious. tvN has always given us a lot of weight."
Park Jae-hyun analyzed, "However, there is probably little hope. This 'MOUSE' is a Netflix original series, and its main purpose is to increase its popularity and expand its user base. It will definitely only be broadcast on its own streaming platform and will be exclusive for at least two years. It will not cooperate with TV stations."
“I think so too.” Chi Jingyuan nodded.
"Okay, I'll go and contact them to see what's going on."
After thinking for a moment, Park Jae-hyun said with a smile, "Even if tvN can't participate this time, we can't let them down... We'll be working together in the future."
After hanging up the phone, Chi Jingyuan thought that things might not be quiet for a while after the news about the TV series spread in the industry.
As it turned out, he was right. He received quite a few phone calls today, including several more from PDs, agents, and even actors he knew in the industry, all wanting to get information about the show.
But there's no script yet, and even Ji Kyung-won himself doesn't know what's going on, so what can he say?
After dealing with several people, it was finally lunchtime. He was just about to take a nap after lunch when the phone rang again.
Thinking it was just another annoying friend, Chi Jingyuan picked it up and raised an eyebrow, his expression turning somewhat strange.
It turned out to be Yoona, the senior who had caused him to be scolded and unable to retaliate just yesterday.
"Yo-boo-sai-yo, Jingyuan~"
The moment the call connected, Lin Yoona's clear voice instantly pierced through the receiver: "Yo-bu-se-yo~" The rising tone at the end was like a shot of adrenaline, instantly dispelling most of Chi Jingyuan's drowsiness.
Although it's nice to talk to seniors on the phone, to be honest, Ji Kyung-won and Yoona often joke around in group chats and meet frequently when they were working on Girls' Generation's album recently, but they don't really contact each other privately that often.
The call came suddenly at this time today... When Chi Jingyuan saw the name 'Lim Yoona' flashing on the caller ID, he immediately knew what Yoona was up to.
After all, the senior had mentioned this matter during a meal some time ago, but at that time he hadn't reached an agreement with Netflix yet, and the environment wasn't suitable, so the senior didn't say much about it.
As expected, the call came as soon as the news got out today.
It's all too common to try to find connections and leverage relationships to secure opportunities and resources. The entertainment industry is essentially a web woven from personal connections, and Chi Kyung-won himself does this all the time, so he doesn't find it objectionable.
However... he is, after all, a loyal fan of Yoona, and a fan of her acting skills, so he still has a certain bias towards her.
The news of the TV series had barely spread when the senior actor called so eagerly. To be honest, it did unconsciously lower the shining image of his idol a little.
The feeling of being gently rubbed down by reality, the shame of being insulted yesterday and unable to retaliate, all welled up in his heart, leaving him with a bitter taste.
And more importantly... Chi Kyung-won never even considered collaborating with his senior!
Chi Jingyuan skillfully concealed this subtle emotion beneath a smile, exchanging pleasantries with his senior on the other end of the phone with ease.
Ji Jingyuan deliberately didn't mention it, waiting for Lin Yun'er to speak.
However, the senior seemed to have no such intention at all, and did not mention the drama at all. It has to be admitted that Lim Yoona's social skills are indeed profound. The topics fluttered between several groups like light butterflies, from Girls' Generation's recent group activities to EXO's world tour fun stories, and finally naturally fell on Bae Joo-hyun.
"Irene's GUCCI ad is truly stunning; you really have excellent taste."
The receiver carried Yoona's smiling voice; her perfectly measured tone of envy was neither contrived nor lacked the elegance characteristic of a senior artist.
Then he didn't say anything more, smiled and said goodbye before hanging up.
Even after the call ended, Chi Kyung-won was still stunned, as if he hadn't reacted yet... He was still like a goalkeeper on high alert, waiting for Yoona to ask about the drama so he could shove the ball away, and he even had an excuse ready... but it turned out the other party had no intention of shooting at all.
How did it happen?