wavenovel Chapter 1408 Where
Chapter 1408 Where
Chapter 1408 Where
After the memorial service, Ji Kyung-won offered his condolences to Kim Jong-hyun's family, including his sister.
He didn't talk much. His family members were clearly very sad and grieving, and he didn't know what to say. He could only offer some superficial comfort and, after receiving a few "thank yous," he left the funeral hall.
They left the funeral home in silence and walked back to the hospital.
The moment I stepped out of the hospital, a cool breeze hit me, and the lingering smell of disinfectant disappeared. In the blink of an eye, it felt like I had stepped into another world.
Chi Jingyuan stood at the doorway, looked up at the pale winter sky, and felt a strange sense of detachment, as if he were in a daze, unsure whether he was in reality or in a dream.
Just then, a faint fragrance drifted over on the wind. He took a sniff and smelled a sweet caramel aroma mixed with the rough scent of potatoes.
It seemed to be the smell of food from the food stalls across the street, like fish cake soup, roasted sweet potatoes, or roasted chestnuts.
The fragrance had no temperature, and the wind along it was a bit chilly, but Chi Jingyuan felt that the scent was warm and hot. This warmth and the scent seemed to have a comforting effect, and even his body seemed to warm up.
"Brother, could you go across the street and see if there are any food stalls there? Buy some for me."
Chi Jingyuan looked across the street, but unfortunately his view was blocked by passing cars. He simply told his assistant, "If you have fish cakes, be sure to buy some. Make sure they're spicy, but not too spicy... I'll wait for you in the car."
"By the way, buy more so we can eat together."
"Okay." Cui Zhichang went immediately upon hearing this.
Chi Jingyuan watched his retreating figure, smiled gently, turned around and took one last look at the hospital gate, let out a deep breath, and strode away.
"How about it?"
After returning to the van, Park Jae-hyun took the initiative to ask...
"Um……"
Not knowing how to describe what he had seen and heard along the way, Chi Jingyuan pondered for a moment, then shook his head, looked out the window, and softly replied, "Said goodbye."
"Okay, it's good to say goodbye. If we say goodbye and see each other again, even if we can't meet again in the future, we won't have too many regrets."
Although he didn't say much, Park Jae-hyun understood Ji Kyung-won's feelings and nodded repeatedly.
After a pause, he spoke again to comfort him, "Jong-hyun's situation is indeed very sad, and it must be a huge blow to his family and friends."
"However, for him, it might not be a bad thing."
"..."
The words reached his ears, but Chi Jingyuan didn't say anything. He just looked through the window at Cui Zhichang walking over, and after a long while, he nodded noncommittally: "Maybe."
As soon as he finished speaking, Cui Zhichang opened the car door, got in, and handed the food he had bought to Chi Jingyuan. He asked, somewhat puzzled, "Jingyuan, how did you know there were snacks and fish cakes sold there? But it's not across the street, it's in a small alley over there."
"Here you go, I bought one of each, the fish cake is spicy."
"Hehe, maybe I've been here before."
Chi Jingyuan smiled and took half of it, then picked up a skewer and put it in his mouth.
The bamboo skewers were heavy, still slightly hot to the touch as they were just pulled from the boiling soup pot. When you put them in your mouth, you experience a smooth, chewy texture before the sweet and spicy broth bursts in your mouth.
In an instant, the heat made Chi Jingyuan gasp for breath, but his expression and demeanor became even more vivid.
While eating, he waved to Park Jae-hyun and the other man, saying, "Hyung, you two should try some too, eat together."
"Haha, now that you mention it, I'm a little hungry too."
Park Jae-hyun and the other man smiled and picked up the snacks, opened them and started eating together. For a moment, the entire van was filled with steam and a rich, salty aroma.
"correct."
While eating a skewer of snacks, Park Jae-hyun said at the right moment, "Kyung-won, the matter you asked me to investigate has been settled... Sana-ssi will be having a photoshoot and interview at a photography studio in Seongsu-dong tonight, but it's not for a magazine on the Korean Peninsula, but for a magazine in Japan."
"Your collaboration with Sanaxi on the 'Uchiage Hanabi' stage at this year's MAMA gave her a lot of exposure in Japan and boosted her popularity significantly."
Chi Jingyuan ate the fish cake in his mouth, chewed it, and nodded: "It's good."
"The photoshoot took place at night, and Sanasi should be here right now..."
Park Jae-hyun continued, but halfway through, he seemed to forget the exact address and picked up his phone to check it:
"Vespera Atelier beauty salon on Garosu-gil in Sinsadong..."
…………
After the group's afternoon activities ended, Sana Minatozaki parted ways with the other members, got into a van with an assistant, and headed to a beauty salon for a styling session in preparation for the evening's photoshoot.
This photoshoot was for a Japanese magazine and promotional event. She was very happy to receive this assignment, as it was one of her rare personal schedules, proving that her previous efforts had not been in vain.
In the van, Sana Minatozaki took off her shoes and sat by the window with her feet propped up on the stool. She was in a half-squatting, half-sitting position, staring blankly at the scenery outside the window. Meanwhile, her female assistant was looking at the news on her phone, occasionally reporting it to Sana Minatozaki.
The hottest news today is, of course, about Kim Jong-hyun. The female assistant was also talking about similar news, such as who went to the memorial service and what activities the fans did.
Normally at this time, Sana Minatozaki would chat with her for a while, but this time, she was very quiet, did not respond, seemed listless, and her slightly furrowed brows seemed to be filled with worry.
Besides being tired from a long day at work, the main reason was the text message I received in the morning.
After blocking me a couple of days ago, I thought I could just let it go, but I didn't expect it to happen again today, and it seems like the other person is even angrier.
The other party made a harsh statement in the morning, telling her to wait and then there was no further news. But this kind of thing is the most unsettling. Knowing that the other party might not be just saying it for nothing, Minatozaki Sana's heart was still hanging there, anxious and restless.
It's like... when I was in school, I was bullied by a classmate, and she threatened me with "you wait and see," and I felt that kind of fear and worry.
She wanted to talk to the company, but she was worried that the company would ignore her or push her out to apologize and settle the matter... It was unlikely that they would ignore her; the latter was more probable.
Having been with the company for so long, Sana Minatozaki has pretty much figured out JYP's ways.
But does she really need to apologize? She had already apologized before; when the other party first texted her, she explained sincerely and apologized for causing trouble.
Do I still need to apologize?
As a female idol working for the company, she doesn't mind apologizing, since she's apologized countless times already.
But the thought of it still makes my heart feel heavy, as if it's being squeezed tightly.
What did she do wrong?
Ever since she received that text message, she has been thinking about it constantly. Her usual energy and enthusiasm have been dampened, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured on them.
However, when faced with work, she cheered up, temporarily put aside her worries, and greeted everyone with a smile after arriving at the beauty salon.
I used to frequent this beauty salon, and I was quite familiar with the beauticians since we had worked together before. Sana Minatozaki is a woman who can chat with anyone.
Her warm and cheerful greetings roused Cody to enthusiasm as well, and they quickly got to work.
Everything went smoothly, seemingly no different from usual.
However, an hour later...
"Bang~"
A slightly agitated shoving sound followed as the beauty salon's door opened, and a group of six or seven people walked in. Two of them, dressed in black suits, had a distinctly cold and thuggish demeanor, behaving like bodyguards.
The other four were dressed fashionably in expensive luxury goods, clearly from wealthy families. Three of them were subtly surrounding the woman in the center, seemingly taking her as their leader.
The receptionist noticed something was off, so she quickly notified the store manager while smiling apologetically as she approached.
"Hello, how can I help you...?"
"Which beauty salon does that female idol, Sana, work at?" the woman leading the group asked directly, wearing large sunglasses.
"MO?" The receptionist paused for a moment, seemingly not quite understanding.
The woman at the head of the group seemed very displeased with the previous generation's stunned expression, and immediately glared at her sternly: "Didn't you hear what I said?"
"I……"
The people in front of her looked like they were not to be trifled with, and the receptionist was so nervous that she couldn't speak for a moment. Fortunately, at that moment, the store manager, Choi Hyun-joo, quickly came out.
When Choi Hyun-joo saw the woman leading the group, she was instantly startled and recognized her.
Isn't that Hwang Ha-na? A well-known rich girl, her family is said to have a powerful background.
The reason they knew each other was not only because the beauty salon owner had given her a warm welcome before, but also because Hwang Ha-na was indeed very famous, and her affair with Park Yoo-chun was very popular online this year.
Moreover, Choi Hyun-joo had heard some of the other party's reputation.
Arrogant, domineering, and wild, he's the kind of rich kid that fits everyone's stereotypes.
Choi Hyun-joo quickly stepped forward to greet her warmly, "Aigoo, Ms. Hwang, what brings you today...?"
Before she could finish speaking, Hwang Hana interrupted her directly: "Which beauty salon does that female idol, Sana, work at?"
However, she seemed to show a bit more respect to the store manager, pulling her sunglasses down slightly to reveal her eyes.
"Uh……"
The blunt question startled Choi Hyun-joo. She instantly realized that this was clearly a ploy to cause trouble for Minatozaki Sana. After a moment's hesitation, she tentatively asked, "What are you going to do...?"
"Don't ask if it has nothing to do with you." Huang Hana shut her down with one sentence, seemingly already a little impatient.
"Just tell us which room we're in, don't make trouble for yourselves." At this moment, a fashionable but plain-looking woman next to them asked.
Her name is Choi Hye-jin. Her family owns a food factory. Although they are not from a wealthy family, they are still considered well-off. Because her family has some business dealings, she tries to curry favor with Hwang Ha-na. She and the two women next to her are Hwang Ha-na's friends.
But they knew perfectly well that while they called each other friends, they were more like followers, just tagging along with her.
There was nothing planned for today, but then they heard Hwang Ha-na say she was going to teach a female celebrity who had seduced her husband a lesson. Of course, they had no objections and came along immediately.
And they were even more excited after learning that the female celebrity they were going to teach a lesson to was Sana from Twice.
Although Twice is popular, they also have a lot of haters. For them, it would be very satisfying to teach these female artists who act cute and flirtatious on stage a lesson, and it would be a topic of bragging and conversation for a long time to come.
"Yes..." Faced with the pressure from the other party, store manager Choi Hyun-joo was sweating profusely. She dared not hide anything and gave a room number. She could only watch as Hwang Ha-na and her group marched past in a grand procession.
Before leaving, the lackey named Cui Huizhen turned back and threatened, "Don't say anything, just pretend you didn't see anything."
"What should the store manager do?" After the group left, the employee next to him asked worriedly.
…………
"Aigoo, Sana really suits this style of look."
Inside the room, Cody was styling Sana Minatozaki's hair while sincerely praising her.
Sitting in front of the vanity, Sana Minatozaki looked at herself in the mirror. Her jet-black curly hair spread out from behind her ears and fell loosely over her shoulders. The curls at the ends of her hair were naturally loose, like a layer of soft black clouds. The wispy hairs on her forehead were neatly styled yet fluffy, and lightly brushed across her eyebrows, adding a touch of brightness.
Her eye makeup is a perfect balance of sweet and energetic, striking the perfect line between sweet and bright. She also adds a layer of fine shimmering rhinestones to the outer corners of her eyes. Combined with her black curly hair and overall makeup, along with her uniquely charming eyes, she looks very atmospheric.
"This should be about right...tsk, it's a complete disaster."
Cody carefully examined her from behind, offered a few words of praise, and then moved closer to Sana Minatozaki to apply another layer of lip gloss.
She carefully outlined an M-shaped cupid's bow on Sana Minatozaki's lips, and slightly extended the lower lip border to create a fuller look. The coral lip gloss was the perfect finishing touch, instantly making her look more three-dimensional and radiant.
"OK, all done..."
Just as Cody finished her work, and Sana Minatozaki was admiring herself in the mirror...
With a loud bang, the door to the beauty salon was pushed open forcefully.
…………
"A beauty salon? Is it far from here?"
Inside the van, after hearing this, Chi Jingyuan chewed the fish cake in his mouth and swallowed it. After a brief silence, he asked a question.
"It takes about 30 minutes to drive here if there is no traffic."
Park Jae-hyun had clearly done his research beforehand: "If things go smoothly, it might only take twenty minutes."
“Then…” Chi Jingyuan seemed to be immediately interested.
"However, judging from the timeline, Sana Xi should have already finished her styling and be heading to the photo studio for the shoot by now."
Before Chi Kyung-won could even think of anything, Park Jae-hyun spoke up again, seemingly with a mischievous grin, to suppress his idea: "The studio is quite far from here, about an hour's drive, but it's probably peak season now, so it might take a little longer."
"Uh……"
Upon hearing this, Chi Jingyuan was speechless and seemed to be hesitant.
After all, he said before that he would go and take a look if it was convenient, but now it's obvious that it's not very convenient... If he still insists on going, wouldn't he be contradicting himself?
"what……"
When Park Jae-hyun saw Ji Kyung-won's eyes, he couldn't help but smile... because he could clearly see that even after such a long drive, Ji Kyung-won was still somewhat tempted.
"We can..."
Just as he was about to say something to persuade Chi Jingyuan to stop hesitating and stop pretending and just leave, his phone suddenly rang.
He picked up the phone, glanced at the name, and answered. After hearing a few quick words spoken on the other end, his expression noticeably turned serious.
After hanging up, her expression was slightly strange as she faced Chi Jingyuan's questioning gaze:
“Something happened with Sana Xi.”