Peninsula: Starting with Hijacking Yoona

96, Jisoo's Attack Begins

The morning sunlight peeked through the gaps in the curtains and fell on the bed sheets, creating a thin layer.

The alarm clock rang. A slender, pale hand emerged from under the covers, its fingers long and delicate, its skin as white as jade. It turned off the alarm and groggily opened its eyes.

It's Bae Joo-hyun.

She subconsciously turned over, still a little sleepy, and reached out to touch the side next to her.

Empty. Cold. He's long gone.

She sighed softly, but the corners of her mouth remained turned up. Li Jingcheng noticed she wasn't feeling well yesterday, so he stayed with her and slept peacefully without moving around.

Bae Joo-hyun knew he did it on purpose, wanting her to get some rest.

My heart feels warm.

But then she remembered something else—Kim Jisoo, Im Yoon-ah.

She rolled over, buried her face in the pillow, then got up, shook her hair vigorously, trying to clear her mind of those thoughts. She then climbed out of bed, slipped on her slippers without socks, and went into the bathroom.

Looking at myself in the mirror, my brows were slightly furrowed; I'd certainly been troubled a lot lately. A faint layer of dark circles lay around my eyes, perhaps a sign of lack of rest, or maybe the pressure of worry. But my skin was brighter, not from foundation, but a natural glow that came from when I was in good condition, like it had been moisturized.

It's a bit strange, nothing like that happened last night.

She pulled out a face mask from the cabinet, put it on without much hesitation, stood by the sink, closed her eyes, and waited for a few minutes.

She opened her eyes and looked at her face in the mirror. It was as if she could see her face through the mask. Her features were still the same, but she looked different. Her innocence was still there, but there was an added layer of texture to it, like the underlying color revealed after the mist dissipates.

Every time I look in the mirror, it feels like I'm dreaming.

She used to have a delicate, girlish charm—slender, light, like a flower bud that hadn't fully bloomed yet. Now it's different; there's a subtle languor to her demeanor, not a slouching, but the relaxed feeling of having slept a whole night with someone, the kind of ease that comes from letting your whole body relax.

That composure grew from being loved. She had indeed become more tender.

Bae Joo-hyun got dressed, put on a mask, and hailed a taxi to SM Entertainment. Seoul outside the car window slowly receded into the distance. Leaning back in her seat, she thought about what she needed to practice that day, what she needed to prepare, and whether she should think about the GG photoshoot in advance, so as not to hold him back on the day of the shoot.

The taxi stopped in front of SM.

The moment Bae Joo-hyun pushed open the car door and her foot touched the ground, the expression on her face seemed to switch on, shifting from warmth back to an icy demeanor—calm, indifferent, and unapproachable.

She glanced at the glass door, then pushed it open and went inside.

The moment she stepped inside, all eyes in the practice room seemed to be drawn to her like magnets. She didn't look at anyone, went straight to her seat, and put her bag down.

Someone in the corner whispered, "It's just the company promoting you and giving you early exposure. You haven't even officially debuted yet, so what are you so smug about?"

Bae Joo-hyun didn't reply. She glanced at the person and recognized her—Choi Soo-ah. She had been pursuing a male trainee at the company, but the man had given Bae Joo-hyun two love letters before, and ever since then, this girl had looked at her like an enemy.

She wasn't angry; she just felt a little sorry for the other person. Someone who doesn't like you won't like you back no matter what you do. She looked away, no longer looking at that person.

Kang Seulgi stood to the side, quietly observing everything.

She had been observing. Unnie didn't refute that sarcastic remark, not because she was afraid, but because she didn't care. That indifference wasn't feigned; she genuinely felt it was unnecessary.

But what she cared about more was another detail—her sister had previously paid special attention to Lee Kyung-sung, and although it was now rumored that SM Entertainment had helped her secure the role, she still felt that Lee Kyung-sung had chosen her for the lead role.

She hesitated for a moment, but her gossip-fueled curiosity overwhelmed her reason. She leaned closer and whispered, "Unnie... they said you're going to film a 'GG' movie with Lee Kyung-sung?"

Bae Joo-hyun glanced at her, somewhat surprised. "Seulgi, how did you know?"

"It's been circulating in the company since early this morning," Kang Seulgi said with a hint of envy.

Bae Joo-hyun neither denied nor explained further, simply stating, "Yes. Soon."

Kang Seulgi looked at her, her gossip-fueled curiosity undiminished, but seeing that her unnie didn't intend to say more, she didn't press the matter. She initially wanted to let it go, but after the thought raced through her mind, she couldn't resist.

She changed her perspective again, holding up her phone and opening the entertainment news, "By the way, unnie, did you see that news? When Lee Kyung-sung was in Japan, he ate ramen with his fans, and it even trended on social media."

Bae Joo-hyun's expression didn't change much, but her eyelashes fluttered slightly. "I saw it. It's trending on social media, how could I not have seen it?"

Kang Seulgi tilted her head, seemingly just curious, "So, unnie, what do you think... is his relationship with that fan?"

Bae Joo-hyun's tone remained calm, but Kang Seul-gi could tell it was slightly colder than before. "The manager and that girl's mother were both there, and there were many fans nearby. It was clearly just a chance encounter."

Kang Seulgi simply said "Oh," without pressing further. But she was already certain—her unnie definitely knew Lee Kyung-sung, and more than just knew him. That reluctance to discuss it was more reassuring than a simple "I don't know" or "I'm not sure."

They might even be together already. She felt a surge of excitement, but didn't voice it. If Unnie really was with that Lee Kyung-sung… she couldn't even bear to think about it.

She didn't ask anything more, afraid of upsetting her, but she secretly made a mental note of it.

...

...

At the same time, YG's practice room had just opened.

Today was the day that idol trainees and actor trainees had a joint language class—English, and there were many more people in the corridor than usual.

Kim Jisoo was listless and had no interest in the course. When she entered, she felt several gazes on her—which immediately woke her up from her drowsy state.

She shrank back and glanced around.

"Have you heard? She's going to film Coffee Guy."

"The company should promote her; acting trainees are doomed from the start."

"Since the resources have already been allocated, we're definitely going to push it through."

Some people were envious, some were jealous, and some were curious.

Kim Jisoo heard it, but didn't take it to heart.

But she was actually in a good mood, mostly happy. Although she was a little nervous, she was mostly looking forward to it—shooting GG, exposure, future development, and... She glanced down at her phone, wondering if she should send a message to her oppa.

Today's English class felt even more boring than usual. Maybe I should let her chat with her oppa instead.

Kim Jisoo felt a bit tense. After sitting down, she took out her phone and, while waiting for the teacher to arrive,...

The other trainees were still discussing, "That Li Jingcheng, I heard he's really popular in Japan."

"Yeah, and he even replied to that fan's Japanese comment. I watched that video, it was hilarious, and the girl in the video blushed too."

Then someone asked out of curiosity, "What do you think is the relationship between Li Jingcheng and that girl?"

Kim Ji-soo's thoughts drifted over to that, and upon hearing this, she pursed her lips.

She didn't join the discussion. Because she knew—it was just a chance encounter. With the agent present, the other person's mother present, and so many fans following, what could possibly happen?

Even if that girl really likes oppa, she's in Japan and oppa is in South Korea, can she fly over?

And they'll definitely forget about her soon enough!

Jisoo didn't really care about that fan. She only cared about one thing:

She and her boyfriend are still in the ambiguous stage, and she wants to make things official as soon as possible.

That means Bae Joo-hyun is no longer a threat.

She didn't want to delay any longer.

Before class, she opened Li Jingcheng's chat window, typed a line of text, deleted it, typed another line, deleted it again. Finally, she sent it.

"Oppa, are you free today? I want to see you."

Class has started.

Kim Jisoo sat in her seat with a textbook open on the table, half-open, and a pen resting on the edge of the book. She looked quite serious—but her eyes were empty.

The English teacher was a woman in her thirties, also Korean, but she spoke with a slight American accent, at a moderate pace. She wrote a sentence on the blackboard.

She immediately noticed that Kim Jisoo was lost in thought, and her voice was somewhat stern, "Kim Jisoo-ssi, you read this passage."

When Kim Jisoo's name was called, she paused for a moment, her eyes scanning the textbook before finding her seat.

"I...I think..." She read two or three words, then couldn't continue. She recognized all the letters, but when put together, they were like a wet, mushy mess of paper.

The classroom was silent for two seconds. Some people were chuckling to themselves, while others pretended not to notice.

The English teacher glanced at her, said nothing harsh, and simply added in a flat tone, "You didn't prepare well enough. Pay attention next time. Sit down."

Kim Jisoo sat down, lowered her head, and her ears turned slightly red.

She wasn't actually unable to do it; she was just distracted.

From the moment she stepped into the classroom, her mind wasn't on the book—she was thinking about that message. Oppa replied "Yes," but then what? When are you free? Where will we go on our date? Or…

I thought about it over and over again, like a butterfly trapped in a glass bottle, its wings flapping and crashing, unable to fly out no matter what it did.

The English teacher continued lecturing, her voice flowing past her ears like water.

As usual, Kim Jisoo didn't catch a single word.

She looked down at her textbook, her eyes fixed on that line of text, but her mind was already wandering elsewhere—to some uncertain weekend, to some time that hadn't been arranged yet, to the words her oppa might say later.

She was even thinking about what she should wear if her oppa asked her out, whether she should change her style or go for a pure and innocent look.

She has to be better than that SM trainee, Bae Joo-hyun!

It's a pity that you can't find any information about her on SM's official website, let alone any photos.

The girl next to her, with her still-chubby, baby-faced skin, reached out and gently touched her arm. "Teacher is watching you."

Kim Ji-soo snapped out of her reverie, looked up, and found her English teacher staring at her with a scrutinizing gaze and an indescribable meaning, as if to say, "I know you're daydreaming, but I'm too lazy to wake you up."

She quickly lowered her head, pretending to be reading a book intently. Why do actors have to learn English? She's not in Hollywood.

At this moment, Li Jingcheng had no time to check his phone, as he was completely overwhelmed by his packed schedule.

They're recording a song at CJ's music department.

After recording, there are still several promotional programs for "Embracing the Sun and the Moon" to be shown.

It was clearly agreed that actors should appear on fewer variety shows and have more mystery!

The soundproof door of the recording studio was closed. Li Jingcheng, wearing headphones, stood in front of the microphone and sang it once, then again.

Producer Kim Do-hoon nodded slowly at the end, a satisfied look on his face. "Kyung-sung, that's good. The emotions were spot on."

Li Jingcheng took off his headphones and walked out.

Kim Do-hoon, a gentle smile on his face, flipped through the sheet music. "The company has decided to release a song for you this year, in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean versions. You're already very popular in Japan, and Hunan TV in China has also started contacting you, wanting to invite you to participate in a program. As for the specific arrangements, that depends on what you decide, Manager Kim."

When Li Jingcheng heard the words "Huaxia" (China), his hands paused for a moment.

He paused for two seconds, then nodded and replied with a smile, "Then, Daoxun-ge, help me collect a few good songs. I don't want my songs to flop right after I release them."

"Don't worry, Kyungsung," Kim Do-hoon said confidently. "The budget I've given you this time is higher than I ever imagined. Not only is the song quality top-notch, but the MV shooting and the entire promotional campaign will also be of the highest standard."

"Then I'll wait and see."

Li Jingcheng was also eyeing the reward for intercepting the song; wasn't intercepting the song also a form of interception?

And if I can go back to China, maybe I can go back and see—see if that world is still there, see if I am still there.

After the recording ended,

He leaned against the wall in the hallway and took out his phone. The screen lit up.

Luo Yonghao watched as Li Jingcheng stopped, picked up his phone, and smiled helplessly.

Jisoo sent a message: "Oppa, are you free these next few days? I want to see you."

He looked at the message, smiled, and replied with a single word: "Whether I have it or not."

However, she'll have to be ranked after Yoona... Jisoo...