Peninsula: The Great Producer

How could Lee Ji-eun, who got up early to buy groceries and make breakfast, not be sleepy?

At that age when I'm prone to oversleeping, and since Qi Yao was driving very steadily, he turned off Lee Ji-eun's navigation and put his own phone on silent while using navigation.

We didn't stop at any rest stops along the way. We set off at around 9 a.m. and finally arrived at the Gwangju toll station at around 12:20 p.m.

The speed bump woke Lee Ji-eun, who was sleeping in the passenger seat.

Still half asleep, Lee Ji-eun rubbed her eyes and mumbled, "Have we reached a service area yet?"

Feeling like she was lying down to sleep, Lee Ji-eun glanced at Ki Yo-gu, who was driving, and slowly sat up.

Before she could even adjust the back seat, Lee Ji-eun immediately perked up when she heard someone talking to Ki Yo-gu, and it was a woman's voice.

I peeked out and was shocked to see a tollbooth? We're still in Seoul? No, Seoul's tollbooths are huge; this isn't Seoul.

After paying, Qi Yaojiu continued driving. After about 100 meters, Li Zhi'en saw another billboard by the roadside that read "Welcome to Gwangju".

"What? Oppa?"

Lee Ji-eun, after realizing what had happened, still couldn't quite believe it.

Weren't we supposed to be going to a service area to eat something delicious? How did we end up in Gwangju?

I picked up my phone, turned off the navigation, and before I knew it, it was past noon.

I rubbed my eyes again; this really wasn't a dream.

"Oppa."

Qi Yaojiu slowly said, "I heard that the kimchi and pork belly stew in Gwangju is very delicious. Since I've never been to Gwangju before, I figured I had to try the most authentic local version, so I came here."

Following the directions, Qiyao 9 Navigation's destination was indeed a restaurant located in Gwangju City.

People in Gwangju eat Korean food almost every day, and besides hot pot, grilled fish is also a specialty.

Lee Ji-eun asked doubtfully, "Oppa, did you really come here just to eat kimchi pork belly hot pot?"

"Well, what if?"

"Oppa, don't you know Gwangju?"

Qi Yaojiu pretended to be stupid: "I know, I've never been here before, so I came."

"No, what I mean is, doesn't Oppa find Gwangju a familiar city?"

Qi Yaojiu pondered for a moment with a serious expression and then said, "The city's name is very similar to a first-tier city on the coast of China. Yes, very similar."

Lee Ji-eun got a little anxious and spread her hands, saying, "Oppa, shouldn't you have heard of this somewhere before?"

Lee Ji-eun was practically pointing at herself.

Of course, Ki Yo-gu remembered that Lee Ji-eun had mentioned to him a long time ago that he, his grandmother, and his younger brother had stayed at his aunt's house in Gwangju when they were young.

Last time I visited Lee Ji-eun's parents' rented house in Heishidong, I met Lee Ji-eun's grandmother, brother, aunt, uncle, and cousin.

Although it happened almost two years ago, it doesn't mean Qi Yaojiu has forgotten.

He continued to feign ignorance, asking, "Where have I heard this before?"

"It should."

"Broadcast? Or..."

"Oppa, have you really forgotten? Last time I went to my parents' rented house, my grandma and the others were there too."

Qi Yaojiu chimed in, "Oh, you mean the one during the Mid-Autumn Festival? It's been almost two years already."

"Oppa, don't you remember what I said? Things from when I was a child?"

“When you were little, you lived with your grandmother from a very young age, which was not easy. Your grandmother always felt sorry for you. You wanted to start earning money as soon as possible, and you loved music and dreamed of becoming a singer, so you auditioned for various entertainment companies.”

"In the end, your current entertainment company signed you. Yes, you were even scammed once during the process. After signing with the company, you lived in that dilapidated dormitory. Before that, you slept in the company's practice room or warehouse, right?"

"Yes, that's right."

“Although the environment is bad, at least there is a place to sleep peacefully. But Ji-eun, that’s all in the past. You have to look forward. Just keep the hardships you’ve endured in your heart, there’s no need to bring them up to reminisce.” Lee Ji-eun gestured anxiously, and out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Ki Yo-gu’s expression was off, and he was clearly trying hard not to laugh out loud. Only then did Lee Ji-eun calm down.

"Oppa, you're so annoying! Oppa did that on purpose, didn't he?"

Qi Yaojiu was still pretending: "What do you mean by annoying, what do you mean by doing it on purpose? I don't understand what you're talking about."

Lee Ji-eun leaned back in her seat and complained, "Oppa always remembered that I told him about my grandma, my younger brother, and I staying at my aunt's house in Gwangju, so Oppa specially drove me to Gwangju."

“I know. I didn’t spend my birthday with my family yesterday. Oppa guessed that I missed my grandma, so he brought me to Gwangju.”

Qi Yaojiu stopped pretending and turned to look at Li Zhi'en, saying, "You're quite smart."

Lee Ji-eun grumbled, "Of course I'm smart, I'm not a little kid."

“Let’s have kimchi and pork belly hot pot outside for lunch, then go to the mall to buy some gifts. Now that you’re earning money, you should buy better gifts for Grandma and the others. After that, we’ll go to your aunt’s house for dinner. How about that?”

"What do you mean by 'crashing for dinner'? Oppa can eat whatever he wants, but you really don't need to tell your aunt beforehand, I'm scared."

"What are you afraid of?"

Lee Ji-eun found it a little difficult to talk about.

In fact, my aunt's family is very kind, but they are quite frugal in terms of food and clothing. Their meals usually consist of only one main dish in just the right amount and some side dishes, or they might just eat rice soaked in water.

Lee Ji-eun felt that her aunt's family was good because they had always taken care of her grandmother's daily life, although in other aspects, such as looking down on her and thinking that she couldn't be a singer, they were a bit "sharp and mean".

Lee Ji-eun didn't want Ki Yo-gu to experience the "not-so-good" side of her aunt's family, so she wanted to tell her aunt in advance so she could make preparations.

Judging from Qi Yaojiu's intention to keep quiet, he probably wanted to give his grandmother a surprise.

Lee Ji-eun also wanted to give her grandmother a surprise. She missed her grandmother very much and believed that her grandmother missed her too.

I'm really torn.

Qi Yaojiu saw through Li Zhi'en's thoughts and said slowly, "You buy some clothes and stuff, and I'll buy some Korean beef gift boxes and fruit gift boxes, which is just right. We can also have Korean beef barbecue at Aunt's house tonight."

Lee Ji-eun muttered, "Why is Oppa so good to me?"

Qi Yaojiu genuinely didn't hear what Li Zhi'en was muttering this time.

Lee Ji-eun stole a glance at Ki Yo-gu.

It's not just now that she's like this. Over the years we've known each other, Qi Yaojiu has been incredibly good to her in every way. She's the best man to her besides Pei Zhonghan.

The only downside is that Qi Yaojiu seems to treat the same people around him in a similar way.

Thinking about this, Lee Ji-eun felt a little sour.

She muttered to herself, "Does anyone else know how good Oppa is to me?"

Qi Yaojiu let out an "Ah".

Lee Ji-eun was startled.

Qi Yaojiu asked, "What are you muttering about?"

Lee Ji-eun said in a flustered manner, "It's nothing, it's just that I haven't had kimchi pork belly stew in a long time. I recommended it to Hara unnie and the others before. I'll take a picture and post it in the chat room after the kimchi stew is served."

"Go ahead and take the picture."

What if I accidentally photograph my oppa?

Ki Yo-gu casually remarked, "Wasn't it supposed to be a photo of me anyway? Otherwise, how would you prove that I was the one who brought you back to Gwangju? I'm not the driver."

What does that mean?
Is Ki Yo-gu trying to imply that the reason he drove me to Gwangju was for a date? The kind of date between a man and a woman?

Guru
Lee Ji-eun swallowed.

Too fast, the pace is too fast.

The contrast with the previous few years, which had been completely uneventful, was too great. I couldn't adjust, I was extremely unaccustomed to it. (End of Chapter)