Hancheng: There is a door between me and the future

Chapter 331 Shamelessness and Strike First (Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets)
Under the eaves.

As Park Hyomin's body slowly sank into the warm spring water, she sat down but did not move closer to Park Jiyeon beside her.

Instead, they subtly moved closer to the corner where Lin Xiuyuan was.

The air was thick with steam, creating a subtle atmosphere.

Especially when she saw the towel on Lin Xiuyuan's face, soaked with her own, becoming heavy and making it hard for him to breathe, she had to quickly pull it off, revealing his disheveled, panting appearance.

Park Hyo-min finally couldn't hold back and burst into laughter.

There was a hint of schadenfreude in that smile.

When Lin Xiuyuan followed the sound of laughter and looked at her with a slightly helpless gaze, Park Hyomin immediately stopped smiling as if she had been caught red-handed.

She feigned composure and glanced at the other side of the waterfall, as if the figure who had just been laughing was not her at all.

Seeing the other party's attempt to cover up their misunderstanding, Lin Xiuyuan was too lazy to ask silly questions like "What are you laughing at?" or "Who spilled the water?"

The answer was practically written all over the other person's face.

So after wringing out the wet towel and placing it on the dry rock next to her, she turned to look at Goo Hara, who was huddled with Sulli, using her phone to find the right angle to take a picture.

"Hara, how many more days of rest can you take?"

Goo Hara, who was adjusting her expression, turned around and replied, "There are only a few days left. We have to start work tomorrow. So let's get some rest with Mari tonight. We'll have to get busy tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiuyuan turned his gaze to Park Jiyeon, who was taking a selfie across from him, and asked, "Jiyeon, what about you guys? What are your schedules?"

“Same here,” Park Jiyeon replied, putting down her phone. “We won’t get many days of rest either. If it weren’t for this typhoon, we’d probably be rehearsing right now.”

"So, are you planning to stay in Tokyo this whole time?" Lin Xiuyuan asked after listening.

"How can it be."

Park Jiyeon finally finished taking photos and started counting on her fingers.

"Many commercial activities and endorsement offers have already come to us from China, and we are also in talks and filing for stage invitations for some galas. Once these scheduled events here are settled, I'll probably be flying over there soon."

As she spoke, she seemed to suddenly remember something and looked at Lin Xiuyuan, "By the way, oppa, about our brand opening franchise stores in China..."

"You're in full charge. I said I'm not involved in this." Lin Xiuyuan waved his hand to relinquish control before she could finish speaking.

Little did anyone know that Park Jiyeon's visit to him this time wasn't to shift the blame, but rather for something else entirely.

"Ah, oppa~ I'm not trying to cause you any trouble or ask you to interfere. I was just saying that Sohee came to Tokyo with me this time, and she gets quite bored staying in the hotel alone when I'm busy. How about we let her go out and have some fun with you and Sulli for the next few days? Otherwise, she'll be stuck at home all the time and get moldy."

Upon hearing Park Jiyeon mention Lee So-hee, Lin Xiuyuan suddenly remembered that she had such a junior assistant and subconsciously asked, "Oh, where does she live? Why didn't you invite her along when you came out today?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Park Jiyeon scooped up some hot spring water with her hand and splashed it accurately all over his face.

"Hey!! Oppa, you're so mean! You were the one who said it was a private gathering and that no outsiders wanted to come, and now you're blaming me??"

"Ah... I forgot, I forgot, it's my fault."

Lin Xiuyuan, whose face was splashed with water, then remembered that he had indeed said that. He smiled somewhat guiltyly and raised his hand to wipe the water droplets off his face.

But at this moment, Park Hyomin, who was sitting next to him, became unhappy.

Pointing to himself, he said with a slightly confused tone, "Outsider? Ah, then what about me? According to your logic, what am I?"

Hearing the voice, Lin Xiuyuan turned his head and glanced at her with a teasing smile. "You? Xiaomin, you're a bit special. You're the kind who insists on coming along, so I can't help it. Shaoxi is too young and shy to join in the fun."

"Lin Xiuyuan!!!"

Park Hyomin, who was already a little annoyed, was completely ignited by his answer.

So anger welled up inside him, and he no longer cared about his image.

He straightened up and, using both hands, splashed several handfuls of water at Lin Xiuyuan, the water spraying large and fast.

At the same time, Ru ware became increasingly shiny, larger, and whiter.

While admiring this, Lin Xiuyuan smiled and reached out to block.

After being attacked several times by Park Hyomin, she suddenly had an idea and seized the opportunity to splash a little bit back at the culprit, Park Jiyeon.

Moreover, the water splashed by Park Hyomin earlier covered a very large area, with many droplets even passing over Lin Xiuyuan and splashing directly onto Goo Hara and Sulli, who were focused on taking pictures not far away.

"ah!"

"Ah! Unnie~!"

Unexpectedly, Goo Hara and Sulli were startled by the sudden water bomb and jumped back, almost dropping their phones.

Then, standing to the side, looking at his hair and shoulders that were instantly soaked, he shouted, both amused and annoyed.

"Unnie, it was oppa who upset you, it has nothing to do with us!"

"That's right, that's right! Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt has its debtor. Don't let innocent people get hurt!"

However, at this moment, Park Ji-yeon, who had been dragged into the hot spring by Lin Xiuyuan's indiscriminate attacks, finally became slightly angry.

Originally, he only wanted to get revenge on Lin Xiuyuan, but now that the conflict has escalated, he simply doesn't care about anything else.

Unconcerned about whether her movements would expose her, she spread her arms wide like a small motor and frantically splashed water at Lin Xiuyuan and Park Hyomin in retaliation.

Unfortunately, it was too young, so there's not much Ru ware to speak of.

Even so, after these few minor incidents, the hot spring pool was suddenly filled with splashing water, and the battle was fierce.

Moreover, when Park Jiyeon, that little dragon cub, gets rowdy, the water spray she creates is huge and wide, almost covering the entire pool and the surrounding floor.

Seeing this, Goo Hara and Sulli, who had already been accidentally injured, were so frightened that they quickly fled the war zone and ran back to the safe area under the eaves near the entrance.

Then, with a mixture of amusement and exasperation, I watched the three perpetually immature figures fooling around in the pool.

Just then, Ham Eun-jung finally finished showering, changed into her swimsuit, and came out.

As soon as she opened the door, she saw Goo Hara and Sulli hiding in the doorway like startled deer, and she was a little confused. "Hara, Sulli, what are you doing?"

"Unnie, see for yourself." Shirley suppressed a laugh and pointed towards the hot spring pool.

Upon hearing the sound, Ham Eun-jung turned her head in the direction she was pointing and saw water splashing everywhere in the pool. Lin Xiuyuan, Park Ji-yeon, and Park Hyo-min were fighting fiercely, and the scene was quite childish.

Ham Eun-jung laughed speechlessly at this, shook her head, and gestured for Goo Hara and Sulli to go take a shower first, while she walked towards the battlefield herself.

As they walked over, they spoke in a tone that was both helpless and like a parent scolding their children, "Hey you guys, none of you are little kids anymore, why are you playing water fights like elementary school kids? How childish!"

Hearing Ham Eun-jung's voice, Lin Xiuyuan, who was in the middle of a fierce battle, took a moment to glance at her, his gaze sweeping over her swimsuit.

Compared to the daring style that Sweet Eun-jung occasionally tried 25 years ago, Ham Eun-jung 13 years ago is obviously much more conservative in her clothing.

She chose a one-piece swimsuit with a classic design, and the bottom even featured a slightly conservative four-corner design.

Although the swimsuit still showed off her well-toned figure, it covered her up completely, creating a stark contrast with Park Hyo-min's sexy and hot look next to her. This overly conservative style made Lin Xiuyuan's vision go black, and he instinctively muttered a complaint.

"Eunjung, when are you going to improve your taste even a little bit? Even Jiyeon doesn't choose these old lady-style swimsuits anymore."

Before Ham Eun-jung could answer, Park Hyo-min, who had just stopped fighting, chimed in, eager to stir up trouble.

"Hey, Xiuyuan, stop beating around the bush. You're not trying to help Eun-jung's taste evolve, you just want to see her in a bikini, you want to see her figure, can't you be any more obvious about your intentions?"

The next second, Lin Xiuyuan followed her words and looked intently at Xian Enjing.

With a confident smile that suggested she had discovered a secret, she uttered a startling question: "Hyomin, guess what I've seen Eunjung in a bikini?"

As soon as Lin Xiuyuan uttered those pointed words, Ham Eun-jung's mind flashed with images of the audacious behavior that man might have exhibited 25 years ago, and her cheeks flushed slightly.

She rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Xiuyuan, stop messing around."

But Park Hyo-min was stunned once again.

No, you two really dated? You really saw each other?
……

……

Just as Lin Xiuyuan, Xian Enjing, Park Hyomin, and others were laughing and playing in a hot spring in Tokyo, enjoying a rare moment of leisure.

In Seoul 25 years ago, another dialogue is taking place.

Jessica, who didn't wake up until the afternoon, first rubbed her throbbing temples before reaching for her vibrating phone on the bedside table and answering the video call from Krystal.

Krystal on the other side of the screen was wearing makeup, presumably on a trip or preparing for a trip.

Looking at the clear face on the other person's face in the camera lens, Jessica asked in a hoarse voice, "What's wrong, Soojung? Why are you in such a hurry to call me? I just woke up and saw your message asking me to reply, and I just replied when you called."

"Jessica, what time did you go to sleep last night?"

Across from her, Krystal looked at the woman on the screen, still lying lazily on the pillow with her hair disheveled, with some surprise.

"Around three or four o'clock."

After saying that, Jessica rubbed her temples again, trying hard to recall, "Last night I went out with some friends I had arranged to meet up, and we had some drinks."

As he spoke, he reached for a bottle of mineral water on the bedside table again, unscrewed the cap, and gulped down a large mouthful.

The cool liquid slightly relieved the dryness in my throat and the dizziness in my head.

After she finished drinking the water, she put the water bottle down.

Looking at Krystal, who was still hesitant to speak on the other end of the video, he spoke again, "Krystal, don't just look at me. Just say what you want to say. I'm listening. Is there anything you can't say?"

However, Krystal on the other end of the video wasn't actually staring blankly at her; she was caught in some kind of conflicting emotion.

She remembered the words Jessica Jung had said to her yesterday, and was now hesitating whether she should relay them to Jessica in front of her.

But actually, when she decided to make that video call, she already had a pretty good idea of ​​what to do.

The sheer volume of information was overwhelming, leaving Krystal momentarily overwhelmed and struggling to organize her thoughts.

So when Jessica called out to her again, Krystal took a deep breath and made up her mind to say, "Jessica, do you know what she said to me yesterday?"

The grammar of this sentence is a bit strange, as it uses both the direct form of address "Jessica" and the honorific "Unnie".

However, no explicit prefix was added to the name, as if confirming some tacit understanding with the other party.

So this unique way of expressing herself made Jessica on the other end of the video slightly open her previously hazy eyes, a knowing glint in her eyes, and she softly replied, "Yeah, I know, I saw her pull you to a little corner yesterday."

Then a cryptic, ambiguous smile appeared on his face. "What's wrong? What did she say to you?"

Krystal pursed her lips on the other end of the video call, and finally told the message that had been troubling her all night. Her tone was somewhat subtle, "She told me to find a suitable time, find a way to get you drunk, and then send you to her bed."

"..."

On the other end of the video, Jessica's face, which had been looking sleepy and languid, froze completely the moment she heard those words.

She considered many possibilities in her mind.

For example, Jessica Jung disliked her and wanted to give her a hard time.

Or perhaps it's about the various forms of female rivalry that were unleashed on Lin Xiuyuan.

But she never expected that what she would receive would be such a straightforward, absurd, and indescribable suggestion.

This caused Jessica's mind to go completely blank, and her CPU burned out.

After a long pause, Jessica, having regained her voice, spoke with a deep sense of confusion and absurdity, "No, what does she mean by that??? Is she crazy, Soojung? Are you sure she didn't say she was sending him to Soowon's bed?"

Krystal had already thought about it for a while and had some vague guesses in her mind.

But she didn't say it directly; she just shook her head. "I'm sure I heard correctly, but I don't know why. That's why I thought I'd tell you as soon as possible. Please be careful."

At this point, Jessica's brain finally recovered from its malfunction and began to work at high speed.

At the eye of the storm, the CPU frantically loaded all sorts of possibilities; countless absurd or reasonable thoughts flashed through her mind like a data stream.

Why did she do this?
Send me to her bed?

What's the point of this?

Is it...

Ultimately, based on her own wicked sense of humor and logic, Jessica suddenly grasped something that seemed utterly absurd, but upon closer inspection, it actually seemed like something she herself could do.

So he suddenly sat up straight on the bed and blurted out to Krystal on the other end of the video call in a tone that was a mixture of shock and realization.

"Damn it, that idiot!! Is she planning to use me as some kind of gift, pack me up and let Xiu Yuan come over to enjoy me and show off his achievements?? Has she lost her mind? Doesn't she know that I've already slept with Xiu Yuan...?"

Thinking of this, Jessica immediately dismissed the guess, "Wait a minute, it's so obvious, she must know already, so what's her motive?"

New questions arose, causing her to ponder once again.

Then an even more infuriating possibility surfaced: "Is it just for fun? To mess with me? To see me make a fool of myself?"

The thought that Jessica might be plotting against her behind her back with such a wicked sense of humor made her feel a surge of anger.

"No! We can't just sit here and wait to die! I have to strike first!"

On the other end of the video, Krystal kept suppressing her laughter, watching Jessica's ever-changing expressions before finally arriving at this counterattack conclusion.

Especially after hearing that last sentence, I finally couldn't hold back anymore.

The smile that had been brewing on her lips for so long finally blossomed, like a rose blooming in the sunlight, bright yet tinged with a touch of regret for Jessica.

He thought to himself: Sure enough, young people have better brains. I hope that stupid girl Jung Soo-jung doesn't plot against me like this. It would be too much of a disaster if I really fell into her trap.

　Last day, please vote with your monthly tickets!!!
　　Just whispering: Is it even possible for them to make the top 100?!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)