Peninsula: My cheat code is unscientific

From Chapter 135 onwards, please call her Fighting Lily (3K)

"What?" Sunny's eyes widened instantly, her face showing an expression that said, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

Before she could even voice her doubts, Jiang Che had already stepped inside, pulled Sunny closer by the neck, and whispered quickly in a voice only the two of them could hear:
"Let's cooperate!"

Sunny instantly understood. Although she was extremely unhappy about being demoted in seniority out of nowhere, she managed to suppress the urge to kill the bastard when she saw Sherry looking on with curiosity at the door.

He forced a completely fake smile and squeezed out a voice through clenched teeth:
"Ah! Kang Cheol oppa! You're back!"

As he spoke, he ruthlessly punched Jiang Che in the lower back with the hand hidden at his side.

"Ouch!" Jiang Che cried out in pain, his hand loosening its grip on Sunny instantly, and he instinctively clutched his lower back.

Taeyeon, who was standing next to her, couldn't help but burst out laughing when she saw the interaction between the two, especially Sunny's gritted teeth as she called out "Oppa." Her shoulders shrugged as she laughed heartily.

Sunny caught a glimpse of it and immediately offered a kind reminder:
"Taeyeon, what are you laughing at? Aren't you called Kang Cheol Oppa?"

Taeyeon's smile froze instantly. Seeing Sulli still standing at the door looking at them with a probing gaze, she quickly changed the subject and warmly took Sulli's hand:
"Shirley! Come in, come in! Are you alright? Were you scared?"

As she spoke, she pulled Shirley into the house, completely ignoring Jiang Che, who was still baring his teeth at the door, and Sunny, who had a "I'll remember you" look on her face.

Seeing Shirley being pulled away, Sunny finally couldn't help but whisper in Jiang Che's ear:

"Hey, what the heck is this? Are you trying to take advantage of me?"

Jiang Che said while rubbing his lower back:
"Isn't there no other way? The three of us are not related and yet we're living together. Isn't this ruining your reputation?"

Sunny felt like punching him again after hearing that.
"Then why don't you acknowledge me as your older cousin?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Che stopped rubbing his back and strode after Taeyeon into the house.

"Taeyeon, is there anything I can do to help?"

Sunny witnessed this from behind, and her back teeth nearly shattered from clenching them.

Sulli was pulled along by Taeyeon and subconsciously followed her inside, but she couldn't help but glance back at her cousins ​​whispering at the door.

Thinking about the relaxed and playful atmosphere between him and Sunny unnie that she had just witnessed at the door, she couldn't help but chuckle softly, finding the scene before her... quite amusing.

'But...why does she see Yoona unnie's shadow in Kang Cheol oppa again?' Before Sulli could think further, Kang Cheol oppa's voice came from behind her, and she couldn't help but mutter to herself:
'It must be because I haven't seen Yoona unnie for too long. Should I ask her out sometime?'

While she was lost in thought, Taeyeon, who was next to her, noticed that she didn't respond and gently nudged her arm.
"Shirley, what are you spacing out for? Are you alright?"

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing, it's nothing." Shirley snapped out of her daze, quickly waved her hand, and forced a well-behaved smile onto her face.

Taeyeon carefully examined her complexion and, finding nothing particularly unusual except for a slight fatigue, relaxed and led her towards a guest room.
"Shirley, why don't you sleep in this guest room tonight? I'll sleep with you, okay?"

“Okay, Taeyeon unnie.” Sulli nodded obediently.

Seeing that Sulli agreed, Taeyeon turned to Sunny and called out:

"Sunny, I slept with Shirley, you can sleep by yourself!"

Sunny, still harboring resentment at being forcibly demoted in seniority, snorted irritably upon hearing this:
"Sure, as long as you don't sleepwalk at night, no one will care if you sleep on the sofa."

"Sleepwalking?" Sulli looked at Taeyeon curiously:

"Taeyeon unnie, are you still sleepwalking?"

"Hey! Lee Soon-kyu! Don't talk nonsense!" Taeyeon's ears burned, and she glared at Sunny, embarrassed and annoyed.

Sunny simply shrugged, gave Shirley a look that said "figure it out yourself," and then casually walked away.

As the night deepened amidst laughter and conversation, the group said goodnight and returned to their rooms. Shirley, however, lay on her bed in the guest room, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. The night's events replayed in her mind like a revolving lantern:
The deafening music in the bar, Choi Ja's repulsive face, the handsome figure who suddenly appeared and subdued the bad guys, the incessant chatter in the car...

And then there was that intense sense of familiarity, originating from Kang Cheol oppa but inexplicably pointing to Yoona unnie… These intertwined images left her feeling utterly confused and wide awake.

"Sulli, are you having trouble sleeping in this bed? Or... are you still shaken by what happened today?" Taeyeon, who was sitting next to her, noticed her shifting and asked softly.

Sherry turned to the side in the darkness, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke softly:
“Taeyeon unnie...are you close to Kang Cheol oppa? I always felt...he was a very special person.”

The word "special" seemed to trigger something within Taeyeon. She silently raised the corners of her mouth in the darkness, paused for a few seconds, and then softly replied:
"It's...very special."

She paused, her thoughts drifting back to their first encounter: "The first time I saw him, it was actually a misunderstanding. I just pulled him right onto the stage..."

Thinking back to how Kang Cheol stammered out his birthday wishes to her on stage, Taeyeon couldn't help but chuckle, and then said:

"Later... when I finally got to know him, it was a huge misunderstanding. At the time, I thought I had discovered some amazing secret. Now that I think about it, I wonder how he was laughing at me back then."

Sulli listened quietly, blinking her eyes in the darkness. Although Taeyeon unnie's words were ambiguous and seemed like she hadn't said anything at all, she could genuinely feel the intimacy and longing in her tone.

“This person of his,” Taeyeon’s tone became even softer:

"It seems like they know everything and can do a little bit of everything. They can cook delicious food, their skills are like those in a movie, they have strong language skills, and they can even... write songs."

Just when you think you know everything about him, he'll suddenly reveal a new skill that surprises you. And chatting with him is genuinely reassuring and enjoyable.

“But,” Taeyeon’s tone was tinged with a helpless smile:
"Sometimes, he's like the protagonist of a shonen anime, with wildly imaginative ideas and strong drive. How should I put it... he's practically a savior who fell from the sky."

Shirley immediately recalled the scene of Jiang Che knocking out Cui Zi in the bar, and nodded in deep agreement in the darkness. That scene did indeed resemble a savior.

"He seems to... always see through your feigned strength, and then comfort you in his clumsy yet sincere way."

Upon hearing this, two overlapping images flashed through Sulli's mind again—one was when Yoona gently comforted her during BJ and made a pinky promise with her;

Another example is tonight, when Kang Cheol oppa was at the bar entrance, rubbing his hair and nagging himself to stay away from bad people and to call unnie if he needed anything... The déjà vu is too strong!

Taeyeon unconsciously quickened her pace as she reminisced, the memories of her time with Kang Cheol flooding her mind like a tide, making her desire to confide extremely strong.

"He's like...like a ray of bright light suddenly shining into a gloomy life, making you realize that life can be lived this way, and that you can relax like this."

He'll notice your subtle mood changes and then try his best to cheer you up in his own way. Being with him will make you feel very…

Taeyeon suddenly stopped.

She suddenly realized that she had talked too much and gotten too involved; the emotions contained in her words had long exceeded the scope of what ordinary friends would describe.

It was almost as if she were describing a light source deeply imprinted on her life trajectory that her cheeks belatedly began to burn.

Even before she finished speaking, Sulli already understood. Taeyeon unnie's tone, her description... it was clearly...! She couldn't help but lean closer to Taeyeon, tentatively probing in an incredulous tone:

"Taeyeon unnie...do you like Kang Cheol oppa?"

"Oh no!" Caught off guard by her secret, Taeyeon was instantly filled with embarrassment and instinctively reached out to tickle Sulli's waist, trying to hide her fluster.
"Hey! Choi Sulli! Mind your own business!"

"Hahaha... Unnie, I'm an adult too... No... I was wrong, I was wrong! Please forgive me!" Sherry laughed and dodged while begging for mercy.

After laughing and joking around, the two lay back down, and the only sound in the room was their slightly rapid breathing.

After a while, Shirley couldn't contain her curiosity and asked in a low voice:

"So... what's the relationship between Taeyeon unnie, Kang Cheol oppa, and Yoona unnie? He knows Yoona unnie too, right?"

"Huh? How do you know that Kang Cheol knows Yoona?" Taeyeon asked, somewhat puzzled.

Shirley smiled sheepishly and explained:
"It was at the bar earlier, when Kang Cheol oppa called you to make me believe him, and then he handed me his phone to listen to it. To confirm, I checked his phone and compared the numbers, and that's how I saw his contacts..."

Taeyeon was both amused and exasperated, but considering the relationship between Kang Cheol and Yoona, she didn't know how to explain it and could only vaguely reply:

"Hmm...they get along very well." Feeling that wasn't quite right, she added with emphasis:
"It's the kind that's really good."

Fearing that Sulli would continue to press for answers, Taeyeon quickly yawned and said in a sleepy voice:
"Alright, alright, stop gossiping and go to sleep. We have things to do tomorrow."

“Yes, Arasso,” Sherry replied obediently, and then fell silent.

But the question mark in her mind about "what exactly is going on between Yoona unnie and Kang Cheol oppa" not only didn't disappear, but actually grew bigger. However, seeing that Taeyeon unnie clearly didn't want to talk about it, she had no choice but to suppress her doubts and force herself to close her eyes.

The next morning, the door to the guest room was gently pushed open, and Shirley came out rubbing her eyes. She had barely managed to fall asleep until the early hours of the morning, and her face still showed signs of fatigue.

When she saw that several breakfasts were already laid out on the table, she was taken aback for a moment, then quickly returned to the room and gently shook the still-sleeping Taeyeon.
"Unnie, wake up."

(End of this chapter)