Peninsula: I can steal the luck of disgraced celebrities

Lim Pak-ji stood at the entrance of the SBS Ilsan Production Center.

This is the third time he has stood here.

This is my first time making a cameo appearance in "Oh My Lady," playing a model without any lines.

Hong Tae-sung, who auditioned for "Bad Guy" for the second time, received notification a few days ago that he had landed the lead role.

This is the third time I've officially joined the cast as a lead actor.

In the production center lobby, crew members were moving equipment.

Tracks, light boxes, reflectors—one by one, they were moved toward the parking lot.

He doesn't have a scene to film today; he's here for a script reading.

These occasions are usually the first formal meeting between actors, and also an opportunity for directors and screenwriters to convey their creative intentions to the actors.

The meeting room is on the third floor.

When Lin Puzhi arrived, several people were already seated around the long table.

The assistant director was organizing materials, screenwriter Kim Jae-eun was typing something on her laptop, and several supporting actors were talking in hushed tones.

He sat down at the spot with the nameplate "Shen Jianxu" on it, and not many people noticed him.

Then the door opened, and Han Jiaren walked in.

She was wearing a beige knit sweater, her hair was casually tied back, and she was without makeup.

What's most striking is the mole on her nose, which the media calls a "beautiful nose."

Lin Puzhi remembers that Lee Qri from the girl group Crown also had a mole on her nose.

Han Ga-in maintained a steady posture, with her back straight and chin slightly tucked in.

It's not arrogance, it's a habit formed from years of facing the camera.

She sat down in the "Moon Jae-in" seat, looked up and glanced around, her gaze lingering on Lim Pak-chi's face for a moment.

It wasn't because I knew him, but because the name tag "Shen Jianxu" was placed in front of a completely unfamiliar face.

"Are you Shen Jianxu?" she asked.

"Yes, senior, newcomer actor Lin Puzhi."

Han Jiaren nodded slightly and did not ask any further questions.

She looked away and opened the script in front of her.

But Lin Puzhi noticed that her fingers were lightly rubbing against the corner of the script.

It's like checking the texture of the paper, or maybe something else entirely.

The pressure of a comeback doesn't need to be spoken; your fingertips will speak for you.

A few minutes later, Kim Jae-wook also walked in and sat in the seat of the second male lead, Hong Tae-sung.

Oh Yeon-soo was the last actor to arrive.

When she walked in, the young actors in the conference room unconsciously sat up straight.

She debuted in 1992 and is the most senior among everyone present, with consistently solid acting skills.

She sat down in "Hong Tai-luo's" seat, opened the script, her movements were very light, but the atmosphere in the entire conference room immediately became heavy. It wasn't oppressive, but rather weighty.

Director Lee Hyung-min pushed open the door and walked in.

He was thinner than during the interview, with higher cheekbones and darker dark circles under his eyes.

He looked around to make sure no actors were absent, and then said:

"Has everyone looked through the scripts for the first two episodes on the table?"

Everyone nodded.

Lee Hyung-min rested his hands on the table, not sitting down.

He nodded and said, "Then let's begin today's script reading."

The script study begins with the first episode.

Lin Puzhi read Shen Jianxu's lines, Han Jiaren read Wen Zaiyin's lines, and Jin Caiyu read Hong Taicheng's lines.

The lines flowed by one after another, and the air in the conference room gradually grew warmer.

At the end of the study session, Director Lee Hyung-min looked at Lin Puzhi and asked:

Have you ever filmed a kissing scene?

"no."

"Have you kissed him?"

Lin Puzhi certainly had a past life.

But after recalling the original owner's memories, he said, "No."

Director Lee Hyung-min looked him up and down.

"What a waste of your face. The male lead, Shen Jianxu, has many kissing scenes. Before filming, go and practice properly to give me the feeling of a seasoned lover."

After saying that, he closed the script, didn't look at anyone, and simply said, "Six o'clock tomorrow morning, first scene."

Then he went outside.

Lin Puzhi subconsciously glanced around.

Han Ga-in, a married woman.

Wu Yanxiu is a married woman with two children.

Kim Jae-wook, male.

Jung So-min is not my type.

Shen Enjing is a minor.

The actors dispersed in twos and threes in the conference room.

Lin Puzhi walked out of the production center.

In the evening of February, the sky is a deep blue, somewhere between day and night.

The streetlights had just come on, their dim yellow light reflecting off the remaining snow.

Lin Puzhi's phone vibrated in his pocket.

He took out his phone to check; it was Ha Joo-hee.

[Spring Bear: How was today's reading session?]

[Lin Puzhi: I'll talk to you when I get to the store.]

[Spring Bear: OK]

The wind chimes rang once as the coffee shop door opened.

Ha Joo-hee was squatting behind the bar, arranging coffee beans, when she heard the sound and looked up.

"Would you like a cup of coffee?" Ha Joo-hee stood up.

"Is it nighttime now?" Lin Puzhi sat down at the bar and draped his coat over the chair next to him. "Not everyone is like you, a nocturnal animal."

"Nighttime is a gift from nature." Ha Joo-hee placed a glass of iced water in front of Lim Pak-ji. "Any interesting things to tell?"

Lin Puzhi picked up his cup, took a sip, and said:

"The director asked me if I had ever filmed a kissing scene."

"What do you say?"

I said no.

"Then what."

"The director said that the male lead has a lot of kissing scenes, so I should practice well before filming to portray the feeling of a seasoned lover."

Ha Joo-hee did not respond.

She put the cleaned cup back on the shelf, then took another one down and continued cleaning.

Lin Puzhi noticed that she had just wiped that cup.

"Who should I practice with?" Ha Joo-hee's voice was flat.

"The director didn't say anything; he told me to figure it out myself."

"Do you have a solution?"

Lin Puzhi thought for a moment, "Not yet."

The coffee shop was quiet for a while.

"Should we...?"

Ha Joo-hee paused for a moment.

"Find me for practice."

Lin Puzhi's hand, holding the ice water, froze in mid-air.

Ha Joo-hee still didn't look at him, and said:

"Don't get me wrong, I was just thinking, since your dream is to become an international superstar, then as your only friend in Seoul right now..."

Her voice grew softer and softer, her logic became riddled with errors, and she rambled on incoherently.

After she finished speaking, she picked up the rag from the bar and wiped the surface, which was completely dry.

Lin Puzhi looked at her.

The tips of her ears were still red, like skin touched by the winter wind.

Does Lin Puzhi need to practice kissing scenes?

The original owner needed it, but he didn't.

But looking at Ha Joo-hee's bright eyes, sexy lips, and bright red ear tips...

He made a strange mistake and said:

"it is good."

The coffee shop quieted down again.

"Now?" Ha Joo-hee asked.

"Now."

"Here?"

"here."

Lin Puzhi couldn't hold back any longer.

He walked around the bar and stood in front of Ha Joo-hee.

He was so close that he could smell her scent—the aroma of coffee beans mixed with a hint of laundry detergent.

Her eyelashes were very long; from this distance, each one was clearly distinguishable.

Their breaths drew close, and then their lips met.

Ha Joo-hee's kiss carried the bitter aroma of coffee and a hint of sweetness from milk.

The first kiss was very light, so light it felt like they were confirming the other person's authenticity.

Then leave.

Ha Joo-hee had already taken a step back, and somehow she had picked up the rag again, gripping it tightly.

Her face flushed red from her cheekbones to her ears, like the last bit of milk foam left at the bottom of a latte on the table that someone had spilled on it.

"That's it," she said, her voice a half-tone higher than usual. "I suddenly remembered that Donggua hasn't had breakfast yet, so I'll go upstairs to find its cat food."

She turned to run, but Lin Puzhi grabbed her hand.

Then they kissed a second time.

This time, their probing went even deeper, until Ha Joo-hee was out of breath and struggled free from Lin Pu-ji's embrace.

She took deep breaths of fresh air and shouted:

"How come you're so skilled at this!"

At this very moment, far away in Shenyang, Northeast China, Jang Nara is practicing a skit.