Peninsula: I can steal the luck of disgraced celebrities

One pound of roasted meat.

It's the same store as last time, in the same corner.

The difference this time is that there are two more people.

Ham Eun-jung sat across from the grill, a slice of pork belly between her fingers, flipping it with practiced ease. She was wearing a loose sweatshirt, her short hair tucked behind her ears, and she looked to be in a great mood.

"I mean what I say." Eun-jung placed the grilled meat into Lim Ji-hoon's bowl. "15.2%, number one in its time slot, I'm happy to treat you to this meal."

"...It seems we were betting on the results of the first episode, and you've been in arrears for a week."

Eun-jung glared at Lim Ji-hoon and put the meat she had just put into his bowl back into her own.

Suzy sat to Lim Ji-hoon's right, looking down at her phone.

IU sat next to Eunjung, a bowl of rice in front of her, eating quietly.

Lin Zhixun picked up a piece of grilled meat. "We're filming episode six next week. Have you all read the script?"

Eunjung and Suzy nodded at the same time.

IU paused for a moment, then nodded in agreement. Although she didn't have many scenes in episode six, she had obviously watched it beforehand.

"There's a major scene in episode six," Lin Zhixun said, looking at Suzy. "Hye-mi is publicly criticized by her teacher for singing without emotion."

Suzy put down her chopsticks, her expression somewhat subtle.

"……Um."

"And then," Lin Zhixun continued, "the solution written in the script was that Song Sendong and the others would take Huimei to perform on the street."

"Yes, we'll sing 'GENIE'," Eunjung chimed in. "I've read the scene breakdown script. The staging of that scene is quite complex; it'll be filmed on location in Hongdae."

Lin Zhixun nodded.

Then he remained silent for two seconds.

GENIE.

Street performance.

He was told that his singing lacked emotion, so he regained his feeling through street performances.

Lin Zhixun put down his chopsticks and stared at the sizzling pork belly on the grill, a thought becoming clearer and clearer in his mind.

Did screenwriter Park Hye-ryun plant a camera on him?

Lim Ji-hoon looked up and glanced at IU.

IU was eating with her head down when she noticed Lin Zhixun's gaze.

She understood what Lin Zhixun was wondering about, so she put down her chopsticks and said something:

"This is normal. Street performance is a good way to build courage and emotional connection. Many veterans went through this process before their debut."

It turned out to be the case.

I thought that a transmigrator with a cheat-like ability like me must be the protagonist of the world.

So there's a group of people spying on my life every day.

"So," Suzy steered the conversation back on track, "that street scene in episode six, I'm supposed to sing 'GENIE'?"

"Yes." Lim Ji-hoon nodded, "And it was filmed on location in Hongdae, with real passersby."

Suzy remained silent for a few seconds.

"My singing skills are pretty average."

She said this calmly, without any self-deprecation; she was simply stating a fact.

"But Suzy, you and Jihoon both have very clean and clear voices that are very captivating," IU commented.

"It's okay," Lin Zhixun said. "The character of Huimei is not a genius singer; she is a hard worker. It's actually good that you didn't sing perfectly."

"That's what CEO Bae Yong-joon told me back then," Lim Ji-hoon added. "He said my singing was just average, but that average actually fits the character's growth arc."

Suzy looked up at him: "Where was your singing mediocre? The ratings for the third episode—"

"People always need to improve."

"That's a lie, who can improve that fast?"

"Handsome guys from Seoul never lie."

Upon hearing this, Eun-jung interjected, "Are you handsome?"

Suzy retorted, "Isn't your hometown Busan?"

Lim Ji-hoon: "..."

He could only laugh helplessly and say, "So I'm not a handsome guy from Seoul, so I can lie however I want."

……

The filming of the sixth episode began sooner than expected.

Hongdae Street, 3 PM.

The film crew cordoned off a section of pedestrian street, but because it was a real street shoot, the barriers were only partially closed off, and many passersby gathered around to watch.

Lin Zhixun stood by the roadside wearing Song Sendong's costume.

Suzy stood next to him, her expression somewhere between nervous and constipated.

"Relax a bit," Lin Zhixun said in a low voice.

"I feel very relaxed."

"Do you like to pinch people's thighs when you relax?"

Suzy looked down and saw that her hand was indeed gripping Lim Ji-hoon's thigh.

"I'm just... there are a lot of people."

There were indeed quite a few onlookers.

Hongdae is a popular spot for young people, especially on weekend afternoons when it's packed with people. The film crew's construction barriers have become the best place to hide their true feelings.

Where there are fences, there's bound to be some excitement.

The director set up the camera on the other side and shouted into the walkie-talkie, "Ready?"

Lin Chih-hsun raised his hand to indicate OK.

Suzy took a deep breath and nodded.

IU didn't have any scenes to film today, but she still came to the event.

Wearing a mask and a baseball cap, she huddled among the crew members, her presence practically nonexistent.

Ham Eun-jung does have scenes, but her parts are filmed in the back, and she's currently standing aside watching.

"Action!"

The prelude begins.

Several actors sang and danced Girls' Generation's "GENIE" together in the square.

The voice trembled slightly.

But that's okay. In the script, it was Go Hye-mi's first time performing on the street, so it's normal for her to be nervous.

After singing four lines, Suzy gradually regained her composure.

Her voice is indeed clean, and although her technique is average, it is highly recognizable.

Some onlookers started swaying to the rhythm.

Lin Zhixun followed the dance moves of Ok Taecyeon in front of him, glancing at the crowd out of the corner of his eye.

More and more people gathered.

This is both a good thing and a bad thing.

The good thing is that the atmosphere is right; the bad thing is that it's hard to control when there are too many people.

The song reached its climax.

Some people in the crowd started clapping.

The director wore a satisfied expression behind the monitor.

Everything is going smooth.

Until the second chorus.

Lin Zhixun heard a sharp scream from the crowd.

It wasn't a cheer.

It was a tirade of abuse.

"Lee Ji-eun is just filling in the numbers because of her looks!"

Lin Zhixun paused for a moment while dancing.

Suzy's voice also faltered by half a beat.

The crowd began to stir.

Lin Zhixun looked in the direction of the sound and saw several people wearing masks and holding banners standing outside the fence.

"Lee Ji-eun, your acting is terrible!"

"Go back to singing your songs!"

Several more shouts followed.

The director immediately yelled "Cut!" and urgent instructions came through the walkie-talkie, ordering security personnel to come and handle the situation.

Lin Chih-hsun stopped dancing and his first reaction was to look in IU's direction.

IU was still standing in the same spot, her mask covering most of her face, but the eyes peeking out from under her hat showed that she was frozen.

Ham Eun-jung had already walked up to IU, put her arm around her shoulder, and led her to the back of the crowd.

"It's okay, don't look over there." Eun-jung's voice was very low.

IU didn't say anything, but Eunjung half-pushed and half-pulled her back two steps.

The security personnel had already gone over, but those people refused to leave and kept shouting.

Some onlookers were filming, while others were whispering among themselves.

The scene was chaotic at one point.

Lin Zhixun stood still, looking at those people.

He frowned.