Peninsula: Please, I only want to talk about ordinary people.

Chapter 54 I Came to Your City

By the time Jiang Yongtai came to his senses, the car was already on the road towards Jinpu.

Mina's smile flashed through my mind again, and I pressed the accelerator a little harder, almost running a red light.

He slammed on the brakes, the car came to a stop, and he took a deep breath.

Calm down, calm down first — Minami is in Hyogo now, she can't run away, but where is she supposed to fly from?

He quickly went through the information in his mind.

The nearest airport is Gimpo. Flying to Kansai and then taking a ferry to Kobe is the fastest way. However, if the flight schedule at Gimpo doesn't work, you'll have to go to Incheon and then fly directly to Kobe.

He looked at the red light, which still had some time left, grabbed his phone, and called Jiang Huiyuan directly.

"Oppa? Ah—whoosh~"

The phone was answered after only a few rings. Jiang Huiyuan yawned, clearly still asleep.

"Huiyuan, please check the earliest flight from Gimpo to Kansai, and also from Incheon to Kobe. Right away."

"Oppa, why are you suddenly going to Japan? Aren't you working?"

Jiang Huiyuan, on the other end of the phone, still had a slightly nasal voice, as if she had just woken up, and hadn't quite figured out what was going on.

"Check it for me first, and I'll explain it to you later."

The red light turned green, and Jiang Yongtai hung up the phone and stepped on the gas again.

The navigation system was reporting the road conditions ahead, and the bright sunlight outside the window shone on the windshield. He squinted, and the two phone calls that had been hung up flashed through his mind again.

Nan-chan, you sent me a photo, but you don't even want to explain?

A moment later, the phone rang. Jiang Huiyuan called back and said directly, "There's a flight to Kansai from Gimpo at 4 PM, but I can't fly to Incheon until tonight. Oppa, what are you going to Osaka for?"

Actually, she had already guessed some of it when she checked the flight information.

My oppa is rushing to Japan in such a hurry, it can't be for work, so the only other reason is—

Is it Sana Minatozaki, or Mina Mina whom I bumped into at the apartment last time? It couldn't possibly be Momo Hirai, could it?!

'

Jiang Yongtai paused for a moment, but the feelings he hadn't expressed to Mina in the car a few days ago suddenly vanished without hesitation.

"Go find Mina, thanks, Emi, I'm driving now, bye."

He hung up the phone, turned the steering wheel, and entered the ramp towards Gimpo Airport, finally slowing down.

When he parked his car in the airport parking lot, Jiang Yongtai was glad that he usually left his passport in the car, otherwise he would have had to go home first.

He pulled out the key and ran into the airport terminal. There weren't many people queuing at the check-in counters. When it was his turn, the ground staff looked up and glanced at him.

Perhaps finding the sweat on his forehead and his furrowed brow a little strange, she quickly bought him a plane ticket and got him a boarding pass.

Jiang Yongtai stood at the security checkpoint, waiting for the people in front of him to line up, and looked down at the boarding pass in his hand.

Was I being impulsive?

Well, I didn't bring any clothes, and I left my car at the airport. I asked Kim Sung-woo for leave on my behalf, and the only destination I knew was "Hyogo." I didn't know the exact address at all.

He only saw a photo, got hung up on twice, and then threw himself onto this road.

—He was afraid, yes, he was just a little afraid, not afraid that Nan-chan would actually be with someone else—

But if she really wanted to give up this time, he hadn't even given her a reason to come back—

Jiang Huiyuan stared at the disconnected phone, her expression a mix of emotions.

Oppa was talking about Mina, right? So I wasn't mistaken last time—there really is something going on between them!

But why Mina of all people? Is Oppa still not awake?

Japanese women are the worst!

She got out of bed and walked out of the bedroom, glancing at Kwon Eunbi, who was curled up on the living room sofa watching TV with Choi Ye-na and Kim Chae-won.

Oh dear, before I've even officially started my operation, Eunbi unnie has already been eliminated?

No, Jiang Huiyuan disagrees! She can't let Oppa fall into the same trap twice!

She composed herself, put on a smile, and walked towards the sofa.

He sat down next to Choi Ye-na, who was playfully fighting with Kim Chae-won on the edge of the sofa, and pulled the two childish girls apart.

Choi Ye-na was pulled inexplicably when Kang Hye-won leaned close to her ear and whispered.

"Ye-na, do you want to come to my oppa's house? He's not here today, we can sneak a drink~"

Choi Ye-na's eyes lit up, but then she looked at the "sincere" Kang Hye-won with a suspicious gaze.

She had asked Jiang Huiyuan to take her to Jiang Yongtai's house several times before, but this brother-obsessed man had never agreed.

Such initiative now can't be anything good!

Jin Caiyuan, who was standing next to him, was still panting heavily and trying to pester him again.

Choi Ye-na kicked her away, glared at her, and pouted.

"Wait a minute! Can't you see Unnie is talking to Hye-won?"

As soon as Kim Chae-won saw the two of them together, he knew something "good" was going to happen, and he pounced on them again.

"Unnie, what are you guys talking about? I want to hear it too!"

Seeing this, Jiang Huiyuan was afraid that the loudspeaker would spread the news everywhere, so she had no choice but to pull her over and sit down as well.

The three heads huddled together and started whispering amongst themselves.

Jiang Huiyuan glanced at Quan Enbi, who seemed unfazed by the three of them and was still watching TV, and whispered, "I was telling Yena that we're going to my oppa's house for drinks tonight. It's not very convenient to drink in the dorm. Chaewon, do you want to come too?"

""

Kim Chae-won immediately raised his hand when he heard that it was time to drink.

"I want to go!"

Choi Ye-na shoved her hand down and muttered a curse under her breath.

"Hey! Keep your voice down, what if someone hears us!"

Kim Chae-won nodded quickly, pursed his lips, and made a zipping gesture.

Jiang Huiyuan nodded in satisfaction and continued to plot in hushed tones.

"But it's not fun with just the three of us. How about you two help me bring Eunbi unnie along too?"

Choi Ye-na was a little confused. "Eunbi unnie doesn't drink, why call her?"

Jiang Huiyuan naturally couldn't reveal his true purpose.

Ever since Kwon Eun-bi returned from Kang Young-tae's house, whenever she tentatively mentions Kang Young-tae, he immediately avoids her.

If they won't even listen, how can I try to match them up?

Now that Oppa is not home, at least we should pull Unnie back into Kang Young-tae's space. Only if she is willing to step in can there be a possibility of taking the next step!

Jiang Huiyuan was quite pleased with her brilliant idea, and explained without changing her expression, "Are you stupid? There are only three of us. If Caiyuan gets drunk, who will take care of her? Of course, we'll have to drag Eunbi unnie along!"

Kim Chae-won was quite dissatisfied with Kang Hye-won's dismissive remarks about his drinking capacity and wrinkled his nose in protest.

"Unnie! I won't get drunk! And I don't need Yena unnie to take care of me, Yena unnie is the one with the lowest alcohol tolerance!"

Choi Ye-na slapped her on the forehead.

"Hey! It's me, unnie! Unnie! How dare you talk to your unnie like that?"

Kim Chae-won winced in pain, clutching her forehead and glaring angrily at her, while Choi Ye-na rolled her eyes back.

Jiang Huiyuan looked at the two people and was speechless.

She wouldn't have bothered these two childish kids if she hadn't been completely desperate for help.

"Alright, stop fooling around. You two, work together with me. While the others aren't around, go and get Eunbi unnie on top."

Kim Chae-won and Choi Ye-na exchanged a glance, tacitly setting aside their past grievances and deciding to settle their differences at the dinner table that evening.

They turned to Jiang Huiyuan and nodded firmly.

Without further ado, the two stood up, wearing mischievous smiles, and sat down on either side of Kwon Eun-bi, calling out sweetly.

"Eunbi unnie~"

A sense of foreboding washed over Kwon Eunbi. She shrank back into the sofa, her voice trembling.

"Ye Na—Chae Won—what are you two doing?"

Jiang Huiyuan also stood up, wearing a sweet smile, and walked over to sit down in front of Quan Enfei, tilting her head back.

"Unnie~ Come out with us tonight~"

Looking at her tightly surrounded situation, Kwon Eun-bi swallowed hard.

How come my premonition came true so quickly?

Mei Yo glanced sideways at Mei Minami, who was smiling the whole time in the passenger seat.

She's been like this ever since she was eating with Yamada; she can even smile for ages while looking at the udon noodles in her bowl.

He couldn't help but ask.

"Nam, you seem to be in a good mood. Are you already thinking about going back to Seoul?"

Mina still smiled and shook her head.

"Oto-san, I'm staying for three more days. I'll spend these three days with you and Oga-san~"

She immediately sensed the reluctance hidden in Mingyang's tone.

Her father probably thought she was so happy because she could stand on the stage again, but unfortunately he was only half right.

The other half — is because I just hung up on Yongtai Sang twice!

Hmph~ Yongtai-san, now you're getting anxious? You only called twice, that's hardly sincere, isn't it?

If I don't answer, you're not going to call anymore? You idiot!

She touched her phone in her pocket, still waiting for it to vibrate again.

Call twice more—no, four times! I'll just have to "reluctantly" get through again.

This is a penguin's struggle!

Mina raised an eyebrow and nodded inwardly, quite satisfied with her battle strategy.

When Meiyo heard her say that, he smiled.

"That's good, but you can't go back now even if you want to. You need to get your knee checked properly later!"

Honestly, if I hadn't noticed during dinner, were you planning to keep it from me?

As he spoke, he began to express his dissatisfaction with his daughter.

My father is an orthopedic professor, and he didn't even tell me that my knee injury had recurred?!

"I'm sorry, Oto-san~"

Minami turned to the side and gave him a soft, coquettish look.

As a seasoned doting father, Mei-Yang swallowed all his dissatisfaction at her calling him that, and could only sigh.

"Alright, stop trying to coax me. Call your mother and tell her we're going to my workplace for a checkup first, and we might be home a little late."

"Understood, Otosan."

Mina smiled and responded, then picked up her phone and opened her contacts.

Jiang Yongtai's two call records lay on the screen. She puffed out her cheeks, paused her thumb on the number for a moment, and then moved it away.

Yongtai-san, aren't you going to call yet? At least bombard us with messages!

She tapped on Sachiko's number and dialed it, pouting as she gazed at the street scene receding past the car window.

Mina had no idea that someone was sitting in the waiting room of Gimpo Airport, frowning as they looked at the ferry timetable from Kansai Airport to Kobe on Wikipedia.

He even clumsily typed "Nai Minami Hyogo Prefecture address" into the search bar, then deleted it halfway through.

I was dumbfounded at my own stupid attempt to find the home address of "famous idol Mina" through a search engine.

The waiting time flew by, and at 6 p.m., Jiang Yongtai heard the flight attendant announce over the intercom that they had arrived at Kansai International Airport in Japanese, English, and Korean.

He turned to look out the window at the unfamiliar land, thinking to himself that if he caught another ship to Kobe, he would see Minami.

At the same moment, Sana Minatozaki, who had just finished practice, sat in her car, looking up at the familiar apartment building outside the window, and muttered something under her breath.

"That guy Kang Young-tae should be back in Liangshan by now, right? Soo-bin unnie probably didn't lie to me—"

She made a phone call to Park Soo-bin during her break, just to ask when the second episode would be filmed.

When asked about the recording date, Park Soo-bin grabbed me and gave me a long lecture.

He said he was at home with his kids today, which was a rare occasion, but then Kim Sung-woo suddenly called and said that Kang Young-tae had something to do at home and needed to take two more days off.

This forced her to rush back to the company to clean up his mess!

Sana Minatozaki listened, her eyes darting around.

Something happened to Jiang Yongtai's family? Liangshan?

She knew his hometown was in Liangshan, so if he needed to ask for leave because of family matters, it must be from there.

"Sana? Are you still listening?" Park Soo-bin called out in confusion.

"Oh, oh! I'm listening, unnie. Kang PDnim is so irresponsible! I'll condemn him with you!"

Park Soo-bin burst out laughing at her joke.

"Okay, thank you Sana~"

"Since you have to work overtime, I won't bother you any longer. Goodbye, unnie!"

Sana Minatozaki hung up the phone hastily and lowered her eyes.

Jiang Yongtai isn't home? This is a great opportunity!

She recalled the photo at Jiang Yongtai's house last time, the one he had blocked from letting her bring back, and her lips curled down in a slight purse.

Although he's not here right now, it really doesn't seem right for me to go in without permission.

But she had already told him during a dinner party a couple of days ago that she would pick up the things when she had time.

Today's practice is over, and it seems like I have quite a bit of free time.

Sana Minatozaki found herself a perfect excuse and arrived at Kang Young-tae's apartment building.

She looked down at the number on her phone screen, hesitated for a moment, but still didn't dial it.

If I hit him, he definitely wouldn't let me come; it's not like I haven't learned my lesson before.

Sana Minatozaki wrinkled her nose, took a deep breath, opened the car door, and got out.

She pulled her baseball cap down hard, the brim covering most of her face, and then jogged into the apartment lobby, her steps as light as if she were a thief.

When she arrived at Jiang Yongtai's apartment floor, the elevator doors opened, and she leaned out halfway, glancing left and right at the corridor. No one was there.

When she reached the door, she pressed herself against it, glanced at the empty corridor to make sure it was safe, and then quickly typed a string of numbers on the keypad.

With a beep, the door opened.

She slipped inside, quietly closed the door, leaned against it, and let out a long breath.

Before her heart, which had been pounding so hard it felt like it was about to jump out of her throat, had completely calmed down, the corners of her mouth had already turned up in a smile.

However, to make sure Jiang Yongtai was really not there, she still called out softly twice into the empty living room.

"Kang Youngtae, Youngtae PDnim~ I'm coming in~"

'

There was no response at all.

Safe~

Sana Minato laughed triumphantly, completely relaxing now. She casually kicked off her canvas shoes, leaving one on each side in the entryway.

Stepping onto the wooden floor in the living room, I immediately felt relaxed and at ease.

The living room is still the same as before, with the sofa, TV, and coffee table unchanged.

She walked to the sofa, but didn't sit down immediately. First, she poked the cushion with her finger, then pressed down with her knee, and then sank down, bouncing her bottom twice on the cushion.

She nodded in satisfaction, a smile curving her lips.

Jiang Yongtai's sofa is her favorite thing.

Back when Twice hadn't changed dorms yet, the old sofa in the living room made her back ache from sitting on it. She wanted to change but it wasn't convenient, so she could only make up for her regret by staying at Kang Youngtae's place.

This is the one she picked out herself. Back then, she and Jiang Yongtai spent a long time trying on each piece of furniture in the store.

Sana Minato smiled, leaned back, and sank into the sofa, letting out a comfortable sigh.

She reached out and grabbed the remote control from the coffee table, turned on the TV, and randomly selected a channel.

Since Jiang Yongtai wasn't home, there was no need to take the things and go back. She decided to catch up with the sofa she had been lying on for over a year!

Laughter from the variety show on TV filled the living room in waves.

Sana Minatozaki lay on her side on the sofa, her head resting on the cushions, her eyes squinting as she laughed at the funny parts of the show.

After watching a variety show, she switched to a music program, and then from the music program to a rerun of an idol drama.

She flipped through the channels one by one, and even started watching "Spirited Away" again, completely unaware that it had gotten dark outside the window.

Until the last rays of the setting sun slanted into the living room and disappeared from the balcony, leaving only the light from the television screen shining on her face.

"PDnim, it's getting dark~ Where are you? Come out and turn on the light for me~"

She called out instinctively, with a hint of coquettishness, just like before.

But only the voice from the television answered her.

Sana Minatozaki paused for a moment, the corners of her mouth still curved in a smile, but they slowly drooped downwards, no matter how hard she tried to hold them up.

It wasn't because Jiang Yongtai wasn't home that no one turned on the lights for her.

She suddenly realized that he was no longer obligated to leave the room.

Actually, the switch was right next to the sofa; she could reach it by standing up and walking a few steps, but she never touched it before.

Of course, she wasn't that lazy; she just liked hearing him come out of the room, sigh helplessly, and say, "You can get it with just a reach, so why do you have to call me? Saa————"

Yet, he would still come out every time to turn on the light for her.

Back then, whenever he passed by the sofa, he would casually ruffle her hair, and then the lights would suddenly turn on, warming the entire living room.

Sana Minatosaki suddenly didn't want to turn on the lights.

She turned around, buried her face in the gaps of the sofa cushions, pulled her legs up, and hugged the cushion in her arms even tighter.

""

The light from the television screen was still flickering.

In the scene, Chihiro is squatting by the flowers, stuffing large mouthfuls of the rice balls that Haku handed her.

Perhaps realizing that she no longer had parents to whine to, tears streamed down her face.

Joe Hisaishi's piano music drifted out from the screen, quietly filling the entire dark living room.

She listened as Chihiro's suppressed sobs grew louder and louder, and inexplicably found it very noisy, so noisy that she couldn't even hear her own voice—

She bit her lower lip and buried her face even deeper into the cushions.

Minami leaned against the headboard, her Switch screen showing her little character diligently fishing for bass by the river.

She cast the bait down, the float moved, but she didn't budge.

The little girl put away her fishing rod and cast it again. The float moved again, but she didn't budge; her mind wasn't on it at all.

Her gaze would occasionally drift to her phone, which sat silently beside her like a brick.

It's almost nine o'clock, and Jiang Yongtai still hasn't called—even if he was working earlier, he should be off work by now!

She puffed out her cheeks, tossed her Switch aside, grabbed her phone, opened her chat with Jiang Yongtai, and started talking about lunchtime.

Enlarge the group photo that was sent.

Could it be that Yongtai-san discovered something was wrong? That shouldn't be the case—

My finger traced names on the screen, slowly bringing the half-obscured nameplate behind Dr. Yamada into view.

She frowned slightly. Although most of the words "Psychiatry" on the signboard were covered, some of them were still visible.

So that's how it is —

If Yongtai-san calmed down later and looked at it more closely, he would probably just think he went for a follow-up appointment.

Mina lowered her eyes and began to look for reasons why he had stopped looking for her.

Suddenly, my phone rang.

She answered the phone before she could even see who it was, and her decision from noon to "hang up at least three times" was completely shattered at that moment.

"Mina unnie~"

Son Chae-young's sweet voice came through the receiver.

Mina paused for a moment, and the glimmer of light that had just appeared in her eyes dimmed again.

She smiled, her voice still gentle, "Oh, it's Chaeyoung. Why are you calling me?"

I miss you~

Mina chuckled, "I've only been back for less than a day."

"Wrong, unnie! It's 26 hours and 10 minutes! I started counting from when you left yesterday!"

After carefully correcting the mistakes, Son Chae-young looked forward to Mina's praise.

"Was my calculation correct?"

If only Yongtai-san were like you —

Mina smiled and nodded. "Yes, you didn't miscalculate. I did—"

"Hehe~ By the way, unnie, there's going to be a good show in the dorm later."

Son Chae-young chuckled, then lowered her voice mysteriously.

When Mina asked her what kind of show it was, Son Chaeyoung began to tell her everything in detail.

Momo wanted to go out to eat with Sana, but found that she wasn't in the dorm. She asked around, but no one knew where she was, and no one answered her phone. It was already nine o'clock and she still hadn't come back.

Momo was so anxious that she wanted to call her manager, but Nayeon stopped her, saying that Sana would be in big trouble if the company found out.

They are now sitting in the living room, waiting for Sana to come back and discipline her.

"--Is that so? Then Sana is indeed in trouble."

Mina still had a smile on her lips, but it only lasted for a second before it slid down, and she couldn't even fool herself.

"But she probably went out with friends, and her phone just ran out of battery?"

She seemed to be making excuses for Minatozaki Sana, but a scene in her mind was already too much to suppress.

A scene showing why we can't contact Sana Minatozaki —

"Maybe, I don't know -- ah, it sounds like Jeongyeon unnie is calling me."

I'll go out first. If Sana unnie comes back, I'll secretly call you and let you hear how she got disciplined~

The excitement of watching a good show was already overflowing from Son Chae-young's voice as she hurriedly hung up the phone.

Mina took the phone away from her ear and held it in her hand.

He looked down at the screen, but his gaze wasn't focused on it.

The image that had just appeared in my mind became more concrete, as clear as if it had already happened.

So it turns out that Yongtai-san didn't notice anything wrong with the photo—he just went to find Sana, no wonder he didn't come to find me. She remembered that day before Minatozaki Sana went to the dinner party, he held her hand in the practice room and said, "At some point, a person suddenly finds himself thinking about things he shouldn't be thinking about."

That scene, combined with the fact that Sana Minatozaki is currently out of contact and Yong-tae Kang is silent, can be pieced together without much deductive reasoning.

The phone rang again. Mina thought it was Son Chaeyoung calling to let her listen to the live broadcast, so she answered it casually.

"Chaeyoung, is Sana back?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

"Nam-chan—it's me, Kang Young-tae, I—I'm lost."

His voice came through the receiver, slightly breathless and hoarse, carrying a mix of relief and embarrassment at finally getting through.

Mina trembled slightly the moment she heard his voice.

I waited all night for the call, and it just so happened to come at this exact moment, right after the news that "Sana has gone back to her dorm."

You just dropped Sana off and you're calling yourself downstairs? You're something else, Kang Young-tae!

Lost? You almost wandered into my place by mistake!

Her voice turned cold, but a surge of emotion welled up in her eyes against her will.

"Why is Yongtai calling me now? Is it to tell me that you and Sana have gotten back together? Congratulations!"

"Nan-chan, what are you talking about? I'm in Kobe Port right now, how could I get back together with Sana?"

Jiang Yongtai was a little confused, completely unaware of how Mina suddenly brought up Minatozaki Sana.

He was standing in the passenger transfer area of ​​Kobe Port when the kind taxi driver next to him leaned out for the third time to ask him, "Sir, where are you going? Would you like to get in the car first?"

He had no address, only a name, so he had no choice but to call Minami in a desperate attempt to get an address.

I'm hoping she'll answer this time so I can get her address, see her, and say what I've been holding back all this way.

Mina was even more bewildered than him. The warmth in her eyes was abruptly cut off by his words, and her voice trembled even more.

Kobe Port? He really isn't with Sana?!

"W-Where did you say you were?"

"I am in Kobe Port."

Jiang Yongtai looked up at the night sky. He had checked the weather before coming. The days were fine, but the nights were always overcast.

But now, the clouds over Hyogo Prefecture have unexpectedly dispersed tonight.

The half-moon hung overhead; it wasn't as beautiful as the full moon, nor as evocative as the waning moon, but he still found it pleasing to the eye.

A smile appeared on his face as he gripped his phone and spoke softly in Kansai-accented Japanese, which he had learned from Sana Minatozaki and corrected by Mina Mei.

"Nan-chan, I want to see you. Can you tell me where you are?"

He paused, then added.

"The moon is beautiful tonight."

The same to you----

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