Peninsula Platinum Era

Chapter 323: Shifting the blame
"Ah! This was dropped here by my teammate, I didn't draw it myself."

Meiyan panicked. After all that effort, she still ended up with a mess, and one that was hard to explain. She really wanted to slap herself.

I don't know if my father will believe this explanation, but there's nothing I can do about it. I can't exactly say that I smoke and drink in private.

Mr. Zhao was clearly taken aback for a moment. He looked at the cigar box in his hand that had already been opened, and then he had a look of sudden realization on his face. His eyes even showed a hint of relief and amusement.

"Your teammate... is pretty old-fashioned!"

He gently put down the heavy cigar box, gave his daughter a meaningful look, and said that although it was common for girls in South Korea to smoke, this was not a women's cigarette.

Meiyan's mother also stopped looking around the living room, her gaze shifting between her daughter and the obviously expensive cigar box.

There's nothing wrong with her dating at her age, and her parents haven't really questioned it. Young people these days often prioritize feelings, and they sensed she was dating many years ago, but they didn't interfere then and they certainly won't now.

"Yes, that's right. This is a high-end product. Dad, take it home and try it out!"

Meiyan has actually become quite thick-skinned, thanks to Chen Shijun's long-term training of her. After all, he made Meiyan squat on the wine cabinet and do DIY for him, repeatedly pushing her boundaries.

Her voice trailed off as she spoke, cursing Chen Shijun countless times in her mind. It was all his fault for displaying these tasteful items everywhere, and she wondered if he had left any other loose ends.

"Really? Our Miyeon is so filial. But this belongs to our teammate. Isn't it a problem to do this?"

Zhao's mother walked over and gently patted her daughter's arm. Her tone was gentle but inquisitive. Looking at her daughter's shifty eyes, she already had some guesses in her mind.

My daughter is working hard alone in Seoul. Her liquor cabinet is full of expensive drinks, including things that are clearly for men and are quite pricey. She definitely has a boyfriend.

"Are you hungry? I know a really good Japanese restaurant that just opened nearby, let's go try it! It's on me!"

Meiyan quickly grabbed her mother's arm to try to change the subject, almost half-pushing and half-pulling her parents forward, afraid that they would discover any more clues.

It's already a stretch to blame these things on teammates; if something even harder to explain is discovered, then even eight mouths wouldn't be able to clear my name.

After finally managing to coax her parents out the door, Meiyan breathed a long sigh of relief. Sitting in the restaurant, she listened to her parents' concerned inquiries about her recent work and health, and sometimes they would subtly probe her love life.

However, Mi-yeon is quite tight-lipped and enjoys her relatively comfortable life, even though this unspeakable relationship is like a thorn that sometimes pricks her.

Just like having to carefully hide this relationship in front of her teammates, it sometimes made her quite tired, but sometimes when she thought of how good Chen Shijun was to her, she felt that there was no problem in continuing.

"Oppa! Look what you've done! I can only blame it on my teammates."

In reality, this kind of blame-shifting is just self-deception. If it were a pack of women's cigarettes that was discovered, then blaming it on a teammate would be perfectly fine, but the cigar box is something that can't be explained.

"Sorry, I forgot to put it away. I hope nothing was discovered."

Chen Shijun could hear the other person speaking in a low voice. The apartment he had given to Meiyan was not large, but it wasn't small either, and it even had a guest room available for guests to stay in.

"Honestly, but thankfully they didn't ask any more questions. But lately I've been feeling like some of the members are looking at me strangely."

After all, Meiyan is a mature woman in her mid-twenties. It would be abnormal for her not to be in a relationship at this age, but her parents didn't say much about it.

As time went on, although Miyeon wasn't always quick to react, she could sometimes sense that Song Yuqi and maknae Ye Shuhua were looking at her differently. When she revealed some flaws, they didn't show any surprise; instead, they seemed to know something.

"It's probably just your imagination. Didn't you say you didn't reveal anything?"

Chen Shijun also comforted her, saying that sometimes when you have a guilty conscience, you will naturally feel anxious and fearful, but it's all just you scaring yourself.

"That's possible. I just tend to overthink things sometimes."

Lying on the soft bed, Mei stretched and yawned, comfortably crossing her legs. The environment here was much better than the dormitory, and it already made her feel at home.

"But you said it was your teammate who smoked it, isn't that just smearing us? If they find out, they'll be furious."

While it's plausible to say those girls looked like they were smoking, Tian Xiaojuan sometimes looked like she needed a puff or two to find inspiration.

Needless to say, Xu Suizhen, who was expelled, is suspected of bullying, and people would believe whatever she did. Song Yuqi's voice has a similar feel to that, but of course we can't judge based on her voice.

As for Ye Shuhua, according to Meiyan's account, she may have had a rebellious personality in the past, and it's normal for a rebellious girl to smoke. As for the Thai girl, I don't know her well, so I won't comment on her here.

"I was just anxious, I had no choice, you have no idea how panicked I was."

In fact, Mianmian later realized that her panic at the time was ridiculous. Her so-called quick thinking was actually full of loopholes, but fortunately her father did not expose her.

“Meiyan isn’t a child anymore, and I’m not some shameful old man. What are you afraid of?”

Chen Shijun wasn't flustered at all. Strictly speaking, his relationship with Zhao Meiyan wasn't one of sugar daddy/sugar baby, so how could it not be considered a romantic relationship?

Moreover, there is an emotional foundation between them. Regardless of how deep it is, over the years, Chen Shijun has shown no signs of being fickle or tired of the relationship.

"What do you think I'm afraid of! If I were dating a senior executive from a rival company, and that got out, I'd be finished. The company would be terrified."

Mei Yan thinks that if Hong Shengcheng knew about this, he would probably be scared out of his wits, even though the founder is no longer involved in the company's operations.

"What are you bragging about? Who is CUBE's rival company?"

The guy made all the men laugh. In terms of scale, CUBE might not be as big as HYBE's label P-Disc, after all, it has a boy group SEVENTEEN that is very popular in the market.

"Let's not talk about this anymore. I'm your girlfriend, but I'll have to keep my relationship with you a secret."

I feel a little disappointed. This relationship ended up being like it never happened at all.

Chen Shijun could understand this situation, since Liu Zhimin had complained about similar situations before, but there was nothing he could do about it, and Chen Shijun neither could nor wanted to change anything.

"Then you'd better hide well, otherwise, who knows how many girls will be eyeing oppa!"

Chen Shijun wasn't just bragging or being narcissistic. Men like him often had a killer instinct when it came to these young girls. Just like when he later asked An Youzhen, she said that she was immediately attracted to his refined and gentle temperament.

Perhaps it's true that the more you lack something, the more you want it. Yu-jin didn't feel like she was at a disadvantage; on the contrary, she felt like she had gained a lot. In some aspects, she even seemed to have some similarities with Ji-min.

(End of this chapter)