Peninsula: Starting with the nation's first love, the white moonlight

The Christmas commotion had barely subsided when December 31st arrived in the blink of an eye.

The end of the year is always the busiest time of the year for artists in the peninsula, with major television stations making intensive preparations for their year-end performances.

With the huge success of her second full-length album, "Last Fantasy," Lee Ji-eun's popularity has exploded like never before.

At the recently concluded MMA Awards ceremony, IU won the Song of the Year award for "Good Day".

Now she has officially entered the ranks of the top female singers in the peninsula, and no one in the entire music industry dares to easily ignore her name.

As a popular female singer, Lee Ji-eun will be invited to attend the 2011 MBC Year-End Gayo Daejeon.

Early in the morning, before it was fully light, Li Luran took her in a nanny van to a high-end beauty salon in the Jiangnan District.

A female celebrity's stage makeup requires several hours of meticulous work; there is no room for carelessness.

"Jimi unnie, please take care of me today too!"

As soon as she entered, Ji-eun greeted the other person sweetly.

Park Ji-mi was organizing her makeup tools when she heard the voice and immediately greeted them with a smile. After greeting Lee Ji-eun as well, her gaze quickly fell on the man behind Ji-eun.

Today, Li Luran wore a long black trench coat. His tall and straight posture, handsome features, and aloof demeanor instantly attracted the attention of the landlady.

"Oh my, Ji-eun, is this the newcomer your LOEN company is preparing to launch?"

Park Ji-mi covered her mouth in surprise, her eyes constantly scanning Lee Lu-ran.

"His looks and physique are just too outstanding. Is he planning to debut as the visual center of a boy band? Or is he a solo singer like you?" However, I think his temperament is more suited to the path of an actor.

Upon hearing this, Lee Ji-eun couldn't help but cover her mouth and burst into laughter.

"What are you thinking, Unnie? His name is Li Luran. He's a planner at our company. He's here temporarily as my personal assistant and manager."

"An assistant? With such a handsome face, he went to work behind the scenes? How bad are the eyes of your company's executives?"

Park Ji-mi looked heartbroken, and her exaggerated tone made the other assistants in the beauty salon laugh along with her.

"Jimei, you flatter me. Behind-the-scenes work is actually quite suitable for me. I'll have to trouble you with Ji-eun's makeup today," Lee Lu-ran replied modestly.

Although Li Luran looked cold, his humility and demeanor instantly boosted Park Ji-mi's favorability.

"Wow, not only is he handsome, but his personality is so likable too! Ji-eun, where did you find such a perfect assistant? Why don't you introduce one to your unnie?"

As Park Ji-mi pulled Lee Ji-eun to sit in front of the vanity mirror, she looked them over and whispered:

"Ji-eun, I've known you for so long, but I've never seen you get so close to any male staff member."

"You actually let him come in the same van as you so early in the morning?" She winked at Lee Ji-eun, "Tell unnie, are you two... something going on?"

Ji-eun, who had been secretly laughing, instantly lost her composure after being teased by Park Ji-mi.

"Unnie, what nonsense are you talking about? It's because Hante oppa had other things to take care of this morning, so I asked him to fill in temporarily."

However, faced with Park Ji-mi's ambiguous gaze, Lee Ji-eun herself felt that her explanation was somewhat weak and powerless, and her face flushed red at a visible speed.

Li Luran stood quietly to the side, watching the two whisper to each other, and helped her hang her down jacket on the coat rack.

"Jimei is joking. Ji-eun is an invaluable asset to our company, and with such a packed schedule at the end of the year, we colleagues naturally have to take good care of her."

"Alright, alright, Nuna is too old to understand the romance of you young people."

Park Ji-mi gave him a meaningful look, smiled and shook her head, and did not ask any further questions. Instead, she began to focus on applying sunscreen to Lee Ji-eun's face.

The makeup process was long and tedious, so to pass the time, Lee Ji-eun decided to explain the precautions for tonight to Lee Lu-ran.

"Li Luran, let me tell you, tonight's music awards ceremony will be broadcast live in its entirety, which is different from music show performances."

Ji-eun kept her eyes closed while the makeup artist applied her eyeliner, but her little mouth kept chattering away.

"At these annual music awards ceremonies, basically half of the singers in the music industry will attend. The backstage waiting area is divided into many sections, so don't get lost."

Li Luran pulled up a chair behind her, handed her a glass of warm water, and replied with a smile, "I'm not a three-year-old, how could I possibly get lost backstage?"

"That's hard to say. Tonight, the backstage area is full of beautiful girl group members."

Lee Ji-eun opened one eye, glared at him fiercely through the mirror, and warned:

"Like Girls' Generation's seniors, as well as f(x), T-ara, and of course, some members of Missa."

When Missa was mentioned, Ji-eun emphasized her words, clearly still harboring resentment about someone taking her home late at night.

"Don't get confused and foolishly go and chat up other people when the time comes."

Even Park Ji-mi couldn't help but laugh at the strong hint of jealousy in Lee Ji-eun's words:

"Oh my, is Ji-eun being possessive of her food? She won't even let us take a second look. Isn't that a bit too strict?"

"Unnie!" Lee Ji-eun stomped her foot in embarrassment and annoyance, her ears turning bright red.

"Don't worry, my big star, tonight I'll only be focused on work. I won't pay any attention to anyone who tries to chat me up. Is that alright?"

Upon hearing Li Luran's assurance, Li Zhi'en gave a haughty hum on the surface, but her lips couldn't help but curl up.

"There's another very important point. You're Chinese, so you might not be familiar with the etiquette between seniors and juniors on the peninsula. If you encounter a senior, you must stop, bow, and greet them. You can't be impolite."

Ji-eun, like a conscientious teacher, earnestly imparted her workplace experience.

"Even though you're just a staff member today, if you're not polite, people will gossip about you. If you encounter strangers, just follow my lead and bow your head; that's the right thing to do."

Although Li Luran didn't like this senior-junior culture, he still understood the principle of adapting to local customs.

It was more than two hours later when the makeup was finished. Lee Ji-eun walked out of the beauty salon with her exquisite makeup. With her full makeup, she looked pure and bright, which made even Lee Lu-ran's eyes light up.

The two said goodbye to Park Ji-mi, got back into the van, and headed towards the MBC Dream Center in Gyeonggi Province.