Peninsula: I run a bed and breakfast on Jeju Island

After Li Ran led her through the door, he gently closed it behind him, shutting out the howling sea breeze outside.

Little Black sat quietly at his feet, raised its round black eyes to look at the guest, and gently wagged its tail twice.

"Please register here first."

He led her to a small solid wood table next to the entrance, pulled out a chair for her to sit down, then turned around and took out a hotel registration book that had already been filed with the police station and a pen from the cabinet, and handed them over.

"My Korean isn't very good, and I'm afraid I'll copy the information incorrectly. Could you please fill it out yourself?"

He paused, then added, "All I need to fill in is my name, resident registration number, and check-in date. By the way, could I take a look at your resident registration card to verify it?"

Li Ran really didn't want to write it down—given his crooked, dog-like Korean writing skills, he'd better not embarrass himself.

These words were exactly what Choi Jin-ri wanted to hear.

She was on tenterhooks the whole way, afraid of being recognized, and even prepared for the landlord to scrutinize her identification repeatedly.

The young Chinese landlord in front of me had a broken accent and a restrained attitude. He wasn't overly enthusiastic, nor did he pry into my life. He didn't even bother to handle my documents.

The corner of her mouth, hidden behind her mask, loosened almost imperceptibly.

The breath that had been hanging in the air for days inexplicably eased a little.

Perhaps it was Li Ran's ingenious ability that was working invisibly.

She had actually heard of this guesthouse a long time ago, and it had a good reputation. She wanted to find a place to relax by herself, so she chose this place.

There were only three guest rooms available, and the minimum stay was seven days. She had expected them to be in high demand, so she booked them three months in advance.

By sheer coincidence, she became the only guest to successfully book a guesthouse after the booking procedures were completed.

"Okay, thank you." She replied softly, put her backpack on the chair, took out her resident registration card from the bag, and handed it over, pinching the edge between her fingertips.

The photo in the upper right corner of the ID is a bareheaded photo taken a few years ago, showing clear and bright eyes. It's a stark contrast to the current look of being wrapped up tightly and looking exhausted.

Li Ran took the document, her gaze only falling on the name column on the left.

"Choi Jin-ri" is written in Korean first, followed by her Chinese name in parentheses.

It turns out to be Choi Jin-ri.

He thought it was Choi Jin-ri.

Looking at the string of Korean characters, he only checked that it matched the "최진리" in the reservation notes. The name was correct, so he handed the documents back.

The photo in the upper right corner only captured a blurry shadow, let alone allowed me to stop and compare it to the person.

Choi Jin-ri took the documents, sat down at the table with her head down, held the pen, and quietly filled in the information.

Her Korean handwriting was neat and beautiful: her name "최진리", her 3-digit resident registration number, and her move-in date, March 14, 2019, without writing a single extra word.

After filling it out, she pushed the registration book and pen back to Li Ran.

He glanced at it, confirmed that all the information was filled in, then closed the notebook, put it in the cabinet, and locked it.

The whole process took less than three minutes. There wasn't a single unnecessary question, not a single probing glance, and even the little black dog at his feet was quiet and didn't make a sound.

"I'll take you to the room. It's at the very back, very soundproof and quiet."

He picked up the house key from the table and turned to walk inside.

The corridor lights were on all the way, and he pushed open the door to the innermost guest room and turned on the overhead light.

A warm yellow light spread out.

The room was spacious, and the fluffy bedding on the bed had just been aired out yesterday, carrying a hint of sunshine.

The daisies on the windowsill were in full bloom. The sound of the sea breeze was mostly blocked out of the room; it was so quiet that you could almost hear your own breathing.

"The bedding and towels were all newly changed, and there are spare bedding and blankets in the closet. It has a private bathroom."

He placed the key on the counter. "The shared kitchen and living room are just over in the hallway. The pots, pans, and seasonings are all in the cabinets. You can use them anytime you want, there are no restrictions."

He paused, then added a rule from the guesthouse: "Breakfast is prepared in the restaurant every morning from eight to ten, at no extra cost. If you can't get up, just let me know in advance, and I can bring it to your door. You can leave it at your door after you've eaten."

"Of course, if you want to sleep in, it's okay if you don't come."

"I don't provide lunch and dinner. If you want to cook for yourself, there's a shelf in the refrigerator where you can store your ingredients."

Choi Jin-ri stood at the door, looking at the clean, sun-drenched room, then at the landlord who showed no curiosity whatsoever and whose tone remained calm throughout, and at the little black dog obediently squatting at his feet.

The suffocating feeling that had been pressing on my chest for days finally let in a breath of fresh air.

She nodded gently, her voice softer than when she first entered: "Thank you, thank you for your trouble."

"You're welcome." Li Ran took a step back. "Call me anytime if you need anything. I live next door. I won't disturb your rest."

After saying that, he gently closed the door.

The door lock clicked softly, and the silence of the room was reserved for the person inside.

Li Ran stood there for two seconds, listening to make sure there was no more noise inside, before turning around and walking back.

Xiao Hei followed at his feet, glanced back at the closed door, and then followed with his head down.

"Woof! Woof!"

On the first morning, Li Ran got up at seven o'clock.

He cooked a pot of white rice porridge, stir-fried a dish of tender tofu, and pickled a few thin slices of cucumber. He put them in a covered earthenware bowl, carried it to the door of the guest room, placed it on the ground, and weighed it down with a note.

"Eat it while it's hot."

Just those three words, no signature.

He didn't knock, and turned and left.

Little Black sniffed the rim of the ceramic bowl, then gently pushed it away. "Let's go, Little Black."

In the afternoon, he walked down the corridor and glanced down.

The bowl was moved.

The note was still on the ground, leaving a faint mark.

He took the bowl back to the kitchen, washed it clean, and put it back in the cupboard.

The next day, he changed the egg drop soup and scallion oil noodles, and served them with a side of mixed nuts with melon seeds.

When he went to collect the dishes in the evening, he glanced down at them.

She only touched the top third of the scallion oil noodles, probably because it was too oily and didn't suit her taste.

I drank more than half of the light egg drop soup, leaving only a few small pieces of egg at the bottom of the bowl.

The dish of nuts, however, remained almost untouched; not even the sunflower seeds inside had been touched.

Li Ran squatted down, stacked the empty bowls together, and paused.

Without asking any further questions, he got up and left.

Back in the kitchen, he stood in front of the counter for a while, mentally going over the ingredients he needed to buy tomorrow. He crossed nuts off the list and replaced them with light and easily digestible pumpkin.

He glanced at the motion-activated lights in the hallway and turned the brightness down a notch. Otherwise, it would be too bright and glaring if he got up in the middle of the night.

The porridge on the third day was softer and more tender than the previous two days. It was a mashed pumpkin porridge, orange-yellow in color, and slightly sweet. It was served with a hard-boiled egg and a few slices of thin toast.

The note read, as usual, "Eat it while it's hot."

He put down his things, was about to turn around, when he paused.

Li Ran squatted down again and moved the ceramic bowl closer to the door so that it wouldn't be so easy for it to trip over.

Then he got up and left.

Collect the dishes in the evening.

More than half of the porridge was gone.

All the eggs were eaten.

Only one slice of toast remained.

I ate more than I did the previous two days.

Li Ran took the bowl into the kitchen, washed it clean, and put it back in its place without thinking much about it.

He woke up thirsty around 2 a.m.

This is an old problem, a result of his staying up late and drinking coffee in his past life. He gets thirsty in the middle of the night and can't fall asleep without drinking some water.

Perhaps it was psychological, but he actually brought this bad habit over with him.

Li Ran put on a coat in the dark, came out of the bedroom, and walked towards the kitchen.

The motion-activated lights in the corridor sensed the movement and turned on, but they were very dim, just enough to make out the outline of the ground.

Then he saw the light in the kitchen.

The refrigerator door was open, and the refrigerator light inside cast a pale white halo on the floor. A person was squatting in front of the refrigerator, with their back to him, head down, quietly munching on a bag of sliced ​​bread.

Her long hair fell down, covering most of her face.

The oversized white pajamas had sleeves that were so long they almost reached her knuckles.

She was barefoot, walking cautiously on the wooden floor like a cat sneaking out to steal food.

The warm brown floor made her feet appear even whiter, like soft jade soaked in warm milk; even the pale blue veins that rose to the surface when her insteps were flexed were clearly visible.

The neatly trimmed toenails had a faint pink tint, without any unnecessary embellishment, only a clean and clear appearance.

Li Ran stood at the entrance of the corridor, without moving.

His gaze fell on her loose hair, and on her face, which was clearly illuminated by the refrigerator light.

He had seen that face in a short video.

More than once.

With her upturned eyes, clean brow bones, and crescent-shaped eyes when she smiles, she's known as "human peach," and her comments section always gets thousands of replies.

Choi Sulli.

The one whose stage name is f(x).

He retrieved it from his memory.

He's not really involved in the K-pop scene, otherwise he would know that f(x) is the name of a girl group, and Sulli is her stage name.

She was squatting on the kitchen floor, without makeup, her hair disheveled, holding half a bag of toast, intently munching on it, completely unaware that someone was behind her.

Li Ran stood there for about three seconds.

Then he took a small step back, deliberately making a sound on the wooden floor, and slowly said in Korean as he walked towards the kitchen, "I'm so thirsty... I'm going to get some water."

It was as if he was talking to himself, or as if he was giving someone time to react.

The white figure froze abruptly.

The bread bag made a soft rustling sound and then quickly disappeared behind it—it was probably stuffed back into the refrigerator.

When he entered the kitchen, the refrigerator door was already closed.

Choi Jin-ri stood there, her back straight, her hands folded in front of her, sleeves covering the backs of her hands, her face still unable to form a proper expression, staring blankly at him.

His cheeks were slightly puffed out.

There was still something in my mouth that I hadn't swallowed.

Li Ran's gaze lingered on her face for less than a second before turning away, walking to the cup holder next to the sink, taking down her usual cup, picking up the thermos next to it, and pouring herself a cup of water.

He tilted his head back and took two sips, then put down the cup and wiped his mouth with his thumb.

"There's some pumpkin porridge in the fridge that's gotten cold. Would you like it heated up?" he asked casually without turning around.

"..."

"Just put it in the microwave for two minutes."

After saying that, he washed the cup on the sink and put it back. As he passed by her, his tone was flat, as if he had just said it casually.

"If you get hungry tonight and want something to eat, just make it in the kitchen. Don't be shy, make yourself at home. After all, you paid for it, so the customer is always right!"

"If you don't know how to cook, it's actually quite convenient to order takeout here. Just have them leave it at the door."

Seeing that she was still a little reserved, Li Ran shrugged, took the cooled pumpkin porridge out of the refrigerator, and put it in the microwave.

"You can take it out when its pointer goes back to zero."

He pressed the button and left the kitchen.

A brief silence followed behind me.

Then came the sound of the refrigerator being gently pulled open.

Xiao Hei poked its head out from the bedroom doorway, yawned, and rested its chin on the threshold.

Li Ran gently nudged it with her foot and moved it into the bedroom.

He went back to his room, lay down again, turned his phone upside down on the pillow, and closed his eyes.

The sounds from the kitchen outside were still faint, like a cat finally relaxing, hiding its claws, and quietly eating in the moonlight.