Peninsula 2017: Is the system living in the past?

"I'll meet Ji-eun at Pungna-dong later. Shall I take you home first?"

Inside the elevator car.

Jiang Xingchen and Park Jiyeon stood side by side.

The numbers on the LCD screen kept decreasing.

Upon arriving at the first floor, as the door slowly opened, Park Jiyeon asked a question.

She knew that Kang Sung-chen lived in Itaewon-dong.

If you're going towards Fengna Cave, it's on the way.

Hearing her ask this, Jiang Xingchen tilted her head and glanced at her, then asked, "Is Samseong-dong in the same direction as Yeopungna-dong and Itaewon-dong?"

Yes or no.

I thought the answer to the question would be one of these two.

Unfortunately, none of them were.

When Park Jiyeon heard Jiang Xingchen's question, she blinked twice quickly before smiling a little shyly.

"It doesn't seem like it..."

"Oh, did you see me drinking?"

Seeing her smile, Jiang Xingchen had another guess: "Want to test if I'm drunk, and then do something bad?"

"Tch, don't try to slander someone out of thin air."

"I'll believe you this time."

"There was nothing to it... I only asked because you were drinking."

Park Jiyeon responded with dissatisfaction.

Then, seeing that the elevator doors were open and about to close again.

I quickly pressed the door open button.

When the door stopped closing and reopened, he forcefully pushed Jiang Xingchen out and pressed the door shut twice.

"Even though I was drinking with Kei, I didn't drink too much... Don't worry."

Before the elevator doors closed, Jiang Xingchen, who was being pushed out, waved twice to say goodbye to Park Jiyeon.

However, he responded to that.

But it was a soft hum that came through the crack in the elevator doors just as they were closing.

"snort..."

It has a lingering, melodious feel to it.

He smiled and shook his head.

Then he turned and walked outside.

About twenty minutes later.

In a coffee shop in Pungna-dong, Songpa-gu.

Park Jiyeon waited for Lee Ji-eun, who was returning from an event out of town and was passing by.

"Ji-yeon, I didn't keep you waiting long, did I?"

"I just arrived a little while ago."

"Aren't you in Samseong-dong? It should be very close by!"

"Since coming too early would just be pointless, I sat there a little longer."

"Too..."

Lee Ji-eun had no suspicions and stopped dwelling on the matter. Instead, she asked about Jiang Xingchen's schedule for the next two days.

Well...

She had always wanted him to save her dance.

"He's not available these days. He's taken on consulting work for EXID's comeback album, so he's a bit busy."

"Wow... I've got a job so soon!"

"He needs to make money, after all."

Knowing her friend's obsession, Park Jiyeon, based on her judgment, decided to decline the invitation on Jiang Xingchen's behalf.

Anyway, it's not like I've only been criticized for my dancing for a short time.

So they probably don't mind waiting a few more days...

In other words, Lee Ji-eun has no way of knowing what she is thinking right now.

If only we could know.

She probably thinks her best friend is the biggest hater.

What does it mean to not care about waiting a few more days?

What if it's like that line from that movie?

Three years after three years.

What can we do?

Unfortunately, she has no way of knowing now.

I picked up the cup in front of me, took a sip of coffee, and leaned back on the soft sofa.

After a long day, I can finally relax a bit.

Judging from her furrowed brows, one could probably guess that she was still thinking about dancing.

"Pfft..." Park Jiyeon laughed out loud, as if she had thought of something.

This earned him a glare from Lee Ji-eun.

...

...

Time always flies when you're focused on something.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

Before they knew it, the day that Jiang Xingchen and Jin Guangzhu had agreed to meet arrived.

However, it was in the afternoon, so he spent the morning at the EPOCH headquarters in Wangyuan Cave as usual, doodling on his tablet.

Around noon.

A faint sound of the door opening was heard.

Immediately afterwards, a head popped in.

When I looked up, I saw a pair of puzzled eyes staring at me.

"Hey, why are you scaring me!"

"Daifa...isn't this a classic case of the guilty party accusing the innocent first?!"

Before she could even speak, Jiang Xingchen remarked with great emotion.

He stayed quietly alone in the office.

Every tiny sound could be heard.

Including the sound of the door opening, which had already been kept very low.

I thought a thief had broken in.

Who knew it was Park Jiyeon?

Little did she know that the first thing she said was that she had scared her!

"I'm just worried there might be bad people inside, so I'm being careful!"

"A bad guy? Me?"

"I have no problem with which category you categorize yourself into!"

"Then come in quickly."

"What are you doing?"

"So I can lock the door and do what bad guys do!"

"ah..."

Park Jiyeon, who instantly understood, blushed and then turned her toes around as if she was ready to slip away at any moment.

Jiang Xingchen looked at the faint blush on her fair cheeks three meters away and laughed.

"Alright, come in if you want. Are you going to stand at the door like a gatekeeper?"

"Is that not allowed?"

"What kind of doorman is as beautiful as you? You might attract everyone's attention instead of scaring them away!"

"Don't think that praising me like this will make me lower my guard."

Park Jiyeon pouted.

She then went straight into the office.

If Jiang Xingchen really has any bad intentions...

The best opportunity was that first night we met.

Now?

He placed the black bag he was carrying on the desk.

It contained their lunch.

Before coming here, she asked Zhao Enjing.

After confirming that Jiang Xingchen wasn't at her studio on the tree-lined road, they brought lunch and headed over here.

"What did you buy?"

"I brought you a salad, and you brought me soup and rice. I also brought you Shunyu's pig's trotters."

"Is this so lavish?"

"Eat a good meal, so you won't be hungry and lack energy when you talk to the president this afternoon."

"But if you eat too much, blood will concentrate in your stomach to aid digestion, and your brain will react more slowly."

"Then you shouldn't eat it..."

In response to Jiang Xingchen's statement, Park Jiyeon inexplicably recalled what happened in the elevator a couple of days ago when she had dinner at Black Swan.

He snatched the chopsticks from Jiang Xingchen's hand in a flash.

But the next second, he shut her down with a casual remark, "It was originally for you."

"Why does a perfectly normal person have a mouth?"

She muttered a complaint under her breath.

But there were no further developments.

After quietly helping me unpack the package, we brought up the matter again while having dinner together.

"Are you sure you don't need me to come with you?"

"No need," Jiang Xingchen replied consistently. "Today's conversation won't take much time!"

"Are you so confident that the president will agree to your conditions?"

"With profit as his primary motivation, no matter what his intentions are, even if he wants to turn his back on someone, he will find a way to secure the benefits first before considering anything else."

"You took the money and now you want to turn your back on me?"

"Isn't it common for people to take the money and then turn their backs on you?"

"Don't let yourself get scammed." A sense of worry arose in Park Jiyeon's heart.

Given Kim Kwang-soo's personality, if he gets tricked like this...

"rest assured."

Jiang Xingchen remained confident, smiling as she scooped beef from the soup. "Here, have some beef. After you finish, just wait here for me!"

"You're talking nonsense again!"

......