Peninsula: 72 Hours of Blind Dates

Humans are inherently greedy.

Wu Haiyuan was no exception.

Wu Haiyuan wouldn't even think about or fantasize if he didn't receive any surprises from Han Xijun.

But from the moment she received Han Xijun's surprise, no matter where Han Xijun was going to take her, Wu Haiyuan couldn't help but wonder if there was a surprise waiting for her.

The knife-cut noodles are served.

Also served was a small dish of food that wasn't on the menu.

The club president's grandmother smiled and said to Han Xijun, "This is my specialty, stir-fried fish cakes. You guys give it a try."

He turned to look at Wu Haiyuan.

During the brief moment of eye contact, Wu Haiyuan instinctively stood up and said, "Thank you."

The club president's grandmother pressed her hand down and said, "Beautiful Agashi is really too polite."

"President-nim, just call her Haiyuan. She's my girlfriend, Wu Haiyuan."

"Even the name is so beautiful. You can eat it while it's hot. I won't disturb you any longer." The club president's grandmother went back to the kitchen.

Han Xijun moved the small dish containing the fried fish cakes to the center of the table.

Seafood knife-cut noodles with stir-fried fish cakes—Wu Haiyuan has never tried this before.

Generally, seafood knife-cut noodles, which are mainly sweet and fresh, are served with side dishes that are sour, spicy, and appetizing.

Before me, a large bowl was filled with all kinds of small seafood, and the stir-fried fish cakes had no spiciness at all.

Han Xijun said, "Why don't you try stir-frying fish cakes?"

"Isn't this just ordinary fried fish cakes?"

Wu Haiyuan spoke his mind.

I picked up my chopsticks, took a piece, and put it in my mouth. The taste wasn't particularly amazing; it was even a little too salty.

Han Xijun also took a bite, then picked up a piece of knife-cut noodles.

Wu Haiyuan followed suit, thinking that eating a bite of fried fish cake followed by a bite of knife-cut noodles would create a different taste.

He frowned slightly, still looking quite ordinary. That is, until Han Xijun told him the story behind the stir-fried fish cakes placed before him.

Wu Haiyuan heard from Han Xijun that he was a regular customer of this seafood knife-cut noodle shop. After entering the shop, Wu Haiyuan could also feel that the owner of the seafood knife-cut noodle shop and Han Xijun had a very close relationship.

But unexpectedly, the president's grandmother would share stories from her youth with Han Hee-joon.

They have absolutely no connection whatsoever.

No young person would sit down and listen to an elderly person reminisce about the past.

A scene that was completely unimaginable.

But it actually happened to Han Hee-joon and the president's grandmother.

This seemingly ordinary stir-fried fish cake was the only appetizer that the community head's grandmother made herself to serve to the neighbors on her wedding day.

Yes, only.

And it happened on the day of their wedding.

Wu Haiyuan had no idea what happened during that era.

When Han Xijun listened to the president's grandmother share her story, he, like Wu Haiyuan at that moment, had absolutely no idea what it was about. He could only learn from the story that the president's grandmother used to live in the north, and later, in order to survive, she followed an elder from her hometown to Incheon.

But he couldn't settle down. In about a year, he followed the crowd from Incheon to Busan, then to Gangneung and Yangyang.

Two years have passed since I finally settled down in Incheon.

At that time, even if she wanted to go back to her hometown, she couldn't. Apart from surviving, whenever she had a little time to rest, the community leader would stand on the beach and look towards her hometown.

That year, the community leader's grandmother was 19 years old.

It was also in the year that things settled down that an elder in the fishing village introduced a matchmaker to the village head's grandmother.

For various reasons, there was no good food to serve at the wedding banquet on the wedding day.

Wu Haiyuan interjected in a low voice, "If you live in a fishing village, at least you'll have seafood, right?"

Han Xijun said, "That's what I asked the president's grandmother too. She said the only ingredient she could come up with was fish cake, unlike the fish cakes made nowadays which include egg whites, shrimp, and starch."

"At that time, fish cakes were made by grinding unsold fish into a paste. They were salty because they brought out the flavor and were good with alcohol."

Wu Haiyuan understood the story and muttered, "Oh, so that's how it is."

Han Xijun said, "Grandma has been very happy since she got married, so she cherishes the fried fish cakes she made at her wedding. She hasn't made them again in decades." Wu Haiyuan asked, "And today?"

Han Xijun glanced back at Ju Lou's busy figure in the kitchen and said, "Grandma said she would make me stir-fried fish cakes as a side dish if I brought my girlfriend over."

Wu Haiyuan immediately understood, and glanced at the club president's grandmother in the kitchen, saying, "Grandma wants to pass on happiness to you?"

Han Xijun smiled and nodded, saying, "It should be."

Wu Haiyuan asked in confusion, "But I just heard Grandma say she has a granddaughter, so why not pass it on to her and instead pass it on to you?"

Han Xijun didn't know the answer either, and said, "He probably likes me."

Wu Haiyuan was stunned for a moment.

The answer sounds unreliable, yet it makes sense.

Among young people, Han Xijun is incredibly popular because of his looks. If it weren't for the fact that Han Xijun's name was trending on social media, Wu Haiyuan wouldn't have imagined that so many people admired him, even though they were complete strangers. Han Xijun is more of a star than any celebrity.

In the eyes of the elders, Han Xijun is the perfect child.

He's academically gifted, intelligent, a graduate of a prestigious university, works in a management position at a large company, and his looks are, of course, beyond question—he's a top-tier son-in-law candidate.

It's easy to explain why the older generation likes Han Xijun; they all wish they had a grandson like him. For several minutes, Han Xijun and Wu Haiyuan quietly ate their knife-cut noodles.

At first, I thought the knife-cut noodles were just ordinary. But after eating them, I found them to be fresh and fragrant, with a sweet taste that I couldn't find in other seafood knife-cut noodle shops.

Without realizing it, Wu Haiyuan found himself consciously avoiding making noise while eating.

You can't hear any slurping sounds of noodles in the noodle shop.

She took the tissue that Han Xijun handed her.

The two did not leave immediately after eating a bowl of noodles.

After sitting for only about five minutes, the president's granddaughter returned from her tutoring class ahead of schedule.

With the college entrance examination approaching, aside from the scores, the choice of university and major is a very important watershed moment in life.

Han Hee-joon was having a private conversation with the president's grandmother's granddaughter.

Wu Haiyuan sat at the next table with the president's grandmother. The president's grandmother said to Wu Haiyuan very gently, "If I'm still alive, you must invite me to your wedding."

Wu Haiyuan instinctively responded, "Grandma President is very healthy and will definitely live a long life."

"My biggest dream is to see my granddaughter grow up and get married." "You definitely will."

"And then there's Hee-joon's wedding. Hee-joon is the only one who, even though he's very busy, will stay and listen to my nagging."

Sure enough, Wu Haiyuan guessed that was the case.

After glancing at Han Xijun, who was earnestly analyzing the situation with the president's grandmother and granddaughter, Wu Haiyuan's impression of Han Xijun improved even more. Being able to put aside work to accompany an elderly person who wanted to talk, this filial piety was definitely not an act.

Wu Haiyuan also thought of his grandmother. His grandmother had told his sister that whether it was looking for a boyfriend or a husband, the most important thing to understand and confirm was the other person's character, which was more important than money.

The club president smiled.

She smiled because she saw Wu Haiyuan smile.

A thought flashed through Wu Haiyuan's mind: "Grandma would really like Han Xijun if she saw him." Thinking of this, Wu Haiyuan couldn't help but smile.