Chapter 10

"Someone else? Is he also a male idol?" Lee Hyori immediately perked up and asked first.

Liu Zaishi and the other men all smiled speechlessly. However, despite the five men present, none of them dared to provoke this "queen"-level boss!

"Not an idol, he's an actor!" Liu Zaishi said.

"An actor is good too!" Lee Hyori said without hesitation.

As they were talking, a taxi stopped nearby, and a figure got out, bowing from a distance.

"He's very polite," Lee Hyori said softly.

The newcomer did not come over immediately but took a large suitcase from the taxi's trunk before approaching.

"Ji-hoon!" Liu Zaishi was taken aback for a moment, then warmly opened his arms to greet him.

It was Park Ji-hoon, who had set out from home early in the morning.

"Brother Zaishi!" Park Ji-hoon bowed first before hugging Liu Zaishi.

"Someone, help Ji-hoon with his luggage," the PD said, seemingly very familiar with Park Ji-hoon.

"Let me introduce him!" After the staff helped Park Ji-hoon with his luggage, Liu Zaishi pulled him over to introduce him to everyone, "This is my good younger brother, Park Ji-hoon!"

Instantly, the attention of Lee Hyori, Kim Jong-kook, and others focused on Park Ji-hoon. How could they not have heard of his "great name"?

"This is Brother Jongsun, this is..." Liu Zaishi introduced each person, and Park Ji-hoon bowed each time, very polite and somewhat nervous.

"There's no need to be so formal!" Lee Hyori said, seemingly a bit impatient. However, those who knew her well knew that this was her way of showing affection.

"Yes!" Park Ji-hoon responded, but he couldn't stop halfway. When it was Kim Jong-kook's turn, the two shared a manly hug, clearly more familiar with each other.

At this moment, a minivan slowly stopped nearby, and a beautiful girl got out.

It was Tiffany from Girls' Generation!

Wearing knee-high boots, jeans, a sweater, and a beanie, though simple, the outfit on Tiffany instantly attracted everyone's attention.

"Pan-i!" Liu Zaishi waved and cheered excitedly.

Tiffany showed her signature smile and bowed from a distance. However, when she stood up, her gaze was drawn to a certain figure, and a flame of anger suddenly rose in her heart, causing her expression to stiffen! Fortunately, she knew she was in front of the camera and quickly composed herself.

Coming to the group, she bowed again.

"This is Brother Jongsun, this is Brother Seorool, this is Jongkook..." Liu Zaishi introduced each person to her, "This is my younger brother, Park Ji-hoon!" He deliberately introduced Park Ji-hoon last, with a proud expression, showing how much he cared for him.

Park Ji-hoon's lips curled into a bitter smile. He thought he would no longer have any interaction with them, but unexpectedly, he and Tiffany appeared on the same show after just a few days.

"Pan-i, hello." Though he said he had forgotten this friend, how could he pretend not to recognize her when they met?

"Huh? Does Ji-hoon know Tiffany?" Liu Zaishi asked curiously, a hint of unusual interest in his eyes.

Park Ji-hoon hurriedly tried to explain—he had witnessed firsthand how Kim Jong-kook and Yoon Eun-hye were "ruined" by Liu Zaishi's words!

"Senior Park Ji-hoon, hello!" However, Tiffany's voice suddenly rang out. She was respectful, even more so than when she greeted Liu Zaishi and the others.

"Oh, we've met a few times," Park Ji-hoon said, thinking it was because of his words and blocking her phone number, without giving it much thought.

"Oh—" Liu Zaishi clearly didn't believe him. As a veteran MC, he had developed a keen eye, but he didn't intend to pry now.

As they were talking, another guest arrived.

Nicole from the group Kara, who had swept the nation in 2009 with the "PP Dance," with her bright short hair, instantly added a lively atmosphere to the scene.

More humble than Tiffany, she bowed almost with every step.

"This is my younger brother, Park Ji-hoon!" Liu Zaishi introduced him to Nicole in the same way.

"Ah!" Nicole clearly knew Park Ji-hoon's name, and after a light exclamation, she bowed and extended her hand, "Senior, hello!"

"Hello." Park Ji-hoon bowed slightly in return.

Tiffany watched his polite demeanor and curled her lip in disdain.

What a great actor!

Since that day, Park Ji-hoon's image in her mind had completely changed.

However, Tiffany and Nicole were very familiar with each other, and the two young girls hugged warmly, jumping and laughing, making even Lee Hyori envious.

"This is the map." After the pleasantries, Liu Zaishi handed the map to Park Ji-hoon and patted his arm lightly.

Park Ji-hoon, however, handed the map to Tiffany—on such outdoor variety shows, the footage is heavily edited, so scenes that are almost certain to be shown are very important.

"Thank you, Senior!" Tiffany didn't want to take it at first, but with so many people around, it would have been too rude to refuse, so she took it and bowed deeply in thanks.

She was putting some distance between them.

Park Ji-hoon smiled indifferently and walked with Liu Zaishi and the others.

Lee Hyori watched this and nodded in approval. She, too, had been part of a girl group and had experienced very difficult times, so she appreciated men who took the initiative to care for their female juniors.

They soon arrived at the farmhouse, and after the owner left, they began their first task of the day: dressing a calf and making rice wine.

However, before that, they needed to determine the team divisions.

Everyone stood in the courtyard, with Liu Zaishi, Kim Seorool, and others in one row, and the three guests, Park Ji-hoon, Tiffany, and Nicole, in another row, with "Queen" Lee Hyori, the only seated member, in the center.

This also reflected the power dynamics within the "family."

Of course, in reality, the one who truly made the decisions was Liu Zaishi, who was always being bullied.

"Brother Zaishi, I'll stay at home," Park Ji-hoon said proactively during Liu Zaishi's roll call.

Tiffany's brow furrowed; Liu Zaishi had just assigned her to the calf team! She then smirked slightly, thinking this man also knew he had no face to see her again?

"Oh, okay!" Liu Zaishi was taken aback for a moment before agreeing.

"Thank you, Brother Zaishi." Park Ji-hoon breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't notice that Tiffany's dislike for him increased when she saw his expression.

After the calf team left, only Park Ji-hoon, Yoon Jong-shin, Kim Jong-kook, and Nicole remained in the courtyard.

While preparing to make rice wine, they chatted with each other.

Among them, Yoon Jong-shin just talked, Kim Jong-kook occasionally helped, but most of the work was done by Park Ji-hoon and Nicole. However, Park Ji-hoon's clumsy efforts soon annoyed the three, and Nicole simply let him rest while she did it alone.

"Ji-hoon!" Yoon Jong-shin shook his head, "You look so smart, I thought you'd be very capable! I didn't expect..." They had gotten to know each other better over time.

As the oldest member of "Family Outing," he had fully embraced the image of a "frail old man," leaving a deep impression on many viewers.

"I basically just open my mouth for food at home," Park Ji-hoon said with a sheepish smile. He was somewhat nervous, having appeared on variety shows only a few times, and his entertainment skills were not great.

"Open your mouth for food?" Yoon Jong-shin and Kim Jong-kook exclaimed in unison, and then Yoon Jong-shin asked with a gossipy look, "Ji-hoon, do you have a girlfriend?"

"No!" Park Ji-hoon shook his head and explained, "It's my sister."

"Oh." Yoon Jong-shin nodded and asked, "What's your ideal type?"

"Do you like Nicole or Tiffany more?" Kim Jong-kook added more specifically.

Without Liu Zaishi, the two were not very skilled at hosting and could only ask such "all-purpose" questions.

Nicole also looked up at Park Ji-hoon.

"Nicole... I guess." After a slight hesitation, Park Ji-hoon answered honestly. He wasn't completely clueless about doing shows, but he didn't want to make a show out of this question.

"Wow—" Yoon Jong-shin and Kim Jong-kook cheered in unison.

"I like Kara's PP Dance!" Since he had already "confessed," Park Ji-hoon decided to go all the way and continued.

"Let's do it with Jongkook!" Yoon Jong-shin pushed Kim Jong-kook forward, and the two of them did a segment of the PP Dance.

It was somewhat simple and boring.

There was no way around it; the four of them were all a bit awkward, and it was hard to make a good show. Although Nicole was lively and cheerful, she found that Yoon Jong-shin and Kim Jong-kook often didn't understand her. Park Ji-hoon, on the other hand, could understand her right away and occasionally spoke English with her, but each time he was teased by Yoon Jong-shin and Kim Jong-kook.

The awkward atmosphere only improved when the calf team returned.

During a brief rest, Tiffany couldn't help but use her peripheral vision to search for Park Ji-hoon, wanting to deepen her dislike for him, but found that he was actually mingling with the staff.

"Ji-hoon was a writer for 'X-Man,'" Liu Zaishi explained to everyone. He and Kim Jong-kook had met Park Ji-hoon during that time, though they weren't very close, they were still old friends. Most of the staff on "Family Outing" were from the original "X-Man" team.

"Ji-hoon oppa was a writer?" Nicole asked in surprise.

"Ji-hoon is a versatile talent, having worked as a writer, PD, VJ, and more," Liu Zaishi said with a smile.

"Wow—" Nicole couldn't help but exclaim, and her gaze towards Park Ji-hoon took on a hint of admiration. Unlike most girls, she liked men with rich experiences who had achieved something! Of course, it was just a general liking.

Seeing her friend's reaction, Tiffany instinctively wanted to contradict her but, considering her situation, she barely held back.

After the rest, everyone moved towards the river.

It was very cold, and the river had already frozen, making it a natural ice rink.

When they reached the river, Nicole became excited, while Tiffany was the opposite. After putting on her ice skates, she cautiously took a few steps but suddenly stumbled, losing her balance. Her eyes caught sight of Park Ji-hoon, who was squatting to put on his skates, and she instinctively adjusted her direction.