Chapter 85

"Mr. Park Ji-hoon, hello!"

"Editor **Rong, hello!"

The next morning, in an office of the building where *MOVIEWEEK* is located, Park Ji-hoon and **Rong exchanged pleasantries.

At yesterday's premiere of *Uncle*, **Rong was also present. Originally, with his status, there was no need for him to attend, but he happened to have some understanding of Park Ji-hoon. When the magazine received the invitation, he happened to have nothing to do and decided to thoroughly review Park Ji-hoon's recent information. He instinctively felt that this might be an opportunity—let's call it intuition. Even if he was wrong, he wouldn't lose much.

Thus, he watched *Uncle* with full concentration, made a decision immediately, and took action.

He is such an action-oriented person.

It was just past 8 a.m., a bit early.

After **Rong made a cup of coffee for Park Ji-hoon, he sized him up. No makeup, no perfume, no flashy clothes, no excessive accessories—just a shirt and casual pants, giving off a fresh and clean vibe.

Coupled with his delicate features, it was easy to form a good impression.

While **Rong was sizing up Park Ji-hoon, Park Ji-hoon was also sizing up **Rong.

A neatly combed back hairstyle, a bit thin on top, no glasses, a white shirt, and dress pants—**Rong was dressed formally. His appearance wasn't particularly striking, but his demeanor and actions left a deep impression—efficient and poised.

"Ha ha..." Both of them had straightforward personalities, openly sizing each other up without any pretense. After a brief moment, their gazes met, and they both laughed.

"To be honest, I really didn't expect Mr. Park Ji-hoon's acting to be so superb! It's truly masterful," **Rong said with admiration after their laughter. He found that Park Ji-hoon's cheerful personality suited him well.

"Too much praise," Park Ji-hoon quickly responded. "Masterful" was fine, but "truly masterful" was too much for him to bear.

"No, it's not too much praise!" **Rong shook his head. "Those young actors who are praised to the heavens by the media and fans should really come and see what true acting is!"

Park Ji-hoon could only smile wryly. Was he praising him or trying to stir up trouble? The fans of those young actors wouldn't take it lightly! Even some senior figures wouldn't dare to say anything about them in public.

Fortunately, **Rong also understood this point and changed the topic. "This interview is mainly to understand Mr. Park Ji-hoon's journey over the past ten years. Is there anything you'd rather not talk about?" In the Korean entertainment industry, becoming famous after ten years is not just a matter of "late blooming"; it's almost a miracle! **Rong, with only a decade of experience as an editor, was very polite to Park Ji-hoon.

"Please don't involve my family," Park Ji-hoon said.

"Alright!" **Rong was taken aback but immediately agreed, though he found it a bit strange. Park Ji-hoon's family was simple; why was he so evasive?

"When can we start?" Park Ji-hoon asked after drinking his coffee.

"Right now!" **Rong hadn't expected him to be so eager. Then he remembered Park Ji-hoon's other identity and understood. He smiled and said, "I wonder if I have the honor to schedule the first interview after Mr. Park Ji-hoon's directorial debut."

"My honor," Park Ji-hoon said, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

"Great!" After making the arrangement, **Rong instructed the staff to get ready and led Park Ji-hoon to the studio to begin the interview.

"Mr. Park Ji-hoon, with such excellent grades, why did you give up the college entrance exam?" The first question was a direct approach to this point. **Rong knew that as Park Ji-hoon's popularity increased, many people would be curious about this. Even their magazine had to consider the audience's preferences.

"Mainly due to family reasons," Park Ji-hoon organized his thoughts and answered, "and also because I didn't like the mundane and boring life."

"Forgive me for saying this," **Rong said, somewhat surprised, "but Mr. Park Ji-hoon's ten years in the entertainment industry should have been quite mundane and boring, right?" According to the information he had, Park Ji-hoon seemed to be a laid-back person who didn't show much strong desire or ambition during those ten years.

"One must endure loneliness to achieve success," Park Ji-hoon replied. "Although my 'success' came a bit late, I believe there will be such a day, because I have been persistently working hard."

"More impressive than the effort is the ten years of endurance!" **Rong nodded, marveling.

"It's okay. Many idol group members go through years of training before debuting, like Jessica from the most popular girl group, Girls' Generation, who trained for seven years before debuting," Park Ji-hoon said.

"Really impressive!" **Rong had no intention of probing into his relationship with Jessica.

Park Ji-hoon smiled faintly.

From high school graduation to the release of *Uncle*, **Rong asked about his experiences over the years, both briefly and in detail. Of course, the focus was on the period of filming *Uncle*, which was relevant to the current topic.

At noon, **Rong invited him to lunch.

After lunch, they took photos for the magazine. Originally, there was no such plan, but after the morning's interaction, **Rong felt that Park Ji-hoon's personality and demeanor suited him well. It was rare to find such a composed artist nowadays. Of course, the main reason was Park Ji-hoon's success; without it, all the efforts would be in vain, and few would pay attention. Therefore, he planned to make this interview in both video and text formats. The latter required photos.

During the photo shoot, **Rong became even more satisfied with Park Ji-hoon. After each photo, he neatly folded the clothes lent to him by the magazine; when there was a need to move props, he would voluntarily help. Such artists were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.

The interview ended in the evening.

"The interview will be published after *Uncle* is released," **Rong had already planned the schedule.

After leaving the magazine, Park Ji-hoon rushed to the *Sunny* film set. He had already planned his schedule; a blessing ceremony would be held the day after tomorrow, and he needed to prepare everything in the next two days.

He didn't have time to go online and didn't know that the most talked-about topics that day were "Uncle" and "Park Ji-hoon."

The audience, media, and artists who attended the premiere of *Uncle* praised the film and Park Ji-hoon's performance highly! Some particularly enthusiastic viewers even praised Park Ji-hoon to the skies, sparking the curiosity of netizens.

If it were just a few people, it would be fine, but the overwhelming praise was almost unanimous!

"Strongly recommend *Uncle* starring Park Ji-hoon, it's a movie both men and women will love!" Ha Ji-won recommended the movie to her fans. She had worked with Park Ji-hoon before, and although they didn't often keep in touch, they had a good relationship.

Many artists did this.

Some out of friendship, some out of genuine admiration, and some to add to the hype. Regardless, a series of recommendations made *Uncle* increasingly popular.

The media's reports on the luxurious guest lineup at the premiere of *Uncle* were even more shocking! Many people suspected that the journalists had made a mistake in the movie's name when they first read it.

Didn't they say that Park Ji-hoon had few friends in the industry?

In any case, that day, *Uncle* and Park Ji-hoon became the hottest topics.

Many people became interested in the movie. Everyone knew that media promotion and the film company played a significant role, but the numerous genuine comments from viewers couldn't be faked. For an actor like Park Ji-hoon, who had almost no fixed fan base, who would fake it for him? The previously mocked "clean slate" had turned into an advantage.

Indeed, life is unpredictable; who could have predicted this situation?

Afterward, the blessing ceremony and the official start of filming *Sunny* further boosted Park Ji-hoon's popularity. Unlike Hong Kong, where many artists are both directors and actors, such cases are rare in Korea. Moreover, Park Ji-hoon was also the scriptwriter of *Sunny*, adding another identity as a screenwriter, making him even more sought after.

The online situation changed dramatically.

"Artists like Park Ji-hoon, who are willing to work hard, are becoming rarer. His success is well-deserved," a senior actor praised Park Ji-hoon in public.

"True to form, another hit is coming from Park Ji-hoon!"

"This is a clear trend of a meteoric rise! Not making a sound until the moment of brilliance."

"I heard that on the day of the premiere of *Uncle*, a magazine invited Park Ji-hoon for an exclusive interview!"

Apart from the two times he leveraged the popularity and fame of Seo Hyun and Park Min-young, this was the first time Park Ji-hoon had such a "glorious" moment. This time, it was solidly based on his own work and acting, with confidence!

At the beginning of *We Got Married*, countless netizens and viewers thought Park Ji-hoon didn't match Seo Hyun. Now, such voices are almost non-existent, and the three MCs of *We Got Married* often joke about Seo Hyun "meeting a good man" and "must hold on to him."

"Ten years of hard work, and suddenly the whole world knows!" Park Min-young felt that this Chinese ancient poem aptly described the current Park Ji-hoon.

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