Chapter 76

It was still the same Montage Beverly Hills, but this time he had booked the presidential suite in advance.

An Hankjian waited in the hotel lobby. His assistant had called to inform him of the schedule, so he calculated the time and stood by the door. Seeing a Maybach sedan stop, An Hankjian rushed to open the door before the doorman. In his imagination, he must have ruined Li Jingming's "good thing" last time, so now he had to show his enthusiasm.

An Hankjian froze for a moment when he opened the car door. The person inside was not Li Jingming, and he immediately broke into a sweat, feeling extremely embarrassed for opening the wrong door. An Hankjian had only rented a Maybach and asked his assistant to pick up the guest, but he didn't know the license plate. The rental company had assured him that there was only one Landaulet in all of Los Angeles, but now he was embarrassed and was ready to call and complain.

"Really sorry, I opened the wrong car." An Hankjian quickly bowed in apology. Glancing sideways, he recognized the person in the car. Wasn't this the big star from Korean dramas, the "Number One Natural Beauty" of Korea, Kim Tae-hee?

"Hey, wrong car?" Li Jingming's impatient voice came from inside the car. "I think you're still half asleep. Don't block the door, move aside quickly."

Li Jingming always sat on the left side, while the right side faced the entrance when the car stopped. So, when An Hankjian saw someone other than Li Jingming in the car, he naturally assumed he had opened the wrong door.

"Brother, I'm sorry." An Hankjian stepped aside to give Kim Tae-hee space to get out. He started to mutter to himself, thinking that since Li Jingming returned to Korea, he seemed to always have women around. He had seen the news online, as Li Jingming was his boss and was coming to the U.S. to "inspect the work," so he naturally cared about Li Jingming's recent activities. Kim Tae-hee, as a Korean, was well-known for her beauty, the "Number One Natural Beauty" was not a title given lightly, but her age was a full half-generation older than Li Jingming. Could Li Jingming have some special preferences, or why was it always either underage girls or much older women?

"Wow, you really are different from us commoners, staying in the legendary presidential suite, right?" In the elevator, Kim Tae-hee saw An Hankjian instruct the staff to press the top floor button, guessing it was the presidential suite, as the top floor of most hotels was usually reserved for the presidential suite.

Li Jingming smiled. "Since we're in the City of Angels, why not stay closer to the angels?"

"Why don't you stay at the Griffith Observatory then?" Kim Tae-hee rolled her eyes; that was the highest point in Los Angeles.

"It's up to them to let me stay." Li Jingming helped Kim Tae-hee with her luggage as they exited the elevator, showing great gentlemanly manners, while his own belongings were in An Hankjian's hands.

The presidential suite was very large. As the name suggests, it was a suite, with multiple living spaces, and several households could stay there at the same time. Seeing Kim Tae-hee looking around with great interest, Li Jingming said, "Nuna, why don't you cancel your hotel and stay with me? I'm the only one here and don't stay often."

"Should I move my assistants over too?" Kim Tae-hee politely declined. Her relationship with Li Jingming had warmed up quickly, but they weren't at the point of staying in the same hotel. The organizer had booked a five-star Four Seasons Hotel for her, and although it was just a regular room, she didn't mind. An artist attending events abroad needed more than just dressing up; they needed to bring a wardrobe assistant, makeup assistant, and life assistant. The more famous the artist, the more assistants they had. Li Jingming, who didn't participate in any events, was an exception.

"I was just being polite, Nuna, don't take it seriously." Li Jingming's face changed immediately after being refused, making Kim Tae-hee laugh and cry.

"I have to go to the other hotel in the morning to take care of some things. Let's go out in the afternoon." Kim Tae-hee's time was precious; she was only staying in the U.S. for two days and would return to Korea the next evening.

"Sure, we'll use the same car. I have some business, so I can't personally take you there." Li Jingming had an appointment with Ken Kelleher at LKM Company.

After Kim Tae-hee left, Li Jingming lay on the sofa. "Anything new recently?" he asked An Hankjian.

"Everything is going according to plan, very smoothly." An Hankjian sat respectfully. He was still a student at Harvard and could only manage these tasks in his spare time. To achieve Li Jingming's desired results, he had to work hard. With Li Jingming's backing and the support of the Chicago Consortium, it was hard for things not to go smoothly. He didn't contribute much, so he was nervous about Li Jingming's satisfaction.

"Very good." Li Jingming's words relieved An Hankjian. "I don't need any surprises, just complete the plan." Li Jingming was the type who wanted everything under his control, a strong and dominant personality. Although he usually acted carefree, he had the capital to do so. People with power were called "cynical," while those without were called "self-destructive." Li Jingming was clearly the former.

After a short rest, Li Jingming set off for Sunset Boulevard after the car dropped Kim Tae-hee off at the Four Seasons Hotel. Someone was waiting for him there.

Jin C had been in high spirits every day recently, like a rice plant finally getting rain after a long drought, full of vitality. When Li Jingming first saw him, he thought he was hallucinating and immediately teased, "I always thought my face and Shi Ge's were on the same level. I'm sorry, I must have been wrong."

Liu Zaishi often mocked his "elder brothers" on the show, saying that the "71-line brothers" were all uglier than him. The "71-line brothers" referred to Jung Jun-ho, Yoo Hee-yeol, and Jin C. Liu Zaishi also often said, "We 72-year-olds have faces on the same level," with other 72-year-old male artists like himself and Bae Yong-joon.

"Don't mention that guy. He has no respect and always jokes about his elder brothers." Jin C's face showed resentment when he was mentioned. Because Liu Zaishi often said it on the show, the whole of South Korea now believed that Jin C's face was worse than Liu Zaishi's.

"But, Brother, you're not using any illegal substances, right? If not, how are you so energetic now?" Li Jingming quickly took out his phone and snapped a close-up of Jin C's face. This was a rare moment, and he doubted anyone would believe the photo if it were shared, thinking it was photoshopped. Jin C's usual sleepy-eyed look was deeply ingrained.

"Hey, you're even more disrespectful than Liu Zaishi." Jin C was helpless, wondering if being honest meant being bullied. "Delete it quickly. Why take a photo? I haven't even put on makeup."

Jin C arrived in the U.S. on Wednesday, and in these four short days, he experienced what true happiness felt like. Learning new things and gaining new insights every day was his definition of happiness. The U.S. was the most advanced country in music and entertainment, in terms of industry development, history, and famous musicians. Unlike Korea, where seniority was highly valued, the U.S. was more open to new ideas and elements in music.

Ken Kelleher was making an album for his daughter, and it was a full-length album, so he had invited many friends from the music industry to help. Jin C's eyes widened when he saw these legendary figures. As an "auditing student," he regretted not knowing enough English, often missing key points due to the fast pace of the discussions. Li Jingming had thought Jin C, being a decent musician with years of experience, could show off a bit to the Americans, but Jin C was more like a student, just there to learn.

Jin C had another complaint: the strict eight-hour workday in the U.S. Once the workday ended, even the President couldn't change their minds about going home. This was unforgivable to Jin C. In Korea, staying until 2 or 3 AM was a sign of success. Filming? Drag it out; no one leaves until the required scenes are done. Recording a show? Drag it out; no one leaves until the required segments are recorded. Writing songs? Drag it out; no one rests until the work is complete. The more tired you were, the more popular you seemed. Jin C's perpetually sleepy look was a sign of his popularity. In the U.S., Jin C couldn't even work overtime if he wanted to; everyone went home, leaving him alone in the studio.

Li Jingming and Jin C entered the recording studio, where many people were present, including Ken Kelleher, who was writing in a small notebook.

"Hi, dear Ken, how have you been?" Li Jingming entered the studio and gave Ken Kelleher a typical American hug.

"Very well, very good." Ken Kelleher, deeply engaged in his work, felt fulfilled and gestured to Li Jingming. "Come meet my friends; they will be working with Kookwang Music."

"Wow, I bet these are all super talented people, right?" Li Jingming greeted them. They didn't look young, but they were full of energy. Ken Kelleher was older than Li Jingming's father, so his friends were likely of a similar age. However, Li Jingming wasn't worried about his Kookwang Music becoming an old people's club; in the music industry, the older you were, the more skilled you became.

"You're right, I love that word, 'super talented.' We are a group of super talented old guys." An old man next to Ken Kelleher happily said, clearly much older than the others, with white hair. Older people appreciated flattery.

"How's the work coming along?" Li Jingming was concerned about the progress. The faster and better the work, the more beneficial it was for him.

"Very smoothly, we're already working on the second song." This highlighted the difference between Americans and Koreans. Due to Jin C's efforts, Li Jingming had debuted in less than a week, releasing a single and even an MV. The Americans took longer, but they were only on the first song, and they still considered it smooth. Although Li Jingming's song was created with his friends at Harvard, the contrast made Jin C a bit dissatisfied with the American music production process, finding it too slow. However, slow work produced fine results, so he couldn't say much to this level of team.

"What about Miss Kehbi? Is she on a weekend break?" It was Sunday, a legal holiday in the U.S., and many devout believers were at church. Li Jingming didn't see Kehbi Kelleher and assumed she was resting at home.

Just as Li Jingming finished speaking, the door opened, and Kehbi Kelleher walked in.