Chapter 35: Beautiful Women Are Not to Be Trusted

"Good little brother, you finally showed up!" Baek Ji-young read the simple four words on the computer screen, her eyes brimming with tears of excitement.

Baek Ji-young, a pitiful woman. In 2001, when her singing career was at its peak, she was betrayed by the person she trusted the most. This betrayal was enough to end her life, and the "bloody" knife almost destroyed her once-thriving singing career. This incident was the 2001 "Baek Ji-young Sex and Love Video" scandal in South Korea, and the person who betrayed her was her ex-boyfriend and manager.

Once such an incident is made public, it is equivalent to killing Baek Ji-young's entertainment career. Many people pointed fingers at her behind her back, and even in front of her, they looked at her with disdain. At that time, life was worse than death, and her entertainment career entered a hiatus. No advertisements, commercial performances, variety shows, late-night radio, or TV drama roles came her way. She had no income and even had to pay compensation to the companies she endorsed for the loss of their image. She was also put on hold by her agency.

That year, Lee Yun-jae was sixteen. By chance, he met Baek Ji-young. Three years ago, she was a singer he admired, but after their true meeting, he saw her at her lowest point. He felt deep sympathy for her situation. He couldn't help her much, but the only thing he could do was to create two good songs with his current level to help Baek Ji-young return to the stage. So he put aside his other work and spent a whole month creating two songs, "No Longer in Love" and "Like Being Shot."

Two years later, Baek Ji-young started over, standing firm against all the criticism. She stood on the stage again, more mature and steady after the hardships she had endured. The two heart-wrenching love songs conquered all her fans, and after four years of effort, she earned the title of "Solo Queen of TV Dramas."

Meanwhile, in Japan.

BoA finished her day's schedule and returned to the hotel, her body tired. She lay on the bed and couldn't help but groan. She picked up the teddy bear on the bedside table and tapped its nose, and a voice came from inside the teddy bear.

"I like you... I like you... I like you..."

"Idiot!" BoA's smile had a bittersweet taste, a bit heart-wrenching. It was completely different from the smiles she put on for performances; this was a genuine smile from the depths of her heart.

Ten years had passed, and it felt like a blink of an eye. This teddy bear, which she discovered a secret in 2004, she carried with her wherever she went.

"Where are you now?! Four years... Don't you know how much everyone misses you?!" BoA murmured to the teddy bear.

Her eyes were slightly moist. She wiped them and took out her phone from her pocket. After turning it on, she found dozens of missed calls, which startled her, and dozens of unread messages. Jung Yun-ho sent 6, Shim Chang-min sent 4, Kim Jun-su sent 9, Kim Heechul sent 3, Jang Woo-hyuk sent 8, and so on...

"What's going on today... Why so many messages and missed calls..."

BoA, puzzled, opened the messages, and her originally lazy gaze gradually focused...

...

The next day.

After just one night, Seoul seemed to have changed its appearance. The ground was covered with snow, and under the winter sun, it shone brightly, making it hard to open one's eyes.

Lee Yun-jae opened the window, and a cold breeze instantly filled the warm room, making even his strong body shiver.

"The sun... it feels so good!" Compared to last night, Lee Yun-jae's throat was less hoarse, but it still had a slightly raspy quality, adding a unique flavor.

After closing the window, Lee Yun-jae washed up, got dressed, put on a pair of snow boots, and walked to the Left Bank Café with his backpack.

On the way, there were more pedestrians than usual, but there were fewer cars on the road. Bicycles and motorcycles were nowhere to be seen. No wonder, as one step down, the snow was already halfway up the calf, making it difficult for cars to drive, let alone bicycles and motorcycles, which could easily skid and cause accidents. On this day, walking was faster than driving.

Lee Yun-jae buried himself in his clothes and walked with his head down to the Left Bank Café. The café was close to where he lived, and even with the poor road conditions, it only took him half an hour to get there.

From 9 to 11 in the morning was his busiest time of the day. He had to make various cakes and grind coffee beans, all of which he did by hand. However, when the exquisite cakes were placed in the glass cabinet, a sense of satisfaction naturally arose.

At 11, the café officially opened for business. Perhaps because of the snow, there were not many customers today. Only a few couples from Seoul Arts University came to this warm café to drink coffee, eat cake, and talk about love, deepening their feelings.

At 1:30 PM, the students who had classes went to their classes, and those who didn't had been sitting for over two hours. When their emotions reached a peak, they naturally went to do what they needed to do, leaving the café empty. Lee Yun-jae, with nothing to do, sat behind the counter and read a magazine.

Ding...

The doorbell rang, and a girl wearing a large scarf and a windbreaker, about 18 years old, entered. Lee Yun-jae still had some impression of her. This girl had come to his shop a few times, always buying several cakes. Moreover, she was very beautiful, with a lively charm. While many beautiful girls from Seoul Arts University had come to the Left Bank Café, none had left as deep an impression on Lee Yun-jae as this one.

"I want a cappuccino and eight pieces of cake to go!" The girl said, taking out her wallet.

Lee Yun-jae nodded and started making the cappuccino. His movements were quick, and his ten fingers flew. Then he drew a blooming white rose on the surface of the coffee.

"Wow, that's so beautiful!" The girl exclaimed in surprise.

Lee Yun-jae chuckled and pushed the coffee to the girl, then started packing the cakes. Soon, the eight pieces were ready.

At this moment, the girl said somewhat shyly to Lee Yun-jae, "Hey... boss, can you help me with something?"

Help? Lee Yun-jae looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"I can't carry so many things, can you help me deliver them?" the girl asked.

Lee Yun-jae was taken aback, but since the girl was beautiful and there was no business in the shop, he nodded and agreed to her request.

After packing the cakes and closing the door, Lee Yun-jae followed the girl to Seoul Arts University.

By the afternoon, much of the snow had melted, and there were more pedestrians. As they walked side by side, a faint fragrance wafted from the girl to Lee Yun-jae's nose.

Unintentionally, Lee Yun-jae saw the girl's face, flushed from the cold air, and was momentarily lost in thought. It wasn't because of his lack of self-control, but because the girl was truly beautiful.

"Hey, your coffee is really good. Why don't you open a shop elsewhere? You're always stuck in this small shop. I think if you opened a shop in a better location, you'd make more money!" the girl said, her cheeks dimpling slightly as she spoke.

Lee Yun-jae smiled and shook his head.

"Oh... I see, you must not have enough money to open a shop, right?" the girl guessed. "How about we partner up? I'll provide the money, and you'll provide the effort! I'm just looking for a side business!" she suggested, seemingly very interested in her sudden idea.

Lee Yun-jae still shook his head.

"You're quite interesting... I've been to your shop a few times, and you never speak. Is your throat sore?"

Lee Yun-jae nodded.

"Oh... I thought you were mute. That's a relief! It would be too bad if you were mute!"

"Huh?" Lee Yun-jae didn't hear clearly what she was saying and looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"Ah... never mind... let's hurry, my classmates must be hungry!" The girl's face turned slightly red, whether from the cold wind or for some other reason...

A moment later, Lee Yun-jae followed the girl into Seoul Arts University. He had been to this place, which was a holy land for many young people in Korea with artistic dreams, a few times. However, if you weren't a student there, you would easily get lost, as the campus was very large.

"I'm a first-year student in the Performing Arts and Broadcasting Department. Thank you so much today. I'll take the cakes from here!" The girl threw the empty coffee cup into the trash and turned to face Lee Yun-jae.

Lee Yun-jae smiled and shook his head, gesturing for her to continue walking. Since they had already come this far, it was no big deal to go a few more steps. It would also help to attract a repeat customer, and this repeat customer was clearly very attractive.

"Okay, thanks!" The girl blew on her hands and put them in her down jacket pocket, turned around, and lowered her head, a smile playing on her lips.

Many people were clearing the snow on campus, almost mobilizing half the school. Of course, many were also taking advantage of the first big snowfall of the year to do something memorable.

When they entered the classroom, most students were huddled inside due to the cold weather.

"Su-min, why did you take so long... we're starving!" A few girls immediately came up to her, and Lee Yun-jae handed them the cakes.

"Su-min... you really brought him, impressive!" The girls whispered to Su-min.

"Hehe... who am I? I'm the department's beauty queen... I always keep my word, and you can't go back on our bet!"

"Don't worry... it's a small matter. I'll introduce you to Senior Ryu when the time comes!"

Lee Yun-jae naturally heard their whispers and shook his head. It seemed he had become a "chip" for others to achieve their goals. Just as he was about to leave, he turned and encountered a few male students coming in from outside.

"Hey, isn't that the mute from the coffee shop? Perfect, we don't have to go out in this cold to buy anything! Mute, get us six cups of coffee and two blueberry cheesecakes!" The boy handed two 100,000 won bills to Lee Yun-jae.

Mute... Lee Yun-jae's face turned slightly cold, and he smiled wryly, shaking his head and walking past the boy. There was no need to get angry over such people.

"Is this mute's head okay? He's not even doing business?!" The boy was taken aback.

"Forget it, here, I just bought this!" Su-min handed him a cup of coffee.

"Hmph, I don't even want to eat this lousy café's stuff!" The boy refused and added, "By the way, the Modern Dance Department set up a stage on the playground today. I heard Senior Ryu will perform there!"

"Really... let's go then!" Su-min said excitedly, clearly a fan of Ryu.

The name "Ryu" silently entered Lee Yun-jae's ears, and his steps momentarily paused.

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