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Chapter 358: Ju Yung-In (4)

That\'s when Ahn Yung-Hee, who was sitting next to her, tried to intervene. "Yung-In, that\'s enough."

"Mrs. Ahn, I got rejected today. I\'m about to lose my mind, so let me have just one more. Okay?"

Ahn Yung-Hee shook her head with a calm expression and showed no sign of surprise. "We have an early schedule tomorrow, remember? You\'ve had enough. It\'s time to head back and sleep. Come on."

Ju Yung-In started to grumble. "Ugh. First I got turned down by a guy and now my talent agent\'s getting on my nerves. Ah, Ju Yung-In has such a poor life!"

Ahn Yung-Hee glanced around. Although the people around them were mostly Chinese, her heart raced with anxiety that someone might understand their conversation.

Fortunately, the nearest table was far enough that their conversation wouldn\'t be overheard.

Ahn Yung-Hee sighed in relief, then lowered her voice and spoke sharply. "Hey! I told you to give up, didn\'t I? It\'s obvious that guy isn\'t interested in you, so why keep chasing him? He\'s not the only man in the world."

"No, he\'s not. But there\'s no one else like Yoon-Ho oppa."

"What?"

"I\'ll be honest. I originally chose to act in the projects chosen by Yoon-Ho oppa just to outshine Yoo-Jin. But do you know what\'s funny? I ended up getting trampled instead. And yet, I succeeded even more. Thanks to him, I reached this position that I could never climb to before no matter how hard I tried. And now he\'s even opening the doors for me to break into the Chinese market? Isn\'t that hilarious?"

Under Jung Yoon-Ho\'s guidance, Ju Yung-In had become the S-class top star she had always dreamed of being.

To her, Jung Yoon-Ho was like Midas: a man whose touch could bring success. As long as she could have him, she didn\'t care about rumors or scandals as they would only slow her down temporarily. Ju Yung-In believed that she could reach even greater heights with Jung Yoon-Ho with her.

And somewhere deep inside, Jung Yoon-Ho was also the man who had awakened a pure kind of excitement in her. That\'s why she still liked him.

As Ju Yung-In kept talking about Jung Yoon-Ho, Ahn Yung-Hee shot back once again in a hushed voice. "Keep your voice down, seriously! What if someone hears you?"

"So what if they do? No one would believe that a guy actually turned down Ju Yung-In. Right?"

At that moment, the bartender returned with the fourth whiskey glass.

Ahn Yung-Hee intercepted the drink before it could reach Ju Yung-In\'s hand. "I\'ll take that, thank you."

When she spoke in Korean and gestured with her hand, the puzzled bartender tilted his head and left.

"Why are you drinking my whiskey? Give it to me, Mrs. Ahn!" Ju Yung-In protested.

"Quiet. Let\'s just go back to the room, okay?"

"I\'m not going anywhere until I get another drink. Come on, give it to me~"

Ahn Yung-Hee had never seen Ju Yung-In this heartbroken before and was about to comfort her when a thought suddenly crossed her mind. \'Wait a minute. Maybe I can use this.\'

On further reflection, Ahn Yung-Hee realized that Jung Yoon-Ho\'s resistance to dating could be an advantage. \'Jung Yoon-Ho said he doesn\'t date within the same company, didn\'t he?\'

Im Sung-Hak had made a mistake from the start by not properly securing the contract with Ju Yung-In. If they couldn\'t bring Team Lead Jung Yoon-Ho over to Ace Entertainment within a few months, the chances of renewing Ju Yung-In\'s contract would disappear.

But from what she heard tonight, it seemed like a potential solution was within reach. If she could offer Ju Yung-In a bit of false hope, she might be able to keep her tied to Ace Entertainment a little longer.

\'It\'s better for her to stay at Ace Entertainment than to go back to Hoop Entertainment even if it means convincing her she has a 1% chance of being with Jung Yoon-Ho,\' Ahn Yung-Hee thought.

With this plan in mind, Ahn Yung-Hee carefully began to set the stage. "Yung-In, are you really the type to give up so easily?"

Ju Yung-In glared at Ahn Yung-Hee with her flushed face. "What did you just say?"

"You used to be known for being tenacious. Remember when you were a rookie and you managed to land the exclusive contract with that jewelry brand \'Bambam\' that Yoo Ji-Yung held onto for six years? Where\'s that fighting spirit now? Are you really the same Ju Yung-In?"

Ju Yung-In\'s legendary story from her rookie days involved taking over as the face of a jewelry brand that a top star, Yoo Ji-Yung, had represented for six years, all within just one year.

Ju Yung-In frowned. "Are you trying to cheer me up or make fun of me?"

"I\'m cheering you on. I know it\'s not what a talent agent should say, but I just feel bad for you. No tree is too strong to fall after ten strikes! Be kind, warm, and keep trying. Don\'t give up!"

Ju Yung-In looked at Ahn Yung-Hee in disbelief. "Seriously? You\'re going to support me? Really, Mrs. Ahn?"

"Yes, that\'s what I\'m saying. But for now, let\'s call it a night and head downstairs, okay?"

At that moment, Ahn Yung-Hee spotted the bartender from earlier talking quietly with another man at a nearby table. It was someone she recognized. "Yung-In, isn\'t that guy... Reporter Gu Ji-Am from Entertainment All Times? The one who was on the same flight as us?"

Ju Yung-In squinted toward the end of the bar. "Yeah, it\'s him. But what\'s he doing here?"

Suddenly, a chill ran down Ahn Yung-Hee\'s spine. Seeing him talking with the bartender, it seemed likely that he was digging into what Ju Yung-In had been saying earlier.

"Hey! Ju Yung-In! Get up now!" Ahn Yung-Hee said urgently.

"Huh? Why?"

Ahn Yung-Hee hurriedly pulled Ju Yung-In by the arm, left some cash on the bar, and made her way toward the opposite exit as if fleeing.

"That bartender knows Korean!"

That\'s when Ju Yung-In snapped back to her senses. If an article came out about this, Jung Yoon-Ho might think she had deliberately leaked the scandal herself.

She frantically tried to get her phone from her handbag, but her alcohol-dulled hands wouldn\'t cooperate.

Ju Yung-In shouted in panic, "Mrs. Ahn! My phone! I need to call Yoon-Ho oppa right now!"

"Oh my goodness, Ju Yung-In! You\'re thinking about a guy even in this situation?"

"It\'s not like that! I need to tell him I didn\'t leak the story on purpose!"

"Huh...what?"

"Quick! Or it\'s all over!"

Ahn Yung-Hee hastily retrieved the phone from Ju Yung-In\'s bag and handed it to her.

Just as Ju Yung-In unlocked the phone, a name popped up on the screen.

[Caller ID: Jung Yoon-Ho]

It was as if he had read her mind.

Seeing his name, Ju Yung-In\'s heart fluttered once more. He always seemed to show up during critical moments like a prince coming to the rescue.

"This is why... I just can\'t give up on him..." she muttered.

Ju Yung-In answered the call right away. "Oppa! I\'m..."

-Where are you right now? I heard that Gu Ji-Am is targeting you.

Ju Yung-In fought back the tears that threatened to spill and replied, "I\'m on the rooftop. Reporter Gu Ji-Am is talking to the bartender here, and I don\'t know what to do. I slipped my tongue while I was drunk... I thought the bartender didn\'t speak Korean, but I guess he does."

-I understand. I\'ll handle it, so you just go back to your room immediately.

"O-okay, oppa."

The moment Jung Yoon-Ho said he\'d take care of it, the urgency of the situation started to feel like someone else\'s problem. She had faith that Jung Yoon-Ho would find a way to resolve this.

"Mrs. Ahn, let\'s get back downstairs. I don\'t want to run into Yoon-Ho oppa."

"What are you planning to do?"

"Oppa said he\'d handle Reporter Gu."

Ahn Yung-Hee could only shake her head at Ju Yung-In\'s unwavering belief in Jung Yoon-Ho.

She realized that Ju Yung-In was far more deeply invested in Jung Yoon-Ho than she had initially thought.

***

Wang Long quickly identified Gu Ji-Am on the Peninsula rooftop using the photo Jung Yoon-Ho had given him.

Ju Yung-In had already left the scene, and he spotted Gu Ji-Am passing money to the bartender.

The 33-year-old Gu Ji-Am, a reporter for Entertainment All Times, had a history full of questionable dealings. Bribery, writing false articles for cash, extortion, and shady liaisons with women were all part of his repertoire.

According to what he had heard from Jung Yoon-Ho, Gu Ji-Am was full of weaknesses—making him an easy target for someone like Wang Long to deal with.

\'There he is.\'

Wang Long instructed the security officers he had brought with him to block all exits.

Gu Ji-Am and the bartender were still in negotiation, oblivious to what was happening.

"Here, take this. It\'s a thousand yuan. Is that enough for you to talk?"

The bartender held the cash and furrowed his brow. "That\'s not enough."

"What? Hey!"

"You need to give me at least 3 thousand yuan."

"Fine! I\'ll give it to you, but only after you give me the information!"

"If you don\'t pay upfront, I\'m not saying anything."

"God, you\'re so difficult! Why can\'t you understand?"

The bartender responded in fluent Korean. "This is not my problem, Mr. Gu. You\'re the one who\'s desperate here. Do what you want."

Gu Ji-Am scowled and let out a sigh. "Ugh, fine. Just wait here. I\'ll go downstairs and get the money."

However, when Gu Ji-Am turned around, he found Wang Long standing directly in his path with four uniformed security officers.

"What... who are you people?"

"Are you Reporter Gu Ji-Am?" asked Wang Long.

"So what if I am?"

At that moment, Wang Long gave a sharp command. "Take him."

The security officers grabbed Gu Ji-Am. Wang Long ignored Gu Ji-Am\'s protests and instead pulled out a stack of 100 yuan bills from his pocket. "Hey, bartender. Here\'s 10 thousand yuan."

"P-pardon me?"

"Wang Jiao, a second-year architecture student at Shanghai University! You will keep quiet about what you heard tonight until the day you die. Understand?"

The bartender clutched the money Wang Long held out and nodded repeatedly. "Yes, yes, I understand!"

Frightened out of his wits, the bartender ran off without looking back.

Meanwhile, Gu Ji-Am stared at Wang Long with a dumbfounded expression. "W-who the hell are you people?"

Wang Long smirked. "We\'re here to fix your bad habits."

"What are you talking about?"

Wang Long turned to the security officers and gave them new instructions. "Take him somewhere quiet. There\'s no need to cause a scene here."

At that moment, the security officers lifted the struggling Gu Ji-Am as if he weighed nothing.

Despite Gu Ji-Am\'s frantic yells, no one came to his aid—not even the rooftop bar\'s staff or patrons.

***

In Room 404 of Peninsula Hotel, Gu Ji-Am was surrounded by five men in black suits and knelt on the floor.

One of them was Wang Long, the director of Shanghai New Media Inc. who was responsible for producing Wolf of the Battlefield which Ju Yung-In was set to star in.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Gu Ji-Am asked nervously.

Wang Long casually pulled out his phone and showed a photo. "You were planning to use this to break the story of Ju Yung-In\'s dating scandal, weren\'t you?"

The photo Wang Long displayed showed Ju Yung-In and Jung Yoon-Ho briefly passing each other near the airplane restroom. At a glance, it looked like a couple having a private moment in a cramped space.

Gu Ji-Am swallowed hard. "W-what are you talking about?"

"Do you want me to call the bartender back and compare stories? Aren\'t you supposed to be a reporter?"

Gu Ji-Am clenched his jaw and shouted defiantly. "So what if I am?"

"What?"

"D-do you think you can just threaten a reporter from South Korea like this?"

Wang Long scoffed. "You really don\'t understand the situation, do you?"

He turned to one of the security officers beside him.

"Hack into this asshole\'s phone and extract all the information he has. His data is probably stored on a microSD card."

The officer nodded with a slight bow. "Yes, sir. We\'ll extract everything."

Gu Ji-Am shouted, "W-what are you planning to do with my phone!?"

"I looked into you, and it seems you\'ve been to China fifteen times in the past six months. You\'ve gained quite the reputation in the nightlife scene here for having... particular tastes."

Gu Ji-Am\'s face turned pale. It was clear that Wang Long knew all of his dirty secrets. "T-that\'s..."

"Don\'t even think about playing dumb. Do you have any idea how many eyes we have watching in Beijing and Shanghai? You love to take pictures while you\'re out partying, so I\'m sure there\'s plenty of evidence here. And don\'t feel too safe just because your phone is locked. We\'re quite skilled at hacking."

Visibly out of his mind, Gu Ji-Am began to clasp his hands together in a plea. "W-wait. W-what do you want from me? Just tell me and I\'ll do it."

Wang Long raised a hand to signal the suited man who was about to leave. "Hold on for a moment."

The man stopped in his tracks.

Wang Long turned to face Gu Ji-Am who was still kneeling. "You\'re going back to Korea tomorrow morning. When you do, you\'ll tell your superiors that your phone and camera were stolen. Understood?"

"P-pardon me?"

"And not a word about Ju Yung-In. Do that and you\'ll be fine."

"That... that\'s it?"

"Yes, but remember this! If you go against my instructions, the photos on your phone will end up on every major online platform in Korea."

"N-no... that\'s..."

The threat of exposing those photos was far worse than a jail sentence. Gu Ji-Am\'s phone and camera contained hundreds of compromising photos of him with various naked women.

Gu Ji-Am\'s head bobbed up and down rapidly. "Y-yes, I understand."

Wang Long finally cracked a smile. "You should consider yourself lucky that I\'m letting you off this easily. If it were up to me, I\'d have thrown you into a Chinese jail right away. The only reason I\'m letting you off is because I don\'t want the Korean embassy kicking up a fuss."

With a cold expression, Wang Long addressed the security officers. "Take this guy to the airport tomorrow morning. Make sure he doesn\'t even use the bathroom without supervision."

"Yes, sir!"

Leaving two officers behind to guard him, Wang Long pocketed Gu Ji-Am\'s phone and camera and walked out.

Gu Ji-Am couldn\'t even stand up despite the pain in his knees from kneeling, especially under the intense watch of the officers.

At that moment, an overwhelming need to use the restroom hit Gu Ji-Am. \'Damn it... I\'m so screwed.\'

***

[Everyday V11]

[Date: October 18, 2020]

-10:00 a.m. <Scheduled Event Deleted>

(Deleted Scheduled Event: [NEW. Jung Yoo-Jin] Schedule canceled due to health reasons. (Video conference content: Entertainment All Times Reporter Gu Ji-Am. Rumors of a dating scandal between Ju Yung-In and Team Lead Jung Yoon-Ho with a photo! Handling follow-up meeting))

Wang Long called me once he had handled the situation.

-Yoon-Ho, don\'t worry. That guy won\'t be able to spill a word. If he tries, it\'ll be the end of his career.

"Thanks, Wang Long."

-There\'s no need to thank me. Rather, we should be the one to thank you.

If the scandal involving Ju Yung-In had spread, it would have been a major setback for Shanghai New Media Inc. as well. Using the information I had provided, Wang Long had resolved the problem with Gu Ji-Am neatly.

Right after, my phone buzzed with a call from Ju Yung-In.

-O-oppa... I didn\'t mean for any of this to happen...

Ju Yung-In\'s voice was heavy with guilt.

"It\'s fine. Don\'t worry about it. Get some rest and focus on your schedule tomorrow."

-Thank you, oppa. I\'m so sorry about what happened. I\'ll make it up to you...I promise.

Though I told Ju Yung-In it was okay, she kept repeating her thanks and her promises to repay me.

Click.

After ending the call, I leaned back on the living room sofa in my hotel room. Then I opened my planner again to review my fate.

\'Kim Dong-Soo establishing Top Entertainment, Choi Man-Sik\'s betrayal of Choi Eun-Tae, and the numerous scandals and hidden stories in the entertainment world...\'

Many of these events remained unchanged in my planner.

\'So this is my fate, is it?\'

However, I had no intention of submitting to this fate.

No matter what challenges came my way, I was determined to confront them head-on—just as I did today.

\'Fate? Screw that!\' I thought.

I turned to the first page of my Everyday planner and wrote down my resolve.

- I decide my own fate.