Chapter 129 Chapter 129
When Lia called, Kwon Ji-yong had already finished his trip and was nearing Mapo. Night traffic was scorching. He gripped the steering wheel with one hand, his index finger tapping unconsciously. At a red light, his phone vibrated in the passenger seat.
"Is the trip over?" Her voice came from the other end of the line. Her voice was still hoarse, but much better than a few days ago. The ending tone was deliberately high, and at first glance, it sounded no different from usual. "...Well,
It's over. I have something else to do, so I'll be back later. He hesitated for a moment and didn't lie. But he didn't say where he was going either. The green light came on, and a few hundred meters away,
The low, grayish-white building was clearly visible. Above the main entrance, a dark blue plaque bore the words "Mapo Police Station" in large, golden characters, gleaming coldly under the streetlight. He slowly parked the car by the roadside, his gaze fixed on the building.
There was silence on the other end of the line for two seconds. "So, is it convenient to talk now?" Realizing that his tone hadn't been very good, Quan Zhilong adjusted his composure before saying, "What's wrong?" The other party took a deep breath.
After a moment's hesitation, he said, "...I missed you." Quan Zhilong was taken aback. His heart warmed slightly, and he subconsciously felt a surge of joy. But almost at the same moment, guilt also surged up, suppressing that little bit of joy.
"I miss you too." He replied with a smile, but a bitter feeling welled up in his heart. Lia didn't notice his abnormality and seemed a little embarrassed. She immediately changed the subject: "However,
"I do have something I want to tell you. Officer Zheng and the PR department are here today." He understood. It was his illegitimate child, but she was still worried about him getting hurt. "Yeah, I know." He didn't say sorry. That would have hurt her.
"This isn't Oppa's fault." She added eagerly, her tone questioning. "Those who make mistakes will be punished. I told Officer Zheng that we won't accept reconciliation—"
"Well done, Lia." He followed her words and responded in a low voice, "Is there anything I can do for PR?" "...Not yet. We're going to respond as 'hospitalized for overwork.'" He was stunned.
She hastily added, "Minister Cui said that this would be better for my image." "This matter will be over soon. So, don't feel sorry, okay?" The voice on the other end of the phone was trying to be cheerful, but he only felt his chest getting heavier and heavier.
Guilt is a weakness of kind people because it is not based on the right or wrong of facts, but on the assumption that "if I weren't there, she wouldn't be hurt."
It was like being stuck in a strange impasse. No matter what I did, I couldn't escape the vortex of self-blame. "...Okay," he agreed gently. "Rest well and wait for me to come back." ...
When he saw the two illegitimate children, Officer Zheng deliberately made way for them.
The man she had once only dared to glimpse from afar was suddenly right before her eyes. She should have been ecstatic, but because of her own mistakes, she couldn't even meet his gaze. The two girls sat timidly side by side on the metal chairs, their fingers entwined in their knees.
In the past, it was disregard. But now, it is disgust. "Oppa, I know I was wrong——" "Forgive us——"
They cried and apologized, their faces distorted with tears and snot, and it was hard to tell whether it was out of true guilt or fear. Quan Zhilong suddenly felt that he had made the wrong decision.
He didn't know what he was doing here. Should he question them? No, there was no need. That look was all too familiar, a mixture of desire, love, prying eyes, and fear...
It wasn't just one or two. No matter where he went, he was always followed by this sight, hidden in the darkness. This deformed part seemed to have grown into his body, gradually becoming a part of him.
He couldn't utter a word, and with a hasty farewell to Officer Zheng, who was waiting outside, he left in a hurry. He also didn't get to see Lia, so he just made up an excuse and returned to the dormitory in a panic. ... That night, he fell ill.
The exhaustion of days finally hit him when the last straw fell, and he had a fever so high that he was unconscious. The extreme fatigue and high fever made him restless even in his sleep.
In his dream, Lia lay on an emergency bed, her face pale. She stared at him, eyes filled with resentment, and asked him, "Why didn't you save me?" He frantically tried to reach out, but found that his feet seemed to be nailed to the ground, unable to move at all.
Nurses and doctors hurried past him, and he was pushed back by the crowd, watching the emergency bed go away bit by bit. "I'm here!" He opened his mouth to shout, but the sound was swallowed by the darkness and could not reach her ears at all.
He jerked awake, his heart aching as if it were being tightly gripped. His chest heaved violently, and cold sweat soaked his back. He knew he was probably ill. Even amidst the pain, he felt a sense of absurd relief.
Only in such a specific illness could he rest for a short while. If he could feel even one ten-thousandth of her pain...even if he could feel even one ten-thousandth of her pain... As the night fell, he fell into a coma again.
On the day Lia flew to Los Angeles, the Seoul Juvenile Court announced the results of the trial of two minors involved in the case: the court found that the defendants had followed and spied on the victim, and broke into the dormitory without permission late at night, seriously endangering the life safety of the parties.
Among them, the leader of the incident was sentenced to one year in a juvenile detention center for closed correctional education; the other accomplice was sentenced to two years of protective observation and was required to complete 200 hours of community service.
The court issued a three-year no-contact order, prohibiting the two from approaching or contacting the victim and her workplace in any way.
Kim is temporarily resting due to health reasons. YG Entertainment recently announced that its producer Lia Kim has become unwell due to continuous work and has been admitted to the hospital for observation and treatment.
The company emphasized that Lia Kim's overall condition is stable. The doctor recommended that she rest for a few days and she is expected to resume normal work soon.
"For her health reasons, we will adjust her schedule and provide the best support. Please don't worry too much, and we hope that the outside world can give her enough time and space." There is naturally no impenetrable wall in the world.
But leaks can be plugged with money. Aside from a few tabloids speculating that she was hospitalized for "overdose," major media outlets unanimously adopted YG's announcement as the official version.
The words "illegitimate child drugged" did not appear in the news at all. Her parents in the United States saw the news and simply thought she was overworked and told her to rest more and not rush home.
In just a few years, not only did she become an important figure in YG, but YG also gradually grew into one of the veritable "three major companies" in the entertainment industry - establishing "close" ties with the media.
Unsurprisingly, most of the comments on the forum focused on her being "overworked." "Working non-stop? Doesn't that mean she's overworked? YG really treats people like machines."
"Doesn't she still have to go to school? That's why she's so stressed out?" "After seeing her on the show, I felt like she was the type who worked herself to the bone. She's a genius, but it's too pitiful to live like this." "Genius Producer = Overworked Human"
"Lia, take good care of yourself TT" "A friend saw GD in the underground garage of a hospital with a name starting with S in the early morning, kkk" "Is this true?" "Isn't it normal for people from the same company to visit?"
"It's early morning... If you want to see it, it should be during the day, right?" "VIP passed by to clarify: It was just a coincidence, Long went to the hospital because he had a fever." "+1, I missed the radio event that day because of a fever."
"kkk, black-hearted YG, artists and producers are the same" "Why do I see some reports saying it's an overdose?" "It must be a mental problem... This kind of thing is not uncommon nowadays. Public figures are under so much pressure, it's completely understandable"
"I thought it was hype, but the news came out that her song has entered the top ten again hhh" "Tabloids are all making up stories, and you believe them" "+1" "No wonder so many artists in our country have mental problems"
But rather than worrying about what others might say, Lia was concerned that Quan Zhilong seemed to be avoiding her. It wasn't indifference, nor was it distant.
After he was discharged from the hospital, he still cared for her and spent more time with her during his free time. Nothing seemed to have changed.
But he rarely looked her in the eyes anymore. The subtle distance between them made her suspicious, but she also felt that she might just be overthinking it. She had wanted to change her flight again, but the time she had agreed with Isaac had been postponed again and again.
He needs time to digest it - she comforted herself like this and boarded the return flight.
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