Chapter 34 Chapter 34
Lia's move out of the dormitory was quickly arranged. The day after the fifth episode of the show was filmed, Bao Heng took her to see the room.
Since she was no longer a candidate for debut, it was inconvenient for her to move back to her original trainee dormitory. The company provided her with a single-bedroom apartment nearby. The room was small and belonged to the company's own assets, which had been unused for a long time.
Only staff members were occasionally accommodated for short stays. The room was simply cleaned and sparsely furnished—white walls, wooden floors, a single bed, a desk, and a floor lamp. To Lia's surprise, there was a computer on the desk.
"Occasionally, staff from other places will stay here, so we put it here for convenience." Bao Heng explained briefly, "If you don't mind, you can use it directly." Lia nodded and looked around the room.
The room's window faces south, allowing for plenty of sunlight. However, due to the low ceiling, the window faces the fire escape of another building, so there's not much of a view. "We were pressed for time, so I only had the aunt do a quick clean. After you move in,
"If there's anything else that needs tidying up, let me know," Baoheng instructed. Lia obliged. She was very satisfied with her new home—clean, bright, and not far from the company and her old dormitory.
She didn't need to spend extra time adapting to the surrounding environment. Thinking about living alone in the future, she even felt a little excited.
The desk could be moved to the window and a few potted plants placed on it. A small rug could be placed under the floor lamp, and a small bookshelf placed next to it, creating a small reading corner. "I like it very much. Thank you, Sister Baoheng," she said with a smile.
Her eyes sparkled, unable to conceal her novelty. Baoheng was amused by her reaction, and his mood lightened a bit: "Can you treat me to a warm-house dinner when the time comes?"
"Of course! You order the food in advance, and I'll take care of it!" Lia agreed without hesitation. Bao Heng couldn't help but laugh: "By the way, the contract is still being negotiated, so it will probably take a while before it's finalized."
Changes to trainee contracts involve coordination across multiple departments, not just the trainee management department, but also the A&R and planning departments.
Right now, almost all of the company's resources are tilted towards the debut of a new girl group. Despite Bao Heng's repeated push, there has been no progress.
"Try not to go out during this period," she added, "wait until the show is over and the heat has died down."
After a pause, he reminded: "The aunt who cooks in the dormitory will bring you a meal every day. If you need anything else, please feel free to contact me." Lia nodded: "I understand."
She didn't ask how long the confinement would last—when the company issued an order, asking more was pointless. Taking advantage of this time to catch up on missed lessons wasn't a bad thing.
"Also, I'll give this back to you," Baoheng said, handing her something. Lia took it. It was the cell phone everyone had to hand in before the shoot.
She was using an old Samsung flip phone. When she first came to Korea, she had to temporarily buy this one with the help of a staff member because the Nokia she brought from home was not compatible with the network standard.
The phone was in good condition, with almost no wear on the edges, and the silver body shone softly in the sunlight. "I'm going back to the office first. Someone will come to help you move. Wait here," Bao Heng instructed.
Lia nodded and watched her leave. Then she sat on the edge of the bed, plugged in the charger, and waited two minutes until the screen lit up. She called home first.
My family on the other side of the ocean wasn't particularly interested in what was happening in Korea, simply tuning in to watch the program each month. "I haven't even said happy birthday to you yet. Congratulations to my precious daughter on turning another year older."
The phone connected, and her mother's voice, tinged with laughter, reached her. Lia's nose tightened, and she murmured. It was mid-June, and she was so exhausted from the incident that she'd forgotten even her birthday.
"Why did the production team return your phone so early?" my mother asked, puzzled. "I'm withdrawing, Mom," she replied as casually as possible.
She briefly explained her decision—skipping the details and simply saying she wasn't cut out for the camera.
There was silence on the other end of the line for a few seconds, and then my mother's gentle reply came: "It's okay if you don't want to be an idol. No matter what, we support your choice." After a pause, she asked, "If you don't debut, will you come back to school?"
Her mother clearly cared more about her academics than her musical career. "If I wanted to pursue music, my chances would be much better in Korea," Lia explained softly. It was the truth.
If she wants to continue her career in music, YG is undoubtedly her best choice. Her mother pondered for a moment, then finally agreed: "Okay, make your own arrangements. Feel free to contact us if you need anything."
After hanging up, Lia opened MSN. Messages flooded in. Because she had hastily put away her phone before filming, she only had time to say a few simple goodbyes to her closest friends.
When she reconnected to the internet, notifications piled up to the top of her screen. She first opened the [Slave Producers] group. The last message was from Kush: K-Flow: Blame it on me, I had to eat sashimi.
Lia couldn't help but laugh. She imagined the other person's tearful face, then quickly shook her head to get rid of the horrible image.
Scrolling further up, the group is mostly filled with messages sent by Kush for her own entertainment - there are certification photos of people voting for her, sharing of delicious food, and a little bit of work progress in between.
After scrolling through the chat, Lia had a basic grasp of his life during this period. Teddy was always very frugal with his words, only occasionally responding to Lia's support. As for Kwon Ji-yong.
There were very few messages from him in the group, obviously he was very busy. Only when Kush really didn't get any response and frantically @ed him did he reply a few words. Lia continued to scroll up. Suddenly she saw a message -
JiYo: Happy Birthday (small cake.jpg) @NeonL She was stunned for a moment. The time displayed was June 16th. Because her phone was turned in at the time, the message lay alone in the group chat history, without any response.
There were additional blessings from Teddy and Kush below. Lia thought for a moment, quoted this message, and replied: NeonL: Thank you, thank you~ I'm back! (Shining Debut.jpg)
Then, hesitating for a moment, he left the group chat without sending any more messages. His friends had also sent quite a few messages, but Xia Qing's messages were the most numerous, piling up like a mountain.
Because she knew in advance that her phone had to be handed in, she didn't send messages too quickly, mostly just school gossip. But the last few messages were clearly filled with anxiety:
"Someone is trying to tell me you're in a relationship. If I didn't know the situation, I would have almost believed it." "There are actually photos. Holy shit. Holy shit. This is not right!!!"
"No, I just looked at the photo carefully again. That can't be GD Oppa!!!!!" "Wow, is your company's PR working? They just leaked it out like that???"
"Are you okay? Don't go online recently. I can't scold those crazy people. It's outrageous." "Ah, if I didn't know you can't use your phone, I would have called the police..." "There's hope, there's hope!!!" This guy.
Lia laughed, her words coming out incoherent. She quickly typed a reply: "I'm fine, just got my phone back. The leak is fake." "What do you mean it's saved?" Then she exited the dialog box and continued to check other messages.
Several friends from school also sent messages. Some said they had seen the show and thought her stage presence was amazing; others asked if she was ready for her debut. She patiently replied to each one in chronological order.
Scrolling to the end, she found a message from JiYo. It was dated March 18th, and because it was sent so early, it had been pushed to the bottom of the message list. She clicked on it. It was a photo.
He was wearing a loose T-shirt, sitting slightly hunched at the end of the hotel bed. On the TV screen in front of him was the first episode of "Project A." In the frame, it happened to be her shot. There was rainbow graffiti on the photo:
"Congratulations to our Lia on her debut day!" A text note was attached below: ps: Because I was too busy, the photo was taken three days after the first broadcast. TT Lia stared at the photo for a long time, then curled the corners of her mouth.
She saved the photo to her phone, opened the dialog box, and typed "thank you." Her finger hovered over the send button, hesitated, and then silently deleted it. She didn't know when it started, but she always wanted to say "thank you" to him.
However, after saying this so many times, it seemed to have become unfamiliar. She couldn't think of a better way to phrase it, so she had to put her phone down. At this moment, Xia Qing's message popped up again: "!!!!!!!!! It's been released?!!!!!!"
Lia didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Yeah, it's out." "You don't even know!! I was so worried for the past two weeks!! Fortunately there was that clarification post! Otherwise, you would have been wronged!" A string of exclamation marks kept popping up on the screen. Clarification post?
Lia keenly grasped the key words: "What clarification post?" Xia Qing suddenly became excited and called directly the next second. She answered the call, and the voice on the other end came out like a machine gun:
"Don't you know? When the news broke that you and GD Oppa were dating, didn't almost the entire internet believe it? Back then, you already had anti-fans, and I couldn't even scold you enough!"
"Your company's PR is completely useless. It's the same as if they didn't clarify at all." "I was so anxious at the time, but a few days later, a post suddenly appeared, explaining the whole thing from beginning to end!"
"Guess what—!" Lia suppressed her laughter and cooperated obediently: "What?"
"This is going viral! The person who posted this is probably a GD Oppa fan. They're super professional and well-reasoned. They straightened out the entire timeline in a few seconds, saying you guys just went out to get some late-night snacks after working overtime, and then just slapped a bunch of pictures up there."
"Then there will be fewer people scolding you!" Xia Qing was beaming with joy as she spoke, her excitement palpable even through the phone. Lia also grew curious: "That post... can you still find it?" "Of course! I'll send it to you right away!"
Xia Qing paused as she spoke. "No, that's not right. Have you finished filming the show?!" "Well... things are a bit complicated, so I guess it's done." Xia Qing's tone faltered, and she clearly didn't react. "What do you mean?"
Lia hesitated for a moment, then answered honestly, "I've decided not to debut." There was silence on the other end of the line for three seconds. Then— "!!!!!!!!!!" An incredulous scream echoed.
Lia held the phone a little further away. "It's too complicated to explain. I'll tell you slowly when we meet at the beginning of the school term." "Can't we meet now? Tomorrow? The day after tomorrow?" Xia Qing was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.
"I might not be able to go out recently." Lia sighed. "Ah... that's right, you're a celebrity now." Xia Qing finally realized it belatedly. "Alright, alright, I'll post it to you first! Take a look!"
She hung up the phone in a hurry. Just as Lia was about to put her phone down, she caught sight of a small digital notification light up above her text message inbox. She tilted her head slightly.
Almost no one texted her, especially close family and friends, who mostly contacted her through MSN. Curious, she clicked on it—a number with no notes. The message couldn't be simpler: "Are you okay?"
She stared at the screen for a few seconds. The numbers were unfamiliar, and she had no memory of them. Could it be someone caring about her because of the revelations? She thought about it, then clicked on the input box and replied: "I'm fine, thank you for your concern."
Then, she casually marked the contact as "pending confirmation," preparing to slowly verify the other party's identity when she had the chance. After processing these, Lia turned on the computer, logged into her account, and clicked on the link sent by Xia Qing.
The page slowly loaded, and after a moment a post with a striking title popped up: ——"Suspicious Points in GD's Love Affairs: Have You Really Seen It Clearly?" Xia Qing wasn't exaggerating at all.
The post received an astonishing number of views and reposts, and the comments section was almost unanimously filled with praise for its "rigorous logic" and "sufficient evidence." Lia quietly read the analysis, each accompanied by illustrations.
My mouse scrolled down unconsciously, and a strange feeling welled up in my heart. The poster's speculation was so accurate, almost every detail was right where it actually happened. It was so similar. It was as if I had witnessed it with my own eyes.
When I came to, I had already clicked on the poster's profile. The account was called [peace0818], and the avatar was a smiling cat wearing sunglasses. The profile page was empty, save for the registration date and a single post.
August 18th—Kwon Ji-yong's birthday. Apparently, she's a fan. Lia couldn't help but sigh softly. While the poster's original intention was to clarify things about Kwon Ji-yong, they actually saved themselves.
She hesitated for a moment, then clicked on the private message and sent a short message: "Thank you for your analysis. It really helped me." The moment she sent it, she glanced at the chat box. The next second, she froze.
At the top of the chat interface, her secondary account ID was clearly displayed: ——lovelovegd222 ... Lia's face was filled with black lines. She forgot to switch accounts.
She stared at the chat box for a long moment, her mind blank. Then, on second thought, she breathed a sigh of relief. How many private messages could such a large post receive in a single day? Her message would probably be quietly lost in the pile of messages.
She was right—but that was a few weeks ago. The post's popularity had faded, so her private message popped up on the poster's phone without any hindrance—"lovelovegd?"
Inside the nanny car, Kwon Ji-yong frowned and whispered the name on the screen. Bigbang had just finished a press conference and was getting in the car to rest. Since publishing that post, he had activated a special reminder for this account.
Because he wasn't sure how the post would receive feedback, he spent this period of time checking comments and private messages one by one whenever he had free time. Fortunately, things developed as he expected, and the popularity has gradually subsided.
He does what the company can't do. Dasheng next to him leaned over and asked curiously, "Brother, what's the news?" Quan Zhilong has been acting mysterious for a while.
Because of the anonymous post, he'd been in a low mood for several days, afraid to mess with anyone. Then, things started to improve, and he started scrolling through his phone again. Dasheng couldn't help but become curious.
Quan Zhilong raised his eyebrows, with a hint of pride: "Nothing, just a small fan." "A small fan?" Dasheng was even more confused. What kind of fans made him care so much? "Well, I'm not quite sure yet."
He smiled but didn't reply, clearly not wanting to say anything more. Seeing this, Dasheng could only curl his lips and retreat in frustration. Quan Zhilong lowered his head and clicked on the new private message. "Thank you for your analysis. It really helped me." Just a few words.
The tone was polite and calm, yet with a subtle sense of dissonance. Judging from the ID, it was clearly his fan. But the content was unlike that of an ordinary fan— "Great analysis, our brother really doesn't know how to fall in love TT"
He'd read thousands of similar private messages in the past few weeks and was familiar with the tone. Normally, he probably wouldn't have paid it any mind. It made no difference to him who sent the private message.
But today, with nothing else to do, he somehow clicked on the sender's profile. It was simple. The profile picture was a lemon tree, with an American-style lawn in the background, like a casual photo. There was no personal biography.
The account was registered two years ago, and posts were few and far between, with the content being remarkably uniform—all Bigbang-related. He randomly clicked on a post. —[Analysis] Detailed notes on Bigbang's "Lies."
The post wasn't long, just a few paragraphs, but it offered a clear and professional breakdown of everything from the instrumentation and arrangement to the lyric layout. The poster not only understood music theory, but even addressed several details that had troubled him when he was composing the piece.
Kwon Ji-yong raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued. He clicked on a few old posts. Each one analyzed Big Bang songs, arranged in chronological order of album release.
The post has a considerable number of views and reposts, and the comments section is mostly filled with messages asking people to listen to a certain song. The poster will occasionally reply: "Add it to the list!" "I'll arrange it when I'm free!" "Sorry everyone T
T has been too busy recently." It can be seen that the owner of this account is not only professional, but also very enthusiastic. He also really likes their music. Quan Zhilong couldn't help but chuckle and clicked to follow.
Next time I release a song, I'll check the reviews. Satisfied, he exited the page, spinning his phone between his fingers. Outside the window, dusk deepened, and the city lights gradually brightened.
The car became quiet, with only the low background music from the player as the sound.
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