Lying on the couch, Hwang Ji-yeon looked at the ceiling in a daze. Her manager, Son Tae-hee, had already left, and there was an order from her company to temporary put her on ice for her reckless actions. At the same time, she would bear a huge penalty for violating a condition in the contract.

It was a far cry from artists in China. The moment artists in China become famous, they would be treated as VIPs by their management companies. But in South Korea, the management companies had absolute control over their artists. If they decide on giving up on their artist, that particular artist would be blacklisted in the industry. The artists would be shunned, even if they tried to hop to another management company.

Hwang Ji-yeon underestimated the consequences of this matter. She initially wanted to lengthen her time as a performing artist, but she never expected that she would be dragged into a mess of scandal. Her first reaction was that this was a plot from Kim Jung-ho, but there was nothing she could do, since she committed a fatal mistake.

She did not even bother washing up. She crouched on the couch with her concert recording playing on the television. She was wearing her costume at the concert, revealing her slender legs. Every single movement of hers would be responded with cheers from her fans. A tear rolled down her cheek, because it was now in the past. It didn’t feel good to fall into the valley from heaven.

Going into the social media platform, she was being flamed by countless people. There were all sorts of insults, but most of them were insulting her for being a disgusting hypocrite to secretly meet with a man at night despite having an innocent image.

Even if they were only words, she felt enormous pressure.

Suddenly, her phone rang. It was a call from her father.

A manly voice sounded from the other side, “Ji-yeon, what’s going on? There are so many reporters in the surroundings wanting to interview us!”

“Dad, I ran into some trouble. You guys should take shelter in the countryside for the time being and return to Seoul after this whole matter dies down!” Through her own hard work, Hwang Ji-yeon managed to buy a house for her family in Seoul.

“Alright, take good care of yourself!” Her father did not talk much, since he was just an ordinary worker. His life only changed because of his daughter. Right now, their entire family had a barbecue restaurant with a decent business. But because of Hwang Ji-yeon’s matter, they could only close it for the time being and lay low in the countryside until this whole matter died down.

After her call with her father, she dragged her feet like a zombie to the washroom and freshened her face. At the same time, she kept telling herself that she must persevere.

Suddenly, her doorbell rang before knocks followed. When she looked through the peephole, she was horrified to see a vulgar man. She immediately cringed into the couch and covered herself with a fur blanket. She was like a startled little bird.

The knocking lasted for a few minutes before it finally stopped. Hwang Ji-yeon buried her face into her knees and sobbed. She had no idea how to face this situation at this moment, but it was undoubtedly the biggest setback she had met.

She lost everything overnight!

As time passed, she started to feel hungry. When she opened her refrigerator, she realised that it was empty with only some expired milk. If it was some other time, she would get food delivered. But under the current situation, who could guarantee that it wouldn’t be a paparazzi in disguise?

Suddenly, her doorbell rang out again. But this time, she did not even bother looking at the peephole and continued to crouch on the couch with her ears covered.

Her phone suddenly rang. It was a call from an unknown number. After a brief pondering, she decided not to pick it up. Soon after, a message was sent to her, “I’m Su Tao, and I’m currently outside your door. Open it!”

After a brief pondering, she suspected that it was a trick from paparazzi. But in the end, she couldn’t bear her curiosity and opened the door. Before she could even react, a silhouette charged into her room. Upon closing the door, he swiftly removed his sunglasses, scarf, and cap to reveal a familiar yet unfamiliar face.

“What are you doing here?” Hwang Ji-yeon’s emotions were complicated upon looking at the unexpected guest. “If a paparazzi took a photo of us, wouldn’t that confirm our scandal?”

With a smile on his face, Su Tao replied, “So what? We’re both unwed, and I believe that it’s not illegal even if we were dating, right?”

From Kim Jung-ho, Su Tao obtained Hwang Ji-yeon’s address.

“But!” Hwang Ji-yeon showed a wry smile and continued, “The public opinion is now one-sided, and my reputation has been damaged. Many fans believe that I was pretending to be innocent in the past! Furthermore, I was iced by my management company, and I’m in a dead-end!”

“Don’t be so certain about that!” Su Tao shook his head and waved the packaged food he brought before Hwang Ji-yeon. “I believe you’ve not eaten, right? Have some food with me, even if you’ve eaten!”

His words made her briefly stunned. Su Tao was really here to give her help in her hour of need. She did not speak any words and received the packaged food from Su Tao. After placing it on the table, she poured herself a cup of chilled water and started eating together with Su Tao.

His arrival has alleviated her depression.

When Su Tao noticed the dustbin filled with napkins, he asked, “You just cried?”

“I didn’t!” Hwang Ji-yeon was seriously hungry. So she did not bother with her eating etiquette and was busy shoving food down her throat.

“Don’t worry about it. This situation is only temporary, and it will be changed soon.” Su Tao consoled.

“You don’t have to console me. I have already made preparations to become an ordinary person.” Hwang Ji-yeon secretly wiped the tears off the corner of her eyes and continued, “There’s actually nothing bad about it. I’m also tired now!”

“You’re speaking against your heart!” Despite Su Tao’s words, he also felt sympathy with Hwang Ji-yeon. He was indirectly the cause of this matter, not to mention that Hwang Ji-yeon had left an unforgettable image in his heart, even if they did not break the last perimeter. He did not talk to her about having her as the spokesperson for the Three Flavour Cosmetics International. After all, it was still being planned, and nothing was in the bag. So if he revealed it now, the Three Flavour Cosmetics International would be in a disadvantageous position when discussing with her management company about the endorsement fee.

As both of them casually chatted in the apartment, Hwang Ji-yeon gradually opened her heart and shared about her bumpy journey in her career.

She never ate anything since last night, so she swept all the food on the table into her stomach.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang again and Hwang Ji-yeon vexed, “There is nothing that a paparazzi can’t do nowadays. The security here is strict, but someone still managed to get in. Oh, right, how did you come in earlier?”

With a smile on his face, Su Tao replied, “I pretended to be a food delivery driver. I never expect that this method is still useful out of China!”

All of a sudden, Hwang Ji-yeon’s phone rang. When she walked over and looked at her phone, it was actually a call from her manager. Picking up the call, she asked, “Tae-hee Unni, what’s wrong?”

“There’s a change in the situation! I’m currently outside, so open the door!” Son Tae-hee anxiously responded.

Glancing at Su Tao, Hwang Ji-yeon felt hesitation. If Son Tae-hee saw him, then it would be equivalent to confirming the scandal, and the latter would definitely shred her into pieces. “Tae-hee Unni, wait a moment. I’m currently showering, and I’ll open the door for you shortly.”

The commotion coming from the door stopped, so Hwang Ji-yeon pointed into her bedroom to signal for Su Tao to hide there. Weakly shrugging his shoulders, Su Tao obliged her request and entered the bedroom.

Closing the door to her room, Hwang Ji-yeon briefly pondered before charging into the bathroom and removed her clothes. She used the sprinkler to wet herself before opening the door while being wrapped in a towel.

Although Su Tao was being locked in Hwang Ji-yeon’s bedroom, he was secretly looking through the crack of the door. He initially wanted to eavesdrop on the discussion between Hwang Ji-yeon and Son Tae-hee, but in the end, he never expected to witness the entire process of Hwang Ji-yeon stripping.

Her body was leaner than he had expected. The size of her chest wasn’t ridiculously massive, but it was petite and curvy. She also did not have a shred of fat on her body and her figure was akin to the art of the gods.

Especially the scene of her removing her trousers. Although Su Tao couldn’t see anything clearly from his angle, the scenery still made his throat dry.

Since ancient times, Goguryeo was known for its beauties. Although they now lacked the flavor of nature due to the rise of plastic surgeries, South Korea never lacked natural beauties.

As a physician, Su Tao wasn’t unfamiliar with the bodies of women. But under this secretive atmosphere, it was surprising that there was actually a response from his body.

When Son Tae-hee sat on the couch and crossed her legs, she lit up a feminine cigarette and sternly looked at Hwang Ji-yeon. After taking two puffs of smoke, she threw it in a glass cup with water in it and said, “Since there’s a guest here, please call him out.”

Because Hwang Ji-yeon was rushing, she forgot to clean up the room. She only remembered to hide Su Tao’s shoes in the closet, but there were two sets of chopsticks left on the table.

Since Su Tao couldn’t understand Korean, Hwang Ji-yeon sighed then walked to her bedroom and knocked. “Come out. You were discovered!”

“Well, I never intended to hide, anyway.” Su Tao waved his sleeve and chuckled before coming out of the bedroom.

Paparazzi were efficient and professional nowadays. In just a short period of time, they had already investigated Su Tao’s identity with his photos all over the internet.

Lowering her face, Hwang Ji-yeon knew that she was in deep trouble this time. Earlier today, Son Tae-hee had just reprimanded her, and now, Su Tao was in her apartment. She was probably thoroughly disappointed in her, not to mention that she even looked as if she had just finished showering. And to make things even more awkward, Su Tao was in her bedroom. However, she wasn’t too bothered about it, since her company had already iced her. So what if she received a friend in her apartment? It wouldn’t make the situation worse than it is now.

Seeing Su Tao, Son Tae-hee immediately stood up and adjusted her clothes. “Annyeonghaseyo!”

Her response left Hwang Ji-yeon stunned. Son Tae-hee was extremely polite with Su Tao. There was even a flattering smile on the lips of her manager.