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墨書 Inktalez
Listening to the sounds behind her gradually becoming calm and even, Anna opened her eyes. Just as she was about to get up and sit back down on the bed, she realized that Park Chan-yeol had not fallen asleep.
"Where are you going?"
Anna sat up and said, "You’re still awake? Are you feeling unwell?"
She touched his forehead and found no signs of a fever breaking; Anna furrowed her brows.
"You're still very hot. This won't do; we should go to the hospital," Anna said.
Chan-yeol shook his head and smiled, saying, "It's fine. A good sleep will fix it. Don't worry, I won't die."
"Then you should sleep quickly," Anna said. "If you can't hold on, you must tell me."
"Okay," Chan-yeol replied, then gestured for Anna to lie down.
Not wanting to let him expend any more energy, Anna turned away from him and lay down at the edge of the bed.
"Sleep," Anna said.
"Okay."
This time, exhausted Chan-yeol finally could not hold on any longer and fell into a deep sleep. His slightly uncomfortable nasal passages emitted soft snoring, and although he was asleep, he still frowned. Anna knew that he must be feeling unwell to be like this.
Anna glanced at him and tucked the blanket around him more snugly. Holding her breath, she quietly got up from the bed again, wrung out a cold towel, and placed it on Chan-yeol's forehead. Perhaps this would make him feel a bit better, as his brow began to relax. Seeing this, Anna decided to bring a basin of cold water and added a few ice cubes to it. She continued to cycle through changing the towel on Chan-yeol's head repeatedly.
Testing his temperature again and again...
As the sky began to lighten at the horizon, Anna once again checked Park Chan-yeol's temperature, which had finally returned to normal, and she let out a sigh of relief.
Sitting on the mat, her exhausted body collapsed onto the bed, and in an instant, she fell into a deep sleep.
The sound of the doorbell rang out, and Park Chan-yeol opened his eyes, feeling a sense of relief wash over him. He saw Anna sleeping by the edge of the bed and a basin nearby with several towels soaking in water. Chan-yeol slowly got up, walked over to Anna, lifted her up gently, and placed her on the bed, covering her with a blanket.
Anna was indeed too tired; during this process, she merely fluttered her eyelids slightly. As soon as she lay down on the bed, she turned over to find a comfortable position and continued to sleep soundly.
Chan-yeol tucked the blanket around her before heading downstairs as the doorbell continued to ring.
When he opened the door, both he and the person outside were somewhat surprised. Although they had only seen each other from a distance before, the person's silver hair and handsome features were truly unforgettable.
"Hello," Hogga was the first to break the silence, bowing slightly with a smile that concealed any change in his expression.
"Hello," Chan-yeol replied politely.
"I came to see Miss Anna," Hogga said, holding a file folder in his hand.
Chan-yeol glanced upstairs and said, "She's sleeping. Is there anything I can relay to her?"
This time, Hogga paused for a moment. He looked at Chan-yeol's pajamas and then at the open bedroom door upstairs. With a slight smile, he said, "Alright, thank you for your help. Goodbye."
"Goodbye."
The heavy door closed again, creating two different moods on either side: one filled with questions and the other shrouded in mystery.
It wasn't until noon that Anna groggily woke up. Realizing she was lying in bed, her initially dazed mind suddenly cleared as she sprang up from the bed. She noticed that only an empty blanket remained on the other side of the bed, and she let out a sigh of relief.
Hearing a faint sound from the first floor, Anna knew that Chan-yeol had not left yet. She scratched her head and walked downstairs.
In the living room, she did not see Park Chan-yeol, but a brown paper folder on the coffee table caught her attention.
"You're awake?"
Anna turned around to see Park Chan-yeol approaching with a glass of water. He looked much better than yesterday, almost like a different person, and he had returned to his usual smiling self.
"Oh." Anna nodded and asked, "Are you feeling better?"
"Of course." Chan-yeol replied, then pointed to the folder on the coffee table and said to Anna, "This was delivered this morning for you. I saw you were sleeping so soundly, so I accepted it on your behalf."
"Who delivered it?" Anna had already guessed a bit in her mind.
"A man with silver hair. I think I saw him on Christmas Eve." Chan-yeol took a sip of water and continued, "I told him you were still sleeping, so he left."
"What?" Anna looked at Park Chan-yeol in surprise and said, "You told him I was still sleeping?"
Chan-yeol nodded nonchalantly and said, "Yeah, you really were sleeping."
Anna bit her lip in frustration; now there was no way to clear up the misunderstanding.
Seeing Anna's reaction, Chan-yeol felt a bit disappointed. He set down his glass of water, sat on the sofa, looked at Anna, and asked, "Do you care about him?"
Anna shook her head and said, "No, it's just that I don't want others to misunderstand and cause you unnecessary trouble."
"Are you worried about causing me trouble or do you think it's troublesome for yourself?" Chan-yeol asked.
Anna did not respond.
I thought that by this night, everything would have changed, the wind would be gentle and the clouds light, and when morning came, we could clearly open our true hearts.
Clearly, you stayed up all night for me,
Clearly, your eyes revealed such exhaustion,
So why do you still avoid me?
I understand what you fear and worry about. But must you forever close your heart because of these concerns?
After a long silence, Park Chan-yeol's smile gradually stiffened on his face.
Feeling the unusual atmosphere, Anna's palms were sweaty; she was afraid of being questioned by Park Chan-yeol again, afraid he would ask her the question she least wanted to face. She would rather Park Chan-yeol never ask and for her to never think about it again, just living in this distant yet close manner…
“Anna Zheng, look at me.” Park Chan-yeol's tone was unusually calm.
Anna clenched her hands, mustering countless times of courage, yet she still did not lift her head.
“I know very well that sitting in front of me is Anna Zheng, not the shadow of Sister Yura. So now, if you just tell me that you don’t want to see me again, I swear I will absolutely treat you as a stranger from now on and will never make things difficult for you.” Park Chan-yeol spoke each word slowly and heavily.
Anna realized clearly that this answer would be a watershed moment; either she would completely fall into danger or they would never meet again…
“Tell me what kind of outcome you want to see in your heart?” Park Chan-yeol asked.
My heart?
I once opened up, though hesitantly, and at that moment I couldn't help but let it out. However, the result made me afraid to open up so easily again.
If this time, fate's trajectory encounters an unexpected turn, then its conclusion will surely be shattering...
The stakes are too high...
"Chan-yeol," Anna said softly.
How long has it been since I heard such a call again?
Anna still kept her head down, her grip tightening even more, and then she said, "Let's end it here... I'm just an obsession for you; it's not love."
"Are you sure this is your answer?" Park Chan-yeol stood up and said, "Look at me."
A tear fell onto her fingertips. Anna raised her head, stubbornly meeting his gaze, and said, "Yes, this is my answer."
Park Chan-yeol looked at her for a long time and then coldly smiled, "Alright, I understand."
At the moment Park Chan-yeol's figure completely disappeared, Anna felt a weight lift from her tense spirit. But for some reason, tears streamed down her face.
Everything has completely ended...
Everything will eventually fade away with the passage of time.
It will all be alright.
But why does this sound of sobbing linger...?
Woken up by Kwang-soo's call, Anna realized she had fallen asleep on the sofa, which was still damp where her eyes had rested.
"Hey, Anna," Kwang-soo said.
Anna sat up and glanced at the time; it was already past three in the afternoon.
"Yes, Brother Kwangsoo," Anna replied, her voice dull and hoarse.
"What's wrong? Caught a cold?" Kwang-soo asked.
"No, I just took a short nap. What's up?"
"I'm at Jung Kook's place right now. I wanted to ask if you've found any information on Gao Yingmei?" Kwang-soo said.
Anna looked at the file bag and said, "I should have found some. Just wait at Jung Kook's; I'll be there shortly."
"Okay."
Although she had never opened that bag, Anna inexplicably believed that Hogga could do what he claimed.
Sure enough, when she opened the bag, it contained detailed records of Gao Yingmei's identity, age, photo, job, address, and even her recent spending history was thoroughly documented.
Anna was amazed at what Hogga was capable of. Now, it seemed clear why Hogga had appeared to know everything about her from the very first meeting.
In any case, she needed to thank him. Anna picked up her phone and dialed Hogga's number.
It connected quickly as usual.
"Hello, Hogga, thank you," Anna said.
However, a woman's seductive laughter came through the receiver, startling Anna and making her think she had dialed the wrong number.
"I'm sorry, I think I must have dialed the wrong number..." Anna said.
"No, Miss Anna, you didn't dial wrong. This is Mr. Hojia's phone," the woman said with a playful tone.
"Oh, then where is he?"
"He...? I'm afraid he's not in a position to take your call right now," the woman replied.
Suddenly, there was a sound of something breaking on the other end of the line. Although Anna found it strange, she didn't want to ask any further questions.
"Alright then, please tell him I really appreciate his help," Anna said.
"Sure, got it," the woman replied, still smiling.
"Thank you then, goodbye."
After hanging up, Anna felt a bit odd. For some reason, she thought Hogga must be right next to the woman. However, perhaps they were a couple; if that were the case, it would make sense.
Anna stood up, washed her face, changed her clothes, picked up her file bag, and went out.
Gao Yingmei, 27 years old, customer service employee at XX Company, unmarried, residing at Fangbei Cave No. 309. After the incident, she moved to Room 1002 of the Yuxi Apartment in Cheongdam-dong. She enjoys stock trading and lost over 80 million Korean won six months ago, accumulating significant debt. However, in the past month or so, Gao Yingmei has been frequently visiting high-end shopping malls and purchasing luxury brands. The bank can only confirm that she has paid off her debts; for everything else, she either used cash or credit cards and then paid off her credit card debts with cash.
"Wow, Anna, you're amazing. This information is so detailed," Kwang-soo exclaimed as he flipped through the thick stack of papers.
"Friends helped," Anna said.
Jung Kook carefully reviewed the materials, furrowing his brow. "These documents must also be with the police. Gao Yingmei has accumulated massive debts, and now she can pay them off so quickly while seemingly making a lot of money. The police aren't fools; they must suspect that Gao Yingmei has taken bribes to frame Brother Jae-seok."
"Exactly, and the key issue is who sent Brother Jae-seok the text message notifying him to go there," Anna said.
"But..." As sharp as Jung Kook was, he understood Yoo Jae-suk's intentions better than Anna. He continued, "Brother Jae-seok wouldn't reveal who that person is."
"That's true," Anna nodded helplessly.
"From what we can see, this person must be someone influential or someone Brother Jae-seok trusts immensely. Moreover, if Gao Yingmei accepted a bribe, then the person who gave her the money is very clever—paying her entirely in cash means the bank won't have any transaction records of them, which naturally wouldn't raise the police's suspicions," Jung Kook said.
"Who did Brother Jae-seok offend to be targeted like this?" Kwang-soo asked.
"You’re right; this person wants to ruin Brother Jae-seok's reputation. They know exactly what Brother Jae-seok values most, so they strike at his most cherished aspects, which is more painful than directly taking Brother Jae-seok's life," Jung Kook said.
To trap Yoo Jae-suk to such an extent, this person must have devised a very thorough plan. They could only hope that the police would find some clues while doing their utmost to clear Yoo Jae-suk's name.
"Jung Kook, should we go meet Gao Yingmei?" Anna asked.
"Yes, but we can't have too many people. Kwang-soo will stay in the car and wait; Anna, you and I will go find her," Jung Kook replied.
"Okay." Anna and Kwang-soo nodded in agreement.
Anna sat in the back seat of the car, her mind a jumble. So much had happened in these past few days that she hardly had time to think about anything else.
This winter was so cold; she wondered when it would finally pass. Perhaps when the weather warmed up, everything would return to normal. As they drove past Citizen Square, a giant public service advertisement that Yoo Jae-suk had once endorsed was being dismantled piece by piece. The broadcast announced that SBS and MBC would replace the time slots originally belonging to Running Man and Infinite Challenge with other programs.
How quickly people's hearts change.
Why not choose to wait a little longer, to hold on? The truth may not be as disappointing as one thinks.
In the end, people only like things that shine; once they get a bit of dirt on them, even if that dirt can be washed away, they will nitpick and find it hard to tolerate.
The more one loves, the more one hates.
However, the more one trusts, the more one will persist.
Looking at Anna's worried face in the rearview mirror, Kwang-soo, who was driving, asked, "What's wrong, Anna? You look so down. At times like this, we can't afford to be discouraged."
Anna lifted the corners of her mouth and smiled faintly, saying, "Nothing, just that too much has happened recently, so suddenly. And about Brother Jae-seok, I don't know when the truth will come out."
Jung Kook sighed and said, "There's no other way; we can only try our best now."
"Yeah, how have Sister Jihyo and the others been these days?" Anna asked.
Jung Kook furrowed his brows even deeper and said, " Ji-hyo was originally set to be the lead in the 'XX' drama, but unexpectedly the director said they wanted to change the cast. GARY decided to stay home with Kiseong Jeong to write music and canceled all his engagements during this time. Haha's two main shows have been suspended. These past few days he has often been running over to Brother Jae-seok's house with Myeong Soo Jun Heo and the others, hoping to help out. Brother Stone has been staying home with his sister-in-law and going out less."
"That's quite a chain reaction," Anna said.
But Brother Jae-seok must already know about this situation. Even though things have gotten this bad, he still can't reveal that person...
Unless there is only one possibility: if he were to speak out, it would make things worse than they are now...
Yoo Jae-suk bears all the burden himself; thus, even if the other members are affected temporarily, once the truth is revealed, it would surely be a fatal blow.
It is hard to imagine what kind of ticking time bomb lies behind this.
"We're here," Kwang-soo said as he parked the car by the roadside.
"Okay, Kwang-soo, you wait here for a bit. Anna and I will go up to find her," Jung Kook said.
"Alright."
The environment of the neighborhood was particularly nice; it was clearly a high-end apartment complex. For someone like Gao Yingmei, an ordinary office worker, such an apartment would be out of reach. Even for Jung Kook, a top-tier artist, buying one would require a lot of consideration.
The security guard was very strict about checking outsiders. Although he recognized Jung Kook as a celebrity, he still politely detained the IDs of both Anna and Jung Kook, informing them that they needed to register before entering the complex.
Each floor of the building had four units, and there were a total of 19 floors. As they took the elevator, Anna felt a bit nervous. However, being with Jung Kook was much more reassuring than being with Kwang-soo; in terms of both intellect and physical strength, he was a comforting older brother.
As the elevator ascended slowly, just as the doors were about to open, a series of frantic dog barks and a woman's terrified scream echoed through the hallway.
"Something's wrong!" Jung Kook exclaimed.
Sure enough, upon exiting the elevator, they found a middle-aged woman sitting on the floor. A white Pomeranian beside her was barking frantically at a half-open door marked 1002.
"What happened?" Anna approached to help her up.
Two elderly people from other units also came out. The middle-aged woman clutched Anna's arm like a lifeline, pointing at the door of 1002, her face filled with terror as she stammered, "There... there’s a dead person..."
"What?" Anna said in disbelief.
Upon hearing this, the other two elderly individuals hurried back to their homes to get their phones and call the police.
Jung Kook thought for a moment, then stepped forward towards room 1002.
"Jung Kook, no, let's wait for the police," Anna said as she reached out to grab Jung Kook's arm.
"It's fine, don't worry," Jung Kook replied.
Anna felt scared but cautiously followed Jung Kook as he opened the door. In the center of the living room, a woman was hanging there, her lifeless body slowly rotating in the cold wind blowing in from the window.
"Get her down!" Anna exclaimed, wanting to rush forward to bring her down.
"Don't move!" Jung Kook stopped her and said, "It's useless; she's already dead."
"What?"
"Look, her nails already have some purplish spots, which means she has been dead for over five hours," Jung Kook explained.
Anna felt both fear and shock that Jung Kook knew about these things...
The cake on the table had only one bite taken out of it, and the coffee had completely cooled. The entire room felt devoid of life...
"Let's go outside," Jung Kook said.
Anna nodded, and the two slowly retreated.
"I just wanted to take our baby downstairs to buy something. I didn't expect to find this door open. Our baby kept barking inside, which I found strange. I knocked on the door but got no response. When I bravely went in to check, I discovered..." A middle-aged woman, still shaken, was sitting on the floor holding their pet dog while speaking to the two elderly people.
"Dogs have a sense; they must have sensed something," one of the elderly said. "But this woman seems to have just moved in a few days ago; I didn't expect she would die so soon."
"Yes, it's still a hanging. The resentment must be heavy. Who would dare to live here after this?" said the middle-aged woman.
Seeing Kim Jong Kook and Anna walk out, the three people who had been in a hurry finally recognized him as Kim Jong Kook.
"You... you're that person from the television... Kim Jong Kook?" the old man carefully identified.
"Yes, it's really me. What are you doing here?" the middle-aged woman was also surprised.
"Oh, hello. I'm here to find this young lady about something. I didn't expect this to happen," Jung Kook said.
Anna realized it was bad; Jung Kook was in big trouble now. The media would definitely report this incident, and even if Jung Kook had nothing to do with it, there would surely be malicious speculation.
Jung Kook must have thought of that too, but even if they hurriedly left now, it would be too late and would only draw more attention.
Anna pulled Kim Jong Kook to a corner and worriedly said, "This is bad, Jung Kook. The media will definitely expose this, and you'll surely get caught up in it."
"I know, but it's already happened, and there's no other way. We can only take it one step at a time," Jung Kook smiled slightly, patting Anna's shoulder. "Even if I get implicated, it just means I won't be able to mix in this circle anymore. With Brother Jae-seok like this, we have to try our best no matter what."
"Jung Kook..." Anna didn't know what to say. She felt that after this incident, the usually playful Kim Jong Kook who loved to tease Brother Jae-seok on the show had become worried, and this worry wasn't about himself but stemmed from his deep trust in Brother Jae-seok.
"It's okay. When the police arrive, we'll just explain everything clearly," Jung Kook reassured her.
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