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墨書 Inktalez
"Why not just tell your little friend the truth directly? Why go through all this trouble?" Cat gently wrapped her arms around Hogga's neck, sitting on his lap, took a puff of smoke, and exhaled slowly into his ear.
"She won't come to me to ask for this."
"You know that even if she knows the truth, she has no evidence to prove that Mr. Yoo Jae-suk is innocent."
"But at least, before the trial results come out, it's safer for her to be here than to be out there recklessly investigating."
"By the way, why is your little friend so concerned about Mr. Yoo Jae-suk?"
"She has her reasons."
"You've gone through so much trouble, just in case she might not know."
"Heh heh, she'll know one day."
Everyone who comes here tears away their public facade, exposing the most primal aspect of humanity—the pursuit of pleasure. Some come to relieve stress, dissipating long-held emotions in the chaos, spending wild and joyful moments with true friends as their authentic selves.
Of course, there are also some whose exposed faces might seem somewhat lewd and ferocious.
It's a mixed crowd, yet they keep to themselves because here, offending someone casually could lead to significant trouble if exposed. No one wants to come for a good time only to end up in a scandal.
The music around them remained frenzied; the DJ had brought the atmosphere to a climax. However, Anna couldn't believe her eyes as she watched that man walk past her...
"He..." Anna finally remembered that face, that name.
"He is... Lee Ji-hyun... the candidate who was eliminated from this year's presidential race..." Anna's tongue began to stumble over her words.
"Yes, you finally remembered," the bartender said with a cold smile.
"How could I..." Anna muttered weakly to herself.
"Why not? You've been here for three years, even the Minister of Defense comes here often for a while," the man said. "But let me remind you, even if you recognize him, you should pretend not to know. Once you're here, everyone is a guest; there are no distinctions of titles or identities."
"I understand, thank you."
"Take care of yourself."
Anna held her glass, unaware that her hand was starting to tremble slightly. How was she supposed to approach Lee Ji-hyun? Once she got close, how could she find an opportunity to ask about Gao Yingmei?
No, if he really knows something, approaching him recklessly and asking would only put her in a difficult position. Moreover, if he denies it and becomes alert, she wouldn't find out anything at all.
If there were any forces powerful enough that Brother Jae-seok wouldn't dare to mention them, then this person in front of her likely had significant connections...
Anna felt a cold sweat break out on her back; this situation was completely unexpected.
What should she do...
What should she do...
How could she find out if Gao Yingmei had any unspeakable secrets with him without drawing attention to herself?
"Excuse me, do you have paper and a pen?" Anna asked the bartender.
The bartender remained emotionless as he took out some paper and a pen from the cabinet and handed them to Anna, saying, "What’s up? Have you thought of a plan?"
Anna took them and replied, "Thank you. I haven't figured it out yet; I don't know if it will work." As she spoke, Anna carefully wrote a few words on the paper and tore it into a small note.
"Miss." A stranger suddenly tapped Anna on the shoulder, causing her to break out in a cold sweat as she quickly clenched the note in her palm.
"What is it, sir?" Anna forced a stiff smile.
"Our Boss Lady would like you to come over for a drink," the man said with a slight bow.
Anna looked in the direction he was pointing and saw Lee Ji-hyun smiling at her, raising the glass in her hand.
Anna gritted her teeth and lowered her head, trying to remain calm, but an ominous feeling crept over her.
"What are you wearing?" a familiar voice came from behind. Surprised, Anna looked up to see Park Chan-yeol and Wu Shixun, one frowning and the other looking astonished, staring at her.
"I told you it was Anna," Sehun said, shaking Park Chan-yeol's arm. He then smiled at Anna and said, "Hello, Anna... You... although I almost didn't recognize you, you look beautiful..."
"You come with me," Park Chan-yeol stepped forward to pull Anna along, but was stopped by the man.
"Our Boss Lady has already invited this young lady for a drink; please do not be rude," the man said.
"Well, that requires this young lady's agreement first, doesn't it?" Park Chan-yeol said seriously as he looked at Anna.
At that moment, Anna felt extremely conflicted. She really wanted to take this opportunity to avoid going to Lee Ji-hyun, but if she didn't go, there would be no chance...
"Our Boss Lady said that this young lady must go; otherwise, she won't find out what she wants to know," the man stated.
Anna's heart sank. This clearly meant that Lee Ji-hyun might already know her intentions.
There was no escaping now. If she left with Park Chan-yeol and the others at this point, it would only drag them into trouble.
"I'll go; please lead the way," Anna said to the man.
"What?!" Sehun exclaimed in surprise.
"Anna Zheng, are you out of your mind?!" Park Chan-yeol glared fiercely at Anna.
"I know what I'm doing, thank you very much," Anna said calmly, looking at them before turning to the man. "Let's go."
After saying that, Anna followed the man's footsteps towards Lee Ji-hyun.
"Has something happened to Anna? She seems like a completely different person. I just thought she resembled her a bit, but you really can tell it's her... But why? Did Jongin reject her and she's given up on herself? Or is it because Running Man is currently off-air and she's in need of money...? But even if you dislike someone, she's still a girl. Chan-yeol, you shouldn't be cursing at her... But why is she here working...? Huh? What do you think?" Sehun mumbled.
Looking back at Park Chan-yeol, he had already turned around and walked to a booth diagonally opposite Lee Ji-hyun without looking back.
"Hey, Chan-yeol, wait for me!"
Lee Ji-hyun signaled with her eyes, and the woman who had been leaning against her dispersed.
"Come, please sit." Lee Ji-hyun raised her glass and smiled at Anna.
Anna nodded with a smile and sat about half a meter away from Lee Ji-hyun.
"Don't be so distant, come closer." Lee Ji-hyun patted the space next to her.
Anna felt a bit awkward, gripping her hands tightly as she moved closer to Lee Ji-hyun. Lee Ji-hyun wrapped an arm around Anna's shoulders, causing Anna to stiffen and attempt to stand up, but Lee Ji-hyun pressed her down.
"Where do you think you're going? We haven't even had a drink yet." Lee Ji-hyun held onto Anna's shoulder with one hand while pouring a glass of wine with the other and handing it to Anna.
The pain from the grip on her shoulder made Anna furrow her brows unconsciously.
Anna took the wine.
"Come on, cheers," Lee Ji-hyun said, then downed the drink in his glass.
In such an awkward situation, Anna had no choice but to drink from her cup as well.
Lee Ji-hyun smiled coldly, looking at her and asked, "Do you know who I am?"
Given the circumstances, pretending not to know would be even stranger. Anna steadied herself and met his gaze.
"I do," Anna replied.
Seeing Anna's reaction, Lee Ji-hyun nodded with a smile and said, "Unexpected, isn't it? You're young but quite bold." He grabbed Anna's left hand, which she had been holding tightly, and asked, "What is this?"
"You know what I want," Anna countered quietly.
"I only heard about you before coming here, but now that I'm here, I can see you're really nervous. Although you have courage, you can't hide it at all," Lee Ji-hyun said as he gradually pried open Anna's fingers and took out the note. The words on the note had become somewhat blurred from Anna's sweat.
"Did you kill Gao Yingmei?" Lee Ji-hyun read the words on the note, smiled coldly, and then lit a lighter to burn it.
Anna stared motionlessly at all of Lee Ji-hyun's expressions and actions.
"You wanted to secretly slip me this note and observe my reaction to determine whether I was involved in Miss Gao Yingmei's case?" Lee Ji-hyun lit a cigarette, looked at Anna, and sneered, "Hmph, such petty tricks. With your skills, you might as well go home and play house. Do you still plan to clear Yoo Jae-suk's name?"
"Fine, since that's the case, let me ask you: is this matter related to you?" Anna fixed her gaze firmly on Lee Ji-hyun's eyes.
Lee Ji-hyun paused for a moment before laughing even louder. With a cigarette in his mouth, he filled all four glasses in front of him with vodka and said, "Little girl, you're really bold. I'm starting to appreciate you a bit. Finish your drink, and then I'll give you an answer."
Anna could hardly imagine that this man, who appeared so polished in the news while preaching various principles, was actually like this behind the scenes...
"If you want to gain something, you have to pay the price. You wouldn't be so naive as to not understand that principle," Lee Ji-hyun said as he placed a glass of liquor into Anna's palm. "Go ahead."
Anna's hand holding the wine glass trembled uncontrollably. After drinking four glasses of such high-proof liquor, it was likely that Anna wouldn't even be able to crawl out of here today, let alone discuss anything else.
"Just tell me, as long as you tell me, I will definitely finish the drink," Anna said earnestly, looking at him.
"That won't do. If I tell you and you back out, what then?" Lee Ji-hyun replied with a playful smile.
"Don't worry, I keep my word. I'm just afraid that if I get drunk, I won't remember anything."
Lee Ji-hyun thought for a moment and said, "Alright, then I'll tell you."
Finally about to unravel a mystery, Anna felt a sudden tightness in her chest.
"Listen carefully. Gao Yingmei's death, just as you suspected, is indeed related to me. However, I want to tell you that it wasn't me who did it. Moreover, the reason I'm willing to let you know it's related to me is that even if you know the truth, you will never find evidence to prove it! And that foolish Yoo Jae-suk is destined to pay the price for the choices he made!"
Before her, Lee Ji-hyun's face twisted into something fierce and terrifying under the light. Anna widened her eyes in horror; she felt as if she was facing a mad and ruthless beast that had been hiding deep underground for years, ready to tear everything apart and turn all beautiful things into a bloody mess.
Lee Ji-hyun laughed recklessly.
Anna had never imagined that such unfathomable terror and darkness could be so close to her. The visceral pain made her shudder.
"It's your turn," Lee Ji-hyun said to Anna.
Anna looked at the wine in her hand, slowly raising it to her lips. Since Yoo Jae-suk's incident, this was the first time she felt somewhat powerless and desperate...
"Wait."
She had thought Park Chan-yeol and the others had already left but was surprised to see them appear again before her.
The man who had been following Lee Ji-hyun reached out to block Park Chan-yeol and Sehun.
"Hey, what are you doing? How rude, step back." Lee Ji-hyun stopped the man who was blocking their way. He looked disdainfully at Park Chan-yeol and Wu Shixun, pointing at them and saying, "Oh... let me think, you guys... are that something-something, the ones who sing and dance, what's it called...?" Then he glanced at Anna and said, "I didn't expect you to know such a pretty boy friend."
"I'm Park Chan-yeol, and I'm taking her with me," Park Chan-yeol said nonchalantly as he looked at Lee Ji-hyun.
"Don't be in such a hurry. Wait until this lady finishes her drinks before leaving; this is what we agreed on, right?" Lee Ji-hyun said as he grabbed Anna's shoulder and pulled her closer to him.
"I said I want to take her now."
Lee Ji-hyun's originally smiling face gradually darkened due to Park Chan-yeol's firm attitude.
"Cat's Paw has its own rules, no interference. Besides, this lady promised me she would finish these four drinks. When I'm speaking nicely, don't push your luck," Lee Ji-hyun stated.
Park Chan-yeol stepped forward to pull Anna away, but the man with Lee Ji-hyun blocked him again. The atmosphere became extremely tense, and Wu Shixun, who had never seen such a situation before, was at a loss for what to do.
If this continued, it would escalate into a serious conflict.
"Boss Lady Lee, let me go first. I just want to talk to him for a moment. Don't worry; I will definitely finish this drink today," Anna said.
Lee Ji-hyun thought for a moment and then released his grip, saying, "Fine, I'll wait for you to come back."
"Don't worry; I will definitely return."
After saying that, she took Park Chan-yeol with her to a relatively quiet hallway near the restroom.
"What do you mean by 'definitely return'? Are you short on money? Do you not care about your life?" Park Chan-yeol glared fiercely at Anna's heavily made-up face.
"Yes, I have to go back," Anna replied. She knew that if she really went with Park Chan-yeol and the others this time, they would also get into trouble.
"I think you've lost your mind!" Park Chan-yeol gritted his teeth.
Wu Shixun hurriedly came over to mediate, saying, "Chan-yeol, Anna must have her reasons for this. Don't say that."
"Reasons? She always has reasons for everything!" Park Chan-yeol replied, then grabbed Anna's wrist and said, "Come with me."
Anna desperately tried to shake him off.
"You won't understand!" Anna said. "Park Chan-yeol, if you really want to help me, promise me two things."
Having never seen Anna so agitated before, Park Chan-yeol was somewhat shocked.
"Speak."
"First, please wait here until I finish those drinks and lose consciousness before taking me away. Second, if I'm not sober, please tell Jung Kook two names. If you say them, he'll understand. One is Lee Ji-hyun, and the other is Gao Yingmei. Third, I have a little dog at home named Peter. If anything happens, please take care of him for two days. The key to my house is under the second blue flower pot in the flowerbed; I left a spare there."
"I can't do that. Don't drink; go tell him when you're sober. As for your dog, you can feed him yourself."
"I'm begging you!" Anna said. She didn't want to drag Park Chan-yeol and the others into this or see her efforts go to waste.
Park Chan-yeol looked at her helplessly. "Why?"
"You'll understand later."
"Chan-yeol, you shouldn't agree to her. After she finishes those four drinks, something will definitely happen to Anna," Sehun said.
"I know. So you go get the car ready and wait at the door," Park Chan-yeol instructed.
Sehun understood what he meant and nodded before heading in the opposite direction.
"It's been so long; I thought you and your handsome friend had run off," Lee Ji-hyun said with a smile. Unbeknownst to her, a group of women had gathered around her.
"Hey, isn't that Park Chan-yeol? You idols usually don't interact with us, so what's the occasion today, especially for a newcomer?" The woman leaning against Lee Ji-hyun mocked.
"Enough with the nonsense. Go and respectfully serve this drink to the lady," Lee Ji-hyun said.
The woman pouted, stood up, picked up a glass of wine, placed it in front of Anna, then turned and returned to Lee Ji-hyun's embrace.
"Please."
Anna slowly lifted the glass and took a sip; the strong alcohol stimulated her entire nervous system.
"Cough cough!" Anna's face turned red from the burn.
Park Chan-yeol wanted to step forward but ultimately stopped in his tracks.
Seeing Anna's reaction, Lee Ji-hyun and the women laughed happily.
"What a waste, such good wine," the women said as they leaned on Lee Ji-hyun's shoulder.
Anna pounded her chest and lifted her glass again, downing it in one go.
Then came the second glass...
The third glass...
Finally, the fourth glass...
Anna felt as if her stomach was filled with countless sharp blades, ready to shatter...
"Boss Lady, I'm done. I'm leaving." Anna swayed as she turned around, unable to hear the laughter behind her anymore.
She felt more and more pain, more and more exhaustion, and more and more helplessness. All she remembered was a blurry vision in front of her, where she saw Park Chan-yeol's face magnified infinitely, and then she fell into an endless darkness...
She didn't know how long it had been when she groggily opened her eyes. Her head was still pounding, and everything around her was pure white. Raising her hand, she realized she was on an IV drip, and everything around clearly indicated that Anna was lying in a hospital room.
So thirsty...
Seeing a glass of water on the bedside table, Anna sniffed it to confirm it was fine and drank it all in one go.
There was still a lingering taste of alcohol in her mouth, making her feel nauseous.
"You’re awake."
"Sister Jihyo?" Anna looked surprised at Song Ji-hyo, who had just walked in after washing up. "How did you end up here?"
"Jung Kook called to tell me," Ji-hyo said as she sat down, urging Anna to lie back down again while peeling an apple.
"Jung Kook..." Memories fragmented like pieces of a puzzle slowly reassembled in her mind.
"Can't remember? It was Park Chan-yeol who brought you here. He stayed for two days, but then he had a performance to attend, and Jung Kook had things to do too, so they asked me to come take care of you," Ji-hyo explained.
"Park Chan-yeol..." Hearing this, Anna recalled various moments from before and sighed in confusion, deep in thought...
After a moment of silence, Anna suddenly realized something was off. She sat up abruptly, one hand pressing against her still-dizzy head, and asked Ji-hyo, "Sister, how long have I been asleep? Brother Jae-seok is supposed to be in court! We need to go." With that, Anna threw off the covers and tried to get out of bed, but Ji-hyo put down the apple and stopped her.
Looking down, Anna clearly saw Ji-hyo's tears falling onto the blanket...
"No need to go."
"What? What do you mean no need to go? What do you mean no need to go...?"
"The first trial was completed yesterday, and Brother Jae-seok has been found guilty, sentenced to three years of confinement... Jung Kook has been trying his best these days to investigate based on the clues you provided him. Although he has a rough idea of the truth, there is simply no evidence to prove it, so... Anna, this time, it's really over..." Ji-hyo said.
"It can't be true, it can't be true... You must be lying to me... This is impossible."
"It's true." Jung Kook had also arrived at the hospital room without her noticing.
Anna felt as if a thunderbolt had struck her mind, leaving her in disbelief at such a reality.
"Anna, I know you've tried your best. Are you trying to kill yourself? Drinking so much alcohol, do you realize you were in a coma for four days due to acute severe alcohol poisoning!" Jung Kook walked to the window and leaned against the sill, saying, "Also, regarding the clues you gave me, I've investigated. I finally understand why Brother Jae-seok can't reveal the truth; it's because it involves too many people. The reason Brother Jae-seok is facing this disaster is that during the election, although Lee Ji-hyun had powerful backing, he was not popular among the people. The forces behind him wanted to use Brother Jae-seok's influence to sway public opinion, but Brother Jae-seok refused. In the end, Lee Ji-hyun lost the election, and their plan fell apart; all their efforts went to waste. Therefore, their anger fell upon Brother Jae-seok. Their entire plan was perfect and meticulous. I tried to hire a private detective to gather evidence in a short time, but... sigh..."
"Just because Brother Jae-seok refused to succumb to their threats and temptations, he ends up in such a situation..." Anna found it hard to believe.
"Anna, do you know what it means when a tree grows tall and attracts the wind? It's precisely because Brother Jae-seok is so beloved by the people that this very fact became a double-edged sword. Some wanted to turn that popularity into profit; when Brother Jae-seok disagreed, he harmed their interests and naturally became their enemy. Moreover, this serves as a warning; if they try to manipulate the elections using similar tactics next time, Brother Jae-seok's fate will be the best and most powerful deterrent."
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