Peninsula: The Best Actor Starts from an Idol Battleground

Chapter 32 Is Li Zhixing a pedophile?

The following afternoon, at a photography studio near Seoul.

"Cut! Perfect! This shoot is now complete. Thank you everyone for your hard work!"

As director Hwang Dong-hyuk put down his megaphone, everyone on set, who had been busy all day, finally relaxed.

Shin Min-ah, the spokesperson for LG Xnote laptops, has just finished filming the latest season of Gossip Girl.

At that moment, accompanied by her agent, she walked over, smiled, and bowed to the director and staff to express her gratitude.

After exchanging a few polite words, just as Shen Min'er was about to leave, she suddenly stopped and her gaze fell on Li Zhixing, who was helping to organize the equipment.

She hesitated for a moment, but couldn't suppress her curiosity and spoke first, "Li Zhixing-xi?"

Li Zhixing stopped what he was doing, turned around, and politely bowed slightly: "Hello, Senior Min'er."

Shin Min-ah looked at the tall, handsome newcomer in front of her, recalling how skillfully he directed the various departments on set earlier that day, and asked, "I've actually been wanting to ask this since this morning, what's Zhi Xing doing here? And... working as an assistant director?"

Li Zhixing smiled and explained, "I'm kind of an unofficial staff member on LG's side. Whenever there's a gap in the publicity for the production team, I come over to work on some GG projects to learn more about behind-the-scenes coordination and directing techniques."

A hint of surprise flashed in Shin Min-ah's eyes, which then turned into undisguised admiration.

"So that's how it is. Zhixing is really working too hard."

She smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, saying sincerely, "I just went to see 'Haeundae' in the cinema a few days ago. Your acting in it was really superb; you couldn't tell at all that you were a newcomer."

"Senior Min'er, you flatter me. I still have a lot to learn from my shortcomings," Li Zhixing said politely.

"No need to be so modest, everyone in the industry is talking about you right now." Shin Min-ah smiled and waved her hand. "Then I won't disturb your work any longer. I look forward to seeing your next work soon."

"Thank you, senior. Please take care."

Hwang Dong-hyuk watched Shin Min-ah's departing figure and said quietly, "Shin Min-ah can actually encourage you so calmly, she really has a good temper."

Li Zhixing was taken aback: "What do you mean?"

"You've probably forgotten that Shin Min-ah's movie 'One Billion' is also being released this summer. You two are competitors."

Hwang Dong-hyuk shook his head, his tone full of sighs, "To avoid the limelight of your 'Haeundae,' they deliberately postponed their release by half a month, but 'Haeundae' still completely dominated the theaters' screenings, leaving 'One Billion' with no room to survive."

"Park Hae-il, Shin Min-ah and the other main actors went to the Australian desert and ate sand for a month. They suffered so much, but they have only managed to attract 400,000 viewers so far. They have lost a lot of money."

Hwang Donghyuk patted Lee Ji-hsing on the shoulder, "If it were anyone else, they would be being polite by not giving you a hard time, considering you are a beneficiary who climbed to the top by stepping on them."

Li Zhixing raised an eyebrow and smiled noncommittally: "The film market is a winner-takes-all market, and everyone makes a living based on their own abilities. But Senior Shen Min'er is indeed very generous."

He didn't say anything more and turned around to continue packing up the filming equipment on site.

Seeing his appearance, Hwang Dong-hyuk couldn't help but ask, "Even Shin Min-ah is curious why you're here. You have such a tight schedule right now, why do you still insist on coming to work on set? Are you planning to keep doing this part-time job forever?"

Li Zhixing straightened up and stretched.

"Compared to when I was a stunt double, things are much easier now. Besides, you know me, I'm full of energy and can't sleep."

Hwang Donghyuk said with some envy, "It's so good to be young. Your stamina is like a monster. Unlike me, my bones would fall apart if I stayed up all night."

Li Zhixing was speechless: "Why do you say that? Donghe, are you that old?"

Then, with a slight smile, he said, "However, I should really focus on acting from now on, Donghyuk hyung. The department head said that there's a GGMV that I'll be directing in a while. After that, I don't plan to continue working on projects with LG."

"It's good that you focus on acting, anyway, you're not very good at it..."

Hwang Dong-hyuk suddenly stopped mid-sentence, realizing what he meant: "Wait, the GG that the department head personally gave you? Which one?"

Li Zhixing lowered his voice: "A flagship phone that the company plans to launch at the end of September."

"What? You actually got that project? I heard a lot of veteran directors were vying for it."

Hwang Dong-hyuk looked surprised, then couldn't help but click his tongue. "Tsk tsk, such an important project was given to a temporary worker like you. I wonder how much pressure the department head had to bear. Why would he suddenly give it to you?"

Li Zhixing frowned: "I'm puzzled too. A few days ago, I went to resign from my position as Director Park, intending to focus on acting. But he just handed me this project proposal and told me to finish it before I left."

Hwang Dong-hyuk suddenly realized, patted him on the shoulder and comforted him, "This is a good thing. It makes up for the grievances you suffered in the Samsung charity project in the first half of the year. This time it's LG's own project, so no one can kick you out halfway through again."

Upon hearing "Samsung's charity project," Li Zhixing paused slightly in his hand movements.

The original project had already completed its preliminary preparations, but it was forcibly changed under pressure just before filming began.

However, he didn't show any dissatisfaction, just shrugged indifferently: "It's all in the past."

"It's good that you can let it go," Hwang Dong-hyuk said, looking at the increasingly composed young man before him. His tone suddenly shifted, becoming somewhat sarcastic. "Besides, you're now a potential box office star with a potential of tens of millions. Who cares about that crappy guy? How much did 'Haeundae' gross today?"

Li Zhixing casually replied, "It just passed nine million, and it's still increasing by a few hundred thousand every day. At this rate, it should break ten million around the 23rd or 24th."

Hwang Dong-hyuk sighed, "Ten million! That's a number that most directors wouldn't even dare to dream of."

"I really envy Yoon Jae-kwan. He lost so much money making 'Romantic Assassin' back then, but he still had a chance to rise again."

"Unlike me, after the box office failure of 'My Father,' I was completely abandoned by the investors. If you hadn't introduced me to LG Ad, I'm afraid I would be having trouble even eating now."

Li Zhixing nudged his shoulder speechlessly.

"Alright, Donghyuk, how many times have you said this? Keep writing your script, and investors will notice it sooner or later. You are a graduate of Seoul National University and studied at the University of Southern California. You have real talent. Why are you always feeling sorry for yourself?"

Hwang Dong-hyuk pouted, still somewhat resentful: "Even a top student can't compare to Yoon Jae-jun, who came from a humble background. He didn't even graduate with a degree in directing."

Li Zhixing glanced at him: "Should I call Ji Jun over so the two of you can have a fight?"

"Hey, you little rascal!"

As the two were chatting and laughing, Li Zhixing's cell phone suddenly rang.

He took it out and saw that it was a call from senior Park Joong-hoon.

As soon as the call connected, Park Joong-hoon's deafening roar came from the other end of the line.

"Hey, Li Zhixing, have you lost your mind?!"

"Look what a terrible thing you've done!"

Li Zhixing looked completely bewildered and quickly moved the phone away from him: "Brother Chongxun, what happened to me?"

Park Joong-hoon yelled impatiently on the phone, "Do you have to find a minor as your girlfriend? I'll introduce you to someone if you want to date, but you have to go and mess with some newbie. Do you know what people are saying about you online right now?!"

"Do you want to be blacklisted right after your debut? I always thought you were a sensible kid, how could you do something so outrageous this time!"

Listening to Park Joong-hoon's incessant scolding, Lee Ji-haeng had no choice but to interrupt.

"Brother Chongxun, please explain yourself clearly. Where did I get a girlfriend? What do you mean by underage? What rumors have you heard?"

"Oh my god, you still won't admit it, huh? The paparazzi have already taken the photos, and they're all over Twitter now!"

"Were you carrying a young girl on your back while walking down the street last night? I saw online that she seems to be a new singer. Don't tell me the person in the photo isn't you!"

Li Zhixing finally understood this time.

He covered his forehead, explaining with a mix of amusement and exasperation, "Brother Chongxun, that's my sister."

"What sister? Even if she's a close sister, it's not allowed to hug and kiss her in the street late at night!"

Park Joong-hoon continued his reprimand, but suddenly stopped halfway through his sentence: "Wait, is she your sister?"

"Yes, Chongxun, that's my sister Ji-eun. Didn't I introduce her to you at the preview screening?"

"Oh, is that so?"

Park Joong-hoon on the other end of the phone was stunned. He vaguely remembered that Lee Ji-haeng had introduced her to him that day, but he didn't remember what she looked like, and he had completely forgotten that Ji-haeng's sister was also an entertainer.

"Oh, I see."

Park Joong-hoon then realized he had made a huge blunder, and his tone immediately softened.

"I knew it! You've always been steady and reliable, not the kind of person who gets arrogant and overconfident just because you've become famous."

"Since it's fake, you should contact the media to clarify it as soon as possible. I see a lot of people online criticizing you. You've just debuted and your fan base isn't stable yet. Don't ruin your future because of this kind of unfounded rumor."

Li Zhixing quickly agreed, then said earnestly, "I understand. Thank you for your guidance, Brother Chongxun. I will handle it well."

After hanging up the phone, Hwang Dong-hyuk leaned over in confusion.

"What's going on? Are you having a scandal?"

Li Zhixing shook his head with a smile: "What? It's my sister Zhi'en. I was walking home with her last night, and we were photographed by paparazzi."

As he spoke, he took out his phone and opened Naver's webpage to search.

Sure enough, several eye-catching bold headlines were prominently displayed in the entertainment section.

[Exclusive] Haeundae's popular newcomer Lee Ji-haeng was caught carrying a minor girl home late at night!

Is her innocence gone? LOEN's new singer IU is spotted behaving intimately with a mysterious man late at night.

Lee Ji-hsing's late-night rendezvous with woman suspected to be underage singer IU

As expected, the comments below were filled with angry remarks from netizens and fans who were unaware of the facts.

"Ugh, what kind of innocent young man persona is this? He just started gaining some popularity and he's already hooking up with minors. Is he really this promiscuous behind the scenes?"

"Damn it, how old is IU? Is this guy crazy? Is LOEN dead? Isn't anyone going to do anything about it?"

"Hugging and kissing in the street late at night is utterly disgusting; I suggest they be banned immediately!"

"Resist pedophilia, get out of the entertainment industry!"

......

Li Zhixing wasn't flustered, but he found it somewhat absurd.

He casually swiped the screen, scrolling through the indignant comments.

Just then, the phone rang again.

This time, it's Choi Gap-won, the head of LOEN's production division.

As soon as the call connected, Cui Jiayuan's voice, which sounded somewhat strange and excited, came through.

"Zhixing, have you seen the news online?"

"Maybe we shouldn't clarify things yet!"

......