novellhall Chapter 36 Sika: Am I being isolated again?
Chapter 36 Sika: Am I being isolated again?
The Zheng family dinner tonight was exceptionally harmonious.
Perhaps because Li Zhixing and Xika had both "extorted" a windfall from Zheng's father today, the two were in high spirits and, for the first time ever, did not bicker with each other at the dinner table.
Compared to the cheerful atmosphere of the other four people, Mr. Zheng's mood plummeted.
He didn't even drink any liquor, hastily ate a couple of mouthfuls of rice, and then went off to watch TV in a depressed mood.
After dinner, Li Zhixing cut a plate of fruit and brought it to the living room.
He first handed a piece of mango to Krystal, then completely ignored Jessica's outstretched hand and plopped down on the sofa.
This differential treatment infuriated Jessica, who then kicked him.
Perhaps because of Mr. Zheng's "heavy medical bills" today, Mrs. Zheng unusually refrained from grabbing the remote control tonight, letting Mr. Zheng watch "Swallowing the Sun".
After cleaning up the kitchen, Zheng's mother came over and sat down on the sofa, glancing around at the kitchen.
But she couldn't stand this kind of revenge drama with fighting and killing, and couldn't help but frown.
She turned to look at Lee Ji-hyun, who was subtly competing with Jessica, and asked, "Ji-hyun, I heard from Soo-jung that there's been a lot of online criticism of you and Ji-eun these past few days. What exactly happened? Has it been resolved?"
Li Zhixing pressed down on Jessica's forehead and turned to explain, "It's been resolved, Auntie."
"Actually, there was a paparazzi who took a picture of me carrying Ji-eun home that night. He wanted to use the photo to extort money from LOEN's company, but the company ignored him, so he posted the photo online. Anyway, Ji-eun and I are like siblings, so the company just issued a clarification statement and that was the end of it."
"Hmph, what siblings? They're not even related." Soojung muttered under her breath.
Zheng's mother slapped her youngest daughter lightly, then sighed with some worry: "Being an artist is really tough. You can be drowned in spittle if you're not careful. Zhixing, you have to be more careful in the future."
Li Zhixing smiled and reassured her, "Don't worry, Auntie, I've done nothing wrong, how could I possibly have such a scandal again?"
Jessica curled her lip and sneered, "Who knows? You look like a scumbag who goes around lying to young girls."
Li Zhixing glared at her and retorted sarcastically, "So you'd better stay away from me in the future. I don't want to be photographed by paparazzi one day and have another scandal involving you. Then I'll really be unable to clear my name even if I jump into the Han River."
"Hey! Do you think I want to be involved in a scandal with you?!" Jessica was immediately annoyed and kicked him again.
At this moment, Mr. Zheng, who had been staring at the TV, sighed softly.
"So what's so great about being an entertainer? This kid is so talented, why doesn't he go down the path of a professional boxer? If he could win an Asian Games medal, he could even be exempt from military service."
Zheng Ma rolled her eyes at him: "What nonsense are you talking about? Didn't Zhixing finish his military service a long time ago?"
Mr. Zheng was taken aback for a moment before he realized, "Oh, that's true. But athletes also have high social status and earn a lot."
Zheng's mother continued to retort, "What kind of boxer is he! Zhixing finally quit being a stuntman, and you want him to box? Besides, Zhixing is so good-looking, he was born to be an actor."
At this point, Aunt Zheng suddenly remembered something and asked with concern, "By the way, Zhixing, 'Haeundae' will be finishing its run soon, right? Have you decided on your next project yet?"
Upon hearing this question, the living room immediately fell silent.
Jessica, Krystal, and even Mr. Jung, who was watching TV, all silently turned their heads and turned their gazes toward Lee Ji-hyung.
Clearly, the whole family is very concerned about his next move.
"Whose movie are you planning to star in next?" Mr. Zheng couldn't help but ask.
Li Zhixing smiled, picked up a tissue and wiped his hands: "As for my next project, I don't plan to act in a movie."
"Not acting in movies?" Mr. Zheng asked, somewhat surprised.
"Well, the movie cycle is too long. If I don't get any exposure for half a year, the popularity I've just built up will have dissipated long ago. So I plan to take on a TV series to stabilize my popularity."
Zheng's mother nodded thoughtfully, but still hesitated: "But I've heard that film actors have a higher status than television actors, right? If you can act in movies, why would you want to go back to acting in television dramas?"
Mr. Zheng chimed in, "Yes, and aren't all your connections in Chungmuro? Can you really succeed by rushing into the television industry?"
Li Zhixing shook his head helplessly: "There is no such thing as absolute status. That's the kind of treatment only big stars who have won Best Actor awards receive. As a newcomer like me, I can't be said to have any status."
"After the 08 financial crisis, investment in Chungmuro shrank, and there were far fewer new film projects. Many big-name actors couldn't get roles. Didn't people like Kim Ha-neul, Song Seung-heon, Kwon Sang-woo, and Song Hye-kyo all go on to act in dramas?"
The Zheng family members all looked enlightened.
"Does Oppa have any suitable drama projects right now?" Krystal asked curiously, tilting her head up.
Lee Ji-hsing nodded: "There are two pretty good projects we're in contact with right now. The first is MBC's sitcom 'High Kick Through the Roof,' the second season of the 'High Kick Through the Roof' series. They invited me to audition for a doctor role with a lot of screen time."
Zheng Ma's eyes lit up, and she exclaimed in surprise, "A second season of 'High Kick!' is going to be made? And with the original cast?"
"The director and screenwriter remain the same, and Lee Soon-jae will likely continue to act, but it seems that Na Moon-hee will no longer be acting."
Zheng's mother was slightly disappointed, but then cheered up again: "This drama really makes people famous! Didn't all those young actors from the first season become famous, like Jung Il-woo, and Jessica's best friend Park Min-young? Didn't they become famous after acting in that drama?"
Jessica nodded: "Indeed, Min-young unnie's popularity increased dramatically after that."
Then, she nudged Li Zhixing with her elbow, a hint of doubt in her eyes: "But are you even capable? The competition for the sequel to such a hit drama must be fierce. Can you even get the role?"
Li Zhixing said proudly, "As long as I go to the audition, the role will definitely be mine."
Sika scoffed, "Keep bragging."
"Is Oppa planning to act in this sitcom?" Krystal asked.
Li Zhixing shook his head: "I don't really want to go. Sitcoms often have more than a hundred episodes and take more than half a year to film. It's too time-consuming. I prefer mini-series with less than 20 episodes. I can still free up time early next year to go back to Chungmuro and see if there are any opportunities."
Jessica frowned and couldn't help but interject, "You're just a newcomer, you should be grateful you even have any roles to play, why are you being so picky?"
Zheng's mother asked curiously, "So what was the second project that came up to you?"
"The second one was introduced to me by Yoona, it's the Hong sisters' new drama, currently tentatively titled 'You're Beautiful'."
"The Hong sisters?" Jessica exclaimed.
"Are the Hong sisters very famous?" asked Aunt Zheng, puzzled.
"Of course! Mom, all the dramas you used to love, like 'Delightful Girl Choon-Hyang' and 'My Girl,' were written by them!" Jessica quickly explained to her mother. "And their dramas are incredibly successful; Lee Da-hae and Han Ye-seul both became famous after starring in their shows!"
"Oh my god, so they wrote all these TV dramas!" Aunt Zheng exclaimed in surprise, covering her mouth. Then, her face lit up with joy as she looked at Li Zhixing. "Isn't this drama even better? Did Yoona help you contact the male lead?"
Li Zhixing chuckled: "How could that be? He's the second male lead. With my current experience and popularity, I'm far from being able to play the leading role."
Just as Li Zhixing was about to continue, Jessica suddenly noticed a blind spot.
She frowned and interrupted Li Zhixing, "Wait a minute, who were you talking about just now? Yoona, which Yoona?"
The living room suddenly fell silent.
Li Zhixing, Zheng Ma, Xiujing, and even Zheng Ba turned around and looked at her with puzzled expressions.
"Song Yoon-ah unnie, Kyung-gu's wife," Soo-jung explained.
Jessica looked at her mother, then at Krystal, and then at Jung's father, who had a calm expression.
A strong sense of isolation, of being cut off from the world, welled up in my heart again.
"Unnie? You know Song Yoon-ah?" Jessica's voice was a little shaky.
Soojung looked at her unnie strangely: "Isn't Kyunggu Oppa's acting teacher? Oppa has a good relationship with them and introduced us to each other, didn't you know that, unnie?"
Zheng's mother smiled and chimed in, "That's right, Song Yoon-ah has a really nice personality, she doesn't act like a big star at all. We even went shopping together at a department store a while ago."
Jessica was bewildered.
Is Li Zhixing's acting coach Xue Jingqiu?
My mom not only knows top actress Song Yoon-ah, but has also gone shopping with her.
This absurd feeling of the whole family knowing but keeping it from her alone... why does it feel so familiar?
History has repeated itself in Jessica's life!
So, in this family, she's always the last to know anything about Li Zhixing?
She took a deep breath, turned her head and stared intently at the culprit, squeezing out a few words through gritted teeth:
"Li...Zhi...Xing! You didn't tell me!"
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