In the workplace, Hyun-soo always addressed us properly as ‘Writer Seo’ or ‘Writer Lee’ when others were around. The moment he called Jeong-eun ‘Seo Writer’ and his voice echoed in the office, Jeong-eun and I almost screamed, as if we had heard something we shouldn’t have.
Jeong-eun quickly turned off the photo, and I stood up to block the view of the monitor. In such urgent situations, we were indeed a great team.
“Hyun-soo, I’m not some great elder. You don’t have to stand up so suddenly to greet me… I’m very pleased, though.”
Hyun-soo, confirming no one else was around, immediately switched to a more casual address and joked.
“Kim Hyun-soo, but why is there so much? I don’t remember there being this much when I checked the other day.”
“Come on, Sister. Don’t act like you don’t know. Ever since we announced last night that Director Kim Jun joined our project, the server has been overwhelmed. It feels like a nationwide campaign to find first loves.”
With that, Hyun-soo placed one stack of the documents in front of me and another in front of Jeong-eun without any suspicion. It seemed he hadn’t noticed the photo, fortunately.
Not that I distrusted Hyun-soo, but to avoid any doubts in case something went wrong, it was better to keep the number of people aware of this matter to a minimum.
“I’ll send you that project photo on your phone later.”
Jeong-eun winked at me secretly, avoiding Hyun-soo’s gaze, and said this. The idea of a project photo made me smile without realizing it.
Today, Jeong-eun, Hyun-soo, and I had planned to sift through viewer stories.
Somehow, I ended up being the first story candidate for the project “Where is Your First Love Now?” Moreover, it just so happened that my first love was a famous movie director, which led to widespread word-of-mouth publicity nationwide without much effort. Additionally, I ended up being responsible for writing the screenplay.
The staff was already overstretched, and from the broadcasting station’s perspective, focusing on ratings made more sense. Consequently, the “Where is Your First Love Now?” project was indefinitely postponed.
As a result, our team ended up focusing solely on the film adaptation of my story. As broadcast writers who were used to all-nighters, we probably owed Jun a deep debt of gratitude for this situation.
Director Kang had also promised to align his schedule with Jun’s as much as possible, but we still had to proceed with preparing the newly launched program. That’s why Hyun-soo brought the thick bundle of viewer stories.
“Pfft, Sister, look at this story. It’s about someone looking for a high school crush. Guess what they wrote in the P.S.?”
Jeong-eun, without looking up from her documents, asked me to guess.
“If the crush is already married, please consider it as if it never happened.”
“How cute. Do they think we’re running a dating show?”
Despite her comment, Jeong-eun’s face was filled with a pleasant smile.
As I quietly read the stories of first loves that viewers had kept close to their hearts over the years, Jeong-eun suddenly put a document on top of mine.
“You should read this one.”
“Why? What’s special about this story?”
Without much thought, I picked up the document. The name on it was the first thing I noticed. The submitter was, Kim Jun…
It could have been a coincidence, but for this project, we asked all participants to include a brief introduction with their stories.
In the introduction section, unlike other submitters, there was only a short sentence.
[A Korean-Japanese film director.]At this point, it was almost certain that the author was the Kim Jun I knew. I quickly checked the content of the story, which was as simple as the introduction.
「Please send my story to “Where is Your First Love Now?”.
I think I found what I was looking for…
But it feels like something is still missing. If it’s not too much trouble, I’d appreciate it if you could help me find that too, Writer Lee Ha-ru.」
As soon as I read it, I felt Jun was asking about the identity of the emotions I had shown him the night before. He seemed to be asking indirectly through these lines. Concern overtook me as I read his words again and again, touching my lips nervously.
Finally, I became aware of Jeong-eun, who must have read this before me. I sneakily glanced at her, but she was just marking lines on the document, not looking my way at all.
What should I do now? I couldn’t move on to the next document. I was restless, fidgeting alone.
The word ‘contact information’ on the document seemed to zoom into focus, appearing larger in my eyes. The number indicated that he had activated a separate cell phone for his stay in Korea.
Carefully, I took out my phone from my pocket and saved Jun’s number. My heart pounded as if I was committing a theft.
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
