Chapter Fifty-Nine: Pushing Him Away

ould have already told you the specifics." 。You joined the company just in time. There's a large-scale male group project underway, and the members have already been selected. Some of the trainees eve..., the Peninsula Asteroid

Looking at this photo, it's like being gazed at with a smile by Jennie, taking me in from head to toe.

She locked eyes with him for two seconds, and without realizing it, Ji Jingyuan's lips twitched into a slight smile. It seemed as if he was unconsciously mirroring the expression of the Pei Zhuxuan on the screen.

A feeling of gloom and irritability that had been lingering suddenly subsided.

Chi Jingyuan could feel the other person's concern and comfort, it wasn't deliberate, it seemed very natural.

It has to be said, this defiant selfie of Park Ji-hyun is really pretty. Her light makeup reveals a clean and fair complexion, with the reflection of sweat on her cheeks. Her wide-open eyes are very lively, holding a glimmer of curiosity and concern within them.

He tapped save, then lay in bed, quickly typing back: "How did you like it What did you discover"

Pei Zhuhyun replied quickly, they probably had already finished practicing: “I found that your mood is a little better.”

"So confident in yourself"

"Inner!"

Ji Jingyuan casually glanced at the two people on the bed next to him, sat up a little, and started chatting with Pei Zhuxuan: "It's already two o'clock, are you still practicing this late"

"Well, because our debut time was pushed up too much, a lot of preparations weren't finished yet, so these last few days I had to work late every day.... But today is over, we just need to tidy up and then we'll go back to rest."

"Then go back early, this kind of work and rest schedule is easy to get acne..." Chi Jingyuan smiled and tapped the phone screen: "By the way, I watched that 'benatural' dance cover you and Seoki made, it's better than I imagined."

Pei Zhuhyun and Kang Seo-ki's collaboration "benatural" was uploaded to s on the 16th, not as new girl group members, but as srookies.

Ji Chang Wook's new photoshoot from two days ago was quite good. Both of them unexpectedly digested this style very well. In the video, Red Velvet's Park Soo-ah has long brown hair, a black top that exposes her waist and half her shoulders, and a leather pants on her legs, she really has a bit of that sexy vibe.

Most importantly, there wasn't the scene where she sat on a chair stretching her legs to dance, with her feet unable to reach the ground as Chi Jingyuan had imagined.

"You're the one with acne!"

What do you imagine yourself as

Two consecutive messages came in, and Chi Jingyuan could probably guess her expression right now.

"Go back to rest early, if you don't sleep, you'll really get acne. I'm going to sleep too..."

Chi Jingyuan first replied, then continued to send another message:

That's you.

…………

"Oni, who are you chatting with"

As soon as Jiang Seqi returned from the restroom, she saw Park Chaeyoung sitting on the floor smiling happily while holding her phone. Curious, Jiang Seqi walked over and bent down to look at her phone, asking, "

"And Jingyuan, is XO alright today Something happened, right I'm just asking how he's doing now."

Pei Zhuxuan casually made a light stroke, switching the chat interface to the screen saver. She naturally looked up and smiled in reply.

"Oh my gosh, he actually replied to you I texted him this afternoon asking how he was doing and he hasn't gotten back to me yet..."

At the sound of ginger's voice, Qi stared wide-eyed with surprise. Then she puckered her lips and muttered: "I thought he didn't reply because he was busy with today's matters or in a bad mood. Tch... Oni is different after all."

As soon as she heard it, she understood. She glanced at Jennie with a slightly sour tone.

"It's nothing unusual. When I sent them a message, they were just heading back to the dorm to sleep, so they replied when they had a chance."

Pei Zhuxuan blinked her eyes, softly denied and comforted Jiang Seqi. A smile played at the corner of her lips as she stood up and stretched comfortably. Her hand was still in the air when she glanced around before urging, "Alright, let's go back. Where are the other two If we don't get some rest soon, our skin might break out..."

……

Last night, several managers were at the company having a meeting and didn't return until very late. The next morning, the members were woken up by Lee Seunghwan to go back to the company to rehearse for the concert again.

To be honest, the team atmosphere has been getting worse as we practice more.

After everyone had a good night's rest, their emotions had eased considerably. At the beginning of the practice, the atmosphere was quite good, and several members were even able to smile. However, as time went on, fewer and fewer people were smiling.

It's clear that we've practiced this countless times before, but now because of Han, we need to start all over again. The workload is enormous and everyone is exhausted.

Especially after Han left yesterday, Xia Guo posted two Weibo posts consecutively saying "I'm home" which sparked widespread discussion and support from many fans. This made the people in EXO who knew about it feel increasingly uncomfortable.

He happily went back to filming, while we here slaved away rehearsing all over again to make up for his mistakes.

As the members' movements became more and more intense, everyone was getting very tired. The dance teacher stopped them and announced a break. Several heavy gasps of breath broke the increasingly thick atmosphere from just moments ago.

Ji Jingyuan proactively walked over and took drinks from the refrigerator. He gave a bottle to each of the people nearby. After finishing, he sat down next to them, just about to take a couple of sips when he pulled out his phone to check the reactions outside. Suddenly, a message came in. After glancing at it, he wiped the sweat off his forehead, put the drink aside, and walked away.

Just as he stepped out of the practice room and glanced to his right, he saw Kim Taeyeon smiling brightly and waving at him quickly. Ji Kyung-won also smiled and walked over quickly.

"Why is Nuna at the company today, isn't Girls' Generation on vacation"

As he walked up to her, Pool Jingyuan lightly clasped his hand with hers. Feeling a little tired, he leaned against the wall beside him and languidly asked her a question.

Before this, Ji-seong, Taeyeon, and Sunny were chatting casually. According to what they said, Girls' Generation finished the last show of their Japanese tour on July 13th and then got a vacation from the company. Some members went on scheduled activities, while others rested directly.

A book friend I've known for ten years recommended this reading app, Wild Fruit Reading! It's really great. I use it to listen to audiobooks while driving or before bed. You can download it here.

"I came here specifically to see you. You guys caused such a big deal...and didn't even reply to my messages. Don't you feel touched that I care so much about you"

Kim Tae-yeon had a light makeup look, her hair dyed back to black and tied up in a ponytail at the back of her head. She wore a white short sleeve and denim shorts with sneakers, looking very casual. She held her eyes open wide, gazing up at Ji Chang-wook. Though not tall, she exuded quite a presence.

But after a few glances, she broke her own cover. She covered her mouth and laughed twice before waving her hand: "Actually, our TTS team came to the company for a meeting today, and we thought you should be here too, so we came to see you."

How is it Is it a big impact

"Sighing, Chi Jingyuan didn't hide it either, nodding slightly: "It's pretty big. The upcoming concert is less than a week away, and just the rehearsal for the dance routine alone probably won't be finished until..."

"As for how many fans left, I don't know. I just didn't want to look because I thought it might affect my mood."

"Sigh, there's nothing we can do about this. That's just how idol groups are. Although we didn't have this kind of situation when we were younger, I've seen quite a few over the years since our debut..."

Taeyeon, with the air of a seasoned senior who'd been through it all, let out a sigh and patted Ji-yeong on the shoulder with a comforting pat. "If you're feeling down, wanna go grab some drinks tonight" she offered.

"Drinking again Is it just me you're watching" I couldn't help rolling my eyes. Ji-yeong glanced at Jin Tae-yeon, who was laughing along, then shook his head and declined. "I'll pass for now. We've been practicing until one or two in the morning these days. Let's do it in a few days."

"That's right."

Kim Tae-yeon nodded and then grinned, raising her right hand: "Call!"

Chuckled, Chi Jingyuan also extended his right hand to bump fists with her.

"Call."

………

Many friends and relatives reached out, which greatly improved Pool Jingyuan's mood. The members of EXO, under the company's restrictions, refrained from making any public statements and instead buried themselves in the practice room, rehearsing diligently as if they were completely cut off from the world.

But the fact that Han left the team won't stop making waves just because they stay silent.

On the contrary, as time passed, the influence of this matter has been spreading rapidly, both on the peninsula and in Xia Kingdom, both online and among fans in private, creating quite a stir.

This time, it was a huge blow to all EXO fans.

I've unfollowed them, I won't be a fan of EXO anymore.

Why

"I'm an EXO fan, a true twelve member stan. Could it still be called EXO if even one person is missing"

Similar conversations and thoughts appear among countless fans of XO.

For many fans, any member leaving a group, regardless of their popularity, will cause irreparable damage to the team. Because from the moment they leave, the original whole entity becomes incomplete, making it difficult for fans to control the feeling of 'incompleteness'.

This feeling greatly affects fans' enthusiasm and impression of the group.

Just like the former TVXQ, after their separation, their massive fanbase immediately split into several factions, such as "Only 5," "Only 2," and "Only 3," each deeply hostile towards the others. They even showed more animosity towards each other than they did towards actual haters.

And now that EXO has experienced a departure, the fanbase has instantly split into different factions. There are those who support Han and those who oppose him. Even though the former group is comparatively smaller in number, they continue to argue relentlessly. Every day, fans leave because of heartbreak and disappointment.

Starting the day after the incident, many people with their own agendas began stirring up trouble online, posting rumors, both true and false.

Under the guidance of some people with ulterior motives, someone unknowingly poured black water onto Chi Jingyuan. In several forums with high traffic, posts claiming to be real insider leaks from a few users gained immense popularity.

A Deep Dive into Han's Departure, Revealed by Insider Leaks

"Do you know why han left He actually expressed it very clearly in the lawsuit. Because s couldn't provide a development plan. What does that mean It's very simple, the company couldn't give him enough resources."

"EXO is so popular, and Han's popularity is also very high. Why doesn't such a big company as ** give him the resources he wants It's very simple, the best resources are all given to the royal family member of the group first, and the remaining second-rate resources naturally can't satisfy him."

"Then who is this royal family member It's actually very obvious, it's EXO's popularity king Yuan."

"Actually, I quite like yuan too. He really played a very important role in the team, especially that song "Roaring." It was crucial; without that song, EXO wouldn't be where they are today."

"This time, his several self-composed songs in the mini album are also very good. Coupled with his excellent personal qualities, like being already hailed as 'the god of visuals' in the fandom, he deserves to be popular in EXO, a group with nearly a tier difference in popularity. At least many fans of other groups around me, even if they don't like EXO, find it hard to dislike Yuan. His passerby緣 is really too good."

But his popularity also stems from the huge amount of exposure he's received, especially from the dramas "Reply" and "The Heirs." These two series directly propelled him to a higher level, distinguishing him significantly from ordinary idols. When people see him now, they don't just view him as an average idol anymore.

But his influence within the team wasn't entirely positive; at least the best resources were prioritized for him, and what he didn't want was left for the other members.

"How could he possibly get such good resources"

“According to insiders, Pool Jingyuan's treatment within ** is exceptional. He's not just treated well within EXO, but throughout the entire company, he's royalty among royalty. Even the highest levels of the company are very kind and polite to him. In that episode of 'Golden Fishery,' the EXO members described the scene where Lee Soo Man greeted him. Don't you think they were joking I assure you, there's no exaggeration. This is the truth.”

As for why he's so 'royal'...EXO has had a lot of members' family backgrounds dug up by fans so far, but Yuan's background is still unknown to this day. Even the composition of his family is a secret. All we know is that he doesn't seem to be short on money. I won't go into specifics here, but if you're interested, you can check out my last post titled "Based on various materials and information, speculating on Yuan's true family background will blow your mind."

So, Han leaving has a lot to do with Yuan occupying the best resources.

To put it bluntly, yuan pushed han out.

Several posts with similar wording and language appeared on various forums, directly blaming Pool Jingyuan for Han's departure.

What they said was a mixture of truth and falsehood, with many related images to support their claims. This led to many viewers forming opinions about Ji Jingyuan after reading it, and public opinion inadvertently shifted in a direction unfavorable to him.

I've always thought that Chi Jingyuan was overrated. He gets so many resources every day, and it's obvious the company favors him.

"It wasn't him, our Han oppa wouldn't have left at all. I used to like him a lot before this, so from now on, Yuan will be his lifelong black fan!"

"You can tell just from watching him on variety shows, he's so aloof. He doesn't speak unless he's directly addressed, obviously too high-class for variety shows. His teammates don't even dare to disagree, tsk tsk, EXO is really something else."

Some unsuspecting passersby, even some fans of xo and han, after watching it had an epiphany and were clamoring in

But when someone slanders, there are naturally people who defend them. Whenever something like this involving Chi Jingyuan's black posts appears, the fans who spread these distorted facts see these posts and become furious, their emotions running high and their tone very harsh.

"What the hell are you talking about Although I don't know the specifics, it's a known fact among many old fans of EXO and yuan that yuan comes from a wealthy family. What's wrong with being from a wealthy family han wants to make more money so he's leaving, who can stop him You're blaming us for this xxx"

“After watching it, I laughed so hard. I don't know how incompetent someone has to be to come up with such ridiculous rumors and still act like that. Why don't you try auditioning for the male lead in 'The Heirs' See if they even look at you True fans know that yuan's family is actually very good, and he connected a lot of resources himself. He didn't use any company resources at all. Why don't you try being the spokesperson for lg's entire product line Are you joking”

He not only didn't hoard resources from his teammates, but rather, yuan's presence significantly boosted EXO's overall popularity and fame.

"Idiot, you have no clue. EXO disbanded the year they debuted. Dumbass."

Chi Jingyuan has a large and very united fan base with unparalleled fighting power. Whenever there are posts attacking him, the omnipresent Yuan fans swarm in to refute and counter-attack. Many even escalate to personal attacks and insults.

The more online arguments and attacks there are, the more attention they attract. Even if Yuan fans present facts clearly and logically, many people don't care about truth or falsehood; they just join in the chaos. They only believe what they want to believe. Conspiracy theories and drama are definitely more popular than harmony.

Under the influence of this trend, Ji Jingyuan has been attacked online these days. Some of the remarks made by EXO fans and other members' fans have left them somewhat wavering between belief and disbelief.

Even if they don't actually believe it, wouldn't it be worth it if this could give xo, or the members of their own meal a little more personal resources

"...I used to really like him, you know From now on, I'm blacking him out for life!"

Looking at the aggressive comment displayed on her phone screen, Zhou Tzuyu sitting on her bed in the dormitory frowned. She felt that the online public opinion had been off lately. Holding her phone, she wanted to call Ji Jingyuan again, but hesitated.

The day before yesterday, when Han ran away, Zhou Tzuyu knew the news and sent a caring text message to Ji Jingyuan. However, she waited anxiously for a reply, but it never came, as if the other party hadn't seen it.

She also hoped that something like this wouldn't happen to EXO. She knew that if it did, Park Ji-sung would be incredibly busy and probably in a terrible mood. So she didn't want to bother him and kept from texting further. Instead, she just waited silently while watching the situation unfold online.

But these two days, the online public opinion has been a bit off. I don't know when it started, but Han's running away and Ji Jingyuan have been linked together. Especially today, many people online are attacking him, and many of the things they say are very harsh. Although Yuan fans quickly swarmed in to scold the posters bloody, Zhou Tzuyu, who saw this, was still quite worried.

Her finger hovered over the screen for a long moment, she glanced at the clock - it was almost dawn. After some deliberation, she finally made up her mind. She discreetly glanced at the other roommates in the same room, put on her shoes and left the room to go to the bathroom. Taking a deep breath, she dialed Chi Jingyuan's number.

"Your eyes, nose, lips…" The ringtone rang for a long time without anyone answering. Just when Tzuyu was starting to feel disappointed, the phone suddenly connected.

"Hey" A familiar voice came over, she knew it was Chi Jingyuan's voice at once. At this time, the other party seemed to be panting slightly, as if he had just finished exercising.

"Hey..." Because some of her roommates were already asleep, she even lowered her voice in the bathroom to reply.

After responding with a sound, she seemed to not know what to say. All the words she had thought of just now had vanished without a trace somehow.

“After a short silence, Chi Jingyuan’s displeased voice came from the phone: “Are you just going to say hello I’m waiting for your follow-up! What’s the matter that you called me so late, Ziyu xi”

"Hmm..." Hearing that familiar tone, Zhou Tzuyu suddenly felt much more at ease. After a moment of hesitation, she softly spoke, "I just wanted to ask how you're doing now. Exo had that thing happen, and these past two days the internet has been..."

Before she could finish her words, the phone was suddenly hung up by the other party.

Zhou Ziyu brought her phone to her face and stared at the disconnected call, a little stunned. She slightly opened her mouth, recalling if she had said something wrong just now, or if something happened on the other end.

Just as she was feeling a little pompous, Chi Jingyuan suddenly handed her a photo.

This is an upper body selfie. In the photo, Ji Jingyuan is wearing a white short sleeve shirt. His nostrils and cheeks are covered in sweat, and his bangs are wet and stuck to his forehead. It's clear he was just practicing intense dancing.

At this time, he deliberately made a sad face and furrowed his brows, looking extremely dejected. However, when Tzuyu saw this, the corners of her mouth twitched, and she couldn't help but let out a light chuckle.

Because this bitter expression is exactly the same as the selfie she sent to him a while ago, Chi Jingyuan is clearly imitating her.

Photo

Before I could take a closer look, the other party called again proactively. Zhou Tzuyu quickly answered:

“Look, I'm in a terrible state now, just like you were before.” After the call connected, Chi Jingyuan deliberately spoke in a pathetic tone.

"Heh, I see it. It's quite pathetic..." Zhou Tzuyu chuckled. She was actually quite worried about Ji Jingyuan's situation, but after seeing this goofy selfie, she instantly felt a lot more at ease, and her mood also lightened up considerably.

After replying, she added, "Are you still practicing in the studio this late"

"Well, these days I have to rehearse the concert songs and choreography all over again. I'm busy until two or three in the morning every day." Ji Jingyuan answered casually with a couple of sentences, then proactively asked, "You called me this late just to check on me Is there nothing else"

"Hmm." Zhou Tzuyu softly responded, paused for two seconds and then spoke about her recent experiences: "I saw a lot of people smearing you today, saying a lot of nasty things..."

“I thought you were calling because something was urgent. I even stopped practicing…” Chi Jingyuan let out a sigh of relief and laughed, panting slightly: “You saw it too… so what do you think Are those online rumors true or false”

Before that, Tzuyu couldn't help but smile and blink her eyes when she heard it. She seemed happy. After hearing that, she blurted out without thinking: "It must be fake, why even ask"

"What if I told you they were telling the truth" Chi Jingyuan's reply took her aback.

"Ugh..."

This question made Zhou Tzuyu hesitate for a moment, but after a brief two-second thought, she quickly spoke with a firm voice: "Then you must have your reasons..."

"Yo, helping relatives or not, Tzuyu xi, I didn't expect you to be like this…" A chuckle echoed through the phone from Ji Jingyuan, his voice sounding more cheerful.

He didn't say much more, smiling and saying: "Thanks, just kidding. Most of what's said online is fake, don't worry about it. I'm doing fine here, no problems. You should get some rest, I have to get back to work soon."

As Pool Jingyuan was about to say goodbye and hang up the phone, he suddenly seemed to remember something and added, "By the way, did you use your face mask today"

Originally, Tzuyu who was smiling and getting ready to say goodbye, heard the last sentence and couldn't hold back. Her expression immediately dropped, and she asked angrily, "What do you mean by using... every day"

"That's exactly what you meant... He's gone."

A voice of "du" signifying the end of a call came from her phone. Zhou Ziyu looked at the screen, scrunched up her nose, and let out a soft hum before preparing to leave the restroom.

But she took a step and then turned back, pretending to jump into the water before walking out briskly.

……

On the other side, Chi Jingyuan stood on the corridor outside the practice room. After hanging up the phone, the smile on his face gradually faded. He looked at the glowing phone screen with a flat expression and frowned.

First Release on Traditional Chinese Novel Networkingyuan completely ignored Sunny's murderous gaze, calmly eating barbecue and chatting."Jia Are you my dinner" Sunny, seeing that the murderous glare wasn't working, stopped caring and instead asked c...