Chapter 216: Jessica and Zheng Xiujing's

Just past eight o'clock the next evening, the flight from Almaty to Tbilisi landed smoothly.

The lights in the cabin were soft, and the quiet yet exotic city outside the window slowly unfolded the moment they landed, like a calm oil painting.

After deplaning and clearing customs, Lin Xiuyuan and Krystal successfully retrieved their luggage.

Lin Xiuyuan, dragging his suitcase in front, opened the map on his phone to check the hotel route while pondering whether to just rent a car at the airport and drive over, saving the trouble of taking a taxi.

At the same time, he didn't forget to chat with Krystal about the situation, but completely failed to notice Krystal's smiling little expression.

Just as he was about to walk toward the car rental counter, his wrist was gently grabbed by Krystal beside him, "No need to rent a car, let's go, let's go straight out."

Lin Xiuyuan was stunned, then thought of the hotel side, "Ah? Did you book a shuttle?"

However, Krystal still didn't speak, just smiled even more sweetly.

Like a child who had arranged everything long ago, she pulled him and walked briskly through the airport lobby, heading straight for the exit.

Walking out of the airport gate, the night wind blew gently, carrying a mixture of grass, wine, and the scent of a strange city.

The night in Tbilisi was gentle and tranquil, with distant lights like stars.

And just beside a dark SUV not far away, a figure had been standing there quietly.

She was wearing a white turtleneck sweater, draped with a gray shawl, black trousers that were crisp and neat, and long, slightly wavy hair naturally draped over her shoulders; the whole person looked both casual and appropriate.

The light overhead spilled down, outlining her silhouette with exceptional familiarity.

The whole person leaned against the car door, arms crossed, her gaze watching the two walking toward this side calmly.

Seeing this, Lin Xiuyuan stopped his steps, separated by a few steps from her, his gaze lingering on her for two seconds, then he spoke, "Jessica?"

Then he turned his head to look at Krystal, a bit more surprise in his eyes.

Continuing to walk forward, Lin Xiuyuan, who hadn't expected to see the other party here, was somewhat curious, "Why are you here?"

"Don't ask me; I didn't know you were coming either." Jessica's tone was steady, but she couldn't hide the meaningful smile in her eyes.

And beside them, Krystal had already let go of Lin Xiuyuan's arm, walked over with a smile, and opened the back door, "Heehee~ Xiuyuan, I'll trouble you with the luggage."

At the same time, Jessica immediately handed the car keys to Lin Xiuyuan, her tone flat but carrying a hint of a mocking smile, "You drive; I've already booked the restaurant, and the navigation is set. Just follow it."

Lin Xiuyuan took the keys, looking at these sisters, one sitting in the back row and one leaning indifferently by the window, and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

"You two are so tacitly coordinated; did you conspire to set me up long ago?"

"Oh my~ how could that be?" Krystal poked her head out from the back seat and said with a smile, "It's mainly because Jessica has been working too hard lately, so I pulled her out to clear her mind."

To this, what else could Lin Xiuyuan say? He couldn't just flip out on the spot and turn back to get on the plane.

So after shaking his head with a smile, he put the luggage in the trunk and sat in the driver's seat to get busy.

There wasn't much talk in the car, only the prompts from the navigation device and the breeze outside the night city.

The three of them tacitly divided their positions like this, as if they had reached a new balance in this silence, tacitly understanding each other.

Under the night, the SUV drove slowly out of the airport, heading toward the city.

The destination was a restaurant with a good reputation locally, famous for its creative cuisine that fused traditional Georgian and French flavors.

The restaurant was located in a century-old stone house in the old town, hidden deep in a small alley entangled with grapevines.

The night wind brushed past, dim oil lamps were lit on the outdoor seats, the wine in the glasses swayed slightly, and the air was filled with the warm aroma of charcoal-grilled meat and herbs.

After the three sat down, the waiter served the appetizers, which were traditional Georgian Khachapuri cheese bread and small skewers of lamb with seasoned yogurt dipping sauce.

"Do you have a plan for what's next?" Lin Xiuyuan, having taken a sip of water, looked at the two sisters opposite him with some curiosity.

In terms of appearance, Jessica opposite him clearly carried the fatigue of the journey, with slight blue circles under her eyes.

And Krystal was full of spirit, her face rosy, her whole face written with "not done playing yet."

So when she heard this question from Lin Xiuyuan, Krystal, while tearing at the hot cheese bread, talked about the itinerary for the next few days.

"Arrangements? We'll stay here for about four days. I plan to go to Kazbegi Mountain tomorrow to walk around, and by the way, book the time for the winery the day after tomorrow. The last two days can be taken easy, depending on the weather."

After all, July happened to be the rainy season, so Krystal didn't dare to say too much.

Lin Xiuyuan nodded and was about to speak when Jessica, who had been silent, suddenly spoke.

"Just right, I've already booked a valley homestay near Kazbegi Mountain, where we can soak in hot springs at night. Xiujing, didn't you say you wanted to take pictures of the starry sky? There's little light pollution there, and if the sky is clear enough, we should be able to capture the Milky Way. Let's rest in the city tonight and head over tomorrow."

"Yay~ calling Jessica over was indeed the right choice. I haven't booked a hotel yet, hahaha."

Krystal, who had never had any plans, didn't think anything of it when she said this.

This also successfully made Lin Xiuyuan ask her, "So the flight tickets to London haven't been booked either, right?"

"Mm, not yet. Don't worry, Xiuyuan~ there won't be a lack of tickets here."

Lin Xiuyuan nodded, then put down his knife and fork and looked at Jessica, "However, didn't you just perform in the country not long ago? Running to Georgia so suddenly, can you arrange your work?"

"None of your business."

Jessica, who had just finished this haughty statement, felt a bit regretful the next second.

She clearly realized that she had been a bit extreme, but a flash in her eyes made her stubbornly refuse to take it back.

Sure enough, Lin Xiuyuan opposite her raised the corners of his mouth, his gaze landing meaningfully on Krystal.

And Krystal, with the cheese bread in her mouth, lowered her head and licked her fingers, sighed, and looked at him with moist eyes.

At this look, Lin Xiuyuan smiled, and the little emotions that had been rising in his heart dissipated.

Since even Krystal had "come forward," he would just keep a tab and talk about it later.

The atmosphere relaxed, and the three continued to eat dinner.

Just as they were eating, Krystal, who suddenly remembered something, stopped chatting with Jessica and turned to look at Lin Xiuyuan, "By the way, Xiuyuan~ after we arrive in London, you'll have to temporarily resume my 'assistant status'."

"Mm?" Lin Xiuyuan was puzzled.

"Just like when we first met, except this time I don't need you to help me bring meals, but I need you to follow me and help me do some things, and shoot some vlog material."

Saying this, Krystal wrinkled her nose, her voice somewhat depressed.

"Do you think I'm here to play easily? Actually, the company originally arranged for a team to accompany me, but I refused and chose to travel alone. Even so, the vlog still has to be handed in, otherwise, I'll definitely be scolded by my manager when I go back."

"Oh, sure. Shooting with a phone or how?" Lin Xiuyuan, understanding the situation, asked.

"Either is fine; if it really doesn't work, we'll go buy an action camera."

"We'll see when the time comes. First, I declare, I'm not appearing on camera."

"Don't worry, the company doesn't want your footage either." Krystal grinned, her dimples appearing and disappearing.

Jessica looked at this man and woman who were bantering back and forth, their eyes softening unconsciously.

The night outside the window was deep, the candlelight swayed slightly, and the dining table seemed isolated from the world, only this tranquility immersed in the gentleness of the night.

After dinner, the night grew deeper.

The three walked out of the stone house restaurant; the lights in the streets were sparse, and the stone road shone with a faint light in the night.

The air was cool, carrying a unique tranquility of an ancient city in the silence.

Because Jessica had already booked a boutique hotel with a high reputation in the city, Lin Xiuyuan drove directly according to the navigation; the distance from the restaurant wasn't far, and before long, the three dragged their luggage into the lobby.

Just as they walked to the front desk, the waiter inside greeted them in English with a slight accent, and Jessica briskly reported the booking information and confirmed the number of rooms.

"Three rooms, all adjacent high-end double rooms."

As soon as the words fell, the front desk staff began to process the check-in procedures.

However, before the registration was completed, Krystal, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke, "Hmm, cancel one room; we don't need three."

Jessica, hearing this, raised her eyebrows, keenly sensing something wrong, her tone carrying a vigilance only a sister would have, "Krystal, you aren't thinking of squeezing into a room with me again, are you? Last time you almost kicked me off the bed and slept like a dead pig."

"No~" Krystal shook her head innocently, her smile as sweet as honey.

The next second, she hugged Lin Xiuyuan's arm and leaned on him as if acting spoiled, "I want to stay with Xiuyuan~"

"..."

This sudden display of affection wiped Jessica, who had been caught off guard, across the neck like a dog several times.

So her expression froze instantly, the fatigue on her face washed away by the anger, and she almost couldn't catch her breath, "Ya, Zheng Xiujing..."

"What's wrong? It's not the first time we've stayed together, Unnie, stop making a fuss," Krystal turned her head to look at Lin Xiuyuan with a giggle, "Don't you think so?"

Lin Xiuyuan shrugged and didn't respond directly, but didn't pull away either, just said in a low voice, "I'll listen to your arrangements."

Jessica, looking at these two, was speechless for a moment.

A few seconds later, she let out a long breath, as if compromising or resigning herself to fate, and waved her hand at the front desk staff, "Cancel one room."

The procedures were completed quickly, and the three took their room cards and took the elevator upstairs; the atmosphere seemed much quieter.

The elevator stopped at the top floor with a "ding," and the three rooms were located at the end of the same corridor.

However, just as Krystal was happily intending to take Lin Xiuyuan to swipe the card and enter the room, she was grabbed by Jessica.

"You wait a moment."

Then, with a cold face, she dragged her directly into her room, and the door closed with a "click."

Lin Xiuyuan, seeing this, just smiled and opened his door to walk in.

The room was decorated in a retro European style, with warm yellow lights spilling onto the wooden furniture, quiet and cozy.

After putting down his luggage, he immediately took out the anti-candid camera device he carried with him and carefully scanned every corner of the room.

After confirming there was no abnormality, he opened his laptop and ran a network detection program he had specially paid someone to design to detect whether there were any suspicious signal sources around.

Everything was safe in the end.

So Lin Xiuyuan was satisfied, closed the computer, let out a long breath, and lay down on the bed, letting his body relax completely.

On the other side, in Jessica's room.

Krystal, who had been pulled in by Jessica earlier, hadn't stood firm when she was blocked by the other party.

Her brows were tightly furrowed, and her tone was clearly filled with worry and a hint of anger, "Are you crazy? Xiujing, you aren't a little girl in your teens anymore; how can you do something so indiscreet? You are a public figure; if you get photographed, there will definitely be problems."

Krystal wasn't panicked at all, sat on the sofa hugging a pillow, and said lightly, "Indiscreet? Who photographed us?"

"It's not about whether you were photographed; it's that you need to be self-aware!" Jessica glared at her, her expression serious, "In this line of work, no matter if anyone is watching, you can't leave any handles."

And this time, Krystal looked up seriously, her eyes exceptionally frank, "Jessica, of course you have to be discreet with people you don't like, but with people you like... you only want to get closer. Do you think I'm you?"

Jessica was stunned; her originally tense face shook lightly in that instant, and a complex emotion appeared in her eyes.

Then, looking at this younger sister who was younger than her but bolder and more fearless than her, she suddenly fell silent.

"You..."

"I know what you're worried about, but I'll handle it myself."

Krystal said in a low voice, a mischievous smile still on her lips, "And I didn't say I was going to fall in love with him either; a little milk dog looks very pleasing to the eye. Besides, I didn't manage your guy, so don't worry about me."

Jessica took a deep breath and finally didn't say anything else, just raised her hand and waved it, "Fine, I won't say anything; you handle it yourself."

"Understood~" Krystal stood up, stood on tiptoe, and hugged Jessica, "I'm going to find Xiuyuan."

Walking to the door, she suddenly stopped, looked back, and smiled lightly as if remembering something.

"By the way, Unnie, I only kick and move around when I sleep with you. When I sleep with Xiuyuan, I only obediently burrow into his arms; it's especially warm and especially comfortable."

"Get out~"

Jessica roared unbearably.

Krystal giggled, slipped out of the room like a successful little fox, and knocked on the door next door.

Two seconds later, Lin Xiuyuan opened the door, scanned her, and then looked at the room behind her, "What did you say to make her react so strongly?"

"She told me to pay attention to my image."

Krystal, who finished speaking with a smile, pushed Lin Xiuyuan into the room the next second, kicked the door shut with her toe, leaned in, and kissed him hotly with a smile.

Lin Xiuyuan naturally didn't want to be outdone; the two went back and forth, and only after some lingering did they separate slightly.

Then, looking at Krystal opposite him, he smiled helplessly, "Is this what you call paying attention to your image?"

"I didn't agree."

Krystal hummed triumphantly, her gaze sweeping across the room, landing on the laptop and detector on the coffee table, "How is it? Are there any cameras?"

"No, I was waiting for you to come over. Are we going back or what?"

"Do you really want to go back to the villa to sleep tonight?"

"It's definitely more comfortable to sleep in the villa. Anyway, it's the same space-time; we can just come back over when we wake up. If it's late, Jessica will call, and it's not like it won't go through, right?"

Listening to Lin Xiuyuan's explanation, Krystal nodded lightly, but always felt something was not quite right.

A moment later, she realized the situation and said, "That's not right, Xiuyuan~ we are out traveling; it's definitely staying here that gives the feeling of traveling. It's fine to go back to wash up and get some things, but if we stay in the villa, there's no anticipation and unknown for traveling."

Listening to Krystal's answer, Lin Xiuyuan smiled, "Fine, then I'll follow you; I'm very good at taking advice."

"Then I advise you not to go against Jessica anymore, okay?" Krystal said with a smile, narrowing her eyes.

As a result, the next second, her wrist was grabbed by Lin Xiuyuan.

"Speaking of this, I was planning to retort earlier, but you stopped me. Then the consequence of Jessica retorting to me will be borne by you, the younger sister, as punishment."

"What punishment?" Krystal looked up at Lin Xiuyuan, laughter flickering in her eyes, "If it's a punishment that can't satisfy me, then I'm not willing."

One sentence made Lin Xiuyuan instantly lose his fire, "You're cheating; have the ability not to use techniques."

"That won't do." Krystal smiled, her eyes curved, "Don't you think my hands are very soft? And didn't you say last night that my stockings were especially comfortable?"

And Lin Xiuyuan was silent again, turned around, and picked up his phone, "Let's go, let's go back to the villa to wash up."

Krystal smiled slightly, stopped teasing him, turned around, locked the door, and pulled a stool to block the door before returning to the 2013 apartment with Lin Xiuyuan, intending to transfer back to the 2025 villa from there.

But unexpectedly, just as they returned to the apartment, they ran into Sulli, who had just come out of the shower.

Sulli was wearing a home-style bathrobe, her hair still dripping water; seeing the two walk in, she couldn't help but be stunned, "Eh, Xiujing, didn't you say you were going to Eastern Europe to play? Why are you back?"

Krystal nudged Lin Xiuyuan, "This one said he wanted to go back to the villa to rest for a while, later I persuaded him, so we changed it to wash up and change clothes first, then go back to the hotel to sleep."

"Fine, it's all my fault then."

Lin Xiuyuan shrugged helplessly, then turned to look at Sulli, "By the way, Zhenli, do you want to go over there with us in a while to take a look? Although it's not convenient to go out, it's not bad to stay in the room and look at the scenery outside."

"A bit tempted."

Sulli, wearing loose pajamas, walked up to the two, looked toward the villa through the Time Gate that hadn't been closed yet, blinked, and her expression was clearly shaken.

Krystal, seeing Sulli tempted, grabbed her, "Let's go, after we finish washing up, let's go over together."

Then Lin Xiuyuan also opened and closed the door again, took the two of them into that door, and returned to the 2025 villa.

And just as these two returned to Seoul from Georgia to wash up, Jessica was still sitting on the sofa in her guest room, staring out the window in a daze.

What she was thinking in her mind now was constantly echoing the sentence Krystal said:

【Jessica, of course you have to be discreet with people you don't like, but with people you like... you only want to get closer. Do you think I'm you?】

This sentence was like a dull but undeniable needle, silently piercing into a soft place in her heart.

Once, she also liked to get close, and also liked to show off in front of the camera.

But later, after seeing the reality clearly, not only did "getting close" become a burden, but even public activities they attended together, she avoided them if she could.

The reason the two appeared together at that wedding last time was only because it was their common friend of many years, and it was truly unavoidable.

Just as her thoughts drifted, a figure that made her grit her teeth yet refused to leave her mind unexpectedly surfaced in her thoughts.

Jessica, with her brows tightly furrowed, suddenly felt a surge of emotion in her chest that didn't belong to "liking."

It wasn't gentleness, it wasn't sweetness; it was a curiosity to get to the bottom of things, a desire to explore mixed with a slight unwillingness; that guy had too many mysterious places.

Jessica, of course, understood that the mature her shouldn't be led astray by this kind of emotion, but she couldn't stop it when the emotion was up.

So she could only bite her lip speechlessly and curse in a low voice, "Damn guy."

And the person she was cursing, at this moment, had just finished washing up in the villa in Seoul and was walking out while wiping his hair.

In the room, Krystal and Sulli on the sofa were huddled together playing games.

"It's your turn."

Lin Xiuyuan looked at Krystal, his tone gentle.

Krystal, hearing the voice, looked up at Lin Xiuyuan and nodded, "Mm, I'll go right away. Jessica just sent me a message asking if I wanted to go down for a walk; I said let's wait until we finish washing up."

"Mm, go wash."

Following Krystal's departure, Sulli on the sofa also stood up, walked to Lin Xiuyuan's side, and said with a mysterious smile.

"Oppa, do you know? These past two days, there has been a little friction within those Girls' Generation Unnies."

Lin Xiuyuan turned his head to look at her, didn't interrupt, just listened quietly.

Sulli didn't hide anything, her tone as relaxed as telling gossip, "It's Xiuyan Unnie. Her tone was a bit sarcastic, and the atmosphere wasn't right on the spot."

And Lin Xiuyuan, after hearing this, couldn't help but smile, "At their current stage, there's no big problem. At most, Xiuyan is unhappy and finds an opportunity to vent."

"Yeah, so even if she was pointed at by Xiuyan Unnie like that, there was no follow-up."

Sulli nodded silently, clearly agreeing, "I guess everyone understands one problem, and that is that their reunion is worth tens of millions in revenue, and they basically won't be willing to flip the table for this bit of face."

"Then how did they handle it later?" Lin Xiuyuan asked.

"Cough, it just faded away. Calm on the surface, cold war in private."

After Sulli finished saying Zheng Xiuyan's words, Lin Xiuyuan listened and just smiled, not expressing an opinion.

On the contrary, Sulli, after finishing speaking, paused and suddenly changed the subject, her tone becoming lighter, "But speaking of which, recently it's Xiujing who makes me worry a bit more."

"Xiujing?"

"That one in 2013."

"What's wrong?"

"I gave her that heroine role."

Sulli's tone softened, like the worry a sister couldn't hide for her younger sister, "And then I heard from V Ma that she isn't staring at the script every night, she's practicing lines. Even after washing up, I can hear her walking and reciting lines on the balcony..."

Saying this, she paused, her eyes falling on Lin Xiuyuan's face, her tone carrying a bit of helplessness and heartache, "I went to chat with her these past few days; she said she's getting more and more anxious, the more she rehearses, the more she feels something is wrong, and she's afraid of ruining my debut work."

Then she paused for a second again, as if organizing her language, and then asked tentatively, "Oppa, do you have any better way to make her suddenly have a breakthrough like YoonA Unnie?"

Lin Xiuyuan didn't rush to answer, but smiled, his eyebrows raised slightly, "Zhenli, are you beating around the bush, wanting me to call Krystal over to give the other party some 'acting private lessons'?"

Sulli shook her head, her tone lighter, "I'm just... a bit worried."

She had indeed had this thought, but she also knew that this kind of thinking couldn't be mixed with emotions; it was too easy to have problems, so this situation was just intended to be mentioned lightly.

Beside her, Lin Xiuyuan, after Sulli stood up, had already sat on the sofa, pondered for a few seconds, and nodded, indicating.

"YoonA previously organized a set of acting notes, and a set of her own rhythm practice system. I'll go ask her for it; you let Zheng Xiujing take a look first, take it slow, don't put too much pressure on her."

Hearing him say this, Sulli's eyes clearly brightened, "Really? That's great!"

Then, the two chatted a lot following the topic of Zheng Xiujing, from her obsession with the stage to her stubbornness in insisting on performing even when she was unwell so as not to disappoint fans.

Lin Xiuyuan listened and couldn't help but smile, "She is really stubborn."

"Stubborn enough to make people's hearts ache," Sulli nodded, her voice carrying a resonance that only they understood.

As the two were talking, the bathroom door suddenly pushed open with a creak.

Krystal walked out in clean home-style clothes, her hair still wet, looking at them while swinging a towel, the corners of her mouth hooked in a smile.

"What are you two chatting about? Why do I feel like I heard my name vaguely inside?"

Lin Xiuyuan looked at her and smiled lightly, "Chatting about your acting."

"Me?" Krystal raised an eyebrow upon hearing this and immediately reacted, "You two are talking about Zheng Xiujing, right? Not me, right, Sulli?"

Sulli narrowed her eyes and smiled, nodding lightly.

Then Krystal understood in a second, her brows furrowed, "To be honest, acting really can't be rushed, unless you rely on... a special way."

After she finished saying the sentence above, she immediately turned to look at Lin Xiuyuan, "The side effects of YoonA Unnie's set have already appeared, right, Xiuyuan?"

Lin Xiuyuan threw the towel to the side of the sofa and spread his hands, pretending to be stupid, "How would I know."

"I didn't blame you, why are you so afraid."

Krystal rolled her eyes at him, then looked at Sulli, "I'll organize a set of materials and send it to you later. That's the rhythm logic I explored myself; it should be more suitable for Zheng Xiujing than YoonA Unnie's set. The rest depends on herself, or..."

She originally wanted to say "can consider trying special one-on-one teaching," but as soon as she thought of the strange phenomena of Lin YoonA and Lin Xiaolu, she swallowed the words, sighed lightly.

Finally, she closed her mouth and changed her phrasing, "Forget it, let's see the situation first."

Thus, the three who had finished washing up reopened the Time Gate, passed through the apartment, and returned to the hotel room in Georgia.

And just the second after the three stepped on the hotel room floor, Lin Xiuyuan's phone rang.

The three's gazes focused over, and after seeing that familiar caller ID, they all laughed out loud.

"Oh, it's Unnie~"

"Probably looking for Xiuyuan."

"Nonsense, the one calling is my phone."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 217 =====