325: Chapter 305 It's clearly a movie for three people~

Im Yoona was woken up by the continuous vibration of her phone.

It wasn't an alarm, but message notifications—Kakao, texts, missed call alerts. Various notification sounds rose and fell like a symphony, sounding particularly piercing in the quiet guest room.

Frowning, she reached out groggily to grope around the pillow, finally catching the "culprit" that was vibrating.

Her eyelids felt heavy as lead. She barely forced them open a crack, squinting at the screen.

The blinding light made her instinctively turn her head away, and it took a few seconds to adjust.

Unlock.

On the Kakao notification bar, there was a dense cluster of red dots.

The top two were from different people, but both were marked "Unread":

Manager Oppa: [Yoona, are you awake? TG sent over a notice, you passed the preliminary test! You have to attend physical training in three days! I'll send you the specific address and time, confirm quickly!]

Sent: 7:05 AM.

Jiang Zhiyu: [Yoona Noona, the training schedule has been sent to SM, please check it. It starts in three days, good luck.]

Sent: 7:12 AM.

Im Yoona's eyes slowly widened.

The grogginess and sluggishness from the hangover quickly receded in the face of these two messages. She sat up, the duvet sliding off her shoulders. The cool morning air made her shiver, but her brain was now completely awake.

She first clicked on the Manager's message.

The attachment was a PDF file titled "Training Schedule and Precautions for Candidate Actors of 'the crab' Project".

She browsed through it quickly:

Training Time: Starting in three days, lasting for two weeks, closed management.

Training Location: A professional action training base in the suburbs of Seoul (detailed address).

Training Content: Physical conditioning, basic combat techniques, firearm safety operations, urban parkour basics, character psychological construction.

Precautions: Bring your own sports gear, no assistants/Managers allowed, TG staff will record performance throughout and include it in the final score.

Other Candidates: Three people in total (two females, one male), identities confidential.

"What?!!"

Im Yoona couldn't help but cry out, her voice sounding particularly loud in the quiet room.

She quickly covered her mouth, looking guiltily to the side—Sunny's spot was empty, the duvet was messy, and she was nowhere to be seen.

Fortunately, she didn't wake... wait, Sunny Unnie is already up.

Im Yoona's attention returned to her phone.

"Included in the final interview passing score"—these words were branded into her mind.

This wasn't just "training"; it was part of the selection process.

TG was going to use these two weeks to observe the physical fitness, learning ability, willpower, and even personality compatibility of the three of them.

The pressure was immense.

But at the same time, an even stronger fighting spirit surged up.

I passed the preliminary test.

I have a chance to fight for this role.

I can't let anyone say "Im Yoona can only play sweet idols" anymore.

She gripped her phone tightly, her nails digging slightly into her palm.

Just then, the phone vibrated again—this time it was a message notification from the Girls Generation group chat.

Im Yoona opened it habitually.

Then, her expression changed from serious and earnest to dumbfounded.

The group chat logs had been exploding since 7:30 this morning:

Sunny: [Major discovery! This morning, a mysterious man sent breakfast to Taeyeon! Freshly made white porridge + premium bread and coffee! He even helped clean up the living room! Taeyeon is panicking big time now, I'm dying of laughter!]

Yuri: What?! Who?!

Hyoyeon: I bet fifty cents it's Jiang Zhiyu.

Sooyoung: Tell us more! I want details!

Tiffany: Really?! OMG!

Seohyun: ...Is it really okay to pry into Taeyeon Unnie's privacy like this?]

[Seohyun has been removed from the group chat (temporary)]

Yuri: Hahahaha, Seohyun got kicked again!

Sooyoung: Soon-kyu, tell us quickly! How did you find out?!

Sunny: [Image: Insulated container, bread, and coffee on the dining table.jpg]

Sunny: I was woken up this morning by Taeyeon's wailing (she seemed to be having a breakdown about something too). I came out and saw this table. The porridge is freshly brewed, the bread is from XX's (super far from here), and the coffee too.

Sunny: Most importantly—the air smells like Jiang Zhiyu! That fruity scent, I could never mistake it!

Hyoyeon: It's confirmed! It's Jiang Zhiyu!

Tiffany: He came to her house in the morning? That's so sweet!

Yuri: Wait, why did he go to Taeyeon's house so early in the morning?

Sunny: That's the point! Taeyeon is stammering and can't explain, and she even put on makeup (she usually doesn't wear makeup at all after a hangover). She clearly has a guilty conscience!

Sooyoung: Could it be... they're dating?!

Yuri: No way, right? The age gap is so big...

Hyoyeon: What's wrong with an age gap? Younger guys are very popular now!

Tiffany: I think they look good together!

Sunny: Whether they're dating or not, their relationship is definitely not ordinary. Taeyeon is currently hiding in the guest room, afraid to come out. I'm dying of laughter, hahahaha]

Im Yoona scrolled down one by one, her eyes growing wider as she read.

A mysterious man? Came...

She looked up at the tightly closed door of the guest room.

Outside, she could vaguely hear Sunny's exaggerated laughter and Kim Taeyeon's exasperated but clearly weak-willed retorts.

Sending... breakfast to Taeyeon Unnie's house?

Im Yoona's brain quickly processed this information.

But why was Seohyun kicked out...

This thought only appeared for a second before she brushed it aside.

No! Now is not the time to be concerned about that!

She gritted her teeth, her fingers tightening unconsciously.

Was that person Jiang Zhiyu?

Why would he come here?

These two questions circled in her mind.

Then, she remembered the two messages she had received.

Jiang Zhiyu sent her the training notice.

The time was 7:12 AM.

And according to Sunny's description, the breakfast delivery was "this morning," specific time unknown, but it should have been not long ago.

So, on the timeline—

Jiang Zhiyu might have come to Kim Taeyeon's house first in the morning (to deliver breakfast), then left while she (Im Yoona) was still sleeping, and then sent her the message.

The logic held up.

But the next question concerned her even more:

What was his purpose for coming here?

Im Yoona frowned and began analyzing the possibilities:

1. Pursuing Taeyeon Unnie?

When this thought popped up, her heart tightened for some reason.

It wasn't jealousy, but a... complex, indescribable emotion.

She remembered the interactions between Jiang Zhiyu and Kim Taeyeon—the Jeonju trip, the fish-slaying feast, the whispers in the elevator. Those scenes indeed exuded an intimacy that transcended a normal working relationship.

But soon, she dismissed this guess.

Unlikely.

Jiang Zhiyu wasn't the type to be easily moved by emotions. At least in her eyes, that president who was excessively young yet terrifyingly mature was more concerned with his career, ambition, and those complex commercial chess games.

Moreover, if he were really pursuing her, why choose such an early, sudden time? And bring breakfast? This didn't fit Jiang Zhiyu's style of doing things.

2. Coming to tell me about the physical training?

This possibility was more likely.

She was a candidate actor for "the crab," and as the project lead, it made sense for Jiang Zhiyu to personally notify her of the training arrangements.

But then the question arose again—

I was sleeping.

She checked the time on her phone: it was almost eight o'clock now. And Jiang Zhiyu's message was sent at 7:12. If she was still sleeping when he came, he could have waited a while or asked Taeyeon Unnie to pass it on.

There was no need to make a special trip, especially with breakfast.

Unless...

Im Yoona's gaze fell back on the photo Sunny posted in the group chat.

The white porridge in the insulated container looked like it had been simmered for a long time, the rice grains almost dissolved.

Fresh bread, and still-steaming coffee.

That breakfast...

Her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

A possibility that she both anticipated and didn't dare to think deeply about surfaced in her mind:

Was it for Taeyeon Unnie?

Or was it... prepared for me?

This "or" made her throat tighten.

If the breakfast was for Taeyeon Unnie, it meant that the relationship between Jiang Zhiyu and Kim Taeyeon was indeed unusual—at least to the extent that he was willing to get up early to brew porridge and deliver it personally for her.

If the breakfast was prepared for her...

Im Yoona thought of everything Jiang Zhiyu had done for her before—insisting she play in "the crab," saying he would "train her personally," and sending an encouraging message after the audition.

And even earlier, the collaboration on the special episode of "destined kim hyo-soon," those script storms, those interactions where they plotted against each other yet had a mysterious rapport.

He, towards me...

She didn't dare think further.

It wasn't that she didn't want to, she just didn't dare to.

At this juncture, at the critical moment of the casting for "the crab," any extra emotion could affect her judgment and might make her lose the ability to objectively evaluate herself.

Im Yoona, calm down.

She told herself.

The most important thing for you right now is to pass the training and get the role.

Don't think about anything else.

She took a deep breath, exited the group chat interface, reopened the PDF file sent by the Manager, and began reading the training details seriously.

But out of the corner of her eye, she still unconsciously glanced at the breakfast photo.

And her ears also perked up to listen to the commotion outside—

"Lee Soon-kyu, shut up!"

"Ya! Kim Taeyeon, why do you have a guilty conscience? I didn't say anything~"

"I don't have a guilty conscience!"

"Then why is your face red?"

"I... I'm hot!"

"Oh~ Hot enough to have a red face so early in the morning? How interesting~"

Listening to the childish bickering of the two Unnies outside, a hint of a smile couldn't help but appear on the corner of Im Yoona's mouth.

But the smile quickly vanished.

She looked down at the short "good luck" message Jiang Zhiyu had sent on her phone screen.

Then she looked at the gossip and speculation Sunny had posted in the group.

Finally, her gaze landed on the training schedule.

Three days later.

She gripped her phone, her eyes becoming firm.

No matter who Jiang Zhiyu came for this morning, no matter who that breakfast was for.

Right now, she had only one thing to do—

Win the training and get the role.

Everything else could wait until later.

[part:gemini-3.1-flash-lite]

She threw off the covers, got out of bed, and walked into the bathroom attached to the guest room.

The mirror reflected a face that looked slightly haggard from the hangover, but her eyes were clear.

Im Yoona turned on the faucet and splashed her face with cold water.

Wake up, Im Yoona.

The game has only just begun.

——

"Lee Soon-kyu, shut up!"

Kim Taeyeon's voice was nearing a scream, her whole face flushed as if it could bleed, and the tips of her ears were even redder, almost translucent. She stood by the dining table with her hands on her hips, trying to use her presence to overpower the woman sitting in the chair with a mischievous smirk.

But Sunny clearly wasn't buying it.

She unhurriedly broke off a piece of bread, dipped it in the white porridge, put it into her mouth, and deliberately made a satisfied "Mmm～" sound while chewing. Only then did she look up, her eyes curving into crescent moons, her tone cloyingly sweet:

"Yah～ Kim Taeyeon, what are you feeling guilty about? I didn't say anything～"

"I'm not feeling guilty!" Kim Taeyeon retorted, stiffening her neck, but her voice clearly lacked conviction.

"Then why are you blushing?"

"I... I'm hot!" Kim Taeyeon fanned herself with her hand, even though the living room air conditioner was steadily blowing cool air.

Sunny raised an eyebrow: "Oh～ Blushing from heat early in the morning? How interesting～"

She deliberately drew out her tone, every word pricking at Kim Taeyeon's tense nerves like a small needle.

Kim Taeyeon gritted her teeth in anger, wishing she could pounce and cover her mouth. But she knew that if she acted on it, it would really confirm her "guilt."

The two were at a stalemate when the guest room door creaked open.

Im Yoona walked out.

She had clearly washed up quickly—her face still had traces of moisture, her hair was tied in a low ponytail with a simple hair tie, and she was wearing the spare loungewear Kim Taeyeon had prepared for her: a light gray cotton T-shirt and loose sweatpants.

Her expression was calm, but the moment she stepped out of the room, her eyes keenly caught the anomaly in the air.

As expected.

Im Yoona twitched her nose.

Although it was already very faint, there was indeed a lingering, familiar, rich fruity scent in the air.

It wasn't perfume, and it wasn't aromatherapy; it was that unique body scent of Jiang Zhiyu.

She had smelled it up close during the fish-killing banquet last time, and the memory was vivid.

This scent was like invisible evidence, silently confirming the scoop Sunny had dropped in the group chat.

Im Yoona's gaze shifted from the air to the dining table.

The exquisite ceramic thermal container was open, and the white porridge inside was almost gone—clearly, Sunny had eaten most of it.

Next to it lay the bread in a kraft paper bag and three lattes—one of which had already been opened and drunk by Sunny, while the other two were still perfectly sealed.

Everything proved it: Jiang Zhiyu had indeed been here, brought breakfast, and had only left a short while ago.

"Yoona, you're awake."

Seeing Im Yoona come out, Kim Taeyeon looked as if she had seen a savior and hurriedly walked over, her tone somewhat unnatural:

"Um... breakfast..."

She wanted to say "there's still breakfast," but the words stuck in her throat—because while there was breakfast, the most important part, the white porridge, had been mostly ruined by Sunny.

Besides, this breakfast was brought by Jiang Zhiyu. How was she supposed to explain why Jiang Zhiyu came to deliver breakfast so early in the morning?

Just as Kim Taeyeon was stammering, Sunny spoke up first.

She swallowed the bread in her mouth, her smile as bright as if she had discovered a new continent:

"Jiang Zhiyu was here, oh～"

She said this lightly and quickly, with an upturned inflection, full of gossipy intent.

Kim Taeyeon glared at her fiercely: "Yah!"

But Sunny ignored her completely and continued talking to Im Yoona:

"He brought white porridge, bread, and coffee. He made the white porridge himself, it's delicious～ Too bad you woke up late, there's only a little bit left."

As she spoke, she patted the thermal container beside her, not hiding the showing off and smugness in her tone.

Im Yoona looked at Sunny's "I know everything" expression, then at Kim Taeyeon, who was standing to the side, looking embarrassed and wishing she could crawl into a crack in the ground.

She suddenly found it a bit funny.

These two Unnies, one trying desperately to hide it, the other trying desperately to expose it, were as childish as elementary school students.

She walked to the dining table, pulled out a chair, and sat down, not looking at how much porridge was left in the thermal container, nor touching the bread or coffee.

She simply took out her phone calmly, unlocked it, and opened the Girls Generation group chat interface.

Then she turned the screen toward them.

The group chat history was still on the latest page——

Sunny: Whether they are dating or not, their relationship is definitely not ordinary. Taeyeon is hiding in the guest room right now, afraid to come out, she's killing me, hahaha]

Yuri: @Sunny So is it really Jiang Zhiyu? Are you sure?]

Sunny: Ninety-nine percent! I would never mistake that scent!]

Hyoyeon: I bet a meal of barbecue, it's definitely him!]

[Dozens of gossipy comments omitted below]

Kim Taeyeon leaned in to take a look, her whole face instantly turning from bright red to deathly pale.

"Lee, Soon, Kyu!" She squeezed these three words through her teeth, "What are you saying in the group chat?!"

Sunny shrugged, looking innocent: "Just telling the truth. Jiang Zhiyu did come this morning, he did bring breakfast, and you are indeed feeling guilty. Which part did I get wrong?"

"You..." Kim Taeyeon was too angry to speak.

Im Yoona put down her phone and looked up, her expression very calm:

"I know."

Three simple words.

Kim Taeyeon was stunned.

Sunny blinked as well.

Im Yoona pointed at the phone: "With the group discussing it like this, it would be hard for me not to know."

Her tone was too calm, so calm that it made Kim Taeyeon even more flustered.

"Yoona, it's not what you think..." Kim Taeyeon tried to explain, but her mind was a mess, and she didn't know where to start.

Say that Jiang Zhiyu came to deliver breakfast? But why deliver it?

Say that Jiang Zhiyu came to notify her about the training? But he could have easily called or sent a message.

Say they are just ordinary friends? Would ordinary friends cook porridge and deliver it early in the morning?

Any explanation sounded like a cover-up.

Kim Taeyeon realized with despair that she had fallen into a pit she couldn't climb out of.

She could only touch her hair awkwardly, her eyes darting around, her voice getting quieter and quieter:

"He just... happened to be passing by... on his way..."

Even she didn't believe those words.

Sunny let out a "pfft" of laughter from the side: "Passing by? On his way? Taeyeon, Jiang Zhiyu lives in Gangnam District, and we are also in Gangnam District, but his house is at least a twenty-minute drive from here, and it's in the completely opposite direction. That's a pretty long 'way'～"

Kim Taeyeon: "...Shut up."

Im Yoona watched the two Unnies bickering, and the complex emotions in her heart actually faded a bit.

She picked up the unopened latte, inserted the straw, and took a sip.

The temperature was just right, the richness of the coffee and the sweetness of the milk perfectly blended—it was indeed the standard of that shop, which really required advance reservation.

"Unnies," she put down the coffee, her voice calm, "Jiang Zhiyu sent me a message this morning."

Kim Taeyeon and Sunny looked at her at the same time.

"He told me that I passed the preliminary test and have to attend physical training in three days." Im Yoona said, "The message was sent at 7:12 in the morning."

She paused and looked at Kim Taeyeon:

"So he came this morning, perhaps intending to tell me about this in person. But I was sleeping, so he didn't disturb me."

This explanation sounded reasonable.

Kim Taeyeon's eyes lit up, as if she had grabbed a lifeline: "Yes, yes, yes! That must be it! He just came to notify Yoona!"

But Sunny immediately poured cold water on it: "Then why didn't he wait until Yoona woke up to say it? Or have Taeyeon pass it on? Why did he have to run over early in the morning, and bring porridge he cooked himself?"

She looked at Im Yoona, her eyes meaningful:

"And, if he really came to notify you, why did he send you a message, but bring breakfast for Taeyeon?"

This question was like a knife, precisely cutting through all the disguises.

Im Yoona fell silent.

Kim Taeyeon also fell silent.

The living room fell into silence again.

Only the humming of the air conditioner and the faint city noise from outside the window remained.

After a long while, Im Yoona spoke, her voice very soft:

"Unnies."

Both looked at her.

"Regardless of why Jiang Zhiyu came this morning, and regardless of who the breakfast was for." Im Yoona's eyes were very firm, "Right now, for me, the most important thing is—"

She looked at the PDF file of the training schedule on her phone screen.

"The physical training in three days."

"I want to pass it and get the role."

There was a sense of burning determination in her tone.

Kim Taeyeon looked at her, and the guilt and confusion in her heart slowly subsided.

That's right.

What's most important now is Yoona's business.

As for Jiang Zhiyu... as for that breakfast... as for those unclear ambiguities and speculations...

Let's put them all aside for now.

Kim Taeyeon took a deep breath, walked to Im Yoona's side, and patted her shoulder:

"Yoona, Unnie believes in you. You can definitely do it."

Sunny also put away her teasing expression and said with rare seriousness: "That's right. Our Yoona works so hard, she will definitely get that role."

Im Yoona looked at the two Unnies and smiled.

Although the headache from the hangover was still there, and although there were still so many questions and complex emotions in her heart.

But at least at this moment, they were standing together.

"Thank you, Unnies." She said softly.

Then, she picked up the last unopened latte and handed it to Kim Taeyeon:

"Unnie, you drink it too. Otherwise, it'll go to waste."

Kim Taeyeon took the coffee, and when her fingertips touched the cup, she could still feel the warm temperature.

Just like the temperature of his fingertips when Jiang Zhiyu handed her that aromatherapy bottle in the morning.

She lowered her eyes and took a sip of coffee.

It was bitter.

But the aftertaste was sweet.

Just like this chaotic morning, just like those tangled thoughts.

Bitter with a hint of sweetness.

And outside the window, the sky over Seoul had completely brightened.

A new day had officially begun.