461: Chapter 514 2022 SPRING SPECIAL - OPERATION SUNNY (3)

April 3, 2022, 2:07 PM. The sky over Seoul was gray, with clouds hanging low like a thick quilt covering the city. Sunlight occasionally leaked through the gaps in the clouds, shattering into tiny spots of light on the surface of the Han River, only to be quickly covered by new layers of clouds. Pedestrians on the road hunched their shoulders; it was April, but the wind was still cold.

Sunlight shone in from outside the car window, gilding Sunny's face in a thin layer of gold. The "Yeri Pig" lay on her lap, its translucent red body emitting a warm luster in the sunlight. Its eyes were half-open and half-closed, like a kitten dozing off. Sunny's fingers gently drew circles on its back. Her mind was still replaying the scene from when she just walked out of the TG Entertainment building—those flashes, those microphones thrust toward her, those prying voices, and the message Yeri sent— "Unnie! That is my Lemm!"

Sunny's fingers paused on the back of the "Yeri Pig," then continued to stroke it. She looked down at the soft, red creature on her lap that was purring. The corners of her mouth curved upward. Her home was definitely not a safe place. Yeri knew her address, and every member of Red Velvet knew her address. They could storm over at any time and snatch the "Yeri Pig" from her arms.

Sunny's fingers paused on the "Yeri Pig's" back again. The company was no good either; the SM Building was full of Red Velvet's people. They spent more time at the company than she did, had wider connections, and were more familiar with the interpersonal relationships there. The moment she walked through the company gates, she might be blocked in the elevator. The most dangerous place is the safest place—this thought circled in her mind. She picked up her phone, opened KakaoTalk, and found Im Yoona's chat window.

"Yoona! Save me!" followed by a long string of exclamation marks and crying emojis.

Im Yoona's reply came quickly. "Unnie? What's wrong?" Sunny's fingers typed rapidly on the screen. "I'm running for my life. Red Velvet is hunting me down. Lend me your place to hide." Im Yoona sent a "?" and a "..." emoji. Sunny replied, "We'll talk when I get there." She flipped her phone over onto her lap, looked up, and said to the driver, "Go to Cheongdam-dong."

Inside the SM Entertainment building, the Publicity Department office was exceptionally quiet today. It wasn't the kind of quiet where "no one is talking," but the kind where "everyone is watching the same thing, and no one has time to talk." Director Park sat at his desk, a document on the computer screen in front of him—an email from the TG Entertainment Variety Department, with a proposal attached. The phrasing of the email was so rigorous that it felt foreign to him. He was used to Jiang Zhiyu's style of "act first, report later," and used to finding out what happened only after seeing his artists' names on the trending search lists. Seeing this proposal, with its rigorous wording, standardized flow, and even a clearly listed marketing heat timeline, he almost wanted to cry.

The title of the proposal was— "The Battle of Girls Generation and Red Velvet Lemm." Subtitle— "Unconventional Live Variety Show Proposal." The attachment also included a participation contract signed by Sunny.

Director Park's gaze moved from the title to the fine print below: TG Entertainment Variety Department, Prepared by: Lee Tima, Reviewed by: Kim Soo-yeon, Date: April 3, 2022. Every page was densely packed with text, from the program background to the program format, from the process arrangement to the expected results, from the judgment of marketing heat to the fermentation path of derivative topics. Even the trending search terms had been drafted, divided into three stages: "Preparation Period," "Explosion Period," and "Extension Period," with the corresponding terms for each stage marked in different colored fonts.

Director Park zoomed in on the scanned contract, looking at Sunny's crooked signature. The signature was located right next to "Party A has read and agreed to the above terms." It was signed with a flourish, clearly signed casually without reading anything. The corner of Director Park's mouth twitched; this child probably still didn't know what she had signed.

Even if TG's planning ability was strong, capable of getting topics on the trending list every time, turning variety shows into phenomenal hits, and magnifying the personal charm of idols to the extreme. He was still jealous. Jealous of how these people's brains were wired, and how they could come up with such ideas as "bringing idols' personal grudges onto the screen." He took a deep breath and pushed the jealousy back into his chest. He picked up the phone and dialed the number of the Red Velvet Manager.

"Manager-nim, TG sent a new proposal that requires Red Velvet's cooperation. Please arrange for the members to start a live stream 'chasing' Sunny." There was silence on the other end of the line for a moment, then a "Nae" came through. Director Park added, "Don't tell Sunny. The company will cooperate with the guidance."

"Director Park, TG is asking when we can confirm?" A staff member poked their head in from the doorway.

Director Park looked up from the document, looked at the staff member, and was silent for a long while.

"Now."

The staff member blinked. "Chasing Sunny?"

"Chasing Sunny." Director Park repeated it again, his tone more firm. "Also, without informing Sunny, coordinate with all artists currently in Seoul. Let them arrive at their respective locations—gyms, Practice Rooms, coffee shops, anywhere. The company will guide Sunny and Red Velvet; this variety show cannot be exposed."

The staff member nodded and turned to leave. Director Park leaned back in his chair, looking at the ceiling, tapping his fingers on the armrest. How on earth did the brains of these people at TG work?

Chief Kim was added to a temporarily created KakaoTalk group chat. The group name was "2022 SPRING SPECIAL - OPERATION SUNNY." By the time he entered, there were already dozens of people in the group. Rows of question marks appeared and disappeared on the screen. Boy group members asked "What is this group," girl group members asked "Why was I pulled in," and others asked "What happened to Sunny Unnie?" Chief Kim did not answer; he directly turned off the permission for everyone to speak, and then sent the prepared message.

"From now on, Red Velvet's Wendy, Seulgi, Joy, and Yeri will conduct an unconventional live variety show. All artists in the group, if you discover Sunny's whereabouts, while interacting with Sunny, Managers will turn on the corresponding location surveillance or hidden cameras. Please report the current location immediately and guide her to the next artist's location according to the plan. Everyone, please arrive at the address sent by your Manager within the specified time to stand by. Twenty minutes later, those who have arrived at the location, please contact your Manager to confirm your arrival, and the Manager will register and report to this group uniformly."

The attached image was an artist guidance map, densely marked with names and avatars. Sunny's avatar was in the top left corner of the map, and a red arrow started from her avatar, pointing to Im Yoona's avatar. The arrow pointed from Im Yoona to Yuri, from Yuri to Hyoyeon, from Hyoyeon to Sooyoung, from Sooyoung to Seohyun, from Seohyun to Leeteuk, from Leeteuk to Taemin, from Taemin to Baekhyun, and from Baekhyun to Red Velvet. The arrows circled most of Seoul and finally returned to the starting point. Next to each name was a location, and next to each location was an estimated arrival time. It was like a carefully woven web.

SM trainees also received the notification. Those children who had not yet debuted were arranged in inconspicuous corners such as coffee shops, convenience stores, and subway stations. Chief Kim dialed the Planning Department's number. "All routes are confirmed, all personnel notified, all equipment in place. Ready to start at any time." The voice of Director Park came from the other end of the line— "Launch."

The Girls Generation chat group was flooding with messages. This group did not have Sunny; it hadn't since the day it was created. It wasn't excluding her; it was just that some things couldn't be said in front of her.

Yuri: "Did you see the news? Sunny walked out of TG holding a Lemm! That Lemm is called 'Yeri Pig' hahahaha!"

Hyoyeon: "Won't Yeri be furious? That's her Lemm!"

Sooyoung: "It's not hers, it's what Jiang Zhiyu made for Red Velvet, it just hadn't been sent yet."

Tiffany: "So Sunny is—snatching it?"

Seohyun: "Unnies, isn't this not very good..."

Hyoyeon: "maknae, don't speak, you have no say in this matter."

Tiffany: "Sunny must be looking for a place to hide the Lemm right now."

Yuri: "She wouldn't hide it at her own house, right? Yeri knows her address."

Sooyoung: "The company is even less safe; Red Velvet's Managers have such a good relationship with them."

Tiffany: "So—the most dangerous place is the safest."

Yuri: "She wouldn't go to Yoona's house, would she?"

Everyone fell silent.

Im Yoona's message slowly popped up. "Sunny Unnie is coming to my place soon. I have to guide her to the coffee shop to find Yuri Unnie..." followed by a "..." emoji.

The group chat exploded. Yuri sent a long string of "hahahaha," Hyoyeon sent a long string of "hehehehe," Sooyoung sent a long string of "heeheeheehee," Tiffany sent a long string of "hohohoho." Seohyun sent a "..." Yoona's message came again. "Ah seriously! Why is it me!" Sooyoung replied, "Because you are the sister she trusts the most." Yoona sent a "..." Yuri said, "Don't cry, remember to guide her to the coffee shop later." Yoona sent a "Nae."

Im Yoona looked at the phone screen and shook her head. She put down the phone, stood up from the sofa, and walked to the entrance. The photo frame on the shoe cabinet contained a group photo of her and the Girls Generation members; Sunny was standing next to her, making a V sign, smiling with her eyes squinted into lines. She reached out to straighten the photo frame, turned around, and walked back to the living room, sitting back on the sofa. She picked up her phone, opened KakaoTalk, and found Sunny's chat window. Her fingers paused on the screen, and she typed a line— "Unnie, are you here yet?"

Sunny's reply was quick. "Almost there! Ten more minutes!" followed by a long string of running emojis.

Im Yoona replied with a " ".

She flipped her phone screen-down onto the sofa and gazed up at the ceiling, where the chandelier looked exceptionally still in the afternoon sun.

She sighed softly.

"Unnie Sunny, I'm sorry. This is just work."

Sunlight streamed through the window, spreading a warm golden hue across the floor of Im Yoona's home.

The light shifted slowly.

Across Seoul, artists were rushing to their designated locations.

Some departed from the Practice Room, others from home, from cafes, or from beauty salons.

They didn't yet know what they were about to participate in, only that it was a "company arrangement."

But that was fine; they were idle anyway.

A grey sedan was driving from Gangbuk toward Gangnam District.

Sunny sat in the passenger seat, holding "Yeri Pig."

Lemm's red body gleamed with a gentle luster in the afternoon sun, the tiny crown on its head occasionally catching the light.

Its eyes were curved, and its mouth was curved.

Sunny's fingers traced circles gently on Lemm's back.

"Yeri Pig" made a "purring" sound.

She watched the streetscape receding rapidly outside the car window; those streets, buildings, and pedestrians—some familiar, some not, all seen countless times—flowed past her field of vision.

She didn't know she was rushing toward Im Yoona's home, where Im Yoona was waiting for her.

Yuri was waiting for her in a coffee shop, Hyoyeon was waiting somewhere, Sooyoung was waiting somewhere, Seohyun was waiting somewhere.

The four members of Red Velvet were waiting for her somewhere, all SM Entertainment artists were waiting for her somewhere, and all of this had been planned; it had been planned from the moment she signed that contract.

She didn't know; she was still stroking "Yeri Pig's" back, still thinking about how to spend these ninety days.

The sunlight outside the car window was beautiful.

— The Red Velvet waiting room had been temporarily converted into a "battle command center."

On a white whiteboard, a simple map of Seoul was drawn in red marker, with several arrows starting from the SM Building and winding toward the Gangnam District.

In one corner of the whiteboard, a photo of Sunny was posted; it was a press photo taken when she walked out of the TG Entertainment building holding the Red Velvet Laimu, smiling brightly.

Next to the photo, it was written in bold: "Target: Retrieve 'Yeri Pig'."

Wendy stood in front of the mirror, tidying her hair, her brows slightly furrowed.

It wasn't nervousness; she was pondering what expression to use for the opening of the live stream.

Joy leaned on the sofa, flipping through a script, though there were only a few lines on it.

Seulgi sat in the corner with an untouched Americano on her lap, silently repeating her lines.

Yeri hugged a pillow, resting her chin on it, her eyes fixed unblinkingly on the photo of Sunny on the whiteboard.

"So—who actually came up with this plan?"

Wendy turned from the mirror, still holding her comb.

"Jiang Zhiyu? He loves doing this kind of thing. Wasn't it him who did that 'Phantom Thief Zhimin' thing before? Tricking Unnie Sunny into signing the contract, taking the Lemm, and now we have to chase after it—isn't this all designed by him?"

Manager Zheng was testing the live streaming equipment and looked up when he heard this.

"It wasn't President Jiang; it was Lee Tima. From the TG Entertainment variety department."

The waiting room went quiet for a moment.

Seulgi raised her eyes from behind her Americano.

"Lee Tima? The Lee Tima who made them eat Sea-Nutty-Bar on the (G)I-DLE variety show, and made Karina wear kimchi and dance to Next Level at the aespa planning meeting?"

Manager Zheng nodded.

The corners of Joy's mouth curved up.

"Interesting."

Yeri lifted her head from the pillow.

"Lee Tima is Jiang Zhiyu's younger sister; the siblings' brains are cut from the same cloth.

Whether it's Phantom Thief Zhimin or Kimchi Karina, and now this—Unnie Sunny getting 'tricked' into signing a contract, the Lemm being taken away, us 'angrily' giving chase—aren't they all the same routine?"

Her fingers tapped on the pillow twice.

"Create conflict, generate attention, harvest traffic. In the end, it doesn't matter who gets the Lemm; the buzz is already enough."

Wendy put the comb back on the table and tapped her fingers lightly on the surface.

"So—we have to pretend to be very angry on the live stream?"

Seulgi took a sip of her Americano.

"Yeah. Unnie Sunny knows it's fake, we know it's fake, but the fans don't know it's fake."

Joy sat up straight on the sofa, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Then we'll just act. It's not like we haven't acted before."

The assistant pushed the door open, holding a tablet, with an expression of "I am executing an important mission."

"Everything is ready; the live stream room is open. I'll speak first, then Wendy-xi will take the phone, and the others will cooperate."

His gaze swept over the four faces.

"Remember—be angry. Not the 'we're joking' kind of angry, but the 'we're really angry' kind of angry. The expressions must be on point, and the tone must be fierce enough."

The four people in the waiting room exchanged glances.

Seulgi's mouth curved slightly, a very small arc.

Yeri clenched her fists, putting on a "I'm going to fight" expression.

Joy adjusted her collar and cleared her throat.

Wendy took a deep breath.

"Let's start," Manager Zheng said.

Wendy took the phone, took a deep breath, and the others gathered around.

The assistant's voice was very serious, like a news broadcast— "Welcome everyone to Red Velvet's live stream.

I believe you all already know that Girls Generation senior Sunny has obtained the Lemm that originally belonged to our cute maknae Yeri—'Yeri Pig'."

The assistant paused.

"According to our SM Entertainment Legal Department, the contract signed between senior Sunny and TG Entertainment has no credibility.

In order to retrieve our exclusive Red Velvet Laimu, we announce that we will be tracking senior Sunny in the coming time to retrieve 'Yeri Pig'!"

The comment section rose rapidly—

[SM Legal Department? Does SM Entertainment really have a legal department?]

[What the heck is a contract having no credibility, hahaha]

[Run, Unnie Sunny!!]

[The Red Velvet Laimu was originally Red Velvet's, right? I saw TG Entertainment's promotional image, five of them lined up, with 'Red Velvet Exclusive' written on it]

[Unnie Sunny stole Yeri's Lemm.]

[The name 'Yeri Pig' is so funny, is it a combination of Yeri and a pig?]

[Go Red Velvet! Retrieve your Laimu!]

[Unnie Sunny, you're surrounded! Hand over the Laimu!]

The assistant added: "Senior Sunny must absolutely not know about this plan.

Everyone, please do not inform senior Sunny through any channels; thank you for your cooperation.

Now, our tracking team is already on the road to find senior Sunny.

First is our Wendy-xi—" The assistant gestured for the camera to turn to Wendy.

Wendy took the phone and waved at the camera.

"Hello everyone, I'm Wendy."

She raised her small fist, her expression serious.

"Yeri Pig! Yeri Pig! Our Yeri Pig was stolen by the senior! This time it's Yeri Pig, what will it be next time? Wendy Dog? Or Seulgi Bear? As a member of Red Velvet, I absolutely do not agree!"

Seulgi nodded beside her. "Right, absolutely do not agree."

Her expression was very calm, and Joy silently complained in her heart: Seulgi, your expression is like you're saying 'the weather is nice today'.

Yeri leaned in from outside the frame, her expression serious, but the corners of her mouth couldn't be suppressed; the arc changed from "serious" to "I'm about to lose it."

Her mouth opened and closed, closed and opened, and finally, she squeezed out a few words from her throat— "Unnie Sunny, I'm coming!"

The comment section went completely crazy—

[I took a screenshot of Yeri's expression; I'll use it as a meme later.]

[Yeri: I'm very serious, I'm really angry, don't laugh.]

[Wendy Dog and Seulgi Bear—I've noted it down, I'll call them that from now on.]

[The whole Red Velvet cast is acting well, but Yeri's face betrayed her.]

The assistant's voice rang out again, with the feeling of a voice-over commentary.

"Currently, the Red Velvet tracking team has departed from SM Entertainment and is searching along the route senior Sunny might have taken."

He paused, his speed increasing.

"According to reports, the last location senior Sunny appeared was near the TG Entertainment building.

Her vehicle is a white sedan, and the license plate number has been confirmed.

The tracking team is moving southeast along the riverside road."

The camera switched to the streetscape outside the car window.

The Han River shimmered with silver light in the sun, and Namsan Tower was faintly visible in the distance.

The assistant's voice continued.

"Meanwhile, many artists under SM Entertainment have entered standby mode.

Girls Generation members Yuri, Hyoyeon, Sooyoung, and Seohyun have arrived at their respective designated locations.

Seniors like Super Junior's Leeteuk, SHINee's Taemin, and EXO's Baekhyun are also in position."

He paused.

"All personnel are waiting for the appearance of senior Sunny."

Seulgi's voice drifted over from the side. "She can't escape." Calm, like she was reciting a line.

Wendy followed up, "Red Velvet's Laimu can only belong to Red Velvet."

Joy added, "This time it's 'Yeri Pig', next time it might be 'Wendy Dog'."

Yeri shouted at the end, "Unnie Sunny, just you wait!"

The number of viewers in the live stream had already exceeded 500,000.

In the comment section, fans spontaneously acted as "informants"; some were spamming "Unnie Sunny's car seems to have gotten on the highway," while others were spamming "It went southeast, maybe it's going to Gangnam."

More people were spamming "Go Red Velvet," "Retrieve Yeri Pig," and "Run, Unnie Sunny."

This grand pursuit drama had only just begun.

"That concludes the live report from the Red Velvet tracking team.

Please continue to follow our live stream; there will be more exciting content later."

He paused.

"We will update senior Sunny's location information at any time, so please don't miss it."