25: Chapter 25 Favoritism in Support

Choi Sulli sat by Liu Zijun for only a few minutes before a staff member came over with a walkie-talkie to call the members of f(x) to wait backstage.

She stood up abruptly, smoothed out the hem of her red leather skirt, and reached up to readjust a crooked hairpin, yet she couldn't help but look back at Liu Zijun.

Those moist, almond-shaped eyes blinked; she first pouted toward the stage, then made a fist-pumping "fighting" gesture at Liu Zijun, and finally pointed specifically at herself, her eyes overflowing with expectation.

This was clearly a demand for Liu Zijun to cheer for them properly later, even more fervently than he had for T-ara.

Seeing her like this, Liu Zijun understood instantly. He smiled and gave her a "received" hand signal, then deliberately shouted loudly, "Choi Jin-ri, fighting!"

Choi Sulli's cheeks flushed at his shout. She stuck her tongue out at him and was then pulled away by Victoria Song, quickly running toward the backstage with Krystal Jung, Amber Liu, and Luna.

As the girls' figures disappeared around the corner of the corridor, Choi Sulli's voice could still be heard calling back, "Joon oppa, you must shout loudly!"

Han Jaeran suddenly spoke from the side in a teasing tone, "Ji-Jun! While it's good to be close with the artists, we staff members should still maintain a certain distance."

Liu Zijun understood in a second!

He said to Han Jaeran, "Don't worry, I won't affect Jin-ri and the others' careers. I just see her as my own younger sister."

Internally, Han Jaeran wailed, "It's only been a few days! I see Sulli is already this dependent on you; I'm just afraid she doesn't see herself as your sister!"

Yes, perhaps once Choi Sulli got better, and T-ara got better too, he would leave The Peninsula.

Liu Zijun shook his head helplessly and leaned back in his seat, his gaze unfocused, lost in thought.

Before long, the stage lights suddenly dimmed, and a familiar electronic intro played—it was f(x)'s "Electric Shock."

Under the spotlights, the five girls rushed onto the stage in eye-catching performance outfits. Choi Sulli's red leather skirt was particularly dazzling under the lights as she stood on the left side of the stage with a vibrant smile.

As soon as they started, deafening cheers erupted from the audience.

"Sulli! Sulli! Choi Sulli!"

"Victoria! Krystal! Sulli! Luna! Amber!"

"f(x)! f(x)! We will love you forever!"

The fans' support signs shimmered like a sea of stars, light sticks waved to the rhythm, and screams filled the air.

Liu Zijun had already stood up, preparing to shout the fan chants as Choi Sulli had requested, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he was drowned out by the wave of fan noise around him.

He looked at the dense crowd of fans holding f(x) support signs and then at the radiantly smiling Choi Sulli on stage; he couldn't help but smile and swallow the fan chants he was about to shout.

He just followed the rhythm and softly shouted "f(x) fighting" and "Sulli fighting" a few times, his voice as light as a feather amidst the boiling roar of the crowd.

Han Jaeran patted his arm, his eyes crinkling with laughter.

"See? There's no need for you at all. Our f(x) fans have much more fighting power than you. Sulli was worried for nothing, thinking you wouldn't cheer for her."

Liu Zijun nodded along, his gaze always fixed on Choi Sulli.

She sang and danced on stage with sharp and agile movements, her short hair slightly lifted by the stage fans, her eyes shining like stars. Occasionally, when her gaze swept toward Liu Zijun in the staff area, she would deliberately wink, her eyes full of pride.

Looking at her like this, Liu Zijun's heart softened.

This girl just wanted him to cheer for her specifically; no matter how loud the fans' voices were, she wanted his share of attention.

When f(x)'s performance ended, the cheers from the audience still hadn't ceased.

As the girls bowed for their curtain call, Choi Sulli specifically made a heart gesture toward Liu Zijun's direction, triggering another round of screams from the fans.

After the f(x) members walked off stage, the performance segment of the SBS Television Station year-end Gayo Daejeon continued with other groups.

It wasn't until very late at night that the final stage of the Gayo Daejeon concluded. The host announced the end of the event, and the crowd in the venue began to slowly disperse.

People in the staff area also stood up one after another. Han Jaeran stretched and said to Liu Zijun, "It's finally over. This day has exhausted me. Let's go pick up the kids and head back to the dorm to rest."

Liu Zijun nodded and followed Han Jaeran toward the artist backstage.

On the way, they happened to run into the members of T-ara, who were packing up to leave. Park Soyeon suddenly said, "It's clear that Jin-ri is very dependent on you!"

Liu Zijun nodded and simply said, "Stay safe on the road."

Park Ji-yeon let out a roar like a dinosaur and then added, "Ja-joon-xi, can I call you 'oppa' like Sulli does from now on? If there's a chance later, I'll treat you to a meal!"

Liu Zijun waved his hand, not agreeing, and just watched them leave with their Manager.

Han Jaeran whispered from the side, "You've really done them a huge favor. In T-ara's current situation, they'll definitely remember someone standing up for them for the rest of their lives.

However, you did well today too, getting a signed album!"

It seemed he was convinced that Liu Zijun was a T-ara fan.

When they reached the artist backstage, the f(x) girls had already finished packing. Choi Sulli was leaning against the wall playing on her phone.

Seeing Liu Zijun approach, the girl immediately put away her phone and walked quickly to his side, but she deliberately put on a stern face and wouldn't speak to him.

Victoria Song smiled and poked Choi Sulli's arm, "Hey! Are you still throwing a tantrum with Ji-Jun?"

Choi Sulli huffed and turned her head away, saying, "I am not. I just think someone is biased."

Liu Zijun saw through her thoughts at a glance and deliberately asked, "Oh? How am I biased?"

Choi Sulli puffed out her cheeks but still couldn't help saying, "You know it yourself! You cheered so loudly for T-ara and even knew the professional fan chants, but when you cheered for us, you only said a few words, and your voice was as quiet as a mosquito's buzz!"

Krystal Jung also chimed in, not looking like her usual Little Iceberg self at all.

She crossed her arms and said, "Exactly, Joon oppa is too biased. You don't even know our fan chants, yet you remember T-ara's. That's too much."

Amber Liu also came over and said with a smile, "Joon oppa, I also think you're being a bit much. You have to give us an explanation."

Luna also nodded, "Yeah, yeah, I want to hear why too."

Liu Zijun looked at the girls surrounding him to interrogate him, then at Choi Sulli's pouting little face, and couldn't help but laugh.

Han Jaeran suddenly popped in and said, "Kids, let's go. It's time to head back and sleep early."

Liu Zijun looked at Choi Sulli with a serious tone.

"You saw T-ara's situation today. There was almost no cheering from the audience. They must have felt terrible. I shouted those few words because I wanted them to know that someone still cares about their performance."

"But you guys are different. You have so many fans cheering for you that my voice is completely insignificant. Besides, I really did cheer, it's just that you have too many fans and they drowned me out."

Hearing his words, Choi Sulli's cheeks flushed slightly, and most of her anger dissipated.

She was a kind-hearted girl!

However, she still said stubbornly, "That's still not okay. You're our bodyguard, so you have to give us exclusive support. You can't just shout for others."

Liu Zijun helplessly compromised and ruffled her short hair. "Fine, fine. In the future, as long as it's your stage, I'll shout louder than anyone else, okay?"

The group walked toward the parking lot, chatting and laughing.

After getting into the van, Choi Sulli still pulled at Liu Zijun, making him search for and learn f(x)'s fan chants right then and there.

The car drove through the night, the lights of Seoul outside the window shining brightly.

All of this was truly quite beautiful.