Peninsula: Who taught him to make that connection?!

Chapter 2 Replacing the White Moonlight

Jiang Tang looked shocked.

He just wanted to write a youth romance novel.

Are you playing this high?

Just then, the system's voice sounded again.

[Link: August 2004]

[Link to topic: The Birth of the White Moonlight.]

[Connection Goal: Accompany her through her trainee days.]

[Link to message: True love often begins with a chance encounter.]

Jiang Tang stared at the building in front of him, a building that was well-known throughout South Korea, for a full ten seconds.

SM Entertainment.

He probably realized one thing—from this moment on, his life could no longer be described as "normal".

As Jiang Tang was thinking, someone suddenly patted his shoulder.

"Jiang Tang?"

He turned around and saw a young man wearing a staff badge standing behind him, who frowned and glanced at him.

"Why are you still outside? Non-public candidates, please go in and register first."

Jiang Tang blinked and quickly realized what was happening.

He nodded immediately: "Yes, sorry."

The staff didn't ask any questions, but simply led him in through a side door.

The corridor was much quieter than outside.

Jiang Tang followed the staff to the door of a waiting room, where they handed him a number plate.

"You'll also be taking a basic test later, so don't wander off."

Jiang Tang took the number plate and saw a number written on it.

309.

His face was reflected in the glass door next to him.

He looked to be sixteen, with a youthful air about him. He was wearing a simple white T-shirt and a light-colored jacket, and his hair was shorter than it was in 2014. He still looked very handsome.

The identity generated for him by the system was complete.

Korean-Chinese.

My mother works in the film and television industry.

He was exposed to music and performance from a young age.

This time, he was recommended by a vocal teacher to participate in the SM Youth Audition.

Looking at the densely packed crowd in the hall, Jiang Tang finally understood what a "preliminary selection" meant.

Some of them are so beautiful they look like they've already debuted.

When someone was dancing, the people around them were so amazed that they clapped and cheered.

Some people are only thirteen or fourteen years old, but when they open their mouths, it's as if they've lived on stage for many years.

This place is full of kids who want to be stars.

"Only one out of 9000 people? That's really cruel."

Jiang Tang saw the selection requirements on the wall and couldn't help but sigh.

He looked around, trying to find the "connector" the system had mentioned.

But there were too many people in the hall, so Jiang Tang could only approach them one by one.

Until one moment, he heard a soft voice.

Jiang Tang's eyes suddenly lit up.

This voice did not come from the outside world, but rose from the depths of one's heart.

—She's really not coming.

—We clearly agreed to participate together.

It doesn't matter if you're alone.

—Dad said, since you're here, sing well.

The voice was soft, like someone putting away an umbrella on a rainy day, clearly afraid, yet still moving forward.

Jiang Tang followed the voice in that direction.

In the corner of the hall, a short girl was sitting on a bench.

She was wearing a simple top, carrying a bag, and holding a number tag in her hand.

She has no friends.

Only a man who looked like a father stood not far away, seemingly afraid of putting pressure on her, only glancing over occasionally.

Jiang Tang's gaze suddenly froze.

Why does this girl look so familiar?

The next second, he gasped.

Mom, hurry up and travel back in time to see Kim Tae-yeon, who's still such an adorable little thing!

……

An underground parking garage in Seoul, 2014.

Kim Tae-yeon wore a mask and dressed in a particularly pink outfit; time seemed to have no effect on her.

She sat in the car, patiently waiting for Xiao Chu and Bian Baekhyun to arrive.

It's called patience, but that's not entirely true.

She would turn on her phone screen every now and then.

In the chat window, Byun Baekhyun's last message was still from ten minutes ago.

"Nuna, I'll be right there."

It was just a very ordinary sentence, but Kim Tae-yeon read it several times.

She didn't know why she kept looking at it.

Perhaps it's because the phrase "coming soon" itself carries a warmth that makes one's heart flutter.

The underground parking garage was dimly lit, with occasional vehicles passing by, their headlights flashing across the glass before disappearing again.

Such places are quiet and secluded, yet carry a sense of tension, as if they cannot be discovered.

Kim Tae-yeon suddenly looked away, feeling a little uncomfortable.

"Why should I care so much..."

She muttered something under her breath.

But despite saying that, the next second, her hand unconsciously rose up and gently tidied the stray hairs by her ear.

The most frustrating thing about ambiguity is precisely this.

No one explicitly said anything.

But every message, every meeting, every joke seemed to carry a hidden weight.

"I feel like I've had this feeling before..."

My phone suddenly vibrated.

Without a second thought, Kim Tae-yeon almost immediately lowered her head.

"Wait for me for five more minutes, we're almost there."

She stared at the line of text, her eyes crinkling slightly.

His finger hovered above the screen, he hesitated for a moment, and finally replied with only a simple message:

"Um."

After sending it, Kim Tae-yeon wondered if she had been too cold.

So I stared at the chat box for two seconds, thinking of adding "Take your time, no rush," but then I felt that would make me seem too eager.

Finally, she simply turned her phone upside down next to her lap and let out a soft breath.

"Really..."

She closed her eyes.

Today's schedule is too full.

Starting from early morning, it's all about makeup, interviews, shooting, moving around, more makeup, more shooting. It's like being stuffed into a wind-up box, where even breathing has to be in sync with the schedule.

She had been forcing herself to stay awake because she was going to see Byun Baekhyun.

But the carriage was too quiet at the moment, and the air conditioning temperature was just right. Even the weariness around my ears was slowly creeping up.

Afraid that she might actually fall asleep, Kim Tae-yeon took out her earphones from her bag.

The black headphone cord was tangled around her fingertips, and she bent down and untangled it for a while.

The moment her fingertips touched the earphones, she suddenly paused.

For some reason, it felt like something gently touched my chest.

It's very light.

Yet it felt strangely familiar.

Like many years ago, I also had a different pair of headphones in a different color.

But the picture was too blurry.

It was so blurry that she couldn't even tell whether it was a memory or a hallucination caused by her recent exhaustion.

Kim Tae-yeon frowned slightly.

The music in my headphones started playing soon after.

She only wanted to listen to music to stay awake, but the more she tried to stay awake, the faster she felt sleepy.

The music in my headphones sounded like it was coming from a very far place.

It felt so far away that it didn't feel like Seoul in 2014.

She leaned back in her chair, still holding her phone in her hand.

Before the screen went dark, Baekhyun's message remained displayed in the chat box—

"We're almost there."

However, Kim Tae-yeon had already fallen asleep.

The headphone cord was tangled around her fingertips, like a forgotten past, slowly resurfacing—

They pulled her away from Byun Baekhyun and towards someone whose name she couldn't even remember.