The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol - Chapter 96

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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96

Joo Woo-sung ultimately abandoned even his beloved kimchi fried rice and spun around to leave. Muttering something about a passport, it seemed he was heading overseas… I didn’t want to know, and I could only hope that guy wouldn’t become best friends with Lim Hyun-sung or (especially) Kim Hee-young.

“Hello~.”
“Oh! Seo Ho-yoon.”

Meanwhile, filming proceeded smoothly. Everything else was spiraling beyond my control, so I headed to the filming set in frustration, but at least the staff greeted me warmly.

“You’re here again! You don’t have filming today, do you?”
“Haha, I have one scene. I came a bit early to study the script too… That looks heavy. Let me take some of that.”

When I took half of what the staff member was carrying, they looked genuinely delighted. Yeah, I know from experience moving this equipment around… it really is heavy.

“Is there anything else I can help with?”
“Ho-yoon, you’re blessed just standing there doing nothing…”
“…Haha.”

Sensing that the staff had warmed up to me from my frequent visits to the set, I casually threw out a question.

“Is Min Ji-heon filming today?”

By now, I should have been hearing staff gossip. I’d settle for hearing about some star’s diva behavior.
I cast my bait with an innocent, guileless expression, but the staff member simply gave me a thumbs up with a bright smile.

“Yep! Today was amazing! Min Ji-heon was absolutely wonderful.”
“…Wonderful?”
“He’s so kind that’s become his nickname! When we filmed before, he asked the staff how they were doing…”

The rest was pointless chatter, so I’ll skip it.

Ding!

[Annoying, right?]

‘I’ll admit that much.’

I chewed quickly, set down the materials, and turned to leave—but Min Ji-heon was walking toward me with an oddly radiant expression.

“Whoa there!”
“….”

Something felt ominous, so I tried to slip past him quickly. I failed. Damn it.

Ding!

[Have an agile day!]

Yeah, yeah.
The System Window wouldn’t even appear when Min Ji-heon was around, yet it loved to snark at me like this.
The staff members who’d been moving materials had already scattered to their next tasks, so no one was nearby—I spoke openly without restraint, and Min Ji-heon just grinned. There was even something about the way light seemed to shimmer around him, and though I couldn’t quite place it, I could definitely feel that his mood was absolutely stellar.

“Why are you so cheerful today? It’s annoying.”
“Well… you see.”

He held five hot dogs in one hand—one of each variety—and a coffee in the other.
I stared at him, bewildered, and Min Ji-heon looked me up and down before spouting nonsense.

“Are you a rabbit, hyung??”
“…What the hell did you just say?”

I asked in disbelief, but Min Ji-heon just took a big bite of his hot dog and kept babbling about how we looked alike. I quickly shoved him aside and strode toward where the crowd had gathered, and the Manager greeted me with exaggerated fanfare.

“Ho-yoon, surprise~!!”
“…?”
“Here, take this!”
“Manager, what is this supposed to be?”
“Hurry, hurry, stand here!”

Bewildered, I took the coffee anyway. Looking down, I saw my face plastered across the cup holder in large print, with a single sentence written beneath it.

“Please take good care of our rabbit…?”

And in small letters at the very bottom corner, I spotted “From, the babies.” I muttered under my breath, feeling uncomfortable.

“I don’t remember getting married and having kids.”
“The members pooled together the money from their settlements and sent a coffee truck! Isn’t that amazing?”

Before any other sentiment could register, my mind swiftly calculated the cost of the coffee truck.
Well, it might not have cost much if they each chipped in… but still, why go out of their way to send this?

“You should’ve had the company send something like this.”
“The kids kept insisting. They said they wanted to do it with their own money.”
“Good grief. These kids still don’t know any better… In situations like this, you should confidently use company funds.”
“Hey, you already look touched.”

At the Manager’s words, I touched my lips sheepishly.
Well, it is touching, I suppose.
I took a photo in front of the coffee truck and sent it to the group chat.

[Me: Why would you guys do something like this?]

Not long after sending it, messages came pouring in.

Kang Yi-chae: Hahahaha… Seo Ho-yoon’s embarrassed, isn’t he?
[Kang Yi-chae: You’re being dishonest again today…?]
[Jeong Da-jun: Hahahaha bro.. At times like this, I need to save my brother’s spirit with “money”ㅠ]
[Kang Yi-chae: We’ve got pride, we’re not broke~~]
Jung Da-jun: Both of them are gone, unfortunately.
[Kang Yi-chae: Damn
Kang Yi-chae: I’ll transfer it with my unique Yi-chae.

I ignored their bickering. Soon after, a more productive message came from the same-age line.

[Sung Ji-won: We split it, so it didn’t cost much!!]
[Sung Ji-won: Is the coffee okay? Does it taste good?]
Kim Sung-hyun: Ha, well let’s just say thanks.

I casually replied that it was delicious. After hesitating briefly, I added a thank-you emoji and closed my phone.
Well, it should be fine to accept something like this. After all, a meal truck only comes once, and a coffee truck probably costs only a few hundred thousand won.

That was a miscalculation.

Staring at the coffee truck that arrived every other day, I was left speechless.

***

[Wow guys, Seo Ho-yoon got a meal truck
(Seo Ho-yoon holding coffee in front of the meal truck)
(Seo Ho-yoon deliberately frowning while looking at the cup holder)
(Cup holder comment: Please take care of our rabbit. From, babies >He’s not a kid though<<
So rabbits are okay then~!!!?
└Looks like Seo Ho-yoon already gave up]

At first, I was just touched. The fact that the members were sending each other meal trucks during the drama shoot meant our kids were close.
Noeul's fans smiled warmly and retweeted the post.

[Aww our Tong~ looks so proud]
[Posting on the official StarStar account itself is… Seo Ho-yoon subtly bragging about his kids like a proud department head would
I received a meal truck yesterday = showing off consideration
Kids with no money = must've gotten paid quite a bit
He's not a kid though = (Obviously Kang Yi-chae wrote the message) Close enough to bicker with each other
Lol why does Twitter only have likes and no upvotes like on Naver?

But the real trouble started after that.

[Meal truck from Joo Woo-sung – Give that annoying guy one extra serving of kimchi fried rice]
[Hot dog truck from Chung Beom – I've lived all these years and now I'm sending meal trucks. Enjoy, you meal truck buddy]
[Seo Ho-yoon's criticism meeting (anonymous) – All come out ㅅㄱ]

[Huh?]

The fact that two completely mismatched people sent them… Noeul's fans were shocked. While I thanked them for looking after my kid, something felt off.

[Joo Woo-sung and Seo Ho-yoon are really true friends… I thought he finally started socializing and managing his juniors since he never cared about anyone before, but that's not it
He's just like that with Seo Ho-yoon
└How do those two even know each other? The mystery of the century
└└Something about childhood friends… Still can't believe it]

I'd been threatened.

[In all my life, I've never seen Chung Beom send a meal truck like this
└Where has your grumpy demon king sister gone? ㅜㅜ Sister ㅜ.. Her charm is that she is grumpy.
Still being a jerk, it's fine.
└└But how does she even know??? Sister's always locked up in the studio]

I was being blackmailed. (2)
Everyone didn't know what the "Seo Ho-yoon Criticism Group" was or how it worked, but most dismissed it lightly, thinking that no one would openly send a meal truck like that unless they were genuinely close and not just talking behind each other's backs.
Besides, it hadn't even been posted on StarStar, and since it was just a photo taken like a sighting, people assumed it was from a civilian acquaintance and moved on.

[Wow, but I thought Seo Ho-yoon had no friends because of his personality, a total loner…. Turns out he actually has friends
└But the people he hangs out with never change, so he's definitely a loner
Even those kinds of details are nice, it's cool.
└└Plus all the guys he hangs out with are loners too
└└Makes me like him even more]

Everyone tried to laugh it off and move past it.
But the members… sent a meal truck every other day.
Seo Ho-yoon eventually gave up posting every time a meal truck arrived on StarStar, and instead uploaded short vlogs to the official YouTube channel.

[(Video of Seo Ho-yoon making a phone call)

Seo Ho-yoon: Are you guys really doing this?
Other side: (No remorse) Yep~!
Seo Ho-yoon: Save your money…. Don't spend it on stuff like this.
Other side: (Still no remorse)(Cheerfully) Okaay~!
Seo Ho-yoon: ….

The Manager laughs like a whistling kettle as the camera zooms in on him lol

Manager: Got me once, haha.
Seo Ho-yoon: Haha, that's enough… that's enough.

What's wrong with this family?
└Yeah, they swore an oath in blood under the cherry blossom tree
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

[Originally Seo Ho-yoon had this thing where he'd dominate the other members…. But lately the members have gotten so much more confident that it doesn't work as well
Ah, so Hogung is giving up now, haha.
└└Wonder who he learned that from]

[Title: I know a noona who works as a staff member on the Cabu filming set

Seo Ho-yoon's nickname is apparently "The King of Meal Trucks"

└He must absolutely hate that nickname
└└Apparently he actually does hate it
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
I was laughing so hard I choked lolololol

***

"Hey, didn't I tell you to send them all home?"
[Ah, we really did send them home, I promise?]

I scolded Jung Da-jun while walking toward the filming set. Since this had become a frequent sight lately, the staff members caught on to the situation from my tone and sent me oddly warm glances.
What was that… what was with those looks?
What is this… why are you looking at me like that?

[Seo Ho-yoon, we really didn't send him home, did we? Isn't that Senior Joo Woo-sung?]
"No, it's not. I already sent him home."
[Hey, where did you sell off the senior?]
"Hey, where the hell did you sell out the senior in the back?"

I clicked my tongue and was heading up when I heard a strange sound.
With a tsk, clicking her tongue as she climbed up, she heard a strange sound.

"You guys are the best!"

I turned my head at a voice I'd heard somewhere before, and someone was hurrying toward Min Ji-heon, who had been chatting quietly with Yoo Ji-a.
Turning his head at a voice he'd heard from somewhere before, someone was hurrying toward Min Ji-heon, who had been chatting quietly with Yoo Ji-a.

"We had no idea our filming locations would overlap like this! When I heard about it not long ago, I was so amazed wondering how such a coincidence could even happen!"

Lee Kang-seok was living hard at it again today.

"…Ah, yes, thank you. But you didn't have to do this."
"No, well. It's only natural between fellow actors."
"No, it's nothing. It's only natural between actors like us."

Except when addressing me, Lee Kang-seok maintained that same refined, gentle tone with everyone else. He'd even brought along an elegant spoon just for serving.

'This guy… he's really something else.'

Could a supporting actor in a drama airing at the same time really fawn over the lead of a competing show like this?
It wasn't even catering—the most chilling part was that Lee Kang-seok had baked this cake himself with Min Ji-heon in mind.
The inscription read "To my deeply respected seniors, always your devoted junior Lee Kang-seok," and I couldn't help but sigh at the sheer dedication.
Even when I was desperately pitching Director Kook day and night about a program I wanted to create, I'd never gone this far.
As Lee Kang-seok carefully extended the spoon, Min Ji-heon wore an expression of genuine discomfort. Yoo Ji-a, standing beside him, had rolled around the entertainment industry long enough to recognize this type immediately—she remained unfazed.

"Hmm…."

'Min Ji-heon's getting the creeps, huh….'

It was satisfying to see that Min Ji-heon—the rare person who'd managed to irritate me—in such an awkward position. But being the troublemaker I am by nature, the moment I spotted him, I strode over with obvious delight.

"I'm not sure if it'll taste good, but… ah, how about you, Senior Yoo Ji-a?"
"…Oh, well."

The attention shifted to Yoo Ji-a. Just as she was scratching her cheek with a look of mild disdain barely concealed beneath feigned awkwardness,

"Mmm."

I snatched the spoon right from Lee Kang-seok's hand—the one meant for Yoo Ji-a—and took an exaggerated bite. The sweet cake flavor bloomed across my palate.
It really was delicious. Creepily so.

"…!!"

Lee Kang-seok's eyes went wide. Regardless, I chewed through the cake and offered him praise.

"Nice work~, it's delicious."
"Se, Se, Seo Ho-yoon, why are you eating that…."
"Though there's quite a bit of carrot texture. Did you add more than the standard amount?"
"…."

Even nitpicking!
Beside me, those "deeply respected seniors" stared blankly in my direction. I paid them no mind and scraped up every last bit of the heavier cream with my spoon.

"I made this for the seniors…."
"Yes, you said it was for fellow actors."

I set down my spoon and spoke.

"I'm a junior too… and my first broadcast is coming up soon… so I'm looking forward to it?"
"…."
"Oh, by the way, I just like plain whipped cream cake."

As I spoke with one eye slightly squinted, Lee Kang-seok's face turned pale and he trembled. Standing there with a quiet smile, Lee Kang-seok couldn't say anything and disappeared.
Min Ji-heon stared with his mouth hanging open, alternating his gaze between the direction Lee Kang-seok had vanished and me, before uttering a single phrase.

"Is there even a cram school in South Korea that teaches how to throw shade properly?"
"He's a guy who got his master's and doctorate in shade-throwing through an accelerated program."

It wasn't something I wanted to hear from Min Ji-heon, but when I vaguely went along with it, he laughed in disbelief. Yoo Ji-a beside him snickered before pressing her forehead and trembling.

"Seo Ho-yoon, seriously… wow, this is a talent…."
"…."
"The Composer would love this, really."
"The Composer told me to get lost."
"Ahahaha!!"

I was just stating the obvious, but Yoo Ji-a found it so hilarious that she was now giggling and wiping tears from her eyes. Just then, a Staff Member called Yoo Ji-a over, saying they needed to touch up her makeup for the next scene.

"Ah, that's funny. Seo Ho-yoon, thanks anyway~."
"No problem."

I replied calmly to her gratitude for eliminating an annoying presence, and Yoo Ji-a gave a slight smile before walking away. Meanwhile, Min Ji-heon crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows.

"…Why did you even come? You hated running into me that much?"
"I wanted to mess with Lee Kang-seok's mood once."
"Wow…. So even if you ran into me, you'd throw shade at Lee Kang-seok?"

Whether I raised my eyebrow or not, Min Ji-heon genuinely let out an exclamation of admiration.

"Sometimes I'm amazed by you, hyung. You're a type of person I've never seen before."
"Same here, you crazy bastard."

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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