Chapter Two: Handsome Man and Beautiful Woman

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Entertainment at Your Fingertips

Story Date: September 2004

Recommended Song: "Setting Out" by Christine Fan

Disclaimer: This story is entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental!

“Lazy cat, wake up! We’ve landed in Korea.” Jiang Ziyi shook her brother, who was sleeping like the dead beside her, with resignation. She had long known that her brother’s only hobbies were eating and sleeping, but she hadn’t expected that even on a journey to a completely unfamiliar place, he wouldn’t be the least bit nervous or uneasy; instead, he slept as deeply as ever. She really couldn’t believe it.

“Huh? We’re here?” Jiang Yihan stretched lazily and sat up, looking out the window at Incheon Airport in Korea. Staring at this unfamiliar land, he murmured, “So this is where we’ll be living from now on.”

Disembarking and collecting their luggage, everything proceeded in an orderly manner, and soon the siblings passed through customs and began searching for the person who was supposed to pick them up. The airport bustled with people, especially as it was the start of the academic year—many international students were arriving these days, making the flow of people lively and vibrant. In this unfamiliar place, surrounded by the foreign sounds of Korean, there was a moment when it all felt unreal, as if they were actually in Beijing rather than Korea. But this illusion lasted only a few seconds before reality crashed in—this was indeed Korea: a completely foreign country, an unfamiliar city, and strangers everywhere. The unfamiliarity was both exhilarating and terrifying.

“Brother, didn’t Li Ran say he would pick us up? Why don’t I see him?” Jiang Ziyi’s voice was tinged with excitement. Despite being in an unknown place, her childlike curiosity for new things made her eyes sparkle with anticipation.

“Let’s look around. The airport is huge—maybe he just hasn’t spotted us yet.” In that brief instant, a thousand thoughts raced through Jiang Yihan’s mind. Taking a deep breath, he too began searching the crowd for his old friend, Li Ran.

As they looked, Jiang Yihan pulled out his digital camera and started taking photos. He had always had the habit of documenting his life with a camera, capturing every moment he experienced. The sweeping view of the unfamiliar Korean airport before him gave him a first impression: cleanliness. The entire airport felt fresh and orderly. Outside, there weren’t many cars; perhaps Korea’s smaller population accounted for that, making the traffic seem trivial compared to Beijing. The people, too, exuded an unmistakable Korean air—indistinct but somehow different from the Chinese, as if each land truly shaped its people, imbuing a unique temperament that was apparent even at a glance.

Li Ran was undeniably handsome—a fact no one could deny. With his striking eyebrows, bright eyes, and tall, upright figure, he had always been popular with girls at school. Because of this, both he and Jiang Yihan had a tough time in their school days. Everyone knew that most Chinese schools forbade early romance, but because they stood out, many girls were drawn to them. While the gifts never reached the extravagant level of hundreds, receiving ten breakfasts at once was common. Whether the girls were studying seriously or not didn’t matter; what concerned the teachers was that these boys were stirring up the girls’ hearts. But what could they do? All the blame fell on them. People used to say that beautiful women brought trouble, but now it seemed that handsome men could be even more dangerous. What could they say but accept their fate?

Li Ran and Jiang Yihan had been playmates since the days of split-crotch pants. Growing up next door in a small county, they attended schools in the same area, though Li Ran was two years older. In fact, up until two years ago, when Li Ran’s family sent him to study in Korea, their lives had been intertwined—each was eighty percent a shadow of the other. Only after Li Ran left did this pattern stop. Now, two years later, for various complicated reasons, Jiang Yihan and his sister Jiang Ziyi had also come to Korea to study, naturally seeking out Li Ran first.

“Hey!” Suddenly, someone tapped Jiang Yihan’s shoulder. He turned to see his lifelong friend Li Ran. As always, Li Ran was effortlessly eye-catching in a simple sky-blue T-shirt and ripped jeans, drawing attention not only for his good looks but also for his comfortable, yet captivating aura—especially that smile and those dark, night-like eyes that drew people in like moths to a flame. It was no wonder Li Ran quickly spotted him in the crowd.

“Hey, do you know you nearly scared me to death? What’s with the ‘hey’ anyway? Today you’re dead meat!” Jiang Yihan glared at Li Ran—who was half a head taller—then leaped onto his back and gave his hair a good tousle. Even with his style ruined, Li Ran remained handsome, though his expression was less than pleased. “Jiang Yihan, get off! The first thing you do is mess up my hair. And stop calling me ‘Jiner’ in public—it ruins my image.”

“Haha, Li Ran, you’re just the same as ever! You still can’t do anything about my brother, just like before!” Jiang Ziyi, hearing the commotion, realized it was Li Ran and began to size up her “big brother” whom she hadn’t seen in two years. Like Jiang Yihan, Li Ran wore jeans and a black T-shirt, but with a different style—his more angular face hinted at a cool, stoic charm. Jiang Ziyi, bouncing excitedly, shook Li Ran’s hand. “You always say, ‘A man’s hair can’t be messed up,’ but you still can’t stop my brother from ruining yours. Look at that helpless expression! You don’t look like a cold, aloof guy at all! Change it up, will you? Jiner! Haha, Jiner!”

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Li Ran looked helplessly at the two siblings who immediately began tormenting him. “Don’t you know you’re not supposed to call me Jiner? Of all the things to learn from your brother, you only pick up the bad habits. Sigh, I guess you two will always be my kryptonite—I’m powerless against you. What image do I have left in front of you?”

“Hmph, fine, I won’t call you that. But everyone knows only my brother can use that nickname.” Jiang Ziyi wrinkled her adorable nose. “Looks like you’ll be under my brother’s thumb for life!”

“Alright then, all our luggage is yours to handle! Haha!” Jiang Yihan grinned mischievously, handing over his luggage to Li Ran, eager to shirk responsibility and resume taking photos.

“Hey, you’re still like this! Enough already—what’s so interesting to photograph anyway?” Li Ran, resigned, took the luggage and walked ahead with Jiang Ziyi.

“Li Ran, are you just going to leave me here without introducing me?” At that moment, a cute girl approached from a nearby seat, her long hair cascading over her shoulders, wearing a plaid skirt and holding a small bag. She pouted at the three, clearly put out by being left out of their fun.

“Oh, I got so excited seeing the ‘dead cat’ that I forgot to introduce you.” Li Ran, looking embarrassed, pulled Jiang Yihan over from his photo session. Jiang Yihan, curious, glanced at the girl but said nothing, instead raising his camera and snapping a shot, which made her giggle.

“Dead cat? Who’s that?” The girl’s crescent-shaped eyes sparkled with laughter, clearly intrigued by the person who could make Li Ran so animated.

“She understands Chinese?” Jiang Yihan, caught off guard mid-photo, shot Li Ran a questioning look.

“Oh, the ‘dead cat’ is this handsome guy right here. Hey, enough photos—come on, let me introduce you.” Li Ran brought Jiang Yihan over. “This is my best friend, Jiang Yihan—‘dead cat’ is just my nickname for him. The girl beside him is his sister, Jiang Ziyi. They just arrived in Korea to study today. Dead cat, Xiao Yi, this is my junior from university, Yin Yun’er—‘Yun’ as in the clouds. She’s majoring in Chinese and is currently a sophomore.”

“Hello, I’m Yun’er. So you’re the friends Li Ran talks about every day! Nice to meet you. He’s always so stern with everyone—rare to see him like this.” Yin Yun’er covered her mouth, chuckling at Li Ran’s uncharacteristic demeanor. Clearly, she found it both amusing and odd.

“Hello, I’m Jiang Yihan. Sorry about the photo—just a reflex, not meant to be rude. This is my sister, Yi—her full name is Jiang Ziyi. Nice to meet you. This pig and I grew up together—he has no image at all in front of me. He was always the cool, stoic guy, right? Never smiled at anyone—as if everyone owed him money or something, am I right?” Jiang Yihan spoke slyly, making Yin Yun’er laugh even more, nodding enthusiastically. “That deadpan face only works on others, not me! Haha.”

“Hi! Earlier you mentioned ‘Jiner’—does that mean Jiang Ziyi? Are all these your nicknames?” Yin Yun’er found these strange names amusing.

“Let me officially introduce you—Jiner is our cool guy Li Ran here.” Jiang Yihan gleefully pushed Li Ran forward. “As for my sister, Yi is just her nickname. By the way, what’s your relationship with our cool guy Li Ran? He actually brought you to meet us—it must be more than ordinary!”

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“Relationship? Please, I’m just his junior.” Li Ran pinched Jiang Yihan’s arm in warning at that comment.

“Hehe, what relationship indeed…” Yin Yun’er blushed faintly. “I’m actually pursuing Li Ran, but he still hasn’t agreed.” Hearing her bold confession, the Jiang siblings’ eyes widened in shock before they burst into raucous laughter, clutching their stomachs, completely losing their composure.

“He’s just a block of wood, right? Totally dense when it comes to romance.” Jiang Yihan, knowing his friend well, commented.

Yin Yun’er nodded shyly, her courage evidently spent in that one confession, her cheeks glowing red.

Watching the brave girl before him, Jiang Yihan leaned in and whispered in Li Ran’s ear, “So, your junior? How did that develop? We’ll have to talk about this in depth some other time.” His mischievous grin made Li Ran shiver. “Come on, dead cat, at least give me some dignity!”

Jiang Yihan ignored him, taking Jiang Ziyi’s hand. “Yi, let’s go. No point hanging around here. Looks like we’re way too much of a third wheel here! Haha!” The siblings exchanged a conspiratorial glance, laughing out loud before dashing toward the exit.

“Li Ran, what did they mean by ‘third wheel’? I’ve studied Chinese, but there are so many hard-to-understand expressions. Isn’t a light bulb just for lighting? Why are they calling themselves that?” Watching them go, Yin Yun’er looked up at the face that brought her both joy and worry, shaking off her disappointment and shifting the topic with her question.

“Uh, I’ll explain later. Let’s go.” Li Ran, at a loss, could only smile awkwardly and chase after the siblings. “Hey, you two, the exit’s not that way! I’ll show you where to catch the bus.”

Jiang Yihan and Jiang Ziyi were already an attractive pair, and with Li Ran and Yin Yun’er joining them, the group was a striking assembly of handsome young men and beautiful women. Their laughter and antics lit up the airport hall, drawing smiles from passersby. After all, beautiful things always bring joy.

Perhaps this ordinary day, thanks to this scene at the airport, would become a cherished memory for the travelers who witnessed it.