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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: You Sent the Message to the Wrong Person
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Bzzz-.
Yi Yeon sat down, her damp hair wrapped in a towel, when her phone vibrated.
"Who could it be this early in the morning?"
Yi Yeon picked up her phone.
A photo from Ha Yul appeared small on the screen.
Wondering what it was, she tapped it to check. It was the shopping bag she'd left behind in Ha Yul's car.
Another photo followed. Yi Yeon tapped it again.
Ha Yul was holding the wig Yi Yeon had taken off.
She'd forgotten. It hadn't even been that long ago, but she'd already blanked on it.
[I'll keep it stored and give it back later. How'd the greeting go?]
She'd rushed off from the event earlier to get home before Do Hyun, focusing all her attention on getting back safely, and forgotten to message Ha Yul.
[Eh, so-so. Didn't you see the article about me?]
Of course she hadn't. She hadn't even had time to surf the web lately.
[Yeah. Wonder why you missed it.]
[Search it up. It's hilarious.]
Searching for Youngsin online brought up an article titled "Youngsin's Youngest Daughter Finally Revealed."
Yi Yeon clicked the headline and read the content.
Something felt off, so she checked other articles too. Sure enough, nothing.
Ha Yul's face wasn't in any of them.
[The faceless youngest daughter, huh?]
[Right? They wanted to use her since they were in a rush, but didn't want to show her face, I guess?]
Yi Yeon could almost hear Ha Yul's listless laugh.
She grabbed a hairdryer in one hand to dry her wet hair and typed a reply to Ha Yul with the other.
No. This wasn't the time for polite responses.
You jerk with the personality issue who tossed me to Do Hyun and vanished!
[Keeping your face hidden might be easier anyway. Anyway, forget anything?]
[?]
Ha Yul sent back a single question mark, as if she genuinely had no idea.
[You went out of your way to greet the far-off Vice President and even threw me right to him?]
Once her hair was dry, Yi Yeon pulled on her hairnet and topped it with the wig again.
She had to leave before she was late.
[So, did he recognize you?]
She could feel Ha Yul's curiosity through the text, not a hint of apology.
[No, he didn't recognize me at all.]
[Oh... Right, we need to return the dress. Can you pack it up and send it to the shop?]
[Sure, got it. Oh, and Eom Ji Hu joined our company.]
Yi Yeon took the chance to tell Ha Yul about Ji Hu's hiring.
Ha Yul, shocked, called right away.
Yi Yeon chatted away on her commute to work, explaining in detail.
⋮
Do Hyun had a morning schedule, so he was coming in that afternoon.
Thinking they could eat lunch early, Yi Yeon nagged Su Jin about going to a famous ramen place a bit far off. Su Jin replied that it was fine.
"The dinner party season is approaching again."
Su Jin sighed as they settled at the ramen shop.
The department got a separate budget twice a year for team-building dinners.
"You guys haven't heard anything yet?"
"Nope, no announcements for us."
Sigh.
Su Jin let out a shallow sigh.
Something wrong?
"Su Jin, what's up? You seem down."
Yi Yeon asked Su Jin worriedly what was wrong.
Su Jin rested her chin on one hand and sighed toward the table again.
"The rumors haven't reached you yet, huh, Miss Slow-on-the-Uptake."
What did she mean?
"What're you talking about?"
"I was so mad and upset when I first heard, I even forgot to tell you right away. I feel betrayed. I've got no appetite now."
Their ramen arrived just then.
"Ramen gets soggy if you don't eat it fast, so let's eat first and talk."
Su Jin, who had just claimed no appetite, slurped it up.
Yi Yeon felt she'd worried for nothing and picked up her chopsticks, watching Su Jin eat happily.
They finished in no time.
When just a few strands were left, Su Jin wiped her forehead with a napkin, looking refreshed, and spoke up.
"I heard this morning too."
And?
"There's a rumor our Vice President got married."
Yi Yeon nearly dropped her chopsticks.
Her heart had already plummeted to the basement.
Her heartbeat thundered so fast and loud that it drowned out everything else in her ears.
A rumor that Do Hyun was married?
This couldn't possibly be true.
"You think it's ridiculous too, right?"
Su Jin seemed to think Yi Yeon was stunned by how absurd it was.
"No matter how many rumors fly, true or not, our Vice President being married? Does that even make sense? And no word of a wedding? What is this? It's the most upsetting nonsense I've heard from Woosung Card. How dare they with our Vice President."
To think even this kind of rumor could spread—Yi Yeon was shocked anew at how there were no secrets in the world.
What if her disguise got exposed someday?
Yi Yeon fiddled nervously with her glasses.
But thinking about it, Yi Yeon felt upset too.
Why keep saying "our Vice President"?
"I was secretly hoping maybe I could be his destined one, and now this! No, say he did get married, our perfect Vice President. Then who's the wife? Not Jeong Hee Ra, right?"
Su Jin slammed her hand on the table.
She glared at Yi Yeon with murderous eyes, like she'd make whoever it was pay.
"Your eyes are scary right now."
"Rumors are like wildfires—some hit the mark, some are just nonsense. But where I heard this, most rumors are true. That's why I've got no appetite!"
Ah, so that's why she slurped up even the broth.
"So... no idea who the wife is?"
"No clue, but he's the Vice President, so not some ordinary woman. At least someone better than Jeong Hee Ra? He doesn't even blink at a pretty top celebrity chasing him. The woman who makes him blink must be something else."
Su Jin, if I told you it was me, what would you say?
Yi Yeon suddenly felt wronged.
It's a loveless marriage. The problem now is one side falling in love.
"Even if he did marry quietly like this, blocking all articles from Woosung... what's the reason?"
"Who knows. Maybe it's a sign not to pry?"
As Su Jin narrowed her guesses, Yi Yeon quickly cut her off. Don't speculate. Please.
Su Jin shot her a side-eye.
"Yu Yi Yeon! How can you not be curious at all when the boss you serve got married in secret? You've served him for years and weren't even invited to the wedding! Aren't you miffed? It must've been so handsome, the Vice President."
"You're not miffed about not being invited—you just regret missing him in a tux?"
Yi Yeon tried to change the subject, but Su Jin was dead set on uncovering the rumor.
Back at her desk after lunch, Yi Yeon felt like she'd been hit on the head with a rock—her mind blank.
Why was there a marriage rumor? Who knew?
Blink blink.
A new message blinked at the bottom of her monitor from the company messenger.
Eom Ji Hu.
What could Ji Hu possibly have to message her about?
It was so out of nowhere that Yi Yeon felt uneasy.
She didn't want to read it but clicked anyway.
[Secretary Yu.]
[Yes.]
[I've actually been curious about something for a while.]
What is it? Just say it already!
He seemed to wait for her to ask, but Yi Yeon just waited.
She stared holes into the monitor until the next message.
[How've you been all this time?]
Yi Yeon's heart sank.
He knew. Ji Hu had known all along.
"No way, how'd he recognize me looking like this?"
Her stomach churned, bile rising.
Until now, whenever she'd met someone from before in disguise, they'd never spotted her first.
What to do?
How to respond?
Her mind went blank.
Yi Yeon glanced at the mirror on her desk.
"Should've added more freckles."
After seriously studying her reflection and pondering her reply to Ji Hu, she decided to play dumb for now.
[You sent that to the wrong person.]
[Nope, it's definitely for you.]
[Who is this?]
[That look... I was pretty shocked at first. Totally unexpected.]
Yi Yeon couldn't keep pretending with Ji Hu so sure.
[Seeing you like that, it seems you haven't been doing well. Where'd pretty Yi Yeon go?]
[None of your business.]
After a long pause, another reply came from Ji Hu.
[I still have all our old photos. People don't know your real face, right?]
[You pretend not to know too.]
[For free? Make some time then. Got stuff to say, stuff I'm curious about. Free after work today?]
Ah, Yi Yeon realized. I just dug my own grave.
[No.]
Would you meet if you were her?
Yi Yeon could already see the exhausting social life ahead.
[Weekend then?]
Ugh, even worse.
Ji Hu seemed determined to meet privately at least once.
Why all of a sudden? He should've just said he knew from the start.
She'd firmly believed she'd fooled him perfectly.
[No weekends, no weekdays. But if we absolutely have to meet once, weekday's better. Just meet today.]
[Got it. I'll tell you the place before we clock out. Meet there.]
An obstacle had appeared.
Yi Yeon got a headache thinking she needed to make Ji Hu keep quiet.
'I should tell the Vice President I have plans tonight?'
Do Hyun had been saying lately he had plans and would be late.
With her mind made up, Yi Yeon knocked on the office door.
"Vice President, I have plans tonight, so I'll be late. You go ahead."
"What plans?"
Huh?
No idea why he was suddenly curious about her plans.
Yi Yeon tilted her head but answered his curiosity.
"Grabbing dinner with an old friend I haven't seen in a while."
"Oh?"
Do Hyun furrowed his brow briefly, like something bothered him, but said okay.
Yi Yeon bowed and left the office.
Her chest tightened, like she'd already gotten indigestion from a dinner she hadn't even eaten.
