Hancheng: There is a door between me and the future

Chapter 148 Making Bread with Lim Yoona in the Middle of the Night (Please Subscribe and Vote)

At around 3 a.m., Incheon Airport was quiet and deserted, lacking the hustle and bustle of the day.

The lights cast a soft orange glow on the empty tarmac. Lin Xiuyuan had always wanted to visit the airport at this time of day, and now his wish had finally come true.

After parking the car in the parking space, Lin Xiuyuan leaned back in his seat and his eyes started to feel sleepy. So, after sending the parking space area code to Lin Yun'er, he immediately closed his eyes and took a nap.

He was awakened by a knocking sound on the window. He frowned slightly, turned his head and looked over, only to see Lin Yoona standing outside the passenger door.

She wore a white T-shirt with a red plaid shirt, and a baseball cap and mask that covered most of her face, but couldn't hide her delicate and bright eyes.

Seeing Lin Xiuyuan wake up and press the unlock button, Lin Yoona opened the car door and teased, "What's wrong? Are you so sleepy?"

"A little," Lin Xiuyuan replied briefly, rubbing his eyes.

Are you asleep?

After getting into the car, Lim Yoona put her bag aside and immediately leaned over to look at Lin Xiuyuan's mental state. "Your eyes are so bloodshot. I knew I shouldn't have let you come pick me up. Should I drive?"

"Okay, you come." Lin Xiuyuan didn't hesitate and unbuckled his seatbelt to get out of the car.

As for Yoona's statement about not calling her to pick her up, he didn't see anything wrong with that. On the contrary, he felt it was like heavenly music that relieved him from his 'frying' state.

Seeing that he changed seats so readily, Lin Yoona, who was in the passenger seat, couldn't help but chuckle. Without saying a word, she rolled her eyes and simply stepped from the passenger seat to the driver's seat, too lazy to even open the car door.

So much so that when Lin Xiuyuan opened the passenger door, he was completely shocked, exclaiming, "Holy crap, Yoona, that was pretty cool!"

"Stop nagging, get in the car." She didn't even turn her head. "You were the one who picked me up, how come I'm the driver now?"

Lin Xiuyuan said with a smile while fastening his seatbelt, "I've driven the car right up to you, so the result is the same. Don't overthink it."

Lin Yoona gave a soft hum, shifted gears, stepped on the gas, and the car smoothly drove out of the parking lot, heading towards the highway entrance.

After passing through a busy traffic jam, the car finally slowed down. Only then did Lin Yoona take a moment to glance at her side and see Lin Xiuyuan leaning against the back of his seat, his eyelids so heavy they were about to close.

"Xiuyuan, hold on, don't fall asleep."

"Ah, I wasn't asleep, I was just a little tired."

Coming back to his senses, Lin Xiuyuan looked at Lin Yun'er, took a deep breath, and answered with renewed vigor.

Looking at the stubborn boy, Lim Yoona laughed, "You're still not asleep. If I hadn't woken you up, you would have been hanging from the seatbelt like a pendant."

She paused, glancing at him suspiciously. "Something's not right. You don't look like you just woke up. If you didn't sleep all night, what were you doing?"

"Watching Animal World and watching other people make fried chicken."

When asked, Lin Xiuyuan, thinking about his recent back-to-back work, selected a snippet of his answer and gave it to the other party.

No sooner had he finished speaking than he heard a cold snort, "Oh, how come I didn't know that the animal world on TV could bite a person's neck until it turns red? Xiuyuan, next time you lie or cheat, you'd better take care of yourself."

As she spoke, Lin Yoona focused on driving while gently tapping Lin Xiuyuan's neck.

Then her fingertips slid down irregularly, brushing over the skin slightly exposed on his collarbone. "Your whole area is covered in hickeys. Tsk tsk, looks like my phone call just now interrupted your good time."

Her tone was amused, but her fingertips were cool, making Lin Xiuyuan shudder and get goosebumps.

He instinctively looked down, but the angle was wrong, and he couldn't see anything at all.

The next second, a fair hand opened the vanity mirror on the sun visor in front of her. "Take a look at yourself. Next time, look in the mirror before you go out. It's only because it's me that you're treated this way. If it were anyone else, you would have been treated like a hooligan."

Hearing Lin Yoona's laughter, Lin Xiuyuan quickly looked at the skin on his neck through the mirror.

Just as the other party said, the color was not dark but it was densely distributed, full of traces of last night's "battle results".

Fortunately, the marks aren't severe and should fade away quickly.

Thinking of this, Lin Xiuyuan breathed a sigh of relief, then closed the mirror, leaned back wearily in his chair, and completely collapsed.

Just then, Lin Yoona suddenly spoke up, full of curiosity, "Who is it, Xiu Yuan? It's not Lin Xiaolu, is it?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiuyuan turned to look at her familiar face. She looked almost exactly like the younger woman he had seen in the presidential suite in Roppongi a few days ago.

These past two days, he's been kissing that face so much that his lips have turned red.

When their eyes met again, as if by instinct, his gaze fell on Yoona's slightly reddened cherry lips.

At that moment, the car stopped briefly because it was supposed to pass through a tollbooth.

Noticing the gaze, Lim Yoona looked to the side, and upon meeting Lin Xiuyuan's eyes, she immediately understood what was going on. "Hey, Xiuyuan, don't treat me like that, don't think about anything."

Lin Xiuyuan, having been exposed, chuckled dryly and looked away from the highway ahead, its taillights flashing like shooting stars. "Don't worry, it's not that perverted. Besides, I didn't touch her. You're overthinking it."

"?"

Lin Xiuyuan's words just now made Lin Yoona's previously confident guess suddenly lose its accuracy.

She thought she had guessed correctly, and even planned to go to Lin Xiaolu tomorrow to "confirm" and "consult" her.

But when she heard Lin Xiuyuan say "I didn't touch her," her emotions suddenly twisted.

What do you mean? You didn't touch her?
Does he look down on her, or does he simply not have that intention at all?
What's the difference between looking down on Lin Xiaolu and looking down on Lin Yoona?

Thinking of this, her emotions surged, and Lin Yoona involuntarily pressed the accelerator harder.

The car suddenly lurched forward, and the sudden acceleration pressed Lin Xiuyuan against the back of his seat, instantly dispelling his drowsiness and startling him so much that he shouted out in surprise.

"Um... Yoona, is something urgent? This seems a bit... fast."

Hearing the slightly nervous voice of the boy in the passenger seat, Lim Yoona slowly released the accelerator and reduced the speed of the car, letting out a soft snort, "Coward."

These words carried an ambiguous double meaning, which Lin Xiuyuan understood, but he dared not refute them.

After all, the steering wheel of the car was currently in the other person's hands, which meant that his life was also in the hands of Lin Yoona. He dared not move, not even a little bit.

He behaved himself exceptionally well for the rest of the journey, not daring to say anything out of line.

Fortunately, Yoona didn't press the issue further. Instead, she changed the subject to something lighter, and the two chatted about his food and shopping experiences in Tokyo, which gradually eased the tension.

The car quickly entered downtown Seoul and turned into the underground parking lot of Yoona's apartment.

When they arrived, Lin Xiuyuan was about to say goodbye when he saw Lin Yun'er backing into a parking space. He quickly said, "You don't need to go into the parking space, right? You get out and I'll get in and we'll leave."

"Who said you can leave?"

As soon as the car came to a smooth stop, Lim Yoona turned to look at the boy who had spoken to her, a bright smile on her lips.

Ok?
Lin Xiuyuan had just reached out to open the door when he heard this and was immediately stunned. His hand was hanging in mid-air, and he subconsciously tightened his grip on the car door.

This reaction is a bodily instinct.

There was nothing he could do; the older women in 2025 were all too enthusiastic, and he was finding it hard to keep up.

Seeing his wary expression, Yoona, who had turned off the car, laughed even harder. "What are you daydreaming about? Get out of the car. Come on, come over here and ask me to do something for you."

"It's the middle of the night, how about... tomorrow?"

Lin Xiuyuan was as wary as a small animal, and his tone softened; he was genuinely afraid.

"No, you're a grown man, are you afraid I'll eat you up? You won't know how to run away then." Lin Yoona smiled slightly.

Is this a question of whether to run or not? It's a question of whether you can resist the urge to run.

In 2013, when he was young and didn't understand things, he could tolerate him playing the "inch stop challenge".

But the older sisters in 2025 are different. They may have fun, but they haven't left any of the things they should be doing.

How could he resist taking the initiative like this?

But after Lin Yoona stared at him intently for a few moments, Lin Xiuyuan sighed softly, "No, is there anything that can't be done tomorrow?"

Just as he was struggling with his decision, Lin Yoona gave him a meaningful look, then smiled faintly, "You'll know when you go up there."

A few minutes later.

Taking the elevator upstairs, Lin Xiuyuan followed in Lin Yoona's footsteps and entered Lin Yoona's apartment, which countless fans dream of.

Just as he stepped into the entrance hall of the apartment, he heard a "click" from behind as the door lock was locked from the inside.

Lin Xiuyuan turned around reflexively, staring in surprise at the beautiful woman behind him.

"Safety first," Lim Yoona said matter-of-factly, then walked past him and went inside.

Lin Xiuyuan glanced at the door lock, raised his eyebrows slightly, then looked at her back and his lips twitched.

Damn it, I'll just make sure I don't lose out.

A few minutes later, an incredulous voice came from Lin Xiuyuan's mouth, "Ah, Yun'er, you called me up here in the middle of the night just for this?"

Then, with a look of shock, he changed his question, "No, I should say you flew back to Seoul in the middle of the night just for this?"

"What do you mean, 'just for this'?"

At the kitchen island, Lin Yoona looked at Lin Xiuyuan inside with a playful expression, "Do you remember the last time you came over to pick up bread from me?"

"Hmm, what's wrong?" Lin Xiuyuan nodded.

“Let me tell you, in all these years, regardless of gender or age, you are the first person to step into my apartment and run away in less than ten minutes.”

At this point, Lim Yoona narrowed her eyes, "Do you know how hurtful your actions were that afternoon?"

Faced with this explanation, Lin Xiuyuan looked completely innocent, "Ah, it can't be that bad, this..."

"Absolutely, you don't understand the pride and dignity of us women."

Im Yoona paused in her shout, then added, "Anyway, I don't care, you have to bake me a batch of bread tonight before you can leave. Don't think you can just take my bread, make me angry, and then walk away without a care."

"If you dare to run..."

Yoona slowly straightened up, a sweet smile on her face, but she said something incredibly hurtful: "I dare to call Krystal and ask her how she got the marks on her neck."

"Sigh~"

Lin Xiuyuan, who had some ideas to begin with, gasped in shock upon hearing this. "Such ruthless methods, Yoon-ah. Is this all the vicious little tricks you've learned over the years?"

"..." Yoona, who was just joking, was unexpectedly hurt in the blink of an eye.

So, she turned around impatiently, grabbed a bag of flour, and handed it to Lin Xiuyuan, saying, "Stop arguing and get to work."

"I don't know how." Looking at the flour, Lin Xiuyuan looked at her with a bit of helplessness.

"Then beg me, and I'll teach you. Otherwise, just search for a guide yourself. Anyway, I want to eat hot bread first thing tomorrow morning."

Yoona stood with her arms crossed, looking at him with a half-smile.

The next second, Lin Xiuyuan immediately bowed his head without any backbone, "Please, Yoona-ssi, help me. I really don't know how, do I have to beg you like that..."

Just a second ago, Lin Yoona thought that the young man might be too embarrassed to admit it and would struggle a bit, but she didn't expect the other party's sliding kneeling to come so suddenly and unexpectedly, which made her a little confused.

"Ah, where is your self-respect, Xiu Yuan~"

"A true man can bend and stretch; what's this?" Lin Xiuyuan said confidently.

"You're flirting with me?"

"Huh? I didn't?"

"Then why are you bending over or stretching out?"

Ten minutes later.

Lin Xiuyuan watched as Lin Yoona walked out of the bedroom, changed into a simple yet stylish set of pajamas, and tied her long hair, which was originally loose, into a high ponytail, revealing her neat neckline. Her whole demeanor exuded a gentle and alluring atmosphere under the dim light.

The pajamas were made of light white cotton, and the simple design revealed a touch of laziness. The neckline was slightly loose, and her shoulder lines could be vaguely seen.

And she wasn't wearing slippers; she walked over barefoot, her feet making soft stomping sounds on the carpet, and the air was filled with her faint fragrance.

“Come on, Xiuyuan,” Lin Yoona walked to the island counter with a mischievous smile on her face. “I can teach you how to make bread, but I won’t do it myself. You have to do it yourself. Don’t blame me if you can’t make it.”

Her gaze fell on Lin Xiuyuan's face, then lingered for a moment on the hickey on his neck, her eyes carrying an unspoken meaning.

Lin Xiuyuan felt slightly uneasy under her gaze. "This is my first time doing this. I'll do whatever you say. If I fail, can I go out and buy something to make up for it?"

At the same time, he still felt a little uncomfortable, mainly because being alone with Lin Yoona so late at night made him feel that there was an ambiguous atmosphere everywhere, especially after rushing to two events.

"What do you think? Well... of course not."

Lin Xiuyuan's words made Lin Yoona smile even sweeter, "But I believe you must be great, just like your... muscles."

As she spoke, she walked to the side and skillfully took out various ingredients and tools from the cabinet.

Her movements were methodical, but after a while she turned to look at Lin Xiuyuan with a hint of doubt in her eyes, "You're standing quite far away, Xiuyuan. Come here, you're the one making the bread, not me."

Lin Xiuyuan smiled somewhat awkwardly, then walked over and helped to take out all the tools and ingredients for making bread.

Soon, under her guidance, we smoothly progressed to the process of kneading the dough.

Just as his hand movements were slowly getting into rhythm, Lim Yoona suddenly moved closer, reached out from behind and gently grasped his wrist. "No, you need to press down here and twist it in a little more."

Her hand traveled down his arm, from his wrist to his palm, and then to the motion of kneading dough together. The touch was light, yet it almost made his heart skip a beat.

To outsiders, all of this was just normal contact during teaching.

But for Lin Xiuyuan, Lin Yoona's occasional close breathing and the intentional or unintentional touch between her fingers were simply some kind of alluring hint.

It sparked his endless reverie.

"Relax."

Suddenly, a laugh rang out. Lin Yoona looked at the dazed Lin Xiuyuan and said, with a faint smile on her lips and a hint of teasing in her eyes.

Then he smiled and said in a low voice, "Don't be so nervous, Xiuyuan, it's nothing, at worst we can just do it again."

Lin Xiuyuan was about to make a joke in response, but she suddenly smiled and pulled back, her eyes showing a hint of slyness and playfulness. "Alright, I won't tease you anymore."

After saying that, she turned and left the kitchen, walking as lightly as if she were dancing a slow dance in the living room.

As she approached the master bedroom door, she turned back and wagged her finger at him, "Xiuyuan, you can continue on your own. I've already explained the process to you. I'm going to take a shower. Don't make any mistakes."

Lin Xiuyuan stood there, watching her figure disappear through the bedroom door. Only when the door clicked shut did he come back to his senses.

Seriously? That's it?

He suddenly felt a vague sense of emptiness, as if he had been left hanging by a thread, but had nowhere to go.

Just like a few days ago in the Roppongi hotel suite, he was hanging Lin Xiaolu up.

This time, however, he was the one being left hanging.

The kitchen air was still filled with the aroma of fermenting dough, the lights were soft and warm, and the kettle was still bubbling away.

Lin Xiuyuan stood there for a while before clicking his tongue softly, a helpless smile unconsciously tugging at the corners of his mouth. Then he lowered his head and continued working on the dough.

Knead the dough, let it rise, whip the cream, and preheat the oven.

I thought this night might be like some of the "ambiguous nights" in the past, with sparks flying and some kind of probing going on, but I didn't expect Yoona to just turn around and leave, and even take a shower.

Huh? Wait, take a shower?
Thinking of something, Lin Xiuyuan unconsciously glanced in the direction of her bedroom.

However, not long after, Yoona, who had just finished showering, came out with her hair half-dry and wearing a loose long-sleeved pajama set, but she did not go near the kitchen again.

She just leaned against the corridor wall, yawned, glanced at him lazily, and finally said, "Good luck, Xiuyuan. I'm going to sleep now. Goodnight."

After saying that, Zhen turned around and went back to her room, closing the bedroom door behind her.

The moment the door closed, Lin Xiuyuan was like a scarecrow left standing there, staring at the door for a few seconds before snapping back to reality.

He then gave a helpless smile and muttered to himself, "What's going on... Am I just being presumptuous?"

Despite the complaints, their hands didn't slow down at all.

As the night deepened, he stared intently at the bread rising in the oven, and the temperature in the kitchen gradually increased, making him feel sleepy.

An hour later, the bread was finally ready.

The pale yellow, crispy crust and the enticing aroma filled the kitchen.

Looking at the freshly baked product, Lin Xiuyuan hummed with a sense of accomplishment and muttered to himself, "Although it's my first time making this, I think the finished product looks pretty good."

He took out his phone and snapped a few pictures, glancing at the time casually—5:30 in the morning.

A faint blue-white hue began to appear on the horizon. The streets outside the window had not yet returned to their usual hustle and bustle, and the whole world was so quiet that only the faint residual heat from the kitchen could be heard.

Having finally finished everything, Lin Xiuyuan dragged his feet into the living room and collapsed onto the sofa like a deflated kite.

He pulled a blanket over himself, casually covered himself with it, and buried his head in the sofa cushions.

He had so much to do tonight, rushing from one event to another and staying up all night kneading dough and making bread. He was really exhausted.

But even as soon as he closed his eyes, the images of the two shows he had rushed to before were still vivid in his mind—exciting and intense.

When he thought that he was still in Yoona's apartment, his physical instincts were revealed more directly than his mental fatigue.

So when Lin Xiuyuan looked at the somewhat incongruous "bulge" under the blanket, he was speechless and muttered to himself, "Brother, you're so sleepy, how come you still have so much energy?"

Perhaps it was Yoona's unexpected "Goodnight" at the end that acted as a key, unlocking some uncertain emotions in him.

This also gave Lin Xiuyuan a rare, strange, and slightly subtly lost feeling.

But he was too tired to even delve into the question before he drifted off to sleep with the first rays of dawn.

In the kitchen, the few still-warm loaves of bread quietly exuded their aroma, like some unspoken thoughts being quietly baked to perfection.

Meanwhile, Lin Xiuyuan was unaware that the door to the master bedroom in the apartment was not actually locked from the inside.

You should know that even if only Lim Yoona lives there normally, that door is always locked.

But tonight, there isn't.

……

……

The next morning, at exactly nine o'clock.

Seoul in 2013 was sunny and bright.

Lin Xiaolu was about to leave for the company and had just put on her shoes in the entryway when she received a call from her agent.

"Hey, Yoona, where are you right now?"

"I'm in the dorm, just about to go to the company for rehearsal. What's up, oppa~"

She answered the phone while hopping on one foot to put on her other shoe, her tone light and cheerful.

The tone on the other end of the phone suddenly changed, becoming somewhat serious: "Then don't go out yet, wait for me to come pick you up. The company just received a call from writer Kim Eun-sook, asking you to go to her studio."

Lin Xiaolu was taken aback and immediately stood up straight. "Writer Kim Eun-sook? Why is she suddenly looking for me?"

"It's because of that script; there seems to be a slight change in the female lead's role."

"Variables?" She looked tense. "What variables? Oppa, explain more clearly."

"It's just competition," the other person said bluntly. "And SBS is pushing us quite hard. They're already in communication with writer Kim Eun-sook, hoping to confirm the female lead as soon as possible so they can arrange subsequent promotions and production."

Lin Xiaolu suddenly understood, her brows furrowing, "So..."

"So you need to prepare in advance." The agent's tone was not harsh, but it was meaningful. "Today's trip is probably the key battle that will determine whether you can get this role."

She paused for a moment, then took a deep breath and nodded.

"Okay, oppa, I'm ready to answer the questions."

　Please vote for me and subscribe! Thank you!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)