Chapter 28: A Valentine's Day Without Lovers

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By the time Li Tong arrived in Korea, it was already the afternoon of February 13th. Although it was Sunday, rushing to the live broadcast of Inkigayo was no longer possible, so he decided to begin his activities the following week.

February 14th, Monday. Jiang Yihan still had classes in the morning, so unsurprisingly, he got up and went to class. Han PD would only arrive after lunch, leaving Jiang Yihan the rare opportunity to attend class alone. He had already received his grade report during the winter break—all As—which greatly surprised Professor Shen. After all, Jiang Yihan’s performance in class was far from that of a model student. But because he had nearly perfect attendance and excellent grades, the school granted him a 70% tuition scholarship, which delighted Jiang Yihan.

Walking through campus, he noticed students passing by whispering and pointing at him. At first, he didn’t mind, but as more people stared, he began to wonder if something was wrong with his appearance. He checked himself over but found nothing amiss, finally giving up and heading toward the classroom.

As he walked, Jiang Yihan was thinking about Professor Shen’s class that morning. “Professor Shen really looks after me. I should treat him to a meal someday.” Just then, two girls around his age approached, interrupting his thoughts. He stopped and looked at them curiously. “Can I help you?” he asked.

“Um, are you Jiang Yihan?” After some hesitation, the taller girl spoke up.

“Yes, I am. Why?” Jiang Yihan was surprised they knew his name. “Everyone’s been staring at me this morning. Is there something on my face?” he asked earnestly.

The two girls giggled, leaving Jiang Yihan completely puzzled. “You really are Jiang Yihan! Can we have your autograph?”

“Huh? What?” The first “huh” was confusion; the second was shock. “An autograph?”

“Yes, yes.” Each girl eagerly pulled out a notebook, eyes shining with excitement.

“Oh.” It took Jiang Yihan a moment to realize these girls were his fans. He couldn’t really blame himself; he’d never felt particularly popular, especially after spending half a month at home living an ordinary life. “Why do you want my autograph?” he asked, taking their notebooks and starting to write carefully.

“I love your songs—especially ‘Castle.’ It’s so good!” The girl’s initial shyness vanished as she grew more excited. “And the MV is so cool!”

“Me too, I love your music, but my favorite is ‘Bittersweet Goodbye.’ I haven’t heard much about you lately—you haven’t been on any shows. When I saw you just now, I couldn’t believe it was really you!” The second girl chattered on. Her favorite song wasn’t the title track or the debut performance’s “Puppet,” which surprised Jiang Yihan. It also made him realize that people really were listening to his album, and the thought made him smile—a smile that immediately made the girls’ hearts race.

“Thank you for your support. I went home recently to see my family, so I haven’t been active.” After signing both notebooks, he handed them back. “Honestly, I thought since I just debuted and haven’t performed much, no one would recognize me. You two really surprised me. By the way, you mentioned my MV—is it out already? I haven’t even seen the final cut myself. I’ll check it out when I get home.” He scratched his head, embarrassed, his shy expression making him all the more endearing.

“The MV is great, and Hyori is gorgeous—you two look perfect together!” the taller girl blurted out. “Don’t you know? Even though you’ve just debuted, you’re already really popular. Online, ‘Castle’ just reached number one this week!”

“Number one? Really? My company never told me! I’ll have to ask them about that.” The news made Jiang Yihan’s heart leap.

The two girls giggled again, delighted with the neat, careful signature in their notebooks—nothing like the flamboyant scrawls of most celebrities.

“Uh, well,” Jiang Yihan said, following their gaze to his signature, “I didn’t expect anyone to ask for my autograph, so I never practiced. I just wrote it as I normally would. This is the first time I’ve ever signed anything—you’ll have to excuse me.”

“Really? Oh my gosh, I’m so excited!” Realizing they held Jiang Yihan’s very first autograph, the girls jumped up and down with joy, leaving Jiang Yihan blushing in embarrassment.

“Happy Valentine’s Day!” they called as they left. Jiang Yihan continued toward his classroom, his steps lighter. Besides feeling happy, he began to wonder how he should spend Valentine’s Day.

Thinking of Valentine’s Day reminded him of his last meeting with Liu Yan before her departure, and a dull ache crept into his heart.

“Yihan, you never dare to say what’s truly in your heart, so you’ve missed out on so much.” Liu Yan had left him with only those words.

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At first, those words had filled Jiang Yihan with hope, thinking Liu Yan understood his feelings. But as she said, what was missed was missed. There was no result in clinging to the past; the thought left his throat tight, as if stuffed with cotton—painful, yet impossible to voice.

Shaking his head, Jiang Yihan decided to stop dwelling on the issue. Liu Yan had gone to France and wouldn’t return anytime soon. If he could forget, he’d let her drift away like the wind and go back to being friends. If not, he’d simply keep those feelings buried in his heart—forever.

Then came the onslaught of messages:

“Let’s go on a date today!” from Li Yimei.

“Yihan, do you have any plans for today?” from Jin Xiaoxi.

“Yihan, are you back? Any schedule today?” from Lee Hyori, who’d heard he’d returned.

“Bro, I have so many events today, there’s no way to celebrate Valentine’s Day. What are you planning?” from Kim Jaejoong, who’d been up early for work.

“I’m out with Jiyong today, won’t be home for dinner!” from Jiang Ziyi.

“Let’s go grocery shopping in the afternoon and eat at home tonight.” from Li Ran.

Not long after class began, Jiang Yihan’s phone was buzzing nonstop with a steady stream of messages. He looked over them and replied to each.

No problem with Li Ran and Jiang Ziyi’s messages.

He hesitated with Jin Xiaoxi, replying, “I’ll be home for dinner today. Would you like to join us?” Jin Xiaoxi coming to eat at Jiang Yihan’s home was nothing new; as she and Jiang Ziyi grew closer, she’d become a frequent guest. Jiang Yihan knew how Jin Xiaoxi felt, but he’d always regarded her as a younger sister, and his reply reflected that.

“To be honest, I’m just going home today, no events. You’re so busy, make sure you eat on time! If you’re free tonight, come over for dinner. If you don’t have anyone to spend Valentine’s with, come eat some comfort food with your big bro.” Though there wasn’t much age difference between him and Kim Jaejoong, Jiang Yihan truly treated him like a brother.

“Hyori, I just got back. The company said my schedule starts this week, so I’m free for now and heading home soon. How about you? Busy?” Jiang Yihan replied without much thought; Hyori had always looked out for him, and they’d kept in touch while he was home.

But the real challenge was Li Yimei. Her relentless pursuit left Jiang Yihan with a headache. But returning home had changed his perspective a little—what’s lost is lost. “I’m going home today, as I said. I’m not interested in dating you.” His changed outlook didn’t mean he was searching for a new relationship, but he’d stopped rejecting her so harshly, simply telling her he was going home.

After class, Jiang Yihan called Li Ran and the two set out to deliver gifts—specialties from home—to their friends, then to do some shopping for dinner. A Valentine’s Day without lovers could still be celebrated with good food.

They visited Professor Shen first—he’d helped Jiang Yihan both academically and by resolving the visa issues that enabled him to perform on stage. Professor Shen was happy to see him, and after a brief chat, Jiang Yihan and Li Ran stopped by Li Tong’s office to wish him a happy new year before running off again. The remaining gifts for Lee Hyori, Kim Jaejoong, Jin Xiaoxi, Kang Jaimin, and other friends would be given later.

Now, Jiang Yihan and Li Ran were shopping for dinner in the city.

“Hello?” Jiang Yihan answered his phone without checking the caller ID, still debating with Li Ran over whether to buy white or red radishes.

“Yihan, it’s your big sister!” Lee Hyori’s voice came through. “I’m done with work around 6:30 tonight. Can you have dinner with me? I have no one to spend Valentine’s with.”

“That’s easy—come to my place for dinner. I’m buying groceries now. Anything you want to eat? I’ll get it.” Jiang Yihan replied with a laugh.

“Perfect! See you tonight, I’ll call when I’m on my way.”

After hanging up, Jiang Yihan turned to Li Ran. “We’ll need to buy a bit more—one extra pair of chopsticks tonight.” Seeing Li Ran’s puzzled look, he explained, “For Hyori.”

No sooner had he finished than his phone rang again. “Hello?”

“Bro, it’s Jaejoong. My schedule tonight was canceled, so I have three hours off. I’ll come to your place for dinner, and then head to the studio, okay?” Kim Jaejoong sounded delighted with the unexpected break.

“Sure, come over after your schedule’s done.” Jiang Yihan hung up. Li Ran didn’t look at him but simply said, “Another pair of chopsticks, right?”

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Jiang Yihan laughed and hurried after Li Ran as they continued shopping.

5 p.m.

Jiang Yihan and Li Ran were busy at home, and besides the two of them, an unexpected guest—Yin Yuner—had arrived. Although Yin Yuner hadn’t given up on Li Ran, she no longer held out hope and simply stayed by his side like a little sister. As Jiang Ziyi put it, “With such a huge iceberg, Yuner should just give up.”

With so many people expected for dinner, and most not arriving until later—since Hyori and Kim Jaejoong had work to finish—Jiang Yihan was just washing vegetables, not yet cooking. Yin Yuner wanted to help, but the kitchen was too small, so she joined Li Ran in the living room to tidy up and watch TV.

By six o’clock, the guests started to arrive. Kim Jaejoong was first. “Bro, do we have enough food? I’m starving!” He was already familiar with Li Ran and made himself at home.

“Hey, Jaejoong, done with work? Come, take a rest.” Jiang Yihan poked his head out of the kitchen, only to be surprised—behind Kim Jaejoong were four more figures: the rest of TVXQ.

“Yihan, sorry to intrude,” Yunho said politely, and the other members bowed, making Jiang Yihan feel flattered.

“You guys should have told me you were coming—Jaejoong, really! Come in, make yourselves comfortable. Food will be ready soon. Xiaojin, help entertain them.” With that, Jiang Yihan retreated to the kitchen.

Yin Yuner was wide-eyed; she’d known from social media that Jiang Yihan knew Kim Jaejoong, but seeing all of TVXQ in person was overwhelming.

Not long after, Jin Xiaoxi arrived, followed by Lee Hyori, who stunned everyone with her presence.

“Wow, so many people! Yunho, you’re here too?” Hyori came in wearing a thick coat, which she took off to reveal her stage outfit—a black, low-cut short skirt that showed off her figure, with a black wool coat over it for warmth.

“Hyori sunbae! We came with Jaejoong to crash Yihan’s dinner.” TVXQ all stood and greeted her respectfully.

Everyone sat down, chatting as Jiang Ziyi and Kwon Jiyong returned, too. “Bro, Li Ran, why so many people? I thought it was just you two, so I came home to spare you a boring Valentine’s Day.”

“Hello, sunbaenim.” Jiyong reflexively bowed to the room full of seniors.

“I thought it’d just be Xiaojin and me for a single’s Valentine’s, but I never expected such a crowd. Come, have a seat, let’s eat.” Finally, Jiang Yihan finished cooking—a table loaded with ten dishes and three soups, a feast for the senses.

“Yihan, I never knew you could cook so well!” Hyori was the first to dig in and praise him.

“Bro’s cooking is amazing—I learned that last time,” Kim Jaejoong chimed in, and soon everyone else joined in.

The apartment wasn’t big, and with a dozen people, there was barely space, but the lively conversation and laughter made the meal fly by—they ate for almost two hours. Afterward, Kim Jaejoong automatically started clearing the table, with Jiyong helping out. Before anyone realized it, it was nine o’clock. Lee Hyori and TVXQ had to leave for their next engagements, and soon after, Yin Yuner and Jin Xiaoxi left as well. Jin Xiaoxi seemed to have something to say but couldn’t find the chance and left in silence.

Before they left, Jiang Yihan brought out gifts from home, making Lee Hyori, Kim Jaejoong, and the others very happy. “It’s nothing special, just some local treats. I wanted you all to try something from my hometown—I love it, hope you do too!”

After seeing his guests off, Jiang Yihan walked them downstairs while Li Ran and the others tidied up at home. As he was about to return upstairs, he spotted a girl sitting by the stairs, her face streaked with tears.

It was Li Yimei.

The troublesome “stray cat” was back again. By the way, reading the comments today, I see many are still shipping Zhang Dongjian and Jiang Yihan, and of course Li Ran too. But I can’t say too much here—let’s just say Li Ran is definitely the second lead, his role is too unique. Without Li Ran, many of Jiang Yihan’s stories wouldn’t exist. As for their brotherly bond—use your imagination, it’s none of my business!