NABC Chapter 23 Jeju Trip 2
Chapter 23 Jeju Trip 2
(After this chapter ends, there will be less variety show description in this part of the plot. After all, it is difficult to write about the variety show effects in this kind of reality show. The original program was not famous for its good variety show effects.)
Seohyun and Narsha each pushed a road bike out of the rental shop.
Car rental prices in Jeju Island are uniform, ranging from basic models at 8,000 won to carbon fiber cars at 50,000 won.
The two compromised and chose a mid-range road bike, costing 20,000 won a day. After all, they would be using it all day, and it would be more troublesome if the chain fell off halfway through a cheaper bike.
The shop assistant, a local man with a tanned complexion, pulled two cycling certification manuals from under the counter and handed them to them, saying that they could collect stamps at various points along the route.
Narsha tucked the manual into his trench coat pocket and stood by, holding onto the handlebars.
The sea breeze blew in from the side, making her hair fly wildly. She held her hair with one hand and gripped the car with the other, her whole body swaying slightly in the wind.
Seohyun, who was standing next to her, had already taken off her jacket and tied it around her waist. She had parked the car and was doing warm-up exercises.
The two men's suitcases had already been collected by FD and put into the trunk of the production crew vehicle following behind.
"Hyun..."
Narsha brushed a strand of hair from her mouth that had been blown by the wind, her voice carrying a final trace of resentment.
"This is fraud! The travel itinerary you showed me didn't even mention bicycles!"
Seohyun straightened up, tilted her head to look at her, and looked completely innocent.
"Unnie, this is the most cost-effective mode of transportation. You can stop whenever you want, and you can enjoy the scenery along the way. It's great value for money!"
"You said it yourself, you can stop whenever you want!"
Narsha seized on the key words in her words and pointed at Seohyun's face.
"certainly."
Seohyun smiled and nodded, fastening the helmet, the chin strap clicking shut.
"Don't worry, unnie, I'll be a good tour guide~"
"..."
Narsha looked at her serious face and remained silent for a few seconds. He wasn't convinced; he knew that no matter how much he struggled, it would be useless.
She sighed, put on her helmet, and resigned herself to her fate:
"Tell me, what's the route? How far do I need to ride?"
Xu Xian took out her phone and showed Narsha the cycling route map she had looked up in advance.
"We are at Jeju Airport now. We will ride north to Yongduam Rock, which is about four kilometers away. It's not far."
Before Narsha could even catch her breath, she tapped the Dragon Head Rock marker on the map with her finger and then drew a long arc westward.
"Starting from Yongduam Rock, I cycled to Iho Beach, and my final destination was Hyeopjae Beach."
She looked up, her tone light and cheerful.
"Hmm, the total length is only about forty kilometers."
"...So what?!"
Narsha nearly hit her chin on the handlebars and turned to look at Kang Young-tae behind the camera.
"PD, I'm quitting!"
Jiang Yongtai stood behind the VJ, and upon hearing Narsha's shout, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.
He knew she wasn't really going to quit, she was just putting on an act, so he didn't reply, but just smiled and raised his hand, signaling her to continue.
Seohyun stepped forward and took Narsha's arm, resting her face on Narsha's shoulder, her voice softening.
"Unnie, I checked this road beforehand. There are no steep slopes, and the whole route is along the coastline. The scenery is especially beautiful!"
We'll ride for a while and then rest, we guarantee you'll be satisfied!
Narsha looked down at the sincere face leaning on his shoulder, his lips moved, and finally he raised his hand and gently patted Seohyun's helmet.
"...I can only tolerate you as a tour guide."
Seohyun straightened up and patted the handlebars with a smile.
Jiang Yongtai nodded to FD next to him. FD stepped forward to install small cameras for the two of them. One GoPro was fixed to their chests, and another was attached to the top of their helmets, for shooting first-person perspectives.
Kim Sung-woo and another AD are confirming the seating arrangement in the vehicle being filmed with two cameramen.
They will then travel in two separate vans, one following in front of them to capture panoramic shots, and the other following behind to film close-up shots.
During a break in the setup of the equipment, Seohyun's manager quickly walked up from outside and whispered a few words in Seohyun's ear.
After listening, Seohyun shook her head, smiled, and replied with a couple of words.
The agent wanted to say something more, opened his mouth, but ultimately swallowed his words and retreated offstage with a hint of barely suppressed worry.
Jiang Yongtai caught a glimpse of this scene out of the corner of his eye, but it was too far away and the wind was too strong for him to hear what they were saying.
He glanced at Seohyun, who was looking down at the camera on her helmet, her expression calm and unreadable.
With all equipment tested and the camera resuming recording, Xu Xian stepped onto the foot pedal and slid off first.
Narsha followed behind her, wobbling slightly at the start but quickly regaining his balance. The two then drove onto the coastal highway one after the other.
The clouds were piled low and thick, pressing down on the sky, blocking out all sunlight, and the sea was a much deeper color than usual.
But the ride went more smoothly than expected. After Seohyun and Narsha turned from the airport road onto the coastal highway, they discovered that the wind direction had quietly changed at some point.
The side wind that was originally coming from the side turned into a tailwind that was pushing them from behind.
The journey, which was originally expected to take fifteen minutes, only took ten minutes before the iconic black volcanic rock coastline of Yongduam Rock came into view.
When the two stopped the car, Narsha glanced down at his watch, then looked back at the road they had come from, and took a breath.
"Hyun, how come you arrived so quickly?"
"Because even the heavens are on our side~"
Xu Xian parked the car, took off her helmet, and her single ponytail popped out from under the helmet brim, the ends of her hair slightly scattered by the wind.
She pointed to the sky and breathed a sigh of relief. "And look, unnie."
The clouds are being blown away by the wind. The thick, gray clouds that were piled up over the airport are now being torn into pieces overhead, and large patches of sunlight are streaming down through the gaps in the clouds.
The seawater had changed from its previous gloomy dark gray to a layered blue, and the waves crashed against the volcanic rocks on the shore, splashing up a string of white foam.
Jiang Yongtai got out of the car and directed the VJ and microphone to take their positions.
FD had already gone to the viewing platform at Yongduam Rock to confirm the shooting area.
Kim Sung-woo climbed out of another car, walked to Kang Young-tae's side, and looked up at him.
"Wow! Thank goodness the weather has improved. It was so gloomy at the airport earlier, the photos wouldn't have turned out well."
Jiang Yongtai didn't reply, but just looked at Xu Xian, who was stretching her shoulders and neck in the camera's view, and then moved his gaze from her face to the brightening sky.
That's how the weather is on Jeju Island. It's cloudy in the morning, but it might clear up in the afternoon. The wind can come from the sea and blow the clouds away.
Seohyun pulled Narsha to the side of the observation deck closest to the sea.
Dragon Head Rock is 10 meters high and 30 meters long. It is made of black basalt formed by the cooling and solidification of volcanic lava two million years ago. From a distance, it does indeed look like a dragon head rising from the sea.
Legend has it that a dragon stole the jade bead of the Hallasan Mountain God in an attempt to ascend to heaven, but was shot by an arrow from the god and fell to the sea. Its body sank to the bottom of the sea, while its head faced the sky and turned into stone.
At this moment, the sunlight spreads across the sea, and the outline of Yongduam Rock is gilded with a faint golden edge, giving it a truly mythical feel.
About 200 meters to the east is Longyuan, where the streams of the lower reaches of the Hanchuan River flow into the sea. The banks are dark brown volcanic rock cliffs covered with dense trees, and a 42-meter-long suspension bridge spans the canyon.
"Hyun, how's this photo?"
Narsha held up her phone and took several pictures of the seascape, then turned the screen over to show Seohyun.
Seohyun nodded. "Unnie filmed very well. But..."
She took the phone, moved to the right side of the platform, and pointed to the sky.
"There are even better ones~"
Narsha followed her to the platform, and Seohyun pointed upwards.
"Unnie, do you know that because Yongduam Rock is very close to the airport, planes fly over your head when they take off and land."
So if you want to take a picture here, the perfect photo would be one where a plane flies over Yongduam Rock.
Many variety shows and Korean dramas choose this location for filming because of the shot of the airplane and the dragon head together.
Narsha looked up with a skeptical gaze, squinting at the distant horizon.
"Really? You can't schedule a time for something like a plane, you can't just take pictures whenever you want..."
As soon as he finished speaking, a deep engine hum came from the clouds, and a passenger plane flew over, its flight path directly aligned with the Yongduam Rock observation deck.
"Unnie!"
Seohyun pulled Narsha by the shoulder and drew her closer to her, while simultaneously taking a selfie with her phone.
"Quick, look at the camera!"
Narsha instinctively moved closer to Seohyun, her face still showing the astonishment she had felt when she first saw the plane.
Seohyun held her phone up to the perfect angle and pressed the shutter button, just as the plane behind her swept across the background.
"Got it!"
Seohyun put her phone down and showed Narsha the photo she had just seen.
In the picture, two people are standing on the observation deck, leaning on each other's shoulders. Sunlight shines on their faces, and behind them is a black basalt dragon head and the blue sea. An airplane happens to fly overhead.
Narsha took the phone and looked at it carefully. Then, the corners of her mouth slowly turned up. From the moment she left the airport until now, the resentment in her heart had finally dissipated a lot.
She returned the phone to Xu Xian, her tone restrained as if she didn't want the tour guide to be too smug, but the smile on her face betrayed her.
"...This one is pretty good. Send it to me, and I'll post it on Instagram when I get back."
Seohyun smiled and nodded, then sent the photo.
She leaned against the railing of the observation deck, looked up at the sky above, which had been cleared by the wind, and saw sunlight streaming through the gaps in the clouds, falling on her face.
The wind ruffled her hair, and the hem of her coat was lifted up, revealing her tightly cinched waist.
She squinted slightly, the lingering feeling of the group photo she had just taken still on her lips. Standing between the blue sky and the sea, she looked like a picture frozen on the coastline.
Jiang Yongtai looked at them and nodded his chin at Jin Chengyu beside him.
Kim Sung-woo understood and directed the lighting technician to adjust the angle of the reflector by one level, making the light in the picture even brighter.
After taking a few more photos, Seohyun put her phone in her pocket, walked over to Narsha who was still leaning on the railing and muttering to herself at Yongduam Rock, and reached out to tug at her sleeve.
"Unnie, we should get going. There's still a long way to go."
Narsha glanced back at her, then at Yongduam Rock, muttering, "Next time I'll come by myself, and drive!"
But instead of protesting as she had when they set off, she fastened her helmet back on and followed Xu Xian.
After turning onto the coastal highway from Longtouyan, the road conditions become more open.
The sea is on the right, and on the left are scattered houses and rapeseed fields on low slopes.
Narsha followed behind Seohyun, looking at the scenery on both sides, and suddenly felt that this wasn't so bad after all.
After riding for about eight kilometers, two horse-shaped lighthouses appeared ahead of the road.
One is pure white, the other is bright red, standing side by side at the end of the breakwater; we have arrived at Lihu Beach.
Seohyun stopped the car by the roadside, turned around and pointed to the two lighthouses at Narsha. Before she could say anything, Narsha had already taken out her phone and taken three pictures of the lighthouses.
"I absolutely have to post this, it's so cute!"
Narsha parked the car on the side of the road, walked over, and took another set of photos with Seohyun in front of the lighthouse.
After the shoot, the two bought two bottles of water at a roadside shop and sat on a bench next to the breakwater for a short rest.
After getting back on the road, they turned onto the Ya Yue Coastal Highway.
This section is the most famous part of the entire Jeju Island coastal route. The road winds along the coastline, with layers of blue waves on the right and cafes and independent designer workshops scattered on the hillside on the left.
Occasionally, I would pass by a glass house with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the sea. Inside, customers would be holding coffee and looking out the window, waving as they passed by.
Inside the car, Kim Sung-woo sat next to Kang Young-tae, looking out the window at the two women riding bicycles.
They were maintaining a steady pace on a long straight section of road. Narsha was hunched over to conserve energy, while Seohyun was leading the way, occasionally turning back to say a word to her.
The scene was beautiful, but Kim Sung-woo looked a little anxious.
"Hey bro, are you getting a little bored? How about we give them some tasks at the next stop?"
For example, you could give them a limited amount of money to buy coffee, and whoever buys it first wins.
Jiang Yongtai turned his gaze away from the car window and shook his head.
"Not for now." He paused.
"The group of Jang Do-yeon and Cho Mi-yeon could produce results in the market without any script, but 'Heartbreaking Trip' doesn't necessarily need to have variety show effects every minute."
The show's premise is to allow members and viewers to see the scenery and people along the way, and to find the most suitable route within a limited budget.
Seohyun and the others are on a good pace right now. They've been riding since the airport, and Narsha has gone from complaining to cooperating. The scenery along this coastal highway is enough to fill the screen without any missions.
I'll let you know when we need to see results.
After listening, Kim Sung-woo closed the script and nodded.
"Okay, bro."
After riding for nearly four kilometers, the road ahead made a small bend from the coastline inland, and a row of orange groves enclosed by stone walls appeared by the roadside.
Narsha's speed visibly slowed down, his shoulders began to slump, his fingers on the handlebars trembled slightly, and he struggled more and more to pedal.
She pulled the car over to the side of the road, panting heavily, and leaned forward, bracing her arms on the handlebars. Sweat streamed down her face from her forehead.
"Hyun, I really can't take it anymore..."
She looked up at Seohyun, who had stopped in front of her and was looking back at her.
"This is the first time in my life I've ridden this far in one day... If you keep going like this, I'm really going to have to call my manager to pick you up!"
Seohyun also broke out in a light sweat, her hair sticking to the back of her neck.
She parked her car on the side of the road, walked over and looked at Narsha's expression, then pointed to a white wooden house about twenty meters away with a handwritten sign hanging on the door.
"Let's rest there then. I'll treat you to coffee."
The coffee shop is small, with only five or six small wooden tables.
Seohyun and Narsha chose a window seat where they could see the sea view.
Narsha slumped into the chair, stretched his legs forward, tilted his head back against the chair, and closed his eyes to breathe.
Seohyun pushed a glass of iced Americano in front of Narsha, who touched it, immediately downed half of it, and let out a satisfied sigh.
Seohyun sipped her latte, took out her phone from her bag, and opened her notes app. This was the travel guide she had prepared before setting off, with several shops marked near Aewol.
"Unnie, there's a traditional pastry shop nearby. They're famous for their red bean rice cakes and mugwort cakes, and they're very cheap, only a little over 1,000 won a piece."
I'm going to buy some snacks. Will you wait here for me? I'll be right back.
Narsha didn't even open his eyes, he just raised his hand and waved weakly at her.
"Go away, go away... don't worry about me, I'd accept it even if you sold me to this shop right now."
Seohyun smiled, stood up, picked up her phone, and walked towards the coffee shop entrance.
Kang Young-tae watched as Seo Hyun stood up and spoke to Kim Sung-woo and the VJ beside her.
"Let's go, follow Seohyun as she buys pastries."
After instructing the others to stay behind, the three of them followed behind Seohyun, and Seohyun's manager also got out of the car and followed.
The four people followed her at a distance of a few steps, neither too close nor too far.
Seohyun walked in front, her hands behind her back, resting on her waist.
She didn't turn around, nor did she deliberately speak to the camera; she had a faint smile on her face.
She would glance at the clumps of rapeseed flowers peeking out from the cracks in the stone wall as she passed by.
There were small pyramids made of Jeju ugly oranges at the roadside stalls. I would stop and ask the owner about the price before continuing on my way.
It was as if he wasn't wearing a microphone, nor was he being followed by a film crew; he was just a tourist taking a stroll in the nice weather.
Seohyun's manager quickened her pace and caught up to Kang Youngtae, standing side by side.
Jiang Yongtai glanced at him and noticed that his brows were slightly furrowed and his gaze was fixed on the figure walking with his hands behind his back.
"PD-nim, there's something I need to tell you."
The agent's voice was very low, just enough for the two of them to hear.
Jiang Yongtai turned his head slightly and glanced at him.
"Please speak."
"Seohyun... has been working too hard filming lately, and her back is a bit injured."
The manager paused, a hint of heartache for Seohyun in his voice.
"At first, I didn't really want her to take the show. The production schedule was already tight, and there were a lot of action scenes in the filming, so her back injury kept recurring and never got better."
But when she heard that she could do promotions at the beginning and during the event, she accepted the offer, and... she even brought up the topic herself.
Jiang Yongtai raised an eyebrow and turned his gaze back to Xu Xian at the entrance of the pastry shop.
She was in line, tiptoeing slightly to peek into the shop, her face full of anticipation for the rice cakes and mugwort cakes.
There was no sign of her putting on a brave face in her expression, but her hands, which were behind her back, never went down the whole way.
So earlier, when her agent leaned up to her and whispered in her ear at the car rental shop, it was to advise her not to work too hard...