Jennie listened to Alice rant about the Kim family members. She wasn't really affected much about hearing the Kims trash talking her. To her, those people were strangers and not worth her time and energy.
When the call ended, Mei called them to eat dinner.
The dinner was once again in buffet style like when they celebrated Christmas and New Year before. They liked its festive and informal vibe. Everyone ate and chatted together. While the penthouse staff was already used to Jennie's casual and inclusive treatment of her employees, the mansion staff was still getting used to it.
After dinner, they continued to watch the Spring Festival Gala. Less than an hour before midnight, V performed a mash-up of some of his greatest hits in a spectacular production. It was obvious that many of the live audience were from his army of fans with all the deafening screams, cheering and applause.
"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. The paparazzo joined my Shadow Winds," Jiyong told her in a low voice.
"Hm?" It took Jennie a few seconds before she understood what he meant. Her eyes widened in surprise. "Oh? You recruited him?"
"Not really. He asked to join. The guy has sharp intuition. He guessed correctly that we were the Shadow Winds. He practically sold himself to us, saying that he's extremely useful."
She tilted her head to the side. "I was wondering why the police didn't include him in the investigations regarding the tabloid case. So it was you. You must've done something to protect him, didn't you?"
"Something like that," he said in a nonchalant manner. "Well, he's still on a trial period to prove his loyalty to my group. He's not a full member yet. I put him in a surveillance team but he'll still continue his work as a paparazzo. It'll be useful to have someone from the media. We can get lots of insider information without spending too much time hacking or sending some spies."
Jennie looked at him with a complicated expression. "Big Brother, please don't do anything dangerous."
He froze for only less than a second before chuckling. "What are you talking about, little sister? Didn't I tell you before that my Shadow Winds exists for justice? Don't worry about me. Anyway, let's not talk about this anymore. This Spring Festival celebration is very interesting. Let's enjoy it."
She still looked like she wanted to ask him more but seeing his blatant change of subject, she decided to let it go. For now.
A few minutes before the midnight countdown, Lisa initiated a video call. Although he couldn't leave the banquet as of yet, he still wanted to celebrate the Lunar New Year by seeing and talking to her.
Some of the household staff were already lighting up all the firecrackers outside. The loud noises frightened both Lily and Leo. They squeezed themselves into tight balls on top of Jennie and Jiyong's laps. Little Jun already fell asleep on the couch, while Jae and Hoyeon talked about the gala performances on TV.
Finally, the countdown started.
"3, 2, 1!"
"HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!"
Jae started jumping all around. He and his family also did this when they celebrated the January 1 New Year. He said it was believed that jumping during New Year would make a person grow taller. Fortunately, all the ruckus didn't wake up Little Jun. The little guy must've exhausted himself from playing so much earlier.
"Happy New Year, love," Lisa greeted her in the video chat. "I'll come home soon. Wait for me."
"Happy New Year, hon. Yes, I'll wait for you. Be safe."
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The Wife Is a Superstar 2
FanfictionA world-famous hacker and daughter of the most powerful criminal family who ruled the international underworld for many generations is killed when their organization is annihilated in a single night. She is reborn into the body of Jennie Kim, a pop...