Against the Light - Chapter 96
Chapter 96: My Mother
In the car, Bai Yilan stared wistfully out the window as a single hot tear suddenly slid down her cheek.
Gu Xinran saw it. She reached out and gently stroked her hair. Without asking too many questions, she scooted closer and pulled Bai Yilan into her arms.
Soothed by her embrace, a torrent of grievances washed over Bai Yilan. She turned and hugged Gu Xinran back, burying her face in the crook of her neck.
Fang Jinghai, driving in the front, was completely bewildered and trembling. She had no idea why the two of them had come out in less than an hour after going in, and why they were the only ones who came out! On top of that, Sister Lan had looked terribly upset the whole time, and now she was actually crying…!?
Bai Yilan whimpered softly, her sobs racking her body. Gu Xinran's heart ached for her. She gently patted her on the back. "I'm here, I'm here."
Realizing she had lost her composure, Bai Yilan took a few deep breaths to suppress the rising sobs. After holding Gu Xinran for a moment longer, she pulled away from her embrace.
She wiped her tears with a tissue, the tip of her nose turning slightly red.
Gu Xinran glanced at the surrounding streets. They weren't far from her home, so she had Fang Jinghai pull over. She took Bai Yilan's hand, and they started walking home.
The night breeze was cool. Gu Xinran took out a jacket and draped it over her shoulders.
"Let's go sit over there," Bai Yilan said, pointing to the pond in the park.
"Okay."
The two went to the edge of the pond. Gu Xinran spread her jacket over a rock for Bai Yilan to sit on.
She quietly watched the ripples on the pond's surface, stirred by the gentle breeze.
Gu Xinran quietly watched her.
Neither of them spoke.
"That was… my mother," Bai Yilan murmured softly.
Gu Xinran was startled. Although she had already suspected it, hearing Bai Yilan say it out loud was still a great shock to her.
Who would have thought that the top mogul who dominated the fashion world was actually Yilan's biological mother!
Gu Xinran composed herself, her brow furrowing slightly. "Then, Bai Yiyue is…?"
"My half-sister. She's three years older than me."
Gu Xinran nodded, but then felt something was off.
"Half-sister? Then… President Shi isn't Bai Yiyue's mother?"
Bai Yilan looked at her and shook her head gently. "Her biological daughter was sitting in the audience, unable to get a single glance from her, yet she treats her adopted daughter like a priceless treasure, showing her every possible care."
"Isn't it ridiculous?"
Gu Xinran gently stroked her head, letting her rest against her heart. "Why?"
"Perhaps, to her, I was useless."
"I'm an illegitimate daughter. My name couldn't even be entered into the family records. The Bai family doesn't acknowledge me as a daughter."
"When I was five, she sent me to my current adoptive mother. To this day, I can count the number of times I've seen her on one hand."
"But why?"
Bai Yilan took a deep breath, her gaze distant as if lost in a memory.
"I was five that year. My father and Bai Yiyue's mother had both passed away. My mother was managing all the family affairs, big and small. She was so busy she had no time for me. That day, Bai Yiyue and I were home alone. She accidentally fell down the stairs and hurt her leg, but she insisted that I had pushed her. All the nannies and maids in the house told the same story. I felt so wronged. I just grabbed my mother's hand and told her I didn't do it, I really didn't."
"But she didn't believe me at all."
"For the next few days, she stayed by Bai Yiyue's side almost constantly, completely ignoring me. I was terrified and miserable every day. I couldn't understand. Bai Yiyue had clearly fallen on her own, so why was everyone framing me? Why did even my mother give me the cold shoulder over it? I was so scared that she, like everyone else, would think I was a bad child who would push someone down the stairs."
"Several days passed in a state of anxiety. That day, she came to my room. I thought she was there to listen to my explanation, but instead, she had the maids pack my luggage and threw me out of the house."
"She was colder that day than I had ever seen her. She didn't even look at me, just coldly ordered someone to send me away."
"I saw Bai Yiyue standing behind her, clutching the corner of her clothes. She was looking at me and smiling, a triumphant smile. Just like a moment ago, when she smiled as she walked toward me."
Hearing this, Gu Xinran felt a sharp pain in her chest, followed by a surge of anger. "Just because of something so trivial??"
"Later, I secretly ran away from my new home to go back, but I got lost. It grew dark, and I just sat on the side of the road, watching the houses across the street light up one by one. Everyone had a home to return to, but I… I didn't know where my home was."
Bai Yilan's voice choked with emotion. Even now, she could still recall that cold night, that profound despair and helplessness. She remembered how, that night, she had longed for the warm embrace of her parents, reminiscing about the home that was once so warm.
Gu Xinran was fuming, but seeing Bai Yilan's sorrowful expression, she quickly suppressed her anger. She caressed her cheek, wiping away her tears. "Don't think about her."
"You still have me."
Bai Yilan looked up at her, her eyes glistening with unshed tears that she fought to hold back.
She smiled faintly and touched Gu Xinran's cheek. "Thank goodness I have you."
That night, Bai Yilan lay on her side, curled up and clutching the blanket, fast asleep.
Gu Xinran sat by the bed, watching her quietly for a while. Seeing the deep furrow in Yilan's brow, she gently reached out to smooth it away.
She turned up the air conditioner's temperature, then got up as quietly as she could. She went to the study and dialed Fang Yi's number.
"Hello… Ah, Sister Ran, what's wrong? It's the middle of the night."
"Don't go to sleep just yet. I need you to do something for me. Help me look someone up."
"Sure, who is it?"
"Shi Qing. Help me find out how she married into the Bai family."
"Eh? Hiss, I think I've seen something about this somewhere. Hold on, let me turn on my computer."
"Okay."
A moment later, the sound of furious typing came through the phone.
"Sister Ran, are you still there?"
"Yes, go ahead."
"It's quite a coincidence, actually. A while ago, Sister Qi asked me to investigate Shi Qing's background. I couldn't find anything at the time; her record was as clean as a blank sheet of paper. But a couple of days ago, I got into a small, private group chat for paparazzi and saw them discussing a shocking scoop. They said a certain mogul in the fashion world was a mistress who drove the original wife to her death, got pregnant out of wedlock, and used her child to marry into a wealthy family. Then her husband died suddenly and mysteriously, and she became the one in power, building the company into the leader of the fashion industry."
"When I first saw that, I didn't realize who it was about. But the last few details all match up with Shi Qing. After all, when you think of a fashion industry giant, she's the one who easily comes to mind."
Hearing phrases like "mistress who took the wife's place," "drove the original wife to her death," and "pregnant out of wedlock," Gu Xinran was also a bit stunned. It was truly difficult to associate those things with Shi Qing. Especially since she had met Shi Qing in person today and had a good impression of her, she couldn't connect her with such words.
But on second thought, Yilan had said she was an illegitimate daughter and that Bai Yiyue was her half-sister. That meant before Shi Qing married into the Bai family, Yilan's father must have had a wife, and the two of them already had Bai Yiyue.
"Wait, where did you say this information came from?"
"A private paparazzi group chat."
"What does that mean? Is someone planning to expose this?"
"It looks like it. By the way, did you see the trending topics tonight? The one about Shi Qing stepping down. It's really strange. Shi Qing's name has always been a taboo in the industry, both in entertainment and fashion. Out of respect for her, news reports would never mention her full name. But today's trending topic used her full name directly, as if someone deliberately arranged it. The moment she relinquished power, the topic was pushed. Something's up."
Gu Xinran nodded, lost in thought for a moment.
"Help me look into Bai Yiyue and Ming Qian as well."
"Bai Yiyue? Why does that name sound so much like the boss's wife's name…" Fang Yi muttered to herself before immediately starting to type.
"Bai Yi… Whoa! This person, this background, it's insane." Fang Yi exclaimed in amazement.
"What is it?"
"Bai Yiyue, female, thirty-two years old. Father, Bai Chengli; mother, Xue Jiahan. The Bai family is the founding family of Wei Yi, and the Xue family is also a major wealthy family. A perfect match in terms of social standing. This woman was truly a young lady born with a golden spoon in her mouth. She really won the birth lottery. Eh? But her mother passed away when she was five, and she was then raised under Shi Qing's care. Shi Qing personally taught her and treated her as her own. Today, Shi Qing relinquished power, and the Bai family's Wei Yi Group has been handed over to her entirely. Hiss, taking charge of such a huge enterprise at thirty-two, with the powerful Xue family backing her… it'd be hard for her not to succeed."
"Sister Ran, did you hear that?"
"Yes. What about Ming Qian?"
"The executive president of Ming Family Fashion. Eeh, it seems this President Ming has a thing for Bai Yiyue. The two were classmates and even appeared as a couple during college, but they both denied it afterward."
Gu Xinran nodded, organizing the clues in her mind.
She couldn't ignore Ming Qian's behavior at the banquet today. When Shi Qing announced she was handing power to Bai Yiyue, she was the first to lead the applause. To dare to stick her neck out on such an occasion… Gu Xinran wouldn't believe there was nothing between them.
She carefully recalled the image of Shi Qing and Bai Yiyue on stage together. Bai Yiyue had clung to Shi Qing's arm, trying to show how close they were, but Shi Qing hadn't met her gaze.
And Ming Qian's constant checking of the time was also truly intriguing.
"Huh?" Fang Yi suddenly let out a soft cry.
"What's wrong?"
"I just saw that these paparazzi originally planned to release this huge scoop on Shi Qing's birthday, but for some reason, they didn't. Maybe some big shot stepped in and bought the dirt."
Gu Xinran raised an eyebrow. Combining this with all the events at the banquet, a flash of insight struck her.
"Fang Yi, I have to trouble you again. Help me find out what major events happened to the Wei Yi Group thirty years ago."
"Thirty years ago? That's going to be a bit difficult."
"That's why I'm asking you. I don't want gossip. I want facts."
"Alright, I'll do my best."
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