Against the Light - Chapter 176

Chapter 176: Celebration Banquet

Today was the celebration banquet for Deep Love.

Gu Xinran had wanted to go to the company early to help everyone set up, but Qu Qi stopped her. It wasn't until nearly evening that Fang Yi came to pick them up.

In the car, Xiao Ye sat obediently in her safety seat, blinking her big eyes and looking from side to side, a lovely smile unconsciously spreading across her face.

"Why is our Little Milk Bun so happy today?" Fang Yi asked with a smile.

"Hmm? Xiao Ye is wearing a very pretty dress!" Xiao Ye sat up straight, as if wanting to show off her clothes.

"Oh, it is! It's so pretty. Are you wearing matching outfits with your moms?" Fang Yi glanced at Gu Xinran beside her. The family of three was wearing the same series of "sky dresses," a new design by Yilan.

The little one's dress was a blue and white gradient princess dress, exceptionally cute. Yilan wore a sky-blue long dress with a hem that graded from sky blue to deep blue, simple and serene. Xinran, on the other hand, wore a deep blue starry sky dress, as if she had draped the Milky Way over herself, looking cool and noble.

The little one nodded, turning her head to look at Yilan with a proud expression.

"Xiao Ye… Xiao Ye helped Mommy make the clothes!"

"Oh? That's amazing!"

"Mhm!"

Bai Yilan looked at Xiao Ye's proud little face and smilingly stroked her head.

Before long, the car slowly stopped in front of the company building.

Fang Yi glanced up at the building and sent a message to Qu Qi, letting her know they had arrived.

Soon after, Qu Qi came downstairs personally to greet them.

"Auntie Qu Qi!" Xiao Ye proactively greeted Qu Qi.

"Hello, Little Milk Bun. Come, let Auntie give you a hug~" Qu Qi lifted the little one and weighed her in her arms. She was heavier, having grown a bit since the last time she saw her.

Cuddling the Little Milk Bun, she walked towards the lobby. At the entrance, Qu Qi paused and gestured for Fang Yi to take the two of them inside first.

Gu Xinran knew something was up with just a glance. She walked in magnanimously. Sure enough, in the next second, with a series of pops, the staff pulled open party poppers, and countless colorful ribbons rained down from above, covering the two of them.

"Wow—" Qu Qi had covered Xiao Ye's little ears in advance, so she wasn't scared at all. Instead, she watched the falling ribbons with great interest, reaching out her little hands to catch a few, finding it all very novel.

"Hello, Boss and Lady Boss~" everyone from Heart Entertainment shouted in unison.

Gu Xinran glanced at everyone, giving them a mock glare. "You scared me!"

"Haha~"

"Wow, Sister Ran, is your family of three wearing matching outfits? They're so beautiful!"

"Huh? This color scheme looks so familiar. I feel like I've seen it somewhere."

"I remember! In that one variety show, didn't Sister Lan paint a swing set? It was this exact gradient, from the color of the daytime sky to the evening sky!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Ah, it's so gorgeous. I want one~"

The staff chattered amongst themselves, discussing the trio's outfits.

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Lin Yuqing stepped out, just in time to see the family of three.

"Auntie Lin!" Xiao Ye's radar immediately detected her Auntie Lin, and she called out in her milky voice.

Hearing her voice, Lin Yuqing broke into a smile and walked over.

Xiao Ye's eyes widened as she looked her up and down, then her eyes curved into a smile. "Auntie Lin, you're so pretty!"

"Hey? Xiao Ye, isn't Auntie Qu Qi pretty??" Qu Qi was displeased to hear the little one praise Lin Yuqing right away.

"Heh~" The little one just giggled at her, completely ignoring her question.

"Sister Ran, Sister Lan, everything's set up upstairs. We're just waiting for you two," Lin Yuqing greeted Gu Xinran and Bai Yilan.

"Let's go. Let's see what kind of surprise this bunch has prepared," Gu Xinran said, taking her beloved wife's arm and entering the elevator.

Soon, the elevator stopped. The doors slowly opened to reveal complete darkness. Gu Xinran and Bai Yilan exchanged a look. Lin Yuqing smiled at them, stepped out, and held the elevator door open with one hand.

The group exited the elevator. As the doors closed, the wall sconces lit up.

They looked at the walls. Gu Xinran's gaze was immediately drawn in. She walked over for a closer look and saw that the walls were covered with photos.

"I met Xinran on the show 【Escape from Death】. At the time, she had a bad reputation and had clashed with the other guests on the show, so no one wanted to team up with her. But that recording completely changed my opinion of her. She's low-key, humble, polite, brave, and resourceful, and she's very considerate of others. We were in the middle of nowhere when a sudden downpour started. Everyone was panicking, but she told me, 'I know you're under pressure, but you have to believe that besides you, no one else can lead everyone to that cave.' Her voice was so steady and calm, it made me feel incredibly at ease."

Huo Jie's voice sounded as a white screen on the opposite wall lit up, playing a short film.

"I also met Sister Ran on 【Escape from Death】. She fulfilled my greatest wish at the time by letting me eat a delicious, fragrant, and perfectly cooked grilled fish on a survival show. She's such a good person." Shen Can's voice held a hint of a smile, drawing a wave of laughter.

Gu Xinran chuckled along with them.

"I also met Sister Ran on this show. I was just an inconspicuous camerawoman back then. Sister Ran didn't look down on me and treated me as an equal. In that environment, she always saved a portion of every meal for me, making the entire crew incredibly envious. When it was pouring rain that day, I offered her my poncho, but she told me, 'No one is more precious than anyone else.' At that moment, I decided I had to follow her," Fang Jinghai said.

Listening to their stories, Gu Xinran also recalled the situation back then. At that time, she still thought she had been reborn. She had just arrived, her reputation was in tatters, and she was being attacked by the entire internet. It was thanks to this variety show that her career began to see a glimmer of hope.

"Sister Ran and I met on 【A Good Show】. She was hiding her identity at the time, using the alias 'Little Fairy,' which made me incredibly curious. I was probably the first person to find out who she was because we were sharing a room. One night, while she was sleeping, she said Teacher Bai's name," Lin Guo said.

"I originally had a very bad impression of her too, but after getting to know her, I realized she's a really good person. During the recording, she was always patient and taught us acting without holding anything back. She really taught me a lot. I'm very grateful and feel very lucky to have met her."

"I also met Xinran on 【A Good Show】. What left the deepest impression on me was after Guozi got injured and Teacher Bai withdrew from the competition. I was really desperate then, but she didn't give up. She went over the details with me and Guozi again and again. Without her, we couldn't have won that competition," Qin Qiong added.

"And that scene where she tore Yang Xue apart on stage during the finals! I'll never forget it. It was so satisfying!!"

Gu Xinran smiled softly and turned to look at Yilan, squeezing her hand. She was grateful for that show. It had allowed her to make a beautiful comeback, and through it, she had also gotten to interact a lot with Yilan.

"I also got to know Xinran again on that show, but at the time, because of the matter with her and Yilan, I still had some reservations about her. When I terminated my contract with my previous company, her Heart Entertainment extended an olive branch, but I refused. Later, during the plagiarism incident with The Ode to Mountains and Rivers, her actions of resolutely boycotting plagiarism and being willing to go bankrupt to protect the original author really surprised me. It completely changed my opinion of her. I really wanted to work with her once, and I'm glad she didn't hold a grudge and signed me," Ye Qihan said.

"My turn. I met Sister Ran during the plastic surgery incident. She's always been my idol; I just love her straightforward personality. During that incident, I went to the hospital with her and we publicly shut down that group of unscrupulous doctors. It was so satisfying. Later, Sister Ran told me to focus on my studies and that if I was interested after graduation, I could come develop my career at Heart Entertainment. I thought she was joking, but the day after I graduated, she had someone pick me up and bring me to Heart Entertainment. She always keeps her word and acts decisively. Following her is the best decision I've ever made in my life," Fang Yi said, her face full of pride.

"I was picked up by Sister Ran at the film studio. I'm grateful to her for letting me become part of this big family and for protecting our little dreams."

"Me too. Thank you, Sister Ran."

After a brief white screen, a line of text flashed: 【What's the most memorable thing Xinran has done?】

"The thing that left the deepest impression on me was when her design was plagiarized by Ye Ting, and she stormed onto the set to confront her in public!"

"For me, it was 【Wonderful Love】! The two of them managed to live a life like poetry even in a harsh environment. Their sweetness made everyone so envious! And that fighting chicken!"

"The deepest, deepest impression was definitely 【Queen's Stage】! She turned a talent competition into a matchmaking show and actually managed to snatch away someone else's Movie Queen!"

"【The Secret Room】 deserves a mention too! Locking Guozi up like an NPC—that's a move not just anyone could pull off!"

"Of course, it's 【Dear Baby】! A gentle Sister Ran and an adorable, soft Little Milk Bun. I can't stop my 'auntie smile' every time I watch it."

"What I remember most is working on set. Sister Ran could just be standing there, not doing anything, and she would make you feel incredibly at ease. She's like a stabilizing pillar. As long as you see her, no problem feels like a problem anymore."

Another line of text appeared: 【What do you want to say to Sister Ran?】

"Thank you, Sister Ran. Thank you for founding Heart Entertainment. Thank you for doing your best to bring warmth to everyone around you. You and Sister Lan must be happy forever. We'll work hard to repay you!"

"Thank you for protecting our dreams. Love you."

"I hope Sister Ran can be happy, and I hope Sister Qi can give her more personal space, torment her less, and let her spend more time with Sister Lan and Xiao Ye."

"Hey, after listening for so long, that's the only reliable sentence," Gu Xinran said, and everyone chuckled. The lights in the hall came on. Gu Xinran looked around and saw that all of Heart Entertainment's artists had gathered around her, several of them looking at her with teary eyes.

"You all say you're grateful to me, but actually, I'm very grateful to you too. Thank you for being willing to believe in me. You say I'm protecting your dreams, but in reality, you are the ones protecting your own dreams. You are all amazing, every single one of you." Gu Xinran looked at each of them, her gaze exceptionally firm and reassuring.

A few of the more emotional ones were moved to tears by her words and ran over to hug her one by one.

"Alright, alright, isn't this a celebration banquet? Everyone, be happy. If you really want to thank me, hurry up and get Qu Qi to book less work for me," Gu Xinran said with a laugh.

"Don't you worry, we'll go kidnap her right now! Coercion, bribery, honey traps—we'll use everything on her. There's no way she won't submit!" the crowd responded loudly, rolling up their sleeves as they went to find Qu Qi.

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