Chapter 47

This was the final recording of Light of Stars, the exact moment when the original plot was most likely to unfold. Because Meng Qiuran hadn’t had any opportunities to speak with Gu Ruolan privately recently, she naturally didn’t know that a wardrobe change was required today, nor did she know that Gu Ruolan would be performing a segment of traditional opera.

On her way to the station, Meng Qiuran was different than usual—her expression was grim, and she stopped joking with Yuan Yi. When she wasn’t speaking, she looked lost in deep thought, as if she were searching for something over and over again.

Yuan Yi was worried, but after several attempts to get her attention failed, she realized Meng Qiuran was deep in thought and decided to stay silent as well.

The atmosphere after the recording started was quite good. The production team had specially changed the stage set today, making the overall color palette brighter and more cheerful. They intended to heighten the festive tone of the grand finale and soften the harsh competitive edge of the championship.

Gu Ruolan wore a dark suit today, but with noticeably more accessories. The most eye-catching was a golden leaf brooch.

It was strange; Yuan Yi usually felt that gold accessories suited older people better, but the gold of Gu Ruolan’s brooch was so pure that it didn’t look tacky at all. Set against her dark suit, it was the perfect embellishment, instantly elevating her air of nobility.

Yuan Yi instinctively turned her head, wanting to share her thoughts with Meng Qiuran. She wouldn’t use the word “sexy,” but surely “stunning” was okay.

But when she saw Meng Qiuran’s face, her previous worry resurfaced. “Sister Qiu, what’s wrong?”

Meng Qiuran was also looking at the stage, her expression heavy. There wasn’t a hint of a smile on her lips, and she frowned occasionally as if worried about something.

“It’s the finale today.” Meng Qiuran looked down and pressed her brow. “I hope everything goes smoothly.”

So she’s nervous about this. Yuan Yi smiled. “Are you afraid she’ll be targeted again?”

Meng Qiuran’s gaze returned to the stage. The camera happened to be stolen contentfocused on Gu Ruolan’s side; a contestant had just finished performing and was waiting for the mentors’ critiques.

“She looks very serious today.” Meng Qiuran gestured toward the stage, her tone carrying a hint of disappointment.

Yuan Yi didn’t see it that way. “Not really. she looks about the same as usual.” She looked more closely for a moment and joked, “Is it because she’s wearing dark colors and gold jewelry today? Her age-vibe has gone up?”

Meng Qiuran had already scanned Gu Ruolan like a remote security scanner the moment she stepped on stage, so she naturally hadn’t missed the gold brooch. But she didn’t feel any sense of “age” at all; if anything, it suited Gu Ruolan’s temperament perfectly.

“She’s not old.”

“I’m not saying she’s old. I’m saying that’s why you think she’s being serious.”

“She hasn’t looked this way once today.”

After stating her reason, both Meng Qiuran and Yuan Yi paused. Meng Qiuran was worried Yuan Yi would read into it; she didn’t want her to misunderstand, but she didn’t want to make up too many lies either. Yuan Yi, however, seemed to have been reminded and realized it was true upon reflection.

“Maybe it’s because the lighting positions changed today.” She pointed to a spot above and to the left of Gu Ruolan. “Look, that one seems to be a new addition.”

If it were truly because of the lighting, it might indeed be inconvenient to look over. But Meng Qiuran still felt that Gu Ruolan was in a mood.

Gu Ruolan was very satisfied with Yu Yimeng’s performance today and was generous with her praise. She also gave affirmation and encouragement to the progress of several other students.

Only when it came to Xie Zixuan did Gu Ruolan still refrain from giving a high score. However, she summarized all of Xie’s performances throughout the show and re-emphasized her most prominent issues, hoping she would overcome her greatest shortcomings soon.

Even though she hadn’t participated in every recording, Gu Ruolan hadn’t [stolen content]missed a single episode. She had taken serious notes on every student’s performance as if she were there in person.

But Xie Zixuan didn’t feel that Gu Ruolan was helping her; instead, she felt she was being publicly humiliated.

Most of the students who went up before her had received decent reviews, but when it was her turn, it was nothing but flaws. Usually, she could let it go, but today was the finale where rankings were decided; the old method of “slacking off” wasn’t going to cut it.

Without even thinking, she knew what kind of score Gu Ruolan would give her.

Meng Qiuran asked Yuan Yi, “Have her alt accounts been fully investigated?”

Yuan Yi leaned into her ear. “Mostly. There are about ten active ones. My god, I don’t know if she’s a centipede or something—how does she have so much time to tap a screen?”

Meng Qiuran raised an eyebrow, her gaze still fixed on the stage. She had to be extra careful today. “What does she usually post on her alts?”

“She has a complete split personality. On one, she acts like a brainless fan-girl ‘licking’ her main account. On another, she acts like a hater to intentionally start controversies and bring herself heat. And four of them are dedicated to attacking other artists; the things she says are hideous.”

Meng Qiuran’s lip twitched in disbelief. “She really has that much free time?”

Yuan Yi sighed and shook her head. “I was shocked too.”

“Keep the evidence saved. Don’t miss anything.”

Yuan Yi was curious. “I’ve done all that. Sister Qiu, why did you think to investigate this?”

Meng Qiuran said coolly, “I’m ​stolen content​preparing some ‘gifts’ to help her make her ‘debut’ later.”

It took Yuan Yi a moment to realize what kind of “debut” she meant. She had originally been indifferent to Xie Zixuan, feeling her skills didn’t match her popularity, but after seeing those alt accounts, she had long since turned into a hater.

“If she debuts like that, she’ll definitely be even more famous than she is now.”

The performance segment ended, and the mentors’ scores were being tallied. Gu Ruolan returned to the backstage area. Because of the outfit change and the need to adjust the stage for the mentors’ improvisations, the intermission was quite long.

Meng Qiuran sat for a bit but eventually decided to go find Gu Ruolan. Regardless of whether she was in a mood, she had to ensure they got through today safely. Having Gu Ruolan out of her sight for too long made her feel uneasy.

Gu Ruolan returned to her dressing room. Xiao Yan brought over the costume the program team had prepared. Following her habit, Gu Ruolan inspected it inside and out before getting ready to change.

But when she saw a logo on the inside of the hem, she stopped in her tracks. Xiao Yan, following behind her, saw her stop and nervously bit her lip.

“Sister Lan, what’s wrong?”

Gu Ruolan inspected the logo carefully, her tone serious and even a bit angry. “Who prepared this costume?”

She had been dissatisfied with costumes before, but she rarely got this angry. Xiao Yan took the garment, pretending not to notice a problem. “It looks the same as usual.”

Gu Ruolan took a deep breath to steady her emotions; she didn’t want to take her anger out on Xiao Yan. But this issue had to be clarified. “Look closely at this pattern.”

“Ah… I think I’ve seen it online before.” Xiao Yan’s tone was uncertain.

Gu Ruolan took out her phone, searched a few terms, and showed the result to Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan’s face went ​stolen content​pale. “If this gets filmed and broadcasted, no amount of explaining will fix it.”

It was a very obscure militaristic war-criminal logo, different from the common ones found online. Not many people would recognize it at first glance, but if a malicious person “educated” the public, it would be impossible to defend.

Even if she blamed Penguin TV or the staff, Gu Ruolan wouldn’t be able to clear her name completely. After all, she was the one wearing it; it would be broadcast through her image.

“Change it immediately.”

Xiao Yan hurried out and soon returned with a new costume. “The design of this one is simpler, and there are no patterns. It should be fine.”

Gu Ruolan had just taken it when she heard a knock on the door. Thinking it was someone from the station coming to check on the previous issue, Gu Ruolan didn’t rush to change.

This was the moment Meng Qiuran and Yuan Yi arrived at the dressing room.

Xiao Yan opened the door as usual, but today Gu Ruolan’s response time was noticeably longer than last time. Eventually, they were welcomed inside.

Seeing a set of clothes draped over Gu Ruolan’s arm, Meng Qiuran’s tense nerves twitched. She asked directly, “Are you changing?”

Xiao Yan explained with a smile, “The recording is long today, so all mentors have two outfits.”

Meng Qiuran gave her a perfunctory smile, her attention remaining on Gu Ruolan. She was standing only a few steps away, but she radiated a sense of unapproachable strangeness.

The relaxed ease she had felt through the mirror last time was gone. Gu Ruolan’s “thorns” could be retracted or extended; once she felt someone was not entirely well-meaning, she would activate her self-protection.

Perhaps realizing the company’s support was waning, she had to stay alert, and the safe distance [Read on BaiLianTales]she marked for herself had expanded. Meng Qiuran and Xin Qi might have different positions, but Gu Ruolan knew that neither of them wanted her to take the Xinghe movie.

Gu Ruolan was actually somewhat disappointed; after the café, she had thought Meng Qiuran supported her.

As it turned out, she still cared more about her own interests and her investment plans. But Meng Qiuran had helped her more than once.

She didn’t want to fall out over this, yet the relaxed joy from before had vanished. She found it hard to fake herself off-camera.

Meng Qiuran saw the coldness in her eyes and sighed inwardly—it truly wasn’t the lighting. But solving the potential crisis was more important now. Her intuition told her the problem likely lay with the clothes in Gu Ruolan’s hands.

She walked over slowly, feigning curiosity. “Can I admire it first?”

Gu Ruolan frowned, pulling her arm back slightly, clearly unwilling. Meng Qiuran smiled. “Just looking. I’m not going to steal it to wear myself.”

Gu Ruolan was about to say something when there was another knock. It was Xiang Jing, who likely knew about the first costume issue.

“Ruolan, it’s lucky you were alert this time. If the show had aired like that, the trouble would have been immense.”

Meng Qiuran didn’t know what they were talking about, but from Xiang Jing’s demeanor and tone, she guessed it was a serious incident. “What happened? Will it affect the advertising sponsors?” As a “Gold Master” and the exclusive title sponsor, Meng Qiuran was entitled to know.

Xiang Jing briefly explained, sighing. “It really is thanks to Ruolan’s meticulousness, otherwise…” She shook her head; it was a terrifying thought.

Meng Qiuran looked at Gu Ruolan with new respect; she hadn’t expected her to have such alertness herself. That was good. But solving one crisis wasn’t enough; she couldn’t be careless.

She spoke half-jokingly, ​Read on BaiLianTales​staring at the second costume. “Then I’ll do my part and help check this one, too.”

Gu Ruolan didn’t understand why she was so obsessed with looking at it, but she didn’t want to make an issue of it in front of everyone, so she handed it over.

Meng Qiuran checked it inside and out quite convincingly. She truly couldn’t see a problem. “It looks very nice.” She even felt the fabric; the texture was excellent. She ran her hand over the buttons—they were sturdy.

Just as she was about to hand it back, she felt a metallic texture. Her hand stopped in mid-air, and Gu Ruolan reached out to nothing. After a moment of being stunned, Gu felt a flicker of annoyance.

But Meng Qiuran was focused on finding the source of the metal. She quickly found a zipper on the side. “What kind of unique design is this?” she laughed while pulling it. After just a few tugs, the zipper broke.

This time, everyone was stunned. Meng Qiuran looked at the broken zipper in her hand and felt a wave of relief.

Found you at last.

But in the anxious eyes of the others, Meng Qiuran’s expression—looking like she wanted to smile but was holding it back—held a different meaning.

It looked like she had done it on purpose. But no one dared to say it to her face.

Xiao Yan looked at Gu Ruolan nervously, looking completely panicked and unsure of what to do. Yuan Yi’s eyes were wide, not knowing how to evaluate her boss’s behavior. Xiang Jing had a massive headache; the rumors of Miss Meng’s love for destruction were apparently true. She had been well-behaved for so long, but eventually, she couldn’t help herself.

Gu Ruolan’s feelings were more complex than anyone’s. Confusion, shock, annoyance—after cycling through these emotions, she felt a trace of… gratitude.

Given the quality of that zipper, it was hard to say what kind of scene would have occurred on stage during her opera performance.