Chapter 592: The Man Behind (Part 2)

Qi Sheng could have sat in the front row, but at an event like this, he had to sit with Gu Pan.

In the middle of the third row, Qi Sheng and Gu Pan found their seats and sat down.

This area was basically reserved for second-tier stars.

Two rows away, Mao Xiaotong, who had arrived early, smiled and waved at Qi Sheng and Gu Pan.

“Xiaotong looks beautiful today, too.”

Gu Pan glanced at Mao Xiaotong’s gown, complimenting her with a smile.

“You’re the most beautiful.”

Just four words from Qi Sheng were enough to make Gu Pan grin from ear to ear.

“Be good. I’ll reward you later.”

Gu Pan suddenly grew nervous again.

“Honey, can I really win?”

“Don’t you have confidence in yourself?”

Seeing Gu Pan’s worried expression, Qi Sheng comforted her with a smile.

“Your performance in the series was outstanding. The judges aren’t fools; of course they’ll see that.”

“Then you have to remind me later. I’m afraid if I win the award, I’ll get too excited and won’t be able to stop myself from kissing you.”

Gu Pan was giving Qi Sheng a heads-up, not quite trusting herself.

“What’s the big deal? They do air kisses abroad, don’t they?”

Qi Sheng smiled and shrugged.

‘As long as we don’t lock lips, the fans will understand, right?’

‘When we get back tonight, I’ll definitely have Gu Pan and Mao Xiaotong kneel together in their gowns.’

‘Just thinking about that scene… it’ll be absolutely thrilling!’

…

To be honest, there wasn’t much to see at these kinds of award ceremonies.

After all, this was the nation’s most prestigious television award, which meant many of the trending young idols were left out.

People like Reba and Yang Mi, for instance, weren’t even qualified to attend the Bai Yulan Awards.

They’d be torn to shreds online if they tried to show up for clout without a nominated project.

So, in a sea of female celebrities in their 30s, and even 40s…

…the naturally gorgeous Gu Pan couldn’t have stood out more.

The live broadcast cameras also panned to Gu Pan from time to time.

Every time the camera swept over to Gu Pan, it couldn’t help but include Qi Sheng in the shot.

Some people are just born main characters.

Qi Sheng was just sitting there, yet he made the audience watching the livestream subconsciously ignore everyone else.

Even though Gu Pan was ethereally beautiful, she couldn’t steal the spotlight from Qi Sheng.

“Seriously, if this guy debuted as an actor, even with bad acting, he’d have a whole legion of fangirls willing to throw money at him.”

“I want to argue, but I can’t. This guy is way more handsome than Bai Gu and Yan Zu.”

“Damn, there’s no justice in this world. To be that rich and that handsome… I wouldn’t be surprised at all if something was going on between him and Gu Pan.”

“Is that even a question? He’s the company’s boss, and Gu Pan is the actress he’s promoting. It’d be weirder if there *wasn’t* something going on between them.”

“No way! Our Gu Pan would never submit to the casting couch! I believe in Panpan!”

…

Qi Sheng was getting a little bored too, so he opened the Xingchen Video app.

He happened to see the bullet comments and couldn’t help but chuckle.

“What is it?”

Gu Pan leaned over curiously. When she saw the last bullet comment, which Qi Sheng had ‘liked’, a blush crept up her cheeks.

“Casting couch… that’s disgusting.”

Gu Pan secretly reached out and gave his waist a sharp pinch.

“And now, for the award for Best Supporting Actress. The nominees are: Gu Pan for *Thirty Years Old*, Mao Xiaotong for *Thirty Years Old*, Tao Hong for *Little Joy*…”

“Congratulations to Gu Pan, winner of Best Supporting Actress!”

Upon hearing her name, Gu Pan, who had been a nervous wreck just moments before, suddenly felt her mind go completely blank.

When she came to, she was so overcome with excitement that she couldn’t stop herself from leaning in to kiss Qi Sheng.

In that moment, she desperately wanted to share her joy with Qi Sheng.

“The cameras are on us,” Qi Sheng whispered.

Otherwise, this girl might really do something foolish.

‘It was a given that her current fans would absolutely lose their minds.’

‘Not that their opinions mattered a damn, but Qi Sheng didn’t want something like this to affect Gu Pan’s future career.’

‘Being the man behind them… wasn’t that a great feeling?’

…

“I’d like to thank the awards committee for this honor, and I’d like to thank my company for believing in me and giving me such a precious role so early in my career. And finally, to my fans, thank you all for your support. I hope I can be back here again next year!”

After finishing her acceptance speech, Gu Pan walked off the stage, trophy in hand.

This Best Supporting Actress award would save her years of struggling.

In the audience, Mao Xiaotong watched the radiant Gu Pan, her heart filled with envy.

Although she had also been nominated for Best Supporting Actress, she knew full well she was just an also-ran.

Fortunately, now that Gu Pan had won Best Supporting Actress once, she definitely wouldn’t be in the running for it again next year.

When the time came, she might have a chance to get her hands on the trophy herself.

…

「In the Xingchen Video livestream.」

Gu Pan’s fans excitedly flooded the entire screen with comments.

“Congrats, Panpan! So well-deserved! She’s the pinnacle of acting among the post-’95 starlets! Aim for a Best Actress nomination next year!”

“A nomination? Forget that, Panpan’s going to win the whole thing next year, okay!”

“Ahem, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. One step at a time. Panpan’s starting point is already incredibly high. This time, Alice and the Little Bees should have nothing to complain about.”

“Exactly! And they said Panpan didn’t deserve to be the company’s top actress. You want her to be like those other two, just getting by on her looks without winning any real awards?”

“Hey, no infighting, sisters! We’re all one family. Reba and Sister Mi are working hard filming too. They’ve turned down a lot of commercial work this year.”

“A big company really is different. Before, Reba and Sister Mi had pitifully few resources and had to rely on variety shows and commercial appearances to stay relevant. After signing with Universal Entertainment, they were immediately given two S-Level leading roles.”

“But one thing I’m not happy about is that Reba’s and Sister Mi’s new dramas don’t have any romance in them. They’re basically not filming modern romance dramas anymore.”

“What’s so great about modern romance dramas anyway? The plots are always so boring.”

…

Qi Sheng had no interest in reading the bullet comments anymore.

He saw Gu Pan watching Yan Ni on stage, who was holding up the Best Actress trophy, her own eyes filled with envy.

“Don’t be envious. Once *Mountain and Sea Love* airs, next year’s Bai Yulan for Best Actress will be yours, no question.”

“Really?”

“When have I ever lied to you?”

“Hmph, plenty of times. You always say you’ll be quick, but I’ve never seen you finish in less than an hour.”

“Alright, alright. Making suggestive jokes now, are we?”

Seeing Gu Pan blinking provocatively at him, Qi Sheng decided he would teach her a proper lesson when they got back to the hotel.

Even though they had been at it all night yesterday, for a young couple reunited after a long separation, one taste is never enough.

Gu Pan shrank back, remembering how miserably he had “bullied” her last night.

She took out her phone and sent a message to her small group chat, the “Shanghai Sisterhood.”

Gu Pan: “Hey girls, who’s in Shanghai tonight?”

Qu Man: “What’s up? Is everything okay?”

Zong Rui: “Just say the word if you need something. Sister Man and I are both here.”

Zong Lin: “+1! I’m here too!”

Gu Pan: “Hehe, I won the award! I want to celebrate with you all. Everyone who can make it has to come!”

Jiang Wanqiu: “Congrats, Panpan! Why don’t you all come over to my place? The security at my villa is good, so it’s not easy for paparazzi to get pictures.”

Gu Pan: “OK, then he and I will head over separately to avoid being photographed and starting gossip.”

Jiang Wanqiu: “Okay, I’ll have the kitchen staff start preparing now. We’ll have a BBQ tonight.”

Gu Pan: “It’s a plan! I’ll go tell him.”

Putting her phone away, Gu Pan saw Qi Sheng playing a game on his phone and couldn’t help but pout.

“Is the game more fun than me?”

“Spit it out.”

Qi Sheng chuckled and put away his phone. The game he’d been playing was one of Miha You’s mobile titles.

“Honey, I invited all the girls who are in Shanghai to come over… so you’ll spare me tonight, right~?”

Gu Pan had sold out her friends without a moment’s hesitation to save her own skin.

After all, she had to fly back to the Northwest for a shoot tomorrow morning.

If Qi Sheng got his hands on her for one of his “bullying” sessions, she definitely wouldn’t be able to get out of bed tomorrow.

‘Her friends would surely understand,’ she reasoned. ‘At worst, she’d just foot the bill the next time they all went shopping.’

“Hmm…”

Qi Sheng’s eyes lit up when he heard that Qu Man and the others would be there.

‘Sleeping around with a few starlets was interesting enough, I guess.’

‘But their looks were terrible. They weren’t even in the same league as his girlfriends.’

‘It was fine for a bit of fun now and then, but for everyday enjoyment, the quality of his own stable of girlfriends was what mattered.’

‘He could pick any one of them at random, and she’d be A-list level.’

“And… you can tear this dress tonight, if you want.”

Gu Pan said through gritted teeth, trying to hide how reluctant she was to make the offer.

She was really going all out just to make it to her shoot.

Her beautiful new gown, worn just once, was now doomed.

“Deal.”

Qi Sheng agreed readily, already starting to look forward to the “no-holds-barred” party tonight.