Chapter 788: New Year's Eve Reunion

Since parting ways at the hot pot restaurant, only a day had passed before everyone gathered together once more.

They were preparing to spend New Year's Day together.

Coincidentally, although everyone had live stage performances on New Year's Day, they were all scheduled early, so there was no need to wait for the countdown.

Thus, after finishing their live performances, they set off for the hot pot restaurant again.

There is nothing that a meal of hot pot cannot solve; if it doesn't work, then have two.

People arrived one after another, and the last to arrive was Jin Li.

The hot pot ingredients had already been added in advance, so she could eat as soon as she arrived.

Gu Cheng piled up a bunch of vegetables she liked and placed them in her bowl to cool down.

Jin Li looked out the window; as expected, it was snowing today, matching the weather of the pre-recorded Bilibili stage performance from before.

Gu Cheng reached out to brush aside the stray hair on her forehead; she was still wearing her stage makeup, having only changed into casual clothes.

He asked, "How was the stage today?"

Jin Li's eyes curved slightly, her gaze very soft.

"Very smooth. The song was simple, and we put more effort into the props. Since we had rehearsed many times, there were no accidents. How about you?"

Gu Cheng also smiled: "The same. This time, the live stage performance featured one of the group's classic songs. The choreography didn't change much; I could almost perform it with my eyes closed without making a mistake."

Chen Lin was whispering to Qi Guan Mingzhu, and the two were playing games together.

Yan Xingdong was chatting with Xi Mengze about future schedules, checking if there were any overlaps so they could record "Leisurely Slow Life" together.

Ji Qinglian had nothing to do, so she simply checked the trending topics of the day to see which artist was topping the charts.

As it happened, Jin Li was on the trending list tonight, and March Sky was on it too.

Jin Li was trending for her divine appearance on the Bilibili pre-recorded stage, looking just like a snow elf who had descended to the human world.

March Sky was trending for the same reason—their new song pre-recorded for Bilibili.

Among tonight's New Year's Eve galas, Bilibili's was considered the most successful because it had the most trending topics, and netizens expressed that the quality was very high.

[Has everyone noticed? Jin Li is becoming more and more professional, and even more beautiful!]

[You're not the only one! It's the first time I've discovered that stars can actually reverse their aging!]

[Ahhh, March Sky, I'm crying to death. They are actually preparing a new album; being a fan of their group is just too happy!]

[I used to worry that March Sky would suddenly disband, but I'm not worried anymore. I hope they release a new album every year!]

There were other celebrities on the trending list, mostly positive, with a small portion being negative, such as lip-syncing or couples appearing to be together in name only.

Ji Qinglian thought for a moment and asked Luo Yi, who was also looking at the trending topics: "Are you officially making a comeback next, using the new album for promotion?"

Luo Yi nodded: "Yes, we'll be running around for promotions like crazy for the next three months. If there are group brand endorsements, we'll do those together, and we've also accepted some variety shows."

He asked curiously: "Why, are you interested in the comeback group's schedule? Does Pink Girls want to make a comeback too?"

Ji Qinglian shook her head: "No, I'm just seeing if Tianding will do anything against you. If it's just a normal comeback, they won't care.

But your comeback this time is clearly unusual. Tianding has several boy groups under its banner, and they might do something for fear that you'll snatch their promotional slots."

Luo Yi gave a light scoff, "Tianding?"

"They'd better not do anything, otherwise Brother Guang will absolutely not be soft-hearted. It's already good that we haven't looked for trouble with Tianding, only targeting the June Summer boy group.

If Tianding dares to trip us up, I can guarantee that half of Tianding's boy group business will be crippled. Don't ever underestimate the tyrannical monopoly a top boy group has on promotional slots."

Ji Qinglian nodded; she also believed that March Sky had this strength.

However, she was a female star, and they were a boy group, so their business did not overlap.

Even if there were overlaps, they didn't belong to a competitive relationship, so neither side viewed the other as an opponent.

As for the conflicts between companies, that was not something for artists to manage.

For a female star of her current status, the impact of company turmoil was already very small.

New Year's Day, a new year.

On this incredibly special day, with friends gathered together, time always passes quickly.

By the time the group came out of the restaurant, it was just in time for the midnight countdown.

There was a large countdown screen nearby, and Jin Li and the others watched it, shouting together starting from "10".

"10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!"

"Happy New Year!!"

"Happy New Year's Day!!"

People nearby released balloons; those balloons flew into the sky, covering the firmament for a moment, beautiful and romantic.

Qi Guan Mingzhu said with regret: "It's a pity we can't release sky lanterns, otherwise how beautiful it would be!"

Chen Lin said with a grin: "Sky lanterns are hard to deal with afterward; I'm afraid they'll land on the mountains and cause a wildfire. But I know a place where we can release them; I'll take you next time."

Qi Guan Mingzhu was coaxed into happiness, her brows curving: "Okay!"

Gu Cheng looked at the sky, "Are we going back to rest now, or are we getting a room to play all night?"

Chen Lin exclaimed: "That's definitely all night! Today is New Year's, a brand new year! Come, come, let's play games, play cards, play mahjong... pick anything!"

Regardless of whether her constitution was poor or had improved, Jin Li never stayed up late.

Even during past New Year's Days or Spring Festivals, she had never stayed up late.

This year's New Year's Day was the first time she had stayed up late, and her body was quite unaccustomed to it; she was already drowsy when getting into the car.

Gu Cheng let her lean on him and put noise-canceling earplugs on her.

In the car, Chen Lin was still organizing activities, and Gu Cheng took the initiative to say: "I'm not playing; I need to rest early."

Chen Lin glanced at Jin Li, who was already asleep, and said with a smirk: "You're trying to protect your wife, aren't you? Afraid she'll wake up in the middle of the night and not find anyone?"

Gu Cheng was noncommittal and said calmly: "I'm getting old; I don't have the energy."

Chen Lin: "...You don't have to say that about yourself."

They were all under thirty on average; how could they be old?

But as male stars, especially idols, they were indeed getting a bit old.

Yan Xingdong and Luo Yi had originally planned to accompany Chen Lin to play wildly all night, but seeing Gu Cheng not playing, and thinking about how they would become incredibly busy starting the day after tomorrow, they couldn't help but feel a headache.

Yan Xingdong: "Forget it, it's not early after we get back; let's rest early. Let's get our energy up for today and tomorrow, because we have to start fighting the day after tomorrow."

Since the captain had spoken, the others dared not disobey.

Chen Lin's wish to stay up late playing games was not realized, but he did realize another wish, which was to move into Qi Guan Mingzhu's apartment.

The next day, when Jin Li got up, Gu Cheng was still sleeping.

She went downstairs to exercise first, and by the time she returned, Gu Cheng had just woken up.

Jin Li's face, just after exercising, was flushed, like a delicate flower dripping with dew; the sweat on her forehead was like dew accidentally stained on the petals, making her look both youthful and charming.

Gu Cheng felt that she used to have a faint expression, like a goddess high above in the heavens.

But now, she seemed to have merged into the world, becoming a human flower of wealth being pampered.

Jin Li had matured and also had more "human touch."

Jin Li walked to Gu Cheng's side, tilted her eyes slightly, and reached out to wave in front of him.

"Why are you dazed?"

Gu Cheng came back to his senses and said embarrassedly: "I was looking at you because you're too beautiful, and I got dazed."

Jin Li was choked up.

These words were so sincere that one didn't know how to respond.

She smiled indifferently, "Is that so? I don't feel it; there are too many beauties in the entertainment industry."

Gu Cheng said seriously: "It's different; you are not like them at all."

He couldn't clearly describe what kind of feeling it was, but it was just different.