The sweetest in the entertainment industry

Chapter 696 No Expectations
Gu Lanxi felt that she had been having some bad luck these past few months, and life was just going wrong in every way.

So, having a rare day off, she immediately bundled herself up tightly and secretly went to Baiyun Temple to offer incense to Doumu Yuanjun. Afterward, she also generously donated a large sum of money for incense oil.

Afraid of being recognized, she didn't linger and left the temple after paying her respects to Doumu Yuanjun.

The sun was shining brightly that day, a rare good day in winter. It was a rare treat to go out, and with the kids not around, it was impossible to go home and lie down after nine o'clock.

Gu Lanxi turned the steering wheel and headed straight for Chongming.

A few days ago, it was widely reported in birdwatching circles that a white-naped crane was spotted in Dongtan. This small grey crane is globally endangered and is a Class I protected animal in China. Gu Lanxi has never seen one before.

I was really excited when I saw the news, but the production team was rushing to meet the deadline, so no matter how tempting it was, I couldn't go.

With a rare holiday and good weather, she certainly wouldn't miss this wonderful opportunity.

These endangered species could be lost forever if we're not careful, so we should see them as soon as possible.

In winter, when you wear thick clothes, a mask, a baseball cap, and pull up the hood of your windbreaker, you can blend into the crowd and, by slightly changing your walking posture, no one will recognize you.

Although it's a bit tiring, she's going to the countryside and won't be staying in the city for long.

Compared to the wetland park, which is more suitable for recreation, the nature reserve does not charge an entrance fee. However, in December, no individual passes are issued for the core area. She can only apply to go to the research base. If she wants to see white-naped cranes, she can only try her luck.

Even so, you still need to make an appointment seven days in advance through the official WeChat account.

If she hadn't been so eager to come and hadn't specifically set an alarm to try and secure a spot, she probably wouldn't have been able to make it.

Once you arrive at the destination, you can't just wander around; you have to take a shuttle bus to a suitable birdwatching spot.

Once I arrived at my destination, I parked the car, opened the trunk, took out my equipment, put on sunglasses and a hat, slung my bag over my shoulder, and left.

When we arrived at the shuttle bus waiting area, there were already many tourists waiting.

Even though it's winter, it's rare to see someone as bundled up as she is.

Several young people, both men and women, stood together in the crowd, all wearing masks. When they saw her, they showed a hint of excitement, but none of them came over. Instead, they took out baseball caps from their bags and put them on, and then, like her, buttoned up their jacket hoods.

In recent years, this cool yet aloof style has become very popular in the entertainment industry, and young people have followed suit and also like it.

In this way, Gu Lanxi blended in without standing out at all.

The reservation period was too long, so a group of "connections" quietly followed her after learning that she was coming to birdwatch, but they didn't intend to disturb her.

But Gu Lanxi dared not take the risk. If things went wrong, she would not go in to chase the white-headed crane.

She is not someone without decisiveness.

Having made up his mind, he immediately walked over and casually struck up a conversation with them: "What time did you arrive?"

Gu Lanxi went out today, not only carrying a brand new, unmarked item, but also deliberately wearing very ordinary clothes. She checked herself over several times before leaving the house, and did not wear any recognizable jewelry or accessories. Even her shoes were a brand new pair. If she didn't make a sound, no one who wasn't a die-hard fan would recognize her.

These people recognized each other immediately upon meeting.

Gu Lanxi decided to take the risk.

It's in the middle of nowhere, and you need a shuttle bus to get in and out of the reserve. It's very far from the parking lot, and if you get stuck here, it's hard to get around.

She came alone today, which is secondary; the main concern is that she might encounter some idiot who could cause trouble in the nature reserve, and then she would have to take the blame.

Afraid she'd run away before going in, the girl in the lead, disregarding her excitement, ignored her question and offered an explanation:
"Before coming here, they didn't know anything about the situation because I didn't tell anyone. Baby, you rarely have a day off, so just pretend we're not here and have fun!"

Gu Lanxi has been on set since October, and hasn't had a few days off in the past two months. Her true fans are very distressed.

It was a rare sight to see her out having fun, and they didn't want to disturb her, but since she was being cautious, they had no choice but to be frank with her.

It has to be said that her fans are probably the people in the world who know her best. As soon as she opens her mouth, they know what she wants to know.

Gu Lanxi debuted early, and her fans who are a little older than her like to call her baby, darling, or even her daughter or little sister.

Having encountered many "mommy fans" in the past, Gu Lanxi wasn't embarrassed when she met them again. She politely explained, "I was mainly scared a while ago because I was frightened."

She didn't say anything like "we shouldn't doubt them." Those who followed them privately were, strictly speaking, sasaeng fans, and Gu Lanxi didn't beat them up only because they weren't that crazy.

It's perfectly reasonable to fear that they are unscrupulous illegitimate children.

The group of people were very embarrassed, but after gritting their teeth, they still spoke up: "You haven't shown your face for a long time. We just wanted to see you from afar, that's all. If you'd feel uneasy if we were here, we wouldn't go in."

Pursuing personal relationships is a very annoying thing. Even if they think they have kept their distance, they are still afraid of upsetting Gu Lanxi.

Since we're already here, rather than letting the information leak out, we might as well keep it under our noses.

At least if you sense something is wrong, you can run away in advance.

Gu Lanxi spoke very eloquently: "You arrived first, so you must have been waiting for me a long time. Let's go, now that everyone's here, let's go together."

Seeing everyone breathe a sigh of relief, Gu Lanxi couldn't help but laugh: "Hey, if I told you that I feel safer walking with you guys, would you believe me?"

True fans always protect her. Last time, when several people were injured, she never backed down. After confirming their identities, Gu Lanxi gives them the trust they deserve.

Knowing what she meant, the group breathed a sigh of relief, and the atmosphere immediately relaxed.

The group boarded the shuttle bus and began organizing their equipment.

Gu Lanxi could tell at a glance that these people were not professional bird hunters.

Because all their cannons are for chasing stars.

For shooting stars, a telephoto lens is good at capturing human figures, performs well in low light, and is portable with image stabilization. It basically doesn't need a super telephoto lens. However, when shooting birds, it pays more attention to bird eye recognition and continuous autofocus. In addition, it needs to be durable and have a long battery life.

The two needs are completely different, so the preferred camera model and lens will naturally be different.

The machine was new. When Gu Lanxi was at home, she only assembled the gimbal. Now that she was almost there, she took out the heavy tripod and quickly assembled it.

After adjusting the damping, balance, and tension, she took out a reed-colored protective net from her bag, gently unfolded it, and draped it over her body.

A group of fans were stunned, while the professionals in the same industry took a great liking to her and took the initiative to ask about the model of her equipment.

Gu Lanxi is a tech enthusiast and a professional in this area, so she immediately started chatting with someone.

Once they arrived, she was immediately taken away by a group of professional birdwatchers to find the best spot. A group of fans with medium to long telephoto lenses couldn't even get a clear shot of distant birds, let alone birds flying fast.

After discussing it, the group decided to send a representative to ask Gu Lanxi if they could take a picture of her.

Gu Lanxi agreed, but with one condition: the photos must not be released before she leaves.

Everyone nodded in unison, and then voluntarily moved to a place quite far away from them.

The day passed quickly. Around noon, Gu Lanxi shared her portable lunch with her fans and new acquaintances. By the time she was about to leave in the afternoon, she had taken a bunch of photos of various common birds, but the white-naped cranes she wanted to see were still nowhere to be seen.

Back on the shuttle bus, I couldn't help feeling a little down.

When fans asked, she told them about it.

She didn't think much of it at the time, but two days later, she received an invitation from a research team to do a public service activity and help promote knowledge about bird conservation.

"To achieve better results, we'd like to film a public service announcement for you."

Gu Lanxi didn't want to go at first, but the person who came told her directly that she could enter the core area of ​​the reserve.

"The shooting task is easy. If you want, you can also bring your own equipment and take advantage of the breaks to observe them carefully."

This reservation information is different from things like plane tickets. To find it, you need real connections. I suppose the other party must have put in a lot of effort for this collaboration.

Unfortunately, she doesn't contact her fans privately and doesn't know their contact information, so even if she's happy, she can only keep it in her heart.

A day of being pampered by a fan's mother.

I wanted it all, and I got it all.