Milk Orange Omega Becomes Popular Through a Dating Show [Entertainment Circle] - Chapter 2

The girl opposite staggered and fell, only barely avoiding a hard fall on her behind by catching herself with her palms on the floor…

It was almost instinctive. In the split second before the wooden box was about to hit the girl’s face, Zhong Lin didn’t hesitate and quickly stretched out her other small arm to brace the weight of the box.

Her arm stung with a burning pain. Zhong Lin let out a soft “hiss.”

It hurt so much…

Her slender, pale forearm collided with the corner of the wooden box, causing a large pink abrasion that was dotted with tiny red beads of blood.

The girl opposite barely stabilized her stance, brushing the dust off her clothes before standing up. She lowered her eyes and looked at Zhong Lin’s injured forearm.

If Zhong Lin hadn’t reacted just now, and the box had slammed into her instead, it would have been her own cheek and neck that were grazed at this moment.

Zhong Lin had indeed been irritating for the past two days—a strange, rude, clingy person—so why would she suddenly…

The girl’s voice held a trace of confusion. “You…”

Before she could finish her question, the group of other guests standing opposite rushed over.

Zhou Xiaoduo scurried to the forefront, the first one to rush to Pei Yi. As Zhong Lin’s “good friend,” he didn’t check on Zhong Lin’s scraped arm immediately.

Instead, he leaned in and asked the perfectly fine Pei Yi, “Pei Yi, are you okay??”

“It was Xiao Lin who wasn’t paying attention when she walked, but please don’t blame her.”

“Let me apologize on her behalf first.”

Zhou Xiaoduo was very articulate. His words downplayed the core issue, highlighting that Zhong Lin hadn’t been walking properly, while showcasing his own kindness by proactively excusing his ‘good friend.’

What a wonderful, pure boy.

Most importantly, he concealed the real reason—that Zhong Lin wasn’t watching the road because she was talking to him—effectively pinning the blame on her.

Only after saying all this did Zhou Xiaoduo turn to ask Zhong Lin, “Xiao Lin, are you okay?”

Zhong Lin was still caught up in the boy’s previous statement. This cute, Japanese-style male O had been called “Xiao Duo” by others.

In other words, this person was the male protagonist Omega from the book, “Zhou Xiaoduo.”

Her eyelid twitched involuntarily. Zhong Lin suddenly felt that something wasn’t right. Both her Baize instincts and her interpretation of the book told her that—

This male protagonist named “Zhou Xiaoduo” might not be the good friend the original owner imagined?

Maybe he wasn’t as good as he appeared on the surface??

And what was the name of the girl she had almost hit? Pei Yi.

Wasn’t that the female Alpha lead of the book?!

She remembered this female lead was very powerful. In the middle-to-later part of the novel, it would be revealed that she was the heiress of the Fanghong Group and ranked in the top five of the hot celebrity charts…

She was also the youngest Movie Queen, having won the Golden Elephant Award for Best Actress at the age of 19.

She just didn’t know why she had been inactive for nearly three years?

Zhong Lin secretly pondered. Given the female lead’s background and prospects, “Zhong Lin,” an obscure 18th-tier online personality, seemed utterly mismatched. It must look strange to see the two of them standing together…

A key for every lock, Zhong Lin clearly knew she wasn’t good enough… Pei Yi was too dazzling and too far away.

What everyone didn’t know was—the biggest sponsor of 31-Day Heartbeat Challenge was the Fanghong Group. Part of the reason for the show was to pave the way for Pei Yi’s comeback.

Pei Yi already had a fan base. Although her fan club, the “E-Fans,” had lost some members during her inactive period, those remaining were all true, highly dedicated fans with extreme loyalty.

The “E-Fans” lamented online when they saw Pei Yi going on 31-Day Heartbeat Challenge, complaining—

Why would Pei Yi lower her Movie Queen status just to suffer? To be desperately tied to and leech off of by those nobodies?!
Was she short on money? Let’s crowdfund money for the Movie Queen!!

Later, the original “Zhong Lin” in the book was also blacklisted by the entire internet and exposed for excessively clinging to and pursuing the most-watched Pei Yi, disregarding the feelings of the other guests.

In the end, the original “Zhong Lin” was completely blacklisted, exposed, and met the BE (Bad Ending) of death.

Lacking fire (passion) and destined to be a nobody, the fan circle said she was “self-inflicted drama.”

The female Alpha lead, Pei Yi, was a luxury—unattainable—to the original “Zhong Lin.”

Crucially, the female Alpha lead was just about to be disfigured by her… If that had happened, wouldn’t she be subjected to online bullying and a more intense, faster, and more brutal blacklisting by the entire internet?!

Zhong Lin let out a soft breath: “Sigh…”

So scary…

The future life of a Baize cub was so difficult.

Zhong Lin’s small arm, which was holding the box, trembled involuntarily. A small milk bottle slid out of the edge of the wooden box and rolled onto the floor.

While she was still lost in thought, the pressure on Zhong Lin’s arm suddenly disappeared. The box in her hand was taken away.

The accompanying cameraman, staff, and director had gathered around. Someone took the heavy wooden box from Zhong Lin.

“Why are you still holding the box?” The director looked at Zhong Lin and suddenly felt she was extraordinarily different today. She seemed much purer and cuter than before. Perhaps the heavy smoky makeup had concealed this gem?

The director subtly waved, signaling the cameraman to inch closer, practically shoving the lens into Zhong Lin’s face to give her a big close-up.

At this moment, the director mouthed to Zhong Lin: Quick, talk about why you got hurt?

Zhong Lin was momentarily confused. She misheard it as—

Quick, recite your sponsored product advertisement.

Lowering her head and seeing the milk bottle rolling at her feet, she quickly bent down and picked it up. Zhong Lin remembered this was one of the sponsors of 31-Day Heartbeat Challenge.

Zhong Lin tilted her head slightly, placed the milk bottle against her cheek, and obediently began to recite the advertisement:

“You Yiduo Sour Milk, fresh milk, healthy milk.”

On the inner skin of the pale arm holding the milk bottle, the fresh, large abrasion was clearly visible under the camera. She looked like an obedient little daughter who, despite being injured, wouldn’t cry or fuss.

—She had to obediently recite the commercial.
—She had to be a useful person, not just a lazy drama queen.

Pei Yi looked at that small arm, the vibrant red scrape, and the girl’s profile. Her almond-shaped eyes were clear, her curled eyelashes fluttered, and her light pink lips obediently recited the commercial…

She had a strange feeling—it was as if the person in front of her was different from the original?

Pei Yi slightly turned her head, her eyelid twitching, no longer looking at the girl who had suddenly become pure and lovely.

This must just be an illusion she felt when Zhong Lin blocked the box to save her from injury.

Absolutely an illusion!

The director was shocked. Why was Zhong Lin so dedicated?

Is this… is this still the little drama queen Zhong Lin I saw two days ago?!

The accompanying cameraman was also stunned. He looked up at the director and whispered, “Should we cut this part later?”

The director shook his head, leaning in to whisper to the staff nearby, “Tell You Yiduo Sour Milk to increase their ad payment later.”

The bullet comments went wild:

【She’s suddenly cute? My heart is being attacked!!!】
【You Yiduo Sour Milk needs to pay up!】
【What a miserable girl, she got hurt but didn’t forget to work, her little arm is bleeding…】
【Drama Queen Zhong Lin suddenly dedicated? Trying to create a dedicated image? I don’t believe it… She must be faking it!】
【Drama Queen Zhong Lin get out of the entertainment circle! Everything a Drama Queen does is wrong! Don’t even think about clinging to our Yi Yi! Blacklisting you for ten thousand years!】
【Honestly, if Zhong Lin hadn’t blocked it with her arm, Yi Yi would have been the one scraped!】
【I also think Zhong Lin seems to have changed a bit? She’s become so pretty? Did she really not get surgery? Why didn’t I notice before?!】

These two or three comments that leaned towards Zhong Lin were quickly drowned out by the professional haters’ barrage—

【Zhong Lin get out of the entertainment circle】
【Zhong Lin get out of the entertainment circle +1】
【Zhong Lin get out of the entertainment circle +10086】

…

At this moment, a staff member wearing a pink and white striped shirt arrived. Seeing Zhong Lin, her voice held surprise:

“It’s you, really?! Thank you for helping me move the boxes this morning.”

She opened the medical kit, took out alcohol for disinfection, and used a cotton swab on Zhong Lin’s scrape.

The touch on her arm was cool, with a stinging pain. Zhong Lin bit her molar, and her voice was soft and sweet: “You’re welcome.”

The staff member in the pink and white striped shirt looked up at Zhong Lin, and her touch became even lighter. She felt this female guest was as well-behaved as a little sister.

“You’re a guest… you shouldn’t step in for things like this next time.”

The staff member applied a band-aid for her and slowly stood up. Her tone had become very gentle, like she was speaking to a little sister. “Be sure to listen to the director, okay?”

It was the first time so many people were surrounding her and showing concern. Zhong Lin felt a tiny bit nervous, slowly clenching her fingers and awkwardly rubbing her knee. Her small, delicate jaw nodded repeatedly, and she obediently replied, “Okay.”

She looked down at the neatly placed band-aid on her arm, its pink kitten pattern catching her attention.

Another staff member carrying a makeup bag squatted down. Having heard the guests say the girl hadn’t applied makeup, she rushed over to save the situation.

“Lift your head,” she said.

“You… you haven’t even put on foundation?!”

Zhong Lin: …Foundation?

“Then please help me apply it,” Zhong Lin politely requested.

The makeup artist stared at Zhong Lin’s small face for a moment, then shook her head repeatedly. “No, just like this… it’s perfectly fine.”

She rummaged through her makeup bag for a long time and pulled out an unopened clear lip balm from a pile of lipsticks. “Just keep up with your daily skincare, and applying this will be enough.”

This female guest used to wear extremely heavy smoky makeup, super-long false eyelashes, and exaggerated thick black eyeliner like a cat-girl. It was impossible to tell that her original appearance was like this?!

Her bare face had a youthful, translucent quality.

Even the color of her lips was just right; applying a natural muted pink lipstick didn’t show up much.

The makeup artist felt that her “girl-next-door” look, even just barefaced, was very suitable for a dating show.

A fresh, natural beauty with endearing, deer-like eyes.

She was a very rare type of Omega guest.

Zhong Lin hesitated, wanting to refuse the makeup artist’s suggestion, repeating Zhou Xiaoduo’s earlier words: “This is for the show. My bare face… might not be that good, right?”

The makeup artist sister was a little excited, nodding repeatedly: “It’s good, very good, absolutely excellent!”

“Just like this, trust me!”

Most celebrities she had worked with often had dull skin and scars or flaws due to overwork, but the makeup artist had almost never seen such delicate and fair skin…

It was like a newly ripened little peach, with a faint pink blush showing through the milky white. In short, she was super cute.

Zhong Lin looked up at the director, seeming to seek his opinion.

Stared at by those bright, deer-like eyes, the director felt as if he suddenly had an extra daughter?!

Where was the Zhong Lin who stirred up trouble, constantly gave away chances, and delivered endless editing material to the post-production team?

The director: “…” How did this drama queen female guest suddenly become so lovable?!

The director sheepishly nodded and agreed: “Uh, uh… it’s pretty good. Listen to the makeup artist. You don’t have to wear heavy makeup like before for this show.”

His tone sounded like he was coaxing his own little daughter.

Zhou Xiaoduo, despite his carefully applied natural makeup, still had faint acne scars and spots on his chin.

He subtly raised an eyebrow, feeling a chill for no reason. He refused to believe it!

—Zhong Lin, that scheming female O, must have secretly used some especially good skincare products for the makeup artist to praise her like this…

It was absolutely infuriating!

Another female Omega guest named Liang Shan, wearing a white dress, subtly pressed the corners of her mouth downwards. Before, when she saw Zhong Lin, she only thought of her as a vulgar little online influencer…

She hadn’t expected her bare face to be so striking.

Liang Shan’s heart tightened. The difficulty of the competition had increased. She slightly turned her head and, while no one was looking, discreetly glanced in Pei Yi’s direction.

—The highest quality Alphas often require the most skilled techniques and methods.

Pei Yi disliked excessive enthusiasm and relentless pursuit. The way Zhong Lin used to pester her made her seem cheap and likely led to Pei Yi’s disgust.

Liang Shan, therefore, maintained her composure, not disturbing Pei Yi, and constantly tried to find ways to subtly create a presence in front of her.

She had originally thought that only Zhou Xiaoduo, that “green tea” flirtatious little male O, would be competing with her, but she never expected Zhong Lin’s appearance to be so pure?!

And there was that inexplicable feeling—Zhong Lin seemed to have become prettier, less dramatic, and not so stupid?

Liang Shan sensed a potential crisis.

Zhong Lin’s sudden abandonment of her exaggerated smoky makeup stunned the netizens with her sudden barefaced attack. For a moment, they didn’t even realize that this pure young girl was Zhong Lin—

【Oh my God? Is Zhong Lin really barefaced? She actually didn’t get plastic surgery?!】 (A certain comment claiming Zhong Lin had surgery was immediately proven wrong)
【Suddenly feel like Zhong Lin… is so cute!!!】
【Aww, she’s so cute?! I want her as my daughter!】
【This cub has suddenly become so well-behaved】
【To be honest, have you forgotten what kind of person she is?!】
【What’s with the act of being cute? She must be trying to get Yi Yi’s attention and leech off her fame again, playing the pity card!】
【Zhong Lin get out of the entertainment circle】
【Zhong Lin get out of the entertainment circle +1】
【Zhong Lin get out of the entertainment circle + one billion】

…

Meanwhile, a girl stood near the sofa on the left, wearing a white short blazer over a simple, vintage little black dress. She rested one hand on the back of the sofa, watching with a cold expression.

Pei Yi’s eyes darkened, lingering on Zhong Lin’s cheek for a few seconds. She suddenly understood why she had felt that strange feeling earlier—Zhong Lin was barefaced today.

Her bare face did look a bit good.

But so what?

She was still that Zhong Lin, that strange, overly enthusiastic hanger-on. She was probably just another person trying to leech off the fame… She really hated this kind of immodest Omega, who would shamelessly cling to anyone for even a small bit of resources!

Pei Yi adjusted her white short blazer, stood to the side, and turned away.

Her gaze no longer lingered on Zhong Lin.

Everyone who participated in 31-Day Heartbeat Challenge had their own agenda. Pei Yi participated for two reasons: one for the interests of her family business, and two for herself.

Pei Yi had been inactive for three years, having retired at the peak of her career after winning the Youngest Best Actress award.

Her participation in the dating show this time was actually to solidify her fan base.

Every guest present had impure motives.

Especially Zhong Lin. The aggressive approach she took toward Pei Yi over the past two days fully demonstrated her ambition to leech off the “Movie Queen’s comeback” hype, as well as the dull nature of Zhong Lin’s personality.

But everything was changing in silence.

Pei Yi stood sideways, her slim, smooth legs showing beneath the black satin skirt. She reached up to tuck a falling strand of hair behind her ear, a subtle shadow flashing in her eyes.

Pei Yi’s gaze seemed to unintentionally sweep over the seemingly innocent girl on the sofa—Zhong Lin.

Pei Yi looked towards Zhong Lin, and the corners of her crimson lips slowly curved up. Her cold, pale face didn’t move at all, clearly a superficial, chilling smile. A sudden sense of doubt rose in her heart—

Did the clingy drama queen Zhong Lin suddenly change her script?

She wanted to see what other tricks this person had up her sleeve.

Zhong Lin stood up at that moment. She raised her eyes and happened to look in Pei Yi’s direction.

Pei Yi was looking at Zhong Lin, coldly smiling.

Their eyes met in the air.

Zhong Lin blinked, feeling a little confused. She didn’t seem to notice the sarcasm in Pei Yi’s smile.

The only thing she registered was—

Why was the female Alpha lead smiling at her????

This… felt a little shy.