Oops! I Became a Fan of My Rival Idol! - Chapter 17

Early the next morning, the top ten contestants set off for the recording site of We Love Farming.

Qiao Huihui boarded the bus arranged by the production team with her small bag, settling into a window seat. Almost immediately, Xia Niao trailed after her like a little shadow and plopped down beside her.

“Hehe~ Huihui…” Xia Niao rubbed her hands together, grinning with an ingratiating expression.

Qiao Huihui found the sight a bit unbearable and couldn’t bear to look too long. Hurriedly, she asked what was up.

Xia Niao immediately whipped out her phone. “Let’s follow each other!”

Ever since getting her phone back, she had shamelessly coaxed follows out of everyone around her, especially those ranked higher.

This not only helped maintain her image as a social butterfly but was also a win-win for everyone—after all, which fan wouldn’t want their idol to have good relationships?

If Xia Niao hadn’t brought it up, Qiao Huihui would’ve completely forgotten about it. Her official account’s following list was still a barren zero.

She pulled out her phone, quickly searched for Xia Niao’s name, and hit follow.

“Done!” She waved her phone in front of Xia Niao’s face.

Le Xingshan, sitting in front of them, turned around with a smile upon hearing their conversation. “Huihui, follow me too.”

“And me!” Shu Bailian chimed in.

Soon, the others joined in as well. Qiao Huihui nodded eagerly, fingers flying across her screen.

When she checked her followers list, she saw that the others had already followed her, so she hurriedly followed them back one by one.

By the time she finished, her following count had risen to seven.

Except for Shen Nanqing and Xiao Ninglu.

Xiao Ninglu not following her was to be expected—in fact, the other girl probably didn’t follow anyone, given her perpetually aloof demeanor. The idea of her actively following someone was laughable.

But Shen Nanqing…

Honestly, Qiao Huihui was a little troubled. Ever since yesterday’s performance, Shen Laoshi hadn’t spoken a single word to her, radiating an unmistakable “keep away” aura that made Qiao Huihui too nervous to approach her.

She was certain Shen Nanqing was angry—but about what, she had no clue.

Stealing a glance at Shen Nanqing, who sat alone in the back with her eyes closed and headphones on, clearly signaling she wanted no interaction, Qiao Huihui sighed inwardly.

Women’s hearts are so hard to read. Since she couldn’t figure it out right now, she simply withdrew her gaze and switched her Weibo to her alternate account.

After following Shen Nanqing on her alt, she felt a quiet satisfaction. Staring at the two lone follows, she couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of having her cake and eating it too.

I’ve really gotten carried away. Just by joining this survival show, she’d not only gained an idol but also grown so close to them. The thought made her giddy.

She didn’t dare use her main account freely, but her alt was fair game. First, she searched her own name and found plenty of tweets praising her, which made her preen with pride.

Next, she searched Le Xingshan. If the posts were positive, she liked them all. If they were negative, she pretended not to see them.

Finally, she did the same for Shen Nanqing.

Along the way, she noticed one thing—she had way too many shipping pairings.

Le Xingshan × her, Xia Niao × her, Shu Bailian × her… It seemed like in this production team, anyone could be paired with her.

Qiao Huihui even stumbled upon a bizarre ship—Xiao Ninglu × her—and was utterly baffled. She really couldn’t fathom why shippers had such… unique tastes.

However, there was one thing that puzzled her. Among all these strange pairings, why wasn’t there a single one with Shen Nanqing?

By any measure, she and Shen Nanqing had far more interactions than she did with Xiao Ninglu, right?

Curiosity got the better of her, so she searched specifically for any Shen Nanqing-related ships—only to find absolutely nothing.

This was even weirder. Nowadays, anyone with even a bit of exposure would have all sorts of random pairings—internet-famous cats could be shipped with internet-famous dogs. Yet Shen Nanqing’s record was spotless. This was a first.

Just as she was engrossed in her phone, someone tapped her shoulder. Xia Niao, holding her bag, called out, “We’re here, get off the bus.”

Lost in her scrolling, Qiao Huihui hadn’t even noticed they’d arrived. She quickly grabbed her bag and followed the others off the bus.

This time, Li Shan was leading the group, acting both as their caretaker and temporary manager.

Standing by the bus door with a megaphone, she shouted, “Be careful! The mountain path is rough—help each other out later.”

Qiao Huihui suppressed a smile. It felt like a teacher taking a bunch of kids on a field trip.

But Li Shan wasn’t wrong—the mountain path was indeed treacherous. A recent rain had turned the dirt road into a muddy mess, making the girls struggle.

Xia Niao suddenly exclaimed in surprise, “Huihui, how is your shoes still clean?”

Her shout drew everyone’s attention.

All eyes turned to Qiao Huihui’s feet—still pristine and neat—then back at their own, shoes caked in mud, pant legs splattered with dirt.

Shu Bailian asked, “Is there some trick to it?”

Under their collective gaze, Qiao Huihui shook her head. “I don’t know. Maybe because I grew up in the countryside, so I’m used to walking on muddy roads?”

If there was a trick, she honestly didn’t know it.

This wasn’t something that could be learned—years of experience were at play here. Disappointed, the others turned away.

Only Xiao Ninglu wore a faint sneer as Qiao Huihui spoke.

Just a country bumpkin who’s never seen the world. How can someone like this outrank me?

The thought of yesterday’s voting results still left her seething.

After a grueling trek, they finally arrived at a small farmhouse.

This courtyard stood out from the rest, exuding a whimsical rustic charm—clearly a set specially built for filming.

Le Xingshan stepped forward and knocked. A man in his forties answered the door.

“Ah, you’re all early! Come in and rest,” he said warmly, smiling.

The girls thanked him and followed him inside.

The man who greeted them was Li Sheng, a veteran host from Orange TV and one of the network’s top talents. Those who’d worked with him praised his high emotional intelligence and kindness.

Then, two more people emerged from the house one after another—they were the regular guests of the show.

Veteran actor Zhao Xining and rising young star Sun Ling.

Zhao Xining was quite the funny guy. As soon as he came out, he exaggeratedly exclaimed, “Wow, this time it’s all young ladies! Finally, we don’t have to make do with just the three of us smelly men.”

Li Sheng joined in the teasing, “What’s wrong? Were you really that miserable filming with just the two of us smelly men?”

“Ah… it’s just too much yang and not enough yin,” Zhao Xining sighed dramatically, feigning melancholy.

The girls immediately covered their mouths and giggled.

Sun Ling didn’t talk much but busied himself running back and forth, helping them carry bags and fetching slippers.

All in all, Qiao Huihui had a pretty good first impression of all three of them.

Their rooms were assigned to the second floor, and the place was filled with cameras—even more exaggerated than in The Dazzling You.

On a variety show, the most important thing is to showcase yourself. Sitting around doing nothing is definitely not an option—opportunities have to be seized. So everyone scrambled to help Li Sheng and the others with their tasks.

Two of the girls were quite skilled at cooking, so they volunteered to stay in the kitchen. Others wanted to experience the joy of farming, so they followed Sun Ling to the fields to plant rice seedlings—like Le Xingshan and Shu Bailian.

After some thought, Qiao Huihui grabbed a basket of grass and went to feed the pigs, while Xia Niao eagerly volunteered to catch the chicken they’d be eating that night.

Shen Nanqing and Jian Luobai had somehow ended up together, figuring out how to chop firewood.

Before long, the small courtyard was bustling with activity, brimming with the energy of daily life.

“Little piggies~ time to eat!” Qiao Huihui opened the pigpen, ready to pour the feed into the trough.

But before she could even bend down, a massive, plump pig charged from behind and knocked her to the ground.

It didn’t hurt much, but she was completely stunned.

Qiao Huihui scrambled up, looking utterly disbelieving. She even felt like her title as the “Little Rural Overlord” was being challenged.

Back in her hometown, all the chickens, ducks, geese, and pigs had revered her as their boss. Yet here, in a new place, she was being bullied like this.

Truly, a mighty dragon is no match for a local pig.

She shifted the basket in her hands, keeping it far away from the pig that had rammed her, and even stuck out her tongue teasingly. “Hah! No food for you, since you’re so mean.” With that, she grabbed a handful and tossed it to another pig, watching as it happily chomped away.

The pig that had been denied food grew furious. It scraped its hind hooves against the ground, lowered its front half, and prepared for another wild charge. But this time, Qiao Huihui was ready. Clutching the basket tightly, she dodged left and right, not letting the pig so much as graze her clothes.

Unexpectedly, the pig didn’t play by the rules. After a feint, it suddenly charged toward the half-open pigpen gate—breaking free in a daring escape.

A two- or three-hundred-pound pig on the run was nothing short of earth-shaking. For a moment, everyone in the courtyard froze—especially Xia Niao, who was in the middle of chasing chickens, because the pig was heading straight for her.

The chickens scattered in a flurry of feathers, leaving Xia Niao stunned and weak in the knees. The others gasped, “Watch out!”

Qiao Huihui was also startled. She quickly gave chase, trying to catch the runaway pig.

Shen Nanqing, still holding an axe, nearly rushed forward too.

Then, in one swift leap, Qiao Huihui landed right on the pig’s back.

She was riding it…

Riding the pig???

The entire scene fell silent, save for the squeals of the fat pig wildly thrashing around.

As soon as Zhao Xining pushed the door open and saw the scene, he was startled. “Whoa, why’s there a fight with a pig here?”

His words seemed to trigger some kind of mechanism, making the others burst into laughter, clutching their stomachs in pain. The staff quickly snapped out of it and rushed to restrain the fat pig.