Oops! I Became a Fan of My Rival Idol! - Chapter 32

No—

Wasn’t it said that you two didn’t get along?

Li Shan began to doubt her own memory as she watched the two people before her interacting so intimately. They clearly looked like a pair of good friends!

While thinking that rumors truly couldn’t be trusted, she sighed and remarked, “You two really have such a good relationship.”

It was only then that Qiao Huihui seemed to suddenly remember Li Shan was there. Her body stiffened slightly as she pulled herself out of Shen Nanqing’s embrace and said with a bright smile, “Sister Shanshan, please wait for me a moment. I’ll be ready soon.”

Then she grabbed her toothbrush and dashed into the bathroom to freshen up.

Shen Nanqing, aware of her concerns, struck up a conversation with Li Shan.

“Reality shows always lead to some misunderstandings.”

Li Shan nodded knowingly—she was naturally privy to plenty of industry gossip.

In many variety shows, audiences loved watching attractive men and women clash, so the editing was deliberately tailored in that direction. There were even cases where two people who were at each other’s throats behind the scenes had to act like the best of friends in front of the camera.

As a director’s assistant, she was all too familiar with these tactics.

It seemed Shen Nanqing and Qiao Huihui had fallen victim to misleading editing—what was actually a close friendship had been twisted into some kind of fated rivalry.

At this realization, she felt a twinge of guilt. After all, she was technically part of the production team, and facing the victims of such manipulation made her somewhat uncomfortable.

Shen Nanqing noticed this and chuckled softly. “But this has also given the two of us a lot of exposure, so it’s not all bad.”

Her implication was that they had turned misfortune into an advantage, so there was no need for guilt or attempts to change things.

Originally, Li Shan had considered speaking to the director to clear the girls’ names, but Shen Nanqing’s words made her understand.

It seemed the two intended to ride this wave of controversy to boost their popularity further.

Quite clever, really.

In the entertainment industry, words meant little—only traffic and hype held real value. Just based on this attitude alone, Li Shan had high hopes for Shen Nanqing.

As they chatted, Qiao Huihui finished getting ready. She slung the small backpack Shen Nanqing had prepared for her the night before over her shoulders, bid farewell to her roommates one by one, and then followed Li Shan out.

The filming location wasn’t too far—just a studio in the city. The production team had arranged a van for her. Since she had woken up so early, she grew drowsy as soon as she got in the car and eventually succumbed to sleep, hugging her backpack.

Li Shan, being the director’s assistant, had many tasks to attend to and couldn’t accompany her this time. Instead, she assigned a staff member to go with Qiao Huihui.

Now, Xiao Tao sat in the seat beside the sleeping Qiao Huihui, carefully observing her. Sunlight streamed through the car window, casting a glow on Qiao Huihui’s face, making her skin appear flawless and translucent, with even the finest peach fuzz visible.

Her long, curled lashes cast delicate shadows, and her soft, pink lips—like jelly—parted slightly, giving her an innocent, doll-like charm.

Xiao Tao was nearly entranced when the driver suddenly braked. Qiao Huihui, caught off guard, lurched forward. Xiao Tao quickly stretched out an arm to block her, preventing a potential disaster.

Startled awake, Qiao Huihui blinked in confusion, her eyes still hazy from sleep. Only when she realized they had arrived did she fully regain her senses.

Following the arm in front of her, she turned to the side and instinctively flashed a sweet, well-behaved smile. “Thank you, Sister Xiao Tao!”

Xiaotao was caught off guard by the cuteness and took a moment to find her voice again. “Huh? Oh… you’re welcome.”

After the driver parked the car, the two got out together and entered the building facing the parking lot.

Qiao Huihui silently admired the towering structure before her, thinking that Hengzheng Group must be quite wealthy—no wonder they could offer her such generous pay for just a tractor advertisement.

After confirming their appointment with the receptionist, a bespectacled man in a suit soon came down from upstairs and respectfully escorted them up.

The elevator went straight to the sixteenth floor. Walking through a high-tech corridor in silence, they finally arrived at a room where the suited man opened the door.

He gestured for them to enter first. “Miss Qiao, please get your makeup done here. Once everything is ready, someone will take you to the shooting location.”

Qiao Huihui nodded, thanked him, and stepped inside.

Several people were already waiting inside, surrounded by an abundance of cosmetics and clothing.

Qiao Huihui swallowed hard. Forgive her—it was her first time seeing such a grand setup. Back at the production team, she had to share a dressing room with others, but here, multiple makeup artists were attending to her alone.

After greeting everyone, Qiao Huihui sat down in the chair in front of the mirror.

Xiaotao took a seat behind her, holding her bag and waiting quietly.

A makeup artist with a lip piercing asked, “Any allergies to cosmetics?”

Qiao Huihui thought for a moment and shook her head.

The woman pinched her chin to examine her face and smiled at the others. “Good base.”

A hairstylist behind her fiddled with her hair, running fingers through it before saying, “Your hair color suits your personal vibe, but it doesn’t quite match this shoot’s theme. I’ll dye it blue-purple for you.”

Perhaps worried Qiao Huihui might refuse, she quickly added, “It’s temporary dye—it’ll wash right out when you shower.”

Surrounded by people, Qiao Huihui barely dared to move, afraid of disrupting the artists. She barely parted her lips and let out a stiff, awkward “Okay.”

Someone burst into laughter. A woman’s voice giggled, “Pfft—hahaha! Don’t be nervous, we won’t eat you.”

Qiao Huihui’s face instantly burned red, and she clammed up—only making the makeup artist laugh harder.

Makeup was an arduous task. After three to four hours of work, Qiao Huihui’s stomach was growling by the time they finished.

This was when an assistant’s usefulness shone. Xiaotao, likely experienced, had already bought a pearl milk tea and stood nearby. The moment the makeup artists gave the all-clear, she handed the drink to Qiao Huihui, thoughtfully inserting the straw.

The team had Qiao Huihui stand up, scrutinized her, and nodded in satisfaction—the look was flawless.

The once soft and sweet Qiao Huihui had transformed into a blue-haired cool girl.

Her naturally rounded eye corners were now elongated sharply, her lips painted a bold, retro red. Contouring hid her baby face, and the hairstylist had woven her hair into small dreadlocks, giving her an edgy, fierce aura.

Nodding approvingly, the makeup artist reminded her, “Sip slowly—don’t smudge the lipstick.”

After speaking, he looked at Qiao Huihui, who obediently complied, and felt a bit reluctant. “Forget it, I’ll just touch up your makeup later if needed.”

Once the milk tea was quickly finished, the group got busy again.

Some touched up makeup, others helped her change clothes.

When everything was done, Qiao Huihui stared at her reflection in the mirror, feeling somewhat unfamiliar with herself.

The blue outfit she wore incorporated elements of armor, making it extremely heavy. Fortunately, Qiao Huihui wasn’t the particularly delicate type, so she could handle it.

She also didn’t quite understand why a tractor commercial had to be so high-end, requiring her to dress like an ancient general.

She had seen tractor ads on TV before—usually featuring a plainly dressed farmer, wearing a straw hat, with a sun-darkened face and a simple, honest smile revealing a row of plain white teeth.

This was nothing like what she had imagined!

Several makeup artists circled around her repeatedly, meticulously checking for any overlooked details.

The one with a lip piercing frowned at her for a long time before murmuring, “Something still seems missing?”

A few seconds later, he suddenly clapped his hands.

“Right, you need platform shoes. You’re too short.”

Qiao Huihui gave him a stunned look, feeling like she had just been personally insulted.

But no one could read her thoughts. The makeup artists bustled about, rummaging for platform shoes she could wear, until a pair of sky-high heels was tossed in front of her.

That’s right—these shoes not only had built-in insoles but also boasted an eight-centimeter heel.

Qiao Huihui hesitated. She had never worn shoes this tall before and doubted she could walk properly in them.

Yet, no matter what, she eventually put them on. After wobbling a few steps, she collapsed into Xiao Tao’s arms.

Frowning, her heart still racing from the near fall, she complained, “They’re too high.”

The stylist reassured her, “These are chunky heels. You wouldn’t stand a chance in stilettos.”

“Don’t worry. Have your assistant help you practice. Most of the time, you’ll be sitting in the tractor anyway—there won’t be much walking involved.”

As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. With Xiao Tao supporting her, Qiao Huihui walked back and forth for over ten minutes. Thanks to her decent sense of balance, she quickly got the hang of it.

After being short for over a decade, she finally got to look down on others—literally—and Qiao Huihui felt pure joy.

Peering down at Xiao Tao, she grinned. “Hehe, Sis Tao, I’m taller than you now!”

Xiao Tao chuckled and humored her, indulging the little shrimp’s fleeting vanity.

After getting more familiar with the shoes, the stylist took them off and packed them away for her to wear at the shoot.

Just as the shoes were stored, someone knocked on the door.

A staff member poked their head in. “Is Miss Qiao ready?”

The makeup artists nodded in unison, ushering Qiao Huihui out the door.

They went downstairs and boarded the waiting car. Half an hour later, they arrived at the filming location.

A regular commercial would be shot in a studio, but given the oversized prop—and the need to drive it around—a temporary set had been built on wasteland in the suburbs.

The special effects scenes would be filmed inside the studio, while the actual operation shots would take place outside on the open field.

The moment Qiao Huihui saw the prop, she understood why she had been dressed this way today.

No particular reason, it was just because the tractor used for filming was actually blue. Qiao Huihui affectionately nicknamed this partner she was about to film with – Little Blue.