Oops! I Became a Fan of My Rival Idol! - Chapter 60

Fashion Eternal V: Innocence and nature, princess and fairy—embark on a magical journey with them this scorching summer. ImageImageImageImage

At the same time, Li Bin was also managing his artist’s account to repost this Weibo.

Qiao Huihui, 180cm Tall V: Traveling with @Shen Nanqing the Fairy Heart // Repost: @Fashion Eternal…

Shen Nanqing: Traveling with @Qiao Huihui, 180cm Tall Her Highness the Princess Flower // Repost: @Fashion Eternal…

On this day, the fans of both sides were in a rather peculiar state.

#What to do when your fave collaborates with your rival!?#

If you buy the magazine, you’re boosting sales for your own idol—but also for the rival.

But if you don’t buy it, how else can you support your darling/sister?

Deeply troubled by this dilemma, fans didn’t even have time to process the shock of this news.

Meanwhile, fans from other circles in the entertainment industry were just here for the drama.

“Fate is fickle, and destiny plays tricks, hahaha, these two sides are killing me.”

“As expected of a legendary veteran agent—pulling off such a classic move right out the gate.”

“But seriously… will this magazine even sell?”

“Did Eternal misjudge this time? Sure, both of them have massive popularity right now, but what if it’s a case of positives canceling each other out?”

“As a casual observer, I don’t care about the drama—just here to say these two ladies are stunning! drools”

“Your Highness the Princess, I’m yours!!! Fairy Highness, ahhh I’m yours too!”

“…Is this the dawn of the CP fans’ era? (covering mouth to stifle giggles)”

“They’re so beautiful—Qiao Huihui is literally the princess of my dreams!”

“I’m in love! Can someone give me the rundown on these two? I need to stan!”

Unlike the casual onlookers, the fans were stuck in a state of bewilderment and mixed feelings.

“55555… to buy or not to buy…”

“I really want to—my girl is just too adorable, wuwuwu my beautiful baby!”

“But buying means boosting the rival’s sales too!”

“This agent is terrifying. Why pair these two of all people?!”

“Whatever, I’m a career stan. This is Huihui’s first magazine shoot—I have to support!”

“As a mom fan, I’m buying too. Every moment of my baby’s career must be preserved in my room.”

“Screw it, so what if the rival gets a sales boost? They’re probably buying too anyway. If anything, they’re probably just as annoyed but forced to buy like us.”

“Hahahaha, just imagining that makes me feel better!”

“Then I’m going for it—buying ten copies right now! Three for collection, one to read, the rest for my friends!”

A few minutes later, everyone reconvened in the comments.

“????? Sold out?????”

“I hesitated for just a second—how is it already gone?!”

“That was way too fast!!!”

“QAQ I genuinely worried this magazine wouldn’t sell well… how naive of me.”

“AAAAAH I’ll pay top dollar! Anyone who bought extras, please spare me a copy, I beg!”

“Hehehe, lucky I was quick—snagged one~”

“So jealous…”

“Stop showing off upstairs, I’m already dying of envy.”

“You’re all too naive. These magazines always sell out fast, let alone this time it’s a duo feature. Fans from both sides are scrambling for it. The fact that it took several minutes to sell out is actually pretty slow.”

“Wuwu… I shouldn’t have hesitated. So what if it’s a joint feature? I could’ve just collected my girl’s solo photos. Now everything’s gone…”

Leaving aside the frustration of fans who missed out, the magazine’s presale soared to the top of trending searches.

#Qiao Huihui and Shen Nanqing’s Magazine Sells 500,000 Copies in Three Minutes#

This sales figure was undoubtedly industry-leading and a record-breaking number.

Casual observers marveled at the power of bundled sales and the massive influence these two individuals carried, while fans reignited another round of arguments.

“At least 400,000 of those 500,000 copies were bought by our Huihui’s fans. Shen was just riding her coattails!”

“Daydreaming in broad daylight, are we? Our boss is the real star here. If anything, Qiao Huihui was the one being carried.”

“How much have you been drinking to talk such nonsense? Put your money where your mouth is—show us who bought more!”

“Bring it on! Just afraid you’ll chicken out!”

“No way! Let’s settle this now—screenshot your purchases and post them on Weibo!”

Hearing this, fans from both sides rushed to flaunt their purchase records to uphold their idols’ honor.

Of course, compiling the final statistics would take considerable time, and the outcome remained unknown for now.

But it had to be said, Eternal Fashion played this move brilliantly—bundled sales truly delivered a 1+1=3 effect, and the magazine publisher reaped massive profits.

Li Bin was quite satisfied too. Qiao Huihui and Shen Nanqing’s reputations had more than doubled, and this sales performance proved they could easily outshine current top celebrities. Now, he just had to wait for opportunities to come knocking.

Meanwhile, Qiao Huihui, still in closed training, was oblivious to all this. She was instead stunned by another piece of news.

“Xiao Ninglu dropped out?”

Shu Bailian nodded, her expression indifferent.

“I never thought someone like her would give up voluntarily,” Qiao Huihui remarked.

After all, Xiao Ninglu seemed like the type who “wouldn’t stop until she hit a wall.” Qiao Huihui had assumed that without concrete evidence presented, Xiao would cling stubbornly to what she wanted, pretending nothing had happened.

Shu Bailian scoffed. “It’s actually quite laughable. Her family went bankrupt. Once the little princess fell from grace, her so-called followers didn’t help her—they stomped on her instead.”

“Being mocked to her face by people she used to look down on, having to handle menial tasks she’d always had others do for her… she just couldn’t take it and quit.”

The final straw was that most of Xiao Ninglu’s fans abandoned her after learning about her family’s bankruptcy.

Their reasoning: “We followed you because we admired your princess lifestyle. Once that fantasy was shattered and you lost your royal aura, why should we keep supporting you?”

This clearly showed that Xiao Ninglu herself possessed no inherently attractive qualities—all her appeal was derived from the powerful backing behind her. Once that superficial glamour shattered, the hollowness and ugliness within were laid bare, making it natural that no one would like her.

Shu Bailian reflected on how naive she had been in the past, actually viewing this empty-headed woman as a rival and harboring genuine hatred for so long.

Now, it was obvious that everything inflicted upon her had merely been borrowed from the Xiao family’s influence. The woman herself wasn’t even worthy of being her opponent.

Qiao Huihui wasn’t particularly interested in the matter. She treated it as gossip, listening with mild amusement before moving on.

Shu Bailian then brought up another topic: “Xiao Ninglu may be gone, but she left behind a lingering nuisance to bother us.”

“A nuisance?” Qiao Huihui was puzzled.

“That girl who used to follow Xiao Ninglu around—Lu Shiwan. Think of her as… someone like me.”

With that description, Qiao Huihui immediately recalled her, though her expression turned doubtful. “Wasn’t she pretty quiet? I’ve only seen her a few times and don’t know much about her, but she always seemed reserved, wearing white dresses?”

Shu Bailian gave her a complicated look. “Quiet?”

She scoffed. “After Xiao Ninglu fell from grace, she was the first to kick her while she was down. She spearheaded the ostracism. And while she used to blend into the background, now that she’s stepped forward, I realize she’s a genuine white lotus.”

“If I’m self-aware about being a ‘green tea,’ then she’s the natural-born version. Getting entangled with her is a hundred times more disgusting than dealing with Xiao Ninglu.”

Qiao Huihui hesitated. “So… it’s green tea versus green tea?”

Shu Bailian shook her head with a strange smile. “Oh, she doesn’t see me as her rival—she’s fixated on you.”

“Me?”

“Haven’t you noticed? She’s been copying you—your fashion, your speech habits, even the selfies you post on Weibo.”

Qiao Huihui’s eyes widened. She really hadn’t paid attention to that.

She only followed a few close friends on Weibo and didn’t even recognize most of the others—how would she have seen their posts?

Shu Bailian put on an innocent expression. “Let me demonstrate for you.”

“Ah, I really admire Sister Huihui! She’s so amazing at dancing.”

“Yes, this is Huihui’s same outfit! I adore her, so I wanted to dress like her!”

“I’d love to be friends with Huihui, but she doesn’t seem to like me very much.”

“Sob… I finally gathered the courage to talk to her last time, but she ignored me. Did I do something wrong to make her hate me?”

Shu Bailian’s imitation skills were sharp—sharp enough to make Qiao Huihui feel genuinely offended.

Even Xia Niao, who had been listening quietly, made a disgusted face.

“And she’s older than you, right? Yet she calls you ‘Sister Huihui’…”

Qiao Huihui racked her memory but couldn’t recall any significant interaction with this Lu Shiwan.

“She claims she tried talking to me? I don’t remember that at all.”

Shu Bailian sneered, “That’s typical, just one of her little tricks. She probably didn’t even speak to you—just walked past you and used camera angles to make it look like she did. Later, she’ll claim she tried talking to you but you ignored her. That way, people who don’t know the truth will think you’re arrogant and full of yourself.”

“This…” Qiao Huihui wore a complicated expression.

Why was a straightforward talent competition turning into some palace or household intrigue?

Shouldn’t the normal progression be everyone competing fairly, working hard in secret, and resolving to outperform their rivals?

When she voiced this doubt, Shu Bailian replied, “It’s normal. What you described is how people with real ability operate. Those without have to resort to underhanded tactics.”