Since You Rong agreed to be friends with Lin Qing He, Lin Qing He now had an excuse to approach him without having to rack her brain for reasons.
For example, now, Lin Qing He, carrying a hot drink just bought by Yuan Xiao Ai, walked openly into You Rong's makeup room and handed him the drink. "You Rong, this is a milk tea I specially bought for you. It's hot. I know you don't like it too sweet, so I specifically got it with less sugar. Try it quickly and see if you like it..."
You Rong frowned slightly, his tone a little helpless. "...You don't have to keep buying me things."
"What's the big deal? Aren't we friends? It's normal for friends to treat each other to drinks and meals. You don't have to feel awkward about it. At worst, you can treat me back next time."
Lin Qing He's casual words left You Rong momentarily speechless.
Lin Qing He knew when to stop. She put down the drink, chatted for a few more casual sentences, and left without lingering in You Rong's makeup room.
The moment Lin Qing He left, Hu Xiao Bei sidled up, his face full of gossip, and asked, "Ge... I see Sister Qing He coming here every day. Could it be that you agreed to her confession last time?"
You Rong's frown deepened. "...No."
"No? Then... you didn't reject Sister Qing He? Otherwise, why would she be so energetic coming to you every day? She was still unhappy not long ago because of the online backlash that cost her endorsement deals. Now, she's smiling happily every time she sees you. She must really like you, you..."
You Rong interrupted Hu Xiao Bei's rambling. "Alright, go ask Director Wang if the set is ready. If it is, call me over."
Hu Xiao Bei knew You Rong didn't want to continue the topic and, with good judgment, didn't press further. "Okay, Ge, I'll go check then. Oh, right... if you're not going to drink that, I..." Hu Xiao Bei caught sight of You Rong picking up the drink and taking a sip. He could only chuckle dryly, "Haha, like I said nothing, like I said nothing... I'll be going now..."
After Hu Xiao Bei left the makeup room, he dared to mutter softly, "Why do I feel like Ge is a bit of a scumbag? He doesn't accept Sister Qing He's confession, yet he enjoys her overtures every day... No, no! Ge isn't that kind of person! I shouldn't overthink. I need to get to the set! Yes! To the set!"
As Hu Xiao Bei walked away, You Rong, still in the makeup room, looked down at the hot drink in his hand, his brow furrowed tighter.
He regretted agreeing to be friends with Lin Qing He. If he didn't like her, he should have rejected her completely. Was this giving her false hope? Would she never give up on him?
After much thought, You Rong sighed, thinking that once filming for "Asking the Heavens" was over, he and Lin Qing He wouldn't have so many coincidental encounters. With less interaction, she would naturally stop thinking about liking him.
On the other side.
As soon as Lin Qing He returned to her makeup room, she heard the system prompt: "Progress bar increased by two percent, total progress bar is now at seventeen percent."
Lin Qing He's lips curved into a pleased smile, very satisfied with this.
It was like boiling a frog in warm water with You Rong. In due time, she would surely cook the frog!
"Sister Qing He, you're back. Please sit down and get ready for makeup. Filming is about to start, and you haven't finished your hair and makeup yet. I told you earlier, but you wouldn't listen and insisted on delivering drinks to You Rong yourself..." Yuan Xiao Ai said with a hint of resentment.
Ever since her drunken confession last time, she felt Sister Qing He had gone mad, constantly finding ways to approach You Rong every day. But You Rong clearly didn't like her!
Lin Qing He saw that Yuan Xiao Ai felt it wasn't worth it for her. She smiled without explanation and sat down, letting the makeup artist work on her hair and makeup.
Yuan Xiao Ai was scrolling through Weibo on her phone. With a worried expression, she handed the phone to Lin Qing He. "Sister Qing He, take a look quickly... The backlash from last time hasn't completely disappeared. Many fans want you to post an explanation, and they've been flooding the studio's comments. Many are also badmouthing You Rong in the super topic and publicly boycotting him..."
Lin Qing He took Yuan Xiao Ai's phone and looked. The fans were more troublesome than she had expected, but she could understand their desire to protect their idol.
She certainly couldn't post an explanation, otherwise, her carefully crafted words in "Simple Life" would have been wasted.
The only way now was to let it cool down.
Lin Qing He returned the phone to Yuan Xiao Ai and said, "Temporarily ignore them. If the studio doesn't respond, they'll quiet down after a few days. As for those posting to bash and insult You Rong... contact Brother Yang and tell him it's my instruction to find someone to handle it. Report them, get their accounts banned, anything. Or directly contact the super topic administrators and have them hide or delete any content that's unfavorable to You Rong."
Upon hearing Lin Qing He's words, Yuan Xiao Ai's worried expression intensified. "Sister Qing He, if the studio intervenes to deal with fans insulting You Rong but doesn't explain themselves, it might make the fans even more upset. Should we consider their feelings a little?" Su Dan Novel Network
After all, she was a popular female artist. Her current fame in the entertainment industry relied entirely on fan support. In her position, who wouldn't try to appease their fans?
Lin Qing He didn't even blink, calmly saying, "I know what I'm doing. Just tell Brother Yang as I said."
"Okay... alright, I'll call Brother Yang later."
After Lin Qing He finished her hair and makeup, she went to the set to film. The moment she saw You Rong, her eyes sparkled, and she happily trotted over to strike up a conversation, causing Yuan Xiao Ai to secretly lament her lack of progress.
She admitted You Rong was very handsome, but there were plenty of handsome male stars in the entertainment industry. Why was Sister Qing He so fixated on him?
At the end of the day's filming, as You Rong was removing his makeup and heading back in his car, Hu Xiao Bei exclaimed in surprise, "Ge, I was still seeing a lot of posts criticizing and slandering you on Weibo the day before yesterday. Why are they all gone today? Did Brother Gu find someone to handle it? I didn't hear him say anything?"
You Rong didn't pay it much mind, closing his eyes to rest. Not to mention now, even two years ago, he disregarded online opinions. Otherwise, it wouldn't have escalated to the point of being cursed by the entire internet back then.
After so long, he still hadn't learned the entertainment industry's tactics of whitewashing and smearing others, so he didn't care how the company handled these matters.
"That's strange. I asked Brother Gu, and he said he didn't... It's really odd. I have a friend who works in this area. I'll go ask them! See what's going on..."
Hu Xiao Bei muttered, taking out his phone to text his friend. After receiving a reply, Hu Xiao Bei exclaimed in surprise, "Ge! My friend said that the negative comments and posts about you were actually handled and removed by Sister Qing He's studio!"