It’s such an honor to witness his growth firsthand along the way.
The subway arrived. Shen You’an followed the crowd onto the train. There were no seats, so she leaned against the corner, repeatedly listening to that song amidst the noisy crowd.
How strange—it became more addictive the more she listened to it.
Just then, two girls in school uniforms standing nearby secretly observed Shen You’an. One of them whispered to her companion, "Look at that girl in black, doesn’t she look really familiar?"
The other girl glanced over and took a careful look. The brim of her cap was pulled low, obscuring her face, but her slender neck and figure stood out. Even such simple clothes looked as stylish as high-end fashion on her.
"That’s impossible. Nana’s a big celebrity. How could she be crammed into the subway like us?"
"But she really does look like her! I’ve scrolled through Nana’s old Weibo posts before. Even though she looks unapproachable, her personality seems great—very down-to-earth. There was one time she got stuck in traffic going to an event, and she ended up taking the subway during rush hour. Back then, no one believed a huge star like her would ride the subway, but she posted about it on Weibo afterward, and that’s when people found out. She even has a brand event in Jingzhou tonight..."
The two girls exchanged looks, their eyes alight with excitement.
They opened the camera app on their phones and secretly took several photos of the girl in black.
Two stations passed before the girl in black got off the train.
One of the girls instinctively started to follow her, but her companion held her back. "What are you doing? We still have five more stops!"
"But that might’ve been Nana—Qiao Wan!"
"You’re overthinking it. I just asked a longtime fan on Qiao Wan’s super topic. Qiao Wan’s already at the event venue. This girl just has a similar body and aura—she’s definitely not Qiao Wan herself."
"Huh?" The girl froze for a moment. "Really? She’s not? But I already posted the photos on Weibo..."
Just then, her phone started buzzing like crazy, the notification sound going off nonstop.
The girl hurriedly opened Weibo, only to see her notifications overwhelmed with a red "99+."
She was stunned. "What’s going on?"
Opening the post, she saw that Qiao Wan’s fans had already found it. Qiao Wan’s fans, nicknamed Qiao Mai, were fiercely combative and notorious across the entertainment industry for their cutthroat behavior. Over time, they had developed an arrogant and indulgent style, launching vicious attacks at anything they disliked. They reserved their harshest insults for female celebrities of the same generation, especially those they suspected of using Qiao Wan’s name to stir up buzz. Being slut-shamed was considered one of the mildest outcomes.
——"How could this woman possibly be our Nana? Her clothes are hideously tacky, and she’s stick-thin—doesn’t even come close to Nana’s perfect figure. And she dares to use our Nana for clout? Go cool off somewhere else."
——"Hey, blogger, is this you in the photos? Shameless much? Our Nana is the hottest star in the industry. Everyone’s jealous and dying to ride her coattails for attention. But sorry to break it to you—your little scheme won’t work. You’ll never, ever be on the same level as even a strand of Nana’s hair in this lifetime."
——"Every year we get these so-called ’Little Qiao Wans.’ Has even one of them ended well? Stop dreaming, blogger. The difference between you and Qiao Wan is like that of a phoenix and a chicken scratching in the dirt."
Qiao Wan’s fans had razor-sharp tongues, flinging profanities with reckless abandon. They treated the girl like an opportunist shamelessly clinging to Qiao Wan for hype.
Reading the cruel and vile insults, the girl burst into tears.
"This is way too much," she choked out.
Her companion said irritably, "Why were you so quick to post? Everyone knows Qiao Mai are aggressive, and their biggest pet peeve is people using Qiao Wan for clout. Remember that online influencer a while back who called herself a ’second coming of Qiao Wan’? Qiao Mai flamed her so hard she quit the internet. How could you even think..."
"I didn’t mean to! Did they have to go this far with the insults? No matter how great Qiao Wan is, her fans shouldn’t attack regular people like this. And I was such a big fan of hers too—now my impression of her is completely shattered. If she hadn’t let her fans run wild, would they be this crazy? Forget about me, that poor girl they just tore into for no reason—what if she’s actually prettier than Qiao Wan?"
The other girl across from her couldn’t stand hearing that. "What the hell are you saying? That’s Qiao Wan we’re talking about—she’s gorgeous, kind, hardworking, talented, and an amazing actress. She’s the pinnacle of feminine beauty. Who could possibly compare to her?"
It was easy for this girl to talk since none of the insults were aimed at her. She could stand on her soapbox without feeling the sting.
But for the girl who had been humiliated, it was a different story. "I don’t know, I actually think the girl from earlier had better presence. I didn’t see her face, but I have this gut feeling she must be even more beautiful. Those Qiao Mai fans are awful. I can’t just let this go—I’ll take the same subway tomorrow and see if I can run into her again. I have to see her face."
The girl’s eyes burned with determination and passion.
Her companion rolled her eyes. "You’ve officially lost it."