230 The Competition
Qiao Yue looked in the mirror.
She saw her classically made-up self in the mirror. Light brown eyeshadow accentuated her beautiful eyes. With her lightly colored red lips, she looked like an androgynous heroine, with the chivalry of a boy and the femininity of a girl.
Hong Ning then stuffed the costume in Qiao Yue’s hands.
Qiao Yue walked into the fitting room and changed into the costume.
When she walked out of the fitting room, everyone’s eyes fell on her.
She stood at the door of the fitting room in her red costume. The black belt cinched her waist, making her look tall and handsome with a hint of girls’ elegance.
“Gorgeous!”
“Is this Qiao Yue? I thought she is the reincarnation of an ancient heroine.”
Xu Hao and Qiao Yu were both stunned.
Qiao Yue looked beautiful in women’s clothing. It was not the delicate kind of beauty, but one that’s full of vitality, like red plum blossoms blooming in winter.
“Beautiful. It fits you better than I thought.” Hong Ning walked up and helped Qiao Yue adjust the red ribbons in her wig.
“But Qiao Yue, you might want to remove this.”
“What?” Qiao Yue looked at Hong Ning.
Hong Ning pointed at the bandage around Qiao Yue’s neck. “Can you take that off? It might affect…”
Hong Ning suddenly felt a little awkward.
Qiao Yue wore this bandage every day. Hong Ning didn’t want to ask why, but she still hoped that Qiao Yue would take it off before going on stage.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that. I have a scar. It will be visible if I remove this.”
Qiao Yue didn’t intend to hide the scars on her body, but she didn’t want to go on stage with a visible scar.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.” Hong Ning lowered her head quickly and apologized. “I was just thinking about the overall effect.”
Qiao Yue shook her head. She didn’t mind Hong Ning’s behavior. Hong Ning was a person who had high standards for the stage, and she didn’t have any ill intentions.
Hong Ning nodded. “Please continue to prepare yourself. I’ll call you when it’s time to go on stage.”
The onlookers dispersed. It was less than ten minutes before the school’s anniversary show, and less than half an hour before their performance.
All teams were making their final preparations.
Qiao Xin had also returned backstage.
She was wearing a blue evening gown with her hair curled into loose waves. She looked noble and elegant.
However, her eyes were still filled with contempt, and her expression sour, which made her generally uncomfortable to look at.
“Qiao Yue, don’t tell me you’re going on stage?”
Qiao Yue ignored her and continued to look at the sword she was holding.
She had studied under a kendo master in Japan for some time.
The sword she was holding wasn’t simple. It was two feet long and the blade looked to be made of high-quality carbon steel.
The blade was thin, and it glinted. The hilt was in the shape of an agile crane.
The blade of the sword was extremely sharp, like frost in autumn.
This was a good sword, and it felt good to the touch. If it was a working cold weapon, it should also have the upper hand.
“Didn’t you hear me?”
What was up with Qiao Yue today? He had been ignoring her all day.
“What?” Qiao Yue glanced at Qiao Xin. “Are you going on stage?”
Wasn’t Qiao Xin asking the obvious? Qiao Yue was already in costume, so how could she not go on stage?
Qiao Yue was completely uninterested in Qiao Xin’s meaningless provocation.
Qiao Xin was like a child, talking nonsense every day.
Perhaps it was because of her naivety and pampered character that made her a tool for Qiao Li to please Andy and his brother.
Qiao Yue recalled what had happened at the dinner table last night, when Qiao Li announced to everyone that Qiao Xin was signing up for an audition with AT Company in December.
December. Wasn’t that when Qiao Ze had predicted that Qiao Yi would start human trafficking again?
Qiao Yue glanced at Qiao Xin. She was so happy now, but she might be one of those people.
Qiao Yue couldn’t believe it. After all, she was Qiao Li’s biological daughter.
“What are you looking at? I’m going on stage now. Just you wait.” Qiao Xin looked at Qiao Yue and smiled.
Qiao Yue turned her head away; she didn’t want to look at Qiao Xin any longer.
Outside, the sound of introductions could be heard.
“A big welcome to the students from St. Faustina’s Institution. St. Faustina’s has sent representatives from the arts as well as computer science faculties this year to our school anniversary celebrations…”
Qiao Yue peeked through the curtains at the representatives from St. Faustina’s computer science faculty. One of them caught Qiao Yue’s attention.