Liu iyu didn’t say anything. She just sat there, lips pressed tight, her eyes stinging.
After a while, she whispered, "But I hate her."
Her manager sighed.
"You can hate her all you want in private. But on cara? You smile. You be polite. Got it?"
Liu iyu nodded slowly. She didn’t want more people to hate her.
The next day, the mood on set was a little tense.
The mission for the day wasn’t any competition but just a normal day.
Yu Holea walked into the kitchen area where iyu was helping cut vegetables. iyu looked up, and their eyes t for a second.
Yu Holea gave a small nod. "Morning."
Liu iyu forced a smile. "Good morning."
There was a weird silence.
Xu Tian walked in, holding a basket of fresh eggs.
"Hey, we got fresh ones from the coop!" he said happily, trying to lighten the mood.
"That’s great," Yu Holea said, smiling a little.
iyu stayed quiet, just cutting the carrots.
When the cara crew ca in to film the morning prep, iyu smiled widely and said,
"Today’s breakfast is going to be amazing!"
She laughed and acted bubbly.
Then she turned toward Yu Holea and held her hand,
"Sister Holea, after you saved yesterday, you have beco my savior."
Yu Holea paused, a little surprised by the sudden touch and words.
She looked at Liu iyu’s smiling face. Her tone was sweet, her grip gentle—but sothing in her eyes didn’t match.
The caras were rolling. Everyone was watching.
Yu Holea kept her calm smile and said softly, "I just did what anyone should have done."
"No," iyu said quickly, still holding her hand, "You were brave. I was so scared, but you stayed strong. I really admire you."
The crew zood in, sensing a good mont for the show.
Xu Tian raised an eyebrow but stayed quiet.
Yu Holea gave a polite smile and gently pulled her hand back. "Thank you, iyu. But you were strong too."
Liu iyu giggled and said in a joking tone, "I don’t know about that. I probably looked really silly, crying like a baby on livestream."
So of the staff chuckled, and the tension eased a little.
But inside, Yu Holea knew.
Liu iyu wasn’t being friendly. She was performing.
And she wasn’t the only one who noticed.
After breakfast, everyone helped clean up. Yu Holea was wiping the table when Liu iyu walked over with a bright smile.
"Sister Holea, can you help carry the water buckets later?" she asked sweetly, even though she clearly saw Xu Tian standing right there.
Yu Holea glanced at the heavy buckets in the corner. "Sure," she said with a small nod.
Xu Tian looked confused. "I can help too."
But iyu waved him off. "It’s okay! I want to spend ti with Sister Holea. She’s like a big sister now."
The caras were still filming, and the livestream chat exploded with hearts and comnts.
"Aww, their bond is so sweet!"
"I love iyu and Holea’s sisterhood!"
"After what they went through, it’s so touching to see them together like this!"
But when the caras turned away for a second, iyu leaned close and whispered so only Yu Holea could hear:
"Don’t worry. I won’t let anyone forget how you saved ."
Yu Holea blinked. Her words sounded nice—but the tone felt sharp. Almost like a warning.
Later that day, iyu "accidentally" spilled so water on the kitchen floor near where Yu Holea was walking.
"Oh no! Be careful!" iyu called out—after Yu Holea had already slipped a little and caught herself on the counter.
Xu Tian rushed over.
"Are you okay, Holea?" He asked.
Yu Holea nodded, brushing it off. "Yeah, I’m fine. Just slipped a bit."
iyu grabbed a towel quickly. "I’m so sorry! That was my fault—I’m so clumsy!"
She looked so worried on cara, like she was super sorry.
The chat went wild again:
"iyu is so caring!"
"She rushed to help her!"
"They really care about each other!"
But Yu Holea stayed quiet.
She knew it wasn’t really an accident.
..................................
Later, when everyone had a break, Liu iyu’s manager sent her a ssage on her phone.
"Look," she said, grinning. "Your follower count’s going up again. This ’sweet sister’ act is working."
Liu iyu gave a smug little smile.
"Of course it is. Everyone loves a touching friendship."
"People are also talking about Yu Holea nonstop," her manager added. "She’s trending again."
iyu’s smile faded just a bit.
Her manager noticed and quickly said, "But that’s good! If people love her, and you are close to her, you benefit too."
iyu crossed her arms. "So I’m just supposed to stick to her like glue now?"
"Exactly," her manager nodded.
"You need to keep this ’bond’ going. Let her be the hero. You just stay sweet and cute beside her. Trust , it’s perfect."
......................................
That evening, during a calm scene by the fire pit, the group sat around roasting sweet potatoes. The cara zood in on Yu Holea and Liu iyu sitting close.
"Sister Holea helped with everything today," iyu said sweetly. "Even when I ssed up."
Yu Holea smiled politely and said, "It wasn’t a big deal."
"You’re always so humble," iyu giggled, resting her head on Yu Holea’s shoulder.
The fans watching live started going crazy again:
"THEY’RE SO WHOLESO!"
"iyu and Holea forever!"
"This is the kind of friendship we need in the world!"
Yu Holea sat still, letting iyu rest her head. But her eyes didn’t shine.
She knew this wasn’t friendship.
This was a ga.
And right now, iyu was playing it very, very well.
...............................
Backstage, the director and producers were talking to the social dia team.
"Cut so short clips of iyu and Holea being sweet," one of them said.
"Put soft music in the background. Fans will eat it up."
"And make sure to tag both of them," another added.
"iyu’s fan page is getting traffic again, thanks to this bonding thing."
Even though Yu Holea didn’t do anything special, her calm, kind reactions won hearts.
People loved how she never said a bad word about anyone.
She helped, smiled, and stayed kind—even when it wasn’t easy.
And that’s why more and more people were calling her...
"The calm queen."
...................................
Yu Holea sat on her bed, still in her pajamas, her hair a little ssy from the long day. Her phone buzzed. It was her manager calling.
She answered with a soft voice, "Hello?"
"Holea," her manager said right away. "We need to talk."
Yu Holea sat up straighter. "What’s wrong?"
"Liu iyu is trying to leech off your fa," her manager said seriously.
"It’s obvious. She’s everywhere you are. Always acting sweet. Always calling you ’Sister Holea’ on cara."
Yu Holea stayed quiet.
"I know you’re kind," her manager continued, "but this isn’t just friendship. She’s using you. Everyone sees you as the calm, strong one. She’s just riding your wave."
Yu Holea looked out the window. The trees swayed gently in the wind outside. "I know," she whispered.
Her manager sighed.
"Then say sothing. Do sothing. You don’t have to be an. But protect yourself."
"I know." Yu Holea said calmly.
..................................
The next day. It was the last day of the shoot.
They were told to team up in pairs and cook lunch together. Everyone quickly picked partners.
Liu iyu, of course, ran to Yu Holea.
"Sister Holea, let’s be a team again!" she said loudly.
Yu Holea gave a small smile. "Actually..." she looked over at Xu Tian. "I was going to team up with Xu Tian today."
There was a pause. iyu froze, her smile twitching.
"Oh," she said softly, trying not to look upset on cara. "That’s okay."
But her hands tightened around her apron.
The cara moved away to film the others pairing up. iyu walked away slowly, her eyes down.
A few minutes in, Liu iyu walked over holding a small bowl of sauce.
"Sister Holea," she said sweetly,
"I made this dipping sauce. I think it’ll go really well with your dish!"
Yu Holea looked at the sauce, then up at iyu.
"Thank you," she said kindly. "But Xu Tian and I are working on our own flavor today. Maybe you can save yours for your dish?"
iyu’s smile faltered for half a second. "Oh... sure."
The cara caught her polite nod and soft smile—but it didn’t catch the quick flash of annoyance in her eyes.
Yu Holea turned back to her cutting board and continued working. After a few minutes, she spoke again, her voice calm but clear.
"Xu Tian, do you rember the other day when soone spilled water near the stove?"
Xu Tian paused. "Yeah. You slipped a little."
"I’ve been thinking," she said, still slicing carrots.
"We all need to be more careful in the kitchen. It’s easy to call sothing an accident, but sotis people forget how dangerous even a little water can be."
Xu Tian nodded slowly. "Yeah... true."
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