Chapter 124: The ""Bad Luck Aura"" Strikes Again

“Tonight, I heard the star performer, Li Shuyao, will be on stage again,” Zhang Shuwan said.

Li Shuyao is going to perform? Isn’t she afraid...

Thinking of that human trafficker, Gu Jianing’s eyes darkened.

It was a pity she’d already used up her skill that let her glimpse three flashes of the future. Otherwise, she could have saved it for tonight—maybe she’d have seen something about Li Shuyao.

There were other similar items in the system shop, but those were permanent and very expensive—1,200 points. She simply didn’t have enough.

As everyone took their seats, the host soon came on stage, and the show was about to begin.

Gu Jianing hadn’t expected Li Shuyao to be the very first performer.

She’s not even saving herself for the finale this time.

But...

The moment Li Shuyao stepped on stage, Gu Jianing’s malice detector immediately blared, showing 99% malice.

The person Li Shuyao hated, of course, was her.

Gu Jianing looked up, locking eyes with Li Shuyao at that exact moment.

A faint smile curled on Gu Jianing’s lips.

Li Shuyao knew Sheng Zexi was away on a mission, but she hadn’t expected Gu Jianing to show up, and sitting so close to the front that she saw her as soon as she looked up.

Seeing Gu Jianing—and the ambiguous smile on her lips—Li Shuyao suddenly had a bad feeling.

She couldn’t help but recall New Year’s Eve, when she’d been the finale act but ended up looking like a clown.

Because of that, she’d barely dared leave her dorm these past weeks, practicing her dance relentlessly, determined to shine at the Lantern Festival.

This time, she’d chosen to open the show.

She’d been confident, but now, after seeing Gu Jianing, an ominous feeling crept over her.

Could something go wrong again, just like on New Year’s Eve?

Backstage, members of the performing troupe peeked out at Li Shuyao dancing on stage, all looking displeased.

“Why does Li Shuyao get to call all the shots? If she wants the finale, she gets it. If she wants to open, she gets to open. Does she own this troupe?”

“What can we do? She’s got the Li family behind her. Even our troupe leader has to cater to her. Whatever she says, goes.”

“After how she messed up on New Year’s Eve, what right does she have? Isn’t she afraid she’ll ruin the opening dance again?”

No sooner had the girl finished speaking than a loud “thud” came from the stage. They all looked over.

The very person they’d just been talking about—Li Shuyao—had actually fallen.

“No way! My words are that prophetic? She really fell!”

Yes, Li Shuyao, who had been dancing gracefully just a moment ago, had really fallen on stage.

Lying on the floor, Li Shuyao’s face was ashen, almost liver-colored.

She’d fallen. She’d really fallen.

Just like last time on New Year’s Eve, Li Shuyao had the intense feeling that some unknown force was targeting her, intent on making her the clown again!

She just knew that whenever she encountered Gu Jianing, nothing good would happen.

Li Shuyao had no proof, but her gut told her: whenever Gu Jianing was around, she was bound to have bad luck.

In fact, Li Shuyao’s instincts weren’t wrong—her fall was indeed because of Gu Jianing.

Although Gu Jianing had no evidence that Li Shuyao was behind the human trafficker incident, she was ninety-nine percent certain.

Since that was the case, she had to pay her back.

If Li Shuyao loved dancing on stage and basking in everyone’s admiration, then Gu Jianing would just have to give her the “stage clown” aura again.

Unfortunately, that aura couldn’t be used forever. Otherwise, she’d make sure Li Shuyao never dared step on stage for the rest of her life.

But Gu Jianing didn’t think that was enough.

After all, Li Shuyao would soon be returning to Beijing, and it’d be hard to deal with her from afar.

So, Gu Jianing spent another 10 points to give Li Shuyao a six-month “bad luck” aura.

Bad people deserved to be unlucky. She wanted everything Li Shuyao tried to do to end in failure—that was only fair.

On stage, sensing she’d been targeted by something again, Li Shuyao didn’t want to make a fool of herself like last time.

She didn’t want to risk it again. Struggling to her feet, Li Shuyao decided to leave the stage.

She thought this would spare her further embarrassment, but as she got halfway up, her left foot caught her right, and she pitched forward.

This time, with the “bad luck aura” in effect, the audience heard a crisp “crack”—the unmistakable sound of a bone breaking.

Li Shuyao’s scream rang out from the stage.

That’s right—Li Shuyao had fractured a bone.

“Oh my god, Shuyao...”

Backstage, the troupe leader and others rushed to surround Li Shuyao, carrying her offstage. The leader quickly apologized to the audience and hurriedly arranged for the next act.

The troupe leader was muttering to herself, wondering what was wrong with Li Shuyao. Time and again, she’d ruined the show. Always insisting on the finale or the opening spot. Last time had already disgraced the troupe, and now this...

In the past, when Li Shuyao performed well, the leader could still protect her for Old Master Li’s sake. But now, after these incidents, if she kept shielding Li Shuyao, the rest of the troupe would be unhappy—maybe even report her.

She couldn’t afford to offend Old Master Li, but she didn’t want to lose her position as troupe leader, either.

Li Shuyao’s mishap was just a brief interlude. Soon, other girls took the stage, and the atmosphere in the auditorium became lively and harmonious again.

Zhang Shuwan leaned over to whisper to Gu Jianing, “Wow, that star performer is really unlucky. She fell last time, and now she’s fallen again. Talk about bad luck.”

Gu Jianing nodded calmly. “She really is unlucky.”

With the two auras she’d placed on Li Shuyao, there was no way she wouldn’t be unlucky—not just now, but for the next six months.

And she hadn’t forgotten the note on the bad luck aura: “Kind people are unaffected. The more malicious a person, the worse their luck.”

Just look at Li Shuyao—Gu Jianing had barely activated the aura before she broke a bone. Clearly, she wasn’t a good person.

Thinking of the innocent lives Li Shuyao might have on her conscience, Gu Jianing thought: Maybe this is just the beginning of her bad luck.

And indeed, as Li Shuyao was carried to the hospital on a stretcher, one of the soldiers carrying her accidentally tripped, instinctively letting go of the stretcher.

Li Shuyao, caught off guard, tumbled forward. She reflexively tried to break her fall with her hand, but her bones were so fragile that with a “crack,” she heard another snap.

Li Shuyao screamed again. That’s right—after breaking her foot, she’d now broken her hand as well."