"What? Did we seriously get someone who just wants to watch the excitement? Why so unlucky? Is it really this hard to get some juicy gossip?"

  The livestream chat erupted in a chorus of frustrated pints.

  "Well, if there’s nothing else, maybe ask about something different," Gu Yu suggested, clearly unprepared for this turn of events. Still, since he had already promised he wouldn’t back down, he passed the microphoo the girl who had been randomly selected.

  "My most pressing question?" Shu Xiuxiu furrowed her brows and g her empty room, the oppressive feeling of fi washing over her.

  "How about you tell me my fortureamer? I saw in your bio that you’re into singing, dang… and tarot cards."

  She spoke impulsively, recalling the many tarot streamers she had watched before. She’d always found fortuelling intriguing but had never been lucky enough to be selected in those streams. This stream, with its rge audience, seemed like it would have someone skilled enough to give it a try.

  The livestream audience: …...

  "What’s with this question? Sis, are you okay?"

  "We’re here fossip, not fortuelling! Did you wander into the wrong stream?"

  Even Gu Yu was momentarily dumbfounded.

  Those who knew him well uood that his so-called "hobbies" were just that—hobbies. His singing and dang were infamously terrible, and tarot was no different. He only liked tarot cards because he thought they looked cool. If someone asked him for the actual tent, he couldn’t say a single word about it.

  Admitting his ck of knowledge in front of his entire audience would be utterly humiliating.

  Gu Yu’s face ectrum of colors, like a spilled ink palette.

  Fet it. Losing face is better than lying.

  He took a deep breath, preparing to fess.

  But just as he opened his mouth, a crisp voiterrupted him.

  "Big sister, you were born in the year of Geng, during the Hai hour, weren’t you? Your elements are metal ah, and your brother’s pace shows Ziwei Star presiding over your fate. You have an older brother who’s been doing well in his career, right? Did I get that wrong?"

  The livestream audience froze in shock.

  "Wait a minute… who’s this little kid?"

  "Wasn’t this supposed to be Gu Yu’s job? Why is this little girl stealing his thunder?"

  Regardless of whether the reading was accurate or not, this little girl was clearly not ordinary. The audience didn’t even reize terms like "Heavenly Stems ahly Branches," "Twelve Hours," or "Ziwei Star Astrology," yet this kid rattled them off like a seasoned fortueller.

  What stuhem even more was that the selected girl nodded in agreement.

  "You… you’re absolutely right. I do have an older brother. He owns a pany that just made it through its startup phase and is doing pretty well now."

  Shu Xiuxiu’s tired eyes suddenly lit up. She had initially thought the handsome young man would be doing the fortuelling. Who would have guessed that the adorable little child sittio him was so skilled?

  "Little master, you check my fortune for me? I’ve been feeling really uneasy tely and just want to know I’ll be safe."

  Shu Xiuxiu didn’t dare address the little girl as "little sister," but calling her "master" felt odd. After some hesitation, she settled on a promise.

  The chat went wild with disbelief.

  "No way. This kid really do fortuelling?"

  "This twist… I did not see this ing."

  Gu Yu, meanwhile, was thrilled. He cursed himself for being so slow to realize that he had a hidden expert sitting right beside him. Thankfully, Yaoyao loved him enough to step in and save him; otherwise, he would have pletely embarrassed himself. Now he was curious to see what else his little sister could do.

  "Big sister, don’t worry about your fortune just yet," Yaoyao said seriously. Her round face suddenly took on a hint of authority. "Your three spirits and five souls are uled. You must have entered something un retly. However, it doesn’t seem malicious. There should be pead willow trees in the small grove behind your neighborhood. Peach wood wards off evil, and willow wood suppresses spirits. Go break off a branch from each, and I’ll teach you how to send it away."

  "But hurry! Yaoyao has other things to do ter," she added, her voice firm.

  The audience was stunned.

  "Holy crap, what just happened? How did this turn into something out of a fantasy novel?"

  " you even say stuff like this on a livestream? What if the ptform shuts it down?"

  Some viewers were genuinely worried about the livestream being taken down. But at the same time, they couldn’t help wanting to see how this bizarre situation would unfold. It was more thrilling than any gossip.

  "Alright, little master, I’ll ght now," Shu Xiuxiu said, already feeling like she was sitting on pins and needles. She grabbed her phone and keys and rushed out the door without hesitation.

  "Yaoyao, is she really haunted by something?" Gu Yu asked, his curiosity piqued. He had been too intimidated to interrupt earlier, but now that Shu Xiuxiu was gone, he seized the ce to ask.

  "Don’t whisper secrets! We want to hear too!"

  "Exactly! Let us in on the versation!"

  The viewers were desperate for details, but Yaoyao simply put a fio her lips and made a "shh" motion.

  "Brother Seven, don’t ask yet," she said.

  For the first time, Gu Yu saw a rare seriousness on Yaoyao’s face, and it made his heart sink. Was the situation with that Shu girl really so grave?

  Shu Xiuxiu lived in a somewhat run-doartment plex. Despite its age, the building had private bathrooms, which made it a det choice. By all rights, she could have afforded better housing, but her pride kept her from asking her family for moo her, the extra ute was a small price to pay for independence.

  After weaving through the narrow corridors and jogging out of the plex, Shu Xiuxiu was pletely out of breath.

  She paused to catch her breath, gng around for the pead willow trees Yaoyao had mentioo her surprise, a voice came from her phone.

  "Big sister, you don’t o run!" Yaoyao’s voice was calm.

  "Huh? Little master, but didn’t you say this was urgent?" Shu Xiuxiu asked, fused. She had been rushing because she was afraid of wasting time.

  Watg through the stream, Yaoyao saw the ominous red aura around Shu Xiuxiu gradually fade. Clearly, whatever danger had been looming was now averted. Her stern expression softened, aone became lighter.

  "You’re not actually haunted by an evil spirit, big sister," Yaoyao finally said.

  The revetio both Shu Xiuxiu and Gu Yu pletely stunned.

  "Then… little master, why did you make me rush out here?" Shu Xiuxiu asked, bewildered.

  If there was no haunting, there was no need for peach or willow branches. So why had she been told to leave her apartment?

  "Is this kid a fraud after all?"

  "No way, she was so accurate before. This has to be part of the pn."

  "What if the girl in the livestream is just an actor? A pnt to make all this seem real?"

  "Impossible. No one would chraph something this absurd. It’d be way too obvious."

  "I’m not an actor," Shu Xiuxiu quickly crified upon seeing the chat. She didn’t want anyone disrespeg Yaoyao and hurried to defend her.

  But Yaoyao ighe chatter and looked directly into the camera. "Big sister, although you’re not haunted, you do o call the police."

  "Call the police?" Shu Xiuxiu froze.

  The audience was equally stunned.

  "What? Why drag the polito this?"

  "Isn’t that risky? What if she gets in trouble for making a false report?"

  Yaoyao’s expression was calm but serious. "Earlier, I didn’t tell you your fortune, not because I couldn’t, but because I saw a red aura of death hanging over you. It was the sign of an immi violeh."

  "If I had told you then, the person hiding in your house might have panicked and attacked you out of desperation."

  "You might not have survived."

  At this, Shu Xiuxiu froze pletely.

  "H-hiding in my house? That’s impossible. I—"

  She stammered but couldn’t finish her sentence. Memories of the uling feeling she’d been watched fshed through her mind.

  "But… but I’ve searched my house! There’s no ohere!"

  "That’s because he’s hiding under your bed," Yaoyao expined bluntly. "Your bed is one of those old-fashioned ones with a gap underh. From outside, you wouldn’t be able to see all the way in. It’s the perfect hiding spot."

  Hearing this, Shu Xiuxiu felt her breath hitch. Her mind raced with terrifying thoughts. Was someone really under her bed? Had they been crawling out to watch her while she slept?

  Her body trembled as goosebumps rose all over her skin. She grabbed her phone and dialed 110 (the emergency poliumber in a) with shaking fingers.

  Meanwhile, the chat erupted into chaos.

  "Holy crap! Real or fake, this is the scariest story I’ve heard all year!"

  "My God, it’s like a horror movie e to life. Imagine finding out there’s been someone under your bed the whole time."

  "Please, police officers, hurry! This just went from supernatural to criminal iigatioory!"

  "I’m staying for this. I HAVE to know how this ends."

  [--------------------------------------------]

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