Xu Qingqing had no idea she had driven Bai Youlan half mad with rage.
She had already realized her initial hunch was correct—Bai Youlan's luck value was likely tied to her own. Whenever she thwarted Bai Youlan's plans, the system's tasks would fail.
This was excellent news for Xu Qingqing. She tossed her phone aside and skipped around cheerfully.
On the other end, Bai Youlan was in no such good mood.
After today's scandal broke, she panicked. Fortunately, her father stepped in quickly to suppress the endorsement brands that were itching to terminate contracts.
Though the damage was contained, her carefully cultivated image as a pure and innocent rising star had completely collapsed. Bai Youlan could only console herself that the rumors had been spread by marketing accounts hired by her company—if she had personally revealed the information, there would have been no way to salvage her reputation.
During the variety show recording, the other cast members eyed her differently, but she pretended not to notice and continued performing energetically.
Most people would have quit under such pressure, but Bai Youlan had no intention of backing out. Xu Changshan had invested in this show, and one of the current top male idols was also participating—she planned to ride the wave of a fabricated CP to weather the crisis.
After Xu Qingqing hung up on her, Bai Youlan stood awkwardly under the others' stares, both humiliated and furious. She gave the assistant collecting phones a fragile smile and said ambiguously, "My sister has a bad temper and always acts like this, but deep down, I know she’s kind-hearted."
The assistant, who had seen the online gossip, had initially viewed Bai Youlan with indifference. But after witnessing her humble attitude during filming and now this pitiable display, she couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy.
"Don’t be upset," the assistant whispered in consolation. Bai Youlan responded with a weak smile, saying nothing, yet appearing even more heartbreaking.
Once alone, she immediately demanded in her mind, "System, what should I do now?"
[Host, as long as you continue completing the system's tasks, you will obtain the full heroine's luck and achieve a beautiful life.]
Hearing this, Bai Youlan’s anxiety instantly eased.
Right, with the system on her side, what did she have to fear?
Bai Youlan wasn’t originally from this world. Before transmigrating, she had been reading a novel—a male-oriented story, but the protagonist was neither sleazy nor a womanizer, instead remaining devoted to one person.
The book was perfect in every way except for one thing: she despised the female lead, Xu Qingqing. The girl was selfish and spoiled—in most novels, such characters were either cannon fodder or villainesses who met miserable ends.
Yet in this story, Xu Qingqing had it all: a stunning figure and face, doting relatives, an unconditionally devoted boyfriend, and even a multibillion-dollar inheritance from the Xu Family.
She possessed everything girls dreamed of!
To Bai Youlan, Xu Qingqing was just a spoiled heiress who threw tantrums for no reason—utterly undeserving of such fortune.
While reading, Bai Youlan often thought, If only I could be that lucky. Forget everything else, just give me that billion-dollar fortune!
And then she transmigrated—into a cannon-fodder side character. Like other transmigrators, she was granted a system. It told her that completing tasks would allow her to return to the real world, but if she chose to stay, she could claim the billion-dollar fortune.
Bai Youlan didn’t hesitate—she picked the second option.
With billions waiting, why the hell would I go back?
Her mission was to steal the protagonist’s luck value for the system. Since this was a male-oriented novel, the male lead was the world’s chosen one. Attempting to take his luck risked triggering the world’s correction mechanisms, so she shrewdly targeted the female lead instead.
By tarnishing Xu Qingqing’s reputation and making others disillusioned with her, Bai Youlan could drain her luck value.
At the same time, gaining affection from people important to Xu Qingqing—or even random strangers—would transfer luck to her. That’s why she had entered the entertainment industry. Public adoration, even in small amounts, added up.
Luck could enhance her physique, making her more beautiful, and could also be exchanged for system shop points to purchase various items.
Bai Youlan’s schemes had been successful. Her original character was a nobody—her mother, a mistress who failed to secure status, had been suppressed by Xu Qingqing’s mother for life. Due to the biased favoritism of Xu Qingqing’s grandparents, neither Bai Youlan nor her brother Xu Tianbao inherited much.
But in this life, seeing that she and her mother still couldn’t enter the Xu Family, Bai Youlan used her luck points to buy a cursed doll. Xu Qingqing’s mother fell ill under the curse and passed away years later.
Once was practice, twice was habit. Bai Youlan wanted to buy another cursed doll to eliminate Xu Qingqing, but the system informed her that such items were not only expensive but also ineffective against targets who hadn’t completely lost their luck.
Reluctantly, she abandoned the idea.
Still, once she stole all of Xu Qingqing’s luck, the girl would inevitably die young, just like her mother—and the Xu Family would belong to Bai Youlan and her brother.
She believed that day wasn’t far off.
A smile returned to Bai Youlan’s face as she headed back to the dance studio.
---
After her call with Bai Youlan, Xu Qingqing received messages from many others—Xu Changshan among them. But she blocked him every time he called, refusing to listen. On good days, she even traded insults until he clutched his blood pressure medication in despair.
Eventually, Xu Changshan gave up. With his hypertension, he simply couldn’t handle his eldest daughter’s temper!
A few quiet days later, Xu Qingqing’s cousin Lin Donghan invited her to his company for a discussion.
In the office, the suited young man behind the desk knew his cousin’s personality well and cut straight to the point: "Qingqing, do you want to debut in the entertainment industry?"
Xu Qingqing stared at him without answering.
Lin Donghan was the son of Xu Qingqing’s uncle and ran a mid-sized entertainment company. Due to family ties, their relationship had been decent—at least, she had genuinely called him "cousin" in the past.
Had she not read that novel in her dream, Xu Qingqing might never have known that this "good cousin" was actually one of Bai Youlan’s devoted followers.
Unaware that his secret had been exposed, Lin Donghan joked persuasively, "Someone as beautiful as you would be wasted outside the industry. Besides, if you sign with my company, what’s there to worry about? If you don’t become famous, Grandma will come after me." (His grandmother was Xu Qingqing’s maternal grandmother.)
In other words, if Xu Qingqing signed with him, his company’s resources would be dedicated to making her a star.
This only made Xu Qingqing want to sneer.
With the backing of the Xie and Xu conglomerates, entering the entertainment industry should have been effortless—she shouldn’t have ended up universally hated. But in the original story, trusting her cousin, she signed with his company and was pushed into a reality show without a second thought.
I never expected Bai Youlan to also appear on that variety show. The two of them were compared relentlessly on the program, and while I ended up being painted as the villain, Bai Youlan rose to fame.
As it turned out, my cousin Lin Donghan had a secret crush on Bai Youlan and funneled all his resources to her. Even when Xu Qingqing was being torn apart online, the company’s PR and hired trolls were all prioritized for Bai Youlan—even going so far as to deliberately have internal employees "expose" Xu Qingqing’s so-called scandals to help Bai Youlan gain more fans.
When the wall starts to crumble, everyone pushes. With too many insiders, real or fake, coming forward with "exposés," even the intervention of the Xie and Xu families’ capital couldn’t turn the tide. In the end, Xu Qingqing left the entertainment industry in disgrace.
Xu Qingqing still remembered the book’s description of the incident—facing his assistant’s report, CEO Lin Donghan said with a solemn expression, "Qingqing is the Xu Family’s young lady. She has people protecting her—losing her celebrity status won’t hurt her. But Youlan… she has nothing."
At this thought, Xu Qingqing’s gaze toward her cousin across the table turned icy.
She sneered inwardly but feigned surprise as she said, "Cousin, why would you suddenly suggest I become a celebrity? I’m still in school—it’s not like Bai Youlan. My university is very strict!"
Bai Youlan had entered the entertainment industry in high school, and her grades weren’t great. Though the film academy she attended now was prestigious, it couldn’t compare to A University at all.
Even now, Xu Qingqing couldn’t resist taking a jab at Bai Youlan. Lin Donghan visibly stiffened. If he didn’t know for sure he’d kept his feelings hidden, he might’ve suspected Xu Qingqing knew about his crush on Bai Youlan.
Lin Donghan had clearly come prepared. He patiently explained, "I’ve looked into it—your college has lighter coursework in the second semester of junior year. You could take on variety shows during that time…"
Studying Xu Qingqing’s expression, he coaxed, "Don’t you want to see yourself on the big screen? Look at how successful Bai Youlan is now—aren’t you even a little envious?"
If this had happened in the past, Xu Qingqing might’ve actually agreed to debut after hearing such words from her trusted cousin, especially after being cyberbullied and insulted by Bai Youlan’s fans.
The realization sent a chill down her spine.
Was this all part of Bai Youlan and that system’s scheme? Did Lin Donghan know?
After a moment’s thought, under Lin Donghan’s confident gaze, she covered her mouth in exaggerated shock. "Oh my god, Lin Donghan, are you seriously comparing Bai Youlan to me? Don’t tell me you’ve actually bought into those online rumors and think she’s really the Xu Family’s heiress?"
"Me, envious of Bai Youlan? Wow, you’ve gotten dumber since the last time I saw you."
Lin Donghan’s smile faltered. He pretended to be confused. "Qingqing, what are you talking about?"
Xu Qingqing dropped all pretense, her expression impatient. "I was just making excuses about school—did you really not get that? Am I not having enough fun as a socialite? Is my life not happy enough? Why would I want to be a celebrity and let haters pick me apart?"
Her tone was matter-of-fact, and Lin Donghan’s face darkened instantly.
Xu Qingqing picked up her coffee, exuding the poise of a true heiress, then said in a deliberately infuriating drawl, "Of course, I’d love to have some fun, but Xie Lianqing’s family might have… opinions. You know how they are."
She trailed off meaningfully, and Lin Donghan immediately understood. His rising anger was instantly suppressed.
The Xie Family was one of the top-tier elites, their name etched on the wealthy list. Their rules were strict, and Xie Lianqing was the next heir. To become the Xie Family’s matriarch, a slightly lower social status might be tolerated, but being a celebrity was absolutely out of the question.
It wasn’t about discrimination—it was the fact that celebrities lived under the spotlight, where every minor incident was magnified by fans, paparazzi, and gossip accounts. Over time, how would that affect the company’s stocks?
Of course, this was purely Xu Qingqing’s bluff. Without the novel’s plot hanging over her, she might’ve been tempted to dabble in the industry. But with her life at stake, she had no interest now.
Besides, Xie Lianqing was the only male heir in three generations. Who in his family could actually oppose him? He wasn’t a child—he didn’t need anyone’s approval to marry whomever he wanted. In the original story, hadn’t he admired Bai Youlan and ended up with her?
Though, even after their relationship began, up until the day he visited her grave, Xie Lianqing never seemed to mention marriage.
That was something Xu Qingqing still found puzzling… but whatever, she didn’t want to think about it anymore.
Lin Donghan forced an awkward laugh. "Just a bit of fun—is Xie Lianqing really that controlling now?"
He was only half-convinced by Xu Qingqing’s words, but the Xie Family was an old-money dynasty. Their conservative mindset wasn’t entirely unbelievable. If he pushed Xu Qingqing into the industry and Xie Lianqing took offense, he might not direct his anger at his girlfriend—but he’d certainly come after Lin Donghan.
With that in mind, Lin Donghan reluctantly abandoned his earlier plan and backpedaled. "I suppose I didn’t think it through. Qingqing, you should focus on your studies."
"Actually, there’s another reason I came to see you today." He smoothly changed the subject, feigning nonchalance. "Do you know what Xie Lianqing has been doing online recently?" Somehow, he’d learned that Xie Lianqing was behind the recent events.
Under Xu Qingqing’s gaze, he continued slowly, "Bai Youlan is signed under my company. The online backlash has been severe, and she’s struggling on the show. You can deal with her however you want later, but for now… could you ask Xie Lianqing to let her go?"
Xu Qingqing smirked inwardly but frowned. "If Xie Lianqing is the one doing it, then go talk to Xie Lianqing."
Let Bai Youlan go? Absolutely not.
With a mocking smile, Xu Qingqing deliberately questioned him, "Besides, cousin, what’s your angle here? You know exactly what my relationship with Bai Youlan is like, yet you’re asking me to help her? Whose side are you on?"
Lin Donghan’s eyes flickered. "Of course I’m on your side."
He clearly wanted to say more, but Xu Qingqing had already stood up impatiently. She abruptly shifted the topic. "Even if I can’t join the entertainment industry, you’re right—I wouldn’t mind having some fun."
Under Lin Donghan’s puzzled gaze, she softened her voice into a sweet, coaxing tone. "I’ve got some spare cash lately, and I’d like to invest in an entertainment project."
Wasn’t Bai Youlan currently filming a dating show? She’d invest in that very program.
Time to ruin both Bai Youlan and Lin Donghan.
