We Weren’t Fated, I Just Played My Cards Right - Chapter 22
When Jenny woke up the next morning, Zhan Huitian had already left the house.
Having barely eaten the previous day, she felt too weak to cook and decided to go out for food.
She found a ramen shop not too far from home. As she entered, she spotted Mr. Ning sitting by the window, leisurely picking at his noodles with chopsticks.
The shop owner’s greeting caught Mr. Ning’s attention, and his gaze turned toward her.
Jenny hesitated, unsure whether to approach him.
But Mr. Ning waved her over, leaving her no choice but to comply.
“Sit,” he said, indicating the seat opposite him.
No sooner had Jenny sat down than a server placed a bowl of beef noodles in front of her.
“This isn’t mine…” she said awkwardly.
“I ordered this for you in advance. Try it, the taste is quite good.”
“You knew I would come here?” Jenny was surprised.
Mr. Ning set down his chopsticks. His bowl still had more than half of the noodles untouched. He looked into Jenny’s eyes and said, “It’s not difficult. I’m a fortune teller.”
He can tell fortunes too? Jenny wondered. She wasn’t sure who was more skilled—him or Liu Mumu.
She had witnessed Liu Mumu’s abilities firsthand. This Mr. Ning didn’t seem like a fraud, but it was hard to say for sure.
Noticing her hesitation, Mr. Ning smiled. “Your mother once went on a blind date. You were unhappy, so you punctured the man’s car tires. When your mother found out, she hit you for the first time… Should I continue?”
“No need.” She quickly stopped him. That was enough to prove his abilities.
Perhaps this Mr. Ning was even more capable than Liu Mumu.
“You knew I’d come here to eat, and you showed up… Do you have something to tell me?” Jenny probed cautiously.
Mr. Ning shook his head. “I don’t need anything from you. It’s you who needs my help, isn’t it?”
Jenny’s heart skipped a beat. She tensed and stared at the man across from her. Did he know something? Impossible. Aside from Liu Mumu, only she herself knew the secret of the vase.
And there were many things even Liu Mumu didn’t know.
Mr. Ning remained inscrutable. “If I wanted to harm you, the one sitting here today wouldn’t be you—it would be your brother.”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying.” Jenny denied it without hesitation. She stood up, ready to leave. She wasn’t sure if Mr. Ning was hinting at something.
“You do.” He leaned slightly forward and lowered his voice. “First, your mother’s strange cause of death. Now, your body is showing abnormalities, isn’t it? And your father—dying inexplicably outside the home. You’re a smart girl. You must have had suspicions all along, right?”
Jenny quietly exhaled in relief, but her nerves remained taut.
Mr. Ning didn’t know her secret, yet he was speaking of the vase’s secret.
“You believed me just now after a single casual remark. Clearly, you already believe there are extraordinary forces in this world.” He studied Jenny intently. “Your instincts are sharp.”
Jenny relaxed slightly. She stood awkwardly for a moment before sitting back down under Mr. Ning’s reassurance.
In a small voice, she said, “I once met a very skilled fortune teller back in my hometown.”
That man was Liu Mumu’s grandfather. From schoolteachers to parents of classmates, no one who sought out Old Man Liu for fortune-telling ever had a bad word to say about him.
Some thought he was a fraud, but Jenny believed that if someone could deceive dozens without being exposed, he must possess real skills.
Moreover, she didn’t think Grandpa Liu was a swindler—she had personally witnessed him prevent an accident with just a few words. He was truly remarkable.
“No wonder,” Mr. Ning remarked, uninterested in the fortune-teller she mentioned, steering the conversation back. “About that vase—it was originally your father’s keepsake. Would you like to know its purpose?”
Jenny shuddered, as if countless needles were pricking her heart, leaving her restless and uneasy.
Of course she wanted to know. Liu Mumu had refused to give her a straight answer, speaking only in vague hints. To this day, she could only guess at the vase’s true function.
“Your father was a rather unhinged man. If I’m not mistaken, not long ago, he had you draw some bl00d, didn’t he?”
Under Mr. Ning’s questioning gaze, Jenny nodded. She moistened her dry lips and asked, “He told me it was for a checkup. Was there something wrong with that?”
“That bl00d was meant to be smeared on the vase. With your bl00d, the vase gains extraordinary power.” His voice grew lower, nearly hoarse. “All you need to do is write someone’s birth details on paper, burn it inside the vase, and that person will vanish from this world—just as you wish.”
“Why does it have to be my bl00d?”
Seeing Jenny’s lack of strong reaction, Mr. Ning leaned back. He hadn’t misjudged this girl.
Ambitious and ruthless—the entire Zhan family seemed to carry a streak of madness in their bl00d.
From Zhan Hongye to Zhan Huitian, and now to Jenny, none had disappointed him.
“Because your father once used your bl00d as an offering. The ritual was never completed—he died before it could be. The vase’s previous owner used the lingering power of your bl00d to kill him.”
“The previous owner… was that my eldest brother?”
Mr. Ning smiled without answering.
This clever girl, after piecing together so many terrifying details from their conversation today, would inevitably draw her own conclusions. What choice would she make upon discovering her brother’s true nature?
His silent smile gave Jenny the answer. She hadn’t been wrong.
She had been her father’s sacrificial offering—and now, her brother saw her the same way.
Mr. Ning’s explanation of the ritual matched what Liu Mumu had told her. At least in this, he hadn’t lied.
“If you know my brother, why tell me all this?”
Mr. Ning smiled faintly, interlacing his fingers beneath his chin. “Because you’re the better investment. Your brother is too greedy—not an ideal partner. As his sister, you must have sensed that already, haven’t you?”
He struck right at her sore spot.
Before, ignorance might have been bliss. But now that she knew how much money she’d missed out on, how her brother had lived lavishly without ever sparing a thought for her—
Even now, despite his promises to take care of her, he had inherited a fortune without sharing even a fraction. He was the true hypocrite.
Anger flared easily within her. Calmly, she asked, “All I need to do is smear my bl00d on it? Won’t that harm me?”
Mr. Ning smiled: “The ritual requires at least four offerings. Your father taking your bl00d was only the first time. You still have two more chances. As long as you stop before the fourth time, it won’t cause you any harm. Have you thought it through?”
Jenny’s hands trembled slightly, whether from excitement or nervousness, it was hard to tell.
Just by applying her bl00d, she would possess the power to control people’s lives. If she could restrain herself, she could completely use these two opportunities to create a completely different life for herself.
Jenny’s dream had never been about studying hard to get into a better university.
All she ever wanted was to stand out, to make her father notice her and bring her home.
She was supposed to live the same life as those rich kids. Although she’d missed out for over a decade, she’d never given up.
She didn’t want to end up like her mother—living off the generous alimony from her father, yet still shamelessly working in the school cafeteria, letting all her classmates know her mom was just a lunch lady.
She would become wealthy, never having to worry about work or life, never counting pennies when spending. She would have higher social status, just like her father.
The fantasy of the future was so beautiful that Jenny almost lost herself in it.
But soon, she came back to her senses.
No, she couldn’t.
This was only her second meeting with Mr. Ning—how could she be sure his words were true? His words had indeed shaken her resolve. Just a little bl00d, maybe there really wouldn’t be any serious consequences.
She wouldn’t even need both chances—just one would be enough.
But quickly, Jenny dismissed the thought.
Liu Mumu had warned her not to let her bl00d touch the vase again. She hadn’t explained the consequences, but she’d repeatedly cautioned her.
And Jenny had witnessed Liu Mumu’s abilities firsthand.
Using herself as a sacrificial offering was too risky. She needed to think it through carefully.
Jenny’s gaze became unfocused, her face showing signs of inner struggle. After a long pause, she finally said: “…I still need to think about it.”
“No problem, young people always want more options,” Mr. Ning said calmly, but when he lowered his eyes, his gaze turned sinister.
He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his phone.
The ringtone suddenly went off—a melodious tune playing softly, audible only to the two of them. Within the music, there seemed to be some strange noises mixed in, like someone coughing or hoarsely shouting.
The sound seemed to possess some kind of magic, completely capturing Jenny’s attention. It wasn’t until ten minutes after the music stopped that she finally snapped out of it.
Mr. Ning had already left at some point. She was still sitting in the same spot, the bowl of braised beef noodles in front of her now cold and congealed.
What just happened?
She tried to recall, shaking her head slightly—she had only listened to a piece of music.
Mechanically finishing the bowl of noodles before her, she left the noodle shop with a sense of urgency. She needed to get home immediately; there was something very important she had to do.
Walking all the way to her doorstep, she felt inexplicably agitated just as she was about to enter.
She thought she should call Liu Mumu.
The number was already dialed, but she didn’t know what to say.
“Jenny, is something wrong?” Liu Mumu’s voice came through.
After a brief silence, Jenny replied, “Nothing, wrong number,” and hung up.
Liu Mumu stared at her phone, puzzled.
Jenny looked at the darkened screen, finding her own behavior strange. Why had she called her?
Back home, she found a bottle in her room, wrote down Zhan Huitian’s birth details on a slip of paper, and stuffed it into her pocket along with a lighter and a small knife. Then she packed the bottle into a canvas bag and hurried out.
Home wasn’t the right place—she needed somewhere higher.
…
At 10 a.m., the company executives were in a meeting, with Zhan Huitian seated in what had once been his father’s chair.
The air conditioning in the conference room seemed too cold; he felt a chill.
Adjusting his tie, he was about to speak when he noticed all the executives staring at him in horror.
He looked down at himself—bl00d was seeping through his suit.
The deepest gash was on his neck, rendering him unable to speak.
Zhan Huitian clutched his throat, eyes wide, as if still trying to comprehend what was happening.
Someone screamed and bolted for the door, others rushed over as if to help, while another called for an ambulance.
Zhan Huitian’s vision darkened, the only sound left the howling wind in his ears—deafeningly loud.
Just then, another group burst into the office. The man at the front barked at those around Zhan Huitian, “Police investigation—everyone out!”
The others hesitated but backed away, though some tried to stay until officers behind them forced them out. Once the room was cleared, Fang Chuan rushed forward, checked Zhan Huitian’s condition, and turned to Yan Xiu behind him with a grim voice. “He’s been cursed too. What’s going on?”
They had only just listed Zhan Huitian as a suspect in Zhan Hongye’s murder, and now he was nearly killed by the same curse.
Luckily, they arrived in time—a moment later, and he’d have been gone.
Yan Xiu crouched beside Zhan Huitian, pulling a brand-new pen from his pocket. With the concealed blade inside, he lightly nicked his index finger, drawing bl00d.
Pressing the finger to Zhan Huitian’s forehead, he swiftly traced a bl00d sigil, its intricate patterns nearly covering the man’s entire face.
With the final stroke and a low utterance of “solidify”, the bleeding wounds on Zhan Huitian’s body froze in an eerie stasis.
The injuries didn’t heal, but they stopped spreading and bleeding.
Yan Xiu withdrew his hand, and Fang Chuan promptly offered a rabbit-patterned band-aid—stolen from his niece, quite the cheerful sight.
Yan Xiu frowned at it briefly before tearing it open and applying it.
“What’s this guy’s deal? Did we get the wrong killer? That can’t be—headquarters confirmed he’s guilty of patricide.”
Ordinary evidence couldn’t prove Zhan Huitian’s involvement in Zhan Hongye’s death, so Fang Chuan filed a report requesting headquarters’ assistance.
With only birth dates but no exact birth times available, more precise calculations would take longer. They’d been waiting these past few days for headquarters’ response.
The results confirmed their suspicions, but why had Zhan Huitian now become a victim too?
Yan Xiu suddenly asked, “Where is Zhan Huitian’s sister?”
Fang Chuan stiffened and immediately ordered his subordinates: “Put out an alert to apprehend Jenny Zhan. Bring her to the station immediately upon capture.”
“Yes, sir.” Two officers left promptly to carry out the order.
“Does the Zhan family have some feng shui problem? Why is the whole family so unhinged?” Fang Chuan couldn’t help remarking.
Yan Xiu offered no comment.
Jenny Zhan carried a vase several blocks away to a very old residential complex.
The seven-story building had an accessible rooftop where someone had hung a row of wet clothes to dry. No one stopped her as she ascended to the top.
There, she used a small knife to cut her hand, smearing bl00d on the vase. She then lit the paper containing Zhan Huitian’s birth details on fire and dropped it into the vase.
The flames inside instantly turned from yellow to black, burning intensely before finally extinguishing.
Her hand still bled, but she seemed impervious to pain as she lifted the vase and threw it off the building.
The sound of shattering porcelain and a stream of angry shouts rose from below, but Jenny paid no attention.
Then she stood at the roof’s edge, staring down. One step forward would send her falling. A voice in her head urgently pushed her to move forward.
Yet that final step remained untaken.
Before jumping, she wanted to make one last phone call—but to whom?
Liu Mumu received Jenny’s second unexpected call. After a long silence, she spoke first: “Jenny, what’s going on?”
The previous call had been strange, and this one was equally bizarre.
“You know what? I’ve always hated you,” Jenny suddenly said.
Liu frowned—what was this about?
“Why wouldn’t you help me? It was just about money, and now I have plenty.”
Recognizing something was terribly wrong, Liu tossed a coin casually, pressed her hand over it, and closed her eyes. A vision flashed in the darkness.
Clutching her phone, she rushed outside. Spotting Dong Yue in the living room, she sprinted downstairs, pointing at the phone on the coffee table and demanding it be unlocked immediately.
Dong Yue, puzzled, handed her unlocked phone to Liu Mumu.
Glancing at the time displayed on the screen, Liu Mumu continued speaking to Jenny on the other end of the call.
She said, “There’s a reason I didn’t help you—it wasn’t just about the money.”
Jenny seemed to ignore her words entirely, rambling on, “I don’t need your help anymore. My dad’s dead, my brother’s dead—everything they left behind is mine now. I know you’re jealous of me.”
“Yes, of course I’m jealous of you.”
A minute passed before Liu Mumu countered, “Do you know why?”
“Because I’ve always been better than you.” Jenny’s voice was shrill.
“Yes, you’re outstanding. When I read your fortune before, I actually saw something else, but I didn’t tell you.”
Time was moving too slowly. Liu Mumu grew impatient, wishing she could just fast-forward the phone’s clock by four minutes.
“What did you see?” Jenny’s curiosity seemed piqued, momentarily overpowering her urge to jump off the building.
“I saw that your financial luck is incredibly strong, so I didn’t want to tell you. And also…”
They rambled on for a full five minutes. Jenny remained standing there, her attention completely captured by Liu Mumu’s words—listening to how glorious her future would be and how insignificant she was now—completely unaware that someone had reached the rooftop.
“Three, two, one!”
As Liu Mumu silently counted down in her mind, a loud thud suddenly came from the other end of the line, as if something heavy had slammed into the ground. Then, the call disconnected.
Other details couldn’t be confirmed yet, but Jenny had likely been rescued by now.
At this point, maybe she should call the police for her?
While dialing emergency services, she casually cast a divination for herself—the omen was dire. She had just done a good deed, yet this was the result? Liu Mumu felt indignant.
*
At 10:20, Fang Chuan received a message about Jenny—she wasn’t at the Jen residence but in the hospital.
By the time they arrived, Jenny was still in the emergency room. Outside, a middle-aged woman stood ranting nonstop, her spit flying everywhere as if she were trying to drown Jenny with her words.
Her insults were so vulgar that Fang Chuan had no choice but to intervene.
“Hello, I’m with the police. Did you report this incident?”
The woman finally stopped, scrutinizing Fang Chuan’s badge skeptically. “You’re really a cop?”
“Yes. Could you tell us what happened?”
The woman immediately perked up, launching back into her tirade. “Officer, can you believe it? We were just playing mahjong downstairs when that girl suddenly threw a flowerpot from the rooftop—nearly scared us to death! Luckily, no one was passing by, or it would’ve killed someone!”
She shuddered at the thought.
“And then?”
“Then I saw her standing up there on the roof—no idea how she even got up there—scared the life out of me!” The woman patted her chest. “I called the police right away, but I was afraid she’d jump before they got here.
“Renting out property is hard enough these days! If someone dies here, this whole building will be haunted, and the rental prices will plummet! So I ran up there and hooked her down with a clothes pole when she wasn’t looking.”
After speaking, she emphasized again: “Officer, I really just wanted to save her at the time. Who knew she’d land right on the back of her head when she fell?”
Fang Chuan remained silent for a long while. The auntie’s rescue attempt was certainly commendable, but her reasoning was… complicated—saving property values?
These days, even an auntie who owns an entire building is going all out.
The auntie stole a glance at his expression and asked, “Officer, you won’t hold me responsible, will you?”
“Don’t worry, this counts as a good deed.”
Fang Chuan reassured her before turning to the doctor who had just stepped out.
He briefly inquired about Jenny’s condition. The doctor said it wasn’t serious—just a mild concussion.
However, the examination revealed abnormal brainwave activity, the cause of which remained unclear. She likely wouldn’t wake up anytime soon.
The doctor then handed him a bag containing Jenny’s personal belongings, including her phone, which had been collected when she was admitted.
Fang Chuan took the bag and passed it to an officer behind him, instructing them to examine the contents. He then left two officers stationed outside the ward to take her statement as soon as she regained consciousness.
*
At 11 a.m., Qingcheng City’s high-speed rail station bustled with activity. Every seat in the waiting area was occupied.
In one corner, Mr. Ning placed a travel bag at his feet and sent a message from his phone: The artifact is destroyed. The Zhan family has been dealt with. Proceed with the cleanup.
A reply popped up seconds later: Well done. You may return. Safe travels.
A faint smile crossed Mr. Ning’s face as he read the message. He removed the SIM card, snapped it in half, and flushed it down the station restroom toilet.
The sound of rushing water erased all traces.
The mission was complete. His train out of Qingcheng would arrive at 12:05.