Chapter 80: Under the Shadow of Misfortune

Li Hao began to regret it; she really shouldn’t have followed Zhang Chu back. If she hadn’t, she wouldn’t keep refreshing and stumbling across these heart-wrenching posts, which would inevitably ruin her mood for the entire day. But now that the words had been said, she couldn’t take them back. Li Hao thought she ought to search for ways to block a friend without the other person noticing. It was a technical task; elderly hearts couldn’t bear such daily shocks.

As she spoke, a makeup artist approached Zhang Chu to touch up his face. He had been sweating under the spotlights, making his cheeks look greasy.

A half-hour break was actually quite long. Zhang Chu felt a little awkward backstage, since half the people had been eliminated by him, and the other half were united in opposition, clustering together in small groups.

Amidst this atmosphere, Zhang Chu found an excuse and slipped out of the backstage area. But the restroom area was overcrowded—women queued as usual, but even the men’s room was packed.

“Why are they all on this floor? I’ll try upstairs instead,” Zhang Chu muttered inwardly. After circling around and finding the fire stairs, he headed upstairs. Most people would check the downstairs restrooms first, but his thinking was a bit eccentric.

The recording of “One Stand to the End” was quite interesting, since contestants were eliminated one by one and subjected to punishment, so the recording platform was elevated, surrounded by LED screens and background panels, and a web of lighting overhead.

The fourth floor’s layout was much like the third. Zhang Chu followed the signs toward the restroom and, inside the studio, spotted a familiar figure!

“Isn’t that Ma Bowen? What’s he doing here—could he be thinking along the same lines as me?” With this thought, Zhang Chu was about to greet him, but then overheard voices from nearby.

Ma Bowen wasn’t alone!

“Uncle Zhou, you said before you’d let me be the Station God, but Zhang Chu stole all my thunder. If he really beats ten in a row, no one will remember me,” Ma Bowen complained.

Zhang Chu quickly held his breath and pressed himself against the wall, listening intently.

Uncle Zhou replied jokingly, “This isn’t some big competition. There’s a Station God every episode. Just the other day, I shamelessly got the questions and answers for you. Can’t you still beat the others?”

Ma Bowen didn’t want to admit it, but facts spoke louder than words. “Zhang Chu is really strong. He has no weaknesses in any subject.”

Literature, history, mathematics, biochemistry, geography, general knowledge, music and film, sports, politics, business—none of these fazed Zhang Chu. Even knowing the question bank in advance was only useful for tying with him at best!

“So what do you want me to do? My reputation isn’t worth much. Getting the question bank already cost me a favor. ‘One Stand to the End’ is a flagship show—our other departments can hardly intervene.”

“Is there any way to ask the production team to adjust the difficulty, give him the tougher questions? He’s bound to slip up eventually,” Ma Bowen suggested. He was the provincial top scorer, hoping to shine.

But his little star had encountered Zhang Chu’s blazing sun—there was no competing.

Zhang Chu didn’t listen further; he tiptoed away unnoticed, lest the pair spot him.

He had no idea who Uncle Zhou was, but probably just an insider, not someone high up. If it were a senior executive, Zhang Chu wouldn’t be standing in the challenger’s position.

The production team arranged for Zhang Chu to defend the station mainly because he was among the most popular contestants, and his presence generated buzz, making for good showmanship and increased attention.

...

“Three minutes left, all departments prepare!” A staff member shouted backstage, megaphone in hand. The break was ending in a blink.

Zhang Chu leisurely pulled a notebook from his backpack, glanced at Ma Bowen nearby, and walked straight over.

“Ma, could you give me an autograph?”

At first, Ma Bowen thought Zhang Chu was looking for trouble and grew anxious, but it turned out he was just asking for a signature.

Ma was taken aback, as were the others, confused by Zhang Chu’s intentions. Was he trying to build rapport, smooth things over? Or perhaps he thought they'd study at the same university and major, and wanted to get in early?

“I’m not famous—what use is my autograph to you?” Ma Bowen asked.

Zhang Chu smiled, “I have a feeling you’ll be a great writer one day. My instincts are always spot-on.”

It was just an autograph, so Ma Bowen didn’t suspect anything, and swiftly scribbled his name in the notebook.

Seeing those bold characters, Zhang Chu looked satisfied. This kid was getting tricked and still counting money for the culprit. Now it was time to see how effective the unlucky notebook would be.

Originally, Zhang Chu only needed to write his own name in it. He was indulging in a bit of mischievous fun by asking for Ma Bowen’s signature. If he wrote his own name in the unlucky notebook, just imagining it made Zhang Chu want to laugh aloud.

“Everyone, get ready to go on stage. Let’s continue recording and aim to finish by five o’clock,” called the staff.

Ten contestants returned to the stage. Suddenly, Ma Bowen stumbled and fell flat on his face.

He looked down and found his shoelaces had somehow come undone. His left foot had trod on the right shoelace, tripping himself.

Zhang Chu chuckled quietly from the sidelines. No doubt, the unlucky notebook was at work!

Too bad this wasn’t live television; if Ma Bowen had fallen in front of the whole nation, it would have been quite the spectacle.

“Everyone, take your positions. Recording resumes!”

Zhang Chu stood center stage. Contestant number six was Ma Bowen.

As the local top scorer, Ma Bowen had a large group of supporters present. His fall had caused quite a stir, and some people were surely worried for him.

When the spotlight hit the two of them, Ma Bowen’s platform suddenly opened beneath him, and he dropped without warning!

This was a hallmark of “One Stand to the End”—contestants who answered incorrectly were punished this way, and the audience delighted in watching their varied expressions as they fell.

But this time, there hadn’t even been a question asked, and a contestant had vanished!

“Who’s controlling that switch? Quickly bring Ma back up, let’s start over,” the director snapped.

The technician raised his hand sheepishly. “I just accidentally bumped it. It’ll be fine now!”

Ma Bowen, who had just dropped below, was utterly bewildered. What had happened? Why did he suddenly lose balance and end up beneath the stage?

After a reminder from the staff, he finally returned to the stage, still shaken, ready to re-record.

But he had only himself to blame and could only endure with tears.

This drop was merely the beginning!

Zhang Chu had just answered the question about the location for half-mast, and Ma Bowen dropped again!

The audience gasped. What was going on with this contestant? Why did he keep falling, and in such novel ways?

“Everyone, pause. Engineer, come check why this device is malfunctioning,” the director said, exasperated by Ma Bowen’s antics. Was the show ever going to finish?

Other contestants stood in the same spot with no issues, but whenever it was Ma Bowen, he inevitably fell before everyone’s eyes.

After five or six falls, Ma Bowen was completely spent, exhausted and miserable, clutching the jade pendant at his neck in prayer.

“Is this place haunted? What’s happening?”

“I feel so bad for him, falling so many times for no reason—but I can’t help laughing!”

“He must have stepped in something unlucky on his way out. His luck is abysmal.”

“Is the production team deliberately messing with him?”

“How can we record the show like this? It seems the platform is targeting him!”

“This is hilarious! I thought recording would be boring, but watching him drop is entertaining.”

The instigator, Zhang Chu, laughed unkindly from the sidelines. The unlucky notebook truly lived up to its reputation—the system’s products were powerful indeed!

Ma Bowen was getting a full experience of what it meant to fall freely.