I turned and walked away. Zheng Kai chased after me: "Wait! I have something for you!" He shoved a USB drive into my hand. "All her raw livestream footage... some content that never aired."
Back home, I checked the USB contents on my computer. Most clips were boring segments of Zhen Shunshun touching up her makeup or yelling at staff. Until the last folder –
"System Test Record"
Clicking the video, it showed Zhen Shunshun on screen, speaking to the air:
"System, confirm today's caloric intake has been fully transferred to Zhen Yuanyuan." After a pause, she jumped up ecstatically: "It works! Double portion tomorrow!"
The video date was one week before I started losing weight.
I shut down the computer, my hands trembling. This was irrefutable proof that she knowingly used the system to harm me.
That night, Mom and Dad came home together – a rare occurrence. Dad's first words upon seeing me were: "What did you do to your sister?"
"Nothing."
"Then why is she like that?" He threw down a stack of photos – Zhen Shunshun on a hospital bed, looking like a prisoner from a concentration camp.
"The doctors say she won't last another month if this continues!" Dad pointed at my face. "Shunshun has always been miles ahead of you! What dirty tricks did you use to hurt her?"
Calmly, I pulled out my phone and played the video Zheng Kai provided.
Zhen Shunshun's voice echoed in the living room: "System, confirm today's caloric intake fully transferred to Zhen Yuanyuan…"
After it finished, Dad's face turned ashen: "What... what is this?"
"No idea," I put my phone away. "But it proves she *did* do something to me, doesn't it?"
Dad stormed out. Mom collapsed onto the sofa, covering her face as she wept.
Late at night, I heard fierce arguing from the master bedroom:
"We *must* send Shunshun to a better hospital!"
"What she needs is a psychiatrist! That video proves..."
"Proves what? A child's nonsense!"
"And Yuanyuan's weight? She lost 20 kilos in three months!"
"Because she's disciplined! Unlike you constantly spoiling Shunshun!"
The argument ended with a door slam. The next morning, Dad was gone, leaving a note: "Taking Shunshun to Beijing for treatment."
Mom, eyes red, made breakfast: "Your father's always been like this. Runs from problems." I silently ate the eggs she fried – the first breakfast she'd made just for me in ten years.
"Yuanyuan..." Her voice choked. "Mom's sorry..."
Sunlight streamed through the curtains onto the table. I squinted:
"Mom, the eggs are overcooked."
She paused, then her tears turned to laughter: "Thirty seconds less tomorrow."
That day I updated my social media: "Day 120, body fat 17.8%. Some people are finally starting to see the truth." The post featured a picture of a shattered mirror, each fragment reflecting different lights.
The call from Beijing came at 3 AM.
After Mom hung up, the house descended into chaos. I stood at my doorway watching her stumble as she packed.
"Mom, what happened?"
"Shunshun... Shunshun escaped from the hospital." Mom's voice was shattered. "She stole a nurse's phone... sent your dad a suicide note..."
I zipped her suitcase: "I'm coming with you."
Beijing Capital Airport was a sea of people.
Mom clutched her phone the whole way, calling Dad every five minutes. No answer.
In the taxi to the hospital, she grabbed my hand:
"Yuanyuan... if... if she..." I clasped her icy fingers: "She'll be okay."
The white corridors of Peking Union Medical College Hospital seemed endless. Dad slumped on a bench, his suit wrinkled like a rag, tie askew. Seeing us, he lurched up: "It's *your* fault!"
He pointed at me. "If you hadn't provoked her—"
"Enough!" Mom screamed. "Where is Shunshun?"
"Missing! Security cameras caught her climbing the hospital wall at 1 AM." Dad clawed at his hair. "Police found her hospital gown... by the moat..."
Mom crumpled; I caught her. Police arrived for statements, asking about Shunshun's recent behavior.
When asked about suicide risk, Dad pointed at my phone: "Her last message was to *you*!"
All eyes turned to me. I unlocked my phone and opened the photo sent at 1:23 AM: Zhen Shunshun's emaciated arm covered in needle marks, captioned "You win."
"Is that all?" the officer pressed.
I scrolled down: "There's a voice message."
Pressing play, Shunshun's weak, distorted voice began: "I know what you did... that System... It betrayed me... I won't rest even as a ghost..."
The message cut off abruptly. The officer frowned: "System? What system?"
"Ravings of a disturbed mind," I put my phone away. "She always accused me of stealing some 'system'."
Dad lunged, snatching my phone: "Liar! You know more!" He frantically scrolled through my contacts. "That Teacher Xi! Did he help you?"
"Stop!" Mom tried to intervene, but was shoved aside by Dad.
Police stepped in, returning my phone. Dad was taken for questioning; Mom and I stayed at the hospital.
Around noon, a nurse rushed over: "Found! Near the Lama Temple! At an internet cafe!"
We arrived as Shunshun was being loaded into an ambulance.
She looked even thinner than in the video – a skeleton draped in human skin, wrists wrapped in blood-soaked bandages. Seeing me, she struggled: "Get away! Get away!" Her voice rasped like sandpaper.
Medical staff restrained her, injecting a sedative.
Dad left with the ambulance; Mom and I stayed to handle things.
The cafe owner looked shaken: "She booked an all-nighter... cried at the computer the whole time... Staff found her this morning with slit wrists..."
Police pulled up her browsing history.
I stood nearby, seeing the search bar filled with:
"How to unbind system"
"Calorie transfer scientific explanation"
"Twin curse"
The final entry was a post on an occult forum: "The System betrayed me, reversing the transfer. How do I exact revenge?"