The Luck Exchange System
My parents were ordinary office workers; life wasn't wealthy but stable.
When I was five, my mother's belly gradually grew larger.
Our family was expecting a new member, and every day I hoped my younger brother would be born soon.
That morning, just as dawn was breaking, my mother was rushed to the hospital.
I paced back and forth in the hospital corridor, my palms slick with sweat.
Around noon, the nurse came out smiling and announced that my mother had given birth to a boy.
I skipped joyfully into the ward, looking at my tiny younger brother swaddled tightly, my heart swelling with happiness.
Our parents named my younger brother Jack Wyatt, hoping he would have a bright future.
A few days later, a fortune teller clad in a teal robe arrived at our home.
It was my grandma who specifically invited him, saying she wanted to have Jack Wyatt's fate pattern read.
The fortune teller took Jack Wyatt's birth details, squinting as he counted with his fingers for quite some time.
His expression gradually darkened, and his brows knitted tightly.
Jack's parents sensed something was wrong and hurriedly asked what had happened.
The fortune teller sighed and said that Jack Wyatt's fate pattern was that of a heavenly curse star, meaning his life would be filled with misfortune and he could bring harm to those around him.
After hearing this, Jack's parents' faces turned deathly pale.
His mother immediately burst into tears, grabbing the fortune teller's hand and begging him to find a solution.
The fortune teller shook his head and said this was an innate fate pattern, very difficult to change unless a once-in-a-lifetime chance came along.
Since then, my parents' smiles had grown scarce, and they were always sighing whenever they looked at Jack Wyatt.
As for me, I seemed to have become the family's only solace.
When I was little, everything I did went smoothly.
In kindergarten, I was always praised by the teachers.
When buying snacks, I would sometimes even win "buy one, get one free" prizes.
My parents gradually realized that I seemed to be born with good fortune.
They often patted my head and said, "Luckily, we still have such a fortunate daughter."
At that time, I didn't really understand what luck was; I only knew that making my parents happy was enough for me.
Day by day, time passed, and I grew up little by little. In the blink of an eye, I had turned ten.
That night, after finishing my homework, I was about to go to bed.
Just as I closed my eyes, a cold, mechanical voice suddenly echoed in my mind.
[Host detected as meeting conditions, Luck Exchange System officially activated]
I snapped my eyes open abruptly, thinking I must have imagined it.
I glanced around, but I was alone in the room with nothing out of the ordinary.
Just as I was confused, that mechanical voice sounded again.
[Host: Jane Wyatt. Age: 10 years old. Current luck value: 85 (Excellent). The Luck Exchange function can be activated to transfer one's own luck to others or to accept others' misfortune.]
I was stunned, my fingers unconsciously picking at the blanket.
I tried silently asking myself, "What is Luck Exchange?"
[Luck Exchange means the host can voluntarily choose to transfer some aspect of their good luck to a designated person, and can also choose to accept that person's misfortune; each exchange consumes a certain amount of the host's mental energy.]
I nodded vaguely, feeling both shocked and afraid.
The next morning, after much hesitation, I told my parents about it.
At first, my parents thought I was talking nonsense; they even smiled and touched my forehead, asking if I hadn't fully woken up.
I was so anxious that tears almost came, gripping their hands and repeating the system's prompt in my mind once more.
To prove I was telling the truth, I silently said to the system, "Show Dad's financial luck today."
[Target: Joseph Wyatt. Today's financial luck: 30 (poor), possible minor financial loss]
I told Father what the System showed.
At first, Father didn't believe me, until that afternoon when he went to buy groceries and his wallet was stolen—it held his allowance for the month.
Only then did Father panic, grabbing Mother's hand and saying excitedly, "Jane was right. She really does have the ability to exchange luck!"
Mother cried with excitement too, holding my hand and saying, "Jane, this is wonderful. It must be that Heaven pities our Jack and sent us this chance!"
"With this ability, we can help change Jack's fate!"
I watched my parents' excited expressions. Though I felt uneasy inside, I still nodded.
I thought that as long as I could help my younger brother and make my parents happy, paying some price seemed worthwhile.
From that day on, my parents frequently discussed how to use the system to change Jack Wyatt's fate.
Their eyes were full of hope, as if Jack Wyatt's future depended entirely on me and this system.
Ever since my parents learned I possessed the Luck Exchange System, they began planning to use it for the first time to help Jack Wyatt.
At that time, Jack Wyatt was in second grade and his grades were always poor, lingering near the bottom of the class after every exam.
Our parents were very anxious about this, always feeling that Jack Wyatt's bad fate pattern was affecting his studies.
One day, Jack Wyatt was about to take his midterm exam.
Our parents called me into their room, looking at me with serious expressions.
Mother spoke first, "Jane, your younger brother is about to take his exam. He usually studies so hard, and if he doesn't do well, it will definitely crush his confidence again."
"See if you can use your system to transfer some of your exam luck to your younger brother."
I kept my head down, my fingers twisting the edge of my clothes.
I knew the exam was very important to me. My grades were usually good, and the teachers thought highly of me.
But when I looked into Mother's pleading eyes and remembered how my younger brother often felt defeated because of his poor grades, my heart softened.
Father also said from the side, "Jane, just this once. When your younger brother does well, the whole family will be happy. Afterwards, I'll buy you your favorite strawberry cake."
I hesitated for a moment but finally nodded.
In my heart, I told the system, "Transfer 50% of my luck from this midterm exam to Jack Wyatt."
[Luck Exchange Command confirmed. Target: Jack Wyatt. Exchange content: Host Jane Wyatt's Midterm Exam luck 50%. Exchange completed. Host's current exam luck value: 40 (poor)]
As soon as the System Notification Sound ended, a slight dizziness washed over my head, as if something had been drained from my body.
On the day of the exam, I sat in the exam hall, staring blankly at the questions, my mind completely empty.
The knowledge I once knew so well now refused to come to mind.
Sweat poured down my face as I gripped my pen tightly, but not a single word came out.
After the exam ended, I walked out of the exam hall with my head hanging low.
Jack Wyatt ran over excitedly, grabbed my hand, and said, "Jane, I felt really good about the exam today. I could solve so many problems!"
I forced a smile but said nothing.
On the day the results were released, the teacher handed out the report cards.
Jack Wyatt ranked fifth in the class, the best result he had ever achieved since starting school.
As for me, I ranked only thirtieth—my worst score ever.
The teacher called me into the office, earnestly asking if I had not been studying seriously lately.
I kept my head down, tears welling up in my eyes, but I didn't know how to explain.
Back home, Jack Wyatt proudly showed his report card to our parents.
Our parents smiled widely, pulling Jack Wyatt into their arms and showering him with praise.
Mother had even prepared a table full of Jack Wyatt's favorite dishes, and the whole family was basking in joy.
No one noticed the disappointment on my face, nor did anyone ask how I had done on the exam.
I sat quietly in the corner, picking at the rice in my bowl, feeling deeply wronged.
But I thought, as long as my younger brother got better, my sacrifice would be worth it.
From then on, my parents frequently made me transfer my luck to Jack Wyatt.
Once, Jack Wyatt was going to participate in the school's sports day and signed up for the 100-meter race.
My parents asked me once again to transfer my athletic luck to Jack Wyatt.
I did as I was told. As a result, Jack Wyatt won first place in the race, but I accidentally fell during PE class while running, scraping a large patch of skin off my knee. The pain brought tears to my eyes.
Another time, there was an antique vase in the house, passed down through generations. Dad treasured it greatly and usually wouldn't let us touch it.
One day, Jack Wyatt was playing at home and accidentally bumped into the shelf holding a vase.
Just as the vase was about to fall, my parents hurriedly told me to use the System to take on this misfortune.
Though I was reluctant, I still followed their instructions.
[Misfortune Acceptance Directive confirmed. Target: Jack Wyatt. Accepted content: misfortune of breaking an antique vase. Acceptance complete. The host will experience a similar item damage incident within 24 hours.]
That afternoon, while cleaning the house, I accidentally broke my mother's favorite porcelain bowl.
Mom heard the noise and came running. Seeing the broken ceramic bowl, she lost her temper and scolded me harshly.
I kept my head down, too afraid to speak, my heart heavy with frustration.
Jack Wyatt stood off to the side, not only refusing to defend me but watching with a cruel smile.
Later, Jack Wyatt grew older and began trying his hand at small businesses.
He heard that selling toys was profitable, so he took some money from our parents and bought a batch of toys to sell near the school.
But his business never did well; he barely sold any toys.
Parents grew anxious again, grabbing me and saying, "Jane, your younger brother's startup isn't easy. Can you take on the misfortune of his business failures so his venture can improve?"
I looked into my parents' hopeful eyes and recalled all the sacrifices I had made before, feeling hesitant.
But Mother held my hand, crying uncontrollably, saying that if Jack Wyatt's startup failed, he would have no future.
My heart softened, and I agreed to their request once more.
[Misfortune Acceptance Directive confirmed. Target: Jack Wyatt. Accepted content: misfortune of entrepreneurial failure. Directive complete. The host will soon face financial loss-related incidents.]
Not long after, I had saved up my pocket money for a long time, planning to buy a comic book I really liked.
But when I went to the bookstore, I found my wallet had been stolen.
That was money I had saved for half a year, and just like that, it was gone.
I stood outside the bookstore and cried for a long time.
Meanwhile, Jack Wyatt's business suddenly improved; many toys sold, and he even made a little money.
When he got home, Jack showed off the money he had earned to our parents. They couldn't stop smiling and even bought him a new pair of shoes.
No one asked me why I was crying, and no one cared that my wallet was lost.
Watching them happy, I felt a trace of regret for the first time.
I began to wonder if what I was doing was truly worth it.
Time passed quickly, and before I knew it, Jack Wyatt and I had reached the age for the College Entrance Examination.
I had always studied hard; although my grades occasionally fluctuated because I transferred my luck to Jack Wyatt, overall they remained quite good.
In senior year, the school had a few guaranteed admission slots to Key Universities.
Thanks to my excellent grades, I secured one of those slots, admission to a prestigious university I truly liked.
I was overjoyed, clutching the Guaranteed Admission Notice as I ran home, eager to share the good news with my parents.
But the moment I stepped inside, I saw my parents and Jack Wyatt sitting on the sofa, their faces troubled.
Jack's grades had never been good, and his mock exam scores were still far below the university cutoff.
When my parents saw the Guaranteed Admission Notice in my hands, their eyes lit up instantly.
My mother grabbed my hand and said urgently, "Jane, look at your younger brother's poor grades—there's no way he can get into a good university."
"Can you give your guaranteed admission slot to your younger brother? Use the system to transfer the luck of admission to him, so he can get into a key university."
I was stunned, nearly dropping the guaranteed admission notice from my hands.
This was an opportunity I had worked so hard for, the university of my dreams.
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