My mom met a Taoist priest when she was pregnant with my brother and me.

The priest pointed at my mom's belly and said, "You're having twin lotus!"

My mom thought he was a fraud and turned to leave.

But what the Taoist priest said next changed my life,

"One of the twins will bring wealth and prosperity, while the other brings poverty and misery."

My mom didn't believe it. But things began to go as the Taoist priest said for some reason.

My family encountered a lot of strange things during my mother's pregnancy.

One day, my dad won the lottery, and the whole family celebrated. But on the following day, he had a car accident and lost all his money.

One day, our family got a huge sum of money for house demolition, and the next day, the developer went bankrupt.

After such things had happened a few times, my parents believed the priest.

"Honey, what are we gonna do? What the Taoist priest said is true."

"Eve, we must give up one baby!"

My mom touched her belly anxiously and said, "But we don't know which one can bring us wealth and prosperity."

My dad looked at my mom's belly and showed a sinister look. "I'll go find that Taoist priest tomorrow."

He had looked for the Taoist priest for three months. Meanwhile, my mom's belly became bigger and bigger.

Things became more and more weird. People even died.

"Honey. Our baby has already caused his grandmother to die before he was born. If he is born, our whole family may also die because of him."

"Don't worry. My friend has already reached the priest. I'll go to meet him tomorrow."

The next afternoon, my dad came back disappointed. He sighed when he looked at my mom's belly.

"What's wrong, honey? The priest can't do anything about it, can he?"

Dad sighed again. "Well, he gave me a pill. If you take it, the jinx will be suppressed, so will be the blessed one."

"What now? The jinx has already made us owe others a lot of money."

My dad thought for a moment and stared at my mom's stomach with his sharp eyes. "You'll take half a pill. Fortune and wealth come from risk."

As my dad spoke, he fed my mom half a pill.

After that day, my family became peaceful, with neither happy events nor disasters.

Then, my brother and I were born.

On the delivery day, my mom had severe stomach pain, and it took her two full days to give birth.

My parents were excited to see my brother, who was a fat little guy.

I, on the other hand, was born with congenital deficiencies and was skinny. So, I stayed in the incubator for three months.

"Honey, do you think this girl is the jinx?"

My dad stared at my face and pondered.

"You stay at home with our son. I'll take my daughter to our hometown and see what happens."

So, my dad took me to the mountains when I was still an infant.

I kept crying on the way, and my dad impatiently picked up the milk bottle and stuffed it into my mouth.

But I still kept crying. He just ignored me and went straight into the mountains.

Before we could reach the foot of the mountain, there was a mudslide. My dad finally made it back to the city after several narrow escapes.

After that day, I was left to the care of a nanny and rarely saw my parents.

I was six years old back then, and I didn’t understand my parents' thoughts.

But I often heard my parents say, "Keep that jinx away from Trevor. Don't let her ruin his luck."

"I'll clean up the basement tomorrow and let her move in."

Not long after I moved to the basement, my dad suddenly made a successful investment. Then, our family moved into a villa.

I just moved to a bigger basement with a small window.

I never went outside. I wasn't allowed to.

So, I could only look through the window and watch my parents play with my brother in the garden.

My dad would hold my brother above his head, and my mom would kiss his forehead gently. They smiled genuinely.

I wondered if my parents didn’t like me because I was a girl.

I started to act like a boy.

I thought if I turned myself into a boy, my parents would like me, too.

One night, I sneaked out, took some clothes that my brother had thrown away, and cut my hair short with scissors.

My hands were too small to control the scissors well. So I scratched my head, and blood flowed down the top of my head, but I didn't care.

Looking at the boy version of me in the mirror, I smiled.

I waited in front of my parents' door, looking forward to their reaction when they saw me the following day.

I waited in excitement all night, but the next day...

My dad looked at me with disgust and growled, "Who told you to do this? Look at you, so ugly! Go back and never come out!"

Seeing my dad's disgusted look, I turned to my mom expectantly.

But she kicked me without warning.

"You're just a jinx. Behave yourself! Don't dress like that. You could bring bad luck to Trevor!"

My dad threw me back into the basement.

With the basement door being slammed closed, my heart was closed, too,

I didn’t understand why they still hated me even though I had become a boy.

Later, the cleaning lady told me that it was because I was a jinx.

My parents always said that, but I was young and didn't know what a jinx was.

But then, I understood it.

When I was seven years old, I was often starved. So, I had to sneak out for food.

That day, my brother was wearing a birthday hat and was surrounded by people in the living room.

They clapped and sang, "Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you..."

My parents gently stroked my brother's hair.

"So, today is my brother’s birthday. So is mine." I thought.

I squatted outside the door and waited, and finally, everyone left.

I ran to the trash can, took out the cake, and started eating it ravenously.

That was the first time I had had cake.

“So, this is how cakes taste.

It's sweet and sour." I thought to myself.

I licked my hands, tied the cake, and took it back to the basement.

There was still a lot left. I planned to enjoy it when I got hungry.

I was holding the bag of cakes and getting ready to sleep when I heard a noise at the door.

I sat up immediately while thinking, "Do my parents come and celebrate my birthday after they realized it?"

I ran to the door with a smile on my face, only to see my dad holding a wooden stick and staring at me viciously. I was so scared that I took a step back.

"Dad..."

"Don't call me dad. I don't have a jinx daughter like you."

That night, my dad beat me so hard that I couldn't stand up. I cried and apologized, "I'm sorry, dad. It's my fault. I shouldn't have stolen food."

Later, I found out that someone who came to the birthday party that day died in a car accident.

My dad thought I had killed him.

I lay on the ground all night. No one gave me medicine or cared about if I was starving.

My stomach was aching, and I knew it was time to eat. But I was so beaten up that I couldn't even get up.

Luckily, my dad didn’t take the cake away. So, I grabbed a handful and stuffed it into my mouth.

It was still sweet. But I felt bitter.

It was mixed with my tears.

My brother and I went to the same kindergarten.

It was my first time leaving the house. I suppressed my excitement and stood next to my dad.

"Remember, don't make any friends or get close to Trevor."

I nodded timidly, keeping my father's words in mind and not daring to talk to anyone.

But there was a girl who always carried a bunny schoolbag and followed me around regardless of my indifference.

"How come you don't talk to me? Don't you like me?"

"Your name is Sophie, and I'm Emily. I'm sure we can be good friends."

"Why do your parents treat you like that? I feel sorry for you. It's okay. I'll love you."

"Sophie. I brought you some food. You won't be hungry anymore."

"This is for you. When your dad beats you next time, just grab it, and you won't feel pain. I will come to you and accompany you."

I couldn't resist her warmth, so I became friends with her.

We played hide-and-seek, went to school, and made clay figures. I had never been so happy.

She would always sneak a lot of food into my bag.

I didn’t really have a schoolbag. I only had a grocery bag to carry my books.

"Sophie, I asked my dad to buy me another bunny schoolbag. I'll bring it to you tomorrow, so we'll have the same schoolbags!"

I looked at her, whose eyes curved with a smile, and smiled, too.

"Okay."

But I never got that schoolbag, and I would never have the chance to get it.

"I told you not to make any friends, but you didn't listen. You are a jinx, and you killed another person. I will beat you to death."

My dad pinned me to the ground and beat me. I held the moon-shaped pendant tightly in my hand and refused to make a sound.

Tears streamed down, wetting the ground.

"Emily, you lied to me. Why didn't you come to accompany me?

Please come back. I will never be friends with you again.” I whispered in my heart.

The girl who followed me around disappeared forever.

People said that I was the one who killed her and that I was a jinx.

Gradually, my reputation as a jinx spread. No one in school talked to me, and even the teachers treated me as if I didn't exist.

They all said that my brother was a lucky star and I was a jinx.

My brother had the same appearance as me, but he lived a completely different life.

I wanted to see my brother, but my dad wouldn't let me approach him.

Therefore, I could only hide behind the trees and watch my brother and his friends play ball, participate in international competitions, give speeches in front of everyone, and learn various skills.

I could only hide in the dark and observe him.

My brother lived in the sunshine, always so cheerful and lively.

I could only live in the shadows, watching him shine like a star.

The only friend I had died because of me.

After I entered high school, it was a new environment, and no one knew that I was a jinx.

My brother was still popular in school. We had the same look but never talked, which made people wonder why.

We had a sports meeting, and my brother and I were in two neighboring classes.

I remembered my dad's warning and chose a seat far away from him.

"Hey. That girl looks so much like you. Is she your twin sister? How come you never mentioned her before?"

I moved my ears and wondered how my brother would reply.

"Well, you'd better stay away from her. Otherwise, she'll get you killed."

"What? No way. This is 21st century. How could you still believe in that?"

The boy in the blue school uniform glanced at me several times, obviously not buying it.

My brother looked over and laughed sarcastically. "She killed my grandmother when she was still in my mom's belly and killed two more people after she was born. She is a jinx. You are my best friend, and I don't want you to get hurt."

I didn’t have to listen anymore. I guess my reputation as a jinx would spread out again.

But unexpectedly, that boy didn't spread the news. Instead, he dared to come to me.

"You must be Sophie Spencer, Trevor's sister. I'm your brother's friend. Nice to meet you."

I was a little stunned when I saw such a cheerful boy suddenly appear in front of me.

I couldn't believe he actually dared to talk to me after hearing what my brother said.

I didn't want to hurt him, so I lowered my head and walked away without replying to him.

"Sophie, why are you so silent? Don't believe those superstitions. Your family is all fine, isn't it?"

The boy followed me and asked me persistently, just like Emily did back then.

Thinking of Emily, I ran away in a hurry.

But he caught up with me.

"Don't run away. Why don't we be friends? If I'm fine, it means you're not a jinx."

I ran faster, but I was weaker than him. So, he soon caught up again.

He came up and grabbed my sleeve. I got scared, and I tried to shake him off.

"What are you doing, Sophie? Didn't our dad warn you not to talk to others, especially my friends? Are you doing this on purpose?"

My brother suddenly appeared and stood in front of the boy angrily.

"Hey, Trevor. You took it the wrong way. I was the one who stopped Sophie and wanted to be friends with her. And your dad went too far. How could he treat his own daughter like that?"

"Gary Luke, stay out of this, and keep your distance from her. She is really a jinx. Just go, Sophie!"

My brother yelled at me. I could see the hatred in his eyes.

"Trevor, I just said a few words to her. Why are you so worked up?"

A sullen and complicated look came on Trevor's face. "Anyway, she is a jinx. Just stay away from her."

I glanced at the boy who spoke out for me, turned around, and left, feeling uneasy.

"Will he also be killed by me?" I wondered.