Suddenly, a rough male voice interrupted their conversation.
“Lin Ran? What are you doing here?”
Cao Xinyu appeared out of nowhere in the staircase.
He looked visibly angry, glared fiercely at Lin Ran, and strode forward to grab Wang Xinuo by the arm.
“Are you trying to lure her away?”
“No… Xinyu, I was just saying hello to her.”
Wang Xinuo smiled apologetically at Lin Ran.
“Sorry about this; maybe you could take a seat downstairs?”
As Lin Ran turned to leave, she suddenly heard the sound of shattering glass, followed by Wang Xinuo’s scream.
The noise came from the adjacent lounge.
Lin Ran exchanged a glance with Meng Xiao, and they immediately rushed into the lounge.
A glass cup lay shattered on the floor.
Wang Xinuo stood nearby, blood dripping from her leg, looking lost and helpless.
Unable to bear it, Meng Xiao grabbed Cao Xinyu’s arm and furiously demanded, “Are you abusing her?”
Ignoring her own injury, Wang Xinuo hurried over.
“No, no, he… he accidentally knocked the glass off, and it happened to cut my leg. He didn’t do it on purpose.”
Cao Xinyu was equally stunned, and after a moment managed to say, “Are you alright?”
Lin Ran lowered her head to examine Wang Xinuo’s injury.
The wound wasn’t deep and didn’t look too serious.
Wang Xinuo looked worried.
“But with this injury… I can’t go into the water. What about the performance?”
Lin Ran’s thoughts stirred.
Based on her suspicions, it was likely that Cao Xinyu had tampered with the water tank.
Wang Xinuo’s inability to perform might actually prevent an accident with the water tank.
Cao Xinyu frowned, finally saying, “Alright… you assist, and I’ll perform. I’ll go inform the boss.”
He got up and left.
At that moment, a theater staff member arrived with a first-aid kit to stop Wang Xinuo’s bleeding and treat her wound.
“Well, if it isn’t Miss Lin! We meet again!”
Yu Shijia emerged from backstage, grinning as he approached Lin Ran.
“Spying on the rival, right? No problem, take a good look! You’re welcome to join us!”
Lin Ran pointed to Wang Xinuo.
“Your performer is injured.”
Yu Shijia glanced at Wang Xinuo.
“Cao Xinyu told me. I asked the costume team to prepare a long skirt to cover the wound.”
“Hah, you’re really cold-hearted.”
“Otherwise? The show must go on.”
Lin Ran turned and left the lounge; this wasn’t her place to be.
With Wang Xinuo out of the performance, it seemed the situation had been resolved.
Before long, the performance began.
When Wang Xinuo took the stage, Lin Ran noticed faint bloodstains showing through her skirt.
Still, she smiled at the audience, saying, “Hello, everyone! We’re the new magicians. I’m Wang Xinuo, and this is my partner, Cao Xinyu!”
The audience responded with polite applause.
With a smile, Wang Xinuo presented the props: a row of fist-sized padlocks.
“Many people suspect our locks are specially made and can be easily opened. So, today we’ll break tradition and let everyone examine these locks to see if they really open so easily!”
Wang Xinuo carried the tray down to the audience, passing out the locks for everyone to inspect.
Sitting in the front row, Lin Ran received a lock as well.
She tugged at it, but it didn’t budge.
Then, Wang Xinuo collected the locks.
Smiling, she took out two balls.
“Now, we’ll need two audience members to help us with the locking! I’ll turn my back and toss these balls into the crowd. Whoever catches them will help us lock up, ensuring everything’s securely locked.”
True to her word, she turned her back, tossing the balls into the audience.
They arched through the air and landed in the crowd.
Two audience members who caught the balls came forward to assist, locking Cao Xinyu tightly in the water tank.
They added over twenty locks, making it seem nearly impossible for him to escape.
Then, the tank’s door closed, and water began to slowly fill it from below.
When the water had filled the tank completely, Wang Xinuo pulled a curtain across it, smiling as she announced, “Now, let’s patiently wait for our magician to miraculously escape from the water tank!”
Exciting music filled the venue, and during the wait, Wang Xinuo continued to build the tension, amplifying the anticipation among the audience along with the suspenseful music.
“The whole process takes ten minutes?”
Meng Xiao leaned over to ask Lin Ran.
“Can anyone hold their breath that long?”
Lin Ran, unfamiliar with the water tank magic, could only guess.
“There must be a way to breathe.”
About five or six minutes in, Lin Ran felt her bag move slightly.
She initially thought it was her phone vibrating, but when she checked, there were no messages.
Looking into her bag, she noticed a gem on the Qiankun Mirror had lit up.
The once-dull white stone now glowed brightly yellow, just as it had when she first received it.
Lin Ran looked up at the stage.
The performance continued smoothly, with the audience caught up in the suspense, eagerly awaiting the outcome.
But Lin Ran clearly noticed that Wang Xinuo’s gaze had taken on a strange intensity, a hint of madness lurking in her eyes.
An uneasy feeling crept over Lin Ran.
She took out her phone and opened a previous photo.
Hesitating for a moment, she zoomed in on Cao Xinyu’s picture and scanned it with the Qiankun Mirror.
Time remaining: 1 minute!
Lin Ran had no time to think; she immediately stood up, rushed onto the stage, and pulled the cloth off the water tank amidst the shocked gasps of the audience.
Wang Xinuo tried to stop her, but with her injured leg, she stumbled, and by the time she tried to intervene, Lin Ran had already ripped off the cover.
Through the water tank, they could all see Cao Xinyu at the bottom, completely motionless.
The audience was stunned.
[Something’s wrong! Something’s happened!]
[The magician is underwater—someone save him!]
[It’s been nearly ten minutes already; could he be… dead?]
Some audience members also rushed to the stage, causing chaos.
Wang Xinuo screamed Cao Xinyu’s name, her face full of panic.
Meng Xiao had followed Lin Ran onto the stage and gave the tank a hard kick, but the water tank was sturdy and didn’t budge.
Lin Ran swung her hand, and a large hammer appeared in her grasp.
She struck the tank with all her might, but only a thin crack appeared.
Meng Xiao snatched the hammer from Lin Ran’s hand and smashed it into the tank with force.
Her strength was immense; she managed to break a hole in the tank, and a torrent of water gushed out, pushing Meng Xiao back a step.
The bandages on her hand were soaked, with faint traces of blood appearing.
Meng Xiao paused only for a moment before raising the hammer again and smashing at the tank until she created a hole large enough to pull someone through.
The staff from the Dream Magic Troupe rushed out from backstage, gathering around the water tank to help.
Yu Shijia led the way, assisting and directing the efforts.
A doctor from the audience came up to perform first aid.
After a while, Cao Xinyu finally started breathing again.
The rescuers cheered, even more joyful than they’d been watching the magic show.
The doctor breathed a sigh of relief and said slowly, “If we had been one minute later, he’d have been dead. Thankfully, we noticed in time.”
Cao Xinyu was still too weak to speak, but he searched the crowd for Wang Xinuo, his gaze full of resentment.
Just then, the ambulance arrived and carried Cao Xinyu away.
The performance was halted, yet the audience lingered, discussing the recent accident.
[Who was that who rushed onto the stage? How did she know something was wrong?]
[And who was that guy helping her?]
[I didn’t see what happened clearly… but I recorded it.]
Lin Ran took Meng Xiao to the backstage dressing room.
Meng Xiao’s clothes were completely soaked.
Lin Ran found her a change of clothes and a first-aid kit, then helped her replace the wet bandages on her hand.
As Lin Ran removed the bandages, she saw that Meng Xiao’s injury was more serious than she’d claimed.
The wound was deep, and after being soaked, the surrounding skin was peeling, clearly painful.
“You and your boyfriend seem really close.”
Yu Shijia walked over to Lin Ran, pulling up a chair next to her.
“Thanks to you both today. If someone had died on my watch… I’d have no way to explain it.”
Lin Ran carefully disinfected Meng Xiao’s wound.
The sting of the disinfectant made Meng Xiao gasp in pain.
Lin Ran gently blew on her wound and softly asked, “Does it hurt?”
Meng Xiao forced a smile.
“Not really.”
While applying medication, Lin Ran turned to Yu Shijia and said, “If you’re truly grateful, help me with something.”
“Of course.”
Yu Shijia agreed without hesitation.
“What do you need?”
Lin Ran pointed at Meng Xiao.
“She’s the one who saved him, so I want you to make sure she gets some recognition.”
Meng Xiao was startled.
“What?”
Lin Ran explained, “If people notice you, you’ll get chances to act. Do you really want to be a stunt double forever? If people pay attention, no one will be able to steal the roles you’ve earned through hard work, and you might even land a lead role that’s perfect for you!”
Meng Xiao was silent for a moment, then lowered her head and whispered, “Okay.”
Yu Shijia was a bit confused.
“Lead role? Wait, she’s a girl?”
“You couldn’t tell?” Lin Ran glanced at him.
“I guess, with her looking so dashing, it’s understandable.”
Yu Shijia’s eyes lit up.
“So, she’s not your boyfriend? Do I… have a chance then?”
“No!”
Lin Ran cut him off.
“…So harsh.”
“Alright, I’ll get to work. Seems like I won’t be getting any sleep tonight,” Yu Shijia muttered as he stood up and left, stifling a yawn.
Meng Xiao’s wound had been wrapped.
She grabbed Lin Ran’s hand with her uninjured one and quietly said, “Thank you.”
Lin Ran gave her a gentle smile.
“No need to thank me; you’ve earned it.”