"Is that all?" Xiao Ying asked woodenly, dissatisfied with the man's answer.
Knowing that something like this had happened to the Shen family's ancestors didn't explain the problem he'd encountered.
He wasn't descended from the Shen family, and Shen relatives were still alive.
A thought struck Xiao Ying, and he asked, "Have you heard the names Shen Mingyi and Shen Mingxiu?"
The man seemed to recall something. His expression turned slightly uneasy as he looked Xiao Ying over.
"I'm a descendant of Shen Mingyi—or, at least, that's what I'm called. In reality, there's not much blood relation anymore," Xiao Ying said tactfully.
The man visibly relaxed. He grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth. "Oh, so you're descended from that younger brother."
Xiao Ying raised an eyebrow.
The man licked his lips. "Then my ancestor did your family a great favor." He lowered his voice. "You know, if my ancestor hadn't steeled himself and beaten that older brother, ruining him down there, the younger brother would never have gotten to run the family."
That was quite a shocking thing to say.
I stared at the man in shock, not bothering to hide my astonishment.
The detective tried hard to keep his expression under control, but his eyes still widened.
Xiao Ying remained impassive, simply watching the man, though a storm was brewing inside him too.
Only then did I realize that after being adopted into the Shen family by Shen Ankang, Xiao Ying had heard plenty of old family gossip.
Shen Mingxiu had favored his nephew over his own son, which had long made people suspect there was something behind it. But Shen Mingyi had suffered a difficult birth, been in poor health, and died young. The version of the rumor Xiao Ying had heard was that Shen Changshou was