Best Friend? More Like Worst Enemy!

Just as Shen Can finished his thought, Shen Mother returned. Her name was Liu Yuwen, a very gentle woman who treated Shen Can with genuine kindness.

"Eat up, Can-can. Do you still feel uncomfortable anywhere? You must tell Mom if you do," Liu Yuwen said while holding a bowl of porridge, intending to feed him.

Shen Can reached out to take the porridge from Liu Yuwen, smiled, and said, "Mom, I'm fine now. I can eat by myself. You've worked hard too, so go back and rest for a while. I can head downstairs for dinner on my own later."

Liu Yuwen had originally wanted to stay a bit longer, but she suddenly remembered that her best friend was coming over that evening. She hadn't rested well over the past two days, so she didn't have the energy to spare.

"Then Mom will go back to rest for a while. If you feel unwell, you must speak up. Your brothers are all home today, so if you need anything, just order them around," Liu Yuwen instructed before leaving.

Shen Can lay down for another afternoon before getting up. In truth, he had already met his brothers when he returned to the country, but at that time, he hadn't known they were the tragic villains from the book.

His eldest brother, Shen Yu, currently managed the Shen Group. Their father, Shen Hong, had already begun to step back. His eldest brother was a very steady man with a keen business sense.

His second brother, Shen Ze, had opened a design company focusing primarily on jewelry and clothing. He served as the company's chief designer, having founded the firm to pursue his own dreams, a venture the family fully supported.

His third brother, Shen Chi, had been scouted by a director by chance during his university years. He happened to have an interest in acting, so he entered the entertainment industry and was now an award-winning actor with tens of millions of fans.

His fourth brother, Shen Yao, had been sent to the military when their grandfather was still alive, as he was seen as prime material for a soldier. Logically, he shouldn't have been home, but he had returned this time for a mission—a mission that required his status as a young master of the Shen Household.

As Shen Can walked toward the dining room, ready to greet his parents and brothers, his gaze was first drawn to a strange woman at the table. Who was this person?

Liu Yuwen noticed Shen Can's gaze and introduced her with a smile, "Sit down, Can-can. This is Mom's best friend from school."

[So, this is that "best friend" who moved into our house first, then opened a beauty salon in Mom's name under the guise of a business partnership, only for it to result in multiple medical malpractice cases?]

[And then she pushed all the blame onto Mom, making Mom lose all face in the circle of wealthy socialites? Nonono, this isn't a best friend; this is a top-tier enemy.]

Liu Yuwen's smiling face stiffened. Had she misheard? Shen Can hadn't opened his mouth, yet she had heard his voice, and the content was actually about her friend.

She turned to look at her husband and sons, noticing their expressions were also slightly unnatural. No one knew her husband and sons better than she did; for them to all look unnatural at the same time, it was possible they had also heard what Shen Can said.

But it wasn't convenient to ask right now. Liu Yuwen paused and could only continue the introduction, "This is your Aunt Zeng."

Normally, she would have had Shen Can greet her, but Liu Yuwen suddenly didn't want him to. After speaking, she gestured for Shen Can to sit down.

As Shen Can sat, he thought, [Hmm, the surname is Zeng. Not only do I know her surname is Zeng, I also know her name is Zeng Mei. Zeng Mei, Zeng Mei—truly unlucky. My mom is truly cursed to have met you.]

[You claim you're being abused by your husband and are in such a miserable state. My mom encouraged you to be an independent woman and bravely say "no" to an unhappy marriage. You agreed readily enough, saying you definitely would, and then you played the victim to move into our house.]

[Someone who truly wants a divorce would be eager to get it the next day. There's no way you'd be dragging your feet like that, making up excuses and crying whenever asked about the situation.]

[In the end, relying on someone you met while staying at our house who wanted to curry favor with us, you swindled an investment in my mom's name to go open a beauty salon.]

[Fine, open it if you must, but you didn't even run it properly. The equipment was second-hand, the doctors were second-rate, but your sales tactics were top-notch, and you scammed a bunch of people.]

[When the accidents started happening, you didn't think about resolving them or firing the doctors; you just wanted to keep making that dirty money.]

[Although the police eventually cleared my mom's name and stated that the beauty salon had absolutely nothing to do with her, my mom's reputation in the socialite circle was ruined.]

[Before the police cleared things up, my mom's reputation was that of someone who made dirty money—that a wealthy socialite would stoop so low. After it was cleared, her reputation became that of a pure fool—that someone with that level of intelligence shouldn't be a wealthy socialite.]

[Anyway, after that, my mom didn't even dare to step out of the house. Whenever she met those socialites, she felt like everyone was looking down on her, and she gradually became somewhat depressed.]

[Clearly, my mom was just kind-hearted and blinded by past friendship, and who would have thought you would do those things behind her back?]

[But there are always few people who can put themselves in others' shoes. Regardless, I can't let this disaster continue to stay in our house. Let me think about how I can hint at this to Mom.]

Liu Yuwen's hand, which was holding her chopsticks, tightened as she listened. She had originally held some doubts, but now she truly believed it, because Zeng Mei had indeed not said she would go get a divorce the next day. As Shen Can said, shouldn't someone suffering from domestic abuse be very anxious to get a divorce?

Moreover, she hadn't even mentioned her name was Zeng Mei, yet Shen Can knew it. Among everyone present, only her husband should have known her name was Zeng Mei, and that was only because she had spoken to him about it before.

But her sons couldn't possibly know, because Zeng Mei's family had been working in another province and had only recently returned to A City. Could Shen Can predict the future? Or was it something else? Otherwise, how could he know the subsequent developments?

"I heard Mom say Aunt Zeng is going to stay here? Why didn't you bring your child along?" Shen Ze asked, feigning indifference.

Upon hearing Shen Ze's question, Zeng Mei immediately said with embarrassment, "How could I be so bold? My child is quite grown up now; how could they move in here?"

After speaking, Zeng Mei lowered her head, a flash of intense jealousy crossing her eyes. Liu Yuwen's sons were even more outstanding than hers. Back when they were in school, her grades hadn't been as good as Liu Yuwen's, and she had more boys chasing after her than Liu Yuwen did.

Yet now, she wasn't living as well as Liu Yuwen. Was it just because Liu Yuwen's family background was slightly better than hers? How ridiculous.

[Bullshit. It's clearly because your good-for-nothing son doesn't listen to you at all and has been running off to mess around somewhere lately. You're worried his acting is terrible and he'll ruin things. After all, ever since you and your husband found out my mom is very wealthy now, you've been wanting to fish some money out of her, haven't you?]

[You fished some out of my mom and still weren't satisfied, wanting to fish for a bigger haul, only to end up in prison. Forget it, people like this never think they're wrong. Better to kick her out as soon as possible.]

The family members all felt the same way. Dinner was finished in a very silent atmosphere and at a very fast pace. After all, eating with someone like that was truly off-putting.

After dinner, Liu Yuwen chatted with Zeng Mei with a fake smile, while the others sat in different spots playing on their phones. At this moment, Shen Can was still brainstorming various methods.

[Hmm, I've got it. I can leak the news about Zeng Mei being abused to her husband's workplace.]

Unbeknownst to Shen Can, the family had a new group chat, which Shen Chi had created right after dinner.

"Is this feasible? Why do I feel like it's a bit risky?" Shen Chi was the first to speak.