Chapter 21

Shen Xiche glanced at her in the rearview mirror. "Why did you take so long to come out today?"

Shen Anya gripped the hem of her skirt. She couldn't let her second brother know a teacher had called her in for a talk!

"I, uh..." Inspiration struck. "There were a few problems I couldn't solve, so I asked a teacher about them. Going through the solutions took a little time."

"Speaking of that, the monthly exam is coming up." Shen Anya smiled at Shen Luoluo. "How's your preparation going, sis?"

"But don't put too much pressure on yourself. The questions here in Jingbei are a little harder than the ones you're used to. It's normal if you don't do well. It's okay."

Her lips curved. Let's see how you talk your way out of it when the results come back!

"We haven't even taken the exam yet. How do you know I won't do well?" Shen Luoluo hadn't wanted to engage with her. She'd only wanted to sit quietly in the corner and go unnoticed.

But some people just wouldn't let her be. If she remembered right, this was the first time she and Shen Anya had exchanged so many words. Usually, they both avoided each other, deliberately or otherwise. Even when they crossed paths, they only exchanged a token greeting. Today, though, Shen Anya had insisted on dragging her into the conversation.

Did she think Shen Xiche would take her side? So what if he did?

Shen Anya hadn't expected Shen Luoluo to snap back so directly in front of Shen Jiayan and Shen Xiche. Panic flashed in her eyes, but she quickly composed herself.

Her voice trembled. "That's not what I meant. You misunderstood me, sis. I only wanted to comfort you." Shen Anya's eyes reddened and filled with tears. "Mom and Dad told me to help you more. If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me..."

"Ask you what?" Shen Jiayan couldn't listen anymore. "You're in International Class, and she's in Rocket Class. You don't even study the same material. How's she supposed to ask you? If anything, you might be the one asking her!"

"And school's over. Can you stop going on about grades? So what if someone gets a low score? Does that mean they can't live anymore? If it did, I'd have to jump off a building!"

Everyone knew Shen Jiayan had the worst grades in the Shen Family. He was often near the bottom of his class. It wasn't that he refused to study: he went to class and did his homework on time, didn't cause trouble, and even paid attention now and then. His grades just never improved.

Shen Ting'an and Zhao Huizhen had hired tutors for him, but they'd barely helped. Eventually, they'd come to accept it. They stopped forcing him to study and let things take their course.

But who didn't want good grades? Shen Anya had unwittingly struck a nerve.

Shen Jiayan was sick of hearing about it. "You get whatever score you get. Life goes on, doesn't it? Why make such a big deal out of it?"

Shen Anya's eyes grew even redder. She clutched her skirt tightly. What did Shen Jiayan mean by that? Was he taking Shen Luoluo's side just to embarrass me?

"Enough," Shen Xiche said, cutting them off. "Stop arguing. We're here."

The car had pulled up in front of a courtyard restaurant, where they were attending the family dinner that evening.

Today was the seventieth birthday of Zhao Huizhen's father—their maternal grandfather. He liked peace and quiet, so there was no lavish banquet or crowd of acquaintances from their social circle. Only family had been invited.

They had chosen this secluded courtyard restaurant. Built beside a hill and water, it had the classic style of a Jiangnan courtyard, with gray brick and white walls. A cobblestone path led in from the entrance.

The four of them had just stepped inside when they ran into Shen Jingyao coming from another path. He was carrying several gift boxes for their grandfather.

Shen Xiche stepped forward and took the boxes from him. "Are Mom and Dad here yet?"

Shen Jingyao was a little surprised that he'd offered to carry them, but said nothing about it. He handed them over. "They're already here. Let's go in."

After speaking, he gave Shen Luoluo's head a gentle pat. "Don't be nervous. Just think of it as an ordinary family dinner. There's nothing special about it."

Shen Luoluo nodded. It was her first time attending a family gathering like this, but she'd already been through the banquet where they'd acknowledged her as family. This was nothing special by comparison.

Besides, now that she had the Intelligence System, a wealthy family gathering was just one big field of gossip waiting to be harvested.

She was rather looking forward to it. Who knew how eventful this dinner might be?

As she thought that, she suddenly paused. No way. I only took a quick look, and there's already gossip?

[Before dinner even starts, someone's going to bring home an illegitimate daughter to acknowledge her place in the family? And she's together with his biological son? The two of them are planning a wedding?]

What? How did that even happen?!

Chapter 21

The illegitimate daughter isn't his biological daughter!

"Huizhen, where are your precious sons and daughters?" The dinner had yet to begin, and everyone in the banquet hall was chatting in small groups.

The woman glanced toward the door, beaming. "I was so busy at the banquet that I didn't get a proper look at Luoluo. Now that I'm seeing her today, I'm going to take a good look!"

There were six Zhao siblings. Zhao Huizhen was the third, with two older brothers. Zhao Yuan was fourth, and there were two younger brothers below her.

The woman speaking was Xu Yinglan, the wife of Zhao Huizhen's older younger brother, Zhao Zhan. The youngest brother was not yet married.

Zhao Yuan was there too. She chimed in first. "Go ahead and look. I guarantee the more you look, the more you'll like her! Luoluo looks exactly like my sister did when she was young. Especially those bright eyes—they're gorgeous!"

Xu Yinglan's eyes lit up. "Really? Then I have to get a good look at her! Huizhen used to be famous around here for her beauty. Even my brother told me he had a crush on her for a while back then!"

"Really?" Zhao Yuan's interest was immediately piqued. "What happened?"

"Nothing happened. His feelings weren't returned. Huizhen never gave him a second look—she didn't even know who he was. My brother was miserable for a while when he found out!"

Zhao Yuan burst out laughing. "If my sister had to know everyone who ever had a crush on her, she'd have more people to remember than she could count."

"That was all years ago. Now that I'm a mother, I'm getting old." Embarrassed by the praise, Zhao Huizhen's ears turned faintly red.

Rankings

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Transmigration into a Book

Feel-Good Fiction

Wealthy CEO

Sweet Romance

Time-Travel and Rebirth Romance

Ice Cream or Not

Mind Reading

Everybody's Darling