Her Unhinged Fourth Brother Actually Protected His Sister

When Shen Shuyi came downstairs,

She saw her fourth son, who should have been away filming a movie, stretched out on the chaise longue in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, lazily basking in the sun.

Her daughter sat beside the coffee table, munching on snacks while listening to her fourth brother tell her about the funny things that had happened during filming.

Sunlight streamed through the windows, spilling over the siblings. The scene was beautiful and heartwarming.

Tears welled in Shen Shuyi's eyes, strengthening her resolve not to let that scumbag destroy her family or hurt her children.

"Ruogu, weren't you supposed to come back at the end of the month?" Shen Shuyi composed herself, walked over, and asked.

"Mommy!" The siblings turned toward her at the same time and called out in unison.

"We finished filming ahead of schedule, so I came home early," Shen Ruogu explained.

Actually, my fourth brother punched the director who kept insisting on giving him more scenes, so his part was wrapped early.

"It's good that you're back early. Get some rest first." Understanding dawned on Shen Shuyi, and she introduced her daughter with a smile. "This is your biological sister, Shen Banxia."

Although their interaction made an introduction unnecessary, Shen Shuyi still formally introduced her.

"We've already met. I didn't expect my biological sister to be so ugly!" Shen Ruogu glanced at Shen Banxia, saying the opposite of what he meant.

"That depends on who you're comparing me to. Next to a beauty like you, of course I'm ugly." Shen Banxia wasn't angry and answered with a smile.

Shen Ruogu didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Shen Shuyi laughed too. It was rare to see her fourth son at a loss for words.

"How long will you stay this time?" Shen Shuyi sat down beside them and asked.

Aside from holidays, her fourth son was away practically all year, either filming or making promotional appearances. She saw him on television more often than in person.

"I'm not sure. I'm not planning to take on another film yet. I'll rest for a while before deciding."

"Then get some proper rest and take care of yourself. Look how thin you've gotten."

He didn't lose weight because filming was exhausting. He's worn out from constantly guarding against casting-couch advances!

Shen Ruogu turned toward his seventh sister, embarrassment flashing in his eyes. He felt as though his private affairs had been exposed.

Yet his seventh sister was still focused on eating her chips, as if those thoughts hadn't come from her at all.

He looked at his mother again. She showed no unusual reaction and was still telling him to rest more now that he was home and get his strength back.

Now certain that only he could hear his seventh sister's thoughts, Shen Ruogu breathed a sigh of relief.

Shen Banxia had just finished a bag of chips when her fourth brother handed her another packet of snacks.

"I really can't eat any more." Shen Banxia rubbed her stomach and shook her head, refusing.

To Shen Shuyi, her fourth son wasn't as cold and uncaring as he usually appeared. Wasn't he treating Banxia quite well?

Shen Ruogu was feeding Shen Banxia partly because he was afraid she might actually say something aloud, and partly because he wanted to hear more of her thoughts.

Eating kept her too busy to talk without interfering with her thoughts.

But in the end, he heard only that one remark.

With a full stomach and the sun warming her, it was easy to grow sleepy.

Shen Banxia fell asleep against the sofa, her mouth slightly open, looking as though she might start drooling.

As Shen Shuyi gazed at her daughter bathed in sunlight, she felt that the girl was an angel heaven had sent her. She wasn't ugly at all. She was beautiful.

"Ruogu, your sister isn't ugly at all!"

"I was joking with her. How could my sister be ugly?"

As Shen Ruogu said this, the corners of his mouth lifted with irrepressible pride.

"I'll carry her upstairs to sleep. She might catch a chill here."

With that, he bent down, picked up his seventh sister, and carried her upstairs.

Shen Shuyi watched her children leave, her heart full of comfort.

Shen Ruogu had never been this patient with Xu Mingyue. He had even seemed somewhat averse to her, which Shen Shuyi had assumed was simply due to his withdrawn personality.

She hadn't expected him to care so much about Shen Banxia after only half a day at home. They really were blood siblings.

Secretary Chen arrived on time with several important documents for Shen Shuyi to review and sign.

After her parents passed away, Shen Shuyi inherited their estate and held the largest share of the Shen Corporation, so the Board of Directors naturally elected her chairwoman.

Although she rarely managed company affairs, leaving their execution to Xu Junshan and the company's general manager,

Some important documents and authorizations still required her personal signature to take effect.

In the past, Shen Shuyi would generally give them a cursory glance and sign wherever Secretary Chen told her to.

Today, however, Shen Shuyi was in no hurry. She asked Sister Lian to make her a cup of coffee and reviewed the documents as she drank.

This made Secretary Chen anxious.

"Chairwoman Shen, um... these reimbursement documents are rather urgent. They need to go to the Finance Department for processing today, or they'll have to wait until next month."

Shen Shuyi raised her eyes to Secretary Chen, her face expressionless.

Secretary Chen's heart lurched, and her expression changed instantly as she stammered an explanation.

"Take your time, Chairwoman Shen. I'm just worried we'll miss the deadline. I didn't mean anything else!"

She had never known Shen Shuyi could be so imposing. That single glance had nearly scared the life out of her.

Shen Shuyi pulled out a folded sheet tucked among the documents. It was blank except for a signature field. She placed it in front of Secretary Chen.

"Secretary Chen, what is this?"

"It's... it's a list. I forgot to print it." Secretary Chen's face reddened as she explained, feeling as though her heart might leap into her throat.

"Then print it before bringing it to me to sign.

"You're such a professional secretary, and you've been working for me for over a year. You shouldn't be making such basic mistakes," Shen Shuyi said calmly.

It was as though she hadn't noticed anything wrong and completely believed Secretary Chen's explanation-that this was merely an A4 sheet on which she had forgotten to print a list.

"I'm sorry, Chairwoman Shen. I'll be more careful from now on. I won't make this mistake again." Secretary Chen felt a faint sense of relief. Fortunately, she had managed to bluff her way through.

"You're one of the people whose talents I value most. Keep up the good work!

"As long as I hold this position, I won't let you go hungry. Don't disappoint me!" Shen Shuyi added, her authority evident despite her lack of anger.

After delivering a slap, she didn't forget to offer a sweet.

Secretary Chen was working with Xu Junshan to cheat her. Today certainly wasn't the first time she had betrayed her.

Someone like that could neither be kept around nor trusted.

But this wasn't the time for an open confrontation. Later, she would still need Secretary Chen to turn their scheme against them.

For now, she had to keep reassuring her so she wouldn't grow suspicious.

Apart from that blank A4 sheet, Shen Shuyi found no problems with the other documents after reviewing them and signed them all.

After handing the documents back to Secretary Chen, she also instructed her,

For the time being, she wanted to spend more time with her daughter.

If any documents needed her authorization or signature, she asked Secretary Chen to take the trouble to bring them to her home.

"It's no trouble. It's part of my job," Secretary Chen quickly replied, secretly delighted.

After Secretary Chen left, Shen Shuyi picked up her coffee and drank quietly.

Although she had only learned yesterday that Xu Junshan was a beast hiding behind a respectable face, and she couldn't immediately strip away his mask of hypocrisy,

Taking the long view didn't mean she couldn't start making arrangements and taking action now.

For instance, she had arranged to have dinner that evening with a friend she trusted.

Dinner was merely the pretext. Her real purpose was to find reliable paparazzi contacts, and her friend happened to have them.