She had only planned to donate a hundred thousand, a token gesture to get it over with.
After all, even a hundred thousand hurt. But no sooner had she transferred the money than she heard Shen Banxia call out,
"That's all you're donating? So that's how little compassion you have!
How can you have the nerve to wear my mom's expensive necklace and even claim it's yours?"
Her face flushed bright red. She explained that her finger had slipped and she had missed a zero, then made another donation of one million.
Cui Yushu smiled and thanked Ms. Lin for her generosity on behalf of the children.
Lin Xiyue wanted to cry but had no tears. The money hurt, yet there was nothing she could do. Her smile looked worse than a grimace, and she hastily found an excuse to slink away.
Before leaving, however, she cast a glance at Shen Banxia, whom she had ignored until now, and suddenly realized that she was Shen Shuyi's biological daughter.
The one who had stolen the happy life that should have belonged to her daughter.
Back then, she had arranged for someone to carry the baby away and abandon her by a roadside outside the city in freezing weather, leaving her to live or die on her own.
She had never expected the child to be so tenacious that someone would pick her up and she would survive.
Still, now that she had grown up looking like this, she wasn't even worthy of carrying Mingyue's shoes.
That discovery was her only consolation after today's humiliation.
Chen Wanzhi had brought Lin Xiyue along, and now that something so embarrassing had happened,
she naturally felt too awkward to stay, much less bring up the trust fund. She too found an excuse to leave early.
Only Shen Shuyi, Cui Yushu, and Shen Banxia, who had been enjoying the drama from start to finish, remained in the living room.
"Where did Wanzhi find that riffraff? And she actually brought her here!" Cui Yushu said in disgust.
Something like this had happened on her turf, at a gathering she had organized. Of course she was furious.
"Let it go. Wanzhi probably didn't expect this either. Even I didn't!
Still, if Wanzhi hadn't brought her, I wouldn't have known my things had been stolen.
So I should thank you for inviting me to tea today, and thank Wanzhi for bringing her friend." Shen Shuyi comforted Cui Yushu instead.
"You're just too forgiving, letting that woman off like that.
If it were me, I wouldn't care whether she'd stolen it or her husband had bought stolen goods. I'd make them both pay dearly.
How dare they take my things?"
"At most, they bought stolen goods. The real issue is that there's a thief in my own household.
Otherwise, how would my things have ended up for sale on the market?
Dealing with that thief is the priority," Shen Shuyi replied with a smile.
"That's true. Something so expensive, usually kept in a bank safe-deposit box-how did it go missing? You really need to investigate," Cui Yushu agreed.
Shen Shuyi nodded without saying more.
After all, the thief was none other than the man who had shared her bed for over twenty years.
And he hadn't merely stolen her belongings. He intended to wipe out the Shen Family and seize everything they owned.
Even though the children were all his own flesh and blood, he showed no mercy. The thought made her want to tear that scumbag to pieces.
She hadn't insisted on pursuing the matter because she knew rationally that if she confronted him now, without sufficient evidence, all she could do was divorce Xu Junshan. Half of much of her property would then have to go to him.
How could she willingly hand half her wealth to that scumbag and let those two adulterers live happily together without facing any punishment?
That was why, two days earlier, she had instructed her personal lawyer to make a complete inventory of the assets in her name, separating what belonged solely to her from what she jointly owned with Xu Junshan.
She was also returning to work at the Shen Corporation next week to gather evidence of Xu Junshan siphoning off company assets and his other illegal activities. Only then could she remove him from his position and hold him accountable.
Every step she took now had to be planned carefully, with every consequence considered. She couldn't ruin the entire game through a moment of impulsiveness.
After this encounter, Shen Banxia saw her biological mother in an entirely new light. When her mother stayed rational, she could be a truly formidable fighter.
Otherwise, at this tea party in the original course of events, her mother had been utterly humiliated for wearing a fake necklace, and the fallout had even damaged the Shen Corporation's reputation.
Back then, she had completely missed the point and kept insisting that her necklace couldn't possibly be fake. When the appraisal proved otherwise, she had no idea what had happened. Ashamed and angry, she grew increasingly flustered and struggled to explain herself.
Lin Xiyue had seized the chance to mock and sneer at her, saying she had never expected the distinguished heir to the Shen Corporation to wear fake jewelry, let alone an imitation of her own necklace.
Even the others had begun to question the financial strength of the Shen Family and the Shen Corporation.
But in this life, Shen Shuyi had handled everything beautifully and decisively. Not only had she reclaimed her jewelry and thoroughly humiliated Lin Xiyue, she had also made her pay dearly. More importantly, the best part of the show was still to come.
At noon, Shen Shuyi and Shen Banxia stayed at the Book Garden for lunch.
Cui Yushu had hired a top-notch chef who specialized in seafood, and a fresh shipment had arrived by air early that morning.
"Banxia, you're in for a treat. These are all your favorites."
"It's all thanks to you, Auntie Cui," Shen Banxia replied with a smile.
"Banxia, how did you know Lin Xiyue only donated a hundred thousand the first time?"
Although transfers were credited instantly nowadays, even as the foundation's chairwoman, she had to wait for the transaction report to know the amount. She hadn't expected Shen Banxia to know immediately.
"I watched the numbers she pressed! A one and five zeros make a hundred thousand, don't they?" Shen Banxia explained.
"You're very observant, Banxia. Still, people like her deserve to be made to donate more. Without a lesson, she'd really think she could do anything. She doesn't even know her own place, yet she dares to cause trouble here!" Cui Yushu said scornfully.
"She wore such expensive jewelry belonging to my mom. Surely a hundred thousand wouldn't even cover the depreciation. Besides, it's for charity. The more, the better," Shen Banxia answered with a beaming smile.
She had deliberately made Lin Xiyue, that mistress, pay through the nose!
The amount was nothing to her mother. For Lin Xiyue, though, it probably represented a long time spent saving private spending money. How could losing it not hurt?
Besides, Xu Junshan supported her, and half of his income belonged to Shen Banxia's mother.
In a roundabout way, her mother was helping Xu Junshan keep his mistress. Without seizing a chance to make that mistress bleed money, how could Shen Banxia soothe her anger?
Besides, this was only the appetizer. The feast had barely begun, and the main courses were still to come!
"Exactly, exactly." Cui Yushu nodded in wholehearted agreement.
"Honestly, you two. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were the mother and daughter!" Shen Shuyi said with a laugh.
"Banxia and I really do hit it off. Why not let her become my and Xie Cheng's goddaughter?" Cui Yushu suggested with a smile.
"Don't get too greedy. My third child is already your godson, and now you want a goddaughter too?" Shen Shuyi shook her head, laughing.
"Who would complain about having too many sons and daughters?" Cui Yushu replied, taking Shen Banxia's hand.
Her health had been poor back then, and she had suffered a severe hemorrhage after giving birth to her son. She had nearly died on the delivery bed.
Only after several years of rest and recuperation had she given birth to a daughter. After that, Xie Cheng had gone off to get a vasectomy himself, leaving her no chance to have another child even if she wanted one.
But she had never imagined she would give birth to a girl who put romance above all else. The girl had worried her sick. If she had known, she would have been better off not having her.
After lunch, Shen Banxia began to feel sleepy again.
Cui Yushu told Shen Banxia to take a nap upstairs while she chatted with her mother.
Shen Banxia had no objections. After asking which guest room on the second floor she should use, she went upstairs for a nap.
Meanwhile, Cui Yushu and Shen Shuyi sat in the tea room, drinking tea and discussing matters between adults.
As Shen Banxia dozed, she felt the empty space beside her dip.
A little later, she opened her eyes and suddenly met a weary yet piercing gaze. She shot upright.
"Who are you? What are you doing in my bed?"
The other person immediately got off the bed too. Standing beside it and looming over her, his face livid, he demanded an answer.
Shen Banxia looked the man before her over.
He was bare-chested, with broad shoulders, narrow hips, and clearly defined six-pack abs. He had an excellent physique.
Her gaze traveled upward. His expression was anything but pleasant, dark and brooding, and his eyes were worse, fixed on her with a sinister glare.
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