Chapter 705: If it can't be hidden, then don't hide it

The office suddenly fell into silence, with only Shen Jingjing's helpless sigh remaining.

She had already been overwhelmed lately, and just as she was getting the hang of things, the new store opened at this time, leaving her feeling somewhat unadjusted.

This phone call from the old lady made her even more irritable.

Just then, a knock on the door sounded. Shen Jingjing quickly composed herself and said, "Come in."

The door opened, and it was Shen Yingying.

Shen Jingjing stood up, a smile finally appearing on her face: "Why are you here?"

"I just happened to be passing by after taking a stroll through the flower and bird market." Shen Yingying caught sight of the massive bouquet of red roses nearby, and her eyes immediately lit up: "Oh! You received flowers? Who sent them?"

Seeing her gossiping, Shen Jingjing knew exactly what her younger sister was thinking. She pulled her over to sit on the sofa: "Stop asking nonsense, I'm already annoyed enough."

"Having a suitor is a good thing. Are you really planning to never look for anyone again?" Shen Yingying advised: "If there's someone suitable, just give it a try. The children are all grown up now."

"It's not that they aren't suitable! I've had contact with him before; it didn't work out."

Upon hearing this, Shen Yingying blurted out: "Ah? That big boss from before?"

"How did you know?" Shen Jingjing was startled, then immediately understood: "Shen Ci must have told you!"

"She mentioned it in passing once. Oh, well, if it's not suitable, then forget it. Don't let such things bother you."

"It's not just this that's bothering me." Shen Jingjing sighed: "There's too much to do, I'm incredibly busy, and our mother just called me."

"She called you again?" Once Shen Yingying heard this, her brows furrowed as well. Neither sister liked to keep in touch with their family: "What did she want?"

"Money." Shen Jingjing said with a cold expression: "She found out Shen Li is an actress, so she came to ask me for money. She asked for three hundred right off the bat!"

"What?" Shen Yingying said indignantly: "What does Shen Li earning money have to do with them? Let alone Shen Li, even if Shen Ci or Shen Xing earned money, it would have nothing to do with them. For all these years, who in that family has ever helped you once? They were nowhere to be found when you were struggling, but now that they see Shen Li is doing well, they come crawling back. How can there be such a cheap deal!"

Thinking of the suffering and hardship her older sister had endured, Shen Yingying felt a pang of heartache.

"She said Shen Cheng needs to start a business. I didn't give her that much, but I couldn't give her nothing either, otherwise the old lady wouldn't let it rest."

As Shen Jingjing spoke, she didn't forget to instruct her sister: "You must not let your current situation slip at all. Remind He He Suisui and He Bin as well. If they find out Shen Ci bought you such a big house, the old home will explode."

"Don't worry, Sis. They don't even know we moved to Longcheng and aren't in Shengang anymore. We were never valued to begin with, and as for me, the younger sister, no one even thinks to give me a call all year round."

Shen Jingjing sighed, then smiled with relief: "Fortunately, we've both made it through. The children are all grown up, and they are all sensible and promising."

"That's because Shen Ci, Shen Li, and Shen Xing are promising. As for my two, forget it."

"Don't say that. Even though He He Suisui and He Bin aren't great at school, He He Suisui is studying very seriously at her vocational college and will be interning soon. He Bin is also sensible; he'll be fine in the future. Don't worry."

Just as they were talking, the phone rang again. Shen Jingjing thought it was the old lady again, but when she picked it up with an impatient expression and saw who it was, her expression changed. Her tone became gentle as she answered: "Shen Ci."

"Mom, are you done with your work? I have something to tell you."

"I—I'm still at the office. Your aunt is here and we're chatting. What's wrong?" Hearing that her daughter's tone was more serious than usual, Shen Jingjing also became serious.

"I can't explain it over the phone. I'll send you two links on WeChat; open them and take a look. I'm coming to your office to find you now."

"Uh, okay, then come over."

Seeing her sister hang up the phone with a strange expression, Shen Yingying asked in a low voice: "What's wrong? Is Shen Ci coming over?"

Shen Jingjing nodded and clicked on the link her daughter had sent her.

The next second, her pupils dilated sharply.

"Sis?"

Shen Yingying was stunned, leaned over to look, and then revealed the same expression as Shen Jingjing.

Both of them looked shocked after reading all the content, and both had goosebumps all over.

"We—we've been discovered?" Shen Yingying slowly turned her head to look at her sister, her voice trembling: "Does Shen Li already know?"

Shen Jingjing muttered: "I can't be sure if Shen Li knows, but Shen Ci probably does."

Twenty years. The secret they had tacitly agreed never to mention had been hidden for twenty years. By now, they had even forgotten that Shen Li wasn't born to her, because from the very beginning, she had raised her just like her own daughter.

Soon, Shen Jingjing composed herself: "Yingying, if it can't be hidden, then don't hide it. Rather than letting Shen Li learn the truth from someone else's mouth, I'd rather tell her myself."

Shen Yingying also regained her composure and nodded in agreement: "Sis, you're right. Shen Li is sensible. Perhaps she might find it hard to accept the truth that she isn't your biological daughter at first, but she will definitely be able to understand you."

Not long after, Shen Ci drove to her mother's company.

As soon as she entered the office, she saw her mother and aunt sitting upright on the sofa, looking at her with calm expressions.

"Mom, Aunt." Shen Ci greeted them, then walked over and sat down opposite them: "You saw what I sent, right?"

Both of them nodded.

Even now, Shen Ci didn't want to believe it. She looked at her mother and asked: "Shen Li is fine, right Mom? She is your biological daughter."

"Shen Ci, Shen Li was not born to Mom. She was picked up by Mom in a park."

Shen Jingjing said it bluntly. Since she intended to tell her, there was no need to beat around the bush.

Shen Ci was stunned: "Ah?"

Shen Yingying looked at Shen Ci with a pained expression. She knew that not only would Shen Li find it hard to accept for a while, but as the older sister, Shen Ci, and as the younger brother, Shen Xing, would certainly not be able to accept it immediately either.

The impact of this matter was too great. Twenty years—no one had ever suspected it.

"Shen Ci, actually, there is one flaw that you would realize is wrong if you think about it carefully." Shen Yingying tentatively spoke up.

Shen Ci looked at her aunt, looking puzzled: "What is it?"

Shen Yingying said: "You are twenty-two, Shen Li is twenty-one, and Shen Xing is twenty this year."

Shen Ci's mind was in chaos, and she didn't react immediately.

Seeing this, Shen Yingying said: "Judging by your ages, your mother would have had to be pregnant and give birth for three consecutive years without any rest, with almost no gaps, to have you three be only one year apart."

Shen Jingjing: "I brought Shen Li home when you were one year old. It wasn't until a year later that I became pregnant with Shen Xing."

Shen Ci looked at her mother. In her mind were every smile and every frown of her younger sister—the sister she had used all her strength to love and protect—was she actually not her biological sister? ===== CHAPTER 706 =====