Chapter 706: The Truth

There was a silence in the office. After Shen Jingjing and Shen Yingying told Shen Ci the truth, they both fell silent.

They knew that even Shen Ci would need time to digest and accept such a subversive truth.

Shen Ci sat there blankly, countless images overlapping in her mind. Every frame and every scene was Shen Li's cute face, and she could even clearly hear the sound of Shen Li calling her "Sister" in her ears.

But why didn't this happen in her past life?

Was it because Shen Li wasn't famous enough in her past life?

Or was it that her mother had hidden this earth-shattering secret for a whole lifetime?

After a long time, Shen Ci finally slowly detached herself, nodded with a wooden expression: "I—I understand."

She seemed not to have fully digested it, nor did she seem to have truly accepted it.

But she could no longer care about herself. Those two people who had appeared out of thin air were already coming aggressively to snatch Shen Li away, and she absolutely would not allow such a thing to happen.

She didn't care who gave birth to Shen Li; Shen Li was her sister, her, Shen Ci's, own sister!

"Shen Ci, don't blame your mother for hiding it from you. This matter was better off known by as few people as possible. Besides me, your uncle, and your grandparents on both sides, no one else knew." Shen Yingying said softly.

"Aunt, of course I won't blame my mother. She did nothing wrong in this matter." Shen Ci looked at her mother and said in a serious tone: "I also want to thank my mother for giving me such a good sister. She is also your good daughter!"

These words brought Shen Jingjing to tears instantly.

She covered her mouth, her eyes red, and nodded vigorously.

"Shen Li did nothing wrong either. She was abandoned, and she will definitely be able to understand."

Shen Ci quickly composed herself, and then immediately took out her phone and called Sister Zhu Li.

She had to explain the whole truth to Sister Zhu Li so that their company could formulate the most appropriate public relations strategy for Shen Li.

Since the truth was about to come out, there was no need to hide it anymore.

"Ah?"

Sister Zhu Li was also extremely shocked after hearing Shen Ci's words: "Ho—how could this be?"

An hour ago, Shen Ci had sworn to her that it was absolutely impossible, and in just this short while...

"Sister Zhu Li, this is the truth. I just found out myself; my mother said it herself."

Shocked as she was, Sister Zhu Li quickly adjusted her state: "The company is having a meeting. Originally, we were going to define it as a 'deliberate incident' or a 'blunder,' but now that direction obviously won't work. We must speak with the truth to be flawless."

"I understand. We don't need to lie, otherwise there will be endless trouble." Shen Ci said.

Lies are the easiest to expose, and one lie leads to countless more; they didn't need to take the risk.

Getting Shen Ci's confirmation, Sister Zhu Li felt confident: "Don't worry, Miss Shen. In this matter, Shen Li is clearly the vulnerable party, the abandoned party, the uninformed party. We have all the buffs stacked; public opinion will definitely lean in our favor."

"Sister Zhu Li, I estimate that the other party might go find 'Jin Xiao'." Shen Ci's brain began to run at high speed after she calmed down: "They won't give up just like that. But between Shen Li's address and the company's address, the company's address is obviously easier to check. You must be prepared."

"Understood. Let's not have Shen Li come to the company for the next two days. We will handle it."

Hanging up the phone, Shen Ci walked back to the sofa and sat down.

"Shen Ci, will this matter affect Shen Li's career?" Shen Jingjing looked worried: "She finally managed to..."

"Mom, don't worry. I won't allow anyone to do anything detrimental to Shen Li. Everything is on me. Now, let's tidy up and go home first. Shen Li should be back soon, and we must give her an explanation. She has the right to know."

Near eleven o'clock at night, Shen Li finally dragged her exhausted body home.

The living room was brightly lit. Not only were her mother and sister home, but her aunt and uncle had also come. The house was noisy, and there was a table full of fragrant food.

"Shen Li is back!"

Seeing Shen Li return, Shen Yingying stepped forward and grabbed her hand: "You're tired, right? You probably didn't eat much at the event's celebration banquet. Your mother and I made a lot of delicious food. Go wash your hands quickly."

"Aunt, you guys..."

Shen Li was confused and subconsciously glanced at her watch. It was already eleven o'clock at night.

What was going on?

Before she could react, she was already being pushed toward the washroom.

When she came out after washing her hands, the others were already seated neatly, just waiting for her.

Her sister looked at her and patted the empty seat next to her: "Come, Shen Li."

Shen Li hesitated, looking at the people in front of her, feeling empty inside, and a strong, bad premonition emerged.

Walking closer, Shen Li slowly sat down. Her eyes scanned everyone's faces like a frightened little deer, and finally landed on her sister.

At this moment, it seemed that only by looking at her sister could she feel at ease.

"Sister."

"Shen Li." Shen Ci reached out and held her sister's hand, only to find her little hand was ice cold: "There is one thing Mom wants to tell you herself today."

Shen Li slowly shifted her gaze to her mother, but only saw her looking at her with eyes full of tenderness.

Her throat choked up, and Shen Li's voice trembled as she spoke: "I—I probably know."

The unease in her heart became concrete. Shen Li's tears slid down uncontrollably. She knew how difficult and hard it was for her mother to tell her these things herself, so she said it for her mother: "I—I am not your biological daughter."

And this sentence was not a question, but a statement.

Her sensibility made everyone feel heartbroken. Shen Ci held her sister's hand even tighter.

"Shen Li, Aunt knows this is hard to accept, but rather than letting you know passively, we thought it would be better to tell you ourselves."

Because in the current situation, it really couldn't be hidden for much longer.

Shen Li cried and asked: "Then—then where did I come from?"

"You were picked up by Mom in a park. At that time, you were only as big as a thermos..."

Shen Li covered her mouth, not letting herself cry out loud.

She was abandoned!

"Shen Li, none of this changes anything!" Shen Ci said: "You are my sister, you will always be my own sister. Mom has never thought of you as picked up either. For so many years, even Aunt and Uncle have treated you like their own daughter."

Shen Jingjing also cried: "Shen Li, if it could be hidden, Mom would have hidden it from you for a lifetime so you wouldn't know these things, because Mom knows these truths are too cruel for you, but..."

Shen Yingying also cried and said: "Shen Li, you have to understand Mom. Back then, it was because your mother insisted on keeping you that your father couldn't withstand the pressure and left. All these years, she has also loved you with all her heart."

Shen Li nodded, sobbing: "I know..." ===== CHAPTER 707 =====