Chapter 20: Qingci Just Got Bullied

The butler stopped in his tracks upon reaching the ancestral hall.

He turned to look and saw Shen Qingci’s delicate face lost in thought, seemingly pondering something.

He bent slightly, closed the door, and walked away.

Only then did Shen Qingci place the heirlooms on the table and light an incense stick.

As she stepped out, she suddenly thought of Shen Lan.

Shen Lan was probably like Xi Xingye, completely blinded by his muddled judgment, which led to the current situation…

Shen Qingci acted on impulse, following her thoughts wherever they led.

Thinking of Shen Lan, she immediately went to find him.

By the time she arrived at the company, everyone was working overtime on finance and taxation reports because of the previous report she had filed.

Shen Lan, meanwhile, was in the office—catching some sleep.

The door was kicked open, startling Shen Lan awake, nearly causing him to fall.

When he saw who had come in, his eyes widened. “Shen… Shen Qingci, what are you doing?!”

Saying he wasn’t scared would have been a lie.

Shen Qingci twirled her motorcycle key. “I just heard someone say kids are rebellious… and it reminded me of you. Thought I’d come check on you.”

“Oh, fresh,” Shen Lan said smugly. “Only now you remember I’m your brother? And now you want to come see me? Shen Qingci! Do you even remember how you treated me, how you treated our Shen family?!”

His voice was particularly arrogant.

But the next second, a flash of silver appeared in Shen Qingci’s hand—a razor suddenly in her palm.

“Let’s see if that messy hair of yours has been shaved yet. If not, I’ll do it myself.”

Shen Lan’s breath caught—but it was already too late.

In the blink of an eye, a tuft of yellow hair fell to the ground.

Like snow drifting in winter, Shen Lan’s head was instantly bare.

Hair—all gone!

Shen Qingci looked at Shen Lan’s shiny bald head with satisfaction.

“Rebellion starts with the young. I started too late.”

Shen Lan touched his bare head, then turned to look at the glass window.

Outside, the night was pitch-black, perfectly reflecting his current state.

“Ahhh! Shen Qingci, my hair! I’ll kill you!”

Shen Qingci casually picked up the ashtray on the coffee table. “Kill who?”

Shen Lan immediately froze, then changed direction, screaming angrily as he ran out of the office.

Everything returned to silence. Shen Qingci finally sat down and began reviewing the finance and tax reports that Shen Shirou had been working on.

…

Unbearable.

If this kept up, Shen Yuan might as well give up on the clothing business and just step onto the sewing machines—it would be faster.

She skimmed through the reports, then pulled a golden key from her bag and opened the bottom drawer.

Inside lay a stack of orders—her mother’s final order, called “Hua Shang.”

At that time, Western fashion was dominating the country, and traditional Chinese clothing was fading. Her mother had wanted to revive traditional clothing in a new form.

The designs had been completed, now placed right before her eyes.

The factory sample approval documents were also there.

So her mother hadn’t even waited for the sample clothing to be made—nor had she entrusted anyone… before committing suicide?

Impossible.

According to the memories Shen Qingci had inherited, her mother was never the type to give up halfway.

So everything Shen Shirou said last time was a lie.

Shen Qingci lifted her eyes, her gaze cold and sharp.

Shen Family Mansion

Shen Lan clutched his hat over his bald head, refusing to take it off.

Shen Shirou heard about this and was delighted inside, but pretended to be sympathetic. “Shen Qingci went too far! After all, you’re her own brother!”

“She’s not my sister! I don’t know her!” Shen Lan shouted in anger.

Shen Shirou coaxed him: “Lan, wait. Tomorrow I’ll make Shen Qingci pay for what she’s done!”

As long as Shen Qingci was gone, Shen Yuan would never be able to hold her second household securely.

Everything had been planned; she just needed the right moment.

The next morning at 10 a.m., Shen Qingci, dressed in a white blazer, arrived at Shen Yuan again, as notified via text.

In the conference room, Shen Shirou stood at the head, calm and composed, waiting for Shen Qingci.

After all, without the main character, how could the show begin?

“The room is quite full,” Shen Qingci noted as she pushed open the door, seeing the seats packed.

It was a completely different scene from her last visit.

“Qingci, sit next to your grandfather,” Xi Laoye said.

Xi Zhenghao and Xi Laoye were both present.

Compared to Xi Laoye’s warmth, Xi Zhenghao gave Shen Qingci a cold, disdainful look, avoiding her eyes entirely.

Shen Shirou stood on the platform. “Since everyone is here, let’s officially begin.”

The moment she spoke, all eyes shifted away from Shen Qingci.

“These past few days, everyone has worked tirelessly day and night.”

Her words sounded elegant, and immediately someone stood to agree:

“Shirou has also been working late with us every day. If anyone deserves praise, it’s Shirou, not us!”

Shen Qingci looked toward the voice’s source.

It was Wang Shunfa, her mother’s protege after her death, now promoted to Design Director.

Not a trace of incompetence.

Shen Shirou smiled. “I’ve called everyone here mainly to get your opinions—Shen Qingci is immoral, intentionally harming the company’s interests, seriously affecting stock prices. Therefore, I propose to remove her from the Board and strip her of her CEO powers!”

“This,” she said, holding up a USB drive, “is the evidence.”

Shen Shirou plugged it into the computer.

It was the deepfake video from Shen Qingci’s wedding day that had never been released.

Soon, she would play it in front of everyone, including Xi Zhenghao and Xi Laoye!

The video popped up. Silence fell over the conference room.

Shen Shirou looked at the big screen, only to turn pale.

On the screen was not Shen Qingci—but herself and Wang Shunfa, caught in a compromising position.

Whispers immediately spread around.

“This… the projector must be broken!”

Shen Shirou hurried to turn it off, but instead it started playing an audio recording.

“I just need you on the spot to pin all the company’s deficits and financial issues on Shen Qingci. Your reward will come naturally.”

“But Shirou, Shen Qingci still has the Xi family backing her…”

“I’ll handle the Xi family. This deepfake was made by a professional. Once it’s played at Shen Qingci’s wedding, even as Xi’s granddaughter-in-law, she’ll have no dignity left!”

“This isn’t real!” Shen Shirou frantically pulled the power, pointing at Shen Qingci with her red nails. “It’s her! The video and audio are AI-generated by Shen Qingci! She’s trying to frame me!”

“Frame you? Then why is your lover panicking?” Shen Qingci said with a half-smile.

Everyone finally noticed Wang Shunfa sweating nervously, eyes darting, guilt written all over his face.

“You!” Shen Shirou glared at Shen Qingci.

Shen Qingci met her gaze calmly.

Xi Zhenghao and Xi Laoye’s faces darkened.

They never imagined that the Xi family could be outsmarted by a little girl with barely any hair!

“Since things have come this far, I hereby remove Shen Shirou from the Board. No objections?”

Shen Qingci stood in front of the screen, hands on the long table, tone commanding.

Almost everyone in the room raised their hands in agreement.

After leaving Shen Yuan, Xi Laoye waited until Xi Zhenghao left, then took out his phone and dialed Xi Xingye.

The first words out of his mouth: “Qingci just got bullied!”