Chapter 2

Sixteen years later.

Nanshan Mansion.

Today is Shi Chengyu’s birthday banquet. In Beijing, everyone respects and fears Shi Chengyu, not only because of his family background, but also because they admire the business empire he created in just a few years.

Perhaps it was even longer ago that he began to take over, from being initially unknown to eventually breaking into the business world and becoming an unattainable existence.

Nanshan Mansion is the venue for the banquet. Due to the special identity of the host, the entrance checks are even stricter. All electronic devices are surrendered and stored, and only after inspection can guests enter. Bodyguards are everywhere.

Before the banquet begins, in the guest lounge, Lin Shulang chases after a little girl from the VIP room, feeling helpless but speaking softly and respectfully, “Little Miss, please have some dinner.”

The little girl, called “Little Miss,” raises her head, revealing a delicate face. Her white and tender baby face still has a touch of childishness. Her thin, curved eyebrows are like a crescent moon, and her bright black eyes are clear and radiant when they look at people. Her brows and eyes reveal a lively spirit. Her thick hair is carefully styled, slightly curled and cascading behind her.

Her cherry lips, lightly coated with lipstick, open in dissatisfaction, “Where is Brother Chengyu?”

The speaker is Shen Chutang, sixteen years later.

“Little Miss, Mr. Shi went to pick up Mr. Shi. He’ll be back soon. He asked you to eat before he left.”

Lin Shulang is helpless. The Little Miss is perfect in every way except for her dislike of food, which is enough to worry anyone. Mr. Shi has put in as much effort on this as he has on the company.

“But I’m not hungry, and I want to wait here for Xie Tong. We agreed to eat the desserts at the banquet together.” Shen Chutang looks up, blinking innocently, then lowers her head again, sending a message to Xie Tong.

Lin Shulang takes the soup bowl from the servant, opens the lid, and pushes it towards her. “Why don’t you drink this first?” He can’t really coax people, so he can only try to soften his tone.

There are already some guests in the lounge. A stylishly dressed woman in the distance is full of confusion. She thinks the little guest is so impolite.

It’s one thing to eat in the lounge, but why is she on her phone? And didn’t they say no white dresses were allowed at this banquet?

“Whose daughter is this? How rude!” She thinks to herself, but unintentionally speaks out loud. Luckily, her voice isn’t very loud, and it’s covered by the surrounding conversations.

“Miss, words can hurt.”

The last person who said that hasn’t been able to stand back up in Beijing.

The woman instantly turns her head. A man with gold-rimmed glasses stands behind her, his voice teasing, “First time here?”

She doesn’t answer. It’s true. She just came back from abroad.

The man smiles, a faint smile playing at the corner of his lips. “Her surname is Shen.”

Behind her is not only the Shen family, but also the treasure Shi Chengyu holds dear.

Just three words, and the woman’s stunned expression instantly changes. She nods to the man, gratefully saying, “Thank you.” Although she just came back, her parents had reminded her beforehand that there are two families in Beijing that one cannot provoke: one with the surname Shi, and one with the surname Shen.

Shen Chutang takes a few bites and puts down the spoon, unwilling to eat another bite. Xie Tong just sent a message saying she’s at the door and will be in soon. She looks up towards the entrance.

Before she sees Xie Tong, she sees Shi Chengyu first.

Shen Chutang quickly gets up from the sofa and walks towards the entrance. Lin Shulang quickly follows behind her.

Naturally, everyone around notices Shi Chengyu’s arrival and their eyes turn towards them. They see the man who was just serious suddenly smile. His cold face softens abruptly, and his steps quicken.

“Mr. Shi.” Lin Shulang calls out, walking behind Shi Chengyu.

“Slow down.” Shi Chengyu gently reminds her, already walking in front of Shen Chutang, holding her arm. He rubs her hair, bends down to talk to her, and asks, “Did you eat?”

Shen Chutang turns her head, her lips curving downwards in a displeased arc. “I’m not hungry, and I’m tired of those things. I don’t want to eat any of them.”

Shi Chengyu runs his hand over the back of her head twice. “Okay, then we’ll see what you want to eat later. If you get hungry, tell me, okay?”

After they finish talking, they reach the sofa. Shi Chengyu touches the soup bowl with the back of his hand. “Change it to a new one.”

The servant nearby agrees and takes the soup bowl out.

Shen Chutang just sits down on the sofa when she hears Shi Chengyu’s words and raises her head in surprise. “You want me to drink more?”

Shen Chutang pulls his arm and shakes it twice. In public, she doesn’t lean into his arms. She pleads and acts cute, “Brother Chengyu, please don’t make me drink anymore. I already drank half of it.”

Shi Chengyu holds her hand. “Drink a little more.”

Shi Chengyu usually does everything for her, but he doesn’t give in on the matter of eating. Shen Chutang can’t force him either. The more he forces her, the more stubborn she becomes. He can only coax her.

“Fine.”

Shen Chutang knows she can’t avoid it. She plays with his fingers as a way of venting her frustration. Soon, a new soup bowl is brought. Shi Chengyu takes the spoon and feeds her.

It takes half a bowl, half coaxed and half tricked, before it’s finally finished.

“How old are you? You still need to be fed?”

Shen Chutang was already unhappy about eating, and when she hears Shen Sichen’s voice, she raises her head angrily, her eyes welling up with tears. “I don’t want to eat.”

Shen Sichen knows she can’t be disturbed when she’s eating. He waits until she finishes before speaking, but one sentence makes her cry. She’s getting more sensitive as she grows up. He doesn’t know who spoiled her.

“Second Brother, she’s not feeling well.” Shi Chengyu speaks softly, addressing Shen Sichen but looking at Shen Chutang. He strokes her back to comfort her.

Shen Sichen feels guilty and doesn’t speak. After all, it was he who raised Shen Chutang to be so weak.

A few years ago, he just came back from abroad. During that time, Shi Chengyu was busy, and Shen Chutang followed him for two years. As a result, her physical examination showed that she was malnourished and weak. Shen Gengli almost flew back from abroad to beat him up.

Since then, Shen Chutang has never stopped taking tonics and medicinal food. She can’t be careless about her meals.

“Alright, Tang’er, Second Brother was just joking,” Shen Sichen rubs her head twice. “Don’t cry, or Big Brother will beat me up later.”

Shen Chutang “hmphs” and turns her head to the side, just in time to see Xie Tong walking in, looking around for her.

She’s sitting there, and Shen Sichen is standing like a pillar, blocking her completely. Xie Tong can’t see her.

Shen Chutang stands up. “Xie Tong is here.”

She leaves that sentence behind and runs towards her. Shen Sichen watches her cry and laugh for a while, and he is also amused. “This little girl.”

Shi Chengyu stands up from the sofa, taller than Shen Sichen, and asks him, “Is Big Brother coming too?”

Shen Sichen nods. “Yeah, Big Brother and Big Sister-in-law are both coming.”

Shi Chengyu called them that way when he was young, and he never changed his way of addressing them when he grew up. Even though his current status and position are different from his simple childhood, Shi Chengyu insists on calling them this way. They got used to it as they listened. Shen Sichen raises his wrist and looks at his watch. It’s almost time. “Let’s go, to the front hall.”