The Tycoon's Mysterious Darling Wife
Chapter 76. Shen Junyu’s Request (second update, please subscribe)

Chapter 76: 76. Shen Junyu’s Request (second update, please subscribe)

Although she spoke words of reproach, her eyes and brows were filled with smiles, making it apparent that the comments were merely polite gestures. Lady Mu, being a shrewd woman, naturally caught on to this and inwardly shook her head at the longstanding rumors in the social circle about how Second Miss Shen from the Shen Family had supposedly lacked education due to growing up away from home, spoke crudely, and was not favored by the Shen family.

Lady Mu had not discerned any lack of education or crudeness in Shen Qinglan’s behavior. Observing Shen Qinglan’s demeanor, and then looking at Shen Xitong beside her, Lady Mu felt that blood ties were ultimately irreplaceable. Even if she hadn’t grown up in the Shen Family, that inherent poise and education were naturally part of her.

Lady Mu’s gaze lingered on Shen Qinglan and with a slight shift in her eyes, she came up with an idea, "I wonder if Qinglan currently has a boyfriend? My son is twenty-eight this year and has yet to have a girlfriend. If Qinglan is willing, may I introduce you two?"

The Shen Family was a century-old prestigious lineage, and her own son was quite an underachiever; after being discharged from the military, he refused to take on the family business and instead chose to work at Fu Hengyi’s security company, which was essentially being a bodyguard. It was enough to drive her up the wall, but her son was adamant and she couldn’t change that. Having a powerful family through marriage would certainly benefit her son’s future endeavors, and the Shen Family was naturally the most fitting.

She hadn’t ruled out Shen Xitong before, in fact, until she met Shen Qinglan today, Shen Xitong had been her preferred candidate for a daughter-in-law.

"I’m afraid my Qinglan isn’t that fortunate; she already has someone," said Chu Yunrong with a smile.

Shen Qinglan, at the center of the conversation, showed no expression, seemingly unaware that they were discussing her, and didn’t make any connection between Lady Mu and Mu Liancheng, whom she had met before.

Shen Xitong’s heart quivered with anger. She had long known that Lady Mu had designs on her; for many years, every time Lady Mu saw her, she was incredibly warm, and she had hinted more than once about her son being single. The implications were clear to Shen Xitong.

But now, after meeting Shen Qinglan just once, Lady Mu had shifted her sights. Shen Xitong refused to believe that Lady Mu was attracted to Shen Qinglan’s appearance; it was more likely tied to the fact that Shen Qinglan was the biological child of the Shen Family.

And this was a perpetual sore point for Shen Xitong. She hated it when someone brought up the fact that she was adopted. Though everyone addressed her as Miss Shen, and the Shen Family introduced Shen Qinglan as the younger daughter of the family, anyone of any status in Beijing knew that Shen Xitong was adopted by the Shen Family.

Although Lady Mu hadn’t explicitly stated it, her behavior clearly demonstrated her disdain, which irked Shen Xitong greatly.

Bored and always observant, Shen Qinglan noticed Xitong’s tightly clenched hands and curved her lips into a cryptic smile. Xitong’s inability to control her emotions left Qinglan with no interest in even humoring her with a game.

Eventually, someone came over to Lady Mu, who then excused herself with an apology and left. Chu Yunrong, together with Shen Qinglan and Shen Xitong, continued mingling with the other ladies, primarily introducing Shen Qinglan and putting her in the spotlight.

This was the first time that the distinguished ladies of Beijing formally met this mysterious Second Miss Shen. Everyone who saw Shen Qinglan inevitably recalled the previous rumors and then sighed at the realization that rumors were indeed just rumors and not to be believed.

Always liking to be the center of attention, Shen Xitong found herself completely relegated to the background this evening, to the point of conjuring excuses to escape to the restroom several times for a breather.

Chu Yunrong, who seemed wholly unaware of Xitong’s discomfort that evening, continued to introduce Shen Qinglan to the various ladies, laughing and chatting merrily.

Although she was bored the entire evening, Shen Qinglan courteously stayed until the banquet concluded before accompanying Chu Yunrong back to the Shen Family.

Yes, she returned to the Shen Family home that night; she did not go back to Jiangxin Garden. Several days of sleeplessness had left Qinglan truly not wanting to return.

Shen Qinglan’s own room remained just as it was before she moved out, kept clean by Sister-in-law Song who cleaned it every day.

By the time Shen Qinglan and the others returned, Old Sir Shen had already gone to sleep, so Shen Qinglan did not disturb him and went to bed after washing up.

Lying in the familiar room, Shen Qinglan finally fell asleep before midnight, but she, who never dreamed, dreamt all night long about a man named Fu Hengyi.

The next morning at 5:30, Shen Qinglan woke up, glanced at the time, changed her clothes, and went out for a run, coincidentally running into Shen Junyu, who was also up for a morning jog.

"Lanlan, did you sleep at home last night?" Shen Junyu, sporting dark circles under his eyes, was somewhat surprised to see Shen Qinglan.

"Mhm, I attended a banquet with Mom last night and it got late, so I slept at home."

Upon hearing this, Shen Junyu immediately lamented, "If only I had known you were home, I could have conscripted you as a strong soldier last night. That way, I wouldn’t have had to deal with official matters until two in the morning, and I wouldn’t have been awakened early today by my biological clock. As a shareholder of the company, shouldn’t you help your brother out?"

Shen Qinglan, without even pausing her stride, replied, "I can transfer all my shares to you."

Shen Junyu: ...Is this really my sister?

"Lanlan, I am still your brother after all. Can you really bear to see me work so hard?" Shen Junyu played the family card, thinking to himself that he was aware of Shen Qinglan’s talent in business, which was no less than his own despite her majoring in Chinese Language and Literature. She was just too lazy to apply herself.

This wasn’t a new thought for Shen Junyu. Ever since he accidentally discovered Qinglan’s talent, he had wanted to pull her into the company. But considering she was still studying, he hadn’t made a move. Now, as Shen Qinglan was about to graduate, Shen Junyu’s desire to have her join the company grew stronger.

Shen Qinglan did not even bother to respond this time.

"Lanlan, I am already twenty-nine and don’t even have a girlfriend. Help me out so I can have some time to find a wife, alright?" In an effort to coax Shen Qinglan into the company, Shen Junyu pulled out all the stops, pretending that it was the excess of company matters, not his own enjoyment of making money, that kept him from pursuing romance.

But Shen Qinglan was not one to be fooled by such lies. She quickened her pace, swiftly putting distance between herself and Shen Junyu.

Shen Junyu, watching the receding figure, gritted his teeth. This stubborn girl, truly, was unrelenting in her lack of support.

Shen Junyu also quickened his pace, trying to catch up and continue reasoning with Shen Qinglan, appealing to her emotions. But no matter how fast he went, the distance between them didn’t shorten by half a meter; in fact, it seemed to grow even larger.

It wasn’t until Shen Qinglan’s figure was out of sight that Shen Junyu stopped, hands on his knees, gasping for breath.

After shaking off Shen Junyu, Shen Qinglan slowed down to a jog. Despite having run more than ten kilometers, she remained dry, not a bead of sweat on her, as if the distance she had covered was no different from a mere ten meters.