Stepdaughter of a wealthy family? The little darling of a Beijing tycoon

Shen Jingshu pondered to herself that in the past, breaking this insidious Double Bull Heart Sha would have required considerable effort, but now, resolving the situation was not difficult at all. The thousand-year-old lightning-struck wood in her personal space could come in very handy. Lightning-struck wood is extremely strong and yang, specializing in breaking all kinds of yin and evil feng shui formations, and restraining this situation would be twice as effective with half the effort.

However, this matter should not be rushed. Breaking the feng shui stalemate requires choosing an auspicious time and preparing ritual objects and formations. Taking rash action may easily trigger a backlash of negative energy.

Having figured everything out, Shen Jingshu said no more and left the Li Group with Li Beichen. Li Beichen was grateful and insisted on treating her to dinner, during which he thanked her repeatedly.

After dinner, Li Beichen personally drove Shen Jingshu safely back to campus.

As soon as the school bell rang on Friday, Shen Jingshu packed her things and prepared to leave school when her phone suddenly rang. The caller ID made her eyes turn slightly cold; it was someone she never expected—Shen Xinyi.

She hesitated for a moment before answering the phone. Shen Xinyi's voice, feigning gentleness and intimacy, immediately came through the receiver, inviting her, "Sister, tomorrow's a holiday. I'd like to invite you out for a get-together. Are you free?"

Since being reborn and seeing through Shen Xinyi's hypocrisy, Shen Jingshu has always avoided this seemingly friendly younger sister whenever possible, unwilling to have anything to do with her.

She saw through Shen Xinyi's ill intentions at a glance and had no intention of playing along with this fake sisterly affection act. Besides, she had already made arrangements for the weekend: she was to go into seclusion to forge a lightning-struck peach wood sword and to livestream her fortune telling to accumulate merit. She simply didn't have the extra energy to deal with these pretense.

Shen Jingshu spoke in a calm and distant tone, directly stating without any preamble: "Just say what you want to say. If there's nothing else, there's no need to meet. I'm very busy this week and don't have time."

Being rejected so decisively, Shen Xinyi was stunned for a moment on the other end of the phone, filled with surprise.

She suddenly realized that Shen Jingshu had rejected her more than once.

The older sister before him was completely different from the submissive, obedient, and family-pleasing woman he had been in his previous life. She had become cold and distant, exuding an aura that kept strangers at bay, and she didn't even seem to care about him.

An absurd yet bold thought suddenly popped into Shen Xinyi's mind: Could it be that Shen Jingshu, like herself, was also reborn?

Otherwise, how could she have changed so much? How could she have ignored me and rejected me so easily time and time again?

But then she immediately rejected the idea.

Rebirth is an incredible opportunity to defy fate and change one's destiny. How could it be as common as cabbage on the street, where just any two people can be reborn?

If Shen Jingshu really was reborn, how could she have willingly followed her mother to remarry into the Li family without the slightest resistance?

Shen Xinyi pondered repeatedly, but ultimately could not suppress the doubts in her heart. Her heart was filled with unease, and thus a seed of suspicion was sown.

She already felt that she had already given Shen Jingshu enough face by lowering herself to invite her out, and that it was a great honor for her. Now that she had been rejected in public, Shen Xinyi felt angry and refused to say anything more, so she hung up the phone.

Since Shen Jingshu refused to come, she turned around and dialed her mother Lin Wanqing's number, gently and coquettishly inviting her to come.

When Lin Wanqing received a call from her youngest daughter, her tone instantly became gentle and doting. She understood that Shen Xinyi had invited her to dinner and shopping the next day, and she readily agreed.

During this period, every weekend when Shen Xinyi was not in school, she would ask Lin Wanqing to go shopping. Lin Wanqing was initially worried, thinking that Shen Xinyi was in her final year of high school and was about to take the college entrance examination. She was under a lot of academic pressure and going shopping all the time would interfere with her studies.

But Shen Xinyi always softly and coquettishly said that she was under too much academic pressure and could only relax and relieve her fatigue by spending time with her mother every week.

Lin Wanqing always doted on this youngest daughter and granted her every request. When she heard that it could relieve her study pressure, she never refused again and always went to the appointment with great joy.

Meanwhile, Shen Jingshu returned to the Li family's old residence. The butler hurriedly came forward and bowed respectfully: "Miss Jingshu, you're back."

As soon as she stepped into the entryway, she saw Lin Wanqing sitting in the living room, holding her phone with a tender expression. Her tone was more affectionate and loving than ever before, and the smile on her lips was a gentleness that Shen Jingshu had never seen before.

Shen Jingshu immediately knew that her mother was talking to Shen Xinyi on the phone.

Lin Wanqing has always been indifferent and distant towards herself and her children, including Shen Yifan. Only when facing Shen Xinyi would she softly call her "baby." This is a term of endearment that belongs only to Shen Xinyi. From childhood to adulthood, Shen Jingshu has never been called so tenderly and affectionately by her mother, not even once.

Lin Wanqing looked up and saw Shen Jingshu enter the room. She quickly spoke softly into the phone, "Okay, baby, Mom won't talk to you anymore. Your sister is back. We'll talk again when we meet tomorrow."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Wanqing stood up, looked at Shen Jingshu, and softened her tone slightly before taking the initiative to invite her: "Jingshu, you're back. I was just on the phone with your sister Xinyi, and she asked me to go shopping with her tomorrow. You don't have classes this weekend, so why don't you come over? It's good for the whole family to get together."

Shen Jingshu raised her eyes, her expression calm, and without the slightest hesitation, gently shook her head: "No, Mom, I have something very important to do tomorrow, so I won't go."

Upon hearing this, Lin Wanqing frowned slightly, her tone tinged with confusion and dissatisfaction. She couldn't help but say, "Tomorrow is the weekend, what could a little kid like you possibly have that's more important than family reunion?"

"And Xinyi also said she hasn't seen you in a long time. You two sisters grew up together, haven't you always had a very good relationship?"

Lin Wanqing still didn't notice anything amiss and continued to persuade herself. In her heart, her two daughters had always been harmonious and had never had any disagreements.

Shen Jingshu suddenly raised her eyes, her gaze calm and unwavering, but she looked directly at Lin Wanqing, her eyes filled with a hint of self-mockery and utter indifference.

"Mom, do you really think that my relationship with Shen Xinyi has always been good?"

A single, casual remark left Lin Wanqing speechless.

She stood there, stunned, unsure how to respond, feeling that the daughter before her was both unfamiliar and distant.

Looking at her astonished expression, Shen Jingshu felt only a cold smile in her heart.

It turns out that in her mother's eyes, her relationship with Shen Xinyi, which was fake and full of suppression and scheming, was actually called a good relationship.

She was too lazy to argue anymore, and didn't want to waste another word on Lin Wanqing.

In her past life, she poured out her heart, yearning for a sliver of kinship, only to be left wounded and broken, her family destroyed, and her life tragically ended. In this life, she has long since given up on this cold-hearted kinship, no longer hoping, no demanding, and no clinging to it. As long as things are outwardly acceptable and they don't disturb each other, that's enough.

"Her and I have never gotten along as well as you think. I won't be going to the party tomorrow, Mom. I just hope you have fun."