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

In the car, Lin Wanqing couldn't suppress the smile on her lips. When she returned to the Li family home, Li Wenqian, who was waiting in the living room, saw her beaming face and guessed that she had gone to see her children.

He wasn't offended by this. Lin Wanqing was kind-hearted, and those were her own children whom she had raised single-handedly. Even if she had severed ties with Shen Mobai, she wouldn't take her anger out on the children.

This is also what Li Wenqian admires about her—she is a truly competent mother.

Lin Wanqing walked to the sofa and sat down, chatting with Li Wenqian about the trivial things that had happened that day, just like any ordinary couple. These ordinary everyday things were the warmth that Li Wenqian had longed for for many years.

Since his ex-wife passed away, only a few men have remained in the house. As the children have grown up and become busy with their own careers, they have become increasingly quiet, and he often feels lonely and isolated.

That evening, Shen Jingshu went downstairs to the kitchen to get a glass of water and immediately saw her mother and Li Wenqian sitting together chatting, with a gentle smile on her mother's face.

She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen that smile.

The two greeted Shen Jingshu when they saw her.

"Jing Shu".

"Mom, Uncle Li. I'm coming down to get a glass of water."

"These things can be done by the servants," Li Wenqian said.

"It's alright, Uncle Li, it's nothing. It's good to come down and stretch my legs; I've been staying in the room for too long."

As she spoke, Shen Jingshu headed towards the kitchen. Just then, the sound of a car pulling in came from outside. A moment later, the butler exclaimed joyfully, "Master, the eldest young master is back!"

Upon hearing this, both Lin Wanqing and Shen Jingshu instinctively looked towards the door.

Shen Jingshu stood at the kitchen doorway, where she could clearly see the direction of the main entrance.

Upon hearing that it was Li Wenqian's eldest son who had returned, Lin Wanqing immediately stood up nervously.

Li Wenqian gently patted her hand, signaling her to relax and not to be reserved.

Li Hanting, who was changing his shoes at the door, had already noticed the situation in the living room and saw a gentle and elegant middle-aged woman sitting next to his father.

He had seen the photo before and recognized her immediately as his father's new wife and his stepmother. He stepped forward and nodded politely to Lin Wanqing, saying, "Aunt Lin."

Lin Wanqing looked at the cold-faced man in front of her, somewhat surprised.

She originally thought that the Li family's sons would be cold and resistant to her, their suddenly appearing stepmother, but she didn't expect him to call her Aunt Lin so politely.

Lin Wanqing was immediately flattered and quickly responded gently, "Oh, you must be Hanting? Come, come sit down. Your father and I were just talking about you guys."

"Oh? What are Father and Aunt Lin talking about me for?" Li Hanting asked in a calm tone, his gaze shifting to Shen Jingshu, who was holding a water glass in the living room.

He had previously focused his investigation on his father’s wife, Lin Wanqing, and hadn’t paid much attention to her children. He only vaguely knew that the Shen family had two daughters, and couldn’t tell whether the girl in front of him was the older or younger one. After all, he had always thought that he might not have much contact with these step-relatives in the future.

When Shen Jingshu saw Li Hanting's face clearly, her brows furrowed slightly involuntarily.

A faint black aura swirled around him, which was definitely not a good omen.

She suddenly remembered the strange feng shui she noticed when she first entered the Li family home, and wondered to herself: Who exactly did the Li family offend?

After a moment of stunned silence, Shen Jingshu spoke first, her tone calm and composed: "Hello, elder brother. My name is Shen Jingshu, and I am your stepsister."

After she introduced herself, Li Hanting realized that this was Lin Wanqing's eldest daughter.

He had heard earlier that Lin Wanqing was always closer to her youngest daughter, and he had assumed that she would bring her youngest daughter with her when she married into the Li family. He never expected that it would be the eldest daughter who was by her side. However, he had no interest in delving into these family matters.

His late-night return was due to his outstanding contribution to cracking a major child trafficking case a few days prior. The bureau had granted him leave to rest and recover, and this achievement would likely lead to a promotion. Furthermore, his father's banquet was in a couple of days, and he needed to return early to meet the new family member and assess whether his new stepmother was easy to get along with.

"Hello."

Seeing that the two were being too polite, Li Wenqian smiled and waved, "Come and sit down, don't stand."

Li Hanting sat down on the opposite side of the sofa first, but Shen Jingshu felt a little awkward—she felt uncomfortable sitting next to her older brother, who had a cold and aloof aura, but she was afraid of seeming inconsiderate if she sat with her parents. Lin Wanqing gently beckoned to her, "Jingshu, come sit with Mom."

Only then did she take her water glass and sit down next to her mother.

Li Hanting spoke calmly, "Aunt Lin just said she was talking about us with Father?"

Li Wenqian chimed in, half complaining and half feeling sorry for them: "It's all because of you rascals, none of you are ever home. Your Aunt Lin and Jing Shu have been here for so long, and we haven't seen a single one of you brothers."

"They haven't come back?"

"Yes, the bureau approved my leave for the past few days. I was working on cases non-stop recently, and I was really too busy."

Lin Wanqing quickly smoothed things over: "It's alright, it's alright. The children all have their own careers, it's good for them to be busy. I was just talking to your dad, Hanting, you're so young to have become the deputy director of the police station and solved so many big cases, you're really accomplished."

"It's all part of my job," Li Hanting said calmly.

"It's rare to see someone so young become a deputy bureau chief."

After a few polite exchanges, Li Hanting calmly sized up the two people in front of him.

Lin Wanqing was gentle and kind, seemingly without any ulterior motives, and easy to get along with; but he couldn't quite see through his stepsister, Shen Jingshu.

She appears well-behaved and quiet on the surface, but her demeanor is completely unlike that of a teenage girl.

Especially since she has worked in criminal investigation for many years, her eyes naturally exude a sense of pressure, which even many vicious criminals cannot withstand, but she remains calm and fearless.

Such composure is truly rare.

Lin Wanqing then politely asked him if he had eaten dinner and if he needed a snack.

Li Hanting said he had already eaten out, then got up and said, "I'm going upstairs to wash up and rest; I'm too tired."

Li Wenqian and Lin Wanqing nodded quickly: "Go ahead, get some rest."

Li Hanting stood up and nodded slightly to the two elders, then looked at Shen Jingshu, nodded lightly, and turned to go upstairs.

Shen Jingshu thought to herself: The Li family's upbringing is really quite good.

But... her gaze narrowed slightly.

This cheap older brother's face clearly shows an auspicious sign of impending promotion, but he is shrouded in a faint black aura. After the promotion, he will probably get into big trouble.