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

Her expression darkened slightly, and she was about to question him when Shen Yifan, who was inside the car, got out and quickly walked forward.

Left with no other choice, Shen Jingshu spoke softly and politely, "Mom, Big Brother."

This greeting completely ignited Shen Yifan's pent-up anger. His face turned ashen, and his tone was filled with malice: "You still have the nerve to call me 'Big Brother'!"

He stared intently at Shen Jingshu, his voice sharp as he questioned, "The cooperation between the Mo family and the Li family should have been an opportunity for our Shen family! Did you sabotage it, forcibly stealing the project that rightfully belonged to the Shen family?"

Shen Jingshu's eyes were cold and clear, a slight, chilly smile playing on her lips. Her tone was calm yet carried a strong sense of intimidation: "I warned you long ago not to provoke me again. It seems that the current dire situation of the Shen family is not enough to keep you in line."

Shen Yifan's pupils constricted sharply, and he angrily confirmed, "It really was you!"

"It's me, so what?" Shen Jingshu raised her eyes, calm and fearless, and retorted indifferently, "What can you do to me?"

Lin Wanqing, who was standing to the side, was shocked and looked at Shen Jingshu with disbelief.

Just now at the restaurant, Shen Yifan accused Shen Jingshu of being behind everything. Deep down, she still held onto a sliver of hope, unwilling to believe that her own daughter would betray her family like this. She always felt that Shen Jingshu, at such a young age, had no ability to influence the Mo family's cooperation.

But at this moment, Shen Jingshu's own admission hit her hard, leaving her both shocked and angry.

"Jing Shu, did you really do this?"

Lin Wanqing's face showed both astonishment and heartbreak as she looked at her indifferent daughter, her tone filled with deep disappointment and reproach:

"I never believed your elder brother's words. I always felt that no matter how distant you were from the Shen family, you wouldn't just stand by and watch your own family be destroyed, deliberately cutting off the Shen family's path to survival. But you actually did it!"

That was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the Shen family to turn things around, a chance to save the entire company and your older brother! How could you possibly ruin your own family's future for an outsider?!

Her tone grew increasingly harsh, her eyes filled with a disappointed and angry rage: "Jing Shu, you're so selfish! Now that you're backed by the Li family and enjoying all the glory, you completely disregard your family of origin and blood ties, is that it?"

Seeing this, Shen Yifan secretly rejoiced.

This is exactly the effect he wanted.

As long as Lin Wanqing is completely on her side and harbors resentment and estrangement towards Shen Jingshu, she will do her best to ask Li Wenqian for help.

Shen Yifan seized the opportunity to feign heartbreak, adding fuel to the fire: "Mom, now you see her true colors! She's never cared about the Shen family, or about us relatives! She handed over a partnership that should have belonged to the Shen family to Li Beichen, watching helplessly as I was forced to mortgage our assets and borrow from loan sharks, watching the Shen family slowly head towards bankruptcy!"

Faced with the two's accusations, Shen Jingshu remained calm and composed, her eyes showing no emotion. She simply raised her eyes and looked at the two furious people.

"Belongs to the Shen family?"

She retorted softly, her tone laced with utter sarcasm: "Why should I?"

One sentence instantly silenced the two excited people.

Shen Yifan's face stiffened, and he angrily said, "That was originally an opportunity for the Shen family! You interfered and stole my cooperation!"

"An opportunity?" Shen Jingshu chuckled lightly, her eyes cold and clear. "The Mo family values ​​innovative solutions, solid strength, and a long-term vision. The Shen family's proposal is riddled with flaws, outdated, and utterly uncompetitive. What makes them think they can secure the partnership?"

Li Beichen's proposal completely overwhelmed everyone present; his vision, strength, and strategic planning far surpassed the Shen family's. It was only natural for the Mo family to choose the best option for cooperation.

Her gaze swept lightly over Shen Yifan, whose face was a mixture of paleness and ashen, and her words were clear and distinct: "Shen Yifan, if you can't handle losing, then don't lose. Your own incompetence, narrow-mindedness, and poor management have dragged the Shen family step by step into the abyss. Now, instead of facing your own failure, you're pushing all the blame onto me?"

"You're talking nonsense!" Shen Yifan exclaimed angrily.

"I'm talking nonsense?" Shen Jingshu retorted step by step. "If you hadn't been so eager for quick success and made such poor decisions, blindly expanding your business, how could the Shen family have fallen into a public relations crisis and suffered a broken financial chain? If your ambition hadn't been so mismatched with your abilities, and you hadn't been so headstrong, how could you have ended up mortgaging your family assets and borrowing money from loan sharks?"

"Now you blame me for taking away your opportunity? I never harmed the Shen family in the slightest. It was the Shen family that couldn't stand on its own two feet, and it was you who couldn't protect your family business."

As soon as she finished speaking, she turned to look at Lin Wanqing, whose face was full of disappointment and who still favored his eldest son.

"Mom, you also think it's my fault?"

Lin Wanqing was taken aback by her question, a flicker of anger rising within her, yet she remained defiant: "But you clearly had the ability to help the Shen family! If you had just asked, the Mo family might have agreed, but you stood by and did nothing, even fueling the flames! How could you be so heartless, given our blood ties?"

"Heartless?"

Shen Jingshu's eyes turned completely cold, and the chill and aloofness that had accumulated over the years surged into her heart.

"When the Shen family was at its peak and had countless resources, no one thought of me, their daughter. You favored Shen Yifan and Shen Xinyi, but when I had nothing and suffered all kinds of hardships, no one thought of blood ties."

Now that the Shen family is in dire straits and has nowhere to turn, they come to me talking about blood ties and family affection?

Her tone was calm, yet every word she spoke was piercing:

"I have already done the greatest thing by not harming the Shen family. I have no obligation to pay for Shen Yifan's incompetence, much less to sacrifice everything for your favoritism and ignorance."

Lin Wanqing was speechless after being rebuked, her face turning pale and then red, her heart feeling both suffocated and painful.

Seeing that he couldn't win an argument with Shen Jingshu, Shen Yifan simply adopted a victim's stance, saying to Lin Wanqing with grief and indignation, "Mom! Look at her! She showed no remorse whatsoever from beginning to end, disregarding even the slightest family affection! She's heartless! You must help me today, you must get the Li family to save the Shen family! Otherwise, our Shen family will truly be finished!"

Shen Jingshu was too lazy to look at their hypocritical faces anymore, and glanced at them indifferently:

"Whether the Shen family prospers or perishes is none of my concern from this day forward."

After saying that, she didn't linger. She walked past the mother and son who were frozen in place, and strode straight toward the school gate. Her back was straight and resolute, without a trace of lingering.

Only Lin Wanqing, with a grim expression, and Shen Yifan, filled with malice and plotting how to force the Li family to take action, remained facing each other at the main gate of the Li family, the atmosphere stagnant and cold.

Shen Jingshu's resolute departure left Lin Wanqing and Shen Yifan both feeling incredibly frustrated.

Lin Wanqing, in particular, felt a tightness in her chest, filled with disappointment and helplessness. She returned to the Li family villa, her heart heavy with resentment, and spent the entire afternoon restless. In the comfortable and luxurious living room, she frequently glanced towards the front door, her mind unsettled, unable to concentrate on anything.

Noticing her absent-minded and preoccupied expression, the butler quickly stepped forward and respectfully inquired, "Madam, is something troubling you?"