That night, Feng Xin and Shen Chengwei, who had eaten the aged ginseng and black chicken soup, made several rounds to the bathroom. By midnight, both had passed out from sheer exhaustion and dehydration and were rushed to the hospital.
The next morning, an article appeared on a popular news website.
"Chairman Shen Chengwei Hospitalized Along with Wife Due to Severe Food Poisoning"
Attached to the article was a picture of the inside of a private hospital room.
Of course, that was a matter for later.
Right now, Shen Yelan was comfortably lying in bed watching a web drama. Next to her, there was a large-sized open bag of chips beside her along with several other snacks Sun Lili had stacked for herself.
She seemed totally unbothered that the door of her room was locked from the outside, and she was not given any dinner.
The cold winter wind drifted in through the half-open window along with a few tiny snowflakes. She pulled the blanket tighter to block the cold, as she was too lazy to move and close the window.
Besides, the drama was just reaching the climax.
"No!" She exclaimed, sitting up slightly.
Just now, her favorite side character was revealed as the killer of the male lead's brother. Her hand reached into the chips bag beside her before stuffing a huge handful into her mouth.
Crunch crunch.
Her eyes never left the screen for even a second.
This was the scene Shen Yucheng stepped into when he climbed through the open window.
Or more accurately…
Tried to climb through it.
He had been feeling guilty ever since Shen Yelan took the blame for the broken vase. After hearing she wasn't allowed to eat dinner, he secretly ordered food for her.
Her room was on the first floor, so sneaking in wasn't hard. At least that was what he thought.
But could someone please explain why the scene inside was the complete opposite of what he'd imagined?
Shen Yelan heard him come in and looked up from her screen. Then she blinked.
Shen Yucheng had one leg inside her room, the other still dangling awkwardly outside. In one hand, he was holding a brown paper bag.
Shen Yelan stared at him for two seconds before asking calmly,
"What are you doing?"
Shen Yucheng's pride would never allow him to admit he got stuck climbing through a window. So he casually sat on the windowsill as if nothing happened.
"Nothing. I just like the view of the moon from here."
"Oh," Shen Yelan looked past him towards the sky, which was covered with clouds. There was no moon in sight.
Shen Yucheng: "…"
The moment he realized what nonsense had just come out of his mouth, his ears instantly turned red.
An awkward silence filled the room.
"Umm…do you need any help?" Shen Yelan asked.
Shen Yucheng looked at her innocent eyes blinking at him, and his heart trembled.
"…yes, please," he said meekly.
The corner of Shen Yelan's lips twitched upward. She quickly lowered her head to hide her smile, but the dimples on her cheeks still appeared clearly.
She couldn't help it.
No one had informed her that this younger brother was this adorable.
She moved into her wheelchair and rolled toward the window.
After struggling for a while, the two of them finally managed to get Shen Yucheng fully inside the room.
How he managed to get stuck in a window that was on the ground floor, she honestly did not know. It's not like the window was small.
If Shen Yucheng knew what she was thinking, he would immediately defend himself by saying he had long legs.
The moment he got inside properly, Shen Yucheng collapsed into the nearby chair. Then he pointed toward the brown paper bag on the table.
"I brought food for you," he said awkwardly. "Don't misunderstand. I'm only repaying you for earlier."
Shen Yelan looked at the bag before opening it.
Inside were burgers, fries, fried chicken, and cola. The corners of her lips twitched slightly. It was a very typical teenage boy's food choices. Still, she happily picked up the burger and took a bite.
Shen Yucheng shifted twice in his seat, finding it uncomfortable. He sat straight and looked around the room. This was the first time he'd ever seen such a small room in his house. He didn't even know a room like this existed here. If he remembered correctly, wasn't this supposed to be a storage room?
His brows slowly furrowed.
Shen Yelan obviously knew what he was thinking.
"Because of my health, Aunt Feng arranged this room on the first floor for my convenience," Shen Yelan told him.
Shen Yucheng's frown got deeper. They could have easily given her a better room, even if it had to be on this floor.
He was about to say something when he realized what she had just said.
"Wait? Aunt Feng? As in mom?" he asked, bewildered.
"Mmm," Shen Yelan nodded as she chewed and then swallowed. "Why? Is there a problem?"
Yes…There was a really big problem.
Shen Yucheng's brain suddenly became a mess.
He knew his father had married thrice. His mom was Shen Chengwei's third wife. Earlier, he had found out that Shen Yelan was Shen Chengwei's daughter from his second marriage. Now he was discovering that Shen Yelan, the eldest daughter of the Shen family, was living inside what used to be a storage room.
Does this mean…
His eyes went wide.
He did the math again, just to make sure.
The math came out the same way.
His mom…was the evil stepmother.
The more he thought about it, the wider his eyes became.
He stared at Shen Yelan. She was eating her burger with both hands and was staring at him with an innocent look on her face. Her dimples popped out every time she chewed.
Looking at her like that, he felt his heart race.
How can someone be so beautiful?
He had always thought that Shen Wanwan was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Now that he had seen Shen Yelan, he had realized that there was no comparison.
Shen Wanwan spent hours maintaining her image and wearing makeup. Compared to her, Shen Yelan was not even trying. She was sitting in a wheelchair, eating a burger in her oversized pajamas with a chip crumb on her cheek.
He had the sudden, completely illogical urge to hide Shen Yelan and protect her from the world. At that moment, he completely forgot that he was supposed to be the younger brother here.
How could Mom dislike someone so innocent?
The thought unconsciously appeared in his mind. But he quickly shook his head afterward.
No, Mom could never do this deliberately. She must have some misunderstanding.
Shen Yelan watched the myriads of emotions that appeared on his face one after another and felt thoroughly amused. This kid was way more entertaining than any drama she watched.