The courthouse was quiet.
Too quiet for someone preparing to reclaim their own name.
Shi Mu sat on the bench outside the registrar's office, fingers wrapped tightly around a folder filled with every document they once burned.
The real birth certificate.Medical records.The student ID they declared expired.Her name—Shi Mu—on every page.
Fu Yunshen stood beside her.
"You're early," he said.
"I wanted to be," she replied. "I've waited long enough."
When the doors opened, she stepped inside.
Three officials waited behind a long desk.
They looked up. Neutral. Professional.
She stood tall.
"Shi Mu," she said clearly. "Born April 12th. Presumed deceased. I'm here to correct the record."
One of them blinked, unsure. "You're…"
"Alive," she said. "Illegally erased. I have proof."
She opened the folder. Laid out every document, photo, and system backup like a silent act of war.
Fu Yunshen placed a notarized statement beside them.
From a witness.A guardian.A brother in all but name.
The clerk flipped through the documents slowly. When he reached the forged death certificate, he stopped.
"Who issued this?"
"My stepmother," Shi Mu said. "With the help of internal connections."
The clerk didn't comment. He didn't have to.
The silence said enough.
[System Notification]
Legal Reinstatement Path Activated – Identity Anchor Confirmed
Personal Data Synchronization: In Progress
Status: Official Review Pending
Brotherhood Value +235 (Official Reclamation + Proof Submitted Without Fear)
Current Total: 11,390 / 1,000,000
They were told to return in 48 hours for confirmation.
On the walk out, Shi Mu held her head high.
Outside the gates, reporters swarmed, sensing a story.
She didn't run.
Didn't speak.
Just walked through them like fog—untouchable.
That night, at home, she sat in front of her desk.
Pulled out a blank piece of paper.
And wrote her name.
Slowly. Deliberately.
Shi Mu.
As if, for the first time in years—
it truly belonged to her again.