Initially, Mrs. Shen wore a flattering smile on her face. However, the moment her gaze fell upon the photo, her expression changed abruptly. Following that, she raised her head to look at Su Jiu. “What is the meaning of this?”
Su Jiu smiled. “Judging by your reaction, I believe that you have seen this photo before.”
When she heard that, Mrs. Shen suddenly reacted and quickly waved her hand. “I have never seen this photo before. I just don’t understand the reason why you’re showing me this. I do not make amulets… Could it be that you want me to make an amulet for you? Hahaha…”
Su Jiu did not panic at all as she took out another photo and pushed it toward Mrs. Shen with a calm expression on her face. “It’s fine if you don’t recognize the amulet, but take a look at this.”
This time, it was a photo of a baby. The baby had snow-white skin and big, round eyes. Moreover, the baby had a delicate-looking nose and mouth. Although the baby was small, her features were well-defined. In addition to that, the baby in the photo was wearing the same amulet around her neck.
Mrs. Shen could not sit still anymore when she saw this photo. At that moment, her hands were shaking beneath the table.
“If you do not recognize the amulet, you should at least recognize the baby in this photo, right?”
Mrs. Shen looked up frantically and shook her head when Su Jiu directed that question toward her. “I don’t know what you are talking about. What does this baby have to do with me? What do you wish to ask me with that photo of the baby in your hands? I believe I can’t answer any of your questions. You guys should leave.” With that, Mrs. Shen got up and was about to send them away.
However, Su Jiu’s tone of voice became stern. “You can’t recognize the photo of your own daughter? Could it be that you have forgotten what your daughter looked like when she was born since it has been such a long time?”
When she heard this, Mrs. Shen trembled as she looked at her.
Su Jiu continued to smile as she looked a picture of innocence. “Mrs. Shen, please think carefully. Are you sure you do not recognize this infant?”
Mrs. Shen lowered her head and looked at the photo of the infant again. Then, as if recalling something, her lips were drained of color. However, she had lived for quite some time now. As such, she had experienced her fair share of ups and downs. Therefore, she was able to calm herself down quickly.
She sat down again. Then, she inhaled deeply before she opened her mouth to speak, “I do not know what is your intention for coming here today. In the beginning, I thought you guys were Yue’s friends, hence I treated you all nicely. Furthermore, I can answer any questions you want. However… I don’t understand why you have to show me the two weird photos that you guys brought along.”
“Mrs. Shen, don’t jump your gun. We just want to ask whether you recognize the infant in the photo and this amulet.”
“I don’t,” said Mrs. Shen in a determined manner.
Su Jiu was not the least bit flustered; instead, she opened her folder. They were fully prepared when they came here. Naturally, they would not back down just because Mrs. Shen denied it.
She placed another photo on the table. “This is the photo of your eldest daughter when she was one year old. Back then, you and your husband posted this photo on social media. Although you guys deleted it later, you guys left some clues behind.”
“What clues? What nonsense are you talking about?” Mrs. Shen looked at the photo as a sense of uneasiness started to creep into her heart.
“If we compare the photo of your eldest daughter to the photo of that infant just now, we can see that their features are completely identical.”
“Hah! I see that you are trying to be funny here. The infant in this photo is merely a baby, so how could you identify her features? Moreover, you even proclaim in such a shameless way that they are completely identical!”
“It’s fine if you don’t want to admit it, Mrs. Shen. But, can you explain the amulet that your youngest daughter is wearing?”
Su Jiu placed another picture on the table. This time, it was a photo of Shen Yue. Not long after she was born, an amulet had appeared around her neck, and it was completely identical to the one worn by the infant in the photo from before.
“Erm…”
“Do you still want to deny the fact that you recognize this amulet?” Su Jiu looked at her in a calm manner. However, there wasn’t a single trace of smile on her face.
Han Qing fixed his gaze upon Mrs. Shen throughout the entire conversation as well. He had a stern look on his face, and that unsettled her.
“Erm… An amulet is a common thing, so how could you guys be sure that this is the amulet that you guys are looking for? Moreover, if this is indeed the amulet, why wouldn’t I admit to it? I have no reason not to.” Her voice trembled slightly when she spoke those words. Although she tried her best to hide it, she still crumbled under Han Qing’s intense aura.
“Because your daughter is not your biological daughter at all.”
“What did you say?!” Su Jiu’s words had provoked Mrs. Shen in that instant. She stood up immediately and glared at her. “Stop it with your nonsense!”
Su Jiu opened the folder again. Then, she looked through the information and said, “Mrs. Shen, you have been married to Mr. Shen for 3 years, yet you could not bear him any children. Hence, you guys became acquainted with a fortune teller through your friends and family. The fortune teller told you guys to adopt a child and treat her well. So, you guys went to an orphanage and happened to meet Shen Qi, who was abducted by traffickers, and brought her home.”
When she heard this, Mrs. Shen interrupted her. “What do you mean by that?! What do you mean by traffickers?! We did not abduct and sell her!”
“Judging by your words, you admit that Shen Qi is not your biological daughter. Am I right?” Su Jiu hit the nail on the head with just a single sentence.
Mrs. Shen finally collapsed onto her seat in a listless manner. She did not expect to give herself away just like that.
Su Jiu reached out her hand to sweep her hair from her forehead to the back of her head as she smiled and continued, “After you and your husband brought that child back, you guys loved her, spoiled her, and treated her like a treasure. That was because you guys did not have a child of your own back then. However, a few years later, you got pregnant and gave birth to a daughter the following year. After the both of you had your own child, you guys started to reject this child because she isn’t one of your own. Hence, when she was abducted by human traffickers, I believe that you thought about letting this child perish on her own. Moreover, you didn’t even call the police. However, you did not expect that this abduction incident was a large scale operation back then. Eventually, the police managed to sniff out the traffickers’ den and destroyed it. And some time later, you were notified by the police to take back the child that you had adopted from the orphanage.”
Slam! Su Jiu closed the folder with a resounding slam.
Mrs. Shen was scared out of her wits as she trembled violently. Following that, she raised her head to look at Su Jiu.
“How could you be so heartless? You personally adopted that child, and you even spoiled and loved her like a treasure before this. In the end, you thought of abandoning her after you had a daughter of your own. It’s a pity that things did not go the way you wanted as that child came back to your side. However, she began to suffer all kinds of unfair treatment afterward.”
