“Every new year, your biological daughter would always get new clothes, while that child would get none. You had always treated her badly; you told her to do all the house chores and take care of your daughter. When she questioned why she was being treated unequally, you would just brush her off by saying she was the elder sister, and that’s why she had to take care of her younger sister. Am I right?”
A tinge of contempt flashed her gaze as Su Jiu went along with her findings, and she continued, “After she was divorced, you even stuffed a marriage your daughter didn’t like into her hands and told her to marry the man as a substitute. As a result, she had to endure more unfair treatments in the household she had married into. Mrs. Shen, you’re probably one of the most shameless people I have ever seen.”
Mrs. Shen was lost for words from Su Jiu’s accusations. However, after a change of thought, she didn’t think she was wrong. She then defended herself, saying, “How am I shameless? You should understand that she’s not my real daughter, and every mother would naturally treat her own daughter better.
Why should I treat her well when she’s not my real daughter? I don’t owe her anything! Moreover, I’ve brought her up and I’ve given her the education she needed. What else do I owe her?”
“You must have forgotten why you adopted her in the first place. Given a choice, do you think she would choose you to be her mother? You adopted her because you couldn’t bear a child, but when you had your own child, you started treating her badly. Do you ever recall how much joy and happiness the child had brought to you before you started being mean to her?”
Mrs. Shen was rendered speechless. In that instant, she recalled how happy she and her husband were when they adopted Shen Qi before she was pregnant because Shen Qi’s delicate features indicated that she would turn out to be a beautiful girl.
They even talked joyfully about how they would find her the right guy when she grew up. However, when she finally had her own child, those thoughts diminished as time went by. She even started to despise Shen Qi, thinking that she was a burden who would waste all her money. So, she stopped buying new clothes for Shen Qi, and when her daughter bullied Shen Qi, she turned a blind eye to it and even felt a sense of glee.
That day when Shen Qi was kidnapped by human traffickers, she thought that it would be perfect if Shen Qi was never to be back and gone for good. Since Shen Qi was an abandoned child whom she adopted from an orphanage anyway, she wouldn’t mind if Shen Qi was gone. That way, Shen Qi could be sent to another family and would no longer be her burden. These crazy thoughts started running wild in her mind until the day she received a call from the police informing her that Shen Qi had been found.
She only went to the police station to fetch Shen Qi after a long hesitation. Since then, her contempt for Shen Qi had become worse. She had even wished for Shen Qi to be killed by those human traffickers while she was being held captive. All in all, it had come to a point when everything became too complicated.
“So what is the purpose of your visit anyway?”
“You admit that that child was adopted from an orphanage and she’s not your biological daughter. Am I right?”
Since there was no point denying the fact now, Mrs. Shen nodded her head. “You’re right. Since you have found out everything, then there’s no point denying it. Who are you, and what’s the reason for this investigation?”
Su Jiu gave Han Qing a look. After Han Qing nodded, she then asked, “Where is the amulet?”
After taking a glance at them, Mrs. Shen was annoyed as she said, “What on earth are you trying to do?”
“Mrs. Shen, it’s very obvious now. Are you sure you have no idea what we’re trying to do?”
“You…” After giving it a thought, Mrs. Shen’s eyes widened in disbelief when she came to her senses. She then pointed at them and asked, “C-Could Shen Qi be…?”
“If possible, we hope that you’ll return the amulet—it was engraved with some words, and it was a priceless gift that Old Master Han had entrusted someone to make.”
Mrs. Shen thought she was dreaming upon hearing that. It never occurred to her that she had adopted a child who came from a wealthy family, and that the child’s family members would one day come look for the child. No, she decided that she wouldn’t let Shen Qi go easily.
With that thought in her mind, she coughed and said, “Fine. You’re here to look for her. But how do I know if there’s any truth in your claim? The amulet is obviously worth a lot of money. Moreover, I adopted her from the orphanage, and I don’t think it’s a breach of any law. What ensued later was after I adopted her. As her parent, I have the right to decide how I should treat her. Are you saying that she’s a daughter of the Han Family when she’s all grown up? Hmph. I won’t believe it if you can’t provide any evidence, let alone handing over the amulet to you.”
Realizing the hidden message in Mrs. Shen’s words, Su Jiu smiled and said, “It’s great that you have made your stance clear.” With that, she took out a bank card and put it on the table. “Mrs. Shen, there is 5 million in this card. Please take it as the payment for raising Miss Han all these years. If you’re willing to return the amulet to us, this 5 million will be yours.”
Much like when all the lights suddenly lit up on a dark and quiet night, Mrs. Shen’s eyes sparkled upon hearing the sum of 5 million. Even then, she managed to compose herself quickly and took a look at Han Qing.
Ever since he stepped into the house, his strong presence had spread throughout the entire house, and it was so overpowering that it filled every corner of the room. 5 million was probably too little to ask for from such a man.
With that thought in her mind, she put on a pretentious look and coughed slightly, before saying, “What do you mean by that? Are you buying my daughter off for 5 million? Do I look like someone who would sell her daughter?”
“According to our findings, you have owed more than 1 million in debts, and your husband has been overburdened by the external debts you have incurred. Moreover, your daughter, Shen Qi, has paid more than 300,000 for you. Am I right?”
Mrs. Shen was stunned as she said, “Seems like you’ve done one hell of an investigation there.”
“You’re a clever woman, so you should know whether or not this deal is worth it. This amount of money is more than enough to pay off your debts and to fund you and your husband’s retirement.”
“What do you mean?!” Mrs. Shen stood straight up out of anger. However, she was taken aback by Han Qing’s dominating presence, which caused her voice to weaken as she said, “I have taken care of her for more than twenty years. Do you think it can be traded for money?”
“I didn’t want to talk about money either, but since you have made up your mind… Su Jiu!” Han Qing suddenly said.
Su Jiu got his hint and immediately retrieved the bank card back into her pocket.
“We hadn’t planned to talk about money at first. After all, you have taken care of Shen Qi for more than twenty years. It is indeed disrespectful if we are to sort out this matter with money. It seems that we are on the same page.”
Mrs. Shen was stunned upon seeing her taking back the card. What’s going on?! She had intended to demand for more money, however, things had turned out the other way round.
