THE FAKE DAUGHTER BECAME THE FAVORITE - CHAPTER 173

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Chapter 173: Blurred Memories

"And I should be thanking you as well!"

"Because of what?" Shen Jingchuan released his hug on Wen Yan and looked at her attentively.

Wiggling her eyebrows at him, Wen Yan pulled a red string out from under her collar.

"See? Because of the jade Buddha you gave me, it really kept me safe and sound!"

"So you've been wearing it all this time!" Shen Jingchuan's eyes sparkled even brighter than before.

When it comes to gifts you've given away, nothing brings greater joy than seeing the recipient genuinely like and treasure them.

This girl is definitely a keeper! Next time, he's going to gift her even more!

"Yeah, I put it on right after I received it. That day on the snow mountain, Wanwan and I went out to set up a pitfall trap. We needed to jab a sharpened wooden stick down through the snow and into the dirt underneath. But my first attempt wasn't great, so the wooden stick snapped while I was jabbing it in. I flipped it around to sharpen the other end, but that attempt failed too.

Since it failed, I had to pull it out, right? At that moment, both ends of the stick were sharp. When I yanked it out, the inertia sent the sharp tip straight into my chest!”

"It poked right through my clothes and made a hole. If I hadn't been wearing this jade Buddha to block it for me, I feel like I definitely would've suffered some internal injuries. Later I noticed the area where I got poked still turned a bit bruised, but if this piece of jade hadn't helped cushion the blow, the consequences definitely would've been much worse. That's why I said I need to thank you."

"Really?"

"Of course it's real! I originally planned on thanking you, just not right now, I was planning to give you a return gift after getting back to China. Who knew you'd suddenly say you wanted to thank me out of nowhere?"

Shen Jingchuan knitted his brows: "Who's asking about that? I was asking about you getting injured!"

"Then that's even more real! It happened on the livestream, okay?!"

"Then did you go to the hospital for a checkup afterward?"

"No need for a checkup, the bruise faded away without a trace long ago."

"Are you sure? No lingering internal injuries? Does your chest hurt when you cough? Any difficulty breathing?"

"I'm not coughing, nor do I have any difficulty breathing."

"Then hand the Buddha over to let me take a look."

"No need, right? What do you want to check? I've already checked it, the jade is completely fine."

"Hand it over!"

Having no other choice, Wen Yan unclasped the jade Buddha.

Shen Jingchuan took it in his hand, turning it over and over to inspect it thoroughly several times. Only after confirming there was indeed nothing wrong did he return it to Wen Yan.

"I'll buy you a new one once we're back."

"No need, this one didn't even break. Other new things I won't refuse, but since the jade Buddha isn't broken, I think it's better to keep wearing it."

Shen Jingchuan shot her a glance: "Back then, when you used the Swap Card, you should've chosen me. With me around, I definitely wouldn't have let you go digging traps.

"Speaking of which, I wanted to ask you—why didn't you pick me back then? Didn't we already agree on it back at the airport?"

Wen Yan giggled: "Well, Sister Qin Yan picked you, right? I thought it'd be pretty nice if you could help her out a bit. Besides, picking Wanwan in the end wasn't bad either, she's super capable, and she and I even became friends. All in all, I was still very happy throughout this past month."

"Fine, as long as you were happy. You have to keep being happy in the future too. Your big bro will watch over you."

"...You're suddenly getting so sappy, I'm totally not used to it. You're not about to leave out of nowhere or something, are you? Are you going abroad again?!"

"!!! How could I? I'm not stupid, I just managed to get my hands on a huge chunk of funds!"

"Oh~ So the root cause was all that money, which made you suddenly burst out with feelings! Money really is a great thing! Don't worry, I'll work hard to achieve financial freedom as early as possible. Next time you come asking to borrow ten million from me, I won't be embarrassed about not being able to pull it out."

"No need!" Shen Jingchuan declared with grand pride, "You're my major shareholder. In the future, just sit back and get ready to live high on the hog with your big bro."

"My few millions actually count as a major shareholder?"

"If I say you are, then you are."

"Sob sob sob, you're so bossy, but I love it so much! Please make sure to stay this bossy with me forever. Here, candied fruit—Brother, please enjoy!"

Wen Yan put on an exaggerated, flattering expression, her large eyes sparkling bright and clear.

Even Shen Jingchuan felt dazed looking at her, were all younger sisters this cute? Beautiful and cute!

He couldn't resist reaching out to ruffle Wen Yan's hair a couple of times, wishing he could bring her the entire world on a platter.

Before long, however, he decided to take back half of that world.

Because he realized he wasn't the only brother in Wen Yan's world. T-T.

Very soon, she pulled out her phone to message Shen Jingxiu, not only delightfully expressing her love for the candied fruit skewer bouquet, but also asking with deep concern about his injured leg.

Before Wen Yan went to film the show, Shen Jingxiu had been in a car accident.

However, after this month of recuperation, his injured leg had fully healed.

When Wen Yan got in touch with him, he was away on an overseas business trip; the private flight arrangements had also been set up by him while he was abroad.

After stepping off the plane, He Xing came to pick up Wen Yan, as work had already been arranged for her today.

Shen Jingchuan had to bustle about his club as well.

By the time Wen Yan returned to the Shen family villa, two days had already passed.

This time, she intended to give Su Yang a surprise, so she hadn't given any advance notice.

Consequently, Su Yang was quite surprised upon seeing her.

"You silly girl, returning without letting us know in advance. If I knew you were coming back, I would've had the kitchen prepare a few more of your favorite dishes."

"No need to go through the trouble!" Having already washed her hands, Wen Yan sat down at the dining table. "I like the dishes on the table too."

"If I'd known you were coming back, I would've asked your Big Brother to come home for dinner too. At this hour, he's probably still working overtime."

Su Yang loved having a lively house; as she spoke, she was already pulling out her phone.

Wen Yan hadn't been in touch with Shen Jingxiu for several days. Hearing Su Yang say that, she couldn't help asking:

"Has Big Brother already returned from abroad?"

"Yes, he just got back this afternoon. Before even getting over his jet lag, he went straight to the company. Out of three meals a day, two were airplane food, who knows what he plans to eat tonight. I'll call him right now to get him to come back."

Before Su Yang could even dial, however, Shen Yuan beside her stopped her:

"Let's forget about it for today. He just got back from a business trip, and there are still many important matters domestically that need his attention. Next time, let's call all the other kids back to have a meal together. What do you think?"

Su Yang knitted her brows slightly: "Very important matters?"

"Mhm, a few relatively major projects."

"Sigh, alright then." Su Yang let out a sigh. "When you were young, I hoped you'd spend more time with me and the kids, but you were always working overtime. Now that you've handed over power, I want my son to spend more time by my side, but now my son has to work overtime instead."

"In a couple of days then, in a couple of days, we'll call all the kids back."

"How could it be that easy? Every single one of them is busy out of their minds."

It wasn't that Su Yang was complaining, but rather that this was simply the truth.

Shen Yuan had no choice but to hold Su Yang's hand and offer a few comforting words: "They're young people, having their own career drive is a good thing."

Su Yang scoffed and yanked her hand out of Shen Yuan's grip.

"Now you know having career drive is a good thing! Earlier, when I told you to support Jingchuan, you were completely unwilling. Now you're willing, but your son doesn't need it anymore."

Wen Yan, eating popcorn on the sidelines: "What's wrong, Mom? Dad already decided to invest in Fourth Brother? But as far as I know, Fourth Brother has already pulled in enough capital.’

"That's right. A couple of days ago, your dad called your Fourth Brother, originally wanting to use the opportunity to patch up their relationship, but your Fourth Brother just said he didn't need it and hung up the phone."

Wen Yan forced out a comforting line: "...Fourth Brother has probably been pretty busy lately. I sent him a message during the day once, and he only replied to me in the middle of the night."

"Forget it, no need to say nice things to make him feel better, this serves your dad right. Let's eat, the food's getting cold."

Following their past habits, even in the freezing winter, the couple—Su Yang and Shen Yuan—would go for a walk in the garden after dinner.

Tonight, however, Su Yang harbored resentment toward Shen Yuan, so she simply canceled the activity altogether and pulled Wen Yan along to watch TV.

It was an overseas wilderness survival show.

Su Yang previously had zero interest in these variety shows, let alone knowing that wilderness survival could be turned into a show. Ever since watching her own children's program, however, she had fallen in love with it.

Regrettably, tonight's episode of that show hadn't updated.

Not wanting to spoil her mood, Wen Yan proposed another suggestion.

"Oh right, Mom, there's an award ceremony tonight, and Second Brother is attending too! How about we watch that instead? I'll screen-cast it with my phone."

"That sounds good too. Ever since parting ways at the hospital that time, I haven't seen your Second Brother."

Wen Yan immediately pulled out her phone and operated it for a bit.

Because it was a live broadcast, however, there was no way to skip directly to what they wanted to see.

When Wen Yan cast the screen, it wasn't Shen Jinghe's turn to present an award on stage yet.

As Su Yang watched, she offered a few commentary thoughts on the jewelry worn by the female celebrities—after all, this was her line of work.

After watching a few, Su Yang couldn't help expressing her heartfelt feelings: "When will our Yanyan be able to go on stage to receive an award too? When that time comes, you can pick whatever you want from the jewelry Mom has in her collection. I have so many wonderful pieces stored away, but some are far too ornate and never had a suitable occasion to be worn. It'd be great if they were worn on you."

"There will definitely be an opportunity! Mom, just you wait! Ooh! The camera cut to Wanwan, she's nominated for Best Actress!"

"She really is! Look, is that your Second Brother sitting behind her? When the camera swept past earlier, I think I saw Jinghe."

"I wasn't paying attention just now, can't see it anymore." Because the screen had already cut back to the stage.

However, when the camera cut back to the guest seating area once more, Wen Yan indeed caught sight of Shen Jinghe.

This inevitably stirred up some memories of the original novel's plot in Wen Yan's mind.

In the original novel, the very first meeting between Shen Jinghe and Jiang Wanwan took place at an award ceremony.

At that time, one was the Best Actress, while the other was the guest presenting the award to the Best Actress.

This time, however, the person presenting the award to Jiang Wanwan was clearly not Shen Jinghe. In fact, the catalyst for their first meeting had changed long ago, turning into the show Jungle Diary.

After sifting through a series of plot points, a certain matter suddenly popped into Wen Yan's mind.

Namely: in the original novel, Shen Jinghe had fallen in love with Jiang Wanwan at first sight right at the award ceremony.

Afterward, he had secretly engaged in a fierce rivalry with the original male lead.

As the rivalry escalated, it eventually spilled over into the realm of financial power. To crush Shen Jinghe, the male lead didn't just strike at Shen Jinghe himself, he even dealt a heavy blow to the entire Shen family.

As for the specific methods used, Wen Yan could no longer recall clearly. When reading the novel, she had zero interest in business wars and the like; whenever she encountered such plots, she usually skipped right over them, preferring only the satisfying tropes of the female lead and supporting cast slapping faces.

What she remembered very clearly, however, was that this matter had dragged in Shen Jingxiu. That was also one of the few appearances Shen Jingxiu, as cannon fodder, made in the original novel.

Regrettably, no matter how hard Wen Yan racked her brain, she couldn't recall the relevant plot points from the book.

So much so that even when she saw Shen Jinghe take the stage to present the award for Most Popular Actress of the Year, she was scowling with a deeply serious expression.

Beside her, Su Yang found the way Wen Yan watched TV so earnestly quite adorable. On a sudden whim, she snapped a photo of this scene.

After taking the photo, she sent it straight into the group chat and casually tagged Shen Jinghe.

Because in the photo, the screen Wen Yan was staring at intently happened to be a close-up shot of Shen Jinghe reading the winner's name.

At this moment, Shen Jinghe was at the live broadcast venue, so naturally he had no way to respond.

However, Shen Jingxiu, who was working overtime in his office, saw it.

He had many group chats on his phone, but they were generally set to Do Not Disturb—only a few family groups had message notifications permanently turned on.

The moment he saw the familiar sofa in the photo, Shen Jingxiu knew Wen Yan had returned to the villa tonight.

After staring at that photo for a few seconds, he operated his mouse to close all files on his desktop, then shut down the computer, put on his coat, and grabbed his car keys—a seamless sequence of actions executed in one breath.

Several dozen minutes later, Shen Jingxiu returned to the Shen family villa.

Su Yang had just stepped out of her study at that moment. Suddenly seeing her eldest son return, she was utterly surprised.

"Why are you back? What's with today, returning one after another without saying a word in advance?"

Shen Jingxiu scanned his surroundings, asking despite knowing the answer: "Wen Yan is back too?"

"Mhm, she watched Jinghe's livestream with me for a bit. After finishing Jinghe's part, she went back to her room to sleep. Why did you come back at this hour?"

"I came back to grab something from the study. I left it at home before my business trip."

Su Yang nodded, then noticed Shen Jingxiu was holding a paper bag in his hand, so she asked casually:

"What are you holding in your hand? Looks like food."

"Mhm, late-night snack."

"Did you not eat dinner?"

"I did, but wasn't too full. Mom, do you want some? It's roasted pig trotters."

"Roasted pig trotters??" Su Yang was thoroughly shocked. "When did you start liking this too? I remember only Yanyan and Jingchuan at home love eating these."

"Recommended by my assistant."

"Pity Yanyan went to sleep, otherwise she could've eaten with you. Why don't you go ask her? When watching their show's livestream before, I remember she craved roasted pig trotters so badly once, bringing it up several times in a single meal."

"Forget it, her work is pretty exhausting too—I won't disturb her rest."

If he'd known, he wouldn't have lined up for it. Because it was a spur-of-the-moment decision to buy, he had no choice but to wait in line, and this wait had ultimately delayed his arrival.

In reality, however, Wen Yan wasn't asleep at all; right at this moment, she was lying in bed exchanging messages with Shen Jinghe.

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Check out this other novel I am currently translating: 

I BECAME THE FEMALE LEAD'S STEPMOTHER

Xiang Wu transmigrated into a novel, becoming the personal maid of Huo Yingyun, the eldest young lady of the Marquis of Dingyuan's household. She was born with a captivating, alluring beauty.

According to the original plot, she was destined to become part of the female lead Huo Yingyun's bridal entourage. Afterward, she would try to seduce her mistress's husband. Although the man would become temporarily captivated by her beauty, the person he ultimately loved would still be Huo Yingyun.

Her attempts at seduction would end up bringing the male and female leads closer together, deepening their relationship. As for her, the supporting female character who had tried to seduce the male lead, she would eventually be sent to a nunnery, where she would spend the rest of her life.

Through a dream, Xiang Wu caught a glimpse of the story's future plot.

She stood dazed beneath a grape arbor, clutching her handkerchief tightly.

No! I don't want to seduce the master!

Behind the grape arbor, a man in purple robes and a jade crown narrowed his eyes. In a low, husky voice, he said,

"Then who do you want to seduce?"

Xiang Wu's face went pale with fright. She trembled and tried to retreat, only for the man to catch her slender waist and hold her firmly against the grape arbor.

As the man lowered his head, clusters of young, unripe grapes trembled above them. Terrified, Xiang Wu grabbed hold of his broad, solid shoulders.

She had never wanted to seduce the female lead's husband.

Yet somehow, by accident, she ended up becoming the female lead's stepmother.

Note 1: Our male lead has no biological children. I personally don't like writing stories where the female lead becomes a stepmother, so all the children in this story are adopted!

Warning 1: The female lead is extremely Mary Sue. If you don't like that type of protagonist, please don't read!

Note 2: The male lead has no wife, so the female lead is not a mistress.

 it is very interesting. i picked it up and fell in love with it.

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