The door opened, and a tall, slender young man hurried out from inside. Seeing Mrs. Shen, he grabbed her and pulled her into the room.
He locked the door and drew the curtains.
He spun around and hugged Mrs. Shen. "My darling, I missed you so much!"
"Mr. Shaw!" Mrs. Shen felt weak all over, but she didn't forget the reason she came today. "Mr. Shaw, hold on—I have something to tell you."
Only then did Mr. Shaw calm down. "Is it about that bastard?"
"Yes, something big happened today." Mrs. Shen gritted her teeth. "That daughter from before, Coco Shen, somehow caught the eye of an influential person and became the personal assistant to Mrs. Yin, the wife of the Yin Enterprises CEO. Because of her, Yin Enterprises actually gave us a spot at Saint Diana Academy. Now, all those women Victor Shen keeps outside are desperate for that spot—they've all come to Newport City and even moved into the house. It's obvious they're all fighting for this opportunity."
"But Jason has already graduated from college, so he can't use it." Mr. Shaw frowned. "This has nothing to do with you—why are you so anxious?"
"Of course I'm anxious." Mrs. Shen's brows were furrowed with anger. "Victor Shen has spent a lot of money on those women. Now that there's a spot at the academy, he'll definitely spend even more to cozy up to those rich kids. The Shen Family's fortune isn't that big—if all the money goes to those little sluts, what about my Jason? I married him so Jason could inherit the family business, but now, before that even happens, all those bastards have shown up. If someone whispers in his ear, all the money at home could be gone. I put up with marrying him for his money—what else?"
A ruthless glint flashed in Mrs. Shen's eyes. "Mr. Shaw, we have to find a way to squeeze money out of Victor Shen! Jason is our child—we have to look out for him!"
Mr. Shaw grew serious. "You're right. Victor Shen is too distracted right now—we need to act fast. Do you know where he's been keeping his assets all these years?"
"All I know about is the safe at home, which just has some jewelry and property certificates. The jewelry can be sold for cash, but the certificates are useless unless they're transferred. He's obviously guarding against me! Bastard!" Mrs. Shen said through gritted teeth.
"Alright, leave this to me. I'll figure something out." Mr. Shaw pinched Mrs. Shen's cheek. "Once we get the money, we'll run away together and live our own lives!"
"Mr. Shaw!" Mrs. Shen collapsed into his arms, her gaze soft enough to melt.
Mr. Shaw picked up Mrs. Shen and carried her straight into the bedroom.
About half an hour later, Mrs. Shen hurried out of the old house, put on her sunglasses to hide her identity, and left in a rush.
The people tailing Mrs. Shen split into two groups.
One group kept following Mrs. Shen, while the other got out of the car, changed clothes, and went to knock on the door. "Water meter inspection."
"Coming, coming." The door opened, and a scruffy man came out. He didn't suspect anything. "Why are you checking the water meter again?"
The man opened his toolbox and showed it to him. "Someone called customer service saying there's a leak in the pipes here. We don't know which unit, so we have to check each one."
Mr. Shaw saw that their tools and paperwork were all in order, and they were wearing the water company's uniform and had the official forms, so he didn't suspect anything and let them in.
The two men professionally checked the water pipes in the house. One of them pulled out a form, wrote a few words on it, and asked Mr. Shaw to sign for confirmation. "If you find another leak, just call the customer service number listed here."
With that, the man didn't suspect anything and calmly signed his name.
While he was signing, the other man slipped into the bedroom and, without a fuss, took hair and other tissue samples from Mr. Shaw and Mrs. Shen's pillows, putting them into a bag.
The two men exchanged a look, then left together after saying goodbye.
Mr. Shaw was preoccupied with figuring out how to get money from Victor Shen, so he didn't suspect anything and let them go.
"Did you get the samples?" Coco Shen answered their call. "Did you get photos of Mrs. Shen and that man together?"
"Of course," the other person replied. "Is there anything else you need, Assistant Shen?"
"One last thing—please send all the samples for DNA testing and get the report as soon as possible," Coco Shen said. "Thank you."
"Okay," the person replied, then ended the call.
Coco Shen said to Mia Dou, "Just as I expected—Mrs. Shen and that man had a child together, and now my scumbag dad gets to play father. For the sake of the mistress's kid, he kicked my mom and me out of the house. Ha! Karma's real!"
Mia Dou patted Coco Shen's shoulder. "The real show is just beginning. Let's sit back and watch."
The two of them exchanged a smile and turned to lie down and rest.
That night was anything but quiet. In fact, it was downright chaotic.
Victor Shen finally realized that having too many women was actually not a good thing.
To keep them all happy, Victor Shen kept making promises, spending money and giving gifts—he was absolutely exhausted.
So he had no idea where his wife had gone that night.
And just like that, the night passed.
The next morning, Mia Dou and Coco Shen got up and went downstairs, only to find that everyone else was still asleep.
Well, after all that chaos last night, it'd be strange if anyone was up early.
Jason Shen, though, was up early. As soon as he saw Mia Dou, he greeted her warmly. "Miss Dou, good morning! Are you hungry? I've already called the housekeeper and asked them to bring breakfast on their way here. There are a lot of people at home, so cooking might take too long. I figured we'd just get something ready-made from outside."
"It's fine, I can eat anything," Mia Dou said with a smile. "Did you sleep well last night?"
Mia Dou was lying through her teeth.
Jason Shen's dark circles looked almost as bad as a panda's.
But she just pretended not to notice anything.
Otherwise, how could the drama keep going?
"It was fine," Jason Shen lied too. "The house is going to be lively today, so please don't laugh at us!"
"What's there to laugh at? No matter what, you're the legitimate eldest son of the Shen Family—the number one. No matter how much your siblings jump around, they still can't surpass you." Mia Dou chatted casually. "When our CEO took over the position, it wasn't easy either. Back then, when the previous CEO had an accident, all the uncles and cousins wanted that spot. Luckily, the old madam was there to keep the peace and pushed our CEO forward. After all these years of hard work, who dares say our CEO isn't up to the job?"
Mia Dou took a sip of water and said offhandedly, "Direct descendants are direct descendants. The side branches can't just covet the position."
Jason Shen's eyes lit up—he seemed to understand something.
"Look at me, talking about all this so early in the morning. But our CEO's story isn't a secret—anyone can find out with a little asking around." Mia Dou chuckled. "Honestly, you're great too. Besides, you've graduated college. It's time to do something real."
Jason Shen suddenly felt that Mia Dou was rooting for him, encouraging him.
He was absolutely over the moon!
If he could take over the entire Shen Family and have a woman like Mia Dou as his girlfriend, then the family's future would be bright—success would be just around the corner!
At that moment, the other kids woke up and came downstairs one after another.
Whenever they saw Mia Dou, they greeted her politely.
In no time, the whole dining room was buzzing with activity.
When breakfast arrived, no one waited for anyone else—whoever came down ate right away.
After finishing breakfast, Jason Shen decided to go upstairs and have a good talk with Victor Shen.
Mia Dou was right.
He was the rightful eldest son of the Shen Family—why should anyone surpass him?
If they wanted a spot at Saint Diana Academy, fine—then they'd have to give up their inheritance rights!
Jason Shen couldn't wait for Victor Shen to come down for breakfast—he was already eager to have a good talk with him.
Coco Shen showered and changed, then came downstairs and sat next to Mia Dou.
Mia Dou poured her some milk and brought over a plate of bread and a plate of fried eggs.
Coco Shen smiled and nodded. "Thanks."
Then the two exchanged a knowing look before glancing away and chatting with the others.
The other kids all tried hard to get noticed by Coco Shen and Mia Dou.
So naturally, they were eager to talk and share everything.
These girls were all seventeen or eighteen, not yet twenty, and all were Victor Shen's daughters.
They were more eager than anyone to climb the social ladder and get a taste of real high society.
They knew perfectly well that if they wanted this chance, they had to win over Mia Dou and Coco Shen.
After all, even if they got into Saint Diana Academy, they'd still have to rely on Coco Shen.
So every one of them was extra sweet and extra attentive.
"Big Sis, there were so many people yesterday, I didn't get to talk to you properly. I'm Sharon Shen, I'm seventeen, and I go to Yulin Private High School." One girl introduced herself first. "I'm good at piano, calligraphy, and dance."
"Big Sis, I'm Sophie Shen. I'm also seventeen, but my birthday hasn't come yet, so technically I'm sixteen and a half. I go to public school. I don't have any special talents, but I'm really good with people."
The other kids all started introducing themselves too, one after another.
To them, Coco Shen—being a few years older—held the power over their futures.
Coco Shen put down her bread, her eyes filled with complicated emotions.