Elder Shen finally spoke.
His voice was steady, carrying a calm that came from seeing much of the world. Are you sure?
Shen Zhizhao gave a slight nod.
I am sure.
Elder Shen looked at him, something flickering in his eyes, almost like surprise. You never take the initiative to ask for anything.
And now that he did, he was asking for a child?
Shen Zhizhao stood there, waiting quietly.
Elder Shen gave him another look.
Then, his gaze bypassed Shen Zhizhao and landed on the wide-eyed little girl in the corner.
Meeting that gaze, Shen Yi subconsciously straightened her back.
Elder Shen looked at her for two seconds.
Then he withdrew his gaze, picked up his teacup, and took a slow, deliberate sip.
Take her away.
He said.
Seeing that after just a brief exchange of words between the two, her guardianship had been transferred into the hands of this stranger, Shen Yi quickly jumped off the sofa, hid behind Shen Zhizhao, bit her lip, and accused Elder Shen in disbelief, Are... are you just throwing me away like this?
...
Elder Shen asked, Who is throwing you away?
Shen Yi shouted at the top of her lungs, You!
That single word echoed through the study.
Elder Shen choked on his words.
He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but swallowed it back down.
Finally, he took a deep breath and pointed at Shen Zhizhao.
You are going with your oldest brother, he said in a stiff tone. It is better than staying with those unreliable parents of yours.
In his eyes, Wen Ya was a madwoman with a bizarre way of thinking.
And Shen Sixing was always lounging around, looking half-dead and lazy all day long.
How could anyone expect those two masterminds to raise a good child?
Shen Zhizhao was far more reliable.
Hearing this, Shen Yi hesitated for a couple of seconds before looking up to peek at the man.
So he was the legendary oldest brother.
Since Shen Yi was about to move to a new place, it could not hurt to show some goodwill first.
She did not grab his clothes, keeping her distance instead, and put on a bright smile. Good evening, Big Brother.
Shen Zhizhao looked down at her.
His gaze was still calm, but Shen Yi somehow felt like he had smiled faintly. He gave a soft hmm and walked out.
Shen Yi had no choice but to follow. As they turned the corner outside the study, she bumped into her three other brothers, who were arguing about who knows what.
Shen Ruxu was the first to spot her.
He immediately stopped his argument with Shen Wenta and gently waved at her.
Come here, Shen Yi.
Shen Yi did not hesitate and immediately trotted over.
Compared to that unfamiliar oldest brother, these three familiar faces gave her a much greater sense of security.
Did Grandpa agree to let you go? Shen Ruxu observed her expression, thinking she seemed to be doing quite well.
Unlike him, every time he came home, Grandpa would constantly lock him in a dark room and strictly forbid him from going out.
But, Shen Yi nodded rapidly, repeating herself, but Grandpa threw me to Big Brother.
Big Brother said he will let me go back in a week.
Shen Yi could not shake the feeling that this oldest brother was a bit weird.
A week? He repeated the timeframe thoughtfully. That is not too bad, I guess.
The young man leaned in a bit closer and sincerely warned his little sister:
Do not talk to Shen Zhizhao unless you have to. There is something wrong with his head.
What is wrong with him?
She first glanced at her second brother, then looked at her silent third and fourth brothers.
Shen Ruxu recalled some memories and began to complain:
He has never liked my personality and always wanted to straighten me out. Back then, he frequently had people educate me.
One time, I was almost stabbed to death. When he found out, he did not react at all. He even had the audacity to lecture me, saying it was karma for me running wild outside.
To hell with karma!
Do not think he did not know, Shen Zhizhao was the one who sent those people.
No matter how awful Shen Ruxu could be, he would never think of stabbing his own younger brother.
But Shen Zhizhao, that incredibly toxic honest man, was perfectly capable of it.
After hearing this, Shen Yi was speechless for a long time.
When it came to the topic of their oldest brother, Shen Wenta also had a few things to say.
He lowered his eyes, his voice carrying a hint of gritted teeth:
Shen Zhizhao is the kind of person who, if two ants on the side of the road did not walk according to his script, he would grab them and reposition them himself.
When he was young, he had only seen Shen Zhizhao a handful of times.
Shen Zhizhao had played building blocks with him a few times.
He would gently tell him what to do next.
But the moment Shen Wenta did not listen, he would knock the blocks over and smilingly tell him to start again.
It was infuriating.
Psycho.
Seeing the serious expressions on her two brothers faces as they wildly badmouthed their oldest brother, Shen Yi hesitated. Then if I am with him, will he find me annoying and shoot me?
Even as she asked it, she felt it sounded a bit exaggerated.
But Shen Ruxu and Shen Wenta fell silent at the same time.
Then Shen Ruxu reached out, grabbed Shen Xun who was standing nearby, and pushed him forward.
Let him go with you.
Shen Ruxu smiled and said affectionately, Big Brother really likes you, Xiao Xun. You should go with Xiao Yi.
These two kids had always been incredibly close.
With Shen Xun keeping her company, she would definitely be fine.
Do not be afraid, Shen Xun naturally did not object. He reached out to hug his sister and earnestly promised, I will protect our lives.
Shen Yi: ...
It probably did not need to escalate to the topic of protecting their lives, right?
Shen Zhizhao was not some psychopathic serial killer.
Seeing the dismissive look on the girl's face, Shen Wenta impatiently pulled the two clinging children apart.
He pulled her in front of him and whispered with a hint of anxiety, Shen Zhizhao has antisocial personality disorder. I am not joking with you, Shen Yi.
Shen Yi looked up and replied reflexively, Isn't that just like you?
Shen Wenta said coldly, I am not antisocial.
His self-awareness had always been fairly clear from the very beginning.
He had a designated place for everyone and everything.
But Shen Zhizhao was different.
He was like a ship drifting aimlessly on the sea, without any navigational markers, like a wandering ghost.
Shen Xun suddenly spoke up.
His voice held a slight hint of confusion:
Why are you two so afraid of him? Big Brother is clearly a good person.
Shen Ruxu raised an eyebrow. What about me?
Shen Xun looked at him, remembering how he had pulled him down to kneel. You are bad.
Then Shen Wenta asked, And me?
Shen Xun looked at him too. You are the same.
Shen Wenta: ...
Shen Yi almost laughed out loud.
Finally, Shen Wenta took a deep breath, looked away, and turned his gaze back to Shen Yi.
He repeatedly warned her, You need to stay away from him.
Shen Yi nodded, agreeing quickly.
But she knew in her heart that saying this was as good as not saying anything at all.
She and Shen Zhizhao were unequal in both age and status.
Whether or not she could stay away from him was never up to her to decide.
...
Shen Zhizhao was a veritable workaholic, and he was indeed very busy with his job.
After bringing Shen Yi and Shen Xun back to a private base, he had almost no time to spend with them alone.
From morning till night every day, he was either in meetings or seeing people, either watching surveillance monitors in the command room or signing documents in his office.
It was Shen Yi's first time visiting an office like this.
Maps and documents were spread across the desks, and an entire wall of surveillance screens displayed footage from every corner of the base.
There were two bedrooms inside the office, enough to accommodate the three of them.
For the first three days, since there were no cell phones or toys around, Shen Yi gathered her courage to explore and dug out an old Rubik's Cube.
She and Shen Xun would sit in the corner and play with it whenever they had nothing to do, often spending the whole afternoon just twisting it around.
Shen Zhizhao occasionally came in, but only to grab a document or stand in front of the surveillance monitors for a while before leaving.
He had no interest in children.
Shen Yi could tell.
He didn't have a hobby of raising children at such a young age.
He merely kept her by his side, letting her tag along.
She had no idea what he was trying to find in her.
Having gotten used to seeing all sorts of strange people, Shen Yi felt that Shen Zhizhao was actually quite nice.
At least on the surface.
He didn't scold people or lose his temper; his personality was mild and indifferent, his voice was unhurried, and his emotions were stable.
Shen Zhizhao was the core figure of this generation in the Shen family.
Grandpa and Shen Sigui had been worrying about a lack of capable hands. Once Shen Zhizhao grew up, they couldn't wait to dump all the industrial departments that needed managing onto him, and then they immediately started training Shen Wenta without stopping, planning to have the two brothers do the work and share the burden.
It wasn't until the fourth day that Shen Yi finally had a truly substantive conversation with Shen Zhizhao.
That day, he received a package.
It was tightly wrapped. The outside was a kraft paper bag, the inside had a cardboard interlayer, and at the very center was an old photograph.
Shen Zhizhao stood by the desk, staring at the photo for quite a long time.
Shen Yi had been playing with the Rubik's Cube with Shen Xun, but Shen Zhizhao's gaze was simply too obvious.
It was hard for her not to notice.
She hesitated for a few seconds.
Then she put down the Rubik's Cube and ran over.
Seeing her approach, Shen Zhizhao held the old photo and gently waved it in front of her eyes. He asked, Do you know her?
At first, Shen Yi was confused.
Until she saw the girl in the picture.
Rather than a little girl, she was more of a teenager.
She looked to be about fourteen or fifteen, smiling radiantly with an amusement park in the background, holding a little boy in her arms.
Just as Shen Yi wanted to look closer, he gently placed the photo face down.
Shen Yi spaced out for a moment. She hadn't paid much attention to the boy in the photo; instead, she was thinking about the teenage girl.
She looked so much like how she would look when she grew up.
She looked exactly like her past self from her previous life.
She hesitated for a long time before meeting his eyes. This person seems to be me.
Shen Zhizhao looked at her.
His gaze still seemed devoid of emotion, but Shen Yi just felt that he was waiting for something.
Shen Yi added, But not the current me.
