After Shen Yi mustered the courage to say those words, the office suddenly fell completely silent.
The large white strip of paper on her face had been torn off, but a few smaller strips were still stuck to it. Hiding behind her fourth brother, she poked her head out, revealing half of her messy face, and stared solemnly at the man in front of her.
Shen Zhizhao looked back at her.
His dark, deep eyes stared at her for two seconds.
Then, Shen Zhizhao took a half-step forward.
Shen Yi instinctively grabbed Shen Xun and shrank back.
But with the sofa right behind her, there was nowhere to retreat.
"What did you," Shen Zhizhao asked, his voice neither loud nor soft, a faint smile on his lips, "just call me?"
Shen Yi froze.
Her brain worked in overdrive, replaying what she had just said—
'Shen Zhizhao, have you finally lost your patience? Are you going to kill us?'
...Shen Zhizhao.
She had called him Shen Zhizhao.
Not Eldest Brother.
Shen Zhizhao.
She had addressed him directly by his full name.
When Shen Yi realized this, she felt like the sky was falling.
Shen Zhizhao wasn't actually angry; he just found the situation a bit subtle, a little amusing.
He simply crouched down in front of her, stared into her wide, round eyes for two seconds, and then slightly shifted his gaze to the side.
At some point, Shen Xun had moved a half-step forward, placing himself protectively in front of Shen Yi.
Two half-grown children—one shrinking in the back, clutching her brother, the other standing as a shield in the front—both sharing a look of unified hostility.
It was quite amusing.
Shen Zhizhao couldn't help but let out a chuckle.
"So you've always thought," he said, a lingering trace of a smile in his voice, "that I was going to kill you?"
Shen Yi looked at his smile, feeling a bit bewildered.
She thought for a moment, recalling the desperate look and pale face of the person who had been dragged away just moments ago.
She swallowed slightly.
"It's unlikely," she said, "but it can't be ruled out..."
Shen Xun added strictly from the side, "Everything has a certain probability and possibility."
The two of them chimed in one after another, cooperating perfectly.
Listening to them, Shen Zhizhao finally understood why, for the seven days these two kids had been here, they always walked three steps behind him, kept their words to an absolute minimum, and acted as weird as mice seeing a cat whenever they saw him.
It turned out that in their eyes, he was a moody, unpredictable murderer.
His gaze landed on Shen Yi as he lightly pointed out her verbal slip-up:
"You should call me Eldest Brother."
"I'm sorry, Eldest Brother." She didn't waste any time, swiftly yielding and apologizing.
Among all the people Shen Yi had met, Shen Wenta was the most neurotic guy.
But at least they were both young; at home, they would play petty tricks on each other back and forth, so it wasn't completely uncontrollable.
Shen Zhizhao was different.
He had become independent very early on and acted in a leadership role somewhat similar to their father's.
He was emotionally detached. He looked gentle and easy to talk to, but in reality, he looked down on everyone.
This kind of person was a bit like their father.
The difference was that Shen Sixing had already had his edges smoothed out by reality. All day long, he would yell at the top of his lungs about not wanting to go to work, complaining about clients and orders, only to quiet down obediently after getting kicked by their impatient mother.
Shen Zhizhao was not like that.
He belonged to the category of absolute superiors.
Shen Yi had a natural reverence for such pure-blooded elites.
Hearing her crisp apology, Shen Zhizhao smiled faintly.
Without any warning, he reached his hand out toward her—
This sudden movement made Shen Yi almost think that because she had offended him with her words, he was going to classlessly hit a child.
She held her breath slightly and instinctively shrank her neck back.
That long, fair hand reached over and plucked the strip of paper from her forehead.
He pinched the white paper between his fingertips and gently waved it.
"You seem," he began, his voice as gentle as a spring breeze, "not very smart."
Shen Yi: "..."
She stood there stunned, looking at his gentle face and the strip of paper at his fingertips, momentarily unsure of how to react.
Shen Zhizhao casually tossed the paper onto the coffee table next to them.
Then, he straightened up and walked toward his desk without looking back, pulled out his chair, and sat down.
"What do you want to eat tonight? Tomorrow, I will have someone take you home."
"..."
Oh, so the "last supper" really just meant their last meal here.
"Anything is fine."
She had no demands.
Shen Xun didn't have any demands either.
At this moment, the subordinates waiting in the office to report their work finally had a chance to slightly relax their tense bodies.
They secretly exchanged a few glances, their eyes involuntarily drifting toward the sofa.
How novel.
Having worked under Shen Zhizhao for so many years, they had never seen any family members around the young Mr. Shen.
This boss seemed to have popped out of a rock; there was absolutely no background information to be found on him.
The outside world knew very little about the children of the Shen family. Even if someone occasionally mentioned them online, the post wouldn't survive for more than a minute.
This was the very first time they had seen the other two children of the Shen family in real life.
"Young Mr. Shen..." a waiting assistant couldn't help but whisper to a colleague beside her, "looks like he's in a pretty good mood right now."
Shen Zhizhao sat behind his desk, his side profile looking exceptionally soft under the lighting, his brow relaxed.
There was absolutely no trace of the oppressive aura he had when he first walked in.
Earlier, when they were following him outside, they had clearly felt that the boss was in a foul mood.
But now, because this child had suddenly spoken up and talked back to Shen Zhizhao, the bizarrely tense atmosphere from before had lightened considerably.
For them, this was a good thing.
A boss in a good mood meant that they, the corporate grunts, wouldn't have to endure extra psychological pressure.
"Maybe...? Even the coldest young Mr. Shen becomes kind and gentle when faced with cute kids?" She half-jokingly pointed at the two half-grown children.
The boy looked like a delicate porcelain doll, and the girl was exceptionally sweet. Standing one behind the other, with the brother shielding the front and the sister looking timid, they painted a very vivid and amusing picture.
After chatting idly for a moment, the two didn't dare to slack off any longer. They exchanged a glance, preparing to finish their work reports while their boss was still in a good mood.
...
By the time Shen Zhizhao finished all his work, it was already late at night. Exhausted, he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes for a moment.
He then raised his hand and picked up another phone—one used for personal matters that hadn't seen any activity for a long time.
Surprisingly,
Numerous messages popped up.
In reality, over these past seven days, compared to these two relatively well-behaved kids, what had annoyed him the most was the barrage of calls and messages from other family members.
Father, Mother, Shen Ruxu, Shen Wenta.
Even Grandpa.
Shen Zhizhao swiped past all of them, not replying to a single message.
He had been disconnected from the concept of family for far too long.
So long that he could no longer remember what normal family dynamics were supposed to look like.
Shen Zhizhao had been brought to the Shen family when he was a child.
His mother had originally been extremely reluctant, but Shen Zhizhao felt that, from a utilitarian perspective, staying with the Shen family was the best choice.
Top-tier educational resources, a massive network of connections, and inexhaustible wealth—these were tangible things.
For him, there was simply too much to learn. He was busy absorbing everything, busy securing a foothold in this unfamiliar family.
There was absolutely no time to dwell on concepts like family and affection.
Years later, when he finally grew up and had the power and time to pause, he realized it was already too late. Any attempts to interact with them felt increasingly forced and awkward.
Shen Zhizhao was quite indifferent to this.
His parents cared about him, but only to a certain extent.
He shared blood with his brothers, but they were practically strangers.
To him, this kind of distance was just right.
Family would always be family. It was a biological link that could not be severed, nor did it need to be deliberately maintained.
As for any emotional attachment beyond blood ties? He could take it or leave it.
He didn't need the love of his parents.
Nor did he need the affection of his younger brother.
The trajectory of his life was clear and stable, and there would never be any exceptions to his rules.
