Chapter 61
Su Yingying and Su Yunzhe were half-siblings, sharing the same father but different mothers. This was also the home of Su Yunzhe’s maternal grandparents, so it was usually just Su Yunzhe and Su Muwei who visited them.
It was quite surprising to Shen Yan that Su Yingying had come.
It was equally surprising to Su Yunzhe.
When they were young, Su Yingying used to come with him often, but after the family inheritance issues, Su Yingying’s mother had a falling out with him, and after Su Yunzhe moved out, he didn’t visit much. It seemed that Su Yingying also stopped coming around. However, Su Yunzhe didn’t press her when she called out to him and just responded casually.
Su Yingying didn’t acknowledge Shen Yan.
Shen Yan wasn’t sure why, but it was clear that Su Yingying didn’t like him. He, on the other hand, didn’t particularly care about whether everyone liked him or not, so he adopted a live-and-let-live attitude.
Besides, he didn’t have time to worry about Su Yingying.
He had only formally met Su Yunzhe’s family during the New Year, and now, just a month later, they were married.
The elderly members of the Su family were still basking in the joy of discovering that Su Yunzhe was in a relationship, and now, they were even more excited to learn that their eldest grandson was married. To them, Shen Yan seemed perfect in every way, with not a single flaw to be found.
The elders eagerly pulled Shen Yan into conversation, asking about the wedding preparations while handing him red envelopes, and his grandmother was already counting on her fingers to figure out which guests should be invited.
Shen Yan had suggested getting married on an impulse.
Everything Su Yunzhe had done for him seemed so effortless on the surface, but Shen Yan knew it must have taken a lot of effort. Otherwise, Duan Yang would not have just left the marriage so mindlessly.
He felt so warm inside, a kind of happiness that came from being loved, and he wanted to spend his life with Su Yunzhe.
Of course, another big reason was that without marriage, the pregnancy check-ups would be a hassle.
So, without thinking much, he had blurted out the idea of getting the marriage certificate, and Su Yunzhe had agreed without hesitation, which led to the current situation.
As for the wedding?
Shen Yan hadn’t thought about it at all.
Even Su Yunzhe had only considered it the night before because he had been focusing on how to propose.
So when they were asked about the wedding, both of them looked confused.
The key issue was that they couldn’t rush into it.
“Well…” Su Yunzhe smiled and pulled Shen Yan closer, “The wedding isn’t urgent. We’ll wait until our little one is born before we plan it.”
…
Suddenly, the living room fell silent.
Grandmother was the first to react. She quickly ran over and grabbed Shen Yan’s hand, joyfully exclaiming, “Yan Yan, you’re pregnant?”
Shen Yan felt awkward. He had some resistance to the idea of men getting pregnant, so his face turned slightly red as he nodded lightly. “Yes.”
“How many months along are you?” Both his grandfather and Su Yunzhe had snapped out of their initial surprise, their eyes filled with undisguised delight.
“Just over a month,” Shen Yan answered.
“Haha, a shotgun marriage, huh? That explains it!”
Before Shen Yan could even finish his sentence, Su Yingying, who had been playing with her phone the whole time, suddenly made a sarcastic remark.
Her words weren’t direct, but the implication of Shen Yan marrying for the baby was clear.
Shen Yan didn’t want to engage with her, especially since she was just an 18-year-old girl, so he decided to let it go. But Su Yunzhe’s expression darkened immediately. He shot her a look, but didn’t say anything. Su Yingying, as if realizing she had said something wrong, lowered her head and stood up to leave.
Despite Su Yingying’s remark, the joy in the room didn’t fade. During lunch, Grandmother almost filled Shen Yan’s bowl with all the food, insisting that he was now eating for two and needed to eat more. This led to a discussion about whether they should hire a nutritionist for his pregnancy.
Shen Yan had no interest in the topic. He thought the food Su Yunzhe made was already perfect, so he didn’t join the conversation and just focused on eating.
The only other person who was also focused on eating was Su Yingying.
She would occasionally glance at Shen Yan, her expression… unreadable.
After the meal, Su Muwei helped his grandmother clean the kitchen, and Su Yunzhe was pulled into a chess game by his grandfather. Shen Yan, on the other hand, was left to sit on the couch, eating fruit as if he were a bystander.
Then, suddenly, Su Yingying walked over. “Can you come outside for a minute?” she said before turning and leaving.
Shen Yan, who had just taken a bite of an apple, looked at her and then at his flat stomach. He couldn’t help but think of some dramatic scene from a soap opera, where the naive female lead was lured into a secluded area by a malicious rival, only to be pushed and lose her child.
He laughed to himself, put down the fruit plate, and followed her out.
Su Yunzhe, who had been playing chess on the balcony, glanced up briefly. His eyes darkened, but he made no move to intervene.
Shen Yan followed Su Yingying out onto the road, and she stopped beneath a parasol tree, looking up at the freshly sprouting branches. Her expression was filled with a melancholy that seemed too mature for her age.
“Have you really broken up with Duan Yang?” she asked.
Shen Yan hesitated, unsure whether to bring up a lighter topic. After all, he was a man and quite a bit older than Su Yingying, so there was no need to engage in any conflict with a young girl.
However, Su Yingying spoke first. She pulled her gaze from the tree and fixed her cold, distant eyes on Shen Yan.
Su Yingying, like Su Yunzhe, had an aloof look when she wasn’t smiling, making her seem distant and hard to approach.
But when she smiled, it was a different feeling. Su Yunzhe’s smile was gentle, while Su Yingying’s was lively.
Perhaps because of this similarity, Shen Yan never actually disliked Su Yingying.
“Yeah, after everything that happened, you don’t really think I’m just some emotional wreck, using your brother as a rebound, do you?” Shen Yan smiled.
Su Yingying’s face remained cold and indifferent. “But I saw the diaries you wrote. Those diaries, along with the comics and movie reviews. They were written by you, weren’t they? I… I just can’t believe you could really forget about Duan Yang!”
“Well, how should I put this?” Shen Yan didn’t want to explain that he wasn’t the same Shen Yan from this world. He didn’t write those diaries. But rather than think too hard about it, he chose to say, “This isn’t really any of your business, is it? I understand you care about your brother, but he trusts me. Isn’t that enough? Must I have your complete trust too, just because I’m marrying your brother?”
For some reason, Su Yingying’s face suddenly flushed. She hurriedly replied, “What nonsense are you talking about? I only didn’t like you because you were the one who sold me that purse. I thought you were after my brother’s money. Since you’re getting married now, I’m just asking, isn’t that normal? Since my brother trusts you, just pretend I never asked. Alright, I’m going now. Please tell him I left. I’m meeting some friends this afternoon.”
With that, she quickly ran off, as if something was chasing her.
Shen Yan watched in confusion.
Later, on the way home with Su Yunzhe, Shen Yan heard Su Yunzhe mention that Su Yingying would be going abroad soon to study. All the arrangements were already made.
“How sudden,” Shen Yan remarked, surprised.
“She decided it on her own. After the New Year, she suddenly said she wanted to go abroad. It’s fine, though.” Su Yunzhe replied casually.
Shen Yan looked at him, his tone casual as if he were talking about someone else’s child.
A strange feeling arose in Shen Yan’s heart. It seemed like there was some secret between Su Yunzhe and Su Yingying.
The thread of mystery was in his hands, and if he pulled on it, he could uncover the truth.
But he didn’t feel like thinking about it, so he let it go and focused on preparing for bed.
Just then, his phone rang, and to his surprise, it was a call from Shen Bowen!
Previously, the Shen family had come to him several times about the family inheritance issues, but after he ran away, Su Yunzhe couldn’t find him, and the Shen family had no clue either. Since his return, he had been staying at Su Yunzhe’s place, and the Shen family hadn’t contacted him.
Why was Shen Bowen calling now?
He didn’t care, so he hung up!
Shen Yan immediately cut off the call and turned off his phone.
Su Yunzhe seemed to remember something. “The two people Lawyer Zhou wanted to find have been located.”
Su Yunzhe hadn’t originally planned to tell Shen Yan, thinking that since Shen Yan was pregnant, he might not want to be bothered. Besides, Lawyer Zhou could handle it without any issues.
But since Shen Bowen called at such a strange moment, it seemed like there was something more going on.
“Really?” Shen Yan’s interest was piqued. “You’ve found both of them? Do you know where they are?”
Su Yunzhe nodded. “The doctor changed his name and moved to a small city to work. The nanny is working in the South. We’ve pretty much got in touch with them, we just need to figure out how to get them to testify.”
The two people were involved, at least to some extent, in the incident involving Wen Xin’s attempted murder. For them to testify to the truth, it would mean admitting their guilt and bearing legal responsibility.
Getting them to testify wouldn’t be easy.
“Can’t money solve it? I could pay them enough money to last a lifetime!” Shen Yan said. Since Wen Xin had left him such a large inheritance, spending it to avenge her seemed to him the most meaningful thing.
Su Yunzhe rubbed his hair gently. “If money could solve everything, would it even be a problem? They both received a sum of money from the Shen family back then. That Dr. Wang seems to have invested that money and made quite a bit. Now he’s changed his name and is the deputy director at the largest hospital in a county, enjoying both fame and fortune.”
Shen Yan nodded. People like him would never give up everything they had for money, unless some miracle happened and they suddenly developed a conscience and truly repented.
“What about the nanny?” Shen Yan asked.
In fact, the nanny’s testimony was the most crucial.
Even if Dr. Wang admitted to giving Shen Bowen illegal prescriptions, it only proved that Shen Bowen had bought the drugs. It wouldn’t prove that he gave them to Wen Xin.
But the nanny had handled the drugs and had even personally given them to Wen Xin under Shen Bowen’s instructions. That was the most powerful evidence.
Su Yunzhe shook his head. “The nanny is more troublesome. She’s completely unreachable. She spouts nonsense whenever we try to contact her. Dr. Wang is easier to deal with; after all, a person like him must have something he cares about. But the nanny, she’s never been married and is completely alone.”
“Ah?” Shen Yan thought Dr. Wang would be difficult enough to deal with, but now there was an even bigger problem.
He furrowed his brow, deep in thought.
Su Yunzhe reached over and gently rubbed his furrowed brow, smiling. “Alright, don’t stress yourself out. You’re not going to figure it out right now, so don’t wear yourself out.”
Shen Yan hadn’t even gotten to the main issue before he was interrupted. He couldn’t help but roll his eyes at him. “Aren’t you in the same situation? Why are you mocking me?”
“Well, I’m still working out a strategy with Lawyer Zhou, aren’t I? I didn’t want to tell you, but since Shen Bowen called at such a perfect time—just one day after we tracked down those two people—it’s likely he’s trying to test the waters,” Su Yunzhe said.
Shen Yan froze for a moment. “You mean those two have been in contact with him?”
Su Yunzhe nodded. “It’s highly likely.”
“Then…” Shen Yan suddenly seemed to come to a realization. A wicked smile appeared on his lips.
