At the Jingshui Bay apartment, sunlight streamed through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, filling the living room.
Yu Sheng reclined halfway on a lounge chair on the balcony, a soft thin blanket draped over her.
Her body was still weak after the miscarriage, and the faint pulling pain hadn't fully subsided. But compared to the past two days, she was much better. More importantly, the heavy stone that had been suffocating her heart seemed to have cracked open after last night's reckless outburst, letting in a trace of fresh air.
She held her phone. On the screen were several short-drama market analysis reports sent by Gu Wanqing.
She was so absorbed that she didn't even notice Aunt Yang approaching with a bowl of soup.
"Miss, it's time to drink your soup." Aunt Yang gently placed the warm bowl on the small table beside her.
Yu Sheng came back to her senses, set down her phone, and gave Aunt Yang a faint but sincere smile. "Thank you, sorry for the trouble."
She picked up the bowl and drank it in small sips. The temperature was just right, the broth rich and flavorful with a faint herbal fragrance. Warmth spread through her stomach, and her body seemed to regain a bit of strength.
Aunt Yang rubbed her hands together, hesitation evident on her face. "Miss, I know it's not my place to say anything…"
Yu Sheng put down the bowl, her tone calm. "It's fine. Just say what you want. It's just the two of us here."
Lowering her voice, Aunt Yang said, "After the eldest miss went back, things got pretty heated at the old residence. Those injuries on her face… sigh… she got really angry and made the second miss kneel for two hours. Even madam couldn't stop her."
She observed Yu Sheng's expression and continued hesitantly, "Miss, I know you've been wronged. But in marriage, how can there not be friction? The eldest miss must care about you, otherwise she wouldn't have agreed to give you that company. Making things too tense doesn't look good, and it's not good for your recovery either. When she calms down a bit, maybe you could give her a way out?"
Yu Sheng listened quietly, her face unreadable. "You didn't tell grandmother the full details, right?"
Aunt Yang quickly nodded. "No! I just said your health isn't good and that you need rest."
"Mm, you did the right thing." Yu Sheng nodded, then changed the topic. "As for the matter between Shen Yunmian and me, you don't need to worry about it. There are some steps I don't want to give, and others don't need me to give them either. I think things are quite good as they are now—peaceful."
Aunt Yang wanted to persuade her further, but seeing Yu Sheng's clear resistance, she wisely said nothing more.
The Miss in front of her really seemed different from before.
She couldn't pinpoint exactly how—just a feeling, as if… she no longer cared about anything.
At that moment, the doorbell suddenly rang, breaking the slightly tense atmosphere.
Aunt Yang quickly responded, "Coming, coming!" and hurried off to open the door.
From the bedroom, Yu Sheng heard the conversation at the door. A barely noticeable, mocking curve appeared at the corner of her lips.
As expected, Shen Yunmian's actions were always within her predictions—calm, rational, using the most efficient and direct methods to deal with "problems." And now, she, Yu Sheng, was the "problem" that needed to be evaluated and handled.
"Please let them in," Yu Sheng called out, her voice calm.
Secretary Li and Doctor Chen entered the bedroom.
Seeing Yu Sheng sitting propped up on the bed—her complexion pale but her eyes clear and bright, nothing like the collapsed, haggard state she had imagined—Doctor Chen couldn't help but be momentarily stunned.
Secretary Li introduced her in a businesslike manner, "Miss, President Shen is very concerned about you. This is Doctor Chen Jing, a highly professional psychological specialist…"
"I understand." Yu Sheng interrupted lightly, her gaze shifting directly to Doctor Chen as she gave a faint, polite smile. "Hello, Doctor Chen. Sorry for the trouble of coming all this way. You can ask whatever you'd like—I'll cooperate."
Her attitude was so cooperative that it caught both Secretary Li and Doctor Chen off guard.
After completing the handover, Secretary Li tactfully withdrew to the living room.
Doctor Chen sat down, her tone as gentle as possible. "Mrs. Shen, hello. Please don't feel nervous—we're just having a casual conversation. After something like this, you must be very upset. Any emotions you have are normal. If you're willing, could you share how you're feeling right now?"
Yu Sheng looked at her, her gaze frank. "Feelings? Doctor Chen, do you want to hear the truth?"
"Of course. Honest communication is the first step in counseling," Doctor Chen nodded.
"Alright." Yu Sheng took a deep breath.
Then, the anger and pain she had suppressed for two lifetimes—feelings that had nearly corroded her completely—came surging out.
"Doctor Chen, I've been married for two years. I have never felt happiness, nor have I ever integrated into this family."
"My mother-in-law—elegant and refined in front of others, but behind the scenes, unbearably petty and sharp-tongued. If the temperature of the breakfast porridge is even one degree off, she'll nag endlessly. She always thinks I married above my station (marrying someone of a higher social, financial, or class standing than oneself), that the Yu family depends on the Shen family."
"Her daughter being busy with her career is only natural. But if I want even a little personal space, I'm accused of being neglectful and immature."
"And my sister-in-law—twelve years old, spoiled beyond control, completely lacking discipline. When I tried to supervise her studies, she called me nosy and said, 'When you and my sister divorce, you'll be nothing.'"
"This time, I lost my child because she brought her classmates home and staged some horror prank, spraying fake blood to scare me!"
"But afterward? My mother-in-law's first reaction was to cover for her younger daughter. That was a human life! Yet in her eyes, it wasn't even as important as her younger daughter getting scolded!"
"As for my wife, Shen Yunmian…" Yu Sheng paused, the mocking curve at her lips deepening suddenly, "she is always calm, always rational, always handling our life the same way she handles her work."
"The child was gone, and she said, 'It's nothing, I don't like children anyway.'"
"Her sister caused my miscarriage, and her solution was, 'I'll discipline her and compensate you financially.'"
"I was sad, I was angry, and she said, 'Yu Sheng, be rational.'"
Yu Sheng raised her eyes and looked straight at Doctor Chen, whose expression had already begun to stiffen, and gave a cold, sarcastic smile. "Doctor Chen, tell me—living in a family like this, facing people like this, day after day, exhausting yourself to accommodate and give, yet receiving not even the slightest emotional response, and instead being taken for granted… if it were you, would you suffer? Would you want to die?"
The last sentence was spoken with extreme calmness, yet it made Doctor Chen's pen tremble in her hand.
Doctor Chen had practiced for many years and heard plenty of wealthy family secrets, but such direct, raw exposure—this was the first time.
This Mrs. Shen didn't need counseling.
She was tearing open all her festering wounds at once, exposing them to the light!
How was she supposed to record this?
Write it truthfully? Would President Shen tear up the report on the spot?
Looking at the doctor's ever-changing expression, Yu Sheng suddenly let out a low laugh. "Before yesterday, I might really have been close to going crazy—or dying. But strangely, after last night… mm, after having a 'deep exchange' with my wife, I said everything I wanted to curse, and did everything I wanted to do…"
She subconsciously flexed her fingers, as if recalling the sensation from last night.
"…Then, I suddenly figured it out. It felt like a thousand-pound weight had been lifted off me." Yu Sheng's smile became more genuine, even carrying a hint of mischief. "Now I can eat, I can sleep. I just want to recover as soon as possible, and then… completely leave this suffocating place and start my real life."
"Doctor Chen, if I had kept enduring like before, wouldn't I either go crazy or die?"
Doctor Chen's throat went dry, and fine beads of sweat formed on her temples.
Looking at the woman in front of her—who appeared fragile but spoke like a weapon—she couldn't connect her at all with Secretary Li's description of someone "possibly emotionally unstable due to miscarriage."
This wasn't loss of control.
This was extreme clarity.
She could only follow professional ethics and respond stiffly, "Mrs. Shen, what you've described is indeed… very oppressive. From a mental health perspective, long-term emotional suppression can lead to serious psychological issues, such as depression or anxiety. Appropriate emotional release and expression… is beneficial."
"Right? I think so too." Yu Sheng nodded in satisfaction, as if she had received authoritative validation. "So I feel like I'm in a much better state now—better than at any time in the past two years."
Doctor Chen: "…"
She felt that this assignment was a complete disaster.
In the end, under Yu Sheng's "full cooperation," Doctor Chen forced herself to record the chief complaints as "objectively" and "professionally" as possible. In the diagnostic opinion, she vaguely wrote: "Severe psychological stress and family relationship distress present, accompanied by acute stress response. Emotional state currently stabilizing. Continued observation and removal from a stress-inducing environment recommended."
Then she prescribed some standard sleep medication, though she felt the Mrs. Shen in front of her probably didn't need it at all.
After seeing off Doctor Chen and the still-dazed Secretary Li, Yu Sheng felt that the last trace of gloom in her heart had dissipated.
So this is nice—turns out going crazy really works.
0Aa
President's Office, Shen Corporation.
Shen Yunmian sat at her desk, wearing a tightly fitted mask, handling documents.
Even so, it couldn't hide the low-pressure aura surrounding her.
On the company's internal communication platform, whispers had already spread wildly—about the president wearing a mask to work for the first time ever, and the faintly visible injuries on her neck and forehead. Speculation was rampant.
A knock sounded. Secretary Li entered with a cup of coffee and a new batch of documents for signing, her eyes carefully avoiding the red marks that the mask failed to fully cover.
"President Shen, these are urgent documents requiring your signature. Also…" Secretary Li set down the coffee, hesitated, then took out another file. "This is the preliminary draft from the legal department regarding the equity transfer of Qiyun Film. Please take a look."
"If there are no issues, the process can begin. As for… should we send it directly to the Miss for signing, or…?"
Shen Yunmian's gaze fell on the words "equity transfer," her expression instantly turning complicated.
Last night's conflict—Yu Sheng's frantic yet cold eyes—flashed vividly in her mind again.
And now, Yu Sheng had blocked her.
"Contact her directly." Shen Yunmian's voice, muffled through the mask, sounded low and cold. "Confirm a convenient time for her, and have legal send someone over to complete the signing."
"Understood." Secretary Li nodded and immediately took out her phone. "I'll contact Miss now."
The call connected and was put on speaker.
It rang twice before being picked up. Yu Sheng's clear and gentle voice came from the other end: "Hello, Secretary Li?"
Her voice sounded… like she was in a good mood?
Secretary Li subconsciously glanced at Shen Yunmian and quickly said, "Hello, Miss. Sorry to disturb you. This is regarding the equity transfer agreement for Qiyun Film. The draft is ready—when would it be convenient for you? I can arrange for someone from legal to come over for your review and signature."
Yu Sheng replied softly, "I'm free this afternoon. Around what time will you come? Just let me know half an hour in advance."
"Alright, how about tentatively 3 PM? I'll confirm and notify you."
"That works. No problem. Thank you for your hard work, Secretary Li."
"Not at all, it's my duty." Secretary Li responded quickly.
"Mm, then that's it. Goodbye." Yu Sheng hung up cleanly.
After the call ended, the office fell into a strange silence.
Shen Yunmian's fingers tightened slightly around her pen. Yu Sheng's gentle, clear, perfectly polite voice now sounded unbearably grating.
She could speak so kindly to a secretary, yet drag her own calls into the blacklist?
That sense of rejection left a bitter taste in Shen Yunmian's heart. She even found herself recalling the things Yu Sheng had shouted at her last night: "cold-blooded animal," "selfish," "scum"…
Secretary Li held her breath, not daring to look at Shen Yunmian.
"President Shen, then I'll go to arrange this afternoon…" she tested cautiously, trying to leave the oppressive atmosphere.
"Wait." Shen Yunmian suddenly spoke.
Secretary Li turned back.
Shen Yunmian pressed her lips together, remained silent for a few seconds, then stiffly said, "This afternoon, I'll go in person."
"…Huh?" Secretary Li was completely stunned. She instinctively looked at Shen Yunmian's face—the injuries clearly unsuitable for being seen, especially by the person involved. "You… you'll go yourself?"
This… was she going to sign an agreement, or continue last night's war?
Secretary Li felt like her brain was overheating.
"Do I need to repeat myself?" Shen Yunmian lifted her eyes, her gaze icy.
"No, no, I understand! I'll arrange the car and have all the documents to accompany you this afternoon." Secretary Li snapped to attention and hurriedly agreed, practically fleeing the office.
After the door closed, Shen Yunmian leaned back in her chair and pressed her brow tiredly.
The edge of the mask brushed against her wounds, bringing a faint sting.
She didn't even know why she wanted to go.
At that moment, a strong, uncontrollable impulse had seized her.
She wanted to see for herself.
What exactly was going on with the wife who could hysterically lash out at her, block her number, yet speak gently to a secretary?
—
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