She had expected it to be An Deyu or Mrs. An walking in, but never An Qing!
An Ruo turned her head, catching the smug, sneering expression on Fang Yingxue’s face, and suddenly it clicked. No wonder they all sang the same tune about her being a substitute bride, spinning lies—it was all because An Qing had come running to tattle and stir up trouble!
An Deyu, for all his shortcomings, had still carved out a name for himself in the business world. Mrs. An was cunning and sly, the type to think ten steps ahead. How on earth did they manage to produce a daughter like An Qing, who had absolutely no brains!?
Old Master Shen’s expression was indifferent. “You’re An Qing?”
“Yes. Grandpa Shen, I’m the real An Qing. Her? She’s just some stray my grandmother, in her senility, picked up from who knows where. Our An family took pity on her and her brother, so we gave them a meal to eat.” An Qing shot An Ruo a cold, cutting glare, a sneer curling at her lips. “I never thought she’d get so cocky, stealing my identity to swindle people.”
“Dad, did you hear that?” Fang Yingxue was eager to pin everything on An Ruo. “This girl’s young, but her heart is vicious. Lucky we caught it early, or she’d have led us all by the nose!?”
Old Master Shen narrowed his eyes. “You just said she took fifty thousand from An Deyu to agree to marry into the Shen family. Now you’re telling a completely different story?”
Fang Yingxue suddenly realized her slip, her expression turning irate. “I was fooled by her too. The intel I got really said it was for fifty thousand…”
“That fifty thousand was her extorting my dad after she married into the Shen family. Grandpa Shen, I have proof.” An Qing seemed prepared, pulling a document from her bag and handing it to the butler.
The butler passed it to Old Master Shen. He flipped through it briefly, his face dark and unreadable—his usual demeanor.
“This is the agreement she left behind when she blackmailed my dad. Even though she impersonated me to marry Big Brother Shen, if this got out, our An family would lose face. That’s why we had no choice but to pay her fifty thousand to shut her up.”
An Ruo watched her performance with a detached expression, inwardly stunned that An Qing could twist the truth so blatantly, not only framing her but even having the evidence ready!
Wait—with An Qing’s low IQ, how could she come up with such a clever scheme? She must have teamed up with Shen Yu and the others to pull this off.
It seemed they were determined to get rid of her once and for all!
“Grandfather, may I take a look at that agreement?”
Old Master Shen studied her thoughtfully for a moment, then raised his hand to pass the document to the butler.
“Thank you.” An Ruo took the agreement, skimmed through it quickly, and suddenly laughed. “You’re saying this agreement is proof that I blackmailed Mr. An by threatening to marry Big Brother Shen, and it even has my signature?”
“Of course.”
An Ruo found it absurd. “I’m not you, with your brilliant mind. If I were really going to extort someone, this would be something to keep hidden. Why would I write an agreement and leave my name on it? That’s just asking for someone with ulterior motives to use it—like you’re doing now.”
“You…”
“I don’t accept this evidence.” An Ruo sneered and tossed the agreement onto the floor.
“It’s in black and white—why won’t you accept it!?”
“Because this isn’t my handwriting.” An Ruo’s tone was calm. “Grandfather, I admit that before the An family took me in, my brother and I were orphans fending for ourselves. In the An household, I walked on eggshells. Even as an adopted daughter, I lived no better than a servant. Marrying Big Brother Shen was for that fifty-thousand dowry. My brother is gravely ill, and I desperately needed that money.”
“I’ve wronged Big Brother Shen, deceiving him all along and letting down his kindness. I made a mistake, and I’ll accept whatever punishment you deem fit. But to say I used this to extort money—that’s just ridiculous!”
“Ha, smooth talker! Dad, don’t listen to her nonsense anymore. She’s brought her scams right to our doorstep. Hand her over to the police now—let her explain herself to the judge in court!” Shen Yu, afraid that another word from her might sway the old man, cut her off and summoned the bodyguards. “Take her to the police station and let her taste what prison food is like!”
Several bodyguards immediately moved to drag An Ruo away. The roomful of people watched her, mocking her, convinced she’d be rotting in a cell from now on.
The butler answered a phone call, then rushed over, brimming with excitement. “Old Master, great news! Dr. Liao just called—the eldest young master can see!”
The entire hall froze, everyone’s face a mask of shock!
An Ruo, being hauled off by the bodyguards, stopped in her tracks at the news!
The old man was so thrilled he thought he’d misheard. “Say that again!”
“The eldest young master’s eyesight has recovered!”
The butler’s words rang out once more, echoing in everyone’s ears.
Joy exploded in An Ruo’s chest. He could see—his eyes were healed!
Shen Xiaoxing’s position in the Shen family was awkward. Some rejoiced, while others were filled with dread.
Fang Yingxue couldn’t believe it. “This… how could it suddenly recover? Dad, could there be something wrong with this?”
“What could be wrong?” Old Master Shen snorted, rising to his feet and thumping his cane hard against the floor. “I think you’d rather he stayed blind forever—that’s the real problem!”
He ordered the butler to prepare the car, insisting on visiting the seaside villa himself.
As he left, the vast meeting hall fell under Shen Yu’s control. With a single command, he barked at the bodyguards to take her to the police station.