The daughter the Shen Family had taken back was threatening to jump off a building!
The news spread through the Compound like wildfire.
Such undignified drama was rare in the Compound, as those who lived here were no ordinary families.
Whether they were close to the Shen Family or not, everyone gathered to watch the commotion.
When the security team approached the Shen Family and relayed Shen Qi’s demands, Shen Congjun smashed a cup on the spot.
He was a man who valued his reputation deeply, and Shen Qi’s actions felt like she was tearing his face off and throwing it to the ground for others to trample.
“If she wants to die, let her die! I’m absolutely not going over there!”
Shen Congjun stormed into his study and slammed the door shut.
Xu Ailian was dumbfounded and asked uncertainly, “Comrade, are you sure the one threatening to jump is really our Shen Qi? Could there be a mistake?”
Shen Qi had been acting a bit off today, but after living together for three years, Xu Ailian believed she knew her daughter well.
Introverted, timid, and afraid of being disliked.
With such a personality, how could she do something as shameful as threatening to jump?
Just then, Shen Baozhu returned home. Unaware of what was happening, she immediately complained to Xu Ailian.
“Mom, Shen Qi seemed really angry today…”
She bit her lip, looking utterly wronged.
It was only then that Xu Ailian learned Fang Yi had taken Shen Baozhu out alone and Shen Qi had caught them red-handed.
She clicked her tongue in irritation. “That wretched child, why is she always so narrow-minded!”
She was now certain Shen Qi was making a scene because of Fang Yi and Shen Baozhu.
With Shen Congjun refusing to intervene, she had to step in. Otherwise, outsiders would say the Shen Family was heartless and didn’t care about their biological daughter’s life.
Xu Ailian and Shen Baozhu rushed to the rooftop together. Staring at Shen Qi standing on the edge, they didn’t dare to breathe too loudly.
As the saying goes, it’s the quiet ones you have to watch out for. Someone like Shen Qi, who was usually silent, could be the most terrifying when they fixated on something.
They were truly capable of anything.
“Xiao Qi, don’t scare your mother. Come over here, it’s too dangerous.” Without anyone urging her, Xu Ailian immediately began coaxing her.
Shen Qi swept a cold glance over them and took half a step back. Instantly, everyone held their breath, frozen in place, not daring to speak or move.
Shen Qi wasn’t surprised Shen Congjun hadn’t come. Although Shen Jibei was still missing due to his closed training, most of the Shen Family members were present.
“I’m standing here today because I have a few questions that have been troubling me for a long time. I want to ask them in front of everyone.”
Shen Qi spoke as loudly as she could, ensuring her words reached as many people as possible.
Xu Ailian was so anxious she burst into tears. She didn’t particularly like Shen Qi, but this was still her own flesh and blood, the child she had carried for ten months. Seeing her like this, on the verge of death, filled her with genuine fear and heartache.
“Xiao Qi, whatever you have to say, let’s sit down and talk properly. Don’t do this. Your mother has a weak heart, don’t scare me.”
Shen Qi remained unmoved.
She knew Xu Ailan’s health wasn’t great, but it wasn’t her heart.
“My first question: Was it my fault that Shen Baozhu and I were switched at birth?”
Xu Ailian shook her head, crying too hard to speak. Shen Baozhu, who was supporting her, stood pale-faced, looking innocent and helpless.
Shen Jinan stomped his foot in frustration. “What nonsense are you talking! You and Sister Baozhu are twins! The hospital accidentally lost you, that’s all!”
Shen Qi looked at him as if he were a fool: “So my second question is, am I really your biological daughter? If so, why did you claim to the outside world that Shen Baozhu and I are twins? We were clearly switched at birth—she’s the Zhou Family’s child, and I’m the Shen Family’s!”
“Shen Qi! Are you insane?!” Shen Jinan, seeing Shen Baozhu on the verge of collapse and about to faint, began lashing out recklessly, “If you want to die, just go die! I don’t have a disgraceful sister like you!”
“My third question: since you don’t welcome me, why did you bring me back? And after bringing me back, why treat me unfairly?”
Shen Qi didn’t wait for Xu Ailian to answer each question one by one. Clenching her fists, she raised her voice to protest the injustice.
“I live in the worst room in the house, with no sunlight all day. The clothes and things I use are what Shen Baozhu discarded. I’m the only child in this family who has to do housework.”
“Mom, I just want to ask: do you really love me?”
“If you truly loved me, why have you never asked about the life I had with the Zhou Family?”
“The Zhou Family favored boys over girls. I had to help with chores before I was even five—starting the fire to cook before dawn, gathering pigweed, washing clothes, feeding the chickens and ducks.”
“I never went to school. I learned to read by sneaking to the school and listening outside the windows. When I grew up, the Zhou Family planned to trade me for a high bride price. They’d already picked someone—the fool from the neighboring village. Do you know how overjoyed I was to learn I wasn’t their daughter and could escape that hellish family?”
“Mom, I used to think the Zhou Family was heartless. But now, I believe the cruelest one is you.”
“They were ignorant, uneducated—their poverty and environment made them vicious. But you—you’re highly educated, well-off, praised by everyone as gentle and generous, a good mother. So how could you turn a blind eye to my suffering?”
“Really, I’ve kept these questions bottled up for so long, lying awake night after night, longing for an answer.”
As she spoke, Shen Qi’s tears fell silently.
She hadn’t wanted to cry.
She’d cried enough in her past life. Asking these questions wasn’t really about seeking answers.
But she couldn’t help it.
The grievance was too overwhelming.
The wind on the high floor whipped through her hair, scattering it wildly.
When Fang Yi arrived, this was the shocking scene that greeted him.
He had never seen Shen Qi like this.
Beneath her calmness was a startling madness, her frail frame trembling like a stalk about to snap under pressure.
The noisy crowd gradually quieted, and some sensitive women were already tearing up.
Truth be told, everyone in the Compound was sharp-eyed—they could all see the Shen Family treated their four children differently.
Shen Jibei, the eldest son and successful, was highly regarded by his father. Xu Ailian doted on Shen Baozhu. Shen Jinan, the youngest and most unruly, naturally worried his parents endlessly.
Only Shen Qi, quiet and unobtrusive, was easily overlooked—and had the poorest living conditions.
Just look at the present moment.
On this freezing day, Shen Baozhu wore the latest trendy pink down jacket, Shen Jinan sported a fashionable leather jacket, while Shen Qi was bundled in an old padded coat.
The contrast was stark.
Under Shen Qi’s relentless questioning, Xu Ailian had already fainted, leaving only a flustered Shen Jinan and a trembling Shen Baozhu with her head hung low.
Fang Yi gritted his teeth, hesitating whether to step forward and persuade Shen Qi.
He truly didn’t want to get involved, but Shen Qi’s condition was clearly abnormal – he feared things might take a tragic turn.
Disliking Shen Qi was one thing, but he never wished for her death.