Chapter 128
The atmosphere in the room was somewhat heavy. Shen Shuyu looked at Shen Yisi and feigned confusion. “So, what exactly is the matter?”
Mother Shen wiped tears from the corner of her eyes with her handkerchief. Father Shen patted her shoulder and said, “You have another brother.”
Shen Shuyu’s eyes widened slightly, acting as if he didn’t quite understand. Fortunately, Father Shen continued quickly, “We only found out about this recently and verified it through multiple sources. Your…”
Father Shen fell into a rare silence. For the first time in decades, he found himself in a predicament where he didn’t know what words to use to break the news gently.
Seeing the three of them remaining silent, Shen Shuyu took a deep breath and asked proactively, “Is it Shen Xili?”
The other three looked at him in unison. Shen Shuyu said, “So it really is him.”
Mother Shen choked back a sob. “Baby, you knew?”
“I guessed,” Shen Shuyu explained gently. “When we talked about Shen Xili at the dinner table, Mom, you got very emotional. Plus, Shen Xili really does look a lot like Brother. To be honest, when I first met him, I occasionally mistook him for Brother.”
Mother Shen turned her face away, unable to stop the urge to cry. Father Shen pulled her into his arms, soothing her with gentle pheromones.
Father Shen said, “Yes, we’ve basically clarified the matter. Shen Xili is indeed our son, but you are also our son. You don’t need to worry. We’re telling you this because you are a member of this family.”
“Little Fish,” Shen Yisi joined in. “Dad is right. No matter what happens, we are a family.”
Shen Shuyu gave a hum of acknowledgment. He asked, “Does Shen Xili know about this?”
Shen Yisi said, “We found him and told him yesterday.”
“Oh.” Shen Shuyu puffed out his cheeks, unsure of what else to say.
After being comforted for a while, Mother Shen’s mood seemed to improve significantly. She beckoned to Shen Shuyu to come to her side.
Shen Shuyu stood up, walked over, and sat down next to her.
Mother Shen wrapped her arm around his shoulders, pressing her cheek tightly against his. Her weeping tone was still very obvious as she said, “Baby, you have to believe Mom, believe Dad and your brother. You are our baby, that is set in stone. Don’t be sad, okay? Mom loves you, and your brother, and your new brother.”
Shen Xili was born in the morning. According to the nurse, Shen Shuyu was discovered in the afternoon. It seemed he was a few hours younger than Shen Xili, so calling Xili his older brother wasn’t wrong.
Shen Shuyu nodded. “I know, Mom. Don’t be sad. When is Shen Xili coming back?”
This question hit the nail on the head. The Shen parents planned to look for him again in a couple of days; after all, such a huge revelation required time for people to digest.
However, thinking back to his expression at the time, he had only been shocked for a moment before quickly returning to normal.
So Father Shen and Mother Shen didn’t know if he was actually willing to return. If he was willing, that would naturally be best. If he wasn’t…
If he wasn’t willing, the parents naturally wouldn’t force him. He had struggled alone in the world for twenty years and had his own life trajectory. But they wanted to tell Shen Xili that he could do whatever he wanted in the future with a free hand—he had a safety net now.
The parents didn’t answer Shen Shuyu’s question immediately. Shen Yisi spoke up thoughtfully, “There’s no rush with this. It’s a major event, and we need to give him space to accept it. The doors of this home will always be open for him.”
Shen Shuyu gave a low assent. Mother Shen hugged him a bit tighter, seeming to draw strength from him.
It wasn’t until Mother Shen had cried herself into exhaustion that this info-heavy family meeting finally ended.
Shen Shuyu escorted his parents back to their room and stayed to chat with Mother Shen for a while before leaving.
Watching Shen Shuyu’s retreating figure, Mother Shen felt a wave of sadness again. She looked at Father Shen and said, “I’d rather he threw a tantrum and questioned me, instead of being like this. My heart feels unsettled.”
Father Shen sighed. He held Mother Shen and said, “The child has grown up. He understands things now.”
“Yes,” Mother Shen sniffled. “Before, when I saw him acting rebellious, I wondered what to do. Now, he reminds me of when he was little—obedient and sensible.”
Father Shen didn’t speak. Mother Shen lifted her head from his embrace. “I’m telling you, no matter what happens in the future, Shuyu is our son. Whatever the other two have, Little Fish must have as well.”
“Are you still worried about me on that front?” Father Shen comforted her. “With the Shen family’s resources, even if we went back twenty years, raising three children at once would be more than effortless. We won’t shortchange anyone. Stop being sad. If you keep crying and Little Fish sees, he’ll overthink it.”
Mother Shen nodded. Father Shen added, “Since things have already happened, we’ll think of ways to solve them and how to make amends.”
Mother Shen nodded. “Okay.”
Shen Shuyu returned to his room. He sat in his chair, staring out the window in a daze.
Today was a nice day, bright and sunny. The weather forecast said this good weather would last until next week.
Shen Shuyu took a deep breath, and soon the System popped up in his mind.
【Master…】
It spoke cautiously.
Shen Shuyu smiled. 【Why do you sound so wilted?】
The System had naturally observed the family meeting just now. Now that they were no longer following the book’s plot, it was collecting data on this world alongside Shen Shuyu’s perspective.
【Master, what do you plan to do next?】 the System asked. 【Are you going to move out of the Shen house?】
They currently had absolutely no direction and could only fumble their way forward.
【Why would I move out?】 Shen Shuyu said. 【They kept saying it’s just one more person. If I moved out, the three of them would probably be very heartbroken.】
He could feel the love the three Shens had for him. They had reiterated that the family would have three children from now on.
Furthermore… he couldn’t bear to leave this family atmosphere.
In his previous life, he was all alone. In this life, he had a brother and parents—things he had only dreamed of. So he wanted to extend this familial love a little longer. If it really came to the point where he had to leave, he wouldn’t cling on shamelessly.
The System didn’t understand emotions. After hearing the answer, it set off electronic fireworks for Shen Shuyu again.
Shen Shuyu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. 【Setting off fireworks for me every day… is your default programming just fireworks?】
The System transformed, turning into a puppy rolling on the ground to amuse Shen Shuyu.
Shen Shuyu’s mood improved a bit. He said, 【Actually, recognizing Shen Xili is a good thing. Right now, our plot is a fog. Being close to the protagonist for longer might yield more information.】
System: 【Master is right!】
Shen Shuyu thought again of the dream he had while unconscious. Although he didn’t know where the scene in the dream took place, he could feel the despair.
However, the nature of this dream was still unknown. Instinctively, he didn’t want the System to know about it just yet. After mulling it over for a while, he asked, 【Xiao Yi, regarding plots outside the main storyline, will the host receive hints?】
The System didn’t quite understand. 【Master, what kind of hints do you mean?】
Shen Shuyu said, 【Like meeting specific people or experiencing special events, would the host get clues, for example, through dreams?】
The System was puzzled. 【Master, did you sense something?】
【No, just asking casually. After all, this ‘plot outside the plot’ scope is too vague; I don’t even know what to do.】
The System replied, 【Theoretically, yes. But whether it’s through dreams or other methods, you won’t know until you encounter it.】
【But generally, these hints are forewarnings of the future, right?】
【Of course, Master. The only thing we can change is the future.】
Receiving Xiao Yi’s definite answer, Shen Shuyu confirmed that the dream he had was a microcosm of the future.
So, the first thing to figure out now was: when exactly was that black bug inside Shen Xili’s body planted?
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