“I want it.” Lin Jiacong was quick — the first to reach out. “Mine!”
Shen Zhicheng handed over the yin-yang coffee drink and carried the pastry tray straight to the Inspector’s office.
The moment he left, Gao Zijie huddled in close with a knowing look: “Something’s off.”
“What’s off?”
“Don’t you think the young master isn’t just here to ‘experience life’?”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it.” Gao Zijie raised an eyebrow. “Madam treats all her subordinates equally — except for this young master—”
Lin Jiacong took a sip of his yin-yang drink and added: “She’s just as tough on him. This morning, Madam spilled her coffee and specifically called the young master in to mop it up. And the stack of old case files from the archives — our ‘bootlicker’ got the most!”
“Exactly — that’s the thing. Did Madam ever call us in to mop before? She usually does everything herself — she wouldn’t send us on personal errands.” Gao Zijie cleared his throat, putting on the shrewd look of a detective in a cartoon, and slapped the table. “So…”
“Madam is usually very strict about separating work and personal matters,” Fang Zhishan said, curious. “So what?”
“I’m still gathering evidence.” Gao Zijie lowered his voice. “Once I’ve connected all the dots — the truth will come out.”
Old You rolled his eyes: “If you’ve got that much free time, why not dig into the old case files instead? If you find a new lead, Madam might even praise you.”
Lin Jiacong had already finished his drink, looking satisfied: “This new drink is both salty and sweet — really unique. It’s definitely going to be the top seller in the canteen.”
Team A’s afternoon tea was lively. Everyone was eating, but their eyes kept drifting toward the Inspector’s office.
Ever since Gao Zijie’s remarks, the more they watched, the more they felt that something unspoken hung in the air between Madam and the young master — something neither would say aloud.
Soon, it was quitting time.
Shen Zhicheng had already tidied his desk and was leaning against Li Heng’s office door.
“Ready to go?”
“Almost.”
A moment later, the two walked out of the station side by side.
Gao Zijie, sitting at the desk closest to the window, watched them the whole time and declared with certainty: “There’s definitely something going on — something we don’t know!”
…
On the drive to Repulse Bay, neither sibling spoke much.
Li Heng gazed out the window.
She wasn’t going for the sake of a family dinner.
There were unresolved questions about the car accident back then — and with her personality, she couldn’t just let it lie. If she wanted answers, she had to meet her uncle’s family in person.
The car pulled into the courtyard of Shen Chongnian’s villa.
Shen Zhicheng finally spoke, slowly filling her in on the family history.
In the beginning, the whole family lived on the Peak — back when their grandmother was still alive. Later, their uncle Shen Kai Yiu got married and moved to Kowloon Tong.
“Then our parents got married and moved out too — but they deliberately chose the Mid-Levels to be closer to Grandfather and Grandmother, to make it easier to visit.”
“But not long after our parents got married, Grandmother passed away. The house was full of reminders of her — Grandfather couldn’t bear to stay, so he moved to Repulse Bay and has lived here for over twenty years.”
“Uncle hardly ever comes — back then, he mostly saw Grandfather at the office. But he never lasted long in the company either — everyone said he had no head for business.”
“As for our aunt — she’d already had a falling out with Grandfather, and after Grandmother died, she rarely came back.”
“I don’t know all the details — most of this I picked up from the servants.”
Li Heng listened quietly.
From those few lines about the past, it seemed that Shen Kai Yiu’s family had drifted away early on.
In the courtyard, the butler was already waiting.
Seeing the familiar car, he came forward.
It was clear to the butler that these two grandchildren were now the ones the old master cared most about.
“You’re finally here.” He didn’t hold back, stepping forward quickly. “Second Master and Second Madam arrived this afternoon.”
He’d heard that Shen Chongnian had ordered tea for them — like guests being received.
“Just the two of them?” Li Heng asked.
“No one else came — just them.” The butler lowered his voice and added quietly.
They’d expected the children to come too — but today they hadn’t shown.
Probably because they’d never gotten anything good out of their visits — no point in wasting their time.
“For years, the master didn’t allow Second Master’s family to visit. But they still sent dried ginseng, abalone, bird’s nests — all kinds of tonic gifts every month or two. The master has more than enough of those — he always told us to put them away, out of sight.”
Li Heng listened to every small detail.
For years, her uncle’s family had been shut out — yet they always maintained appearances, at least on the surface, never giving anyone a reason to criticize.
The butler led the way.
The siblings stepped into the villa’s spacious, luxurious living room.
Shen Chongnian sat in the main seat on the sofa. Seeing his grandchildren, his tense expression relaxed slightly.
After greeting her grandfather, Li Heng’s gaze swept across the room and landed on a man and woman on the sofa.
Shen Kai Yiu was slightly heavyset, his suit impeccably pressed. He looked honest and unassuming, with a mild, unassuming smile.
Beside him sat his wife, Cen Pei Lan — well-preserved, dripping with jewelry.
Li Heng had already heard from her aunt how this woman had once repeatedly bullied her mother. But now, in front of Shen Chongnian, Cen Pei Lan’s expression was soft, her voice gentle. She even seemed close to tears — the picture of a loving elder.
“So this is Zhining?” Cen Pei Lan stepped forward, taking Li Heng’s hand warmly. “Let me have a look — you’ve grown so much. If only we’d known about you sooner, we’d have done everything to bring you back. A child of the Shen family, yet you suffered so much outside — no wonder your grandfather’s heart aches. It aches for me too.”
Li Heng couldn’t mention the fragments she knew from the original plot. But what Shen Chongnian had pieced together matched the truth — that her mother had pushed her out of the car with the last of her strength. The scar on Li Heng’s back would never fade, but at least she had survived.
“Look at me, I’m so happy I’ve forgotten to introduce myself.” Cen Pei Lan smiled, continuing: “Zhining — do you remember me?”
“Look at what you’re saying.” Shen Kai Yiu’s smile was kindly. “The child was only a year old — how could she remember you?”
“I go by Li Heng now.” Li Heng withdrew her hand and said flatly: “Second Madam.”
The smile at Cen Pei Lan’s lips faltered for a moment. She let out a rueful sigh: “You’re just like Zhicheng — so formal.”
Just then, Shen Zhicheng’s lazy voice came from upstairs: “Bored yet? I’m up here.”
He was standing at the top of the staircase, waiting for her.
Li Heng walked up the spiral stairs.
The study door was open. She followed Shen Zhicheng inside.
On the desk sat a delicate wooden box, filled to the brim with postcards.
Her grandfather always said he didn’t care for the postcards their parents had sent back — but they had become one of the few mementos he could keep after they were gone. The box sat at the corner of his desk, within easy reach, handled countless times — yet the edges of the paper were still intact. He had always treasured them.
Li Heng reached out and picked up the photo frame lying face down on the desk.
It was an old family portrait from the early days — when her father, aunt, and Shen Kai Yiu were still children, and their grandmother was still alive.
Li Heng studied each face, bringing it closer for a closer look.
Shen Kai Yiu sat in the center — but from everyone’s stance and the empty spaces in the composition, his position looked jarringly out of place, as if he’d squeezed in between his parents just before the photo was taken.
“Before our parents died — what was Uncle’s relationship with Grandfather and Grandmother like?” Li Heng asked.
“I don’t know about Grandmother — I never met her. As for Grandfather… Uncle was always quiet and introverted. Whatever Grandfather said, he’d do — he never went against him.” Shen Zhicheng’s voice rang out. “The only time I remember him making Grandfather really angry was over me.”
Shen Zhicheng recounted his childhood memories.
He was still young at the time. When Shen Chongnian discovered that rumors spread by Ku Cheung Fung had reached the entire Shen family — except him — he immediately had a huge fight with Shen Kai Yiu. Shen Kai Yiu blamed everything on Cen Pei Lan, claiming he knew nothing about it.
The argument was fierce — Shen Chongnian even smashed a cup in anger. Shen Kai Yiu, always so reserved, finally snapped, his eyes red, demanding to know why — when they were all flesh and blood — his eldest brother was valued and his little sister was loved, but he was the one always overlooked.
“He said Grandfather had always looked down on him — that people might as well think he was adopted.”
“Later, Grandfather brought me back to Repulse Bay. I couldn’t sleep that night — I saw the study light still on. Grandfather was talking to himself, flipping through Grandmother’s photo album, saying a lot of things.”
After that, Cen Pei Lan went back to her family home.
Shen Kai Yiu came alone to apologize, his words heartfelt and sincere, offering to take Shen Zhicheng back to raise. Shen Chongnian asked Shen Zhicheng what he wanted. At the time, he felt that his grandfather was too stern, and the Repulse Bay house was too empty — not a single child in sight. So he went to live with his uncle’s family.
During that time, Shen Kai Yiu and Cen Pei Lan fought so badly they nearly signed divorce papers.
But in the end, they reconciled. After Shen Zhicheng was brought back, Cen Pei Lan became much more restrained.
“To be honest, they weren’t bad to me. They indulged me — whatever I wanted, they’d coax and spoil me.” Shen Zhicheng said. “But they were strict with their own children — even if one of them sneaked a bite before dinner, they’d be scolded in public.”
But back then, as a young child, Shen Zhicheng hadn’t noticed the difference in treatment.
Li Heng put the postcards back neatly in the wooden box.
Her gaze slowly swept across the entire study — and stopped at a corner behind the curtains.
She stepped forward and found an unfamiliar painting hidden behind them: “I didn’t see this the last time I was here.”
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