Chapter 23 Shen Yurou's Suicide

The main hall of the Shen family.

Chairman Shen sat in the main seat, his face cold and stern.

Madam Shen sat beside Chairman Shen, her hands linked with his arms.

She wasn't home when Shen Yurou was taken away by the police today, and only found out about it after she returned.

She keenly sensed that something was wrong and, unlike usual, didn't rush to comfort Shen Yurou.

Shen Wangchuan stood by the window, his back straight as a pine tree. The cigarette between his fingers was half-burned, and the ash fell onto the Persian carpet, burning a black hole.

Shen Yichuan sat on the other side, his face still red and swollen.

Apart from Shen Yuepo, who remained uninvolved, all the core members of the Shen family gathered here.

Chairman Shen glanced at Shen Yurou sitting opposite him and slowly recounted everything that had happened at the Xiao family today.

Then, he stared intently into Shen Yurou's eyes, trying to find even the slightest trace of guilt or panic in them:

"Yu Rou, tell your father, is what the Xiao family said true or not?"

The air froze instantly.

Upon hearing this, Madam Shen's well-maintained face instantly lost all color, and she instinctively gripped Chairman Shen's arm tightly:

"Husband, how could this be! Yu Rou, she..."

She instinctively wanted to defend her daughter, whom she had cherished for eighteen years, and to accuse the Xiao family of making baseless accusations.

Chairman Shen shook his head at her, so she had no choice but to stop talking.

With one side of his face swollen and red, Shen Yichuan said, "Dad, is there even a need to ask? The Xiao family must have made a mistake!"

He turned to look at Shen Wangchuan, who stood silently by the window, his tone tinged with anxiety:

"Big brother, say something! Do you also doubt Yu Rou? She's the younger sister we've raised in the Shen family for eighteen years, someone we've watched grow up!"

Shen Wangchuan didn't turn around, still facing away from everyone. The cigarette butt between his fingers burned out, and the hot ash burned his fingertips, making him shudder slightly.

"Enough." Chairman Shen raised his hand to stop him, his voice deep and cold.

He stared intently at Shen Yurou sitting opposite him, his voice hoarse yet carrying an unprecedented sense of oppression:

"Yu Rou, look into your father's eyes and tell me. What the Xiao family said... is it really true?!"

Sitting opposite them, Shen Yurou was unusually quiet at this moment.

She didn't immediately burst into tears and try to defend herself as she usually would when she was wronged.

She simply raised her head slowly, and her small face, which always wore a sweet smile, was now free of any tears.

There was only a chilling calm, and an overwhelming sense of disappointment.

Her gaze slowly swept over Chairman Shen's scrutinizing face, Madam Shen's alarmed and worried eyes, Shen Yichuan's eager protective expression, and finally landed on Shen Wangchuan's silent back.

Her lips twitched very slightly, revealing a smile tinged with endless sorrow.

"So that's how it is..."

Her voice was soft, "I thought I had already become part of this family, become your real daughter, your real sister..."

She paused, and the tears that had been welling up in her eyes finally slid down her cheeks.

"It turns out that all of this was just wishful thinking on my part."

“I never did it,” her voice suddenly rose, “I absolutely will not admit to it!”

Her gaze finally settled on Chairman Shen's face.

The hurt and disappointment in his eyes were like a whip, lashing the hearts of everyone in the Shen family:

"When I returned from the police station, I was filled with the thought that my family would comfort me, but I never expected to be met with this trial..."

"Heh." She let out a self-deprecating chuckle.

After saying that, she suddenly stood up.

Her movements were somewhat unsteady. She stopped looking at anyone and turned to walk towards the stairs to the second floor.

Before stepping onto the first step, she paused, not turning back, leaving only her last words echoing in the hall:

"I didn't kill Xiao Wanxing."

Every word, every glance, pierced precisely into the softest corner of the Shen family.

Madam Shen covered her mouth and sobbed, and for the first time, Chairman Shen's hard face showed a hint of wavering.

Shen Yichuan was so anxious that his eyes turned red. He wanted to rush up and grab his sister, but he was stunned into place by the aura of utter despair emanating from her.

Shen Yurou's bedroom on the second floor.

Shen Yurou locked the door from the inside, a cold smile curling at the corner of her lips.

She calmly walked to the bathroom and turned on the bathtub faucet. Warm water flowed out and quickly filled the pristine white bathtub.

She took a small utility knife from the dressing table drawer, held it up to her wrist, and then frowned in disgust.

It hurts so much, and it will leave a scar.

Finally, she made a small cut on her wrist, squeezed out a few drops of blood, and smeared it on the edge of the bathtub and a towel.

"That's about it."

She muttered to herself and threw the knife into the trash can. Then she pulled a bottle of sleeping pills from deep inside the closet, swallowed five pills, and poured half the bottle out, sprinkling it around the bathtub.

After doing all this, she slowly slid in, leaned back in the bathtub, and closed her eyes.

Five minutes later.

Madam Shen was still worried, so she carried the hot milk upstairs and gently knocked on the door:

"Yurou? Mom has heated up some milk for you."

There was no response.

She panicked and quickly called the housekeeper to get the spare key.

The door opened to a moment of silence; the instant Madam Shen found the bathroom—

The glass in Chen's hand shattered on the ground, spilling milk everywhere.

Bloodstains were visible around the edge of the bathtub. Shen Yurou lay pale as a sheet in the tub, only her head showing.

Her long, wet hair clung to her face, and her wrists dangled above the bathtub, stained with blood.

"Yu Rou—!!"

The piercing screams startled the entire villa.

The entire Shen family was instantly thrown into chaos.

Beijing Central Hospital, late at night.

The emergency room lights finally went out.

The doctor came out and took off his mask: "Fortunately, it was discovered in time. It was just minor blood loss and medication overdose. There is no danger to his life."

Madam Shen slumped onto the bench, tears streaming down her face.

Shen Yichuan slammed his fist against the wall, oblivious to the blood seeping from his knuckles.

All the distrust of the Shen family was washed away at this moment by Shen Yurou's dying posture.

Instead, there was a deeper sense of guilt and heartache.

The Shen family mansion was in complete chaos.

The screams and the frantic footsteps of the servants mingled together, almost lifting the roof off.