Although she had doubts in her heart, Shen Yuan did not show them on her face at all.
She smiled slightly and followed behind Shen Wei, saying, "Greetings, Grandmother, Sister Yun Jin, and Brothers Chang Shu and Qing Shu."
Seeing that Shen Yuan was ignoring her without any attempt to hide it, Jiang Shi pressed her lower lip tightly into a line. She looked at Shen Yuan, but there was no trace of a mother's joy at seeing her daughter for the first time in her eyes.
On the contrary... a fleeting hint of hatred flashed in his dark eyes.
Shen Yuan narrowed her eyes. She was certain that she had not seen wrong. Jiang Shi... hated her. Why did she hate her? Was it because she suspected her identity or was there another reason?
Just then, Madam Jiang suddenly reached out her hand to her, "Yuanyuan, this is the first time I've met you, and I don't know what you like. This is a gift I prepared for you. I hope you like it."
As Jiang finished speaking, Shen Yunjin reluctantly took out a gift.
Shen Changshu and Shen Qingshu simply handed the gift to the maid, who then gave it to Shen Yuan.
Jiang's gift was a gold hairpin adorned with a red coral bead, which looked quite beautiful. Shen Yunjin also gave jewelry, a pair of Hetian jade bracelets. Shen Changshu and Shen Qingshu, on the other hand, presented a set of writing implements.
These gifts meant nothing to them, but they were incredibly valuable to Shen Yuan, as she couldn't offer anything of equal value in return.
Seeing that Shen Yuan hesitated and didn't dare to accept the gifts they had prepared, Shen Yunjin couldn't help but curl her lips into a smile.
Shen Yuan has been raised in the countryside all these years, so she probably doesn't have much money and definitely can't afford a decent gift. If she can't afford a present and just accepts their gifts for free, it will naturally become the subject of gossip!
Just as Shen Yunjin was feeling smug, Xiao Ling took the gift from her hands.
Shen Yuan smiled and said, "Thank you for the gifts, Madam Shen, Sister Yun Jin, and Brothers Chang Shu and Qing Shu."
After a pause, Shen Yuan took out several small porcelain bottles from her sleeve and handed them to Jiang Shi and Shen Yunjin.
"This is comfrey ointment. It's not an expensive item, but I made it myself. It can treat eczema, prevent allergies, repel mosquitoes, and moisturize the skin. It's a small gift but carries great sentiment. I hope you like it!"
"You made this yourself? You can even make medicine?" Shen Wei took a small porcelain bottle, opened it, smelled it, and then proudly introduced it to the others: "This is a purple gromwell ointment made by my daughter. Smell it, it smells so good! The medicinal effect is definitely top-notch!"
Shen Yuan: "..."
With Shen Wei standing up for Shen Yuan, naturally no one dared to say that the purple gromwell ointment was bad, especially since Shen Yuan had deliberately mentioned that she had personally prepared it.
No gift, however good, can compare to the sentiment behind something made by hand.
Shen Yunjin naturally understood this as well. She awkwardly accepted the ointment and retreated behind Jiang Shi. For some reason, she just couldn't bring herself to like this older sister, who shared the same mother.
After exchanging greetings and gifts, Shen Wei asked the old clan chief to unseal the family genealogy and fill in Shen Yuan's name.
But at that moment, Old Madam Shen, who had been silent all along, suddenly raised her hand to stop the old patriarch, "Wait!"
"mother?"
Shen Wei looked puzzled, wondering what Old Madam Shen was planning.
Madam Shen coughed lightly, then cleared her throat: "This girl's identity is questionable. It's still unknown whether she is of blood from my General's Mansion. She cannot be added to the family register today!"
"Mother!" Shen Wei's face darkened slightly, but he refrained from speaking out of respect for Madam Shen's status. He walked up to Madam Shen and lowered his voice, "Mother, what are you doing?"
"So many people came today to welcome A Yuan back to her roots! How can you do this and make A Yuan lose face?"
"Aren't you afraid that A-Yuan will resent you in the future? We've already let her down all these years!"
Shen Wei's eyes were bloodshot, and he tried his best to suppress his emotions so that he wouldn't get angry.
Madam Shen sneered, "What am I doing? I'm looking after the entire Shen family on behalf of the old general! I will never allow a child with a questionable identity to be included in my Shen family's genealogy!"
Shen Wei: "I personally investigated A Yuan's identity. She is my biological daughter. Doesn't Mother believe me?"
“Mother knows that you and Jiang’s first child did not survive, and you have been resentful about it all these years. But Jiang saw it with her own eyes; the child died right after it was born.”
Madam Shen glanced at Madam Jiang.
Jiang's eyes also reddened. She looked at Shen Wei with tears in her eyes and choked out, "Husband, those two children are truly gone. If you truly love Yuanyuan, we can adopt her as our goddaughter. She'll be recognized as a daughter of the Shen family, and as for the family genealogy..."
“I’ll say it again, those two children didn’t die. One of them was raised by Granny Liu at my behest. That’s Yuan Yuan!” Shen Wei interrupted Jiang Shi decisively.
He looked at the head of the Shen family, his voice carrying the imposing authority of someone who had been through many battles: "My father is gone, and now I am the head of the Shen family. I will make all the decisions, big and small, of the Shen family!"
“I said A Yuan is my biological daughter, and she is! Please, clan chief, add Shen Yuan’s name to the family register!”
After a pause, Shen Wei raised his eyes and glanced at everyone, his imposing presence radiating authority: "This is the order of the patriarch!"
Inside the ancestral hall, everyone fell silent.
All eyes were on Shen Yuan, but she remained calm and detached, seemingly unconcerned about what Old Madam Shen had said.
Shen Yuan didn't care whether or not she was on the family tree, because she couldn't fully accept the fact that Shen Wei was her father.
So Shen Yuan looked at Shen Wei, about to say that the matter should be dropped, but unexpectedly, Old Madam Shen was so angry with Shen Wei that she suddenly vomited a mouthful of blood.
Shen Wei was standing in front of Madam Shen, the blood splattered on his dark purple robe, a shocking sight.
Shen Wei was also frightened by this scene. He only wanted to clear Shen Yuan's name, not to anger his elderly mother to death.
Seeing that Old Madam Shen was spitting blood, Shen Wei was so frightened that he forgot everything else and hurriedly helped Old Madam Shen up, shouting outside, "Quickly, fetch the family physician! Fetch the family physician!"
Chaos erupted inside the ancestral hall.
Shen Yuan frowned as she looked at the blood at the corner of Old Madam Shen's mouth, then stepped forward and said, "Let me see!"
"Who do you think you are, trying to touch my grandmother?" Shen Yunjin rushed forward and shoved away Shen Yuan's hand that was trying to take her pulse. "Don't touch my grandmother! You've made her vomit blood! Haven't you hurt her enough?"
Eager to save her, Shen Yuan's gaze towards Shen Yunjin instantly turned serious: "Madam Shen's face is flushed; she probably still has blockages in her lungs that haven't been completely cleared yet. We can't delay!"
“”
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