Nan Yu had no choice but to step inside.
The Shen family's residence was very quiet. The servants had all left work early, and there were no extra onlookers around.
On the sofa in the living room, Shen Suhai was already sitting there waiting for her.
The atmosphere in the room had dropped to freezing point.
Nan Yu thought for a few seconds, then walked to the opposite side of the sofa and still greeted politely, "Hello, Uncle Shen."
Shen Suhai's face was solemn. His eyes looking at her carried a half - smile, "Nan Yu, now that you have a few people backing you up, you don't take the Shen family seriously anymore?"
Nan Yu replied calmly, "Uncle Shen, you're overthinking."
"Going back on one's word is not the behavior of a well - bred young lady."
Shen Suhai's tone was full of meaning. "I don't want to delay your marriage with Yanche any longer."
He was already old, with graying hair. He was used to the cut - throat business world when he was young. Even though he was old now, he still looked fierce.
When he looked at people, there was a calculating glint in his cloudy eyes.
"I'm not the one delaying," Nan Yu said without blinking. "Loyalty is crucial in marriage. It was Yanche who was unfaithful first."
Shen Suhai let out a cold laugh, as if mocking her self - righteousness. "Just because you think you're in the right, you think you can turn the world upside down?"
"One should know how to be grateful, Nan Yu." Shen Suhai tapped on the table and raised his voice angrily. "When you were scurrying around like a rat, it was the Shen family who helped you!"
His words were extremely harsh. He deliberately brought up Nan Yu's past humiliation.
"If it weren't for the Shen family, would you have befriended Miss Qu? If it weren't for the Shen family, do you think Lin Yuan would protect you?"
He spoke haughtily, "Besides, what's wrong with a man having fun outside? You're Yanche's legitimate wife. Isn't that enough?"
What he meant was that she shouldn't care about Shen Yanche keeping other women outside. Anyway, the title of Mrs. Shen would still be hers.
Nan Yu felt like laughing.
It was really like living in a bygone era. In today's society, there were still people who could say such things so brazenly.
Did it mean that only when a man had a harem full of concubines would it be considered normal?
Nan Yu smiled faintly. "It's enough. Why not? Like father, like son. It seems Uncle Shen is the same kind of person, which is why you're not surprised by your son's affair."
Shen Suhai's face immediately turned ashen. "Nan Yu, I think you've got a lot of nerve to lecture me!"
Facing his rage, Nan Yu remained fearless. Shen Yanche tried to persuade her from the side, "Yuyu, don't make Dad angry. He's old and it's not easy for him..."
"He's your dad," Nan Yu corrected. Then she faced Shen Suhai and said, "Of course I know how to be grateful, but I can't marry a man who cheated before marriage."
"I believe that my parents in heaven also don't want me to have such a marriage," Nan Yu said firmly.
After Nan Yu said this, Shen Suhai and Shen Yanche quickly glanced at each other.
It was as if a stone had finally landed. Shen Suhai's face was obviously not as ugly as before. He looked at Nan Yu contemptuously. "You mean that if your parents agreed, you wouldn't reject this marriage?"
These words were full of meaning. Nan Yu's heart skipped a beat.
She subconsciously lowered her voice. "What do you mean?"
Shen Suhai cleared his throat. His tone was a bit gentler than before. "Yanche, go to the study and get that letter."
A letter? What letter?
Shen Suhai's tone was calm, looking as if he had everything under control. "I didn't mention it before because I didn't want to bring up your sad memories."
"Actually, your parents agreed to this marriage between you and Yanche."
Nan Yu's breathing stopped.
Shen Yanche quickly fetched the letter and handed it to Nan Yu. He didn't forget to explain, "Yuyu, this is a letter that Uncle Nan personally entrusted someone to send to the Shen family. You can take a look."
Nan Yu opened the letter in shock.
The handwriting on the letter was indeed Nan Jiwen's. Nan Yu would never mistake it.
Nan Jiwen loved calligraphy and seal - carving. There were almost his words everywhere in the house. It had been engraved deeply in her bones.
She took a deep breath and read it word by word.
The letter expressed Nan Jiwen's hopes and expectations for the Shen family, praised Shen Yanche, and finally stated that he and his wife Ye Hong agreed to marry their daughter to the Shen family.
This piece of paper was no different from a marriage letter.
By the end of the letter, Nan Yu's body began to tremble. Shen Yanche stepped forward to support her, but she dodged silently. "Don't touch me."
She repeatedly confirmed the handwriting, but the final answer made her despair.
This letter, from the stroke to the handwriting and the tone of speech, was exactly the same. It was indeed written by her father.
Shen Suhai's tone softened at this time, with a soothing meaning. "Nan Yu, I know Yanche let you down, but it's good for a person to admit his mistakes and correct them."
"Since your parents also agreed, you should think it over carefully. Don't act on impulse."
Rarely, he made a concession kindly. "Well, as long as you agree to marry Yanche, the previous terms will be cancelled. The debt owed by the Nan family will be paid off for you tomorrow."
Nan Yu hardly listened to his words.
The content of the letter kept echoing in her mind. She still couldn't understand why her parents had arranged her marriage without her knowledge.
In her memory, her parents were open - minded, kind, and respectful of her.
But this letter made her feel that her parents were a bit strange.
She felt that there were still some thoughts that she couldn't sort out, but she couldn't find the source.
Seeing Nan Yu being quiet for a long time, Shen Yanche quietly winked at his father.
There was another thing they were still hiding from Nan Yu, but it wasn't the right time to say it today.
"Nan Yu, you don't have to give an answer today,"
Shen Suhai now looked kind. "You can go back and think slowly. We can decide the wedding date and other matters later. Take it step by step."
Nan Yu lowered her head and was quiet for a long time.
When she raised her head again, she said, "Then I'd like to get something of my parents' back first."
...
Less than two hours later, Nan Yu walked out of the Shen family's residence.
Her face was paler than when she went in. She looked as if her energy had been drained, and she seemed a bit listless.
"Yuyu, did they make things difficult for you?" Qu Jiaran was very concerned about her and came up to ask non - stop. "Did they force you into anything or threaten you?"
Qu Jiaran was really too noisy. Nan Yu raised her hand and rubbed the space between her eyebrows. "Let me be alone and quiet for a while."
Qu Jiaran immediately stopped asking and obediently quieted down. "Okay, I'll do whatever Yuyu says."
Tan Linyuan was sitting in the driver's seat. His gaze casually landed on her through the rear - view mirror.
Even without saying anything, he keenly sensed.
She must have suffered a great deal of grievance.