Sheng Xia saw the maid put a cup in front of her and both of the elder. Sheng Xia looked at the old man, waiting for the usual question. She remembered that the first thing the Chengs asked her was whether she was in university or had a job.
"How old are you, Little Xia?"
"I'm twenty-two years old."
"So, Little Xia," the Old Man coughed, "do you have a boyfriend?"
Sheng Xia was stunned.
"Hey!" the Old Madam glared at her husband. "That's her privacy!"
"I just wanna ask~" the Old Man pouted. "I'm just wondering if the cabbage has been stolen or not."
Sheng Xia laughed, and the Old Madam sneered.
"That's not your problem yet."
"It will be, right?" said the Old Man while glancing at Sheng Xia. "I have contacted my assistant to book an appointment with our medical laboratory. They said they can provide a fast-track service for the DNA test."
Sheng Xia nodded. "The faster we prove the relation, the better it will be."
"I'm glad you don't feel offended when I mention the DNA test," the Old Man smiled.
Sheng Xia grinned. "Well, for your question, I'm still single."
The Old Man laughed. "That's good, that's good."
"But I have a crush."
The Old Man stopped laughing and started pouting. "Tsk, I hope he wasn't some bastard."
"Don't worry, Sir. I think you are acquainted with him, too." Sheng Xia smiled shyly.
The Old Man sneered. "Huh, I wondered who he is."
Sheng Xia's smile deepened. "That's still a secret for now."
The Old Man rolled his eyes. The Old Madam laughed when she saw her husband's predicament. She understood her husband. After all, their grievance all started when Shen Yayi fell for a scumbag like Cheng Changyue.
Every day was full of regret. What's wrong with being a single mother? They shouldn't have married their beloved to that Cheng at all.
"What favorite food do you like, little Xia?" asked Old Madam, trying to steer the conversation.
"I like eating. Thankfully, my body has good digestion. I love tofu a lot, and I like tomato noodles. But my friend's homemade burger and pizza are also good. That chicken tika masala is also nice. Well, I like a lot of food and rarely reject any food offered by people," said Sheng Xia, full of energy.
Both the elders laughed; this girl reminded them of their daughter a lot. The way she spoke, laughed, her hand gestures, and her energetic but poised body movement. They started to wonder if the girl was truly their granddaughter.
Then, the girl in the Cheng family, who was she?
Sheng Xia and both elders talked a lot about various foods from around the world and their opinions about them. Not long after, a middle-aged man approached them, turned out he was the Patriarch's assistant.
"Let's go, Little Xia. Don't worry, it won't take long," said the Old Man, while he stood up from the sofa.
Sheng Xia nodded. "Yes, Sir."
"Wait! She hasn't eaten anything yet!" The Old Madam grumbled. "Nanny Li! Pack some food for her!"
"Yes, Old Madam," said a middle-aged woman, who stood not far from them. Sheng Xia somehow got a glimpse of her eyes, a little red in the corner.
Was she crying?
After receiving the food, the three of them drove to the laboratory. While on the road, their conversation shifted to drinks from around the world and which one was their favorite. The Old Man started to feel amazed at the little girl in front of her.
Her appearance indeed lacked if based on their usual style, but the way she thinks about something and her knowledge was great, better than most of the same generation as her. The Old Man was happy, and his good mood stayed until they reached the laboratory.
The three of them were nervous, and the doctor laughed when he saw them. After taking some blood samples, he told them to relax and come back in the next three days.
Sheng Xia felt nauseous and said she needed to go to the toilet. The elders looked worried, but they could only wait not far from the female toilet.
"Why are you nervous?" The Old Madam teased the Old Man.
The Old Man coughed. "Aren't you too?"
The Old Madam smiled sadly. "If the result comes out positive, I don't know how to pay all her grievances for these twenty-two years."
"The result hasn't come out yet."
"I know." The Old Madam sighed.
"But somehow..."
The Old Madam smiled, but her eyes were full of tears. "I know. Somehow, I can feel it too."
"The girl is like a copy of Yayi." The Old Man smirked.
The Old Madam laughed. "The way they talked about food, so similar!"
"I need to hire a new chef for her." The Old Man pulled out his phone and started to search for his friend's contact. One of his friends knew a lot about many capable chefs.
The Old Madam shook her head, but she also pulled out her phone, contacting the Shen's housekeeper to prepare a bedroom not far from theirs. She also contacted her trusted fashion designer to prepare a lot of clothes for Sheng Xia, but she suddenly stopped. She remembered she didn't have Sheng Xia's measurement.
Not the problem, just bring all the sizes that could fit a young woman.
Sheng Xia showed up after a few minutes, and they drove back to the mansion. The Old Madam escorted Sheng Xia toward the bedroom on the second floor, right beside her and her husband's bedroom.
"What do you think? Do you like it?" asked the Old Madam. "For now, please bear with this. I will contact my favorite interior designer to adjust the room based on your preference. I have prepared some homie clothes for you in your walk-in closet. This evening, my friend will bring more clothes and other stuff for you, just tell her your preference and your measurements, and she will take care of the rest. Wait! Why are you crying?"
Sheng Xia touched her face, and she realized she was crying. She felt funny. It was very different. The Chengs and the Shens. Both were here related by blood relatives, but why were they so different?
"Oh, baby..." The Old Madam felt heartache. She slowly hugged Sheng Xia and stroked the young woman's back softly. "I'm so sorry, Little Xia. It's okay now. It's okay..."
The Old Man, who stood not far from them, also had a redness in the corner of his eyes. He turned and walked into his study. His assistant followed behind him.
"So," the Old Man named Shen Jingze, sat on his seat behind the table. His face looked grim. "Tell me, what is going on?"
The assistant swallowed his nervousness. He started to explain the event where the Chengs spread the news about them adopting a young woman. But the rumors told them that the Chengs didn't care about this adopted daughter.
From the information, she was adopted from a small town and previously did a part-time job to fulfill her daily needs. She was also an elementary graduate and had a weak personality. She was also rumored to have ideas about Cheng An's fiancé and had a bad reputation at work.
There was not a single positive information related to Sheng Xia when he investigated around the Chengs, but he found something weird.
"I found the ID she used when she entered our residential, and her name was not Sheng Xia, but Stella Aldridge," said the assistant, looking bewildered.
"Stella... Aldridge?" Shen Jingze looked confused. "Where had I heard about this name?"
"Do you remember a business magazine from a few months ago?" The assistant put an old magazine on the table.
Shen Jiangze took the foreign magazine. His eyes shook when he saw the cover. The title shook him even more.
The Current Rank Number 1 Business Woman in the Technology Field.
On the cover, the woman smiled confidently. She wore a black female suit. Her hair flowed in style, not looking like a nest at all. Her eyes showed how confident she was. She looked so beautiful and had a lot of similarity with Shen Yayi.
He remembered. Once, he commented about this young woman, whose face bore a similarity to his daughter's.
Shen Jiangze looked at the cover for a long time. His heart trembled.
"What is going on here?" said Shen Jianze in a whisper.