Shen Xiaoyan watched Xi He with perfect composure, her expression unchanged, as if waiting for Xi He to pay her respects.
Xi He was, naturally, unwilling.
Seeing that Shen Xiaoyan hadn't explicitly stated it, she feigned ignorance.
She chatted on and on, rambling about this and that, but Shen Xiaoyan and the others showed no reaction, as if she weren't speaking to them at all.
Xi He gritted her teeth in secret. Shen Xiaoyan was clearly doing this deliberately.
She wanted to ignore her, to force her to submit.
Xi He really wanted to rush forward and kill Shen Xiaoyan right then and there, to be subjected to such a show of force right upon meeting.
But she couldn't!
If Zhen Lingrong knew nothing about this, she could have secretly arranged for someone to kill Shen Xiaoyan.
Then, she could have shifted blame and vehemently denied everything, and Zhen Lingrong wouldn't have done anything to her.
After all, they had never interacted before, and there was no emotional bond with a child.
However, she hadn't expected that just as she received Wang Dahong's letter and was preparing to destroy the evidence, Zhen Lingrong would excitedly come to her, saying that Yan Rulie had written to her saying he had found her children.
Xi He almost lost her composure at that moment.
She had been so careful and vigilant for so many years, only to be caught off guard in the end.
Since Zhen Lingrong already knew, she couldn't destroy Wang Dahong's letter anymore.
Otherwise, if there was a confrontation later, she would be the one at a disadvantage.
Her thoughts spun rapidly. A moment later, a pleased smile bloomed on her face, and her eyes welled up with tears.
She showed Wang Dahong's letter to Zhen Lingrong and told her that she would personally go to Medicine King Valley to welcome the young master and mistress back.
Zhen Lingrong was initially unwilling and insisted on going with her.
In the end, Xi He said that after so many years apart, she should tidy herself up properly and think about what to say when she met her children.
More importantly, she was their mother.
After not seeing her own children for so many years, she hadn't done anything for them.
Now that she was going to bring them back, she had to first personally arrange their rooms and belongings. This would show Shen Xiaoyan and her brother respect and allow them to accept her without any reservations.
This was a very good reason, and Zhen Lingrong believed it.
Therefore, she summoned Xi He.
Xi He was happy to come, not because of Zhen Lingrong's supposed concern for Shen Xiaoyan and Shen Xiaoming, but simply to see for herself, and then to facilitate her plan.
Unfortunately, upon arriving, she realized that the situation was completely beyond her control.
Now, things had far spiraled out of her grasp, and she had been repeatedly rebuffed by Shen Xiaoyan.
If Shen Xiaoyan knew her current thoughts, she would calmly explain.
"You've misunderstood. Her 'rebuffs' haven't even begun! Everything that happened before was just a warm-up, a mere trifle."
Xi He finally couldn't withstand Shen Xiaoyan's patience any longer. She felt as though she was sitting on pins and needles on the wooden chair.
If she didn't stand up now, she felt she would die on that wooden chair.
Wang Dahong's eyes widened in disbelief as he watched Xi He squat down to pay her respects to Shen Xiaoyan.
This was shocking enough to everyone in the room, but what was even more astonishing was that Shen Xiaoyan hadn't uttered a word for a long time.
Wang Dahong knew Xi He's status and truly didn't want her to suffer such humiliation in his own home.
If he hadn't seen it, it would be one thing. But now that he had, if he let Xi He continue to squat like this, he felt he would be utterly ruined by Xi He.
He coughed a few times, seeing that he couldn't delay any longer. Wang Dahong reluctantly spoke.
"Mistress Shen, why... why aren't you letting Aunt Xi He stand up?"
Shen Xiaoyan raised her eyebrows. "Isn't she standing perfectly fine?"
Wang Dahong was stunned. "She is standing fine, but..." But she was still in a kneeling posture of respect.
Shen Xiaoyan let out a cold smile. "She didn't even kneel. Do I need to tell her to get up?"
Her tone was indifferent, as if she were discussing a perfectly ordinary matter.
She completely disregarded Wang Dahong's increasingly grim expression and Xi He's sinister gaze.
Shen Xiaoyan truly didn't take them seriously.
No matter how much they hated her in their hearts, what difference would it make?
Were they not still like quails, afraid to move, afraid to even breathe?
Shen Xiaoyan remained seated calmly, but Wang Dahong dared not speak further.
Shen Xiaoyan's actions and attitude earlier had reminded him of something.
Although Xi He held a relatively high position, and Zhen Lingrong favored her, could that compare to her own flesh and blood?
Before, it was because Shen Xiaoyan and Shen Xiaoming hadn't appeared. Now that Shen Xiaoyan and Shen Xiaoming had returned, would Zhen Lingrong still dote on Xi He's child and Xi He herself?
Having realized this, Wang Dahong leaned back against his chair, clearly unwilling to get involved any further.
Xi He was still waiting for Wang Dahong to challenge Shen Xiaoyan again, but after waiting for a long time, she still heard nothing.
What was going on?
Xi He tilted her head slightly and froze when she saw Wang Dahong's demeanor.
However, she wasn't a fool. She quickly understood what Wang Dahong was thinking.
Although she had known for a long time that Wang Dahong was cowardly and unreliable, now that she was the one being treated this way, how could she possibly endure it?
She straightened up immediately and looked at Wang Dahong with a sneer.
"Do you think that if you listen to her now, she will look at you with newfound respect? Don't you realize why the Yin family hasn't caused any trouble under your command for over a hundred years, yet with her arrival, the Yin family has undergone such a massive change?"
Xi He's words successfully darkened Wang Dahong's face.
How could he forget this matter?
But, was this matter really related to Shen Xiaoyan?
And why would she do this?
Wang Dahong couldn't figure it out, but Xi He knew.
"I'll have three people brought in, and then you'll know."
As Xi He spoke, she flicked her sleeve and walked towards the main seat.
Shen Xiaoyan watched her gracefully take her seat, somewhat dumbfounded.
This Xi He was truly a remarkable person, capable of such flexibility.
As for the three people she mentioned, Shen Xiaoyan thought she already knew who they were.
Indeed, when she heard footsteps approaching the door, she turned to look and saw Bai Gē'er and the other two walking in.
Although the three were dressed in opulent attire, the frostbite on their faces was impossible to ignore.
Shen Xiaoyan wasn't startled; she was merely curious.
These three were clearly cultivators, all possessing spiritual energy to protect themselves. How could they have frostbite?
How could Bai Gē'er and the other two not feel the curious gazes of the people in the room?
Although they were extremely annoyed, they couldn't show it on their faces, nor could they cause trouble because of it.
Doing so would only lead to greater embarrassment.
Shen Xiaoyan was quite satisfied with their self-awareness.
After examining them from head to toe, she withdrew her gaze.
However, Xi He had no intention of letting her off the hook.
"Miss Shen, do these three look familiar to you?" Xi He asked with a confident, light smile.
Shen Xiaoyan looked at her, her gaze as if she were looking at a joke.
"Where did you find these beggars? Look at their faces, they're all frozen! Even if you dress them in gold and silver, you can't hide the thread of poverty clinging to them."
Shen Xiaoyan then looked at Xi He with disdain.
Xi He was so angry at Shen Xiaoyan's words that she felt like spitting blood.
What did she mean, "found beggars"? Would she go out of her way to find beggars for no reason?
Besides, Shen Xiaoyan was clearly pretending to be ignorant.
She wouldn't let her have her way.
So, Xi He said with a faint smile, "Mistress Shen is joking again. Didn't they come out of the Sun Warming Sect with you? If you casually say you don't recognize them, I'll believe you? Lady Le is perhaps too naive."
Did she really think that if she denied everything, it would be alright?
Now, with Bai Gē'er and the other two present, they were her evidence.