Sharing Dreams with My Bestie's Cousin

On the side, due to Shang Hexing’s presence, Jian Yingqing, who had been reluctant to make his presence felt, suddenly walked over. He took the photograph from Meng Fan’s hands, "Let me take a look."

Meng Fan was somewhat displeased with Jian Yingqing’s familiarity, but it wasn’t appropriate to voice it out loud. She thought to herself, just let it be, let him look, she didn’t believe he could discern anything special.

"I think...!"

Jian Yingqing’s voice suddenly came through.

Wen Zhi and Meng Fan both looked up at Jian Yingqing, even Shang Hexing raised his eyes to him.

His brief three-word interjection drew several gazes. Jian Yingqing let out a nervous laugh, showing a tiger tooth, "I actually think the girl on the right, looks a bit like Shen Zhiyao."

Meng Fan scoffed lightly, "This is information related to Shen Zhiyao, of course it’s Shen Zhiyao."

Jian Yingqing winked at Meng Fan, "If the right side is Shen Zhiyao, then what if the left side is you?"

"Is that even possible?!" Meng Fan retorted instinctively.

As her words fell,

the atmosphere around them grew tense.

After a moment, it was still Meng Fan who spoke first, but this time she addressed Jian Yingqing, "You should listen to what you’re saying. If the left side is me and the right side is Shen Zhiyao, this is a joint photo. Do you think she and I could calmly take a photo together?"

Jian Yingqing sat down beside Meng Fan, leaning in close, "Why couldn’t it be possible? Anything is possible!" 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Meng Fan, "Shut your mouth!"

"All right." Jian Yingqing mimed zipping his lips.

Wen Zhi stood up and came over, taking the photograph from Jian Yingqing’s hands, "Let me take another look."

She took the photograph back to Shang Hexing’s side, inspected it herself, and then handed it to Shang Hexing, "What do you think?"

Shang Hexing looked at the blurry photograph, his brow slightly furrowing.

Meng Fan, sensing something was not right and initially thinking Jian Yingqing was just spouting nonsense, suddenly began to waver.

Could it really look like her?

But why hadn’t she noticed it herself?

She swallowed hard, her voice slightly uneasy as she asked, "Does the person on the left really look like me?"

"Not at all."

"Not at all."

These two identical responses were uttered simultaneously by Shang Hexing and Wen Zhi. A single exchange of glances had sufficed for them to understand what the other was supposed to say.

Meng Fan let out a sigh of relief inwardly, "I thought as much, how could Shen Zhiyao and I possibly appear in the same photograph, let alone a portrait of the two of us."

Shang Hexing signaled to Wen Zhi, "Put the photograph away."

Wen Zhi did so immediately.

Meng Fan was carefree and did not dwell on it. But Jian Yingqing, sitting beside her, had an expression that seemed rather intriguing.

Two o’clock in the afternoon.

Wen Zhi and Shang Hexing boarded the flight back to Bai City on time. Meng Fan had booked late and couldn’t secure a seat on this flight; she was on the next one. Shang Hexing thus left Chen Jinhai behind to take care of Meng Fan. As for Jian Yingqing, he was free to follow whoever he pleased; no one cared for him.

On the plane.

Shang Hexing asked Wen Zhi if she had any thoughts on the photograph, to which Wen Zhi shook her head, preoccupied, "This matter has become very complicated."

Shang Hexing said indifferently, "She’s not a native of Licheng; she grew up in a relative’s home there after moving in. Shen Zhilin is the son of her relatives, and moreover, Shen Zhiyao is a name she took later on. What her name was before, we haven’t yet confirmed."

Shen Zhiyao’s identity appeared to be without issue on the surface but couldn’t withstand close scrutiny.

Upon closer inspection, it was all problematic.

It was like a false identity.

Wen Zhi remembered the photograph, "Actually, at first glance, I thought the person on the left looked like Meng Fan. After all, I have known Meng Fan for so many years; I’m very familiar with her profile and appearance."

Shang Hexing, "She does look somewhat similar. I told Chen Jinhai to especially investigate the photograph’s negatives. We should have the results by tonight at the earliest, or tomorrow morning at the latest."

Wen Zhi nodded, "Good."

The airplane had already taken off, and all electronic devices were switched to flight mode. Wen Zhi was still not accustomed to her new phone, and with nothing to watch, she decided to close her eyes and rest.

"Wen Zhi," Shang Hexing called out to her.

Wen Zhi opened her eyes, turned her head, and heard Shang Hexing say, "I understood your hint at that time."

He was referring to the hotel incident when, after reading Shen Zhiyao’s related information, Wen Zhi signaled Shang Hexing with a subtle glance, which he understood immediately.

Not to continue the topic in front of Meng Fan, not only because it was too complicated, but there were also many things that couldn’t be said.

Wen Zhi didn’t expect him to suddenly bring this up and didn’t know how to react, so she just nodded, "Mhm."

"Aren’t you going to praise me?" Shang Hexing asked her.

Wen Zhi was startled: "Praise?"

Shang Hexing reminded her, "I cooperated with you."

Wen Zhi sincerely praised him, "Mr. Shang is very clever."

Shang Hexing curved his lips in a smile.

As the two joked, Shang Hexing raised his hand to press the center of his forehead and suddenly mused, "If I remember correctly, Meng Fan should have visited Licheng to see her great-grandmother that year, right?"

Wen Zhi’s slender back tensed slightly, but she still responded, "Yes."

After a silence of two or three seconds, she continued, "That year, I went to Licheng with Meng Fan. We were originally going to visit her great-grandmother and then travel together, but I had to rush back home less than a month later due to family matters."

Wen Zhi did not specify what the family matters were.

She merely continued the conversation, "I had planned to settle the family matters and then head to Licheng, but then I suddenly received a call from Meng Fan. She told me that she had fallen in love in Licheng and would return after a while."

"It was her first time in love, and she said that if that person behaved well, she would bring him back to introduce to everyone around her."

"That was the most secretive she had ever been with me and our family. And it was also then that she suffered terribly, nearly losing her life. Meng Fan’s parents went to Licheng in person to fetch her back. After returning, Meng Fan underwent psychological treatment for half a year. What I remember most vividly is that she experienced electric shock treatment four times..."

"It’s that incident," Shang Hexing’s brows slightly raised.

Wen Zhi asked in surprise, "You know about it?"

Shang Hexing: "Not entirely. That year, something major happened in the Meng Family; the news was widespread. Han Yiru, being deeply concerned for her daughter, kept Meng Fan’s affair very private, preventing it from spreading, and no one probed into what exactly had happened."

"Yes, Meng Fan’s parents kept it under wraps," Wen Zhi nodded.

Shang Hexing asked, "What about Meng Fan herself?"

"She doesn’t remember anymore."

At this point, Wen Zhi sighed, her tone somewhat somber, "You might not understand what it means to undergo electric shock therapy four times within a year. Electric shock can damage a person’s brain memory, leading to memory degradation. There was a time when Meng Fan woke up like a seven- or eight-year-old child, which lasted almost a month before she gradually recovered. However, she forgot a lot about Licheng, especially the most important parts."

As for what happened to Meng Fan in Licheng, she closed herself off upon her return and refused to discuss it with anyone. After forgetting those incidents, even fewer knew the details.

Meng Fan’s parents also investigated in Licheng, but ultimately found nothing.

Once Meng Fan returned to normal, the incident became a thing of the past.

Noticing that Wen Zhi seemed overly somber as she recalled the past, Shang Hexing changed the subject, "I’ve already alerted the police in Harbor City. Shen Zhiyao cannot leave Harbor City."

Wen Zhi came back to her senses: "Temporarily or?"

Shang Hexing: "Permanently."

He paused, then added, "Shen Zhilin will be detained for now. Additionally, the police will immediately seal the house where Shen Zhiyao lives in Harbor City, and impose a restriction barring Rong Huaishen from appearing in Harbor City for a year."

Wen Zhi froze, then pursed her lips in a faint smile.

She suddenly remembered Meng Fan saying that Shang Hexing would definitely take action against Shen Zhiyao once he knew. Now, hearing that Shang Hexing had everything arranged, there was an inevitable, uncontrollable flutter in her heart.

"Restricting Rong Huaishen from going to Harbor City and sealing Shen Zhiyao’s house, with Harbor City being so small, Shen Zhiyao must feel desperate," Wen Zhi could imagine Shen Zhiyao’s upcoming predicament.

Shang Hexing’s expression was dark, "That’s what she deserves."

Wen Zhi agreed, indeed it was what Shen Zhiyao deserved. As for Rong Huaishen not being allowed out of Harbor City for a year, it was the limit of what Shang Hexing could achieve by utilizing his connections, and it served as retribution for Meng Fan.

Shang Hexing continued, "I’ve already sent a message to Han Yiru. Knowing her temperament, she’ll likely make a trip to Harbor City herself."

Wen Zhi was surprised, "You also informed Aunt Han?"

The Han Yiru Shang Hexing spoke of was Meng Fan’s mother, a capable and resourceful lady of high society.