Chapter 151: The Least Number Of Brand Ambassador Deals

[Even if he wanted to smear Little Stone, he shouldn't have done this. Everyone saw how well she performed!]

[Appearance is important, but talent and integrity matter more.]

[Totally. Little Gold Bar's fans kept saying Little Stone needed a new face. The person who needs to do something about himself is Little Gold Bar.]

[Exactly. I already felt that the picture did not look like it was taken by accident. It looked like it was taken deliberately! Even though they claim it was done by paparazzi, who knows?]

[Smirk. We all know what's going on here. Isn't it clear why his photo got leaked right before the finals?]

[Little Stone has a scar on her face, so Little Gold Bar marketed his good looks.]

Hua Xin and his talent agent's ploy got discussed online openly.

In an instant, the handsome young man whom everyone adored became an unethical and scheming contestant. Only fans of his good looks continued defending him online.

He was still new to the industry, so he was destined to suffer exponentially from the effects of the failed marketing.

After Shi Jin came off the stage, Gu Qinghua pounced on her teary-eyed. "Shi Jin!"

"It's okay. It's all over."

"Uh huh. I am just happy for you." Gu Qinghua smiled as she cried tears of joy.

Shi Jin rubbed her head. Gu Qinghua shrank her neck and seemed flattered by Shi Jin's gesture as she blushed promptly. Even though she was at a loss, she wanted to be closer to Shi Jin.

Yu Guannan sent word to Shi Jin. "Go back and get some rest. The program has some interviewing lined up for you. I will help you take care of it."

Shi Jin thanked Yu Guannan before she got in the huge van.

She reached her hand out to take a bottle of Coca-Cola to drink, but Yao Jiahong took it from her and gave her a thermos cup. "Drink this instead."

"I always drink Coca-Cola," said Shi Jin. "Or juice."

Yao Jiahong looked at her disappointedly. "Try not to drink cold drinks. They are bad for your throat."

He forced the cup into Shi Jin's hand. "I am your talent agent, so you have to do as I say."

Yao Jiahong regretted not paying attention to Shi Jin sooner. Otherwise, he would have nipped her bad habits in the bud sooner.

No matter how good her vocals were, they would not last long with such abuse!

***

At the end of the competition, Shi Jin, Meng Shaoheng, and Wen Yongwei came in top three.

Gu Qinghua, Hua Xin, and Situ Hao were eliminated.

Gu Qinghua and Situ Hao did not do much marketing and simply focused on their performance until it was time for them to leave, so they were well received.

Now it was time for the main event in the finals as they competed to be champion.

The program had already announced what the top three contestants would stand to win in the finals.

"The champion would receive a cash prize of $15 million, a five album deal, and get to study at Hamilton Music Academy for three years."

"The first runner up would receive a cash prize of $8 million, a three album deal, and get to study at Hamilton Music Academy for a year."

"The second runner up would receive a cash prize of $5 million, a solo album deal, and get to sit in for classes at Hamilton Music Academy."

Also, they would get to receive some ambassadorship deals and do performances.

The cash prize would get transferred to the contestants' bank account directly.

It was an unusually huge budget for a talent program.

Gu Qinghua, Situ Hao, and Hua Xin had come in fourth, fifth, and sixth, they also received a cash prize and ambassadorship deals.

However, Hua Xin ended up receiving the least amount of ambassadorship deals owing to the scandal.

Chapter 152: No One Wanted To Sign Him

Hua Xin and his talent agent's plot had major repercussions on his career. None of the brand representatives were interested in doing business with a scheming artist.

The finals were now the top priority for everyone. It would begin soon and the contestants would finally fight to be champion.

Wen Yongwei was the one with the highest chances of coming in champion out of the three finalists.

She hailed from a family with a music background. Also, she studied at professional musical academies and had strong fundamentals.

She had a positive image as a beautiful talented girl from a rich family.

She was completely out of Shi Jin's league. Even Meng Shaoheng had higher chances of outdoing Shi Jin.

All the brand representatives and the public preferred talented artists with clean images.

Yao Jiahong had to think ahead for Shi Jin, so he almost agreed without hesitation when he received an invitation from Xia Peifeng to collaborate with Shi Jin for a single. However, he suppressed his urge and sought Shi Jin's opinion first.

"I don't want to work with him," rejected Shi Jin.

Xia Peifeng used to have absolute faith in Deng Yufei and deeply doubted Shi Jin's songwriting skills. Shi Jin did not want to bother entertaining him.

Yao Jiahong recalled the poor attitude he had for Shi Jin in the past and felt bad. He said, "Not everyone gets to work with Xia Peifeng."

"Then give the job to someone else. Does he really want to work with me? He simply wants to take the opportunity to confirm whether I can write songs. Do I look that free to you?"

Yao Jiahong felt even guiltier now. He was relieved that Shi Jin did not terminate her contract with him when she had the opportunity to do it.

He personally turned down Xia Peifeng's offer.

Xia Peifeng's talent agent was shocked by the response!

How could anyone reject Xia Peifeng's offer to collaborate without a thought? This was simply incredible!

Xia Peifeng was stunned by their response and looked disappointed to hear it.

The last time anyone refused his offer was before he entered the entertainment industry. He certainly did not anticipate having a taste of rejection considering his status.

"Is she dumb or what?" Xia Peifeng's talent agent was puzzled by her reaction.

Xia Peifeng wanted to work with her even more. He said softly, "She knows I invited her to work so that I can find out where she is at with songwriting, but she can't be bothered to do it. From the looks of it, I made a mistake. Instead of trying to test her, I should have just sincerely invited her to collaborate with me."

The talent agent was at a loss.

What were they playing at here?

Xia Peifeng threw his pen down and felt disappointed.

***

As usual, all the contestants had to perform their original music in the finals.

The moment Shi Jin arrived at the filming location, she went to the studio to write music.

Since there were only three contestants left, the place felt more spacious and the contestants' talent agents, assistants, and other staff could follow them with ease.

Wen Yongwei was the only one without a talent agency.

Even though Sheng Shuangnan was not in the trade, his grandfather owned a music label called Diamond Music.

He must be here to sign artists for Diamond Music.

The moment Wen Yongwei saw Sheng Shuangnan arrive, she stopped composing music and moved to the piano, and started to practice her singing.

Meng Shaoheng also stood up to greet Sheng Shuangnan.

Only Shi Jin continued revising her music with her head lowered.

Yao Jiahong lowered his head and glanced at her. She swiftly wrote and only lowered her head to think every now and then.

He had groomed plenty of singers in his career, so he had a keen eye for music.

The moment he saw Shi Jin's draft, he could not help taking a second look and felt stunned by her work.. This song genuinely sounded incredible.

Chapter 153: She Made It With Sheer Talent

In the past, Yao Jiahong paid very little attention to Shi Jin and did not know what she did.

During this time, it was the first time he saw Shi Jin trying out the lyrics and rhythm of her songs. As he watched Shi Jin produce every note and word, he was so impressed that he felt speechless. He also felt very happy about Shi Jin's performance.

Shi Jin felt a little tired, so she reached her hand out to get a drink.

Yao Jiahong handed her a cup of water the moment she reached her hands out.

"Thanks," said Shi Jin as she nodded.

Yao Jiahong felt a sense of contentment. After she was done drinking the water, he immediately went to refill her cup.

In reality, he could have left the job to the assistants, but these tasks came completely naturally to him now.

When Yao Jiahong went over to get a drink, he heard someone saying, "Have you heard? Mr Sheng is here. I think he plans on signing a contestant."

"Don't most of our contestants already have talent agencies?"

"If Mr Sheng is keen on signing anyone, there are plenty of ways it can be done. A lot of the other contestants already had talent agencies, but Mr Sheng convinced them to join Diamond Music."

"That's true. If he can pay the price, I am sure the talent agencies are happy to release their artists from their contracts."

"Uh huh. Also, Little Rose doesn't have a talent agency yet. I guess Mr Sheng is here to see Little Rose"

"There is always a chance for him to sign all three of them."

Yao Jiahong saw Sheng Shuangnan at the filming location when he walked out with the cup.

During the last few rounds, Sheng Shuangnan kept showing up at the film location to watch the performance as though he was an idle man.

It seemed as though he was not the rising star of the IT industry with a tight schedule as mentioned in the business magazines he had read.

Yao Jiahong took a cup of coffee before he went over to smile and say, "Hello, Mr Sheng"

Sheng Shuangnan took the coffee and had a sip. "Tastes good. Thanks."

"Little Stone was able to join such a good show thanks to you and your grandfather's investment," said Yao Jiahong with a smile. "Little Stone will enter the entertainment industry soon. Thank you for helping to promote her, Mr Sheng."

"She made it onto the show through sheer talent."

"Even though that is true, it will be a real boon for her career to have this opportunity to promote herself on the channel. Supreme Entertainment doesn't specialize in music, but we have come up with a five year plan for Little Stone's career."

Sheng Shuangnan put down the coffee and looked at Yao Jiahong deeply. "I am impressed by all the big plans you have for her."

"That goes without saying. The company has high hopes for Little Stone and she wants to stay with Supreme Entertainment."

Sheng Shuangnan laughed out loud. "You certainly live up to your name as an ace talent agent."

After the perfunctory chat, it became abundantly clear what they wanted.

Sheng Shuangnan wanted to sign Shi Jin as a Diamond Music artist.

Everyone felt Wen Yongwei was the reason Sheng Shuangnan kept coming by the filming location. Yao Jiahong was the only person who caught on that Sheng Shuangnan was here to see Shi Jin.

Yao Jiahong had made it clear it was impossible for him to let Shi Jin leave the talent agency.

If the talent agency refused to let Shi Jin go, it did not matter how badly Sheng Shuangnan wanted to sign her. It simply wasn't going to happen.

Yao Jiahong smiled and said, "Since I am a talent agent, I have to serve my artists well."

"Tell Little Stone to work hard. Even if she stays with Supreme Entertainment, it doesn't mean our collaboration will end, right?" reminded Sheng Shuangnan.

Yao Jiahong felt the same way.. If Shi Jin continued staying with Supreme Entertainment, he would have nothing to worry about.

Chapter 154: Will Only See The Champion

Yao Jiahong stood up and said goodbye to Sheng Shuangnan before he went back and placed the glass of warm water beside Shi Jin.

Sheng Shuangnan rubbed his forehead and glanced at Shi Jin before veering his eyes. He made an appointment with Wen Yongwei and Meng Shaoheng to see them.

Since they had invested in a major talent program, he had to ensure the talent got signed to Diamond Music.

***

Before the show was even over, Diamond Music had successfully signed Wen Yongwei to the label and also poached Meng Shaoheng at a high price. It was undoubtedly big news. It was a clear sign that he thought highly of them.

Diamond Music also gave them two of their best talent agents.

The next part of the program was about guessing their appearances.

The film crew produced a series of chibi artwork to satisfy the fans' curiosity.

Among the three of them, Wen Yongwei and Meng Shaoheng had more chibi artwork. Also, theirs were more exquisitely done and came in a huge variety, ranging from adorable, cool, and gorgeous artwork. The fans couldn't get enough of them.

Shi Jin had the least amount of chibi artwork.

The film crew did not know what to do about her chibi artwork considering the ghastly scar on her face. They felt it would be disrespectful if they placed too much emphasis on the scar. However, they were also worried they would have trouble answering to the fans if they didn't.

Hence, the effects of Shi Jin's promotion were much poorer than Wen Yongwei and Meng Shaoheng's.

The film crew was also busy taking care of their admission into Hamilton Music Academy.

A senior professor from Hamilton Music Academy by the name of Pence was invited to the film location.

Kang Cheng and Deng Yongjian gave him a warm welcome before inviting him into the office.

All the employees turned to look in the direction of Kang Cheng's office.

Hamilton Music Academy was a world-class music academy and Pence was a highly revered professor in the industry. Even the employees who were not musically trained had heard about his reputation.

Both the academy and this professor were top-notch.

Shortly after Kang Cheng and Pence entered the office, Shi Jin came over.

She headed straight to the office.

Deng Yongjian was about to send someone to prepare Pence's coffee. Since he was picky about his coffee, they had to prepare his favorite in advance. The moment he saw Shi Jin coming over, he frowned and said, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to see Prof Pence," said Shi Jin.

"Humph," sneered Deng Yongjian annoyingly. "Why are you here to see Prof Pence?"

The film crew was able to get in touch with Hamilton Music Academy only because they had an honorary director from the Sheng family sitting on its board. They had won the title owing to the vast amount of resources they supplied the school.

Only the champion would have the honor of studying at the academy for three years.

To put it bluntly, the first and second runner-ups would probably only have the chance to sit in for classes. He was confident that Prof Pence would only personally see the champion and not Shi Jin.

Shi Jin raised her head and glanced at Deng Yongjian. He was somewhat startled by the way she looked at him, but he said nothing and turned to send someone to prepare coffee.

Shi Jin stood by the side and waited patiently.

After she joined the program, she received a call from the principal of Hamilton Music Academy.

Firstly, the principal had inadvertently heard her songs and was blown away by her talent.. Secondly, she had pointed out some errors and provided some suggestions after watching some Hamilton Music Academy free online courses.

Chapter 155: When Is She Going To Stop Using Hype?

The principal chatted with Shi Jin for hours over the phone when he realized the suggestion was given by the same person who wrote the song. He wished they could go on chatting forever.

Initially, the principal invited her to join the academy. However, he changed his mind after chatting with her.

Since Prof Pence was invited to go over to the film location, the principal made Shi Jin promise to see Prof Pence.

Since she knew Kang Cheng and Deng Yongjian did not like her, why would Shi Jin wait at the door?

Deng Yongjian brought the coffee in for Pence first. He came out to invite Wen Yongwei into the office about 30 minutes later, and saw Shi Jin standing where she was.

"Little Stone, why are you still here?"

"Working on my music." Shi Jin waved the music manuscript in her hands.

"I know what you are trying to do, but Prof Pence doesn't entertain any Tom, Dick, or Harry," said Deng Yongjian. After all, the entire film crew thought highly of Wen Yongwei, including Kang Cheng, so Wen Yongwei was the only person who would get to see Pence today.

He glanced at Shi Jin pitifully. "If you want to work, then go to the studio. This is not the right place to do it. Also, you have already come in top three. After you have graduated from high school, the show will make a recommendation for you to enter a local music academy."

The moment he finished his sentence, he went to call Wen Yongwei over.

Wen Yongwei followed behind Deng Yongjian. She was beside herself with joy when she heard about seeing Prof Pence.

Although she pretended to be composed, she was holding her hands tightly intertwined as she fidgeted. She was clearly reveling in joy and was also dreadfully nervous.

She glanced at Shi Jin deeply when she saw Shi Jin. She also felt puzzled about Shi Jin standing here.

She furtively asked, "Is Prof Pence going to see Little Stone too?"

"We didn't make any arrangements for that," replied Deng Yongjian.

"I see." Wen Yongwei beamed even more brightly.

Shi Jin lowered her eyes and did not look at her.

After the meeting was over, Kang Cheng walked out with Pence.

"Prof Pence, thank you for helping Little Rose," said Kang Cheng with a smile.

The moment he finished his sentence, he saw Shi Jin standing nearby and frowned automatically.

Deng Yongjian hurriedly said, "She is writing music and isn't here to see Prof Pence."

"I sure hope so." Kang Cheng did not want anything to go wrong.

Also, he did not want Pence to get used for hype and end up getting in the news.

"Prof Pence, this way, please. Tonight, allow Little Rose and I to play host and show you around..." Kang Cheng turned and led the way for Prof Pence.

Pence was about to leave with them when he caught sight of Shi Jin standing nearby from the corner of his eye.

His eyes instantly lit up and the wrinkles on the corners of his eyes disappeared before he said to Kang Cheng, "Please give me a moment."

Shi Jin happened to be walking towards him.

Kang Cheng instantly felt a headache coming on. Was Shi Jin going to use Prof Pence for hype? She used to do it to Chu Ling. Did she have her eyes on Prof Pence this time?

Just as Kang Cheng was about to go over with Pence, Pence waved his hand to stop him.

Kang Cheng could not afford to offend Pence, so he halted in his steps.

He watched as Pence walked up to Shi Jin and started to chat.

"What the..." Deng Yongjian was particularly shocked. "Does Little Stone speak French?"

Wen Yongwei reminded him softly, "Have you forgotten? Prof Pence is quite fluent in our language."

Deng Yongjian finally realized Pence was fluent in their language.. Since Pence was a man of high status, it made sense for him to have a warm outspoken personality.

Chapter 156: That's Too Bad

Shi Jin only had a brief chat with Pence. Since he had work to do, she did not linger and quickly bade farewell.

However, Pence wanted to talk more, so he said, "Let's have a little chat tomorrow."

"Sure," agreed Shi Jin.

"Shi Jin, please be sure to make time for me!" said Pence earnestly.

After Shi Jin promised to see him tomorrow, he finally smiled before he reluctantly turned and walked over to Kang Cheng.

Kang Cheng smiled as he said, "Prof Pence, she is one of our contestants as well. However, she is not under Diamond Music. Also, she hasn't even graduated from high school, so..."

Pence replied, "Well, that's too bad!"

"Uh huh. It's too bad," Kang Cheng chimed in. He thought Pence was talking about how Little Stone had yet to graduate from high school and would not be able to join the academy.

***

The next day, Pence and Shi Jin met up as promised.

Shi Jin thought all she needed was two to three hours. However, they ended up chatting for six hours straight until late at night.

Shi Jin noticed how late it was, so she stood up and said goodbye. After all, there was someone eagerly waiting for her to come home.

After she was reborn, Fu Xiuyuan was equally important as her career.

***

Wen Yongwei had already gotten signed to Diamond Music and met the esteemed Prof. Pence before the finals. It was an immense glory for her.

Meng Shaoheng also got a lot of hype from signing with Diamond Music. Instead, people didn't really talk about Shi Jin.

On the night of the finals, the competition mechanics were officially announced.

The host announced, "Tonight, over 5000 people are here for the live performance, so this is equivalent to a medium-sized concert. Each one of the audience present can cast ten votes."

"The audience was selected randomly based on the pool of viewers who signed up for tickets, so it consists of fans belonging to every contestant. It's just that I can't give you solid numbers about the ratio."

"The viewers at home still have the chance to cast five votes. The reason for the difference in votes is because watching the performance live is quite different from watching it from home."

"Also, the four instructors on the program get 20 votes each."

No one objected to the voting mechanics.

The host finally said with a resounding voice, "I am sure everyone is very excited about the last segment of the program tonight. Please be sure to watch the entire program so as not to miss the juiciest part of the show! What segment am I talking about everyone?"

The audience shouted excitedly, "Take off their masks! Take off their masks!"

The online viewers happily commented.

[I have been waiting forever for this day to come!]

[I am so afraid to get disappointed!]

[Don't worry. Trust me. The show is not a charity, so they won't pick ugly contestants to join the program.]

[What about Little Stone?]

[Hahaha! I agree. What about Little Stone?]

[I think Little Stone is probably the ugliest contestant on the show, so the rest of the contestants must be good-looking!]

[I am sure Little Rose is the prettiest of the lot! Just look at how well Diamond Music treats her!]

[What are you talking about? Little Rose clearly made it through the finals using talent!]

[Little Rose is talented and gorgeous!]

The host proceeded to smile and continued, "Tonight, the top three finalists will take off their masks for you.. Also, the other contestants who were eliminated will make a reappearance and show their faces."

Chapter 157: Xia Peifeng Did Not Feel Moved

"The show will continue to adhere to its rules. Regardless of a contestant's appearance, it doesn't matter. Only talent can help them win! We hope to help cultivate a new way of doing things in the local entertainment industry using the show! Also, we hope all of us can have a long and bright future using talent no matter the trade!"

The audience cheered wildly.

It certainly struck a chord with the audience. They also hoped to rise professionally using talent and hard work. Looks and status should have no part in their level of success. However, a lot of the audience continued to be all about good looks.

It was one thing to appreciate the importance of this, but an entirely different matter when it came to execution. It was human nature to have double standards.

The competition started officially after the host announced the highlights.

In the finals, each contestant had to perform their own songs along with songs created by the other two contestants. They had to prove their songwriting abilities as well as their vocals.

Meng Shaoheng started first.

Shi Jin came next.

The moment Shi Jin got onto the stage, she picked up the microphone as a spotlight trained itself on her.

This time, her creation sounded warm and easy. She stood on this stage and calmly performed using her bright, unsullied vocals.

Even though it didn't sound showy, it sounded as though she was talking to its listeners and people couldn't help feeling immersed in it, be it the audience here or those watching it from a computer.

Other than those diehard fans of some other contestants, the rest of the audience was quickly moved by her singing.

Shi Jin was absolutely magnetic and her voice sounded magical. The moment she opened her mouth, everyone got sucked in by her singing.

It seemed as though she was a phoenix and the rest of them were common birds.

All the other birds turned to pay respects to their queen the moment she opened her mouth to sing.

Xia Peifeng sat in front of the computer leaning his chin against his hand when he suddenly slammed the table and said, "I've got it!"

He buried his head and wrote a string of notes on the manuscript.

"Bring me my guitar!" said Xia Peifeng

The talent agent happily went over to get his guitar for him.

Ever since Deng Yufei's plagiarism scandal broke out, Xia Peifeng had no inspiration to write any music.

It was not the same as being tired of writing. The more he was unable to write, the more he yearned to do it. He got increasingly worried that he might lose his ability to write music altogether.

For the past few days, he had locked himself up in the studio trying to write day and night, but he was not happy with a single note he wrote. However, Xia Peifeng felt inspired the moment he heard Shi Jin's singing.

This familiar sensation he had from listening to her songs made Xia Peifeng more certain that Deng Yufei's songs came from Shi Jin.

Only Shi Jin's music was able to make him feel like this! It had never happened to him before!

After Shi Jin was done singing, Wen Yongwei went on the stage.

Shi Jin was able to perform in countless singing styles and had a lot of potential. She often tried new singing styles and the same held true for her songs.

Wen Yongwei was a consistent performer in comparison. She was always flawless and sounded professional.

Xia Peifeng raised his head from his song manuscript. He had to admit Wen Yongwei was an excellent singer for pulling off her performance with such consistency. For most other people, it was pure fantasy to achieve this.

It was very impressive that Wen Yongwei was able to pull this off every round.

Her song was good, it was perfect for singing and he could tell she was an excellent songwriter.. However, Xia Peifeng did not feel moved.

Chapter 158: Little Rose Is Bound To Come In Champion

Xia Peifeng didn't feel moved by Wen Yongwei's performance and that was that. Xia Peifeng didn't feel blown away or emotional when he heard this singing, so he quickly stopped composing.

Wen Yongwei's fans kept flattering in the comments online.

[Little Rose, you are super!]

[Go for it! Do your best!]

[She is bound to come in champion!]

[I am sure Little Rose is the best-looking contestant as well. Have you seen her chibi artwork? I can tell they must have drawn it to her likeness.]

A lot of the fans adored Wen Yongwei as well.

However, Shi Jin's fans were just as good. After everything that transpired throughout the show, her fans had learned to calmly accept everything about her. No one despised the hideous scar on her face. Also, some of her fans voluntarily created chibi artwork for her. Although her scar was obvious, her eyes were bright and dazzling.

Before long, all three contestants finished performing everything. Their performances came off natural and their songwriting was solid.

The host went on the stage and said, "The count is almost ready!"

The audience waved their banners for Little Stone, Little Rose, and Little Dream. Even the number of banners out there came in neck in neck.

It was clear that all the contestants were equally good.

Even though Kang Cheng thought highly of Wen Yongwei, he had to admit that she had met strong competition.

The host continued, "Other than the instructors, all the other votes have been confirmed and all voting channels have been closed!"

The vote count on the screen stopped spinning.

Again, all the contestants would go on stage to unveil each digit in their vote count starting from the last single digit, followed by the tenth, down to the first number.

This time around, there were a lot more votes since the other contestants were not around to split the votes with them.

Everyone had witnessed firsthand their incredible singing and songwriting skills.

Since it was the finals, there were far more viewers than in the previous episodes. All of their votes went as high as tens of millions!

Meng Shaoheng was the first to unveil his vote count. The host happily announced, "Little Dream has 26 964 150 votes! Congrats!"

The host got a shock when he saw Wen Yongwei's votes.

The fans were overjoyed and kept cheering, "47 659 111! Wow! Little Rose! Little Rose!"

Even though they seemed equally popular, Wen Yongwei surpassed Meng Shaoheng overwhelmingly.

The instructors and talent agents sitting beneath the stage felt surprised by this result.

All of them were keenly aware that voting fraud was eradicated. Some fans might have used someone else's phones or computers to vote, but as long as they were willing to try, they could help the contestants and it wouldn't be deemed voting fraud. Hence, Wen Yongwei's voting count was entirely legitimate!

Kang Cheng sat at Chu Ling's old seat as he smiled and said to Yu Guannan, "Little Rose will definitely win now! From the looks of it, it wouldn't make a difference whether the instructors voted."

Yu Guannan replied mildly, "Well, Little Stone's results aren't out yet!

"God. Little Rose has already defeated Little Dream overwhelmingly. What makes you think Little Stone has any chance of winning?"

Yu Guannan ignored Kang Cheng.

Chapter 159: An Unexpected Turn Of Events For The Underdog

There was a commotion in the air when Little Stone's votes got announced.

Yu Guannan looked straight ahead as everyone shouted excitedly when the host announced Shi Jin's voting results. "47 659 149! She has received 39 votes more than Little Rose!"

He looked sideways at Kang Cheng. Kang Cheng looked a little upset.

Shi Jin was at a disadvantage in terms of appearance throughout the show. Before the finals, she was also the most poorly marketed contestant. However, she ended up having so many votes!

The host spoke excitedly, "For now, Little Stone has the lead. The instructors have yet to vote, so let's go for a short break..."

An advertisement was cued at the most crucial part of the show, so the audience got so infuriated that they cursed. It successfully held the audience in suspense.

"I am sure Little Stone will win this time! Wanna bet?"

"Didn't you hear? The instructors haven't voted yet!"

"I thought the instructors' votes didn't matter, but they ended up vital!"

"This is just a gimmick. A pure gimmick!"

"No matter what, Little Stone rocks!"

"Excuse me. You should get Little Stone to get some cosmetic surgery done!"

"Uh huh. The Sheng family provided a lot of ambassadorship deals for the champion. The advertisements can't be filmed with a mask on this time. Does Little Stone intend on causing the businesses to fold or something?"

***

Backstage, everyone got to rest for three minutes now that the advertisement was airing.

For most people, barely anything could be done within three minutes, but it was enough for Kang Cheng to handle some matters.

Not that Kang Cheng had to do much to help Wen Yongwei. After all, the two other instructors loved her. They felt she was professionally trained and had an excellent image. In comparison to Shi Jin, she was more well suited to become a spokesperson for the show.

Only artists without any scandals have the right to work their way up the industry using pure talent.

After the advertisement ended, the show commenced.

The host spoke with his voice trembling, "Welcome back! Now, it is time for the instructors to cast their votes. Each instructor can give 20 votes to any contestant. Let us invite Lu Yao to get the ball rolling!"

The first instructor to vote was Lu Yao. "I will give all my votes to Little Rose."

She always liked Wen Yongwei, so her choice was unsurprising.

Wen Yongwei bowed and thanked Lu Yao. She was so anxious that she held her hands together exceptionally tightly. It never crossed her mind that the difference in the number of votes between her and Shi Jin would end up so small. Also, Shi Jin was in the lead.

"Now that the first instructor has voted, the difference between Little Rose and Little Stone's votes has reduced to 19 votes with Little Stone in the lead! The next instructor is Zhang Jia. Who will his votes go to?"

"Little Stone is an excellent singer-songwriter. Although she is still new to the industry, she possesses the qualities of a first-class artist. However, I'm going to give Little Rose my votes!"

Zhang Jia genuinely admired Shi Jin's songwriting skills. However, he had his own concerns.

The champion would represent Country S and study at Hamilton Music Academy for three years. Also, she would receive a lot of ambassadorship deals. He worked for the Sheng family, so he had to decide with the Sheng family's interests in mind and choose the most commercially viable contestant.

He did it even though Sheng Shuangnan kept reiterating that he should ignore the contestants' commercial value and focus on their talent.

Chapter 160: Ruined By People Who Only Cared About Looks

It was very hard for people to disregard appearance when it came to commercial value.

Zhang Jia didn't dare to say it out loud. However, he knew he was one of those people who didn't give Shi Jin a chance because of her scar!

"Now, Little Rose is leading Little Stone by one vote! Just one vote! The third instructor is Yu Guannan. Who will he vote for?"

Yu Guannan gave all his votes to Shi Jin without hesitation!

"Now we are back to square one with Little Stone leading by 19 votes!" shouted the host tensely. The more exciting the show got, the higher its viewership.

The audience went into a commotion. The situation felt absolutely accelerating!

After the first three instructors gave their votes, Shi Jin ended up leading by 19 votes. Only Kang Cheng had yet to vote.

Yu Guannan's nose expanded slightly. He didn't expect Kang Cheng to have the deciding vote!

Kang Cheng's votes were everyone's last hope.

Wen Yongwei finally smiled.

It was public knowledge of how much Kang Cheng adored her. Moreover, Kang Cheng had taken over Chu Ling to be an instructor on the program. Since they were on the same team, it made absolute sense for him to vote for Wen Yongwei.

Everyone knew who he would give his votes to.

Yao Jiahong clenched his fists tightly. His throat felt dry, so he coughed gently.

Shi Jin's fans seemed to catch on to this situation and everyone raised their banners and cheered for her, "Little Stone! Little Stone! Little Stone!"

Shi Jin's clear bright eyes could be seen through the mask as she glanced at the audience calmly.

The audience watching online kept posting comments.

[Little Stone! He must give them to Little Stone! Little Stone was really good!]

Little Rose's fans got pissed off.

[Why? Little Rose was the best!]

[Little Stone is an all-rounded composer and has excellent vocals, so she deserves to be the champion!]

[Little Stone is hideous. She will give her audience a heart attack when she goes on stage! I suggest she moves behind the scenes the moment this competition is over!]

[Exactly. Just work backstage from now on!]

[You stupid pigs only care about looks!]

[Little Stone's fans are so blind that I can't even bear to look at them!]

The fans got embroiled in an argument.

Kang Cheng held the microphone and said, "Little Stone and Little Rose are both excellent singer-songwriters in their own right. I feel that it is important to choose a contestant who is 100% focused on the job. She shouldn't be easily distracted by the outside world. Focus and passion for music will help the contestants go a long way! For that, I am giving my votes to Little Rose!"

The host shouted excitedly, "Kang Cheng has given his votes to Little Rose! This means Little Rose has a total of 47 659 171 votes and is in the lead by one vote! Little Rose has won by a single vote to come in champion on 'Ultimate Singer-Songwriter'! Congratulations!"

Wen Yongwei trembled in excitement as she took the microphone from the host and said a few words about winning.

Some people were disappointed and some people were exhilarated.

Yu Guannan frowned and looked annoyed.

Yao Jiahong opened his mouth slightly as he stared at Shi Jin in a daze.

Shi Jin seemed completely calm and didn't really care about the result. First or second place didn't make a difference to her.

She had followed the rules of the program and did not show her face throughout the show, so she had a clear conscience.

Chapter 161: Curse Her Every Time

In front of the screen, some people clapped joyfully while others threw something at the television or computer.

Little Stone's anti-fans started to talk.

"Isn't this expected? Little Stone should consider it an honor to make it so far into the program."

"If not for this program and wearing a mask, she would have gotten kicked out at the prelims. It would be impossible for her to come in second."

"People who are fans of Little Stone should really stop whining. Just ask yourselves, shouldn't she be content that she could have made it so far?"

"Uh huh. If the entertainment industry was filled with ugly celebrities, would you bother watching?"

"The entertainment industry is intended for gorgeous people. Even singers have to be good-looking. Just think about it. Can you stand listening to a ballad looking at her face?"

[It doesn't matter how the program wants to change the world. Beauty is beauty. We have no problem if Little Stone wants to work behind the scenes, but if you want to put someone like her on stage, don't blame me for cursing her every time I see her!]

Everyone held a different opinion. Even though Little Stone's fans try to defend her fiercely, it was futile.

Neither party was capable of convincing each other.

Meanwhile, the host announced the next highlight for tonight.

"Have you been waiting for this moment all night? Now, you will get to see the contestants' faces! Allow me to start with the contestants ranking 10th to 30th to join me on stage one by one!"

The audience stopped arguing and turned their attention to the stage.

This was the highlight of the program. Everyone was absolutely curious about the contestants' appearances. Did they look as good as they sang?

Everyone sat on the edge of their seats waiting.

All the contestants remove their masks to reveal their faces.

The host also introduced the contestants' real names.

The audience exclaimed in shock, surprise, or joy.

However, these 20 contestants were all pretty good-looking.

In modern times, most people looked okay. After getting their hair and makeup professionally done by the program, all the contestants looked radiant and above average in terms of appearance.

"Please continue supporting these contestants in the future! Now, allow me to invite the contestants ranking fourth to ninth to join me on stage!"

Among them included Gu Qinghua, Deng Yufei and Hua Xin. Hence, the program's viewership hit yet another record high. Everyone wanted to see how good-looking Hua Xin was.

Although Deng Yufei was involved in plagiarism, it didn't happen during the program, so the film crew also invited her to join this segment of the program.

Gu Qinghua had normal delicate features, but she gave off a literary air and everyone loved it.

People couldn't help inhaling in surprise when Deng Yufei took off her mask.

"Oh my god! She's so pretty!"

"Uh huh. She is really pretty. Look at those features!"

"I am officially a fan of her good looks!"

"No matter how pretty she is, she plagiarized! Please show some restraint!"

"Since I never heard about the plagiarism, I am going to pretend I didn't hear you talking about it. Nothing is going to stop me from being her fan!"

Chapter 162: Wasn't Even Fit To Remove Her Mask

Deng Yufei wanted to steal the show tonight so that she could save her career in the entertainment industry. Hence, she went all out with her hair and makeup and even wore an evening gown.

The moment she heard the cheering and whistling, she knew she had succeeded! The prettier she was, the greater the contrast when Shi Jin showed her real face.

This rare chance was going to help save her career in the entertainment industry, so Mr Wang had to pull a lot of connections in order to get her here. She had to succeed!

Hua Xin was up next.

When the high-quality photos got leaked online previously, he managed to steal the public's attention for some time. Now that he was back on the program, a lot of people fell for his gorgeous face again.

The moment he removed his mask, the screaming became even louder.

"Little Gold Bar is absolutely hot! Omigod!"

"I like how he looks!"

"I thought the pictures only looked good because he posed for them. From the looks of it, he is genuinely good-looking in person!"

"I'm so jealous!"

"Sadly, he didn't make it into the finals. I could've voted for you!"

"Even the likes of Little Stone made it into the finals, it is so unfair that he didn't make it."

The cameraman also generously gave him a lot of shots.

Meng Shaoheng was next to remove his mask. However, since Hua Xin got to remove his mask first, no one cared about Meng Shaoheng's pretty decent looks.

The host finally got to the main event. "Next up is Little Rose!"

In reality, Shi Jin ought to have removed her mask next.

The host and the film crew thought about Shi Jin's face and decided to let her appear last so as not to draw too much attention to her hideous scar.

Before it was Wen Yongwei's turn to show her face, Kang Cheng made arrangements for her makeup to get touched up.

The audience had waited for a long time and were on the edge of their seats when she came out.

"Little Rose, say hi to everyone." The host waited for her to take off her mask.

Wen Yongwei took off her mask in front of the camera.

The camera took a 360 degrees shot of her in slow motion.

"Wow! She is gorgeous!"

"Initially, I thought Deng Yufei was already the prettiest of the lot, but Wen Yongwei was unexpectedly good-looking."

"She has the poise and elegance of a beautiful talented girl from a rich family."

"I love her!"

"Weiwei, I used all the phones and computers in my family to vote for you earlier! It was really worth it!"

Wen Yongwei looked just like the image she had projected on the program. She looked very upright, poised and elegant. This was the reason a lot of the instructors and film crew adored her.

She looked easy to get along with and uncompetitive, so this meant she had high commercial value and would be well-liked by the mainstream.

Shi Jin's eyes looked seductive in comparison. Also, she had a scar on her face. The audience couldn't imagine what she would look like.

Everyone adored Wen Yongwei. The moment she removed her mask, she received praise from the audience and the host even gave her some time to talk about how she felt.

The audience was very happy with the outcome. However, the anti-fans felt Shi Jin wasn't even fit to remove her mask.

Her fans felt it didn't matter if she removed her mask.. They just wanted Shi Jin to be happy and didn't want people to judge her for her appearance.

Chapter 163: Are You Ready To See Her Hideous Face?

No one had control over their appearance, so no one should be judged by their looks, but everyone had an opinion of their own.

However, what had to come, had to come. The program was not about to make any exceptions.

After the host had a brief chat with Wen Yongwei, he had to turn his attention to Shi Jin.

"Little Stone, it is your turn to remove your mask."

"Uh huh." Shi Jin nodded.

"Everyone looks different, but our looks should not hold us back! The only thing that will help you succeed in life is diligence." The host really liked Shi Jin for her talent, so he tried to manage the public's expectations before Shi Jin removed her mask.

He was warning the audience not to pick on Shi Jin because of her appearance.

Shi Jin acknowledged softly, "You are right. Thanks."

The host asked softly, "In that case... are you ready?"

"Yes, I am," replied Shi Jin calmly.

The anti-fans promptly commented online.

[Are you ready to see her hideous face?]

[Hahaha! I want to see exactly how ugly Shi Jin is!]

[Me too!]

[Me too!]

[I plan on writing a story about an ugly woman, so I was hoping to get some inspiration from Little Stone.]

[I'm not watching this. I don't want to get nightmares and lose sleep from seeing her!]

Little Stone's fans kept cheering her on.

[No matter how you look, we will always be here for you!]

[You can use your talent to carve a career in the entertainment industry! You rock!]

Shi Jin's fans clenched their fists tightly and got ready to fight the anti-fans. They could not allow people to hurt such a talented young woman. Despite all the naysayers out there, they wanted to protect her.

Shi Jin swiftly took off her mask as the world waited in anticipation.

The audience went silent for three seconds.

The cameramen were so startled that their hands trembled. Fortunately, the camera equipment was reinforced for stability. Otherwise, the audience would end up seeing shaky images.

The viewers watching the show online suddenly went quiet and stopped. A lot of the viewers even stood up automatically.

A fan was eating instant noodles when Shi Jin took off her mask and he failed to notice noodles slipping from his mouth.

Someone was drinking milk and sprayed milk all over the screen when Shi Jin removed her mask.

The host opened his mouth in surprise. A few seconds later, he managed to snap out of his shock thanks to his professionalism. "Meet Shi Jin aka Little Stone!"

A girl dressed in a simple white shirt and jeans with a beautiful face appeared in front of everyone. Her face was so clear that it was flawless even when the cameras gave her a close-up. She looked absolutely radiant and enchanting.

Her eyes were clear and bright and the corners of her eyes were long. Her curly eyelashes and misty eyes made them look even more expressive despite her cool quiet aura.

She looked cool and sexy. With a face like hers, she seemed capable of saying a thousand words with a single glance. She had the potential to look gentle, charming, mesmerizing and was at the same time completely calm and unaffected by the things around her.

She had an exquisite face and her skin was so fair that even the fine hair on her face was visible. There was no scar on her red lips.. Her lips were slightly parted as though she was ready to sing.

Chapter 164: Suffered The Most Injustice

Shi Jin had no scar. She was not hideous or offensive-looking.

Shi Jin's past performance was being aired on the large screen on stage.

Every contestant's past performance would get played.

As the audience looked at Shi Jin's previous performances, they found her surprisingly cool when she was singing upbeat tunes. They found her cool and gorgeous and at the same time gentle and moving when she sang ballads.

Now that they had a face to her name, they found her previous performance absolutely incredible.

Even without using her good looks, she managed to come in second. Would she have suffered all this humiliation if she was allowed to show her face at the get go? Would her path to success be as bumpy?

Everyone finally realized that she was the contestant who suffered the most injustice!

Everyone thought Deng Yufei was setting the bar in terms of appearance after seeing her again. People thought Wen Yongwei was the best contestant. The public was bowled over by Hua Xin's good looks when his photos were leaked.

The moment they saw Shi Jin, they finally realized there was someone better out there.

Shi Jin's good looks had gone beyond the defines of gender and could not be called beauty alone.

[AHHHH!]

[HOOOWL!]

[OMIGOD!]

The people watching online and sending comments did not know how to express their astonishment.

They could only express what they felt with sounds.

[Can I recast my votes? I was wrong. I was genuinely mistaken!]

[She looks like a fairy! She suffered so much while she was in the mortal realm!]

[I can't believe my eyes! Is it really Little Stone?]

[Her name is Shi Jin! Shi means jade, jewelry, elegance and priceless. It was so unfair for her to be called Little Stone!]

[How could the film crew come up with such an awful name? She is as pretty as a goddess!]

[Now I finally believe looks have nothing to do with the competition and only talent matters. If Shi Jin got to use her face, she would definitely be number one!]

[Nonsense! Even if Little Stone only used her talent, she would have come in champion as well!]

Her anti fans were dumbfounded. Every single one of them were shocked by her appearance. They did not expect Shi Jin to look like this.

They used to say bad things about Shi Jin's appearance after they saw her scar. Now that Shi Jin had shown her face, the anti-fans finally realized the error of their ways.

Her face was completely flawless!

Could they cast their votes again? It was an honest question!

Yu Guannan and Yao Jiahong were slightly astounded as well. Since they were working on set, they knew of Shi Jin's appearance and had seen her picture. However, the scar genuinely used to exist.

Shortly after filming commenced, someone had secretly seen her scar.

Yet, the skin on her face looked as tender as baby skin now and was even more beautiful than before. When did this happen? Was Shi Jin capable of magic or something?

The instructor, Zhang Jia, who did not pick Shi Jin owing to her appearance and low commercial value now looked at Shi Jin in awe.

In terms of commercial value, Shi Jin was undoubtedly the best among all the contestants.

Zhang Jia pulled his hair hard and was clearly annoyed. Sadly, it was too late to regret now that the voting was over no matter how much he wanted to vote for Shi Jin.

Only Kang Cheng remained resolute of his choice.. Although he was surprised by Shi Jin's face, she had a sexy vibe and could not compare to Wen Yongwei's classiness, so he would not have picked her.

Chapter 165: No One Can Tell Us What To Do

The host could not resist talking to Shi Jin, "Little Stone. No, I should call you Shi Jin now. Everyone used to think you have a scar on your face. Why didn't you clarify when they misunderstood you?"

Shi Jin smiled. "I was simply abiding by the program's rules and didn't show my face."

"Haha! That makes sense." The host laughed.

The people who broke the program's rule and attempted to gain fans using their appearances felt slapped on the faces when Shi Jin said this.

Shi Jin held the microphone as she looked at the camera calmly. "I hope my fans don't get held back because of their appearances. I am living proof that working hard pays. Everyone looks different and people have differences in opinions about looks. No matter what people think of your looks, it is just a passing opinion. You shouldn't let it control how far you go in life. We have to rely on ourselves to succeed! If I can do it, so can you!"

The fans felt moved by what Shi Jin said. Shi Jin's life experience genuinely motivated them a lot.

[Thanks to Shi Jin, I have learned how important diligence and determination are.]

[Although there is a lot of injustice in the world, if I work hard, I will be rewarded!]

[Little Stone, we will work just as hard as you!]

[I am an ugly girl with low self-esteem. After seeing Shi Jin's determination on the show, I am starting to get over it. I came in third in class in my last exam. I believe that if I work hard like Shi Jin, my life will change one day!]

[Good looks don't guarantee success! Only diligence will give me what I want. Little Stone, thanks for showing us the way.]

***

After the show ended, the contestants' appearances continued being a hot topic online.

Posts about Shi Jin crushed all other topics and came in first.

Everyone kept checking out her face and her real pictures kept surfacing everywhere.

In the past, Shi Jin had worked on Chu Ling's television dramas. Since her parts were small and she only did it to be with Chu Ling, she did not act seriously. Despite her stunning face, she did not succeed as an actress.

Otherwise, people would have already found out who she was.

People naturally kept talking about looks and life.

This society was all about looks, so it caused quite a commotion online.

Wen Yongwei looked a little upset when she got off the stage.

Kang Cheng asked worriedly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Wen Yongwei smiled immediately.

"Go get ready for the after-party. There are a lot of things you need to finalize including your studies at Hamilton Music Academy."

Wen Yongwei could not resist looking at Shi Jin one more time.

Shi Jin's gorgeous profile came to sight and stole all her attention.

She had to admit that Shi Jin was very beautiful. Even though people kept praising her for her good looks since young, she could not help feeling jealous.

How did Shi Jin make her scar disappear? She had genuinely seen the scar with her own eyes!

Gu Qinghua kept looking at Shi Jin's face after Shi Jin came off the stage. She was starting to appear like an obsessed man.

"Watch your saliva.." Shi Jin pointed at Gu Qinghua's lips.

Chapter 166: Beauty Became Clearer With Comparison

Gu Qinghua hurriedly retrieved some tissue and wiped her mouth only to realize that Shi Jin was teasing her.

However, she did not get angry. Instead, she was very happy. If someone was pretty, people could not get enough of looking at them. Moreover, it was Shi Jin in question!

She was delighted by Shi Jin's good looks. This would come as a major slap on the anti-fans' faces. Other than the anti-fans, it was a slap on Deng Yufei's face as well.

Deng Yufei had used Mr Wang's connections to reappear on the program. For the sake of three minutes of airtime, she had put in a lot of effort to dress up to ensure she would make a stunning appearance.

However, before the show was even through, the news about Deng Yufei's good looks was overwhelmed by posts about Shi Jin's face.

She was genuinely pretty, so she used to think highly of herself and always felt she was as good as Shi Jin.

Before Shi Jin had shown her face, Deng Yufei attracted quite a wave of attention and a lot of people were blown away by her beauty. However, the good times lasted no more than 30 minutes.

The moment Shi Jin took off her mask, everyone stopped talking about Deng Yufei and turned their attention to Shi Jin.

Beauty became clearer with comparison. Without Shi Jin around, everyone truly thought Deng Yufei was incredibly talented and pretty, but Deng Yufei's beauty couldn't compete with Shi Jin the moment she showed her face.

People kept talking about it online.

[I thought Deng Yufei was rather pretty earlier. I don't know why I stopped feeling that way.]

Someone replied: [This is completely normal. If Shi Jin is considered a delicacy, Deng Yufei is just an ordinary dish. Would you still want to eat an ordinary dish after having a delicacy?]

Everyone felt the same way. Some people deeply regretted not voting for Shi Jin. Some people regretted casting all their votes on some other contestant.

Everyone looked at Shi Jin's picture as they started listening to all the songs she had performed on the program.

With a face like hers singing love songs to them, no one had the heart to do anything else but listen to her songs.

The online promotion Deng Yufei had prepared fizzled out completely before long.

Shi Jin proceeded to tag Deng Yufei on social media telling her to pay her copyright fees.

She listed all the songs Deng Yufei had plagiarized including the ten songs Deng Yufei had used on the program. All of these songs were major hits when they were performed before they gradually went under the radar after Deng Yufei was eliminated.

Shi Jin was in the spotlight tonight with all attention turning to her. However, the only thing she posted was a message to Deng Yufei leaving the public in a commotion.

Shi Jin did not say much, but simply posted the copyright information for all her songs.

After she was reborn, she registered all her work for copyright right after she married Fu Xiuyuan.

This meant she was able to produce copyright certificates for every single song Deng Yufei took from her.

The moment the news got out, everyone condemned Deng Yufei.

[Oh god. Has Deng Yufei been using Shi Jin all this time?]

[I was wondering why their styles were so similar. Initially, I simply thought they had similar music tastes because they were good friends. However, Deng Yufei turned out to be a thief!]

[First, she plagiarized Xia Peifeng's work. Now, she stole Shi Jin's songs as well! She is clearly a repeat offender!]

[Shi Jin was so nice about it and didn't expose her till now. She should have beaten up that woman ages ago!]

Chapter 167: He Did Not Believe Her

[Shi Jin probably didn't expose Deng Yufei so as not to put her in the limelight. If she exposed her at that time, it would only serve to create more hype for Deng Yufei!]

[Now that I think about it, Deng Yufei had planned this all along! She even deliberately walked into Shi Jin to make her mask fall off! She must have already known about Shi Jin's scar.]

[You are absolutely right! Even though she claimed to be best friends with Shi Jin, she was using her!]

[Deng Yufei, get out of the entertainment industry! There is no place in the industry for someone like you!]

Deng Yufei wanted to use the last episode of the program to gain standing in the entertainment industry using her good looks. She simply wanted to get more television appearances, commercial performances and use her old songs. Even if she could not reach the same heights as Shi Jin, she could at least make a living, but her dreams were completely crushed in an instant.

Mr Wang had just spoken to some small brands and got her some work, but they were all dashed.

She was invited to sing the ending theme song for a television drama, but they sent her a termination letter right away. After all, no one wanted to collaborate with someone like Deng Yufei at a time like this and damage their reputation.

.

***

Although Yao Jiahong knew Shi Jin was an incredible talent, he realized he had underestimated Shi Jin the moment he read the list of songs that Deng Yufei had stolen.

Initially, he felt Deng Yufei must have some talent as a composer, and it was just a moment's folly to plagiarize Xia Peifeng's work. However, from the looks of it now, all of Deng Yufei's best songs were written by Shi Jin.

Even though Deng Yufei had written a couple of original works during the program, they gave her the worst results and were the least well-known.

"Can you talk to Mr Wang about my copyright fees?" Shi Jin sent Yao Jiahong a copy of her copyright certificate.

Yao Jiahong said awkwardly, "Shi Jin, why didn't you tell me about this before?"

The moment he finished his sentence, he recalled Shi Jin telling him about this. However, he did not believe her.

Shi Jin said mildly, "If I charged Deng Yufei for plagiarism before this, I would only get tied to Chu Ling again and you know how much I hate him."

It was the best time to do it now that she was no longer connected to Chu Ling and Deng Yufei in any way. This way, her charges would come off more powerful.

A wave of regret surged in Yao Jiahong's chest. Shi Jin had suffered so much because of his past disinterest in her.

Shi Jin only came in second because he did not do his job to help her.

Moments later, he suppressed his regret and said, "I will talk to Mr Wang about it."

There was a lot of work waiting for him.

Shi Jin only came in second and received less prize money and brand ambassadorship deals from the Sheng family than Wen Yongwei. However, the number of brands calling Yao Jiahong on their own accord offering brand ambassadorship deals was three times more than Wen Yongwei's.

Yao Jiahong had to go through all the offers and compare their prices to maximize Shi Jin's career growth.

***

Shi Jin got off the huge van and got into Fu Xiuyuan's car.

He looked at Shi Jin with admiration and encircled her with his warm embrace.

All the chaos going on outside got cut off by his powerful hug.

Fu Xiuyuan had watched the live program tonight. He almost wanted to handle the production team for treating Shi Jin unfairly during the voting segment.

Chapter 168: She Was Perfect, So They Were Not Fit To Judge Her

However, Shi Jin told him not to do anything, so he held back.

His woman was extraordinary and did not need any validation or judgment from anyone else. She was perfect, so they were not fit to judge her.

***

Shi Jin's life had gone back to normal the next day while Wen Yongwei was busy dealing with interviews

She wanted more time for herself today, so Yao Jiahong pushed away as many activities as possible and gave her as much time as she needed. He was doing his best to make up for his past mistakes.

Yao Jiahong was one of the best talent agents out there, so he was capable of turning down work from the film crew, the Sheng family, and the media without offending anyone.

It was one of the reasons Shi Jin had insisted on keeping him around as her talent agent.

Shi Jin needed to follow up on Fu Heyan today, so she had to set aside some time for the task..

She disguised herself as Si Jin and entered the hospital without a hitch.

The nurse smiled as she said, "Hi, Dr Si. Miss Fu is still asleep."

"Is she unwell?" asked Shi Jin.

Fu Heyan was usually already awake at this hour and would even do some exercise and had a lot of self-discipline.

"Well, she isn't unwell. She simply stayed up too late watching TV last night." The nurse laughed as she continued, "I don't know who she was voting for, but she asked me to borrow a lot of phones and was up watching 'Ultimate Singer-Songwriter'. She ended up so angry that she couldn't sleep last night. She even woke up in the middle of the night to check social media and wanted to argue with the anti-fans."

It did not cross Shi Jin's mind who Fu Heyan was voting for. She simply nodded. "Then let me know when she wakes up."

"Yes, Dr Si."

Since she was Fu Heyan's private nurse, she had a lot of time on her hands now that Fu Heyan was asleep, so she tapped on a video and started watching it engrossingly as she muttered, "Shi Jin is so cool! I wonder if she likes girls!"

Shi Jin's lips twitched when she realized the nurse was watching a video of her from last night.

"Don't let Miss and Mr Fu hear that."

The nurse asked quizzically, "Why not?"

"Miss Fu doesn't like Shi Jin and Mr Fu doesn't like lesbians," said Shi Jin with a straight face.

The first line was true. As for the second line, she simply made it up. If Fu Xiuyuan heard what the nurse said, he would get jealous. The moment he got jealous, the hospital was dead meat.

"Oh, I see." The nurse hurriedly covered her mouth. She was simply too careless. "Thanks for telling me, Dr Si."

Fu Heyan did not sleep in for long since she knew that Shi Jin was coming today.

Shi Jin only sat for a short while before Fu Heyan came out after washing up. She smiled at Shi Jin. "Hi, Dr. Si!"

"Hi, Miss Fu." Shi Jin walked over.

The moment Fu Heyan yawned, Shi Jin got annoyed. "Miss Fu, if you want to recover, you can't stay up late."

"I had to vote for Shi Jin and defend her against her anti-fans," blurted Fu Heyan.

Shi Jin thought she had heard wrongly. What did Fu Heyan just say?

Since Fu Heyan was a grown-up, she instantly felt embarrassed for chasing celebrities, so she quickly said, "I won't do it next time."

After all, the competition was over.

Shi Jin did not continue probing and started to examine her injury.

Fu Heyan's wound was recovering well but staying up late to watch the program and fighting the anti-fans had taken its toll to a certain degree.

Chapter 169: No Way On Earth She Would Believe Him

Shi Jin looked at Fu Heyan coldly as she reiterated the things Fu Heyan had to watch out for if she wanted to recover completely.

"Jin, I'm so sorry. It won't happen again," promised Fu Heyan weakly.

Fu Heyan was older to begin with and not the apologetic sort, so Shi Jin could not bring herself to get angry the moment she apologized. Shi Jin simply said, "Well, this is your body, so you have to be careful."

"Uh huh. You are right. I will watch out from now on."

Fu Heyan was so attracted by Shi Jin's stage performance that she stayed up all night.

First, she borrowed phones to vote for Shi Jin, then she stomped in anger when Kang Cheng was unfair to Shi Jin..

She could not resist mocking Deng Yufei when Shi Jin eventually surpassed her in terms of looks.

She had unknowingly taken Shi Jin so seriously and kept following her. However, she refused to admit how much she liked Shi Jin and did not even let the nurse know who she was voting for.

She was unable to accept Shi Jin in reality, so she had segregated Shi Jin's identity as a singer from Shi Jin in reality.

"Then get some rest. You are lucky everything's okay. I'm off." Shi Jin got up and said goodbye.

She walked out and saw Fu Xiuyuan walking over. She automatically smiled and strode over towards him.

"Why did you come over by yourself today?"

"Your assistant said you had an early meeting, so I didn't want to get in your way."

Fu Xiuyuan held her hand as he whispered to her.

Fu Heyan recalled the gift she had bought for Si Jin, so she came chasing after her.

The moment she came out, she caught sight of Fu Xiuyuan talking to Si Jin.

Although the two of them did not appear close, she could detect an amicable atmosphere between them. It was clear that Fu Xiuyuan liked her.

Fu Heyan opened her mouth wide and was incapable of closing it as she took in everything in shock.

It was probably normal for Si Jin to be friendly, but the same could not be said of Fu Xiuyuan. She recalled Fu Xiuyuan being aloof and disinterested in girls ever since they were children.

He could forcibly be slightly more polite towards a small number of daughters of family friends. However, it was barely considered friendly terms. Also, he looked happy and there was a light in his eyes and he clearly liked Si Jin.

In the past, she had only caught him looking at Shi Jin this way.

Judging from the way he looked at Si Jin now, he looked a lot more affectionate than he did when he looked at Shi Jin.

After all, he had lost his temper and hope more often with Shi Jin than he spent time looking at her affectionately.

"Erm..." Although Fu Heyan liked Si Jin a lot, she felt puzzled when she witnessed their interaction.

She reflected on herself and wondered if she made a mistake about matchmaking them. Was she wrong about them?

Moments later, she finally went back to her room. Despite the high chance that Fu Xiuyuan would blow up for interrupting him, she called him and said, "Xiuyuan, can you come over to my room? By yourself, please."

After Fu Heyan hung up, she composed herself as she waited for Fu Xiuyuan to come over.

Fu Xiuyuan walked over a few minutes later.

There was something amiss with the atmosphere in the hospital ward. Fu Heyan had a solemn expression on her face as complicated emotions ran through her heart. She seemed to be wrapped in deep thought.

"Big Sis." Fu Xiuyuan walked up beside her.

"Xiuyuan, how is Shi Jin treating you these days?"

"She's very good to me."

Very good to him? There was no way on earth Fu Heyan would believe that!

Chapter 170: Such An Obedient Fu Xiuyuan

In the past, he would defend Shi Jin and say she was good to him even if Shi Jin was holding a knife to his throat. Now that he had changed his words from "good" to "very good", did it mean Shi Jin was holding an even bigger knife to his throat?

Moreover, Shi Jin had been appearing on the entertainment program. How could she have the time to be good to Fu Xiuyuan if she was busy rehearsing and writing music?

Fu Heyan asked, "What about you and Dr Si? Are you dating?"

Fu Xiuyuan knew Dr Si was Shi Jin. However, Shi Jin had kept the truth about Dr Si's true identity hidden so that Fu Heyan would not get upset during treatment. He pursed his thin lips slightly.

Fu Heyan thought Fu Xiuyuan was in a dilemma about who to date and could not help feeling sorry for him. She said profoundly, "If you really like Dr Si, then you should tell Shi Jin about it as soon as possible and make a clean break. Don't end up breaking both their hearts."

Fu Xiuyuan clenched his fists slightly as he cleared his throat softly.

.

"It was my fault for introducing Dr Si to you before you had broken up with Shi Jin. I have done injustice to all three of you." Fu Heyan did not expect Fu Xiuyuan to fall for Dr Si so quickly. She was just as shocked herself. "I should have given you some time to break up with Shi Jin properly before you started seeing someone else. Otherwise, it is equally unfair for Dr Si and Shi Jin."

"Are you defending Shi Jin?"

Fu Heyan kept a straight face as she spoke, "Even if it weren't Shi Jin, it is wrong for men to two-time women! If you like someone, you have to be absolutely loyal."

"Okay." Fu Xiuyuan nodded his head in agreement.

Fu Heyan felt happy. It had been a long time since Fu Xiuyuan was so obedient. The two of them always argued because of Shi Jin and it had really taken a toll on their relationship over time.

***

Shi Jin was waiting for Fu Xiuyuan outside. He was clearly in a good mood when he came out.

She knew that Fu Xiuyuan and Fu Heyan were very close, so she felt equally happy to see them on good terms.

In her past life, Fu Heyan was unable to bounce back after hurting her hand. She kept arguing with Fu Xiuyuan about Shi Jin. Fu Heyan spent over ten years living in depression and eventually ruined her life and career.

Fu Xiuyuan suffered just as much. Even after Shi Jin had left and Fu Xiuyuan spent years in agony, he continued to quietly protect her so that she could live in peace despite all her troubles.

Shi Jin pulled Fu Xiuyuan's arm the moment she thought about this and said gently, "Honey, why don't we go on a date? We haven't been together for almost half a month because of the competition."

"Okay." Even though Fu Xiuyuan spoke softly, he was clearly happy.

The two of them went into the mall wearing masks after the little incident that transpired on their last date.

Even though they had nothing to buy, the two of them felt very happy just quietly walking around together.

A silhouette could be seen hiding in the corner. Her hair was a mess, her face was haggard and all her radiance was long gone.

It was none other than Deng Yufei as she stood in the corner desperately.

News about Shi Jin demanding copyright fees had already spread like wildfire throughout the industry. There was no saving her reputation now.

Everyone had come to know that all her other songs were stolen from Shi Jin, so people kept ridiculing her. Naturally, she had to fork out the copyright fees.

Mr Wang had already compensated Xia Peifeng a sum of money owing to the previous plagiarism incident.

Chapter 171: You Are?

Xia Peifeng was after Chu Ling and not her, so she did not have to take a financial hit. However, there was no escape for her this time.

Deng Yufei had used far too many songs written by Shi Jin. She had used them to rise through the ranks on the program and had gained a lot of commercial advantage. Hence, she had to pay an astronomical sum of copyright fees. It was many times more than she ever earned as an artist during this time. Also, she would never be able to make this kind of money in her life.

Mr Wang was very angry and completely disappointed with Deng Yufei, so he signed her up for a lot of tasteless films and bad product ambassadorship deals so as to recoup his losses as soon as possible.

It was complete oppression and would eventually destroy her career as well.

Deng Yufei had escaped the filming location when she had the time. She did not know who else to turn to.. Her last lifeline was Chu Ling, but Chu Ling had already severed ties with her.

Just as she was anxiously trying to evade capture by Mr Wang's subordinates, she suddenly saw Fu Xiuyuan.

Although he was wearing a mask, Deng Yufei recognized him instantly since his face was emblazoned on her heart after secretly having a crush on him for years. She ran towards Fu Xiuyuan as though she had seen her savior and said imploringly, "Mr Fu!"

If Fu Xiuyuan was willing to help, her life would be completely different! She could not lose this golden opportunity!

"Mr Fu, you have to help me!" Deng Yufei cried as she implored Fu Xiuyuan to save her.

Fu Xiuyuan removed his mask and seemed aloof.

"You are?" asked Fu Xiuyuan. He genuinely did not recognize her.

He only had eyes for Shi Jin, so the rest of the women were simply categorized as Shi Jin's friends or complete strangers. Even though Deng Yufei kept coming to the villa, he was unable to remember her face.

Deng Yufei was startled when he could not remember her, so she said immediately, "I am Deng Yufei! I used to visit Repulse Bay Villa a lot. Can you help me, please?"

Fu Xiuyuan frowned slightly. He remembered someone who kept stealing Shi Jin's music and inflicted a lot of damage on Shi Jin and his relationship.

He asked, "What's wrong?"

Deng Yufei thought Fu Xiuyuan was showing concern and felt sorry for her. She was instantly delighted and promptly said, "I am completely cornered. Golden Domain Entertainment gave me so much work that even 24 hours a day isn't enough for me. They kept giving me bad assignments with very little money. My hair is falling off in clumps. Also, my face is reacting to all the bad makeup they used on me so I have almost been disfigured. After working in the day, I have to go for drinks with... Mr Fu, please help me!"

There were other things that she could not bring herself to say. Mr Wang would sleep with her and make her drink and have sex with other people. She kept sleeping with old men to help get resources for other artists in her company.

Her life was in complete chaos. However, she did not dare to tell Fu Xiuyuan. She was afraid he would dislike her because of it.

An eerie look of satisfaction seemed to appear on Fu Xiuyuan's face after he heard Deng Yufei and there was even a smile on his face.

Just when Deng Yufei thought there was hope, Fu Xiuyuan finally said, "That's good."

Anyone who offended Shi Jin deserved this end.

The moment Fu Xiuyuan finished his sentence, he turned to leave without batting an eye at her.

Deng Yufei wanted to chase after Fu Xiuyuan, but his bodyguards had already stepped forward to stop her.

Chapter 172: You Did This To Me Deliberately!

It was impossible for the bodyguards to let Deng Yufei even come close to Fu Xiuyuan.

Fu Xiuyuan asked Shi Jin softly, "What flavor do you want?"

"Same as you," said Shi Jin. "Why don't you queue first? I need to use the bathroom."

She went into the bathroom to remove her wig and makeup before she finally walked towards Deng Yufei.

Deng Yufei lost all hope. Now that Fu Xiuyuan had refused to help, she had no one else to turn to.

Mr Wang's subordinates would find her before long and drag her back. She had signed the contract with her own hands and bound her career and future with Golden Domain Entertainment and Mr Wang.

Shi Jin was here to witness Deng Yufei as she lost all hope..

In her past life, Deng Yufei had stood towering over her when she lost all hope and kept ridiculing her

Shi Jin had signed a contract with Mr Wang in her past life. Thanks to Shi Jin's scar, she was able to escape the fate of drinking and sleeping with Mr Wang. However, Mr Wang oppressed her by squeezing her for music and making her take on brand ambassador deals with her mask on. Just when Shi Jin needed a friend, Deng Yufei hit her when she was down.

The moment Shi Jin appeared, Deng Yufei wept as she said, "Shi Jin! Help me! Mr Wang is killing me! Can you please help me since we used to be best friends?"

"Best friends?" Shi Jin smiled. "Does a best friend sabotage you for hype? Would she steal your songs? Would they try to steal your thunder? Would they try to introduce you to the likes of Golden Domain Entertainment?"

Deng Yufei recalled how Mr Wang planned on signing Shi Jin. However, she was tempted by what Mr Wang could offer her and ended up signing with him. From then on, everything changed. Nothing went as planned and things even went in the opposite direction.

"It was you! You deliberately made me sign the contract with Mr Wang. You purposely showed him your ugly face so that he would pick me!" Deng Yufei finally caught on to Shi Jin's true intentions and realized that she had already fallen into Shi Jin's trap.

Shi Jin smiled calmly. "Yes, it was me. I was the one who encouraged you to sign with Mr Wang. Didn't you say we were best friends? Since you were so nice to introduce Mr Wang to me, I naturally had to return the favor, right?"

Deng Yufei trembled as she looked at Shi Jin murderously. "Shi Jin, you sabotaged me! You did it on purpose! You were out to get me! You knew what Mr Wang was like, but you pushed me into hell!"

"In that case, why don't you tell everyone what happened? You are free to tell them what I did... While you are at it, perhaps you can tell them what you did as well." Shi Jin looked at Deng Yufei coldly.

Deng Yufei sat squarely on the ground.

How could she tell people about it? She was the one who contacted Mr Wang first. Also, she kept going in and out of Golden Domain Entertainment!

Deng Yufei had wanted to make Shi Jin sign with Mr Wang and helped to make it happen! Shi Jin merely failed to fall for Deng Yufei's ruse!

She was too shortsighted and fell for it the moment she stood to gain something.

Deng Yufei got up from the ground and charged towards Shi Jin. "Shi Jin, you did this to me! I'm going to kill you! I am going to finish you off!"

Shi Jin stood without moving a muscle as she looked at Deng Yufei calmly.

Mr Wang's subordinates had found them. The moment they caught sight of Deng Yufei, they ran over, grabbed her, and pinned her onto the ground firmly. They dragged her off as they said, "We found her. We are taking her back now!"

Chapter 173: This Must Be Retribution

Deng Yufei suddenly laughed loudly. "Shi Jin, Fu Xiuyuan already has a new girlfriend! I saw her with my own eyes! So what if you manage to get me? I sabotaged your relationship with Fu Xiuyuan, but you walked right into my trap like an idiot and broke up with him anyway! Hahaha! No matter how good you are, your ending is equally bad!"

She recalled Fu Xiuyuan holding some other girl's hand earlier and they seemed rather close, so there was no chance for Shi Jin! Never again!

Shi Jin was wearing a mask as she emotionlessly watched Mr Wang's subordinates drag Deng Yufei away.

Deng Yufei was in the dark about Shi Jin's identity, but she could not be bothered to explain. This woman did not deserve an explanation from Shi Jin and was unfit to know about her life.

She watched as they dragged Deng Yufei away like a dead dog until she disappeared into the distance before she veered her eyes.

She could sense a familiar gaze on her, so she glanced in his direction. Fu Xiuyuan was coming towards her with two cups of milk tea.

In her past life, Deng Yufei came over to gloat when Shi Jin was stuck with Golden Domain Entertainment. However, Fu Xiuyuan strode over to drive Deng Yufei away and gave the desperate Shi Jin some sense of warmth..

However, she was too stupid back then and continued pushing him away.

In hindsight, Shi Jin probably did not entirely hate Fu Xiuyuan by that time. Instead, it was simply a matter of pride that made it impossible for her to accept Fu Xiuyuan since she had already rejected him countless times. Fortunately, she would not pass on him in this life.

She smiled as she headed towards Fu Xiuyuan and reached her hand out to take a cup of milk tea looking gorgeous when she smiled. They kept chatting as they walked into the distance.

***

After "Ultimate Singer-Songwriter' was over, there were a few concerts to go. The top 15 contestants were all invited to perform other than Deng Yufei.

Naturally, the top three contestants would get to perform the most.

Wen Yongwei and Shi Jin were the main events.

Even though Shi Jin was the second last performer, everyone treated her as though she was the finale. Everyone cheered thunderously as they chanted her name and made the atmosphere absolutely climatic.

After she was done singing two songs, everyone kept shouting for her to come back. "Encore! Encore!"

Wen Yongwei was the finale, but she was not as well-received as Shi Jin when she appeared on the stage.

All the other contestants were getting interviewed when Shi Jin went backstage. Based on each contestants' popularity, an interview would be conducted by a news media outlet of equal standing. However, Shi Jin said she was busy and left.

Yao Jiahong did not even stop to ask where she was going and simply took care of the reporters the moment he heard this.

Xia Peifeng wanted to come in with the reporters to see Shi Jin, but she was gone, so he instantly looked annoyed.

Xia Peifeng had snatched up the tickets the moment they were available. He had to suffer watching all the other contestants perform before he could hear Shi Jin sing. The moment the concert ended, he learned that Shi Jin had bailed on the reporters.

He pulled down his cap and said nothing as he covered his face up.

Perhaps this was retribution for mocking Shi Jin in the past! He had already failed to see Shi Jin after several tries, but the more this happened, the more he wanted to see her.

Chapter 174: She Is Just Using Her Looks And Won't Go Far In Life

Shi Jin was completely oblivious to everything and was entirely focused on her personal matters.

Shi Jin had stolen Wen Yongwei's limelight during the first performance together. So since she was clearly not as popular, she was a little anxious.

Kang Cheng comforted her, "Don't worry. Shi Jin is just using her looks and won't go far in life. Women who use their good looks to win favor are destined to lose it in old age."

Since Kang Cheng worked for Diamond Music and used to be key staff in the company, he was good at producing music and grooming new artists.

This time, he quickly replaced Wen Yongwei's original talent agent and became Wen Yongwei's full-time talent agent after the competition.

Wen Yongwei smiled. "You definitely make sense.."

"I will quickly make an announcement about your enrollment in Hamilton Music Academy," said Kang Cheng.

Before long, Kang Cheng posted Wen Yongwei's future plans on social media.

[After coming in champion for "Ultimate Singer-Songwriter", Wen Yongwei won a three year placement at Hamilton Music Academy. Since she has yet to finish her college entrance exam and is only 18 years old, we have discussed it with the academy and they have agreed to send a teacher to Country S to tutor her!]

Wen Yongwei's fans went into a commotion when they saw the post.

[I thought I wouldn't get to see her for three years. Now I suddenly hear such good news!]

[Wen Yongwei is awesome. I can't believe Hamilton Music Academy made an exception for her and sent a teacher over to tutor her personally! She is probably the only person in the entertainment industry to enjoy such honor!]

[Little Rose earned it!]

[I hope Little Rose studies hard and writes even better songs for us in the future.]

This was exactly the effect Kang Cheng was hoping for.

Sheng Shuangnan felt dejected about not signing Shi Jin after the competition, so he lost interest entirely and left the rest of the work for Kang Cheng to take care of.

Kang Cheng naturally did not want Wen Yongwei to be stuck in school for three years the moment she entered the entertainment industry. Who would still remember her in three years?

He wanted to use this opportunity to establish her reputation. As for school, she could always find time to study for it.

Old Master Sheng was the one who first invested in the program. However, Old Master Sheng took ill shortly after the program started airing. Since he was stuck in the hospital recuperating, no one was around to stop Kang Cheng.

As Wen Yongwei basked in glory, Kang Cheng chased Shi Jin to make her way to Hamilton Music Academy as soon as possible.

Shi Jin came in second, so she got to attend the academy for a year. However, she would only get to sit in and this could not compare to the three years' worth of complete enrollment Wen Yongwei would get.

Yao Jiahong replied, "Shi Jin already has plans. She won't be able to stay in France for so long, so we communicated with Hamilton Music Academy and agreed that she doesn't have to go personally."

Kang Cheng was caught by surprise. "Have you spoken to the Hamilton Music Academy representative? Why didn't I know about this?"

"Shi Jin knows someone from the academy, so she has already communicated with them." Yao Jiahong only came to know this from Shi Jin after she had already taken care of it.

In the past, he would never have believed her. Shi Jin had trouble even getting past her senior year. How could she possibly convince the academy to make an exception?

Chapter 175: Mimicking Her With A Ludicrous Effect

However, now, no matter what Shi Jin said, Yao Jiahong trusted her unquestioningly and did exactly as she asked.

Yao Jiahong might trust Shi Jin, but the same could not be said of Kang Cheng.

Kang Cheng smiled as he shook his head. "Jiahong, I know none of the contestants really want to go to school. After all, it is uncertain how much knowledge she can come back with after studying for a year, but we all know how much work she will stand to lose out on. I get it if Shi Jin doesn't want to go, so you can talk to me about it. However, if you insist that Shi Jin is acquainted with someone from the academy, I must stop you right there. You shouldn't talk big. If the reporters caught wind of what you just said, they are going to make a big deal of it. Things could turn out really bad for Shi Jin."

"Shi Jin said she did, so she did." Yao Jiahong was instantly protective of her.. "We will also make an announcement regarding the matter."

"Fine. As you wish," said Kang Cheng nonchalantly.

If Shi Jin and Yao Jiahong were feeling suicidal, he was not about to stop them.

Before long, Yao Jiahong posted an announcement: [Shi Jin will not be going to Hamilton Music Academy. Instead, she will continue her studies locally and work will go on as per normal.]

A lot of anti-fans unexpectedly reacted after he posted the announcement.

The top three contestants had the opportunity to study at the prestigious Hamilton Music Academy, but everyone kept turning down the offer, so people kept talking about it.

To begin with, the public always had a lot to say about artists in the entertainment industry who were not educated enough. Some artists were so uneducated that they were incapable of using idioms fluently and it was a widespread problem.

Now, Shi Jin had the opportunity to further her studies, but she decided to give up on it. A lot of people felt she was giving up her placement at the academy so that she could make more money.

[I heard Wen Yongwei is a model student and is now a senior. She is planning on taking the local exam before going abroad to study. I think her choice completely makes sense. As for Shi Jin, she came in at the bottom at school all the time. How could she compare to Wen Yongwei? I think she is simply giving up on Hamilton Music Academy and even her local studies altogether.]

[That's right. The academy sent a teacher to come over to tutor Wen Yongwei. What about Shi Jin? She probably posted this announcement so that she could get away from studying!]

[Sigh. How can you expect our local celebrities to care about studying? All they want to do is make a quick buck.]

[Did Shi Jin really write those songs herself?]

[I heard she was swapped at birth and isn't really from a rich family. If even her identity is fake, what else can you expect from her?]

Shi Jin's fans quickly defended her online.

[Shi Jin was able to produce all the copyright certificates for her music. Didn't you see the name appearing on the copyright certificates?]

[Shi Jin might not be good at school, but that doesn't make her a bad songwriter. Are you an all-rounder?]

[Why do you cheer for Wen Yongwei when she made the choice, but say Shi Jin is wrong for doing the same? How could you have such double standards?]

Someone replied to Shi Jin's fans immediately: [Wen Yongwei is an excellent student to begin with. Didn't you hear about Hamilton Music Academy sending a teacher to tutor her? I admit Shi Jin is pretty and has great vocals. However, by saying she isn't going to the academy just like Wen Yongwei, Shi Jin is simply mimicking Wen Yongwei with a ludicrous effect.]

Chapter 176: Are You Anti-fans Living In The Stone Age?

People were simply judgemental about Shi Jin.

Shi Jin was swapped at birth and didn't belong to a rich family. Also, she was academically unaccomplished. From the anti-fans' perspective, Shi Jin could not compare to Wen Yongwei. Wen Yongwei was a beautiful, talented girl from a rich family, so people liked her a lot.

Kang Cheng shook his head when he saw this farce going on online. "I don't know what Yao Jiahong is thinking. How did he become a top talent agent? Doesn't he know what kind of effects this post will have on Shi Jin? How could he fall for Shi Jin's lies? How could she be acquainted with someone from Hamilton Music Academy?"

Just as the public was in a furor about this, Prof Pence from Hamilton Music Academy unexpectedly created a local social media account!

Prof Pence always kept a low profile and rarely even showed up in public considering his status, let alone creating a social media account on a foreign social media platform.

On any other occasion, he would not have attracted so much attention by creating a new social media account, but now that Hamilton Music Academy was the talk of the town, his actions instantly made him a hot topic online and people kept talking about it.

.

Most of the people who left comments were fans of Wen Yongwei.

[Glad you signed up for a Weibo account, Prof Pence! ]

[Welcome to Weibo! You must have set up an account for Wen Yongwei, right?]

[Little Rose, check out your professor's account!]

[Wow! I am witnessing history in the making here. Little Rose has just followed Prof Pence's social media account!]

[I am super happy! Does this mean we will get to see Prof Pence teaching Little Rose from now on?]

[Prof Pence, you have yet to follow Little Rose's social media account. Maybe you are still unfamiliar with social media functions. Here are some screenshots if you need help. Just follow the instructions to follow her account!]

Shi Jin's fans genuinely felt a little demoralized. Since Shi Jin was still in the news for not attending the academy in France, they did not bother to make any comments for now.

The anti-fans naturally pounced on the opportunity to diss Shi Jin.

Just as Wen Yongwei and Shi Jin's fans were arguing online, everyone noticed Prof Pence following Shi Jin's social media account!

Everyone saw Little Stone's name showing up on the list of followed accounts on Prof Pence's social media homepage.

[Is the professor mistaken?]

[It is normal for foreigners to have face blindness towards Asians!]

[Prof Pence, Wen Yongwei's social media account is here!]

Moments later, Prof Pence made a post on social media with the academy and Shi Jin tagged to it: [Hamilton Music Academy has already come to an amicable agreement with Shi Jin for her to take online classes. Thank you for your concern.]

Hamilton Music Academy's official social media account reposted it with Shi Jin tagged to it.

What?

It was a real slap on the anti-fans' faces. Wen Yongwei's fans were equally speechless.

Everyone rubbed their eyes speechlessly. Online classes were common these days, so it was nothing new. Prof Pence had confirmed that Shi Jin and the academy had come to an amicable agreement about studying online. What else could the naysayers say now?

Shi Jin's fans finally caught on to the dramatic turn of events! Shi Jin was eager to study and was not a disappointment. She simply chose to study online.

[Hahahaha! Are you anti-fans living in the stone age? Do you need a lesson about online classes?]

[Shi Jin has already made an arrangement with the academy, so mind your business you nosey parkers.]

Chapter 177: Only Followed Shi Jin

[Little Stone has been a diligent student all this time. Now that Prof Pence has posted this. Do you anti-fans like the taste of eating your own words?]

[What were you anti-fans saying earlier? I dare you to say it now! Let's have at it! Come on!]

The anti-fans were still in denial.

[How could Prof Pence register for a social media account for the sake of Shi Jin? He must have done it for Wen Yongwei!]

A long while later, Prof Pence still did not follow anyone else other than Shi Jin.

After the night had passed, Shi Jin was still the only person he followed.

[Haha! I'm dying here! Prof Pence still hasn't followed Wen Yongwei's social media account!]

[I'm really curious. When is Prof Pence going to follow Wen Yongwei?]

[This is killing me.. Wen Yongwei was the first to follow Prof Pence's social media account, but he couldn't be bothered talking to her!]

The anti-fans were slapped on the face.

Kang Cheng could not believe his eyes either. Had Shi Jin genuinely spoken to the school about taking online classes? Then again, Yao Jiahong probably pulled this off using his connections. However, there was still some difference between online classes and tutoring in person. The effects of getting personally tutored were naturally better.

Kang Cheng was completely unflustered.

Wen Yongwei felt a little awkward, but she did not lose her cool either.

Now that the furor online was quelled, Yao Jiahong finally felt better.

Shi Jin's classes were held at night owing to the time difference.

Yao Jiahong wanted to watch Shi Jin study and see if there was anything he could do to help, so he went to Lanting Residence.

"Do you want to join my class?" Shi Jin sounded uncertain. Did he have nothing to do recently? Why did he seem so free of late?

"May I?" Yao Jiahong sounded serious and imploring as he asked in a polite tone.

"Fine. Fortunately, Xiuyuan isn't around," muttered Shi Jin.

Yao Jiahong felt relieved when she agreed.

Shi Jin went upstairs first and told him to come up later.

Yao Jiahong calmly drank some tea before heading upstairs.

Shi Jin had used an empty room for class and it had minimalistic decoration.

Yao Jiahong went in with a cup of tea and stood by the side to watch.

Two minutes later, Yao Jiahong's teacup nearly fell onto the ground. Even though the teacup did not fall onto the ground, some tea got spilled.

Shi Jin was not getting tutored online!

She was sitting in front of the computer screen teaching a group of blonde-haired Europeans with blue eyes, music in fluent French!

Was this Prof Pence's idea of coming up with an amicable agreement about giving online classes?

Yao Jiahong quickly cleaned up the mess on the ground before looking at Shi Jin with guilt and complicated emotions running through his heart.

The anti-fans were a bunch of pure idiots! No, correction. Even he was a fool!

***

Old Master Shi looked radiant after Shi Jin won the competition. He generously treated the medical staff at the hospital to lunch.

The moment he talked about Shi Jin, even his wrinkles diminished.

The doctors were examining him when he promoted Shi Jin once more. "Shi Jin was always talented. I single-handedly brought her up, so I know how gifted she is."

The doctors and nurses were rather curious to hear more, so they listened excitedly to Old Master Shi.

"Grandpa," greeted Shi Jin as she stood at the door.

The medical staff turned to see a young woman standing at the door. She glowed so brightly that it felt as though she was the sun.

The room was already brightly lit, but she was equally dazzling as she stood in the room.

Chapter 178: Sit In The Last Row

Old Master Shi said happily, "Come on in! Come right in!"

The medical staff was blown away by Shi Jin's beauty before they asked for leave.

Old Master Shi looked at her happily. "You must be exhausted from all the work, right? Why don't you spend a few days at home and have some rest? Tell your talent agent to come over so that I can talk to him about it."

Outsiders only cared about her level of success. Only the people who truly cared were concerned about how much rest she got.

Shi Jin smiled. "It's not too bad actually. I don't have to work that much."

"Is the talent agency holding you back?" Old Master Shi instantly sounded furious.

.

"Nope. My talent agent takes care of my assignments. He doesn't give me as much work." Shi Jin pressed her grandfather down and gestured for him not to get agitated.

"Okay then. That's good." Old Master Shi looked at her sadly before he finally said, "Shi Jin, why don't you go back to school?"

Old Master Shi cared a lot about her. Since she was genuinely not the Shi family's progeny, the rest of the family did not have feelings for her.

The entertainment industry was a very competitive trade. Old Master Shi was worried that life would be hard for Shi Jin without any proper education.

"Okay," agreed Shi Jin right away.

After she was reborn, she decided never to make the elders who loved her worried.

***

"It is best if you go back to school." Yu Xiuhua stood in front of Shi Jin and spoke calmly, "I will talk to this school and get them to make arrangements."

Although Shi Jin had performed well on "Ultimate Singer-Songwriter", Yu Xiuhua felt it was no big deal. She was just an artist in the entertainment industry. How could she compare to Shi Xuexin's piano skills and art?

"It's fine. My talent agent will talk to the school about it," said Shi Jin before turning to leave.

Yu Xiuhua watched from behind as she left. She felt completely livid. Shi Jin was such a rude child! She had raised Shi Jin for years. How could Shi Jin give her such attitude?

"Mom, since Shi Jin has a talent agent now, why don't you let her handle it on her own?" said Shi Xuexin. "Now that she is in the entertainment industry, how could she have the heart to study?"

Yu Xiuhua looked at her sensible daughter and said, "Then again, she doesn't belong to the family, so there is no need to care about her. I was simply saying it on account of your grandfather. Also, now that she is returning to school, you have to keep an eye on Chu Ling."

Shi Xuexin bit her lips slightly. Even though Chu Ling did not completely collapse from the plagiarism scandal, he was clearly depressed.

Shi Xuexin kept checking on him recently, so it helped to make them closer.

She was certain that Chu Ling was in love with her, but she was afraid Shi Jin would put her efforts to waste after going back to school.

Yu Xiuhua laughed after finishing her sentence. "Sigh. Look at how forgetful I am. You are already a university sophomore, but Shi Jin is still doing her second year at high school. How could she have the opportunity to fight with you over Chu Ling?"

Shi Xuexin finally felt a little better.

***

"I have gotten you changed to another class. You will get taken out of the tenth class and transferred to the fifth. Your teacher said you can get promoted to the third year as long as you pass every subject during the finals. No pressure," said Yao Jiahong. "Go on. It's almost time for class."

Although Kang Cheng was not happy about Shi Jin going back to school, he could not do anything about it.

Even though Shi Jin was not a Diamond Music artist, all the contestants had to work with Diamond Music and take part in all kinds of activities. After all, the Sheng family was the biggest investor for the program and had groomed them into what they were now.

Since Wen Yongwei had to go back to school as well, Kang Cheng could not say anything about Shi Jin's decision.

Shi Jin headed towards the fifth class with her backpack.

She was in Second High School and it was one of the best schools in town, so it placed great importance on the students' grades.

The students were sorted into A, B, C, and D grade classes. Shi Jin used to be in the tenth class and was a D level student.

The fifth class was considered B grade.

Yao Jiahong was behind this class transfer.

D grade students clearly lacked academic talent and were mostly lousy students. Shi Jin clearly was not good enough to be a B grade student. Considering her grades, she would get a lot of flack if she was transferred to the top classes.

Hence, he decided to get her placed in a mid-level class.

There were only three months to go before the final exam. Yao Jiahong was planning on finding Shi Jin some tutors to help with her grades.

The moment Shi Jin entered the school, all the students turned to look at her. They kept gossiping as they looked at her.

Most of the students were awestruck by her beauty. They never realized there was such a beauty attending Second High School.

"She is gorgeous!"

"Oh my god. After I went close to her, I realized she was not wearing makeup!"

"I must have been blind in the past. Why didn't I ever notice such a beauty in the school?"

Shi Jin was not wearing makeup. She was dressed in the Second High School uniform carrying a backpack.

Even though students did not look good in the uniform and the cut was always slightly off, it was perfect on her. It seemed as though the uniform was custom made for Shi Jin and the fit was so perfect that it felt as though she was on the runway.

"Do you think the uniform was custom made? I am sure the talent agency must have altered it for her!"

Shi Jin pretended to hear nothing as she continued walking.

The school teacher had given her the uniform and it was completely unaltered.

It was normal that people did not realize she attended this high school. In the past, she kept cutting class to follow Chu Ling while he was out at work. Sometimes, she wheedled her way into his television dramas to work as an extra. And whenever she was at school, she kept sleeping on the table.

Also, she was busy handling Fu Xiuyuan and trying to outwit him all the time. It was only natural that people rarely saw her face.

***

Shi Jin quickly went into class.

The homeroom teacher was a man in his forties called Shi Dawei. The moment he caught sight of Shi Jin, he looked annoyed.

He had painstakingly groomed the students and he stood a good chance of getting them promoted to A level students. With Shi Jin around, she was bound to hold them back.

Despite his repeated protests, he had to take Shi Jin as a student.

He raised his head and said, "The students are seated according to their results, so you belong in the last row."

Shi Jin walked over to the last row to find only one last seat right next to the trash can, brooms, and mops available and sat down.

Everyone kept following her every movement and turned their heads to follow her.

She was so radiant that the students could not help turning their heads.

Chapter 179: After All, He Was A Teacher

Shi Dawei almost vomited blood when he witnessed the sight.

He just knew Shi Jin spelled trouble! He knew that there would be no peace for his class, especially the boys!

He slammed the table hard. "What do you need to stand on your own two feet? As students, you need good grades. You need talent when you are out in society! How could you waste your time on shallow things all the time? Even if she looks good on the outside, it is all superficial, got it?"

Everyone in class burst out laughing.

Shi Jin opened her eyes and glanced at Shi Dawei.

Despite the calmness in her eyes, she looked completely emotionless giving Shi Dawei a slight shock. However, he never liked students like Shi Jin, so he continued, "As for the newly transferred students, even if you are not interested in studying, you should at least not affect the other students! Class will begin now!"

Everyone reluctantly turned their eyes away from her before they finally settled down and proceeded with class.

People kept furtively stealing a glance at her, but Shi Jin remained focused and paid no attention to them, so they veered their eyes after looking at her briefly..

Shi Jin opened her textbook and glanced through its contents. In her past life, she was academically inclined and was a model student. However, the moment she found out she was swapped at birth, she lost focus. She was just a 12 year old kid and was naturally unable to absorb this. Hence, she was gradually distracted from her studies and her grades declined badly.

She kept coming in last in class and kept repeating grade two classes in an effort to avoid getting married to Fu Xiuyuan.

In her past life, she secretly learned a lot of skills to help her court Chu Ling. After she was deceived, she regretted her actions deeply and tried to pick up her studies once more. However, she could not escape her fate in her past life.

After she opened the textbooks, memories flooded her head and all the questions were summoned to mind.

She flipped open a test paper as Shi Dawei went on with class and quickly finished it. After she was done answering the test, she checked her answers and confirmed she had gotten everything right.

Shi Jin smiled.

Shi Dawei slammed the table hard when he caught sight of Shi Jin doing something else. "Shi Jin, this isn't the entertainment industry and this isn't your stage! Put aside your coquettish behavior this instant. If you are interested in my class, you are welcome to listen. Otherwise, get out!"

Although he was unable to stop the principal from transferring Shi Jin to his class, he was certainly able to throw his temper on Shi Jin.

Shi Jin stood up and said, "In that case, I will leave!"

"You! How dare you leave!" Shi Dawei was infuriated.

"Didn't you tell me to leave?"

"Very well! Then don't bother coming to my class from now on!"

Shi Jin smiled. "As you wish!"

The second year students had never encountered anything as exciting as this. They were so blown away by Shi Jin's words that their legs turned soft as they slammed the table and went into a commotion.

Shi Dawei looked livid. Moments later, he finally got a handle on things.

After class finally ended, the students from the other classes swarmed over to see Shi Jin face-off Shi Dawei.

Shi Dawei stormed into the principal's office angrily. There was no way on earth Shi Jin could remain in his class!

He was so angry that he barged right in without even knocking and saw Principal Lu and Shi Jin chatting inside.

"Principal Lu, Shi Jin can't stay in my class!"

"Oh? Why so?" asked Principal Lu.

Shi Dawei was furious. "The school is a place for learning, but Shi Jin isn't here to study! People like her will just lead the other students astray. We have to be fair to the other students!"

"Mr Shi, I told you. Shi Jin is really serious about studying. Also, her test results turned out well." Principal Lu had communicated with Yao Jiahong and Shi Jin previously and felt very impressed when he found out how serious Shi Jin was about studying.

"Turned out well?" Shi Dawei found this unbelievable.

She kept flunking her sophomore year. How could she be capable of having good grades?

He glanced at Principal Lu before looking at Shi Jin. Some men got obsessed with beautiful women and even Principal Lu fell prey to her!

This was giving the school a bad reputation.

Principal Lu could tell what Shi Dawei was thinking, so he suppressed his anger as he said, "Don't worry. Shi Jin has already requested to get promoted to third year. I will arrange for her to take the test as soon as possible."

Shi Dawei was stunned. Did Shi Jin want to skip the second grade and move on to the third grade? Did she know that the college entrance exams were due in two months? She must be dreaming!

"That would be best! I don't care where she goes as long as she does not hang around and affect my students," said Shi Dawei harshly.

Principal Lu secretly shook his head and said nothing.

***

Shi Jin was in the hospital feeding Old Master Shi porridge.

His eyes were much better, but he remained weak after all the operations and medication he had to take.

Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin happened to walk right in.

Yu Xiuhua said, "Shi Jin, why don't you let us feed him? Now that you are finally here, I don't want you getting exhausted from taking care of him."

She was clearly implying Shi Jin never visited Old Master Shi.

Old Master Shi sneered, "This is nothing. How could Shi Jin get tired from feeding me?"

He knew best who cared about him and visited him the most.

Yu Xiuhua awkwardly took a step back after Old Master Shi saw right through her schemes. She poured a glass of water and eventually said, "I heard Shi Jin has already gone back to school. Since she was held up for such a long time, it is only natural that she is unable to keep up with the pace. Why don't you let Xuexin help you with your studies? Although she is a uni sophomore, I am sure she still remembers what she learned in high school, right?"

"Uh huh. I still remember my high school work." Shi Xuexin nodded gently.

Although Old Master Shi did not like Yu Xiuhua much, he was impressed by Shi Xuexin. He looked at Shi Jin and waited for her to answer, but noticed the mild expression on her face and quickly said, "I am sure the teachers are able to help Shi Jin just fine, so there is no need to trouble Xuexin. Xuexin can focus on her school."

"I heard Mr Shi threw a temper at Shi Jin today. Shi Jin, even if Mr Shi did anything wrong, you should be more patient. After all, he is your teacher," said Yu Xiuhua enthusiastically to ensure Old Master Shi knew about Shi Jin's situation at school.

Old Master Shi said protectively, "If the teacher has to scold Shi Jin, he must be in the wrong. I am tired, so you two can leave."

Yu Xiuhua had barely started the conversation when Old Master Shi pretended to be exhausted and told them to leave. Even though she felt embarrassed, she said, "In that case, you should get some rest. We will come back another time."

After Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin walked out of the hospital ward, Yu Xiuhua felt annoyed.

Shi Xuexin said, "Mom, don't be mad. Isn't it better if we leave Shi Jin to her own devices?'

Chapter 180: Already Finished The Exam

"I just can't stand your grandfather. Even though Shi Jin is awful, he remains protective of her. Is Shi Jin an idiot or something? You were the top humanities scholar in the city and scored over 680 points. If you just helped her a little, it would be such a boon. I am sure she would have no problem getting placement in a university. How could she reject our kind intentions!"

"Perhaps she still doesn't like me."

"What gives her the right? I was just worried that if she could not make it into university, your grandfather would keep spending money to get her a spot."

Shi Xuexin thought about Shi Jin's poor attitude towards her and felt it was fine.

The worse Shi Jin became, the less she would have the chance of outshining Shi Xuexin.

***

After Wen Yongwei got back to school, she started preparing for her exams.. However, Shi Jin got into an argument with her teacher after resuming her studies.

The moment word got out, it was impossible to suppress it.

Everyone kept talking about how Shi Jin intended on skipping a grade and getting into the third grade.

Wen Yongwei was from the First High School and it had been in direct competition with Second High School for years. Each year, they would come in neck in neck as the top and second high schools in the city.

Even the students were privately competitive towards each other.

To begin with, Second High School had more students making it into elite universities last year, so First High School was determined to outdo it. So how could they pass up on the opportunity to mock them now that the chance was presented to them?

"First High School has all-rounded straight-A students like Wen Yongwei, but Second High School only has strange students. No wonder even their school is called second and not the first!"

"How could someone who keeps scoring zero even think about skipping a grade and getting promoted to third grade? Does she even want to take the college entrance exam? She is clearly taking the back door. Has she even paid her way into getting a placement at a university?"

"Second High School is so unfair. What is the principal doing?"

"He must have made the test easy for Shi Jin. If Shi Jin manages to pass the test and gets promoted to the third grade, I will lodge a complaint about this!"

"First High School probably feels threatened by Wen Yongwei from Second High School, so they are allowing Shi Jin to get promoted!"

The test paper was brought over to Shi Jin amid the furor.

Principal Lu came over with the third year English teacher, Miss Ji.

Miss Ji was very young and had just come home from studying abroad, so she was very modern. She had big wavy hair and was gorgeous.

She was all praise for Shi Jin, unlike Shi Dawei. The moment she saw Shi Jin, she was impressed by her. She swiftly said, "Just take the exam. You can join my class once you pass."

She taught a third grade A class and it couldn't compare to Shi Jin's current B grade class.

Shi Jin smiled and took the test paper.

All the test papers were sealed and the exam hall was under surveillance.

Every year, some students from Second High School would apply to skip a grade, so the school was very systematic about it.

After Shi Jin took a seat, she reached her hand out for the paper and started to write on it.

Yao Jiahong waited outside. Although he found it risky for Shi Jin to skip a grade, he did not object.

After working with Shi Jin for some time, he was accustomed to trusting every word she said, even if they sometimes sounded unbelievable.

He did not want to ever see the look of disappointment in Shi Jin's eyes or feel guilty about not trusting her.

The first paper was English and it was scheduled for two hours, but Shi Jin completed it in just one hour.

Miss Ji looked at Shi Jin as though this genius was already in her class.

Principal Lu was startled. "Are you done already?"

"Uh huh." Shi Jin nodded. "Why don't I go ahead and do the rest of the subjects earlier?"

There were a total of four papers. These consisted of English, Chinese, Math, and Science.

The papers were expected to be taken over two days.

Principal Lu discussed it with the other teachers and decided to let Shi Jin take them today since it was just her taking the test and no other students were involved.

Shi Jin proceeded to finish the rest of the papers.

Yao Jiahong waited until 12:00 pm, but Shi Jin did not show up, so he stood up and looked in the direction of the exam hall anxiously.

Since the paper was two hours long, she ought to be out by now. Had something happened to Shi Jin?

He quickly thought about how to handle the situation with a worried look on his face. He was determined to keep Shi Jin out of trouble.

The moment Shi Jin walked out, Yao Jiahong stood up immediately and looked at her happily before he started looking worried.

"Shi Jin, are you hungry? What would you like for lunch? Let's go have something nice!"

"Do you have to look so nervous?" Shi Jin looked at him quizzically.

"Am I?" Yao Jiahong did not feel he was nervous. He was simply trying to take good care of Shi Jin. Also, if she failed to do well, she could still try again, so not all was lost.

Shi Jin stretched lazily before she said, "Let's go. What do you feel like eating? It's on me."

Yao Jiahong nodded. "Yes, we should give ourselves a treat. I have booked a hotel room for you so that you can rest after lunch. That way, you will be ready for your Math paper in the afternoon. Oh yes. Gu Qinghua sent us some exam tips. Although it might be a little too late, you should have a look at them tonight. It beats going in for the exam completely unprepared."

"I have already finished everything."

"What?"

"I said I have already finished all four papers. The teachers are probably marking them as we speak."

Shi Jin went forward as she spoke. "I will pick up my things from class in the afternoon."

Although she had only spent a few days in class, there was a lot of studying material at her desk, so she had to go back for them.

Yao Jiahong was briefly stunned before he quickly followed behind her.

***

Miss Ji pulled out Shi Jin's English paper.

She inexplicably trusted Shi Jin's ability and had a feeling that Shi Jin would definitely do well.

After quickly going over Shi Jin's exam paper, she saw that all the answers were neatly written in English calligraphy and promptly left a good impression on her.

She sighed as she quickly went through the answers and marked them with a red pen rapidly.

"Principal Lu, you promised that if Shi Jin meets the requirements, Shi Jin can join my class!"

Principal Lu smiled genially. "Of course, no problem at all!"

***

Shi Jin came back to her desk to pack up before lunch break was over.

She deliberately picked lunchtime so as not to disturb the students' studies. However, the moment she showed up, the students who were chatting in small groups, or doing homework swiftly raised their heads and looked at her.

The students from the other classes came over to watch. Some people even climbed into the class through the window.

Chapter 181: I Am Officially A Fan!

If people's gazes were material, Shi Jin would be entirely surrounded by her fans and incapable of moving.

The boys blushed as they looked at her and gossiped. They wanted to come over, but did not dare to do it.

Before class even started, Shi Dawei was already back.

All the other students scattered the moment they saw Shi Dawei.

The students in the fifth class were still looking at Shi Jin and slammed their tables and sighed sadly when Shi Dawei showed up early and interrupted them.

"Enough. What's wrong if I am a few minutes early? What's wrong with learning ten more marks worth of work? Take your seats!"

Shi Dawei patted the table. The moment he caught sight of Shi Jin in the last row, he finally realized what the commotion was for..

He promptly looked annoyed. "Shi Jin, do you know what you are doing?"

"Uh huh. I am here to pack up and leave." Shi Jin waved her schoolbag at him. She naturally did not want to spend a second more with Shi Dawei.

"Pack up and leave? That is beside the point. Shouldn't you be taking your test now?" The more Shi Dawei looked at Shi Jin, the more annoyed he felt. He had seen plenty of rebellious students in his career, but it was the first time he had ever encountered anyone as insensible as Shi Jin.

A boy sitting in the last row spoke on Shi Jin's behalf, "Mr Shi, I was in the office taking teaching aids today and heard the teachers saying Shi Jin has already finished the test!"

A lot of people had already caught wind of this.

Since Shi Dawei had left the school during lunch and had come straight to class without going to the office, he was unaware of this.

People defended Shi Jin one after another. "Uh huh. Shi Jin has already finished taking the exam."

Shi Dawei's face instantly looked annoyed. "Did you finish all four subjects in a single morning? I am so sick of the way the entertainment industry works! How could you use the same dirty tactics at school? First, you bought over the students. Now, you have sullied the principal! The tactics that you use to gain fans is sheer poison! You used your beauty to tarnish the entertainment industry. Now, you are doing the same in school and giving us a bad name!"

"Mr Shi!" said Shi Jin with her eyes looking cold.

"Don't bother calling me! I am talking about you! Everyone knows women like you use their bodies to get ahead! Listen up, everyone. You boys shouldn't get deceived by her good looks. Do not believe her lies. You girls had better learn from this. If you resort to such tactics, you will ruin your lives!"

Even though the other students wanted to defend Shi Jin, they did not utter a word when they saw how furious Shi Dawei was.

Shi Jin stood where she was holding her bag as she looked at him coldly with composure. "Mr Shi, are you the only smart person in Second High School who does not fall for the tricks used in the entertainment industry? Are you the only one who doesn't get fooled by so-called pretty women? In that case..."

Since classes had yet to start and Shi Dawei was particularly loud, the students who had scattered earlier leaned against the window to check out what was going on in the fifth class.

Everyone watched intriguingly. Since they were just students, an argument between a student and teacher was equivalent to a world war.

Shi Jin said unhurriedly, "This afternoon, you neither went home nor stayed at school. Instead, you were at the hotel fooling around with someone who was not your wife. Are the likes of you fit to be a teacher?"

Everyone went into a commotion from hearing this.

Shi Dawei promptly looked awkward. He was genuinely at a hotel fooling around with some other woman this afternoon. He had done this so secretly that even his wife did not know about it. How did Shi Jin come to know?

He hurriedly denied, "Shi Jin, that's a lie! How could you disrespect the teacher?"

"You? You aren't fit for my respect." Shi Jin's voice sounded cool and imposing.

Shi Dawei was always hypocritical, so the students never liked him and they instantly shouted, "You aren't fit! You aren't fit!"

"Shi Jin, apologize this instant! Take back what you said!"

Shi Jin walked out without even looking at him.

Shi Dawei continued saying sternly, "Shi Jin, I am going to sue you for slander!"

"If I have evidence, can this still be considered slander?" Shi Jin reached her hand out and waved her phone.

She had videos of Shi Dawei on her phone.

After Yao Jiahong realized Shi Dawei and Shi Jin did not get along, he quickly investigated Shi Dawei and sent Shi Jin evidence of his transgressions so that she could use it against him. She simply did not expect to use it so quickly

Shi Dawei knew exactly what he had done. This affair had been going on for some time, so it was easy to find evidence. The moment he saw Shi Jin waving her phone, he swallowed his saliva nervously, "What could you possibly have in there about me? Just wait to talk to my lawyer!"

The bigger this got, the worse it became for him, so he did not want to keep arguing with Shi Jin.

"If you want to talk, then you can talk to my talent agent," said Shi Jin before walking out of class.

"She's so cool!" The girls in class placed their hands over their hearts and looked very impressed by Shi Jin.

"Shi Jin was so cool! People like him who cheat on their wives are pure scum! How could a scum have the right to bitch about Shi Jin? It was too much!"

"This is official. I am Shi Jin's fan!"

Shi Dawei had a hard time making the class regain order and finish the class.

After he was finally done with class, he went over to Principal Lu's office. However, Shi Jin had already beat him to it.

A few teachers were inside the principal's office arguing about something.

Shi Dawei felt Shi Jin was here to report on him, so he immediately said, "Principal Lu, let me explain!"

A third grade teacher called Mr Li interrupted him, "Mr Shi, some courtesy, please! We came first, so we have the right to be considered first! Moreover, you are a second grade teacher, so this has nothing to do with you!"

"What do you mean?" Shi Dawei was oblivious to the situation.

Mr Li could not be bothered explaining to Shi Dawei. Instead, he said to Principal Lu, "Principal Lu, Shi Jin should join our class! The kids in our class are very good students!"

"How could she? Mr Li, you must be joking. You teach a humanities class, but Shi Jin is clearly a science student. Why are you even here fighting with us?" retorted Mr Zhang before he said slowly, "Our class is a science class, so we are perfect for Shi Jin! Shi Jin should join my class!"

Mr Li got anxious. "Didn't you see the test? Shi Jin is equally good with humanities!"

"So what? Shi Jin was from a science class to begin with! Teachers from the humanities class should just save their time!"

"She should join my class. My class comes in champion for the English competition every year. Shi Jin will get along with everyone just swell."

Chapter 182: All Teachers Liked Geniuses

"Shi Jin, pick my class!"

"Shi Jin, pick my class!"

Even though the teachers were usually composed, it seemed as though they were at an auction hall as they fought to win Shi Jin over.

***

One period ago...

After Shi Jin's results were out, Principal Lu saw her grades and promptly summoned all the third year A class teachers over to discuss Shi Jin's class placement.

None of the teachers were particularly enthusiastic. After all, Shi Jin had poor grades and was from the entertainment industry. They felt it would not serve them any good to have her in their classes. However, they changed their minds the moment they caught sight of her grades.

Every teacher hoped to groom a genius and were particularly forgiving towards them. Yet, the teachers remained suspicious of her results..

"She used to even get zero in her previous exams. How did things end up like this?"

"Did she get a hold of the questions ahead of time?"

"That is possible. I heard her talent agent is a very resourceful man! I am sure he has no problems getting the questions ahead of time."

Principal Lu drank tea unhurriedly. "The questions were sealed and surveillance was used throughout the exam. Take a look at the questions. Do you think anyone is capable of doing them through rote learning?"

Everyone scrutinized the questions before a couple of the teachers shook their heads. "I don't know if it can be done for the language papers, but no one can memorize the solutions for the Math and Physics questions. Advanced application was used to solve the questions!"

A Chinese teacher also said, "Anyone who can come up with this theme in the composition must be a genius! Also, just look at how powerful her pen strokes look. Only a genius who has done a lot of writing is capable of coming up with this."

"I swear no one is able to memorize an answer like this for the English paper," said the English teacher.

Shi Jin walked into the office just as everyone was talking about her.

Mr Li promptly said, "Don't we have a compilation of exam questions? Why don't you let Shi Jin do some right in front of us?"

Everyone agreed.

The compilation of exam questions was the fruit of the teachers' labor. They had painstakingly compiled the questions in assessment books. However, they did not blindly copy the questions and had altered them a little and gave them to the students as tests.

Other than the teachers, no one else was capable of having the right answers.

Once Shi Jin tried to do the questions, they would know exactly what she was made of.

Principal Lu said, "Shi Jin, can you try doing them?"

Shi Jin had no objection. She picked up a pen and took the questions.

The number of questions from each teacher and subject varied. Some of the teachers had prepared over half a page worth of questions, while the others only had two or three questions. However, they had one thing in common; all of them were as hard as the actual college entrance exam.

Shi Jin did all the questions they gave her. She wrote swiftly and finished the questions as the teachers watched.

Even though she was a Science student, she also finished the humanities questions.

In just a period, she was able to finish all the questions! Also, she was almost 100% accurate!

The teachers were so stunned that no one even stopped for a drink as they kept encircling her to watch as she finished every single question.

This was the reason for the earlier commotion. Everyone wanted Shi Jin to join their classes!

Despite their initial doubt towards Shi Jin, they concluded she was an extraordinarily intelligent student and no longer just an artist after watching her at work.

All teachers like smart students, so everyone wanted to snag this genius for their classes.

Only the three top classes in the third year were good enough for Shi Jin.

All the teachers from the top classes were in the teachers' room arguing nonstop to get Shi Jin.

Even though Shi Dawei did not know what they were doing, none of the teachers were interested in explaining the situation to him. Now was not the time to explain. Instead, they were determined to get Shi Jin!

Every teacher argued until their faces turned red. They rolled their sleeves up and wanted to pick a fight.

Principal Lu waved his hand. "Enough already. All of you teach the top third year classes and are excellent teachers. In theory, any of your classes ought to suit Shi Jin just fine. It is all up to Shi Jin to decide."

Shi Dawei felt everyone must be insane! Why were they fighting to get Shi Jin?

Everyone instantly looked at Shi Jin earnestly with "pick me" written on their faces.

Shi Jin smiled at Principal Lu thankfully. Shi Dawei hated Shi Jin because she had yet to take the test to prove herself.

Principal Lu had arranged for Shi Jin to take the promotional exam so that Shi Jin could prove herself and prevent people from talking behind her back. This way, the teachers would no longer have a problem with taking her in.

Shi Jin said calmly, "In that case, I choose Miss Ji."

The teachers instantly sighed sadly when they heard this. They hammered their chests sadly and looked annoyed. One of the teachers slumped right into his seat and looked at the sky miserably. The teachers were utterly envious of Ji Huan.

Ji Huan gave Shi Jin a bear hug. Ji Huan did not expect Shi Jin to take what she said about joining her class seriously. She looked even more beautiful when she beamed in joy.

Ji Huan was an excellent teacher, but she had a hard time climbing to where she was because people felt she used her good looks to succeed.

The world was genuinely far more demanding on women. Average-looking women were blamed for making the world an ugly place and called names. The ones who were pretty ended up being accused of being bimbos.

To a degree, Ji Huan and Shi Jin shared common life experiences and had a lot in common.

Shi Dawei was still ignorant about what everyone was doing, so he said angrily, "Principal Lu, Shi Jin did not even finish the test. How could you promote her?"

Principal Lu pointed at the test papers and Shi Dawei stepped forward to peruse them.

All the other teachers looked at him as though he was a fool.

Shi Dawei's face turned ghastly pale as he looked at her exam scripts. She scored 145 points for Chinese, 145 points for Math, 140 points for English, and 281 points for Science. In total, she had scored over 700 points!

And the test was a mock exam for the college entrance exam!

Shi Jin had also completed some questions that were consolidated and written by his peers. She had shockingly managed to answer everything accurately.

"Huh? How is this possible?"

Although Shi Dawei was certain that Shi Jin would use the same unscrupulous means she used in the entertainment industry to get ahead at school, he was keenly aware of how strict the school was about education.

Now that it was public knowledge that Shi Jin wanted to take the exam and skip a grade, it was impossible for Principal Lu to make things easy for Shi Jin.

His face turned pasty as he looked at Shi Jin in astonishment. However, Shi Jin did not even bother to look at him. Instead, she was talking to Ji Huan softly and completely disregarding him.

Shi Jin was from his class, so she was officially the smartest student in his class!

Chapter 183: Pretend To Be A Genius

"Shi Jin, let me show you to the classroom!" Ji Huan led Shi Jin off to class.

Shi Dawei finally realized what he had done and was beside himself with regret.

No, he had lost far more than a straight-A student to be precise. His scandal had gone public because he kept picking on Shi Jin and humiliating her thinking that she was a lousy student.

In no time, his wife would come to know of this and make trouble for him. Also, the school would hold him accountable for his transgressions. Also, Yao Jiahong was going to sue him for slander on behalf of Shi Jin!

***

News about Shi Jin passing the exam and getting promoted to third grade spread like wildfire.

Yu Xiuhua shook her head repeatedly when she saw the news. "Principal Lu is making a huge mistake here!" How could he have done that?

.

Shi Xuexin said, "I'm sure Shi Jin wants to get into college as soon as possible so as not to affect her career in the entertainment industry."

"People in the entertainment industry are simply shameless. Everyone keeps resorting to taking shortcuts! No one is willing to get into college through diligence anymore!"

"Mom, isn't Ling just fine? Not everyone in the entertainment industry takes shortcuts, so don't be too quick to judge everyone."

Yu Xiuhua laughed out loud. "Sigh. Just look at you jumping to his defense."

News about this promptly spread throughout social media as well.

The anti-fans leaped to action tapping their keyboards to curse Second High School, Shi Jin, and Principal Lu.

[Sure enough, Shi Jin even paid off the school so that she can finish high school and get into university as soon as possible!]

[This school is complete trash! It can't compare to First High School!]

[Artists simply have too many privileges. I suggest that the authorities investigate this!]

[She used to be such a lousy student. There is no way on earth she could have skipped a grade if the school did not make it easy for her!]

[I heard Shi Jin even entered one of the top classes. It is just a matter of time before Second High School closes!]

[First High School is definitely stricter about education. Have you ever heard about Wen Yongwei making trouble like this?]

Yao Jiahong did not let the public get away with speaking ill of Shi Jin. He promptly uploaded Shi Jin's test papers and surveillance footage online.

She could be seen writing swiftly in the surveillance footage as she attacked each question.

The anti-fans were shocked to see that Shi Jin had scored a total of over 700 points and promptly insisted it was impossible for her to do so well!

They studied the test paper and were determined to find evidence that Shi Jin had the answers ahead of time.

The anti-fans kept finding fault and trying to prove Shi Jin had cheated and the school was in on it as well. However, they failed to find any evidence of Shi Jin cheating even after they turned blind from checking the papers.

After comparing the test papers and surveillance footage, they concluded that the questions Shi Jin attempted were both the same.

As things unraveled online, Shi Jin's fans watched the surveillance footage like entertainment.

[Shi Jin looks so serious when she is finishing the questions!]

[Just look at her jawline. She looks even more attractive from this angle!]

[Her hands are genuinely beautiful when she is writing. Even though she is writing on paper, it is as good as writing in my heart!]

[After looking at Little Stone do her paper, I feel like doing some revision as well.]

[Then go ahead!]

[From now on, I will study hard just like her.]

[I wonder if the anti-fans have found any evidence against Shi Jin yet?]

[Why aren't the anti-fans saying anything?]

The anti-fans could not contain themselves.

[Ptooey. Even though Shi Jin is taking an exam, she is acting as though it's an entertainment program. Only Shi Jin could be capable of attempting to gain hype by doing this!]

[Let's see how long she can go on pretending?]

[Second High School has no ethics I tell you. How could they help her with this free publicity?]

[It is just a matter of time before First High School makes Second High School completely irrelevant.]

Yao Jiahong posted footage of Shi Jin doing the questions in front of the teachers in the office amid the uproar.

It was also surveillance footage. Even though it wasn't high resolution, it clearly showed what was going on inside the room.

Shi Jin finished all the questions right in front of the teachers to alleviate their doubts. All the best teachers in the third grade proceeded to fight for her after seeing her answers.

The anti-fans finally eased up a little. Anyone with enough brains would know how busy top teachers from an elite school were. Since all they cared about were their students, why would they bother wasting time on Shi Jin? Whenever they showed up together, they must have a good reason to do it.

Shi Jin's fans started to gush as they watched the footage.

[Even though the footage is low quality, Shi Jin looks outstanding. I wonder how she looks in person!]

[Now, I have the motivation to study! I am going to study now!]

[I didn't realize that my idol was a genius! I have to be a straight-A student just like her!]

[Shi Jin used to say, no matter who we are, no one can decide on our futures or stop us from chasing our dreams. Working hard is our only way out!]

The students felt motivated by Shi Jin and went back to studying.

Parents who used to get worried when their kids chased idols unexpectedly noticed huge changes in their children!

In the past, all their children cared about was checking out their idols online, buying magazines, and everything else their idols promoted. Now, those kids suddenly studied with great enthusiasm.

No matter the reason for the change, all the parents were delighted when their kids finally became sensible.

***

Kang Cheng shook his head at the farce playing out online and said to Wen Yongwei, "Study hard. No matter what people say about Shi Jin's grades, it was just some normal test. So what if she scored 750 points? Only your college entrance exam scores matter."

"I have been taking tuition." Wen Yongwei nodded. Her grades were always above 500 points. If she studied hard, she could probably get over 600 points for the actual college entrance exam.

Kang Cheng made sense. Only the college entrance exam results mattered. People always pretended to be straight-A students online.

Wen Yongwei's fans felt the same way and didn't care about Shi Jin's grades. A true genius did not have to resort to any sort of publicity!

***

Shi Jin was transferred to the first third year class and Ji Huan was her homeroom teacher.

Since there were only two more months until the college entrance exam, the students in the class were more focused than second grade students.

After making a brief commotion on Shi Jin's arrival, the class quickly reverted to normal.

Ji Huan called Shi Jin to her office and said, "Shi Jin, I know you are not in the academic industry now, but you should still get a degree to be safe. Once you get into a good college, it will do you good, so you can't give up on your studies even though you are an artist."

"I plan on doing just that." Shi Jin nodded. Otherwise, she would not have immediately requested to take the exam to skip a grade when she realized that she was still stuck in the second grade.

Ji Huan smiled brightly. "I know you have a busy schedule, so if you have trouble attending school, it is fine with me. Just let me know in advance."

Chapter 184: A Real Idol

Shi Jin saw the empathetic look on her face and nodded.

By the time she returned to class, everyone was becoming increasingly excited as they discussed something softly.

"Do you know Shi Xuexin is coming for the school anniversary this weekend?"

"Oh really? Is she coming too? I want to see her so badly! I wonder if third grade students have the time to attend it."

"We absolutely will. After all, it's the school's 50th anniversary. Since it is a major affair, I am sure we will have to go."

"I really want to see Xuexin too! She was a straight-A student back in the day and came in first in the city with a total of 683 marks!"

"Uh huh. If we can get to see her, it would be even more effective than praying to the gods for good grades."

.

Shi Jin finally recalled it was almost time for this school anniversary.

Shi Xuexin was a legend in Second High School. She had excellent grades. Also, all her other interests were well developed. Back in the day, people worshiped her for years after her college entrance exam grades came out.

Even though the first class was filled with straight-A students in its own right, everyone idolized Shi Xuexin the moment the subject came up.

Also, the Shi family was an up-and-coming elite family and well-known in town, so Shi Xuexin's status at Second High School was akin to Wen Yongwei's status at "Ultimate Singer-Songwriter ".

"Shi Jin, do you know who Shi Xuexin is?" asked a boy softly.

Some other boy promptly covered his mouth. "Stop asking Shi Jin. Haven't you heard what people say about Shi Jin? Shi Jin and Shi Xuexin were swapped at birth. What do you expect her to say?"

The first boy shrank his neck and stopped asking about it.

In reality, Shi Jin did not really care about the identity swap. Instead, Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin were very bothered by it. They ordered Shi Jin to never mention she was brought up by the Shi family in public. In time, people at school gradually forgot that Shi Jin and Shi Xuexin were both from the Shi family.

Hence, people often ask her about it out of curiosity.

Shi Jin had no love for the Shi clan. However, she did not leave because Old Master Shi loved her and she did not want to make him upset.

***

Before long, it was time for Second High School's 50th anniversary.

A lot of famous alumni were invited to come back for the event.

Other than the third grade classes, all the other classes had prepared performances.

Shi Xuexin remained very popular among the swarm of accomplished alumni. She was a sophomore at university and her background was the envy of everyone. As the daughter of the Shi family, she was a genuinely beautiful, talented girl from a rich family. During the college entrance exam, she came in first with straight-As. She was champion for the youth division in a national piano competition and a grade 8 violinist. Also, she was a level nine Chinese brush painting artist. She was a natural for a variety of instruments and art.

Shi Xuexin was a true idol at Second High School.

Classes ended early at Second High School today. All the students were waiting in class for the school anniversary celebrations to commence.

Luxury cars kept pulling up at the Second High School entrance one after another with their accomplished alumni.

After Shi Jin had a word with Ji Huan, she wanted to head back to class with her workbook.

"Shi Jin!" Shi Jin halted in her steps briefly.

It was none other than Shi Xuexin calling Shi Jin. She smiled as she said gently, "Shi Jin, I have yet to congratulate you for skipping a level and getting promoted to third grade. Congrats."

Shi Jin glanced at Shi Xuexin. Mr Li from the third grade along with several other elites dressed in suits were standing beside Shi Xuexin.

Mr Li was clearly here to personally welcome his favorite disciple, Shi Xuexin.

The other elites were happy to rub shoulders with Shi Xuexin as well.

Mr Li smiled as he asked Shi Xuexin, "Do you know Shi Jin?"

Shi Xuexin replied gently, "Yes, Mr Li. We are sisters. Although we aren't biologically related, we have known each other for years, so we are very close."

The moment Shi Xuexin mentioned this, everyone remembered that Shi Jin and Shi Xuexin were once swapped at birth. After they learned the truth, Shi Jin ought to have left, but she refused to leave the Shi family and insisted on staying.

Despite not being a member of the Shi family, she persisted in staying. Why else would she want to stay?

The anti-fans had already dug up Shi Jin's dirty history, so this was not news to them. However, now that Shi Jin and Shi Xuexin were standing together, this old scandal naturally came to mind and people could not help comparing them.

All the elites present naturally knew what was going on, but they did not make any opinion. They knew full well that a woman from a privileged family would never enter the entertainment industry. They were proud women with important careers waiting for them and a different kind of life to lead. That was the difference between a woman from a powerful family and a normal woman.

Despite the silence, it was clear what they were thinking. Everyone looked at Shi Jin profoundly.

Shi Jin naturally knew what Shi Xuexin was implying.

She promptly looked at Shi Xuexin. "I recall my parents only had one daughter. When did I ever have a sister? I have already left the Shi family for years and I have no intention of moving back. I really don't remember ever spending time with you. Also, I doubt there is any chance for it to happen in the future either."

Shi Jin had genuinely tried to stay at the Shi family. She was foolish and didn't want to leave Old Master Shi.

Since Fu Xiuyuan took her from the family ages ago, she did not spend much time at the Shi family.

Her words promptly made these elites catch onto Shi Xuexin's little lies.

Shi Jin did not insist on staying at the Shi family as word had it. In fact, she had moved out ages ago. In that case, why did the Shi family claim Shi Jin refused to leave?

The atmosphere became awkward as everyone contemplated.

Shi Xuexin did not expect Shi Jin to gain the upper hand so easily. She quickly explained, "Although we barely spent any time together, I think about you all the time."

Shi Jin replied mildly, "Is there anything else you have for me? Otherwise, I am going."

Shi Jin was completely calm and didn't care about Shi Xuexin. She certainly didn't sound like the type of person who desired the Shi family's wealth and status. Instead, she looked particularly disinterested.

Everyone made their own judgment and no longer despised Shi Jin. In hindsight, Shi Jin had made a commendable effort to break into the entertainment industry to make a living after leaving the Shi family.

Shi Xuexin could tell what everyone was thinking, so she hurriedly smiled and said, "Shi Jin, I know you are busy and you also have to prepare for the college entrance exam, so I won't hold you up. When you are free, allow me to introduce some friends to you. I am sure they are happy to help you with your studies."

Chapter 185: Was She Still Harboring Fantasies About Chu Ling?

Shi Xuexin was deliberately reminding everyone that Shi Jin was already 20 years old and the same age as her. However, Shi Xuexin was already in college and doing well while Shi Jin was still struggling in high school.

As for how she made it to third grade... Everyone had their own opinions.

Shi Xuexin succeeded in doing what she wanted in just a few words.

"It's fine. Miss Ji will take care of my studies." Shi Jin's voice sounded calm and completely unaffected. "If you have time, you should work on your violin. I recall you wanted to come in champion for that violin competition of yours, right?"

Shi Xuexin looked at Shi Jin from behind as she secretly clenched her fists. Shi Jin's words had struck her at her Achilles heel.

.

Mr Li asked with concern, "Xuexin, how is your violin practice coming along?"

"It's fine. Everything is perfectly fine," said Shi Xuexin as she acted composed.

She had been practicing violin diligently all this time, but she was eliminated before she even made it to the finals for a mid-scale violin competition.

Since it was a minor competition, it was not a big deal for her to lose.

Shi Xuexin simply had too many things to practice and too many facades to keep up. Sometimes, it was hard for her to take care of every single area. However, she was a proud woman. How could she let herself get eliminated before she even made it into the finals?

She did not even tell Shi Qing and Yu Xiuhua about this, let alone some other outsider. Now that Shi Jin pointed this out, she was very worried that someone might learn the truth.

They continued chatting about the last thing she wanted to talk about.

"Oh yes. Xuexin, how is the violin competition going? I am sure you have no problem coming in champion, right?" asked a male senior.

"Haha! You must be joking. Considering Xuexin's violin skills, I am sure she will come in first," answered a female senior.

Some other elites asked, "Xuexin, what competition is this? Since we will be hanging around for a few days, we can go over for a look. We can show up for some support and cheer you on."

Shi Xuexin clenched her fists tightly.

Everyone chatted happily. They knew Shi Xuexin was an all-rounded young woman, so they genuinely wanted to watch her perform.

Shi Xuexin had no choice, but to say regretfully, "I am so sorry. Since the violin competition clashes with my English speech competition, I couldn't go for it. I decided to focus on my English speech."

Sure enough, everyone sighed in regret. "It's too bad. I really wanted to watch you perform on the violin."

Someone said, "There's no loss here. Since Xuexin is an all-rounded young lady, she basically comes in first for every competition she participates in. Even if she misses the violin competition, there are other competitions she can take part in."

The moment Shi Jin brought up the violent competition, Shi Xuexin felt terribly uneasy. Fortunately, she had a great track record of excellent performance, so the subject quickly changed as they chatted and people stopped asking about the violin competition. However, she did not dare to let down her guard against Shi Jin anymore.

How did Shi Jin know she had lost the violin competition? Had she investigated everything there was to know about her? Was she concerned because she still harbored fantasies about Chu Ling?

"Xuexin, are you okay?" asked Mr Li with concern when he noticed how distracted she was.

Shi Xuexin hurriedly shook her head. "I'm fine."

Since Shi Xuexin claimed everything was fine, Mr Li smiled and said, "In that case, why don't you go have some rest? You are performing for the finale and everyone is looking forward to it."

Shi Xuexin cheered herself up. She was performing violin as the finale tonight.

Since everyone in Second High School idolized her, she had to do her best.

Ever since Shi Jin returned to school, gossip about her relationship with Shi Xuexin started to spread.

Some people had yet to realize this, but they quickly caught on that Shi Jin was the infamous fake young mistress of the Shi family with Shi Xuexin's arrival tonight.

Even though she had shown her talent on "Ultimate Singer-Songwriter ", and was able to skip a grade, everyone felt that Shi Xuexin was far better owing to her reputation.

People kept saying the same things as Shi Xuexin returned to her seat.

"Was Shi Jin swapped at birth from the Shi family? Sure enough, a fake is a fake, so she can't compare to Shi Xuexin at all."

"Do you know who Shi Xuexin is? She is like a goddess, okay? There is no way Shi Jin can compare to her. All the contestants at 'Ultimate Singer-Songwriter' combined can't compare to her."

"I used to think Shi Jin was pretty impressive, but there are always people who are better than her out there!"

"There is one area where Shi Jin surpasses Shi Xuexin."

"What what?"

"In the looks department of course!"

"That's true! But even Shi Jin says looks don't matter, with that in mind, Shi Xuexin is still a whole lot better than her!"

"Stop talking already. We should head to the hall as soon as possible so that we can see her. If we manage to see her in person, it might bring us good luck for our exam!"

Since all the students had to attend the event, Shi Jin attended it as well and took a seat in the section assigned to her class.

A lot of students made banners for Shi Xuexin and shouted her name. It felt as though they were here to support their idol.

The first class was seated rather close to the first row of the guests' section.

Shi Xuexin was sitting among the guests with her friends. People kept going up to talk to her every now and then.

Two girls sat beside Shi Xuexin on her left and right. They used to be fellow students of Second High School and now they were at college together. One of them was called Chen Jierou and the other was Zhao Xiyue.

Students of Second High School went up to greet Shi Xuexin every now and then and asked for her autograph. She was a complete superstar at school. Some of the boys even excitedly turned 180 degrees after talking to Shi Xuexin.

Shi Jin lowered her head calmly. Chen Jierou and Zhao Xiyue turned to glance at Shi Jin.

Since they were best friends with Shi Xuexin, they knew Shi Jin well and hated the likes of her.

Ever since Shi Jin brought up the violin competition, Shi Xuexin was in low spirits.

However, since Chen Jierou and Zhao Xiyue were not around when it happened, they didn't know what Shi Jin had done. They lowered their heads and asked Shi Xuexin about it.

"It's no big deal. I think Shi Jin might still have fantasies about being with Chu Ling," said Shi Xuexin softly.

Otherwise, why would she know about her violin competition? How could she know what she was doing?

"She's so shameless," scolded Chen Jierou uncontrollably. "Who does she think she is? How can she even dream of being with Chu Ling?"

Chapter 186: Both Perform

Zhao Xiyue pouted and said, "Why can't she just go back to the Li family? Why does she hang around to piss you off? How could she not know better?

"Never mind. Whatever it is, she has feelings for my parents and grandfather. Nothing can change that," said Shi Xuexin magnanimously.

"Xuexin, you are so silly. You are simply too nice to her. That is the reason she keeps pushing you around. Now that she has a talent agency behind her, she will probably want to stay with your family even more," said Zhao Xiyue.

Shi Xuexin clenched her fists slightly. She was worried about just the same thing. However, Shi Jin existed and it was impossible for Shi Xuexin to rid herself of Shi Jin.

Before long, the school anniversary celebrations commenced..

Zhao Xiyue was one of the hosts, so she had to go prepare. She said to Shi Xuexin, "I have to go now. See you later on the stage."

Shi Xuexin nodded. Chen Jierou smiled and said, "Are you playing the violin tonight?"

"Uh huh," acknowledged Shi Xuexin.

She was a little flustered when Shi Jin talked about her losing the violin competition, but it was actually quite normal for her to lose. No one could always win. Even if she occasionally lost, she was still one of the best violinists in Second High School and University H. No one else could compare to her.

Chen Jierou looked excited. "Omigod. I haven't seen you perform live in ages. The last time I watched you perform, you came in as champion for the youth division. I will cheer you on later!"

Shi Xuexin felt even more motivated to perform.

The celebrations proceeded to commence.

There were a lot of talented people at Second High School. Other than the third year students who were busy preparing for exams, every class contributed excellent performances.

Also, a lot of the alumni attending the school anniversary celebrations were elites in society making the event very exciting.

Before long, the celebrations slowly came to an end and it was time for the finale to commence.

Zhao Xiyue stood on the stage and introduced Shi Xuexin excitedly. "The next performer is the pride of Second High School. She is a rising star and an incredibly talented young woman. She came in first in the city for her college entrance exam. Also, she is well versed in piano, violin, and art. She has already achieved astounding results in every field and repeatedly came in champion in the youth division.

People kept cheering Shi Xuexin's name as Zhao Xiyue spoke and waved their banners for her.

Some people even shouted, "Shi Xuexin, I pray that I will do well on the national college entrance exam!"

Everyone burst out laughing when they heard this.

Shi Jin had a lot of fans at school. After all, "Ultimate Singer-Songwriter" had remained popular for months. However, Shi Jin and Yao Jiahong did not allow the students to cheer for her so as to set a good example for everyone and not use her fellow students for popularity, so Yao Jiahong had told the fans to be discreet at school.

Yao Jiahong was very good at handling the fan club. Although it made Shi Jin seem unpopular at school, Shi Jin could also avoid causing unnecessary trouble.

After the fans learned of their idol's decision, they were discreet about their actions and focused on school. Moreover, the school anniversary celebrations did not have anything to do with third year students, so Shi Jin's fans did not make any banners for her.

Hence, there was a sea of people rooting for Shi Xuexin. It seemed as though it was not the school anniversary celebrations and she was here to do a solo performance.

"Now, allow me to invite Shi Xuexin to come up and perform 'Hungarian Dance'." Zhao Xiyue gestured for Shi Xuexin to come up the stage.

Everyone clapped thunderously.

Shi Xuexin had already gotten changed and was wearing a princess dress with flowers on it. It made her look extremely elegant and graceful. The big, loose curls in her hair made her look like a real princess.

A light was trained onto her as she stood on the stage garnering everyone's attention as they waited for her to perform.

The moment she held up her violin, everyone held their breaths as they went quiet.

"Hungarian Dance" could be heard and it was bright and lively. It was the perfect song for livening up the atmosphere. Everyone felt immersed by the song when Shi Xuexin started to perform.

Since she was pretty and well-dressed tonight, she looked like a beautiful, talented woman from a rich family. People couldn't have enough of her.

After the performance, the crowd cheered for her thunderously.

Shi Xuexin smiled with poise as people clapped.

"Xuexin's performance was simply amazing! She is such a master violinist! Thank you for giving us such a brilliant performance!" sighed Zhao Xiyue exaggeratedly.

The audience was blown away by her performance and kept cheering for her.

The school anniversary celebrations were about to end, so people were preparing to leave the hall when Zhao Xiyue suddenly said, "We have one more performer coming on stage tonight."

The moment she said this, the students halted in their steps.

Was there one more performance on the itinerary? Shi Xuexin was supposed to be the finale. Who else was performing?

Zhao Xiyue exclaimed loudly, "Shi Jin is going to perform! Shi Jin Is coming on stage to perform violin as well!"

Shi Jin looked at the stage and was briefly caught by surprise before she realized Zhao Xiyue was trying to sabotage her.

Since Zhao Xiyue was best friends with Shi Xuexin, she did not like Shi Jin, so she wanted to take the opportunity to embarrass Shi Jin.

The crowd cheered when Zhao Xiyue said Shi Jin's name. Before long, people started to chant, "Shi Jin! Shi Jin! Shi Jin!"

Some of the people who cheered were people who didn't like Shi Jin. After they heard gossip about Shi Jin and Shi Xuexin today, they took Shi Xuexin's side, so they wanted Shi Jin to perform violin. In their opinion, it was the perfect opportunity for them to prove that Shi Jin could not compare to Shi Xuexin.

The other people cheering were Shi Jin's fans. They had come unprepared since they were told to keep a low profile at school and they did not know that Shi Jin would perform tonight.

Now that Zhao Xiyue said that Shi Jin was due to perform, her fans naturally cheered enthusiastically.

In an instant, everyone cheered and clapped.

Zhao Xiyue had known Shi Jin and Shi Xuexin for years, so she knew everything there was to know about them.

Chapter 187: An Overwhelming Defeat For Shi Xuexin

Zhao Xiyue had used her role as host to make this happen and Shi Jin would undoubtedly get embarrassed tonight.

Zhao Xiyue wanted to show the world the gulf that lay between the true and fake daughter of the Shi family. She also wanted Shi Jin to back off. She was not good enough for Chu Ling.

Shi Jin stood up and walked towards the stage as everyone watched and cheered.

Shi Jin was too simply dressed compared to Shi Xuexin. She was just dressed in the school uniform pants with a white cotton T-shirt. It could not compare to Shi Xuexin's extravagant princess dress.

Shi Xuexin was still standing on the stage. The moment they stood together, Shi Xuexin looked like a beautiful peony while Shi Jin resembled an elegant orchid.

After looking at Shi Jin a little more, she gave off a charming aura..

Zhao Xiyue smiled as she said, "Shi Jin, I heard you are pretty good at playing the violin as well, right?"

She gloated smugly after putting Shi Jin in the spot. Shi Xuexin caught on to what Zhao Xiyue was doing, so she did not stop Zhao Xiyue. Instead, she simply stood on the stage as she watched.

All of them knew that Shi Jin was unable to play the violin.

If Shi Jin denied it now, it would be very embarrassing for her.

Sure enough, Shi Jin took the microphone and said, "Nope. You are mistaken."

Zhao Xiyue smiled even more happily when Shi Jin admitted she could not play the violin. "Oh my. I must be mistaken. I am so sorry about that. Since you are siblings with Shi Xuexin, I thought you took violin lessons with her."

Zhao Xiyue had a feeling Shi Jin might offer to sing in order to save her reputation. Even then, Zhao Xiyue would have successfully embarrassed Shi Jin.

Whatever it was, a lot of people were talking about Shi Jin now.

Although Zhao Xiyue could not hear what they were saying, they were probably talking about Shi Jin and Shi Xuexin's swap at birth and their abilities.

It was a common human reaction. Everyone felt musicians were very impressive. After all, it took a lot of practice to be an expert. However, people always felt they were equally good singers and simply lacked an opportunity when it came to singing.

Moreover, everyone felt violin performances were very elegant. In comparison, everyone could sing, so it wasn't as special. Hence, it was normal to feel Shi Jin could not compare to Shi Xuexin.

"I have never learned violin before." Shi Jin glanced at Zhao Xiyue. "Also, the third graders don't have to perform, so I did not prepare anything. You must have made a mistake, right?"

Since it was the school anniversary celebrations, Zhao Xiyue felt certain that Shi Jin would offer to sing and wriggle out of the situation.

Now that Shi Jin was coming on so strong and Zhao Xiyue was genuinely guilty of sabotaging her, Zhao Xiyue could only apologize for her mistake. "My bad. I must have made a mistake. I thought you were still doing second year and assumed you were performing. I am so sorry."

Her apology was so insincere that it was barely enough to cover Shi Jin's nail. She even embarrassed Shi Jin by talking about Shi Jin's promotion to third year.

"Uh huh. I accept your apology. Since it is an important day, you really need to be careful. Not everyone is nice enough to allow this to happen. Not everyone in school will let you off for this," replied Shi Jin confidently.

Since Zhao Xiyue was guilty of sabotaging Shi Jin, she could only quietly listen to Shi Jin admonish her.

Just as she thought Shi Jin was going to leave the stage, Shi Jin said, "Since it is the school anniversary, I don't mind performing the violin. Why don't I just perform the same song? Can I borrow a violin from the school orchestra?"

After listening to the conversation between Zhao Xiyue and Shi Jin, everyone realized that Zhao Xiyue had forced Shi Jin to go on stage completely unprepared.

Also, everyone knew Zhao Xiyue was best friends with Shi Xuexin... It was clear what she was up to.

Shi Jin's fans felt anxious when they saw this.

"Didn't Shi Jin just say she couldn't play the violin? Why is she offering to perform now?"

"Uh huh. What should we do? However, if she does not perform, people might think she is a chicken."

"Shi Xuexin came with her own violin. Do you know it costs a bomb and was made by a master violin maker? She has been using it all her life. How could a violin from the school orchestra compare to it? Do you know how lousy the school violins are? I am so worried."

Someone who liked Shi Xuexin said softly, "Is Shi Jin really going to perform that? Is she sure?

"Isn't it a bad idea for her to play violin in front of a true violin master?"

Everyone had their own opinion. Someone from the school orchestra quickly handed Shi Jin a violin.

Shi Xuexin smiled when she saw this. The school violin only cost a fraction of hers and it couldn't compare to hers in terms of accuracy and tone.

She asked Shi Jin sweetly, "Why don't you use my violin instead?"

Shi Jin rejected her offer.

Shi Xuexin was more than happy to leave Shi Jin to her own devices and stood by the side with her master violin.

Zhao Xiyue did not expect this to happen either. Even though Shi Jin was good at singing, she chose to play the violin. What was she thinking?

"Shi Jin is going to perform the same piece as Shi Xuexin, 'Hungarian Dance'!" said Zhao Xiyue excitedly to the audience in a resounding voice.

Shi Jin's fans were nervous down to their toes. She was a singer, so everyone knew she could play the guitar. However, all instruments were different, and it was exceptionally hard to master the violin. A lot of practice was required just to even play violin decently. Otherwise, it would be complete chaos.

The stage lighting landed on Shi Jin. She raised her hand and held the violin before placing the bow on it.

As the music flowed, the fans couldn't resist whistling!

Shi Jin's violin playing was elegant, lively, and particularly pleasing to the ear. Their initial worries were quickly tossed to the back of their minds.

She was completely focused as her hands moved in sync with each other.

People who were able to play the violin could tell Shi Jin had a lot of practice. Also, she was incredibly good! Her technique was at the professional level and every move she made was flawless.

Musical instruments were all about technique and expression. Since the piece sounded intense, the audience was quickly captivated by the violin.

Chapter 188: Her Biological Parents From The Li Family

Shi Jin's performance was nothing short of breathtaking.

The smile on Shi Xuexin's face gradually disappeared.

Zhao Xiyue felt she had made the biggest mistake of her life and had inadvertently given Shi Jin the opportunity to impress the audience!

The same question kept running through their minds. When did Shi Jin learn the violin?

Shi Xuexin and Zhao Xiyue both knew that Shi Jin didn't have any talent. Ever since Shi Jin found out that she was swapped at birth, she was too depressed to focus on her studies before she proceeded to get obsessed with Chu Ling. Why was she playing the violin so well now?

The stage lighting landed on her and brought out her silhouette.

"Hungarian Dance" was inspired by lively Hungarian folk music, so Shi Jin's outfit was perfect for the piece. In comparison, Shi Xuexin's complicated princess dress did not match the lively air of the song.

After she was done playing the violin, the crowd went silent for a few seconds before thunderous applause reverberated throughout the hall..

Shi Jin's fans finally cheered loudly and chanted her name.

Zhao Xiyue realized that her efforts to help Shi Xuexin had come back to bite her. She forcibly composed herself before she went onto the stage to wrap up the performance.

After she got off the stage with the microphone, she ran after Shi Xuexin. "Xuexin, hang on."

Shi Xuexin was in a bad mood and didn't feel like entertaining her.

As they walked, they could hear people comparing Shi Xuexin and Shi Jin.

Tonight was the night for Shi Xuexin to steal the limelight. However, this little episode had caused Shi Jin to garner all the attention and made Shi Xuexin look bad.

Moments later, teachers came to talk to Zhao Xiyue about what she had just done. Shi Jin's homeroom teacher was very annoyed that one of her students was made to perform without prior notice.

From the looks of it, Zhao Xiyue had some explaining to do.

A dinner was planned after the performance.

Shi Xuexin wanted to find some excuse not to go. However, since she was in the limelight, everyone was waiting for her and it was impossible to turn them down.

Everyone smiled as they welcomed her when Shi Xuexin arrived at the dinner. Someone asked, "Xuexin, where is Shi Jin? Didn't she come along with you?"

Shi Xuexin instantly looked embarrassed.

***

By the time Yao Jiahong left Ji Huan's office, it was already very late.

Although Zhao Xiyue claimed it was an innocent mistake, Yao Jiahong did not let her off the hook easily. He got so harsh that Zhao Xiyue burst out crying as she apologized incessantly.

The school did its best to mediate before Yao Jiahong was willing to let this slide.

After Yao Jiahong left the office, he thought about Shi Jin's violin playing and the Shi family.

Yao Jiahong already knew about Shi Jin's life at the Shi family, but he did not do anything about it as he felt she could never become an artist.

After Zhao Xiyue attempted to publicly embarrass Shi Jin, he could not help breathing hard as sadness swelled in his heart while he thought about this.

***

Shi Jin quickly left the school after class and headed to Lanting Residence.

The moment she entered the living room, Butler Chen saw her and came over. "Miss Shi, Young Master Fu is in the closet. Also, he has been in there for hours."

Butler Chen looked worried. He did not know what had come over Fu Xiuyuan, but he did not dare to probe.

"Uh huh. Okay." Shi Jin put down her school bag and walked over to the closet quickly.

Butler Chen watched from behind. He had to admit that Shi Jin played an important role in the Fu family.

Fu Xiuyuan and Shi Jin now shared a closet. Even though it was called a closet, it was over 100 square meters in size and filled with both their clothing.

Fu Xiuyuan was standing in front of the mirror shaking his head with dissatisfaction.

There was a mountain of clothes beside Fu Xiuyuan that he had already tried on.

Even if he was wearing a gunny sack, he would have looked gorgeous. Now, he was wearing the latest designer suit that fit him perfectly.

The moment Shi Jin entered the room, she saw Fu Xiuyuan dressed in a suit that was perfect for him. However, he was frowning into the mirror.

"Hubby." Shi Jin strode over quickly and greeted him. "Aren't you done picking your outfit?"

"Uh huh." Fu Xiuyuan's voice sounded deep.

Every single garment he owned was custom-made. Since he worked out often, it was unlikely for his clothes not to fit.

Shi Jin knew where his worry was coming from. They were going to pick up her parents tonight.

The parents in question were naturally her biological parents from the Li family. She had been dying to see them.

Since she was already very nervous about seeing them, Fu Xiuyuan naturally felt the same way.

Shi Jin felt the suit he was wearing was already perfect. She glanced around and picked a tie before putting it on Fu Xiuyuan as she said, "What about now?"

Fu Xiuyuan glanced into the mirror. He could see Shi Jin's eyes gleaming as she admired him in the mirror. He instantly felt good about his outfit and nodded happily. "I think it's good now."

Shi Jin shoved him out of the closet. "Wait for me outside. I need to get changed. We are running late."

Fu Xiuyuan was pushed out.

After Shi Jin closed the door, she picked out an outfit and got changed.

Fu Xiuyuan stood outside the door listening to the rustling as she got changed. The sound left a tingling sensation running through him.

He could open the door now effortlessly, but something was holding him back.

After struggling to control himself, Fu Xiuyuan suppressed this urge as he patiently waited outside for Shi Jin to get changed.

Moments later, Shi Jin came out dressed in a sweet, long dress and a ponytail looking just like an innocent student.

After she came out, she showed Fu Xiuyuan her outfit. "Do you think my parents will like this?"

"I'm sure they will," said Fu Xiuyuan firmly. Shi Jin was such a wonderful girl. How could they not like her?

The two of them went downstairs for dinner before going to the airport.

Butler Chen could not help feeling impressed when Shi Jin managed to make Fu Xiuyuan get changed and leave the closet.

***

Fu Xiuyuan patiently waited with Shi Jin at the airport parking lot.

Shi Jin clenched her fists tightly as she thought about her past life.

The Li family used to be one of the most important families in the capital and the Shi family was completely out of their league. However, a major incident in the family over two decades ago almost caused the family to be completely ruined.

Although Li Juekai managed to save the family, the clan fell into decline. It was the main reason Shi Xuexin ended up residing in a small town with Old Master Li.

Chapter 189: Why Didn't They Pick Her Up?

For 12 years, Li Juekai was unable to spend much time with Shi Xuexin since he was busy trying to stage a comeback for the family. They were trying to protect Shi Xuexin by sending her to a remote small town to live.

Even though it was a small town, Old Master Li spared no expense in terms of Shi Xuexin's life and education.

Although they resided in a small town, she was able to receive tutelage from the best teachers. The family sent her for all kinds of extracurricular lessons, gave her a chauffeur, and provided her the best they could afford.

When they were 12 years old, they learned they were swapped at birth and Shi Xuexin was sent to the Shi family immediately. However, Li Juekai went back on his word when he was supposed to pick up Shi Jin.

In her past life, Shi Jin thought she was forsaken because her father did not pick her up.

First, she was unwelcome in the Shi family. Now, her biological family didn't want her. She was at a sensitive age and felt terribly vulnerable.. It didn't help that Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin kept picking on her. Also, there was a lot of gossip floating in the air. Hence, she lost her mind and fell into the deep end of the pool.

The Li family came to pick her up when Shi Jin was around 15 years old and did their utmost to take her with them. However, no matter how they tried to convince her, she refused to leave with them.

Shi Jin learned in her past life how much her family loved her after she got into trouble. Other than Fu Xiuyuan, they were the only people in the world who cared about her.

Shi Jin secretly regretted giving her father and older brother such a lousy attitude when they came to pick her up a couple of years ago.

She clenched her fists even more tightly in regret.

She was in a daze when she suddenly sensed something warm on her hand. It was Fu Xiuyuan placing his hand on hers and covering it completely. He opened her tightly clenched fist and held her hand with their fingers interlaced.

"Don't be nervous," comforted Fu Xiuyuan succinctly.

Shi Jin felt a lot better when she heard what he said. She gazed into Fu Xiuyuan's eyes and smiled.

***

A flight from Germany gradually landed.

One of the passengers was wheelchair-bound, so the air stewardesses checked on him a couple of times to see if he needed anything.

"No, thanks." The male passenger was in his fifties. Despite the stern, sad look on his face, he was rather polite.

There was an elegant well-poised lady sitting beside him. Also, a young man sat in the same row as them.

Since they were family, the atmosphere ought to be amicable, but all of them had an imperceptible air of sadness about them.

The male passenger was Li Juekai, Shi Jin's biological father.

The woman was his wife, Gu Qingqing, and the man was their son, Gu Jingyuan.

They were Shi Jin's mother and eldest brother.

The three of them had just returned from Germany after treatment. Sadly, Li Juekai's leg injury did not improve, even though his son was a talented and renowned surgeon now.

They had come back with the intention of giving up treatment and settling down for good. Also, they wanted to get Shi Jin to come home with them.

Li Juekai felt worried just thinking about it and said softly, "I wonder if our daughter has forgiven me."

Gu Qingqing replied softly, "Honey, I am sure she will."

"We did her injustice back in the day. We were supposed to pick her up. However, we encountered a traffic accident and my legs got hurt, so we ended up missing the appointment. She was only 12 years old. She must have been terribly disappointed when no one came to pick her up," sighed Li Juekai sadly as he thought about the past.

After the traffic accident, Li Juekai went into a coma leaving everyone terrified. Only Gu Qingqing was around to take care of Li Juekai since Gu Jingyuan was still studying in Germany and their second son, Gu Zehan, was busy training.

Li Juekai had broken both his legs and the doctors did not know how to treat him, so he was in and out of hospitals a lot.

Gu Qingqing had no choice, but to call the Shi family and implored them to take care of Shi Jin for a few more years. That way, Shi Jin didn't have to worry about Li Juekai's condition and could focus on studying.

By the time Li Juekai's condition stabilized a little, Shi Jin was already 15 years old.

Shi Jin was rebellious and willful when she was 15 years old. Even though Li Juekai kept visiting her every year to take her home, she refused to give in.

In the past two years, Li Juekai suffered a relapse from this old injury. Since he had to go abroad for treatment, Li Juekai and Shi Jin gradually drifted apart.

Li Juekai said in regret, "No matter what happened, we should have picked up our daughter. It was my fault for letting things turn out this way."

Gu Qingqing regretted their actions equally. They were considering Shi Jin's well-being when they decided against picking her up from the Shi family, but they failed to understand what a 12 year old little girl wanted. No one asked her how she felt about living with the Shi family.

Since Gu Qingqing did not want to make her husband upset, she never brought up the regret she felt.

She continued comforting her husband, "Don't worry about it. Now that she is all grown up, I am sure she is sensible enough to empathize with what we did.'

"Will she?" Li Juekai looked miserable.

Gu Qingqing also wanted to know the same thing.

They heard Shi Jin was already very against her marriage to the Fu family, so she was bound to still be angry with her biological family. She must be blaming her parents for abandoning her. Gu Qingqing could not help feeling heartbroken thinking about it.

Since her husband's legs were paralyzed, she wanted to stay positive, so she forced a smile and said, "I am sure she will."

Gu Qingqing was saying this to comfort both Li Juekai and her.

They proceeded to look at their phones.

Everyone in the family kept an eye on Shi Jin's news.

Complicated emotions flooded their hearts when Shi Jin came in second on "Ultimate Singer-Songwriter". They were proud of her success but also worried that it would be even harder to convince her to come home with them.

Now that she was a successful artist with a massive following, a whole new life was waiting for her. She was completely different from the little girl they once knew.

Even though Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing wanted to be closer to Shi Jin, they did not want to become her burden, so they did not call her to tell her about their return.

In reality, Li Juekai and Gu Jingyuan were decent entrepreneurs. Although they were not as rich as before, they were doing well.

Gu Jingyuan sat by the window without joining in Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing's conversation.

He finally stood up when he saw people getting up to retrieve their luggage after the plane landed and helped his mother to take care of his father.

He was not much of a talker, but it was fine by Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing. After they got off the plane, they headed towards the arrival hall.

Chapter 190: Liked Him More With Every Glance

The Li family wasn't as rich as it was 20 years ago, but they could afford to live decently. However, they were no longer considered an elite family. Instead, they were more like an ordinary wealthy family.

Gu Jingyuan booked a car online and it was going to pick them up at the airport exit.

Since the car had yet to arrive, the three of them went over to the exit to wait for it.

As they walked towards the exit, two silhouettes suddenly came over from the door.

It was a man and a woman. The man was tall and upright while the lady was slim and graceful. Both of them were wearing masks, but the woman was wearing a cap as well.

Since it was normal to wear a mask these days, no one took any notice. However, Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing promptly recognized them and saw that it was Fu Xiuyuan and Shi Jin..

They had not seen Fu Xiuyuan in years, and the last time they saw Shi Jin was two years ago.

Since everyone in the family kept thinking about Shi Jin, it was only natural for them to recognize her right away.

For a moment, no one dared to speak or even say hello to each other.

Shi Jin was an artist now. Since she showed up wearing a mask and cap, she must be avoiding her fans.

She probably had something important to do since she showed up at this hour at the airport.

They felt sorry that Shi Jin had to work so hard and proud that she finally severed ties with Chu Ling and focused on herself. Despite the thoughts flowing through their minds, no one dared to approach her. Just seeing her was enough for now. They had plenty of opportunities to see each other in the future.

Gu Qingqing's eyes became a little teary.

Shi Jin stopped briefly and headed straight towards them as they pondered.

Before Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing realized what was going on, Shi Jin had already walked up in front of them. Shi Jin looked at them with her eyes gleaming.

Shi Jin reached her hand out and held Gu Qingqing's arm as she said softly in a sincere tone, "Mom."

Gu Qingqing felt as though she was dreaming and was unable to react. For a moment, she thought that she was still on the flight sleeping.

Just as she was about to scrutinize Shi Jin, she bent over and said to Li Juekai, "Dad."

A confused look emerged on Li Juekai's face.

Shi Jin called Gu Jingyuan, "Big Bro."

Even though Gu Jingyuan was unable to see her face, he was able to sense that she was smiling by the look in her eyes.

Now was not the place to speak, so Shi Jin pushed Li Juekai's wheelchair out of the airport as she said, "Fu Xiuyuan came with me to pick you up. His car is right over there. We can talk after getting into the car."

This felt absolutely surreal to them and it felt as though they were walking in the air.

Gu Qingqing bit the tip of her tongue and found that it hurt, so she was not dreaming. This was all shockingly real!

Shi Jin came to pick them up personally!

They never dreamt that Shi Jin would ever pick them up from the airport. Each time they tried to see her, she refused to meet them!

Although they were already acquainted with Fu Xiuyuan, Shi Jin introduced him after getting into the car.

On this rare occasion, Fu Xiuyuan's eyes looked warm and clearly felt happy.

The Li and Fu clans were family friends. However, ever since a major incident, the Li family's business fell into decline. After Li Juekai got into a traffic accident, things only became worse for the family.

Li Juekai knew Fu Xiuyuan slightly better than average and knew his personality well, so Li Juekai couldn't help finding it unbelievable when the famous man quietly drove them home.

Even though the Li and Fu families had agreed to marry Fu Xiuyuan and Shi Jin, no one could object if the Fu family decided to change their minds about it considering the state the Li family was in.

Hence, Li Juekai never bore hope that Fu Xiuyuan would stick to the agreement.

He instinctively turned to look at Gu Qingqing.

Gu Qingqing felt inexplicably worried after the initial joy.

Li Juekai knew exactly what she was thinking since they were married. These days, a lot of children sever ties with their families after coming of age if they did not get along with their families.

Since Shi Jin was acting very abnormally, Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were afraid she was planning to sever ties with them.

Just thinking about it made them feel terribly apprehensive.

***

The Li residence was a somewhat old villa located in a serene environment. Although it was only average-sized, they had the entire place for themselves.

After they entered the villa, Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing took a seat while Gu Jingyuan went out to buy some milk tea. The atmosphere in the villa quickly felt intense.

"Shi Jin..." Gu Qingqing did not know what to say.

"Mom." Shi Jin thought about how much her parents loved her and how she rejected them in her past life and choked as she spoke.

Despite Gu Qingqing's suspicions, she could tell Shi Jin meant it about reconnecting with them, so she reached her hand out and embraced Shi Jin. "My baby girl."

The two of them felt so moved that their eyes became teary. They finally composed themselves a long while later.

Fu Xiuyuan gave Shi Jin a piece of tissue, handed Gu Qingqing a piece as well before he gave Shi Jin more.

"Shi Jin, are you and Xiuyuan..." asked Gu Qingqing. She simply had to ask.

"Mom and Dad, I am married to Xiuyuan," replied Shi Jin in a solemn tone.

Everyone was blown away by the news. They did not object to the marriage, but everyone knew how she felt about Fu Xiuyuan. Also, she used to be in love with Chu Ling.

Now that Shi Jin was able to accept her marriage with Fu Xiuyuan, everyone was happy for her. This meant she was now over Chu Ling and this made her even closer to the Li family.

Fu Xiuyuan stood bolt upright as everyone looked at him.

It felt as though he was a soldier waiting for his superiors to inspect him.

Despite Fu Xiuyuan's cool appearance, he felt absolutely nervous inside. Shi Jin had told her family right away that they were married and didn't hide the truth about it.

Fu Xiuyuan thought Shi Jin might not want to tell people they were married. He used to think that Shi Jin only married him to survive, but Shi Jin clearly took their marriage seriously from the looks of it. Hence, Fu Xiuyuan felt even more serious than Li Juekai, Gu Qingqing, and Gu Jingyuan.

He felt as though he was floating on the ocean with no safe harbor until Shi Jin held his hand with her soft hand making him feel as though he was back on solid ground.

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing liked their son-in-law more with every glance and couldn't stop looking at him.

"Mom, Dad, are you planning to stay for good this time?" asked Shi Jin.

A look of regret appeared on Li Juekai's face when he heard what she asked.

Chapter 191: You Are Quite Pretty

Li Juekai was confident that he could bring the family back to its past glory if he worked hard.

Sadly, Li Juekai's traffic accident dashed his hopes completely just when things were looking up. In the process, he also lost his daughter.

He was unable to forgive himself for not being with his daughter all these years.

Gu Qingqing said softly, "We plan on staying in the capital. Don't worry about us. Shi Jin, we can take care of ourselves, so you should focus on yourself."

She genuinely did not want to burden her daughter.

"Then what about Dad's injury? What do you plan to do about it?"

"We have been treating it while we were abroad, but we were only able to stabilize his condition. If he ever wants to walk again, it is basically impossible..." Gu Qingqing shook her head gently.. She glanced at Gu Jingyuan and continued, "Since your older brother is a surgeon, he plans on operating on his father."

Gu Jingyuan was a renowned surgeon. He had gained a lot of fame after succeeding in performing a lot of complicated procedures. However, he did not dare to operate on his father. Li Juekai's injury occurred many years ago, so he had already undergone countless surgeries. To begin with, old injuries were harder to treat than new ones.

Secondly, he could not help feeling apprehensive about surgery since the patient was his father.

Shi Jin could empathize with how he felt.

She said, "Tell me when you are ready for surgery. I will come to help my brother."

Could any random person help with the surgery?

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing felt very moved when Shi Jin wanted to help. Their baby girl had grown into a sensible young woman.

It did not matter if she was able to help with the surgery. All that mattered was her concern.

"Mom, why don't all of you have some rest. I will swing by in a couple of days to see you." Shi Jin sounded as though she had known them forever.

Although the Li family kept feeling guilty for not being able to spend quality time with Shi Jin all these years, Shi Jin knew how much they did for her.

Before long, Shi Jin and Fu Xiuyuan left. The Li family was pleased with this change in Shi Jin.

Shi Jin kept thinking about her father's condition after leaving the Li residence.

Fu Xiuyuan was deep in thought about getting introduced to the Li family.

After she had decided what to do about her father, she finally realized Fu Xiuyuan had been looking at her all this time.

"Is there something wrong with my face?" Shi Jin automatically pointed at her cheek.

Fu Xiuyuan looked at her deeply as he placed his hands on the back of her hand and her cheek. "Uh huh."

"What is it?"

"I have to say you are quite pretty."

Shi Jin felt tickled. It was hard to imagine a serious and restrained man saying something like that.

She could not help saying, "It seems you are in an excellent mood."

"My mood is excellent." Fu Xiuyuan's eyes came alive as he spoke. The love of his life had just introduced him to her family and nothing was more gratifying and blissful than this. "Thank you, Shi Jin."

He wanted to thank his girl for everything she gave him.

Shi Jin could tell what was on his mind and she felt sorry thinking about it. All she did was a minor gesture, but he was incredibly moved. She had introduced him to her family mostly to ease their worries. However, he was reacting as though it was a huge honor.

"Honey, this is completely normal. From now on, we will get to see even more family members," said Shi Jin softly.

Fu Xiuyuan's smiley eyes lit up and dazzled like stars.

Even though this was everyday life, he was swimming in bliss since he was with Shi Jin.

***

Before Shi Jin had even gotten around to helping out during Li Juekai's surgery, it was already Shi Qing's birthday.

Since it was Shi Qing's birthday, it was naturally a grand affair for the Shi family.

Shi Jin was their foster daughter, so she was also invited.

As Yu Xiuhua handed Shi Jin the invitation in person, she suddenly recalled something and said, "Oh yes. I heard your parents and older brother are in town. Why don't you bring them over?"

She always had the impression that the Li family was not doing well, so she wanted to invite them and embarrass them at the party.

"Sure," agreed Shi Jin right away.

It was the perfect time for the world to learn the truth.

Since it was inappropriate for the Li family to bring such matters up, Shi Jin would do it for them.

Yu Xiuhua smiled happily. "You don't have to bring any gifts and just treat it like you are coming home."

Shi Jin could tell what Yu Xiuhua was trying to do. It was Shi Qing's birthday, but Yu Xiuhua was trying to mislead her about not bringing a present. How could the guest come empty-handed? It would have been completely rude.

Although Shi Qing was not very good to Shi Jin, he was loads better than that two-faced Yu Xiuhua. Shi Qing was at least like a normal father to Shi Jin, so Shi Jin was not about to sever ties with him completely.

"Try to swing by early," said Yu Xiuhua.

***

Chu Ling's family was the first to arrive on Shi Qing's birthday.

Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin welcomed them into the house personally. Yu Xiuhua looked at Chu Ling happily as she said, "Chu Ling, welcome. Please have a seat."

Ever since the plagiarism incident, Chu Ling had kept a low profile and had not shown his face for some time.

Through the talent agency's efforts, the public was no longer talking about this, but Chu Ling had clearly lost weight over the matter.

This incident was a real setback to his career. He deeply regretted his actions, so he found himself a new music teacher and was determined not to take shortcuts from now on.

The moment he saw Yu Xiuhua, he greeted her politely, "Hi, Madame Shi."

The Shi and Chu families both felt someone was out to get Chu Ling, so they felt sorry for him. Yu Xiuhua noticed all the weight Chu Ling had lost and said, "Chu Ling, you youngsters can't keep dieting. The kitchen made some nourishing tonic soup. You must have some later."

Chu Ling thanked her before entering the villa.

Shi Xuexin went up and entered the villa with Chu Ling's parents.

There was heavy security since it was a gathering of the rich and powerful and they had to ensure no reporters would get in.

Chu Ling's cousin was present as well. The moment Chu Jia saw Shi Xuexin, she went over and greeted her, "Hi, Xuexin!"

"Jiajia, come upstairs with me later. I bought some new skincare and it suits your skin type, so I got you a set too."

Chu Jia was delighted. "Thanks! You are the best!"

The Chu clan were rich and powerful, so skincare meant nothing to them. However, it was very thoughtful of Shi Xuexin to keep thinking about them and saving nice things for them, so everyone in the Chu family liked her.

Mr and Mrs Chu watched as Shi Xuexin held Chu Jia's hand and went upstairs. Their guilt towards Shi Jin automatically diminished a little.

Since Shi Jin only cared about herself, she was incapable of taking care of Chu Ling if they got married. Shi Xuexin was far better since she was poised and thoughtful.

Chapter 192: They Gave Up Their Daughter To Get Close To The Shi Family

Other than the Chu family, a lot of friends and relatives were there for the party.

Shi Jin's third aunt was present as well. She always had a candid personality, so the moment she arrived, she praised, "Xuexin, you are handling your duties as the host perfectly. You have done us proud as the daughter of the Shi family."

"All I did was give her some practice." Yu Xiuhua felt pleased by the flattery, but she said modestly, "She was able to do so well because all her elders taught her well."

"Since she is your biological daughter, I am sure she is better," said Third Aunt as she gestured. Everyone knew she was comparing Shi Xuexin and Shi Jin.

Seventh Aunt promptly asked, "Why isn't Shi Jin here today?"

Yu Xiuhua took the opportunity to say, "Shi Jin is coming over with her biological parents, so they might be a little late."

Third aunt said in astonishment, "Are her parents coming? Xiuhua, since when were they considered relatives?"

.

Everyone looked at Yu Xiuhua curiously.

The Shi family had already spread gossip about how awful the Li family was in high society.

Yu Xiuhua kept belittling the Li family in public.

Despite never blatantly speaking ill of the Li family, it was clear from Shi Xuexin's reaction how pathetic the Li family was.

Although Yu Xiuhua had seen Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing a couple of times, Li Juekai's legs were injured and he was depressed from Shi Jin's repeated rejection, so they were always in bad shape whenever they met.

Yu Xiuhua naturally despised them. She failed to realize exactly who Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were.

"After all, Shi Jin grew up in the Shi family. Whatever it is, we can't leave them in the lurch," said Yu Xiuhua as she smiled and acted generous.

She glanced at Mr and Mrs Chu.

Chu Ling and Shi Jin were childhood friends, so they were exceptionally close to each other.

After learning Shi Jin wasn't her daughter, Yu Xiuhua was worried that Shi Jin would end up marrying into the Chu family owing to how close Shi Jin and Chu Ling were.

Fortunately, Chu Ling knew better than to do that. Shortly after Shi Xuexin returned to the Shi family, he started to take a liking to Shi Xuexin. And Shi Jin ended up embarrassing herself by repeatedly throwing herself at him.

Since Shi Jin visited the Chu family often, Mr and Mrs Chu felt bad about Shi Jin's predicament. They did not insist that Shi Jin stay away from Chu Ling. Instead, they left it to Chu Ling to decide who he preferred to marry and claimed to respect their son's preference.

Yu Xiuhua had invited Shi Jin's parents over today. She wanted Mr and Mrs Chu to see what an embarrassment the Li family was for themselves. Also, she wanted to show them what lousy parents Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were for abandoning their daughter for years. That way, Mr and Mrs Chu were bound to pick Shi Xuexin.

Third Aunt sighed, "Shi Jin is such a smart girl for refusing to leave the Shi family. Now, she has everything she could ever dream of and even her parents can get invited to this party as guests."

She made it clear Shi Jin was using her ties with the Shi family since they were rich and powerful.

Seventh Aunt chimed in, "That's true. If she stays here, she can get everything she wants. What's the point of returning to the Li family? I really have to take my hat off to the Li family. They were able to let their biological daughter live outside without hesitation. They were smart to give up their daughter so that they could curry favor with the Shi family."

All the other relatives felt the same way.

"That's right. If Shi Jin stays with the Shi family, she can get anything she wants. She was even able to use Chu Ling for hype. Otherwise, would Shi Jin have come in second on the show?"

Sure enough, Mr and Mrs Chu looked a little annoyed.

Chu Ling stayed quiet and did not join in the conversation.

After Shi Xuexin and Chu Jia came downstairs, Shi Xuexin deliberately asked innocently, "Third Aunt, Seventh Aunt, why are you chatting so happily? What are you talking about?"

She had already overheard the conversation, but she purposely asked so as to ensure that everyone could hear it a second time.

"Xuexin, we were just talking about Shi Jin. I heard she is coming over with her parents today," replied Third Aunt.

"Oh really? I haven't seen them in ages, so I miss them a lot," said Shi Xuexin gently.

In reality, Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were not close to Shi Xuexin at all. They were too busy working and could only come home to spend a few days with her during the Chinese New Year.

Also, she despised them for being poor. She was unable to live like the other rich folk in town. They were able to bring their family to big cities on holidays and could afford to buy their children designer goods.

All her garments were handmade by an old lady who worked for Old Master Li. They were not designer goods and were not as trendy as the things that were sold in malls.

Although there was a chauffeur, the car was an old jalopy and couldn't compare to the latest cars out there.

Even her toiletries were unbranded, so she deeply envied the other children in town who could use branded goods.

She only enjoyed the finer things in life after returning to her biological family. If she had a choice, she did not want to ever see the Li family again including Old Master Li who raised her in the countryside.

However, she knew full well she could not say such things. The moment she did, it would make her look bad.

Yu Xiuhua looked at her daughter proudly as she said, "Uh huh. You can finally get to see them today. You are so sweet for thinking about the Li family all the time. I know you really want to repay them for bringing you up."

Despite the occasional jealousy, Yu Xiuhua mostly felt impressed by how kind Shi Xuexin was.

If Shi Xuexin was already able to show such gratitude to an impoverished family like the Li family, she was bound to be even more filial to the Shi family.

Third Aunt smiled and said, "Xuexin is such a wonderful young woman for being so filial and grateful. She is loads better than those people who refuse to even go back to their biological families."

Seventh Aunt shook her head as she said, "Precisely. If my daughter doesn't even think about her family, I would rather have given birth to a pound of meat."

Shi Xuexin glanced at Mr and Mrs Chu before furtively looking at Chu Ling.

All three of them were holding their teacups, but no one knew what they were thinking.

Old Master Shi was still hospitalized so he was not at the party.

Shi Qing would get to take the main seat. The moment he came over, he heard everyone saying mean things about Shi Jin. He frowned and said, "Enough. Stop talking. Shi Jin is almost here."

The moment he finished his sentence, the butler led Shi Jin, Li Juekai, and Gu Qingqing into the villa.

Chapter 193: Redeem Yourself

Li Juekai had been unwell ever since the traffic accident. Also, he was slightly depressed for failing to achieve his ambitions. So despite his flawless features, he gave off a gloomy aura and felt a lot older than he actually was. And since he was sitting in a wheelchair, he looked a lot shorter than average and seemed unprepossessing.

No one would have guessed that he was the mighty heir of the Li family and a celebrated award-winning actor.

Gu Qingqing was busy taking care of Li Juekai. Even though she was an elegant woman, no one remembered she used to be the respectable and well-loved eldest daughter from the Gu family.

They were wearing unlabeled handmade garments. Shi Xuexin had worn the same ones when she lived in the Li residence. No one was able to identify their brands and prices, but in reality, they were shockingly expensive.

Despite the family's decline, some habits from back in the day when they were elites stayed around, but they simply kept a low profile.

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Since everyone at the banquet was well dressed, Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing came off looking unremarkable. They genuinely resembled ordinary people from the countryside only with slightly better appearances.

Shi Xuexin smiled and greeted them, "Hi, Uncle Juekai and Auntie Qingqing."

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing nodded in acknowledgment. They had learned that Shi Xuexin treated Shi Jin poorly and kept making things hard for her.

In the past, they used to treat Shi Xuexin like their biological daughter, but they gradually grew distant over time.

If Shi Jin did not insist on attending Shi Qing's birthday, Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing would not have come.

The moment Shi Xuexin greeted them, everyone turned to look their way. They acted nonchalantly when they saw Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing. However, they were surprised to see Shi Jin.

"Isn't that Shi Jin?"

"Is it really her?"

Everyone kept asking.

Although everyone had already seen her on the television, it was different to see her in person.

Also, it was common knowledge that makeup artists and hairstylists were capable of doing wonders to an artist. With the right skills and tools, they were able to change a woman's face completely.

However, Shi Jin looked exactly like she did on television. At a close look, people realized she was not wearing makeup and her skin was as flawless as that of a newborn.

Didn't she use to be meek? Was she not in the habit of wearing thick makeup? Now they were unable to find even the slightest flaw on her face.

The more they looked at her, the more she seemed vastly different from her biological parents. People could not help wondering if the Li family had picked her up from the roadside or something.

Shi Xuexin clenched her fists slightly when everyone was blown away by Shi Jin's appearance.

Shi Xuexin had started to get ready for the party at 5:00 am so as not to be outdone by Shi Jin, but Shi Jin ended up winning. Everyone kept singing praises for Shi Xuexin's achievements, but no one commended her for being pretty.

Also, the scar on Shi Jin's face had completely disappeared. How did she pull this off? It was such a serious scar. How did she remove it?

Shi Xuexin bit her lip slightly when she noticed the look of awe in Chu Ling's eyes when Shi Jin showed up.

Yu Xiuhua quickly caught on to her daughter's concerns and smiled courteously as she said, "Shi Jin, have you brought your parents here? Make yourself comfortable."

The moment the other guests realized Shi Jin had brought her biological parents along, everyone secretly rolled their eyes at them. Her biological parents were terrible for dumping her at the Shi family all these years to begin with. How could they have the cheek to show up and rub shoulders with them? Had they no shame?

"Shi Jin, why don't you sit at the main table with your parents?" asked Yu Xiuhua.

Shi Jin confidently led her parents to the main table and sat down. It was perfect since she had something to say today.

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were accustomed to sitting at the best tables everywhere they went in the past. Even though they were at the main table, they remained completely calm and unflustered.

Someone secretly thought, "They must just be pretending to be calm. Deep down inside, I am sure they are terribly nervous."

The Chus simply glanced at them briefly before veering their eyes.

Chu Ling found Li Juekai particularly familiar. Since Chu Ling could not put his finger on it, he did not go on thinking about it.

"Since everyone is here, let's start the banquet." Shi Xuexin played a good host. "Dad, why don't you say a few words since it's your birthday?"

Shi Qing did not object and calmly made a small speech.

Everyone came over with their gifts for him.

Since the Chu and Shi families were bonded by marriage, they were the first to present their gift.

Shi Qing happily accepted the gift and opened it in front of the guests.

It was a jade coral tree.

Even though it was called a coral tree, it was in fact carved out of jade entirely. It had a translucent quality to it and it was clearly top-grade jade.

Shi Xuexin quickly said, "In comparison to gold and silver, jade has far more character. It's easy for gold and silver to be come by, but high-quality jade is much rarer. If I am not mistaken, this looks like warm jade. It is warm to the touch even in winter and long-term use is really good for health. Mr and Mrs Chu and Ling, you were so thoughtful with your gift."

Everyone said nice things about the gift. Shi Qing and Yu Xiuhua were pleased by how seriously the Chu family treated them.

Mr and Mrs Chu liked Shi Xuexin even more when they saw her poise and learned how knowledgeable she was.

Since Shi Xuexin had embarrassed herself at the school anniversary celebrations, she was eager to show off and redeem herself.

She took out a Chinese brush painting and gave it to Shi Qing. "Dad, I drew this for you. I hope you will stay young forever."

She opened the painting to reveal a pine Chinese brush painting. The brushstrokes were exquisite and had a lot of character. It was clear that she was well-versed in the art.

Chu Ling promptly said, "Xuexin, all your practice has paid off. I can see that your painting has become even better. No wonder Master Liu keeps saying such nice things about your work."

Everyone naturally praised Shi Xuexin.

"It is so impressive that Master Liu likes your work."

"Xuexin is a talented and diligent young woman, so she deserves this success."

"I'm so envious of Mr Shi."

Shi Xuexin smiled graciously.

In reality, she had prepared a solo performance for her father's birthday. It was the perfect way to show off her talent.

However, since Shi Jin had outdone Shi Xuexin at the school anniversary celebrations, a solo performance would only serve to remind people of her little setback with Shi Jin.

What if people asked Shi Jin to perform as well? It would become such a nightmare!

Shi Xuexin decided to play it safe and chose to give her father a Chinese painting.

Chapter 194: Don't You Know Why?

Shi Xuexin was unable to perform for her father on his birthday and ended up giving him this Chinese painting, so she was a little upset.

Fortunately, she finally managed to regain confidence when everyone sang her praises.

And sure enough, Shi Qing loved the painting. "Thanks, Xuexin. It was a thoughtful gift."

Gu Qingqing glanced at Shi Xuexin's pine Chinese brush painting and felt she had some degree of talent.

However, Gu Qingqing had already achieved this degree of mastery when she was just 12 years old. Even though she received far more praise than Shi Xuexin, she did not take it to heart at all. Hence, Gu Qingqing was unable to laud praise like the rest of the guests.

If memory served Gu Qingqing right, Master Liu was probably Liu Xueyuan. It was a fellow artist she used to know who was unable to surpass her skills.. In that case, it could hardly be considered glory for Master Liu to think highly of Shi Xuexin.

After all, Gu Qingqing couldn't continue being an artist because of her husband's ill health. That was the main reason Liu Xueyuan was finally able to make a name for himself in the trade.

Li Juekai also didn't react when he saw the painting.

The moment Shi Xuexin saw their reaction, she felt they must know nothing about Chinese painting since they were from a small town. The same went for Shi Jin. No matter how good her work was, they were incapable of appreciating it. They probably never even heard of Master Liu in their lives.

Chu Ling and Shi Xuexin had already presented their gifts to Shi Qing, so it was now Shi Jin's turn.

After all, Shi Qing had treated Shi Jin well during her time in the Shi family. Shi Qing and Old Master Shi were the only people in the clan who treated Shi Jin like family.

Shi Xuexin raised her chin and looked at Shi Jin. Everyone turned to look at Shi Jin as well.

Shi Jin naturally didn't come empty-handed. She promptly took out a perfumed bag and presented it to Shi Qing with both hands. "Uncle Qing, please accept my gift. Happy birthday."

Shi Qing took the gift. He didn't appear to dislike it at all as he said, "Thanks, Shi Jin."

"Try to wear it or place it under your pillow," said Shi Jin.

"Sure." Shi Qing accepted the gift.

Everyone secretly scoffed when they saw the perfumed bag and felt unimpressed by the gift. Sure enough, Shi Jin was from a small town. How could she give Shi Qing a perfumed bag on his birthday? From the looks of it, she must have bought it online for cheap with free shipping even.

However, Shi Qing was gracious enough to accept Shi Jin's gift without publicly rejecting it.

Third Aunt promptly said, "Shi Jin, you are a famous artist now. I heard you won a lot of money for coming in second on the show. How could you give Shi Qing just that on his birthday? Shouldn't you take the opportunity to show some gratitude to your foster father for raising you?"

"Third Aunt, stop saying that. Shi Jin has always been a filial child. Shi Jin has been staying at the Shi residence all this time because she can't bear to leave my parents," defended Shi Xuexin right away.

Despite sounding like she was speaking in defense of Shi Jin, Shi Xuexin was in fact accusing Shi Jin of refusing to leave.

Third Aunt shook her head hard. "Xuexin, you are too nice. How could Shi Jin be staying because she can't bear to leave your parents? Can't you tell why she is still around? Well, I certainly can. Now, even her parents are here to get cozy with us. Don't you know why they are doing this?"

Everyone secretly nodded in agreement. Judging from the way Li Juekai looked, he probably needed full-time medical attention. If Shi Jin could get close to the Shi family and they were in a charitable mood, the Li family could probably survive on just handouts alone from the Shi family.

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing certainly knew how to do their Math!

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing instantly looked annoyed! How could they think that of Shi Jin? It became clear to them the kind of life Shi Jin led in the Shi family!

They always knew Shi Jin had a hard time while she was with the Shi family, but they did not know exactly how bad it was.

Gu Qingqing promptly wanted to defend Shi Jin. She didn't care if they wanted to attack her, but they could not do it to Shi Jin. She was Shi Jin's biological mother. How could she stand by and watch everyone treat her daughter this way?

Shi Jin hurriedly pressed Gu Qingqing's hand and patted Li Juekai's shoulder and gestured for them to stay quiet.

Although Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were anxious to help their daughter, they respected her decisions, so they stopped and let Shi Jin do what she wanted.

Shi Jin proceeded to step forward. She was a natural beauty who glowed and drew attention no matter where she was.

Even Chu Ling could not resist looking at her just like everyone else.

She looked at Third Aunt and asked mildly, "Third Aunt, why do you think I'm still living here? Do you mind sharing a pointer or two? I for one certainly don't know what you mean."

"I..." Third Aunt instantly stuttered when Shi Jin looked at her with her bright stern eyes.

After all, Third Aunt was her elder, so she had seen her fair share of family drama in her life.

She quickly composed herself. "It's no big deal. Our family is rich and famous. Even our servants have better perks than other help. It's no surprise you want to continue living here and be close to us."

"Third Aunt, are you saying I deliberately refused to leave the Shi residence so that I can use the family? Are you saying that I even got my parents involved?" asked Shi Jin rhetorically.

"Thereabouts," replied Third Aunt.

Everyone cast a knowing look at Shi Jin.

Yu Xiuhua said, "Shi Jin grew up in the Shi family, so it is completely normal for her to feel that way. The truth is, we can't bear for her to leave either."

In reality, Yu Xiuhua couldn't wait for Shi Jin to leave. However, she had to continue pretending to be a doting mother to Shi Jin.

Shi Jin nodded and smiled. "Okay. Let's talk about this then. Auntie Xiuhua, Xuexin, and I were brought up by the Li and Shi families respectively for 12 years. Has anything unfair happened? Or is there anything we should do now to make up for the other family?"

"Of course not. There is no need for you to make up for anything." Yu Xiuhua hurriedly shook her head. In reality, the Shi family was considered new to high society, so Shi Jin didn't get to enjoy life while she was residing at the Shi family.

Old Master Shi's eyes were starting to deteriorate at the time and made a few losses when he did business, so the Shi family was not doing well. Shi Qing and Yu Xiuhua were busy trying to make up for the losses and did not pay much attention to Shi Jin. This was the main reason Yu Xiuhua and Shi Jin were never close.

By the time Shi Xuexin returned to the Shi family, it was already financially stable.

Yu Xiuhua felt Shi Xuexin brought the family good luck. Also, she was her biological daughter. Hence, she doted on her even more.

In hindsight, Shi Xuexin had a much better life in the first 12 years of her life. Although she lived in a small town, she was brought up to be poised. Also, she did well academically and had the freedom to pursue her interests.

Shi Xuexin and Yu Xiuhua felt Shi Xuexin was naturally talented and gave the Li family no credit whatsoever.

Chapter 195: Not Just Slander

All these things about the Shi family were public knowledge.

Over time, Yu Xiuhua kept bitching about the Li family as though they had done the Shi family a huge injustice.

In hindsight, everyone finally caught on to how vastly different Shi Jin and Shi Xuexin's lives were when they were kids.

"Does this mean we can call it quits for everything that happened in those 12 years?" asked Shi Jin.

"Of course. No one owes anyone anything." Even some of the guests felt the same way. After all, they were around to see it when the Shi family fell into decline when Old Master Shi started losing his sight. Shi Jin had a tough life when she was a kid.

"I did stay here for three more years, but I moved out when I was 15 years old. In reality, I only stayed here for three more years, right?" asked Shi Jin..

Yu Xiuhua had to admit. "That's right."

One of the guests was startled. "Just three years?"

Yu Xiuhua kept telling people how hard it was for her to raise two daughters, and that the Li family refused to come and take Shi Jin home.

Everyone thought Shi Jin refused to leave. Also, Shi Jin kept visiting Old Master Shi, so everyone thought she was still living in the Shi residence. Now that Shi Jin had exposed the truth, everyone felt bewildered.

"Oh? Did Shi Jin only spend three more years in the Shi residence?"

"Does this mean Shi Jin only kept showing up here because she was here to visit Old Master Shi?"

Everyone finally caught on to the fact that Yu Xiuhua had told a lot of lies.

Shi Xuexin couldn't bear letting anyone criticize her mother, so she quickly said, "Shi Jin wasn't around most of the time since she was busy chasing after Chu Ling. Mom keeps telling her to focus on studies since she was just a kid."

Everyone remembered how Shi Jin kept chasing after Chu Ling.

Chu Ling also glanced at Shi Jin.

Shi Jin Smiled and said, "That's true. I acted in three of Chu Ling's shows as unimportant roles. I probably spent about three months on those in total. As for 'Ultimate Singer-Songwriter', I had even less interaction with Chu Ling, right?"

She had Fu Xiuyuan to thank for this. He had insisted on taking her away so that she didn't have to suffer at the Shi residence.

Since he kept stopping Shi Jin from going anywhere and kept her locked up at Repulse Bay Villa so that she could not see Chu Ling, Shi Jin ended up wasting less time on Chu Ling.

Even though Shi Jin had wasted a lot of time on Chu Ling, she spent most of her time doing her best to outwit Fu Xiuyuan. In reality, she hardly wasted or spent any time with Chu Ling.

Three months and five years were genuinely vastly different.

Everyone contemplated and came to a conclusion that Shi Jin genuinely did not like Chu Ling as much as they thought.

Although she used to run after him, it was normal since they used to be childhood friends.

As for the recent program, Shi Jin had avoided him like a plague, cut off the orchid, and wrote a song entitled "Get Lost". It was clear that she did not have a crush on Chu Ling.

The moment they thought about Chu Ling and the competition, everyone automatically recalled Chu Ling's plagiarism incident. They automatically turned to look at Chu Ling as they contemplated.

Mr and Mrs Chu instantly knew what everyone was thinking when they stopped looking at Shi Jin and turned their attention to Chu Ling. They promptly looked a little annoyed.

Shi Xuexin immediately regretted her words. She shouldn't have gotten Chu Ling involved tonight.

She swiftly said, "I simply read about it on the entertainment news, so I was worried about you since you were living on your own."

"Which source is more reliable? Me or the tabloids?" asked Shi Jin rhetorically.

Since Shi Xuexin was a young woman from high society, she would never admit she trusted the tabloids more.

She said, "Shi Jin, I know you are upset that my parents didn't take care of you. Even if you stayed for only three more years, my parents still had to take care of you. Nothing can compare to parents' love for their children. No matter how you feel about them, they brought you up, so you are indebted to them."

"Naturally, the Shi family and my parents don't need you to repay them. However, I hope you can stop hating us and let go of any resentment you have against us."

Everyone felt moved by what she said. She was right. Even if the Shi family did not do their best and Shi Jin only spent three more years under their roof, they did Shi Jin a favor.

This meant that Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were irresponsible parents who now wanted to make use of Shi Jin to get connected to the Shi family.

Shi Jin sneered out loud as she looked at Shi Xuexin hilariously before she said, "That's right. I'm certainly not going to repay the Shi family, but let me make it clear why I won't be doing it. The truth is, I didn't continue living here. Also, I did not bring my parents here so that they could be friends with the Shi family either. I have never taken anything from the Shi family."

"Instead, my parents were very good to me. My parents were unable to pick me up because my father encountered a severe traffic accident and had to undergo several surgeries and kept getting transferred in between hospitals. My mother was afraid that I might get worried, so she chose not to take me home. She was also worried I might get distracted from school if I left the home I grew up in."

Third Aunt scoffed, "If you are not using the Shi family, then what are they doing here?"

"If it were true, they shouldn't have come to the Shi family to begin with. What traffic accident? If you ask me, he is just making excuses," said Seventh Aunt in ridicule.

Shi Jin couldn't be bothered with them. Instead, she said, "Although my parents didn't pick me up, they hardly left me in the lurch. Ever since I was 12 years old, my parents gave the Shi family $300 000 every year. Is $300 000 a year not enough to raise a child?"

"Let me ask you this. I have left the Shi residence ever since I was 15. Why hasn't the Shi family returned the money to me or my parents yet? Instead, they go around spreading gossip that I refused to go back to my biological parents and made people think that my parents and I are vain and materialistic."

The moment she finished her sentence, everyone went quiet.

This news had come without warning and everyone turned to look at Shi Qing and Yu Xiuhua in shock.

Li Juekai held onto the wheelchair handle tightly and Gu Qingqing placed her hands on his back.

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing were both pleased and sad to hear this. Their daughter had known about their actions all along and wanted to seek justice for them today!

They had never told her about it before. In the past, Shi Jin refused to believe what they said. Also, they didn't want to give her any pressure.

Chapter 196: Change Public Opinion Of Her Parents

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing did not expect their daughter to know about this. She knew everything.

It was so hard on their daughter.

Shi Qing looked at Yu Xiuhua coldly. "Xiuhua, did you take the money?"

Yu Xiuhua trembled right away. She had indeed pocketed the money.

No one from the Li family came when Shi Jin was 12 years old. Instead, they got someone to send over $300 000.

The Li family sent $300 000 every year without fail when Shi Jin continued living at the Shi residence for three more years. Also, they sent word asking the Shi family to take good care of their daughter.

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Shi Jin moved out when she was 15 years old, but Yu Xiuhua said nothing about it, so the Li family kept sending the money every year.

Now that the Shi family was doing well, $300 000 was really nothing to them. Yet ever since the money troubles the Shi family suffered, Yu Xiuhua continued to feel worried about money.

Money was money. She did not want to raise some other family's daughter for free, so she was happy to accept the money.

She sent someone to investigate the matter and learned that the government wanted to build a high-speed rail in the town where they resided. Hence, the government shelled out a lot of money to pay the locals for their land and buildings, so she did not feel guilty about taking this money.

She was certain that people from a small town like them would not dare to ask her about the money.

Since Shi Jin was making bucket loads of money as an artist, she had no reason to talk about it either. However, Shi Jin unexpectedly brought it up.

Also, she had mentioned it right in front of the Shi and Chu families.

Shi Jin wanted her to return every dime and cough up every penny!

"I asked you. Did you take the money?" asked Shi Qing sternly.

"Yes, I did. Everyone knows it isn't cheap to raise a child these days. Even if Shi Jin wasn't always home, I kept buying things for her. I signed her up for every single class that Xuexin took, but she insisted on moving out without collecting her things or going for classes. That doesn't mean I didn't spend the money," explained Yu Xiuhua desperately. However, her response was simply too far-fetched.

Despite their previous support for her, Third Aunt and Seventh Aunt could not help speaking their mind, "Wow. You accepted $300 000 a year. That means $2.4 million for a total of eight years. It's undoubtedly enough to raise a child. If you wanted to, you could have even plated Shi Jin in 24K gold."

Everyone quietly shook their heads.

The Shi family was now a respectable family, but they accepted so much money from the Li family to raise Shi Jin.

Since the Li family were from a small town, it was not easy for them to make a living. From the looks of it, they must have spent every penny they made on Shi Jin!

It was genuinely unbecoming of Yu Xiuhua to take the money! A lot of the women who married into rich families found her disdainful. None of them batted an eye when they purchased expensive jewelry. How could Yu Xiuhua be so desperate for money?

Although it was unfair to expect Yu Xiuhua to raise someone else's daughter for free, she shouldn't have taken all that money.

Shi Qing didn't expect his wife to accept the Li family's money, so he was furious. "How could you take so much money from them? Don't you know it is hard for them to make money?"

Li Juekai couldn't help clearing his throat a couple of times. Did it seem like he had trouble making money?

Although the Li family wasn't what it used to be, and Old Master Li genuinely resided in a small town, they were simply trying to prevent their children from being implicated in the mess that occurred over 20 years ago. In terms of money, they were still wealthier than the average family. Even though they had declined, they were easily ten times more well off than the Shi family.

Shi Jin automatically glanced at her biological father.

In her past life, the Li family's business quickly skyrocketed a few years later. Gu Jingyuan had a lot of luck with money and was also a good manager. The private hospital he established was very popular with the rich and powerful, so everyone kept throwing money at him, swiftly turning him into one of the top-ranking wealthy men in the world.

Naturally, Shi Jin didn't care about money now and simply wanted her family to be safe.

Yu Xiuhua muttered defensively, "They got that money as a payout from the government for taking their land. How could it be considered hard-earned money? It is only right for them to spend it on Shi Jin, right?"

"Nonsense!" said Shi Qing angrily.

If his wife had genuinely spent all the money on Shi Jin, Shi Qing wouldn't be this furious, but she didn't spend a dime on Shi Jin.

Yu Xiuhua had genuinely embarrassed herself publicly, so she didn't have the cheek to go on defending herself. From now on, she would end up becoming a laughingstock in high society.

Shi Xuexin felt worried. Now that the truth was out about her mother's shameful deeds, what would the Chu family think of her?

She even told Shi Jin that she didn't have to repay the Shi family and simply had to be good to her parents. Now that she came to know about the vast sum of money her mother had accepted from the Li family, it was undoubtedly a tight slap on her face. She was incredibly angry with her mother for doing this.

Shi Qing looked at Shi Jin and her parents and said apologetically, "I am so sorry. I didn't know about this at all. If I knew about this, I would have made her give Shi Jin all the money. Don't worry. I will right this injustice and will return all the money to Shi Jin this instant."

Shi Jin nodded "Thanks. Why don't you get Auntie Xiuhua to return the money that she accepted for the years I had already moved out of the Shi family first?"

Despite the serious look on her face, she reminded everyone of how Yu Xiuhua took the money and treated her badly.

Shi Qing naturally did nothing of the sort. Instead, he promptly instructed for $2.4 million to be transferred to Shi Jin's bank account entirely.

Yu Xiuhua's face turned ghastly pale. Now that everyone knew about her shameful deeds, she could only accept all the looks of contempt.

Shi Qing's selflessness finally made up for Yu Xiuhua's stingy ways.

Shi Jin wanted to return the money to her biological parents.

"Just save it for yourself as pocket money." Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing refused to take the money. In the past, they wanted to give this money to Shi Jin, but she turned their offer down. Now they had the perfect excuse to make her take it.

Shi Jin contemplated. Although the Li family genuinely wasn't the richest and most powerful family in the capital anymore, they certainly had money. So she accepted the money without any guilt at the thought of that.

She proceeded to take out her phone and transferred the money to Old Master Shi and called him in front of everyone. "Grandpa, I just sent you some pocket money so that you can treat yourself to some snacks."

Everyone was stunned when she called Old Master Shi.

Judging from the way she calmly transferred all the money to Old Master Shi, she clearly wasn't here about the money.

Li Juekai turned to glance at Gu Qingqing. Both of them knew Shi Jin was trying to help change everyone's impression of them and clear their bad name!

Chapter 197: Tossed Out The Marriage Agreement Like Leftovers

The rumors that the Shi family kept spreading were targeted at Shi Jin, but also put the Li family in an awkward position. If the Li family was made a laughingstock, they would never be able to hold their heads up high in town.

Shi Jin did this so everyone would know that the Li family didn't sell their daughter for money. She had also ensured that everyone knew about what Yu Xiuhua had done.

If they allowed Yu Xiuhua to go on spreading this nonsense, it would be much harder to clear the air in the future if this was left to fester.

After Shi Jin hung up the phone, she said to everyone, "The Shi family doesn't like having me around and I am genuinely not their biological daughter, so I will sever ties with the Shi family from now on."

Since Old Master Shi has brought me up and treats me like a real granddaughter, I will not leave him in the lurch. I don't care about the rest of the family, but I will continue being filial to him."

She promptly made her objectives for the night clear.

The Li family was not made of money.. Yu Xiuhua had mentioned they received all that money from the government as compensation for their land. However, Shi Jin was able to give the money to Old Master Shi without batting an eye, so it went to show what a kind and filial young lady she was.

People couldn't help looking at her with a degree of admiration.

Even Chu Ling could not resist taking second looks at her, but he veered his eyes when he finally realized how inappropriate it was.

Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin clenched their fists so tightly that their skin almost tore.

"Since we are at it, I have one more thing to say," continued Shi Jin.

Chu Ling had a feeling it had something to do with him. He instinctively glanced at Shi Jin.

Shi Jin said calmly, "Since I am not a Shi, the marriage agreement you have made is deemed null and void. From now on, please do not link me to the Chu family. Now that Shi Xuexin has returned to the Shi family, she is no longer a Li and has nothing to do with the marriage agreement that the Li family has made either."

Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin had been dying for Shi Jin to say these words. However, by saying it now, Shi Jin had embarrassed Shi Xuexin making her seem as though she was snatching something from her.

Shi Jin had just tossed aside the marriage agreement she had with Chu Ling like it was garbage to Shi Xuexin.

Since Yu Xiuhua had already humiliated herself, it was inappropriate for her to retaliate, so she could only suck it up.

Chu Ling gritted his teeth. Perfect! That would be best! He had been waiting for her to say this for such a long time!

So why did his heart inexplicably feel empty when he had clearly stopped liking her a long time ago?

The guests were awfully impressed by how sensible Shi Jin was when she did not insist on marrying Chu Ling since he was not hers. Why did Yu Xiuhua insist Shi Jin kept fighting with Shi Xuexin for resources while she was living here? How could she claim Shi Jin was competitive towards Shi Xuexin? Everyone looked at Yu Xiuhua suspiciously and felt sorry for Shi Jin's predicament.

What had this young woman endured during her time at the Shi residence?

Shi Qing felt the same way. He used to think that the Shi family had done Shi Jin justice, but he finally found out what kind of life Shi Jin truly led in the family.

Stifled pain came from his chest as he became overwhelmed by giddiness. Just as he was about to speak, his body slanted sideways and toppled. He had fallen with a crash breaking the teacups and wine glasses on the table in the process.

"Honey!"

"Dad!"

"Mr Shi!"

"Get an ambulance!"

Shi Jin lowered her head and checked on Shi Qing.

Yu Xiuhua couldn't bear the sight of her tonight, so she shoved Shi Jin. "Get out of the way. He doesn't even have air to breathe!"

Shi Xuexin was flustered. "Has anyone called an ambulance?"

She finally felt relieved when the butler confirmed he did. However, she and all the guests remained worried.

Chu Ling was unable to offer any help, so he could only stay by Shi Xuexin's side.

"Now that he has passed out, do we have to do CPR?"

"He appears to be conscious. Can't we only do CPR when the patient is unconscious?"

Even people with some medical knowledge were at a loss. In an instant, no one knew what to do.

Only Shi Jin sounded calm. "Where is the perfume bag I gave him? There is medicine in there which can help with his condition."

Yu Xiuhua was infuriated. "Stop causing more trouble as it is!"

Everyone felt Shi Jin was insensible to act this way at a time like this.

Shi Qing was already in such a bad state. Did Shi Jin have to do this now? Moreover, no one even knew what Shi Qing was suffering from. How could they blindly give him medicine? What if something went wrong with the treatment?

Fortunately, the Shi residence was centrally located in the wealthy part of town, so an ambulance was bound to arrive soon.

Gu Qingqing couldn't bear hearing them speak ill of her daughter, so she reached her hand out and wanted to pull her back.

Shi Jin gently pulled her hand out and gestured that it was fine. She proceeded to say calmly, "Uncle Qing often suffers from chest tightness, giddiness, and fatigue. A long time ago, he passed out once. After someone faints, it is very important to treat him within four minutes. You have already caused a two minute delay. By the time the ambulance arrives, it would be at least seven minutes. You have to decide whether you want to treat him now."

Even though Shi Qing was busy working all the time and did not have time to take care of her, he did not treat her like Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin. Shi Jin was happy to help him, but she would never insist on saving him like Mother Teresa.

Neither Yu Xiuhua nor Shi Xuexin cared about him, so there was no reason for her to step up.

Yu Xiuhua was still hesitating when Shi Xuexin said to the butler decisively, "Where is Shi Jin's perfumed back? Bring it over this instant!"

Shi Qing was in charge of the family's business affairs, so if anything happened to him, all of them would get implicated! Shi Xuexin could only trust Shi Jin this time.

Yu Xiuhua had secretly told the butler to discard the perfumed bag Shi Jin had given Shi Qing earlier.

How could Shi Jin expect Yu Xiuhua to allow Shi Qing to use it and place it under his pillow? It was the last thing Yu Xiuhua wanted to see.

Fortunately, the butler was too occupied to take care of the perfumed bag and simply left it aside without discarding it. Before long, he came over with the perfumed bag.

Everyone saw a small bottle inside when Shi Jin opened the perfume bag. She swiftly opened the wooden stopper and gave Shi Qing the medication. She finally stopped when she had given him half the medication.

Even though Shi Jin claimed she wasn't going to dive in and save Shi Qing, she remembered what her master said about the Hippocratic oath when she first became his disciple. It was deeply engraved in her mind and she would never forget it, not in two lifetimes.

After Shi Jin had given Shi Qing the medication, everyone watched and waited.

Yu Xiuhua clenched her fists tightly. If anything happened to Shi Qing, she would kill Shi Jin!

Chapter 198: If He Died There And Then

Shi Xuexin waited with her face bereft of color. Even though she did not think Shi Jin was able to treat Shi Qing, Shi Jin was also her only hope. She was deeply overwhelmed with conflict in her heart.

No one dared to make a peep.

Shi Qing was lying on the ground with his mouth closed tightly and his face looked exceptionally sallow.

The atmosphere froze as a minute went by before he finally exhaled.

Shi Jin said, "Help him up."

Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin did not hesitate and instantly reached their hands out to help support Shi Qing to sit up. They overlooked the fact that it was Shi Jin giving the orders despite their immense hate for her.

Shi Qing gradually sat up.. Although his face was ghastly pale, he did not look as pasty and he clearly looked a lot better now.

Everyone automatically looked at Shi Jin in shock and admiration.

Shi Qing had been overworked when he was just starting out, so he ended up being plagued by giddiness. He had already visited the best hospitals for examination, but they were unable to determine the cause of his problems and was simply advised to have plenty of rest and to avoid staying up late at night.

Yu Xiuhua often talked to people about his condition and asked if they knew any good doctors. Hence, Shi Qing's condition was public knowledge.

Although Shi Qing was plagued by incessant giddiness, no one felt it was a huge problem since it was considered a minor ailment. Everyone only realized how serious Shi Qing's condition was when he passed out today.

An ambulance finally arrived at this moment.

The doctor ran in. "Where is the patient?"

"I'm okay now." Shi Qing knew his condition best. Also, his face was gradually regaining color.

The doctor insisted on giving him an examination before he said, "You are genuinely fine now, but you really need to go to the hospital for a detailed examination, treatment, and observation."

"The doctor is right. Why don't we go for a checkup?" Yu Xiuhua was worried about the strange medicine Shi Jin had given Shi Qing.

Shi Qing had visited the hospital many times because of his condition, but nothing worked. This time, he couldn't be bothered to go either. "It's fine. I just need some rest."

Since Shi Qing was insistent about not going to the hospital and the doctor was sure he was fine, the doctor left with the nurse.

Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin suddenly felt a little awkward towards Shi Jin.

They had planned to let the Chu family and all the other guests at the banquet see Shi Jin and the Li family throwing themselves at the Shi family. However, Shi Jin ended up stealing all the limelight.

Shi Xuexin suppressed her resentment and said, "Shi Jin, thanks so much. Did you learn about Chinese herbs from Grandpa Li? I always knew he adored keeping herbs, but I didn't expect them to be this effective."

She was deliberately watering down Shi Jin's credit.

Shi Jin said nothing.

Instead, Yu Xiuhua said, "I certainly hope it doesn't have any side effects. After all, you can't always be sure when it comes to Chinese medicine since it tends to be dodgy."

Although Shi Jin had saved Shi Qing, Yu Xiuhua spoke sarcastically. However, a lot of the guests felt the same way about Chinese medicine.

They were in modern times, so Western medicine was common. In comparison, traditional Chinese medicine was no longer as popular. People were more willing to trust the results of high precision apparatus and medicine from big brands with a proven track record of success. It was hard for them to trust unknown Chinese herbs from the countryside.

"Xiuhua!" Shi Qing hurriedly stopped Yu Xiuhua.

Li Juekai said mildly, "It is true that we might not know enough about Chinese medicine, but it is still a national treasure that was passed down through generations. It is not something you can disregard frivolously. Moreover, you have seen with your own eyes how effective it was. If Shi Jin hadn't stepped up, you certainly wouldn't be sitting around having this conversation about side effects now."

He was implying that if Shi Qing died without taking the medicine, they wouldn't be standing around finding trouble for Shi Jin now.

Some of the guests quickly caught on to this. Their shoulders trembled slightly as they did their utmost to suppress their laughter.

Although Li Juekai sounded harsh, Shi Qing did not take it to heart. It was only natural for Li Juekai to feel protective of his daughter.

Shi Jin couldn't help laughing. Her biological father was undoubtedly the eldest son of the Li family. Other than having remarkable self-restraint, he also had an incredibly sharp tongue.

Shi Qing said apologetically, "Shi Jin, Mr Li, thank you so much for the medicine. I know my condition best and I definitely feel a lot better now."

"Why don't you keep the rest for future use?" said Shi Jin. "I have used a wooden stopper on the bottle so that the medicine will get released slowly. By wearing it long-term, you will be able to alleviate the giddiness a lot."

"Is that medication in there? Oh, you even used a glass bottle for the meds. Shi Jin, if you didn't tell us about it, we might never have known," said Shi Xuexin. "I'm so glad you happened to be here today."

Even though Shi Xuexin was thanking Shi Jin on the surface, she was implying that Shi Jin failed to make herself clear when she gifted Shi Qing the perfumed bag. If she was not around today, Shi Qing might have died despite having medication for his condition.

Everyone caught on to what she was implying and also wanted to know what Shi Jin was thinking.

Shi Jin explained to Shi Qing, "For as long as I've stayed at the Shi residence, you only passed out once before. I thought you would never need to take the medicine orally. You just need to take some of this medicine when you pass out and keep it on you at all times."

Everyone realized Shi Jin was genuinely being a good daughter to Shi Qing. Since she cared about him a lot, she even made medication to ease his condition.

In comparison, Yu Xiuhua and Shi Xuexin were such ingrates. However, Shi Jin did not take it to heart.

Everyone felt a little embarrassed as they thought about the praise they lauded on Chu Ling and Shi Xuexin's birthday gifts while they belittled Shi Jin's perfumed bag.

The jade ornament and pine Chinese brush painting might be good, but no one would be in the mood to admire them if his life was at stake.

Complicated emotions ran through Shi Qing's heart. He felt even guiltier towards Shi Jin. "I am so sorry. Juekai, from now on..."

Li Juekai looked at them before he interrupted Shi Qing, "You certainly owe us an apology, but Qingqing and I owe her one as well. We thought letting her stay here in the place she grew up without forcing her to change her life would give her stability. It was our fault she had to suffer so much ridicule and experience things that should not be expected of her at her age."

"We were too simple-minded to think that giving her money and letting her stay put at the Shi residence would make her happy, but we didn't know what she wanted. Shi Jin is our daughter. We should have brought her up. From now on, we will have nothing to do with the Shi family."

Chapter 199: A Total Win

Li Juekai sounded resolute despite his calm tone.

Shi Qing felt even guiltier towards Shi Jin. Since he was in the wrong, he was not in the position to insist.

"In that case, we will be making a move first." Now that Shi Jin had achieved what she set out to do, she had no intention of lingering.

She reached her hands out to push Li Juekai's wheelchair and left with Gu Qingqing.

The guests couldn't help nodding as they watched them leave. Their attitude towards them took on a 180 degree change.

"Even though the Li family isn't made of money, they certainly love their daughter. They gave all the money they received for their land without batting an eye."

.

"That's right. They were clearly very nice people."

"We were wrong about them. They were honest folks who did not care about getting connected to the rich and powerful."

"Also, Shi Jin's Chinese herbs were clearly very effective. I wonder if she is able to treat my old ailment."

The moment the last person finished his sentence, a lot of the guests at the banquet regretted their actions. If Shi Jin did not leave, they could have asked her about treatment. Sadly, Shi Jin had severed ties with the Shi family, so they were probably the last people she would help.

Since Shi Qing was sick, all the guests bade farewell and left. As they left, they continued talking about Shi Jin.

Shi Xuexin suppressed her jealousy and smiled as she saw the guests out. Shi Jin had outshone her completely yet again!

She had intended on using a violin solo at her father's birthday banquet to help make up for the set back at the school anniversary celebrations!

She could only count her lucky stars that this was just a family affair. Chu Ling had shown up quietly without getting any reporters or paparazzi involved. Otherwise, it would be a major public embarrassment for her and her mother.

Mr and Mrs Chu seemed annoyed. Chu Ling stood beside Shi Xuexin and comforted her, "Since we don't want to have anything to do with Shi Jin, isn't it great that she offered to terminate the marriage agreement?"

Despite the embarrassment Shi Jin had brought about, Shi Xuexin had to agree with Chu Ling.

After Chu Ling's parents had left, Chu Jia stayed behind and chatted with Shi Xuexin. "Xuexin, didn't you say that the Li family is impoverished and petty? Although the Fu family is wealthy, the man is old and ugly. Now that Shi Jin has severed ties with Chu Ling, things are really working out for you."

"From now on, you no longer have to worry about the Li family. Also, Shi Jin has to marry that old man. Now that Shi Jin has announced this publicly, it is a total win for you."

After Chu Ling and Chu Jia kept comforting her, Shi Xuexin's mood eventually lifted.

***

Shi Jin left the Shi residence with Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing to see Gu Jingyuan waiting at the same spot. Just as she was about to call him, she received a call from Song Fan.

"Help, Miss Shi!" The moment Shi Jin answered the phone, he nearly wanted to kneel.

The moment Shi Jin heard his voice, she gestured to her parents, walked some distance before answering him, "What happened to Xiuyuan?"

Since Fu Xiuyuan was stubborn in nature, the people around him had trouble handling him. Shi Jin did not want her parents to worry, so she did not tell them about his condition.

Song Fan felt relieved to hear her and hurriedly said, "Mr Fu has been in a foul mood ever since this morning. Although he looks cold as usual, there is clearly a difference in his aura. I can tell he is particularly angry today."

"He didn't take breakfast or lunch. We just had a seven hour meeting where he kept picking on everyone. Now, he has locked himself up inside the office and refuses to eat. It is completely dark inside his office and even his blinds are drawn. I am really worried that he might do something stupid..."

Shi Jin suddenly recalled she had told Fu Xiuyuan she was attending Shi Qing's birthday banquet. Naturally, he knew about it even without her telling him. However, she did not tell him why she was attending the banquet. Also, she had been focusing all her attention on her family ever since they came home and forgot about Fu Xiuyuan's feelings.

He must be thinking she was at the banquet to see Chu Ling, right? This was such a huge mistake!

Shi Jin had a few words to say to her older brother, so she could not go to Fu Xiuyuan immediately.

"Miss Shi, Mr Fu hasn't acted like this in a long time to be honest! I really don't know why he is being like this! Can you please help?"

Although Song Fan was Fu Xiuyuan's assistant, there was nothing he could do about his boss.

Shi Jin contemplated before she said, "I will send you a recording. After you check out the recording, pick a few juicy parts and let Fu Xiuyuan listen to it. I think he will be fine after listening to it."

"Huh?" Song Fan was caught by surprise, but he quickly composed himself. If Shi Jin said it would work, it would definitely work.

Shi Jin was relieved that she came prepared and had recorded everything at the banquet. Including what she said about severing ties with the Shi family and not marrying Chu Ling. Also, she made it clear that the marriage agreement Shi Xuexin used to have with the Fu family was officially called off.

She felt these recordings ought to make Fu Xiuyuan feel a lot better. She simply had to trouble Song Fan to find the relevant parts for Fu Xiuyuan.

After Shi Jin sent Song Fan the audio file, she walked over to her parents.

Li Juekai and Gu Qingqing looked at her lovingly. They knew she had done this for the Li family and felt even sorrier, especially when she was such a sensible girl.

Li Juekai raised his head to glance at Gu Qingqing and said coolly, "From the looks of it, it is about time that we pull our resources from the Shi family."

"You read my mind," said Gu Qingqing.

After they learned about the baby swap, Yu Xiuhua seemed absolutely kind on the surface.

Gu Qingqing believed her. She felt it was better for Shi Jin to stay at the Shi residence while she focused on taking care of the comatose Li Juekai. Sadly, Yu Xiuhua did so many awful things behind their backs.

The Li family had given the Shi family far more than money.

The Li family did not bring this up so as not to embarrass Yu Xiuhua, so they only gave her $300 000 in cash on the surface. In reality, they had given the Shi family plenty of resources to help their business flourish.

They did not know whether Yu Xiuhua knew about the Shi family's business matters since Yu Xiuhua did not bring this up at all. They were also unsure if she told Shi Jin about their kind intentions. Instead, she ostracized Shi Jin, treated her poorly at every opportunity, and gave her so much pressure.

Thankfully, Shi Jin was all grown up and had flourished into a sensible young woman.

Gu Qingqing stopped talking about the Shi family when Shi Jin came over.

"Shi Jin, you don't have to do such things for us in the future," said Gu Qingqing gently. "We are your parents, so it is our job to protect you. We don't want to see you bullied."

"Mom, there was always a tall tree shading me from the sun and rain when I played in the yard as a child. Now that I have grown up, its branches have already contorted from pressure. I think it is my job to protect it and give it support. If I have the power to do it, I will be happy to repay it."

Although Shi Jin spoke calmly, Gu Qingqing's eyes instantly turned teary.

Gu Jingyuan came in from outside. He was tall and looked like a righteous man. Even though he resembled Li Juekai a lot, he had a cooler aura. He was wearing an earphone in one ear and seemed nonchalant.

"Big Bro!" Shi Jin couldn't suppress her warmth.

Gu Jingyuan acknowledged her. Although he did not go in, he had overheard the conversation and couldn't help looking at Shi Jin deeply.

"Big Bro, I heard you are giving Dad surgery in a couple of days. What are your success rates?" asked Shi Jin candidly.

"60%." Gu Jingyuan felt annoyed that he was not good enough and had such low confidence in the surgery.

"If you let me help, you will have a 90% success rate."

Chapter 200: Three Against One

Gu Jingyuan looked powerless. Was Shi Jin really going to help with the surgery?

He looked at his parents coldly and wanted them to talk his little sister out of this.

Li Juekai unexpectedly said, "Why don't you let her help then?"

His legs had been injured for years so he had seen his fair share of specialists from all over the world.

Since Shi Jin wanted to help, he was happy to oblige even if his life was at stake, so losing his legs meant nothing.

The more he knew Shi Jin, the more he wanted to fulfill her every whim.

Gu Jingyuan went speechless.

Gu Qingqing also said, "Why don't you take your sister along with you? In any case, you only have a 60% success rate. No matter the outcome, I hardly doubt things can get worse, right?

Gu Jingyuan was left dumbstruck yet again..

Shi Jin smiled warmly at Gu Jingyuan.

Gu Jingyuan went quiet. They had just voted three against one. What else could he do?

They happily decided to accede to Shi Jin's request.

***

After Shi Jin parted ways with her family, she was unable to calm herself down.

Her eldest brother's cool profile kept emerging in her head.

Gu Jingyuan did not use to be like this. He was always a positive and extroverted boy. Despite the problems that plagued the family, he continued to have a positive personality.

His personality only changed to become quiet after he encountered Shi Jin and she was the only person who knew the reason for this drastic change.

When Shi Jin was around 16 to 17 years old, he went to visit Shi Xuexin with a small gift before looking for her. It was completely understandable for him to do this. After all, Gu Jingyuan had lived with Shi Xuexin for a couple of years and he was a responsible boy. Also, he did not catch on to Shi Xuexin's deviousness, so he naturally treated her like his little sister.

Shi Jin was very upset when she saw this.

To begin with, Shi Jin was upset with the Li family. Also, Shi Xuexin kept ostracizing her. Gu Jingyuan completely triggered Shi Jin by giving Shi Xuexin a present and she swore never to talk to Gu Jingyuan again.

Shi Jin turned to walk off and refused to talk to him when Gu Jingyuan came to see her.

Gu Jingyuan failed to notice the car behind him when he ran after her anxiously.

Although he managed to avoid critical impact, he took a hard fall.

His gift for Shi Jin was smashed to smithereens and he suffered a bruise on his head. From then on, he lost hearing in one ear.

Shi Jin did not take it to heart and only found out he had problems hearing ever since the accident.

Although it was not Shi Jin's fault that he had trouble hearing, he was clearly a lot colder to Shi Jin. Despite being kind to Shi Jin, he was purely doing it out of a sense of familial responsibility and not because he liked her.

Shi Jin finally snapped out of her daze.

After treating her father's leg, it was about time she treated her eldest brother's hearing.

Even though it was just unilateral hearing loss, it had undoubtedly caused a lot of inconvenience and problems.

Shi Jin had never seen Gu Jingyuan driving before. It must be because of his unilateral deafness.

The earphone he kept wearing was not an earphone. In reality, it was a hearing aid.

Shi Jin finally looked a little calmer after coming up with a treatment plan.

She recalled Fu Xiuyuan was still at the office and told the chauffeur to send her there. He made a U-turn and headed towards Fu Corporation.

***

Meanwhile, at the Fu Corporation.

Song Fan ran downstairs to welcome Shi Jin when he received a call from Shi Jin.

Shi Jin was skillful at disguising herself to dodge the media and fans. Song Fan kept looking around when he came to the ground floor, but failed to find her.

By the time he turned his head to check, he saw Shi Jin slowly taking off her mask and glancing at him before putting it back on.

"Miss Shi, you are finally here!" Song Fan looked at Shi Jin as though she was his last hope. "Mr Fu hasn't come out yet."

"Didn't you let him hear the recording?"

"I did, but he didn't come out." Song Fan was so anxious that his forehead was covered with sweat. "I sent it over ages ago, but he did not react."

Shi Jin felt a little surprised. In theory, Fu Xiuyuan ought to have felt better after hearing the recording.

She quickly headed in with Song Fan following behind her quickly.

Song Fan felt a little puzzled when Shi Jin walked through the office with great familiarity despite the winding paths inside. If he was not mistaken, it was probably her first time at Fu Corporation, right? How could she know the place so well?

Shi Jin took the lift and headed straight for the top floor.

Song Fan said anxiously, "Miss Shi, take a look yourself."

The moment he finished his sentence, he did not continue following behind Shi Jin. Instead, he watched as she entered the room.

Fu Xiuyuan's office doors were slightly open.

Since it was already late at night, the sky was dark and the top floor was completely empty. He was sitting inside the completely dark room.

Shi Jin suddenly thought about her past life as she stood at the door. Fu Xiuyuan lay in her arms covered in blood as she reached her hands out to hold his bloody face.

However, he stubbornly removed her hands and said softly, "Don't touch me... the blood will dirty your hands."

Fu Xiuyuan was the extraordinary man who single handedly led Fu Corporation to its heights to outsiders. He had repeatedly created insurmountable records in the industry and made himself an untouchable business world legend.

However, he stubbornly removed her hands and said softly, "Don't touch me... the blood will dirty your hands."

He did not want to hurt her, make her cry, or see her sad.

He was worried that she might feel uncomfortable about his proximity. Also, he was worried she might just leave him if he kept too much distance. He was worried about having her as his woman and also afraid of losing her.

He had a mountain of concerns and kept being hard on himself until he was unable to take it mentally.

Despite the hordes of women willing to bow at his feet if he so willed it, he only cared about her feelings and longed for every drop of attention he could squeeze out of her.

He did not forcibly imprison her. Instead, he asked her to do it imploringly.

It finally dawned on Shi Jin that she had miscalculated his feelings for her. Also, she underestimated how insecure he felt.

She opened the door and walked over to the window to open the curtains slightly to let some light in without turning on the light yet.

The dim light from outside made the room seem misty.

Shi Jin looked around for Fu Xiuyuan. He was sitting on the ground with his tie hanging from his neck loosely and his white shirt was crumpled.