She Got Slapped Hard
1655 Words
The next morning, when Frost came downstairs, Shen Yu was already sitting in the dining room.
A cup of coffee rested beside him as he quietly worked through a stack of business emails.
She hadn’t realized he’d come home the night before.
Without saying much, she took the seat across from him and began eating breakfast.
Silence settled between them.
That was unusual.
Whenever she was with Shen Yu, she was normally a chatterbox, eager to tell him every little thing that had happened.
This time…
He spoke first.
“I heard from Mom you’ve been at the hospital every day taking care of your senior.”
Frost nodded.
“Her mother’s health hasn’t been good these past few years. She doesn’t want her family worrying, so she hasn’t told them about the leukemia yet.”
Shen Yu set down his coffee.
“That’s what professional caregivers are for.”
“You don’t need to exhaust yourself.”
He had never interfered with her friendships.
But that didn’t mean he liked the idea of the little sister he’d cherished all these years running herself ragged taking care of someone else.
“I know.”
She answered obediently.
“The treatment plan was reviewed by the country’s best hematology specialists.”
“There won’t be any problems.”
“So stop worrying.”
He cared about Shu Yang’s illness…
Only because Frost cared.
She quietly stirred the porridge in her bowl.
“…Okay.”
He watched her for a moment.
“You’re unhappy.”
She quickly changed the subject.
“Brother…”
“Do you know any good lawyers?”
His lips curved slightly.
“You’ve only been back a few days.”
“And you’re already in trouble?”
He lifted his coffee with elegant fingers.
“So?”
“What mess have you gotten yourself into this time?”
Morning sunlight reflected softly in his eyes.
Frost looked away.
“It’s not me.”
“My senior and her business partner have some financial disputes.”
“The lawyer I hired isn’t experienced enough.”
Shen Yu didn’t even hesitate.
“I’ll arrange someone.”
A smile finally appeared on her face.
“Thank you.”
⸻
The lawyer Shen Yu recommended contacted Frost that very afternoon.
He was one of the city’s top attorneys, specializing in complex commercial litigation.
Compared to the billion-dollar cases he normally handled…
Shu Yang’s dispute was practically beneath his level.
Like using a cannon to kill a mosquito.
Frost spent the weekend meeting with him and discussing the case.
As for returning to the Song residence…
She ignored Cui Ning’s order completely.
⸻
That night, when she came back to the Shen residence, it was already late.
Fu Yun was still awake, sitting in the living room waiting for her.
The moment Frost entered, Fu Yun instructed the housekeeper,
“Wang Sao, bring the warm milk.”
Turning back toward Frost, she smiled gently.
“You’ve been coming home later every night.”
“What have you been so busy with?”
“I’m helping my senior handle some company matters.”
Frost didn’t actually like milk.
She accepted the glass anyway.
“You’ve been back for several days now…”
“And you still haven’t gone home.”
Fu Yun looked at her meaningfully.
“When you have time…”
“You really should visit.”
Frost immediately understood.
Cui Ning must have called.
The Shen and Song families had been close for years.
Many times, Fu Yun had to preserve that relationship out of courtesy.
“I’ve really been busy.”
Frost drained the milk in one breath before deliberately yawning.
“I’m exhausted.”
“Godmother…”
“I’m going upstairs.”
Before Fu Yun could continue the conversation…
Frost hurried toward the staircase.
Watching her disappear, Fu Yun sighed helplessly.
“The moment I mention the Song family…”
“She runs.”
Wang Sao couldn’t help speaking up.
“Miss Frost was never close to them anyway.”
“The Songs didn’t raise her for even a single day.”
“Back then, Director Song slapped her so hard her entire face swelled.”
“Then Madam Song shipped her overseas.”
“They ignored her for years.”
“Now that she’s finally returned…”
“They’re suddenly anxious?”
“What?”
“They expected Miss Frost to stay abroad forever?”
She shook her head.
“If I were her…”
“I wouldn’t go back just to get scolded.”
“Don’t encourage her.”
Fu Yun sighed.
“No matter what…”
“They’re still her family.”
“When she gets married someday…”
“The Song family will have the final say.”
“If Cui Ning becomes unhappy…”
“How will that benefit Frost?”
Wang Sao let out another sigh.
“With Madam Song’s personality…”
“What kind of marriage could she possibly arrange for Miss Frost?”
⸻
Later that evening…
Fu Yun called Cui Ning herself.
“She isn’t refusing to visit on purpose.”
“She’s simply overwhelmed.”
“One of her closest friends is seriously ill.”
“Her company is facing problems too.”
“When Frost was studying overseas, that young woman took wonderful care of her.”
“They’re very close.”
“She’s been running around nonstop helping her.”
“Honestly…”
“I barely see Frost myself these days.”
Those perfectly reasonable explanations earned only a cold reply.
“You don’t see her?”
“I think your Shen Yu sees her often enough.”
Fu Yun’s expression darkened immediately.
“What exactly are you implying?”
“Ah Yu has always treated Frost as his little sister.”
“They’ve grown up together.”
“Isn’t it perfectly normal for them to see each other?”
Cui Ning offered no explanation.
Instead…
She sent over a short video.
It had been recorded during Shen Yu’s birthday party.
The room buzzed with laughter.
Shen Yu stood beside Frost while cutting the birthday cake.
Because of the camera angle…
It looked as though he’d wrapped one arm protectively around her.
The clip lasted barely fifteen seconds.
By the time it ended…
Fu Yun’s face had already changed.
Cui Ning spoke evenly.
“Have you forgotten…”
“Why we sent her overseas in the first place?”
“If the Shen family thinks the scandal from five years ago wasn’t humiliating enough…”
“I don’t mind sacrificing the Song family’s reputation…”
“…if it means dragging yours down with it.”
⸻
Back upstairs…
Frost wasn’t sleepy at all.
She lay face-down on her bed, hugging a pillow.
Her mood was terrible.
She hated the Song family.
Not only because they felt like strangers…
But because of what had happened five years ago.
⸻
Within their social circle…
Her background had never been a secret.
Everyone knew the eldest daughter of the Song family wasn’t Madam Song’s biological child.
Her birth mother had once worked directly under Song Mianzhi.
Back then…
He’d only recently joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Young.
Refined.
Exceptionally handsome.
It wasn’t surprising that her mother had fallen in love with him.
Working together day after day…
Their feelings had grown naturally.
At the time…
Song Mianzhi wasn’t married.
Unfortunately…
Love alone wasn’t enough.
Frost’s grandfather had already reached vice-ministerial rank.
Song Mianzhi’s political career was only beginning.
A simple translator from an ordinary family could never become the wife of someone destined for higher office.
Her grandfather forcefully broke them apart.
But Frost had always believed…
That wasn’t the whole story.
Because Song Mianzhi…
Loved two things more than anyone else.
His career.
And himself.
Her mother was stubborn.
Proud.
After being pressured into resigning…
She discovered she was pregnant.
She never told Song Mianzhi.
Instead…
She gave birth alone.
For the first eight years of her life…
Frost had lived only with her mother.
Then…
One day…
Her mother abandoned her.
That single wound never truly healed.
Which was why…
Five years ago…
When the Song family decided to send her overseas…
She had begged them.
Over and over again.
Please don’t send me away.
She’d wanted to call Shen Yu.
They confiscated her phone.
Locked her inside a room.
Several days later…
Escorted her directly onto a plane.
Even now…
Whenever she remembered those days…
It still felt impossible to breathe.
⸻
The next morning…
Frost woke to the comforting aroma of something simmering in the kitchen.
Fu Yun stood beside the stove, stirring a pot of ginger soup.
Burnt red dates.
Snow pears.
Brown sugar.
The soup was sweet.
When Frost caught colds as a child…
Fu Yun always made it this way because she hated the taste of ginger.
It had been years since she’d had it.
Unexpectedly…
The familiar smell filled her with nostalgia.
The pear slices had turned almost translucent after hours of cooking.
Unable to resist, she grabbed a fork and stole a piece.
“Did someone catch a cold?”
The Shen family employed three full-time chefs.
Fu Yun rarely cooked herself.
There were only a handful of people she’d personally make ginger soup for.
Frost herself was perfectly healthy.
Shen Changyuan was away on a business trip.
Which left only…
“Your brother.”
Fu Yun carefully poured the soup into a thermal flask.
“He has a fever.”
“The weather’s been changing too much lately.”
“And he never remembers to take care of himself.”
She handed the flask to Frost.
“You’re heading out anyway.”
“Take this to him on your way.”
The moment Frost heard Shen Yu had a fever…
She stopped chewing the pear.
Swallowing it quickly, she grabbed the insulated flask without another word—
And hurried out the door to find him.
- Writer
