While Ellie went to play, Vicente and Lisa went back to sleep once again.
Time continued to pass, and we returned to Shen Bing's world.
A day had already passed since she fell asleep. Naturally, her parents were worried.
But after calling a maid trained in medicine to examine her,
her answer made them breathe in relief.
Medical Maid:"It's just extreme mental exhaustion. It's as if she hadn't slept for days and was in constant panic."
"But now her brain interprets this place as extremely safe."
"So she relaxed and fell into a deep sleep."
"She'll be fine, and judging by her breathing, her body should be satisfied with at least two hours of rest."
"Miss should eat a lot since she hasn't eaten for more than a day."
"And leave water nearby for when she wakes up."
Shen Xuan was satisfied with the explanation. The maid might not know why she was like this, but he did.
Xiao Yu:"Yes, you did a good job. Take a small tip of 100,000 imperial coins."
The maid was delighted but still refused.
"I should do this because Miss's well-being is everyone's concern."
"Everyone would be sad if something happened to her, so I don't need to be paid, Madam Shen."
Xiao Yu:"Just take it, it's nothing."
With that, she placed the money into the maid's hand.
This time she didn't refuse, since it would be impolite.
After the maid left, the parents looked at each other for a while and soon shared a knowing smile.
Shen Xuan:"We have at least two hours before she wakes up."
Xiao Yu:"Is the surprise ready?"
Shen Xuan sighed:"Unfortunately, we couldn't confirm the SSS-level talent."
"However…"
"Xuer has been rescued."
Xiao Yu jumped in happiness on the spot.
Since no one was watching, it didn't matter.
Xiao Yu:"So the surprise already arrived or will arrive within two hours, right? Did you explain everything?"
"Yes, we explained that she was chosen by the eldest daughter of the Shen family."
"But as a younger sister…"
When Shen Xuan reached this part, he fell silent.
Xiao Yu:"Why the silence?"
Shen Xuan:"Well… I explained that through a dream our daughter met her and wanted to adopt her as a younger sister."
"But after understanding everything, she said…"
[ A master for Xuer? ]
After hearing that, Xiao Yu also went silent for a moment.
But soon she started laughing.
And her laughter grew louder and louder.
In the room where there were only the two of them, Shen Xuan couldn't hold back either.
Because he thought the same thing as his wife.
What would their daughter's reaction be when she realized nothing had changed even after rebirth?
It should be interesting to see her face at that moment.
The two thought the same thing and laughed out loud.
(Perspective shift)
While the Shen family was happy,
the Empire had not been at peace since yesterday.
For some unknown reason, the Shen family suddenly moved with full force.
They were the strongest family aside from the imperial family.
To give you an idea, all of their "competitors" simply disappeared overnight.
Not all of them died, but they gave up competing.
Of course, some really died, but when investigated, there was no proof blaming the Shen family.
Anyway, money makes everything turn, no matter the world.
As long as the money is enough, even if there is proof of murder, it becomes:
[ Images merely illustrative that prove nothing. ]
The rich only suffer when their money runs out.
Then they lose their protection, or sometimes are thrown to the public to distract the masses.
Anyway, the Shen family, the strongest after the imperial family, naturally had no shortage of money.
They dominated every sector they wanted through blood and iron.
Those who disagreed simply disappeared.
The Shen family used to be aggressive, but surprisingly, eighteen years ago they stopped.
In a way, it was a transformation.
They didn't donate to charities or things like that, because rich people know where the money goes if it's handed to a public organization.
It goes anywhere except charity.
So they did themselves what others only promised to do.
Thus, their reputation among common people, not only in the empire but in other places as well, grew over the years.
People didn't understand why they had changed so much, but they thought it was a good change.
However, this was even more frightening to the rich and powerful families.
Because the Shen family surpassed the royal family in popularity among the people.
If this were the feudal era, they could easily rebel and the people would support them.
But they didn't want that, and the throne was nothing more than decoration to them.
Only a few people knew they stopped being so aggressive because their daughter was born.
They didn't want their daughter to think her family was a bunch of villains, the good reputation was just an incidental result.
In the end, everything was because of Shen Bing, even without her knowing.
She was always deeply loved by everyone to the point of being spoiled, but she wasn't arrogant.
She didn't even like going out, much less things like accounts and blah blah blah.
Her parents were slightly disappointed for a moment.
But it was very brief, and soon they let her enjoy her life. In the end, they were rich and could support her.
They made thousands of preparations. Their daughter was their Achilles' heel, they loved her so much that if something happened well…
Empires could fall into crisis if they used all their strength to cause chaos.
So they truly were an untouchable family, to the point that their military strength alone was equivalent to an empire.
You might wonder why a family like this exists and others don't do anything.
Because they don't know. They only know the Shen family is dangerous, but not to this extent, and if they knew, they would have even less reason to provoke them.
On this day, after eighteen years of seclusion, the Shen family moved with full force.
First, they discovered an "illegal orphanage".
They shut it down and arrested everyone.
All the staff were taken away for investigation.
The children were rescued, and only after everything was explained did they hug each other and cry.
Their suffering was over, and among those children standing a bit far away was Xuer.
In the end, they took her away under the jealous and envious gazes of the other orphans.
But this wasn't the end, they seemed to be searching for someone specific.
The number of people mobilized for this made the scalps of those in power tingle.
There were many, and those were only the visible ones, obviously there were hidden ones searching too.
That day, the entire empire trembled.
They remembered the fear of being dominated by the Shen family after eighteen years.
The older ones who lived during the time they were more active felt their vision darken and fainted from the pressure.
But before fainting, they all shared the same question in their minds.
[Who the hell messed with the Shen family's daughter???]
Because they knew the reason the Shen family had been "quiet", and that was also the reason they fainted.
Because if they got angry, regardless of whether they were the target or not, they would be the ones who suffered.
The Shen family didn't care much about outsiders' opinions because unlike families with thousands of members and many voices,
this family only had two people in power, the rest were employees trained since childhood.
Of course, if there were a third, it would be their daughter, but she didn't care about that.
Shen Bing didn't know the exact number of uncles her parents had, and they never told her.
But if she knew that so many people existed and still none adapted, she would definitely curse.
Because with their loyalty to her and to the Shen family, it was impossible for them to simply abandon her so quickly.
It could only be said that no one adapted.
As time passed, Xuer finally arrived at the Shen family's house.
It was huge, the size of a mansion.
But the details looked modern, like the magazines she accidentally saw at the orphanage.
She only knew how to read a few words, so she wasn't sure what it was called.
Walking through the house, wherever she passed, the employees treated her with respect.
They knew who she was because they had already been informed.
She returned the greetings because she couldn't be arrogant.
But in her mind she started thinking.
[My master should have quite a lot of prestige, right?]
After the maids helped her wash up and change clothes,
they helped tie her hair into a ponytail.
She finally looked presentable, different from the photo.
Then she happily followed the butler in a black suit who came to get her.
He took her to meet the parents of the master she would serve from now until the end of her life.
Serving someone who saved her from a sea of suffering was like having a second life.
So she didn't feel fear, only admiration.
She just didn't know what their temperament was like or if they were easy to talk to.
With that, the door opened and a middle-aged man appeared in Xuer's sight.
Beside him was a beautiful middle-aged woman.
In fact, they were already considered old, almost in their fifties.
But rich people age slower, so it didn't look that way.
But Xuer didn't know that.
She bowed slightly like the maids.
As a form of greeting.
Shen Xuan and Xiao Yu, after the greetings, began to explain everything.
From Shen Bing's return to the end of the world.
And the reason they cared so much about her.
They knew she was trustworthy according to their daughter.
So they weren't too worried.
Xuer didn't understand very well, but suddenly her eyes became very wet.
As she listened to the story told by those two uncles, images began to spin in her head.
It was similar to the story, but different, as if she had truly been there.
Back then she wasn't a nobody abandoned by the orphanage, nor did she die to zombies.
But she almost died of hunger.
However, she met a girl.
She controlled the ice element and saved her from starvation.
Her name was Shen Bing.
She swore to herself that she would be her greatest shield.
Just like she said, a shield of flesh.
She swore to protect her master even though she wanted to be called sister.
After many twists and turns, Xuer finally gave in and called her sister instead of master.
But inside her, her status never changed,
only the way she addressed her.
They went through good times and grew stronger through the cores.
Sometimes it was dangerous, but with sister attacking and her defending, they could handle everything.
Her defensive talent was strong, but they didn't know its level.
Everything was going well, and even though the days were dangerous, they felt rewarding.
But everything must have an end, even if you don't want it to.
They encountered a danger her sister couldn't handle.
In the end, it was ironic that her first broken defense was also her last.
But she felt happy because she had fulfilled her promise to her sister.
Even crying and reluctant to leave, unfortunately fate wanted it that way.
She felt useless, forcing her sister to shed tears, and she wouldn't be able to accompany her anymore.
Her vision gradually blurred, and the last thing she heard was her sister's heartbreaking scream.
Xuer couldn't take it anymore and started crying right there in the room.
She kept muttering in a low voice.
"Sister, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
"I couldn't help you anymore."
Her brain throbbed with the wave of memories invading her being.
They seemed to come from the original future, and she was sure, because her thoughts were the same.
The Shen parents were shocked by the sudden turn, but before they could speak, she stood up, ran, and shouted.
"SISTER!!!"
Shen Xuan ordered through the microphone:"No one is allowed to stop her"
(End of chapter)