Chapter 5: We Are Twins, We Can’t Be Too Far Apart

In truth, yesterday was the first time Shang Heng had ever scolded his youngest daughter. Although the original Shang Ying hadn't liked studying in the past, she never got into major trouble either, so he had usually just turned a blind eye.

However, when he saw that test paper with a score of 28 points, he simply couldn't keep his eyes closed any longer. If he let Shang Ying continue slacking off like this, he wouldn't have the face to see her late mother in the future.

He genuinely couldn't fathom why his three older sons and his youngest son required zero effort when it came to their studies, yet his only daughter was the biggest headache of all. Other people's daughters were like sweet little padded jackets, but his own daughter was a piece of rough burlap that couldn't be made into a jacket no matter what.

After that row, he hadn't slept well for several nights, tossing and turning as he resolved to properly discipline his youngest daughter so she wouldn't end up accomplishing nothing. Yet, for every single sentence he uttered, Shang Ying had ten snarky replies waiting for him.

Shang Heng rubbed his temples in frustration.

"Shang Ying, do you really have to talk to your father like this? Isn't your dad doing this for your own good? Everything I do is for your own good!"

"If you're doing it for my own good, then stop making me angry while I'm trying to eat," Shang Ying retorted fearlessly while chewing on her beef, staring right back at her cheap father.

Shang Heng: "..."

‘This rebellious daughter was beyond saving!’

He shifted his gaze toward his youngest son, who was behaving with refined elegance, and his chest finally felt a bit lighter. He could only comfort himself with the thought that they were twins. One was obedient while the other was defiant. Having the best of both worlds simply didn't happen for everyone.

Shang Heng's tone calmed down.

"Little Yi, how have things been at school recently?"

Shang Yi paused his chopsticks, nodded slightly, but didn't say a word.

Shang Heng relaxed his brows in relief and continued, "Have you finished reading the manual on go strategies I brought you? In a while, I'll take you over to Old Man Feng's place."

Shang Yi nodded, expressing no objection.

Suddenly, an irritating voice cut in.

Shang Ying swallowed her food and said, "I want to go, too."

"What are you going for?" Shang Heng shot her a glare.

Shang Ying said with complete seriousness, "We're fraternal twins. We can't be separated by too much distance, otherwise our magnetic fields will experience interference."

Naturally, her real reason was that Shang Yi would meet the female lead, Lin Yuan, at that location. Melancholy and lacking a sense of security and love, he would feel the warmth of being cared for for the very first time, leaving a deep impression of the female lead in his heart.

Therefore, getting a "little sunshine" space heater for Shang Yi was something that needed to be put on her agenda right away.

Shang Heng: "..."

Shang Yi: "..."

Ning Wanyuan: "..."

Shang Heng hesitated to speak. He knew full well that the relationship between Shang Ying and Shang Yi had been terrible over the past few years, largely due to Shang Ying's own doing. Yet now, she was actually spouting such nonsense.

‘Magnetic field interference?! Did she think she was an Armored Hero preparing to transform?!’

Seeing her cheap father's utterly incredulous expression, Shang Ying couldn't be bothered to come up with another excuse.

"I don't care why you think I'm going, I'm just going."

‘A gentleman is no match for a shameless rascal.' Since Shang Heng wanted to maintain his gentlemanly demeanor, he was destined to be no match for a rogue like Shang Ying.

At this moment, Ning Wanyuan chimed in, "Little Yi is going there to study. Yingying, if you want to have fun, how about I accompany you to an art exhibition instead?"

Her tone was gentle, and her smile was just right, neither distant nor overly flattering. She carried herself with perfect poise, placing herself in a position that was impossible to dislike.

However, although these words sounded nice on the surface, they subtly implied that Shang Ying was just looking to play around and cause trouble. Shang Heng visibly hesitated, while Shang Yi's dark, cold eyes quietly fixed upon her. Ning Wanyuan subtly avoided his gaze.

Shang Ying scoffed internally. In the novel, Ning Wanyuan had built a good relationship with the original host precisely through this facade of maternal warmth. Although the original host had a weird temper, she couldn't resist motherly affection. It was like a mirage in the desert. Even if you knew it might be fake, you couldn't help but yearn for it.

That was why, in the later stages, Shang Ying hated the male and female leads so intensely and constantly tripped them up. Ning Wanyuan's subtle instigations played no small part in that.

Thinking about how her ultimate fate of eating prison food was inextricably linked to this woman, Shang Ying felt a surge of anger. Showing zero courtesy, she lashed out at Ning Wanyuan directly.

"Did you not get scolded enough by me yesterday? Stop making subtle jabs about me being playful. It's not your place to make arrangements for me. Mind your own business once you're full!"

Since she had transmigrated, she had to pave a good path for herself. In the event that she couldn't transmigrate back, she would have to spend the rest of her life here, so she needed to eliminate every hidden danger on her path to a luxurious life, one by one.

She understood very clearly that she didn't need to have amazingly close relationships with her family members. As long as things didn't turn sour, it would be fine. Besides, when she was reading the novel, she realized that although Shang Heng was stern and old-fashioned, he actually cared deeply for the younger generation in his heart.

With this father around, as long as she didn't poke a hole in the sky, Shang Heng wouldn't abandon her.

If she happened to transmigrate back later on, at least she would leave behind a peaceful and prosperous life for the original Shang Ying, making this trip worthwhile.

Ning Wanyuan was completely stunned. If yesterday's outburst could be attributed to Shang Ying taking out her anger on her, today was entirely different. She had no idea when or how she had offended Shang Ying.

According to past dynamics, Shang Ying should have happily agreed, since she always wanted Ning Wanyuan to hang out with her exclusively.

Shang Heng's eyes widened, and he barked out a reprimand.

"How dare you speak to your Aunt Ning like that?! Show some respect!"

"It's fine, really," Ning Wanyuan said with a gentle, reassuring posture toward Shang Heng, despite feeling deeply embarrassed. Yet, the title "Aunt Ning" from Shang Heng's mouth felt like a knife stabbing straight into her heart.

Indeed, even after so many years since she married into the family, Shang Heng had never intended to let the Shang family's younger generation call her "Mom." They always addressed her as Aunt Ning. Anyone unaware would think she was just a housekeeper in the family!

Shang Ying let out an irritated hum. Either way, she had said what she needed to say. Since Shang Heng hadn't explicitly refused to let her go to the Feng family with Shang Yi, it meant he agreed.

Shang Heng did indeed agree. He hoped the relationship between the twins could ease up a bit, or at least stop being so hostile. Since Shang Ying was willing to accompany her brother, he had no reason to refuse.

It had been a long time since the dining table had been this "lively." Shang Yi, who usually kept himself distant from family matters, glanced at Shang Ying, a complex emotion flickering across his usually indifferent eyes.

The next day, Shang Ying got into the car sporting dark circles under her eyes. Seeing Shang Yi still standing outside, she huffed again in annoyance.

"Get in! What are you standing there for, pretending to be a utility pole?"

Last night, she had stayed up late reading wealthy family transmigration novels, wanting to see how other "colleagues" handled similar situations. Since she lacked experience, she figured she could copy their tactics.

The result? She woke up having forgotten everything, unable to recall a single detail from the first fifty chapters.

Shang Yi looked at Shang Ying, who patted the seat beside her, and sat down without saying a word.

The two of them walked into the school together again. Following yesterday's cafeteria incident, quite a few people noticed them today, and some even pulled out their phones to take photos.

The whispering voices grew so loud that it was hard for Shang Ying to ignore them even if she wanted to. Feeling a bit baffled, she thought to herself, ‘Sure, I know I'm good-looking, but do I really have this many fans? They could literally form a support club at this rate.’

Shang Yi stared at her face for a few seconds without reacting.

Unexpectedly, Shang Ying casually patted his shoulder. The moment her palm touched him, Shang Yi's entire body stiffened almost imperceptibly. Immediately after, he heard a soft laugh near his ear.

"You share a face with your sister. You should be secretly celebrating, kid."

With that, Shang Ying turned and walked into her classroom, leaving behind a dashing silhouette.

Though she said that, usually no one paid attention to the resemblance between Shang Ying and Shang Yi. Unless they were placed right next to each other, people wouldn't realize how similar their facial features actually were.

Shang Ying slept through her morning classes as usual. Her seat was right by the window, and with a stack of books piled high, keeping her head low made it virtually impossible for anyone to notice what she was doing. A technique built on years of personal experience.

By noon, she had no appetite for lunch, so she bought a box of strawberries at the supermarket and leisurely strolled through the stairwell. Originally, she wanted to take the elevator, but due to the heavy crowd, she had no choice but to condescend and take the stairs instead.

Eating as she walked, Shang Ying kept her head down to play on her phone. Before long, she sensed something wasn't quite right. Looking up, she spotted several girls blocking the stairwell entrance, seemingly gathered there to chat.