Hey, what's with that tone Don't you trust me

There must be surveillance inside.

And they're all connected to the same network.

Click-clack…

The screen flickers.

Footage from inside Xinran's studio appears.

One camera is pointed at the lobby, showing a receptionist in stockings pouring water.

Another is positioned in a corner of the office.

Inside the office, the eldest sister is visible, along with a woman sitting across from her—a doctor?

Xinran?

The doctor looks young, but judging from the footage, she seems very familiar with the eldest sister. Their cheerful conversation doesn’t resemble a therapy session.

It looks more like a friendly chat.

Cao Cheng mimics Zhen Zhidan’s demeanor, glancing at the second sister before pointing at the screen. "Do you know this woman?"

The second sister frowns. "No… Wait, zoom in a bit."

Cao Cheng adjusts the image.

"More."

"..."

"Bigger."

"Damn, you think I’ve got a magic staff or something? This is the max—can’t go any further." Cao Cheng rolls his eyes.

The second sister doesn’t press further, her sharp eyes locked onto the screen.

After a long pause, she says, "She looks familiar. I think I’ve seen her face before…"

Cao Cheng doesn’t ask anything else.

Instead, he fiddles with the computer, shrinking the camera feed as he starts searching online…

Soon, Young Master Cao finds her information through Xinran Psychological Studio’s registration records.

"Shen Xinran!"

"Graduated from Tsinghua University with a degree in psychology…"

"Ph.D.…"

There isn’t much publicly available—just a few articles published in journals like Acta Psychologica Sinica and Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology.

Some international publications too.

From these forums, he deduces her research focuses: hypnosis and cognition studies, mindfulness training, depression and anxiety disorders…

"Shen Xinran!!!"

The second sister suddenly exclaims, "I remember now! She’s the Shen family’s daughter. I recall her parents visiting ours during New Year’s when we were kids. I almost forgot, but her features look familiar."

Cao Cheng raises an eyebrow but stays silent, staring at the video.

Shen Xinran’s got something going on…

At least a D-cup, no doubt.

Pretty impressive.

Ahem—

Of course,

Cao Cheng isn’t focusing on that. He just happens to catch a glimpse of those curves in his peripheral vision.

His eyes are fixed on Shen Xinran’s lips through the screen.

Young Master Cao knows a thing or two about vocal mimicry.

And he’s picked up a bit of lip-reading along the way.

Not much.

But enough to get by.

So even without audio, Cao Cheng can read Shen Xinran’s mouth and "hear" what she’s saying.

The second sister presses urgently, "Can you get the audio?"

"No." Cao Cheng shakes his head.

"Aren’t you a hacker?" she asks, surprised.

Cao Cheng is equally baffled. "What do you think hacking is? This camera doesn’t even have audio. You want me to magically conjure it?"

"..." The second sister shoots him a look.

Cao Cheng scoffs.

"What’s that look for?"

"Looking down on me, huh?"

He clicks his tongue. "Fine, just wait. I’ll get you sound…"

He turns back to the computer.

A moment later, Young Master Cao speaks up:

"Shen Xinran says: Your condition seems stable. I really think you should stop taking those meds…"

"But the eldest sister’s response isn’t clear—she’s facing away from the camera."

"Shen Xinran shakes her head and says: My advice has always been to step back from work and rest more. The pressure from your position isn’t helping your condition. Even if you want to work to distract yourself, at least choose something lighter."

The second sister blinks. "You can read lips?"

"Just a little." Cao Cheng smirks. Impressed yet?

He continues:

"Shen Xinran adds: This illness requires proper rest—at least eight hours of sleep daily as a baseline. But you’re clearly not meeting that…"

"Still, your current state is an improvement. That’s a good sign."

Most of it is just standard medical talk.

If the eldest sister could drop her responsibilities, she would’ve done it long ago.

What’s she waiting for?

Thinking about their family situation—

The second sister is a loose cannon, indifferent to money and business. Her world revolves around catching bad guys… Well, no wonder she likes Cao Cheng so much.

The third sister is swamped too, with no free time.

As for the fourth sister… also a wildcard.

And the fifth.

The fifth is the busiest of all.

So,

No one in this family can share the eldest sister’s burdens.

Their parents are lost in their own world, making up for lost time.

They even go on trips for months without notice.

When you think about it…

The eldest sister is kind of pitiful.

With so many people at home, not a single one can help her.

The weight of the family and the company rests entirely on her shoulders—one side carrying the household, the other the business, marching forward alone.

Even Cao Cheng feels a pang of sympathy for her.

The second sister nudges him. "Keep going. Why’d you stop?"

Cao Cheng smirks.

"Shen Xinran says: I heard your family has a younger brother—the kind that’s super, super, super handsome. Introduce me, won’t you?"

"..." The second sister’s face darkens.

Cao Cheng adds, "She goes on: Word is, this brother of yours is tall, rich, ridiculously good-looking, with a perfect body. Oh, and not just his looks—his intellect is off the charts, and his charisma? Unmatched. Shame he’s always so busy…"

"Hey!"

The second sister clenches her fists. "Can you not joke around right now?"

Cao Cheng shrugs. "It’s just filler. Right now, she’s spouting medical jargon. Even if I translate it, you wouldn’t get it. Basically, she’s telling the eldest sister to rest more, drink warm water, and step back from work. Bet she’s said this a dozen times already. But… does the eldest sister listen?"

The second sister falls silent.

She’s right.

The eldest sister is the busiest in the family.

Back when their mother was still active, the eldest sister only assisted.

But as her skills grew, so did her responsibilities—especially after their mom dove headfirst into a late-life romance…

Now, the company and the household rest solely on the eldest sister’s shoulders.

It’s been ages since anyone’s seen her take a break.

Even today’s therapy session?

She squeezed it in after work.

She’ll probably go home, take her meds, and dive back into overtime—working late, waking up early.

Honestly, she’s even busier than the second sister.

Sure, the second sister pulls all-nighters during major cases.

But those are emergencies—not a constant grind.

If she had to endure what the eldest sister does—years of nonstop pressure—even her ironclad stamina would buckle.

How the eldest sister manages, no one knows.

The car falls into silence.

Neither speaks.

Until—

Cao Cheng breaks it: "Shen Xinran’s about to start hypnotherapy."

"Hypnosis is real?" the second sister mutters in disbelief.

Cao Cheng nodded: "Of course, though it's a bit different from what you might imagine. It's not about controlling someone's body, but rather guiding them into a special state of consciousness—helping them relax more deeply. A highly skilled hypnotist can even alter a person's awareness, implant subtle suggestions, enhance inner perception, or even improve memory..."

Second Sister glanced at Cao Cheng: "From the sound of it, you know how to do it too."

"A little."

"..."

Second Sister couldn't hide her surprise and curiosity: "What else can you do?"

"You should be asking what I can't do," Cao Cheng replied coolly, clearly showing off.

Second Sister was left speechless.

Honestly, the more she learned about this guy, the more it seemed like he had a hand in everything.

He always played it off with "a little" this and "a little" that, but looking back, every single thing he touched turned out to be something he’d mastered—sometimes even at a professional level.

At first, she’d thought he was just a good-for-nothing. Then he casually dabbled in stocks and made more money than the Ren family’s entire fortune—several times over.

You’d think he was a finance whiz, but he barely even touched trading after that.

Instead, he took up woodworking.

And his craftsmanship was incredible—the small wooden figurine he carved still sat on Second Sister’s desk, so lifelike it could almost breathe.

He knew traditional medicine too.

Now it seemed he understood hypnotherapy as well.

Not to mention hacking.

And he had some knowledge of criminal investigation, plus a talent for drawing.

Second Sister suddenly realized—this little brat must have suffered in silence to shine so brightly in public.

He might look lazy, like he was always slacking off, but behind the scenes, he must have put in grueling effort to learn all these skills.

Second Sister felt like she’d cracked the code.

Her gaze toward Cao Cheng shifted slightly.

No one in this world achieved success without hard work. While others thought he was lounging around drinking tea, he was actually studying.

Yeah…

That had to be it.

……

On the monitor screen, Eldest Sister lay on the comfortable therapy chair as Shen Xinran gently guided her into a meditative state, gradually lulling her into sleep.

Second Sister spoke up: "I think we should tell Mom about this. We need someone to share Eldest Sister’s workload—it’ll help with her treatment."

"No need for that. I can handle this illness myself," Cao Cheng dismissed the idea.

"Of course."

He added, "But hiring a professional manager to help run the company isn’t a bad idea. There’s no need for her to do everything herself. We can tell Mom after she’s recovered. Worst case, I’ll just buy out our family’s company."

Second Sister asked skeptically, "You can really cure her?"

"Drop the doubt. If I say I can do something, I can. You don’t need to get involved. I’ll talk to Eldest Sister myself later."

Cao Cheng continued, "This isn’t something too many people should know about. It might make her resistant to treatment."

Second Sister nodded slowly. "Fine. I’ll leave it to you."

Maybe it was Cao Cheng’s unshakable confidence that reassured her.

She finally let out a sigh of relief.

Her earlier panic had stemmed from the unknown—she had no idea what was wrong with Eldest Sister.

But now that she understood, the urgency faded.

……

About half an hour later, Eldest Sister looked as though she’d woken from a deep, restful sleep.

Her complexion was glowing, her whole demeanor relaxed.

It was time to go.

Eldest Sister prepared to leave.

Cao Cheng and Second Sister slipped away first to avoid raising suspicion.

Another half-hour passed.

When Eldest Sister returned home, she found Cao Cheng and Second Sister still lounging in the living room, watching TV as if they hadn’t moved an inch.

Eldest Sister smiled casually. "I’ll have the housekeeper bring some fruit. Want coffee?"

Second Sister raised her wine bottle in response—clearly, alcohol beat coffee any day.

Cao Cheng didn’t hold back either. "Mangoes, please."

"Got it."

Eldest Sister went to find the housekeeper.

Once she was out of earshot, Second Sister whispered, "She really does seem different—so much more at ease. Is hypnosis really that effective?"

"Depends on the hypnotist’s skill. Shen Xinran must be pretty good. Want me to try it on you? I’m even better."

"You? No thanks," Second Sister hesitated, then shook her head.

"What’s that tone? Don’t trust me?"

"Ha. Not a bit," Second Sister snorted.

"You—ugh! The world’s gone cold, hearts have turned to stone!" Cao Cheng clutched his chest dramatically. "When did our once-harmonious family lose even the most basic trust? Ah… this household is doomed."

"..."