The next morning arrived with an unusual silence.
Not the ordinary quiet that filled the Pei residence every day, but something sharper. More deliberate. The air itself seemed to hold a certain tension.
Pei Ye noticed it quickly.
Servants moved carefully through the hallways, their voices lowered to little more than whispers. Several documents had arrived early that morning and were carried directly into Pei Fang's study.
Pei Yan noticed something else.
The study door had remained closed longer than usual.
The twins knocked once before stepping back. They stood silently near the entrance hall wall, waiting according to the instructions they had been given.
Both wore simple dark clothing—elegant but restrained. Their posture remained straight and composed.
When the study door finally opened, the twins immediately stepped forward and lowered their heads.
They bowed.
"Father."
"Mother."
Pei Fang stepped into the hallway first. His expression revealed nothing unusual, though his eyes were slightly colder than usual.
Pei Jing followed behind him, holding a thin yellow folder in one hand.
"You may rise," Pei Fang said.
The twins straightened.
Pei Jing observed them for a moment, as if measuring their readiness for something.
"You will accompany us today," she said calmly.
Pei Ye blinked slightly.
"To where?"
"A legal meeting."
The twins exchanged a brief glance.
Legal matters had been mentioned before. They had heard quiet discussions between Pei Fang and Pei Jing many times, but this was the first time they had been asked to attend one.
Pei Fang spoke calmly.
"A petition has been filed."
Pei Yan tilted his head slightly.
"By whom?"
Pei Jing closed the folder in her hand.
"A relative from the Pei family."
The words lingered in the air.
Pei Ye frowned faintly.
"A relative?"
"Yes."
Pei Fang continued.
"He claims your guardianship arrangements should be reviewed… for your benefit."
Pei Ye repeated quietly,
"For our benefit?"
Pei Yan immediately understood the implication.
"Because we were adopted."
Pei Jing nodded once.
"That is his argument."
Neither twin reacted emotionally, but both understood the meaning.
Someone from the Pei family had decided they did not belong here.
Pei Fang turned toward the door.
"You will observe today."
Nothing more.
No reassurance.
Observation itself was a lesson.
The law office was located in one of the older financial buildings downtown.
Unlike the large government courts the twins had imagined, the place was quiet and controlled.
Dark oakwood walls lined the interior.
Tall windows allowed pale morning light to fall across the polished floor.
Shelves filled with thick legal volumes stretched across the walls.
By the time they entered the meeting room, several people were already seated.
Two lawyers stood near the main table, quietly reviewing documents.
Another man sat calmly at the far end of the room.
The moment Pei Fang entered, the man looked up.
He appeared to be in his late fifties, much older than Pei Fang. His posture was rigid, his expression polite—but the politeness felt sharp, as if it concealed something venomous beneath it.
The twins bowed automatically when they entered.
Pei Fang and Pei Jing took their seats.
The twins sat behind them as observers.
The meeting began shortly afterward.
One of the lawyers cleared his throat.
"Thank you all for attending. We will proceed by reviewing the petition submitted by Mr. Pei Shuren."
So that was the man's name.
Pei Shuren inclined his head slightly, acknowledging the introduction.
His eyes briefly shifted toward the twins.
There was no warmth in them.
The lawyer continued reading.
"Mr. Pei Shuren has requested that the court review the guardianship arrangement currently overseeing the children."
He adjusted another document.
"His claim states that the children are not biologically related to Mr. Pei Fang or Mrs. Pei Jing."
Pei Shuren finally spoke.
"Which is quite a simple fact."
His voice carried visible confidence.
"The Pei family possesses numerous capable members who could easily assume responsibility for managing the family estate."
Pei Fang did not respond.
Neither did Pei Jing.
Instead, their lawyer stood and began speaking.
"After the death of the children's biological parents, their guardianship was legally established."
A document was placed on the table.
"Mr. Pei Fang and Mrs. Pei Jing were designated guardians according to registered adoption records."
Pei Shuren leaned back slightly.
"Yes."
He folded his hands calmly.
"Children can be adopted."
His gaze shifted again toward the twins.
"But heritage cannot."
The room suddenly felt colder.
Pei Yan felt the tension immediately.
Pei Ye remained still, though his fingers tightened slightly against his knees.
Pei Shuren continued.
"The Pei family is an old house with a long legacy."
His voice remained polite.
"That legacy should not depend on children who appeared suddenly from… uncertain origins."
The words sounded courteous.
But their meaning was sharp.
Pei Yan's jaw tightened instantly.
Pei Ye lowered his gaze toward the floor.
Pei Jing finally spoke.
"What precisely are you requesting?"
Pei Shuren turned toward her.
"A temporary review of the estate's management."
He gestured toward the twins.
"Until these children are old enough to understand what they are inheriting."
Pei Jing nodded.
Then she opened the same folder she had been carrying.
Several documents slid onto the table.
"The legal adoption records," she said.
Her voice remained level.
"Registered three years ago."
Another paper followed.
"The trust agreement originally established by the children's parents."
Another document appeared.
"The revised estate structure confirmed by the former family patriarch."
The room grew quieter.
Pei Shuren frowned slightly.
"The patriarch is long dead."
Pei Jing nodded calmly.
"Yes."
She tapped one of the documents.
"But his signature remains legally binding."
One of the lawyers began reading the clause aloud.
The wording was clear.
The guardianship structure had been personally approved by the former patriarch of the family.
Pei Jing placed another document forward.
"These are the financial oversight reports submitted annually to the trust board."
Pei Shuren's lawyer picked it up and began scanning the contents.
Pei Jing continued calmly.
"According to this clause, no external family member may interfere with the guardianship arrangement unless strong evidence of mismanagement is presented."
She looked directly at Pei Shuren.
"So do you possess such evidence?"
The question was simple.
Pei Shuren did not answer immediately.
His lawyer spoke instead.
"There are… concerns."
Pei Jing leaned slightly forward.
"Concerns are not evidence."
The silence in the room deepened.
Pei Jing did not argue.
She did not raise her voice.
She simply continued placing documents on the table.
Every claim Pei Shuren presented encountered another signature.
Another clause.
Another record.
Another document.
Pei Ye and Pei Yan slowly realized something.
None of this had been prepared today.
Not recently.
Pei Fang and Pei Jing had prepared for it years ago.
The meeting continued for nearly an hour.
Gradually, the confidence in Pei Shuren's tone began to fade.
Finally, his lawyer closed the folder.
"There appears to be no legal basis for altering the current arrangement."
The words settled into the room.
Pei Shuren's expression hardened slightly.
He looked toward the twins again.
This time his politeness disappeared completely.
"Interesting," he said quietly.
His gaze lingered on them.
"Children from nowhere suddenly become heirs to the Pei house."
Pei Yan felt heat rise in his chest.
Pei Ye's fingers tightened.
But neither moved.
Pei Fang had not permitted them to speak.
Pei Jing closed her folder calmly.
"The meeting is concluded, Mr. Pei Shuren."
Pei Shuren stood slowly.
For a moment he looked toward Pei Fang.
"You may have protected your position today."
His voice remained calm.
"But the Pei family is patient."
Pei Fang finally spoke.
His tone was quiet.
"So are we."
The meeting ended shortly afterward.
The ride home was silent.
The city moved quickly past the car windows in long stretches of glass and steel.
Pei Yan finally spoke.
"He expected us to disappear."
Pei Fang did not look at him.
"Yes."
Pei Ye asked quietly,
"Because we were never supposed to exist."
Pei Jing answered simply.
"Correct."
The twins absorbed the lesson.
Somewhere beyond the quiet safety of their home, there were people who believed the twins had taken something that did not belong to them.
When the car reached the Pei residence, the twins stepped out and bowed again.
"Father."
"Mother."
Pei Fang paused briefly before entering the residence.
"Today you observed something important."
The twins waited.
Pei Jing finished the thought.
"Power rarely needs to shout."
The doors closed behind them.
But somewhere across the city, Pei Shuren was already considering his next move.