Perhaps because I grew up starved for affection, any small kindness shown to me made me want to repay it
tenfold.
I decided to use the money I had saved over the years to buy them all gifts. But in my excitement, I acciden-
tally sent a link for an online group buy to the family group chat.
Oh, god. They’re going to think I’m so tacky.
I was about to retract the message, but in the next second, my bank account balance exploded with new
zeroes.
Grandfather: [My dear granddaughter wants to start a business? Here’s a hundred million to practice with.]
The others immediately followed suit, wiring me staggering amounts of money.
My jaw dropped. They were definitely my real family.
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Chapter 1
Still, I transferred the money back, trying to explain my embarrassing mistake.
That only made them send even more.
02.46
Mother: [Such a good girl. Definitely our blood. That other one… we raised her for twenty years and neve
saw a dime back.]
She then sent a video. I opened it to see my father, bundled up in his blankets, sobbing his eyes out.
I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
These were my people.
I settled in quickly. I no longer had to worry about where my next meal was coming from or fight with anyon over scraps. I was like a sponge, soaking up all the knowledge my family and the tutors they hired coul provide. My only job was to learn. They paved the way for everything else.
Mother personally coached me in etiquette and social graces. Father cultivated my taste in the finer things In just one month, I transformed from an ugly duckling into a swan.
Isabelle, who had somehow gotten my number, kept trying to convince me to leave. When she learned tha the family was pouring all their resources into my education, she just scoffed.
[So naive. You think they’re doing this for your own good? They’re just fattening you up for slaughter, getting better price for you on the marriage market!]
I ignored her, but the family found out about the messages.
Terrified I would misunderstand, Mother called an emergency family meeting. Father tripped over himself to explain. Grandfather was ready to call off the engagement on the spot. My brother insisted that my opinior was the only one that mattered.
But I knew this marriage was about more than just me; it was a long–term strategic alliance between two powerful families. More importantly, I trusted my family. They weren’t the monsters Isabelle made them out
to be.
“I’m willing,” I said, my voice clear and steady. “I trust Mom and Dad’s judgment.”
My compliance only seemed to deepen their guilt.
And as a result, my dowry grew even larger.
