During the time I was almost raped, Mom and
Dad were lying right next to me, motionless.
I couldn’t imagine what was going through
their heads.
They always favored my brother.
Their behavior had made me numb.
But that time, I was almost raped in front of
them!
My own parents just lay there!
Later, I worked at a diner, then DJed at a
nightclub, and finished the night delivering
food.
That was normal for me.
I had worked hard for three years.
I paid off our debts and the company started
く
to recover.
That was when Mom and Dad started to wake
up.
I cried myself to sleep so many nights,
thinking that I was finally getting a break.
But two months after the company recovered,
the “dead” Ethan came home.
He had a woman and a little boy.
Facing my shocked expression, he said, “This
is your sister–in–law.
This is your nephew.”
Mom and Dad were ecstatic.
Just as I was about to land a huge deal, Mom
and Dad told me to step down.
“Your brother is the eldest son, the only man.
He’s the pillar of this family.”
“He should have inherited the company. Be a
good girl.”
“Your brother’s always been good to you. You
wouldn’t fight with him over the family
fortune, would you?”
I wanted to talk to my brother, but I overheard
that horrific truth.
That family pushed me off the balcony
without hesitation.
I was 21 years old when I died.
Now, I could finally watch them go through all
that pain.
10.
I
The next day, Mom woke up first.
Two days later, Dad’s condition slowly got
better.
I played along with them, acting like I was
happy.
“Mom, Dad, Ethan, I’m so happy you’re okay.
I wouldn’t have known what to do.”
The three of them stared at me, but none of
them said anything.
I pretended to be hurt by their cold looks.
Then I started to stir the pot.
“Mom, Dad, why aren’t you happy that you’re
awake?
People online are saying that you did this to
avoid debts, is that true?
Are Mom, Dad, and Ethan going to abandon
me?”
I covered my face and cried.
Through my fingers, I saw them exchanging
dark looks.
Ethan was the most angry. He silently cursed
me.
But who cares?
I don’t feel anything.
Most important of all, he was the eldest son
and he had recovered. So what did the
family’s debts have to do with me, a high
school student?
Mom pulled me to her side.
L
“Of course not!
They’re lying! Who do you trust, your family or
some random people?”
I disgustedly rested in Mom’s arms.
The four of us each had ulterior motives.
11.
The next morning, I woke up to the sound of
frantic knocking.
Mom barged in and pulled me out of bed.
“Mom, what are you doing?”
“What do you think? We’re running away! Our
company is bankrupt and we owe so much
Voe n stay here and eleve
<
money. You can stay here and slave away, or
you can run with us.”
I pretended not to know what was going on,
and blinked like I was confused.
“Pack a few outfits and come with us.
If you don’t, stay here!”
She stormed out, slamming the door.
As soon as the door closed, I smiled.
Mom and Dad, you think it’s that easy?
It’s not that easy to run away.
Half an hour later, the four of us stood in the
living room.
It wasn’t even daylight yet.
“We don’t have a choice. We’ll come back
“Be quiet. Hurry, I bought four tickets!”
Dad took the lead.
As soon as he opened the door, he gasped
and tried to close it.
I sighed as I saw the baseball bat in the door.
Too slow.
C
“How did they know?!”
“Who leaked it?”
The three of them looked at each other, then
at me.
I innocently opened my hands and put on my
most scared voice.
“Mom, Dad, didn’t I find out this morning?”
The door was kicked open.
Dad took the brunt of the force. He stumbled
and fell to the ground.
“Zhou!”
Mom wanted to help him, but the leader of
the thugs stepped on Dad’s head.
I felt a surge of happiness as I saw his face
distort.
12.
“You’re trying to run away?
You have to pay your debts, it’s the law! You
used to be a boss, you don’t know anything
about trust?
Smash everything! Destroy their house!”
<
All the decorations were smashed into pieces.
Mom and Ethan tried to protect the vases and
paintings.
Cries mixed with shattering sounds.
After they finished, the leader grabbed Dad
by the collar and pulled him up.
“Pay the money now.
Or we’ll smash your head.
Pay up!”
Mom and Dad insisted that they didn’t have
any money.
But the thugs glanced at each other and
punched Ethan.
I thought they were finally getting smart.
Ethan Could fake his death to avoid the debto
<
Ethan could fake his death to avoid the debts.
He must have money.
“Pay up! Pay up, pay up!”
Ethan couldn’t do anything.
I fake–cried. “Stop it, stop it. Just pay them.”
Ethan snapped.
“What are you doing? Do you want me to be
killed? Give them the money!
Please, don’t hit me! They have money! The
old people have money!”
The thugs let him go.
Mom and Dad exchanged looks and took out
a bank card.
The leader snatched it.
“Password!
How much is in there?”
Dad started to cry. “Just… just over a million.”
“Leave some for us. We’ll pay you back later.”
The thugs cursed at Mom and Dad and left.
I looked at them with resentment.
Over a million.
I was practically starving to death last time,
and they never gave me the money!
13.
The house was trashed.
The family sat on the couch like stray dogs.
“How did they find out?
There’s no way they could’ve known! What
happened?”
I smirked.
I wouldn’t have been defenseless if I knew
what was going to happen.
I bought a tape recorder on the way home
from school.
I overheard their plans and the arguments
they had because of me.
I wouldn’t be joining them on their trip
abroad.
They still wanted to marry me off to some old
guy.
“Why are you trying to figure out how they
found out? It doesn’t matter.”
Ethan covered his bleeding nose.
“Think about how we’re going to pay them
back!”
The family fell silent. Dad could only sigh.
They all looked at me.
“I didn’t have heart failure and needed a new
heart!
We need to pay the money. What are we
going to do?”
They let me start the fire.