Chapter 2

As we walked, my mom’s eyes suddenly lit up, and she pulled me into a rundown building across the street.

She stood on the second-floor windowsill, where wind leaked in from all directions, and excitedly shoved a wad of crumpled bills at me so I could buy a pair of binoculars.

“I can’t wait to see your dad crying his eyes out at home and calling my name in his sleep.”

I looked at my mom speechlessly.

“They’re a happy family of three right now, living in a villa and driving luxury cars. Who knows how happy they are.”

My mom frowned and slapped the top of my head hard.

“You don’t get it. He’ll regret it soon enough, and then he’ll be chasing after us, begging us to come back.”

She muttered under her breath, “That’s how all those grovel-and-win-her-back stories are written.”

Watching my mom stay completely lost in her fantasy of a grovel-and-win-her-back arc, I shook my head. She was hopeless.

I picked up the crumpled bills from the floor, pushed past my mom, and ran outside.

My stomach had been growling the whole way, so I stopped at a steamed bun shop.

I swallowed and was just about to take the bun I had bought when someone suddenly reached from behind and slapped me hard.

The plump bun rolled several times on the ground and got covered in dust. I stared unblinkingly as it rolled to the roadside.

Seeing that, Jason smirked and stomped the bun flat.

“Yo, weren’t you acting all high and mighty just now? Can a rich heiress really swallow something like this?”

A bunch of his bootlicking friends chimed in sarcastically. “What else can she do? She’s broke now, so she has to scavenge for scraps to fill her stomach.”

I clenched my fists tightly, lowered my head, and held back the urge to hit someone.

Jason mocked me for a long time. When I still didn’t react, he lost interest, got into the car, drove a circle around me, sprayed me with exhaust, and then sped off.

I lifted my head and cursed at the car’s rear until I felt a lot better.

Just as I was about to head to school, a sharp red flashed in front of my eyes. It was a stack of brand-new bills.

I looked around, rushed over, and stepped on them with one foot. Then, when no one was paying attention, I carefully slipped them into my pocket.

My heart calmed down a little too. This money would be enough for me and my mom to get by for a while.

I jogged into the classroom, and everyone was pointing at me.

“I never thought her mom would be that kind of person. She used to act so arrogant. I always said someone like that wasn’t fit to be a rich wife.”

“I heard she almost drove Jason to suicide, and she still had the nerve to come to school.”

I didn’t want to pay attention to those rumors. I reached for my books and was about to review my lessons.

Jason was pushed over by his classmates until he stood in front of me, holding a few yellowed photos in his hand.

They were photos of his mother and my dad when they were young, the two of them linked arm in arm, smiling brightly.

The girl who had always disliked me clicked her tongue.

“Looks like the real mistress is someone else. No wonder she ran off without taking anything. She was probably scared of getting beaten!”

“Definitely. I’ve hated her for a long time. She had a little money and acted like she was above everyone else. In the end, wasn’t it all dirty money from her mom climbing up through mistress status?”

I clenched my fists, bit my lip, and stared at Jason.

“Your mom isn’t the mistress, so why am I older than you? I can prove I’m a legitimate child born in wedlock. Can you?”

I pulled out my parents’ marriage certificate with the official seal on my phone.

The classmates looked at him in confusion. Jason couldn’t think of a comeback for a moment, and his face went pale.

His eyes darted around, and he pretended to fall, tearing my pocket open in one motion. A handful of red bills spilled onto the floor, the color glaringly bright.

“So my money was stolen by you. Your mom steals men, and you steal money.”

I gritted my teeth. “Who can prove this money was yours? I clearly picked it up.”

Jason looked委屈 on the surface, but his eyes were full of malice. “What a coincidence, then. You just happened to pick up the sequential bills I specifically withdrew.”