To pay off my son's debts, I swept the streets at dawn, sold vegetables in the morning, washed dishes at a restaurant in the afternoon and sew insoles at night.

Even my granddaughter works part-time while studying, living so frugally that she splitted a single bread across two meals.

One morning, while sweeping the street, I saw a soda bottle thrown from a car and hurried over to pick it up.

The driver jumped out and kicked me to the ground.

"Get lost, you old hag! If you dirty Mr. Lockwood and the others' clothes, ten lives wouldn't be enough to pay for it!"

I curled up and clutched my stomach as I watched Deryl step out in a tailored suit while escorting his first love and her daughter.

"Cynthia, today's your birthday. I booked the whole hotel to celebrate it with the city's elite."

"For you, I'm willing to give up everything."

He said with deep affection.

"Even your own mother and daughter?"

The first love asked.

"Of course."

"They're nothing but burdens. I've wanted to get rid of them for a long time."

My son didn't hesitate

I was shocked and cried for a long time.

Just then, my granddaughter came stumbling out of the hotel, blood trickling down her forehead. She helped me up and whispered, "Don't cry, Grandma. We don't need him anymore. I'll take you to Scandinavia."

——

"Dad has extra work for the May Day holiday and can't get away right now. Lucy, you take good care of Grandma."

"As for the medical expenses, haven't you been earning your tuition with part-time jobs? Just pay for it first."

The moment my son hung up the phone.

I felt a mix of anger and disappointment. My whole body trembled uncontrollably and I raised my hand to slap myself repeatedly. "What sin did I commit, heavens, to birth such a son?"

"Grandma, please don't do this! It's all Dad's fault. He only has that first love, Cynthia Larkin, in his heart."

Lucy hugged me tightly, comforting me through her tears.

"No wonder every time Cynthia's daughter bullied you and I went to the school to talk to them, your father would always tell me to be patient."

"So, he's been using all the money to please Cynthia and her daughter."

Looking back at seven years ago, I felt utterly foolish.

At that time, Deryl knelt before me, saying his company had gone bankrupt and he owed millions.

I didn't blame him. Instead, I sold everything I had, mortgaged my home and borrowed money from everywhere.

I even handed over the gold bracelet my late husband gave me when we were married to the creditor.

That night, my son stayed up all night carving a wooden bracelet to give to me.

He said, "Mom, I'm sorry. I'll definitely buy back the bracelet for you in the future."

I was touched and heartbroken. From then on, I worked every job I could find, sometimes ten in a single day.

I collapsed on the street in the early morning several times.

The doctor told me to eat more nutritious food.

However, I couldn't bear to eat a single egg. Every penny I earned went to help my son repay his debts.

My granddaughter, Lucy, was even more understanding.

I'd saved up money for her to study abroad, but she refused to take it. She relied entirely on her part-time jobs to earn money and would transfer any extra she had to her father.

She ate only a piece of bread at school all day long.

She became thin and dark-skinned, so frail that she looked like she could be blown over by the wind and her development was far behind that of her peers.

She was also constantly bullied by Cynthia's daughter, Summer.

Her backpack would be filled with toads.

Glue would be smeared on her chair.

It happened all the time.

I wondered why nothing had changed, no matter how many times I had talked to the school.

Now I understand.

It was Deryl who was backing them up.

Fortunately, Lucy was intelligent and determined. She obtained a national scholarship to study abroad and was even allowed to bring one family member.

Since he favored his first love and her daughter.

Then we would grant him his wish and not be eyesores any longer.

The next morning, my son finally came.

His hair was disheveled and he had removed his expensive, tailored suit, replacing it with worn-out blue work clothes.

In his hand, he carried what he called leftovers, packed by his company.

Thinking of how painstakingly he switches back and forth every day.

I just found it ironic and ridiculous.

"Mom, how are you doing?"

"If I ever find the person who hurt you, I'll tear them to pieces!"

My son's eyes were red like he was about to cry.

His acting was truly impressive.

Even now, for a fleeting moment, I almost believed him.

When I didn't respond, he quickly added, "Mom, last night was the company's anniversary celebration. I was the only one on duty, so I couldn't return."

"Please don't be mad."

"I even asked my boss to save some of the good dishes from the party for you. There were meatballs, beef stew and lobster."

Deryl unwrapped the plastic container and the sour stench of spoiled food hit me instantly.

My son really was a smooth liar.

Anniversary celebration?

These were clearly just leftovers from Cynthia and her daughter.

"Eat it yourself if you want it!"

Just then, Lucy burst into the hospital room, snatched the leftovers and dumped them straight into the trash. Then she pulled out a thermos of chicken soup and a bag of KFC.

"Grandma, we won't eat other people's leftovers anymore."

She said with a cold expression.

"You … "

Deryl was taken aback and then immediately put on a stern face. "What's gotten into you today? How dare you be so wasteful? Don't you know our family's situation?"

"Grandma's sick. What's wrong with her eating something good? Why must she eat spoiled food?"

Lucy retorted stubbornly, but tears welled up in her eyes.

Usually, Cynthia's daughter, Summer, drove luxury cars, wore designer clothes and carried purses worth over a hundred thousand dollars.

She swapped phones, laptops, necklaces and bracelets every few days.

She'd toss out half-eaten fruit and unfinished milk tea without a second thought. If her shoes got dirty, she just bought new ones.

My son supported all of this unconditionally.

But if Lucy didn't eat leftovers, she got scolded.

How could she not feel wronged?

"You brat, you've grown bold, haven't you? Today, I'm going to teach you a lesson."

Deryl didn't realize his mistake and instead angrily raised his hand.

"I was the one who told Lucy to buy it. If you want to hit someone, hit me, too."

I glared at him.

"Mom, weren't you always extremely frugal before? Why are you … "

My son was stunned.

"Lucy just said I'm sick."

If this had happened in the past, I would've happily eaten whatever food he brought home.

Now, these leftovers felt like knives stabbing into my heart.

"I'm sorry, Mom. I didn't think it through."

Deryl quickly apologized.

Then, I deliberately tested him. "Instead of blaming Lucy, maybe you should deal with Summer."

"She smashed an ashtray over Lucy's head in public."

Last night, Lucy was working part-time as a waitress at the hotel and was bullied by Summer.

Not only did she not get her wages, but she was also injured.

"Mom, this isn't Summer's fault."

"The hotel staff said Lucy cursed at Summer first and made Summer cry."

My son instead blamed Lucy, "We may be poor, but we should have integrity. Don't do things like that in the future."

"Lucy never curses!"

I retorted seriously.

"Mom!"

"You just dote on her too much."

"I am a bit strict with Lucy, but it's all for her own good."

Deryl put on a helpless expression.

I'd prepared a dozen arguments, but hearing him like this, I swallowed them all.

Because no matter how much I said, my son wouldn't believe me.

Lucy bit back her tears and said to her father, "If you don't stand up for me, then at least move Grandma to a VIP ward. Get her the best meds and hire some nurses."

"That way, she'll recover faster."

My son sighed, clearly troubled. "We can't afford a VIP ward in our situation."

"Then what about the follow-up medical expenses?"

Lucy pressed.

"You can help me cover them for now. When Grandma gets better, we'll take her to the beach for a few days to relax."

Deryl replied with a smile.

Lucy and I were both silent in disappointment.

Actually, if my son genuinely liked Cynthia, we wouldn't object.

But the problem was, he pretended to be poor and deceived us for seven years.

Even now, he's still unwilling to come clean.

Buzz! Buzz!

My son's phone rang.

After answering, his face suddenly changed and he hurriedly said to me, "Mom, something came up at work. I have to go."

However, I caught a glimpse of the caller ID.

It was clearly Cynthia Larkin.

After we finished eating.

Lucy went to get hot water, but when she returned, she threw herself into my arms and cried loudly.

"What happened?"

I asked anxiously.

"Dad lied to us again."

It turned out that Cynthia's parents had caught a cold and had a fever.

My son busied himself with everything and paid a million in hospital fees in one go to secure the best VIP ward.

He also spent a fortune hiring top specialists from all departments for consultations.

Lucy saw all of this with her own eyes.

She worked part-time daily, enduring all sorts of grievances without saying a word.

She studied hard and read late into the night.

She mended and patched her clothes to save money and split a single bread into two meals.

All of it was to help her father pay off his debts.

Later, she eventually discovered.

That Summer had stolen her life as the daughter of a wealthy family.

How could she not be devastated and heartbroken?

Buzz! Buzz!

My son sent a text message. [Mom, the company needs me to go on a business trip. I won't be back for half a month. Please take care of yourselves and Lucy.]

If it were before, I would have replied, [Deryl, you've worked hard. Focus on your work and don't worry about home.]

But now, I didn't reply. I just held Lucy tightly as tears streamed down my face.

Sure enough.

In the following days, my son didn't visit me even once.

He devoted himself wholeheartedly to taking care of Cynthia's parents.

On the contrary, Summer led a group of fake creditors into the ward.

Attracting a crowd of onlookers.

"Humph, you think I couldn't find you if you hid here?"

The creditor grabbed Lucy's hair and roared viciously.

"Let go of my granddaughter!"

Anxiously, I fell off the bed. Because my injury hadn't healed, I couldn't stand up and could only grab the fake creditor's leg.

Immediately, I received two slaps across the face.

Some people wanted to help us.

But Summer stopped them.

"Don't be fooled by them. These two are just putting on an act."

Summer sneered and continued, "They're deliberately pretending to be sick and hiding in the hospital to avoid paying their debts."

"The creditor can't even afford to pay his employees, yet they eat and drink lavishly every day."

The fake creditor also took out the IOU with my signature and fingerprint as proof.

Instantly, the way everyone looked at Lucy and me changed.

"How shameless!"

"The old one looks like a crook and the young one's just a tramp. Neither of them are any good."

"If you don't pay your debts, you're worse than a beggar!"

Lucy wept silently.

Trembling with rage, I wiped blood from my lip and glared at Summer. "Do you have no conscience? Bullying us like this, aren't you afraid of karma?"

Slap! Slap!

The creditor slapped me again, then slammed Lucy's head against the cabinet.

"You've got three days to pay this month's installment."

"Or I'll rip your heads off and use them as soccer balls."

He dropped the threat and turned to leave.

The crowd dispersed, muttering curses.

Only Summer didn't leave.

"Did you arrange this?"

I looked up and questioned her.

"That's right!"

Summer smiled smugly, casually closed the door and continued, "This is just a warning."

"If you know what's good for you, quickly break off all ties with Uncle Deryl and get lost as far as you can!"

"Don't disturb my family's happiness."