I hung up and turned off my phone in one swift motion.

I would never have anything to do with those people again.

Ben, looking worried, asked what had happened and why I seemed so tense.

I told him that my parents wanted to come stay with us.

His expression changed immediately.

“No way. I won’t agree to that. If they come, they’ll definitely bring your sister and nephew, and I don’t want to see them. If you insist on letting them stay, I’ll leave with Hannah right away!”

He was firm in his words, and my heart ached.

In my last life, he had said the same thing, but I thought he was being unreasonable. We had a huge fight, and I brought my parents and sister’s family to our house against his wishes.

Later, when he couldn’t take it anymore, he left with our daughter. They disappeared, and I never saw them again.

It wasn’t until then that I realized how terribly wrong I had been.

“I know. I won’t let them come, but my parents already know our address. Even if we try to stop them, it’s too late. If they make a scene in the neighborhood, it’ll only hurt us.”

Ben fell silent. He knew it was true. When we bought this house together, my parents demanded shamelessly, “Since Charlotte helped pay for it, why not put Brady’s name on the title as well?”

Brady was my adoptive sister’s son, a complete troublemaker.

I refused, and my parents mocked me, saying I wasn’t behaving like a proper elder.

What a joke. I bought this house with my own money – why should I give it to someone else?

Looking at my innocent, sweet daughter, I felt a wave of bitterness.

In my last life, I failed to protect my family.

This time, I wouldn’t let those people harm my loved ones.

I sent my daughter to her grandparents’ house, making sure they would take good care of her, and spent the night selling off everything valuable in the house.

By the end of it, I had managed to collect 100,000 bucks.

Our upstairs neighbors were moving abroad and selling their place at a low price.

I negotiated with them to swap our homes, paying them an extra 50,000 bucks.

And just like that, I now had two identical apartments – one that I bought, and one that I rented.

Ben was confused as to why I was treating this situation like a looming disaster.

I looked at him seriously.

“You’ve never lived with my family. You don’t know how shameless my adoptive sister’s family can be. Did you stock up on enough food?”

“Yes, I followed your suggestion and bought a month’s worth. Charlotte, isn’t that a bit too much?”

Too much?

I lowered my head and let out a cold laugh.

I feared even this wouldn’t last them ten days.

The day after setting up the surveillance cameras, my parents and my adoptive sister’s family arrived at my home, carrying bags and packages.

They blocked the entrance, shouting loudly, “Charlotte, we finally found you! Thank goodness you’re such a good person, not letting us stay in that rural house without air conditioning and getting roasted alive. You really are generous – just what we’d expect from someone who married a policeman!”

Jasmine’s voice drew the attention of everyone in the building. They gathered around, giving me strange looks.

Her words put me on a pedestal, as if refusing them would make me guilty of some kind of crime. Luckily, I was prepared.

With a smile, I took the bundle from her hand and said, “What are you saying, Jasmine? You already mentioned that your house couldn’t even afford electricity, so how could I, as your older sister, just leave you all to fend for yourselves?

“And look, to make room for you, I’ve even sent my daughter to her grandparents’ house. Does this arrangement satisfy you?”

A wave of murmurs spread through the crowd, and soon people began criticizing Jasmine. “What kind of person does that? Moving into someone else’s home and making them send their daughter away – how shameless!”

“And she is an adoptive sister? Not even related by blood, and she has the nerve to act like that! Her parents must really be biased!”

Jasmine’s face twisted with anger, looking like she had swallowed something foul. She shot a glance at my mother.

My mother, clutching her own bags, rushed forward and yelled, “Our family’s business is none of yours, so mind your own! Don’t you have anything better to do?”

The hallway erupted into shouts and curses. The neighbors were just trying to help, and I couldn’t let them suffer for it.

After they got a taste of my parents’ true nature, I led them inside.

As soon as we entered, Jasmine headed straight for my bedroom. She pushed the door open, finding the room completely empty.

Her face fell.

“Sis, where’s your skincare stuff? You know, the cream that costs a couple thousand dollars.”

She pulled open the closet and started rummaging through it.

“And where’s that mink coat you bought for a few grand? Why isn’t it here?”

Seeing her dig through my things as if this was her own home, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes.

She must have been eyeing my valuables for a long time, or she wouldn’t have gone straight for them the moment she arrived.

Thankfully, I had already moved everything valuable to the other apartment.

I pushed her out of the room and locked the door, pocketing the key.

“This is my room. What do you think you’re doing, barging in like that?”

Seeing that I was being firm, Jasmine didn’t argue. But her eyes darted around, taking note of everything in the house.

She ran over to my mother and whispered something in her ear, glancing at me the whole time.

When she finished, my mother stormed over to me, raising her hand to slap me.

Ben stepped in front of me, furious.

“What the hell are you doing? This is my house!”

Startled by his outburst, my mother hesitated for a moment, her shoulders shrinking.

But when she saw the encouraging look in Jasmine’s eyes, she regained her composure, planting her hands on her hips and insisting,

“I’m hitting my daughter – what business is it of yours?”

She grabbed my arm and dragged me out, gripping me so hard that my arm throbbed with pain.

“Tell me, are you hiding something from us? Why are all the valuable things missing from the house? Jasmine was here a few days ago, and the place was packed with expensive stuff!”

A few days ago… Jasmine had come over, claiming her son was sick and that she needed my help watching him.

No wonder she had been sneaking around my house that day – she had her eyes on my things all along.

My mother was fuming, completely disregarding the fact that I was her biological daughter.

Clutching my face, I swallowed the rising frustration and, with eyes slightly reddened, forced myself to stay calm.

“Mom, I didn’t want this either, but Ben made a bad investment and got fired by his boss. We’ve racked up a huge amount of debt, so I had to sell off everything valuable to cover the losses.”

Feigning misery, I straightened up and looked Jasmine dead in the eye.

“Didn’t my dear sister just brag about getting a big year-end bonus? How about lending me some of that money to help me out in this emergency?”

All eyes turned to Jasmine, who suddenly panicked. “You must be dreaming! Don’t even think about it!”

The sun was scorching, and it felt like there were several suns outside.

This was the sign that the heatwave was about to hit.

Inside the house, the air conditioning was running, but Jasmine still looked cold and distant. For her, parting with her money was as painful as losing her life.

She forced a smile and said dismissively, “I don’t have that much money. It wouldn’t even make a dent in your debt. Besides, Brady’s still so young, and we need the money for him. You, as his aunt, should be contributing something, right? How dare you expect me to lend you money?”

She was flipping the situation around, and my mother’s concern for me vanished in an instant. As soon as Jasmine mentioned Brady, my mother’s focus shifted entirely to him.

Brady wasn’t even related to her by blood, yet he was her precious treasure.

I hadn’t even spoken yet when my mother cut me off impatiently, “Alright, alright, what’s the point of talking about money in a family? It just creates distance. Now, let’s divide the rooms and get ready to eat!”

Jasmine’s eyes lit up when she heard that, and she quickly pointed to claim the master bedroom.

“I’ll take the master bedroom. I need to sleep with my son at night. He’s still young and can’t handle the heat.

“The second bedroom will go to Mom and Dad. They’re old and need a soft bed to sleep well.

“Hannah’s room is too small, so I guess my husband will have to make do with it.”

She had arranged everything perfectly for her family, completely forgetting about where Ben and I would sleep.

“And where are Ben and I supposed to sleep?” I questioned.

Jasmine put on an exaggerated thinking face, then pretended to struggle. “Well, you and your husband are still young and healthy, so you don’t really need a bed, right? The sofa should be fine for you two, don’t you think, Mom?”

My mother eagerly nodded, showing no hesitation as she commanded me, “Exactly! Your father and I are old, and Brady’s the only grandson in the family – he can’t be uncomfortable. Now, Charlotte, go get our luggage and make up our beds. I need to take a nap soon.”

Take a nap? Like hell you will.

I let out a cold laugh and had Ben block them all.

“I’m not satisfied with the room assignments. The master bedroom belongs to my husband and me. You can split the rest of the rooms however you like, but the master bedroom stays off-limits!”

As soon as Brady realized he wouldn’t get the best room, he threw himself to the floor and started wailing.

At ten years old, his face was covered in snot and tears, making the sight all the more disgusting.

“No! No! I want the best room! I want it!”

Jasmine’s eyes gleamed with smugness as she nudged my mother, “Mom, you can’t let your only grandson suffer like this, can you?”

My mother, driven by Jasmine’s manipulation, immediately collapsed to the floor, howling, “What a heartless daughter I raised, treating her own parents so cruelly!”

She cried dramatically, peeking at me through her fingers, waiting for me to give in.

In the past, this tactic had always worked.

Whether it was out of guilt or to save face, I would eventually give in.

But things were different now. After coming back to life, I finally saw through their true nature.

What was the point of pretending there was any real family love? It was all a joke.

It was better to focus on protecting my own family first.

Seeing that I didn’t react, my mother’s crying gradually faded.

I cleaned out my ears and said, “Have you cried enough? If you’re done, let’s figure out the sleeping arrangements. There are only two rooms left for the five of you, so someone’s going to have to sleep on the couch.”

I smiled slightly. “And here’s some bad news: to pay off my husband’s debts, I’ve sold this apartment. Now I’m just renting it, and from next month on, you’ll have to cover the rent yourselves.”

My mother’s face changed instantly, “Charlotte, you ungrateful brat! Your father and I worked so hard to raise you, and this is how you repay us.”

Ignoring the cursing behind me, I pulled Ben into our bedroom.

He gave me a thumbs up.

“That was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.”

Then, with hope in his eyes, he asked, “Do you think they’ll finally give up and leave now?”

I burst his bubble immediately. “With them? Not a chance. Just wait and see.”