After hearing that I had bought a big house, my father brazenly demanded, in front of all our relatives and friends, that I transfer the property to his illegitimate son.

"You’re not married," he said. "Eventually, the house will belong to your brother anyway. It's better to transfer it to him now so he can marry, have children and continue our family's bloodline soon."

Without hesitation, my mother refused and even stood up to argue against the crowd on my behalf.

Instead of supporting her, I sided with my father and criticized her alongside him.

"Mom, Dad is right. A sister should look after her brother. I'll go transfer the house to him tomorrow."

And that was not all.

I even forced my mother to step down from her position, giving it to the mistress. I brought the mistress to my side, keeping a close watch on her, forbidding her from returning home to cause trouble.

My mother was nearly driven mad by me.

However, it did not take long before my father and his illegitimate son were the ones seething with rage.

——

After receiving my mother's message, I immediately took leave from work and rushed home.

The moment I reached the doorstep, I saw my grandmother, Martha Chambers, jabbing a finger at my mother's face, scolding her harshly.

"Why are you crying? You couldn't give birth to a son and she fulfilled that duty for you, helping our Dalton Family continue the bloodline. What's wrong with serving her?"

Hearing this, I pushed the door open and stepped inside.

"What's going on?" I asked.

At the sight of me, my mother suddenly seemed to find her strength. She grabbed my hand tightly and sobbed, "Elena, you're finally back. Your father... he's not even human. You're only thirty years old and his illegitimate son is already twenty-nine!"

"It happened with my best friend. When she got pregnant out of wedlock, no one was willing to help her at the hospital. I even brought you along to take care of her. I must be the stupidest, most naive person in the world!"

No wonder she was so furious.

My mother had married far from her hometown and in that unfamiliar place, her only close friend was Vanessa Grayson. The two of them had always been inseparable, like sisters. My mother treated Vanessa’s son, Brian Dalton, with as much care and love as her own child.

To be betrayed by the three people she trusted most at the same time was a blow no one could endure.

As soon as my mother finished speaking, Vanessa pulled Brian down to kneel before her.

"I swear, I never meant to destroy your family," she wept. "If you want to blame someone, you can just blame me. Still, my son is innocent."

"You raised Brian too... I only hope he can acknowledge his roots. Don't worry, Brian is such a good boy. He’ll definitely treat you like his own mother. As long as you agree, I... I’ll leave and never come back."

Before my mother could even refuse, my father, Gerald, scowled and barked, "Nonsense! You're the child's mother, so why would you leave? After all the years you spent raising him alone, suffering through humiliation and hardship, I will make sure you are given a rightful place."

My mother swayed on her feet. After steadying herself, she finally spoke. "Yes... you're right. She shouldn't have to leave. I'm the fool who should go. Gerald Dalton, I want a divorce!"

As if she had already anticipated that my mother would demand a divorce, Martha sneered and said arrogantly, "Divorce? Your parents are long gone and you have few relatives or friends. At your age, where do you think you’re going to go?"

At her words, the onlooking relatives and friends also began to chime in, persuading my mother to reconsider.

They said that my mother did not know how to appreciate her blessings, that she had no real hardships to bear and that someone was caring for her in her old age and yet she was still being ungrateful and making trouble.

With the crowd backing her up, Martha grew even bolder. "I'll tell you this. You want a divorce, huh? Fine. But first, pay back every grain of rice you’ve eaten and every piece of clothing you’ve worn in our family all these years!"

"And another thing." Martha yanked me over to her side. "You can leave if you want, but Elena stays. Elena is a child of the Dalton Family. Just because she’s capable of earning money now doesn’t mean you can dream of living a good life by clinging to her. That’s absolutely impossible!"

"That's right. If you want to leave, I won't stop you, but Elena stays. Brian is already grown and about to get married. Elena needs to stay behind and find a way to buy him a house and a car so that Brian can continue the Dalton Family bloodline without any worries."

My mother was so furious she could not even form words. Seeing an opening, Vanessa quickly stepped in, smiling as she said, "Please, it's better if you don't talk about divorce. We'll still be sisters in the future."

"You don't really have to serve me or anything. Even though I gave birth to a son for the Dalton Family, I will still treat you as my dear sister. You just need to help with the housework when you have free time."

Grinding her teeth, my mother hissed, "You betrayed me and now you want to drain me dry. Keep dreaming. I will definitely divorce him!"

Vanessa frowned, looking confused and said, "You really don't know how to appreciate a good life. Or are you bringing up divorce just because Elena secretly bought a big house?"

Vanessa's words might have been said 'without intention,' but they landed like a thunderclap in the ears of Gerald and Martha. Not only them even the surrounding relatives and friends who had come to watch the spectacle began to whisper and gossip about my house purchase.

Although I was the only child of my parents, it did not stop Gerald and Martha from disliking me simply because I was a daughter. After I started working, they constantly found excuses to ask me for money, which was why, when I bought a house, I only told my mother about it.

It seemed my mother had trusted Vanessa Grayson far too much.

I glanced at Vanessa. She wore a proud and self-satisfied expression.

I finally understood everything. The reason Gerald and Vanessa had kept their affair hidden for so many years, only to reveal everything today, was because of the house.

Facing everyone's questioning eyes, I ignored my mother's anxious gaze and calmly nodded.

"Yes, I did buy a house. It's about twice the size of the one we live in now. Although it's not very close to the city center, there's a subway station nearby, so it's very convenient. The neighborhood also has great landscaping."

"Since it’s a fully furnished house, I won’t need to buy any more stuff. I'm planning to move in within the next couple of days. It's a spacious place with three bedrooms and a living room. It's very nice."

Gerald suddenly slammed the table, pointing at me and shouting, "Good, very good! When I asked you to pay for my renovations last time, you told me your salary was low, that rent was expensive and you hadn’t saved anything! Turns out you secretly bought a house for yourself! How could I have fathered such an ungrateful daughter like you!"

Meanwhile, Martha’s eyes lit up with excitement. "I knew my granddaughter was extraordinary. She bought a house just like that! This is perfect. I was just saying there wouldn't be enough room at home for Brian and Vanessa. This solves everything."

"You can move back home. It's close to your workplace anyway. The house you bought will be just right for your father, me, Vanessa and Brian to live in. Three bedrooms and a living room. Absolutely perfect!"

My mother immediately shouted, "That can't be! That house belongs to Elena. It's in her name alone. Even if I die, I will never let you get away with this!"

However, no one paid her any attention.

Martha’s words had clearly given Gerald an idea. The anger on his face vanished, replaced by a broad smile.

"Good, very good. I was just wondering how to get Brian a house and it turns out you’ve already bought one."

"Let me make the decision. Tomorrow, you’ll transfer the house to Brian."

"As a woman, it’s useless for you to keep a house. Besides, you said it yourself that you don't intend to marry or have children. Since you don't plan to start a family, the house would go to Brian when you die anyway."

"It’s going to belong to him sooner or later, so why not just hand it over now? You'll even save the inheritance tax!"

Vanessa was overjoyed, yet she pretended to hesitate as she said coyly, "How could I accept that? Although Elena is the elder sister and it’s natural for an elder sister to help her younger brother, I’m afraid Elena might not be willing."

My mother was furious. Without thinking, she slapped Vanessa hard across the face.

"You shameless bitch! I treated you so well and this is how you repay me? I kept wondering why you came here, stirring up trouble and trying to force me out. So, it was all because of the house!"

Martha rolled her eyes at my mother and snapped, "Are you out of your mind? We gave Elena her life. What’s wrong with asking her for a house? If she dares say no, I’ll be the first one to deal with her!"

My mother immediately shielded me, her gaze firm and resolute. "Elena, don’t be afraid. I will never let them succeed. Even if I have to die fighting them, I won’t let them…"

Before she could finish, I frowned and shook her hand off. "Mom, what are you talking about? I am a member of the Dalton Family. Brian is a member of the Dalton Family too and he’s my younger brother. It’s only right for me to give him my house."

As soon as I said that, the entire room fell into a stunned silence.

My mother stood there, stunned for a long moment before finally speaking. "Elena, what are you talking about? Are you crazy? He’s not your brother at all. He’s just... a bastard!"

I rolled my eyes at her and my expression changed. "Am I crazy? I think you’re the one who’s gone mad!"

"I finally understand everything now. All this talk about cheating, mistress, illegitimate child... the words you used were far too harsh. Mrs. Grayson is the true benefactor of our Dalton Family."

"If it weren’t for her, the Dalton Family’s bloodline would have been cut off long ago. Why should you blame her? If you want to blame anyone, you should blame yourself for failing to give birth to a son."

"I did say that I didn’t plan to marry and have children, but do you know why? It’s because once I married, I would no longer carry the last name of the Dalton Family. I refused marriage because I wanted to stay a daughter of the Dalton Family forever."

"So today, I, Elena Dalton, declare right here. Not only will I transfer the house to my younger brother, but I will also continue to pay the mortgage every month. When he marries and has children, I will contribute both money and effort."

Although Vanessa, my father and my grandmother had been scheming for this all along when they actually heard me say it so directly, they still couldn’t believe it.

"Really? Are you lying?"

"How could you suddenly be so kind? You’ve always been an ungrateful girl!"

"Are you planning to trick us, pretending to go home for the property certificate and then running away?"

Faced with their suspicions, I did not get angry. Instead, I calmly sat down on the sofa and said, "I’m not going anywhere tonight. I’ve already brought the property certificate and all my documents with me. I’ve put them right here. Tomorrow morning, we’ll go together to complete the transfer. Whether I’m telling the truth or lying, you’ll see for yourselves."

Seeing that my expression didn’t look like I was joking and that I had already started contacting the loan company to arrange a bridge loan, Martha was so overjoyed that she took off a gold bracelet she had worn for more than thirty years and slipped it onto my wrist.

She said, "Elena, thank goodness you're not like your mother. She's a vicious woman, but you are sensible and know what truly matters for a woman."

I nodded and replied, "Of course. I'm not foolish. No matter how capable a woman is, what does it matter in the end? I refused to get married before because I didn’t have a younger brother to depend on. Now that I have one, I finally have someone to rely on. I'll go on a blind date soon. That way, after the engagement gifts are settled, I can also find a good sister-in-law for my younger brother."