The moment I stepped into the Reed residence, a bodyguard kicked me down to my knees. Mr. Reed Senior glanced at me indifferently, as if he were looking at a pile of garbage.

"Kneel outside for a day and night first."

In the dead of winter, I kneeled outside wearing nothing but thin clothes.

A camera was placed in front of me, and Mr. Reed Senior grabbed my chin as he warned, "You had the guts to hurt my granddaughter, so I'll let your parents see just how I'll torture their precious daughter!"

I looked at the small camera and smiled bitterly. Unfortunately, he was wrong. I was not their precious daughter. They would not feel anything for me.

That night passed very slowly. My vision gradually blurred, and I eventually lost consciousness.

A bucket of bone-chilling water splashed me awake, and a foot stomped hard on my back.

"You were so arrogant when hitting Millie! How are you so weak now?"

I coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood that sprayed onto the pristine snow, blooming like a spider lily.

Mr. Reed Senior snorted coldly and had a bodyguard hand him a knife. He gently slid it along my cheek.

"My granddaughter has three scars on her face. You'll pay for that."

I trembled in terror and closed my eyes in despair as sharp pain shot through my cheek. I screamed and struggled desperately, clutching my blood-covered face.

Meanwhile, Mom, Dad, and Jonathan were in the dining room, celebrating Adriana's narrow escape.

Three days later, I appeared before Jonathan with a scarred face. He froze for a moment. Clearly, he did not recognize me. Two seconds later, he looked at me with heartache, tears glimmering in his eyes.

"Elena... you've been through so much... Don't worry, I'll definitely compensate you! I'll take care of you for the rest of my life!"

He held me tightly in his arms, but when he caught sight of my disfigured face, he averted his gaze.

Five years ago, he fell in love with me at first sight because of my face, saying I was the most beautiful woman in the world. He pursued me frantically, sending me all kinds of expensive gifts. When I told him about the unfair treatment I faced at home, he even wiped the tears from my eyes.

He promised to give me a new home and let me find happiness and joy. He truly loved me then, but when did things start to change?

Probably at the wedding, when he first saw Adriana's face that was identical to mine yet more fragile. Compared to me, she was more in need of protection.

He fell in love with me at first sight because of my face, so naturally, he would feel the same about Adriana, who looked just like me. He might even prefer her due to the feeling of novelty.

Thinking about that, I pushed Jonathan away in disgust and walked upstairs. However, soon after, I heard him on the balcony talking to my parents on the phone.

"It's good that only her face was injured and no other parts. Otherwise, it'd be difficult for her to proceed with the drug trials."

Every word he spoke was like a sharp sword piercing through my heart.

At that moment, I suddenly felt that my impending death might be a good thing. I would no longer have to face all this misery.

With red-rimmed eyes, I opened the door, only to see Adriana lying on my bed. When she saw the scars on my face, she froze for a moment, then slapped the bed and laughed so hard that she could not catch her breath.

The force of her movements showed no trace of her status as a patient. I had known for a long time that she was faking her illness. I had seen her throwing pills into the gutter at school.

I had told Mom and Dad about it once, but it only earned me several slaps and countless insults.

"Elena, we don't look identical anymore. Now, your husband will completely give up on you." She caressed the scars on my face like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.

I gripped her wrist and said softly, "It's good if he gives up. He'll belong completely to you."

There were three days left before the drug trials began, and my life was about to come to an end. When the time came, the medication would react in my body. I would break out in rashes, vomit profusely, and be riddled with pain.

Finally, I would have difficulty breathing and get a cardiac arrest due to the complications the drug triggered, leaving behind a cold, foul-smelling corpse.

At that time, what would Mom's, Dad's, and Jonathan's reactions be? Shock? Fear? Would they feel sad for me and shed a tear?

I guessed they would not. They would only feel happy about the departure of someone unwanted.

Three days passed in a flash. Mom, Dad, and Jonathan personally escorted me to the pharmaceutical research center. At the center's entrance, Mom and Dad joyfully embraced Adriana as if the drug trials had already succeeded.

"Hard work really pays off! Adriana, your suffering is finally about to end."

"Let's go have a big feast later to celebrate in advance. We'll have all your favorite dishes."

Jonathan looked at this scene tenderly and stepped forward to hold her hand. "Once you're better, how about I take you on a trip around the world?"

Even though I was the one heading to the execution ground, their attention remained on Adriana. I thought I had grown used to it, but in the final moments of my life, my heart still felt like it was being cut by knives.

I could not help but turn back and ask them, "Will you be sad if I die in the center?"

Mom and Dad turned their heads, only now recalling my presence. Their faces showed some embarrassment.

However, after processing my words, Mom retorted, "What nonsense are you talking about? It's just simple drug trials testing. Don't say such things!"

Dad also looked at me coldly. "Are you trying to back out again? I'm telling you, the form has been signed. You'd better go in obediently. Once the medication is developed, we'll come pick you up."

Jonathan also gently grabbed my hand. "It'll be quick—just one month. When you come out, I'll buy you whatever you want."

I looked at Mom and Dad, then at Jonathan. Finally, I sighed as I pulled my hand away. I turned and resolutely walked into the research center, no longer holding any attachment to them.

The so-called drug trials were anything but normal. The experiments were agonizing. It felt like my body was being pricked by a thousand needles every day.

I clawed frantically at my skin, which quickly became covered in bloody marks and scars. During this time, my family and Jonathan never came to see me even once.

They might be eating luxurious meals or watching sunsets by the riverside. I did not know.

I only knew that my heartbeat was getting weaker and weaker. On the eighteenth day, it became a flat line.

When Dr. Stone came into my room, he thought I was just sleeping and poked my arm impatiently. "Get up. Time for the next phase of research."

Yet, all that answered him was prolonged silence. He could not help but frown. When he saw the heart monitor beside him, his face turned pale with shock. After a long moment, he shakily picked up his phone and called my parents.

"M-Mrs. Lane, something's happened... Ms. Lane... She's dead!"

The other end of the phone fell silent for a moment, then Mom laughed mockingly. She sounded completely unconcerned. "Dr. Stone, today isn't April Fool's Day. Stop joking around."

Dr. Stone looked at the corpse on the operating table with a bluish face and rigid body, feeling both panicked and annoyed. "I'm not joking around! She has stopped breathing completely!"

On the other end of the line, Jonathan snatched Mom's phone and spoke in a calm voice. "Doctor, Elena might just be putting on an act to avoid the drug trials. Don't let her fool you."

"Are you people insane? She's really dead!"

Before Dr. Stone could finish, Jonathan interrupted impatiently, "We're busy here. When Elena wakes up, please tell her to stop playing games. We'll come see her in 12 more days."

After saying that, he hastily ended the call. Dr. Stone stared at the phone in disbelief. Unwilling to give up, he tried calling several more times but could never get through again. He cursed under his breath, then threw my corpse into a makeshift morgue.

No one knew that this so-called medical research center was nothing more than something Adriana had created to maintain her weak persona. It was all for her to retain Mom and Dad's love and to obtain Jonathan as her plaything.

My soul floated to the side, and I watched my own body get thrown like garbage. Before long, ants and rats followed the scent and crawled onto my body, gnawing at my flesh and sucking my blood. Though I was dead, I still seemed to feel the pain.

Unloved in life, ignored in death. My existence seemed to have no meaning whatsoever.

My soul was tethered to my physical body, unable to move away for reasons unknown.

Days passed, and the narrow morgue gradually filled with a terrible stench.

Finally, familiar voices came from outside the door.

"Doctor, were the drug trials successful?"