Miranda led the long, snake-like procession as they started their power walk.

The crowd was packed shoulder to shoulder. They took over the entire street while blaring their music.

The ambulance did not dare to force its way through. It had no choice but to pull over to the side with its siren wailing while it waited. The doctor already started emergency treatment on Bradley, but it barely helped his condition.

His vital signs dropped fast.

Fifteen minutes later, the power-walk mob finally cleared out and gave way.

The ambulance sped off at full throttle as it raced to the hospital. Bradley barely hung on by a thread.

My phone was crushed under their feet. I had no choice but to use a landline at the hospital to call Caleb.

The phone rang twice before he picked up.

The moment he heard my voice, his tone turned impatient.

“Shirley, my mom already told me about your father. Not to be harsh, but you know our situation. How can you waste money like this?”

I froze. “Caleb, how is treating an elder’s illness a waste of money?”

“How is it not? Your father’s just a country bumpkin, yet he insists on coming to the city for treatment. Do you have any idea how expensive medical care is? How much is this going to cost?”

My chest felt so tight that I almost felt like I had difficulty breathing.

My father, Peter Langley, had always been in poor health. After much persuasion, he finally agreed to leave our hometown and come to the city where I lived for treatment.

He had medical insurance, so he paid the medical expenses with his money.

He only needed to stay at my home for a few days.

Caleb was worried that Peter would take advantage of us. Hence, Caleb insisted on bringing his parents over as well. The five of us ended up squeezed under the same roof.

Miranda repeatedly told Peter that Caleb was the one who had bought the house, and that he could not be so thick-skinned as to come and stay in the house.

It was true that Caleb and his family had been the ones who paid the down payment for the house. But Caleb was still a PhD student. He needed to prepare his thesis at home, so he did not generate any income for the household. As a result, I was the one who paid the mortgage all along. Yet in Miranda’s version of events, everything somehow belonged to Caleb.

But it was not the time to argue about any of that.

We delayed the treatment window. Hence, Bradley needed an emergency surgery. The doctor held a thick stack of consent forms and payment notices.

“We need to operate as soon as possible. Are you going ahead or not? If we wait any longer, it’ll become truly life-threatening!”

On the other end of the phone, Caleb shouted, “Don’t do it! We don’t have the money!”

“Caleb, how can you…”

I was so angry that I could not even finish my sentence.

Caleb hung up. I called again, only to find that he had blocked my number. As a result, I could not get through anymore.

This was the man who once swore he would love me for a lifetime.

Thinking back on everything, I felt nothing but exhaustion and ridicule.

But Bradley was lying on the bed, so what could I do?

I could not just stand by and watch him die.

My phone was already broken, and my cards were not with me. I had no way to pay for the surgery. If I return home to get them, it would be time-consuming. Should I really give up on Bradley?

“Shirley…”

Just then, someone called my name.

I turned around, and my eyes immediately reddened. “Dad!”

Peter was still in his house clothes as he rushed toward me in panic. “Shirley, how’s Bradley?”

I shook my head. I did not know what to say to him. Tears spilled down my face.

“Take this.”

Peter pressed a credit card into my hand. “We’re family. This is urgent. Use it now.”

After settling the payment, they pushed Bradley into the operating theater.

The red light outside the operating theater lit up.

With no phone working, I had no way to contact anyone. I could only sit outside the operating theater with my father and wait.

After all night long, I persuaded him to go home and rest.

He shook his head. “Miranda and Caleb must be busy. That’s why they didn’t come. How can you handle everything here alone? Let me help you.”

I was about to say something when Peter’s phone vibrated.

The word “Caleb” showed up on the screen.

I quickly answered, “Hello.”

“Bah! So your dad’s phone’s with you!” he said. “Where are you?”

I froze.

Caleb pressed on impatiently. “Hurry up and speak. I’m already at the hospital entrance. I’m coming in to find you.”

I immediately told him I was at the emergency building on the eighth floor.

But before I could add on that I was outside the operating theater, he hung up again.

Peter was beside me. He reached out and wiped away the tears at the corners of my eyes. “Caleb’s a good man. He has a sharp tongue, but he’s soft-hearted in nature. Although his words are a bit harsh, he still comes for you at the end of the day, right?”

After a while, the elevator doors opened at the turn of the corridor.

Caleb strode over to me.

I went up to him. But before I could even speak, he paused mid-stride and looked past me with disgust. “So that’s how it is?”

“What?” I froze. Then, I turned around.

I saw Peter smile somewhat flatteringly as he walked over to us.

A wave of anger surged in my chest. “Caleb, what do you mean?”

He smirked. He brushed past me and left.

I chased after him and grabbed his sleeve. “Did you come to the hospital just to take one look and leave? Where’s the money?”

“What money? Don’t embarrass yourself out here!”

Caleb yanked his arm up and sent me stumbling.

He said, “Mom got back from her walk and didn’t see Dad. So she thought something had happened to him and told me to come check.”

I felt as if something had slammed hard into my chest. I steadied myself against the wall. “What now?”

Caleb pointed at Peter. “Since it’s your dad, that’s that.”

I was so furious I almost laughed. “Isn’t my dad your in-law, too?”

“So?” Caleb shot a contemptuous glance at my father’s plain clothes. His expression was filled with disdain. “He’s just my in-law. Meanwhile, my father has been a cadre his whole life. He’s an honorable and dignified man. Your father’s just some sort of farmer who scratches a living out of dirt. How can they be the same?”

I recalled our wedding three years ago when Caleb held my hands and said, “From now on, we’re one family. There’s no difference between us.”

It all felt absurd at that moment.

I did not even want to speak to him anymore.

My father caught up to us, only to watch helplessly as Caleb turned around and got back into the elevator. He did not even spare me another glance.

Five hours later, dawn broke.

The red light above the operating theater finally went out.

I rubbed my tired eyes and rushed over to the doctor. “Doctor, how is he?”

The doctor removed his surgical cap and wiped the sweat from his forehead. “We’ve managed to save his life for now. But his treatment was delayed, so he’s still in a critical condition.”

He looked at me, and his voice was heavy with concern. “The next few days require both care and financial support. As his family members, you have to make up your mind. If you decide to continue treatment, you’ll need to prepare the funds now.”

I understood what he meant.

After asking for an estimated figure, I took Peter’s phone and logged into my banking account.

I wanted to transfer money first to pay the hospital fees.

The moment the page loaded, my eyes flew wide open as I stared at the balance in disbelief.

I had zero balance in my account.

The only person who could have accessed this card was Caleb.

My hands trembled as I used Peter’s phone to call him. But he hung up immediately.

I called again, and he blocked my father’s phone number.

Caleb had withdrawn over a hundred thousand dollars from my account! I had painstakingly saved that money.

I could no longer hold back as I turned on WhatsApp and sent him a voice message.

“Caleb, do you even realize that the one lying in the operating theater is your father, not mine?!”

The next moment, I froze upon looking at the notice in the chat window.

Caleb had blocked Peter and me.

Not just that, he had also kicked both of us out of the ‘Happy Family’ group chat.

When the nurse wheeled Bradley out of the operating theater, she came over and said, “Ms. Shirley, your father’s condition is critical. For continued treatment, he should be transferred to the ICU.”

The nurse paused for a moment before adding, “If you’re not continuing treatment, we can move him to a regular ward instead.”

I looked at my father-in-law lying on his sickbed with a thick, long tube inserted into his mouth. Every breath he took required tremendous effort. He looked painfully frail.

“Treat him.”

I heard my voice come out hoarse. “Take him to a regular ward first. I’ll go home to get the money. When I come back, transfer him to the ICU immediately.”

I left my father to stay with Bradley at the hospital. By the time I arrived home, dawn had broken.

Miranda sat on the couch with her arms crossed. She gave me a sideways glance.

I did not bother to entertain her.

“Caleb, where’s the money from my bank account? Transfer it back to me. I need it for emergency use!”

Miranda sneered and said, “Caleb, luckily, you listened to me. Look, Shirley’s been eyeing the money all along.

“You’re a wasteful woman! You’re trying to funnel all our family’s fortune and blessings to your bumpkin father!”

I could not take it anymore. I took off my shoes and hurled them at her. “Watch your mouth! He’s my dad!”

Caleb instantly flew into a fit of rage. He jumped to his feet and shoved me hard.

I was caught off guard. I slammed against the sharp corner of the coffee table. Pain shot through me, and I dropped to my knees. My vision went dark in waves.

“You’ve got some nerve! How dare you lay a hand on my mom?!”

Miranda shrieked, “Caleb, you need to discipline your wife! If not, she’ll steal our family’s fortune.”

Caleb grabbed a fistful of my hair and dragged me into the washroom.

Without a word, he tied me up beside the toilet.

“You’re disrespecting my mom and stealing our family’s money. Shirley, I’m going to show you who’s the actual head of this family!”

Caleb stared at me. “If I don’t teach you a lesson, you’re not fit to be the Priestly family’s daughter-in-law!”

The stench from the toilet made me retch.

After staying up all night without a drop of water, all I could bring up was bile.

“Caleb, you must have lost your mind! I’ve been the one supporting this family all these years…”

“Quiet!”

Miranda let out a shrill cry and shouted, “Let me tell you something. Caleb already passed his PhD and made it to the interview stage for a civil service job! Don’t act like the peanuts you earned over the years can give you any right to hold it over us! How much money was that, really?!”

In that instant, I finally understood.

It was no wonder Caleb had been harsh to me over the past few days. It turned out that because he had earned his PhD, he finally thought he could stand tall.

Caleb grabbed my chin. “Shirley, stay here and reflect on yourself! My mom and I are going on vacation for a few days. By the time we get back, you’d better have figured things out.

“There’s no way our family’s money is going to your dad’s medical treatment. Don’t ever think about it!”

I stared at him. “What if it were your dad?”

Caleb froze.

Apparently, the possibility had never crossed his mind. Panic flickered in his eyes.

But Miranda snorted and said, “Stop trying to fool me. I know Bradley’s health better than anyone else. He power-walks with me every day. He’s in great shape! There’s nothing wrong with him.”

“Really?” I smirked. “Then, where is he now?”