I was separated from my family at a young age and was adopted by my adoptive parents, who treated me very well.

The day I turned eighteen and became an adult, my biological parents called me and begged me to meet them.

Even though I had not seen them for years, I decided to fly to the city where they lived for a meetup.

On the day I arrived, I shopped for gifts to give them as a gesture of goodwill, all while waiting for my biological brother to come and pick me up.

When I finally picked up the gifts, a young woman decided to take them for herself.

“I want the smoking pipe, the tie, and the necklace she’s holding!”

She signaled to the shop assistant with a quirk of her lips, and the latter snatched the gift boxes from me.

“Hey, I saw them first!”

I was furious, but she looked me up and down with a sneer.

“All these items are from the most expensive brands in the store. They cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Can a penniless loser like you afford them?

“I am the daughter of the Ferrero family. My older brother is the heir of the Roccia Gang, the city's most powerful gang. Over here, no one dares fight me over things I’ve set my eyes on.”

‘Ferrero? Isn’t that my biological family?’ I thought.

As it turned out, she was the girl my parents had adopted after they lost me.

I raised an eyebrow and called my older brother, who was coming to pick me up.

“Hey, your adopted sister snatched the gifts I bought for you all. What’re you going to do about it?”

I had a busy schedule. I would not have come to this city if my biological parents had not called me in tears, insisting the whole family was longing to reunite with me and begging me to meet them.

Unexpectedly, my biological brother, who was on his way here, quickly hung up on me before even responding.

The rude young woman, Isabella Ferrero, sneered when she saw what had just happened.

“What a fool! Did you really think you could just call someone and pretend he’s my brother?”

She regarded my outfit and cocked her brows in disdain.

“What makes you think you can fool me? My housekeeper’s outfit costs more than whatever you’re wearing!”

I looked down at the hoodie I was wearing.

I always dressed plainly and preferred loose-fitting clothes. My adoptive parents and their son doted on me. No one dared to judge and tell me what to wear.

It was the first time someone had commented on my fashion choice with such contempt.

Out of respect for my biological parents, I did not lash out at her immediately.

I suppressed my anger, took back the gifts, and turned to head to the cashier. But the shop assistant reached out and stopped me.

“Miss, we’re obliged to prioritize our VIP customers. Please let Miss Ferrero have the gifts.”

Isabella raised her brows and took out a shiny gold card.

“You heard that, loser? You can only be a VIP if you spend five hundred thousand dollars per year at this place.”

Her cocky attitude pissed me off.

I said, “Bring out the most expensive things in your inventory. I’ll take them all.”

Isabelle laughed.

“You’re still faking it, aren’t you, loser? How’re you going to pay for the priciest items in this store? With the coins in your purse?”

Her shrill laughter broke off when I took out the black card I had gotten from my adoptive parents.

I ignored the scowl on her face and handed the card to the shop assistant.

“Charge me five hundred thousand dollars for the VIP membership, then bag the items I picked just now.”

Infuriated, Isabella threatened the shop assistant. “If you dare to take her card, I’ll tell my brother and have his men trash your place tomorrow.”

The shop assistant, who was in a dilemma, looked at me.

“Miss, the Ferrero family controls the entire city. I’m only an employee at this store. I can’t afford to offend them. Why don’t you pick some other things?”

I chuckled.

The Ferrero family was only a small crime family in a small city, yet their adopted daughter had the guts to act so arrogantly.

As it seemed, this family truly failed at parenting.

Seeing that I refused to back down, the customers around us could not help but step forward to try to dissuade me.

“Let it go, young lady! Miss Ferrero is not the kind of person you can offend and walk away safely! Her family pampered her. Her brother, Davide Ferrero, is the heir of the Roccia Gang! No local ever dares to go against her!”

“The last person who upset her was even wealthier than you, but he ended up dead in a ditch somewhere. You’d better apologize to her now!”

When Isabella saw how powerful the others thought she was, she looked even more pleased.

“You heard that, loser? Don’t you think you can one-up me just because you have some money to splurge! Kneel before me and say ‘sorry, I’m a pretentious, pathetic shrew and a slum dweller.’ Maybe then I’ll consider telling my brother to spare your life.”

Just then, a luxury car stopped at the store entrance. It belonged to my biological brother, Davide, who had come to fetch me.

“Do you dare repeat what you said just now?”

I glanced at Davide and sneered at her.

“Are you deaf? I told you to get on your knees and say, ‘I’m a pretentious, pathetic shrew and a slum dweller!’ Say it! Then, I’ll convince my brother to spare you!”

Isabella was screaming in a shrill voice and did not notice that Davide was right behind her.

He had seen my photo. Naturally, he recognized me.

But Isabella was clearly oblivious. When she followed my gaze and spotted Davide, she looked surprised.

“Dav! How did you know I was here? Are you here to pick me up?”

She ran toward Davide, pointed at me, and complained to him. “This shrew dares to fight with me over some gifts! I wanted to get them for you and our parents. Teach her a lesson now!”

I raised an eyebrow. “What a coincidence! I also wanted to get them for my parents, since I’ll be meeting them for the first time.”

Isabella laughed.

“You pretentious shrew! You have a family, huh? What kind of people are they? Is your dad a drunkard or a drug addict? Is your mom a prostitute? Which district does she work in? Did they have to sell themselves to afford that black card?”

In my eighteen years of life, no one had ever dared to behave in such a way with me.

Oddly enough, I was not the angriest person in the room.

I sneered and looked at Davide, who seemed furious.

“Did you hear the way she insulted me and our parents, Davide?”

“What?!” Isabella gasped. “Dav? Is this Celina, your long-lost sister? Did I just—”

Shocked, she stumbled back and trembled uncontrollably.

The people around us cried out in shock as well.

“What? Is this young lady the Ferrero family’s long-lost daughter?!”

“I heard that when they lost her, everyone was out looking for her at the family’s order. They only adopted Isabella when they couldn’t find her!”

“It’s no wonder she looks so confident and brave. I wonder who Mr. Ferrero will side with, now that his adopted sister and his biological sister are fighting.”

Isabella glanced around, and her eyes lit up. She quickly grabbed Davide’s sleeve. With a disappointed face, she tearfully said, “I’m sorry, Dav. I was genuinely worried that when Celina came back, you and our parents would kick me out. That’s why I wanted to buy you the best gifts!”

“I know, my dear.”

Davide, who had been quiet the entire time, patted Isabella on the shoulder. Then, he looked at me and said coldly, “Isabella will always be my little sister and a Ferrero. No one can replace her.”

I stared coldly at my biological brother, whom I had met for the first time.

He chose to take her side and defend her even when he heard that Isabella had insulted our parents and me.

Someone like him did not deserve the gift I had bought with my own money.

I took back my black card from the shop assistant.

“I no longer want these things. You may sell them to whomever you like.”

Seeing Davide take her side, Isabella felt emboldened. She grabbed me by the wrist and raised the card in my hand.

“It’s no wonder you have a black card! It must have been a gift from my family! How impressive, Celina! The first thing you did after coming home was spend my parents’ money and act like you’re a billionaire! Not even I could bring myself to spend five hundred thousand dollars like this!”

Hearing that, Davide frowned in disapproval.

“I never wanted you to come back. Mom and Dad said you wanted to meet us very badly. I assumed you were having a hard time, so I relented and thought I’d let you return home out of remorse. Who would’ve thought that you’d be so ungrateful and wasteful with our money? I shouldn’t have let you come back!”

I let out a bark of laughter.

My biological parents were the ones who had sobbed and begged me to meet with them after finding out who my adoptive parents were.

But according to Davide, I was a dirt-poor woman begging to come home to them.

After all, humans were selfish and opportunistic. They would fawn over those who were powerful and stomped on those they deemed inferior.

“Fine, Davide! Go home to your parents and tell them that I won’t be returning. I neither want to be in your family nor do I plan to meet them!”

I yanked my wrist free from Isabella’s grip and walked out of the store.

Just as I texted Alessandro, my adoptive brother, Isabella dashed over and tried to stop me from leaving.

“Get back here, you damn beggar!”

She stared at me cockily. “Leave our black card behind, then you may leave.”

I sneered.

“You greedy idiot! This is an unlimited black card that can be used all around the world. Only four cards have been issued so far. What makes you think a small family like the Ferrero family can own one?”

“Are you still pretending you’re rich? It’s my parents’ money! It won’t go into the pockets of the beggars who adopted you. Give it back, or you won’t be leaving this store!”

‘Beggars who adopted me?’ I thought.

Out of respect for my biological parents, I had put up with her insults twice.

But my adoptive family was my bottom line. I would never let anyone insult them.

I smiled icily.

“Oh? How’re you going to stop me from leaving?”

“By teaching you a lesson, obviously!”

With that, Isabella raised her hand and tried to slap me.

I caught her wrist mid-air, my expression colder than ice, then kicked her in the stomach.

As she fell onto the ground, Isabella’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“You damn beggar, how dare you—”

Before she could finish, I swung a sharp backhand across her cheek and asked coldly, “Are you satisfied now?”

Having been beaten twice, Isabella was no longer cocky. She bawled.

When Davide stepped forward, she hid behind him with tears in her eyes.

“This trash hit me! You have to avenge me, Dav!”

Davide helped Isabella to her feet and held her in his arms protectively. Then, he glared at me.

“Is this how your adoptive parents taught you to behave, Celina? I was right about you! You were indeed raised by crude, low-life scums!”

He beckoned to his men with a wave of his hands, and they instantly surrounded me.

“As your older brother, I’ll have to teach you a lesson on behalf of those low-lives!”

With that, the men behind me tried to subdue me.

I managed to take one down, but the second was faster and stronger. I was no match for him.

A blow to my ribs sent me sprawling to the ground.

Two men subdued me and dragged me to Davide and Isabella.

Davide turned toward Isabella, who looked very pleased, and spoke to her in a gentle voice.

“Don’t cry, Belle! You can hit her the same way she hit you earlier. You can do whatever you like. I have your back!”

With Davide’s assurance, Isabella felt emboldened to hurt me. She slapped me twice and spat in my face.

“Where is that attitude of yours now, stupid trash? Come on, fight back!”

With that, she kicked me in my lower abdomen, grabbed my hair, and forced me to look up at her.

I endured the sharp pain and glared at them both with gritted teeth.

“How dare you treat me this way?! I’ll get back at you, and there’ll be no mercy!”

Isabella laughed.

“We run this city! How could a slum-dwelling beggar like you fight me?

“Today, I’ll show you what happens to those who offend me!”

She took out a nail file from her purse and cut me on the cheek.

A sharp, burning pain shot through my skin, and blood oozed out.

A bystander said regretfully, “I knew this would happen. After all, she’s only the long-lost daughter of the family. Of course, they prefer the adopted daughter who’s lived with them for so many years.”

Another person said, “I told her not to upset Miss Ferrero, but she didn’t listen and thought that her identity could protect her. Now, she suffers the consequences!”

“She is so pretty. It’s a shame that they’re trying to disfigure her.”

Isabella sneered and tried to cut my face again. Terror surged through me at the thought of being disfigured, and I pleaded for her to stop.

Isabella said, “I won’t stop until I’m satisfied!”

“Make her stop, Davide, or you’ll regret it!” I shouted.

Davide said in disdain, “I’ll explain the situation to Mom and Dad. You’d better apologize, Celina. If Belle forgives you, I’ll allow you to be part of the family.”

“Part of the Ferrero family? Ha! Do you think I want that?”

Utterly furious, Davide glared at me.

“What then? Do you think the scums who adopted you will come to your rescue?

“They must’ve been ecstatic after learning that you’re a Ferrero. They probably hope you’ll stay with us forever, so that they can live an easier life with our money and power.

“Stop being stubborn and apologize right now! I’ll help you out financially since we’re related by blood.”

The phrase “related by blood” seemed to irk Isabella.

She approached me with a vicious glint in her eyes, grabbed my hair, and whispered in my ear, “You slum-dwelling trash, first you win over my parents, then you make Dav show you mercy? Want to take my place? Keep dreaming!

“Dav! The black card is not on Celina! Why don’t we strip her clothes off and see where she’s hidden it?”

Isabella turned around to look at Davide, and he nodded.

“Sure, do whatever you like!”

“No!” I screamed.

Just then, my phone rang.

I struggled and tried to answer it, but Isabella snatched the phone from me and answered it instead.

Alessandro’s voice boomed through the speaker.

“How’s shopping going, Celina? Do you need me to come pick you up?”

I immediately cried for help. “Save me, Alex!”

Davide frowned and took my phone.

“Alex?”

Hearing my cry for help, Alessandro said anxiously, “Who are you? How dare you mess with my little sister?! Let her go, or I, Alessandro Gallante, and my family will come after you!”

Davide and Isabella exchanged looks of fear.

“Gallante? The same mafia family that controls all the crime families across the entire country?”

After a pause, they both suddenly burst out laughing.

“Hahahaha… Now I know who taught this stupid trash to lie!” Isabella said.

Davide kept mocking Alessandro.

“You should’ve namedropped a more convincing family. The Gallante family is powerful and mysterious, especially the Don of the family, Alessandro! He's my idol. Normally we can't meet him even if we want to!

“How dare a scum like you impersonate him! I dare you to come over right now. The Ferrero family will be waiting!”

They hung up on Alessandro, and Isabella slammed my phone on the ground. She raised her brows and mocked me.

“Your beggar family is just as pretentious as you! Stubborn trash, I’ll beat you until they come for you!”

She lifted her hand to slap my injured cheek.

There was a screech of tyres, and a familiar limousine came into view.

Alessandro opened the door and stormed toward us in fury. “Who the hell thinks they can hurt my little sister?!”