When they saw how cocky I was, the crowd became indignant once again.

"She must be put on trial! Since she's so eager to court death, let her die!"

"Yes, yes! She needs to be taught a lesson!"

Judge Lambert remained silent, as if he also agreed with their sentiments. Then, he turned to look at my parents and said, "Mr. and Mrs. Thompson, although you have sufficient evidence, I still need to make something clear.

"If none of the three charges are proven, and the trial fails, you will suffer the consequences. Not only will you lose everything you have, but you will also be immediately sentenced to life in prison. Do you both agree to this?"

My parents exchanged uneasy glances, and Edwin also looked a little hesitant.

I knew they had no real footing. Instead, they were just trying to use the court of public opinion to strong-arm me.

Just then, Mom stepped forward. With a hypocritical look of concern, she tried to persuade me, "Patricia, stop while you still can. We don't want to see you end up in prison. As long as you're willing to fulfill your duty and give us a little money to survive, we won't hold it against you."

What was laughable was that the onlookers were all singing her praises as a loving mother.

I sneered. Clearly, she was just afraid.

"Dad, Mom, Edwin, you're not scared, are you?"

Provoked by my taunt, Edwin immediately stepped forward and declared with all the self-righteousness he could muster, "Your Honor, we agree! Let's get this trial moving. We've got nothing to fear."

Judge Lambert gave a slight nod, and the trial officially began.

A memory extractor was placed on my head, and next to me was a state-of-the-art lie detector. This was to prevent me from tampering with the memories or cheating.

Soon, the first memory was extracted and displayed on the large screen for the entire nation to watch.

In the video, Mom and Dad arrived from the countryside, looking travel-worn. They were dressed in ragged clothes and were illiterate, yet they still managed to find my company.

"Patricia, we have suffered so much looking for you!"

The moment she saw me, Mom eagerly rushed forward and excitedly pulled out some mangoes from a large burlap sack. Then, she presented them to me like a precious offering.

"These are freshly picked home-grown mangoes. Your father and I made sure to keep them safe the whole trip, because we know how much you love them. Go on, try some."

But I knocked the mangoes to the ground with an indifferent expression.

"I'm very busy. Don't bother me if there's nothing important."

When they saw the mangoes splatter on the ground, Mom and Dad fell to their knees in humility.

"Patricia, please don't be like this. We only came to you because we have no other way to survive. We have no money for food, and the pantry is empty."

"Just think of it as fulfilling your obligation as a daughter and give us some money to live on, okay?"

Both of them pleaded with such tearful sincerity that there wasn't a dry eye among those present.

However, I coldly kicked them to the ground.

"Get lost! It's none of my business even if you starve to death. You want money? Dream on! Security, drag these two out! Don't let them near the company ever again!"

The video cut out suddenly, with the final frame showing my parents wailing in despair and my cold, callous expression.

The onlookers erupted into another uproar.

"She's nothing but an ingrate! Her parents were so good to her. They came all the way from the countryside to see her, and this is how she treats them?"

"Exactly! Who does she think she is? I hope they win the trial and she gets sentenced to prison."

"I pity her parents. If I were her parent, I would've been better off never having kids than ending up with an ingrate like her!"

Mom and Dad took their words as a sure sign of victory and couldn't help but let their smugness show.

But soon, the trial light lit up, and it was red. Though Judge Lambert could hardly believe it, he still struck the gavel.

"The court finds the defendant not guilty on the first charge of ingratitude."

Everyone was stunned, unable to figure out what exactly went wrong.

I remained calm and composed, and the lie detector next to me showed no reaction at all. This was sufficient proof of the outcome's authenticity.

When she saw the light turn red, Mom was visibly flustered.

I overheard her whispering to Edwin, "Are we going to be okay?"

Edwin patted her hand to reassure her, then looked at me with a defiant glare.

"We still have more evidence. Besides, there's no way she won't be found guilty on at least one of the three charges."

Soon, Judge Lambert announced that the second memory would be extracted.

In the footage, I was just 12 years old. Mom and Dad were holding my hands as they took me to the mall for new clothes and all my favorite foods.

Overjoyed, I hopped and skipped, then looked up and asked innocently, "Dad, Mom, what about Edwin?"

A flicker of awkwardness crossed Mom's eyes. "He's a boy, so he needs to be raised strictly. We're only taking you, and we'll buy you whatever you want."

When Edwin heard that from behind, he started wailing and threw himself on the ground in a full-blown tantrum. Yet, Mom and Dad didn't waver in the slightest.

The clothes at the mall were very expensive. A single outfit would cost my parents half a year's wages.

But seeing how much I liked it, they gritted their teeth and bought it anyway.

"As long as you like it, I don't think it's expensive," Mom said.

Even when it came to food, my parents just watched me eat with longing looks.

"I'm not hungry. As long as you're full, that's all that matters."

Deeply touched by the scene, the audience was moved to tears.

"What selfless parents. They deny themselves food and clothing just to give everything to their daughter."

"Pfft! A heartless wretch like Patricia doesn't deserve parents like this!"

However, I scoffed at all this chatter. These people were all fooled by appearances. None of them had any idea of the truth behind it.

Judge Lambert struck the gavel, signaling for everyone to be silent.

Soon, the memory continued playing. This time, the scene shifted to when I was grown up.

Edwin looked at me with a sheepish, uneasy expression.

"Patricia, I'm about to get married. Can you help out with the expenses? When we were kids, Mom and Dad played favorites and only took you to the mall. Yet, I never complained about it. Now that you've made it big, can you take pity on me—"

I let out a cold snort and slapped him across the face.

"Shut up, you crazy mutt. Do I know you? Who are you to ask me to contribute to the expenses?"

With that, I laughed as if I'd just heard the most ridiculous joke.

I looked him up and down and continued, "Not to be harsh, but are you even worthy? Get out of my sight and never show your face in front of me again. I have nothing to do with the Thompson family anymore."

But Edwin refused to let it go. He stood his ground stubbornly and said, "Patricia, if it weren't for Mom and Dad favoring you back then, maybe I would've had a good future too. Don't you bear some responsibility for how things turned out for me?"

Meanwhile, Mom and Dad also emerged from the corner. They latched onto my legs and began playing the victim.

"Patricia, please take pity on Edwin. I heard you make millions of dollars a month. Edwin only needs 200 thousand dollars for the wedding. That's practically chump change to you.

"If it weren't for us favoring you back then, maybe Edwin would've been the successful one now."

With that, they brought up the old story about taking me to the mall when I was little.

It would've been one thing if they'd let it go, but the mention of that only pissed me off more.

Blowing up right there and then, I kicked them all out and shouted harshly, "Get lost, all of you! No matter what you say, it's useless! I cut ties with you a long time ago. Edwin has nothing to do with me. Even if he dies out there, I won't feel a shred of sympathy or pity for him!"

The audience watching the scene erupted, defending Edwin and accusing me of being ungrateful.

"Patricia is way out of line! Her parents favored her since she was a child, while Edwin got nothing!"

"Now he's just asking for some money, and she wants to cut off all ties!"

"Exactly! She makes a bit of money, and suddenly she's too good for her family. Just sentence her to death already. I can't stand watching this."

Their words didn't stir a single emotion in me.

Sure enough, when the trial light lit up, the entire room erupted again.

Of all things, it was another red light.

Judge Lambert furrowed his brows. Though his expression was grim, he still announced, "The court finds the defendant not guilty on the second charge of refusing to acknowledge one's family."

Protests immediately broke out from the audience. They questioned the fairness of the trial.

But Judge Lambert dismissed them, stating that the memory extractor was based on reality and was absolutely fair and impartial.

Meanwhile, Mom and Dad were beginning to panic. They had only one chance left. Otherwise, it would be them who would face punishment.

Edwin, however, blustered with self-righteous indignation. "There's no way you'll have a good excuse for the last charge—standing by and doing nothing while our father was dying."

This time, the scene shifted to a hospital.

Dad lay on the hospital bed, his face etched with weariness. His head was wrapped in bandages, and he looked to be in critical condition.

Edwin called me anxiously, "Patricia, please come quickly. Dad's been in a car accident. The doctor says if he doesn't have surgery soon, he's not going to make it."

At that moment, I was partying at a bar and replied nonchalantly, "So? What does that have to do with me? Since he's about to die, just find him a burial plot. Don't worry, I'll cover that expense."

With that, I hung up without hesitation and blocked Edwin's number.

Dad lay in the hospital room with utter hopelessness in his eyes, while Edwin and Mom held each other and wept.

The memory was brief, but it was more than enough to send everyone's anger soaring.

The audience, who had previously been seething in their seats, now stood up one after another.

"You should just drop dead, Patricia! You're nothing but a monster."

"You're worse than a beast!"

"I can't take this anymore. If that trial light doesn't turn green, I'm going to lose my mind."

Unfortunately, under the gaze of the entire nation, the trial light lit up red once more.

Even Judge Lambert couldn't help but stare in disbelief as he said, "The court finds the defendant not guilty on the third charge of refusing to save the plaintiff's life."

Everyone was furious at this. The crowd rose to their feet in protest, insisting that either the memories had been tampered with or the lie detector was faulty.

I raised my hand calmly and unhurriedly.

"Your Honor, does that mean it's my turn to give my counter-argument now?"