“I wondered which school Freya attended and what she had learned. As for me, though not perfect, I’ve tried everything, zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting.”

“Oh, I almost forgot, Freya grew up in an orphanage. You must have worked really hard to get into college, right?”

Phoebe’s tone carried a clear mix of pride and mockery. “I don’t remember having any sisters. Don’t go around claiming that.”

I looked at the woman pretending to be the victim after taking all the benefits for herself. When the manager brought out my customized jewelry, I brushed past Phoebe. I hadn’t even used much strength, yet she fell to the floor with a loud cry.

Claudia stared at me, shocked. “I can’t believe your temper has only gotten worse over the past eight years. You haven’t even come home yet, and you already dare to push people. If you had returned eight years ago, would you have killed someone by now?!”

She was completely unreasonable. She kept standing in my way, talking nonstop.

“Claudia, I was adopted by another family eight years ago. I only came today to pick up my jewelry, not to look for you.”

“My parents have treated me with love, as if I were their own daughter. I have no wish to be yours.”

Claudia’s face turned completely cold. “What nonsense are you saying? Your mother is standing right here. Even if you’re joking, there should be a limit.”

Yet, a hint of panic flashed in her eyes. The daughter she hadn’t seen for eight years now felt like a stranger, as if something precious had slipped from her hands.

Seeing no one pay her attention, Phoebe slowly got up from the floor.

“Mom, maybe I shouldn’t stay at home anymore. The family isn’t mine; everything I have once belonged to Freya. It’s only right that I give it back.”

As she spoke, she began taking off her jewelry. “Here, these are yours. I just have one small request: can I still be your daughter?”

Her voice sounded heartbreakingly soft.

Claudia’s eyes were filled with visible sorrow. “Enough! Phoebe is already being so humble, what more do you want? She only wishes to stay with us as our daughter. Why can’t you accept that?”

“Even now, you still refuse to call me Mom. I’ve tried to understand you, but you still won’t show Phoebe any respect. You must have been taught poorly!”

Phoebe held on to the angry Claudia, looking heartbreakingly fragile. She offered the earrings, necklace, and ring she had just removed with both hands.

“Freya probably hasn’t seen jewelry this fine before. Any one of these costs more than you could earn in a lifetime. I’m not trying to show off how well Mom and Dad treat me, but since you’re coming home, don’t upset Mom.”

Her words hinted that I was making a scene for money. I looked down at her gifts. Jewelry like that? My brother could buy me a room full of it, there was nothing worth comparing.

I gestured for the manager to bring my order. When I opened the box, a green, hollow-carved sapphire-and-gold hairpin lay inside. I nodded in approval.

Not to mention the craftsmanship, even the imperial green sapphire had taken me several auctions to acquire, and the carving alone had used up a large portion of the stone.

Years of my savings had gone into it, but my mom deserved nothing less than perfection.

“Miss Freya, are you satisfied with the custom-made ‘Golden Sapphire Reunion’ hairpin we prepared for your mother?”

The manager smiled politely and handed me the receipt to sign.

Just as I was about to write my name, a hand suddenly grabbed the hairpin. “So, it was meant for me after all.”

Claudia’s expression softened at once, while Phoebe spoke up beside her.

“I didn’t expect this store to actually use glass for jewelry. It looks almost real.”

“Mom, even though Freya’s gift is cheap, it’s still her thought that matters.”

I was stunned. How did my fine imperial green sapphire hairpin suddenly become glass? Was it because it looked too perfect to seem real?

Phoebe reached out, trying to place the hairpin in her own hair. Something that had already been touched by someone else, how could I give that to Mom?

“Give it back to me!”

In the struggle, Phoebe turned her back to Claudia and gave me a faint smile before letting go. My years of quick reflexes kicked in, and before the hairpin hit the ground, I caught it.

“I’m really sorry, Freya. I accidentally lost my grip…”

Before she could finish, I slapped her hard across the face. She fell to the floor, a tooth flying out.

Now, she truly couldn’t smile anymore.

Claudia lifted her hand to defend Phoebe, but I pushed her down onto the sofa. “It’s just a hairpin. What’s wrong with your sister wearing it? It was meant for me anyway. What’s mine is also Phoebe’s!”

She completely lost her usual composure, shouting at me in anger.

I took the silk cloth the manager handed me and gently wiped the hairpin. “Is your name engraved on it? Yet you still claim it’s yours. How self-centered.”

Claudia stared at me, taken aback. “Didn’t he say it was custom-made for your mother? If not me, then who else could your mother be?”

I didn’t answer. Instead, I picked up a call. “Hello, Mom, I’m heading home now. You don’t need to come pick me up.”

After signing the receipt, I gathered my things and turned to leave.

“Freya!”

Claudia grabbed my hand tightly, refusing to let go.

“You actually called someone else Mom? Did you really find new parents? The dean never mentioned that! Judging by your clothes, they must not be rich, probably just workers earning four or five thousand a month, barely getting by?”

She gritted her teeth, her eyes full of resentment toward me.

“Cut ties with those ridiculous people right now! It’s shameful. Counting the ones in the mountains, you’ve already had three sets of parents. What decent girl has three sets of parents?”

“If you don’t handle this properly, don’t blame me for stepping in to fix it.”

Claudia’s face turned cold as she threatened me.

“Oh, I’m so scared,” I said with a hint of mockery. “Why don’t you come home with me and say that to their faces?”

Her cheeks flushed with anger. “Did you already transfer your household registration?”

Back when they left me at the orphanage, they had put my registration there so Phoebe wouldn’t grow suspicious.

“It was a legal adoption. Of course, my registration was transferred.”

Only then did Claudia finally believe that I had truly been adopted.

“You’re unfilial!”

“Your biological parents are still alive, and yet you let someone else adopt you? We only asked you to wait eight years. Why couldn’t you wait?”

Claudia never once thought she was at fault. She simply poured out her anger, unaware of the strange look on the manager’s face beside her. She pulled out her phone and made a call.

Before long, a man who looked like a butler appeared. “Follow her. Drive those two bitch out of the city. I don’t want to see them again!”

Phoebe covered her face, glaring at me with venom. “Mom, I heard girls her age in the countryside are already married. Could Freya already have a child?”

Claudia’s expression darkened, her critical gaze sweeping over me from head to toe.

“Take her to a gynecology hospital first. Country people are usually loose, don’t you dare bring back some dirty disease!”

“Forget it. When the time comes, we’ll just say you’re an illegitimate daughter. Otherwise, I won’t be able to show my face in social circles.”

My temper rose instantly. I had been forced to become an orphan, and now they wanted to label me an illegitimate daughter?

“Crazy woman!”

My vision blurred as anger surged through me so hard that my low blood sugar kicked in. After eating some sugar and regaining a bit of strength, I suddenly felt someone unbuttoning my pants.

“What are you doing?!”