Jessica knew that her parents would never offer to help raise Billy and Maisie. She had no intention of giving up on me, her so-called compliant husband.

She softened her tone and said, "Fine. I guess having one more child won't make much of a difference. We'll take care of Olivia."

Although Billy and Maisie were only three, they were already surprisingly skilled at reading the room and picking up on subtle cues.

Time and time again, they rejected Olivia's efforts to be friendly. After enough of these incidents, Jessica even began to verbally lash out at the five-year-old.

"There aren't enough rooms in the house. How about we remodel the bathroom and have Olivia live there?" she suggested.

"What exactly do you mean by 'not enough'?" I replied, looking up. "We've got two spare bedrooms and a study. We can just turn the study into an extra bedroom."

"But what if Maisie wants to learn piano or dance in the future? She'll need a room to practice in."

Jessica wore that all-too-familiar look of entitlement. I sneered inwardly, but my expression stayed calm and stoic.

I said, "Either you take your two kids and move out, or we convert the study."

Maybe I had changed too much lately; Jessica didn't have the nerve to argue.

Still, it was clear that she wasn't on board. When the renovations started, she even suggested giving the largest guest room to Billy.

"I've already compromised so much," she said. "You're not going to refuse me this time, are you?"

Seeing her act so coy sent a wave of unease rushing through me.

"The largest room should go to Olivia," I said. "Given that she's the oldest, it's only right that she gets more space."

My words sparked Jessica's anger again. In front of the workers, she thrust a finger at my face. With tears filling her eyes, she began unloading her frustrations.

"Be honest with me. Is Olivia your biological daughter from a relationship you never told me about? Your behavior has changed dramatically since she arrived."

Although the workers carried on with their tasks, they remained alert, eager not to miss a single snippet of gossip.

"If that's the angle you want to take, then fine. Honestly, Billy and Maisie look a lot like you. If your fertility hadn't been an issue, I wouldn't have had to adopt Olivia at all."

My seemingly casual voice carried a sting of sarcasm. To Jessica, it hit like a physical blow.

She let out a couple of strained laughs before going quiet.

…

From that point on, life for the five of us truly began.

In my past life, I had been very fond of Billy and Maisie. Determined to give them the best, I worked tirelessly and saved every penny. When they turned four, I enrolled them in extracurricular classes.

At first, Billy and Maisie weren't very enthusiastic; they often ran to Jessica to complain.

Behind the scenes, however, Jessica frequently drew comparisons between them and other children, pointing out those who excelled in music or art. She insisted that Billy and Maisie couldn't afford to fall behind, or they would lose their edge at school.

Yet whenever the kids begged for her help, she would put on a helpless, heartbroken expression and say, "This is your dad's decision. He's the breadwinner, after all. What I say doesn't count."

During every piano lesson, Billy and Maisie would look at me with resentment. Back then, I thought they were simply too young to understand and would come around as they grew older.

Nonetheless, it was clear now that Jessica was playing the part of the "good parent". She reaped the benefits of their lessons while painting me as the villain who forced them to practice.

In contrast, Olivia was mature and thoughtful beyond her years. She helped around the house in every way she could. When I came home from a long day at work, she would always ask me if I was tired.

Whenever this happened, Jessica would roll her eyes and mock Olivia for "sucking up" to me.

Given that Olivia had just turned five, I asked if she wanted to take an extracurricular class.

She said she'd go along with whatever I decided. But when Jessica overheard our conversation, she came running over, insisting that I couldn't favor one child over the others—Billy and Maisie had to be signed up too.

Although paying for classes for all three children was a significant financial strain, I simply nodded and agreed.

Jessica was thrilled, showing no concern that Billy and Maisie still hadn't formed much of a connection with her. At just three years old, they could barely even hold their spoons properly.

On the very first day of piano lessons, Billy and Maisie were already screaming that they wanted to go home. Nothing could convince them to stay.

Sitting still was already a struggle for children, let alone practicing tedious piano techniques.

Olivia, however, was a model student. By the end of the day, the teacher couldn't stop praising her.

Billy and Maisie burst into tears, adamantly refusing to carry on. But when Jessica saw how much praise Olivia received, her eyes immediately widened in shock.

She scolded Billy and Maisie harshly, insisting that they had no choice but to attend the class.

Seeing this, I handed Billy and Maisie each an ice cream. "They're still so young. Don't push them too hard. Maybe when they're older, they'll actually enjoy playing the piano," I said gently.

The moment Billy and Maisie heard me, they abandoned Jessica. Nodding repeatedly, they clung to my legs. "Daddy's the best! Mommy's so mean!"

Jessica could hardly believe her eyes. In a fit of anger, she grabbed Billy and Maisie and began spanking them.

All night, their cries reverberated across the entire apartment. I waited until she had almost done before finally stepping in.

"That's enough! They're just children. You can't hit them like this."

…

That night, both Billy and Maisie refused to sleep with Jessica. They wanted me to stay with them instead.

Of course, I wasn't going to sleep in the same bed as the two individuals who had caused my death in my past life. I regretfully told them that Jessica didn't want me to sleep with them.

For the first time, I saw the malice they felt toward Jessica reflected in their eyes. Still, their resistance was pointless—they had to obediently attend piano class alongside Olivia.

Every day when I returned home, I would see Jessica sternly forcing Billy and Maisie to memorize scores and practice finger exercises.

Meanwhile, Olivia would quietly sit beside them, her fingers dancing over invisible piano keys in the air.

Whenever I had a day off and took the kids to piano class, I always made sure Olivia was safely in the teacher's care. But when I saw Billy's and Maisie's pleading eyes, I couldn't resist letting them skip class and taking them out for some fun.

Each time, I warned them not to tell Jessica; if they did, I wouldn't be able to take them out anymore.

In those moments, Billy and Maisie were perfectly united. Waving their fists, they would declare, "It's our little secret."

Perhaps because I always treated them to these special outings, Billy and Maisie naturally thought I favored them over Olivia.

From a child's perspective, anyone who took them out to have fun was a hero.

I even asked Olivia if she ever felt that I was being unfair. She simply shook her head and looked at me with grateful eyes. "I know you mean well, Daddy. I'm already very touched that you adopted me."

As my bond with Billy and Maisie grew stronger, Jessica began to lose her composure.

As they grew older, I continued enrolling them in more extracurricular classes.

Each time, I insisted that it was entirely at Jessica's request. But after years of piano lessons, she began to notice that Billy and Maisie hadn't made any real progress.

Slowly, she began to wonder whether they simply weren't suited for piano and started exploring other activities for them.

Nevertheless, things had been different in my past life.

Under my constant guidance, the twins—especially Maisie—had quickly shown talent in piano. By the time she was eight, she had even appeared on television, becoming a well-known child piano prodigy.

But in this life, I often spent time taking them out to play. Whenever they struggled with piano practice, I would step in and cover for them. Gradually, they became more unruly.

The more extracurricular classes I enrolled them in, the more resentment Billy and Maisie developed toward Jessica.

Thanks to my indulgence, the twins quickly gained weight.

Jessica watched day by day as Olivia blossomed into a graceful and charming girl. At the same time, her two children steadily grew rounder. Billy, in particular, was starting to resemble a little puffball.

While preparing their meals, Jessica made sure that Olivia ate plenty, piling her plate high with fried chicken and mashed potatoes.

As for Billy and Maisie, she mostly gave them leafy greens and carrots. Naturally, the spoiled twins couldn't tolerate such unequal treatment.

Seeing them throw tantrums at the dining table, Olivia would secretly pass them food from her plate.

After meals, I would also slip them extra snacks, explaining that Jessica wasn't being deliberately unfair. I told them that she was just trying to cut costs, considering how expensive food had become.

The two young troublemakers were furious upon hearing this. They couldn't understand why they should be the ones to sacrifice their meals just to save money.