I was busy with work. Just after a meeting, I received a call from Iris.

"Aunt Rebecca, come over for dinner tonight. I've prepared all your favorite dishes."

I knew they had ulterior motives, and I was a bit tired, so I didn't really want to go. I said I'd go some other day.

However, Iris insisted, "I'm already downstairs at your office. Please come today, okay? The food won't taste as good once it gets cold."

She had actually come to my company, clearly not giving up until I agreed. I thought about it. I'd have to cook when I got home, so I might as well eat my fill here first. I wasn't at a loss anyway.

I would have to cook when I got home, so I might as well eat my fill here first. I wasn't at a loss anyway.

She hadn't been a stranger to my dinner table. It was about time I was the guest.

I told her to wait for me. After work, I went to her place with her.

Sure enough, there was a table full of delicious food, all my favorites.

I didn't hold back and started eating as soon as I sat down.

During the meal, Clive's family set the stage for a while before quickly steering the conversation towards Iris's wedding.

I had already guessed what they wanted to talk about.

In my previous life, Iris, taking advantage of her pregnancy, demanded half a million dollars from her fiancé Derek to marry him.

But Derek was not easily swayed. He asked Iris to provide a car of equal value, or he would rather not have the child and not get married.

Clive, of course, couldn't come up with half a million dollars. He directly told Iris, "Let your aunt buy it for you."

Iris was frail and often ill as a child. I carried her from one hospital to another, treating her like my own daughter.

Upon hearing this, fearing she would be at a disadvantage with Derek and worried that it would be inappropriate to have a wedding when her pregnancy showed, I generously gave her eight hundred thousand dollars to buy a high-end car and personally arranged her wedding.

I made her wedding grand and magnificent. To keep up her appearance, I even paid out of pocket to invite my connections to her wedding.

But she complained about my stinginess in the dressing room with her bridesmaids, saying I didn't buy her a one-million-dollar car. She claimed I deliberately didn't arrange a better wedding venue, making her once-in-a-lifetime event shabby and simple.

Those words still ring in my ears. I haven't forgotten the feeling of my heart freezing over.

Now, judging by their intentions, they were planning to hold the wedding quickly. I suspected Iris was pregnant out of wedlock, just like in my previous life.

As I ate, I asked, "This is great news. What wedding gift are you and Beryl preparing for Iris?"

"We were thinking of giving her and Derek a car, but..." Clive hesitated.

As expected, the second half of his sentence was about to bring the topic back to me.

So, I quickly interjected, "That's not quite right. Derek is giving her half a million dollars. How can you only give them a car? That's too stingy. You'll make Iris look bad in front of his family. Our girl must not be wronged. You two should be generous. Iris must marry in style and splendor!"

Beryl, having prepared her words, said to me, "Rebecca, you're right, but..."

I cut her off again. "Iris is getting married. As her aunt, I should give her something..."

I paused, and Iris and her parents looked at me expectantly.

They knew I was wealthy and had always been generous; they could only expect more than they imagined from me.

Sighing under their eager gazes, I said, "But I just bought a piece of land recently... The real estate market is not doing well these days... Now I'm so broke I can't even afford a meal, and I have to come here to eat for free..."

They were stunned, looking at each other, understanding but unwilling to accept it.

Beryl first laughed it off, "Rebecca, you're really joking. How could you be that poor?"

Iris got anxious, following up. "Aunt Rebecca, you have such a big company. I can't believe you can't even afford a car."

Realizing her words were too blunt, Iris tried to recover. "Of course, I would be happy with whatever you give me. Aunt, you love me the most, right?"

Indeed, I used to be fond of her, but that didn't stop her from leaving me under the bridge.

She even complained about my filth and stench, saying she felt sick just looking at me.

But why was I dirty and smelly? Because without treatment, my illness progressed too quickly, with cancer cells spreading and causing many abscesses on my body.

Given how she treated me, I wouldn't give her even a feather, let alone a car.

"Of course. When you have a baby in the future, I'll prepare another big gift."

I didn't say who the big gift was for. If she assumes it's for her, that's her own business. It has nothing to do with me.

Iris was clearly not satisfied. "But the most pressing matter is to marry. It would be so embarrassing if I can't come up with half a million dollars."

I comforted her. "Silly girl, it won't happen. Your parents love you so much. They will definitely prepare more for you. Besides, didn't I give your dad quite a bit of money a few years ago? It's more than enough to buy a good car."

Beryl's face changed instantly. Obviously, she never saw that money, but Clive's expression indicated that I did give him the money.

The atmosphere at the table began to change. Having eaten my fill, I patted my round belly and got up to leave.

As for what would happen next, it had nothing to do with me.

Soon, I heard from my parents that Derek had backed out, only intending to give her one hundred thousand dollars. If she didn't accept, he wouldn't marry her.

This outcome was not surprising at all.

Clive had some bad habits, occasionally sleeping with women. The money I gave him before was probably long gone, so he couldn't come up with much cash for Iris and Derek.

Knowing Iris was pregnant and couldn't delay, Derek insisted that offering her one hundred thousand dollars was already very generous.

My parents also felt sorry for Iris, sighing, "We don't care about his money. But fifty thousand to one hundred thousand shows that he and his family don't take us seriously. Will you be happy if you marry into his family?"

Iris used to suffer from menstrual cramps, and I took her to a big hospital for a gynecological examination. She had severe polycystic ovary syndrome, making it difficult for her to get pregnant.

My parents didn't know about this, but Iris and her parents did.

If she didn't get married this time, she would have to have an abortion. Next time, she might not be able to get pregnant again.

Even if she didn't have an abortion, she would become a single mother. Her future husband might not accept her child.

So, she had to get married this time.

The wedding was hastily arranged. Time was tight, so everything was simplified.

She said the wedding I arranged for her last time was shabby. This time, I didn't participate at all, letting her see what real shabbiness was.

The wedding was held in an inconspicuous small hotel with poor lighting and sound systems that screeched at the slightest opportunity.

Only a dozen guests attended her wedding.

It was a world away from the grand wedding in my previous life.

There wasn't even a bridal dressing room here. The hotel arranged an empty private room for her to get ready.

I passed by on my way to the restroom and heard her complaining to the makeup artist inside. "It's all because of my stingy aunt. If she hadn't spent the money on buying land just when I was getting married, I wouldn't be in this situation.

"It's all her fault that my wedding is so miserable. It's so embarrassing. She must have money left, but she just doesn't want to give it to me. She's deliberately trying to embarrass me. Our whole family has been so kind to her, and our sincerity has been completely wasted on this ungrateful person!"

I pushed the door open and said, "Iris, who are you calling ungrateful?"

Iris turned to see me, her face flustered. "Aunt Rebecca, why are you here?"