"But Uncle Charles, Amy just said that I was the reason my parents died. She might be right. I don't want to get you and your family in trouble too," I said, biting my lip and trying to look as pitiful as possible.

Fearing that I might actually get the guardianship rights revoked, Charles hastily glared at Amy and shouted angrily, "Amy, apologize to Julia right now! I'll teach you a lesson if you say those things again!"

Amy was Charles and Nancy's only daughter and the apple of their eye, so of course, Charles' harsh tone startled her. Her eyes instantly reddened as she began sobbing pitifully. She said stubbornly, "No way! She really does bring bad luck, and she'll be the death of our family!"

When I heard that, I pursed my lips and put on an even sadder expression. I lamented, "It's all my fault, Uncle Charles. I don't think you should take me in, after all. Just leave me alone to fend for myself."

In his panic, Charles raised his hand and slapped Amy across the face. He shouted, "Come on, Amy! Apologize!"

Amy's cheek quickly became red and swollen. She was stunned by the slap. Charles and Nancy had pampered her all her life, so the slap came as a surprise.

She lay on the floor as if she were throwing a tantrum. Then, she began wailing and making a fuss about it, crying, "Save me, Mom! Dad hit me because of Julia! Waaah! Save me, Mom…"

Back in the master bedroom, Nancy had already taken a shower and changed into her own clothes. She walked out of the bedroom.

When Nancy saw her precious daughter crying on the floor, her heart ached terribly for Amy. She shoved me and Charles aside as she hastily helped Amy up.

Turning around, Nancy stared coldly at me as she warned, "Do you really have to cause such a ruckus in this house, Julia?

"You said that you want to get the guardianship rights revoked, so does that mean you want to be sent to an orphanage? You can't even behave at home, so I can only imagine how much you'll suffer there!"

I lowered my head. I knew that this wasn't the right time to completely turn against them. So, I said calmly, "Uncle Charles, I know that Amy is still a clueless kid, so I shouldn't hold it against her. However, Amy has said that I was the reason my parents died. She should at least apologize for it, right?"

Charles hastily gave Nancy a look. Nancy understood what Charles meant. She had to choose between money and her poor daughter's pride. She eventually decided to choose the former.

Caressing the top of Amy's head, Nancy coaxed gently, "Amy, I've taught you to be patient, right? So, please be a good girl and apologize. I'll buy lots of dresses and dolls for you when the time comes, promise."

"When the time comes?" I thought. Nancy was probably talking about when she and Charles had completely wrestled my home and the bank cards out of my hands.

It was only the first day, but their greed was already in full view.

The angrier I felt inside, the calmer I appeared on the outside.

A long while later, I finally heard Amy's reluctant apology. "I'm sorry, Julia. It was my fault. Please forgive me."

She was apologizing, but I could see the rage and malice in her eyes. I knew that she wouldn't stop there.

However, I would show her that I wasn't someone to be trifled with, either.

That night, I curled up under a blanket and spent the night on the couch. The couch was too narrow, so I woke up several times from the cold to look for my blanket which had fallen onto the floor.

The next day, my whole body was sore and in pain.

Before daybreak, I went out with my bag on my shoulders. I got on a bus and had to make several transfers before I arrived at my Aunt Elizabeth's place.

Even from a distance away, I could see Elizabeth with the child carrier as she carried my baby cousin, who wasn't even a year old, on her back.

She was pushing her cart full of breakfast wraps as she walked out the door.

It was summer then, and the heat was unbearable. She hadn't taken more than a few steps when her forehead was already full of sweat.

I called out to her from behind, "Aunt Elizabeth!"

Elizabeth looked at me in surprise. She probably didn't want me to witness her predicament, for she tried to send me away after getting an egg-filled breakfast wrap from her cart and stuffing it in my hands.

"Can you please take me in, Aunt Elizabeth? I can help you sell the wraps in the mornings before I go to school." After painstakingly helping her push her cart to the designated spot, I spoke up helplessly.

When I said those words, I felt like something was lodged in my throat, and I couldn't get it out.

As always, the answer I received gave me nothing but despair.

Elizabeth firmly rejected me. She was already having a hard time bringing up a child, so if she had to raise two children alone, it would be too much for her.

After facing rejection from Elizabeth, I went to the orphanage in the suburbs.

At the orphanage, I saw several older kids being mean to another kid over a toy. They threw punches at the kid and kicked him.

I completely chickened out. In the end, I chose to go home. I also had to gain a foothold in that house.

When I got home, I saw Nancy sitting on the couch in the living room with her arms crossed. She seemed to have been waiting for me for a while. She said, "Finally had it in you to come back, huh? I thought you'd be brave enough to revoke your uncle's guardianship rights."

I pretended that I didn't understand the sarcasm in her tone. Smiling, I replied, "You and Uncle Charles have been so nice to me. Why would I do that?"

Realizing that I was being civil about it, Nancy dropped her malice and said, "Since you want us to take care of you, Julia, you'll have to at least give us some money for that, right? You do know the password for the bank card your parents left you, don't you?"

"Hadn't my mom given Uncle Charles a bank card before, Aunt Nancy?" I asked.

My parents had left behind two bank cards with large sums of money in those cards. A bank card with 300 thousand dollars in it was given to Charles for safekeeping, and the money was meant for my tuition and daily expenses. My mom had given the other card solely to me in case of emergencies.

"Hah, did you think it's that simple to raise a child? That bit of money was gone in the blink of an eye," Nancy said, rolling her eyes at me in exasperation.

I pursed my lips. I knew that I mustn't fight back, so I could only insist that I couldn't recall the password for the other card. I also told Nancy that I would tell her the password as soon as I remembered it.

I had adamantly refused to say a word, so Nancy couldn't do anything about it.

That night, while I was showering, Nancy told Amy to pour a basin of cold water onto the blanket I slept in.

When I came out of the bathroom, they shut their doors tightly. I wanted to ask them for a new blanket, but they ignored me no matter how much I shouted.

That night, I could only hug myself as I curled up on the couch. I was freezing throughout the night.

I also committed to memory everything they had done to me.

…

When the new semester began, Charles said that he couldn't afford my tuition fees in a private school, so he transferred me to Amy's school. I was put in the same class as Amy.

On the second day of school, Amy and her lackeys stood in my way at the school gates.

"Julia needs a lesson. I want you two to discipline her for me." Amy was saying the most wicked words with that most innocent expression on her face.

When her lackeys heard that, they slowly approached me.

When everything was over, Amy and her lackeys gleefully walked away.

I crouched in a corner. When they had gone out of sight, I slowly made my way back to the classroom.

I committed their appearances to memory, making sure to remember the faces of Amy's two lackeys.

In the days that followed, I carefully minded my behavior so that Amy wouldn't have a chance to pick on me.

At the same time, I secretly observed the habits of Amy's two lackeys.

One of the lackeys, Anna Clark, was a mobile game addict and didn't care for her studies. However, she lacked skill, so she seemed to be forever stuck in the Diamond rank in the game.

The other lackey, Betsy Turner, was trying to improve in her studies, but she failed all her subjects, and she couldn't even turn in her homework sometimes.

It was easy to deal with people once their weaknesses were located.

I thought, "Amy, it's about time I give you a taste of your own medicine."

During a break, Anna went to the bathroom, and I followed suit with my phone in hand.

She recognized the game sounds coming from my phone, so she quickly realized that I was playing the same game as her. Her interest was piqued, and she said mockingly, "Hey, loser! I can't believe someone like you could play this game too. You're probably in the Bronze rank, huh? Want me to carry you?"

I ignored her as I continued showing off my expertise. I was attacking the last enemy tower with my teammates.

She was shocked as she looked at the shiny "WIN" on my phone screen. It was only then that she realized that I was in the Champion rank. She asked in suspicion, "Is this account yours? Does it really belong to a loser like you?"

I stared at her earnestly, saying, "You can fake an account, but you can never fake your skills. Fancy a match?"

My dad had been a genius gamer when he was still alive. He would play mobile games when he was free, and he had defeated several top-ranking players in the nation. Other fathers would forbid their children from becoming addicted to games, but my dad was all for fun-based learning.

My dad had often played this particular game with me, too. It seemed like I was a chip off the old block, for I had apparently inherited my dad's gaming genius.

I achieved total victory in that match. Anna had no chance against me at all.

She was amazed at my speed and skills.

For a gaming addict like her, my achievements in the game were enough to make me a deity in her eyes.

When the match ended, Anna was in utter shock. She was pleasantly surprised as she said to me in admiration, "Please forgive my wrongdoings, Julia. Can you teach me your ways and help me become a Champion too?"

"Of course," I replied as I raised an eyebrow. Just like that, I had won Anna over.

It was Betsy's turn next.