"You're an unmarried girl, whose bastard is in your belly?" My parents questioned me like they'd lost their minds. They demanded to know who the father was. I looked at them and suddenly smiled. "The kidnappers." My parents and brother froze instantly, their faces pale as sheets. I continued softly, "Don't you remember? The kidnappers demanded a ransom, but you only agreed to save your other precious daughter, saying you wanted to teach me a lesson." My mother collapsed onto the sofa. "That's impossible. We just wanted you to learn not to bully Amber anymore. I didn't... we didn't think..." I squatted in front of my mother. "You never thought the kidnappers would assault me, did you?" Without waiting for her answer, I continued, "Take a guess. Do several grown male kidnappers have any humanity?" My mother opened her mouth to speak, but I cut her off. "When I came home covered in bruises, why did no one ask me what happened?" "You didn't come to save me. You only took Amber." "You didn't come the first day, nor the second. A whole month..." "Did you think the kidnappers still believed they'd get the ransom?" Well, now it's fine. I'm dying. 1 The next day, I prepared to go to the hospital for surgery. Coincidentally, I ran into Mr. and Mrs. Shaw and their son, Ethan. Amber's stomach issues had flared up again, and the whole family was rushing to accompany her. I went to the doctor's office to confirm the surgery time. Walking out to handle the hospitalization paperwork, Ethan saw me. He grabbed my arm, Amber glaring daggers from behind him. "What are you doing at the hospital? Amber's stomach acts up because you refuse to eat or drink, and you're still causing trouble?" Ethan demanded sharply. I waved him off. "I'm not bored enough to visit you guys." To me, the Shaw family were now strangers. 2 Since I decided not to be a Shaw anymore, I would completely cut off all emotional ties with them, just like... my parents did to me. Perhaps in my bones, I truly shared the same cold blood as the Shaws. I shook off Ethan and walked away. I used to always watch the backs of my parents and Ethan. Finally, I didn't have to anymore. The biopsy results came back. Stage 4 Glioblastoma. Surgery was pointless, but the baby couldn't stay. How could I keep the baby? Coming off the operating table alone, I almost lost half my life. I slept for two days, but it felt like a shallow nap. If death is like this, it doesn't seem too hard to accept. The doctor said the abortion was successful, but the cancer cells had spread. I knew my time was even shorter. A month later, I was discharged. The doctor urged me to continue chemotherapy. That's when I got a call from Amber. She said if I was leaving the Shaw family, I should make a clean break. She asked to meet at a coffee shop to return my things. Twenty minutes later, I arrived. Amber was already impatient. I didn't expect Ethan to be there too. He looked me up and down. I had lost weight too fast this month. I looked like I had zero body fat, and the cancer pain left dark circles under my eyes. "Lily, look at yourself. How can you compare to Amber? You've embarrassed the Shaw family," Ethan said. I didn't speak. I picked up my luggage to leave. Ethan called out to me, looking displeased. Probably because I ignored him. For four years, I spent every moment trying to please him. When had he ever received such cold treatment from me? Seeing he had nothing to say, I prepared to push open the glass door and leave. Ethan tried to grab me but accidentally pulled my hair... my long, brownish-curly hair fell off. Ethan and Amber were shocked. "Why did you shave your head?" 3 "Are you crazy? Don't you care about your image at all?" Ethan asked, noticing the shocked looks from other customers. Amber sneered, "Lily, what's your trick this time? People cut flesh to repay parents; are you shaving your head to show determination?" Her words were like knives. I smiled. "Don't you know what 'starting from scratch' means?" I held out my hand to Ethan. "Give me back my wig." Ethan clutched the wig silently, just staring at me. Amber snatched it and threw it into my arms. I calmly put the wig back on. A skeletal woman with a shaved head on the street does affect the city's image a bit. "Amber, you don't need to be so scared. I won't return to the Shaw family," I said with a smile. "Not in this life, and definitely not in the next." "I'm not scared! Mom, Dad, and Brother only love me!" Amber snapped, exasperated. Before going to the hospital for chemo, I went to pick out my grave. Right next to my adoptive parents. In my next life, I want to be their biological daughter. This life hurt too much. Next time, I just want the life I had before 17. To my surprise, the cemetery sales manager was Oliver Gu, the neighbor boy who lived next to my adoptive parents. He didn't ask much, nor did he try to comfort me artificially. He was probably used to life and death. The brief shock was likely just because it was his first time serving the plot owner directly. Oliver seriously introduced the details and even picked out a high-quality, reasonably priced urn for me. He accompanied me to my parents' grave. "Dad, Mom..." I missed you so much. I quickened my pace up the 108 steps. Standing before the familiar tombstone, the sight before me made me black out for a second! 4 The tombstone was defaced with large characters written in stinking dog blood. I rushed toward it... [LILY IS A SLUT. PARENTS WHO RAISED A SLUT ARE ANIMALS!] I dropped to my knees, frantically wiping with my sleeves. As I wiped, I apologized, "Dad, Mom, I'm sorry... Your daughter is unfilial, disturbing your peace even in heaven..." "I'm useless. How did this happen..." "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" My hands rubbed until the skin broke. My light-colored clothes were stained red and dirty. Oliver ran back to the office, fetched a bucket and rag, and helped me clean. The rain fell harder, soaking me through. Oliver dragged and carried me down the mountain. I was the real daughter the Shaw family found. But when I returned at 17, the house already had a fake daughter, Amber, the same age as me. Amber. What a nice name. Embbodying all the Shaw family's love. Before I got lost, my name was Pearl. The pearl in my parents' palm. In the four years since my return, no one seemed to remember to change my name back to Shaw. I kept the name my adoptive parents gave me, Lily Liu. My adoptive parents treated me well. Unable to conceive, they thought finding me was a gift from heaven. They said they would always cherish me, their baby. But when my DNA was uploaded to a database during a school blood drive, my biological parents, who had lost me 13 years ago, found me. My adoptive parents let me return. They believed I could get better educational resources with the Shaws. At least I wouldn't need to work part-time to study. But now, I'm dying. Brain tumor, late stage. My adoptive parents were also insulted like this. I felt like my internal organs were being crushed by a giant hand. 5 They don't love me, and I don't want to love them anymore. I just want to live for myself at the end of my life. Tomorrow is the painless surgery. But why did I have to see my deeply loving adoptive parents insulted like this? My adoptive mother passed away when I was 12. My adoptive father died in an accident last year. Can't the dead leave in peace? My childhood memories of Mr. and Mrs. Shaw are blurry. I only remember my brother, Ethan, five years older, taking me to the amusement park. He told me to wait while he bought ice cream. I waited from morning till night. My brother never came back. In the end, a cleaner at the park, my adoptive mother, found me and took me home. On the first day back at the Shaw mansion, Amber cried to me, "I don't want anything. I know I stole Sister's identity all these years. But now I just want to be with Dad, Mom, and Brother. Please, Sister, don't kick me out." And what did Ethan, the brother who lost me, do? He pushed me away. "Amber, no one will kick you out, and no one dares to. You are my sister, my only sister." Ethan hugged Amber tight, glaring at me. As if I were a villain trying to break up their family. My biological mother also had red eyes. Looking at Amber, she choked out to me, "Lily, when you got lost, Mom went crazy. So Dad brought Amber home. It was Amber who accompanied Mom through the days and nights without you." The moment I turned to look at Amber, she smiled at me provocatively. "Mom, let's not talk about this. Let Sister stay in my room tonight. The guest room isn't ready yet." Amber emphasized the words "guest room." "How can we do that? Amber, you're picky about beds. You won't sleep well if you change rooms," Mom said hurriedly, then abruptly stopped, remembering I was there. For the next four years, I lived in the guest room next to the nanny's room on the first floor. I never moved. Don't think about it. Can't think about it anymore.
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