es widened.
“What did you say?”
Dave repeated himself. I smiled.
“And what about that promise you just made?”
Daniel glared at me, still in disbelief.
“It’s impossible for you to have that much money. Impossible. You must have bribed Dave to cover for you.
You have at most $500,000, nothing more.”
Daniel had no idea that the account I used for verification was the one with the least amount of money.
“Ms. Mary provided a valid account with verifiable funds.
Whether you believe it or not is your problem,” Dave said politely. “Ms.
Mary, would you like to rest in our VIP lounge while we finalize the paperwork?”
I followed my parents to the VIP lounge.
Behind us, the crowd was swarming Daniel. “Idiot. The wife you tossed aside turned out to be a multi-millionaire.
You must be regretting this so much.”
“If you hadn’t divorced her, you wouldn’t have to spend the next twenty years paying a house mortgage.
You could have lived in her mansion.”
“Well, that’s what a jerk like him deserves.”
Daniel’s face turned tomato red. “You don’t understand.
Mary must be scamming everyone.”
“Oh, please, keep making excuses. He simply doesn’t want to eat dirt.
What kind of man makes a bet and then refuses to acknowledge it?”
Unable to bear the public humiliation, Daniel and Melanie fled in disgrace without even buying a house.
A month later, my family and I officially moved into our new home. Olivia now had a spacious, beautifully decorated bedroom designed to her taste. Since she loved reading, there was also an expansive study next to her room filled with books she adored.
She was thrilled with the new house.
“Mom, I love you so much.”
Seeing my thoughtful daughter smile so radiantly, I gave her a loving pat on the head. “Mom loves you, too.” Then I added, “By the way, didn’t you say you wanted to study art and design at university?
The United Kingdom has some of the best programs for that. You’re an excellent student, so your grades won’t be a problem.
I’ve already hired the best tutors for you, and I’m preparing to send you abroad to study.”
“That’s amazing, Mom.” Olivia hugged me and gave me a soft, sweet kiss.
I sighed inwardly. Daughters truly are the best. A little bit of kindness from me, and she responded with the purest, most genuine love.
Moving into our new house wasn’t just exciting for Olivia; it was exciting for me, too.
I had finally begun a new chapter in my life. I no longer had to sleep in the same bed as Daniel, endure his snoring, wake up at five in the morning to cook breakfast for Robert, or tolerate Susan’s constant criticisms.
Since the divorce, even my parents commented that I looked noticeably healthier and more radiant. One day, as my parents and I were returning home, we happened to see Daniel and his family moving into the house right behind ours.
Susan spotted us and immediately swelled with pride.
“Mary, look at this. Our new house. Isn’t it gorgeous?
So jealous, right?”
I glanced at the house.
It was fine. But compared to mine, it was much smaller.
I shrugged. “It’s okay, I guess.”
Susan sneered.
“Okay?
Anyone hearing you would think you live in a grand mansion. The truth is you’re still stuck in some old run-down place.”
Melanie chimed in with a saccharine tone. “Mary, I know you must feel awful.
You were married to Daniel for so long and never got to live in a villa, but I’ve only been with him for a few months, and here I am.
It’s fate. You can’t blame anyone else for that.”
My mom scoffed.
“We don’t need it, and we don’t care.”
Susan put her hands on her hips. “Then why are you standing there watching us move in?
Clearly, you’re here out of jealousy.”
My mom rolled her eyes.
“We were just passing by.”
Susan smiled smugly. “Passing by? You live in the South Central and this is the West District.
What kind of route is that?”
My dad chuckled.
“Well, truth be told, we actually live in the house across the street. It has a much better view and is much bigger.
Frankly, we wouldn’t even consider a house as small as yours.”
Daniel scoffed. “The more you lie, the more you believe it.
With your financial situation, you think you can afford a house in this neighborhood?
You can fool the real estate agents, but not us.”
Robert, standing next to him, added, “Grandpa, Grandma, you should stop. You’re just going to embarrass yourselves later.”
My father narrowed his eyes. “You don’t believe us?
Then come check if we’re the real owners of this.”
Susan crossed her arms.
“Fine, this will be fun. Let’s see who ends up embarrassed.”
With the mindset of witnessing a joke, Susan and the others followed us to our house.
When we reached the door, she snickered. “Well, don’t just stand there.
Open it.
Or are you going to use the classic excuse that you forgot your keys?”
Before she could finish her sentence, my father casually placed his finger on the fingerprint scanner. With a beep, the door unlocked. He smirked.
“What century are you living in?
Who uses keys anymore? Everything’s fingerprint now.”
Susan was stunned.
“You really bought a house? A villa?”
My mom smiled proudly.
“That’s right.”
“Where did you get the money?” Susan asked.
“That’s none of your business,” my mom replied smugly. “You just need to know that Mary is living much better without you.”
We were about to walk in when Daniel suddenly spoke suspiciously. “This villa isn’t yours.
You’re just the maids, right?”
Susan’s eyes suddenly lit up as if she had just realized something.
“Daniel, how clever of you. I was wondering how they could afford a villa, but now it all makes sense.” She narrowed her eyes and added maliciously, “Just wait.
I’ll tell the real owner about your bad deeds and make sure you all lose even this job.”
How despicable. Daniel was the one who broke our marriage, yet Susan continued to do everything she could to make things difficult for my family.
My parents, however, laughed cheerfully.
“We’ll be waiting.”
A few moments later, Olivia’s art history tutor arrived. Susan glanced at the well-dressed, elegant woman and immediately assumed she was the villa’s owner. She rushed over and grabbed her arm, ready to start badmouthing us.
“Madam, you must be the owner of this villa.
I’m telling you, the people you hired—Mary and her family—are not good employees. They’re very nosy, you know.
They cannot be trusted.”
The tutor looked at Susan, completely bewildered. “What are you talking about?
They are the owners of this villa.
I’m just here to teach Olivia art history.”
“What?” Susan’s jaw nearly dropped to the floor. Daniel, equally frustrated, snapped, “I thought so, too. I guess Mary was hiding her true wealth from me all this time.”
Susan groaned in regret.
“So you let a rich woman slip away?”
Melanie’s face visibly darkened at those words.
Daniel noticed and quickly tried to smooth things over. “Mom, stop talking.
Melanie is right here.” He turned to Melanie, all affection. “Sweetheart, don’t take what she said to heart.
What I feel for you has nothing to do with money.”
Melanie’s expression softened slightly, but she still didn’t say a word.
With their heads bowed, the three of them shuffled back to their house. Their former arrogance had completely vanished, and any joy about moving into their new home was utterly crushed. When we got home, my parents began to regret how smug they had been earlier.
“Mary, should we have kept a low profile?
But seeing that Susan and her family only respect the rich and trample on the poor, we wanted them to know you’re doing well.”
“I don’t mind,” I said. “It’s okay.
We live in the same neighborhood now. We’ll surely run into each other sooner or later.
They’ll find out.”
“Exactly,” Olivia chimed in.
“Grandpa, Grandma, your clapback was amazing. It felt so good hearing you put them in their place.”
Hearing this, my parents relaxed a little and their expressions softened. That very evening, Robert called.
His voice sounded hesitant.
“Mom, how have you been lately?”
Who says kids aren’t realistic? Sometimes they’re even more pragmatic than adults.
When I was about to divorce his father, he chose Daniel without a second thought, refusing to acknowledge a housewife mother like me. Now that he knew I had money, the first thing he did was call me.
I smiled smugly.
“Since leaving Daniel and his family, I feel great. If you hadn’t called, I’d feel even better.”
“Mom, I know you’re saying that because you’re upset. I’m still your dear son, right?”
Once upon a time he was, but the love I felt for him had been completely drained by his actions.
I looked at Olivia, who was quietly reading a book not far away.
The only person I cherished now was my daughter. Robert continued, “Mom, I’ve wanted to call you for a long time, but I was afraid Dad and Melanie wouldn’t be happy.
That’s the only reason I waited.”
Oh, how considerate of you. “Olivia told me she’s studying art history.
She’s preparing to study abroad, right?
Mom, you know my grades aren’t great, but I want to study abroad, too. Say the United Kingdom. It’s only about $150,000 a year.
You already bought a villa, so this is nothing to you, right?”
I couldn’t help but smile.
Where did Robert get the confidence to think that after treating me with such indifference, I would still do anything for him? Hearing my silence, he grew impatient.
“Mom, you love me so much. You’ll definitely help me, right?”
I reminded him, “Robert, did you forget you chose your father?
You and I have nothing to do with each other anymore.”
My parents added, “Robert, do us a favor and stay out of our lives.
Just hearing your voice puts us in a bad mood.”
Robert, now embarrassed and angry, finally revealed the real reason for his call. “You got lucky with money. Who cares?
Tell me honestly, where did you get the money to buy that house?
My grandma and dad said you must have hidden money during the divorce. If we can prove you used marital assets to buy that house, then half of that money legally belongs to my father.
Once he gets his share, studying abroad will be a piece of cake for me.”
“Oh,” I scoffed. “So now you’re openly declaring your intentions, and you still expect me to tell you anything useful?”
“It doesn’t matter.
My dad is smart.
He’ll figure out where you got the money.”
I hung up the phone calmly. Let them figure it out all they want. The lottery ticket was bought in my mother’s name.
The winnings were collected in her name.
Even the house was bought with her bank account. My mother’s money had nothing to do with me.
And it had even less to do with Daniel and his family. I never expected Daniel’s family to be so shameless.
That morning, I was still sleeping when I was awakened by a loud commotion downstairs.
When I went down, I saw Daniel’s family had broken into my house and were arguing with my parents. “What’s going on here?” I asked. My parents looked upset.
“We just went out to take out the trash, and they instantly forced their way in, demanding money.”
I arched an eyebrow.
“Daniel, how much do I owe you?”
Susan raged. “What the heck?
Your parents have money. How dare you demand so much from Daniel?”
I replied coldly, “My parents’ wealth has nothing to do with the compensation I was owed.
The sacrifices I made for that home were real.
I contributed to the down payment and helped pay the mortgage. If you’re not satisfied, you can take it to court.”
My mother nodded. “That’s right.
And I heard you recently hired a housekeeper for $3,000 a month.
If we were to put a price on all the work my daughter did in that house, it would be worth much more than that.”
Susan rolled her eyes. “That’s only because Melanie is useless with housework.
I thought she was a good catch—educated, successful, and much better than Mary. But it turns out she’s nothing but a money-sucking mess.
She can’t do anything right and is just wasting Daniel’s hard-earned money.”
Melanie’s face darkened.
“Mom, what are you saying?”
Susan practically pointed her finger at her nose. “Am I wrong? Since you married into the family, have you contributed a single penny?
You even caused Robert’s allergy attack and sent him to the hospital.
You did it on purpose, right?”
I crossed my arms and watched the show unfold. I never imagined that before they could finish attacking me, they would turn on each other.
I had a strong hunch that this little family wouldn’t last much longer. Even if they didn’t split, their life together was guaranteed to be a constant disaster.
Tears welled up in Melanie’s eyes.
“Daniel, aren’t you going to say anything?”
Daniel put his arm around her. “Sweetheart, my mom doesn’t know what she’s saying. Don’t worry.”
Susan, her voice louder than ever, shoved Daniel.
“And what do you mean by that, Daniel?
Did you forget how much it cost me to raise you all these years?”
Daniel’s chest heaved with frustration. He took a deep breath.
“Enough, Mom. Stop talking.
We didn’t come here to make a scene in front of Mary’s family.
Don’t forget why we’re here.”
“Ah, yes. I almost forgot.” Susan finally calmed down. And then they revealed their true purpose for coming.
It was all about money.
They spelled it out clearly: since I was clearly not struggling financially, I should give back the $500,000 in compensation. Plus, I should give them an additional $10 million in cash.
This money was for Robert’s future. They’d heard I was sending Olivia abroad to study, so Robert should have the same opportunity.
“Don’t worry, we’re not unreasonable.
If you want to see Robert, we won’t stop you.” They assumed I would cave for my son. But they forgot one thing. I had long lost all affection for Robert.
I wasn’t going to spend another cent on him.
And with their scheming nature, who knew how much of that $10 million would actually go into Robert’s hands? Smiling, I asked, “Are you all daydreaming?
I’m not giving you a dime.”
Susan gasped. “Mary, how can you be so heartless?
Robert is your son.
If you don’t take care of him, who will?”
I gently stroked Olivia’s head. “Have any of you ever worried about Olivia?”
Robert scoffed. “Grandma says Olivia is useless, that she’ll never amount to anything, so you should focus on me.”
I laughed mockingly.
“When your father cheated on me and asked for a divorce, your first reaction wasn’t to defend me, but to make sure you didn’t choose me so you wouldn’t be dragged down.
You insulted me for being a housewife and praised your stepmother, and you expect me to invest in you?”
Robert looked away. “Well, that’s because you didn’t have money at the time.
If you could have given me a good life, I would have definitely chosen you.”
I replied coldly, “Robert, you still don’t understand where you went wrong. I could accept you choosing to live with your father for a better life.
But what I can’t accept is your betrayal.
For all these years, I stepped away from my career. I became an ordinary housewife just so I could take better care of you. You might not know this, but I worked at the same company as your father, and I was promoted even faster than he was.
If it wasn’t for you, I would have been much more successful than your father.
Of course, I didn’t do all this expecting anything in return. But at the very least, you should have been grateful.
You weren’t. You belittled and dismissed everything I did.
You betrayed me without hesitation and enthusiastically called Daniel and Melanie ‘Mom’ and ‘Dad.’ They were the ones who hurt me, and yet you joined them to hurt me and your sister who has always been good to you.
Do you really think you still deserve to be my son? Do you think you deserve my kindness?”
For the first time, I saw a flicker of guilt on Robert’s face. Susan sneered.
“Enough with the speeches.
Do you think I don’t understand what you’re saying? You simply don’t want to give us money.”
Robert suddenly looked enlightened.
“Yes, for a second I almost got carried away by her words, but after all, I’m still her son. Shouldn’t she be good to me no matter what?”
I shook my head.
Robert was beyond saving.
Talking to him was a complete waste of breath. Daniel, being the most calculating, tried a different approach. “Mary, no matter what, Robert is still your son.
You’ve devoted so much time and energy to him.
You can’t just abandon him. He’s still young.
He doesn’t understand now. But one day he’ll grow up and realize everything you did was for him.”
My mother had heard enough.
She spat on the floor in disgust.
“Robert was given to you in the divorce. He’s your responsibility now. We won’t be dealing with him anymore.
We’ll only take care of our good granddaughter.
Besides, Robert is already sixteen years old. He’s not a child anymore.
You need to get out of our house and stay far, far away from us.”
But Susan and the rest refused to leave and kept shouting, “Robert is your son. One day you’ll regret losing him.”
She really thought too highly of herself.
I had my wonderful daughter and more money than I could ever spend.
I would live a much better life than any of them. If anything, Susan should worry about herself. In the end, I had to call the police to finally have them kicked out of my house.
But even after that, Daniel’s family refused to leave us alone.
They kept showing up, sometimes trying to guilt us, sometimes throwing insults when we didn’t respond. We were more than fed up with it.
Fortunately, summer vacation arrived, so I took my family to France for a long, luxurious vacation. I was lounging on a beach chair, enjoying the sun.
A handsome young man was massaging my back with essential oil when I suddenly received a call from Daniel.
His voice was filled with rage. “Mary, how cruel you are. We had a deal.
You weren’t supposed to reveal what happened between Melanie and me.
And now, thanks to you, both Melanie and I have lost our jobs. You broke the agreement.
The $50,000 I gave you as compensation—you have to give it back.”
I was completely confused. What the heck did I do?
I was on vacation, far away from them.
With stunning views, delicious food, and handsome men all around me, I couldn’t care less about their pathetic problems. Daniel didn’t reply. Instead, he sent me a video.
I clicked on it.
Someone had secretly recorded the entire confrontation we had at the real estate center where they mocked me for not being able to buy a house, only to be spectacularly silenced. In the video, my family’s faces were considerably blurred, but Daniel’s and Melanie’s were completely visible.
Whoever uploaded it even gave it a dramatic title: “Man leaves his wife, then discovers she’s a multi-millionaire. Now he regrets everything.” The comments were brutal.
Some jokingly asked if I needed a rich woman’s companion.
Others outright called Daniel a scumbag who deserved this downfall. And of course, some had already dug up Daniel’s and Melanie’s identities. As a result, they both lost their jobs.
I rolled my eyes.
“And what does that have to do with me? I wasn’t the one who recorded the video, nor was I the one who uploaded it.
I honestly couldn’t care less about the two of you. If you want to blame someone, blame yourselves.”
My voice turned cold.
“You were the ones acting like fools in public, so don’t be surprised that someone recorded it.”
Daniel fell silent.
Just when I was about to hang up, his tone suddenly changed, becoming sickeningly sweet. “Mary, I still have feelings for you. I was a little confused when I got involved with Melanie, but now that I’m with her, I finally realized that the person I truly love is you.
Let’s do it.
I’ll divorce Melanie tomorrow. Can we get back together?
Okay? You have my word.
From now on, I’ll only love you and will never do anything to upset you again.”
I almost choked.
Where did he get the confidence to think I would ever take him back? I would have to be crazy to go back to an unfaithful man who had ruined so many of my opportunities. The man massaging me—George—was a romantic Frenchman.
Noticing my frown, he asked in a concerned voice, “Am I pressing too hard?
Does it hurt?”
I smiled at him. “No, it’s perfect.
I feel wonderful.”
Daniel, on the other end of the line, heard our conversation and instantly lost his mind. “Mary, what the heck are you doing?” His tone was accusatory, as if I were the one who had cheated.
How ridiculous.
He had betrayed our marriage. We were divorced, and yet he still had the audacity to act as if I owed him loyalty. I chuckled.
“Obviously, I’m doing things that make me happy.
Now, stop bothering me. Let’s be real.
You’re a middle-aged, balding, sloppy, unhygienic, and snoring cheater. I wouldn’t get back together with you even if you were the last man on Earth.”
With that, I hung up before he could call again—which he did, numerous times.
I turned to George, who was still massaging me.
Looking at a handsome man really improves the mood. We spent two months abroad, but that didn’t mean we were completely disconnected from what was happening back home. My mother had made quite a few friends in our neighborhood and was in a group chat dedicated to discussing the latest gossip.
Daniel’s family had become internet-famous, and naturally the neighborhood was buzzing with discussions about them.
After losing their jobs, Susan began to blame Melanie, calling her a walking disaster. She ranted about how ever since Melanie married into the family, they hadn’t had a single day of peace.
First, she made Daniel lose his rich ex-wife. Then, she was responsible for Robert ending up in the emergency room.
And finally she brought Daniel down with her, costing him his job.
Furthermore, Melanie didn’t lift a finger at home and was utterly useless. As Susan continued, she began to reminisce about how much better things had been when I was around. Melanie, of course, wasn’t one to suffer in silence.
She fought back, and soon the two were constantly butting heads.
At first, Daniel tried to mediate, but after a while, he gave up and resorted to drinking himself into a stupor. As for Robert, his grades had never been great, and with all the chaos at home, they only dropped further.
Eventually, their drama faded from the neighborhood conversations. Daniel had no job and couldn’t afford the expensive mortgage, so he defaulted on payments and was forced to move out.
When my parents heard about it, their only comment was, “They deserve it.” Then they added, “Mary, we need to be careful.
Daniel’s family has no shame. Now that they know we’re rich, they’ll surely try to seize our money.”
I had to admit, my parents were incredibly insightful. It wasn’t long before Daniel’s family made their move.
What I didn’t expect was how pathetic and ridiculous their plan would be—so ridiculous I wasn’t sure if they were insulting my intelligence or their own.
That day I was sightseeing when my mother received a frantic call from Susan. “Oh my God.
Robert has been kidnapped. The kidnappers are demanding a $30 million ransom in three days.
If we don’t pay, they said they’ll kill him.” Her voice trembled with fake sobs.
“We don’t have that kind of money. Where are we going to get $30 million?”
Hearing it was a life-or-death situation, my mother panicked. “Don’t worry, we’ll figure something out.”
“Okay, but whatever you do, don’t call the police.
The kidnappers said if we involve the police, they’ll kill Robert,” Susan emphasized.
“Okay, we won’t call the police.”
After hanging up, my mom turned to me, flustered. “Mary, I know you’re still angry at Robert, but it’s a life at stake.
We can’t just stand by.”
My dad chimed in. “She’s right.
We’ll help him this one time, and then we won’t deal with him anymore.”
I ran my fingers over my phone, deep in thought.
Then I looked up and said, “Mom, Dad, don’t you think this supposed kidnapping is a little suspicious?”
“What do you mean?”
“Daniel and Melanie lost their jobs. They couldn’t even afford the mortgage and had to move into a rental apartment. They’re completely broke.
What kind of kidnappers would target Robert of all people?” I paused and let the thought sink in.
“Robert? The kidnappers are clearly targeting us.”
My mom’s eyes widened as she put the pieces together.
“Are you saying this kidnapping was staged by Daniel’s family?”
“It’s highly possible. And who else would be so desperate as to try and extort us?”
My father hesitated.
“But what if it’s real?
What if Robert really is kidnapped? We can’t risk anyone’s life.”
I remained calm. “We’ll pay the ransom, but when Robert returns, we’ll call the police and let them thoroughly investigate Daniel’s family.”
My dad nodded.
“Okay, we’ll do it your way.”
We transferred the ransom money to the account designated by the kidnappers.
About three hours later, Daniel called me and said Robert had returned safe and sound. He made sure to emphasize, “Mary, don’t call the police.
The kidnappers said if we involve the police, they’ll come for our entire family.”
At that moment, my family and I had just landed from our flight home. Hearing Daniel’s warning only solidified my suspicion that the whole thing was a setup.
From the beginning, Daniel’s family obsessively repeated one thing: Don’t call the police.
Their tone practically screamed that they were more worried about the kidnappers getting caught than about Robert’s safety. So the moment we landed, I went straight to the police station and reported the incident along with my suspicions. The police worked quickly.
In less than three days, they uncovered the truth.
Robert’s kidnapping had been entirely staged by Daniel’s family. It was all a ploy to scam me out of money.
They apparently wasted no time spending the ransom. Melanie and Susan used $5 million to repurchase their previous home in full.
Then they spent another million on jewelry.
Daniel, now plunged into despair over his life failures, had acquired a gambling addiction and lost $3 million at the tables. As for Robert, he had fallen in with the wrong crowd and splurged tens of thousands of dollars on parties. When the authorities stepped in, they could only recover a portion of the stolen money.
In the end, Robert, being a minor, was sentenced to three years in prison.
The rest received ten years in prison for fraud. Before the sentencing, I went to see them one last time.
They pleaded for mercy, crying that they had simply lost their way, and begged me to forgive them. I refused.
These people had no moral grounding.
If they were capable of faking Robert’s kidnapping just to extort me, what would stop them from kidnapping Olivia in the future to force my hand? For my family’s safety, the best place for them was behind bars. On the day of the sentencing, Robert was in the courtroom and looked at Olivia, who was standing next to me.
She was radiant, confident, happy, and full of life.
Seeing this, he finally broke down. Tears streamed down his face as he sobbed uncontrollably.
“Mom, I was wrong. Mom, I was truly wrong.”
I felt nothing.
I will never forget the cold, detached way he once looked at me.
Did Robert truly realize his mistakes? No, he was only regretful because he had made the wrong choice—because he hadn’t chosen me. If he had, he would be living the luxurious life he had always dreamed of.
But deep down, he was still the same selfish person he had always been.
A year later, Olivia achieved her dream of getting into one of the top design schools overseas. I personally drove her to the airport to see her off.
As we watched her leave, my parents sighed. “Olivia has grown up,” my dad said.
“She’s leaving on her own now.”
My mom looked at me and added, “Mary, you should consider getting married again.
It would be nice to have someone by your side so you don’t feel lonely.”
I laughed. “Why would I bring unnecessary trouble into my life? I feel happier than ever.
I have wealth, freedom, and a family that truly loves me.
And if I ever feel a little lonely, well, I have the always capable young pool boys to keep me entertained. Not to mention, I could always meet new friends and travel the world.
Honestly, life couldn’t get any better.”
