After my father died, my mother remarried, taking me and my sister Mia Lawrence with her. But my stepfather Richard Stanford would only allow my mother to bring one of us children. I learned from those mourning my father that my grandfather Henry Lawrence was an antique collector and very wealthy. Mia clung to grandfather, refusing to let go. But my grandfather only made her study hard, keeping her food, clothing, and expenses extremely frugal. Meanwhile, Richard’s business flourished, and he moved me into a grand mansion. I was even engaged to a wealthy young master. She went mad with jealousy, doused me with gasoline, and we both returned to that moment of choice. This time she gripped Richard’s hand tightly. “I want to stay with Mom and Dad.” I quickly ran behind my grandfather. “Mia, if this life is just a bargaining chip at the dinner table, then I’ll give it to you!” ***** Mom looked at me and Mia with difficulty. “Evelyn, Mia, which one of you wants to come with me? The other will stay and live with Grandfather.” Mom looked at me, then worriedly at Mia. Mia had always been closer to her since childhood, so naturally she wanted Mia to come with her. Under Mom’s expectant gaze, Mia proactively grabbed Richard’s hand. “I want to go with you!” And I ran behind Grandfather, grasping his calloused hands. Facing me, Mia’s lips curved upward in a mocking expression. I knew she must have been reborn just like me. In my previous life, after my father died, we also faced this same choice. But Mia had heard at my father’s funeral that Grandfather was an antique collector, so she chose Grandfather without hesitation. Before leaving, she said to me smugly: “I’ll soon be living the good life with Grandfather, while you’ll be stuck helping Richard babysit like a nanny.” But when she got to Grandfather’s house, it was nothing like the classical estate she’d imagined. Just one house, a yard full of dirt, and a beat-up old pickup truck. The antique jewelry collection she’d imagined—she searched everywhere but couldn’t find any. She went to ask Grandfather, only to receive his angry rebuke: “Who told you I collect antiques? You’re still young—studying is the most important thing for you.” While others played in the fields during summer vacation, she could only read those obscure, difficult books in her room. She wanted to dress up nicely to go out, but she wore the same old clothes year after year. Grandfather just tended his garden and played cards with neighbors. The money he gave her was barely enough for daily meals. Meanwhile, Richard’s business grew more and more successful. We moved from subsidized housing to a large apartment, then from the apartment to a villa district. Soon the Stanford family name became well-known. I wore elegant gowns with perfect makeup, appearing with Richard at various high-society gatherings. Everyone who met me praised my gracious manner and good breeding. I attended an elite private school and traveled everywhere in luxury cars. When Mia was brought over during winter break, she wore faded old clothes. My stepbrother Hector Stanford buried his head in my mother’s arms: “Who is she? She smells!” At the dinner table, Richard and I discussed which balls to attend next week, what etiquette classes to take next, and he told Mom to take me shopping for more beautiful clothes. Mia tried to join the conversation but found she couldn’t break into our discussion. She cried pitifully: “I should be a daughter of the Stanford family too! Why does she have everything while I have nothing?!” Richard frowned at my mother: “Why did you bring her here? When we’re discussing serious matters, where do you get off interrupting?” Mia thought my mother would defend her, but instead Mom said: “If I wasn’t afraid of people gossiping, saying I forgot about my other daughter after becoming successful, why would I bring her back? Sigh, children raised in the countryside really do turn out this petty.” That day Mia broke many things, and Richard decided to throw her out. In the end, it was Grandfather who drove through the heavy rain in that old pickup truck to take her back.
After Mia returned, Grandpa never allowed her to sneak over to see us again. Richard also told my mother to stop caring about Mia, that useless waste of a daughter. So Mia could only stay at Grandpa’s house, supervised by him daily as she studied. When the SAT scores came out, she did well and rekindled hope of returning to Stanford Villa. Overjoyed, she came to Stanford Villa with her acceptance letter in hand. But when she arrived at Stanford Villa, no one paid attention to her. Because today was my farewell party. Richard had already pulled strings to send me abroad to study. The hair clip in my hair, the bracelet on my wrist, the necklace around my neck—everything was sparkling. All of this stung Mia’s eyes. She struggled through the crowd, trying to show my mother and Richard her acceptance letter. But Hector pushed her to the ground. “Where did this beggar come from? Where’s security?” After Mia was pulled up, Mother finally recognized her. Her acceptance letter fell to the ground and was trampled to pieces. My mother only had someone release her, then never spoke to her again. Mother took my arm and chatted with various CEO wives. I was gracious and charming, delighting them all. “Your eldest daughter really is something—so poised and elegant. Whoever marries Evelyn will be truly blessed.” “I heard you have a younger daughter too. How is she?” Mother waved dismissively. “Better not to mention her. She’s as annoying as her grandfather.” Mia stood awkwardly to the side, watching me move through every corner of the hall. I held a wine glass, chatting enthusiastically with wealthy young men by the buffet table. Richard clapped his hands, and the entire room fell silent. He took my hand and led me to the stage. “My daughter is eighteen now, and it’s time I let her go out and make her own way in the world.” With that, Richard smiled as he handed me a bank card. “Study abroad, and make sure you take good care of yourself!” A picture of deep father-daughter affection. Then James Fulton walked onto the stage. He gently knelt on one knee and kissed the back of my hand. “I’ll wait for you to come back.” When James stood up, Richard placed my hand in his and announced the true purpose of this farewell party. “When Evelyn returns from abroad, she and James will be engaged.” Everyone applauded their congratulations, while some wealthy young men sighed with regret. “But James really is impressive—so young and already closing so many big deals. He’s practically surpassing his father.” Mia’s eyes revealed hatred as she stared at me like a venomous snake. She felt all of this should have been hers—she should be the one enjoying a life of luxury, she should be the one getting engaged to an outstanding man! That night, I received a text from Mia asking me to chat with her. “Evelyn, I’m in so much pain. I miss you.” I casually threw on a jacket and went to our agreed meeting place. Mia turned to look at me with a crazed expression, holding a bucket in her hands. “If it weren’t for you, all of this would be mine!” She splashed the liquid from the bucket on me, hugged me tightly, then threw the lighter. “Evelyn, if I can’t live well, neither can you. Let’s die together!” Both of us perished in the flames, and once again I returned to that moment of choice. This time, she chose Mother and Richard first. Before leaving, she came over to hug me and whispered mockingly in my ear, “Go ahead and rot in the ground with that old relic! You damn pauper!” Riding in Grandpa’s old pickup truck, I arrived in the countryside. It certainly wasn’t as nice as the city, but it wasn’t as terrible as Mia had described either. Grandpa had already prepared a room for me in advance. My room had a wooden bed, a wooden desk, and a wooden bookshelf. The room was filled with the scent of wood, which made me feel very comfortable. I opened my suitcase—there wasn’t much inside, so I finished organizing quickly. Grandpa had already returned from working the fields, carrying a piece of meat in his hand. Though he said nothing, I knew he had bought it especially for me. Grandpa wasn’t good with words, but he kept urging me to eat more. “After you eat, go wash the dishes. There’s no dishwasher on this farm!” Before he finished speaking, I had already started washing the dishes. Grandpa grunted. “The road ahead is long, and today doesn’t count as hardship. Since you’re with me now, there’ll be plenty more suffering to come!”
I knew he was the type who acted tough but had a soft heart. The next day, after I sneezed from catching a cold, I found an extra blanket on my bed that evening. The bookshelf Grandpa had prepared for me was packed with books, mostly history texts that looked particularly old—some didn’t even have covers anymore. Grandpa strictly demanded that I read through all of them. But history books were really boring and hard for me to understand. In the evenings, Grandpa would pull me to sit in the courtyard under the starry sky, telling me heroic stories. Gradually, I became interested. Occasionally, Grandpa would also teach me how to identify different soil layers. When I got it wrong, he’d scold me for being stupid, but he would secretly record my mistakes in his little notebook. Though life was modest, Grandpa treated me extremely well, even if he never expressed his love for me directly. He worried that a girl like me would struggle without her mother’s companionship, so he often asked available women in the village to look after me. Winter break passed quickly, and school was about to start. Late at night, I could still see him scrubbing the mud stains off that old pickup truck. Grandpa dropped me off at the school entrance, and before I even walked through the gates, I spotted Mia and Mom. Mia stepped out of a luxury car, carrying a designer bag, pulling Mom along like a proud swan. When Mia saw me, she enthusiastically came over to grab my hand but stopped abruptly in front of me, covering her nose. “Evelyn, why do you smell like cow manure?” I covered my nose too, because her perfume was overwhelming me. Mia put on a surprised expression. “Evelyn, how come you’re taking a cattle truck to school? Didn’t you say your grandpa was an antique collector? I just rode in a luxury car worth millions of dollars!” Then she casually greeted some wealthy kids getting out of their luxury cars. Mia turned to look at me. “Evelyn, you and I aren’t from the same world anymore. Richard takes me to all kinds of parties every day, unlike you who can only stay on that broken farm.” She stepped on my shoe. “Your shoes are so dirty. Mine cost hundreds of times more than yours. You should feel honored that I’m stepping on you.” I didn’t get angry. I crouched down and cleaned my shoe with my sleeve, then looked at her calmly. “Are you trying to take out all the frustration you get at home on me?” Mia laughed angrily. “Frustration? I’m having a great time every day—how could I be frustrated! You should worry about yourself!” But I could see the discomfort in her eyes—I had hit a nerve. After school, I was doing homework in my room when I heard knocking at the door. I opened it but only saw a shoebox on the ground. The grandson of the elderly neighbor lady went to my school, and yesterday I heard him begging for new shoes, saying he’d need them for PE class when school started. Before I could say anything, the shoes were already at my door. I felt incredibly warm, and suddenly tears wet my face. When I lived at Stanford Villa, Richard only cared about profit—there was no genuine affection there. Teenagers’ stomachs are fragile to begin with, and every day after school, Richard would bring out various types of alcohol and force me to drink. With each glass, I had to say something flattering. On weekends, I also had to learn “ballroom dancing.” Their so-called ballroom dancing involved finding the right angles while dancing to let men see what they wanted to see, allowing them to take advantage. I asked Mom if this wasn’t a sign of lacking self-respect. But Mom stroked her belly and said coldly, “This is all to cultivate you. Can’t you be more understanding?” They made me pour drinks for those wealthy men, satisfying their hidden desires. Only this way could Richard negotiate business deals with them. Even my marriage was something they had arranged. James appeared polished and glamorous on the surface, but privately he was a degenerate. I was pushed around like a gambling chip at their drinking parties, often waking up in pain in the middle of the night. Even when I had stomach bleeding, they’d just give me an injection and drag me to another cocktail party. A semester passed, and summer vacation arrived. Mom rarely contacted Grandpa, but now she wanted to bring me back. I knew they wanted to buy land and do business with the big boss Victor Hughes. Bringing me back was just to highlight how exceptional Mia was. It was the same in my previous life, and it had gotten Mia’s hopes up for nothing. I didn’t want to go back, but I was afraid they’d keep bothering Grandpa, so I went along. Victor was an upright man. In my previous life, Richard tried to bribe him using his usual tactics, which ruined the deal, and back then he blamed me for it. But he wouldn’t hit me because he still needed to use me—he’d just punish me by not letting me eat for several days under the excuse of maintaining my figure. Richard had originally arranged to meet at the banquet hall, but the boss brought Richard directly to the plot of land. Mia wore an ultra-short skirt, her legs covered with red welts from bug bites, yet she still had to maintain her smile. Victor asked Richard, “You want to buy this land?” Richard nodded eagerly, but then heard Victor ask again, “Do you know what this place used to be? Do you know what this soil represents?” They stammered and couldn’t answer. Suddenly, I remembered a story Grandpa had told me: “This used to be a cemetery. The soil color looks like it’s been settled for a long time—the history must go way back.” Victor’s eyes lit up. “Who taught you that? Mr. Stanford, I didn’t expect your daughter to know how to read soil layers. Such knowledge!” This was from one of Grandpa’s stories—I never thought I’d be praised for it. Richard still hadn’t figured out Victor’s true intentions and pushed Mia forward: “Evelyn’s always been in the countryside, what knowledge could she have? Let Mia chat with you instead!” Victor then realized why Mia was dressed that way and got a bit angry: “I’m not selling this land! And don’t think I’m the kind of sleazy person you take me for!” After the unpleasant parting, Richard brought us home with a dark expression. Mia cried pitifully: “If it weren’t for Evelyn, I definitely would have succeeded. She deliberately sabotaged everything!” Mom chimed in from the side: “I should have known better than to bring her back. The moment she comes home, she ruins the family’s big plans!” Richard flew into a rage, slapping me across the face and pulling out his belt to whip me: “You jinx!” It hurt so much. The more I resisted, the harder he hit. I even thought I might be beaten to death right there. As I lost consciousness, I seemed to see an upright figure. I wondered if I was hallucinating. Why did this person look so much like Grandpa?
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