I worked part-time jobs to support my boyfriend Jack through college. Once, I even bought a 10-hour standing-room-only train ticket to visit him when we were in a long-distance relationship. I wanted to surprise him, but instead, I caught him intimately strolling arm-in-arm with a rich heiress. Devastated, I confronted him: “Why are you doing this to me?” He just sneered and said, “Let’s break up. You have nothing to offer. She can give me so much more.” However, the very next day, my life took an unexpected turn – I discovered I was the daughter of a billionaire. When Jack broke up with me, I was still holding a bouquet of flowers in my hand. The rich girl in the red dress beside him looked at me disdainfully and asked, “Jack, who’s this?” Jack seemed surprised to see me and nervously withdrew his arm from the rich girl’s. “It’s nothing, just a friend of mine.” “Friend?” I stared at him in disbelief. I looked disheveled and travel-worn, having rushed here straight from the train station to give him a surprise. “Jack, you told me you were working overtime at the company. I wanted to surprise you, but you’ve ended up giving me such a big surprise instead?” The rich girl seemed to catch on and asked unhappily, “Jack, didn’t you say you were single? Is this your girlfriend?” Jack looked annoyed. “What girlfriend? I stopped liking her ages ago.” Then he turned to me, “I don’t like you anymore. Stop clinging to me.” His eyes were so cold, as if he couldn’t wait to get rid of me. It was as if the eight years we’d spent together meant nothing to him. It felt like a bolt from the blue. I blinked in disbelief, unable to process that the person looking at me with such disgust was the same one who had been talking about celebrating our eighth anniversary just yesterday on the phone. Jack turned to the rich girl and said softly, “Chloe, it’s cold out here. Why don’t you wait in that coffee shop over there? This girl is clingy. I’ll deal with her.” Chloe wasn’t stupid. She sensed that our relationship was far from ordinary. She looked me up and down haughtily, then laughed and said in a coquettish tone, “Alright, but hurry up and deal with it, okay?” Then she strutted off to the nearby coffee shop in her high heels. A light drizzle had started. I was dressed thinly, but as the night wind blew, I couldn’t feel the cold. The person in front of me had become a stranger, making my heart feel ice-cold. “Pursuer?” I sneered, throwing the flowers at him forcefully. “Some pursuer, Jack! Which pursuer would stay with you for eight years? Which pursuer would be discussing engagement plans with you just two days ago? I was so excited to come and be with you, and this is how you treat me!” Jack’s expression darkened as he silently watched me. The person standing before me was someone I had been with for eight years, someone I had wholeheartedly wanted to marry. I had once believed that even long-distance couldn’t hinder our love. Yet here he was, calmly watching me break down and go crazy, completely unmoved. “Are you done?” Jack frowned impatiently. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?” I found it absurd and laughed through my tears. “Tell you? So you could have time to prepare and continue deceiving me?” Jack suddenly started laughing, looking at me with mockery in his eyes. “Emily, don’t you get it yet? You’re just an orphan. What can you offer me?” “Chloe is a rich heiress. Her dad owns a big company, with mansions and yachts. She’s got a great figure too. What do you have?” I stood there, stunned. “Jack, I’ve been with you for eight years. Yes, I’m an orphan without a degree, but don’t forget that your college and master’s degree were funded by me working two jobs and doing part-time work every day.” “Haha, wasn’t that all voluntary on your part?” Jack’s expression was strange. “So you do know I graduated from a top university? I’ve got a good job now, and plenty of girls like me. Look at yourself, Emily. You’ve got no money, no looks. You’re just a high school graduate. How can you compare to her? How are you worthy of me?” “She’s very rich and she likes me. I finally have this opportunity, and I don’t want to live that hard life anymore. We’re not a good match. Just let me go.” I opened my mouth but couldn’t say a word. The fine rain fell on my head, blurring my vision. I felt like I was truly seeing this person for the first time. With the gentle facade stripped away, all that remained were shocking scars. An umbrella appeared over Jack’s head. Chloe was holding it for him. She smiled, “Jack, is this the orphan ex-girlfriend you mentioned who keeps clinging to you? She really doesn’t match up to you.” Ex-girlfriend? I nodded and calmly said, “Yes, I’m the ex-girlfriend now. But Chloe, this Jack beside you isn’t a good person. Rich lady, open your eyes and take a good look. This guy has been living off me for years while studying. He ate my food, wore clothes I bought, and spent the money I earned from part-time jobs. He was happy to be a kept man, and it wasn’t a small expense.” I opened my bag, took out a pen and paper, wrote down my payment details, and slapped it onto Jack’s chest. “Want to get rid of me? Fine. Pay back every cent I spent on you over these years. Not a penny less. I want it in my account within three days, or we’ll settle this in court.” I then turned to Chloe, “You like this scumbag? Well, I was blind. He’s all yours now. If you really like him, you can pay me back on his behalf.” With that, I turned and walked away.
I’m an orphan. I was abandoned at the doorstep of an orphanage when I was still a baby. The kind-hearted director took me in and raised me. Some charitable people sponsored my education. But because I had no parents, I was often bullied at school. The other kids would gang up to mock me for wearing patched clothes, saying I was an uncultured wild child without parents. When I couldn’t take it anymore, I told the teacher, but they didn’t care. I couldn’t even afford the school uniform fees and often had to work part-time jobs or collect recyclables for pocket money, which led to poor grades. So those bullies became even worse. They were like a pack of wolves that had found a weak rabbit and felt excited. They would pour ink on my books, my desk was always covered in messy graffiti, and after school, I’d be cornered and forced to hand over my pocket money. That day, I was cornered again. Their tall shadows loomed over me, making me feel terrified. Suddenly, an angry voice came from behind: “What are you doing?” That was the first time I saw Daniel. He threatened to call the police if they bullied me again. Only then did they reluctantly disperse. Daniel asked me with concern, “Are you okay?” The boy’s clean shirt smelled of laundry detergent. At that time, he was full of righteousness, with gentle features. He was a model student at school, shining like a deity in my eyes. Later, I started to frequently “bump into” him. I deliberately created every opportunity to meet him. He said, “Emily, you’re very pretty.” He kissed my eyes and held my hand on the playground. So we naturally became a couple. Everyone said I was lucky that Daniel liked me, but this made those bullies target me even more. However, Daniel’s family suffered a setback and fell on hard times just as he was about to start college. I stepped up, just as he had once saved me: “Daniel, I’m not going to continue studying. My grades are far worse than yours, and we can’t afford to support both of us.” So I started working several jobs a day to support his studies. He would always hug me tenderly, whispering sweet nothings that made me willingly fall into his honeyed words and devotedly give everything. He said, “Emily, when I graduate and find a good job, I’ll marry you.” He was good-looking, and when we were in a long-distance relationship, many girls at his school liked him. But he said he only liked me and wanted to be with me forever. Now I see it was all just sugar-coated bullets. He just needed a fool to pave the way for his future. I deleted everything related to Jack and hid in a hotel, slowly accepting the fact that I had been betrayed. On the third day of my stay in this city, I suddenly received a payment in my account, along with a text message from an unknown number. [The money has been repaid. Don’t come looking for Jack again. You’re not good enough for him. He’s my boyfriend now.] It was that rich girl. I could only laugh. Looks like another girl fooled by Jack’s sweet talk. I was feeling like a lost goose, not knowing where to go, when I suddenly received a call from the orphanage director. “Emily, there’s a couple here who say they’re your birth parents.”
My heart sank. The word “parents” was foreign to me. In countless dark moments, I had hoped they would appear in my life, but I was always disappointed. Despite this, I still traveled overnight to the city where the orphanage was located. Before me stood a well-dressed middle-aged couple. The man wore a suit and tie, while the woman was dressed in an expensive fur coat with perfect makeup. The moment she saw me, the woman’s eyes welled up with tears. She rushed forward and hugged me excitedly, “Daughter, we’ve finally found you!” It felt surreal. The middle-aged man beside her took off his glasses and wiped his tears, “Emily, we’ve been looking for you for so long.” The woman’s name was Sarah. She looked at me carefully, with a gaze I had never experienced before – gentle and filled with heartache. The middle-aged man was called Robert. He looked at me with relief, “Your mom and I were quite young when we had you. We didn’t have much money then, so we took you north to find work. But the train was so crowded, and in a moment of carelessness, you were stolen by a trafficker. Your mom nearly cried her eyes out. We reported it to the police, and after a long wait, the trafficker was finally caught. But he said the buyer had changed their mind at the last minute, so he just left you at the doorstep of an orphanage.” “But he had done this so many times that he couldn’t remember which orphanage it was. By the time we found out, we were told that you had moved from the old orphanage. It’s taken all these years for us to finally meet, father and daughter.” Robert’s eyes were a bit red as he looked at me excitedly, “They named you Emily, right? Now you have a surname. Your name is Emily Yan.” “Emily Yan…” I murmured. It all felt so unreal, as if I were in a dream. Sarah affectionately held my hand, “My dear child, you must have suffered a lot all these years. I heard from the director that you’ve been very strong and capable. Your dad and I have had some success in our business over the years, and we can give you a good life now. Come home with us.” The director nodded approvingly, so I went home with them. It was only then that I realized their “some success” was far more than just a little. Robert, my father, was the director of the city’s largest venture capital group, with countless businesses under his name. When the car pulled up to a high-end villa complex, I still couldn’t believe it. This area was known for its exorbitant property prices, with many top celebrities choosing to buy luxury homes here. In the past, this was something I couldn’t even dream of. As we entered, an elegant young woman came down the stairs. When she saw me, her eyes lit up, and she quickened her pace, rushing over to grab my hand. “Mom, Dad, is this my sister?” she asked. Her eyes were bright, and her features were similar to mine. She was fair and beautiful, and I immediately took a liking to her. Sarah smiled and pulled me closer, “This is your sister, Lily. She’s been looking for you with us all these years. When we went to pick you up, she kept talking about you.” I felt awkward due to the unfamiliarity, but Lily was excited. She pulled my hand and led me upstairs, “Come on, sis, let me show you your room. I decorated it myself.” As she opened the door, a grand crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, with a huge princess bed in the center. Lily hadn’t let go of my hand. She chattered away, “Sis, here’s the walk-in closet. It’s all filled with the latest seasonal fashion. I picked them out for you, but I’m not sure if they’ll fit. Oh, and we’ve booked a designer to come and take your measurements in a few days. And look, this is my favorite bunny plushie. I’ve put it on your bedside table.” As I listened to her, I felt a lump in my throat for some reason. “Thank you, Lily.” Lily pursed her lips and frowned, “Sis, have you been through a lot of hardship?” I didn’t say anything. She looked at me with concern, “When I held your hand just now, I felt a lot of calluses.” “But don’t worry, I’ll protect you from now on. You won’t have to suffer anymore,” she said with a smile.
Robert said that in a few days, there would be a birthday party for him, with invitations sent to various celebrities and influential people. He planned to announce my return at the party. Over these few days, I truly felt the love of my parents, and my sister loved to stick close to me. At night, we would often squeeze together, and she would listen to stories about my past. The blood ties quickly dissolved the sense of unfamiliarity, and Lily happily helped me choose an evening gown. “Lily, I’m a bit nervous,” I said, feeling anxious at the thought of facing so many people. “Oh, don’t be nervous,” Lily squeezed my hand reassuringly. “Sis, just remember you’re our dad’s daughter. There will be a lot of media there too, announcing your identity to the world.” Soon, the day of the party arrived. I changed into a carefully designed red evening gown, with flawless makeup and hair styled in big waves. The person in the mirror looked so beautiful, I hardly recognized myself. The party was set in a grand hall, with champagne and wine glasses filling long tables covered in red cloth. Men in suits escorted their partners, clinking glasses in conversation. I had only seen such scenes on TV before, but I never expected to see Jack here. He was standing not far from me, with Chloe intimately holding his arm. As Jack turned, he clearly saw me and was visibly stunned. Chloe, the rich girl beside him, was talking to some socialite. Noticing his odd expression, she followed his gaze and saw me, also looking surprised. Then Chloe smiled, her red lips curving as she held her wine glass. With a challenging look, she strutted over in her high heels. She looked me up and down and sneered, “What? Are you working as a waitress here? Do waitresses need to dress up like this?” Jack beside her also looked at me quizzically, though there was a hint of admiration in his eyes. In the past, I had always been weighed down by life’s pressures. This was the first time I appeared so glamorous in front of others. I looked at the couple in front of me and smiled without saying a word. Jack frowned, “Emily, where did you borrow this evening gown from? Are you doing some kind of part-time job?” “This kind of place requires invitations. Ordinary people can’t just waltz in,” Chloe looked me up and down. “Don’t tell me you rented an outfit and are pretending to be some socialite? Or have you hooked up with some rich young master?” Her words unintentionally stung Jack, who was there precisely because he had hooked up with her. “She doesn’t need to pretend, nor does she need to hook up with anyone,” a voice rang out. Lily, wearing a deep red cocktail dress, walked over like a proud swan. She looked Chloe straight in the eye, took my hand, and smiled lightly, “Let me introduce you properly. This is Emily Yan, my elder sister. She’s the long-lost daughter of the Yan family, whom we’ve finally found!” Chloe’s hand holding the wine glass trembled, and Jack beside her turned pale. “Listen, Chloe,” Lily said, her usual warm and lively demeanor replaced by a serious expression. “You brought this kept man to my family’s event and insulted my sister. Are you sure you want your family’s business to continue?” Chloe’s face turned from red to white. “Lily, you…!” At this moment, Robert walked over. He had witnessed everything with cold eyes. He took my hand – the first time I felt the warmth of a father’s broad palm – and led me to stand on the raised platform in the grand hall. He announced to everyone: “Ladies and gentlemen, I have something else to say. My long-lost daughter, Emily Yan, returned to my side a few days ago.” There was a commotion below, and camera flashes went off, dazzling my eyes. But I didn’t shy away, facing head-on what should have been mine all along. I caught sight of Jack staring at me in a daze from below. He was now looking up at me from a slightly lower angle. “How is this possible…” he muttered, seemingly regretting his misjudgment. Chloe’s fingers gripping the wine glass turned white as she noticed Jack’s expression. She spat out bitterly, “Like what you see?” Jack snapped back to reality, cleverly concealing the regret in his eyes. At the party, those people I used to only see in business reports and finance magazines were all praising me for how beautiful I had become. For a moment, I felt like the moon surrounded by stars, though I understood they were only saying it for my father’s benefit. Lily pulled me over to a group of socialites to introduce me. Jack remained silent, drinking alcohol with half his face hidden in shadow. Chloe was fuming inside. She sneered, “Does everyone know? This Miss Emily was just a factory girl who barely graduated high school, living at the bottom of society before she was found. She used to cling to my boyfriend, but unfortunately, my boyfriend didn’t like her.” People around started to whisper. Lily’s brows furrowed, about to say something, but I gently patted her hand to calm her. Then I spoke up: “Miss Chloe, you keep mentioning that I only graduated from high school. So why did you eagerly pick up what this high school graduate discarded?” Chloe’s face immediately darkened. I felt she was easy to provoke, so I continued, “You’re a guest in my home, yet you’re so rude to the host. Is this the kind of upbringing you’ve had, Miss Chloe?” The socialites around, who probably had long disliked Chloe, chimed in sarcastically, “That’s right, some people think they’re all that just because their daddy made some money riding a trend. Now they’re causing a scene on someone else’s turf.” Provoked, Chloe exploded in anger: “Emily, don’t think you’re so great just because the Yan family found you! Deep down, you’re still just an orphan with no parental guidance!” Her words caused a stir, directly slapping Robert in the face. Lily, furious, stepped forward and grabbed her hand, looking like she was about to hit her: “Who are you calling an orphan with no parental guidance?” Robert walked over, his aura intimidating as he glared at Chloe: “You’ve really gone too far! Your father begged and pleaded yesterday to do business with us, and now you dare act so arrogantly! Do you really think I, Robert Yan, have been eating vegetarian dishes all these years?” “Get out of my birthday party right now. You’re not welcome in our home! Go back and tell your father that the business deal is off. We won’t be associating anymore. By calling my daughter an orphan, aren’t you cursing our whole family? Get out of here right now!” Chloe had never faced such a situation before. Her face turned red, and with everyone around watching her like a spectacle, she couldn’t bear to stay any longer. She picked up her dress and ran out crying. Jack hadn’t expected things to turn out this way either. He gave me a deep look before chasing after her. Robert raised his voice, essentially giving a message to the media: “The Zhao family can’t control their daughter. She came to my house today and greatly embarrassed my daughter, which is like slapping me, Robert Yan, in the face. From now on, our Yan Group will have no more dealings with the Zhao family’s investment bank.” For the first time, I felt the confidence of having a strong backing. After years of struggling alone, I now had a safety net. Lily whispered in my ear, explaining, “Dad’s meaning is clear. He’s drawing a line between us and that Chloe’s family. Sis, our family is the industry leader. If we make this statement, other families probably won’t dare to go against us. Anyone who does business with them will be seen as opposing us.” I was shocked, not realizing the Yan family’s influence was so powerful. I was also amazed that my father would go to such lengths for a daughter he hadn’t seen in years. Sarah arranged the best private tutors to teach me, and even suggested that if I was willing, I could study abroad with Lily for a while, taking the opportunity to travel and clear my mind. Studying abroad was something I had never dared to dream of before.
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