Chapter 4

Tiffany woke up to the sound of her phone ringing. Looking at the screen, she realized it was a phone call from her grandmother, telling her that her luggage had been sent to the Young family’s home. Her grandmother was calling to ask if she had received it. After washing up, Tiffany dressed herself in a flowery cotton top and took a cab to the Young family’s home. It had been a long time since she was here. The villa where she had once lived for more than a decade now felt strange and unfamiliar. As soon as she stepped into the villa, Avery Carlson's soothing voice came from afar, "Tiffy, you're back! How's life in the Blake family? Did they mistreat you?" Just hearing her voice made Tiffany's hair stand on end, and she trembled slightly. Although many years have passed, Tiffany was still unable to control her body's response to hearing Avery's voice. Soon, Tiffany's hand was grabbed, and she could feel Avery's soft and delicate skin against hers. Looking up, Avery's pretty face came into view. Time had no doubt left its mark over the years. Avery's undereye wrinkles were still apparent despite the thick layers of makeup. Avery did not loathe Tiffany’s cheap-looking clothes but instead looked at her with a face full of love. Despite Avery's warm and welcoming attitude, Tiffany nevertheless still caught the hostility and disdain that was lurking behind her smiling eyes. Tiffany shoved her aside, causing Avery to stumble a few steps back. Regaining her balance, Avery looked at Tiffany and said with eyes glistening with tears, "Tiffy..." Tiffany scoffed and replied, "It's been ten years. Aren't you tired of pretending? You're seriously mistaken if you think that you're my mother just because everybody else says so." Jabbing Avery's heart, Tiffany continued, "Ask yourself. Do you think you’re worthy?" Avery looked at her in surprise. She had spent five years transforming Tiffany, who was once a confident and poised girl, into a timid and fearful girl. She spent another five years banishing her to the countryside and made sure that she would not receive any support from the family. She had expected Tiffany to be a timid and inelegant woman who would be despised by everyone. However, to her surprise, Tiffany looked even more confident than before. This was definitely not what Avery was expecting. Seeing Avery's wretched expression, Tiffany's scornful smile grew wider. She decided to ignore Avery for the time being and started looking for her luggage instead. Once she found her luggage, she saw that it had already been forced open and her belongings were a complete mess. Tiffany rubbed her temples and could not help but laugh in frustration. 'A leopard never changes its spots, does it?' Tiffany thought to herself. While she might have become the daughter-in-law of a wealthy family, there was still nothing she could do to change the Young family's way of doing things. Her suitcase came with an inner pocket, and her grandmother had put all of her important belongings in that compartment. Going through the list given by her grandmother, Tiffany breathed out a sigh of relief when she saw that all her important belongings were still there. "Tiffany Young, how dare you come home? Aren't you ashamed of yourself?" Tiffany turned toward the voice, and for a brief moment, she could not recognize who it was. After a while, she finally realized that it was her half-sister. Dressed in a red strappy dress, Jessie Young was a tall and slim beauty. Tiffany stared at her and was soon lost in her own thoughts. A few years ago when Tiffany met her, she thought of Jessie as just an ordinary-looking girl. One may say that she was beautiful, but she was definitely not the prettiest. She looked much more beautiful now, but Tiffany had no comments about that. However, she also started to look a lot like Yulia Queen, which made Tiffany uncomfortable. Yulia Queen was Tiffany's birth mother, and she was also Braxton's first wife. She died ten years ago. Jessie Young's previous name was Yanet Carlson. She was the daughter of Braxton Young and Avery Carlson when Braxton had an affair. She was one day older than Tiffany. After Yulia passed away, Braxton took Jessie and Avery in, so Tiffany had always suspected that they were the ones who were responsible for her mother's death despite having no evidence. Jessie flipped her hair and asked, "Aren't I beautiful? I have you to thank for that, for I wouldn't be this pretty if you didn't try to burn me alive that day." Jessie was very satisfied with her current appearance. Five years ago, after she was disfigured due to the accident, Braxton changed her name from Yanet to Jessie. He told everybody that she was the daughter of the Young family. On the other hand, Tiffany was sent to the countryside and was made known to be Braxton's illegitimate child instead. All the love that Tiffany had received was directed to Jessie, and Tiffany also lost her social status in the upper class. A mix of emotions surged through Tiffany when she heard what happened, and she had been utterly disappointed with Braxton ever since. "Daddy loves me a lot, so he could never marry me off to a vegetable. That's why he swapped our birth dates. "I used to have a crush on Micah Blake too, thinking that only a rich and powerful man like him was good enough for me. What a shame that he's no longer worthy of me now. "Your parents and the social status that you once had are now mine. Even your future husband is somebody I don't want. "It seems like you can only enjoy my ‘leftover scraps', Tiffany. You should please me often. Who knows? I may give you something better if I'm happy." Proud as a peacock, Jessie did not hesitate to show off in front of Tiffany. Now that Jessie looked a lot like Yulia, Tiffany felt even more disgusted at her words. In one swift move, Tiffany grabbed a pen, pinned Jessie's head to the table, and made a long bloody cut across her face. "Argh! My face! How dare you, Tiffany?!" Tiffany then pointed the pen at Jessie's eyes and said, "Don't move, or I'll push it down. "Listen carefully now, Jessie Young. I’ll take back everything that's mine, as well as the man that you're no longer interested in. I'll turn him into the most powerful man in the world, and when that time comes, you'll be on your knees, left with nothing." After saying those words, Tiffany threw the pen aside. However, she soon shuddered at the thought of what might happen to her given Micah's cold and ruthless personality. She knew that controlling him would not be an easy task. 'Oh, well. I'll worry about that later. I needed to show Jessie who's boss.' Holding her cheek in pain, Jessie initially felt a little afraid, but she later sneered and said, "He's a vegetable who can't even stand by himself, yet you’re planning on turning him into the most powerful man in the world? You can't be serious." Hearing the commotion, Avery rushed into the room and saw the wound on Jessie's face. Furious, she raised her hand and was about to give Tiffany a tight slap. Taking a step backward, Tiffany dodged the slap and gave the two of them a cold, hard stare. She then left with her luggage. Minutes after she left the villa, Braxton came home with a dashing man by his side. The man was dressed in a gray suit that outlined his tall and slender build. His eyes were dark and mysterious. Braxton followed him closely while keeping a polished smile plastered on his face. This man was Yulia's younger brother and Braxton's brother-in-law, Julian Queen. The Queen family was another powerful yet mysterious family in the city. Jessie looked at him pitifully and said, "Uncle, you have to help me." Julian was visibly displeased when he saw the wound on Jessie's face as it made him think of his deceased sister. With a dark expression, he asked, "Who did this?" "That illegitimate child, Tiffany." Julian's eyes gleamed with anger as he said, "She dared to hurt you?" Jessie held her cheek and said mournfully, "She doesn’t like me because I look a lot like Mom, and she’s jealous of the love I receive from my parents. That's why she did this to me." Julian scoffed and said, "How dare an illegitimate child like her lay a hand on my niece? Seems like she needs to be disciplined." Delighted at his words, Jessie gave Julian a slight smile and thanked him. Braxton's joy was plain on his face when he saw them getting along so well. However, his smile soon turned into a frown when he saw the message on his phone. Through the message, Braxton learned that Micah Blake had woken up and that he was inviting guests to his party. The Young family was invited too as they were the Blake family's future in-laws. Jessie felt humiliated as she was not expecting such news. Minutes ago, she was just belittling Tiffany about this matter. She never expected to receive a party invitation from Micah Blake. 'It's a bit weird, but I'm sure a powerful man like Micah won't marry a country bumpkin like Tiffany.' Nevertheless, Jessie's mood improved when she heard that Julian would also be attending the party so that he could give Tiffany a piece of his mind.