On the second day of the Lunar New Year, my thirty-year-old cousin stomped on my limited edition figurine, crushing a $5,000 collectible into pieces. My Aunt Clara immediately shielded him behind her back, screeching at me with righteous indignation. "If you didn't put your things away, they belong to Tyler now! Besides, aren't you too old to be playing with toys?" My mother was shaking with anger. "How does something my daughter spent five grand on suddenly become yours?" Aunt Clara instantly sat on the floor, slapping her thighs and wailing. "God help me! I come with good intentions to visit my own brother for the holidays, and my sister-in-law tries to extort five thousand dollars from me!" I pulled back my mom, who was on the verge of tears, and smiled at them. "It's fine, Mom. It's just a pile of plastic." "It's rare for Aunt Clara and Tyler to visit. We should treat them to something better." Aunt Clara's wailing stopped abruptly. She scrambled up, suspicious at first, then sneered. "Now that sounds like human speech. A girl like you can't compare to my precious Tyler." An hour later, Aunt Clara was handed a $500,000 compensation bill by the police. I smiled even brighter. "That's right. My cousin is precious indeed." 1 "See? That's what I call sensible." Aunt Clara's heavy hand slapped my shoulder. "You can tell she's been in the big city. She knows her place." After saying that, she turned and rolled her eyes at my mother. "Unlike some people who've never left this village their whole lives. Long hair, short wit. Only knows how to protect a money-losing daughter." My mother's lips trembled, unable to say a word. Her precious thirty-year-old son, Tyler, was picking his teeth on the sofa, mumbling in agreement. "Making a fuss over a broken toy." Aunt Clara pointed at the shattered remains of the figurine on the floor and ordered me around. "Sophie, sweep up those broken plastics. Tyler can take them home." I paused. "Take them home for what?" "They're broken anyway. We can sell them for scrap and get a few bucks. Can't waste them." She spoke as if she was disposing of her own property. Tyler grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth. He climbed off the sofa, walked over to the pile of fragments, and lifted his foot. Crunch. Crunch. He stomped down hard, grinding the figurine into dust. "Mom's right. It's trash anyway. Stomping it a few more times doesn't matter." I clenched my fists, nails digging into my palms. Aunt Clara's gaze had already been drawn to the holiday gifts and red envelopes on the coffee table. She picked up the thickest envelope and tore it open right in front of us. Pulling out the cash, she licked her finger and counted the bills one by one. "One, two, three... only two thousand?" Her voice suddenly rose, sharp and piercing. "David! You're dismissing your own sister with this little money?" My father, David, an honest man his whole life, rubbed his hands together, looking troubled. "Sis, the factory hasn't been doing well this year, and Sophie's mom's medical bills were high..." "I don't care about that!" Aunt Clara violently threw the money in her hand at my mother's face. "If you don't have money, don't pretend to be fat! What's the use of raising a daughter? In the end, she's just a losing investment!" The red bills scattered, the sharp edge of one slicing across my mother's cheek, leaving a thin red line. My mother gasped, tears bursting from her eyes. She didn't dare make a sound, just silently crouched down to pick up the money one by one. Tyler swaggered over and stepped on my mother's hand. "Oops, Auntie, sorry. Didn't see you." He apologized with his mouth, but his foot ground down hard. My mother sucked in a breath of cold air, her hand instantly swelling red. The fire in my chest reached its peak. I calmly pushed Tyler aside and forced a bright smile onto my face. "Aunt Clara, Tyler, it's the New Year. No need to get angry over small things." "I'll take you somewhere nice to open your eyes. The new Grand Era Gallery downtown. I heard it's full of treasures." Aunt Clara looked me up and down suspiciously. "A place like that? Can a working girl like you even get in?" Her eyes were full of contempt. "You're not working there as a cleaner, are you?" I didn't deny it. I just took out my phone, tapped a few times, and sent a message. [Prepare for guests.] Then I looked up, my smile unchanged. "You'll know when we get there, won't you?" Seeing my confidence, the greed in Aunt Clara's eyes overpowered her suspicion, and she finally nodded. On the way to the garage, she lectured my parents, demanding dinner be even more lavish than lunch. Once in my car, she showed her true colors, spitting a glob of phlegm onto the floor mat. Tyler, meanwhile, stuffed his tangerine peels one by one into the crevices of the leather seats. I watched the ugly behavior of this mother and son, the smile on my lips growing wider. The car stopped in front of the magnificent main entrance of the Grand Era Gallery. Aunt Clara and Tyler stared at the building, eyes wide. "My god, Sophie, this place is so grand!" Greed and calculation shone unhidden in Aunt Clara's eyes. I knew. The fish had taken the bait. 2 The Grand Era Gallery was closed today. It was open only for my aunt and cousin. I led them into the empty exhibition hall. In the magnificent lobby, only the sound of our footsteps echoed monotonously. Aunt Clara touched this and looked at that, constantly clicking her tongue in amazement. "Wow, is this pillar gold? This floor tile is shiny enough to be a mirror!" Tyler was even worse. He wanted to touch everything he saw. Blocked by glass cases, he slapped them hard with his palms. Thud, thud. The dull sounds echoed. The head of security at the door saw me and immediately straightened up, about to approach. "Miss So..." I shot him a glance, and he shut his mouth instantly, pretending not to know me and standing far away. Aunt Clara saw this but completely misinterpreted it. She thought the security guard was scared off by her presence, and she stood even straighter. She turned to brag to my mother: "See? In places for rich people, even the watchdogs know who to respect." My mother looked worried, tugging secretly at my sleeve. "Sophie, the things here are too expensive. Don't let them touch anything. We can't afford to pay if they break something." I patted her hand reassuringly, then deliberately raised my voice. "Aunt Clara, Tyler, look all you want. Have fun." Hearing this, Aunt Clara and Tyler's eyes lit up instantly. "Really? You said it!" Aunt Clara looked skeptical. "Of course. Why would I lie to you?" I smiled with utmost sincerity. With my guarantee, they completely let loose. Aunt Clara pointed at a colorful Tang Dynasty ceramic horse in the center of the hall and insulted my mother. "Sister-in-law, look at this horse. Doesn't it look like you?" My mother froze. "Working like a horse for David your whole life, exhausted, and can't even birth a son. Useless." The harsh words were like knives, turning my mother's face pale instantly. Tyler wasn't idle either. He set his sights on an ivory folding fan in a glass case, carved with exquisite landscapes. "I want that fan! Mom, I want to take it out and fan myself!" He whined like a three-year-old. I walked over slowly, looking regretful. "Tyler, this case is special bulletproof glass. It's locked." "Only the curator has the key. I can't open it either." "Bullshit!" Tyler cursed. "What crappy cabinet? Watch me kick it open!" He stepped back, gathered his strength, and kicked the display case hard. BANG! The loud noise hurt our eardrums. The case didn't budge. Tyler clutched his foot, grimacing in pain. Aunt Clara didn't stop him; instead, she clapped and cheered. "Good! Kick it hard! My Tyler is so strong, he'll be a big boss for sure!" "Another kick! Shatter this stupid glass!" The phone in my pocket vibrated. It was a message from the monitoring room staff. [Ms. Sophie, should we call the police?] I lowered my eyes, tapping the screen lightly to reply. [Wait.] Thinking for a moment, I added another sentence. [The amount isn't high enough yet.] My mother couldn't stand it anymore and ran over to stop the crazy Tyler. "Tyler, stop kicking! That's an artifact! You'll go to jail if you break it!" Seeing this, Aunt Clara rushed forward and shoved my mother hard. "Get away! You jinx, daring to curse my son with jail?" Caught off guard, my mother slammed her back against a stone pillar with a muffled groan. She was in so much pain she couldn't straighten up, tears circling in her eyes. Aunt Clara wasn't done. She pointed at me as I rushed to help my mother and cursed loudly. "Losing investment! Just like your heirless mother!" I ignored her screaming. I took a bottle of water from my bag. Unscrewing the cap, I handed it to her with a smile. "Auntie, you must be thirsty after shouting so much." "Drink some water to soothe your throat so you have the strength to keep playing." Aunt Clara snatched the water and gulped down half the bottle. She wiped her mouth and threw the bottle on the floor in disgust. "What is this trash? Not even as good as tap water." After walking around the hall, Aunt Clara's thieving eyes started darting around. She walked to an inconspicuous corner. While I wasn't looking, she stuffed a Qing Dynasty snuff bottle into her large cloth bag. All of this was recorded clearly by the surveillance cameras in the corner. Having stolen something, Aunt Clara grew bolder. She set her sights on me. Her gaze fell on the bag I was carrying. "Sophie, what good stuff do you have in there?" Saying that, she reached out to grab it. I didn't resist, letting her snatch it away. Aunt Clara unzipped it and dumped the bag upside down. Everything inside clattered to the floor. Lipstick, powder compact, tissues, and my work ID and a personal seal. She picked up the seal, examining it, thinking it was gold or jade. "Ooh, what's this? Gold?" Then, she picked up my work ID. When she read the words on it, she let out a shrill laugh. "Grand Era Gallery Art Restorer? Sophie, after all that, you just fix junk?" Tyler also came over and stepped on my lipstick, crushing it. He saw my phone on the floor and snatched it. "Unlock it! I want to play games!" he ordered. I looked at him coldly. "No." "You wanna die!" Enraged by my attitude, Tyler smashed my phone hard onto the floor. The screen shattered. My mother looked at the fragments on the floor, heartbroken. "You child! That phone cost over a thousand dollars!" She tried to pick it up but was shoved away by Tyler. "Get lost, old hag!" My mother stumbled, her forehead hitting the sharp corner of a display case. A trail of blood ran down her temple. "Mom!" I rushed to support her. Aunt Clara looked at my mother's bleeding forehead and spat on the ground. "Deserved it! Heirless woman, this is your karma!" My mother covered her wound, trembling, tears rolling down. She grabbed my arm, her voice pleading. "Sophie, let's go home. Let's go home, please? Mom begs you..." I held her cold hand tightly, my heart clenching. I looked at the wound on her forehead, at her despairing eyes, and a wave of fury hit me. I leaned into her ear, my voice so low only we could hear. "Mom, endure for five more minutes." "Just five minutes." "Today, we take back everything we've suffered in this life, with interest." My mother froze, looking at me in confusion. I helped her stand, turned around, and put the docile smile back on my face. I led the still-shouting Aunt Clara and Tyler into the deepest part of the gallery. The Supreme Hall. In the center of the hall, displayed alone, was an ancient painting I had spent countless hours restoring—Spring Mountains. Aunt Clara looked disdainful. "Just this ragged painting? Colors are fading. Not even as nice as my wall calendar." I didn't argue. Instead, I lowered my voice and whispered mysteriously: "Auntie, Tyler, don't underestimate this painting." "I heard the curator say there's a secret hidden inside." Tyler was instantly interested. "What secret?" I leaned closer, voice even lower. "There are gold threads in the interlayer of the paper." "Tear it open, and it's full of gold." As soon as the words left my mouth, greedy light exploded in Aunt Clara and Tyler's eyes. "Gold? Are you serious?" Aunt Clara's voice pitched up, sharp and ear-piercing. She stared dead at the Spring Mountains. Tyler pulled a switchblade from his pocket. Click. The blade flashed cold light. "Who cares if it's real or fake? Cut it open and see!" He raised the knife and charged at the ancient painting. "No!" My mother screamed, trying to stop him. Too late. RIIIP! Almost simultaneously, piercing alarms rang through the entire gallery. Red warning lights flashed wildly, making Aunt Clara and Tyler's faces look ghastly pale. "What's happening? Why is it ringing?" Aunt Clara was scared out of her wits. Tyler panicked too, dropping the knife with a clatter. Just then, Aunt Clara snapped out of it. She turned and slapped me across the face with all her might. Smack! Pain exploded on my cheek, ears ringing. "Sophie! It was you, you little bitch! You told Tyler to cut it!" She shrieked at the rushing security guards. "Come look! This black-hearted girl wants to frame her own cousin!" Tyler immediately found his scapegoat and pointed at me along with his mother. "Yeah! It was her! Sophie told me to cut it however I wanted!" Security guards quickly surrounded us. Aunt Clara pulled at me, trying to push me forward to take the blame. "Grab her! She did it! It has nothing to do with us!" The gallery doors burst open. My father, David, ran in panting, followed by several police officers. Aunt Clara's eyes lit up. She let go of me and threw herself at my father, pounding his chest and wailing. "David! Look at the good daughter you raised!" "What a vicious heart! She wants Tyler to go to jail!" She cried with tears and snot, her acting impeccable. "If you don't make her kneel and apologize to my Tyler today, I'll die right here in front of you!" Saying that, she actually grabbed the knife and held it to her own neck. My father, honest to a fault, turned pale with fright, his legs going weak. "Sis, don't be impulsive, let's talk..." The scene was chaotic to the extreme. Under everyone's gaze, I took out a second phone. I pressed play. Clear video and audio flowed from the phone. Aunt Clara insulting my mother, Tyler smashing my phone. Their bandit-like behavior, and finally their false accusations... Everything was recorded. The noisy hall fell deathly silent. The knife at Aunt Clara's neck clattered to the floor. I walked up to her step by step, watching her trembling body, and spoke clearly, word by word. "Auntie, I forgot to tell you." "This Spring Mountains painting is a national treasure." "Its base valuation is five hundred thousand dollars." The leading officer walked up to me, expression serious. "Director Sophie, we came as soon as we got the call." "Director... Sophie?" Aunt Clara pointed at me in disbelief, her voice cracking. "What did you call her? She fixes trash! A working girl!" I smiled faintly, pointing at the limp Tyler and Aunt Clara, and said to the police: "Officer, these two are suspected of intentionally damaging precious cultural relics, the amount is exceptionally large." "Also suspected of theft, and intentional injury." "Please, handle this with the utmost severity." Aunt Clara lunged from the ground, pouncing at me to grab the phone. "You little bitch! Give me the evidence!" I dodged sideways, and she slammed heavily onto the floor. In her hand, she was still clutching the stolen snuff bottle. I looked down at her, my tone icy. "Cousin really is precious." "One move of his hand, and it's five hundred grand." 3 Aunt Clara went completely mad, screaming hysterically. "I'm her aunt! She's framing me! You can't arrest me!" Her answer was a click. Cold handcuffs locked onto her wrists. "Sophie Summers, Curator of Grand Era Gallery, National Level 1 Art Restorer." The officer verified my ID. Every word hammered into Aunt Clara's heart. The color drained from her face, and she collapsed. The woman who was throwing a tantrum seconds ago was now muttering blankly. "Impossible... this is impossible..." "A little girl... how can she be the curator..." The shock of reality shattered her mind. Tyler was even more wretched. The moment the handcuffs clicked, a foul stench spread. He had peed his pants in fear. "Not me! It was Sophie! She told me to cut it!" He pointed at me, snot and tears streaming down his face. "Officer, my mom can testify! She instigated me!" This woke Aunt Clara up. She jerked her head up and crawled to my feet. "Sophie! My good niece! Auntie was wrong! Auntie isn't human!" She cried while slapping her own face. "Let your cousin go! He's still a child, he can't go to jail!" "If he goes to jail, his life is ruined!" A security guard nearby couldn't help but mutter, "Still a child? He's twice my size." Aunt Clara glared at him viciously, then immediately switched back to sobbing. "We're family! Flesh and blood! How can you be so cruel!" Family? Laughable. When she pushed my mother down, causing her to bleed, did she mention family? When Tyler stepped on my mother's hand, maliciously grinding it, did she think about flesh and blood? I coldly pushed her hand away and stepped back. "Auntie, it's too late for that." "From the moment you laid hands on my mother, there was nothing left between us but the law." My voice was soft, but it stopped her crying instantly. She looked at me in disbelief, her eyes filled only with venom. "Sophie! You have a cruel heart! You'll get your karma!" My father, David, finally recovered from his immense shock. He looked at his handcuffed sister and nephew. This honest man's face was full of pain. His lips moved, wanting to beg for mercy. "Sophie..." I cut him off directly. "Dad, Mom's head is still bleeding." I helped up my silent, weeping mother. Without another glance at the mother and son, I walked past them. Behind me came Aunt Clara's hysterical curses. "Sophie! You heirless wretch who deserves to die horribly! I won't let you go even as a ghost!" I didn't stop. A ghost? Fine. But before that, you have to survive hell on earth. Dad and I took Mom to the hospital. The doctor said the wound wasn't deep, but she had a mild concussion and needed observation. After settling Mom in, Dad sat by the bed sighing, wanting to speak but afraid to. I knew he wanted to persuade me. Blood is thicker than water; forgive and forget. I didn't give him the chance. A call came in. From the police station. They told me Aunt Clara was throwing a tantrum at the station. Insisting it was a family dispute and demanding a private settlement. She was even calling every relative to cry and complain. Exaggerating how her niece was heartless and cruel. Trying to send her own aunt to jail over a painting. As soon as the call ended, my phone started vibrating wildly. The family group chat exploded. Uncle Bob: [Sophie, your aunt says you're suing her? It's New Year's, don't make it so ugly.] Aunt Helen: [Sophie, Tyler is your cousin. He's immature, just let it go.] [It's just a painting, let them pay for it!] Uncle Mike was the most direct, tagging my dad: [David! Control your daughter! She's shaming the Summers family name!] Dozens of people in the group. Not one asked about my mom's injury. Not one cared about the truth. All lecturing me. These words were like dull knives cutting my father's heart. His lips trembled, wanting to defend me, but he couldn't type a single word. I remained expressionless. Unlocked my phone, found the full surveillance video. And threw it directly into the family group. The video wasn't long, but it recorded all the ugliness. Aunt Clara's tantrum, Tyler smashing the figurine. Aunt Clara throwing money to cut my mom's face, Tyler stepping on my mom's hand. How they smashed my gallery stuff, pushed my mom until she bled. Finally, how they cut the painting in front of me and framed me. In the video, the faces of that mother and son were nauseating. The group chat that was spamming messages a second ago went dead silent. For a full five minutes. Aunt Helen cautiously popped up: [This... how could Clara treat her sister-in-law like that?] Uncle Bob: [Tyler is an animal! Hitting an elder!] The wind changed instantly. The people who were advising me to be generous started condemning Aunt Clara and her son. Uncle Mike: [David, this is Clara's fault. Do what needs to be done, we won't interfere.] Aunt Helen: [Right, who needs relatives like that!] My father looked at the chat history and let out a long sigh. He never mentioned pleading for them again. Clara, Tyler. You will pay the price for what you've done. The next day, my legal team officially stepped in. Intentional destruction of property, theft, intentional injury. Multiple crimes punished together. Tyler faced prison time. Aunt Clara, as an accomplice and instigator, couldn't escape either. The lawyers moved fast, applying for property preservation immediately. The court ruling came down quickly. Aunt Clara's old apartment downtown? Seized. The wedding house she bought for Tyler? Seized. All bank accounts in her name? Frozen. When the news reached the detention center, Aunt Clara went crazy on the spot. She banged her head against the bars, screaming that the house was her life. Cursing me, her niece, for being heartless and trying to kill her. Tyler, hearing this in the interrogation room, completely collapsed. His arrogance was gone. Snot and tears covered his face as he slumped in the chair, shaking like a leaf. To reduce his sentence, he started frantically biting his own mother. "It was all my mom! She made me do it!" "She said Sophie's family is rich, breaking things doesn't matter!" "She said there was gold in the painting and told me to cut it open!" "Officer, I was the one tricked! I'm the victim!" The police relayed the confession verbatim to Aunt Clara. The mother and son who were usually so close turned against each other completely. Aunt Clara couldn't believe it. Her precious son, whom she had pampered for thirty years, sold her out completely to save himself. She cursed in the detention center, calling Tyler an ingrate, a beast she raised in vain. Separated by cold walls, the mother and son tearing at each other became the biggest joke in the detention center. And I watched it all with cold eyes. My father held the materials submitted by the lawyer, looking at the astronomical compensation figure, his hands shaking. "Sophie, do we really... have to go this far?" He was soft-hearted after all. I didn't speak. I just took out a thick stack of IOUs from my bag and slapped them in front of him. "Dad, look at these." Each one was evidence of Aunt Clara borrowing money from us. Game console for Tyler, $500. Sponsorship fee for school, $8,000. Car for him, $15,000. Wedding house, $30,000. Totaling over $80,000. Item by item, page by page, all his soft-heartedness and indulgence. Aunt Clara never intended to pay back this money. Whenever my parents mentioned it, she would throw a tantrum, scolding my dad for not caring about his nephew, calling us rich and heartless. "Dad, have we helped her little over the years?" "She took our kindness for granted, our concessions for weakness." "Today she dared to let Tyler step on Mom's hand. Tomorrow she'll dare to stab us with a knife." "Why should we be soft-hearted to such an ungrateful vampire?" My words, like hammers, struck his heart. He looked at the yellowing IOUs, then turned to look at my mother on the hospital bed, still dizzy and nauseous from the concussion. The hesitation in his eyes was finally replaced by heavy guilt and anger. He picked up the pen and, on another document prepared by the lawyer, solemnly signed his name stroke by stroke. No more hesitation. It was a lawsuit to recover all debts with interest. Old debts should be settled with new hatreds. My mother stayed in the hospital for two weeks. During this time, Aunt Clara and Tyler were formally arrested and transferred to the prosecutor's office. The relatives who had clamored in the group chat disappeared completely. No one dared to visit. Good. Saved my mom the trouble. The day she was discharged, she had lost weight, but her eyes were clearer than ever. She looked out the window for a long time, then suddenly spoke. "Sophie, I used to think taking a step back meant peace in the family." "Now I understand. With some people, the more you retreat, the more they think you're easy to bully."
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