1 At my elementary school reunion, my old desk mate, whom I hadn’t seen in fifteen years, gripped my hand warmly. “I heard you’re dating someone super rich now, like, the CEO of a publicly traded company?” Out of politeness, I gave a small nod. The moment dinner was served, Ashley suddenly pulled me up. “Everyone, please be our witnesses!” “Evening, you’re about to marry your boyfriend, so when are you moving out of that house of yours?” I simply said, “No rush.” But in the next second, Ashley’s eyes flared. “How can you say ‘no rush’? You’ve been squatting in my house for so many years, and you still refuse to leave?!” My head was full of question marks. Since when did our Norvell family house have anything to do with you? … While planning my engagement party, I got an unexpected call. The person claimed to be an old elementary school classmate and invited me to a tri-annual reunion. Before heading out, I thought it was for the private school my family invested in. But when I arrived, I realized it was the school where I’d only briefly attended for two months in second grade. “Who are you? This is our class reunion. Did you get the wrong place?” Hearing that, I looked up at the banner. It was indeed the school I’d attended. The timing was right too. Before I could even speak, a girl burst out from inside, running and shouting, “I invited her!” “This is Evening Norvell, from our second-grade class! Don’t you remember her?” At Ashley’s reminder, everyone started whispering, but their comments weren’t flattering. “I remember her! The one who always wore flowery dresses, had braids, and got picked up by luxury cars.” “I just remember she acted like she was too good for us.” “More than that! She loved tattling on teachers. I just tugged her braid, and she ran to the teacher to get my parents involved. So petty.” Those voices made me deeply uncomfortable. I just wanted to turn and leave. But Ashley grabbed my hand. “We’re all old classmates, let’s not be so nitpicky, right? It’s rare to get together.” Ashley gave subtle eye signals to the others as she said the last two words. I still didn’t leave, but it wasn’t because of Ashley’s insistent pleas. My driver, who was supposed to pick me up, had a breakdown midway. “Evening, I heard you’re getting married?” Ashley pulled me to a seat with exaggerated enthusiasm. “I heard your fiancé is super rich, the CEO of a publicly traded company.” I just nodded, not saying much. But the other classmates overheard and started constantly raising their glasses to toast me. I knew their actions were simply an attempt to butter me up, to gain some advantage for themselves. Just moments ago, they were sneering; now they’d completely changed their tune. Such is the way of the world. But I despise such people, so I couldn’t be bothered to entertain them. The moment dinner was served, I received a message from my driver. [Miss Norvell, the car is at the hotel entrance.] So I turned to Ashley and said, “I have something to take care of. I’ll be leaving now. You all have fun.” “Don’t rush off, Evening!” Ashley suddenly grabbed my arm, pulling me to my feet. Then she gestured for a classmate who was singing to hand over the microphone. “Everyone, listen to me for a moment!” “First, let’s welcome our long-unseen classmate, Evening Norvell. Even though we were only classmates for two months, we share a deep bond.” “Second, I want you all to witness something for me.” Ashley turned to me. “When are you going to give me back your family’s mansion?” I was speechless, just coldly asking Ashley, “What does my house have to do with you?” I turned to leave, letting Ashley shout my name behind me. But as soon as I reached the door, a group of classmates blocked my way. “Don’t be in such a hurry to leave, Miss Norvell. First, tell us how you’re going to repay the house you owe our class president.” “Anyway, your family’s house must be mine.” “Evening, why don’t you just marry your boyfriend already? Hand over the house sooner. I’m waiting to move in!” I completely ignored these crazed people. If they wouldn’t let me leave, I’d just have my driver come up to get me. Before I left, Ashley blocked me again. “Evening, you’re so rich. Why don’t you just pay for everyone’s tab today? It’s just pocket change for you, and you wouldn’t want everyone to call you cheap, right?” Ashley’s entitled attitude instantly turned me off. I just told her, “I am rich, but I don’t want to spend my money on you.” Ashley and the group of classmates were so loud that I could still hear their shouting even after I got into the elevator. Back home, I mentioned the day’s events to my boyfriend, Leo. He simply advised me to “let sleeping dogs lie.” I thought it was just a brief farce, but the next day, right after I woke up, there was a frantic banging on the door. When I opened it, I was met with Ashley’s eyes. “Finally! I’ve been waiting for you for ten minutes!” Ashley pushed past me, dragging her suitcase inside, constantly looking around. “Evening, I remember your house being quite big. Why does it look so… ordinary now? Is this enough for my family of seven? I still need to decorate a room as a dance studio!” 2 “You’re insane.” I rolled my eyes, pushing her out with a sleepy haze still clinging to me. Then Ashley got frantic. “Evening, how dare you kick me out of my house? You’re the one who should be leaving!” “I’ve been meaning to ask you, how did my house become yours?” Ashley put her hands on her hips, listened, then turned and pulled a piece of paper from her bag. The paper looked old, with crooked writing around the edges, stating: [Evening Norvell’s house is to be given to Ashley.] My signature was underneath. “You promised this yourself back then. You can’t go back on your word now, can you?” I was so infuriated I didn’t know what to say. Not only was this from when I was in second grade, but thinking back now, I remembered exactly what happened that day. When I temporarily transferred in second grade, the other kids came from different backgrounds and had different perspectives than mine, so they weren’t too fond of me. Only Ashley constantly pestered me with questions. This paper was also inexplicably slipped to me after class, with her saying, “Leave me a signature before you transfer. I’ll miss you so much.” Then, after I signed, she laughed loudly. “Evening, your house will be mine now!” I didn’t take it seriously at the time, it didn’t even register in my memory. But I never imagined this had been Ashley’s long-standing obsession. Fifteen years ago, Ashley was mischievous, always up to no good. Fifteen years later, Ashley brandished the slip of paper triumphantly. “If you don’t give me the house, I’ll tell the police, the media. I’m not afraid of embarrassment, but you and your fiancé’s family are.” Ashley let out a few laughs. “You figure it out yourself!” To further threaten me, Ashley showed me her social media account. With 200,000 followers, she was a minor influencer. “To be honest, I’ve already teased this on my live stream. Hundreds of thousands of people are waiting to see what happens next, and many are waiting for a good laugh at the Norvell Group and the Burgi Group.” Looking at the seemingly decent Ashley in front of me, it was hard to imagine the true person underneath. She pressed on, even going into my house and freely rummaging through my belongings. “These clothes are all designer brands! They’d definitely look better on me than on you.” “A whole wine cellar full of such old vintages! Selling them would be a huge profit. Evening, the house, and everything in it, is mine. Do you hear me?” Ashley was unusually excited as she explored my house, while I sat on the sofa, nodding along. “Mmhmm.” The next second, the front door opened. My bodyguards walked in with a team of officers, immediately spotting Ashley rummaging through my things. “Ma’am, you’ve trespassed and committed burglary. Please come with us to the police station.” “Why are you arresting me? How is taking things in my own home burglary? If anyone should be arrested, it’s Evening! She’s squatting in my house and won’t leave…” She maintained this story even after arriving at the police station. But besides her stubbornness and that piece of paper with no legal validity, Ashley had nothing. Unlike me, with connections, resources, and irrefutable proof of ownership in the form of a property deed, Ashley wanted to fight me? Simply impossible. Although Ashley caused me no actual harm, she still earned herself three months in prison. That stack of civil service exam prep books at her house would gather dust. Leo and my engagement party proceeded as planned, at the most luxurious skyscraper in A-City. Promotions had been running city-wide for days, our engagement photos plastered on every commercial screen across A-City. #NorvellGroupAndBurgiGroupAllianceToday #LeoBurgiEveningNorvell These trending topics stayed high on social media. The engagement party was going smoothly, until all the guests arrived, and the trending topics on social media shifted. #NorvellGroupHeiressEveningNorvellDefaultsOnDebtConfrontedAtEngagement “Everyone, don’t be fooled by Evening Norvell. She’s not at all what you see.” Ashley burst onto the stage, megaphone in hand. “The Norvell family is so rich, yet she’s been defaulting on a debt to me for fifteen years. To avoid paying, Evening even schemed to have me locked up by the police!” Ashley truly was a performer. She started crying for the cameras. “How difficult it is for a girl from the slums like me! The only thing that could change my life was this debt, but Evening keeps pushing, does she want to push me to my death?” I, who was just moments ago surrounded by well-wishers, instantly became the target of public scrutiny. Reporters swarmed me, asking blunt, aggressive questions. “Miss Norvell, do you really think power and wealth can solve everything? Do you truly disregard the lives of ordinary people?” Someone even pressed Leo, “Mr. Burgi, are you really going to marry this spoiled heiress, Evening Norvell?” Leo glanced at me, then coldly spoke. “No.” 3 Leo’s answer stunned every guest. What did he mean, “No”? Was Leo not marrying Evening anymore? “While Evening and I were betrothed by our families, I have many requirements for my future wife. The most important is her character.” Leo turned to me. “A spoiled, overbearing temperament like hers? My family, the Burgi, won’t tolerate it.” When the live stream hit the internet, comments were sharply divided. [I thought Evening Norvell was a socialite, but she’s so vicious, won’t even spare an ordinary person.] [Mr. Burgi has such integrity! He should dump a woman like that without hesitation. Such a handsome Mr. Burgi deserves better!] “Leo, are you sure you want to call off our engagement?” “Absolutely.” Leo announced again to the guests and countless viewers, “From this day forward, Leo Burgi and Evening Norvell have no further connection. Whatever outrageous things she does, please do not involve the Burgi family.” Watching Leo lead his entire family away, I hadn’t even had a chance to explain when my mother rushed over and slapped me. “You’re an utter disgrace!” “I don’t owe Ashley anything. Not a single word she said was true.” “Do you think someone as smart as Leo can’t tell truth from lies? If you didn’t do it, why would he break off the engagement with you?” My mother’s face was puffed with anger. “I think we spoiled you too much, that’s why you’re so lawless!” If my father hadn’t held her back, my mother would have continued to scold me publicly. The live stream had been stopped, but the on-site chatter hadn’t. Meanwhile, the instigator, Ashley, was secretly smirking in front of the cameras. When she saw me looking, she immediately lunged forward and knelt at my feet. “Please, Miss Norvell, keep your promise and give me back the house!” “If you promised, you should give it back.” “They’re so rich, a house is like a bottle of water to the Norvells, but it’s her lifeline. Don’t you have any conscience?” The more the surrounding whispers grew, the uglier my mother’s face became. She was about to flare up again, but my sister, Anne Norvell, grabbed her arm. “It’s fine, Mom, don’t be mad at Sis. She’s just being impulsive.” “You two are sisters, Anne is so sensible, but you only cause trouble every day!” My mother stormed off. Only my father remained from the Norvell family, his face grim as he dealt with the media. The public opinion was already ignited, and I couldn’t quell it quickly. Just like if I told the world that Ashley was pressuring me for a house with a legally invalid paper from second grade, not a single person online would believe me. The night the engagement ended, Anne, on behalf of the Norvell family, transferred the property deed to Ashley’s name. I had no choice but to move out that night. But I had moved there to live alone because of disagreements with my family. Now that Ashley and her family of seven had taken over, and my other properties were frozen by my mother, I could only return to the old family estate. The moment I dragged my suitcase through the door, I heard my mother’s voice. “Marcy, close the door. Don’t let any riff-raff sneak into the house.” I watched as the front door closed in front of me. As I turned and walked onto the main road, a black sports car pulled up. Ethan Brown rolled down the window. “Hop in, Miss Norvell. I’ll give you a ride.” Twenty years ago, my family wasn’t as well-off as it is now. Although my grandfather’s side had been wealthy for generations, they favored my uncle, which left my father to build his wealth from scratch with my mother after they married. When I was young, nannies raised me. My parents were always out entertaining clients and working late. They built their empire, but completely missed my childhood. In contrast, my sister, Anne, was born when the company earned its first fortune, so Anne was seen as their “lucky star” from birth. My parents always said, “We’ve already missed one daughter’s growth; we can’t miss a second.” So they took Anne everywhere. Anne was their darling daughter. I only returned to their side when I was twelve, and we were very distant. They favored Anne, prioritizing her in everything. After they scolded me countless times for Anne’s mistakes, I moved out. Three years passed before we saw each other again, for my engagement to Leo, but it ended badly.
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