Chapter 1: The Secret of One's Origin

In the pitch-black room, not even a hand could be seen in front of one's face—

Feeling as if she were floating and sinking, drowsiness overcame her. Her eyelids felt as heavy as lead, refusing to open no matter how hard she tried—

"No! No! Don't do this!"

A sharp, hoarse voice suddenly pierced the silence of the room. Anastasia Hansom jolted awake from her nightmare, sitting up abruptly.

It had been nine months since that fateful night, yet she still found herself reliving the scene in her dreams from time to time.

The man in her dream was always faceless; all Anastasia Hansom remembered was a jade pendant hanging around his neck, which occasionally brushed against her cheek, sending chills down her spine.

Yes, nine months ago, at a banquet, she was forcibly taken by an unknown man and ended up pregnant.

She had wanted to terminate the pregnancy, but her usually strict mother, uncharacteristically, insisted she keep the child, citing the significant harm an abortion could cause to her body. Her mother also suggested that after the baby was born, they could claim it was adopted, thus preserving Anastasia Hansom's reputation.

As a result, her mother arranged for her to stay in a secluded villa on the outskirts, where she rarely saw anyone, including medical professionals.

However, Anastasia Hansom had recently been feeling unwell and, worried, decided to go to the hospital. She grabbed her bag and headed to the garage, only to realize she had forgotten her phone. Reluctantly, she returned to the house.

Just as she stepped through the door, she noticed a car from the Su family parked in the courtyard.

Surprised and pleased, she was about to enter when she heard her sister, Camille Hansom, speaking with a harsh and disdainful tone: "Mom, why did you drag me here all of a sudden! I feel sick just seeing that slut! If it weren't for the health of the child in her belly, I wouldn't bother coming here at all!"

Anastasia Hansom froze, as if struck by lightning.

"Enough, don't get angry. Once she gives birth, we won't have to put on this act anymore," came her mother's voice.

Camille Hansom's tone softened slightly, "Hmph, she better pray that the child in her belly can save Young Master Qin. Otherwise, neither she nor that bastard child will live to see another day!"

"The Qin family is pressing us. Young Master Qin's condition cannot wait. I've already sent the bodyguards to bring a midwife from the countryside. We'll give her some labor-inducing drugs to speed up the delivery. I'll take the child to the Qin family to save him, and you find a way to send her to the countryside to fend for herself. If anyone asks, just say she eloped with someone. Got it?" her mother instructed methodically.

Camille Hansom replied, "Got it! Got it! But what if the child can't save Young Master Qin? What then?"

Her mother said confidently, "Don't worry about that. If Young Master Qin recovers, I'll say the child is yours, and you can marry into the Qin family with honor. If it fails, the Qin family has promised to give us a sum of money. We'll say the child is that slut Anastasia Hansom's, and you can choose another wealthy family to marry into. It won't affect anything."

"Mom, you're so smart!" Camille Hansom praised.

"Of course, we've raised her for so long. This is her way of repaying us. A child of a rapist, calling us Mom and Dad for all these years, shouldn't she make some contribution to our Su family?"

"Mom, will Dad be angry about this?" Camille Hansom asked again.

"Why would he be angry? After he divorced that deadbeat's mother, she refused to remarry and kept bothering your father. I had no choice but to have someone force her. Who knew she was so weak, giving birth to Anastasia Hansom and then killing herself! Your father and I didn't have any children back then, so we adopted her. After all these years, any guilt your father felt over the divorce is long gone. Why should he be angry now?"

Standing outside, Anastasia Hansom heard every word, feeling as if she had fallen into an ice cellar, unable to control her shivering.

So, this was the truth!