Chapter 4

"I'm warning you, Rosalyn—you'd better hand over that money if you know what's good for you; otherwise, I won't hold back!" Phoebe began to lash out with desperate threats.

"Do you really have no idea what's happening here? You clearly know that the Sherwoods are already deeply involved in illegal money laundering! You ought to know that money laundering is a felony! You'd better give me those lottery tickets if you don't want Mom and Dad to go to prison!"

I distinctly noticed Mom and Dad, who had just approached from behind, turned pale the moment the phrase "money laundering" rang out. Dad's expression shifted from shock to anger, while Mom looked entirely bewildered and frightened. They honestly seemed to have no idea what was happening.

There was someone else who reacted even more strongly than they did, though. Liam, who usually remained completely unbothered no matter what happened, shuddered uncontrollably at the mention of money laundering. He tried to hide it, but that split second had already completely given him away.

Liam was involved in this. I had the confirmation I needed.

"You can let her in," I said to the guard.

Phoebe was led into the living room. She wore a smug smile, believing that I had backed down. "At least you know what's good for you."

Dad tried to speak several times, but I looked at him and stopped him every time.

"Do you have any evidence to prove that my family is involved in money laundering?" I asked.

"You want evidence? I'm the evidence!" Phoebe puffed out her chest.

"I'm the rightful heiress of the Sherwood family! I've been reborn! It was precisely because of this that the Sherwood family got investigated and ruined for good! I'm doing this for your own good, so as long as you give the money to me, I'll act as if I know nothing about it!"

I nodded and turned to Liam. "You heard everything, didn't you, Liam?"

Liam clearly didn't expect me to call him out at that moment. He had turned utterly pale, but he still managed to maintain a facade of composure and flashed his signature smile. "I-I didn't catch any of that, Ms. Rosalyn…"

I stood up and walked toward him step by step. "What do you think after hearing all that, Liam?"

Liam's expression shifted uncomfortably. "I shouldn't be hearing any of this. I'll take my leave now, Ms. Rosalyn."

I ordered coldly, "Get him."

In that instant, two of the guards stepped forward, pinning Liam down. He struggled violently as the panic set in, yelling at Mom and Dad. "You can't do this to me, Mr. and Mrs. Sherwood! You ought to know that everyone will go down once this goes public!"

There was a hint of hesitation on Mom's and Dad's faces.

Phoebe gained confidence from their reaction. "You're all done for if this leaks, Rosalyn! I'm the actual heiress of the Sherwood family, and you're nothing but an imposter!"

I ignored her shouting and just pulled out a stack of documents, slamming them down hard on the coffee table. It contained accounts, bank statements, information on Liam's contacts, and several winning lottery tickets.

Phoebe's eyes widened the moment she saw the lottery tickets, while Liam's expression was initially fraught with confusion.

"You're very familiar with these lottery tickets, aren't you, Liam?"

Liam's expression stiffened after hearing that. "Aren't these the lottery tickets the Sherwood family won recently, Ms. Rosalyn?"

In my past life, after the Sherwood family collapsed, I secretly liquidated some of the transferred assets and used the proceeds to purchase winning lottery tickets as a way to launder the money.

In this life, while Liam was away for a few days, I bribed some of his associates in advance to mislead him and subtly suggest the same laundering scheme. Desperate for a solution, he was bound to take the bait—and in doing so, provide me with all the evidence I needed.

"Is all this evidence—the past financial statements, the accounts, and the records of you buying winning tickets from those people—enough to get some honesty out of you, Liam?"

Liam instantly deflated and sank limply to the ground the moment he saw those documents, while Phoebe was completely bewildered.