Chapter 2

That evening, at the start of the banquet, my father raised his glass and announced excitedly, “As Whitney is getting married soon, I shall grant all the real estate companies under my name as her bridal gift.”

Whitney’s face lit up instantly.

At that moment, mother said indignantly, “What about Layla? She’s getting married as well.”

My father replied without hesitation, “She’s getting married to Jonathan, so we don’t know if she’ll survive this marriage or not. It would be a waste to give her such valuable gifts.”

Although I already knew my father favored Whitney over me, it still hurt to hear that he didn’t take my life seriously.

When my mother heard this, her eyes welled up with tears. She was prepared to fight back for me, but I tugged her arm and said, “Forget it, Mom. I don’t need anything from them.”

Halfway through the banquet, William arrived in his bespoke suit. In front of everyone, he presented a diamond bracelet to Whitney.

“Whitney, this is a gift to celebrate your recovery.”

Whitney’s eyes lit up when she saw the bracelet, but she pretended to turn down his gift.

“Oh, how could I accept this? It’s too expensive.”

Ignoring her, William wrapped the bracelet around her wrist and said, “To me, nothing’s as precious as you.”

Those with a good eye knew that this was a family heirloom, passed down through generations for their daughters-in-law.

“Only a daughter-in-law of the Crawfords can wear that bracelet. If he has given that to Whitney, what about Layla?”

“Mr. Crawford and Whitney are in love with each other. Now that she’s recovered, it’s only right that it should go to her.”

“Doesn’t that mean he won’t be marrying Layla?”

Unable to bear the discussions of the crowd, I left the banquet on my own and went to the backyard.

To my surprise, Whitney came after me.

Under the pale moonlight, she fiddled with her diamond bracelet while looking at me disdainfully. “In the end, this is still mine. Did you think you could steal it from me while I was sick? Dream on!”

She was wrong. I wanted nothing to do with her.

I just wanted to watch her ruin her life quietly.

“I heard from Dad you’re gonna marry Jonathan Gray? The guy with a violent disposition and who's rumored to be impotent?”

Whitney sighed softly.

“What a shame. I can no longer bully you as I please anymore.”

I didn’t want to waste my time with her anymore, so I turned and prepared to leave.

Without a warning, she grabbed my wrist and leaped into the pool next to us.

“Help! Help!”

Her cries for help quickly attracted everyone’s attention.

William was the first to arrive. He jumped into the pool to drag Whitney to safety.

She was huddled in his arms while complaining, “Layla was upset, so I came to cheer her up, but she pushed me into the water!”

Without giving me a chance to explain, William kicked me into the swimming pool and left with Whitney in his arms.

I flailed around in the water for a while before I managed to climb out of the water.

My father came after hearing the news. He raised his arm and gave me a hard slap. “How cruel can you be? Picking on your own sister like this? Go kneel and repent in the family hall! Anyone who protects you will be punished altogether!”

I placed my hand over my now swollen cheeks and looked at my mother. I shook my head, signalling for her to stay silent.

In the family hall, my mother sobbed silently. “It’s all my fault, Layla. You got dragged into this because your father dislikes me.”

My eyes were red, but I kept my back straight. “If they don’t like me, I won’t like them either.”

Three days later, my mother managed to convince my father to let me out of the house so that she could prepare a bridal gift for me.

At the jewelry store, my mother picked out a pair of pink diamond earrings, which she placed above my earlobes.

“Fortunately, I’ve tucked away some money to be able to afford a bridal gift for you. With this, you won’t be looked down upon when you marry into their family.”

I shook my head and smiled. “I don’t care about these things.”

At that moment, Whitney and William entered the store. She pointed at the pink diamond earrings I was trying on and said, “I want those earrings.”