Chapter 2

I was at my wits' end as I pleaded, "Nora, I'm telling the truth; I'm not lying to you! Lillian really was in a car accident. Right now, you're the only person I can borrow money from for that life-saving injection!"

Nora sneered, "Who would believe your nonsense? What do you need money for? To go fool around? There's no way I'm letting you cheat on my friend either! Scram!" Right after saying that, she hung up on me.

I was so anxious that I could only pace in circles. Ever since I married Elena, she had demanded that I quit my job to take care of the household full-time, so I barely had any savings of my own over the years.

Furthermore, she would only give me a small sum of money for household expenses. Consequently, my former friends had all gradually drifted away.

Whenever I mentioned wanting to go out and meet up with them, Elena would always look at me with utter disdain. "What's the point of seeing those shady friends of yours?" she mocked.

Gradually, I stopped going out altogether.

I had no choice but to call Elena's uncle, Gabriel, again. "Gabriel, can you lend me some money? The injection that can save Lillian's life costs ten grand per shot. Please—"

"Enough is enough, Tristan! What could possibly happen to my sister? I didn't give you an earful earlier because someone else was listening, and I was letting you keep your dignity. But now, you're really pushing it!

"Listen here, if you curse my sister again, I'll ask Elena to divorce you!" The call was disconnected, and I sank to the floor of the hospital corridor.

The doctor came out and asked me, "Well? Have you gotten in touch with the patient's family?"

I shook my head. My eyes were filled with utter despair.

The doctor's brows knitted together. "In any case, you need to hurry. Your mother-in-law's condition isn't looking good."

I nodded and gritted my teeth as I rose to my feet. "I'll make a trip home, Doctor. Please wait for me. I'm going to get the money!"

I went downstairs, took a cab home, and rummaged through my vanity cabinet until I found a gold chain and a gold ring. Elena had given me these a long time ago.

I had never had the heart to wear them, so I had put them all away. Who would have thought they would come in handy at a time like this?

I hurried to a gold shop, intending to pawn the two items. To my surprise, I ran into Nora there.

Her brows drew together as she gazed at me. "What are you doing here?"

Her eyes were full of mockery. "Just a moment ago, you told me you were broke and needed a loan, yet now you're shopping at a gold shop? Does a single honest word ever come out of your mouth, Tristan? Tell me, who did you scam to get the money to come here?"

Ignoring her, I went straight to the counter and fished out my two accessories. "Please, pawn these for me now. I need the money urgently!"

The clerk nodded and was just about to take my accessories when Nora stopped them. "Hold on, who gave you permission to pawn these? Have you informed Elena? I bet you're planning to use the money to support a mistress!"

I couldn't take it anymore. "Get the hell away from me, Nora! Do you know that it's your fault my mother-in-law is in danger? Get lost!"

Nora seemed startled by the state I was in. She froze and fell silent.

The clerk looked back and forth between the two of us, appearing a bit hesitant. "Do you still want to pawn these accessories or not?"

I swiftly nodded. "Yes, I do. Please pawn them for me right now!"

So, she nodded, weighed the items, and placed them into a container to melt them down. However, the chain and the ring actually separated, revealing the silver underneath.

Holding my gaze, the clerk explained, "These aren't solid gold. They're gold-plated silver. There are only a few grams of actual gold."