In the beginning when Chen Family accepted Eva, Lillian thought about visiting her birth family.
But Eva, wearing her usual pitiful expression, had spoken up with a trembling voice. "Lillian, I... I don't think you should visit the Lu Family."
Her words drew the attention of those in the room. Eva hesitated, as though battling guilt. "I know I shouldn't say this. They raised me, and I should be grateful... But I can't just stand by and watch someone walk into a pit."
Concerned, Mary instinctively placed her hand around her daughter's shoulder. The atmosphere in the room shifted, and the Chen Family showed a hostile, wary filled expression.
"Did they treat you badly?" Mary asked, her voice careful but tense.
Eva shook her head.
"No, they were nice to me, really nice," she added, almost as if trying to convince herself.
Then, after a beat, compelled by the worried gazes on her, she garnered her courage and quietly admitted, "It's just that my mother was biased a lot growing up. She preferred my brothers over me, but it must be because I was useless and couldn't fit in."
Tears welled up in her eyes.
Mary wiped them away gently. Her heart ached. "No, my dear, it can never be your fault. It is just that they were blind and couldn't recognize the pearl."
Eva's eyes then locked on Lillian. "I know you must be yearning for your real family, but Lillian, please don't. Once you show affection to them, they will try to take advantage of you. If they can't, they will hurt you.
Her voice held a hint of vulnerability in it as she continued, "My mother... I don't know what kind of business she does. But she always brings over strange, scary men over at home. She always dresses up and visits the clubs as well.
I don't dare to approach my brothers. All of them have gotten in trouble with the law and asked me to help them many times. If I don't cover for them, then..."
Eva tightly clutched on to her sleeves, shuddering as if she thought of something frightening.
"Did those bastards abuse you?" Alex raised his voice in fury, clenching his hand into a tight fist.
"They were good to me. Forget about it," Eva muttered as if backpedalling. "But Lillian, you don't know how dirty the society can be. Please listen to my words, and don't go back."
As a trail of tear travelled down her cheek, Mary's heart broke at her daughter's appearance. She tightly hugged her and cried, "My daughter, you are my flesh and blood. I endured ten months of pregnancy to give birth to you. How can you suffer through this? I must have committed great sins in my past life, and that's why, God must be punishing you."
Alex's heavy punch fell on the wall. "How dare those bastards touch my sister? I will destroy them."
Eva's hands instantly extended forward, grabbing on to Alex. Horror crossed through her face. "No, you mustn't. Please, I don't want you to put yourself in danger because of me. They have connections with the Underworld."
Jason's jaw tightened, and a frown etched on his face. "No matter how powerful they claim to be, it is easy for us Chen Family to crush them like ants. There is nothing for you to be afraid of."
"I thought about rewarding them for taking care of Eva for so long, but now, it seems there is no use for it," Henry Chen announced, "No one in this family is to visit them or else you will be disowned."
Henry's eyes then narrowed at Lillian. "Got it?"
Lillian hesitated for a second, feeling a flicker of conflict.
His gaze hardened.
She immediately nodded. "Understood, Dad."
"But aren't they abusive and dangerous?" Sophie's voice brought her out of her thoughts.
That is what Lillian thought in her last life. However, in the end, they were the ones who collected her corpse.
"Then again, if that little bitch hates them, they should be righteous people. After all, she isn't kind enough to want well for you," Sophie followed up her statement.
Lillian smiled. "You are smart."
Sophie wrinkled her nose. "Of course I am."
Then her expression grew a little more serious. "But what if they don't want you back? They never came looking for you, you know."
Then, placing her hand on Lillian's shoulder, she assured, "No matter what, my brothers and I will always have a place for you in our den."
"They probably thought I was living a good life in Chen Family," responded Lillian calmly. "The Chens are one of the most prominent family in the country. The position as their biological daughter brings a lot of envy."
"What dogshit!" cursed Sophie. "It's only because they don't know how hypocritical and deceitful those motherfuckers are."
Although Sophie was the legitimate daughter of the Wang Family, she barely enjoyed the associated privileges. Her birth mother passed away early, and soon enough, his father welcomed another woman.
The woman's daughter was presented to the media as her father's step-daughter, but Sophie knew they shared blood connection, meaning her father kept the woman as his mistress for years.
Unfavoured at home, Sophie's rebellious personality burst out, and she contradicted her father at every turn. Because she grew up roaming around the streets, she resembled more like a gangster than a elegant daughter of wealthy family.
She had the mouth of a sailor, smoked and drank to her desire, and played around with the wrong crowd.
This gave Chen Family enough reasons to disapprove her friendship with Sophie. But if there was one smart decision Lillian had made in her previous life, it was holding onto that bond.
The car then halted in front of a run down warehouse- the so-called den her friend took pride in. Sophie hopped down from the car first confidently, and Lillian followed, heels clicking softly on the cracked pavement.
In the beginning, she found the area sketchy. The peeling walls, dim lighting, and rough-looking guys lounging outside gave her enough reasons to be wary. She warned Sophie many times, even offered to make proper arrangements for her.
But according to Sophie, she smiled and expressed, "I feel right at home here than a gold gilded prison."
Sophie entered the warehouse and flipped on the light switch. The hum of fluorescent bulbs buzzed above as she clapped her hands. "Gather up, boys!"
The sound of shoes echoed as a group of young men—tattooed, rough, and muscular—assembled quickly. They stared at Lillian, curiosity painted across their faces.
"Boss, you brought back a beauty this time," one of them commented with a grin.
Sophie's expression hardened, moving forward to stand in front of her and kicked him squarely on the knee. After that, she sternly stared at them and warned, "Put away your dirty thoughts. This is Lillian, my baby. You are going to treat her like how you see me and protect her, alright?"
The boys straightened up instantly and nodded respectfully.
"Don't worry, Boss. We will take good care of her!"
"Yeah, you can trust us!"
Lillian knew of their loyalty to Sophie. However, although she couldn't uncover the entire truth behind her death in her previous life, she understood traitors lurked beneath the surface.
Lillian's eyes darkened.
All she had to do was weed them out.