Filed To Story: Returning to Her Not-So-Poor Family
“Martha, over these past eighteen years, the total worth of the gifts I’ve received is not a paltry sum.”
“Serena, have you been brainwashed by sorneone again? You mustn’t believe their nonsense. You’re just a foster daughter now, an outsider to the Collins family. Of course they’ll want to fob you off with as little money as possible”
Serena was firm, “I believe Uncle Sampson doesn’t think like that.”
“Was it your uncle who brainwashed you?” Martha knew she shouldn’t have let Serena go out alone.
She was too innocent, too susceptible to manipulation.
“Martha, I think Uncle Sampson’s right. Mirabella suffered for eighteen years growing up in the Melton family. It’s only natural that everyone wants to make it up to her now that she’s back with her biological parents”
“You’re sympathizing with her now?” Martha was frustrated. She hadn’t expected Sampson to change Serena’s mind so easily with just a few words.
“She’s part of this family. She didn’t kick me out the moment she came back, but let me stay, enjoying the wealth and luxury that should have been hers. It’s like she’s sharing her fortune and her family with me.”
“Foolish girl, this is not sharing. You’ve been with the family for eighteen years. They’re willing to pay for this bond. The gifts they give, the care they show, have nothing to do with Mirabella. It’s due to the bond formed over these eighteen years that they’re willing to do this for you.”
“But Martha, she was switched at birth. The family feels guilty about her. If she asked to get rid of me using this quilt, there’s a high chance the family would agree.””Sweetheart, even if they let you leave, they would still worry about you. They would still take care of you in their own ways. Do you know why? Because for the past eighteen years, they’ve loved you like their own daughter!
This bond, formed over eighteen years, can’t be severed just because Mirabella says so.”
Serena lowered her head, remaining silent for a while before speaking, “But Martha, I still think Uncle Sampson makes sense.”
Her parents still treated her as their daughter, throwing her grand feasts.
Her brothers still treated her as their sister, gifting her things she liked.
And Uncle Sampson wasn’t biased. The worth of his gift was the same as previous years.
Serena put herself in Mirabella’s shoes, “If I were her, I couldn’t be as magnanimous as she is, allowing me to stay and share her status, wealth and family. She’s already very generous.”
“Oh dear.” Hearing Serena say this, Martha sighed heavily, “When you’re bullied by Mirabella again, you’ll understand that I’m looking out for you.”
“Martha, she also gave me a gift.”
“What?” Martha was taken aback.
“She gave me a Christmas gift. It’s a calligraphy piece.” Serena described the scene as it happened.
Upon hearing what Mirabella had written, Martha scoffed, ‘She’s warning you not to be too greedy. I knew she was up to no good. She’s trying to win over the family by giving you a gift, while subtly implying something else.”“But she’s Labella after all. Each of her characters is worth a fortune. What I gave her in return was just a cheap bracelet.”
Normally, Serena would disdain such a bracelet, but Mirabella didn’t mind. She even reciprocated with a valuable gift.
If they could be real sisters, that wouldn’t be so bad.
“it was just a thought.” Serena knew Mirabella wouldn’t be friends with anyone.
In her eyes, it seemed that there was only room for ambition.
Martha wasn’t quite sure what to say, it took her a moment to finally ask, “So, what did Mr. McMillian gift Mirabella? Did you hear anything?”
Serena truthfully replied, “He used a swarm of drones to confess his love to her, even orchestrated a light show on all of McMillian Corporation’s skyscrapers in Lidaria. Word is there were fields of flowers too.”
Some resort guests saw it, even took pictures, and posted them online.
Although the couple were too far away to see clearly, the woman’s outfit was identical to what Mirabella wore that day.
The silhouette, the aura, it was undoubtedly Mirabella.
“And what about Mr. Martin? What did he gift you?” Martha couldn’t help but inquire.
“He gave me a ring on Christmas Eve, and a necklace for Christmas.”
“Are they expensive?”
“Both combined, probably around $200,000.”
Martha breathed a sigh of relief, at least it was more valuable than what Romeo prepared for Mirabella.
That light show was merely a waste of electricity.
Those flowers were just some worthless blooms.”It seems like Mr. McMillian is losing interest in her, putting up a show but not willing to actually spend money.”
Upon hearing this, Serena was somewhat surprised, “Really? I thought Romeo seemed pretty smitten with her.”
“Is Romeo short of cash?”
“No.”
“Then why didn’t he buy a priceless ring or necklace for Mirabella? If he’s so smitten, why is he reluctant to spend money?”
“But girls find these surprises romantic.”
On the contrary, Serena felt Martin was too rigid, didn’t know how to be romantic. The designs of his gifts weren’t as appealing as the ones her brothers gave her.
And he just handed them over, without any element of surprise.
“By the way, there’s a significant decrease in online posts and videos about ‘Sampson taking his girlfriend shopping’. Unless you specifically search for it, there are no related topics popping up. I guess your uncle used his connections to suppress the hype. He probably didn’t want you to see it, I bet he’s feeling guilty”
Martha couldn’t help but add fuel to the fire, “If you ask me, he’s just being unfair, buying all those things for Mirabella. I heard that in about ten hours, a plane will land directly at Reflections Villa. It’s filled with gifts your uncle bought for Mirabella, and they even told us to bring more people to unload, claiming there’s plenty of stuff.”Serena’s response was much more subdued, “Well, I did see a comment or two from mall employees saying that it was Mirabella who bought lots of QY items for my uncle, and he was merely reciprocating.
Their familial relationship was also clarified, leaving the only trolls with no ammunition, which is probably why the hype slowly died down.”
Martha noticed that Serena was consistently defending Mirabella tonight, which made her anxious.
She thought, “This naive girl is brainwashed and she doesn’t even realize!”
She had worked hard to steer the child on the right path, only for the manipulative Collins family to lead her astray again!
At that moment, Serena heard a commotion downstairs, followed by someone rushing up to knock on her door.
“Serena, Serena, are you resting? Your grandma is awake!”
Upon hearing this, Serena quickly bid Martha goodbye, hung up the phone, and rushed downstairs.
At the same time, upon receiving news of her grandmother’s awakening, Mirabella immediately rushed back to the villa.
“Once Grandma’s condition stabilizes a bit, I’ll go visit her.” Romeo patted Mirabella’s head, already feeling contented.
Tonight, Mirabella had spent an entire hour with him.
Much more than he had anticipated.
With her grandmother’s current condition, Mirabella’s presence was needed, for they still needed to recognize each other.
Romeo knew his presence was not well-suited for the moment.
“I’ll head in first then? Mirabella nodded, turning towards the villa.
Romeo watched her silhouette disappear into the house before pulling out his cell phone to reply to his brothers’ messages.
Old Mrs. Griffith on the sickbed was emotionally stirred, several times opening her mouth to speak, only to be too overcome to utter a word. Her hand was trembling, as if trying to grasp onto something.
“Mom, I know what you’re trying to say. Just take a moment to calm down, take it easy.” Louisa, holding her mother’s hand, urged anxiously. “Just relax.”
“Yeah, Grandma, take it easy. Don’t rush.’ Serena chimed in.
Old Mrs. Griffith looked around the room filled with her family: her daughter and son-in-law, her son, her grandchildren, and her most cherished granddaughter Serena, whom she had adored for eighteen years.
Tears welled up in her eyes and flowed down silently.
“Mom, why are you crying?” Kenneth quickly reached for a tissue to wipe her tears. “Are you feeling unwell?”
Old Mrs. Griffith gazed at Serena with tear-filled eyes, keeping her thoughts to herself.
Serena, too, was on the verge of tears. She knew her grandmother loved her the most. Among her five brothers, she was the one mast pampered.When she was a child, if her brothers misbehaved, their grandmother would scold them. But when Serena made a mess, her grandmother would only laugh heartily.
Rumor had it, her mother had already told her grandmother the truth.
Were her grandmother’s tears regret for the eighteen years of love she had given her, or were they because she couldn’t bear to part with her beloved granddaughter?
Perhaps due to the emotional upheaval, Old Mrs. Griffith suddenly found herself gasping for breath.
Her panting was heavy and exaggerated, like a fish out of water.
“Mom, what’s wrong? Mom.” Louisa was immediately thrown into a panic.
“Quick, get the nurse.”
As soon as Sampson finished speaking, May piped up, “The nurse went to take a shower. I told her I could keep an eye on things here. I didn’t expect the Lady to wake up all of a sudden”
May regretted her words as soon as they left her mouth.