Raise the Fake, Reward the Real

We have weird rules set in place in this home.

1. Ethan's opinion is the one that matters the most in all events.

2. If Matthew has any objections, please refer to the first rule.

Ethan Moreno is the real heir who has been reunited with the family. I am Matthew Moreno, the fake heir.

My adoptive parents claim that they've set up these rules because they are worried that Ethan might not feel at ease when he's home.

That's why when Ethan asks to move into my room, I let him have it.

When he demands that I give him my scholarship, I give it to him obediently.

When he tells me he wants to marry my fiancee, Holly Nottings, I agree to it.

Even when Ethan plans on using our family's account to donate ten million dollars to a university in exchange for an exchange student slot, I agree to let him have his way as well.

After all, when I refused to give Ethan what he wanted in my previous life, he threatened to commit suicide after he got his sorry ass dumped by Holly.

When my adoptive parents found out about it, they strung me up and had me whipped for three days and nights.

By the time I was released, I was already reduced to a shriveled-up corpse.

When I open my eyes once again, I hear my adoptive father claiming that he'll wire ten million dollars from the family account to Ethan.

"Fine. I'll transfer the money right now," I said.

My adoptive parents, Frank Moreno and Nadia Westerson, were stunned as they watched me pull out my phone and transfer the money to them.

"You're actually doing it?" they asked.

It was obvious that their question was meant to test me.

My chest ached. I had so many words stuck in my throat. Just breathing made my heart squeeze painfully.

Frank thought I was mocking them and roared, "That's a shared bank account, Matthew! You're just taking care of it for the time being. Don't forget your place!"

Of course, I could never forget my place.

I was just the fake heir of the Moreno family, whom they picked up off the streets, while Ethan Moreno was the true heir.

Frank and Nadia even set down a few house rules just to make Ethan happy.

The first rule was that everything had to revolve around Ethan. The second rule was that if I had any objections, we were to refer to the first rule.

Due to these rules, I was forced to give my room, my scholarship, and even my fiancee, who I had been engaged to since we were children, to Ethan.

However, in my past life, when Ethan wanted to use my money to further his studies, I rejected him. I knew that instead of using the money to further his studies as he claimed, he would just use it to gamble.

Ethan didn't say anything about my rejection at first, but when his fiancee called off the engagement, he started threatening to end his own life.

To appease him, Frank and Nadia strung me up and beat me for three days and three nights. The blood that flowed from my body soaked through three carpets. When they finally released me, all the blood in my body had been completely drained.

I was determined to avoid such a fate in this life.

I hastily transferred the money.

Ethan grinned from ear to ear when he got the notification that he had just received ten million dollars in his account.

I returned to my room and dialed a number, asking the other person on the line to investigate my background.

In my past life, I thought I saw a middle-aged couple burst into the room before I took my last breath. I couldn't be sure that they were my biological parents, but I couldn't give up on any chances.

Ethan suddenly threw my door open right after I hung up. "What are you doing?" he asked.

I calmly showed him my phone, saying, "The boss of Crown Bar asked me to pick up a shift tonight. I earn 5,000 dollars in a single night. I'll have more money to give you then."

Frank nodded, looking pleased. "You're getting more mature, Matt."

Ethan was momentarily stunned at the mention of Crown Bar. He immediately grew jealous when he heard Frank praise me, saying, "I haven't earned any money for the family. Why don't you bring me along to your part-time job, Matt?"

Frank frowned and exclaimed, "No! A bar is too dangerous."

He then turned to me and began berating me, "You can hang around in a degenerate place like a bar if you want, Matt, but don't drag Ethan into this. He's the heir of the Moreno family. He doesn't share the same lowly genes that you have.

"Don't think that we'll fall at your feet in gratitude just because you're earning some money for us. It's your duty. You enjoyed being the heir of the Moreno family for the last two decades while Ethan faced terrible hardship. It's only right that you repay him for the time that you stole from him."

Frank even tried to beat me in his fit of anger.

It seemed that he had forgotten that I never dared to use any expensive products because I knew that I was adopted since I was a child.

I never needed any material things. I only wanted their love. Having their love was more than enough to satisfy me. If they withheld their love from me, I would simply wait in a place where they could see me until they noticed me.

It was why Frank's words made me feel as if my heart had been tossed into a blazing fire before being scooped out and thrown into an ice cave.

My body trembled as I forced myself to hide how upset I was. "Didn't you tell me to listen to everything that Ethan said, Dad? Also, I truly just want Ethan to have an easier time when he moves abroad."

Frank glared at me. "That had better be your true intention! Don't you have a part-time job to go to? Get out of here!"

I lowered my head and wiped the tears from my eyes before hurrying out of the room.

I noticed Ethan's smug expression right before closing the door behind me.