In my previous life, I took the blame for the false son of the Stafford family and was sentenced to five years in prison.

On the day I left jail, my family threw a grand birthday party for Charles. My only birthday present was the removal of my clothes and being frozen to death in the snow.

When I opened my eyes, I was once again five years old. My parents stood before me, ready to take me home from the orphanage.

My older sister, Juliet Stafford, rushed out from nowhere and blocked the door. She pointed at me—a boy dressed in rags—and shouted, "Dad, Mom! Leave him here, or he'll ruin everything!"

Her emotional reaction was different from the one I saw in my previous life. That was when I realized she had been reborn too.

After our parents left in disappointment, Juliet walked up to me and forced a piece of candy into my palm.

Then she threatened, "Remember this. Chuck is the only son of the Stafford family. A curse like you is not welcome in our home."

The Perkins Family

I clenched the candy in my hand, my nails digging into my palm.

In the past, my only use to her was to shield the Stafford family from disaster and take the blame for Charles whenever he got into trouble.

Now that we had both been reborn, if she believed I would only stain the family's reputation, then as the unwanted one, I would stay far away from them, just as she wished.

I forced a smile, but tears betrayed my body and fell down my cheeks.

I wiped my tears and told myself, 'You're no longer Miles Stafford. You're your own person.'

After that, I settled myself in a corner.

Before long, a black sedan pulled up at the gate.

The head, Alex Brabson, escorted an elegant elderly woman inside.

The sight of her stirred the other children. They swarmed her in excitement, trying to win her favor by showing off.

"Good day to you, Madam!"

"Madam, do you want to hear me sing?"

"Madam, look at my drawing!"

Meanwhile, I stayed in the corner quietly, unbothered by the commotion.

The elderly lady noticed me.

Clutching her cane, she walked past the crowd and came straight toward me.

"Little one, why are you sitting alone in the corner? Did your peers cast you out?" she asked with concern.

I shook my head and looked up at her, handing her the candy warmed by my palm. "Madam, here's a candy for you."

I calmly offered her the candy, trying to move her with maturity beyond a five-year-old.

My gesture took her off guard.

She took the candy, unwrapped it, and tasted it. A gentle smile appeared on her lips as she hummed. "It's sweet."

She cast me a thoughtful look before asking, "What's your name?"

"Mr. Brabson calls me Miles."

"Miles…" She repeated the name, then nodded. "Would you like to go home with me? I'd love a grandson like you."

Her words instantly plunged our surroundings into silence.

The other children's envious gaze fell on me.

"Yes!" I nodded eagerly, never once hesitating.

Her chuckle boomed above my head. "That's great to hear. From today on, your name will be Sage Perkins."

Her warm and dry hand found mine. "I wish you wisdom and good judgment. May you become a just and righteous man."

She had high regard for me.

She was none other than Astrea Perkins, a titan of the legal world and the former Chief Justice of the High Court.

I reached out and tightened my grip around her hand.

And just like that, she took me in as the grandson of the Perkins family.

Astrea treasured me as her beloved. She explained the legal theory and logic to me and took me to the trials. It broadened my horizon.

My uncles and aunts were elites from the legal sector. Despite their busy schedule, they always visited with law books and casebooks. They genuinely cared for me.

Still, my older sister, Sylvia, who was ten years apart, had to be the person who spoiled me the most.

At our first meeting, she removed her glasses. A gentle smile appeared on her innocent face.

"Nobody should ever lay a finger on my little brother." That became her motto.

I grew up surrounded by love. I seldom thought about the events of my previous life anymore.

I studied hard, always coming out on top in exams, and brought home the prizes from various moot court competitions.

Twenty years later, I became the youngest and most renowned prosecutor in the country.

An Unexpected Reunion

I had been living my life to the fullest. I firmly believed I would never see a Stafford in my life again.

One day, Dakota, my assistant, knocked on my door. "Mr. Perkins, a client named Juliet Stafford is here to see you. She wants to hire you as a consultant for a business fraud case involving their company."

My heart couldn't help but ache at the mention of her name.

Taking a deep breath to calm myself, I casually replied, "Show her in."

At that, a tall and lean woman in an expensive suit entered my office.

The years had sharpened her features. Her face now carried an air of elegance and confidence.

She stopped short in her tracks when she recognized me. Shock and disbelief were written all over her face.

Clearly, she could not believe that the rising star she had tried so hard to contact was the same person she had abandoned twenty years ago.

After a long pause, she finally managed to ask, obvious doubt in her voice, "Are you Mr. Sage Perkins?"

I nodded. "Take a seat, Ms. Stafford. I think you've mistaken. I'm a prosecutor. I don't serve private interests."

As though she didn't hear me, she threw me a judging look. "Are you really a prosecutor? How confident are you about winning the case?"

She did not even bother hiding her doubt in my professionalism.

Having had enough of her arrogance, Dakota defended me. "Ms. Stafford, Mr. Perkins is one of the top prosecutors in the field. If you could stop wasting his time—"

Keeping my gaze on Juliet, I curled my lips into a faint smile. "It seems that Ms. Stafford has no confidence in my competence. In that case, I believe our meeting is over. Dakota, please see her out."

A shadow immediately darkened Juliet's face.

Gritting her teeth, she refrained from adding anything. She stormed out and slammed the door behind her.

Dakota muttered in indignation, "Mr. Perkins, that woman is rude! Does she think she's above everything?"

I simply shrugged. "Forget about her. She's just desperate."

For me, our meeting was nothing more than a minor incident.

After work, Juliet stopped me outside the building.

She glared at me with a gloomy look.

I scowled. "What do you want?"

Setting her eyes on me, she finally threatened through gritted teeth after a moment of silence. "Let this be a warning to you, Miles. I don't care about your status, but I won't let you turn it against Chuck and harm him."

I barely stifled a laugh, which was out of anger.

Twenty years ago, she deprived me of the chance to return to my biological family. And now, she still dared to call me Miles.

She was the one who sought my help from the beginning, yet she was audacious enough to warn me against harming Charles.

I wondered what made her believe I would waste time on him.

Her demands were unreasonable. Ridiculous, even.

"Ms. Stafford," I said coldly, "my name is Sage Perkins. Please address me correctly. Also, I've never seen you or your brother in my life. As a prosecutor, my duty is to fight for justice, not frame innocent people. So why, pray tell, would I hurt a stranger?"

My words took her aback. Shock was evident on her face. "Don't you remember me?"

She clearly refused to believe me and blurted out in a sharp voice, "Twenty years ago, at the orphanage. I stopped—"

She couldn't bring herself to finish, as if feeling ashamed of what she had done.

Seeing the embarrassment on her face only made me despise her more.

I could never have forgotten what she did.

I remembered the looks of disgust on her face. I remembered the curses and insults she hurled at me.

I remembered how she pushed me away from my real family, depriving me of the last hope for them.

But I wouldn't give myself away.

I pretended to go through my memories, and finally, a look of recognition appeared on my face.

"Ah…" I drawled. "It's you."

Then I smiled at her as innocently as I could. "I'm sorry. Twenty years was a long time ago. Pardon me for not recognizing you right away. After all, I'm a busy man. Such a trivial matter is hardly worth remembering."

Witnessing a Happy Moment

Juliet's face twisted with complicated emotions.

She didn't believe it to be a trivial matter. She thought it was a fateful moment in my life.

Knowing that things didn't go the way she planned felt worse than hearing me snap back.

Gritting her teeth, she pushed her luck. "Stop pretending! You're holding a grudge because I stopped Dad and Mom from adopting you twenty years ago. Now you want revenge on me and my brother!"

I snorted. "Ms. Stafford, your accusation is uncalled for."

A cold look replaced my smile. "Why would I waste time on you? Speaking of which, I should thank you for talking your parents out of adopting me. Otherwise, Madam Astrea Perkins wouldn't have adopted me, and I wouldn't have achieved greatness."

I paused, then concluded calmly, "So really, I can't thank you enough. There's no reason for me to be angry with you."

The more I downplayed the importance of the Stafford family to me, the more harm my words did to her.

She choked on her words, unable to find a clever comeback. Embarrassment had painted her cheeks red.

"Watch what you say. What does this have to do with Astrea Perkins?"

As if she had caught me in a lie, she mocked, "Just because you're a Perkins now doesn't mean you're related to her. You can keep dreaming about having ties to that family, but you'll never truly be one of them!"

At that, A black Bentley pulled up to the curb.

The door opened, revealing a slender, elegant woman.

She strode toward me and put a trenchcoat on me.

The whole time, she ignored Juliet.

Gently caressing my head, she urged, "Let's go, Sage. Grandma is waiting for us."

Only then did Juliet's presence seem to catch her attention. "Who is she, Sage?"

I linked my arm around hers and smiled at her. "Don't worry, Sylvia. She's a client. We were just talking."

The revelation stunned Juliet.

She stared at us in disbelief. She refused to connect Sylvia's affection and the luxury car to me.

Still, she could not deny it.

She recognized Sylvia as the founder of a top law firm.

She had also heard that Sylvia had a younger brother, treasured by the whole Perkins family.

She simply never expected me to be that brother.

She couldn't help but recall a young man in a prison uniform staring blankly at her from behind the glass panel in the visitation room. It happened in her previous life.

But now, the same man was smiling sweetly and linking arms with another woman.

Leaving her frozen in a daze, I got into Sylvia's car.

The next day, Dakota told me that Juliet had used her connections to transfer the fraud case and involve me directly.

As he compiled the documents, he complained, "Mr. Perkins, what's wrong with Juliet Stafford? Not long ago, she still had doubts about your competence. But today, her attitude changed. Now, she specifically demands your involvement. I bet she wants to win your favor after learning your family background."

I dismissed it with a faint smile and signed the referral application.

I looked forward to seeing what Juliet would bring me.