“What nonsense are you spouting, girl? How can you curse your own mother like that?”

“We only returned to our hometown because it felt more comfortable. And your grandpa and I have never been the kind to prefer boys over girls.”

Grandpa waved his hand, his tone light, too light, like it could wipe away everything I’d just said.

“Elisa’s just been under a lot of stress lately. She’ll be fine once she’s settled in college.”

His words dismissed everything like it was nothing more than a passing storm.

Just then, Lila stepped out of the kitchen, her eyes red and swollen.

She had been crying.

“I’ve already made an appointment. I won’t be keeping this child.”

“Nonsense!” Grandpa’s palm slammed against the table with a crack that made me flinch.

“Our Scott family has only had one male heir per generation for four generations! Now that we finally have a grandson, and you want to throw him away?”

“That’s right. This child didn’t come easily. The doctor said he’s healthy and strong. How can you just give him up like that?”

Lila shrank away from Dad’s comforting touch, her voice barely a whisper, trembling with uncertainty.

“I always said Elisa was my one and only daughter. This pregnancy… it was a mistake.”

“Elisa’s about to leave for university. How often will she come home after that? Once she starts working, it’ll be even rarer. And after she gets married? Forget it. This family still needs a boy.”

Just moments ago, Grandpa and Grandma insisted they weren’t biased toward boys. Now, they were eager to push me out.

Fine. I’d go.

That woman wasn’t even my real mother, after all.

If they were so sure Lila was my mom, then let them live together without me.

I packed a small suitcase, grabbed my university acceptance letter, and stormed out of the home I had called mine for eighteen years.

Behind me, Lila’s sobs fell like a relentless waterfall.

She tried to reach out, to stop me, but Dad held her firmly back.

“We’ve spoiled her too much before. Let her go. I want to see just how strong she really is.”

“Exactly. Just a girl stirring up drama, all to stop her little brother from being born. She’s so cunning, it’s frightening.”

Grandma’s voice echoed Dad’s cold words behind me.

I kept walking, putting more distance between us, their voices slowly fading into silence.

Only one goal burned in my mind now: to expose this fake mother.

Besides family, the people who knew Mom best were her old colleagues.

Dragging my suitcase, I made my way to Mom’s former workplace.

There, I spotted Aunt Gina, someone who’d once been close to Mom.

“Elisa? What are you doing here? Isn’t tonight your college banquet? And that suitcase…”

Her eyes flicked to my luggage.

“Aunt Gina! You have to remember Mom died three years ago, right? You even came to her funeral.”

Aunt Gina stared at me, disbelief flashing across her face. She reached out, gently touching my forehead.

“Elisa, are you alright? How can you say such things about your mom? I know she pushed you hard during your senior year, and maybe you resented her, but you shouldn’t curse her like that. And if she hadn’t been so strict, would you have gotten into such a good university?”

I released her wrist, shaking my head as I took a cautious step back.

“Impossible… impossible…”

“Are you fighting with your mom again? Planning to run off like this? Don’t mess around, she won’t be able to bear it if she finds out.”

“She’s not my mom. She’s not… she’s not…”

“Gina, why are you still here? There’s a meeting starting soon. You—”

Mom’s former supervisor glared at Aunt Gina from across the room. But when his eyes landed on me, his expression shifted, quickly turning away as if he’d seen a ghost.

“Uncle, Uncle, I have something I need to ask you.” I hurried forward, desperate to catch his attention.

“Gina! Get this poor relative out of here!”

“Sorry, Supervisor, I’ll handle it.” Aunt Gina pulled me aside firmly.

“Uncle, I’m Lila’s daughter. We met at my mom’s funeral!”

The man’s back stiffened for a moment, but he said nothing and quickened his steps.

“Aunt Gina…”

“Elisa, don’t come here again. Your mom finally got promoted. If you keep causing a scene, you’ll only embarrass her at work.”

She shoved a few hundred dollars into my palm and walked away without another glance.

I tracked down many others, classmates, and teachers, all echoing the same words as Aunt Gina.

My homeroom teacher even showed me surveillance footage. At every parent-teacher meeting in the past three years, my mother had been there.

I wandered the streets like a lost soul, begging anyone for news of my mother.

In the end, the police brought me home.

Relatives and neighbors whispered that I’d lost my mind, that my studies had driven me to madness.

I even found myself convincing my mind that the woman at home was truly my mother.

Dad and Lila took me to university together. Lila carefully helped me settle in, making my bed and getting along with my roommates. She reminded me to eat on time every single day.

There was always a flicker of hope in her eyes when she looked at me, but I stayed distant, cold toward her. Yet she never minded. She even added my roommates on WhatsApp.

All my roommates admired how caring and thoughtful Lila was as a mother.

Throughout my four years at university, I never once went home.

Lila had a difficult labor and nearly died giving birth. Dad asked me to visit my little brother, but I didn’t go.

When Grandpa fell gravely ill, Dad urged me to say goodbye, but I didn’t go.

I didn’t attend Grandpa’s funeral either.

If it hadn’t been for needing to return home to transfer my household registration, I doubt I would have gone back at all.

I didn’t tell a soul I was coming home.

Dad had asked me to come back because Grandma was gravely ill, but I told him I was buried in preparing for the civil service exam and couldn’t make it.

When I finally arrived, the house was empty.

Everything has changed so much since four years ago.

The wall behind the sofa was now covered with countless photos of a little boy.

Toy cars lay scattered across the coffee table, and crayon drawings filled every inch of the walls.

Only my bedroom door remained firmly locked, untouched as if frozen in time.

When I opened it, the room was immaculate, clearly cared for, and cleaned regularly.

With no expression, I stepped into Dad and Lila’s room to search for the household registration book.

My eyes landed on the wedding photo resting on the nightstand, familiar yet strange.

The image was the same as I remembered, but the woman’s eyes were different; one look and I knew it was Lila.

Suddenly, a toy on the floor slipped from beneath the bed with a sharp noise.

I knelt to pick it up and felt something cold and wooden beneath my fingers.

A sudden chill crawled down my spine.

It was Mom’s spirit tablet, exactly as I remembered, the date of her death engraved clearly.

At that moment, I finally held the undeniable proof: the woman at home wasn’t really my mother.

As memories I’d ignored four years ago flooded back, clarity sparked in my mind.

I quickly dialed Dad’s number.

Crying echoed from the other end. Grandma’s condition was grave and uncertain.

Nothing else mattered. Grasping Mom’s spirit tablet tightly, I rushed straight to the hospital.

I had finally uncovered the truth, everyone had conspired with that fake mother to deceive me.

By the time I arrived, Grandma had already slipped away.

He collapsed to the floor, sharp cries piercing the quiet hospital room.

Dad glanced at me, shaking his head with heavy disappointment.

The relatives around us wasted no time; their voices filled with harsh judgment.

“Elisa was spoiled rotten by you two. Her grandfather was on his deathbed, wanting to see her one last time, and she couldn’t even be bothered to show up, not even at the funeral. If she were my daughter, I’d have beaten some sense into her!”

“She’s clearly lost her mind. A few years back, she cursed her own mother, claiming she was dead, and even forced Lila to abort her baby.”

“That’s no madness, that’s cold calculation! She tried to stop her parents from having a little brother just to keep everything for herself. So scheming!”

“She didn’t come home once in four years of college. Now she hears Grandma left a will and rushes back, fighting for the inheritance. Jackson, take a good look at the ungrateful wolf you raised.”

“She even hit her little brother as soon as she returned. If you don’t intervene, who knows what harm she’ll do next.”

Everyone’s eyes burned with cruel satisfaction as if they’d be pleased to see Dad beat me senseless right then and there.

But just then, Lila, who had been steadying her son, suddenly straightened and stepped between me and the angry crowd.

“I won’t let any of you speak ill of my daughter like this!”

“She is nothing like what you say. I believe in her.”

Her words carried a quiet strength as she turned to give me a steady, reassuring look.

I couldn’t help but sneer, cold and bitter.

That sneer lit a fire in Dad. Without a word, his hand shot out, slapping me hard across the cheek.

“From this day forward, you are no longer my daughter. I cut all ties with you!”

His harsh words drew nods of approval from many relatives, some even offering thumbs-up as if proud of his cruelty.

Unfazed, I calmly pulled Mom’s spirit tablet from my bag and raised it high, letting every eye catch the truth.

“My mother has been dead for a long time.”

“Dad, why don’t you tell everyone who this woman really is?”