I did not return to China immediately.
Not because I was afraid.
Not because I wanted to escape.
But because, for six years, I had finally learned something my family had never allowed me to learn:
My life belonged to me.
The moment Ethan mentioned the 230 million yuan compensation, I already knew.
They were not calling because they missed me.
They were not calling because they regretted what they had done.
They were calling because, once again, they needed something from me.
Six years ago, when they took my twenty million, they treated me like an outsider.
Now that the house had become worth 230 million, suddenly I was their daughter again.
How convenient.
I opened my laptop.
The first thing I did was not book a flight.
It was searching for the documents I had kept six years ago.
The transfer records.
The bank statements.
The conversations.
The recordings.
Everything.
I had never believed that one day I would need them.
But when you are betrayed by the people closest to you…
Your memory becomes your only protection.
The next morning, my lawyer in Switzerland helped me contact a Chinese legal team.
I sent them all the documents.
Three hours later, I received a call.
“Ms. Shen, there is indeed a problem.”
I remained silent.
“What problem?”
“The property was purchased under your brother’s name, but the source of the funds was your personal account.”
I smiled.
“Yes.”
“The demolition compensation cannot be distributed normally without confirming the ownership of the original investment.”
I looked outside the window.
Snow was falling slowly.
“So they need my signature.”
“Correct.”
I finally understood.
My mother didn’t want me to come back because she missed me.
Ethan didn’t want to share the money with me because he suddenly became generous.
They needed me because without me…
They couldn’t touch the 230 million.
Three days later, I returned to Shanghai.
The moment I walked out of the airport, I saw a familiar figure.
My mother.
Teresa Jiang.
Six years had passed.
Her hair was much whiter.
Her back was more bent.
The moment she saw me, tears immediately filled her eyes.
“Sofia…”
She rushed toward me.
“My daughter…”
I stepped back.
Her hand stopped in the air.
For a second, she looked hurt.
But I only felt tired.
Not angry.
Not sad.
Just tired.
Because anger means you still care.
And I had already spent all my anger six years ago.
“You have grown thinner.”
She tried to touch my face.
I avoided her hand.
“Let’s talk about the documents.”
Her expression froze.
The warmth disappeared immediately.
Just like that.
The mother who cried a second ago became the mother who needed something.
“You came back only because of money?”
I almost laughed.
“Mom.”
“You called me after six years.”
“Your first sentence was not ‘Are you doing well?'”
“It was ‘Come back quickly. You have a part of the money.'”
She opened her mouth.
No words came out.
Ethan arrived twenty minutes later.
He was no longer the careless younger brother I remembered.
He wore an expensive suit.
A luxury watch.
The kind of person who looked successful.
But when he saw me…
His smile disappeared.
“Sister.”
I looked at him.
“Don’t call me that.”
His expression changed.
“Sofia…”
“Six years ago, when you transferred my twenty million into your account, did you remember that I was your sister?”
Silence.
My mother immediately interrupted.
“Enough.”
“That was all in the past.”
“Now the house is being demolished. Why do you still hold onto old things?”
I looked at her.
“Old things?”
“The twenty million you took from me was not old when you spent it.”
“It only became old after it turned into 230 million.”
No one spoke.
At that moment, Daniel arrived.
My former fiancé.
The man who had told me:
“Let it go.”
“We are family.”
“When the house increases in value, your brother will share.”
Six years had changed him too.
He looked older.
Tired.
But when he saw me, his first words were:
“Sofia, you finally came back.”
I smiled.
“Why?”
“Did you miss me?”
Daniel’s face stiffened.
“I know you are still angry.”
“But six years is enough.”
“Your mother is old. Ethan also has a family now.”
“Don’t destroy everyone’s relationship because of money.”
I looked at him quietly.
Then I asked:
“Daniel.”
“Do you remember what you told me six years ago?”
He lowered his eyes.
I continued:
“You said I was destroying my family for twenty million.”
“But did you ever ask why my family was willing to destroy me for twenty million?”
He had no answer.
That afternoon, we went to the demolition office.
The staff placed the documents on the table.
“The original payment records show that the full purchase amount came from Miss Shen Sofia’s account.”
Everyone became silent.
The employee continued:
“According to regulations, all parties involved must clarify the ownership issue before compensation can be distributed.”
My mother immediately grabbed my hand.
“Sofia.”
“We are family.”
“Ethan is your brother.”
I looked at her hand.
Then slowly pulled mine away.
“Mom.”
“Six years ago, you told me that my money belonged to the Shen family.”
“But when I needed a house, you told me I belonged to another family after marriage.”
Her face turned pale.
“So now…”
“Am I your daughter?”
“Or am I just the person whose signature you need?”
The room became completely silent.
Ethan lowered his head.
For the first time…
He looked ashamed.
But it was too late.
Because some things cannot be repaired with regret.
Especially after six years.
The next day, the official investigation began.
And the truth they feared finally came out.
The house was not only purchased with my twenty million.
There were also additional funds transferred from my mother’s account after the purchase.
Money that came from my father’s life insurance.
Money that originally belonged to the whole family.
But my mother had secretly used it to complete the property registration under Ethan’s name.
The house they called “family heritage”…
Was built on money they stole from the people they were supposed to protect.
And this time…
There was no way for them to pretend it was a misunderstanding.
Because six years ago, I had cried.
I had begged.
I had waited for them to admit they were wrong.
Now?
I only wanted the truth.
And the truth was finally more expensive than 230 million yuan.
