Chapter 1: The Appearance Fee
Lily walked unsteadily out of the hospital, having spent three days alone due to a sudden bout of acute enteritis.
She had fallen asleep while on an IV drip, which had finished and started to backflow.
Fortunately, someone noticed, and the nurse, still shaken, advised her to call her family.
She smiled wryly—family?
Yes, she had a family: parents, a brother, and an adopted sister who had taken all the love that used to be hers.
Just as she was about to hail a taxi, her phone rang. It was her mother.
Her mother, whom she hadn't heard from in a long time, sounded somewhat stiff. "Tomorrow is your sister's birthday party. Don't forget."
"I can't make it. I'm sick," she said wearily.
"You get sick now of all times? Just when your sister's birthday is approaching?Stop pretending. You must come to the party. Many people are coming, and it's your sister's birthday. If you don't show up, people will laugh at us," her mother said, her tone clearly worsening.
"I'm not going. Why should I? I'll attend her funeral instead," Lily replied coldly.
"Lily, how can you be so vicious?" Mrs. Mei's voice rose noticeably.
"No matter how vicious, you gave birth to me. It's genetic. You can't blame me," Lily said, having mastered the art of arguing with Mrs. Mei over the years.
"You still know you're my daughter? Is this how you treat your mother? Can't you learn from your sister? She's always been obedient and sensible, never causing us any worry. Your sister..." Mrs. Mei couldn't stop praising the adopted daughter.
"Learn from her? Learn to be shameless? Learn to lie? Learn to have a heart of a snake? Learn to fool everyone until you all forget you have a biological daughter?" Lily's voice grew colder when talking about the adopted sister.
"Lily!" The voice on the other end was a full octave higher.
"If you dislike me so much, why call me? Wouldn't your family of four be perfectly happy without me?" Lily retorted.
This kind of conversation happened every year, and Layla had long gotten used to it. After a round of scolding and warnings, she began giving orders, "Listen, Royce will come tomorrow too. He said he'll pick you up."
Lily's expression darkened. "You called him?"
"Yes, you two argued. How could I expect you to call him? I'm giving you a way out. When you see him, apologize and make up," Layla began to nag again.
"Your wedding is in three months. Stop staying in that photography studio of yours. You don't make much money. Spend more time with Royce, and stop fighting with him. You need to change your temper. Learn from your sister; she has such a good temper. Your sister..."
Lily moved the phone away from her ear, not wanting to hear more praise for the adopted sister. "Have you finished praising your perfect daughter? If you have, I'll hang up now."
She flagged down a taxi and got in.
Layla quickly added, "Many people are coming tomorrow. It's your sister's birthday. As her sister, if you don't show up, what will people think? People already talk about your bad relationship. If you don't come, your sister will be gossiped about. Do me a favor and come."
Lily gave the driver an address and leaned back. "Oh, my appearance fee is very high."
Layla felt a surge of frustration. "Money, money, money! Every time we talk, it ends up about money. You only care about money now, not family!"
After venting, she asked, "How much?"
Lily replied, "Didn't you ask for a favor? How much is your favor worth?"
...
Lily returned to her apartment, made some oatmeal, ate it, and then collapsed into bed to sleep.
The next day at noon, Lily was woken up by a phone call from her best friend, Aria.
"Darling, my flight lands at 5:30 PM. Come pick me up."
Lily stared at the ceiling for a moment. "Weren't you supposed to be on a business trip for a month? It hasn't
even been half a month yet."
"No, I took half a day off to have dinner with you before heading back."
Lily was taken aback, then patted her forehead to clear her mind. Right, today was Zoya's birthday. Every year on this day, Aria would spend the whole night clubbing and drinking with her.
"You don't need to make the trip back and forth," Lily said as she sat up in bed and took a sip of water from the glass on her bedside table.
She glanced at a message she had just received on her phone, her lips curling into a slight smile. "I'm going home tonight."
Layla had transferred money to her.
Initially, it was only a five-figure sum, which Lily ignored. After several attempts, Layla raised it to seven figures, at which point Lily reluctantly replied with a single word: "Thanks."
Layla felt another wave of frustration upon seeing her daughter's response.
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