Marissa walked over and sat next to Landen, who looked at her with slight disapproval. In a low voice, he asked, “Where have you been wandering off to this time?”
Marissa looked him in the eye, her tone just as soft. “Why should I have to tell you?”
“Why aren’t you using the bank card I gave you? Dress better and buy some nice accessories to maintain our family’s reputation. Do you know how many people mock you behind your back?” Landen commented
“Sansa must have pocketed a big portion of your allowance, too. I doubt there’s much money left in that account,” Marissa retorted
“I manage to supplement my finances on my own. Just use the card for your shopping and try to present yourself well. Don’t embarrass our family,” Landen said
“No matter how I present myself, I’m still married to the richest man in the city. You might want to save your money in case you end up on your own,” Marissa responded sharply
“My, you’ve become quite sharp-tongued. Is this really the timid Tiffany I used to know?” Landen exclaimed, taken aback
Before Marissa could respond, Balthasar interjected sharply, “We’re in the middle of a family meeting. What are you two whispering about?”
Marissa stayed silent
Casually, Landen answered, “Grandpa, we should be focusing on Ayla. She’s our family’s future, isn’t she? Whether Tiffany and I attend the meeting really doesn’t matter.” His words deeply embarrassed Ayla. Once the star at her grandpa’s birthday celebration, she now felt only humiliation
Marissa burst out laughing at Landen’s comment
Ayla was annoyed by the laughter and lashed out at Marissa, saying, “You shouldn’t be laughing at me, Tiffany. Despite my mistakes, I’m still more accomplished than you, a high school dropout.”
Turning her frustration towards Landen, Ayla continued, “And what gives you the right to make fun of me? As the male young heir of our family, you waste your days doing nothing. Are you more skilled in medicine than I am?”
Landen gave a nonchalant shrug and responded, “It’s true. My medical skills might not match yours. But as a so-called loser, I’m well aware of my limitations and never engage in foolish boasting or overreaching. I might not elevate our family’s status, but I certainly don’t tarnish it, do I?”
“Damn you!” Ayla was seething, her eyes burning with anger
Her emotions surged, and she turned to Balthasar, saying, “Grandpa, they’ve driven me to this point, so I must speak the truth!”
With that declaration, all attention shifted to Ayla. She took a deep breath and added, “I am indeed acquainted with Riss, and Riss has agreed to mentor me. However, Riss prefers to stay under the radar and keep her real identity a secret, so I had to lie to you all.”
The Nash family members looked at each other with expressions filled with doubt, wondering whether to trust Ayla’s claim
Surprised, Landen leaned over to Marissa and murmured, “Do you think she’s telling the truth?”
Marissa just scoffed and absentmindedly scratched her ear
After a moment of quiet, Balthasar asked, “What proof do you have, Ayla?”
“Grandpa, I assure you, I have proof,” Ayla confidently said, then promptly presented her evidence, placing it forcefully on the coffee table
As Ayla presented what she claimed was evidence, the crowd’s interest peaked, only to quickly deflate when they saw it was just an invitation to a medical conference. The room filled with a ripple of disappointment, their skepticism remaining intact. Undeterred, Ayla asserted with confidence, “Riss will publicly declare me as her apprentice at the upcoming medical conference in two weeks. That should dispel any doubts about my honesty.”
Seeing that skepticism lingered in the living room, Ayla continued, “You’ve all seen the MindEase Elixir I gave Grandpa, right? If I didn’t know Dr. Riss, how could I possibly have bought it?”
Those words seemed to soften some of the lingering doubts among the Nash family members. Balthasar, feeling remorseful, instructed a servant to help Ayla onto the sofa and offered her words of comfort. Gradually, other family members joined, extending their apologies for doubting her. With renewed confidence, Ayla shot a challenging look at Marissa and Landen
Landen responded with a nonchalant shrug, still uncertain about Ayla’s claims, while Marissa, amused, went upstairs
Retreating to her room, Marissa was eager to dive into Tiffany’s diary for more clues. Just as she was about to open it, a knock at the door interrupted her. Quickly hiding the diary, she opened the door to find Landen, his arms full of medical books. Without waiting for an invitation, Landen walked in and set the books down on the table. “Tiffany, it’s time you started learning medicine,” he announced, already starting to read one of the books
Taken aback by his sudden decree, Marissa responded with a touch of amusement, “It’s late. I’m heading to bed.”
Despite her attempt to end the conversation, Landen was clearly not ready to drop the subject. “You need to join me in studying,” he insisted earnestly, noticing Marissa’s reluctance. He gently guided her to sit beside him. “Do you want to keep letting Ayla bully us? If she really becomes Dr. Riss’ apprentice, what position will that leave us in this family?” he asked with genuine concern
“Ayla becoming Dr. Riss’ disciple is impossible,” Marissa declared confidently
“Why are you so certain? Didn’t you see how confident she was earlier? What if it’s true?”
“Just the other day, she claimed Riss was a man in his thirties, which we know isn’t true,” Marissa countered. “Enough with the excuses. Regardless of what Ayla claims, we need to be proactive. I saw Riss today. She’s about our age and already an accomplished doctor. Shouldn’t that embarrass us?” Landen argued, pushing a medical book towards Marissa. Marissa couldn’t help but chuckle as she glanced at the title: Preliminary Medical Knowledge
“Are you really serious about this, Landen?”
“Yes, I feel the need to take on the family responsibilities, instead of letting Sansa and Ayla dictate everything. If I take charge, maybe you wouldn’t have to suffer indignities even if you were ousted by the Daniels family one day,” Landen explained. Although his words were unpleasant to the ear, Marissa felt his genuine concern. She played along, pretending to study and posing questions to him, impressed by his knowledgeable responses
“Landen, if you’re truly intent on challenging Ayla and taking charge of the Nash family, why not compete to become Riss’ apprentice yourself?” she suggested
“Are you joking? Many seasoned professionals struggle to get Riss’ attention. How could I, a newcomer, stand a chance?”
“Just give it a try. You might be surprised. Let me help you with your resume,” Marissa encouraged
Bolstered by her support, Landen emailed his resume to Riss. With a meaningful smile, Marissa then told him, “You should head back to your room now and wait for Riss’ response. No need to linger here any longer.” She playfully grabbed his collar, ushered him out the door, and locked it behind him
Finally alone, Marissa eagerly retrieved Tiffany’s diary from its hiding place, ready to dive into the pivotal event that changed Tiffany’s life when she was a high school student
While in high school, Tiffany maintained the guise of a frail, innocent girl to avoid provoking the jealousy and suppression of Sansa and Ayla, enjoying a period of relative tranquility. However, during the latter part of her freshman year, this facade crumbled dramatically. After several heated arguments with a classmate, Tiffany, overwhelmed by anger, brandished a knife and seriously injured her classmate, necessitating immediate hospitalization. The incident was rapidly exposed by the classmate’s parents to the media, causing widespread outrage online, with many calling for severe punishment for Tiffany. As a result, she was expelled from school and spent six months in detention. Upon her release, no school would accept her, branding her a dropout and a failure. This incident led the Nash family to view her as a disgrace, offering her no respect or support
Sansa, however, feigned concern for her niece-in-law’s future. “What should Tiffany do now? She can’t continue her studies, so her only option is to marry into a good family. With her parents absent, as her aunt-in-law and the family matriarch, it falls on me to worry about her future.”
Her convincing portrayal of concern seemed to resonate with the other members of the Nash family, who commended her for her kindness and thoughtfulness. No one questioned her approach to handling Tiffany’s situation, and even Balthasar deferred to her judgment. As a result, Tiffany was pushed into a series of blind dates, each man carefully chosen by Sansa. Despite Sansa’s lavish praise of these men, Tiffany knew better. Each man had ulterior motives. They were interested in exploiting her situation for their own benefit, and she knew that once they got what they wanted, they would leave her. During this time, Tiffany felt powerless to alter her destiny. Under Sansa’s tight control, her life spiraled further downward with each failed engagement, marked by deepening humiliation and despair. Rumors surrounding the previous broken engagements were not widely spread
However, the final engagement ended in a public scandal. The night before the wedding, Tiffany’s fiance brought a nightclub girl back to their future home for a wild evening and took several inappropriate photos on their wedding bed, ensuring the scandal was widely publicized. Unable to endure the humiliation, Tiffany confronted him, only to be further humiliated as he publicly declared he would rather die than marry her, calling her worthless and inferior to the nightclub girl. From that moment, Tiffany became the subject of ridicule, shunned by the eligible bachelors of Blebert. Her diaries recounted all of her agonizing experiences, each entry filled with palpable sorrow. Through her words, Marissa could sense Tiffany’s despair, her constant battle against her dire circumstances, and her repeated capitulations to her grim reality
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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