"Jianyue, take this check as a token of congratulations from your father for reuniting with your birth parents."

Su Jianyue descended the stairs with a simple suitcase in hand, casting a scornful glance at the 100,000-yuan check in Ji Luofu's grip.

*Congratulations?* More like hush money.

Ever since the Ji family adopted her at six years old, she had become Ji Qingya's personal blood bank.

For thirteen long years, she had been forced to donate blood for this so-called sister.

Now that Ji Qingya had recovered, she—the expendable tool—was no longer needed.

Wasn’t this just kicking her out in disguise?

"Thank you for your generosity, Mr. Ji, but I can’t accept this."

Without hesitation, Su Jianyue pushed the check aside, grabbed her luggage, and strode toward the door—refusing to spare another glance at the house she once called home.

Her icy demeanor unsettled Ji Luofu.

From the couch, Ji’s wife slammed her teacup down with a sharp *clink*, shooting her husband a glare.

"After all these years of raising her, we didn’t even ask for a penny in return! And here you are, handing her money?"

"Even a dog knows to wag its tail for its master. But her? Not so much as a ‘thank you’ on her way out. What an ungrateful wretch!"

"Enough!" Ji Luofu snapped.

Ji Qingya quickly soothed her mother, "Mom, Jianyue has lived with us for so long, spoiled by luxury. Now that she’s heard the Su family isn’t well-off, she’s probably just worried about adjusting..."

To silence the gossips, the Ji family went to great lengths to track down Su Jianyue's biological parents.

From what she'd heard, the small mountain town of Qingshan where the Su family lived was notorious for its poverty. The Sus were the poorest of the poor—her parents scraped by collecting trash while struggling to feed their three good-for-nothing sons.

Su Jianyue was in for a rough ride now!

The thought made Ji Qingya's lips curl into a smirk. She hurried after Su Jianyue and said in a coaxing tone,

"Jianyue, you really should take the money. Even if you don’t care about yourself, think about your birth parents and family!"

Ten thousand yuan—they’d probably have to scavenge for decades to save up that much!

Lowering her voice deliberately, she couldn’t resist a gloating undertone.

"Siyi proposed to me yesterday, you know. He admitted that the only reason he got engaged to you was because he thought you saved his life—just out of gratitude. Turns out, it was me all along."

"Now that he’s broken off the engagement with you and chosen me instead, it’s just fate finally working things out. You’re not… upset, are you?"

Su Jianyue’s lips twitched slightly.

"Are you kidding? A guy who can’t tell people apart and has zero judgment? Thank goodness you’re willing to take him off my hands—saves me the trouble of dumping him."

Ji Qingya’s smile stiffened, her teeth clenched behind her painted lips. "You’ve always been so stubborn," she forced out.

"Oh, I packed some barely worn clothes for you. They might be a little outdated, but they’re designer. If you ever get desperate, you could always sell them for scrap."

Without waiting for a refusal, she grabbed the bundled clothes and shoved them toward Su Jianyue’s luggage.

But then she "accidentally" brushed against the side pocket, and a dazzling blue diamond bracelet suddenly tumbled out.

Ji Qingya feigned surprise, "Oh my, isn't this the bracelet Dad specially bought for my eighteenth birthday? Jianyue, how did it end up in your luggage?"

Su Jianyue narrowed her eyes.

So, they were pulling this framing trick again.

"Unbelievable! You just can't guard against everything!"

Madam Ji hurried over and took one look before exploding with rage.

"No wonder you were in such a hurry to leave—you stole something and were afraid of getting caught!"

Ji Luofu approached as well, first examining the bracelet, then studying Su Jianyue's calm expression.

His tone was stern. "Jianyue, what exactly is going on here?"

Ji Qingya put on a sympathetic act.

"Dad, Mom, maybe Jianyue just mixed it up while packing. She probably didn’t mean to, right, Jianyue?"

"This is your favorite piece by jewelry designer Miss Y.—your dad went through so much trouble to bid millions for it! You’ve treasured it like a prized possession. How could it possibly end up with her?"

Madam Ji’s face twisted with disbelief as she turned to glare venomously at Su Jianyue.

"Trash breeds trash! A child from a poor family will never shake off their thieving habits. Parents who scavenge for a living raise kids no better!"

Ji Luofu frowned as well. "Jianyue, if you liked the bracelet, you could’ve just asked us. Why resort to stealing?"

Ji Qingya sighed and bent down to pick up the bracelet, handing it to Su Jianyue with a resigned expression.

"I get it," she said softly. "You're worried about your future, so you took this million-dollar bracelet... If you want it that badly, just keep it."

"Why should we give it to her?" Madam Ji shrieked, her face flushing with rage. "Everything she has is because of our family! We’ve let her play the rich heiress long enough—now she dares to steal something this valuable on her way out?" She spun around and barked, "Butler, call the police!"

Watching their theatrics, Su Jianyue couldn’t help but laugh.

She hoisted her duffel bag from the floor, unzipped an inner pocket, and pulled out three identical sapphire bracelets. Unlike the one in Ji Qingya’s hand, each of Su Jianyue’s bore the unmistakable Miss.Y authenticity seal.

"You really think I’d bother stealing her knockoff?"

Without waiting for a response, she tapped her phone a few times. The living room’s large screen flickered to life, displaying crystal-clear footage of Ji Qingya lurking outside Su Jianyue’s door. After checking that no one was around, she fished a bracelet from her pocket and hastily stuffed it into the side pocket of the duffel bag before slipping away, cool as a cucumber.

The room fell so silent you could hear a pin drop.

The security guard rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

So the bracelet had been planted by the young mistress herself?

How could their angelic Ji Qingya—the girl they’d all adored—stoop to something so underhanded?

Su Jianyue set down her phone, a cold smirk playing at the corners of her lips.

"Miss Ji, we live in an age where surveillance cameras are everywhere. If you're going to frame someone, at least check your surroundings first."

She then turned to Mrs. Ji, whose face had turned ashen. "Mrs. Ji, I believe the police will be arriving shortly?"

Mrs. Ji flushed crimson with rage, shooting her a venomous glare before helplessly turning to her distraught daughter.

"Yaya, how could you... Oh, for heaven's sake!"

Ji Qingya dug her nails into her palms, humiliation and fury burning in her eyes as she snapped, "Jianyue, what’s the meaning of installing cameras in the house? Were you planning to set us up all along? Or are you trying to blackmail the Ji family with those recordings?"

"And where did you get the money for such an expensive sapphire bracelet?"

At this, Ji Luofu immediately tensed, his sharp gaze locking onto Su Jianyue.

Su Jianyue tapped lightly on the tiny surveillance device atop her suitcase before replying with deliberate calm, "After all the times you’ve tried to sabotage me, is it so wrong to take precautions? As for the money—what business is it of yours?"

She had hoped for a clean break, but since they insisted on pushing her, she had no choice but to lay all her cards on the table.