In the depth of winter, on a rain-soaked night, heavy rain poured down relentlessly.

Liana Stuart knelt in the rain in front of the grand entrance to the Stuart family's mansion. She had been there for an entire hour.

"Miss, you should leave. The master will not change his mind," Martin Scott ventured, looking at Liana's trembling, chilled body and spoke with a heart full of distress.

"It's okay, Martin, pay me no heed. I must get the money to save my mom."

If it weren't for her gravely ill mother's need for medical aid, Liana would probably never step a foot into this place in her lifetime, let alone kneel here begging that man.

Just then, the glaring headlights of a vehicle shone through the curtain of rain onto Liana. The car drove quickly past her side, splashing the dirty rainwater all over her.

"Ah!" She couldn't help but cry out in shock. Already drenched and battered by the freezing rain, Liana now looked even more wretched. Her entire body felt as though it had fallen into an icehouse.

"Oh my, dear sister, I apologize. It's so dark I couldn't see clearly. I didn't do it on purpose!" A pretentious female voice rang out from the car.

Lifting her head, Liana looked at her 'sister' hailing from the same father but different mother. She saw the woman slowly get out of the car and look down at her, standing high in her diamond-encrusted silver stilettos. Her eyes were full of contempt without the slightest hint of remorse.

"Who's your sister?" This address touched a nerve in Liana. She abruptly stood up, glaring fiercely at the woman before her.

It was ironic to think that her own mother was Phillip Stuart's legally wedded wife, yet this woman, born just one month earlier, was the child of an extramarital relationship.

"Do you think I'd be willing to call someone like you 'sister', if it were not for my father's mandate? I'd rather not for fear of losing face," Maia Stuart leaned down, whispering in her ear.

"Don't act so high and mighty, Maia! You and your mother's present luxury is just what my mother and I didn't want. Isn't your mother just a mistress who rose in status? What's there for you to be arrogant about!" Liana shot back, hitting Maia's sore spot.

"Ah, I was kindly trying to help you up, Liana. How could you push me!" Just then, Maia sat down on the muddy ground splattered with rainwater.

"You wretch!" Upon witnessing this scene, Phillip stormed out, disregarding everything else. He promptly went over and slapped Liana across the face without further ado.

Liana felt a strong gust of wind approaching, and before she could react, her face was stinging with pain, and she was awkwardly sprawled on the ground.

She was staring at the man in front of her who she called her father, and the small flame of hope in her heart was slowly being extinguished.

"Someone bring Miss Stuart to her feet," commanded Phillip, frowning, his face flushed with anger.

Liana couldn't believe that her sister's poor acting was convincing to anyone. It seemed that some people weren't just visually impaired, but emotionally blind as well.

"Daddy, please don't hit Liana. She mustn't have done it on purpose," Maia pleaded gently.

"Maia, spare me your false pretenses. It's making me sick,” retorted Liana, flat against the ground.

"How disrespectful! Liana, you cursed child! How can you speak so harshly? Where is the grace of a high-born lady?” Phillip, who had always raised her to be a genteel woman, was incensed at her lack of decorum.

"High-born lady? How laughable," she scoffed, "Would a high-born lady struggle for three meals a day like I do? Would they kneel and beg for their mother's medical expenses like I have? To be framed by your beloved daughter and beaten until they lay on the ground?”

She knew that her mother's medical expenses were beyond reach, and in her frustration, all these pent-up words came tumbling out.

Her childhood was spent practicing dance, playing the cello, and the piano. She was afraid of her father's displeasure, as well as her mother's consequential blame. Therefore, she practiced tirelessly, excelling in every subject, yet she was never happy.

"Fine...just fine. I invested so much in you. Is this how you repay me, Liana? You've grown a backbone, eh? Well if you've grown so much, don’t come back begging for my help. Get out! Get out!"

Phillip had never been accused so outright before, let alone by his own daughter. He was pointing at her and shouting, seething with rage.

"I am no longer the little girl who used to be scolded for not practicing piano well and dared not to refute."

She forced herself to stand up, and glanced at him coldly. Then, swaying slightly, she walked out.

She arrived at the entrance of the villa district and her legs gave out, collapsing to the rain-soaked ground with a 'thud'. The walls around her heart crumbled down and her tears started dropping heavily, her sobbing growing more intense.

What about her mother's medical expenses? The best time for surgery is within a week and eight hundred thousand might be a drop in the ocean for the Stuart family, but to her and her mother it's a matter of life and death.

What was she to do? What?

She had thought of everyone she could think of who might have been able to help her, and the last person left who could was her boyfriend Micheal Clark.

While Micheal was a second-generation rich kid, he had his own ideas and had started his own company. He had been chasing her since college, she saw how her parents' marriage turned out and didn't have much hope in love, she finally decided to be with him because he was easy to get along with and ambitious. She thought this was a man she wouldn't mind marrying.

Liana has always pursued equality in a relationship, she also didn't spend a lot of Micheal's money. She was only borrowing the eight hundred thousand, she would definitely pay him back, she thought.

Half an hour later, Liana arrives at a high-end apartment.

Before entering the apartment, she had to compose herself several times. No matter how uncomfortable it was, she had to speak up for her mother's medical expenses.

Taking a deep breath, she unlocked the door with her fingerprint and stepped inside.

Just around the entryway, she saw scattered high heels, men's dress shoes, and a suit jacket, a blouse and a lady's bra in disarray...

Her breath hitched, her mind went blank.

Until she heard sounds coming from the room. Even without knowing the matters between a man and woman, she could understand what was happening.

Working up the strength to pick up her heavy legs, she walked slowly towards the bedroom.

"Honey, you're so good!" a flirtatious woman's voice came from the bedroom.

Upon hearing this, Liana's mind reeled as if she'd been struck by lightning.