Chapter 1

The day the wealthy Vance family brought me back, my scumbag biological father tossed a fifty-million-dollar black card at my face.

"Learn from your sister. Don't go out there embarrassing us."

Evelyn clung to his arm, giggling.

"Dad, she's just a trailer-park nobody. She'll probably blow it all on tacky gold chains by tomorrow."

I picked up the card and smiled. "Sure. I'll learn."

The next day, I went on a reckless spending spree.

Abandoned construction projects, bankrupt tech startups, barren wasteland where even weeds refused to grow...

Whatever everyone else tossed in the trash, I bought.

Evelyn laughed until she doubled over. "What a brainless spendthrift. She deserves to die broke."

Yet, less than a month later, the tables turned.

The abandoned property was rezoned into a top-tier school district. The dying tech startup developed a viral hit product. And beneath that barren land, a massive deposit of rare earth minerals was uncovered.

My net worth skyrocketed overnight. Meanwhile, Richard Vance’s empire was on the verge of collapse after his capital chain snapped.

When they came crawling, begging me for a bailout, I couldn't help but laugh.

"What a brainless spendthrift. You deserve to die broke."

Richard Vance snapped back to reality first. He slammed his hand onto the table. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

The crystal chandelier in the private VIP lounge shook slightly, spilling a few drops of tea.

I picked up my napkin and wiped my fingers slowly, paying him no mind.

"Chloe!"

He gritted his teeth, barking my name.

"You think you're on top of the world now, don't you? Your father is begging you. For the sake of our own flesh and blood, save Vance Enterprises."

Flesh and blood.

I grew up in an orphanage. I started working at sixteen—washing dishes, running street stalls, sleeping under bridges in the freezing cold.

Where was our flesh and blood during those twenty-odd years?

"Mr. Vance," I took a sip of tea and met his eyes.

"Did you forget something?

I spent that fifty million. You saw exactly where it went. So in what capacity are you standing here talking to me now?"

"I'm your father!" Richard’s face flushed bright red.

I set the cup down. The ceramic clicked sharply against the table.

"Mr. Vance, the moment you dumped me at that orphanage, that relationship ended."

Evelyn couldn't take it anymore. She tugged at Richard’s sleeve, tears welling up on cue.

"Dad, don't beg her. She's doing this on purpose! She hates us. She wants nothing more than to watch our family burn."

She wept like a delicate flower in the rain. Paired with her heavily filtered, Instagram-model face, it was quite the performance.

Too bad I already knew the rot beneath that pretty face.

"Evelyn," I tilted my head, studying her. "You know, more tears are coming out of your left eye than your right. You should practice in front of a mirror next time."

Her expression froze instantly. The tears hung on her eyelashes, completely stuck.

Miranda Vance, my stepmother, finally chimed in, her voice shrill and piercing:

"Chloe, don't get cocky. Evelyn is your sister, and Richard is your biological father.

Even if you hold a grudge, you can't just stand by and watch us drown. Name your price. How much do you want?"

Name my price.

I almost laughed out loud.

Vance Enterprises was staring down a deficit of at least eight hundred million. When they tossed me fifty million to get rid of me, they felt like royalty. Now that they needed a bailout, they wanted to haggle?

I stood up and smoothed down my blazer. "We're not the same. You burn cash on designer bags, luxury watches, and fake prestige. I buy real assets. Vance Enterprises is a bottomless money pit right now. I won't throw a dime into it. But I can offer you one way out."

All three of them stared at me.

"Transfer fifty-one percent of Vance Enterprises' voting shares to me. I’ll restructure the company. You get to keep forty-nine percent. At least you won't walk away with nothing."

"Keep dreaming!" Richard roared without hesitation. "I built Vance Enterprises with my own bare hands! Why the hell would I hand it to you?"

I smiled, grabbed my bag, and walked toward the door.

"Then enjoy going bankrupt."

Outside the lounge, the night breeze was crisp and cold, but it couldn't cool the fire burning in my chest.

Ethan pulled the car up and opened the door for me, glancing at me cautiously:

"Ms. Vance, Mr. Vance’s yelling could be heard all the way out here."

"Good. Let it spread."