In the morning, when Charles got up, he saw that Maria was still sleeping on the sofa.He frowned, walked over to the sofa, and gently nudged her."Ria...""What?"Maria irritably pushed away his hand, turned over and faced the sofa.Charles nudged her again. "Ria, aren't you getting up? Don't you have classes today?""I don't have classes in the morning..."Maria grumbled unhappily and covered her head with the quilt. She clearly didn't want him to disturb her sleep.Charles shook his head with a chuckle. He didn't try to wake her up again. He turned to leave the room, even thoughtfully closing the door behind him.Maria's head slowly emerged from the quilt as the door closed. Assured that Charles had left, she turned over and looked at the ceiling with sadness.Today, she would be switching places with Mia. She would have to leave here forever.When she thought of Charles' happy face while he played pool with her last night, her heart ached even more.Actually...Charles had been nic
Maria sent her luggage to the school dormitory, then headed to Mia’s house.After leaving the Smith family's mansion, she turned off her mobile phone. She just wanted to quietly pick up her father.As soon as she arrived at Mia’s villa, she rang the doorbell. The door quickly opened. Taking a deep breath, she walked in.Upon reaching the second floor, in the guest room, she saw Luna with an odd expression, Mia glaring at her in anger, and... her expressionless mother.Once Maria saw Lily Dench, her eyes welled up instantly. She took a couple of steps in and called, "Mom...""Don't call me mom!"Lily looked disdainfully at Maria’s cheap clothes and flicked her silk dress elegantly,"I only have one daughter, and her name is Mia!"Maria stopped and stood frozen, not daring to move another step forward. She knew her mother didn't like her. But she never thought that hermother would hate her so much like this...Her heart was bleeding.Maria forced back the tears in her eyes, taking a de
Maria’s heart sank as she saw the faint smirk appear on Mia’s face.It was always like this since they were kids.Mia would expertly pin the blame of her mistakes on Maria. Anything she desired would be claimed as Maria’s desire instead.Over time, in Lily's eyes, Mia was perceived as the considerate kid that cared about others' feelings, while Maria was seen as the greedy, thoughtless one."Heh-Heh..."Maria sneered. Her laughter was filled with ridicule.It was a waste for Mia not to join the movie industry with her acting skills worthy of a top-level award!"Mom, Mia promised to give me back my father. Even if you came today, this is happening. I don't care about the movie. I just want my father back!""You stubborn little slut!"Lily swiftly stood up, grabbed a feather duster from the sidelines and started to hit Maria."Since your father doesn't educate you how to behave, I'll do it myself today! Learn to show some respect to your mother!"With a resounding smack, the feather dus
Maria stepped out from the villa. The Previously sunny day suddenly turned gloomy.She walked step by step towards the main road. Her heart was bleeding in pain. Whether it was Lily's threat today to make her promise to help Mia act, or Lily's final questioning about her and Charles, every word felt like a needle, piercing fiercely into her heart.Truly, the maternal love easily acquired by others was a luxury she could only dream of. It was something she never had.But she was a child too. Like other children, she yearned for her mother's love and care…Suddenly, a few flashes of lightning appeared in the sky, followed by the rumbling of thunder. Maria seemed oblivious, continuing to walk mechanically on the road.The next second, a heavy rain poured down. Maria walked on the sidewalk. The rain wet her entirely as it flowed down her hair.There weren't many people on the road, only the occasional cars racing by.With open eyes, Maria trudged along. She let the rain wash over her, l
"Maid Heather, come here!"The moment Charles went inside, carrying Maria in his arms, he called out loudly to the living room.Maid Heather quickly rushed over. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Charles holding the motionless Maria whose eyes were tightly shut. "Young Master Smith, what happened?" she asked urgently.Charles looked seriously mad. He didn't say anything. He carried Maria in his arms dashing upstairs.Maid Heather hurriedly followed and entered the room to find Charles placing Maria on the bed."Maid Heather, she got caught in the heavy rain. Help her change into a clean set of clothes and wipe her body dry.""Sure."However, as Maid Heather was helping Maria change, she suddenly screamed, "Ah! Young Master Smith..."Charles rushed over from the window, "What's wrong, Maid Heather?"Maid Heather pointed to the bruises on Maria’s shoulders and arms. She felt like crying, "Who's so evil and did this? How dare they beat Mrs. Smith this badly?"Seeing the wounds, Charl
Lily changed her shoes and entered the Miller family's mansion with a spring in her step.Before she could glance at the living room, an angry voice shouted at her from the front, "Lily, where have you been!?"Lily was startled by the voice. She looked up to see her husband, Samuel Miller. He was sitting on the sofa, glaring at her.Knowing that this man was jealous, she gave a slight laugh, flicked her long, curly hair seductively with her fingers, and sashayed over to him."Babe, you scared me! What could I possibly be doing? I went to see Mimi. Samuel, if you don’t believe me, you can call Mimi and ask her about it.”"Mimi?"Samuel sneered. He coldly looked at Lily, "I knew you went to see Mimi! Lily, however you put it, Mimi is your daughter, what have you done to her? How could you let Charles vent his anger on the Miller family!?""What did I do to Mimi?"Lily looked confused, "I didn't do anything to Mimi.""Hmm..."Sitting next to his father, Daniel Miller also sneered, "Ms.
In the Smith family's villa.In Charles' bedroom, Maria was lying in bed with her eyes closed. The private doctor had already visited and placed her on a drip.Charles sat at the bedside, gently holding Maria’s other hand. Looking at her feverish and flushed face, which was slowly getting back to normal, he felt greatly relieved.Fortunately, it was just a fever. As long as the fever subsided, Maria would be fine."Knock, knock, knock ..."The bedroom door was gently knocked on from the outside, followed by Maid Heather's voice, "Young Master Smith, Mr. Miller and Mrs. Miller came and wish to meet Mrs. Smith."Charles squinted a little and said in a cold tone, "Don't let them in."Maid Heather nodded. Without a word, she turned to leave.Maid Heather went to the front door and turned on the video call. Looking at the sycophantic face of Samuel on the screen, she sternly stated, "Mrs. Smith is running a high fever. She has no time to see you. You should go!"She was about to hang up, b
Samuel had no idea that Maria replaced Mia in the arranged marriage.Besides, Samuel wasn't a stranger. He had lived with Mia for more than a decade as her stepfather. Others might not be able to see that this Mia was a fake, but he surely could see it!Lily reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. She jumped up in surprise, "What? That's not necessary, right? Didn't you say Mia has a fever? Just let her rest. There's no need to bother her."Samuel nodded in agreement, voicing his concern, "Yeah, Mr. Smith, Mia is unwell. It might be inconvenient. Let her rest. We're fine standing here."Lily quickly agreed, dropping her mother-in-law's intimidating demeanor. She smiled awkwardly, "Yes, we're fine standing here."Charles waved at Maid Heather. She quickly understood it and sat back down.Seeing Charles' reaction, Samuel knew that Charles didn't want this issue to become too ugly. In annoyance, he suddenly turned and threw a harsh slap on Lily's face.With a loud smack, Lily