Chapter 1

My son’s gold-digging girlfriend immediately took all our family’s assets the moment I was diagnosed with cancer.

She declared it was all her wedding settlement, and even if I died on the streets, I wouldn't get a single penny of her money.

Ultimately, she caused me to miss the best treatment window, and my condition worsened. With only a short time left, I pulled her with me as I jumped from the building.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at the first time I met that gold-digging girlfriend.

I could even hear her thoughts.

Only then did I realize, she wasn't the gold-digger after all.

"Danny said Auntie wouldn't even glance at anything under a seven-thousand-dollar necklace, but the one I bought was only twelve hundred.

Still, that was all the money I saved from my entire semester of work-study. I gave it to him days ago, why isn't she wearing it? Guess she really does look down on my stuff."

Chloe's voice drifted into my ears, fragmented and uncertain.

I opened my eyes and saw the familiar scene of my home, realizing I had been reborn.

And I was back at the moment my son, Daniel, first brought his girlfriend, Chloe, to meet me.

In my previous life, this supposedly gold-digging young woman, even before marrying Daniel, had a tight grip on his salary.

She then used the excuse that a two-hundred-thousand-dollar wedding settlement was customary in her hometown, forcing us to sell everything we owned to gather the money for her.

By the time I was diagnosed with cancer, there was no money left for treatment.

I tried to discuss with her the possibility of returning a portion of the settlement for my treatment, promising to repay it later.

But she flat-out refused, and even told Daniel: "All your family's money is my wedding settlement. Your mother's old life isn't worth saving; even if she dies on the street, she won't get a single penny of my money."

Her stubborn refusal to contribute led me to miss my treatment window, dragging my early-stage cancer all the way to terminal.

Watching my remaining days dwindle, I was consumed by grief and rage. When she came to visit me, I grabbed her and jumped off the building.

But I never expected to be reborn.

In a daze, I heard her speaking—something about a gold necklace. What did that mean?

I looked up at Chloe, who sat across from me, looking slightly nervous. That voice spoke again:

"Auntie's staring at me so seriously, is she unhappy with me? I shouldn't have listened to Danny, telling me it would be awkward to give it to Auntie in person, insisting I give it to him early. I should have known to ask my parents for more money to get a bigger one. Auntie probably thinks I don't care enough about her now."

Chloe's lips weren't moving, yet the voice flowed continuously.

Could it be her thoughts?

But when had she ever given me a gold necklace?

In my previous life, she started trying to intimidate me a month before we even met.

She said she wouldn't eat fruit unless it was over fifty dollars a pound, wouldn't eat meals from anything less than a five-star restaurant. Even the slippers she wore into our house had to be limited-edition, celebrity-endorsed. And when she left, I had to give her a large cash gift.

As for her, she never spent a dime, not once. Even the gift she gave me was just a free sample from the supermarket.

As I pondered this, Chloe glanced at Daniel, then suddenly stood up to go to the bathroom.

Once she was in the bathroom, Daniel urgently pulled me aside: "Mom, why are you just sitting there since she arrived? Aren't you going to give her a welcome gift? Chloe's already upset."

"And the fruit, the food… it's not what Chloe asked for, is it? Aren't you obviously trying to put her in her place?"

I was stunned.

Daniel had said the exact same thing in my previous life. Back then, I'd immediately thought Chloe was too materialistic, not a good girl.

That led to me having a strong prejudice against her later on.

But judging by Chloe's thoughts just now, it seemed she hadn't meant any of that.