Chapter 4

The moment the words left my mouth, the place erupted in massive laughter.

"Fifteen thousand dollars a month? Are you insane?"

"Poor people are just pathetic, they'll say any lie for the sake of appearances!"

"LOL, he must be so poor he's hallucinating. Fifteen thousand a month? Why not a hundred million?"

The live stream chat scrolled wildly, everyone calling me a liar, saying I was delusionally rich.

Blake, looking smug, sneered.

"Alex, you really do love making a fool of yourself, don't you? With your pathetic appearance, have you ever even seen fifteen thousand dollars?"

Facing the endless laughter and mockery, I suppressed my anger, looked at Aunt Sarah, and spoke firmly.

"Aunt Sarah, please clarify for everyone. Does my mom send you fifteen thousand dollars every month for my living expenses?"

Seeing my serious question, the entire area instantly fell silent.

Everyone turned to look at Aunt Sarah.

Aunt Sarah looked at me with a complicated expression for a moment, then slowly said.

"Alex, I know you want to save face and regain your dignity, but... but your family truly hasn't given us any living expenses."

"I don't want to embarrass you, but I can't lie for you either!"

I stared at Aunt Sarah in disbelief, as if struck by lightning.

I had personally seen her receive my mom's transfers! Why was she lying?!

Hearing Aunt Sarah's answer, the mockery grew even louder.

"See! I told you he was lying!"

"How disgusting, taking advantage of his aunt's kindness, then trying to force her to lie for him?"

"No wonder he refused to go back with his aunt. He was waiting for this moment! If his aunt had actually, for his sake, admitted to receiving the fifteen grand, he'd probably extort her relentlessly later!"

"He's utterly shameless! Not only does he freeload off others, but he also tries to exploit their kindness for his own gain!"

Laughter and insults surged like a tidal wave.

The live stream chat was even more ruthless, full of curses and condemnations.

Blake glared at me with pure disgust, his voice full of hatred.

"Alex, aren't you ashamed? You've been freeloading at our house for so long, and now you want to extort money from us?"

Then, he turned to Aunt Sarah.

"Mom, let's settle this with him today, so he can't spread rumors later that we mistreated him!"

Aunt Sarah's face flashed with panic. She tried to stop him. "Blake, just let it go..."

"No, we can't!"

Blake insisted. "Isn't he so stubborn? Didn't he brag about giving our family fifteen thousand dollars for living expenses? Today, I'm going to expose him!"

He pulled out his phone and began calculating earnestly.

"Listen, our house is across from a top high school, a prime school district! Renting out one room would be at least three hundred dollars a month!"

"Your three meals a day, at least ten dollars a day, that's three hundred dollars a month!"

"Utilities - water, electricity, gas, property fees - split among us, that's a hundred dollars a month for you!"

"Plus Mom doing your laundry and cooking every day, let's say a nanny fee of eight hundred dollars a month!"

"300 + 300 + 100 + 800 = 1500 dollars a month. You stayed at our house for three months, so 1,500 dollars a month multiplied by three months is 4,500 dollars."

After calculating, Blake looked down at me, extended his hand, and said coldly.

"Business is business, even among family. Hand over that 4,500 dollars right now!"

"After that, you can live wherever you want. We won't care if you die out there!"

At this, everyone gloated.

"That's what you get for bragging! Now you're speechless, huh?"

"LOL, didn't your family give you fifteen thousand a month for living expenses? What are you waiting for? Pay up!"

"Exactly! Could it be your parents didn't collect enough garbage today and can't afford it?"

The live stream chat was also flooded with insults, mocking me for bragging and telling me to pay up.

Aunt Sarah stood to the side, her lips moving, but ultimately she remained silent.

I looked at the mother and son, and the last shred of warmth in my heart was completely extinguished.

Under everyone's gaze, I calmly took out my phone, my voice icy.

"Alright, since you want to settle accounts with me, let's do it, item by item, and make it crystal clear."