Chapter 5

On the day the SAT scores were released, I went back home.

My dad was nervously guarding the phone, ready to call relatives and friends as soon as the scores came out.

The sound of characters being killed came from my brother Tim's phone. He glanced at me and asked in a seemingly casual tone:

"I heard the top SAT scorers and Ivy League admits get awarded tens of thousands of dollars, right?"

My mom's eyes instantly lit up:

"Really? Tens of thousands?"

My mom had never cared about my excellent grades before.

In her eyes, no matter what I did, I was never good enough. She thought it would be better for me to get married early and earn some dowry money for Tim to use.

Hearing Tim mention the prize money, my mom's eyes suddenly blazed with greed.

"My good daughter, look what mom bought you as a gift from our trip! Don't you love it?"

A sun hat with a sweat-stained brim was forcefully shoved into my hands.

My mom smiled eagerly, unable to hide the avarice in her eyes:

"You see how bad your brother's grades are. Your dad and I are thinking of sending him to study abroad."

"Once your brother makes it big, you'll have someone to rely on even after you get married..."

Listening to her made me nauseous. In my past life at this time, they had already taken Lily's money, bought a big house, and found a study abroad agency for Tim.

They didn't care about me at all.

Now that they knew there was prize money, they started sucking up to me again.

I hid the disgust in my eyes and calmly looked straight at my mom:

"I got sick during the SAT week. I didn't take the tests."

"What?!"

My mom leapt up from the sofa, shrieking:

"You're saying you didn't take the tests?!"

Tim also looked up in shock.

My dad was much calmer:

"Ava, stop joking around. Don't upset your mother."

Hearing that, my mom and Tim also thought I was just kidding. My mom put on a smile again to coax me.

Tim gave me a disdainful look before going back to his game.

But as more and more congratulatory calls came in from relatives and friends, while my score inquiry still showed 0 points, they finally couldn't sit still.

"I really didn't take the tests. You can call my teacher to confirm."

My mom's reaction was direct - she started cursing me viciously:

"You little slut, I knew you were nothing but trouble. I should have drowned you in a bucket when you were born!"

"Take the damn test or don't, don't expect me to pay for you to retake it."

"It's just as well you're not going to college. We can use your dowry to send your brother abroad."

Whether it was being the top scorer or getting married, it was all about getting tens of thousands of dollars to my mom and brother. So they weren't in a rush anymore.

But my dad was furious. His lips were trembling and he pointed at me, unable to speak for a long time. He looked like he was about to have a stroke.

My mom had always wanted to marry me off for a dowry. It was my dad who kept stopping her.

He said I was his pride and joy, and told me to study hard and get into a good college.

I thought at least he loved me.

For his praise and encouragement, I studied like crazy.

Seeing him always being scolded by my mom, I would rather go hungry than ask him for money.

But after I died, he kept a study for himself, pretending to practice calligraphy and read newspapers in there every day.

I realized then that he thought he could have gotten into Harvard or Yale himself, if only the family hadn't been too poor to support him.

He was arrogant and felt his talents were wasted. He wanted to live out his dreams through me.

On the other hand, as the top scorer I could fetch an even higher dowry price, maybe even marry into a rich family.

He was dreaming of money, fame and status. Whether I lived or died didn't matter to him at all.

The viciousness in his eyes made me have no doubt he would beat me to death the next moment.

I took out my Yale early admission letter and said I had already been admitted. My dad gradually calmed down.

"The school will award $10,000, and the county will give $30,000."

"But I'm keeping this money for myself. I'll need it for college."

My dad was grinning from ear to ear as he caressed the admission letter, but stopped smiling when he heard I wanted to keep the money.

"Then don't go to college. With this $40,000, plus asking for a few tens of thousands more in dowry, it'll be enough for your brother to study abroad and even get married."

I smirked coldly.

He would never let me skip college for the sake of his grand dreams. He was just threatening me.

"It's your choice - the money or me. You decide!"

My mom sneered:

"You think you can disown your own parents?"

I ignored her and only looked at my dad:

"If you want the money, we'll terminate our parent-child relationship."

I knew only my dad had the final say in this matter.

"If you want me, you won't get a penny of this money. But I'll support you in your old age in the future."

My dad knew which option was clearly more beneficial. The value of a Yale student would definitely exceed $40,000 in the long run.

But he was more reluctant to give up the $40,000 right in front of him.

He also didn't believe I would really abandon them in the future.

He was confident that by showing me some small favors later on, he could make me continue to be their cash cow.

I was grateful for his confidence as I signed the papers terminating our parent-child relationship. I successfully got my household registration transferred out.

I packed my things and left that same night.

My dad held his favorite thermos, smiling at me:

"Ava, come back for dinner sometime. I'll have your mom make your favorite beef and potato stew."

I replied flatly:

"I'm allergic to beef."