Chapter 8 You Don't Deserve

Soon, the gates of the Yan Family's villa were opened ajar.

"Miss Rachel, you are back," one of the servants said in a surprised tone. Unlike the usual contemptuous tone, Rachel picked up a hint of fear in her voice.

She headed straight to her room on the second floor without bothering to entertain the servants. She was only there today to pack up her things and to deal with something. She had thought things through, and had come to draw a clear line between her and this family.

"Rachel, you're back! Why didn't you inform us of your whereabouts for all these days? Do you know how worried I was?"

Rachel's adoptive father, Anthony Yan, rushed over when he heard from the servants that she had come back. His pretentious words did nothing to lighten Rachel's mood.

In the past, she felt grateful for such petty kindness, but now she was disgusted by his fake concern.

She replied without turning to face him, "I only came here to get my things."

Her voice was devoid of any emotion.

Anthony had a bad feeling about it. He sensed that something was off.

A cloud of doubt enveloped his head, but he did not show it on his face. Pretending concern, he asked in a shocked tone, "Where are you going, Rachel?"

After a short pause, Rachel cast a cold glance at him. Anthony was taken aback by her lack of emotion.

"Where am I going? Anywhere but here. I'm leaving the Yan Family," she said indifferently.

"What?" Anthony said in a high-pitched voice. "You are leaving your family? Why would you do that?"

He looked around, flailing his arms around in confusion.

Rachel scoffed. She hadn't informed the Yan Family in advance about her visit today because she wanted to take advantage of Teresa's and Nancy's absences.

She planned to pack up and leave before they made it back home to avoid any unnecessary conflict.

"I don't understand. What do you mean you are leaving, Rachel? Are you angry because your mother was too strict with you the other day? I already criticized her about what she had done. She has realized that she shouldn't have punished you so severely that day, but you should know that your mother and father are only doing things for your own good. You don't have to leave. Just wait for your mother to return, okay?"

He tried his best to calm Rachel down and buy some time for the servants to inform Teresa about Rachel's arrival.

"Hmph! Father? Mother?" Rachel repeated with a disgusted look on her face.

"When were you ever a good father to me?"

"Rachel..."

Before Anthony could speak, Rachel interrupted, "My parents died a long time ago, Mr. Anthony. I am an orphan. Did you forget that?" With a sneer at the corners of her mouth, she turned away from him and said indifferently, "Besides, you don't deserve to be called my parents."

Anthony's face turned livid. "Rachel, what do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said," she said coldly as she continued to pack her things. "Let me make it clear for you, Mr. Anthony. I am no longer a member of the Yan Family, nor am I your adopted daughter."

She turned to him and looked directly into his confused eyes. "Do you still not understand? I am saying that I'm going to cut off all ties to you and this family forever."

"If you think that you can end things so easily, then you are dreaming!"

Teresa's cold voice came from the door. Both she and Nancy looked angry and were looking at Rachel with disgust in their eyes.

"Rachel, I haven't seen you in a few days. You have become very daring. Do you not have any basic moral integrity?" Teresa asked with a stern look.

Throwing her clothes onto the bed, Rachel sat down lazily on it and glanced at Teresa indifferently. "I'm sorry, madam, but I don't remember you teaching me any basic moral integrity."

The sarcasm in Rachel's tone upset Teresa. At that moment, she looked exactly like her birth mother, which made Teresa much angrier than ever before.

Teresa's eyes narrowed slightly and she examined the girl up and down. Rachel seemed very different, unlike her usual self.

"Wow." Even though she was seething with anger, Teresa burst into laughter. She squinted coldly at Rachel, who looked very similar to her birth mother now, and said, "You may leave this family. The decision is up to you, but..."

She paused before continuing in a grim voice, "You have to repay us for raising you for all these years. Rachel, you should do something to repay all our kindness."

"Mom! Why would you let her leave so easily?" Nancy asked, tugging at Teresa's sleeves nervously. She stared at Rachel with resentment; she wanted to slash up her face and make it hideous.

"What? You can't do it?" Since Rachel remained silent, Teresa laughed scornfully and continued to taunt her, "Then, you have no right to say that you want to cut off all ties with the Yan Family. You are forever in our debt and should obediently stay at home as Rachel Yan."

She turned around to leave, her face adorned with a smug smile of victory.

However, Rachel spoke in a low puzzled tone. "Teresa, I never understood why you would hate a person so much that you would go as far as to ruin her entire family and wish so much pain upon her..."

After a pause, she said, "But I think I understand now." She slowly walked towards Teresa. "It's because you were a selfish woman from the very beginning."

She stood boldly beside Teresa and whispered in her ear, "I will accept any condition you lay down."

Realizing what she was talking about, Teresa stared at her adopted daughter with a cold smile and said, "I underestimated you, Rachel Yan."

They looked at each other for a moment, and then both quickly looked away.

"Nancy, you were complaining that your assistant was not good enough," Teresa said. A treacherous look appeared in her narrowed eyes. "Would you mind letting your sister be your assistant from now on?"

"Her?" Nancy snorted contemptuously.

But as soon as she caught the look on her mother's face, she understood.

The annoyance was replaced by a burst of giggles. She said in a joyful tone, "Well, that's up to my sister."

Casting a cold glance at Rachel, Teresa asked, "Yes?"

A smirk crept on to Rachel's lips and her eyes turned as cold as ice. She said, "I will do it, but only this once."

She had no time to waste on them.

"Well, good luck with that," Nancy said sarcastically. She knew why her mother let her deal with Rachel.