Chapter 2 No Identity

In his haste to leave, Owen wasn't worried that Yunice wouldn't follow. She was already reckless enough to grab a flaming piece of charcoal, so there was no way she would be petty enough to stay put. Sure enough, Yunice came out of the mental hospital.

Her walk was a little strange. She held her stomach with one hand, her shoulders were hunched, and her legs felt too heavy to lift.

His driver, Bobby, felt that something was wrong. "Mr. Owen, Mrs. Saunders doesn't look well."

Owen lifted his gaze and let out a cold snort. "She's just faking it, trying to get me worked up. I've coddled her too much, and now she thinks acting weak makes her right about everything."

Even as he spoke in a dismissive tone, he couldn't help but notice how thin the woman was, how pale her skin was, and the wounds on her hands... Fine. As soon as she got into the car, he'd take her to the hospital for a check-up, so she couldn't use her illness as a reason to manipulate him again.

However, before he had a chance to act on that thought, Yunice, despite seeing his car, suddenly turned and bolted in the opposite direction. She was trying to run away!

Yunice had no intention of going back to the Saunders family! Elsie must have set a trap, just waiting for her to walk into it. Going back now would be like throwing herself into a pit of suffering!

She didn't want anything from the Saunders family anymore. Her priority was to go to the registry office, replace her missing ID, and then disappear completely to start her own new life!

However, her body was too battered. The internal injuries from the lunatics there had taken their toll. Every step she took was like reopening a wound. Yunice was gasping for air, her forehead slick with cold sweat, yet she barely managed to get far before Owen pulled her back.

"Ah!" Yunice screamed as she lost her balance and fell heavily to the ground.

Yunice's pained cry caught Owen by surprise. He froze, staring at Yunice curled up on the ground, holding her head as if bracing for a beating... But he hadn't even done anything yet. Frowning, he examined her carefully but didn't move to help her up. "If you think running away will make me worry, you're wrong."

Hearing Owen's voice, Yunice finally dared to lower her hands. Right... this wasn't the mental hospital. No one would chase and beat her here.

Owen said, frowning, "Right now, you're not even in the system. Without an identity, you can't even buy a ticket."

No money, no phone, no ID... She had no destination. She had no choice but to rely on the Saunders family.

"I'm not in it?" Yunice was confused at first, but then her eyes widened as she realized something.

Elsie was an illegitimate child. When their mother brought her back from the mountains, she couldn't provide a birth certificate or any information about her father. Because of this, Elsie had been a ghost in the system ever since she joined the Saunders family. She couldn't register for school, couldn't buy a plane ticket, and barely dared to leave the house. Her background was a stain on her life. She was pathetic and innocent. So, the whole family went to great lengths to make it up to her. Even Yunice did the same.

And now...

Yunice gave a bitter laugh. The very thing she had once pitied in others had now become her own reality.

Seeing her reaction, Owen felt this would be difficult for her to accept. He knelt down and began to explain, "After you were admitted to the mental hospital, Oscar was worried that the longer you stayed there, the worse your reputation would be. So, he had Elsie take your identity-she attended school as you, she attended banquets as you. She grew up in the mountains, Yunice. When she first arrived at our home, she didn't even know what a strawberry was. She knew she was very different from you and was afraid of embarrassing you in public. That's why she studied late into the night, until she fainted from exhaustion more than once. She did all of that for you. Don't be so ungrateful and hurt her feelings."

Owen frowned, his expression filled with disappointment, as if Yunice was the unreasonable one.

Yunice let out a hollow laugh. "So now that I'm better, can she give me back my identity?"

She already knew the answer. Elsie had spent years building herself up under the name of Yunice. Even if she was willing to return it, the people she was connected to would only see Yunice as an imposter who was bullying her.

She already knew she would never get her identity back. Yet, she couldn't help but feel a pang of bitterness and resentment. She wanted to hear Owen's answer.

Just as she expected, Owen snapped. "I've explained everything to you, and all you care about is yourself. You didn't even once ask how Elsie is. Three years in a mental hospital, and you're still so selfish!"

Owen lost his patience. "The mental hospital is right there. If you don't want to go home, just go in!"

After that, he turned and got into the car. His driver, Bobby, hesitated. "Mr. Owen, are we really leaving Miss Saunders?"

Owen made sure Yunice could hear him. "I've been too kind to her, which is why she's become such an ungrateful brat! Let her suffer a little; maybe she'll finally understand the meaning of kindness."

After that, he rolled up the window and ordered coldly, "Drive."

As the Saunders family car sped away, Yunice didn't even glance at it. She forced her battered body to move and turned to look at the mental hospital one last time. She would never return there.

She knew the way home. Even without a car, she could walk home. However, two hours after Owen arrived at home, he still hadn't found any sign of her.

...

At the cemetery, Yunice knelt on the ground, pressing her face against the cold tombstone as she cried.

"Dad, I miss you so much... If you knew your daughter had no home to go to, you'd be heartbroken. Dad, please hug me... Owen and Mom no longer love me. They only hug Elsie. They only smile at Elsie..."

Clutching the tombstone, Yunice buried her forehead against her father's photo, but the stone remained still. Just as she would never get the comfort she craved.

She didn't know how long she cried. Only when her tears had completely dried did she begin to calm down.

She wiped her face with the back of her hand, then used her sleeve to brush the dust off the tombstone. "Dad, I'll take care of myself. Don't worry."

After that, she began digging the soil in front of the grave. When her hands weren't strong enough, she used a rock to pry up one of the tiles.

Underneath the tile was an empty space containing a box.

The Saunders family came from a long line of apothecaries, but as they transitioned into the hospital business, traditional medicine was gradually phased out. Nevertheless, the family's medical texts were still passed down through generations.

When Yunice was a child, her father noticed her interest in ancient medicine and bequeathed all those books to her. After he died, a ten-year-old Yunice secretly hid them here. At the time, she naively thought that if her father got bored underground, at least he would have something to read.

She never expected that a childish decision would one day become her last asset. Inside the box weren't just ancient medical manuscripts; there was also a Cow Bezoar Pill, and it was the genuine article.

A proper Cow Bezoar Pill could save a life in a critical moment. The original formula required rhinoceros horn, but since rhinoceros horns were banned, later versions used buffalo horn, which significantly reduced its potency.

However, what Yunice had was the rare, original formula. Her body was a wreck. She had no money, no identity, no way to get hospital care, and no access to medicine. So, she bit off a piece of the pill and swallowed it. The rest she carefully put away.

She quickly looked around. There was no one nearby. She buried the rest of her belongings back into the ground.

Elsie would never know about this. Otherwise, she would surely convince Owen to take all her things.

Just as she finished covering the grave, a familiar yet unfamiliar voice spoke from behind her.

"I knew you'd be here."