The Unlucky Turn by Mark Twain 37
How could she not hate her?
Callahan didn’t speak; he just watched her quietly, seeming to wait for her to continue.
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Leilani was silent for a moment, then suddenly felt there was nothing to hide. Her background was no secret in their circle anyway.
“I am the biological daughter of the Sloan family. Twenty years ago, the hospital swapped the babies. Tamara became the Sloan family heiress, while I was thrown away by Tamara’s biological father and adopted by a kind couple in the countryside.”
Callahan’s eyes flickered; he was clearly somewhat surprised. The Sloan family’s status was only mid-tier; he had heard bits of gossip occasionally but never paid attention.
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“Later, the Sloan family discovered the truth and took me back.” She gave a light laugh, but her eyes held no warmth. “Unfortunately, they never cared about blood ties. They only cared about a daughter who could bring them prestige.”
Callahan frowned slightly. “So, Clive and Josiah…”
“They are my brothers in name,” Leilani said sarcastically. “But in their eyes, only Tamara is their sister.”
Callahan recalled the attitude of Clive and Zeus toward Leilani the previous two times he had seen them. His gaze grew cold.
“The Sloan family acknowledged you, but they don’t treat you well?” His voice was low, carrying a barely perceptible chill.
Callahan thought the Sloan family must have something wrong with their heads. No wonder their status had stagnated; after so many years, they hadn’t improved at all.
Leilani smiled, her eyes completely indifferent. “They only took me back because the blood relation couldn’t be denied. But emotionally, they had long treated Tamara as their own.”
She paused, her tone calm to the point of cruelty. “Hackett and Zadie are people who care extremely about their reputation. Compared to bloodlines, they care more about who can bring them glory. Tamara was carefully cultivated from childhood; she’s elegant and proper, the socialite everyone praises. While I…”
She looked up, meeting Callahan’s gaze. “A daughter who grew up in the country and went to prison only brings them shame.”
Callahan’s gaze deepened as he scrutinized the girl in front of him. Leilani was clearly talking about her own life, yet her tone was as detached as if she were telling a stranger’s story, without a trace of self-pity. This clarity and resilience stirred a strange emotion in his heart.
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“So, they chose Tamara,” he said simply.
Leilani shook her head. She saw through Hackett and Zadie clearly. She hooked her lips in a mocking arc. “It wasn’t a choice. They just couldn’t bear to abandon the ‘perfect daughter’ they had raised for twenty years. By the same logic, if there ever comes a day when Tamara humiliates them completely, they will discard her without hesitation.”
Leilani’s attitude was so calm that Callahan couldn’t help but ask, “Do you hate them?”
“Of course!” Leilani looked up, a cold light flashing in her eyes before returning to calm. “But until I have the power to take revenge, they aren’t qualified to make me emotional.”
Callahan looked at her. He wasn’t frightened by her hatred; instead, a sense of admiration rose within him. Repaying evil with kindness was nonsense. In the business world, it meant waiting to be skinned alive and eaten bone and all.
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