Chapter 2

Lindsay really didn't care about such biased family members anymore. She considered herself to have no blood relations with them.

When she was young, Alex lost her, and she was taken by human traffickers who intended to use her for child labor. Fortunately, her benefactor, Moses Goodwin, rescued and adopted her; otherwise, her life would have been miserable.

Lindsay's words caused the expressions of the Harper family to change dramatically. They never expected that she would actually sever ties with them and leave.

Olivia leaned against Grace, her eyes shifting slightly. She looked at Lindsay with a guilty and apologetic expression and said, "No, I'm the one who should leave.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to steal your opportunity. I just liked that variety show, so Oliver went to talk to you.

"I don't want the show anymore, so you don't have to be unhappy. I don't want to make Dad, Mom, and my brothers upset and worried."

On the surface, she appeared guilty, but in reality, she was using this to advance her position. She cleared herself of any intention to steal Lindsay's opportunity while showing her understanding and generosity.

She also made Lindsay look bad in front of the Harper family, implying that Lindsay was using the threat of severing ties to manipulate them.

As expected, everyone in the family looked even more upset.

Lindsay looked at Olivia and retorted bluntly, "Stop acting so innocent in front of me. I don't buy it."

Having completely given up on family affection, Lindsay didn't hold back and was even less polite to Olivia.

"You've been saying you want to leave for a year, but you never actually left. I'm tired of your retreat-to-advance act. Only certain fools would believe it."

She deliberately exposed the truth, "Of course, you wouldn't directly ask me for my opportunities. After all, as soon as you say you want something, your beloved family members will naturally hand it over to you.

"And you don't need to play innocent. I no longer care about what your beloved family members think, so it doesn't matter to me."

These words immediately darkened the expressions of the Harper family.

Olivia's expression changed as she suppressed her anger. She hugged Grace, looking aggrieved. "I didn't. Don't talk about Mom, Dad, and my brothers like that."

She wondered if Lindsay had gone mad today, confronting her directly and speaking so harshly.

Although being confronted made her uncomfortable, Lindsay's behavior would only make the Harper family dislike her more. She decided to endure it.

As expected, Grace was furious. "What are you saying? Where are your manners?"

Lindsay shrugged. "My parents who gave birth to me didn’t raise me, so I lack manners.”

Everyone was speechless.

Grace looked at Lindsay with disappointment. "Are you still blaming us? We brought you back, but it seems we made a mistake. We've tried to compensate you over the past year. What more do you want?

"Why do you have to compete with Via? Can't you just be a good sister to her?”

Grace emphasized, "Even though you are our biological daughter, Via has been with us all these years in your place. In our hearts, she is an important part of the Harper family and my daughter."

Lindsay used to find these words painful, but now they no longer mattered to her.

"What am I competing for? Since I returned to the Harper family, it's been you and her who have constantly come after me. Whatever I do, you accuse me of seeking attention and wanting things that don't belong to me.

“If you have a persecution complex, go to the hospital for treatment. I'm done with this."

Lindsay pulled out a bank card from her bag and tossed it onto the table in front of them. "This is the compensation you gave me. I haven't used a single cent."

The card had two hundred thousand dollars, and she indeed hadn't touched it.

“I won't take anything the butler bought for me from the day I stepped into this house. But for the things I used, I'll reimburse you."

She then placed a piece of paper on the table. "I've been with the Harper family for over a year. Considering my living expenses, I've used less than twenty thousand dollars. This is the list. I've just transferred twenty thousand to this card. From now on, we are even.”

If money could solve the problem, it wasn't a real problem.

So now she had settled things financially with the Harper family, but what they owed her emotionally would remain unpaid forever.

Lindsay's actions made the Harper family realize she was serious, and they felt a bit embarrassed.

Grace couldn't accept that Lindsay, who had been so compliant since coming back, was now acting so rebellious and disobedient. She slapped the table in anger. "Fine, if you want to leave, then leave.

"But if you step out of the Harper family's door today, don't ever think about coming back."

She believed her biological daughter wouldn't truly abandon the Harper family and them. Just like Olivia said, this was a tactic to get their attention by pretending to leave.

If they let Lindsay succeed this time, who knew what trouble she'd cause in the future?

Grace's order for Lindsay to leave wasn't genuine; it was a warning not to push things too far. The others remained silent, clearly sharing Grace's thoughts.

Lindsay immediately understood their thoughts. They were convinced she couldn't leave the Harper family. "Once I leave, I won't come back."

With that, she grabbed her suitcase and turned to leave without any hesitation.

Seeing this, Richard spoke up, "Stop this nonsense. Via won't take your variety show spot anymore. I'll have Oliver secure more good opportunities for you in the future."

After all, she was his biological daughter, and he couldn't really let her go.

Lindsay turned and looked at Richard coldly. "Are you trying to insult me by offering me opportunities?"

Richard frowned. "That's not my intention. I just want you to know that since we found you, we will compensate you."

Lindsay found it laughable. "I really appreciate your compensation. In the past year, I've experienced your coldness, complaints, and disdain thoroughly. So, I can’t really accept your compensation.”

Richard was taken aback, seeing that Lindsay was completely unyielding. He sighed and asked, "What exactly do you want?"

He was usually very busy and had indeed neglected his biological daughter over the past year.

Lindsay replied, "I want to sever all ties. It's that simple. No need to contact me anymore. I'm leaving."

Richard was infuriated by Lindsay's attitude, and the expressions on the faces of the five Harper brothers were also grim.

Especially Alex, who looked at Lindsay with a mix of complexity and anger. "In the end, you're still blaming me. You just want to use this to force us to compromise and compete with Via for attention."

Lindsay coldly stared at Alex. "Shouldn't I blame you? You lost me back then, leading to me being taken by human traffickers who nearly forced me into child labor. Should I be grateful for the 'favor' of being lost by you?"

Alex's face turned red and then pale. "I didn't do it on purpose back then, and I had no idea you got taken away by human traffickers."

Lindsay raised an eyebrow. "Just because it wasn't intentional, does that erase the fact that you lost me and changed my life?"

Although Alex showed more kindness and concern compared to the other four brothers and their parents, trying to make up for his mistake, he always sided with Olivia whenever there was a conflict between her and Lindsay.

So, as far as Lindsay was concerned, a brother like him was better off being someone else's problem.