After dinner, Edgar called Alexei to his study.


    Natasha sat alone on the sofa, munching on some fruit.


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    Given her badass entrance earlier and Alexei’s obvious favoritism, nobody wanted to mess


    with her for now.


    Since they couldn’t go head–to–head with her, they figured ignoring her was the next best thing. So a weird vibe of istion settled over the living room.


    The Turner family members chatted, yed cards, and hung out in small groups, while Natasha was left sitting all by herself.


    Natasha was perfectly happy chilling by herself, but Cora Turner clearly couldn’t stand the group cold–shoulder vibe.


    She shot a yful, reproachful look at the younger folks who were deliberately leaving Natasha out, then smiled and called out to her.


    “Natasha, if you’re bored,e join us for some cards! We need a fourth,” Cora said.


    Natasha nced over and saw the other two people at the table.


    One was Vivian Westwood, the full–blooded sister of Dereck.


    Her face was cold, showing neither wee nor rejection toward Natasha.


    Vivian had been keeping that same uninterested look ever since Natasha arrived.


    The other woman was Harley, with slender, alluring eyes. She had a slight frown on her lips, looking a bit impatient, but whatever was on her mind, she kept it to herself.


    Natasha couldn’t care less about what was going on in their heads. Alexei had made it clear she didn’t have to get close to anyone.


    But Cora was the only one in the family who had been nice to her so far.


    So Natasha gave her a polite smile and declined gently. “Thanks, Cora, but I don’t know how to y cards. I wouldn’t want to spoil your game.”


    “What a show–off,” a voice came from the other end of the sofa.


    It was a teenager who looked about seventeen, ying a video game.


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    Natasha didn’t recognize him. He wasn’t one of the people Alexei had introduced her to.


    He was staring intently at the screen, his fingers flying over the controls, his face totally nk. It was hard to tell if he was the one who’d actually said it.


    Natasha didn’t bother figuring out whether he was talking about her or Cora. She nced at him, then put her headphones back on.


    Cora just smiled and let it go. She called Sasha, who had just walked in from outside, to join them for cards.


    She also thoughtfully asked the maid to bring Natasha another te of fruit.


    Unlike the lively scene downstairs, the atmosphere in the study was somber and tense.


    Edgar stared at Alexei, who was loungingzily across from him, a mix of admiration and heartache in his eyes.


    “Are you serious about that woman you brought back?” Edgar asked.


    “Of course,” Alexei replied.


    “With your status, you could have anyone you want. Of all people, why her–a girl with almost no family to speak of?” Edgar said.


    Alexei let out a coldugh. “She’s like an orphan, and I’m the cursed one. We’re a perfect pair,


    aren’t we?”


    Edgar gripped his cane tightly, his tone almost certain. “You still hate us.”


    Alexei didn’t respond.


    Back in the day, Byron Turner, the eldest son Edgar had always favored, was still around, and his spot as the heir to the family was rock solid.


    Dereck was never ambitious enough to fight for power.


    Byron had married Cora, who was basically perfect in every way. It was a ssic family alliance.


    Dereck, on the other hand, was all about chasing the excitement of true love when it came to marriage.


    That was how he ended up falling for Alexei’s mother, Unity Turner.


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    She came from a regr family, but her musical talent was off the charts.


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    Dereck firstid eyes on Unity at a concert, where she was ying the cello. He started pursuing her right after.


    At the time, Unity already had a fiancé, and the two of them were really close.


    But then she found out he was still tangled up with his ex–girlfriend, and heartbroken, she called off the engagement.


    After that, Dereck pretended to be the second son of an ordinary business family and kept pursuing her relentlessly. It took him a whole year, but he finally won her heart.


    But naturally, their rtionship faced opposition from the family.


    Once Unity learned Dereck’s true identity, she didn’t want to marry into a family with so much drama.


    But Dereck just wouldn’t let go. He pleaded and even threatened to end his life if his family didn’t ept her. In the end, they caved.


    After the wedding, they had a sweet honeymoon phase. But once Byron passed away, the family drama exploded, and their happy life started to unravel.


    Right around then, Teri, who was Dereck’s childhood friend who’d always secretly liked him, just happened to return from overseas.


    With Byron gone, Dereck wanted to fight for the top spot. But he quickly realized that, aside from her music, Unity couldn’t help him at all in the family power games.


    After suffering through several miscarriages, Unity kept urging him to walk away from all thi:


    mess.


    In contrast, Teri understood Dereck’s ambitions and secretly gave him all kinds of support behind the scenes.


    Unsurprisingly, Dereck ended up cheating.


    When Unity found out, she didn’t make a scene. She was already worn out. She just calmly asked for a divorce<i>. </i>


    But back then, their marriage had been a huge sensation. The second son of a top–tier billionaire family and a genius cellist’s romance became legendary.


    His persona as a loving husband had earned him plenty of goodwill from the public.


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    Getting a divorce and remarrying at that point would have been a total PR disaster.


    If their enemies got wind of it, it would turn into a huge scandal, and Teri would be branded as the homewrecker.


    On top of that, Unity was pregnant at the time.


    Dereck had feelings for Unity. The moment he was caught, regret hit him hard.


    She was the woman he’d fought so hard to win, and he just couldn’t bring himself to let her <ol><li>go. </li></ol>


    Teri, on the other hand, was stubborn to the core.


    She’d been in love with Dereck since childhood, and even though she knew it was wrong to get involved with a married man, she just wouldn’t back off.


    The three of them were caught in this messy love triangle, and Dereck was too spineless to make a choice.


    Unity was determined to get a divorce. When that failed, she even tried to run away.


    In response, Dereck confined her in the Green Garden of the Turner Mansion, keeping her under house arrest.


    Unity’s parents were worried sick about her.


    They tried to visit the Turner family several times but were always turned away. One rainy day, on their way back home, they were killed in a car ident.


    By the time Unity gave birth to Alexei, she was already deep in depression.


    Dealing with his hysterical wife was wearing Dereck down, both physically and mentally. Meanwhile, Edgar still hadn’t handed over any real power to anyone.


    Instead, he was hinting at grooming an heir among his grandchildren. With Teri’s encouragement, Dereck decided to go abroad to expand his business.


    Unity and two–year–old Alexei were left behind in the old mansion, but their freedom were still restricted.


    Cora still had the powerful backing of her own family after Byron’s death. However, Unity had no one to rely on.


    Cora had chosen to stay with the Turner family as a widow after Byron’s death.


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    But for Unity, a woman whose parents were gone and whose husband offered no protection, being trapped in this nest of vipers was like falling straight into hell.


    With the Turner family all scheming and fighting for power, Unity and Alexei were basically left to fend for themselves. They became everyone’s favorite targets.


    Anyone could step on them whenever they pleased, and to make things worse, Dereck’s shady business abroad kept dragging more trouble their way.


    The family mocked them, the servants bullied them. Edgar treated them with cold indifference.


    Worst of all, Melvin was secretly coveting Unity.


    Since Dereck, who’d seen every kind of beauty out there, fell for her at first sight, it proved how stunning Unity was.


    One time, while trying to avoid Melvin, she tumbled down the stairs and hit her head.


    But nobody felt sorry for her. Instead, they mocked her and called her a homewrecker.


    Melvin’s wife, Lane Turner, even dragged a group over and beat her up right in front of little Alexei, warning her not to seduce other man.


    When Edgar found out, he just had someone patch Unity up and told the others not to get her killed and embarrass the Turner family.


    He had way <i>too </i>many kids and grandkids, and he believed in survival of the fittest. A mother and son with no value weren’t worth his time.


    Unity was basically driven mad by the entire Turner family. Every single one of them was partly to me.


    By then, her mental state was already falling apart, but she kept going, hanging on for her


    son’s sake.


    She tried to end her life more than once. Sometimes, she would lose control and hurt Alexei.


    Whenever she snapped out of it, the guilt and pain would hit her twice as hard, and her health just kept getting worse.


    Clinging to herst shred of hope, she tried reaching out to Vivian, who was already married. After all, Vivian was Alexei’s aunt.


    But Vivian never replied.


    5:05 pm <b>D </b>


    When Alexei turned five, Dereck came back home with Teri in tow.


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