Reba froze, her gaze fixed on Zoey. The corners of her eyes, which had sagged slightly, now lifted, filled with scrutiny as she tried to gauge whether the younger woman was joking.


    But it was clear that Zoey was not joking–she was dead <b>serious</b>.


    A rush of blood flooded Reba’s head as she struggled to catch her breath, scarcely able to believe that Zoey was asking her for money to buy medicine. They were family by marriage, and this was for medicine. Did she have to be so calctive about it?


    Suppressing the humiliation that bubbled up inside her Reba shot a nce at Tara. There were s things she simply couldn’t voice, given her senior status.


    some


    Recognizing the cue, Tara mustered the courage to ask, “Could you lend us the money for now, Madam Zoey? We can pay you backter.”


    “I rushed out of my home this morning. How could I possibly have that much money on me?” Zoey replied.


    “You could always go back and fetch it first,” Tara suggested, her voice barely a whisper.


    Zoey chuckled. “Isn’t that a bit redundant? I’d have to make an extra trip to the estate. Why


    not just give me the money directly? After all, you’ll need to pay me back eventually. You can’t be saying that a prestigious family like yours can’te up with two hundred silver coins, right?”


    Reba’s face flushed with anger, herplexion darkening. It was clear Zoey was humiliating her.


    Tara tried tough it off. “How could that be? It just so happens that the steward isn’t here at the moment, so… so we can’t ess the funds right now.”


    <i>Vi </i>in th


    Zoey stood up, her demeanor cool. “Then, send someone to fetch him. I’ll check on Vi in the meantime. Once you have the funds, send them over to Grace Mansion. It’s just running an errand for you. There’s no reason I shouldn’t help family.”


    With that, Zoey offered a polite nod and left. Once outside the courtyard, a cold smile crept onto her lips.


    The audacity of it all–daring to ask her for money to buy medicine!


    Vi had been resting for the past few days, finally managing to settle herself after narrowly escaping death. The thought of her brush with the afterlife sent chills down her spine.


    Previously, she had held a ridiculous and pitying attitude towards Amelia’s death, thinking it <b>was </b>absurd for someone to be so fragile and be unable to bear any burden. If living was so difficult, what was the point of it all?


    But now, having nearly died herself, Vi understood just how terrifying death could be. And yet Amelia, that timid woman, had chosen death. She had first tried to throw herself into the river, <b>and </b>failing that, she hung herself. It showed the depths of her despair, the sheer hopelessness that led her to such a drastic end<b>. </b>N?velDrama.Org (C) content.


    Vi started to feel a pang of sadness for Amelia, along with a bit of guilt. At first, she believed herte sister–inw’s death had nothing to do with her, but then Zoey scolded her and pointed out that Amelia’s suicide had a lot to do with her actions.


    Initially, Vi had resisted this notion. Yet, Zoeyid <b>out </b>one point after another, painting a picture of a bitter, sharp–tongued, and selfish woman.


    That woman was her, Vi Prince.


    Vi couldn’t understand how she had be like this She was the third daughter of Earl of Silverstone’s family, ady who had never known hardship. It was no exaggeration to say she lived a life of luxury. But after marrying into the Warren family, why had she begun to value money over lives?


    When she saw Zoey enter, she quickly wiped away her tears. Even though she knew her sister–inw despised her, she couldn’t help but choke out, “Zoey, I don’t know why I treated her like that. I really didn’t. mean to go against her.”


    Zoey sat down, silent for a moment. Noticing Vi continually dabbing at her eyes, she finally spoke, her tone measured, “You didn’t mean to harm her, but you did intend to go against her. Amelia had no money, and you looked down on her shabby ways.


    “You wanted to humiliate her by depriving her of money, to see her embarrassed and struggling, all to highlight your own wealth and status. You couldn’tpete with Carissa or even Ka, so you chose topare yourself to Amelia. You won, but at what cost? She’s dead…”


    Zoey paused, fully aware that her next words would be harsh, but she felt they needed to be said, a wake- up call to Vi.


    “But she’s dead, and your child is gone too. Have you thought about what it would have meant if she hadn’t died? With just a little effort to gather some money, she could have bought Snowdrop Pills. The people at Arcane Sanctum acknowledged her and would have sold the pills to her.”


    Vi covered her eyes with her hands, tears streaming down her face. “I truly didn’t think she would die. I never thought…”


    Zoey watched her cry. “When you deliberately inflict malice upon someone, you must consider the worst. consequences your actions could bring.”