Chapter 1

For twenty years, the Blake family poured their hearts into raising me, believing I was their precious daughter—even though I was nothing but a fake heiress.

On my twentieth birthday, the real heiress showed up—dirt-streaked, wild-eyed, and wearing a look that said she'd already won.

With a smile full of arrogance, she announced, "I'm the real heiress."

She called me a fraud, said I was the "fake" taking her place.

But what she didn't know was that the Blake family had known I wasn't their real daughter for a long time.

And besides, the fortune my biological parents left me could buy out the Blakes a few times over—enough for me to live lavishly for eight hundred lifetimes.

"Mom, Dad, I'm your real daughter!" The girl burst in through the doorway, yelling straight at Matthew and Emily, who stood beside me.

Matthew and Emily's brows knitted together. Following the commotion, I glanced over and spotted the girl just a few steps away.

She wore a worn-out, faded white dress, had a canvas bag slung over her shoulder, and squeezed her feet into barely-fitting sandals. She looked completely down-and-out.

Matthew was just about to call security to escort her out, but she darted inside before anyone could stop her.

"Mom, Dad, I'm home," she said, her voice trembling.

Matthew and Emily exchanged a look, but neither of them moved.

Today was supposed to be my twentieth birthday, the day the Blakes would officially announce me as their heir.

I had been groomed for this since I was little. Matthew and Emily raised me, personally tutored me, shaped me into a polished prodigy.

Double major in finance and law. Fluent in four languages. A piano virtuoso.

My childhood? I didn't get one. It was just endless lessons and competitions.

But it paid off. I became the city's top genius, the one everyone talked about, the girl every rich heir was after.

I noticed some of the guests already had their phones out, filming. The Blake family, on the other hand, didn't budge.

So I gave the butler, Mary, a quick signal to help the girl up.

"Miss," I said quietly, "if you have something to say, let's go inside, alright?"

But suddenly, she gave me a shove.

"Don't act all sweet and innocent! You've been living my life for twenty years — isn't that enough?" she yelled.

Emily quickly stepped in, steadying me, her face full of fury.

"Enough! Do you have any proof to back up your claim that you're our real daughter?" Matthew said coldly.

Back in the day, the Blake family made headlines for losing their daughter.

People had come out of the woodwork, lining up from here to France, claiming to be the lost daughter.

Things only settled down once they brought me home.

Everyone just assumed I was the girl they'd found, and the Blake family never bothered to set the record straight.

She seemed ready for this, pulling a DNA test report out of her canvas bag.

It wasn't all that surprising. Matthew had been sending in hair samples to the authorities every few months, hoping to track down his real daughter.

But he never imagined she'd just show up like this, barging in at an event like it was nothing.

Matthew took the paper from her, his expression softening a little as he scanned the results.

Then he handed it around for everyone to see—it was true. She was their biological daughter.

Still, something about it didn't sit right with me.

Emily's eyes reddened as she rushed forward and grabbed the girl's hand, overcome with emotion and speechless.

The girl sniffled, playing up the sob story. "Mom, Dad… I've had it so hard these past twenty years."

But Emily, who had been on the verge of tears, suddenly froze, her emotions caught off guard by those words.

Her eyes dropped to the girl's hands—soft, unscarred, looking like they'd never done a day of real work.

Emily was sharp, business-savvy. She wasn't buying this act.

Still, with her daughter finally home after being lost for so long, she couldn't bring herself to say anything harsh.

She gently patted the girl's head, though.

The girl, clearly expecting more emotional drama, looked disappointed.

She immediately shifted her glare to me.

She studied my diamond-studded gown and the pink sapphire necklace around my neck. Jealousy flickered in her eyes.

Then she spat out, "Does a fake like you really think you deserve to inherit everything?"

Everyone in the room turned to stare, all eyes locked on her.

But she just stood there, looking completely calm, not even considering how her outburst could impact the Blake family's reputation.

Matthew quickly snapped, "That's not how it is."

She looked like she'd been hit by a truckload of misery, tears welled up in her eyes as she choked out,

"Dad, I'm your real daughter! Shouldn't the whole family empire be handed to me, not her?" she wailed, voice trembling.

Matthew didn't even flinch—he was completely unmoved.

But the guests were whispering now, and the pressure was starting to show. He exchanged a glance with Emily.

Emily reached for his arm, trying to pull the girl out of the spotlight before it became a public mess.

But the girl yanked away from her, refusing to leave.