Aurora wanted to see what type of stepmother she had. The generous and caring stepmother or the scheming stepmother.
The young female doctor and nurse exchanged uneasy glances.
"But Miss Aurora," the nurse hesitated, "your stepmother... she might not agree."
Aurora arched an eyebrow. "That’s her problem, not mine."
She wasn’t going to pay for soone else’s decision—especially when she had no recollection of agreeing to it.
If her so-called stepmother wanted to act generous in front of others, then she could also act responsible when the bill ca knocking.
The nurse nodded and stepped away to make the call.
A few minutes later, she returned with a complicated expression.
"Your stepmother said... you should be the one to handle it."
The answer to her previous question arrived, scheming stepmother.
Aurora flashed a sweet smile to the nurse and said,
"If you don’t mind, can you give your phone and dial my stepmother’s phone number?"
The nurse, feeling sympathy for Aurora, dailed the stepmother’s number again and passed the phone to Aurora.
Aurora turned the recording function on and pressed the phone to her ears.
Once the call was connected, a gentle voice sounded,
"Hello?"
Aurora’s lips curled slightly as she leaned back against the hospital bed.
"Stepmother," she said, her tone dripping with honeyed sweetness.
"I heard from the hospital staff that you were the one who arranged for to stay in the VIP ward."
There was a slight pause on the other end. Then, the gentle voice replied,
"Oh, Aurora, dear! Of course I did. You were in critical condition. I wanted you to have the best care possible."
Aurora’s smile didn’t reach her eyes.
"That’s so thoughtful of you," she said, twirling a strand of her hair.
"Then naturally, since you made the decision, you’ll be the one paying the bill, right?"
A sharp intake of breath sounded on the other end before her stepmother regained her composure.
"Well... Aurora, I assud you’d cover it. You do have money, don’t you?"
Aurora chuckled, though there was no humor in it.
"I am recording the phone call, and if you don’t pay the money, I will release it to the dia. Let them see how a stepmother can screw her stepdaughter."
There was a sharp silence on the other end of the line.
Then, the gentle facade crumbled.
"You little brat!" her stepmother hissed, her voice dripping with venom. "Do you think you can threaten ?"
Aurora lazily examined her nails, completely unfazed.
"Threaten you?" she echoed innocently.
"Oh no, stepmother, I’m simply stating facts. You wanted to play the role of a generous and caring mother—so why back out when it’s ti to pay?"
Her stepmother’s breathing turned heavy with suppressed rage.
"You—!"
Aurora cut her off smoothly.
"You see, my dear stepmother, public perception is a tricky thing. If I release this recording, what do you think will happen?
A wealthy, high-status woman like you refusing to pay for the hospital bills of her critically ill underage stepdaughter? People love a good villain, and you’d fit the role perfectly."
A long pause.
Aurora knew she had struck a nerve.
"Fine," her stepmother finally spat through clenched teeth. "I’ll pay."
Aurora’s smile widened.
She handed the phone back to the nurse, who stared at her with wide eyes.
Aurora stretched lazily, satisfied.
"Let know when the paynt is confird," she said. "I’ll be waiting."
Once everyone left, Aurora lay on the bed and closed her eyes.
Her face turned pale, and she wished that when she opened her eyes again, she would be back to her original world.
However...
Nothing.
Even when she was discharged, Aurora still felt as if everything was unrealistic.
The sky outside was still blue, but many things were new to her.
There were cleaning robots around and holographic billboards displaying advertisents that responded to passersby.
There weren’t flying cars, as she had imagined, but the cars of this world were indeed different from what she rembered.
There were also few hovercar around, but they were rare.
Aurora sighed.
It had been days since she woke up in this unfamiliar world, and yet she still couldn’t shake the feeling of disconnection.
She had read enough novels to understand what had likely happened—she had transmigrated.
But why? And into whose body?
Her stepmother’s reaction earlier confird that this body had a complicated past.
It also ant that she couldn’t afford to be careless.
Who was this girl? What had happened to her? And more importantly...
Why was Aurora here?
As she stepped out of the hospital, a sleek, black hovercar pulled up in front of her.
The driver, a middle-aged man in a crisp uniform, stepped out and bowed slightly.
"Miss Aurora, I’ve been sent to take you ho."
Aurora tilted her head.
Ho?
Right. This body had a ho.
Aurora studied the driver carefully.
His face was expressionless, his posture formal, but there was sothing about the way he avoided eting her eyes that made her suspicious.
She didn’t move.
Instead, she crossed her arms and leaned slightly against the hospital entrance.
"Who sent you?" she asked lazily.
The driver stiffened for a split second before quickly regaining his composure.
"Madam instructed to bring you ho safely."
Madam. Her stepmother.
Aurora’s lips curled into a smirk.
"Oh? And what if I don’t want to go ho?"
The driver hesitated. He hadn’t expected resistance.
"Miss Aurora, I’m afraid I cannot—"
Aurora turned and started walking away.
"Then don’t," she interrupted.
The driver panicked. "Miss Aurora, please, you must co with —!"
Aurora paused and looked at him over her shoulder. "Do you think I am dumb dumb?"
How co the generous stepmother suddenly becos caring and sends a driver just to pick her?
Maybe the stepmother was planning to sell her off to soone, or worse, she might end up in an abandoned warehouse.
"Miss Aurora, if you have to keep being stubborn, I will have to drag you inside the car." The driver slowly turned expressionless.
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