After My Parents Jailed the Top Scholar, I Abandon This Family

It should have been a family dinner. The whole point was to celebrate my acceptance letter from the National Defense University. Instead it turned into a full-blown production over a ‘stolen watch.’ Everyone suspected me. Everyone was sure I'd taken it. Even my own parents refused to believe me. They'd made up their minds. I was the ‘watch thief.’ I wouldn't confess. So my parents drove me to the police station themselves. When the officer began to question us, before I could even open my mouth, my mother sitting beside me got there first. “There's something wrong with my daughter's character. Today was supposed to be a celebration for getting into the National Defense University, and on a day this important she quietly stole her cousin's watch.” “That watch is worth hundreds of thousands.” “We suspect she did it on purpose.” The officer frowned. “On purpose?” “You're saying your daughter had her eye on her cousin's watch all along?” My mother nodded hard. “Yes.” “Do you have anything to back that up?” “Of course we do!” She paused. Then my mother launched right into it. “She's a girl about to start college. We never gave her much of an allowance, yet somehow the luxury goods in her room just keep piling up.” “We strongly suspect she's been doing things she can't let anyone see, and that to enjoy that kind of high-end lifestyle, she may even have sold her own body.” Hearing my mother say her own daughter had ‘sold her body,’ I stared at her, shocked, unable to believe it. In that moment, it was as if someone had swung a giant hammer at my heart and slammed it hard. The sheer force of that pain nearly stopped me from breathing. And yet. My cousin, the one who'd actually lost the watch, rushed to defend me. His mother clapped a hand over his mouth. “You little brat, don't you dare try to get her off.” “She stole something, so she has to be punished!” “She's getting exactly what she deserves.” My cousin pulled free of her hand. “Mom, stop it. The watch is gone, so let it go.” “Emma's spent all these years studying late into the night, pushing herself so hard.” “She finally made it into the National Defense University.” “If we go through with reporting her,” “her whole life could be ruined.” My uncle looked unimpressed. “For someone like her, wouldn't it be better if she were ruined?” “So she can't go out and be a menace to society later.” My father actually nodded in complete agreement. “She needs to be punished. She needs to learn her lesson.” “Then she'll finally understand that honesty is worth more.” The female officer taking the report suddenly lifted her eyes from the computer screen and looked at me. “Your name is Emma Gilbert?” I nodded, my eyes red. “The perfect-score valedictorian from this year's SATs?” I made a small sound of agreement. The officer stared at my parents, taken aback. “What were you thinking.” “Over a single watch, you'd actually report your own valedictorian daughter?”

When my parents heard the words "valedictorian daughter," pride flickered plainly in their eyes. But only for a second. Then both their faces darkened all at once. "So what if she's a perfect-score valedictorian?" "Even if she topped the whole world, she'd still be our daughter." "When it comes to education, we're extremely strict." "If she does something wrong, we still hit her!" The female officer opened her mouth, about to say something. The male officer beside her asked me, "Emma Gilbert, did you steal your cousin's watch?" I shook my head hard. "I didn't steal it!" My mother's eyes snapped to me. "You're already at the station and you're still making excuses?" "Admit it right now. Give the watch back to your cousin." "Then straighten up your attitude and apologize properly." Before I could get a word out, the male officer motioned for my parents to be quiet. Then he asked them, "You two need to think this through. If you insist on charging your daughter with theft, she'll have a record. The National Defense University's review process for this kind of thing is extremely strict." "Once the case is opened, she's finished with the National Defense University." I bit my lip and looked at my parents. My eyes were hopeful, edged with a trace of pleading. I had worked so hard for so many years. I had gotten into the school of my dreams as a perfect-score valedictorian. I really didn't want to lose it just like this. But they didn't just ignore my pleading. They turned to the officer, self-righteous, and told him: "Open the case if it needs opening. Detain her if she needs detaining." "This is how we've always raised our daughter. We won't allow her the smallest mistake." The male officer and the female officer taking the record exchanged a glance. Both of them let out a soft sigh, then looked at me with a strange expression. Like they pitied what was happening to me. In the end, the case was opened, and the police would handle the investigation. Not only did I get a record, they also confiscated my ID. Until this case was cleared up, I wasn't allowed to leave the city. Once we came out of the station, the relatives all left, one after another. My uncle's wife made a point of pulling her son aside to keep him at a distance from me. "Son, from now on, stay far away from this valedictorian cousin of yours." "She's a super genius, you know." "What if one day she goes after your things again for a life of luxury?" "Our family may be well-off, but we can't afford to be a target." "Understand?" My cousin stood there, wanting to say something, but my uncle dragged him into the car. After they left, my parents were shaking with rage. The whole way, they didn't say a word. But it was obvious how angry they were. I held it in for a long time before I finally spoke. "Mom, Dad, I..." "Shut up!" My mother whipped around, her bloodshot eyes glaring, and screamed at me. "You worthless thing." "We finally had something to brag about to them." "And you go and commit a disgrace like this." "How can you be so greedy for money?" "Didn't we feed you?" "You just had to steal?" She screamed the questions at me, pinching me with her hand the whole time. The pain left my face streaming with tears. My father, driving, let out a cold snort. "Don't think this is over." My heart lurched. I already knew what they meant to do. Sure enough, once we got home. The moment we reached the living room, my father unbuckled his belt and lashed it down hard across my body.

My whole body was covered in bruises from my father's belt. And afterward he sat there dabbing ointment on them himself. "Sweetheart, your mom and I doing this to you, it doesn't mean we don't love you." "It's because we need you to make us proud." "We poured everything into raising you." "All so we could watch you succeed." "So why on earth would you go and steal?" Tears ran down my face without a sound. My voice shook. "I didn't steal..." "Still won't admit it?" My father's brow creased. "I really didn't steal it. How am I supposed to admit to something I didn't do?" My mother's palm cracked across my face. "You little wretch, why do you have to be so stubborn?" "Would it kill you to just admit it?" I lowered my head and stopped defending myself. At dinner. My parents had gone out of their way to invite my uncle's family over. "What, come to plead for your daughter, get us to drop the charges?" My younger cousin cut in quickly, "We'll drop them..." "You shut up!" My uncle glared at his son. "You're young, you don't understand. You think hundreds of thousands come easy?" "She lifts a finger and steals hundreds of thousands." "One day when we're old." "Everything we leave to you, she'd just steal all of it, wouldn't she?" My cousin stared at him, lost. "Dad, it's not that serious..." "People are worse than you'd ever imagine." Then. My uncle turned to my mother. "Sis, this needs to be a lesson she never forgets." "Otherwise, once she's out of college, who could control her?" My mother nodded. "Don't worry. I'll make sure you're satisfied with how this ends." After that. My aunt even went and hired a lawyer, dead set on pressing charges. With my parents cooperating. I was taken to the station again. This time my mother's attitude was even harder, even more resolute. And the lawyer backed her every step. Before my file was fully entered into the justice system. The officer asked my parents, "This is really just a simple family dispute. You could easily settle it between yourselves. There's no need to insist on opening a case and ruining your child." "As long as I haven't entered the file into the system, you still have a chance to take it back." My mother waved her hand and said coldly, "Enter it now. We're not taking anything back." "Mom, please, don't..." I'd barely begun to beg. My mother glared at me. "This is your lesson!" A while later. The officer said, "It's in the system now. The file is officially created." And that was it. I didn't have even a sliver of a chance left. My mother, thoroughly satisfied, gave my uncle's family her promise again. Once we got home, she'd force me to say where the watch was. She guaranteed it would be "returned to its rightful owner." But. By the time we got home, before they could even start in on me. The National Defense University called. Because I was the perfect-score valedictorian, the school had kept close watch on me. The moment the justice system created a file on me. They were notified. After review, the school had decided: I would be permanently barred from admission. My mother flatly refused to believe it. "My daughter's a perfect-score valedictorian. She just made a little mistake. Don't try to scare me with this 'permanently barred' nonsense." The school's representative hung up. My mother sneered. "Scam calls these days. More brazen every year." I wept and screamed out in despair, "You destroyed my future with your own hands!"