Blaming Myself for Trusting Them

Sam Evans woke up feeling groggy, his mind clouded. It took him a while to recall what had happened before.

Looking around at the furnishings, he realized this must be Arthur Evans's home.

"Sam, you're finally awake! How are you feeling? Any discomfort?" Arthur Evans heard movement inside and pushed the door open.

Seeing his younger brother enter, Sam Evans lowered his head in shame.

Thinking back, Arthur and Lily had warned him many times that Lana Evans was no longer the daughter he once knew, but he stubbornly refused to believe them, insisting that Lana was still his sweet, obedient girl.

Now, it was Lily and Arthur who went to great lengths so he could hear Lana's true thoughts for himself.

Sam Evans felt deeply ashamed. If he hadn't finally come to his senses, who knows how much more money Lana would have managed to swindle from Arthur and Lily using him as a pawn.

"Arthur, it's all my fault. I was wrong to trust Lana Evans. Sigh, I've lived most of my life, yet I turned out to be blind—played for a fool by those people." Sam Evans's face was full of pain and remorse.

"Uncle Sam." Lily Evans walked in from the doorway, patted Sam Evans on the shoulder, and asked, "Uncle, now that you know everything, what do you plan to do next?"

Sam Evans shook his head in confusion. "Sigh, do you know what Lana did for money? She actually lied to me, saying she was seriously ill. She knew I'd be worried sick if I thought she was sick, but for the sake of silver, she didn't care about anything—just schemed and deceived me however she could."

Arthur Evans and Lily Evans both sighed. Lana Evans really had done such a thing—it was truly disappointing.

"Sam, now that you know their true colors, you should start thinking about your own future," Arthur Evans advised.

"I... Anyway, I don't want to go back there, and I don't want to see them again." Sam Evans let out a long sigh. "I may be honest, but I can't let them play me like this. It's bad enough they fooled me, but what I can't stand is how they used me to get money and favors from you. Everyone's silver was earned through hard work—I can't let them get away with it! No, I want that ten thousand taels of silver back. I won't let them have it so easily!"

As he spoke, Sam Evans sprang to his feet, anxiously heading for the door, determined to confront Lana Evans and demand his money back.

"Sam, don't be impulsive!" Arthur Evans saw that Sam was serious about getting his money back and quickly tried to stop him.

"That silver was lost because of me, and I have to get it back! Arthur, don't stop me. Even if you don't care about those ten thousand taels, I can't swallow this humiliation!" Sam Evans was visibly furious.

"Uncle Sam, the silver isn't in their hands." Lily Evans came over to help restrain Sam Evans. "Uncle, didn't you hear them say the silver was stolen by a group of thugs?"

"I don't believe a single word they say! They claim it was stolen by thugs, but who knows if those thugs weren't just their accomplices." Sam Evans was on high alert, refusing to trust anything Lana Evans and her group said.

"Uncle Sam, the silver really was stolen." Lily Evans pressed Sam Evans back into his seat and waved her hand.

Lola walked in, carrying two boxes. Sam Evans recognized them immediately—they were the boxes he had used to borrow money.

"How did the silver end up back with you?" Sam Evans was completely bewildered.

"We all worked hard for this silver. We never wanted it to fall into the hands of people with ill intentions." Lily Evans grinned at Sam Evans. "So after Lana Evans told the truth, we took the silver back and gave them a good beating to teach them a lesson."