She Outshines 136
Chapter 136
49%
Athena’s eyes flickered as her mind raced.
Jaden was right. It was normal that Children didn’t like certain things but ended up wanting them
influenced by their surroundings.
However, the fact that something so strange happened right before Zilvin’s incident made Athena
feel that things weren’t that simple..
She asked, “Did Zilvia ever talk about her dreams or goals? Or, did she mention anything she
wanted to do or ces she wanted to go?
Jaden paused for a moment before saying, “Although she didn’t say it explicitly, during the school
survey, she mentioned that her goal is to pursue boundless ideals and a bright future.
Athena paused mid-scoop of her dessert, looking up in surprise.
Noticing her reaction, Jaden smiled. “What’s wrong?”
Athena replied. That was my too. When I was in kindergarten, I gave a speech on that theme and
won first ce.”
Jaden, equally surprised, studied her for a few seconds before chuckling. “If you had gone missing
when you were five, I might have suspected you were Zilvia”
Athena tapped her head lightly and said, “Although Zilvia and I have many simrities, we probably
have more differences.” Jaden looked at her deeply but didn’t continue discussing the resemnce
between them. “After just one year in kindergarten, Zilvia said it was boring and that the kids were
too childish. She wanted to start primary school. The family nned to let her take the entrance
exam for the middle school at Kitmore City School after another six months.”
e again.
Athena was taken aback once
She had attended both middle and high school at Kitmore City School.
If Zilvia hadn’t had that unfortunate ident, they would likely have met there.
Jaden then seemed to recall something. “By the way, all of Zilvia’s things are still at home, kept in a
few boxes under the bed in the old house at Viento Court. No one has dared to touch them all these
years. If you want, you can go and take a look.”
Athena nodded and said, “Alright, I’ll go over in the next couple of days.”
She paused briefly before broaching a topic she had long nned to ask, “What kind of person is
Catherine?
Jaden hadn’t expected this question, and after a moment of contemtion, he replied, “When Mom
was pregnant with you guys, she was older and had to take care of many children, so the family
decided to hire a nanny to take care of her. Catherine volunteered for the job as soon as she found
out. Since she had experience with childbirth, the family epted
her.
“She has a high emotional intelligence and took great care of Mom. She also got along well with the
whole family. We’ve always considered her one of us.”
Jaden paused for a few seconds before continuing, “However, her reputation back in Mom’s
hometown and Maria’s hometown was terrible. Personally, I don’t like her much.”
He gazed at Athena. “Do you think I’m being biased against Catherine?”
Athena smiled, “As long as what you’re saying is the truth, it’s not biased.”
Chapter 136
Jaden nodded. “In our family, I’m the only one who doesn’t like her, and Maria is scared of her. To
avoid being subjective, it’s better if you ask and I answer.”
“Alright.” Athena’s eyes sharpened. “Why don’t you like Catherine
Jaden pondered for a moment and said. “I can’t pinpoint anything specific. It’s just she always feels
a bit hypocritical to me. I can’t tell if she’s being sincere or just putting on an act.”
Athena nodded thoughtfully. “Did she get paid for working as a nanny in our family?”
“Yes” Jaden said. “She lived in our house, sharing a room with Zilvia, and the family paid her about
half the going rate.
“It wasn’t that the family didn’t want to pay her market price. She refused to take it, saying that her
sister was her most important family member, and she couldn’t ept wages from family, or it
would feel too impersonal. Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.
“She only epted half so she could send money home and support her daughter.”
Athena asked. “Did she only have Maria as a daughter?”
Jaden replied. “That’s what she said. I’ve never seen her have contact with any other children.”
Athena picked up on a clue and asked quickly. “She’s only two years younger than Mom, right? Why
did she have a child sote! And you mentioned she’s emotionally intelligent. Why does she have
such a bad reputation in her hometown and with her inws?
“What was her
appearance.
nality, education, poprity, and talent like!”
This time, Jaden was silent for a long time.
Athena observed his expression. He seemed to be recalling and carefully considering how to
respond.
After a few minutes, Jaden finally said, “People from Mom’s hometown said she had trouble
conceiving because of too many abortions and excessive medication.”
Athena was genuinely surprised now.
Catherine’s background was far from simple.
With every question Athena asked and every detail Jaden shared, Athena started to form a clearer
picture of Catherine.
The Stevens family had three children, with the eldest being a boy.
Both ire and Catherine were beautiful and famous in the mountains.
Girls from the mountains typically only went to elementary school, learning to write and do basic
math was considered enough.
When ire graduated from elementary school, her family didn’t want her to continue studying, but
she convinced them. saying. “Girls need more education to marry well. If I marry well, I can help the
family. Otherwise, you’ll have to support
me
Her family was persuaded and allowed her to attend middle school in town.
As a result, Catherine got the chance to attend middle school.
There were rumors that during her time in middle school, Catherine dated the son of the richest
man in town and often stayed at his house. He provided everything for her, including food, clothing,
and tuition fees.
By that time, ire had already moved to the county to attend high school and couldn’t keep an eye
on Catherine,
who
13:17 Sun, Oct
Chapter 136
ended up not even going home for New Year, focused solely on getting married. Her grades
plummeted, and she failed to get into high school
After graduating from middle school, Catherine continued to live at the boy’s house for a year or
two, reportedly having had several abortions for him.
Later, his family arranged a more educated woman for him and wanted to kick Catherine out.
She caused a scene, demanded money from him, and eventually left for the city to work.
For several years, Catherine had little contact with her family, and no one knew how she was doing.
She was hard to reach.
After two or three years, Catherine started sending money and photos back home asionally. In
the photos, she was stylishly dressed, with modern high-rises in the background.
Later, she sent a sum of money and more photos, iming she had married.
In the photos, her husband looked old enough to be her father, but he was dressed like a wealthy
man
Initially, Catherine’s family was happy for her, but a couple of yearster, she returned to the
mountains, saying her health had been worn out by work, and she needed to recuperate there
Rumors began to swirl that her husband had been imprisoned for a crime, and creditors were
chasing after her, leaving her with no choice but to hide at home.
At that point, she was nearly thirty, with no husband and no children. The locals treated her like an
outcast, and the Stevens family was so embarrassed hey pressured her to marry or leave.
Around that time, a man from a nearby vige, reportedly well-off, sent a matchmaker to propose,
offering a generous dowry by local standards to marry Catherine.
After inspecting the man’s family and finding it eptable, Catherine agreed to the marriage.
However, Catherine’s rtionship with her inws soured quickly. Theyined that she was
lazy, pampered, and disobedient. More importantly, she struggled to conceive, and her inws
started to regret the marriage.
After trying various methods, she finally gave birth to a daughter, but her inws were deeply
disappointed and treated both her and her daughter poorly.
When Maria was nearly two years old, Catherine went to town to buy a birthday gift for her and
never returned.
In reality, she hade to Kitmore City and sought out her pregnant sister, ire, offering to be her
sanny. That was how she ended up living with the Donovan family.
She sent money to her inws every month, and they were content to let her be, happy to have one
less person to feed.
When Maria was five, and Zilvia started kindergarten, Catherine brought Maria to live with the
Donovan family.
After Zilvia’s ident, the Donovan family fell into financial hardship and turmoil, constantly beset
by illness and unrest. Catherine, not wanting to burden the family, took Maria back to her inws.
Not long after returning, Catherine ran