Sent Away the Ungrateful Son

I had raised my adopted son for over twenty years, but he chose to return to his birth parents without hesitation.

He told me, "They're my real parents, after all. You won't understand unless you give birth to a child yourself."

My husband and I agreed with tears in our eyes, but we never expected that he would come back a year later.

Our adopted son, with tears streaming down his face, pleaded with us, "Mom, Dad, I'm sorry. I didn't come back for treatment. I just want to care for you and make up for all the years I wasn't there for you."

We sold off everything we owned and worked tirelessly to get him treated.

But once he recovered, he used our identities to take out high-interest loans and shamelessly claimed, "I got sick because you didn't take good care of me. You deserve this."

In the end, my husband died from the stress and heartbreak, and I was left destitute, having to live on the streets and get bullied, and finally starving to death.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the very day our adopted son wanted to return home.

1

"Mom, Dad, I missed you so much. I'm sorry to have left you, and I want to spend my last days making it up to you." Calvin was sobbing uncontrollably at our doorstep, his eyes swollen and red.

Standing beside him were his birth parents, Erik Knight and Yvette Knight, both red-eyed and very tearful.

I stood frozen in shock. I didn't expect I could have a second chance at life.

And I returned to the day Calvin begged my husband and me to come back to us.

In my previous life, the year he returned to his birth parents, he was diagnosed with lung cancer.

He could have started treatment right away, but Calvin insisted on coming back to us, saying he wanted to care for us.

My husband, Oscar Shepherd, and I were a bit miffed about Calvin's leaving, but deep down, we still cared about him. So his decision to return delighted both of us.

After all, we took him for the apple of our eye for nearly twenty years. We couldn't bear to see him die so young.

So we spent all our meager retirement savings on his treatment, and even sold our only house despite the already precarious situation.

But the medical expenses were increasing relentlessly. I became the waiter's assistant, and Oscar took the job as a worker at a factory.

Fortunately, Calvin recovered, but then he turned against us and used our identities to take out high-interest loans.

He grinned and said, "How could you be so naive? Of course, I came back to you for treatment. But you deserve this. It's because of you two that I got sick."

Oscar was so angry at Calvin's ingratitude that he coughed up blood, and my already bad back gave out from all the dishwashing.

I went to beg Calvin for a little money, but he kicked me hard and told us to go to hell and not to bother him.

2

"Mom, Dad, please let me come home. I want to make it up to you, so I'll have no regrets." Calvin's voice was choked with emotion and snapped me back to reality. He sounded so sincere and earnest.

He was like a pitiful child abandoned by his evil parents, and we were like his heartless parents.

A wave of nausea rose in my stomach, but I still forced a loving smile onto my face. "Silly boy, even though you've left us, we won't use our past kindness as leverage to make you repay us. We only hope you can spend your last days with your parents and be happy."

Oscar put on a kind face, too. "We appreciate your offer, but your health comes first."

Calvin was momentarily speechless at our responses, his face streaked with tears. He stared at us in disbelief. "But you're also my parents. I want to stay with you."

I blinked in confusion. "But didn't you say only Erik and Yvette are your parents? Oscar and I can't have children, so we can never become real parents."

My words witnessed that the people who had been gossiping about us nearby immediately glared at Calvin with open contempt.

Calvin's face flushed red with embarrassment.

At that moment, his mother, Yvette, started sobbing again. "He was young and didn't know any better. Why hold a grudge against him? He missed you so much."

Erik looked pained. "Yes. Please have some compassion and let him come back to make it up to you."

I stared coldly at the feigned sad look on Yvette and Erik's faces. In my previous life, it was exactly their superb performance that convinced Oscar and me that they had no choice.

So we took Calvin back in. But it turned out in the end that it was all part of their plan.

Once they exploited us fully, they kicked us down the ladder. But this time, I would never help them again.

3

After calming myself, I sighed and told Calvin to stop crying.

The moment he heard my tone soften, Calvin thought he had a chance. He immediately wiped away his tears, ready to carry his luggage inside.

But I stopped him and said with a troubled look, "Oscar's headaches have been acting up again lately. We can't have too many people at the house. You're a good boy, and you're always welcome to visit us, but you can't stay here."

Oscar quickly put on a pained expression and called out to me, "Maisie, let's go inside. I'm not feeling well again."

Before anyone could react, we slipped back inside, leaving Erik's family standing there dumbfounded.

And Oscar and I were equally stunned.

Once inside, Oscar and I exchanged a knowing look and suddenly understood.

We spoke in unison, "Did you get reborn as well?"

The next moment, we hugged each other tightly, sobbing uncontrollably. As I recalled how he had died in my arms, covered in blood, in our previous life, my heart ached as if pierced by a knife.

In this life, Oscar and I would watch Calvin meet his end without lending him a hand.

4

Sure enough, he came back again.

There was no way we'd let him in, so we pretended we were heading out to have a meal.

He looked surprised and muttered, "You're going out to eat? That'll spend a lot."

I caught the disapproval in his voice. In our previous life, Oscar and I had scrimped and saved every penny for him.

We lived on scraps to save money for him. But we ended up with a miserable death.

Oscar and I remained composed as if we hadn't heard him. Calvin still trailed after us to the restaurant.

Oscar ordered two of my favorite dishes, and Calvin immediately stopped him, "That's enough!"

Oscar didn't respond to Calvin's words and just handed me the menu. I ordered two more dishes that he liked.

Calvin's face soured, his brows furrowing in displeasure. "You didn't order anything I can eat. I'm sick, you know."

I feigned an apologetic tone, "Sorry about that. Why don't you order something you can eat?"

Calvin put on a stern look, his tone full of resentment. "That's cost even more. Never mind. You two enjoy yourselves."

His bad temper finally showed through.

I exchanged a glance with Oscar and sighed. "What? Why can't we even treat ourselves to a meal with our own money?"

Calvin looked at me with a pained expression. "Of course, you can. I just feel like I don't deserve it. Even though my illness is still treatable, I don't want to waste your money."

Well, he broached the subject of his illness again. He was waiting for us to offer to pay for his treatment, his usual trick.

He looked outwardly calm, but I could see the anticipation in his eyes.

Oscar pretended to be puzzled and moved as he looked at Calvin. "Of course, you won't waste our money. It's your real parents who should pay for your treatment. You've only been back to them for less than a year, and you're already trying to save money for them. You're much more sensible now."

Calvin clearly hadn't expected Oscar to say that. We no longer considered him part of our family, so there was no way we would pay for his treatment.

Calvin's face filled with resentment, his fingers clenched tightly around his fork, his demeanor gloomy.

Oscar and I didn't pay him any attention, enjoying our meal in peace.

As we were about to finish eating, Calvin stared at us intently before finally speaking up. "Mom, Dad, can you come with me to the hospital tomorrow? I want to know what stage my illness is in now."

5

I let out a troubled sigh. "But we have plans tomorrow."

Calvin slammed his hand on the table and snapped, "You're both retired! What plans could you possibly have?"

We pretended to be shocked by his outburst. "Why are you getting so worked up? We're going on a trip. After all these years of putting you first, it's finally our turn to enjoy life."

Oscar nodded. "Didn't you say you wanted to make it up to us and make us happy? We think you're right. It's time for us to relax."

Calvin's face twisted with anger, but he managed to hold back his temper in the end.

I knew he was searching for another excuse.

Sure enough, he looked at us with a sincere expression as if he were truly concerned about us. "Mom, Dad, have you ever thought about how you will support yourselves in your old age since you have no children to rely on?"

I chuckled and waved my hand. "We'll just go to a retirement home. Silly boy, stop worrying about us and start thinking about yourself."

Calvin immediately responded, "Then don't go on that trip. Save the money and give it to me instead."

I thought for a moment. "Alright, the tour only costs us three hundred and ninety-nine dollars. We'll give it to you as a gift."

Calvin shot to his feet, his expression darkened with anger. "That's it? That's not enough at all! How could you be so heartless? I'm dying, you know. And you still have the mood for travel!"

I watched Calvin's tantrum coldly. Back then, after he recovered, Oscar was so stressed about the loans that he coughed up blood.

Meanwhile, this ungrateful jerk took our money and lived it up with his girlfriend. Now that the tables had turned, it was only fair he got a taste of our suffering!

Oscar's brow furrowed. "Calvin, we used to spend all our money on you. We paid for private tutors when you were in high school. And we paid for your education in a private university..."

His eyes brimmed with tears as he spoke, his voice trembling. "Now that we've retired, we can't even spend a few hundred on a local trip without your approval!"

I quickly comforted Oscar and then turned to Calvin. "We won't require you to pay us back, and we don't expect you to care for us. Just don't come bothering us again."

Calvin stood there rigidly, his face frozen. Suddenly, he kicked the table, sending dishes clattering.

He barked, "Sell your house and give me the money for my treatment!"

I stared at him in disbelief. "Don't be ridiculous. If we sold the house, where would we live?"

He shouted angrily at us, "So you're just going to watch me die? You're so heartless! If I die, you'll be my murderers! Thank God you're not my real parents! Otherwise, how miserable my life would be!"

I watched his outburst coldly, thinking how foolish and selfish he was.

Oscar stood up and said innocently, "You should go to your real parents. Didn't you always say only they deserve to be your parents? Honestly, I think so, too."

With that, we ignored his tantrum, calmly paid the bill, and left him shouting behind us.

6

The next day, our door was banged loudly.

Oscar and I were startled and hurried to open it.

The moment we did, a crowd of reporters and livestreamers shoved cameras in our faces.

Calvin, dressed in tattered clothes, stood in front of our door holding a sign, sobbing pitifully.

The sign read, "My adoptive parents abandoned me after I got sick. Mom, Dad, please save me."

Around us, livestreamers bombarded us with questions.

"You clearly can afford his treatment. Why don't you help him?"

"Is it that you don't care about his life at all?"

"It's claimed by your son that while he can't afford treatment, you're living a luxurious life. Is it true?"

I shook my head and tried to explain. "He's the one who left us. Now that he's sick, he wants to use us to get treatment."

A female influencer with bright red hair shoved her phone in my face and snapped, "Are you just making excuses for yourself? Why are you letting him die?"

Oscar, angry now, retorted, "Do you have any proof for what you're saying?"

The woman, emboldened by his anger, got even more aggressive. "Why are you so acted up? Feeling guilty? Maybe you can't have kids because of all the bad karma."

The onlookers went from whispering gossip to outright fury. Someone even threw pebbles at us.

In an instant, Oscar and I were bruised from the hitting.

Wary of the situation, we quickly retreated inside and slammed the door, shutting out the insults and abuse.

The internet exploded with hateful comments.

"Let's expose their real identities. They deserve it."

"No wonder they can't have their own kids. Serves them right."

"The first sight of them tells me they're petty and mean. Guys, steer clear of people like this."

Oscar was so upset by these twisted accusations that he nearly fell ill. I immediately contacted a lawyer to sue the red-haired influencer.

The moment I hung up with the lawyer, it hit me that on the day Calvin said he wanted to cut ties with us, I saved a copy of the home security footage!