The Real Billionaire Heiress Reclaims Her Throne

I was the long-lost daughter of a billionaire family, working three jobs to support my unemployed childhood sweetheart.

He always said he would marry me as soon as he found a job.

I suffered for three grueling years until he finally told me to put on a wedding dress and meet him at a luxury hotel.

But when I rushed to the hotel entrance, he was holding the fake heiress who had stolen my life, laughing hysterically.

"What did I tell you? I knew she was still delusional enough to think I'd marry her!"

He threw two thousand dollars in my face.

"I was just messing with you today. I've joined the Sterling Group now. We belong to different social classes."

"It's actually quite fitting for you to come here and be a maid for Scarlett."

Everyone around us laughed at my supposed delusions, calling me a dog licking his boots.

But when the Prince of the Sterling Group walked out with my marriage certificate, their laughter died instantly.

01

When I saw Lucas cover his nose with a tissue as he approached me, I knew this was another one of his so-called jokes.

His best friend, Joey, looked at me with pure mockery.

"A greasy girl selling breakfast actually dared to squeeze herself into a wedding dress. Aren't you afraid of bursting the seams and going home naked?"

"She has no idea what she's worth, yet she still dreams that Lucas would marry her."

"She probably fried her own brain along with those dough sticks."

I held the bouquet, my fingertips trembling uncontrollably.

Lucas pushed Joey aside and walked over to tuck a stray hair behind my ear.

"Don't listen to him. This dress looks good on you."

This was his first compliment in three years, and his gaze was unusually gentle.

However, in the next second, his expression shifted. He made an exaggerated gagging face and laughed loudly.

"Too bad even eight bottles of perfume can't hide the smell of trash on you. Putting a beautiful dress on you is such a waste!"

The others burst into a fit of laughter. Joey pulled a bottle of scented insecticide from his bag and started spraying it on me.

"Lucas is too kind. She doesn't deserve perfume. She deserves this!"

If this had happened before, I probably would have stood there crying alone, praying Lucas wouldn't be angry about the smell.

But this time, I took a step back to avoid the mist and looked Joey straight in the eye.

"Don't spray that. If it gets on the bouquet, whoever catches it might get poisoned"

Before I could finish, Lucas interrupted me with a deep frown.

"Catching the bouquet? Aria, did you really leave your brain in the deep fryer? You actually thought I'd marry you?"

"Can't you see I only called you here today to prank you?"

He was already several feet away, yet he still turned his head and held his breath as he spoke, as if I were a cockroach that just crawled out of a sewer.

Joey scanned me up and down, letting out a disdainful snort.

"I think she's just desperate. She sees a man and wants to throw herself at him!"

Even though I had prepared myself, the disgust in Lucas's eyes still felt like a knife to my heart, causing a suffocating pain.

Actually, I already knew he only wanted me here to humiliate me.

Lucas had a secret burner account on X.

Two weeks ago, he posted a status: How can I completely get rid of an ex-girlfriend who is beneath me?

In that post, he glossed over the three years I spent working multiple jobs to support him while he was unemployed.

He wrote: The gifts my ex gives are incredibly cheap. The most expensive thing was just a gaming console.

He didn't mention that my hands, which bought him that console, were covered in chilblains from washing dishes in ice-cold water during the winter.

The post detailed how the smell of my body made him sick.

The smell of oil and smoke on her hair and clothes won't go away no matter how much she washes. I feel nauseous every time I smell it. I have to change my clothes immediately after hugging her.

But before I had to support him, I didn't know that selling breakfast meant waking up at 3 AM. I didn't know the labor would make my back too sore to even bend.

He once swore to me:

"A virtuous wife supports my dreams, and I will repay her with a fortune!"

But in his post, he claimed he had been working at a major corporation for a long time. To prevent me from forcing him into marriage, he faked being sick and pretended to be at the hospital during work hours.

I had foolishly thought he refused to be hospitalized because he was worried about the cost, so I took on an extra job as a designated driver.

Many people criticized him in the comments, but he only liked the replies that insulted me.

This kind of woman is only fit to be a stepping stone. Use her and throw her away.

Living with a woman like that for three years is already a blessing for her. Otherwise, she'd never know what a real man is like.

He ignored countless messages telling him to say a proper goodbye. Instead, he pinned the most malicious comment to the top.

Bro, you should trick her into coming over and humiliate her. The bigger the scene, the better. That way, she won't have the face to keep pestering you.

Every word felt like a slow execution, yet I read them over and over.

It wasn't until my tears blurred the screen that I finally believed this was the man I had loved with all my heart for three years.

He forgot the countless times we fantasized about how happy we would be when our lives improved.

"Aria, when we have money, I'll marry you right away."

"We'll have a bright house for our new home, and we'll put up beautiful wedding photos."

I didn't tell Lucas that I currently own a bright villa with a garden, and I am wearing a beautiful wedding dress.

But the man I am marrying is no longer him.

02

I bypassed them and headed toward the interior of the hotel.

Lucas frowned and blocked my path. "Aria, do you think you're worthy of going in there?"

"If you really want to get married, go find a homeless guy under a bridge. I'm sure they'd be thrilled."

I looked into his eyes and felt a deep sense of exhaustion.

The Lucas who worried about me being cold while riding my bike and saved money to buy me gloves was dead forever.

I lowered my eyes and lifted my skirt to move away, but Lucas grabbed my wrist tightly.

"Are you deaf? Didn't you hear me?"

Before I could speak, a voice came from behind him.

"Lucas, what are you doing?"

"Scarlett."

Lucas's body jerked. He immediately let go of me with a look of extreme disgust, frantically wiping his sleeve where I had touched him.

Scarlett walked closer, looking at me with suspicion.

"Why is she here? And wearing a wedding dress?"

Looking at Scarlett, I couldn't help but clench my fists.

She was the fake heiress who had usurped my identity. If her mother hadn't swapped us at birth and abandoned me, I wouldn't have suffered for so many years.

Unfortunately, by the time the Hale family found me, they had already settled her elsewhere. She only knew me as Lucas's ex-girlfriend.

A flash of panic crossed Lucas's face, fearing he would be linked to me in front of Scarlett.

"She's into Joey now. She came here to confess her feelings to him. Right?"

his friends quickly covered for him.

"That's right, Scarlett. She can't live a day without a man. A woman like her isn't worth your concern."

They crowded around Joey and pushed him toward me. Joey leaned in with a lewd smirk.

"Lucas is out of your league now, but seeing how pathetic you are, I guess I could settle for you."

Lucas clapped and cheered the loudest, desperate to keep Scarlett from doubting him.

Joey reached out with a disgusting smile, trying to wrap his arm around me.

I looked at his red, bulbous nose and felt a wave of nausea. I shoved him away.

"I'm not here to play games with you all. I'm here for a wedding."

Scarlett's brows furrowed, and Lucas immediately reacted by pushing me into Joey's arms.

"Wow, getting married so soon? Joey's a catch!"

On the surface, he shook Joey's hand in celebration, but he whispered a threat to me.

"What are you blabbering about in front of my fiance? Who would marry you?"

I struggled to break free from Joey, feeling like I was about to vomit.

Scarlett put on a show of being generous and smiled.

"Forget it, she's a girl too. You guys are making her shy."

"But congratulations anyway on finally getting married. I was worried you'd never get over Lucas."

The others immediately followed suit.

"Scarlett is so classy. She's even polite to trash like Aria."

"Exactly. Aria doesn't deserve her blessings."

I swept a cold gaze over everyone present, finally letting my eyes rest on Lucas's smug face.

"I am indeed getting married. But you don't know the groom. My wedding is being held on the hotel penthouse. If you want to see how the other half lives, you're welcome to come up and watch."

03

Scarlett wore a smile full of pity.

"Aria, even if you're trying to save face, you shouldn't lie like that."

"The person getting married on the penthouse today is the heir of the Sterling family. The bride is my sister."

The tension in Lucas's face relaxed, and he let out a disdainful snort.

"She's always been a liar. How could she possibly know anything about the high society dealings between the Hales and the Sterlings?"

Scarlett gave Lucas a playful, scolding look, then came over to take my hand, speaking in a serious tone.

"I know you can't let go of Lucas. You came here for him today, didn't you?"

Lucas became anxious upon hearing this and pulled Scarlett away, trying to explain himself.

"I've made it completely clear to her. My heart only has room for you now."

Scarlett sighed.

"I can understand. After all, you were together for so many years. It's impossible to have zero feelings left."

She patted my hand.

"But a girl needs to respect herself. You two are broken up. Acting like this now is just trying to be a side piece."

"Listen to me. Go home quietly. Don't make a bigger fool of yourself."

Lucas hugged Scarlett with a look of pure adoration.

"Scarlett, you're too kind. You don't see Aria's true nature. She doesn't love me; she just doesn't want to let go of a successful man."

A fake heiress who stole someone else's life and a gold-digging man who bit the hand that fed him were actually trying to pin all the blame on me.

I felt a chill of disgust in my heart.

I held up the sparkling Tiffany diamond ring on my finger for them to see.

"The penthouse is indeed my wedding venue. This is the engagement ring given to me by the Sterling family."

Scarlett grabbed my hand and stared at it intensely for a long time.

She didn't need to search for it to recognize it. This design was indeed the Sterling family heirloom.

Lucas impatiently slapped my hand away, his face full of contempt.

"You really went all out, didn't you?"

He pulled out his phone and tossed it into my lap.

"The Sterling heir's ring was leaked ages ago. Look, there are thousands of replicas just like yours."

The shopping app was filled with listings for "Sterling Heir Style Rings." Scarlett, standing beside me, let out a long sigh of relief.

Her tone became patronizing.

"Aria, you really didn't need to go this far. If you lie too much, it will come back to haunt you."

I wanted to prove I was telling the truth, so I took out my phone to call my fianc, Caleb Sterling. But for some reason, the line was busy.

Seeing that I couldn't reach him, the crowd erupted in mocking laughter.

Scarlett and Lucas looked triumphant, as if they had been proven right.

I took a deep breath and looked at Scarlett.

"You aren't even a Hale anymore"

Before I could finish, Scarlett lunged forward and grabbed my arm tightly, her eyes turning dark.

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

A huge reason Lucas was marrying her was because of her status.

She would never allow the truth about her being a fake heiress to be exposed here.

She was squeezing me so hard it hurt. I raised my arm to pull away.

"I said, you are the fake daughter. You aren't their biological child."

Scarlett flashed a poisonous smile that only I could see, but her voice sounded innocent.

"Aria, even if you're jealous that Lucas loves me, you shouldn't make up such lies to slander me."

After saying that, she followed my movement and threw herself backward, making it look like I had pushed her.

Lucas gasped in horror and immediately rushed forward to shield her in his arms.

He glared at me with rage.

"You actually dared to push Scarlett! You're insane!"

Joey, who was already irritated, finally found his chance to lash out.

He ran fast to call the hotel security, pointing at me and shouting.

"It's her! Kick her out!"

"This shameless bitch tried to crash the wedding and then attacked the bride!"

The guards hesitated. Since we hadn't officially entered the hotel, they weren't sure if they should intervene in a guest dispute.

Joey started jumping with rage.

"Do you know who she hit? The eldest daughter of the Hale family! Why haven't you removed her yet?"

Once the guards heard a Hale had been hit, their hesitation vanished.

Several large men grabbed me, trying to throw me to the ground and drag me away.

My white wedding dress was instantly covered in footprints and dirt. I tried to stand my ground, but someone grabbed my hair and yanked me backward.

The pain in my scalp brought tears to my eyes.

The others cheered at the sight, their eyes filled with sadistic pleasure.

Lucas looked at me, his lips twitching slightly, but in the end, he said nothing. He just held Scarlett and checked her for injuries.

I closed my eyes in despair, preparing to be dragged across the pavement.

But in the next second, a roar erupted from behind me.

"Stop! What do you think you're doing to my wife!"