The Day I Chose Power

On the day of my coming-of-age ceremony, all three of my fiancés showed up with the worst reports from their family-run businesses.

My father had declared that I would marry the one who could bring the greatest benefit to our family.

However, all three of them had already fallen for a penniless scholarship girl named Amelia Jones, and none of them wanted me.

In my previous life, I kept them close, mentored them, and poured my resources into helping them rise.

By the time they had each become powerful men in my family, they repaid me by framing my father, getting him arrested, and making him age more than 10 years overnight.

He was dragged to prison.

Me? They hired a crew of street thugs to brutalize me, leaving me to die while my private photos spread across the internet.

As life slipped away, I heard their sneering voices:

"Did you really think we ever liked you? Everything we did was for Amelia."

"If you hadn't chained us to your side, we'd have married her long ago, we'd have a house full of kids by now!"

"You and your father ruined her future. She couldn't afford college because of you. She had no choice but to jump!"

Then I opened my eyes: reborn on the very day of my coming-of-age ceremony.

I pulled my father aside, looked him in the eye, and said,

"I'm an adult now. Throw them out. Strip them of every business and every asset we gave them."

"I'm not choosing any of them. I chose Bruce Sullivan, the Don of the Sullivan family."

My father, Howard Chapman, stared at me, his eyes wide with disbelief. "You threw a fit when I suggested marrying you off to the Sullivans, insisting on breaking it off with Bruce. What's changed your mind now?"

I met Howard's gaze, the memory of his smile before his life took a turn for the worse in my previous life, making my heart ache.

"I was being childish at the time. You've been scaling back the family's activities and planning to go legitimate, pretending to be an ordinary wealthy businessman in public for my sake. I also thought I could live as happily as an ordinary person.

"But I was wrong. Without power, we'll be bullied. An alliance with another mafia family could be good for us. I see that now, Dad.

"And about those three–they've all got their own loves. I don't want to be the one who breaks hearts."

Howard let out a relieved breath and affectionately patted my shoulder. "I always said you were a visionary, my girl.

"I'll head over to the Sullivans right away to sort out your marriage. And if they don't see sense, I'll move heaven and earth to get you what you want!"

Watching him put on his act, I could not help but chuckle.

The same Howard who doted on me ended up in such a mess because of me in my previous life.

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