My Vicious Fiance, Her Ungrateful Son

The smell of disinfectant in the hospital hung like an airtight net. I clutched the diagnosis report, my knuckles turning white. "Advanced gastric cancer" – those words hit me like a ton of bricks, leaving me dizzy and disoriented. The patient was Victor Jones' mother, my future mother-in-law. The doctor said the subsequent treatment costs would be extremely high, conservatively estimated at several hundred thousand. Several hundred thousand was an astronomical figure for the small family we were about to start. Victor and I had set our wedding date for three months later. A while ago, he had transferred the 180,000 betrothal gift to my bank card. At that time, I teased him, saying I would save the money as our emergency fund. I never thought the emergency would come so soon. Without the slightest hesitation, I took out my phone to make the transfer. But the moment I opened the banking app, I froze. The balance showed zero. I thought I had misread it and refreshed the page repeatedly. The glaring "0" on the screen remained unchanged. My heart suddenly contracted, and an ominous premonition spread through me. Just then, my phone rang. The caller ID showed it was Victor. I took a deep breath and pressed the answer button. "Cindy, I have something to tell you," his voice sounded a little cheerful, completely unaware of my unusual state. "What is it?" My voice trembled slightly. "I withdrew the betrothal gift money," Victor said casually. My heart sank completely: "What did you withdraw it for?" "Nina and I are going on an overseas trip. This money is just perfect for our travel fund." Nina. Nina Shawn, Victor's childhood sweetheart. I knew this woman existed. Victor always said they were just like brother and sister. But at this moment, he was using our betrothal gift money to travel with another woman. "Victor, your mother is ill," I said through gritted teeth, holding back my tears. "I know. It's just a minor illness, isn't it?" His tone was nonchalant. "It's advanced gastric cancer!" I couldn't help raising my voice. "It needs hundreds of thousands for treatment!" There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. I thought he had finally realized the seriousness of the situation. But the next second, his voice turned impatient: "Advanced? Then treating her is definitely a waste of money. It won't help anyway." "That's your mother!" I trembled all over. "So what? She has her own savings. If all else fails, there's my brother," Victor's tone became more and more irritable. "Besides, the travel itinerary is already booked. The air tickets and hotel can't be refunded. We can't delay Nina's and my trip because of this trivial matter, can we?" "Trivial matter?" I couldn't believe my ears. "Victor, that's a human life! Can you postpone the trip first and use the money to treat your mother?" "No way!" He refused without hesitation. "Cindy Lincoln, don't be so selfish. Nina and I have been looking forward to this trip for a long time. Why should we postpone it because of this?" Selfish? I almost laughed out of anger. "Victor, that money is my betrothal gift, our emergency fund – not for you to waste on another woman!" "What do you mean by wasting? Nina and I are just friends!" Victor started to act unreasonably. "I think you just don't want me to be happy and are deliberately making trouble. Do you think that since my mother is ill, you can avoid marrying me? Let me tell you, that's impossible!"