"Sir, there's nothing conclusive in the video. Freya might be foolish; perhaps she thought Lola was playing with her, so she went up the mountain herself."

In front of the Austin family, Sophie directly shifted the blame onto Freya.

Immediately, Mr. Austin's expression turned even uglier. "Who told you that Freya is foolish?"

Inwardly, Bruce felt a sense of impending doom. Could it be that Mr. Austin knew about their deception, that coming to take Lola back was a pretense, and the real intention was to hold them accountable?

On the other hand, Sophie was quick-witted. She hurriedly interjected, "Freya had a high fever when she was twelve and became mentally impaired. After that, her condition has been erratic. Sir, perhaps you've misunderstood something?"

"My old age hasn't blinded me!" Mr. Austin slammed the table in anger. "I've already confirmed with Freya herself, and she admitted she's not foolish! Since both of you are here today, let me remind you: Freya is now the daughter-in-law of the Austin family. I don't want anyone mistreating my daughter-in-law."

With a resounding voice and imposing demeanor, Mr. Austin's words intimidated Sophie, who shrank her neck and dared not speak another word.

Bruce bowed slightly and said, "Yes, yes, Freya is my daughter. I cherish her so much, how could I mistreat her?"

"Good, that's for the best!" Mr. Austin's face darkened. "I won't hold you accountable for deceiving Freya for now. However, if you, as a couple, don't explain the incident where Lola plotted against Freya, endangering Bradley in the process, I'll lock you up in the basement for life."

"Sir." Sophie's eyes widened in urgency. "Lola is willful and immature. I apologize on her behalf. Please don't lock her away for life."

"You should apologize not to me, but to Bradley and Freya!" After speaking, the old master's gaze shifted to the staircase, where Bradley was already descending with Freya.

The two sat down beside Mr. Austin. As if grasping at a lifeline, Sophie stood up and reached for Freya's hand. "Freya, please quickly help Lola plead her case. She definitely didn't do it on purpose."

Freya looked at her hand, her face full of disdain. "Aunt Sophie, I'm germophobic. I don't like being touched."

That was a brutal slap in the face!

Sophie's expression dimmed as she uncomfortably pulled back her hand. However, beneath the surface, she was boiling with rage. If it weren't for Mr. Austin being there, she would have shut her up with a slap long ago.

"Bradley, now that you and Freya are present, take charge of this issue!" Despite Mr. Austin's desire to expel the Lawson family from the city, he had been directed by Bradley not to intervene, as Bradley had his own agenda in place.

With that, he left without another word, leaving the matter in their hands.

"Thanks, Dad, but Freya is more equipped to handle this situation." Bradley glanced at the young woman next to him. He had pledged to assist her in seeking retribution, so it was only fitting that she relished the chance to torment the despicable individual.

Freya smiled at him.

She truly intended to seize this chance to confront the Lawson family. Even without complete certainty at present, she still desired for Sophie to experience fear and trepidation.

Of course, this was just the beginning; the true spectacle was yet to come.

"Aunt Sophie, Dad," Freya's tone was cold, "You both knew all along that I'm not foolish, didn't you? You just hid it from me for fear of ruining the contract. Isn't that right?"

"Freya, you're talking nonsense! You're the one who have been pretending to be foolish for seven whole years. What exactly are you up to?" Sophie's face contorted with anger as she yelled furiously.

"If I hadn't pretended, I wouldn't have survived to this day!" Freya sneered, looking at Sophie. "Dad, do you know how I endured these seven years?"

She had no affection for this father; all she felt was resentment and hatred.

If it weren't for Bruce, how could her mother have died so tragically? Even if Sophie was the murderer, Bruce was an accomplice indirectly responsible for her mother's death.

"I've been giving the Smith family living expenses every month to ensure they don't mistreat you. Your life over these seven years shouldn't have been too bad." Bruce looked into Freya’s eyes, his expression cold and harsh, reminiscent of the way Charlotte Barnes had looked at him when he drove her out of the Lawson family.

Freya looked back at him, a deeper smile on her lips. "Not bad? Do you really think I haven't been mistreated these years? From the moment I stepped into the Smith family's gate, Mrs. Smith made me fetch water and cook every day. Not only did I have to feed the pigs and gather grass, but I also had to chop wood and dig wild vegetables on the mountain. I only had one meal a day, leftovers from the Smith family, sometimes even leftovers that had gone bad overnight."

"Mrs. Smith made me sleep in a dog's kennel, and she didn't even give me half a blanket in winter. When I was shivering from the cold, the Smith family's children were laughing nearby. They called me "dog's mother," threw stones at me, and chained me up like a dog to walk along the road. I lived like this, sick and exhausted.

"When I had a high fever of 41°C, Mrs. Smith wouldn't even call a doctor. She just went to the village's barefoot doctor and got some fever-reducing pills, forcing me to take a few. That's how she left me to fend for myself in the snow in December, sick and suffering."

Freya stared at Bruce, recounting these unbearable past events with little emotion on her face, only a cold smirk and resentment.

Bruce remained stunned for a while; he knew the Smith family wasn't trustworthy and hadn't taken proper care of Freya despite his financial support, but he hadn't realized they had been so cruel to his daughter.

Bradley's expression darkened; he knew Freya's past, but hearing these things from her mouth still pained him deeply.

Uncontrollably, he reached out and took her small hand, offering her comfort.

Freya turned to him, smiled, and with her eyes indicated that she was fine before speaking again.

"Today, why did Lola lead me to the back mountain? Do you know?"

Bruce's gaze grew heavy; he truly didn't know. Since childhood, Lola had been willful and liked to snatch things from Freya. He had simply attributed it to the girl's vanity and hadn't thought much about it.

But now, hearing Freya say this, he suddenly felt that this matter wasn't so simple.

Freya spoke quietly, "Lola wanted to kill me because she felt guilty. She was afraid I would investigate my mother's cause of death, which would be detrimental to her and Aunt Sophie."

Sophie immediately realized what she was about to say and hurriedly wiped her tears.

"Freya, it's been so many years, why do you still bring this up? Your mother's death was because of a car accident. The police closed the case long ago. Why can't you let it go?"

Freya sneered coldly, "Was it really an accident? Aunt Sophie, doesn't your conscience ache when you say that? How did my mother die? You should know best. You bribed the driver to deliberately cause the accident, and afterwards, you let the driver escape and die without evidence. This case was hastily closed. I'm afraid it's also your doing, Aunt Sophie."