My seven foster husbands chose the poor student
When it came time to apply for college, Weston asked me which university I wanted to choose.
According to Weston's plan, whichever university I selected, those seven would have to follow me there.
In my previous life, I gave up my dream school, the University of Washington, and chose Harvard Business School for its renowned business program.
I accompanied Anthony Williams, the most level-headed of the seven, studying theory while gaining practical experience, helping him develop his skills to become the most qualified business heir.
But on the second Christmas after he took over Hall Corporation, he abandoned me in a remote mountain village, forcing me to marry a disabled old man, and had someone disconnect Weston's ventilator.
Anthony said: "Who cares about being the heir to Hall Corporation? If you hadn't insisted on choosing Harvard Business School, all seven of us would have chosen the same university as Sarah.
"That way, we could have protected Sarah, prevented her from being isolated and alone, getting depression, and then jumping off that building.
"You and your father killed Sarah. I want you to pay with your lives!"
The other six men who had benefited from my family's generosity also turned against us, dividing up our family's assets.
Now, I've been reborn to the time before college applications. This time, I've decided to fulfill their so-called deep feelings for Sarah Martin.
I said: "Dad, isn't your friend's son the youngest professor at the University of Washington? Then I'll choose the University of Washington.
"As for those seven, they each have their own ideas. Let's allow them to apply to universities according to their own wishes."
Weston looked at me in disbelief and asked: "You want to go to the University of Washington?
"Didn't you say before that Harvard Business School had the best business program, so you wanted to take Anthony and the other six there to study and make Hall Corporation bigger and stronger?"
I suppressed the pain in my heart and said: "I still prefer the University of Washington.
"As for Anthony and the other six, it doesn't matter whether they want to go to Harvard Business School or not. We'll just let them choose freely.
"Dad, don't worry. You have connections at the University of Washington too. I won't be mistreated."
After my mother Lillian Hall passed away, Weston raised me as both father and mother, always accommodating me in everything.
Sure enough, Weston said: "Alright. I'll call my friend Thomas Green right now. If you feel uncomfortable at the University of Washington, even if you just stay home and relax, I can afford to support you."
This Weston who loved me so much had to lie in a hospital bed in my previous life, watching Anthony send me to that old man in the mountains.
How much must his heart have ached then?
I held back the tears in my eyes and pushed open the door to leave.
The seven men outside immediately surrounded me.
One man said: "Ariana, which school are you planning to apply to?"
Another man said: "We don't need to ask. She'll definitely choose Harvard Business School. Only businesspeople would choose such a vulgar place like Harvard Business School."
Anthony pulled me aside to a corner, his eyes showing unwillingness and anger.
He said: "Ariana, I'm warning you, don't choose Harvard Business School for us without consulting us. Even if you choose it, I won't go."
One man chimed in: "Right. None of us will go to Harvard Business School. We want to accompany Sarah."
Another man said: "Miss Hall, you have money and power, you can have as many men as you want. Sarah is different from you. She only has us."
Looking at their righteous expressions, I was about to tell them the truth but stopped myself.
I said: "You'll know when the acceptance letters come."
The group suddenly fell silent and bowed toward someone behind them.
Anthony bit his lip and said seriously: "Mr. Hall, we've been grateful for your help all these years. It's just that we're adults now and can make our own decisions.
"This time, I want to apply to the same school as Sarah. Please give your consent."
Weston's face darkened as he said: "Nonsense! Sarah's grades are poor, she can't apply to good schools. You're gambling with your own futures and destinies!"
Anthony lifted his chin defiantly and said: "I know Sarah's grades aren't as good as Ariana's, but that's not her fault.
"Besides, even if we accompany Sarah to a community college, with our qualifications and learning abilities, we won't be any worse off than those who go to Harvard Business School."
Weston sighed in disappointment, then turned to look at the other six.
He asked: "Do you all feel the same way as him?"
Everyone answered in unison: "We want to apply to the same school as Anthony."
Weston looked at me with guilt. I knew he was blaming himself for choosing the wrong people to sponsor. He finally understood why I insisted on going to the University of Washington alone.
He said: "You're right. This is your life. I have no right to interfere with your decisions.
"Work hard from now on."
Weston was about to comfort me when he suddenly received an urgent phone call requiring him to go abroad to handle a major project.
After hanging up the phone, Weston said to me, "Ariana, whatever decision you make, I'll support you. When I get back, I'll personally take you to college."
After Weston left, those seven men became even more brazen, constantly hovering around Sarah.
I watched as all seven of them took Sarah to get her hair done and accompanied her to museums.
Sarah posted on Instagram with photos showing off a luxury laptop, the latest top-of-the-line phone, and even a set of car keys.
The caption read: [My seven knights, how could I possibly deserve such expensive gifts?]
Anthony immediately commented below: [You deserve the best of everything in the world.]
The other six men also left comments, and amazingly, all seven of their comments were identical.
My family raised them from age seven to eighteen, transforming them from starving orphans into people living luxurious lives now.
But even on mine and Weston's birthdays, they'd only offer a simple blessing.
They'd say: "Heartfelt wishes are the most precious and priceless things in the world. Those materialistic items can't express the gratitude in our hearts."
Bullshit! Money goes where love is—that's the truth.
On the day college applications opened, they rarely came home.
Anthony said, "Ariana, we're planning to accompany Sarah to apply to National Career College together. You should come with us. We promised we'd go to college together and never be separated."
During that Christmas break when we first brought them home, Weston took all of us to visit Harvard Business School.
Back then, they looked at the impressive Harvard Business School with such envy and vowed to get accepted there, planning to give back to the Hall family after graduation.
We took a group photo at the Harvard Business School entrance and all signed our names on the back, making a solemn pledge.
I said, "My father already told you—make your own decisions."
Samuel Campbell, one of the seven men, looked at me suspiciously.
He said, "Ariana, you agreed so easily? Are you secretly plotting something?"
Another man said, "Exactly! Just like that Christmas when we deliberately scored low on purpose to stay in regular classes with Sarah, but you went behind our backs and used our competition scores to get us transferred to honors classes."
Back then, I thought they had made mistakes on their exams and begged the principal for ages to get them moved to honors classes. I never realized they had failed on purpose.
Sarah stepped forward fearfully, reaching out toward me.
She said, "Ariana, it's wonderful that you can join us. Could you give me your username and password? I'll help everyone apply to schools together."
The seven men immediately and eagerly shared their usernames and passwords in the group chat.
I clutched my laptop bag tightly and said, "I only said you could make your own decisions. I never said I'd go to some career college with you. Why would I pass up all the good schools in the country to choose a career college? Do I look like someone with brain damage?"
Sarah's eyes immediately welled up with tears, looking like she was about to cry.
She said, "Ariana, why do you have to put it so harshly? If I had your family background, wealth, and resources, I might have scored even better than you. But being born poor isn't something I could control. Anthony, maybe you should listen to Ms. Hall. I'll just go to National Career College by myself."
The seven men immediately surrounded Sarah protectively, patiently comforting her.
One man accused me: "Ariana, can't you stop targeting Sarah? She's had a hard life and is pitiful enough already."
Samuel said, "We all came from poverty. Are you looking down on us too?"
Another man said, "Don't think that just because your family raised us for a few years, you can interfere with our lives! We're living, breathing people, not accessories of the Hall family!"
It was always like this. Whenever someone mentioned her poor background, Sarah could instantly turn them against me.
In my past life, I heard these words so often that I thought it really was my fault. I'd humbly apologize and desperately try to please them, wanting to fit in.
But now, I said calmly, "You're right. This is your life. Similarly, my life doesn't need your interference either."
I turned to leave, but Anthony beside me snatched my backpack.
I shouted, "Anthony, give me back my laptop!"
The laptop had my auto-saved usernames and passwords for college applications. I desperately lunged forward trying to grab it back, but he threw the backpack to Samuel.
They tossed the backpack back and forth like they were teasing a dog. I was exhausted and gasping for breath when I fell to the ground. "You bastards!"
Anthony sighed and looked at me with a seemingly sincere attitude.
He said, "Ariana, you need to be good. We promised we'd go to college with you. We've always been grateful, and we always keep our word. But we can't abandon Sarah. Only if we all apply to the same school can we achieve both goals."
I stumbled to my feet, wanting to escape this suffocating place.
But Sarah blocked my path: "Ariana, are you planning to go somewhere else to change your password?"
Anthony's face darkened as he ordered the other six men: "Lock her in Henry's doghouse. Don't let her out until after the college application deadline passes."
I struggled desperately, shouting: "Anthony, are you insane? You know I'm terrified of dogs! How dare you do this!"
Anthony snatched my phone away and gently patted the top of my head.
He said: "Henry's well-behaved, he won't bite you. Once we're in college together, I'll take good care of you."
Without hesitation, they locked me in the doghouse. Everything was pitch black around me, with only Henry's glowing green eyes staring at me intently.
When I was little, I went with Lillian to do charity work in the countryside and got bitten by a dog. Fortunately, Anthony happened to pass by and saved me. But ever since then, I've had a psychological trauma whenever I see dogs.
He knew about this perfectly well, yet to prevent me from ruining his and Sarah's plans, he deliberately locked me up with a dog.
Over the next few days, they seemed to completely forget about my existence. Henry was howling from hunger, and I kept staring fearfully at this increasingly vicious dog in front of me, not daring to close my eyes.
Finally, I reached my breaking point. Henry let out a howl and lunged at me to bite. The pain was excruciating, but I had no choice but to fight back to save myself.
When they opened the doghouse door, they found me biting down hard on Henry's neck. Fresh blood—whether mine or the dog's—was splattered all over the doghouse.
I finally couldn't hold on any longer and passed out.
When I woke up again, I was already in the hospital. My whole body ached, wrapped in bandages, with no one by my side.
That's when Sarah walked in and said: "Looking for Anthony? They're busy preparing a celebration party for me.
"Ariana, so what if you have good grades? You'll still end up at a vocational college just like me.
"Anthony said once we're in college, they'll have you work as my nanny.
"Oh, and let me share a secret with you. I heard you really like Anthony. But what can you do? Anthony already belongs to me.
"If you don't believe me, look. Anthony said he can only experience the joy of being a man with me."
She then opened her phone and played an intimate video of her and Anthony. The disgusting scene nearly made me throw up bile.
Suddenly Sarah's expression changed. She slapped herself across the face and collapsed softly to the ground.
She cried out: "Ariana, I came to visit you out of kindness, why did you hit me?"
The first person to rush in was Samuel. He lovingly pulled Sarah into his arms.
Anthony frowned, looking at me with displeasure.
He said: "Ariana, I thought after staying in the doghouse for a few days you'd learn to behave, but you're still as cruel and vicious as ever.
"If you keep this up, you won't be invited to our celebration party."
Sarah immediately "pleaded" for me: "Anthony, don't be so harsh. We agreed to go to college together—how can Ariana be absent?"
One of the men chimed in: "Sarah's so kind, unlike some people who are as wicked as old witches."
Before I knew it, the day of the celebration party arrived. I pushed open the banquet hall doors and saw Sarah standing radiant in the center.
She wore layers of elaborate gown, diamond-studded high heels, and limited-edition jewelry around her neck, looking like a proud princess.
My breath caught as I rushed forward.
I demanded: "Sarah, where did this dress and jewelry come from?"
I pulled out my phone to call the police, but Anthony grabbed it from behind me.
Anthony said: "I gave them to Sarah. You have so many dresses and jewelry pieces—lending one to Sarah is no big deal."
To show off in front of Sarah, Samuel pulled out a stack of bills and threw them in my face.
He said: "Yeah, why are you being so petty? It's just a dress. How much does it cost? I'll pay you for it."
I shouted excitedly: "This dress and jewelry are Christmas gifts my mother left for me! How can you just give them away to someone else?
"Taking my things without my permission is stealing! I'm calling the police right now!"
A flash of guilt crossed Anthony's and the other six men's eyes. After all these years together, they all knew how much I treasured the things Lillian left behind—even Weston wasn't allowed to touch them.
Anthony looked at Sarah and said: "Sarah, you..."
Before he could finish, Sarah interrupted him. Her eyes filled with tears as she yanked off the crystal necklace around her neck and smashed it hard on the ground.
The necklace Lillian had made for me by hand instantly shattered into several pieces.
Sarah cried: "I don't deserve to wear these things. I just fantasized about being a princess for once, even if only for a short time.
"Ariana, I know you rich girls look down on us poor people, but you don't have to use the word 'stealing' to insult my character, do you?"
After saying this, she angrily tore off the dress. The seven men quickly took off their jackets to cover Sarah's body.
Meanwhile, the dress Lillian left me was carelessly trampled underfoot by them, torn like a rag.
I was still in a daze when I suddenly heard shouting from a waiter in the distance. The chandelier above my head suddenly exploded and came crashing down.
The seven men who should have protected me all rushed to save Sarah instead.
They knocked me down as they pushed past, and the chandelier landed right on top of me.
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