Chapter 32: Family Reprimands
She thought it was Aria, saying she was hot and asking her to help wipe her body.
So Edmond meant he wasn't suitable now, but after marriage, he'd be qualified to help her clean up? Her face flushed red, feeling embarrassed and stammering her thanks.
Edmond put the basin on the ground.
"I called Aria earlier. She's downstairs. Wait a bit, and she'll come up to help you. I'll leave when she arrives."
Lily: "Oh, okay."
…"Did he really agree?"
Receiving a positive answer, Aria was excited and energetically helped Lily wash her back.
"Edmond agreed to marry you because of the life-saving grace. Do you know what this means?" "It means he's a man of his word, and responsible people are usually very reliable."
Aria poked Lily's face.
"You need to make him fall in love with you. Edmond is the kind of man who, if he truly loves someone, would spoil you to the heavens."
Lily: "…"
Make Edmond fall in love with her? Ridiculous. She couldn't even handle Royce, how could she captivate Edmond?
Aria threw the towel into the basin, pulled down Lily's clothes, and sat on the bed, half-hugging her.
"Lily, even though the marriage is for ulterior motives, you should aim to build a life together. Trust me, Edmond is absolutely worth entrusting your life to."
Aria originally encouraged Lily to pursue Edmond not just for revenge.
Lily, despite her arrogant and aggressive exterior, was actually insecure.
Before Zoya was brought into the Jian family, Lily was the little princess, innocent, cheerful, and loved by everyone.
After Zoya stole her family's affection, she became quiet. Her grandmother, feeling sorry for her, took her in for a few years.
Brooks didn't get along with his mother, and Layla had conflicts with her mother-in-law, so when the grandmother took Lily, her relationship with her parents worsened.
The grandmother genuinely loved her, giving her support and raising her like a princess, but she passed away early.
The grandmother died when Lily was in high school, and soon after, Lily had an accident.
After that incident, Lily went abroad for treatment, returning a changed person.
The change wasn't sudden; she spent five years alone overseas. The Jian family felt that incident disgraced them and barely cared about her well-being.
Royce never visited her due to his mother's interference.
A passionate heart doesn't turn cold overnight.
Lily appeared carefree but was internally scarred.
Aria always felt that Royce, with his unstable emotions, was unsuitable for her.
Edmond, though older, was the most suitable for Lily among the people she knew.
Single for many years, serious, with no scandals, mature, and emotionally stable.
Most importantly, he could provide Lily with the emotional security and protection she needed.
Far better than the impulsive, easily angered, and fickle Royce.
In Aria's view, Royce didn't lack feelings for Lily.
His betrayal and cheating were more about revenge for Lily saving Edmond. He was too hypocritical to admit it to himself.
As for his love for Nadia, it wasn't genuine, just self-hypnosis.
He'd regret it one day.
Though Alistair suppressed the incident that night, gossip still spread.
"I heard that Nadia is the woman Royce protected at Zoya's birthday party, his secretary and mistress. Royce called off the engagement because of her."
"Lily was jealous and pushed Nadia, then accidentally fell herself. Didn't she push Zoya and Nadia into the water at her sister's birthday?"
"Although Nadia's affair is immoral, Lily deserves it. Who can stand her temper?"
This gossip reached the Jian family.
Layla, who was in a bad mood after Lily made her faint last time, went abroad with Zoya to attend an exhibition.
During their trip, a friend informed Layla of the incident, and she immediately called Lily.
"Can't you go a day without causing trouble? Can't you learn from your sister, be more mature, and worry us less?"
Mrs. Mei nagged a lot, essentially wanting Lily to take Zoya as a role model.
Lily hung up on her amidst a torrent of curses. When she called back, Lily blocked her number directly.
Not long after, Brooks also called.
"At your sister's birthday last time, Royce was obviously siding with that Jiang girl. What did I tell you? All men are the same. When they have a mistress they cherish, you can't do anything about it. Just bear with it. Wait until Royce loses interest in that Jiang girl."
"And you fell with that Jiang girl again? Did you push her down? Are you stupid? Royce is partial to her now. Why do you keep bullying her? Becoming Mrs. Zhou smoothly is your real skill..."
Brooks rambled on, with the main point being that Lily should tolerate it.
Lily hung up just as quickly.
Leopold called from a business trip, expressing concern about her health, but only briefly. After that, he scolded her, calling her stupid and saying she was harming others without benefiting herself.
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