Regardless of how she ended up in the water, the first concern of her biological parents and brother was for a foster daughter, and her fiancé saved another woman first.
How suffocating.
No wonder Lily would lose it. With her usual temper, she would have definitely torn the Jian family's roof apart tonight.
But after coming out of the water, she was unexpectedly calm.
Aria had said before, it was not Lily's madness that was scary, but her silence.
If she went crazy, it meant there was still room for turning things around, that she was giving the other party a chance to make it up to her.
But once she suddenly went silent and treated things coldly, it meant she was truly desperate.
Therefore, Lily coming to find Edmond this time must mean she had completely given up on Royce.
...
Edmond didn't answer Alistair's question. After organizing his cards, he looked up and glanced at him.
"Where's Aria?"
Alistair sneakily looked at his cards, "She's on a business trip. Why do you ask?"
Edmond ignored Alistair's sneakiness, "Call her and ask if she knows what happened at the Jian family tonight."
If she knew, she would definitely be with Lily.
If she didn't know, then let her know and let her go to Lily.
Alistair glanced at his cards again, "I won't call. She's been annoying me lately, and I finally got some breathing space."
Edmond spread his cards on the table in front of him, "Call her and I'll let you win."
Alistair: "..."
Did he need to be given a win? Okay, he did. He had never won against this guy. No matter how he won, he definitely wanted to win once tonight and show off in his circle.
Alistair called Aria, and the call quickly connected amidst noisy background sounds.
"Alistair?"
Aria's voice was a bit breathless, "I just got off the plane and have some urgent matters. If your business isn't important, I'll hang up first?"
She had just landed and turned on her phone, discovering a missed call from Lily. She was about to return the call when Alistair's call came through.
"Just landed?"
Alistair remembered that Lily had mentioned her phone was off. "You're back in Jiangyu?"
Aria spoke quickly. "Yes, today is Zoya's birthday. I came back to accompany Lily. I'll leave on the first flight tomorrow morning."
Alistair realized Aria was unaware of what had happened at the Jian family house tonight.
"Lily's having some trouble. Since you're back, stay with her. I'll have someone else cover your work here. Stay in Jiangyu."
After hanging up, Alistair suddenly thought of something and turned to Edmond.
"You care about Lily?"
Otherwise, why would he specifically ask about Aria?
Edmond ignored the prying eyes of those around the table, drew a card, and tossed it out.
"She saved my life."
Alistair glanced at his cards and played a higher one. "True, if someone saved my life, I'd consider repaying the favor."
Edmond didn't respond, instead texting Royce.
[Meet at the company at 8 AM, bring Nadia.]
After returning to the country, Lily stayed at the old family house for two months before moving out. Her grandmother had left her a few properties, and she chose an apartment by the river. It was far from the family house, which was perfect for her.
The wind by the river was strong, rustling the leaves loudly. Octavian followed Lily out of the car, handing her a bag from the pharmacy.
"This is from Mr. Zhou."
Lily was surprised. Octavian had indeed stopped at a pharmacy, saying he needed to get Edmond some hangover medicine, but she hadn't expected this.
She took the bag, peeked inside. It was ointment for swelling.
She touched her face, feeling a tremor in her eyes.
A small ointment wasn't worth much, but in her moment of isolation, knowing someone cared about her injury was touching.
"Thank Uncle Edmond for me."
Octavian said he would relay the message, then paused as if he had more to say.
"Miss Jian, there's something..."
He hesitated. Lily gestured for him to continue.
"Deputy Director Jian from L&S Group seems to have feelings for our Mr. Zhou. He has rejected her advances, but she hasn't given up."
Deputy Director Jian from L&S Group? Zoya? Zoya liked Edmond? Impossible! Although Edmond was a sought-after bachelor in Jiangyu, Zoya had always been interested in Leopold, hadn't she? Had she changed her mind? Lily pondered the reason Octavian was telling her this.
"So, Mr. Pan, you want me to dissuade Zoya from pursuing Uncle Edmond, right? Don't worry, leave it to me."
Edmond had helped her a lot; it was only right she helped him in return.
Octavian smiled. "Thank you, Miss Jian."
"No problem."
"Miss Jian," Octavian adjusted his glasses, half-jokingly, "I actually thought you might use the life-saving favor to ask Mr. Zhou to marry you."
Lily: "?"
Octavian: "If you marry Mr. Zhou, you'd be Royce's elder. He'd have to respect you. Second, marrying Mr. Zhou would give you the greatest support in Jiangyu; no one would dare bully you. Third, it would be the best way to get back at Zoya, stealing the man she likes. Even Chairman Jian and Mrs. Jian wouldn't dare to favor her over you."
Octavian listed the points, his tone meaningful. "So, I thought after your engagement was called off, you'd want to marry Mr. Zhou. It would be your best option."