"Sit here for a bit, I'll go buy you some hangover medicine."
As soon as she stepped out, Lily called Lin Ye and briefly explained the situation.
"They think it was your photo that caused the miscarriage. This is your mess, come and get him out of here."
After hanging up, she drove straight home.
Upon hearing that he was being blamed, Lin Ye rushed to the studio in a panic.
Royce had already left. After sobering up, he realized he shouldn't have come, so he slipped away right after Lily left.
Lin Ye arrived to an empty studio, infuriated, and posted a sarcastic idiom in the group chat:
[Pigsy's Defeat—Turning the Blame Around.]
[Turning the Blame Around. In "Journey to the West," Pigsy often used his rake to defeat opponents with a backhanded strike. When someone does something wrong and blames others instead, it's referred to as "turning the blame around."]
Franklin, who was still working late, saw the message and responded, [It's late, shouldn't you be sleeping? Who are you mad at now?]
Lin Ye, the scapegoat, replied, [I'm at a red light. I need to stay focused so I don't get hit by a car. No time to chat.]
Franklin responded, [Last time, Royce's wife hit my aunt while waiting at a red light.]
Everyone else in the group chat: [...]
So, he was taking a jab at Nadia.
Edmond was on a business trip because the internet company under Jingxiu Group was being listed on the NYSE, and as the head of Jingxiu, he was there to support the company's executives.
With many tasks and constant socializing, he saw the group chat messages the next day.
He called Lily during lunchtime in China.
"Nadia caused trouble for you again?"
Lin Ye had no connection to Nadia except through Lily.
When Lin Ye suddenly started hinting about Nadia, Edmond's first guess was that Nadia had started something.
Aunt Fang made dumplings today, and Lily was home eating them. She had just taken a bite, savoring the meaty flavor.
When it came to Royce, she never held back from Edmond.
In the time it took to finish half a bowl of dumplings, she recounted the previous night's events at the studio.
Only then did Edmond learn about Nadia's miscarriage.
Lily knew he was busy. "Royce was just drunk and talking nonsense. Focus on your work. There's no need to worry about such trivial matters. I'm fine at home."
Lily genuinely didn't care. She wasn't as hot-tempered as she used to be. As long as no one came to provoke her, she had no interest in engaging in childish, petty games.
Royce, when drunk, always acted like a child, wanting to vent and be comforted. He hadn't changed in all these years, so she just found him immature.
After confirming she was alright, Edmond didn't say much more.
The day before the Mid-Autumn Festival, Franklin had business near Hui'an Road and decided to visit the studio to mooch a meal from Lily around noon.
Talking about going back to the old house for the holiday, Franklin brought two pieces of good news.
"There's a project abroad that will take three months to wrap up. Uncle Edmond sent Royce over. He left today, so you won't see him tomorrow."
"Nadia's miscarriage seems quite serious. They say she'll be in the hospital for a month. You won't see her tomorrow either. Aren't you happy that you won't have to deal with those two unpleasant people?"
Lily was indeed happy.
The best news was that Edmond was coming back today.
Lily had to go pick him up from the airport and left early, handing the little boxwood bead bracelet to Franklin before she went.
When Aria arrived, she saw Franklin repeatedly rubbing the bead with his thumb, his head bowed, his expression unreadable.
Aria sat across from him.
"Franklin, are you sick? I asked Qin Yingzhi, and that strong woman at Jingxiu the other day was indeed her. You clearly know her, so why did you deliberately mislead Lily?"
Aria had little contact with Qin Yingzhi but was close with one of Alistair's nieces.
She had asked Alistair's niece to inquire.
Knowing that the woman who made Lily misunderstand was indeed Qin Yingzhi, she couldn't understand Franklin's actions.
"You know Lily doesn't feel secure with men right now. Why scare her? She trusts you the most, even more than she trusts me."
They were sitting in the studio's lobby by the glass window.
A square table was placed there because Lily liked to sit there for meals. She said watching people hustle and bustle outside while she leisurely ate was quite pleasant.
She used to love crowds.
She still did, but now preferred to keep a safe distance, hiding behind glass, becoming wary of people.
Aria looked at Franklin with a complicated gaze.
"I've advised you. I don't understand why you're still hesitant. But Franklin, Lily is doing well now. Edmond suits her. Do you understand what I mean?"
Franklin smiled, "Do you think I'm trying to sabotage them?"
Aria remained silent because she couldn't fathom it. Even she knew Lily now detested cheating and infidelity. Franklin couldn't possibly be unaware.
Lily had known Franklin longer and their relationship was deeper.
Lily never doubted Franklin's words.
"Uncle Edmond wants to pursue Lily. He feels she doesn't take him seriously, so he asked for my advice."
Franklin's tone was calm, "I suggested he make Lily feel a sense of crisis."
Uncle Edmond wants to pursue Lily… Edmond wants to pursue Lily? After her initial shock, Aria felt joy, but then frowned at him, "Why use such a method? Why use cheating as a scare tactic? Are you looking for trouble?"
She was suspicious.
"And a person like Edmond, he actually believed in such a cliched method?"
Franklin lowered his head, fingers slowly rubbing the densely veined bead, and said slowly, "Half and half."
"What?"
"He believed it halfway, proving he truly likes Lily. He only half-believed, showing he's… quite good, really."
Aria was completely confused, "What do you mean by half-believed? Can you speak plainly?"
Franklin raised his head, his gaze falling on the vase on the table.
A white porcelain vase with fresh sunflowers.
The studio received fresh flowers every morning, delivered by the Shuangxi Flower Shop on Changhuai Street.
Franklin plucked a petal and placed it in his palm, looking at Aria with a smile in his dark eyes.
"Plainly speaking: Aria, if one day you find you suddenly don't recognize me, you can doubt me like today, but you must believe that no matter how abhorrent I may become, I will never harm Lily."
The more Aria listened, the more confused she became, feeling something was off.
"The more you speak, the less I understand."
Franklin smiled, "There will be plenty of time to understand in the future. For now, focus on your own affairs."
He nodded towards the window, signaling Aria to look outside, "Your 'not understanding' is here."
Following his gaze, Aria saw a tall man standing in the yard. The sunlight was too glaring, and she could only see his vague silhouette.
Blurry, yet instantly recognizable.
It was Alistair.
Alistair had returned to Jiangyu the previous night.
After Aria left the café by the photo studio that day, he sat there for a long time, thinking about various things, and finally decided to follow her advice.
Since she had unresolved feelings and obsessions, and only one point left, he decided to let her vent and resolve it, freeing them both.
So he headed towards the photo studio after leaving the café.
Just a step away from the door, his phone rang. A subsidiary of his group had encountered a tricky issue. Although his presence wasn't necessary, he went anyway.
He didn't know why; he just left directly.
On the way to the airport, he saw Aria's call and felt inexplicably guilty.
When his secretary took Aria's call, she was sitting next to him and saw him hesitate to answer. She didn't say much.
Later, he got busy and temporarily forgot about it until Edmond called him, saying Aria had a message for him and asking what was going on.
He explained the situation, and Edmond scolded him harshly.
"If you were here, I'd punch you. She said it's her last bit of unresolved feelings. You can't give her marriage or commitment, so why not let her have it?"