Chapter 27: Arranged Marriage
Yunice was so shocked that she took a step back, but she didn’t cry out. Genna was pleased with her reaction. She smiled and nodded at Lily. "This girl is steady. She can live a good life."
Hearing that, Lily’s expression visibly relaxed. She replied, “She was raised in comfort. As long as you approve of her, that’s good enough.”
Genna grinned so wide that the flesh on her face trembled. “She is good, just a little too skinny. Might not be easy for her to bear children.”
Yunice understood immediately. Her heart skipped a beat as she looked at Lily. “Mom, who is she?”
Lily knew Yunice wasn’t asking for a name. She reached out to soothe her. “Your brother asked me to arrange your marriage. Genna is an old friend of mine. Her son is honest and dependable. If you marry him, you won’t suffer.”
Genna quickly chimed in, “That’s right! You won’t have to do anything at my house. Just lie in bed and give birth to a son.”
Yunice turned around, her face cold. “And what if I can’t have a son?”
Genna didn’t realize she was being mocked and said, “It’s fine if you have a daughter. Just keep having kids. You’ll get a son eventually.”
Yunice now understood exactly what kind of family this was. She glanced at the coffee table, picked up the teapot, and poured it over Genna’s head! The tea was at a drinkable temperature, but it still made Genna yelp as she flailed her hands in the air.
Yunice had no intention of stopping. She chased after her, pouring more tea over her head. Genna couldn’t sit still anymore. She jumped up and ran, screaming, “Lily! What’s wrong with your daughter?!”
Yunice said sharply, “I have a mental illness. Sorry, when I have an episode, I like to hit people. Please be understanding!”
With that, she grabbed a teacup from the table and smashed it near Genna’s feet. Genna clutched her chest in fear and ran outside, yelling at Lily as she went, “If she’s mentally ill, why didn’t you say so earlier? Are you trying to make my son go crazy too? Lily, you’re a fraud! I’m going to expose you on the matchmaking site!”
“Oh,” Lily stood up anxiously. Yunice turned to look at her. Lily opened her mouth but hesitated, then sat back down on the couch, not daring to make a sound.
Seeing that Lily didn’t dare move and Giana wasn’t home, Yunice went straight to the yard to find the tree Gill had mentioned. She then started digging.
She knew that once Owen came back, she wouldn’t escape a beating. So she figured, since she was already in trouble, she might as well get everything done in one go. The shovel hit something solid. Yunice crouched down, brushed away the dirt, and pulled out a plastic box.
She carried the box back to her room. Lily kept glancing at her but didn’t dare intervene. Inside her room, Yunice threw a piece of clothing over the surveillance camera, locked the door with a chain, then sat on the floor and started going through what Gill had left her.
The plastic box was filled with things wrapped in plastic. The moment she opened it, a musty smell hit her. Most of it was old paper, notebooks, and random scribbles. Gall wasn’t well-educated, but she knew Yunice treasured written records. So instead of keeping any valuable items, she had only saved these scraps of paper. And it was precisely because they were worthless that the Saunders family hadn’t noticed them. But to Yunice, these tattered pages were priceless!
She checked the surveillance feed and saw Elsie’s car pulling in. Owen stepped out, rubbing his temples, looking exhausted. Elsie, on the other hand, had reddened eyes and looked like she had done something wrong.
According to their original plan, Owen and Elsie were supposed to be out discussing business deals. But not only had they come back early, they both looked troubled. What happened?
Owen walked straight into the living room, with Elsie trailing behind, apologizing nonstop. “Owen, it’s all my fault. I was too eager to prove myself, too eager to help the family, and that’s why things turned out like this. This accident is entirely my responsibility. I’m willing to go to jail for it.”
Owen reassured her, “No one goes through life without making mistakes. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. I’ll take care of it.” He stood beside her, holding a plate of food. As he spoke, he looked up and saw Lily sitting on the couch, wiping her tears, trying to comfort her. Lily shook her head, a few tears falling as she said she couldn’t eat.
Owen quickly walked over. “Mom, what’s wrong?”
Lily shook her head and forced a smile. “I’m fine.”
Giana huffed. “Fine? You’ve been crying all day and haven’t eaten a single bite.”
Owen noticed the iPad next to Lily and picked it up. It was open to a matchmaking website. A post had been pinned to the top in bold, eye-catching letters—Shameful Lily. She’s a fraud! Beware!
Owen clicked on the post and read through the details. That was when he found out that Yunice had beaten up the mother of her matchmaking prospect!