One Last Request

"Uncle Edmond, last year when Royce wanted to cancel the wedding, I begged you once. You helped me, and I know I shouldn't trouble you again this time, but I have no choice."

Lily sat upright, her hands clasped on her knees. After being drenched, she had stopped wearing makeup, her pale face showing a faint pallor, with the slap marks becoming more evident.

Edmond's eyes fell on those red marks, his gaze devoid of any emotion.

Lily's eyelashes drooped, not looking at him, her tone filled with a hint of pleading.

"I want to break off the engagement with Royce. He fears you and dares not back out. Uncle Edmond, I won't trouble you further. Just tell Royce that you won't interfere with us anymore."

As long as Edmond didn't interfere, Royce would take the initiative to break off the engagement.

He despised her so much; given the chance, he would abandon her immediately.

After Lily finished speaking, she waited for a response but heard nothing. Her heart began to pound. Just as she was about to look up, she suddenly heard Edmond ask, "What happened to your face? Did Royce hit you?"

Face? Lily instinctively touched her face, then remembered the two slaps she had received.

"No, my parents hit me."

Edmond, listening to Lily's explanation, guessed something must have happened tonight. Just as he was about to ask, his phone beeped twice, with a message coming in from Alistair.

[I said Lily must have been provoked tonight, and indeed!]

[Your nephew is really despicable, pretending to be decent, yet he's actually seeing someone else outside.]

Two messages followed by a long video. Edmond glanced at Lily.

"I'll go out for a smoke. Wait a moment."

With Lily's request, how could she disagree? "Okay."

Edmond got out of the car. Octavian, waiting outside, immediately came over. Edmond asked him for a cigarette, watched the video while puffing smoke.

Lily waited in the car for about fifteen minutes. She guessed Edmond had gone to consider whether to help her, and when he returned, she would have an answer.

So, when Edmond opened the door to come back in, she immediately sat up straight, waiting for him to say, "Maybe you need some rest now."

After watching the video, Edmond knew she had suffered greatly tonight and was worried that her decision was impulsive, asking her to go back and think it over.

"Go home and get a good night's sleep. If you still want to cancel the wedding when you wake up tomorrow, come back to see me."

He was afraid she might regret it, so he gave her time to think it through.

Lily understood his meaning. She also knew, given her previous clingy and devoted behavior toward Royce, no one would believe she would really give him up.

"Uncle Edmond, I'm impulsive and indeed prone to act on a whim, but I respect you. Unless absolutely necessary, I wouldn't bother you."

Lily looked up at Edmond, her tone calm, her emotions stable, without any hint of jest.

"The first time I asked you to help me keep the marriage and keep Royce, I was serious. This time, in front of you, I'm serious too."

Edmond could see her determination, his deep, hoarse voice carrying a hint of solemnity.

He mentioned the wedding date.

"In three months, it will be the wedding. Do you know what will happen if you cancel it now?"

Canceling the wedding, for any reason, would make Lily the one laughed at and discussed, suffering the consequences.

She was naturally aware of these follow-up reactions.

She wasn't afraid at all. What was face anyway? She had long lost it. Did it matter? Let them laugh, let them mock, they deserved it.

"Uncle Edmond, when I decided to come to you, I was very clear.

I don't want this marriage. I'm sure I don't want Royce."

Lily thought Edmond's repeated reminders were to prevent her from regretting and coming back to him. She thought he was annoyed by her, so she raised her hand and swore.

"Uncle Edmond, this is really the last time. After this, you can pretend I never saved you. I won't bother you again, really."

Saving Edmond was an accident.

On the way back from her grandmother's grave, she encountered a car accident scene.

A white car, for some reason, flipped over, its front end in a horrible state, thick smoke billowing, and flames licking out from underneath.

.

The area was remote, and it was evening. There were not many people around. Lily was actually quite scared, but after calling the police, she instinctively ran over.

There were people in both the driver's seat and the passenger seat. The man in the passenger seat begged her to save the driver first.

Unfortunately, the driver's seat was a disaster. The driver was completely trapped, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move him an inch. Besides, the driver was already unconscious.

The situation in the passenger seat was much better. The man was only trapped by his leg. She broke the glass and struggled to open the deformed door to help him move his leg.

The flames roared more fiercely, and the crackling sound of burning seemed like a countdown to life. Lily was almost unable to open her eyes due to the thick smoke.

Luckily, the man had not lost consciousness and was able to exert some force himself.

When she finally dragged the man out, Lily was amazed at her own strength. Later, the car exploded into flames, engulfing the entire vehicle. She was scared out of her wits.

She was incredibly fortunate to be alive! It wasn't until she was on her way to the hospital with the ambulance, realizing her own injuries, that she found out.

The person she had saved was Edmond.

It was an accidental rescue, and she did it voluntarily. She shouldn't have chased him to demand repayment for saving his life.