"Let me show you to your room," Grace offered. She walked ahead, guiding Lillian down the short hallway.
Lillian followed silently, counting the doors as they passed—one, two, three, four.
Grace stopped in front of the last door and pushed it open.
The room beyond was minimalistic and neat, bathed in soft afternoon light. A single bed rested against one wall, accompanied by a desk, a wardrobe, and a bookshelf. Everything was arranged thoughtfully, but some spaces remained bare, waiting for her to fill them up.
Lillian stepped into the doorway and paused.
"Was this Eva's room?" Lillian asked.
Thinking about how Eva left the room like this made her feel an internal resistance.
If it came down to it, she'd sleep on the couch instead.
But Grace shook her head. "No. This one's always been empty. Eva's room is across the hall. The boys share the one beside it."
Lillian looked confused.
Grace had three grown up man squeeze together in a room?
"Don't think about it," Grace said with a sigh. "I don't even remember the last time I saw their faces. They should be grateful they have a room here."
It seemed there was always a place for her here.
Lillian entered the room. It was smaller and less impressive than the one she had at Chen Manor. However, it made her feel strange inside.
Grace noticed Lillian's tumultous emotions and voiced out, "This room is still so empty, and you brought no clothes along. Why don't we go shopping together? As in mother and daughter bonding time?"
Lillian looked back at Grace. She wanted to mention how she could do it on her own, but Grace's expectant eyes made her nod.
"I have no money now," Lillian stated. All her money was in the card issued by Chen Family, and she knew they probably blocked it now. "You can keep count of it. I will pay you later with interest."
A frown settled on her forehead, and she raised her hand to lightly hit on Lillian's arm.
Lillian's dark eyes stared at her perplexed.
"I will beat you up worse if you continue to speak in this hurtful manner." Grace's tone was unusually firm, a mix of exasperation and frustration lacing her words.
"I know I owe you a lot, and you hold a lot of grudges, but Lillian, I took upon the role of your mother earlier than you realized. That's why, allow me to make it up to you."
Lillian muttered, "I don't hold any grudges."
Transactional relationships allowed Lillian to draw a clear line with the other people, and she did not want to have emotional bonds with anyone.
That kind of vulnerability scarred her in her previous life.
Although Grace faced her with sincerity, Lillian still had her resistance.
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Lillian stepped out of the dressing room. A black and red plaid, knee-length dress clung gently to her figure. The round neckline adorned with a red bow gave her the look of an elegant, life-sized porcelain doll. A beret was secured on top of her head completed the ensemble.
Grace leaned back against the couch, clapping her hand in enthusiasm. A bright smile sat on her face.
"As expected of my daughter, what a lovely doll!" commented Grace.
Lillian stood stiffly, unsure of how to receive such unabashed praise.
Just then, her eyes fell on the saleswoman, and she enthusiastically asked, "Don't you agree?"
The young saleswoman was caught off guard by the gorgeous woman, slightly taken aback by how she had such a grown up daughter.
But Grace took this as her hesitation, and her eyes dimmed.
Noticing the shift of emotions, the professionalism of the saleswoman caught up, and she immediately expressed, "Absolutely. Both of you look totally the same. Why don't you get matching sets? It's trendy. Do you want me to show some to you?"
The bright look in Grace's eyes showed how she was eager to take up on the idea, but Lillian cut in first. "There is no need for that."
Lillian grew up in wearing named luxury brands. But she could hardly remember the times Mary went shopping with her. Most of the times, the new collections would be delivered to her doorsteps. Her status as the Chen required her to have no flaws.
Later, when Eva entered the picture, Mary suddenly became an attentive and caring mother. She accompanied Eva and spent her sweet time with her. This made Lillian wonder whether she was truly unworthy of love regardless of her status.
However, Grace personally selected the dresses for her, waited for her to get dressed, and showered her with compliments. It made the steady Lillian feel awkward.
Lillian always knew she was conventionally attractive and grew up showered with compliments, but she still couldn't get used to the ones from Grace.
Her response made Grace's face instantly fall. "Do you find it embarrassing?"
Lillian wrecked her head to find proper words. "It is getting late. There are lot of other essentials to buy. Also, these are expensive."
Initially, she thought Grace would bring her to some store by the street to pick up few dresses, but in the end, Grace entered the mall with her, taking her to a store she recognized.
Although Lillian was used to ignoring price tags, the five to six digit values on the dresses made her eyes widen. She knew the pressure this would place on Grace's pockets.
The woman's shabby place told Lillian of her financial status well, and Lillian did not come here to be a burden no matter how much Grace felt she owed her.
Grace chuckled.
Lillian raised an eyebrow in question.
"You remind me of that man," Grace commented.
That man?
"Since I bought you here, I have the means to pay for it even if you want to empty the entire store."
After that, Grace dialled a number and called, "Come over to Daisy quickly. You need to make a payment."
She hung up the call and handed a dress to Lillian. "It will take a while for him to arrive. Meanwhile, why don't you try this out?"
Lillian had her questions, but Grace pushed her into the dressing room.
When Lillian stepped out after a while, she changed into a off the shoulder black dress. The bodice had blue embroidery work over it, making the piece look unique and beautiful.
Grace nodded her head in approval.
Before she could shower her daughter with compliments, a middle aged man entered the store and handed Grace a card.
"Boss gave you this, Ms. Lu. There is no set limit," he said.
Grace grabbed the card from his hand elegantly with her fingers and stated, "Tell him I will reward him another day."
The man bowed and left.
Lillian's eyes narrowed at the card.
All the pieces Grace selected for her would add up to at least hundreds of thousands.
Who would give her the money to pay for it?
All the information told her how Lu's were barely getting by.
As Grace made the payment, she noticed the silly expression on Lillian's face.
She finally looked like a child her age.
Grace satisfied her curiosity.
"The owner of this card owes me. I wanted to ignore it, but since my daughter deserves the best, why should I ignore the money?"