Filed to story: Eight Uncles Beloved Treasure
Lilly nodded silently, holding Polly tightly in her hands. Tears welled up in her eyes.
Bettany was so distraught that tears began to stream down her face. She embraced Lilly and gently stroked her back, saying, “Don’t cry. Our precious Lilly is a strong girl…”
In between sobs, Lilly choked out, “It was Hannah who hit Polly first…”
She didn’t want to be submissive and polite. After all, she was just a child. Why should she have to give in to her sister when Hannah was the one who started the fight with Polly?
Lilly felt wronged. She had never cried when she was beaten or scolded in the past. However, with Bettany embracing her and Hugh comforting her, she couldn’t hold back her tears any longer.
Suddenly, Lilly burst into tears and cried loudly, as if releasing all the pent-up emotions she had been holding onto for years.
The three boys who had been peeking through the door quietly retreated to their room.
As expected, sisters were nothing but annoying crybabies.
They didn’t want crybabies as their younger sisters!
Meanwhile, in Hannah’s room, Winona was tending to Hannah’s wounds. As she looked at the scratch marks on her child’s arms, her anger flared up again.
At that moment, Liam walked in and said, “What’s wrong with you? Go and apologize to Hannah!”
Winona exploded in anger and threw the wet towel she was holding to the ground. She retorted, “What kind of father are you, Liam? Our child was bullied there! Look, her eyes are swollen and her arms are bleeding!”
Liam sneered in response, “Would any of this have happened if she hadn’t tried to take someone else’s belongings?”
Hannah cried even louder upon hearing that.
Annoyed by her cries, Liam turned around and left without saying much. He didn’t bother to engage with them further.
Liam and Winona had never gotten along well. He had only married her to take responsibility for getting her pregnant during their brief affair. Even to this day, he had no feelings for Winona.
It was only after Hannah was born that Liam discovered Winona’s ulterior motives. He wanted a divorce, but Winona refused.
Even Winona’s own mother had advised him against getting a divorce for the sake of their two children. Additionally, the Crawford family had been preoccupied with finding Jean after her disappearance, so Liam’s divorce took a backseat.
At that moment, all Winona could feel was heartbreak. What had she done wrong? Was it wrong to love and protect her own child?
In Lilly’s room, Polly nestled in Lilly’s hands while she snuggled in Bettany’s arms.
Lilly felt sad seeing how shaken Polly was after almost being strangled to death. She blamed herself for not protecting Polly in an unfamiliar environment.
As Lilly began to calm down, Bettany asked, “Do you feel better now? This was Hannah’s fault, not yours, Lilly.”
Hugh added, “Yes! You are a very good and obedient girl.”
Bettany continued, “You are my lovely little gem!”
Both of them continued to praise her one after another.
It was the first time Lilly had received such praise, and she shyly played with Polly’s wings and said, “Grandpa and grandma are lovely little gems too!”
The old folks were momentarily taken aback before bursting into laughter.
Just then, Anthony finished his meeting in the study and walked out. He furrowed his brow upon hearing about the fight between Lilly and Hannah.
His heart ached as he quietly observed Lilly from outside the door.
Seeing Liam pass by, Anthony quietly said, “You need to resolve this as soon as possible, Liam.”
When Winona married into the family, her relationship with Liam was shaky, but they were able to maintain relative peace because they already had their son at that time.
It was only after Hannah’s birth that the Crawford family discovered the whole truth. When Liam asked for a divorce, the Jackson family refused to allow it.
The issue with Winona dragged on for so long because the Crawford family was preoccupied with searching for their missing sister, Jean.
Liam replied, “I know. But now that my two children are grown up, I’m afraid the divorce will affect them.”
Regardless, they were still his children, and even though they didn’t always get along, Liam couldn’t bear to lose them.
Anthony nodded. He understood that every family had their own secrets, and it wasn’t his place to make decisions for Liam.
He replied, “You have to handle it yourself.”
Both of them looked into Lilly’s room. It seemed like the storm had passed, and the child was discussing her name with Hugh and Bettany.
She said, “Mommy said that a lily is a very pretty flower. It symbolizes love, admiration, and compassion. That’s why mommy named me Lilly.”
Even though she said it with a childlike voice, her serious expression made it seem like she had memorized her mother’s words verbatim.
Bettany felt a pang in her heart as she nodded, “It’s a good name. Your mother’s surname is Crawford, so you will also be called Lilly Crawford, okay?”
Lilly happily nodded, “Yes, Crawford. I’ll have the same surname as mommy!”
Hugh smiled and said, “Let’s see, what name goes well with Crawford?”
Lilly immediately raised her tiny hand and replied, “Lilly Crawford!”
Everyone couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Anthony walked in and said, “Yes, Lilly Crawford sounds good.”
Shaking her head, Bettany replied, “But don’t you feel like something’s missing with that name?”
Everyone was at a loss for words. It did sound like something was missing, and more importantly, it would be great to give Lilly a new name for a fresh start in life. They wanted Lilly to leave the past behind.
They decided to call a family meeting to brainstorm a name for Lilly.
Bettany turned to Lilly and asked, “You will be three and a half years old this year, right?”
Lilly tilted her head and thought for a moment before saying, “I think so? Mommy said I came out from her tummy on March 15th.”
Everyone paused for a moment. “March 15th… that’s next week!”
In a week, Lilly would turn four years old.
Bettany exclaimed, “That’s great! We can have a birthday party for Lilly and get you a big, big cake, okay? And then you can make a wish in front of the cake!”
Lilly’s eyes sparkled as she happily asked, “Really?”
She would finally have a huge cake!
Seeing how happy Lilly was, Bettany asked, “Who did you celebrate your birthday with before?”
Lilly shook her head and said, “I never celebrated my birthday. Daddy was always busy, and my stepmother said she felt nauseous when she saw a cake after she got pregnant…”
Lilly initially wanted to ask her grandparents for a small cake, but they offered to get her a huge one instead!
Now, Lilly was brimming with excitement for her upcoming birthday.
She could make a wish with the cake! Lilly already knew what she was going to wish for.
Her wish was, “I hope mommy will live happily in heaven with Grandpa Sun and Grandma Moon, surrounded by fluffy clouds! I also hope that Grandpa and Grandma will live a long and happy life!”
Seeing the child’s happiness, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
As dinner time approached, the entire Crawford family gathered at home. It was the first time in four years that the Crawford mansion was so lively.
At the dining table, Hugh brought up the issue of giving Lilly a new name, leaving the eight powerful Crawford men stumped.
For a moment, the dining table fell into an eerie silence as everyone wracked their brains to come up with a name for Lilly.
Winona remained silent, feeling dissatisfied in her heart.
