Chapter 137 - Fundraising Event Guest
William frowned at Lilia's words. He looked at the woman with sad eyes and smiled bitterly, "Lili, you've changed. You've never acted like this before."
Lilia met William's gaze with a mocking smile, "Why are you bringing up the past? Do you need to be reminded of what you and Sara did to me? Do I need to mention everything so you understand that I will never forgive you?"
William closed his mouth tightly and lowered his head. He knew he was being mean to Lilia when he dumped her three years ago. William deliberately broke the woman's heart to pieces so that Lilia wouldn't dare appear in his life again. But now William regretted his arrogance.
Lilia turned and walked towards the auction hall, leaving William standing alone in the lobby. She didn't want to talk to the man any longer.
Tonight, 8 items would be auctioned. The precious objects were displayed in glass boxes scattered throughout the hall. The displays were intended to make guests tempted to buy these things.
Lilia stopped in front of one of the glass cases. The object in the box was a painting by a famous painter. She was admiring the beauty of the painting when someone called her name out loud.
"Lilia Pangestu!"
Lilia secretly sighed when she heard that familiar voice. Why did she keep running into people she didn't want to meet the most?
Lilia turned around and saw Sasha approaching her with graceful steps. The kimono she wore was dark blue, like the color of Jean's eyes. Her hair was rolled up and made the woman look mature. But her aggressive gaze ruined her elegant appearance.
"Why are you attending this dinner? Aren't you badly injured?" Sasha asked with a contrived worried expression.
Even though Sasha did not shout, her voice was clearly heard in this quiet hall. The guests instantly turned towards them with curious expressions.
Sasha looked at Lilia with a satisfied smile, but that smile immediately vanished when she saw that model's appearance. Lilia's figure standing in front of the landscape painting looked very elegant and mesmerizing. Her black dress matched the painting of the night sky that hung behind her, as if she had just stepped out of the painting. Sasha gritted her teeth with jealousy.
On the other hand, Lilia just smiled faintly while rubbing her bandaged left arm, "I insist on coming to support tonight's fundraising event. Miss Sasha doesn't have to worry about me."
Sasha snorted. She didn't like the way Lilia used her wound to gain public sympathy. Sasha took a step forward and said, "Miss Lilia, I know you weren't actually that badly hurt. What do you really want to do by tricking everyone?"
Lilia raised an eyebrow. Without Jean's presence here, Sasha finally showed her true nature. She then smiled and replied, "What do you mean, Miss Sasha? The whole virtual world knows that I was hurt. You yourself have seen my condition on the night of your birthday."
The woman in the kimono gritted her teeth as Lilia mentioned her birthday party which had fallen apart in Jean's absence. Sasha raised her voice as she said, "Are you afraid that I will expose your lies? You think I can't recognize the fake wounds on your body?"
Lilia shrugged, "If Miss Sasha insists that my wounds are fake, then I can't change your mind." She casually replied, "Does Miss Sasha want to force me to go to the hospital now and reexamine my wounds? I just got out of the hospital, but if that would please Miss Sasha, I wouldn't mind going back there."
Sasha was unable to reply to anything as the guests around them began to cast sharp gazes at her. In their eyes, Sasha looked like a cruel woman who deliberately made things difficult for a poor woman who had just been the victim of a brutal assault. Sasha wanted to slap Lilia in the face to vent her anger, but if she did, her reputation would be destroyed!
Suddenly, there was a commotion coming from the lobby door. When Sasha heard that, she smiled broadly. Her anger immediately disappeared, as if the fight just now never happened.
"The people I've been waiting for have arrived. Miss Lilia, I wish you a speedy recovery." Sasha said in a haughty tone.
Lilia looked at the woman with suspicion. This sudden change in attitude meant only one thing. When Lilia turned her gaze to the door, she saw three men stepping into the hall. Sasha immediately approached them with graceful steps and a big smile.
As the guests made a fuss over the appearance of the three men, William quietly approached Lilia again.
Lilia's gaze fell on the three men who were the center of attention of the guests. She did not expect that Jean, Chris, and Alex would also attend the event tonight. The three young men came from respectable families and had eye-catching looks. No wonder the guests immediately flocked to them, like a group of hyenas finding their prey.
But before the guests could greet the three men, they were preceded by a male voice.
"Oh, all of you have come!"
The guests, including Lilia, turned their heads to the source of the voice. A man wearing an old-fashioned gray suit walked over to Jean and his two friends. The man over 60 years old smiled broadly, his expression was like a grandfather meeting his grandson.
Jean bent over to the man, followed by Chris and Alex.
"Uncle Felix, long time no see." They greeted the man warmly.
Lilia took turns looking at Felix and the three men. So they knew Felix, a philanthropist whose name was all over Indonesia? No wonder the three of them attended the event tonight!
"Uncle Felix, I'm coming tonight too!" Sasha appeared from among the crowd and stood beside Jean, as if she deserved that position.
Lilia clenched her fists, but she couldn't make a fuss in front of these guests. She could only cast a sharp gaze at the woman.
"Oh, Sasha is here too! Welcome! I haven't seen you in a long time. How about we have a drink together to celebrate this meeting?" Felix offered with a warm laugh, making the wrinkles around his eyes even clearer.
As Felix chatted with Sasha, Jean's gaze swept across the great hall. Not long after, he found the woman he was looking for. However, Jean's gaze turned dark and his forehead creased when he saw the man who was standing casually beside Lilia.
Meanwhile, Lilia met Jean's gaze with a faint smile. She thought that Jean would be happy to see her here, but the man's expression was grim and irritated. Lilia watched Jean closely and realized that the man's gaze was directed to her side.
Lilia turned her head and almost jumped when she saw William standing beside her. Since when was he there?! Did William think he was a ghost that could appear and at any place anytime?
"Lili, do you have a relationship with that man?" William asked without taking his eyes off Jean's figure in the distance. He realized that Jean and Lilia exchanged glances as soon as the man entered the hall. Surely the two of them had a special relationship!
In addition, the more William watched Jean, the more he looked like the man in the photo Lilia posted. Could it be that the man in the photo was Jean Widjaya? If this guess was correct, then Lilia's cold attitude towards him made sense! That woman had a new boyfriend, so she refused to be approached by William!
Lilia turned around and said coldly, "This has nothing to do with you."
Then she walked back to leave the actor.
"Lili!" William walked over to her, lowering his voice, "Why do you want to be with that man?! What can he give you?! I can give you whatever you want! If you want, I'm even willing to get engaged to you!"
Lilia's steps stopped when she heard that. William's words not only belittled Lilia, they also insulted Jean!
"Listen carefully, William Anggara." Lilia turned around and gave an icy glare. The skirt of her dress opened like a curtain as dark as night, "You can't give me whatever I want. The only thing you can give me is pain and disappointment!"
Lilia didn't understand why William didn't seem to realize how much Lilia hated him. The man saw only what he wanted to see and heard what he wanted to hear.
William was stunned for a moment, then he reached out and took the woman's right hand, "Lili, that's not true! I did make mistakes in the past and I'm sorry! I'm ready to give everything for you! You just have to say it and I'll fulfill it! If you want, I can give you the position of my wife!"
Lilia's cold expression immediately turned disgusted. How dare this man say that to her after breaking her heart three years ago?! If Jean had heard those words, he would have smacked William right away here without paying attention to his surroundings!
"Sorry, but I'm married to Jean!" Lilia replied firmly while jerking her hand away. She didn't want to publicly announce her marriage, but if she could get William to give up with this, Lilia wouldn't mind.
Hearing that, William's expression immediately turned blank. The man looked as if someone had been punched. However, he immediately recovered and frowned.
"Lili, you don't have to lie like that. Jean Widjaya is just your sugar daddy, right? Do you think he really wants to marry you?" William replied fiercely, "Even if he wanted to, would the Widjaya family let you be his wife? You really are naive, Lili!"