Lilia looked up in surprise. Her expression brightened when she heard Mellisa's suggestion.
"I agree. We'd better do this in an official way so there's no doubt." Lilia answered with a relieved smile.
Mellisa watched Lilia for a while, but the model just stared back looking a bit confused. Mellisa smiled a little while shaking her head. Others might not be able to believe Mellisa's story and demand that she prove her identity first.
But Lilia was different. The woman believed her story with all her heart. Mellisa felt a little worried that her innocent sister might be fooled by bad people, but then she remembered that Lilia had Jean. That scary man would definitely protect Lilia from people with bad intentions. Besides, Lilia wasn't stupid either. Her sister must have thought through the story carefully before deciding to believe it.
Mellisa got up from the sofa and walked to the front of the window. The large glass window provided a view of the bustling city of Jakarta. The woman touched the window pane while saying in a bitter voice, "If you had appeared five years ago, maybe I wouldn't have had an accident."
Lilia stared at Mellisa's back in surprise, "Do you suspect Leila of being the culprit five years ago?"
Mellisa nodded without turning to Lilia. She said in a self-mocking tone, "I've been suspicious of Leila since six years ago, to be precise. At that time, I happened to find that Leila owns many residential properties in Jakarta."
Mellisa's fingers traced the dewy windows, forming a silhouette of a house.
"Do you know that the Irwan Family has the principle to always live humbly? Even though we were one of the richest families in Jakarta and my grandfather was a famous painter, we were always taught to not live in a lavish lifestyle."
While talking, Mellisa continued to draw on the glass until there were silhouettes of three houses side by side.
"At that time, Leila was just growing up. How could she afford to buy a house in Jakarta? That child is clearly violating the principles of the Irwan Family." Mellisa said bitterly, "The amount of money for daily living expenses and pocket money that we get every month is predetermined. Even the gifts we get at the beginning of each year are always managed by Mom and Dad."
Mellisa lowered her hand from the window pane and stared at the image she made with hatred.
"Even if Leila saved up all her money during her 18 years of life, she won't have enough money to buy a house, let alone three houses at once!" Mellisa finally turned towards Lilia, "But do you know what I found?"
Sunlight from outside the window entered freely and illuminated Mellisa's figure. The woman's body looked like it was giving off its own light. Her white skin, which was adorned with bruises and scars from her harsh life, became even more prominent.
But in Lilia's eyes, she couldn't see any light. Her world looked dark and gloomy, as if it was covered in overcast clouds. She got up from the sofa and walked over to Mellisa, "What did you find?" She asked as she stopped beside the woman.
Leila Irwan, how many secrets were hidden behind your cute attitude?
Mellisa grabbed Lilia's hand and squeezed it gently. Then she turned her gaze out the window, "I found that there is a husband and wife who regularly fund Leila. After I started to suspect her, I stalked them on purpose. The couple treats Leila very well and is willing to give her anything she asks for."
Mellisa glanced at Lilia, whose face turned deathly pale.
"If I didn't happen to find that couple, there wouldn't be anyone in the Irwan Family who would know that the sweet and innocent Leila secretly owns private property."
Unfortunately, Lilia only heard Mellisa's words until the part 'husband and wife'. She didn't listen to the rest of the woman's words. Her mind immediately fell to Robert and Sylvia. Lilia remembered very well that her parents regularly went to Jakarta every few months. They always claimed that they were away on business, but was that true?
Their departure schedule was never fixed. Sometimes they would go every few months, but other times, they would go every month. Lilia forced herself to remember when her parents started traveling to Jakarta. As far as Lilia's memory, Robert and Sylvia had been doing this for a long time, at least over six years ago.
Did they go to Jakarta to meet Leila? Were they funding Leila's lavish lifestyle? And were they the one who bought property in Jakarta for that woman?
Mellisa looked at Lilia with a worried expression. She didn't want to say this, but she felt that her sister needed to know. Mellisa said slowly, "If my guess is right, the husband and wife couple ... are your current parents."
Lilia didn't answer, but she pulled her hand away from Mellisa's grip. With stiff, robotic movements, Lilia headed to the sofa and searched for her cellphone. She wanted to find a photo of her parents to see if her sister's guess was correct.
Tears obscured Lilia's sight as she continued to search the sofa with blind movements. She gritted her teeth and blinked to wipe away her tears. But tremendous sadness hit her. If what Mellisa said was true, then how much money did her parents spend for Leila?
As a result, when the Pangestu Family went into financial crisis, they did not hesitate to sell their daughter in a contract marriage. If Lilia hadn't met Jean, if Lilia hadn't met Mellisa, would she have to keep paying for Leila all her life?
A few tears fell on the sofa. Lilia paused for a moment to roughly wipe away her tears. She thought back to what Sylvia had said when Lilia was trying to refuse the contract marriage.
"You grew up on good food and good clothes all this time! Now this family is facing difficulties and you don't want to help? Can't you sacrifice a little for your family?"
Lilia's heart felt like it was being cut to pieces when she remembered those words. So all this time, Lilia's existence in the Pangestu Family was only to be sacrificed and used for the rest of her life. She considered them her family, but they only saw her as a tool.
"Here."
Suddenly, Mellisa handed Lilia's cell phone to her. The woman didn't have the heart to see Lilia looking frantically for her cellphone, so she helped find it.
Lilia accepted the cell phone with trembling hands. She opened her photo album and scrolled through the screen while looking for photos of her parents among the thousands of photos. Lilia's eyes widened in relief when she found her photo with Robert. However, she couldn't find a single photo of Sylvia. The woman never wanted to take a picture with her 'daughter'.
"This ..." Lilia handed her a photo of Robert, "Is it true…?" Her voice cracked as she tried to ask the question.
Mellisa studied the photo for a moment, then looked back at Lilia. Her expression was so flat as she replied, "That's right, that's the man I saw."
"I see ... I see." Lilia closed her cellphone and fell down on the sofa. All of her strength seemed to disappear when she heard Mellisa's answer.
So Robert and Sylvia had been lying to her all this time. Lilia always thought that even if Sylvia didn't love her, the love she got from her father was enough. However, it turned out that Robert was just acting as if he loved Lilia so that she would agree to this contract marriage. Over the years, that man raised Lilia like a lamb to be slaughtered. They didn't really love her!
Even a while ago, Sylvia asked Lilia for 200 million. Did that woman intend to use it for Leila's sake? Then who was Lilia in their eyes? Did they think of her as a walking ATM machine that they could use whenever they wanted? Then what about the Widjaya Family? Were Robert and Sylvia just after their money too?
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