Coddled Hearts

Chapter 7

It was yet another day of mischief for Lily. Lily Montgomery hailed a taxi to her office, pausing at the entrance where the security guard froze upon seeing her.

Ordinarily, Miss Montgomery would arrive and depart in luxurious cars, dressed dazzlingly beautiful, almost as if she wished the entire world knew of her family's immense wealth.

Such modesty today?

Approaching, Lily Montgomery offered a slight smile. "Greetings, I am the new designer, Lily Montgomery, at your service."

The security guard was momentarily speechless.

With the company's modest employee count, everyone was familiar with each other.

Miss Montgomery was up to her antics again!

He replied, "Greetings, I am Ethan Parker, the security guard who is allegedly new and unfamiliar with Miss Montgomery. I look forward to working with you!"

Lily Montgomery, after listening, entered with a gentle smile, garnering more astonishment and confusion than what was apparent on Ethan Parker's face.

Almost every employee at Dayu recognized Lily Montgomery, yet none had seen her devoid of makeup and luxury. Dressed in a simple white shirt, knee-length skirt, modest three-inch heels, and an unbranded black leather bag - she resembled an ordinary office worker, an eerily uncharacteristic sight.

"Lily, you've arrived!" Victoria Thompson, brimming with enthusiasm, rushed over.

She was the daughter of Oliver's assistant, Daniel Roberts, and also a good friend to Lily Montgomery. They shared the bond of being from the same hometown and alma mater.

After graduation, Victoria Thompson joined Dayu Architecture as a designer, diligent and hardworking. In contrast, Lily Montgomery took a more laid-back approach, seamlessly embracing unemployment post-graduation.

Victoria Thompson escorted her to the new Design Department on the second floor.

This nascent division had been recently established as Oliver, who had made his fortune in civil engineering, had turned his ambitions to the architectural decoration market only in the last couple of years, having just received the necessary certifications. It was an open secret in the company that this shift was for his cherished daughter—Lily Montgomery—who had begun painting at 15 and barely passed the art school entrance exam to study Environmental Art Design for her undergraduate degree, a field exactly aligned with her major.

"How many days are you planning to commit this time?" Victoria Thompson pulled out a chair for her, "Sit opposite me. It’ll make delegating tasks easier, sparing me the legwork!"

Lily Montgomery: ...

After setting down her bag, she surveyed the office and signaled Victoria Thompson with a crooked finger. Leaning in close she whispered, "Would you believe me if I said I plan to stay on indefinitely?"

Victoria Thompson's eyes popped, as if beholding an extraterrestrial being.

"Has some unfortunate handsome fellow in our Design Department caught your eye?"

"Victoria!" Lily admonished with a glance, smoothing out her crisp white shirt, "Does this attire not reflect my sincere intention to be a regular designer?"

Victoria Thompson furrowed her brow, "It seems more like you’re incognito."

"Oliver isn't that influential," Lily retorted with a grin, "Assign me anything that needs to get done; you're the boss today."

Victoria scowled, shaking her head solemnly.

"Lily, you've changed. You're no longer the illustrious young person I knew whose life's pursuit was to live off others. Tell me, is it because of Ethan Foster? Did he provoke you?"

Lily’s smile turned icy, "Would you believe I've been reborn? In my past life, Ethan Foster’s infidelity and Oliver’s bankruptcy led to our downfall, so in this life, I took initiative, ditched Ethan Foster, and now work to fortify Oliver’s company—preserving my future free ride."

Victoria’s gaze flickered.

This was no dream, Miss Montgomery.

Her father had relayed to Victoria how Dayu was mired in misfortune, akin to falling into a dung pit. Numerous contracts had fallen through, projects had stalled, and completed works were unpaid. Cooperating companies and clients turned heartlessly rogue, as shameless as defaulters.

The company’s frozen capital meant liquidity issues; banks were unwilling to lend. How far from bankruptcy was the enterprise without resolving this dire strait?

These were matters unknown to Lily Montgomery.

Noting Victoria's perturbed expression, Lily's laugh crinkled her eyes.

"Silly Victoria, it’s all in jest—you actually believed me? I'm here to gain some experience. In case Oliver does become impoverished one day, I'll be able to fend for ourselves."

"Lily—" Victoria Thompson peered into her untainted, lustrous eyes, recounting Dayu's predicament in full, followed by the rumors circulating outside.

"They say it’s the Foster family targeting you, aiming to ruin Dayu..."

“？？？”

Oliver has surely become presumptuous.

Such a significant matter, and he didn’t think to inform them or to hold a family meeting?

Oliver’s office was on the third floor.

Lily Montgomery entered without knocking, and Oliver didn't close the door. He was propping up his head with one hand, deep in contemplation—a sight fully visible to Lily.

“Oliver.”

“Ah, my girl, what brings you here?” Oliver’s face transformed into a welcoming smile at the sight of his daughter, his eyes nearly crinkling shut. “Had a tiff with your mother, or did you lose at a game?”

Lily Montgomery, lips pursed, simply stared at him.

“What is it, darling girl? You unsettle me when you look like that. The last time you came home with the lowest of grades, you leveled that same gaze at me.” A look of utter befuddlement was painted across Oliver's face.

Lily took the seat across from him, pouting, “Father, let’s relent.”

Oliver: “???”

Lily Montgomery laid out her earnest analysis, “What Shengtian Group has offered us is not an olive branch, but a lifeline. At this critical juncture, what reason have we to refuse?”

Had his daughter caught wind of it?

With a resigned chuckle, Oliver sat back against his desk, “My girl, a good steed does not come back to the same pasture. Our eagerness does not guarantee their cooperation. Don't trouble yourself with the company's affairs; your father has solutions at hand.”

If Lily didn’t know Oliver any better, she might have believed him.

“Bravo, Oliver, your performance deserves full marks.” Lily scoffed, “Who would have thought the Foster family could be so malicious. And to think you called Uncle Ethan a good man. After saving his life, this is how he repays you.”

The size of these covert acts made it hard for Oliver to believe William Reed was entirely clueless, though they weren’t characteristic of him either.

“That Ethan Foster is unworthy of you. Lacking in nobility.”

Oliver had no regrets about his past deeds, but it pained him to see his daughter distressed.

“My girl, I won’t let you or your mother suffer. The company is merely facing temporary difficulties. Trust in your father, he will resolve them.”

Lily’s brows furrowed, her mind alight with anger as she envisioned the Tang family's smug expressions.

“Father, our sole hope now lies with Shengtian Group’s Utopia Project. If we land this contract, others will regain confidence in us, and no longer fear the Foster clan...”

Her words were undeniably true.

Those who wavered were not entirely motivated by fear of the Foster family but held a pessimistic view of the Montgomery family’s standoff with them.

With serious mien, Lily added, “Father, if our office building isn’t the vital vein of our family’s feng shui, let's sell it if they're offering good money—we won’t suffer.”

“...But they need to approach us first.”

Emma Hamilton hadn’t contacted him in over ten days.

“Perhaps they’ve already settled on another company.”

Lily gave it some thought, “Father, I should go and plead our case. How do we know it's hopeless if we don't try?”

“No!”

Oliver rejected the idea immediately, without a second thought.

He could not allow such a face-losing errand to fall upon his daughter.

“Dear girl, be patient, I believe Dayu can still save itself. Worst comes to worst, we still have our properties. Don’t forget, we are nouveau riche.”

Lily’s eyes lit up, “Right, we do have so many houses.”

“Hahaha, intelligent, am I not?”

“Father is the most intelligent.”

After lavishing Oliver with flattering words, Lily narrowed her eyes slightly, “However, I have a foolish idea that might just lure Shengtian Group into our trap…”

Oliver, intrigued, “What is it?”

Lily’s smile turned foxy, “Desperate times call for desperate measures. Release a rumor that Dayu is strapped for cash and plans to sell the office building... If Shengtian’s aim is the building, we win. If not... then your daughter will go to them, offering herself in marriage to save her father.”

Oliver：……

Alarming it is, her once naive and endearing good girl has been led astray!

"Let's do just that!" His laughter was buoyant.

After formulating a strategy, Oliver’s expression turned grave.

"My dear, Uncle Daniel's mother-in-law celebrates her birthday this weekend, and the old comrades will be present. The Fosters might attend, too. Prepare yourself mentally. Stick with Victoria and keep a low profile, avoiding any ruffle with them that would put Uncle Daniel in an uncomfortable position."

"Understood."

Lily Montgomery returned to the office of the Design Department, checking WeChat on her phone.

Her father's old comrades stemmed from a group dubbed “Old Friends from Lily's Hometown Reservoir." These individuals had been sent down to work in Lily’s hometown and had jointly contributed to the construction of the hometown reservoir.

As fate would have it, some returned to urban life, while others remained in Lily’s hometown—each to their own destiny.

With the advent of modern communication, someone took the lead and formed a group, bringing together all reachable old friends to reminisce about the years spent working on the reservoir in Lily’s hometown. In the same city, they would arrange meet-ups for meals, tea, or card games; if a family celebrated a joyous occasion or mourned a loss, the others would proactively offer help. Like an ever-growing family, they fostered harmonious relationships.

The Fosters were also part of this group.

Some attendees of Lily's anniversary celebration were members of this group.

However, after the falling out between the two families, there were attempts within the group to mediate, but to no avail, resulting in the group falling silent and becoming desolate.

Lily Montgomery was well aware that her father greatly cherished his relationships with these individuals. Uncle Daniel's upcoming dinner party could possibly hold an intention of reconciliation.

There wasn't much to do in the office. Fearing that Lily Montgomery might bore herself, Victoria Thompson assigned her a task.

The renovation department of Dayu had only recently commenced operations. Every bit counts, no matter how small it seems. As long as clients made appointments, regardless of the distance, the manager would arrange for designers to carry out measurements, come up with plans, and vie for clients.

Victoria glanced at the time, "Why don't you accompany me to the measurement site? I'll guide you."

Lily Montgomery lit up, "Let's go."

……

En route, Victoria Thompson imparted numerous principles to Lily Montgomery, emphasizing the adage "The customer is always right" above all. Yet upon arrival, Lily Montgomery’s inherent stubbornness surfaced.

The clients, a young woman and a middle-aged man, proved to be a challenging duo with their demanding demeanor and critical comments.

Among the five decoration companies they had invited for measurements in their new home, all but Lily Montgomery were keen to agree and propose ideas aligned with the clients' wishes, displaying her uncompromising honesty.

"Do you really need a children's room? How about transforming this space into a study? Immerse yourself in books, embellish your intellect, enrich your life?"

Victoria Thompson was speechless.

Stepping out of the clients' place, she was torn between laughter and frustration.

"Lily Montgomery, have you lost your senses? Was that really your place to say?"

Lily Montgomery looked around lazily, hailing a taxi, "Don't you see? That woman is the mistress. I overheard the adulterous man lying on the phone to his wife..."

"That's none of our business. We're designers tasked with delivering satisfactory solutions and winning the clients over. What do they do in their personal life?"

"Why design a home for a cheater and his mistress? Victoria Thompson, have you discarded all your principles? What happened to our unwavering resolve to combat deceit?"

Victoria was nearly driven to despair by her.

"Miss Lily, I made those assertions when I was in the third grade—"

"Wait, wait, wait—"

Suddenly interrupting, Lily Montgomery grabbed her bag and dashed forward, shouting after a black limousine, "Hey, Manager Hamilton, wait, please. Manager Hamilton, it's me!"