Chapter 2 The Speed Of Changing Faces

• On the day of the wedding, Lila sat alone in the spacious yet cold lounge.
• The expensive custom-made wedding dress she was wearing felt a bit tight and uncomfortable.
• Her face was perfectly made up, making her look like Elena, the highly anticipated bride of the day.
• She looked down at the screen of her phone, the light reflecting on her expressionless face.
• Bang! The door was rudely pushed open, and a woman in a tight red dress with glamorous makeup burst in, her high heels making sharp noises on the floor.
• Her sharp gaze immediately locked onto Lila sitting on the sofa.
• "Elena?" The woman sneered, her tone sharp and cutting, "You're the mistress who stole my man!"
• Lila raised her eyes and looked at her calmly.
• What kind of drama was this now?
• Oh, it seemed like the consequences of Andrew's philandering had come knocking on the door.
• Lila remained silent, just looking at her as if the situation had nothing to do with her at all.
• The woman, seeing that Lila didn't respond, became even more aggressive. She strode up to Lila, her fingers almost poking her in the nose.
• "Andrew loves me! I should be the one standing here today!"
• A hint of impatience flashed across Lila's face as she raised her hand and swatted away the pointing finger.
• The woman clearly didn't expect the gentle and obedient Elena, as rumored, to resist. She paused for a moment, a look of astonishment appearing on her well-maintained face, which quickly turned into deeper disdain and anger. She seemed to have heard the biggest joke, exaggeratedly chuckling, crossing her arms and scrutinizing Lila from head to toe with a cutting gaze.
• "Oh, you dare to fight back? Elena, what are you pretending to be?" The woman's voice rose eight octaves, piercingly sharp, "Who in this circle doesn't know what kind of person you are? You used every means to secure this marriage. Do you really think Andrew wants to marry you?"
• She took a step closer, a smug expression on her face, "Andrew was with me last night! He said he felt disgusted whenever he saw you! If it weren't for the pathetic cooperation between the Swift Family and Morgan Family, you wouldn't even be worthy of carrying his shoes!"
• The woman became more and more excited as she spoke, almost spitting on Lila's face. "You're just a lapdog! A complete lapdog! Without a powerful family backing you up, you're nothing! Andrew said that marrying you is just like marrying a decoration, his heart will always belong to me! You'll never even touch his finger in your lifetime! Believe it or not, after the wedding, he won't even spare you a glance!"
• She seemed to feel that words were not enough, so she pointed at the wedding dress on Lila. "Tsk tsk, dressed like a doll, but deep down, you're just a scheming mistress! No, you're even worse than a mistress, you're just a commodity!"
• Lila listened quietly, her face expressionless, but she found it somewhat amusing.
• The woman was getting worked up, but she was cursing the wrong person.
• The woman's face twisted with anger.
• Lila looked at her, her eyes flickering for a moment, landing on the crooked eyeliner.
• "Have you had enough of your tantrum?" an impatient voice came from the door.
• Andrew walked in with a frown, his face darkening even more when he saw the woman in the red dress. He glanced at "Elena" with undisguised disgust.
• Now.
• Tears welled up in Lila's eyes instantly, just the right amount to look pitiful and wronged. Her voice quivered as she spoke, sounding fragile and aggrieved, "Andrew... I don't know who this lady is..." She leaned slightly to the side, as if seeking protection, but then shrank back, as if frightened.
• This pitiful and wronged look was Elena's specialty.
• Andrew didn't even look at Lila, he directly scolded the woman in the red dress, "Get out! Don't embarrass yourself here!"
• The woman in the red dress wanted to say something, but when she met Andrew's icy gaze, she stomped her foot in frustration, glared at Lila, and then stormed out.
• In the dressing room, only the two of them were left.
• Andrew adjusted his tie, glanced at Lila, and then walked away without looking back.
• The door closed again.
• The sadness and vulnerability on Lila's face disappeared in an instant. She raised her hand expressionlessly, wiped away the tear that hadn't even fallen from the corner of her eye, with a swift motion.
• Her phone buzzed.
• The screen lit up with a familiar number, and Lila quickly answered the call.
• "Miss. Swift, we still haven't found any information about your mother from back then, the trail goes cold." A formal voice came from the other end of the line.
• It was expected, but it still made her heart ache.
• The faint hope was shattered again.
• She hung up the phone, feeling a chill in her fingertips.
• After a pause, she opened the chat with Elena and quickly typed: [Just now, a woman came to cause trouble, claiming to be Andrew's true love, and he drove her away.]
• After sending the message, she turned off her phone and threw it aside.
• Silence.
• ...
• The wedding ceremony was long and extravagant, Lila wore layers of wedding dress, holding Andrew's arm, feeling like wearing a delicate shackle.
• Andrew remained expressionless throughout, only the cold touch of his fingertips and a fleeting stiffness during the ring exchange revealed his true reluctance.
• But at least he didn't walk out in a huff on the spot, giving both the Swift Family and the Morgan Family some basic dignity.
• The noise in the banquet hall finally subsided as the guests began to leave one by one.
• Lila's perfectly poised smile was almost unable to hold up, the muscles at the corners of her mouth were starting to ache.
• She saw Andrew tug at his tie, looking like he couldn't wait to leave, so she immediately pulled herself together and assumed the role of "Elena".
• She approached, reaching out to tug at Andrew's sleeve, her voice soft and gentle: "Andrew... the banquet has just ended, where are you going? Aren't you waiting for me to go back together?"
• Andrew seemed to be repulsed by something dirty, he violently shook off her hand, causing Lila to stagger. He turned around, his eyes cold, his tone filled with disgust: "Where I go, what's it to you? Elena, I warn you, don't push your luck! Behave yourself!"
• He took a step closer, looking down at her, his voice low but cutting: "Do you really think putting on a wedding dress makes you my wife? It's just a transaction, play your role well, don't delude yourself with things that don't belong to you, it's disgusting to watch."
• His poisonous words stung deeply, Lila's eyelashes trembled violently, her eyes instantly turning red.
• She bit her lip tightly, her shoulders trembling slightly, lowering her head, looking like a wife humiliated in public, heartbroken and afraid to speak up.
• Seeing her in this "pitiful" state, Andrew felt even more annoyed, he snorted, turned around and walked away, not even bothering to look back.
• "Bang!" The door was slammed shut, the bolt clicking into place.
• The room fell completely silent.
• Lila, who had just been hunched over, with lowered brows and obedient, slowly straightened her body.
• She wiped the corner of her eye with her hand, her fingertips clean and dry, no tears at all.
• Her gaze had changed too, clear and bright, with a hint of coldness and mockery, completely different from the timid person just now. Even a slight curve appeared at the corner of her mouth, exuding a hint of indifference, as if the previous scene was quite boring.
• In the corner of the banquet hall, hidden in the shadow of the corridor pillar, Julian was holding a glass of red wine, absentmindedly rubbing the rim of the glass with his fingertips, but his gaze never left that figure.
• This new "niece-in-law" seemed to be quite interesting.
• Lila happened to turn her head at that moment, and she saw him at a glance, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes.
• Julian remained noncommittal, just raised his hand and raised his glass towards her from a distance, a meaningful smile playing at the corner of his mouth.