Pursing her lips, Lilly stared at Cheryl.
Although Cheryl looked nothing like her stepmother, the expression on the girl’s face was all too familiar to Lilly.
That was the trick her stepmother always pulled, and her daddy would turn around and give Lilly a piece of his mind.
Even though Lilly did nothing to deserve any of that!
Lilly was forthright with her answer. “I didn’t push you. You fell on your own.”
Biting her lip, Cheryl wiped her eyes in distress. After giving her eyes a good rub, she said, “Yeah, I know you didn’t mean to. It was my fault…”
Lilly pressed her lips together.
Other children might be dumbfounded in Lilly’s shoes, not understanding what was going on.
However, Lilly had been in this position far too many times.
She turned to Bettany and uttered, “Granny, I didn’t push her. I was getting up after finishing the food, and Cheryl suddenly fell.”
Bettany picked Lilly up and gave an affirmative answer, “It’s okay. I trust you didn’t push anybody. Maybe somebody can’t tell the difference between intentional and accidental.”
She made a point to look at Cheryl.
Lilly blinked her eyes and fell into thought.
Tina awkwardly jumped in, “The kids were just fooling around. I should have paid closer attention…”
She tried to cover up the whole thing as harmless horsing around between children.
Nevertheless, the Crawfords were not going to let it go.
Bettany callously said, “So? What are you trying to say? Are you expecting our darling to apologize to you?
“Or are you trying to give us the wrong idea about Lilly? What? So we would think she is bad and Cheryl is good? You are foolish to flatter yourself.”
The family ignored their child and took someone else’s child under their wing. Now, they had the nerve to point fingers at Lilly.
Bettany did not hold back with her choice of words.
Color washed off Tina’s complexion… That was not the end of it. The other Crawford family members chimed in to give their two cents.
Anthony curtly snapped, “The last person to frame Lilly is still sitting in jail.”
Hugh had a deadpan look. “It’s the parents’ duty to educate their children. It’ll be too late if you don’t start now.”
Gilbert faintly uttered, “What are you thinking to pull this sort of stunt? Don’t you think it’s embarrassing?”
The Crawford family took turns jumping down Tina’s throat.
Tina wished the earth could swallow her up.
The Crawfords really got up in her face.
She could admit that Cheryl screwed up by trying too hard to get people to like her.
Still, Cheryl was young and only meant well. The Crawford family should not rip into them.
Tina forced a smile. “I’m sorry, Bettany! I’m sorry, Mr. Anthony… Let us take it easy… Just take it easy…”
With tears streaming down her face, Cheryl choked with sobs.
“Sob, sob… It’s my fault… It’s my fault either way… Don’t be mad, Grandma Bettany.”
She wept in sniffles, trying to stop herself from crying out loud. Yet, she was sensible enough to apologize.
Cheryl appeared so miserable. She had the look that no one would have the heart to put the blame on her.
However, the whole thing did not sit well with the Crawfords.
What did Cheryl mean by either way?
She was dragging Lilly down in her apologies.
Just then, Lilly approached with a plate of salad in hand and cautiously made her way to Cheryl.
The Crawford family had mixed feelings about it because they thought Lilly was so nice to try and resolve things with Cheryl.
Seeing an out, Tina jumped in, “Oh, Miss Lilly. That isn’t necessary…”
Cheryl wiped away her tears and magnanimously uttered, “It’s okay, Lilly…”
Lilly dumped the whole plate of salad all over Cheryl.
Her red bracelet twinkled a flashing scarlet glint as the salad was tossed onto Cheryl’s face…
That sure stopped Cheryl from talking.
Hung on the details, Lilly said, “Here you go. That’s intentional! The one before was accidental.
“Now can you differentiate between intentional and accidental?”
So it turned out Lilly took everything Bettany said to heart.
That was why Lilly felt the need to explain herself.
Pablo often said that it was easier to remember things when put into practice.
Cheryl was dumbfounded.
She only poured salad on the hem of her skirt just now, so it was nothing.
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