Even Derrick could not hide his obvious shock. Though it was a private matter, for people with their
status in society, the only way that you could meet your partner was most likely from an arranged
marriage. It was impossible for news not to travel if someone from their social hierarchy got married or
was engaged
Alexander was always deemed an eligible bachelor in most women‘s eyes. They were all dying to date
him or even try getting married to him. However, there was never a rumor about him dating or being
interested in anyone.
He was always only focused on his work and how to build up the Russell family. Now getting the news
of his engagement so suddenly was a shock to Derrick, plus it was coming from Alexander himself. It
was just unbelievable.
“Fiancee?” Benedict yelled with his eyes wide–opened, looking at Lily.
“Enough, Benedict!” Derrick reprimanded him sternly for his rudeness.
He immediately regained his composure and addressed Lily politely, “This was surprising yet wonderful
news. How should I address this young lady then?” “Hello, Mr. Tanner. My name‘s Lily Christian,” Lily
extended her hand politely toward him for a handshake. He was, after all, a family friend and an elder.
Derrick hesitated for a moment. Her name sounded familiar to him. He pondered for a short while
before asking, “You‘re Mr.
Lodge‘s granddaughter?”
This time, Lily was more surprised than he was. The Lodge family had always kept a low profile, plus
they had a lot of extended family members and several apprentices, so not many people knew exactly
who was from the main family except the few famous ones.
This was also why no one knew about Lily‘s background when she left the Loge family to fend for
herself.
Naturally, it was unexpected when Derrick accurately predicted who she was and asked if she was Mr.
Lodge‘s granddaughter. This only meant that he had close ties with the Lodge family.
Since he had already guessed, Lily just nodded her head and admitted, “Yes, I am.”
“I see. So, you‘re his granddaughter,” Derrick repeated. Lily could sense something in his tone, but she
did not know what it meant, so she smiled politely at him. He then turned to Alexander and added,
“Alex, you have good taste.”
“Thank you, my thoughts exactly!” Alexander smiled and glanced at Lily. She could see that he was
boasting.
“Mr. Tanner, if you don‘t mind, I‘m friends with Benedict and would like to talk to him about some things.
Could I borrow him for a few minutes?” Since the atmosphere was less tense, Lily decided to voice out
her request.
Maybe it was because he knew of her identity now, or he was being nice on behalf of Alexander.
Derrick looked at his son and said, “Since you‘ve made some new friends, you should spend some
time getting to know each other!”
He then turned around and walked back toward the banquet hall. The tense atmosphere eased further
as Derrick left. Without the presence of an older person, all of them could finally relax.
When Lily turned around to glance at Benedict, she noticed that he was studying her closely with a
strange expression on his face. She immediately walked toward him.
“Benedict Tanner,” Lily said. His family‘s name was Tanner, so the young carpenter she met at a small
wood carving store was actually a member of the Tanner family from Ruby City. Benedict raised his
eyebrow in confusion. His name sounded strange from the way Lily was saying it.
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