She didn't reach out to take it, but instead asked abruptly: "After selecting a daughter-in-law for so long, is this the kind of person Liam’s mother chose?"

Chapter 7: The Answer After Seven Years

"What do you mean by that?" The smile on Vivian’s face vanished, her eyes locked onto Elena.

"Nothing..." Elena offered a self-deprecating smile. "Keep the money yourself. Don't look for me again."

With that, she turned and walked away, ignoring Vivian.

Vivian’s face turned alternating shades of blue and white in anger, but she couldn't stop her.

Back home, Elena sat blankly at her desk.

After a while, she dug out an old notebook containing a faded blue paper rose—the first thing Liam had made by hand for their first Valentine's Day.

She touched the paper rose, a sweet and nostalgic smile crossing her lips.

But then her eyes dimmed.

She picked up a pen and wrote: 2,650 days since losing you, I’m doing just fine...

Putting the notebook away, Elena leaned back, exhausted, her mood incredibly suppressed.

Suddenly, her mother pushed the door open and walked in.

"Mom, is something wrong?" Elena asked, puzzled.

Her mother walked over, took Elena’s hand, and said: "Auntie Xu, the one who cleans at the cafeteria, said she wants to introduce you to someone. I hear he’s a very honest man."

As she spoke, her mother pulled out a slip of paper with a WeChat ID written on it: "You’re not young anymore. Even if you have to settle, you need to get married..."

Elena froze.

How terrifying those words were. What was more terrifying was that they were coming from her own mother.

She asked in disbelief: "Mom, am I that cheap in your eyes?"

Seeing her mother’s look of shock, Elena snapped back to reality and lowered her tone: "I have something to discuss with Clara. Go to sleep early, don't wait for me."

With that, she grabbed her coat and walked out the door.

Once in her car, she called Clara: "Clara, I’m waiting for you at Nightlife."

Nightlife Bar.

Elena poured drink after drink, but even when her stomach began to ache, it couldn't numb her heart.

Finally, she passed out from intoxication.

Tears flowed uncontrollably, and she whispered the same name over and over: "Liam..."

Clara watched Elena, her heart breaking: "And you say you don't love him? Look at you, crying like this every time you’re drunk."

Elena simply gripped her hand, her crying reduced to soft, muffled sobs.

Clara leaned in close to hear her say: "He’s getting married. To that mean woman who bullied me..."

Clara felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow, her heart aching for her friend.

After a moment of thought, she found Liam’s number and called.

As soon as he answered, she spoke: "Come to Nightlife Bar. Elena is drunk."

She hung up.

Elena had already closed her eyes, tears still leaking from the corners, murmuring: "Liam, I’m in so much pain..."

The mere thought of losing Liam forever felt like a knife cutting through her heart.

Not long after, Liam arrived in a rush.

"I’m leaving Elena in your hands," Clara said.

Liam nodded slightly, hoisted Elena onto his back, and walked out of the bar.

Her weight on his back was so light it made his heart skip a beat. He muttered with a hint of annoyance: "You silly pig, you’ve lost all the weight I worked so hard to help you gain."

Once he said it, he suddenly realized that seven years had truly passed.

Yet, for these seven years, he felt as if he had been living in the day he lost her.

The streetlamps cast a dim, yellow glow on the lonely silhouettes of pedestrians.

With every step, Liam heard Elena calling his name.

"Liam... Liam..."

Liam didn't respond to any of her whispers.

But as he walked, his eyes couldn't help but redden.

When they reached the entrance of Elena’s complex, Liam stopped. He had a sudden change of heart.

He stood there for a long moment, then turned and carried Elena toward his own home.

Carefully placing her on the bed and pouring a glass of water, he lifted her with gentle motions, feeding her water sip by sip, just like in the old days.

After she drank, Liam sat silently by the bed, gazing at her features.

He didn't know how tender and lingering his gaze was at that moment.

If only he could, he wished time would stop forever right here.

That way, they would never have to be apart again.

The person on the bed mumbled something, and Liam asked, his voice trembling: "Elena, do you still love Liam?"

Chapter 8: The Dignity of Love

The next day, Elena was awakened by urgent doorbell ringing.

She stumbled to the door in a daze, but became instantly clear-headed upon opening it.

It was Liam’s mother!

A flash of surprise crossed her eyes, quickly replaced by deep mockery: "I thought that even if you were poor, you would at least have some self-respect. I never expected that you’d lose even that."

The undisguised malice was like a whip striking Elena’s heart, leaving her blood running cold.

After a long pause, she managed to say: "Mrs. Liam."

The older woman composed herself, returning to her usual elegance: "Miss Elena, I do not want any accidents to happen at my son’s wedding. As for you..."

She paused intentionally, her eyes scanning Elena’s lower abdomen with disdain before continuing: "You had better learn to behave and not fall pregnant before Vivian does."

With that, Liam’s mother turned and left.

Elena stood frozen, the color draining from her face bit by bit.

At that moment, hearing the noise, Liam walked down the stairs.

Elena turned to look at him, and her eyes suddenly stung with unshed tears.

With a trace of panic in her eyes, she hurried out the words: "I have to go."

She left in a rush, not even having the time to change her shoes.

Liam remained standing in his place, eyes fixed on the closed door for a long time before he gave a self-deprecating laugh: "Am I really that unbearable to you?"

Elena walked home, the wind biting and cold.

The arrival of Liam’s mother brought back memories of seven years ago.

She remembered it was the day after Valentine's Day.

The day before, Liam had told her: "I’m taking you home to meet my parents tomorrow."

Back then, she had been immersed in joy, believing their love was finally coming to fruition.

But the next day, Liam’s mother showed up at her doorstep.

She didn't hire anyone to deal with her, nor did she ridicule her; she simply 'hired' her.

That day, Elena followed her around like an assistant.

She watched the woman casually hand five thousand as a tip; she watched the school board members fawn over her; she watched her intentionally converse in several languages in front of her...

Her heart sank lower and lower, yet she persevered.

By evening, the mother insisted on dropping Elena off at the entrance of her dilapidated shed.

"Goodbye, Mrs. Liam." Just as Elena was about to leave, the woman called her back.

She pulled a stack of money from her bag and said with a smile: "Here’s two thousand. About the same as your mother’s monthly salary, right? Take it. Thank you for accompanying me all day today."

In that instant, the blood in Elena’s body turned ice cold.

She loved Liam.

She loved him enough to abandon her dignity and her pride, but she couldn't allow her mother to suffer that kind of humiliation!

So the next day, she called Liam out: "Let’s... let’s break up."

At that moment, her heart felt as if it were being torn apart, but she didn't look back.

Back home, she sobbed in her mother’s arms, determined to make something of herself.

The cold wind snapped Elena out of her memories.

She tilted her head back and took a deep breath, suppressing the unwillingness and the pain in her heart.

She could no longer cry over things from seven years ago. The only thing she could do was look forward.

Exhausted, she returned home, changed clothes, and drove back to the company.

But as she stepped into the office, she felt strange eyes on her.

These gazes pierced her like needles.

She was confused, until her lunch break, when she walked outside the pantry with her cup.

She heard two people mocking her without reserve.

"I never thought Director Elena would be a 'homewrecker'!"

"Look at this—no wonder she was promoted to executive. She’s even seducing Mr. Liam, who’s about to be married. You truly can't judge a book by its cover!"

Chapter 9: Meeting Again

Elena pushed the door open, and the pantry fell instantly silent.

"Director Elena..." The employee’s smile was stiff with dread.

Elena swept her cold gaze across the room, held out her hand, and lowered her voice: "Give me your phone."