"It’s interesting. I can wait. When you break up one day, I’ll treat everyone to wedding candy." Julian laughed callously—a stark contrast to his name.

From then on, every time Liam went on a date with Elena, Julian would appear within his field of vision.

But no matter how many times he appeared, he never let Elena feel Julian’s presence.

Since the other party refused to retreat, Liam certainly wouldn't back down either.

And so, for the four years of college, their relationship had maintained this bizarre state.

Chapter 21: A Special Birthday

Early the next morning.

After finishing breakfast, Elena sat in Liam’s car as they drove toward the hospital.

Upon arrival, the doctor put Elena through a comprehensive series of examinations. The report showed that her vocal cords were completely intact.

"Can this be treated?" Liam asked, a strange tension in his voice, though his face remained expressionless.

The doctor pondered for a moment after reviewing the results and sighed: "Ms. Elena’s condition is caused by psychological stress. It can only be improved through slow and steady practice."

Liam frowned slightly, his expression darkening.

Elena stood to the side. She wasn't particularly saddened; she had heard similar things from doctors so many times that she had long become numb to it.

After leaving the hospital, each lost in their own thoughts, they had just gotten into the car when Liam’s phone rang.

He answered, his voice neutral: "What is it?"

...

About two minutes later, Liam hung up the phone and turned to Elena: "Elena, I’m taking you to meet a friend."

Elena nodded gently. Though she didn't know who she was meeting, she was still happy to be with him.

The car eventually stopped at the Milai Restaurant.

Due to its beautiful surroundings, it was known as the "Sky Garden" of Yangcheng.

Those who dined there were either wealthy or noble, and the restaurant had only three floors, each accepting only one guest at a time.

Led by a waiter, they took a private elevator to the third floor.

As soon as the elevator doors opened, Xu Chen ran over: "Liam, you’re finally here. I was about to leave if you didn't show up soon."

Liam offered a soft hum, saying only two words: "Traffic jam."

Xu Chen didn't press the issue, his gaze shifting curiously to Elena standing behind Liam, a flash of astonishment in his eyes.

"Not bad, Liam. You’ve been hiding her well."

Liam shot him a cold glance, subtly blocking Xu Chen’s line of sight.

Xu Chen was smart enough not to bring it up again.

The three of them sat down to dine. Liam introduced Xu Chen to Elena briefly: "His family and mine have been friends for generations. You should have heard of the Xu family."

Elena stopped cutting her steak and looked up at Xu Chen.

The Xu family was the largest medical dynasty in Yangcheng, having won the Nobel Prize in Medicine twice.

Their heir was known in the outside world as a once-in-a-century medical genius.

However, news regarding the Xu heir was always scrubbed clean from the internet, with the given reason being that the heir suffered from social anxiety and avoided all public appearances.

But looking at Xu Chen cheerfully cutting his beef, Elena found it impossible to reconcile the two personalities.

Just as she was lost in thought, Xu Chen looked up, flashing a cheeky, playful smile.

"Sister-in-law, do you also think I look better than Liam?"

Elena quickly averted her gaze, looking toward Liam for help.

Liam understood and looked at Xu Chen: "Don't scare your sister-in-law; she’s easily frightened. I still have important business for you to handle later."

Xu Chen’s face collapsed into a grimace: "You’re making me work after feeding me dog food? Capitalists would probably weep if they heard this."

Liam retorted coldly: "I am a capitalist."

Round one: Xu Chen lost completely.

After the meal, Xu Chen left in his car with some documents, leaving Liam and Elena to take a stroll by the lake.

Seeing Elena looking troubled, Liam asked: "Elena, are you curious why Xu Chen is so different from what people say?"

Elena nodded. She had indeed been thinking about it; she had noticed something wrong earlier—Xu Chen had taken a white pill both before and after the meal.

Liam stopped walking and sighed softly, explaining Xu Chen’s situation.

"When Xu Chen was born, his grandfather determined he wouldn't live past twenty. He has a congenital genetic defect that could take his life at any moment."

Elena froze, feeling a wave of sorrow. Being sentenced to death from birth—that was exceptionally cruel for anyone.

Liam continued: "That’s why he has always been trying to prove himself to his family. And today just happens to be his twentieth birthday."

Under the starry sky.

Liam looked directly at Elena, his deep eyes so beautiful they were intoxicating.

"So, Elena, you must also keep working hard. I want to hear you say you love me with my own ears."

Chapter 22: Power Outage

Elena froze and nodded.

But to her surprise, the very next morning, Liam dragged her along with him to work at the office!

Elena swore that if she had known it would be like this, she never would have nodded her head.

But clearly, Liam had planned this all along.

"These are the best-received children’s phonics readers on the market. You practice these first; I’ll come over to keep you company as soon as I’m done with my work."

Elena looked at the mountain of children’s books on the table and frowned slightly. She quickly typed a message on her phone.

"I’ll disturb your work if I stay here. I’d better go home to practice."

After typing it, she hit send.

Liam looked at the message, hooked his lips into a smile, and looked at Elena with a devilish glint in his eyes.

"If you don't want to sit on the sofa to practice, then sit on my lap. That way, I can supervise you."

Elena quickly shook her head, grabbed a children’s book from the table, and began to study it seriously.

Seeing this, Liam was satisfied and returned to his desk to start processing documents.

Looking at the syllables in the book, Elena made a crying face, but after taking a few deep breaths, she began to practice her pronunciation earnestly.

In the vast office, aside from the "scratching" sound of Liam’s pen, one could hear Elena’s raspy voice straining to speak.

At lunch, Liam had a table brought directly into the office, and when Elena looked, it was covered in various stews.

"These are good for your throat; you need to eat more."

Elena frowned, hesitating to pick up her chopsticks.

At this moment, she longed for the days she and Liam used to eat hotpot in college.

Just as she felt miserable, Liam’s voice sounded.

"If you don't eat, I’ll have to feed you myself."

Hearing this, Elena hurriedly picked up her spoon and drank the soup, even though every mouthful felt tasteless to her.

After lunch, Elena returned to the sofa to continue practicing syllables.

But before long, sleepiness overcame her, and she fell into a deep sleep on the sofa.

Liam looked at her peaceful sleeping face, feeling as though everything around him had become wonderful.

After gently covering Elena with his coat, Liam set the air conditioner to a constant temperature.

He then returned to his seat, picked up his phone, and typed a message to his secretary.

"Pass the word: no one is allowed to enter my office today."

After pressing send, Liam took a deep breath and buried himself back into his work.

Elena was awakened by her own alarm clock. Upon opening her eyes, she saw that the sky outside had turned dark.

She looked at her phone; it was 10:00 PM.

Seeing the string of missed calls from her mother popping up on her phone, Elena felt a sudden panic—it was the same nervous feeling she used to have as a child after doing something wrong.

Liam picked up his suit jacket and walked over: "Are you awake? Let’s go, I’ll take you home."

With that, Liam walked ahead and opened the office door, with Elena following close behind.

The lights throughout the building were turned off, and the night air carried a hint of chill.

Looking at the pitch-black surroundings, Elena instinctively reached out and clutched Liam’s arm.

At the moment of physical contact, both of them stopped in unison.

This familiar scene was exactly like the time there was a power outage in college.

Back then, the electric locks wouldn't open during a blackout, and they were trapped in the classroom building.

The classroom building without a single light looked exceptionally eerie at night.

They weren't a couple then, and they were only together because they had been competing in a tournament. Elena had been terrified, but she had held it together.

"I called the teacher; the power won't be back on for a while," Liam’s voice was neutral.