"Elena, if you have no objections, let's get our marriage license a week from now, on your twentieth birthday."
Though the timeline was tight, and the arrangement felt rushed, Elena simply nodded again. "Okay."
With their marriage settled, the next urgent matter was the crisis at Shen Group.
For Elena, asking Ethan for help wasn't easy. In the past ten years, they hadn't contacted each other even once in private—they were practically strangers.
But with Shen Group's shares and market value evaporating by the minute, no matter how difficult it was to speak up, Elena couldn't afford to delay.
"There's one more thing… I'd like to ask for your help, Ethan…"
"The Shen Group situation?" Ethan interrupted before she could finish.
Elena paused for a second and looked at him.
"Come here," he said.
Elena wasn't sure what he meant but obediently walked around the large desk toward him.
Ethan pulled over a chair, placed it next to his own and motioned for her to sit.
Then, under her gaze, he opened a financial report sent earlier by Eric Chen, detailing the amount Shen Group needed in financing.
Without hesitation, he accessed the highest authority level of the Tiancheng Group's corporate account and transferred the funds directly into the Shen Group's account.
"I have already received a full report from Eric. Don't worry—I'll handle it."
In the blink of an eye, Elena watched as a vast sum of money was wired to Shen Group.
The next second, her phone chimed with several notifications.
Auden Zhang messaged her, excitedly confirming that Tiancheng's headquarters had sent over the funds, and their executive team was now at Shen Group helping connect the company's projects with Jiang Corporation's resources.
Right after that, Auden also sent a screenshot showing the company's stock value had stabilized and was even beginning to rise, thanks to Jiang Corporation's support.
The heavy burden pressing on Elena's chest finally lifted.
She exhaled deeply and sent back a couple of replies.
"Now you can relax, right?" Ethan's voice came from beside her.
Elena put away her phone, smiled softly, and thanked him. "Thank you, Ethan."
Ethan hadn't logged out from the Tiancheng Group's top-level system on his computer. The screen was still displaying classified data from the Jiang Corporation's core systems—yet he made no effort to hide any of it from her.
"No need to thank me, and don't feel burdened by it."
His deep, steady voice gradually soothed her nerves, gently easing the emotional rollercoaster of her day.
"A union between our families is mutually beneficial. You don't have to overthink it or feel indebted."
"Elena, I'm only doing what I should."
Her heart gradually calmed.
She looked up, meeting Ethan's eyes, and sincerely said, "Thank you, Ethan."
At four o'clock, Ethan had a scheduled contract signing—an appointment he couldn't cancel.
He glanced at the time and asked, "Do you have anything planned after this?"
Elena shook her head. "No."
"Then wait for me an hour. Once the meeting is over, I'll take you to dinner."
Having just received his help, Elena naturally couldn't refuse. She nodded sweetly and stood up. "Then I'll go look around—"
"Just stay here," Ethan said, pulling her gently back to her seat. "I'll have Eric bring some snacks and drinks. There's a lounge behind that door—if you're tired, go lie down for a bit."
Elena followed his gaze toward the lounge and then sat up straight again, nodding obediently.
Ethan left for his meeting.
The computer on his desk remained unlocked.
Just a flick of the mouse, and all the confidential core data of Jiang Corporation would be right in front of her—data others would never dream of accessing.
Elena glanced at the screen briefly but didn't linger or touch the computer at all.
After Ethan left, she moved to the sofa farthest from the desk, chatting with Auden Zhang on WeChat about the company situation while quietly waiting for Ethan to return.
The meeting had been scheduled for an hour and a half, but Ethan concluded it in just fifty minutes.
On his way back to the executive office, Eric Chen suddenly remembered something. Smacking his forehead, he rushed over to catch up.
"Mr. Jiang."
"There's one more thing."
He handed over a tablet. The screen displayed the latest entertainment gossip about Adrian Jiang and Grace Su spotted entering "Nightfall" late at night.
Although Mr. Adrian had allowed previous rumors to circulate for a few hours before pulling them down. This one had been up for over a day without being removed.
Eric wasn't sure whether Adrian was genuinely interested in Grace Su or if there was another reason, but given how each trending topic prominently featured the "Jiang Corporation" tag, he felt it necessary to ask Ethan for instructions.
"This topic involves Mr. Adrian has been trending for quite a while, and Guangying Media hasn't made any move to remove it."
"Would you like me to contact someone to take it down?"
Ethan glanced down at the trending tags on the screen.
As his eyes lifted, he caught sight of the slightly ajar door to his office.
Inside, Elena was much more relaxed in his absence. Her rigid posture had softened as she nestled against the sofa with a cushion, head lowered, scrolling through her phone.
Ethan withdrew his gaze and replied calmly.
"If I'm not mistaken, is this already the third trending topic this month?"
Eric paused, then nodded.
To be precise—it had only been twenty days.
In the past, rumors involving Grace and Adrian appeared occasionally, but never this frequently.
"Leave it," Ethan said flatly. "If he wants to create a scene, even if you take down this one, there'll be another in a couple of days."
Eric nodded. "Understood, Mr. Jiang."
Ethan kept walking. "Is the restaurant ready?"
"Yes, sir. Reservations are made and the car is waiting."
With Shen Group's financial gap filled and its stock value stabilizing, Elena finally let go of her worries and took the earliest flight the next morning to Country A.
In the hospital room, Aurel Shen had regained consciousness.
However, the car accident had caused trauma to his brain, so he still couldn't be discharged.
After waking up, the first thing Aurel did was ask his assistant, Frank Fang, who was keeping vigil on the hospital sofa:
"You didn't tell Elena about the accident, right?"
Seeing Aurel awake, Jason immediately rushed over and hit the call button for the doctor.
"Mr. Shen, you're awake!"
"The accident…" he hesitated, "we kept it from Miss Elena at first, but…"
The hospital bed rose up as Aurel leaned against the headboard.
Seeing Jason's hesitant look, his brows darkened.
"Speak. What happened?"
Jason didn't dare hide anything and quickly explained:
"After you fell into a coma, the company was thrown into chaos. The branches began plotting, and Auden panicked—he called Miss Elena."
Aurel's face turned grim. Already pale from the coma, his lips pressed into a thin line, and a heavy, cold aura filled the room.
"Bring me the laptop."
Having worked with Aurel for years, Jason could tell he wanted to manage the crisis despite still recovering.
But the accident had been severe—even the lead medical team said his condition was complicated after three days of treatment. Jason didn't dare let him exhaust himself over business.
Instead of handing him the laptop, he poured a cup of warm water and said nothing about the request.
"Mr. Shen, the crisis has passed. Jiang Corporation has already sent in support. Both headquarters and branches are now stable, and the stock values have returned to normal."
"What matters most now is your health. Miss Elena knows about the accident and calls several times a day to ask about her condition. With all due respect, Mr. Shen, you need rest."
Hearing that Jiang Corporation sent people into the company, Aurel's eyes darkened slightly.
He said nothing more and simply asked Jason for his phone.
As soon as the screen lit up, before he could even open Elena's chat, a flood of entertainment news notifications popped up.
He stared at the trending headline: Adrian Jiang, and tapped in.
After watching the scandalous video, he asked:
"Has Elena called off her engagement with Adrian?"
Jason glanced at him, hesitated, and finally replied with the latest developments from back home.
"Our sources say… the engagement with Mr. Adrian appears to be off. However…"
Aurel's cold eyes flicked over.
Jason lowered his voice, not daring to meet his gaze.
"… However, recently, Mr. Ethan Jiang returned to the country. According to reports, he seems open to a marriage alliance."
The air in the room suddenly grew frigid.
Jason stood silently, head bowed low, not daring to look at Aurel's expression.