In the fountain garden, Mason Meng's two sycophantic followers noticed her sour expression and were about to offer some words of comfort when the sound of approaching footsteps interrupted them once more.
Leah Chen was the first to spot the man coming their way.
"Mr... Mr. Adrian?" she stammered.
Mason's brow furrowed.
She turned around and saw Adrian Jiang.
His expression was unreadable, offering no hint of emotion. He ignored the fawning attempts of Leah Chen and Lora Song, and instead stopped squarely in front of Mason.
With a faint smirk tugging at his lips, his tone carried a deceptive air of casual concern:
"I heard the Meng family plans to enter the entertainment industry?"
Having just been warned by Ethan, Mason instinctively felt a sense of wariness toward the Jiang family.
But after a brief pause, she recalled that the rift between Elena and Adrian had long been the talk of Huaihai's high society.
Adrian had even allowed Grace Su to publicize their relationship online, which meant he likely wouldn't shield Elena anymore.
Encouraged by that thought, Mason was about to nod in confirmation.
But Adrian leisurely finished his sentence, his voice smooth and slow:
"—Please let your father know. Huaihai's entertainment industry is already oversaturated. He'd do well to look elsewhere for investment."
Mason choked on a breath, nearly grinding her teeth to dust. Reflexively, she snapped, "And who are you to say that?"
Adrian's gaze turned ice-cold, his tone laced with scorn as he narrowed his eyes at her.
"Because you dared lay a hand on someone from the Jiang family."
With that, he walked off, heading in the direction Ethan and Elena had disappeared.
Outside the villa community, inside a sleek black limited-edition Maybach.
Elena sat in the passenger seat, head lowered in silence.
Ethan had one hand resting lightly on the steering wheel, his head tilted slightly toward her.
Feigning innocence, he asked, "Got into a fight?"
She pursed her lips and said nothing.
But his response was unexpected.
"Good."
"...?" Elena looked up at him in disbelief.
She had braced herself for a lecture—something about decorum, about avoiding conflict in public. But instead, she heard Ethan say:
"If it ever happens again, don't hold back."
"If things get messy, I'll clean it up for you."
Elena was genuinely stunned this time.
She never would have imagined that Ethan Jiang—the man known for his restraint, his cold composure, the one who carried rules and order in his very bones—would say something like that after she'd just gotten into a fight.
In her daze, she blurted out, "What if I get into real trouble?"
She was already feeling a pang of regret. After all, today was Winston and Annie's birthday party. The guest list was full of Huaihai's elite. Making a scene at such an event was certainly ill-advised, and she might've even ruined her best friend's annual celebration.
But in the heat of the moment, provoked by Mason and her sidekicks' disgusting insults towards her late parents, she had lost control.
Ethan's tone remained calm, almost indifferent.
"Even if you bring down the sky over Huaihai, I'll make sure you land on your feet."
Elena turned toward him again, her eyes searching his face.
He met her gaze steadily and spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world:
"Elena, just remember—no one from the Jiang family needs to swallow their pride."
"—That includes you."
The engine rumbled to life as Ethan turned the wheel and pulled the car out of the parking lot. In the dimming twilight, he asked:
"Back to the apartment?"
She nodded silently.
By the time Adrian Jiang exited the villa, the limited-edition Maybach had just pulled away from the parking area.
Seeing him emerge, the chauffeur who had been waiting immediately stepped out and opened the rear door.
"You heading back to the main estate, young master?" he asked.
For the past few days, Adrian has been occupied in the southern city due to some issues at Lightwave Media, and today's party at the Gu residence was the reason for his sudden return.
The chauffeur had overheard Madam Jiang's repeated phone calls urging Adrian to return home, so he assumed that his young master was leaving the event early at her behest.
Adrian didn't respond.
He didn't get into the backseat either. Instead, he walked straight to the driver's side.
"I'll drive myself. You can go."
The chauffeur closed the door and nodded, taking his leave.
Adrian then followed Ethan and Elena's route, heading toward the apartment near Huaihai University.
By the time he arrived, the two had already entered the building.
He parked his car, stepped out, and leaned against the door, gazing up at the apartment complex now shrouded in twilight.
He rarely came here.
After Elena had moved out of the Jiang estate, they often went weeks without seeing each other.
But he knew which floor she lived on.
He kept his eyes fixed on that level—until the lights came on.
And then, as if drawn by some magnetic pull, he reached for his cigarettes.
He lit one, hoping the smoke would dull the tight knot in his chest.
But the longer he stood there, the darker the night became, and the tighter that knot pulled.
The cigarette butts gathered at his feet, but the suffocating pressure in his chest only deepened—like a storm gathering force behind fragile restraints, threatening to burst free.
Adrian's eyes turned shadowed and unreadable.
As the final cigarette burned down to his fingertips, its heat singed his skin. He dropped it, jaw clenched tight.
Unable to hold back anymore, he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
It connected quickly.
"Mr. Adrian?" came the voice of Charles Feng from the other end.
Adrian kept his gaze on the ground littered with ash. His voice was low, taut with tension.
"Where did Elena stay last weekend?"
There was a brief pause of surprise at Charles's end.
After a moment, he answered cautiously, "I think… Yushan Court."
The words Yushan Court landed like a hammer.
Adrian's eyes darkened. His hand curled into a tight fist by his side.
There was no follow-up. Before Charles could say more, the call was cut off.
Adrian's veins stood out under the skin of his hand, his pulse surging with fury.
In his mind, he heard Ethan's voice from that thunderstorm-lashed night, the one that had pierced through static over the phone:
"Adrian, since you've chosen to walk away from this marriage, then step back to where you belong."
His hands trembled with the effort to contain himself.
But the pain in his chest had turned sharp—raw.
Adrian climbed back into his car, slammed the door, and drove off, tires screeching, speeding away toward the Jiang family estate.