Evening.
The final class of the day had just ended.
Elena Shen and Annie strolled along the tree-lined path leading toward the school gate.
As they walked, Annie scrolled through her phone and casually said to Elena,
"There's a new restaurant that just opened near campus. The food looks great, and the reviews are stellar. Since we're both free tonight, want to check it out?"
Elena nodded, "Sure, sounds good."
Annie jotted down the name of the restaurant, then turned off her phone and looped her arm through Elena's. "Still early. Let's stop by the café first…"
Outside the South Gate of Huaihai University.
A sleek black Pullman sat quietly by the roadside.
Even with the windows tinted dark and rolled up tight, it drew curious glances from nearly everyone passing by.
In the driver's seat, Eric Chen stared intently at the school gates, not daring to blink for fear of missing Miss Elena.
Finally, he spotted Elena and Annie walking out of campus.
Eric's eyes lit up, and he glanced quickly into the rearview mirror. "Mr. Jiang, Miss Shen is coming out—"
Before he could finish, a male student called out to her. Eric's voice faltered mid-sentence, his gaze instinctively shifting in that direction.
Ethan Jiang lifted his eyes from his laptop just in time to catch the same scene.
Eric felt a chill run down his spine.
He glanced cautiously into the rearview mirror, silently praying that whoever the guy was would leave quickly and not cling to their future lady boss.
But reality, as always, had other plans.
It was still only four-thirty; a few students were leaving campus at that hour. Miles Chi jogged toward them, catching Annie's attention.
Turning around, Annie saw him and asked first,
"Senior, do you need something from us?"
Miles gave Elena a warm smile. "Actually, I was looking for Elena."
He continued, "Professor Lin just assigned a new project. We need to begin preliminary data integration within the next couple of days. Did you see the message in the group chat?"
"Sorry, my phone was on silent. I haven't checked it yet."
Elena opened her phone as she spoke and quickly found Professor Lin's message from half an hour ago.
After skimming through the attached documents, she replied with a brief "Received."
Then she asked, "Are we starting the data work today?"
Miles nodded. "Professor Lin wants us to finish by tomorrow evening, if possible. But the data is a bit scattered—it's hard to explain over the phone. I was hoping we could talk in person. Do you have some time now? I'll try not to keep you too long."
Elena didn't answer right away.
She looked hesitantly at Annie.
Having known Elena for years, Annie understood her best friend's personality all too well.
If she asked Elena to have dinner first, Elena would definitely oblige her. But once they got back to the dorm, she'd surely stay up all night to finish the project. And Annie couldn't bear to let her beloved Elena suffer like that.
So before either Elena or Miles could speak, Annie took a small step back and said considerately,
"Then you two go ahead and take care of it. Elena, we'll go to the restaurant tomorrow night instead."
After Annie left, Elena and Miles turned back and walked toward the lab building.
Professor Lin's assignment was a brand-new research topic. As Miles explained the project, Elena flipped through the group messages on her phone, trying to familiarize herself with the material.
She was so absorbed in the details that she didn't notice the car suddenly pulling out from the side.
Fortunately, Miles grabbed her wrist just in time and pulled her back.
Inside the Pullman.
Eric's prayers had clearly failed. He watched helplessly as Elena and the male student walked off together. Worse yet, the guy was obviously interested in her. His eyes rarely left her, and his movements betrayed a subtle protectiveness.
Eric held his breath.
He cast a wary glance into the rearview mirror and cautiously asked,
"Mr. Jiang… should I go down and call out to Miss Shen?"
Ethan narrowed his eyes, watching the two figures walk side by side a little too closely. His expression darkened when he saw Zane's hand on Elena's wrist, guiding her away from the path of the car.
He didn't respond to Eric's question.
Instead, his tone remained cool as he instructed,
"Find out who that guy is."
Eric blinked.
Then, realizing the gravity of the command, he quickly picked up his phone and made a call.
By the time they finished sorting the data and left the lab, it was already past 7 p.m.
Some floors of the research building were still lit. Others were completely dark.
Zane walked alongside Elena down the stairs. As they stepped out into the open, he seemed to remember something. He pulled out a USB drive and handed it to her.
"These are materials I previously compiled. They might help with this project. I made a copy for you—see if there's anything useful."
Elena glanced at it and accepted it.
"Thank you, Senior."
Dinner hours had passed. The campus was growing quiet. Most of the people still lingering outside were couples out on evening strolls, wrapped in the hush of dusk.
Zane slung his backpack over one shoulder. His mind wandered back to that day during the Mid-Autumn Festival, when he saw the CEO of Jiang Corporation personally come to pick Elena up.
He hesitated briefly, then asked, trying to sound casual,
"Elena… I've been meaning to ask. Is Mr. Jiang—Ethan Jiang—your brother?"
After staring at data for two hours straight, Elena's eyes were sore and strained.
The question caught her off guard. She frowned faintly, paused for a beat, then replied vaguely,
"He's not my bloodbrother. We just grew up together."
Zane suddenly recalled the rumors from two years ago—the whispers on the school forum, that Elena had a close connection with Adrian Jiang.
But not long after, the rumors vanished—snuffed out, it seemed, by an unseen force.
Given Elena's quiet and private nature, her name rarely appeared in any gossip afterward. Though many still tried to win her affection, no one brought up the old stories again.
Zane, not being from a privileged background, had little knowledge of elite circles and their unspoken rules.
But putting all the clues together, he now had a rough idea of who Elena might really be.
Still, Elena had no intention of discussing her background. Before Zane could probe further, she shifted the topic with practiced ease and soon excused herself under the pretense of going home to organize more data.
By the time Elena reached her apartment, the sky had gone completely dark.
She entered the elevator as usual, watching the floor numbers tick upward on the small digital screen.
Then came the familiar "ding."
As the elevator doors slid open, she stepped forward—and froze.
Standing in front of her apartment was a figure she hadn't expected to see.
"Mr. Jiang?" she stammered.
Ethan stubbed out his cigarette and lifted his eyes to hers.
The surprise in Elena's eyes was unmistakable.
She stepped out of the elevator just before the doors closed again, looking up at him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
His tone was calm, just as it had been the last time they met.
"I was worried you wouldn't take proper care of yourself. Thought I'd stop by."
Then, almost seamlessly, he added,
"Do you always come home this late?"
Elena pressed her lips together, quietly explaining,
"Usually I'm home earlier. Today just got a bit busy."
Ethan didn't ask for details.
Instead, he nodded toward her apartment door.
"Open it. Let's talk inside."
Under his gaze, Elena placed her finger on the lock. The door clicked open.
This apartment was her personal sanctuary—no one, not even Adrian, had visited often.
The moment Ethan stepped in and closed the door behind him, the space felt noticeably smaller, more intimate, and Elena, already slightly nervous from his sudden appearance, felt tense, even more tense.
"Would you like some water?" she asked, setting her phone on the edge of the table and turning toward him.
But the polite distance in her voice didn't sit well with him.
Ethan frowned slightly and said,
"Elena, we're not strangers."
"Call me something else."