Upon reflection, Eva shifted her gaze away from Michael''s stare and calmly asked, "Are you nning on staying in the country for the long term?" "Well, I should have everything settled in about two weeks."


    At this point, Eva responded, "Then I congratte you in advance for your return to the country. However, I will probably be very busy with work and won''t have much spare time." How could Michael not understand Eva''s avoidance and refusal in her words?


    However, he was no longer the impulsive young man he was in the past. He was now an adult man who naturally understood that some things couldn''t be rushed.


    After so many years, he had already prepared for a long-term battle, much like boiling a frog in warm water. He wouldn''t be impatient, nor would he shy away because of her polite rejection.


    "It''s alright, we can get together when you have free time. Don''t forget about this old friend just because so many years have passed."


    This response puzzled Eva.


    Did she misunderstand?


    Quickly, Eva reasoned with herself.


    It was not impossible that Michael had already found a girlfriend during his five years abroad. As for why he still kept this tie clip, it was probably just a memento of an old acquaintance, which was normal.


    Just like the gifts her friends had given her in the past, she still kept them because they were special friends, right?


    Aftering to this realization, Eva''s mood rxed a lot, and she became less guarded towards Michael. "Alright then."


    They ate their supper together, but Eva didn''t have much of an appetite. She found the vegetable porridge to be nd and tasteless, so she ate very little. Michael, on the other hand, probably because he had just returned to the country, also didn''t eat much of what he ordered.


    When it was time to pay, Eva quickly scanned the QR code.


    Michael watched on and smiled helplessly, "Is thispensation for the failed farewell party?"


    "Yeah, since the farewell party was a mess, I can''t let you pay for a bowl of porridge, right?"


    After a brief moment of silence, Michael said, "If that''s the case, it seems like I''m at a loss?"


    After leaving the restaurant, Eva couldn''t help butugh and said, "Yeah, you lost a bit. We should have a big meal together sometime."


    "Yeah, I''ll remember that. I owe you one."


    As they got into the car, Eva remembered the incident at the entrance of thepany and asked, "When you went to thepany yesterday, you weren''t in this car, right?"


    "Yeah." Michael nodded and had already gone around to open the passenger door for her. "That car belongs to a rtive."


    Eva thanked him and got in.


    The journey back would take nearly thirty minutes. Initially, Eva thought that they wouldn''t have much to talk about, but Michael turned out to be more talkative than she had imagined. "How is Uncle Shen now? I heard heter went abroad to develop his career?"


    "Yeah, my father said that industry had better prospects overseas, so he wanted to give it a try."


    "When I found out about your situation, it was a littlete, otherwise I wouldn''t have stood by and done nothing. I''m sorry."


    Upon hearing his apology, Eva was quite surprised. Even if he didn''t help her, it wouldn''t have mattered.


    "It''s okay, anyway, everything has been resolved."


    Michael sighed, sounding somewhat self-ming, "It does matter to me though. My friend was in trouble, and I didn''t hear a whisper or offer any help."


    In fact, even though he had left to go abroad years ago, he knew everything about Eva''s family situation, including her personal actions, because he had nted informants in the country who would inform him immediately if anything happened to Eva.


    But by the time he found out about the Hansen family''s bankruptcy, Adrian had already sorted everything out for her.


    Because his so-called "good sister" at the time was worried that this matter would affect his studies, she didn''t let the informant tell him anything and kept it tightly sealed.


    It was only when he felt that something wasn''t right and probed further, did he discover the magnitude of the situation.


    Originally, the little girl had liked Adrian, and he was just a step behind.


    But unexpectedly, he was still a step behind in helping her with this matter.


    "In any case, if you need any help in the future, just ask."


    This time, he wouldn''t be like before, nor would he let go.


    The car smoothly stopped at the front gate of the vi, Eva unbuckled her seatbelt, "Thank you for driving me back, I''ll go in first. Take care and drive safely."


    Michael nodded at her, "Okay, rest early."


    Then he watched as the person in the passenger seat left and walked towards the gate. When she turned back and waved at him, signaling for him to leave, he smiled and nodded, then watched her enter.


    As soon as the slender figure disappeared from his sight, the smile on Michael''s lips vanished instantly.


    His phone rang, he nced at it and found that it was a call from his so-called "sister", coldly sneering, he directly ignored it and drove away.


    After Eva returned, she found Granny ckwood had already gone to sleep.


    Perhaps it was because she had gone out with Adrian in the evening, so the elderly woman was very at ease and rested early.


    Eva breathed a sigh of relief, still worried about how she would exin to Granny ckwood if she came back alone. It was good that she had gone to bed early.


    "How is Granny ckwood''s conditiontely?"


    She chatted with the butler for a while, preparing to go upstairs.


    However, as she was about to go up, she found Adrian standing at the staircase, arms crossed, and a cold, icy gaze fixed on her.


    Eva paused, a flicker of surprise passing through her eyes.


    Why was he at home? Wasn''t he supposed to be at the hospital this time, with Vivian?


    Adrian lowered his dark gaze, his aura as chilling as ice in a winter''s moon, "Where did you go? Why didn''t you answer my call?" "You called me?"


    Eva took out her phone from her bag, pressed it twice, but nothing happened, so she could only shrug helplessly, "It ran out of battery."


    As soon as she finished speaking, Adrian took the phone from her and checked it, a motion that caused a self-mocking curl to appear at the corner of Eva''s lips.


    He didn''t trust her.


    He didn''t even trust her when she said her phone ran out of battery. And he still needed her to exin to him.


    After confirming that her phone was indeed out of battery and not intentionally ignoring his call, Adrian''s expression improved slightly. However, he didn''t return her phone to her, instead raising his gaze and locking his eyes tightly onto her. "Where were you? Why didn''t you wait for me?"


    After Adrian finished dealing with Vivian''s situation and went back to look for her, he discovered that Eva had already left. Adrian thought she went home, but he didn''t see anyone there either. Inparison to him, Eva''s reaction was much calmer.


    "Oh, I thought you would stay at the hospital to take care of Vivian."


    Upon mentioning Vivian''s name, a hint of unease shed across Adrian''s face as he said, "The assistant is there."


    "Oh."


    Eva nodded, "That''s good, I''ll go upstairs first."


    After speaking, she prepared to pass Adrian and head upstairs, but her wrist was grabbed by him.


    Adrian furrowed his brow, "Don''t you have anything to exin?"