In the afternoon, Hayden Crawford received a text message from Anabelle Rathborne. "Hayden, are you busy today? Can you come to pick me up from school?"
Hayden threw the phone onto the desk, but after a few seconds, he picked it up again and replied with a simple, "Okay."
Hayden grabbed his car keys and drove straight to T University.
A Rolls-Royce Phantom luxury car was parked by the roadside. Hayden didn’t get out of the car; he rolled down the driver’s window a bit, his deep eyes casually sweeping through the gleaming rearview mirror to glance at A University behind.
It was the end of school, and students from A University were coming out in succession.
Hayden saw Tiana Ford, but Serena wasn’t with her.
Tiana walked over with a few other girls, chatting as they went.
"Tiana, why didn’t I see Serena today?"
"Serena is sick and took a leave."
"What, Serena is sick?"
"Yeah, Serena has a high fever of 42 degrees. I heard she’s still in a coma. I’m heading to the Sterling family to see her. Do you want to come with me?"
"Of course, we’ll go together! How could Serena fall sick at such a critical time? The Academy of Sciences selection is in two days, and Serena has always wanted to get in. She’s worked hard for so long, and suddenly she falls ill." Follow current novels on nοvelfire.net
"Do you think it was because Serena got scared at Emperor’s Bar last night? Last night there was a fight between Young Master Crawford and Young Master Burke, and thinking about it now still makes me nervous. Hayden even pushed Serena!"
The group of girls walked away, and Hayden tightened his grip on the steering wheel. She fell ill with a 42-degree fever?
Last night at Emperor’s Bar, he had accidentally pushed her. He was too angry at the time and lost control of himself.
At this moment, the passenger door opened, and Anabelle Rathborne got in. "Hayden, have you been waiting long?"
"Not long. I’ll take you home."
"Hayden, can we go out for dinner together?"
"I have a meeting later, no time today."
Anabelle looked at the man beside her. His handsome face was sharp and cold, covered with a layer of frost. It was obvious he was in a bad mood.
"Hayden, you mentioned the engagement yesterday. Were you serious, or were you joking with me?"
Hayden pressed his thin lips together and spoke in a low, magnetic voice, "The whole of Aethelgard is talking about the alliance between the Crawfords and the Rathbornes. Anabelle, I’m serious about the engagement. I can marry you, but I don’t like you. It’s just an arranged marriage; I only need a Mrs. Crawford."
Anabelle stiffened. He said he doesn’t like her...
Anabelle had long known this man was cold and indifferent, but her face still went pale. The sweetness of the engagement turned into a faint sense of humiliation and shame.
"Anabelle, you’re the daughter of the richest man and have many options. There’s no need to compromise for me, so think it over carefully."
"No need to think about it, I’ve decided. Hayden, let’s get engaged, and the sooner, the better!" Anabelle said directly.
Hayden pondered for a moment. Since Serena Sterling came into his life, everything had turned upside down. She directly affected his emotions, making him crazy and out of control, and he hated being this way.
He wanted to calm down and return to his normal trajectory, live the life he was supposed to live. Before she came, the Crawford-Rathborne alliance was already in the plans.
So be it, forget about her.
Hayden nodded, "Okay."
Serena Sterling woke up the next day. Her parents, Summer Sterling and Iris Blue, thanked heaven and quickly helped her sit up. "Serena, you finally woke up. You scared us. If you hadn’t awakened, we would have thrown those quack doctors out!"
Serena leaned against the soft cushion, her face pale and bloodless, having clearly been through a severe illness. She weakly curled her lips, "Summer, Iris, I’m fine now."
"Serena, how did you suddenly get such a high fever of 42 degrees?"
Why did she suddenly have a fever?
She didn’t know either.
It felt like something she had clung to in her heart suddenly disappeared, extracted from her life. This complete sense of loss made her feel dull pain and dizziness.
"Maybe I caught a cold. Anyway, I’m alright now. By the way, Summer and Iris, when is the Academy of Sciences selection?"
"Serena, the selection is tomorrow. If you hadn’t woken up, you would’ve missed it!"
Serena mentally scolded herself, thinking she was so pathetic, living and dying over a man again. She had already died once for Hayden Crawford and had thrown her mission aside. This time she almost repeated the same mistake. No, she must pull herself together quickly!
Serena’s bright eyes quickly showed sparks of light, as if she had come to life, radiant and full of energy. "Summer, Iris, the day we’ve been waiting for has finally arrived. Academy of Sciences, here I come, Mommy, here I come!"
Summer and Iris both smiled, seeing their usual dazzling Serena Sterling back again. She was truly well!
Today was the day of the Academy of Sciences selection. This time, the top five universities in the joint exams gathered in one place, and candidates entered the office in order of their student numbers for selection assessment.
Tiana and the others surrounded Serena.
"Serena, I’ve heard there are very few spots available in this selection, only three."
"But Serena, you scored a perfect 750 in the joint exams and are now famous throughout City of Aethelgard. I believe you’ll definitely be one of the three."
"That’s right, Serena, we all believe in you."
Now that it was already autumn, Serena was wearing a yellow cardigan today. Her pure black hair draped down, adorned with a pearl hair clip. The 20-year-old girl was youthful and bright, delicate yet warm.
Serena smiled, "Tiana, thank you for your good wishes."
Just then, Tiana pulled Serena and said, "Serena, look, Old Man Knight, the director of the Academy of Sciences, is here. I heard he’s the chief examiner this time!"
Serena looked up. There were many people ahead, all young scholars applying for the selection, and they quickly made way for a group of people in black suits. Among them, leading the group was Old Man Knight, dressed in a black Zhongshan suit, looking energetic and vigorous.
Just then, as if sensing something, Old Man Knight turned his head, his cloudy yet sharp eyes landing directly on Serena.
As their eyes met, Serena felt the coldness in Old Man Knight’s gaze.
Old Man Knight then withdrew his gaze and disappeared with the group at the corridor’s end.
"Serena, this Old Man Knight is a towering figure in the field of traditional Chinese medicine. His status is undisputed."
"I’ve heard that Old Man Knight has a fervent pursuit of medical skills. I’ve also heard he’s researching... the art of eternal youth."