Chapter 221

Chapter 221

Joshua looked up some information about love curses online.

He found that there were indeed cases where people developed irrational infatuation through psychological suggestion and drug induction.

But he couldn't understand - if this was a trap set by Lena, why would Ella fall in love with Michael?

He figured that to break this control, he had to find the person who set the trap.

But Lena had completely disappeared. Even using all his resources, he couldn't find any trace of her, as if she had vanished into thin air.

He also knew that if he could find a high priest from those families that had practiced curse-making for generations, they could also break it.

His investigators eventually uncovered something. Deep within a remote mountain range lay an isolated village, one said to possess unusual, almost mystical healing traditions.

But the information showed that the village was very exclusive. The villagers never married or interacted with outsiders, living self-sufficiently like an independent kingdom.

Since they wouldn't come out, Joshua knew he would have to bring Ella there himself.

But this trip might take a month, or even longer.

Before leaving, he had to arrange everything properly.

That evening, he returned to the bedroom, only to find Ella once again on a video call with Michael. Joshua didn’t interrupt, just leaned against the doorframe, quietly waiting. Every time he heard Ella speak tender, intimate words to Michael, it felt like invisible thorns stabbing into his heart.

He seemed to have grown numb to this pain, forcing himself to stay calm while suppressing his rage that was about to explode.

Finally, the call ended.

In an instant, Joshua masked everything, his pain, his anger, his jealousy, and walked forward with a gentle smile and said, "Ella, let's go on a trip somewhere in a few days, okay?"

Ella refused without thinking, "I don't have time, work is busy. I need to finish everything before the baby is born, then go to Eldoria."

She was determined to leave and never come back. Now she just wanted to rest peacefully during her pregnancy, finish her work, and spend more time with her family.

Joshua knew she was single-mindedly focused on going to Michael. Despite the pain inside, he still acted casual as he moved closer to her, reaching out to gently pull her into his embrace.

"Just keep me company, okay? That place is like a paradise, the scenery is beautiful, and the villagers are warm and friendly. Let's stay there for a month, okay?"

When persuasion failed, he softened his tone, almost pleading.

Ella studied him, feeling uncomfortable with his sudden intimate gesture. "A month? Are you serious? What about the company? The family?"

Joshua held her hand, patiently explaining, "Aren't Aurora and Dorian on summer vacation? We’ve been too busy—we’ve barely spent time with them. I want to use this vacation to take them to experience a different kind of life. Work can be delegated to others - you can never finish making money, but the time to be with our children is precious."

Ella still shook her head, "No, it's too far. If something happens, it'll be very inconvenient."

"How would it be inconvenient?" Joshua countered immediately. "Rural facilities are well-developed now. If there's really an emergency, I can arrange for a helicopter to pick us up anytime. It'll be quick."

Then, like a boy seeking comfort, he lowered his head and nuzzled against her neck, his voice soft and earnest.

Ella had never seen Joshua like this.

She actually felt reluctant to refuse him again and couldn't help but push him away with a laugh.

"Alright, I'll go to the company tomorrow to check. A month is really long—I need to make all the arrangements in advance."

Seeing her attitude soften, Joshua immediately smiled too.

"Good, you go arrange the company matters first. We'll leave once we're ready."

Ella ultimately couldn't resist his gentle approach and agreed.

The next day, Joshua went to ask the children's opinion.

Aurora and Dorian had originally planned to go to Eldoria as soon as possible to get the medicine from Michael that could maintain Aurora's health. Hearing Joshua's proposal, they immediately shook their heads in refusal.

Joshua took their little hands, crouched down and said softly, "Your mom is sick,” he said gently. “Her emotions aren’t stable. We need to take her somewhere to find a doctor who can help her. But if you don't go, Mom won't go either."

He looked at the children and continued explaining, "To help Mom get better soon, to stop her from wanting to leave us for Eldoria, we must all go together, okay?"

Dorian asked suspiciously, "Can doctors in the mountains really cure Mom's illness?"

Joshua looked at his son with certainty, "I believe this condition is connected to something Lena gave her. The information I found shows that the doctors in that village have ways to remove this influence and make Mom return to normal."

Dorian hesitated. Through his own channels, he had also learned that there were indeed some non-traditional therapies that might work. He hadn't expected his dad to find leads before him.

It seemed Joshua was more capable than he had imagined.

If they could really cure Mom, he wouldn't have to risk going to Eldoria to find Lena.

Dorian nodded, "Okay, I'll go with you."

Aurora was still hesitating. She knew her body needed Michael's medicine to survive. If she didn't go now, she might be in mortal danger.

She didn't want to make her parents sad.

Looking at Joshua, Aurora refused, "Dad, I don't want to go. You guys go by yourselves."

Joshua lifted her onto his lap and said patiently, "If you don't go, Mom definitely won't go either. Plus, the mountains are really fun, with lots of interesting things you can't see in the city. Let's go together, okay? Just one month - we'll be back before school starts."

Aurora was eventually persuaded too. She had a little plan in her mind, perhaps in the remote mountains, she could better avoid her family's attention and find a chance to contact Michael's people.

After convincing both children, Joshua worried that the mountain environment would be complicated. He alone would have to take care of pregnant Ella and watch over two children - he might not be able to handle everything. So he prepared a necklace with a tracking function and a smart watch for each child.

He instructed, "These are gifts from Dad. Remember, no matter where you go or what you do, you can't take them off, understand?"

Dorian immediately understood the watch's function when he saw it, but the necklace pendant was designed so exquisitely that he didn't notice the tracker hidden inside. They just took them as ordinary gifts from their dad and wore them that day.

Joshua told everyone around him that he was taking Ella and the kids to the countryside for a month. Everyone expressed understanding, thinking he wanted to use this trip to repair his relationship with Ella and make her give up the idea of leaving.

The day before departure, Joshua went to the hospital.

He asked Samuel, "Aurora's medicine - still no progress?"

Samuel shook his head with a grave expression.

Thinking about Joshua taking his whole family to a remote mountain area, he couldn't help but remind him, "Take good care of them, contact me immediately if anything happens. Especially Ella - this pregnancy wasn't easy for her, you must ensure her safety."

Joshua agreed.

Thinking about Aurora's health issues, he also felt a headache coming on. If Samuel ultimately couldn't develop a substitute medicine, even if Ella returned to normal, she would probably still go to Michael for Aurora's sake.

Looking at Samuel, Joshua earnestly requested, "Samuel, I'm counting on you for this. My daughter's life is in your hands."

Samuel felt the enormous pressure and sighed, "All I can say is, I'll do my best."

He actually didn't have much confidence. Since he didn't know what combination of drugs Michael had originally used to save Aurora, he couldn't reverse-engineer it. He could only rely on trial and error, a process full of uncertainty.

Joshua couldn't say much more. After all, others had no obligation to bear all this for him.

After leaving the hospital, he went home again to see his parents.

Jasper and Ava were now very dissatisfied with Ella. Learning that Joshua was putting aside work to accompany her to the countryside, Ava immediately objected, "What's the point of all this fuss now? If she wants to go to Eldoria, just let her go after the baby is born! I want to see how that man will treat a woman who's had three children."

Joshua didn't want to argue with his parents. They were old and couldn't understand many things. He knew he owed Ella and the children too much. Now was his time to make amends - he had to persist.

"Joshua, your mother has a point," Jasper also felt sorry for Joshua. "Since Ella is willing to have the baby, just let her go. Look at yourself now - you have no dignity at all around her."

Joshua didn't want to listen anymore. He stood up, "Dad, Mom, take care of yourselves. I need to pick up Ella from the company. I'm leaving now."

Jasper and Ava watched Joshua's retreating figure and could only sigh helplessly.

When Joshua arrived at the Lewis Group, he was stopped by Mason at the CEO's office door.

Mason looked worried, "Are you really taking all three of them to the countryside? Ella is still pregnant - can you take care of them all by yourself?"

He really couldn't understand what Joshua was thinking. Now that Ella had finally settled down and was peacefully waiting for the baby to be born, wasn't that good enough? Why cause all this trouble?

"Don't worry, I can take care of them." Joshua patted Mason's shoulder. "I'm counting on you to handle the company matters. We'll be back in a month."

"Whatever you say, as long as you can guarantee their safety." Mason didn't want to say more and turned to go back to work.

Joshua pushed open the office door and saw Ella video calling Michael again.

This time, he saw Michael's face on the screen. Their conversation was as intimate as a real married couple.

Joshua's face immediately darkened. He walked over, his tone unable to hide the bitterness, "Ella, work's over. Let's go home."