Chapter 196
On the phone, Zachary knew there was hope, so he bluntly stated his demands.
He not only wanted Joshua to stop attacking his company and use his connections to cover up his company's scandals, but also wanted Joshua to fill the financial holes his company had left.
This amount would need at least ten billion dollars.
No matter how angry or unwilling Joshua was, for Aurora's sake, he could only accept everything.
And the matter of sending mercenaries to kill Michael had to be canceled too.
Michael could not die yet - if he died, there would be no antidote to save his Aurora.
No matter what, he had to ensure Aurora could grow up healthy and well.
Because of this, Joshua was in a terrible mood.
When he went to pick up Ella from the company, even though he tried to put on a happy face, the complicated emotions in his eyes were still noticeable.
"Do you have something on your mind?" Ella looked at him and asked.
Today's car was filled with fresh flowers as usual.
Joshua also gave her a gift - a very delicate diamond necklace.
Ella thought he was unwilling to do this every day and was starting to slack off.
She did not need him to surprise her every day, but she just wanted to see how long his enthusiasm could last.
Was he already losing patience after just a few days?
Sure enough, you should never believe what men say.
"I do have something on my mind." Joshua glanced at Ella, really wanting to hide the matter about Aurora from her.
But he immediately thought of the past - the reason they had so many conflicts was that they hid too many things from each other.
The best way for couples to get along is to be honest about everything and move forward together.
Not to push one person away and bear everything alone.
That way, the other person would feel hurt, sad, and disappointed.
Thinking that Aurora's situation might be solvable, Joshua felt honesty was best.
"What is it?" Ella looked at him, suddenly having an ominous feeling.
Joshua told her the truth, "I took Aurora to the hospital for a checkup. The doctor said her development is a bit slow, caused by medication. She needs a special medicine to recover, and that medicine might be in Michael's hands."
Ella was stunned. She stared at him, "You mean we need to find Michael?"
Joshua did not deny it.
Michael could probably be found.
But whether Michael would give them the medicine was another matter.
Maybe he would, but who knew what Michael's conditions would be?
Thinking about how he almost died at Michael's hands, Joshua knew very well that getting the antidote from him wouldn't be simple.
"Did Aurora feel uncomfortable, so you took her for a checkup? How do you know the medicine she needs is in Michael's hands?" Ella's mood suddenly became heavy after hearing this.
Ella especially remembered that Aurora had survived because Michael sent people to take her away and save her.
Aurora had been with Michael for a long time - maybe Michael really did inject some kind of medicine into Aurora's body.
That damned man, why wouldn't he just leave her alone?
"Zachary told me, then I took Aurora for the checkup. Samuel's conclusion was that Aurora's development is indeed much slower than Dorian's. Haven't you noticed that Aurora is much shorter than Dorian?" Joshua explained patiently.
But he didn't want to tell Ella that without medication intervention, Aurora could only live to about ten years old.
He didn't want her to be anxious about this all the time, especially since she was pregnant.
But even if he didn't say it, Ella would still worry.
"I did feel Aurora was a bit shorter than Dorian, but Aurora never said she felt uncomfortable, so I thought it was normal. After all, kids the same age can be tall or short. Are you sure it's because Michael and his people gave the child some medicine?"
"We shouldn't easily believe what they say. They'll do anything to achieve their goals."
As for Zachary, she didn't think he was very trustworthy either.
Joshua nodded, "I know, so I've asked Samuel to work on adjusting Aurora's condition with medication. If she can recover naturally, that would be best."
If she couldn't recover, he would have no choice but to ask Michael.
When that time came, even if it cost him his own life, he wouldn't hesitate.
"Don't worry too much. As long as there are no other problems, I think modern hospitals can help children grow. Don't fall into their trap." Ella didn't realize how serious the problem was.
Ella was afraid Joshua would try desperate measures, so she tried to comfort him.
Joshua nodded in agreement.
According to Samuel, they still had time - no rush.
As for Zachary and Michael, he would send people to keep them under control and try to take the initiative when the time came.
"I thought you'd lost interest in me. I noticed you were preoccupied from the moment you picked me up." Ella hugged the flowers and sniffed them, sharing her thoughts.
Joshua looked at her.
Today's Ella seemed not to be wearing makeup.
Probably because she knew she was pregnant?
And actually, without makeup, she was naturally beautiful, her skin so fair it seemed to glow.
He reached over with his long arm and pinched her cheek, "What silly talk is that? Even if I lost interest in life itself, I'd never lose interest in you."
"You're my beloved, the only goal I'm pursuing in this life."
"Even if I really have you, I don't dare slack off, because knowing your personality, you might push me away again if you're unhappy someday."
When it came to Ella, Joshua knew he couldn't let his guard down.
"Just talk, don't get handsy." Ella leaned back against the seat and complained.
But she loved hearing Joshua's words - they made her heart feel warm and secure.
Joshua smiled at her, but couldn't help wanting to know her thoughts, so he asked anxiously, "Do you love me even a little bit now? Even just a moment of being moved would be fine."
After all, in his heart and eyes, Ella already occupied most of the space.
The children were just a small part.
If he couldn't have Ella in his world, he would feel life was meaningless.
Ella glanced at the man driving.
Today, he was still in a suit and tie.
Perhaps because he paid special attention to his personal image, his short hair was neatly trimmed, clean and sharp, his stubble always shaved clean, without a single flaw.
From her position, looking at him.
He had a broad build, tight facial contours, and features that were still deep and strong.
Overall, he was still very handsome and charming.
Ella had always known she was a visual person who liked beautiful things.
Handsome men were no exception.
Back in Eldoria, she thought Joshua was good-looking, so she didn't care about his age and got entangled with him again.
But even though he was almost forty, he was still pretty good at certain things.
That deserved praise.
Plus, after coming back, he was quite attentive to her. Ella didn't deny that she had feelings for him again.
Like now, she quite enjoyed being with him.
But, when asking her to say it out loud, she still felt a bit embarrassed.
"What does silence mean? Don't tell me you only like me physically, but actually still hate me in your heart?" Not hearing Ella's answer for a while, Joshua felt a bit hurt.
He expressed his love for Ella without any concealment.
But when it was Ella's turn, she chose silence.
Did she not love him?
Joshua didn't know what she was thinking.
Ella withdrew her gaze, still unable to express her thoughts, and changed the subject. "Pay attention to your driving, we're almost at the school."
Why talk about feelings with Joshua now?
Raising the children well was the important thing.
Joshua still didn't get the answer he wanted. Although he felt down, he didn't mind too much.
After all, considering how terrible he had been in the past, the fact that Ella could forgive him and be with him already made him very content.
Why demand that she have him in her heart?
Seeing it was just dismissal time, Joshua pulled the car over to the side of the road, told Ella to wait in the car, and went to the school gate to pick up the two children.
As soon as Aurora saw Joshua, she happily flew into his arms.
Joshua picked her up, bounced her a bit, and couldn't help kissing her.
Thinking about Aurora's slow development, his heart filled with sadness again.
Dorian followed behind, complaining helplessly, "Aurora, you're seven years old, not a little kid anymore. Why do you always cling to him?"
Shaking his head helplessly, thinking Ella might also be in the car, Dorian walked toward the car.
Aurora thought Dorian was just jealous that Joshua doted on her.
She hugged Joshua's neck and kissed him back, laughing. "Daddy, I want to always cling to you and be close to you forever, okay?"
Joshua held her in his arms, pinching her soft little face, simply unable to let go. "Okay, Daddy will protect you and take care of you for life."
In the car, Dorian's expression wasn't very good.
Dorian told Ella, "He took Aurora away today. Aurora said he took her to the hospital for lots of tests. Mom, is she okay?"
He had checked Aurora and found no problems.
But it was obvious that Aurora wasn't growing as fast as him.
Her appetite lately wasn't as good as his either.
She looked thinner too.
Ella turned to look at Dorian and could only brush it off, "She's fine. Your sister just isn't growing as fast as you. We just took her to the hospital to check."
Dorian saw Ella's eyes avoiding his, clearly hiding something from him.
But he did not ask more questions.
Soon, Joshua came up carrying Aurora.
The car left the school, and in the car with the family of four, the atmosphere was harmonious and happy.
Especially Aurora - her little mouth seemed like it would never close, constantly chattering away.
One moment, she wanted to touch the baby in Ella's belly, the next moment she was kissing Joshua's head.
Then she was telling them about interesting things that happened at school.
Anyway, the more lively and talkative she was, the more painful Joshua and Ella felt listening.
They were afraid there was no special medicine to help Aurora develop normally.
Afraid Aurora would always be like this.
Joshua was even more afraid Aurora would leave him.
His eyes looking ahead unconsciously turned red.
Dorian in the back seat had been observing his parents' reactions.
Seeing them cooperate with Aurora on the surface, but their eyes were actually full of complex emotions and heartache.
He knew Aurora must have some problem.
He had to help his parents solve the problem together.