Chapter 715 A Relationship in Crisis
Blake's eyes lit up at the nurse's words. He rushed inside and hurried to Lisa's side. Watching her open her eyes slightly with her face still showing signs of exhaustion, he couldn't help but lovingly stroke her face. "You must be tired, darling."
"It's okay, I'm fine." Lisa smiled faintly. Then, she suddenly recalled something and asked, "Where's our baby? Can I see the baby?"
Elspeth couldn't help but let out a chuckle. "Why are you in such a hurry to see the baby as soon as you wake up? The baby's doing fine. It's a boy, and he's in the incubator right now."
Lisa blushed slightly. "It's not that. It's just—"
Elspeth interrupted her and continued, "Now that you've given birth to a child, I'm going to give you a great gift."
"What kind of gift?"
"I've decided to gift you with 15 percent of Azure's shares."
Lisa's eyes widened in an instant. "No, this is not appropriate."
Elspeth smiled while giving her a reproachful look. "How is it not appropriate? You've just given birth to a child, so consider this my gift to you. Besides, you've done so much for me, and I haven't figured out what to give you. I think this is just perfect."
Owning 15 percent of Azure's shares would essentially grant Lisa direct entry into the company's board of directors.
"By the way, I've also promoted you to Azure's vice president," added Elspeth.
Lisa couldn't help it as her eyes welled up with tears upon hearing that. "Miss Elspeth, you've been so kind to me. I really have no idea how to repay you for this."
She was truly touched by those words. She lost her parents at a young age and had been struggling to make a living on her own, working hard just to support herself. It was entirely by chance that Elspeth discovered some of her talents and gave her an opportunity, which completely changed her life. She thought that meeting Elspeth was already a stroke of good luck, but she never thought the latter would do this much for her.
Elspeth's eyes were now slightly red, and she couldn't help but gently stroke Lisa's hair. "Cut that nonsense. You're a wonderful girl, and you deserve all of this. You've been with me for so many years and have done so much for me. I still feel that I haven't given you enough."
Lisa nodded vigorously.
Elspeth then turned around and waved her fist at Blake. "I'm warning you, Lisa is my sister now. If you ever dare bully her, I won't let you off."
Blake shook his head, pretending to look frightened. "How could I? I'd never dare bully her. In our family, she calls the shots. Heck, even my baby comes first before me."
Everyone around him burst into laughter at his words.
Just then, Yelena interjected, "Alright, the new mother has just given birth and is not feeling well at the moment. Let her have some rest. The rest of us can leave for now."
The others nodded in agreement before following her out of the ward.
As they reached the door, Blake teased, "Yelena, I never thought you'd actually understand a new mother's feelings. So, when do you plan on marrying Hank?"
Yelena shot a fierce glare at him. "Why bother so much about this? Who said I was going to marry him?"
Blake clicked his tongue. "Tsk, you're quite the vengeful girl. It's been years since that incident happened. Are you still obsessed over it?"
Noticing that something seemed wrong with Yelena's attitude, Elspeth asked, "What incident happened back then? How did end up like this?"
Blake is implying that Yelena became the way she is now because of a certain incident in the past. What did she go through that led to her current state?
Blake turned his head and glanced at Yelena's expression. Seeing that she didn't object, he blurted out with a sigh, "It was all because of Hank. When he heard about the incident in your lab back then, he refused to take the medicine out of guilt. In the end, he even broke up with Yelena. Later on, he finally came to his senses, took the medicine, and started regretting it. Then, he ended up having a hard time winning her heart back."
Recalling that incident from back then, Elspeth felt rather downcast. It's true that I went to the lab to make the medicine for Yelena, but Hank was indeed the direct beneficiary of this. It's understandable for him to feel guilty and refuse to take the medicine. However, Yelena had already experienced the pain of losing me at the time, then her boyfriend broke up with her and refused to receive medical treatment. It was only natural for her temperament to change.
At the thought of this, she patted Yelena's shoulder, saying, "Don't worry, Yelena. I'll straighten him out for you."
Yelena let out a snort. "I've been straightening him out all these years. Don't worry, I won't ever let myself get mistreated."
Elspeth let out a soft chuckle. "Why don't you tell me how you've been straightening him out, then?"
Yelena lifted her chin while darting a glance toward the corridor next to them. "Isn't he coming this way already?"
Elspeth looked back, and sure enough, there was Hank, hurrying toward them in a suit and tie. He looked rather hurried and travel-worn, but he still had the air of cool elegance about him. "Yelena, why are you here? You didn't answer when I called you."
After five years, the man had shed his youthful appearance, changing to the point where he was almost unrecognizable. Moreover, he had lost his inherent arrogance. Instead, he now spoke to Yelena with overflowing tenderness.
However, Yelena replied, "Why should I call you? Haven't I told you before? Don't come looking for me as you please. I'm very busy."
Elspeth was taken aback at the woman's reply. She thought Yelena might act willfully toward Hank, but she never expected their relationship to turn this sour. After glancing behind her to make sure the couple wasn't listening, she whispered to Blake, "Have they been like this for so many years?"
Blake had a pained look on his face. "Yeah, it's been like this for many years. Yelena might have really suffered some serious emotional trauma at the time. She's never polite to Hank whenever she talks to him."
"What about Hank? Has he been putting up with this the entire time?"
"Yeah, both of them are willing participants in this relationship. One of them keeps trying to make it up to the other, while the other keeps resisting. It's okay, though. It's just the way they are. It's not like they're outright saying they're breaking up."
Sitting in the front row, Yelena heard Blake's remark clearly. She turned her head and glared at him angrily, saying, "What nonsense are you talking about? Who told you we were in a relationship? I never agreed to be with him, nor have I ever been together with him!"
Hank seemed unfazed by her words; obviously, he was already accustomed to such statements. "Alright, Yelena, stop it already. My mom wants me to bring you home for dinner today."
Yelena's face darkened at once. "Are you using your mother to blackmail me again?"