Cubase LE AI Elements 9 / Fails to Recognize Soundcard

Hello Everyone! I am new to the forums. I made this account because I am at a wits-end. I’ve done much research without finding a solution so here I am. My issue is that I cannot get any sound when I am in cubase. I’ve used this application for the last 8 years, so I am heavily knowledgeable with this product. When I go into “VST Connections” in the input tab, it says “not connected” highlighted in yellow, and when I click it, it give me no option to do anything. When I go to the outputs tab, which is were I should be able to select my speakers as an output, it says “not connected” highlighted in blue, and when I click it, it does the same as the input. I then, went to “VST Audio System” and then control panel, it doesn’t show my speakers or soundcard, so that I can select it. It is completely empty. I have spent about 5 hours today trying to figure out why this is happening. I don’t understand why is it not recognizing it at all. My sound works on everything else on my PC. What I did, to try to fix this was I uninstalled/reinstalled sound card several times, and that did nothing. I uninstalled/reinstalled cubase several times, and that did nothing. I am at a loss for words. If anyone has any idea what the issue might be, please help!

Thanks for your time!

What soundcard?
Has it got an ASIO driver?
What o/s?