Filed to story: Sweetheart Do You Still Love Me
On the other hand, Wesley never anticipated that serving as the Winthrops’ family doctor would be such a straightforward endeavor. The scale of medical equipment and supplies at his disposal within the illustrious Winthrop Family surpassed his expectations, rivaling that of a fully equipped hospital.
As he pondered this revelation, he couldn’t help but realize that he had never encountered such top- notch facilities, even during his tenure at the hospital. Deep in thought, he began to understand the reasoning behind Elspeth’s insistence on recuperating at home. The home care provided within the Winthrop Residence was on par with the hospital environment, if not more serene and tranquil.
His primary focus was to ensure the well-being of Elspeth throughout her pregnancy and oversee her daily care. Additionally, he was entrusted with monitoring and supervising the preparation of her meals, which had gained heightened importance after the unfortunate incident involving Faith. In light of that event, Callum had become exceptionally vigilant regarding Elspeth’s food. While understanding the gravity of the situation, Wesley diligently inspected the meals each day before they were served.
Meanwhile, as Elspeth sat down to have her meal early in the morning, she heard a familiar and distinct knocking at the door. The sound instantly registered in her mind, and she knew exactly who it was. True to her intuition, moments later, Yelena arrived, visibly breathless and in a state of urgency. Witnessing her in such a state, Elspeth shook her head in concern and gently patted Yelena’s back, trying to soothe her. “Why are you in such a hurry? Did something happen?”
Yelena nodded, her face etched with deep concern and anxiety. Then, she said, “Hank’s condition has worsened. I want you to come and check on him.”
Elspeth was already aware of Hank’s situation and the compelling reason behind his forced separation from Yelena. In fact, she had granted Yelena permission to remain by Hank’s side and care for him. “What is his current specific condition?” she inquired.
Yelena shook her head, her worry evident in her eyes. “I don’t have the exact details of his condition, but this morning when I went to see him, I found him lying unconscious in bed. The doctors are doing everything they can to save him, but I’m still unsure what caused this sudden deterioration.” Her heart sank, knowing that his illness was something only Elspeth had the power to cure. She felt desperate and uncertain of where else to seek help.
“Don’t worry. I’ll get ready, and I’ll go to the hospital right away.” The sight of Yelena’s distress and the tears welling up in her eyes broke Elspeth’s heart even more. Without wasting another moment, Elspeth swiftly gathered her things, readying herself to rush to the hospital.
In the meantime, as Wesley overheard the conversation, his troubled expression deepened. He spoke with concern, “Mrs. Winthrop, I’m afraid this might not be a good idea. You’re already five or six months pregnant and physically weakened. It may not be suitable for you to take on the responsibility of caring for others.” Although he acknowledged her exceptional medical skills, he feared the strain it would place on her delicate condition.
After hearing this, Yelena’s gaze shifted toward Elspeth’s bulging belly, and a tinge of guilt crept into her expression. Hence, she asked, “Elspeth, will this be too hard on you?” She is so pregnant and frail. Callum would likely eat me alive if something were to happen to her.
“It’s fine. Hank’s life is more important.” Then, Elspeth glanced at the bewildered Wesley beside her and added, “You come with me.”
However, he couldn’t believe it and pointed at himself. “What? You want me to come with you?”
“Yes. I may be unable to handle everything, so I’ll enlist your help.”
Wesley finally understood and nodded.
As Elspeth and Wesley swiftly made preparations, they joined Yelena on their way to the hospital. When they arrived, Hank was still being treated in the emergency room. The red surgical light loomed overhead, casting an eerie glow, and several hours had passed since the operation began, intensifying Yelena’s anxiety.
Is Hank’s illness… incurable?
After about three hours, the lights above the operating room were switched off, and a doctor emerged from the room.
Yelena’s heart skipped a beat after she saw the doctor’s grave expression.
“Who is the patient’s family?”
Before Simone could speak, Yelena couldn’t help but interject, “It’s me.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized it was inappropriate and awkwardly stepped back.
Simone took a deep breath, stepped forward, and asked, “I’m his mother. How is he now?”
“The patient is temporarily stable, but I recommend transferring him to another hospital for treatment. We can’t afford any more delays with his condition.”
Simone’s vision blurred after she heard these words.
This was already the best hospital in Damoria. If they wanted to transfer him elsewhere, they would have to go abroad.
However, his current physical condition couldn’t withstand such a journey.
Simone nearly cried in despair. At that moment, Yelena walked over to Elspeth with a pleading look on her face. “Elspeth, can you help me save him?”
At the sight of Yelena like this, Elspeth could only pat her back. “Don’t worry. I’ve already promised to help you, so I will.”
Yelena nodded as she wiped away the tears in her eyes.
After Hank was transferred to a regular ward, Yelena led Elspeth straight into the ward.
Simone’s face showed hesitation. “Miss Lynwood, I know you have remarkable medical skills, but his condition is one that no doctor can currently treat. It’s a hereditary disease within our family, and the chances of a cure are slim…”
Elspeth understood that Simone had doubts, so she smiled and tried to offer some comfort.
“Ms. Balkan, although I can’t guarantee that I can cure him, I will do my best to save him, so please don’t worry.”
Simone nodded. It was indeed the only option at the moment.
Elspeth asked everyone else in the ward to temporarily leave. Only Wesley stayed behind.
She first examined Hank’s pulse and observed his facial features before taking out a set of acupuncture tools from her bag.
Wesley, who had studied clinical medicine, was somewhat at a loss with these traditional medicine practices. “Mrs. Winthrop, are you planning to perform acupuncture on him?”
“Yes. Help me hold him down, so he doesn’t move suddenly when he wakes up.”
He thought the man was lying motionless and that Elspeth was being overly cautious. “Mrs. Winthrop, he just had surgery. He shouldn’t wake up so soon.”
“You never know. Just help me hold him down.”
Wesley agreed and carefully held Hank down.
Elspeth applied needles to several key acupoints and watched as Hank’s expression gradually relaxed. She then removed those needles and inserted others.
After about half an hour, she removed all the needles.
Throughout the process of administering the acupuncture, Hank didn’t make any movements.
Wesley was about to say that Elspeth was being overly cautious when he suddenly heard a strange voice.
“Thank you.”
The voice was weak and it came from directly beneath him.
Wesley looked down at the man he was holding and realized that the man had opened his eyes at some point.
Wesley quickly withdrew his hand as he was startled. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way. Please don’t misunderstand.”
He didn’t know why he felt the need to explain himself. Despite his actions being perfectly reasonable, he blushed and his heart raced.
Hank chuckled lightly. “It’s okay. I understand.”
After seeing that Hank didn’t find anything wrong with the situation, Wesley realized that he had been overly worried.
It was all his own fault. He had stayed up late reading some novels the previous night, and perhaps those books contained some inappropriate content, his mind was still preoccupied with those abnormal thoughts…
“Thank you for administering the acupuncture. I feel much better now.”
After collecting all the needles, Elspeth looked at him calmly. “You don’t have to thank me. Thank Yelena instead. She asked me to come and help you. If it weren’t because of how much she loved you, I wouldn’t have interfered in your affairs.”
At this, Hank didn’t insist on expressing gratitude further.
“I just administered acupuncture to temporarily relieve your pain. As for long-term treatment, it will require me to consult my mentor.”
When she had examined his pulse, she had already gained a good understanding of the severity of his condition.
With such a disease, there was no guarantee of a complete cure even if Sonny came.
However, he was Yelena’s beloved, and if he died, Yelena would have to endure the pain of losing a lover for the second time.
In any case, Elspeth had to find a way to save Hank.
“It’s all right. I’m aware of the condition, and if I can’t be saved in the end, so be it.”
A fit of inexplicable anger surged in Elspeth’s heart after she saw his nonchalant attitude toward the possibility of not being cured.
“So, you’ll just give up if you can’t be cured? You casually broke up with Yelena before because of your own illness. You used such a poor excuse to deceive her and made her suffer for so long. Now that the truth is out and there you still have a chance of being cured, you’re saying such pessimistic words. What exactly are you thinking?”
She had wanted to scold him like this for a long time and happened to have the opportunity to do so today.
Although Elspeth didn’t usually appear gentle and tender, she had never mercilessly berated someone like she did today.