“What garbage are you spewing? You’re not needed here. Get out!” Josephine barked, as she was worried that Jared would disrupt the treatment. “Fine. You’re the one that asked me to leave. I’ll be waiting in the corridor. In less than five minutes, you’ll be out there begging me to come back in.” The moment he finished, Jared opened the door and went out. After he left, no one bothered about him. Meanwhile, Jonathan carefully continued with William’s acupuncture treatment.
Soon, he was entirely drenched in sweat. After the last needle was inserted, William gradually regain his consciousness and opened his eyes. “Dad! My dad is awake, Dr. Watson. He’s awake. This is wonderful!” Josephine cried out jubilantly as tears filled her eyes. Just a moment ago, she was worried that he would never ever do so. When Jonathan saw William was awake, he, too, heaved a sigh of relief. After all, he barely had any confidence going in. Unfortunately, the moment Josephine and Jonathan sighed in relief, William began to tremble violently.
He looked to be in excruciating pain as his face started turning purple. “Dad! Dad!” Josephine yelled as she turned to Jonathan in panic. “Dr. Watson, why is this happening?” At that moment, even Jonathan was feeling so distressed that he was just stumped. “I… I don’t know why this is happening either. How did it turn out this way?” “Who are you asking? You’re the doctor here!” Josephine roared at the doctor in desperation.
At the same time, William’s shiver began to grow faint before he finally stopped moving. Even his breath could not be felt at all. Watching the change in William, Jonathan felt his panic intensify. If anything happened to William, he would have to suffer the consequences. “Dad, don’t scare me… Don’t scare me…” Josephine began to cry. “Ms. Sullivan, let’s take Mr. Sullivan to the hospital. I have run out of ideas!” Jonathan suggested anxiously.
He wanted to send William there so that he could shirk his responsibility. If William died in the hospital, it would then not be his fault. “Do you take me for a fool? Given my dad’s condition, there’s no way he can make it to the hospital! You better save him! If not, don’t think you will survive this unscathed!” Josephine exploded, having lost her rational mind. The Sullivans were the wealthiest family in Horington. To destroy a lowly doctor would take no more than a flick of their fingers. Jonathan was stricken with terror by her threat. Nonetheless, he was devoid of any ideas.
Suddenly, he thought of Jared and quickly suggested, “Ms. Sullivan, the guy that just went out. Perhaps he might have a solution. I think he probably knows a thing or two.” Jonathan’s words reminded Josephine of Jared. Still, it was not lost upon her that Jonathan had looked down upon him earlier, but was praising him now. Evidently, Jonathan was planning to let Jared take the blame. Once Jared stepped in to treat William, even if he was dead, Jonathan would be able to absolve himself of any responsibility.
After a momentary hesitation, Josephine let go of William, who slumped in his chair as she dashed out of the room. At that very moment, Jared was sitting along the corridor, expecting Josephine to come and see him. When the woman saw Jared was still there, she rushed up to him. Just when she wanted to speak, she suddenly realized that she had no idea how to address him. “P-Please save my father, I beg of you,” Josephine pleaded with an awkward expression. When Jared gradually raised his head at her, Josephine averted her gaze, as she didn’t dare make eye contact.
Not too long ago, she was berating him, but now, she ended up begging him instead. “Do you believe I can save your father and that I’m not a con man?” Jared asked. Josephine kept silent, as she didn’t know how to answer. She didn’t fully trust him yet, but she had no other choice. Looking at her reaction, Jared simply chuckled. He decided not to make things difficult for her as he got up and returned to the room.
When Josephine followed Jared back in, she saw Jonathan pacing back and forth with his head covered in sweat. The moment Jonathan saw Jared, he felt as if he had seen his savior. Regardless of whether Jared could revive William, he could push the blame to Jared once the latter took over. Lowering himself, Jonathan begged, “I’m sorry about just now, young man. Please save Mr. Sullivan!” Considering that he could potentially lose everything, Jonathan felt that being polite would not hurt at all. After shooting William a glance, Jared sighed.
“Looks like I’ll have to give it my all.” Turning toward Jonathan, Jared questioned, “Do you still have any silver needles?” “Yes, in the medical bag.” Jonathan quickly handed over a bag of silver needles to Jared. “It’s not enough!” Jared shook his head. “Not enough?” Jonathan was stunned. “The bag contains thirty needles. How can it not be enough?” In acupuncture, anyone who could insert more than ten needles was considered impressive.
Even the president of the Association of Traditional Medicine, John Jacobson, who was also known as a miracle doctor, could only insert around twenty needles. As a result, thirty needles were more than enough. “It just isn’t. I need more!” Jared replied. “How many more?” Jonathan carefully asked. “Eighty-one!” Jonathan was stupefied by the reply. Suddenly, his eyes were filled with horror. However, instead of saying anything, he handed over all his silver needles.
After receiving them, Jared laid William’s b*dy flat on the ground. Moving ambidextrously, he swiftly inserted the needles into William’s b*dy. At this moment, cold sweat began to break out on Jared’s forehead. He looked as if he was exerting a lot of energy to the extent his clothes were all drenched.
When the final needle was inserted into William, Jared let out a long sigh. As if he was entirely drained, he dropped his butt onto the ground to sit. During the entire time, Josephine watched on nervously. She didn’t know much about acupuncture, and she felt the urge to ask.
However, she was worried about disrupting Jared. As for Jonathan, he was already gawking in astonishment from the get-go. His mouth opened so wide that one could fit an egg into it. A short while later, Jonathan’s shock had turned into elation. With a loud thud, he dropped his knees to the ground in front of Jared. His sudden movement gave both Jared and Josephine a fright.
