"But I want to go see Adele," Mila Anderson halted, her face showing her dilemma. Since Gian Horne's affair, the couple had rarely gone out alone. It's so rare for Gian to be willing to accompany me out. If I go against his wishes, he might go back to that old vixen, and then I'll just be left fuming, won't I?
"Adele is not a child anymore. Besides, isn't Julia there with her? Don't worry, nothing bad will happen. You don't trust your daughter? You don't even trust Julia?" Gian said soothingly, narrowing his piercing eyes as he exchanged a knowing look with his mother; their thoughts were somewhat aligned.
Considering this, Mila thought her husband made sense and dismissed the idea of visiting the hospital. Nevertheless, she still called Julia Bluen to ensure she took good care of Adele Horne.
At a large hospital, seeing a doctor involved four queues: one to see the doctor, one to pay, one to pick up medicine, and one for injections.
Julia Bluen pulled Adele Horne out of the car. Adele tried to pull away, shaking off her hand, but Julia was unperturbed and led Adele toward the Medical Science Building. As they entered and saw the crowd, which was like a bustling market, Julia couldn't help but exclaim, "Why are there so many people?"
"With so many people, who knows when we'll even get to the doctor. I'm not seeing a doctor," Adele said. Smelling the strong scent of disinfectant, her fever-flushed face began to pale. The place she dreaded most in her life was the hospital.
"I'll take you to see an acquaintance. There probably won't be many people at his clinic," Julia said, grabbing Adele's arm to prevent her from escaping. Adele was burning with fever and suffering from a severe cold; she couldn't skip seeing the doctor.
"Why do you have to be so nosy? It's my body, and if I say I don't want to see a doctor, what's it to you? Do you think your feigned concern will make me acknowledge you as my sister-in-law? Julia Bluen, stop dreaming! In my heart, my sister-in-law will always be Orlando Evans," Adele vented her frustration as Julia dragged her towards the Inpatient Department. Unable to break free from Julia's grip, Adele couldn't help but air her grievances.
"Running a high fever can easily turn you into an idiot. You don't want to become an idiot, do you?" Julia glanced sideways at her sister-in-law, her lips curling into a mocking smile. When she heard Adele's latter words, the derision in her smile intensified, making Adele wish she could seal that smile away, never to let it appear again. "Whether or not I'm your sister-in-law doesn't seem to require your acknowledgment, does it? Besides, I'm already married to your brother. Whether you acknowledge it or not, I am your sister-in-law. That's a fact. Those who evade reality are like ostriches."
"You dare call me an ostrich?" Adele wanted to scream at the top of her lungs, but feeling weak and woozy, she couldn't muster the strength. Ugh, this cold is unbearable! Damn Orlando Evans! What kind of brilliant plan was that, getting me mocked by Julia Bluen ?
While fuming, Adele also cursed Orlando Evans in her heart, conveniently forgetting that she had been the one to ask Orlando Evans for help in the first place. Besides, while Orlando Evans had come up with the plan, the decision to act on it had been hers alone.
Adele had no real friends precisely because of this selfish mindset. No matter what she did, she never considered others, thinking only of herself. When she needed someone, she treated them like treasures; when she didn't, she treated them like dirt.
"I didn't say that; you did. We're here," Julia deftly shifted the topic, making Adele forget she wanted to go back. Adele allowed Julia to lead her into the Inpatient Department to meet the person Julia knew. This was Julia's high school classmate. While Julia had studied management, this classmate had chosen to pursue medicine. Now, he was a doctor assigned to the Inpatient Department, where doctors generally had a little more time to spare than those in the outpatient department.
Any doctor could treat Adele's common cold.
Julia managed to get her old classmate to squeeze in ten minutes to examine Adele.
Ten minutes later, the sisters-in-law had the prescription in hand.
"She's running a high fever, so have the pharmacy staff prepare her IV medications first. The oral medications can be picked up later," the old classmate instructed Julia.
"Okay, old pal, thank you," Julia said, helping Adele, who turned even paler at the mention of an IV, while expressing her gratitude to their classmate.
"It's nothing, no need to thank me. Hurry on, she's got a pretty high fever."
Julia nodded and supported Adele, who was scared of needles and didn't want to be teased by Julia, as they made their way downstairs.
The pharmacy was on the first floor, and so was the payment counter.
While you might find acquaintances for medical consultations, you couldn't use connections to pay.
Looking at the row of payment windows, each with a long queue and everyone holding a prescription, Julia felt a bit of a headache coming on.
"Adele, sit here; I'll go queue up to pay," Julia told Adele, seating her on a chair. She first fetched a cup of hot water for Adele and then went to line up to pay.
After queuing for over ten minutes to pay, she hurried to the pharmacy to pick up the medications. There was a long line at the pharmacy too, but remembering her classmate's words, she quickly approached the pharmacy staff. She explained that the patient was running a high fever and urgently needed an IV, asking them to prepare it first. Although queuing was a virtue and there was an order to things, people usually understood in emergencies.
The pharmacy staff prepared the IV for Julia. She apologized to the others still in line and quickly headed back to Adele.
Adele sat there, her gaze fixed on Julia. She watched as Julia queued to pay, then went to get her IV medication, even cutting in line for her sake. She also saw Julia's deep apologies to the strangers. Suddenly, Adele started to feel a little ashamed.
Adele thought, Who were these strangers anyway? Julia is the Second Miss of the Bluen Family, the Young Mistress of my Horne Family, yet she's apologizing to them! And all for me, her sister-in-law who detests her. A touch of warmth actually flickered through Adele's heart.
However, as soon as she thought of Orlando Evans and that her current illness was indirectly caused by Ruby Bluen, she dispelled that bit of warmth, mistaking Julia's genuine concern for pretense.
Even with the IV ready, there was still a line to wait for the injection.