Chapter 135: A Thorough Offense from the Beginning

Chapter 135: Chapter 135: A Thorough Offense from the Beginning

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Mrs. Sloan, with your lack of class, calling people bitches left and right, you’re dreaming if you expect Dr. Vance to see you."

"You—!" Furious, Laura lunged forward, raising her hand to slap Eleanor!

"Nathaniel!" Noelle called out just in time. She looked fragile, her eyes welling with tears. "You’re here."

Nathaniel?

Laura abruptly stopped her hand mid-air and turned around. Sure enough, she saw her son.

Her eyes lit up, immediately feeling emboldened.

Mrs. Kendrick had just insulted her in front of everyone. As her son, surely Nathaniel couldn’t just stand by and not help his own mother, right?

Laura placed her hands on her hips, lifted her chin, and put on a haughty air. "Do you know who my son is? He’s a shareholder of this hospital! All of you, get out of my way! Tell that Dr. Vance to come out here right now, or she can kiss her job at this hospital goodbye!"

Nathaniel’s expression instantly turned cold.

While Laura was still throwing her weight around, Nathaniel’s icy voice cut through. "I didn’t realize my name carried so much weight that it allows you to act like a tyrant in a hospital."

Fully expecting Nathaniel to help her vent her frustration, Laura nearly choked on her breath when she heard his reprimand instead.

"Nathaniel, what do you mean by acting like a tyrant? It’s these doctors who are being unreasonable! Noelle is in such a pitiful state. I brought her here to see a doctor, and they actually want me to take a number and wait in line? With my status, how can I be treated like those commoners out there?!

"You don’t know this, Nathaniel, but who knows what that Yara did! She actually coaxed Dr. Vance into refusing to treat Noelle and even had Mrs. Kendrick mock her! I just couldn’t swallow this insult—"

Nathaniel’s face grew increasingly darker. "Enough!"

Laura instantly snapped her mouth shut.

Nathaniel’s cold gaze swept over Noelle. "The hospital has clear regulations: everyone must wait in line, regardless of who they are. This is a hospital. By making a scene here, do you want me to tear the hospital down just to vent Noelle’s anger? Or do you want me to drive Mrs. Kendrick away and force her to apologize to Noelle?"

Unconvinced, Laura retorted, "The hospital belongs to you anyway! I can do whatever I want, and no one has the right to interfere! So what if you tear it down?!"

Noelle and Rose kept their heads down and remained silent, but it was obvious that the mother and daughter shared the same sentiment.

This was a hospital under Nathaniel’s name. No matter how powerful the Kendrick family was, they would have to scram if told to.

Never mind whether this would affect the relationship between Evernight International and the Kendrick Group; in Rose’s mind, Mrs. Kendrick was just a woman. How much of an impact could she possibly have?

Nathaniel’s expression remained unchanged. "Point one: I am not the largest shareholder of this hospital. The largest shareholder is the Kendrick family. The only way to drive the Kendrick family away is if the hospital goes bankrupt and shuts down. Mother, do you truly believe Noelle is that important?"

Noelle’s face turned deathly pale, but Laura remained stubborn. "It’s just a hospital! So what if it goes bankrupt? How much money could you possibly lose? You’re not short on money anyway!"

Nathaniel didn’t even bat an eyelid. "The loss would be around ten billion. If you can afford to pay that sum, Mother, fine. I will announce Evernight’s immediate withdrawal."

Laura’s words instantly got stuck in her throat, and she looked sheepish.

Ten billion... Where—where would she get that kind of money? But she still wasn’t willing to let it go.

"But what right does Mrs. Kendrick have to mock Noelle? Noelle is pure and kind-hearted; she just wanted to meet Dr. Vance. Yet Mrs. Kendrick claimed that Noelle had offended Dr. Vance. Isn’t that pure nonsense? She’s clearly trying to frame Noelle on purpose!"

Nathaniel coldly raised his eyes. "Nonsense? Mother, didn’t you thoroughly offend Dr. Vance right from the very beginning?"

They had thoroughly offended Dr. Vance from the very beginning?

Laura was dumbfounded. It took her a long moment to process this before a sudden realization hit her. A horrifying thought darted into her mind, and her eyes widened in shock as she stared at Mrs. Kendrick. "You... you’re..."

Eleanor drawled slowly, "Well, normally, as a doctor, I wouldn’t refuse a patient. I fully intended to take a look at Noelle’s ear.

"However, I don’t have the best of tempers. Mrs. Sloan here has been cursing my Yara left and right, implying with every word that my Yara deserves to be a stepping stone for Noelle.

"You know how it is. As a parent, seeing your own child suffer an unprovoked disaster and then get insulted on top of it... it really puts me in a foul mood. And when I’m in a foul mood, my medical skills tend to plummet. Once my skills plummet, who knows? Perhaps Noelle, who was only temporarily deaf, might end up permanently deaf after I treat her."

Her words echoed down the hallway, leaving Rose and Laura both furious and anxious.

Laura’s face flushed red with anger. She wanted to hurl a torrent of abuse but ultimately swallowed it back.

Rose felt a deep disdain for Eleanor in her heart. She was just a woman; what gave her the right to become an internationally renowned expert?! But... but they said that only Dr. Vance could cure Noelle’s condition. Then, then...

Rose’s expression shifted repeatedly until she finally suppressed her disgust and squeezed out a fawning smile.

"It’s a misunderstanding, Mrs. Kendrick. What happened just now was all a misunderstanding!

"We just lost our heads out of concern. In truth, we care very much about Yara too! I know Yara got hurt and you’re feeling terrible about it, but that fire really had nothing to do with Noelle! Noelle was a victim too!"

Eleanor felt disgusted. "She really knows when to yield," she thought. "To go to such lengths for an adopted daughter... how could she have the heart to indulge Noelle in burning her own biological daughter to death back then!"

Under Rose’s expectant gaze, Eleanor spoke languidly, "Such a profound love for your daughter. I’m truly moved. It’s not impossible for me to treat her."

Then, her tone shifted. "However, is Miss Lockwood’s right ear truly deaf?

"Just now, I spoke softly on Miss Lockwood’s right side, and she was actually able to hear every single word perfectly. Logically speaking..."

Eleanor paused, flashing a meaningful smile. "Logically speaking, if her right ear is completely deaf, she would instinctively turn slightly to listen clearly with her left ear before turning to face me.

"Miss Lockwood, would you like to take a hearing test? Since everyone is here, let’s all go together. We can see just how severe this deafness in your right ear really is."

As Eleanor’s voice faded, dead silence fell over the corridor.

Nathaniel raised an eyebrow. Mrs. Kendrick was vastly different from what he had imagined.

Noelle clenched her fists, beads of sweat continuously rolling down her forehead. She forced a facade of composure. "N-No need... I only go deaf occasionally. Most of the time, I-I can still hear."

"In that case," Eleanor said resoundingly, "Any ordinary doctor can treat your condition, Miss Lockwood. There’s no need to waste public resources!"

With Eleanor putting it that way, who wouldn’t understand?

The nurse who had been slapped earlier couldn’t help but say sarcastically, "No wonder she’s a big star. Her acting skills are truly stellar."

A doctor stifled a laugh. "Tell me about it. Just looking at Noelle, you can tell her ears are perfectly fine. To think the dignified Mrs. Sloan was actually played for a fool. It’s hilarious..."