Chapter 29 Savior?

Chapter 29: Chapter 29: Savior?

Sophie Winslow quickly ran over. An elderly man leaning on a cane stood unsteadily by the flowerbed. He was pale, his breathing erratic, and he was dry heaving.

Sophie didn’t dare delay. The elderly often had multiple underlying conditions, making sudden illnesses almost always fatal. She jogged up to him. "Sir?"

The old man’s consciousness was a bit muddled, but he managed to look at her.

Sophie frowned and carefully checked his pulse for a moment. Combined with other quick visual assessments, she could practically draw a conclusion. The old man was likely suffering from acute gastrointestinal spasms, which, combined with his severe hypertension, was triggering these complications. Any delay could highly likely lead to a cerebral hemorrhage, resulting in a stroke.

Supporting the old man, she said patiently, "Don’t be nervous. Try to breathe evenly."

She quickly took out the acupuncture kit she had brought from the volunteer medical team. After a brief sanitization, she applied the needles with speed and precision. Before long, the old man took a sharp breath, and his erratic breathing gradually steadied. His unfocused pupils began to clear.

He looked at Sophie gratefully. "Sorry to trouble you, young lady. Look, I even got your clothes dirty."

Seeing that he was out of danger, Sophie smiled. "It’s fine. Is your family around? Should I walk you back?"

Timothy Lockwood shook his head. "No need, I feel much better now. If the kids find out, it’ll give them a fright."

Especially that boy Finn Lockwood—he was already worried about Timothy going out for a walk alone. If he knew about this, he would be even more overbearing.

Sophie advised, "You have some chronic underlying conditions. I suggest you get a detailed checkup to find the cause of this attack so you can manage it better."

The more Timothy looked at Sophie, the more he liked her. He nodded with a chuckle. "Alright. What’s your name, young lady?"

Sophie opened her mouth to reply.

"Miss Winslow, we have a patient over here with a strange pulse. Come take a look!" someone from the volunteer medical team rushed over and hurriedly called out to her.

Sophie nodded, then looked back at Master Lockwood. "No need to thank me, it’s my job. I’ll have a resort staff member escort you back now."

Having made the arrangements, she left in a hurry.

Timothy tapped his cane regretfully as he watched her retreating back. He had planned to get to know her properly; he might have even introduced her to his rascal of a grandson!

Soon after, the resort staff and Finn Lockwood all rushed over. Finn’s face was pale with fright as he inspected his grandfather from head to toe. "Did you have another episode? We’re going to the hospital right now!"

Master Lockwood snorted. "A beautiful young lady already treated me. She saved my old life."

Finn let out a massive sigh of relief and asked, "Who? What’s her name?"

The old man’s expression turned troubled. "It’s a pity, I didn’t get to ask. She’s a very striking and elegant girl, probably from the volunteer medical team. The Lockwood family owes her a huge favor. If it weren’t for her, I almost thought my portrait would be hanging on the wall at the ripe old age of eighty-four."

"Grandpa, don’t talk nonsense," Finn said, rubbing his forehead.

Master Lockwood tapped his cane as they walked. "Oh dear, why didn’t I get her contact information in time? Such a wonderful girl. I even wanted to introduce you to her, though a rascal like you might not be good enough for her."

Finn was speechless. Naturally, he was also incredibly grateful to this stranger, but without her information, he had to put the search on hold.

He immediately escorted his grandfather back to his room. The resort had a top-tier medical team and portable medical equipment. Finn knew his grandfather’s condition well. He had worked himself to the bone in his youth, leaving him with numerous underlying health issues that, when combined, became exceptionally severe.

After examining him, the doctor said in amazement, "It’s a miracle. Master Lockwood was at risk of a cerebral hemorrhage just now. Under such severe thrombosis, it would have been nearly impossible to race against time to get to a hospital for an immediate surgery. Yet, he’s stabilized now. He just needs proper follow-up care. That crucial intervention truly saved his life."

Finn pondered for a moment and decided to head over to the volunteer medical team to ask around. Just as he reached the ground floor, he bumped right into Stella Sutton and Julian Sterling, who were just returning.

Seeing the volunteer medical team vest Stella was wearing, Finn’s face instantly lit up with joy. "Were you the one who saved my grandfather?"

Even Julian turned to look at Stella.

Stella had indeed just returned from the volunteer team’s station. The guests at the resort were all important figures from high society. She had taken the opportunity to help out for a while, as it was an excellent platform to network with the elite. She had even treated a few elderly patients today.

As a result, when Finn looked at her with such profound gratitude, Stella was briefly surprised before saying, "So that was your grandfather? It was the least I could do."

She hadn’t expected her luck to be this good. To have coincidentally treated Master Lockwood meant that the Lockwood family now owed her a favor.

"My grandfather said you were beautiful. He praised you endlessly and insisted that we must properly thank and repay you," Finn said, looking at Stella with eager eyes. He was completely convinced that the person his grandfather spoke of was Stella. Striking and elegant—could anyone in the volunteer team fit that description better than her?

Recalling that his grandfather had also wanted to set them up, Finn decided to keep that detail to himself.

Stella chuckled softly and glanced up at Julian. "You’re making me blush."

Finn couldn’t help but step forward and pat Julian on the shoulder. "Julian, you’ve really hit the jackpot having such a perfect partner."

Julian carelessly raised an eyebrow, a faint curve on his lips. "Is that so?"

Looking at his handsome, noble face, Stella couldn’t help but blush.

Finn was in high spirits today and immediately said, "My grandfather is out of danger now, so my birthday party tonight will proceed as planned. When the time comes, I’ll introduce Stella to a few TV producers."

Stella slowly raised an eyebrow in surprise. Finn was handing her resources on a silver platter. He was using tangible actions to thank her.

However, she frowned slightly, deep in thought. Why couldn’t she recall any of the elderly patients she treated today being in critical condition? Yet Finn had just said Master Lockwood’s situation was very serious.

"What are you thinking about?" Julian looked down at her. Finn also cast a concerned glance her way.

Stella gathered her thoughts, deciding that even if there was a mix-up, it didn’t matter. The fact remained that the Lockwood family believed she was their savior. "Nothing. I just feel that studying medicine was the right choice. It feels like destiny that I was able to meet your grandfather and help him."

Sophie Winslow had been busy all day. She did manage to make a few friends around her age, though. One of them, a wealthy heir, specifically handed her an invitation and asked her to join their gathering that night. Not opposed to making new friends, Sophie accepted.

Just past eight o’clock that evening, Sophie changed her clothes and took the resort shuttle to the entertainment hall. There were quite a few people present, all young and visibly wealthy or noble.

The moment Sophie walked through the door, she felt her luck had run out. She bumped right into Julian Sterling and Stella Sutton, who were entering from a side door. Sophie glanced at Stella’s hand resting on Julian’s arm and turned, wanting to go elsewhere.

Seeing Sophie’s apparent lack of confidence and quick retreat, Stella offered a subtle, mocking smile. She immediately turned to Finn, who had just walked over, and asked, "Did you invite her?"

Following her gaze to Sophie’s retreating back, Finn reflexively defended himself. "I’m not that ungrateful! You’re our family’s savior. Why would I invite her here and make you unhappy?"

"Let’s go take our seats first," Julian said, entirely unbothered by Sophie’s appearance. He had no intention of paying her any mind.

Stella finally smiled. "Alright. Finn is the birthday boy today, so what he says goes."

Shortly after entering, Sophie learned that tonight was Finn’s birthday party. She hadn’t expected her new friend to invite her into the lion’s den. She pondered finding an excuse to leave early.

POP!

A bottle of champagne was popped open at the front of the room. Sophie looked over.

Finn was in a fantastic mood today, especially since Stella had saved his grandfather.

"Finn, what would you like for your birthday?" Stella asked with a bright smile.

Finn knew that Stella only had eyes for Julian. The two of them just needed a little push to ignite the spark between them. Repaying a favor meant doing it right. He poured champagne into the glasses next to Stella and Julian.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Sophie standing on the fringes of the crowd, and he suddenly smirked. He raised his voice, ensuring Sophie could hear him clearly. "No need for presents. I just love seeing lovers finally get together. Why don’t you two link arms for a toast, and then share a champagne kiss? How about that?"