Chapter 7: The Half-Fish Girl.

The following day was Carla's birthday.

After dropping Carla off at daycare, Roger drove Jonathan to an old food market in the western part of the city.

Just as they exited the car, a sharp smell greeted them.

Being an affluent figure like Roger, he was uncomfortable.

But accompanying the young master, no matter how uncomfortable, he had to bear it.

"Young master, the Adela Kyle you're looking for... she's selling fish here, at that stall."

Roger pointed to the fish-selling area where a young girl wearing a waterproof apron skillfully conversed with the fish buyers.

Despite having a gorgeous face and lofty lady status, Adela Kyle was now tragically reduced to selling fish in a market.

Although he wasn't the cause of her predicament, seeing how Adela has lived these past few years, he felt profoundly remorseful and pained.

According to the information Roger obtained, Adela's father had passed away a long time ago.

However, Adela was strong, had worked hard since childhood, and had an extraordinary talent for fashion design. She won countless awards just after a year of university, and her future was promising.

But during her second year of college, a rape incident drastically changed her life.

The Kyle family blamed her for tarnishing the family's reputation and kicked her and her mother out without financial support.

Adela's mother was suffering from severe heart disease. Initially, the Kyle family gave them some money so they were not destitute.

But after being expelled from the house and cut off from resources, Adela had to drop out of school.

With a university degree, it was easier to find a job.

The Kyle family had warned companies not to hire Adela.

In Elite Summit, Adela couldn't find any office job.

Due to her mother's illness requiring expensive medication every month, Adela found a reasonably paying job selling fish after trying every possible means.

"A 24-year-old girl, it's indeed too hard for her!" Roger lamented, instantly falling silent.

The one who made Adela suffer this tragedy was the young master he was serving.

Jonathan took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it up. He didn't explain the reasons for the past incident and said: "Help me find a fairly large-scale fashion company, I will be the CEO, and then I will hire Adela with a high salary."

Roger understood that his master wanted to make amends for Miss Kyle and promptly responded: "I'll certainly handle this satisfactorily!"

Suddenly recalling something, Roger hastily said: "Master, Miss Kyle's mother's condition has worsened recently. She's been in the hospital for two months now. Miss Kyle has had to borrow a high-interest loan!"

"How much?"

"Two hundred thousand USD. However, the interest rate is excessive, and the loan shark doubled it! He told Miss Kyle he'd waive the interest if she spent a few nights with him. Master, do you want me to handle this?"

Jonathan squinted, his eyes sparking with a murderous intent: "I'll handle it personally."

"As you wish, Master."

"All right, I don't need you here anymore. Go take care of your business."

Jonathan threw down his cigarette and stepped on it to put it out. He then proceeded towards the fish stall.

Knowing his place, Roger promptly disappeared.

After selling two fish, the fish stall had no customers.

Adela sat on a stool, resting her chin on her hand, pondering that Dominic Joe asked her to sleep with him a few times. She felt surrounded by a sense of helplessness.

Tears welled up in her eyes, the bitter sting overwhelming her.

"How much for this fish?"

Suddenly, a male voice rang out.

Disregarding everything else, Adela hastily wiped her eyes: "Flowery grouper is ten USD per kg, white grouper is seven USD per kg, and red snapper is thirty USD per pound..."

While speaking, she glanced at Jonathan, finding him oddly familiar. Yet, she couldn't remember who he was or where she might have met him.

Jonathan was not interested in buying fish; he just wanted to start a conversation.

But when the conversation started, he felt uneasy, his heart unsettled.

"Sir, if you're not planning on buying fish, please don't stand here as it hinders my business." Adela tried to keep her voice calm.

From Jonathan's formal attire and leather shoes, it was clear he wasn't here to buy fish.

He was a wealthy young master why would he come to a chaotic food market like this?

Perhaps he, like many others, came to laugh at the pitiful spectacle of the once prestigious Miss Kyle from the Kyle family.

She was used to it.

"I..."

Just as Jonathan was about to introduce himself to Adela, a commotion broke out at the food stall opposite.

"Mrs. Jones' chronic asthma has flared up again. Call the hospital quickly!"

"Hurry up, Mrs. Jones is having difficulty breathing, and we won't have much time."

"Our market business could be better. If Mrs. Jones dies here, it will get ruined!"

There was a constant buzz of conversation.

Adela left her fish stall and rushed towards Mrs. Jones.

Jonathan followed without hesitation.

"I can't breathe. I'm very uncomfortable..."

"Mrs. Jones, how are you feeling? Hang in there! I'll call the hospital!"

Adela was different from those who stood around avoiding trouble. She immediately supported Mrs. Jones, gasping for breath on the ground, and calmly dialed for an ambulance.

"This old lady has severe chronic asthma, and her condition has deteriorated. This flare-up is severe. If we don't respond promptly, I'm afraid we can't wait for the ambulance to arrive!" Jonathan arrived behind them, observed for a moment, and spoke.

"What good does it do just to say that? We know all this!"

"Indeed."

"Adela, we've already called for an ambulance, don't get too close, or else when the time comes, Mrs. Jones' son will blame this on you. You'll end up in trouble!"

Adela was utterly panicked. Typically Mrs. Jones was very good to her, giving her leftover food, so she ignored the warnings of those around her.

Jonathan could identify Mrs. Jones' condition with just a glance, so she looked up, intending to ask him for help, only to find he had disappeared.

She felt hopeless. Would Mrs. Jones not be able to hold on until the ambulance arrived?

But two minutes later, a voice came from afar: "Make way, make way!"

Jonathan quickly returned from a nearby pharmacy, his hand holding an IV set.

Due to his fast pace, his forehead was dripping with sweat.

The crowd around him didn't understand and began murmuring loudly.

Seeing Jonathan crouching down, Adela watched him warily: "What are you doing?"

"If you don't want Mrs. Jones to die, be quiet!"

Jonathan took a fruit-peeling knife and cut about forty centimeters off the IV tube, slicing one section into a petal shape.

He then opened Mrs. Jones' mouth and put the IV tube inside.

In the meantime, Mrs. Jones' eyebrows tightened. She seemed very uncomfortable.

But this method worked quickly. Her rapid breathing lessened once the IV tube was inserted into Mrs. Jones' trachea.

Having done all this, Jonathan finally exhaled, then explained to Adela: "Earlier, due to the urgency, I was a bit harsh, don't be upset. I performed a simple tracheotomy on Mrs. Jones to make her breathing easier. This way, she can hold on until she reaches the hospital".

After this explanation, everyone understood.

"Amazing!"

"Even the hospital's doctors aren't as good as this guy!"

"Just by inserting an IV tube into Mrs. Jones' throat, her condition has already improved."

Adela blinked: "Are you a doctor?"

"If you need a medical license, I don't have one!"

"Thank you, truly, thank you so much!"

As long as it was effective, Adela didn't care whether he was a doctor.

The ambulance arrived about ten minutes later.

A doctor stepped out and walked over, noticing the IV tube in Mrs. Jones' mouth. He was amazed: "Is this a tracheotomy?"

"Doctor, is there a problem?" Adela, not understanding anything, asked worriedly.

The doctor pulled himself together, observing Mrs. Jones' condition, he said: "No, no, it's just remarkable. Although a tracheotomy isn't complicated, I don't think even our hospital's professors could use an IV set to do it!"

"This old lady is lucky to have encountered a skilled surgeon! I'm afraid things could've been much worse without this IV tube!"

"A...."

Adela gasped in surprise. A skilled surgeon? But didn't that guy say he wasn't a doctor?

"I wonder who was the doctor that performed this emergency procedure?".

The doctor asked further, wondering if he could get acquainted.

"It was that guy. He was incredible! But where did he go?"

"Someone was looking for the man who helped earlier, only to find that he had already disappeared.

"He seems to have left. Mrs. Jones is still in critical condition. Get her in the ambulance now!"

The doctor seemed somewhat regretful. He had planned to make acquaintance with this brilliant surgeon, possibly even to invite him to his hospital.

A highly skilled doctor would boost the reputation of his hospital. Unfortunately, the man had already left.

The ambulance quickly transported Mrs. Jones to the emergency hospital.

The food market gradually quieted down.

As Adela returned to her fish stall, she noticed that Jonathan had already been sitting there, unbeknownst to her, when he arrived.

"You... you..."

"I didn't want to cause a scene earlier, so I hid here." Jonathan said.

Performing a tracheotomy is simple, but to complete one with just an IV tube, probably only three people in Eaglonia could pull it off.

If that doctor spotted him, he would undoubtedly encounter unnecessary trouble.

"That was truly dangerous earlier!"

Adela was still terrified.

Such a kind-hearted girl.

If only Orla could be half as good as her, Jonathan wouldn't have to worry so much.

Jonathan suddenly pulled out a piece of paper: "You seem to have a good relationship with Mrs. Jones, so I've prepared a prescription for her. Her asthma should be cured in at least six months if taken regularly. If she gets plenty of rest, there should be no relapse!"

"Really? Many renowned doctors have diagnosed Mrs. Jones' asthma, who said it could only be managed, not cured!" Adela found it hard to believe.

Jonathan retorted: "Do you think that after I saved Mrs. Jones from the Grim Reaper, I would do anything to harm her?"

That made sense!

Without Jonathan's life-saving actions, Adela would undoubtedly have doubts. But he had demonstrated a medical expertise that even astounded the doctors at the large hospital. If he made such a claim, he must be sure.

After accepting the prescription, Adela suddenly remembered her mother's heart condition, which was even more complicated than Mrs. Jones' asthma.

She hesitantly asked, gambling on the chance: "Do you know about heart disease? Can it be cured?"

Jonathan chuckled: "Saying 'heart disease' is quite vague. In medical terms, it's called heart failure, the final stage of heart disease. According to conventional Western medicine, it essentially cannot be cured. The only solutions are expensive medication to suppress the symptoms or a heart transplant. However, not just in our country but even abroad, heart transplants are not common. Aside from the huge cost, the success rate is low, not to mention the compatibility issue. But if other treatment methods are used, there's a chance for a cure. However, doctors who truly understand this disease are few and far between. You can only hope to encounter one but cannot demand or request!"

Jonathan's eloquent explanation left Adela with a sense of understanding and, thus, loss: "So you mean in the late stage of heart failure... there's no hope?"

Jonathan chuckled: "No, the idea that you can only meet but not force is that if you haven't found a doctor who can cure that disease, no amount of searching will make a difference. But now, that doctor is standing right before you. Isn't that your mother? I can cure her!"

Adela froze momentarily, then broke into ecstatic jubilation: "Can you treat my mother?"

Previous doctors had already given up on her mother's case.

Jonathan nodded vigorously.

"Hold on, how do you know I was asking for my mother? How do you know me?"

Suddenly, Adela noticed something peculiar.

Jonathan's smile gradually faded, and his voice became more serious: "I'm Jonathan Wang."