Silly Bride

Chapter 380

“Winnie! It must have been a long wait for you,” Josiah said as he took off his Bluetooth earphones and strode over to her.Upon hearing Josiah’s voice, Winnie turned in his direction.“I was enjoying my music, so I lost track of time. You’re done?”“Yeah. I’ll be sending you back now.”“Okay,” she answered before standing up.A beat later, Josiah said, “I think we should call Xavier. How should I phrase my words?”“I’ll do the talking, but pay attention to what I say and make sure not to let anything slip.”“You’re the witty one between us two,” Josiah praised as he called Xavier.It took Xavier a few rings before he picked up the call.Once Josiah heard Xavier’s voice, he passed the phone to Winnie.Xavier asked, “Are you done with the checkup? How was it?”In her usual voice, she replied, “Neither good nor bad. I was given some meds, so I guess I’ll take those first.”“What about Lisanne and that Rodunstian scientist’s research? Any progress?”“Yeah. The meds I just received were the product of their research with the hospital.”“Any side effects? How did Lisanne feel after taking them? Did you ask her about it?”“Don’t worry. I did. There aren’t any side effects after she took the meds, but you know how my symptoms are a little more serious than hers, so the meds I received aren’t completely identical to hers. Still, they’re made from the same base materials, so it should be fine.”Right then, Winnie heard someone calling for Xavier on the other end of the line, so she said, “You should head back to work. I’m about to go back with Josiah.”After ending the call, Winnie gave the phone back to Josiah.The two then went back to Lagune Mansion.After working incessantly for a few days, Xavier finally settled the backlog of his work.Winnie realized it was the right time for her to tell him about her worsening condition.However, before she could tell him about it herself, Xavier noticed it.That was because she started experiencing the side effects of the medication a few days after starting the course.Her hair began to fall, and she started vomiting. As a matter of fact, she even began coughing up blood.When Xavier found out about her symptoms, his heart ached so terribly his knees nearly buckled.After hearing Winnie’s explanation, he promptly sent her to the hospital.While Winnie was undergoing examination, Xavier stood by the window, staring at the dark world outside. He looked as if his mind was no longer with his physical body in the hospital.It was difficult for him to recompose himself. For the past month and more, he could notNôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

make himself cheer up or become optimistic.In the end, an elderly doctor’s suggestion was what enlightened both of them.He suggested Winnie see a traditional medicine practitioner, for the side effects of traditional medicine were far weaker than normal medicine.Xavier hastily brought Winnie to visit Sebastian.Sebastian had always appreciated Winnie as a person. Alas, due to Winnie’s conflict with his granddaughter, Yolanda, he was forced to end his master-disciple relationship with Winnie.Nevertheless, that did not stop him from giving Winnie a consultation. After all, Winnie ended up this way because she had sacrificed herself for others, and Sebastian desperately hoped that Winnie could recover as soon as possible.Bored when Xavier was at work, Winnie would sometimes even stay at the Xander residence to enquire Sebastian about acupuncture.Sebastian was surprised by Winnie’s desire to learn and her abnormal optimism.He realized that, despite Winnie’s loss of vision, she was capable of finding the human body’s acupuncture points after practicing. It was almost a miracle.Other than practicing her needling techniques, Winnie would also chat with Sebastian.Sebastian realized that Winnie was a wise woman, and the knowledge she had was no lesser than him, an elderly man who was decades older than her.Sebastian would share with Winnie about his family matters as well, such as stories about his granddaughter, Yolanda.He told Winnie that Yolanda was currently doing research under one of his old coworkers and that she was good at everything except for how she was still hung up with Nate. He had made several arrangements for blind dates, but Yolanda had never once attended them.While Winnie no longer saw Yolanda as her enemy, Yolanda did not seem to be as magnanimous as her.One of the days, Yolanda saw Winnie at her place when she went home. She even shot Winnie a glare.However, Winnie did not take the incident to heart, and she continued visiting the Xander residence.A few days after starting her traditional medicine course, she no longer vomited or coughed blood, and her hair stopped falling.A smile returned to Xavier’s face when he saw that.He was happier than everyone to see an improvement in Winnie’s health and complexion.At night, he hugged Winnie as they lay on their soft bed.In a hushed voice, he told her what was on his mind.“Winnie, I’ve been scared out of my mind these few days. I’m terrified of your condition worsening. Even when I hold you in my arms as I lie by your side, I can’t sleep. I’ve never felt this way before I met you, but if I have a choice, I’ll never want to feel this again. I’m constantly in fear and

anxiety. Every day, I wonder what I’m going to do the next day and the day after next. There isn’t any improvement to your vision and your health, and I feel so helpless. I’m in despair. When I was at company meetings, I wondered what the point of me having all these projects was. What’s the point of earning this much? I can’t buy the light back into your eyes, and I can’t buy your health. But every time when I’m gripped by melancholy, your smile appears in my mind. Winnie, I love you. I really, really love you. I can’t live without you. I don’t know what I’m going to do without you. Your name is etched on my heart. When all is good for you, I’m nothing but joy. But if things aren’t going well for you, my heart aches whenever I think of you. Touch my heart, Winnie. Do you have any ways to soothe it? I’m on the verge of breaking down. Who can cure you? Who should I look for? Who should I go to? Who can give me a solution to this? What can I possibly do to make you well again? I’ll give up everything I have in this life, the next life, and the life after the next…” Xavier trailed off. He was so sad that he lost his voice.Winnie knew that he was upset, but she did not know that things had been excruciating for him.She slowly put her hand over his heart as silent, heavyhearted tears rolled down her cheeks.