novelonline Chapter 4208 Niece
Chapter 4208 Niece
Chapter 4208 Niece
Dorothy has two older brothers and a younger sister. Shad once visited Professor Louisa, and although he did not meet Dorothy's brother at the time—he was married and no longer lived with his parents—Shad saw a family photo of Louisa in Dorothy's apartment, and the middle-aged man looked very similar to Professor Louisa.
Since Lacey saw it, Dorothy naturally saw it too. Both Dorothy and Lacey were wearing light-colored spring dresses, one blue and the other pale yellow. Dorothy was about to pick up her veal and ham pie; she didn't look in their direction.
“That’s my older brother. He’s more than ten years younger than me. He moved out of the house when I was seven, but every time he came home to visit our parents, he would bring gifts for us younger siblings.”
Should we go say hello?
Lacey asked proactively:
“I can hide for a while and make it look like you and Shad are on a date alone. Don’t worry about it. When Shad went to meet my parents, you didn’t say anything, did you?”
But Dorothy did not agree:
“My brother’s family seems to be just here for a picnic, so there’s no need to bother them. My niece has a congenital heart condition, and she’s finally been allowed out, so I, as her aunt, shouldn’t spoil her fun.”
They're so far away, they probably can't see me. Let's not go over there.
Neither Xia De nor Lacey said anything, and the three of them continued their picnic, chatting and laughing.
Shad had a sudden inspiration and tried to entice the lazy cat by offering her "Mia, if you show me a backflip right now, I'll give you whatever food you want from the wicker basket" in order to unleash her potential.
But after hearing what Shad said, Mia ignored him completely and continued to lie on Shad's lap waiting to be fed. Clearly, she understood better than anyone that she wanted to eat whatever she wanted.
The day was still long, so everyone had a leisurely lunch. After lunch, Dorothy and Lacey even played a few rounds of Rhodes with Shad, and judging from the smile on Shad's face, everyone present could tell that he was in a very good mood.
Soon after, Mia yawned and snuggled up next to Shad, looking for a sunny spot to take a nap. Dorothy looked at Shad expectantly, and Shad, caught her yawn, nodded in response.
"Then I'll take a rest too. If I'm not awake in an hour, remember to wake me up. We still need to continue reading those materials this afternoon."
"Yes Yes."
Dorothy chuckled and patted her leg, so Shad used it as a pillow. He lay under the shade of the tree overhead, closed his eyes, listened to the rustling of the wind through the treetops, smelled Dorothy's pleasant scent, and felt the warm spring sunshine. He soon fell asleep.
Lacey smiled at Dorothy, then took out a sketchbook and pencil from her maid, found a suitable angle, and prepared to record Shad, Dorothy, and Mia together.
Because he wasn't at home, Shad didn't sleep very soundly. He felt like he had just closed his eyes when he heard panicked cries coming from not far away.
Then Dorothy called out something, and Lacey reached out to support Shad. Dorothy immediately stood up and ran away into the distance.
When Shad opened his eyes, Dorothy was almost at the location of her brother's family.
"It seems something happened to Dorothy's niece."
Lacey explained quietly that she had been sketching and therefore couldn't see very clearly, but Winnie had seen what had happened:
"The little girl was clutching her heart, as if she was in discomfort. Her parents told her to lie down and rest, but it doesn't seem to be getting better."
"It should be alright, right?"
Lacey also said with some concern, because due to her status she couldn't go directly to check the situation, and could only share Dorothy's view:
"Her breathing was very weak, which was probably caused by her emotional state triggering a heart problem. The family doctor had been advising her not to go out unnecessarily, but Dorothy's older brother and sister-in-law probably thought her health had improved recently, and the weather was nice today."
What specific problem does she have with her heart? Does she need me to help her get a new heart?
Shad asked, "Dorothy's brother's family is just an ordinary middle-class family in the area. They're not like royalty, constantly watched by the church. Even if Shad intervenes, as long as the family doesn't publicize it and allows the child to 'recover' in stages, there shouldn't be any problems."
Lacey shook her head:
"Dorothy said it wasn't necessary for now. Once she had a relationship with us, her life would be stable and there wouldn't be any problems."
She breathed a sigh of relief:
"Luckily, the family doctor came along today, otherwise Dorothy would definitely have intervened."
Shad looked over from afar and saw Dorothy and her sister-in-law still kneeling beside the little girl, holding her hand, while Dorothy's older brother was talking to the family doctor with a worried expression.
The people who had gathered to help gradually dispersed, and once their view was unobstructed, Shad blinked:
"The spark of life."
The little girl's vitality was indeed weaker than that of ordinary people, and she did not have the vigorous spirit that children typically possess.
Then, Xia De subconsciously used other reconnaissance-type magical arts:
"Edwards' Eye. Hmm?"
"what happened?"
Lacey keenly noticed the astonishment on Shad's face.
"There was a red spot where her heart was, how could it have disappeared? It's gone again."
"Go and take a look."
Lacey suggested, and Shad stood up. Winnie then suggested from the side:
"Don't go empty-handed. Bring some drinks and food, and say that you were worried that too many people would delay your treatment, so you didn't go there immediately."
Shade nodded, and the maids filled several bottles of pumpkin juice and some desserts in an empty wicker basket for him before he went over.
Dorothy's brother's family did not know Shad, but they had heard a lot of gossip about the Duchess and the famous detective, and they also knew that their sister had an ambiguous relationship with that famous detective.
Today, with Shad appearing as "Dorothy's friend," they almost immediately understood something. Dorothy's older brother looked at Shad and his sister with a complicated expression, but the occasion wasn't suitable for asking further questions.
The little girl seemed to have recovered somewhat, nestled in her mother's arms and looking at the wicker basket Shad had brought. However, Dorothy only allowed her to eat one piece of sweets; she was permitted to drink pumpkin juice, but the little girl didn't seem to like it.
The hired servants had gone to find the carriage, so the family remained there for the time being. After a brief conversation, Shad also learned about the nature of Dorothy's little niece's heart condition.
The outsider had no medical background and couldn't use the complex medical terms. But according to his understanding, the girl's condition could be completely cured with a heart transplant. If Dorothy allowed it, he could even pause the time of everyone around him right now and then perform the heart transplant.
But Dorothy wouldn't allow it:
"Her condition isn't particularly difficult among congenital heart diseases. The doctors even said that as long as she doesn't engage in strenuous exercise, it's not impossible for her to live to fifty. Perhaps future medical technology can cure her. Unless it's a matter of life and death, I don't want her to undergo treatment using mystical methods."
"Of course, if treatment is truly needed, Shad, I will ask you for help."
These are the words Dorothy said when the two were seeing off the family at the park entrance. The child seemed to like Shad very much, and when she got into the carriage, she asked Shad to carry her up, which Shad of course agreed to.
As Shad and Dorothy walked back to the lawn along the path in the park, he mentioned that he had just seen a fleeting red dot on the girl's body using the "Eye of Edwards."
"No, I'm pretty sure she hasn't had any surgery, and there's no way there could be any implants in her heart."
Dorothy rejected Shad's initial idea; she was worried, but Shad reassured her:
"When I carried her onto the carriage just now, I sensed her and there were no traces of elemental energy on her body. Although I don't know what that fleeting red light was, it didn't reappear until the family left."
If you're still worried, you can visit her often these days. With your and Lacia's current advanced spatial manipulation skills, removing something that shouldn't be there from her heart shouldn't be a problem, right?
In fact, the girls performed more complex maneuvers during the nighttime activities, especially when they were experiencing significant emotional fluctuations, which is enough to prove that they are truly talented in subtle spatial manipulation.
Lacia and Dorothy can share their five senses to some extent, so Lacia knows what Dorothy knows. When Shad and Dorothy returned to the picnic camp, Lacia didn't ask any more questions, but instead showed them her sketchbook:
"Look! It's finished!"
In the black and white sketch, Shad is asleep on his back with his head on Dorothy's lap, while Mia is curled up like a cat ball next to him, and Winnie's half-figure can be seen in the corner of the picture.
The painting captures the tenderness of Dorothy gazing down at Shad, the melancholy in Shad's sleep, and the endearing charm of Mia. The trees and picnicking crowd in the background further imbue the painting with the vibrant energy of spring.
"That's really good."
Shad praised it, while Lacia laughed and said her painting skills were nowhere near Flora's. However, she was quite satisfied with the painting herself, and the girls planned to frame it and hang it in Dorothy's apartment so they could see it every day.