Chapter 109

Just as Zinnia set off from home, Sofia called Charlie. Since Charlie was tied up, Alex, Charlie’s friend, was already waiting for her outside the hospital. He had asked a close friend to pick her up. When Zinnia got out of the car, Alex immediately recognized her from Charlie’s description: she stood out from the crowd, impossible to miss with her breathtaking beauty. With a warm smile, he called out, “Hello there, are you Charlie’s sister?”

Zinnia gave a small nod to him. Charlie had already called her on the way here, so she wasn’t surprised to see Alex.

“Zinnia, I’m Charlie’s good friend. Just call me Alex,” Alex said with an earnest, good–natured smile.

“Hello, Alex,” Zinnia greeted him sweetly.

Alex said, “Charlie is on the 6th floor doing his rounds right now. Let me take you to his office first.” He guided Zinnia into the medical complex. The place was so vast that anyone unfamiliar with it could easily get turned around.

“Okay,” Zinnia replied.

After climbing the stairs and passing an office, they heard someone shouting in a frantic, enraged voice, “My daughter’s been out cold for two days! Can’t you damn well wake her up? And you call yourselves Moores? Ever since Richard died, you Moores have only gotten more and more useless!”

Seeing Neo shaking his head helplessly, Daniel’s heart ached unbearably. He thought, ‘Anne is my only daughter. If anything happened to her, how could I ever face my wife in the afterlife?’

Noticing Zinnia’s curiosity, Alex explained with a tinge of regret in his voice, “The man inside is Ms. Carson’s father. Not long ago, Ms. Carson was pushed down the stairs and has remained unconscious ever since."

“These past few days, her father has been coming to the hospital daily, demanding answers from the department heads.

“Charlie did consider performing the surgery, but the blockage in Ms. Carson’s blood vessel was in such a dangerous location that he wasn’t confident enough to proceed, so things have been at a standstill.

“Mr. Carson invited specialists from the Moore family overseas to help, but they couldn’t do anything about it, because none of the remaining members of the Moore family ever learned the legendary Flowing Technique from the previous family head.

“I heard the technique is amazing. How I wish I could witness it with my own eyes someday.”

Ever since Anne’s accident, Daniel had barely left the hospital, staying by her side day and night. The doctors completely understand how deeply Daniel worried about Anne. They wanted nothing more than for their patient to recover quickly, but as doctors, they couldn’t gamble with a patient’s life.

The blockage in Anne’s blood vessel was in an extremely dangerous spot, right in her brain. They could only rely on conservative, non–invasive treatments, hoping the clot would dissolve on its own without surgery.

Alex remembered there was once a student from the Moore family at his school. The Moores possessed a miraculous acupuncture technique known as the Flowing Technique. It was said that those who mastered this technique could even snatch lives from the brink of death. If someone was destined to die at midnight, this technique could keep them alive until dawn. But that student from the Moore family passed away over a decade ago. After that, none of the existing Moores could perform the legendary Flowing Technique.

The man Daniel had invited was Neo, the youngest son from a collateral line of the Moore family. His medical skills simply couldn’t compare to those of the main family.

Now living overseas, the Moores rely entirely on the legacy established by their ancestors to maintain their standing. The Moore family achieved great glory, then gradually declined.

Alex always spoke his mind. Thanks to his friendship with Charlie, he was naturally warm and familiar around Zinnia, so he shared everything with her.

Zinnia asked, “The Moore family?” A flicker of doubt crossed her mind. She pondered, “The Moore family? The Flowing Technique? Is it the same one Master taught me?

‘From what Alex described, Anne’s condition doesn’t seem severe enough to require the Flowing Technique. That technique is only used to save someone on the brink of death, and performing it is extremely taxing on the practitioner.

‘Who exactly is Master? Is he from the Moore family?’ Suddenly, Zinnia recalled the token her Master had given her. It was engraved with the character “Moore.” A wave of doubt washed over her.

Zinnia had never known who Master was, not his name, not his background. After hearing about the Moore family, she couldn’t help but start questioning her Master’s true identity.

Zinnia thought, ‘Master once said the Flowing Technique is exclusive to his family. Could Master be connected to the Moores? If he truly is one of them, maybe I could find him through the Moore family.

But as soon as the thought crossed her mind, Zinnia pushed it aside. Her Master once told her not to look for him. So even with doubts lingering in her heart, she couldn’t disobey her Master’s words.

She thought, ‘There must be a reason Master left. I will just wait until he comes back.’

Alex explained further, “That’s right, the Moore family. They used to be one of Jinston’s top four families, but emigrated overseas twenty years ago. So now there are only three elite families left in the city.”

Just then, they arrived at the office. Alex said, “Zinnia, we’re here. Charlie’s office is just ahead. Let’s go in and wait for him inside.”

The office was shared by Charlie and Alex. Alex pushed open the door and led Zinnia to sit at Charlie’s desk.

“Zinnia, have a seat. Let me get you some water,” Alex said, turning to pour her a drink.

Zinnia handed one of the lunch boxes to Alex and said, “Alex, have you eaten yet? Here, I brought this for you.”

Zinnia thought, ‘Sofia is always so thoughtful. Knowing Charlie shares his office with someone else, she made sure to pack two lunches.’

“I didn’t expect there’d be one for me, too. Thanks, Zinnia. Perfect timing, I haven’t eaten yet,” Alex said, his eyes lighting up in surprise. Without hesitation, he accepted the lunchbox with a big smile.

Alex had been swamped all afternoon and was starving. He’d planned to grab a meal at the cafeteria, but then Charlie asked him to pick up Zinnia, so he still hadn’t had a chance to eat.

Alex settled into his seat beside Zinnia and continued chatting. He asked, “Zinnia, have you had dinner yet?”

“I’ve already eaten,” Zinnia replied.

Just then, Charlie returned to his office. Seeing Zinnia, his eyes softened with affection. With a warm smile, he said, “Zinnia, why did you come all the way to bring me lunch? I could’ve just grabbed a quick bite.”

Zinnia replied, “I’m off today and not busy. Sofia said you get so busy you forget to eat, so she sent me to make sure you eat.”

Dressed in a white doctor’s coat, Charlie’s naturally gentle demeanor seemed even softer. Sometimes, Zinnia caught glimpses of her Master in Charlie, and being around Charlie always gave her an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

“She is always worrying,” Charlie said helplessly.

“Charlie, hurry up and eat before it gets cold,” Zinnia urged, bending down to open the lunchbox for him.