bookbashuk Chapter 247 Hospital and Ice Cream
Chapter 247 Hospital and Ice Cream
Chapter 247 Hospital and Ice Cream
"The price of extraordinary materials has gone up quite a bit recently. Is it because of the official actions a while ago—..."
Lorne, who had just come from the gathering of extraordinary individuals hosted by Mr. A, made a comment.
In recent days, many extraordinary underground gatherings in Backlund have fallen silent. Like the one he had attended hosted by the old man known as the "Eye of Wisdom," he hadn't seen any related veiled news in the corners of the newspapers for a long time.
However, this haul was quite good. He successfully purchased a complete "Dark Lurker" poison sac, which means he'll soon have all the potion ingredients needed for "Rachi's" advancement.
The price was a bit painful, costing him a full 600 pounds, almost 30% higher than the usual market price.
"Sigh, oh well, it's a special time, there's nothing I can do about being a sucker once in a while—" Lorne comforted himself as he put the lead box containing the poison sac into his personal space.
Before he knew it, he had arrived in the eastern district. He had originally planned to stop by his gun factory to check on the recent production situation.
Unexpectedly, just as he turned a corner, a familiar figure unexpectedly came into view.
"stop?"
Lorne looked at the figure in the distance, a petite woman with blond hair, sitting alone by the window of a cheap cafe on the street, seemingly resting.
"Are you here to carry out arbitration duties?"
"Perfect timing, I can talk to her about the gun factory."
Thinking this, Lorne put on a gentle smile and quickly stepped forward to greet him.
"It's nice to see you again, Miss Hugh."
"Mr. Scott?" Hugh was lost in thought, holding her coffee cup, when she was startled by the sudden voice. When she saw who it was, her face showed obvious surprise.
She had just finished an arbitration mission and was looking for a place to rest when she unexpectedly ran into Lorne here.
"You look tired. Did something happen?" Lorne sat down naturally opposite her and asked with concern.
"No." Hugh shook his head, then asked suspiciously, "Mr. Scott, what are you doing here?"
"I just finished what I was doing and wanted to find a place to rest," Lorne said sincerely. "I never expected to run into Sister Hugh here. We're quite destined to meet."
Xiu lowered her head somewhat awkwardly, her cheeks slightly flushed. She always felt that whenever the other person said "it's fate," they were teasing her.
"By the way, Miss Hugh, I happen to have something I'd like to ask you for help with," Lorne said, changing the subject with a slightly pleading tone.
"Ah—what is it?" Hugh was somewhat surprised. Why would someone as powerful as Mr. Scott ask him for help?
But as soon as she opened her mouth, she realized that something was wrong with her words. She had personally promised that she would do anything the other person asked for.
"If—if it's something I can do, I will definitely help."
Of course, if it's that kind of thing—I'd definitely have to think about it—after all, I don't know him very well yet, and I don't have that kind of intention right now—
Seeing Hugh's slightly flushed cheeks and evasive eyes, Lorne seemed to guess what was going on and couldn't help but chuckle, soothingly saying:
"Don't worry, it's just a small matter."
Compared to its previous lifelessness, the Loggert Machinery Factory was noticeably more lively, with the faint sounds of machinery emanating from within.
Lorne brought Hugh here.
"Old Kohler," Lorne called out as he walked to the small room next to the main gate, which served as the gatehouse.
"Ahem—Mr. Scott!" Upon hearing the familiar voice, old Kohler rushed out of the room.
"Are you sick?" Lorne noticed that his complexion was a little off, and he was sweating profusely on his forehead.
"It's just a minor cold, sir. The weather's been bad lately, quite a few people are like that." Old Kohler waved his hand. "Don't worry, I'll manage."
Lorne subtly activated his spiritual vision, glanced at the other party, and discovered that the color of Old Kohler's spirit body was mixed with some black, which represented disease, but overall it was still within a safe range.
"If possible, go buy some medicine. Don't try to tough it out," Lorne advised.
"This is Miss Hugh Deercha," Lorne said, turning to introduce her to old Kohler.
"This is old Kohler, the factory gatekeeper."
"Hello, Mr. Kohler." Hugh bowed slightly and greeted him politely.
"You—hello, Miss Deercha," old Kohler said, sounding somewhat flustered and uneasy.
"Has anything happened at the factory these past two days?" Lorne asked.
"No, sir. Because of your generosity, everyone is very motivated, and many of the old workers who left have returned—"
Lorne nodded slightly.
Mr. Scott is really a nice guy—Hugh, listening from the side, felt his impression of Lorne improve even more.
"By the way, old Kohler, have any gangsters been harassing you lately?" Lorne cut to the chase.
Not yet.
"temporary?"
Old Kohler sighed, a worried look on his face: "Sir, there are just too many gangs in the East District. They probably looked down on this place because the factory was about to go bankrupt."
But now you've not only restarted production, but also increased the workers' wages. I'm afraid... I'm afraid this place will be targeted sooner or later.
"You just need to do your job well and stay alert." Lorne glanced at Hugh beside him. "If you encounter any special situations that you can't handle, you can go to this Hugh."
Hugh stepped forward and said to old Kohler, "Yes, Mr. Kohler. If any gangs cause trouble, you can come to me."
Her tone was full of confidence. She had arbitrated countless cases involving gangs over the years, and she was quite experienced in this area.
Old Kohler glanced at Hugh hesitantly, looking at her breasts that reached his chin, and asked tentatively:
"Does Sister Deercha know people in the police station, or is there something else behind her—"
“No, she can handle it herself,” Lorne said.
"Themselves?" Old Kohler's face was filled with surprise. He had seen many gangsters in the East District; although most were bullies, there were also some desperate criminals among them. Could this short—not very tall—young lady really handle things?
"What, you don't believe me?" Lorne saw his doubt and smiled. "Ordinary gangs are no match for her."
"She's probably 'educated' more gangsters than you've ever seen. Don't you think so?" He turned and glanced at Hugh beside him.
"Of course! I'm very strong!" Hugh understood and even made a samurai gesture. Although her thin arms didn't seem convincing at all.
"I believe Mr. Scott." Since the boss had said that, old Kohler couldn't say anything more.
They also briefly explained how to contact them in case of special circumstances, and Lorne asked Xiu to come and visit the area whenever he had time.
So that's all there is to it—Hugh breathed a sigh of relief, but a vague sense of disappointment lingered within him.
Fortunately, the request wasn't something difficult to say. Disappointingly, she realized she had vaguely anticipated something else.
Just then, a commotion and argument suddenly came from the direction of the factory workshop.
Something happened?
Lorne and his companions immediately pushed through the crowd and hurried over.
"What's wrong? What happened?" Old Kohler asked, pulling aside a worker he knew.
"It's John! John—he suddenly collapsed!"
Lorne squeezed into the center of the crowd and saw the man lying on the cold ground, wearing dark blue overalls.
His face was pale, his lips were black, and he looked pained and had lost consciousness.
Lorne immediately activated his spiritual vision and discovered that John's spirit body was dull in color and shrouded in a thick, unhealthy black layer, indicating a very serious condition.
"How is his health usually? Has he always been in poor condition?" Lorne asked his coworker next to him in a deep voice.
"No, no, sir!" The coworker quickly shook his head. "John has always been in good health. He's a veteran worker in our factory, very strong. It's just—it seemed like he had a bit of a cold a couple of days ago, and then today while he was working, he suddenly—"
A cold—could it be a complication of acute influenza? Lorne's gaze swept around and he noticed that although the workers watching all had worried expressions on their faces, none of them dared to step forward to help.
Are you afraid of getting infected?
"Old Kohler," he approached Old Kohler and asked in a low voice, "Are you afraid of getting infected?"
"I'm not afraid!" Old Kohler answered without hesitation.
“Alright,” Lorne made the decision immediately, “Old Kohler, you lend a hand, we’ll take him to the hospital.”
Hospital!
Upon hearing this, old Kohler's face showed a troubled expression: "But sir, John's family situation is very bad, I'm afraid—I'm afraid they can't afford the hospital bills."
"I'm the boss, I'll pay for him," Lorne said decisively.
He turned to Hugh beside him and said, "Hugh, could you please go outside the factory and find a horse-drawn carriage to come over right away?"
"Understood!" Without the slightest hesitation, Hugh immediately turned around and ran quickly out of the factory.
Amidst the mixed gazes of shock, admiration, and gratitude from the surrounding workers, Lorne and Old Kohler lifted the unconscious John onto one of their left and right sides, and carried him into a taxi that had just arrived.
"Go to the hospital! The nearest one!"
The carriage began to jolt, and Lorne looked out the window at the rapidly receding street scene, lost in thought.
Getting old Kohler's help in rescuing people will definitely boost his standing among the workers. He'll also be more likely to find out the information he needs if anything happens at the factory in the future.
Since it was his first time visiting a hospital in this era, Lorne wasn't very familiar with the procedures. It was only with the help of Hugh and Old Kohler that he was able to complete the admission formalities.
The doctor's diagnosis was similar to Lorne's guess: a serious complication caused by an acute cold. Moreover, John's condition deteriorated rapidly in a short period of time because he hadn't rested at all since falling ill and had been working at a high intensity while sick.
Rest? For them, rest might mean losing their jobs, or starving to death. How could they possibly dare to rest? After listening to the doctor's explanation, Lorne sighed silently in his heart.
He first paid two pounds for John's medical expenses, then looked at old Kohler, who also looked unwell.
"Old Kohler, how are you feeling? Should we get a checkup?"
"No, no need, sir! I'm fine!" Old Kohler waved his hands repeatedly in refusal. He cherished this job and did not want to leave Lorne with the impression that he was physically weak.
Seeing the other party's resistance, Lorne activated his spiritual vision to scan him again. Fortunately, Old Kohler's condition wasn't too serious. He could only tell the other party to make sure to buy some medicine and not to tough it out.
After all the formalities were completed, old Kohler volunteered to stay at the hospital, saying he would watch over John until he woke up. Lorne and Hugh left the hospital side by side.
"Being a boss is quite troublesome," Lorne remarked, then turned to the girl silently following beside him. "Hugh, thank you for coming with me today."
"It's nothing," Hugh, who was lost in thought behind him, was suddenly called out. He paused for a moment, then smiled and replied, "This is fine too."
She paused, then, as if gathering her courage, asked, "Just now—did you call me by my name directly?"
"—" Lorne paused slightly, then chuckled and apologized, "I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself—"
"It's nothing—" Hugh lowered his head, his voice becoming lighter. "Actually—this way of addressing you is quite nice."
"Alright then, Hugh." Lorne shrugged obligingly.
"Hmm," Hugh responded softly, lowered his head, and said nothing more.
The two came to the roadside, intending to hail a horse-drawn carriage to go back.
Just then, Lorne noticed a nice-looking street-side coffee shop nearby.
He looked up at the sky; after all that work, it was well past lunchtime, and it was already afternoon.
"Would you like something to drink? It's on me," Lorne suggested.
"Okay." Hugh didn't refuse.
The two sat down at an outdoor table outside the coffee shop.
Xiu ordered a cup of Earl Grey tea, which she often drinks.
Lorne stared at the menu, lost in thought. To be honest, he wasn't really in the mood for coffee, and he didn't like black tea. After a moment's thought, his gaze fell on the dessert section.
"Give me a mixed flavor ice cream."
what--
Hugh cast a slightly puzzled look at him. She hadn't expected Scott to like ice cream, such a somewhat childish dessert.
Lorne saw through her thoughts and explained with a smile, "I prefer desserts."
The ice cream was served quickly. Lorne picked up a small spoon, took a bite, and nodded in satisfaction.
"The taste is not bad."
Although it wasn't quite as good as the ice cream in Bayam's fancy restaurant, it was still quite good for this little street shop, even better than many of the ice creams he had eaten before he transmigrated.
Huh?
Just as he was enjoying his ice cream, he keenly noticed a gaze.
He looked in the direction of his gaze and saw a little boy holding tarot cards not far away, staring at him without moving.