Ch. 2271..2280

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2271 -Though a little startled, Austin quickly explained, "A servant from the estate called and told me some foreigners took Uncle Dom away."

The servants were not sure who those people were, but it was clear their employer had been forced into leaving with them. Knowing they had to alert someone, the first person that came to mind was Austin.

Although Austin was not exactly Dominic's student, the servants considered him to be one of them because he was their employer's grandnephew and had lived with them for a while. Most importantly, he was popular among the servants as he had cured them.

When Austin received the news, he immediately had a clue and came to find Alexander.

"Foreigners?" Alexander thought of someone as well.

"Do you also think it's Fred?" Austin asked as if he had read Alexander’s mind.

"I think so." Alexander nodded. "But why would he want to abduct Dominic?

Could it be for the experiment, too?” Although the experiment needed all kinds of experts, they would not have waited until now if they needed Dominic.

"I have no idea, but the servant said Dominic left with them willingly, so I don't think it's that simple." Austin frowned.

The two fell silent. Austin then curiously peered inside.

Catching himself, Alexander opened the door wider. "Come in."

He was not trying to hide anything from Austin. He did not want too many people to know who Ross was or that he was staying there. However, since Austin was already here, he might as well tell him.

"Are you sure?" Austin hesitated.

He knew Alexander had reasons for not asking him to join them. He was not upset about it, just a bit curious.

"It's okay," Alexander said, "I had reasons for asking you not to join us, but it's not something you shouldn't know about. Let's talk inside." He beckoned.

Austin stepped inside. Seeing Mike and a foreigner seated on the sofa and Edward standing beside them, he asked, “A secret meeting, huh?"

"Not really." Alexander chuckled and led him to Ross. "This is Prince Ross of Yudonia."

"Oh…" Austin caught on. "Now I know why I wasn't asked to join, but don't worry, my lips are sealed." He chuckled as he looked at Ross. "Long time no see, Your Highness!"

Alexander and Mike were surprised.

Giving Austin a friendly hug, Ross said, 'Hey, Aust. It’s been a minute."

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2272-Austin and Ross were acting like old friends.

"I should’ve told you I've known Prince Ross for a long time. We got acquainted when I was studying abroad.” Austin said to Ross laughingly, "I'm pleasantly surprised to see you! When did you get here? You should’ve told me you were coming."

Ross laughed heartily. "I’m only here for a short business trip, so I didn’t call you. To think I'd meet you here!" He gave Austin another hug.

The other three men shared a surprised look. Nobody expected Austin to be the prince's old pal.

"You can say that again!" Austin took a seat beside Ross. "How are your headaches?"

"Since you treated me two years ago, I've felt much better. I do have some trouble sleeping, though." Now that Austin was here, Ross was now much more relaxed.

Austin sighed. "You have so many things to worry about, and you hold yourself to high standards. If I were you, I'd have trouble sleeping too."

"You're making fun of me again, Aust!" Ross laughed.

The atmosphere became much more light-hearted.

After chatting about old times, Austin suddenly asked, "Hold up! We should catch up later. My granduncle is in trouble right now."

"Your granduncle? The reclusive miracle doctor?"

Austin had told him about the old man before.

Nodding, Austin turned to Alexander, then thought of something, and returned to Ross again. "Hey, you're the prince of Yudonia. The duke has to listen to you, right? Ross, you have to help my granduncle!"

Ross frowned. "Fred again?"

"Yes!" Austin nodded. "So you know what's going on? That's great. Wait, you weren't discussing Fred, were you?"

The other three men nodded in unison.

"So, what's the conclusion?" Since they were talking about it, Austin thought he might as well join them.

"There's nothing we can do for now," Alexander said.

"Not even you?" Austin looked at Ross in disbelief. "But you're the prince!"

Ross spread his arms helplessly and joked, "Yes, but I'm under Fred's control right now."

"What?" Austin looked bewildered.

Mike quickly filled him in on the details.

"So Rhea hypnotized you and failed?" Scratching his head, Austin pondered and said, "Just what the hell has she been researching?"

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2273 -One or two failures seemed reasonable, but Rhea’s experiments seemed to have failed too often.

Back in the laboratory, Austin thought she was talented. However, he later discovered she was better at improving others’ work, while her individual research typically failed.

Rhea did not develop the drug that tormented Austin and the virus in Burnwken, while the ones used on Cameron and Edward were. In the latter two cases, her experiments had failed.

She was unable to control Cameron fully, and he even regained his volition. It was also the same with Edward.

Interestingly, Rhea's research had always been about mind control. She seemed to enjoy the thrill of manipulating others but had never succeeded.

Austin could not help but wonder why she was obsessed with it. He looked at Ross and asked, “So, she doesn’t know her hypnosis has failed?” Ross nodded. "She thinks it worked."

Austin shook his head and chuckled. After some thought, he asked, "Does my granduncle's abduction have something to do with it? They realize Rhea isn't capable enough, so they want him to replace her. Is that it?"

"Perhaps." Alexander was just as puzzled. He asked, "But you said Dominic went with them willingly, right?"

Austin nodded. "That's the strangest part. No one can make my granduncle do anything against his will. Many VIPs have tried to get him to treat them, but he never yielded, even when they offered him a lot of money or threatened to kill him.” ‘The fact that Uncle Dom left with Fred showed that he wanted to. But why?’ Alexander paced back and forth and thought about his time spent with the older man and what he said. Suddenly, Alexander had a thought and turned around.

He looked at everyone before asking Austin, “Could it have something to do with Lily?” After all, only she could make Dominic want to go.

Having no wife and children, Dominic did not care about fame and had little regard for his life. The only people he cared about were Lily and Galen. The others were stunned for a moment before nodding. “Yes, that could be it!” Everyone knew Dominic was partial to Lily, so much so that Austin was once jealous of her. Therefore, the older man most likely went with them for her sake.

"So Dominic went to save Lily?" Mike thought about it and said, "But why did they look for him? They aren't planning to replace Lily with him, are they?"

They all thought it was unlikely.

It was evident Fred wanted to use Lily's body as a vessel for the queen's soul.

As Dominic was an elderly man, the duke would never use him as a substitute.

"Well, people only look for him for one reason—" Austin looked at others and said, "to cure life-threatening illnesses."

The others exchanged looks.

"Is Fred… sick?" Ross asked, puzzled.

"Or is it the queen?" Mike asked.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2274-Alexander remained silent while Ross and Mike shook their heads, thinking both their suspicions were unlikely.

After some consideration, Alexander asked, "Is it possible Dom went to treat Lily?"

The four men thought it was highly probable.

"Fred looked healthy when I left. As for my mom, she has her own doctors. I doubt Fred would do such a thing for her. It makes more sense if Dominic did it for his favorite student,” Ross voiced his opinion, and the others nodded in agreement.

Still, Mike was puzzled. "But Lily has always been in good health, and she knows how to take care of herself. How did Lily suddenly fall sick? Even if she is, the embassy has many excellent doctors. Why would Fred risk approaching Dominic?

"We won't find out unless we can get inside." Sighing, he felt the more they delved into the matter, the more troubled and bewildered they became.

If they were right, then Lily should have a severe illness. Considering the risks, Fred would have never asked Dominic for help otherwise.

They wondered how Lily was doing right now.

… At the embassy, Fred led Dominic to a room when he alighted from the car.

When the door opened, the roomful of people in white coats looked at him.

Seeing Fred, the doctors leaped to their feet and said respectfully, "Your Grace."

The duke nodded. "How is she?"

No one dared to answer. The equipment was beeping, and Lily lay motionless on the bed.

"Get out." Fred waved at them.

They quickly obeyed and closed the door behind them. Only Fred, his bodyguard, and Dominic remained.

Dominic had his gaze fixed on Lily since entering. Seeing this, Fred knew he had guessed correctly.

Fred sneered. "I believe you two haven't seen each other in some time. I'll give you a moment to catch up."

He stood to the side and watched while Dominic remained frozen for a while. A moment later, Dominic slowly approached the bed.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2275 -Lying quietly in bed, Lily looked as if she was asleep. Her face was pale, and her breathing was slow. The electrocardiogram next to her showed that her heart rate was so slow that it might stop anytime.

Dominic then realized why that foreign man had come looking for him. Since they had a use for her, they could not let Lily die. They must be at their wits' end and thus used the relationship between him and Lily to get him to come.

"I'm sure you don't want your favorite student to die at such a young age, right?"

Fred questioned in a mocking tone.

Dominic did not even bother to glance at him.

"Only you can save her now. If you fail, she's a goner." Fred shrugged, feigning indifference.

"Get out," Dominic finally said.

Fred was taken aback.

"Get out. I don't need you here." Dominic’s gaze was fixed upon Lily's face as if no one else was around.

This blatant disregard and hostility upset Fred. Throughout Yudonia, he was second only to the queen in terms of power. Now that she was under his control, even Ross had to listen to him. Yet, this old coot was ordering him to get out.

Fred snorted. "You seem to forget that this is my place."

"If you don't get out, I won't treat her," Dominic said, unwilling to budge.

Unconvinced, Fred laughed. "She's the student you're most proud of. I doubt you’ll stand by and do nothing."

Not wanting to leave them alone, Fred stayed put. However, Dominic proved to be more adamant.

"As I said, everyone has their destiny. I came here because of Lily, but if you don't cooperate, I won’t lift a finger."

"Oh, yeah?" Fred felt that Dominic was threatening him. "Do you think I'll buy this? Why would I care if you don't save her? If it weren't for my friendship with Lily—"

Before he could finish, Dominic suddenly ripped out Lily’s ECG wires and tubes.

The equipment immediately started wailing.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Alarmed, Fred quickly said to his bodyguard, "Seize him!" He then shouted for the doctors to come back in and only relaxed after they had reconnected the wires and tubes.

Seeing Dominic staring at Lily quietly, Fred let out a long sigh and felt apprehensive. This old man was fucking crazy. He never expected him to do such a thing. If he had not reacted quickly, Lily could have died.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2276 -If Lily had died, all his efforts would have gone to waste, and there would have been no way to proceed with the last phase of R10.

"Your Grace…"

The doctors were curious about why the wires and tubes were removed.

"Get out," Fred said grimly.

"Your Grace—"

"Out!" The duke exploded in rage.

The doctors quickly darted out of the room, leaving them alone once again.

Fred turned to his bodyguard. "You too!"

Taken aback, the bodyguard hesitated, then did as told.

Dominic sat beside the bed and gently held Lily's wrist, trying to take her pulse.

Fred once witnessed a pulse-taking before and knew how remarkable it was.

Although it was hard to comprehend it from the viewpoint of mainstream medicine, it had somehow proven effective.

"Leave us," Dominic said coldly, throwing Fred a sidelong glance.

Fred was reluctant. "You can save her, right?" He wanted to know for sure.

For the past two days, the doctors had told him that there was no cure for Lily, so he did not have high hopes and was in a terrible mood.

"I can't guarantee that. Everyone has their own—"

Fred held up a hand to stop him. "Okay, okay, I get it! Everyone has their own destiny, but I don't believe in destiny. I only believe in myself, and I believe you'll be able to revive her."

He gazed at Lily, then turned and walked toward the door. "I'll do as you say, but you better live up to your reputation." He exited the room.

Left alone with Lily, Dominic held her hand gently and saw her wrist was so thin and pale that he could almost see the veins. She had been through so much.

She had suffered when she was pregnant, and even after she had given birth, her torment did not end.

‘Why do you put yourself through this, Lily?' Dominic felt like giving her an earful. However, he knew that if Lily was awake, she would surely outargue him.

"You little brat!" Dominic scolded quietly and focused on taking her pulse.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2277 -Dominic placed his fingers gently on her wrist. He closed his eyes and looked like he was sleeping, but he was not. Frowning, he focused on her pulse. After a while, he removed his fingers and leaned in to examine her face. He lifted her eyelids, then felt her neck.

Watching this through the surveillance cameras, Fred rested his chin in one hand, pensive. Although it did not look like it, Dominic was treating her.

The earlier doctors had relied on all kinds of equipment to determine what illness one had, but alternative medicine practitioners did this through observation, asking questions, and taking wrist pulses. He was unsure if Dominic could save Lily, but there was no other way.

After examining her, Dominic stood up. All he did was gaze at Lily.

As Fred was bewildered, he watched Dominic open the bag he was carrying. It was a black, old-fashioned cloth sack. From it, Dominic took out a set of silver needles of different sizes and laid them out.

Intrigued, Fred sat up straight. Was Dominic about to perform this acupuncture treatment that the doctors had mentioned earlier?

Wanting to see how it worked, he widened his eyes and watched as Dominic took one needle and inserted it into Lily's arm.

Fred was fascinated. 'Why doesn't it bleed?' he wondered as Lily gave no response. 'Does this technique really work?' He stared at the screen as Dominic inserted one needle after another into Lily.

When it came to the last needle, Dominic paused. "You're my most disobedient student,” he muttered as he looked at her. "You always did things your way. I shouldn't have indulged you just because you were smart. Look at where you've ended up.” He choked up, feeling terrible at seeing her lifeless state.

She might stop breathing at any moment without getting to say her last words.

"Goodbye, Lily." Taking a deep breath, Dominic inserted the last needle.

‘Something's wrong!’ Although Fred could not put his finger on what it was, he had a bad feeling.

"Stop him!" he shouted into the microphone as he dashed out of the surveillance room.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2278-The guard outside the door stormed in and apprehended Dominic. Fred charged into the room next, but he was too late. The electrocardiogram emitted a highpitched screech as it showed a flat line.

"No, no, no!" Fred darted toward Lily and shook her by the shoulders. "Don't you fucking die on me! This is an order!"

As he shouted like a madman, the doctors rushed into the room to perform CPR. However, the flat line on the electrocardiogram persisted, signifying that Lily was gone.

"No!" Fred charged toward Dominic, who the guard held back. "Why? Why?!

She's your favorite student! Why did you kill her?! You were supposed to save her!"

Fred punched Dominic in the face, who spat out a mouthful of blood. Despite his swelling face, Dominic smirked.

"I did save her," he murmured as he gazed gently at Lily.

"You're a crazy old man!"

Fred was livid. He should never have trusted him. A miracle doctor?

Acupuncture? It was all bullshit! Dominic had come to kill her instead of saving her. How could he have believed a goddamn charlatan?

"Save her! If she dies, I'll kill all of you," Fred said shouted.

The doctors knew that Lily was dead, but they did not dare to give up. They continued to perform CPR and even brought out the defibrillator. They were worried about using it at first as they worried her heart could not handle it, but they had no other choice now.

Glancing over his shoulder at the ECG machine, a doctor solemnly called out, "Clear!"

Just as they were about to apply the defibrillator, they heard a faint grunt. Then, the flat line on the electrocardiogram suddenly jumped. After a moment, it settled into a steady rise and fall.

Lily's closed eyes finally flickered.

"She's alive?"

The doctor took a step back in shock as if they were seeing a ghost. At the same time, they were relieved, knowing that they were safe.

Surprised, Fred hurried over to her. "Lily? Lily?"

Lily weakly opened her eyes before closing them again. Even her fingers were twitching.

"I knew you weren't going to die!" Fred laughed happily.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2279-However, even with a heartbeat, Lily still looked weak.

Fred noticed this and turned to the doctor. "Examine her!"

They immediately did as told, and one of them announced, "Your Grace, she's out of danger, but she's fragile. She will need time to recuperate."

"For how long?" Fred said with a frown.

"Two weeks at least."

"That long?"

Fred looked grim. He could not wait that long, but there was no other way. He marched toward Dominic and grabbed him by his collar. "How dare you mess with me, old man? What if she had died?" Pointing toward Lily, he thought of what happened and felt his anger rise.

If Lily had died, all his efforts would have gone to waste.

Dominic simply burst out laughing.

Fred was about to punch Dominic again when a doctor whispered into his ear, "Perhaps he was trying to save her."

"What do you mean?" Fred looked at the doctor with a frown.

After some hesitation, the man answered truthfully, "I've read about a technique like this in ancient texts. It involves worsening the patients' conditions in the hopes of reviving them."

This technique was akin to using a defibrillator, the machine they had not dared to use. No one wanted to take the risk. If Lily had died, the one whose hands she had died by would suffer Fred's wrath.

"Are you saying he was trying to save instead of killing her just now?" Fred narrowed his eyes incredulously.

Judging by the old man's expression, that did not seem like the case.

Furthermore, Dominic had not even tried to explain his actions.

"Based on Lily's conditions, I think he was."

After all, Lily was not only revived, but her vital signs also showed significant improvement.

"Was that what you were doing?" Fred asked with a half-smile as he loomed over Dominic, who simply sneered in response.

Dominic’s dismissive attitude irritated Fred, but he could not kill the old man for now, as he still needed him.

Spoiled by mr. russell chapter 2280.--"Lock him up," Fred said coldly.

"I'm staying," Dominic said after some struggle. "You have to kill me to make me leave."

Fred snorted. "Do you think I won't?"

"Do it then." Dominic plopped down by the head of the bed and held on to the bedpost.

Although he was scrawny, Dominic proved rather strong. As several guards tried to drag him away, they pulled the bed along with them.

Lily then frowned. "Dom…" She coughed. "S-Stop!"

Happy that she could speak, Fred gestured for the guards to stop and went up to her. He said, "You really are something else. Do you think you can mess up my plan by dying?"

"I've no idea what you're talking about." Still trying to process what was going on, Lily turned to look at Dominic. "Dom shouldn't be here. Let him go."

"Let him go?" Fred chuckled. "So that you can try to kill yourself again?"

He believed that Lily must have done this to herself. Even if there was a traitor among them, the person would not have tried to kill Lily and was more likely to attempt to save the queen instead.

Secondly, Lily had not come into contact with anyone, and she was in good health. Although he did not know how she did it, he was certain that Lily had done something to herself.

"If you dare to lay a finger on him, I'll end my life right now," Lily said, her voice hoarse and chilling.

She and Fred glared at one another, trying to see who would back down first.

After a moment, Fred snorted. "Just you wait." He turned and strode toward the door. "Everyone out!"

He then paused, then turned back to her.

"I'm warning you. If you die before the experiment begins, I'll kill your whole family and everyone related to you. Don’t think this is an empty threat.

“Yes, I can't do just whatever I want here, but keep in mind the pandemic that happened in Burnwken. The Hyderland government won't be able to protect them forever. If you want them dead, then go ahead.” Fred then left the room, leaving Lily and Dominic alone.

Dominic staggered to his feet and sighed. "You little brat!"

Lily smiled. It was a blessing to be scolded by her mentor.

"I thought I’d never see you again," Lily murmured.