Hamilton Hale felt that any doctor with a conscience would be furious after hearing something like this.

And so, he drove straight to Evergreen Private Hospital.

"This place?" Eve Vaughn asked quickly. "I just asked this morning. They refused to admit my mother, saying all their beds were already booked."

Hamilton said meaningfully, "They’ll take her."

He then got out of the car, called for security, and had them bring out a gurney to move Aurelia Quinn from the car into the hospital.

Everyone at Evergreen Hospital knew Hamilton Hale. After all, it was the Hale family’s hospital—and the most luxurious private hospital in all of Rivaster.

To be precise, the Hale Group held shares in nine of the ten private hospitals in Rivaster. Moreover, the Hale family controlled the city’s largest pharmaceutical market, raking in enormous profits.

When Hamilton arrived at the rehabilitation department with Eve and her mother, the department director himself came out to greet them.

"Eldest Young Master!"

The director, a man nearly fifty years old, was utterly deferential to Hamilton.

Hamilton stated, his face devoid of expression, "Director Ford, there are only doctors in a hospital, not young masters. I’ve told you this many times."

Director Ford corrected himself awkwardly. "Doctor Hale, just now... the chairman called."

Hamilton nodded. "I know. We’re not supposed to admit the patient named Aurelia Quinn, right? Get her a bed first. I’ll deal with my father."

"But... Doctor Hale, I really can’t go against the chairman’s orders," Director Ford said in a low voice. "This came from the Health Bureau. Please don’t put me in a difficult position. Why don’t you call the chairman right now? Once you two have it sorted out, I’ll follow the orders. How about that?"

Just then, his father, Gordon Hale, rushed into the ward. "There’s no need to call. I’m here!"

Without even glancing at Eve Vaughn, he spoke directly to Hamilton. "Come with me!"

And so, Hamilton followed his father to the office.

Gordon Hale looked at his son. "I recall when you insisted on working at a public hospital, you said you would never rely on the Hale family’s influence or have anything to do with the family business. That none of it concerned you, correct? If that’s the case, what are you doing storming in here today with a comatose patient?"

Hamilton scoffed. "Are you really that afraid of the Health Bureau? Who was it that used to say that with the Hale family’s standing in Rivaster’s medical community, even the Health Bureau has to treat us with respect? What’s wrong? Scared now? Or were you just a paper tiger making empty boasts back then?"

Gordon’s face turned livid. "Don’t you try goading me! Let me be perfectly clear. I’m not afraid of the Health Bureau, but I have no reason to make an enemy over some irrelevant person. I’ve heard all about this girl’s reputation. She’s the one who abandoned Julian Lawson when he was critically ill, isn’t she?"

"That was clearly slander spread by Mrs. Lawson!" Hamilton said, his tone grave and earnest. "I don’t want to argue with you about this. I know that whether Eve is innocent or not is completely unimportant to you. What matters is that you won’t go against the Woods family for her. But I’ve already started gathering evidence of their illegal activities and misconduct in their position over the years."

Gordon roared, "I paid for your schooling, gave you the best education, and the moment you graduated, you cut all ties with this family, refusing to help me at the Hale Group in the slightest! And now? You actually want to make enemies for us? Believe it or not, I will disown you!"

"Don’t try to scare me by threatening to disown me all the time," Hamilton said, his voice sharp as a blade. "If you don’t admit Eve Vaughn’s mother today, I will personally go to the media and expose how Evergreen Hospital is colluding with the Health Bureau and putting lives at risk!"

"You’re insane!"

Furious, Gordon Hale swept everything off his desk and roared, "This family will be ruined by a rebellious son like you sooner or later!"

Hamilton was unmoved.

Although Gordon was furious enough to have a stroke, he knew his son’s temperament. If he insisted on opposing him, the boy might just lose his head and actually go to the media.

And so, Gordon reluctantly allowed the rehabilitation department to admit Aurelia Quinn.

Hamilton even arranged a private room for Eve Vaughn’s mother.

Only after everything was settled did Eve finally get a chance to speak with Hamilton.

"Doctor Hale, thank you so much for today," she said, still shaken. "I really thought my mom and I weren’t going to make it through this."

Hamilton smiled. "You don’t have to be so formal. Mason and I have been friends for years, after all. I couldn’t just stand by and do nothing when someone close to him is in trouble."

Eve’s expression suddenly fell. ’So in the end,’ she thought, ’it was all for Mason’s sake.’

’That’s right. Without Mason, who among people like Hamilton Hale or Jonah Spencer would even know who I am?’

’For a moment, she couldn’t quite put a name to the feeling in her heart.’

’If this keeps up, will I ever be able to leave Mason?’

Hamilton asked, a little puzzled, "Mrs. Lawson treated you like that, and you didn’t tell Mason? If I hadn’t happened to be passing by that hospital, what were you going to do?"

Eve shook her head and said dejectedly, "No. Mason... he’s on a business trip abroad. Besides, there’s something I’d like to ask of you, Doctor Hale. Can you promise me you’ll do it?"

"Tell me."

Hamilton waited for her to continue.

Eve said earnestly, "Please don’t tell Mason what happened today. I... I don’t want to cause him any more trouble."

Hamilton said mildly, "You’re Mason’s woman. If you’re in trouble, you can go directly to him. Something that you think is an insurmountable problem might be solved with a single word from him."

Eve bit her lower lip and said, embarrassed, "You’re all mistaken. I’m not his woman."

"What?"

Hamilton looked as if he hadn’t quite understood. "Then your relationship with Mason is...?"

Eve felt that Hamilton was a good person, and not a gossip like Eric Kendall, so she told him how Mason had asked her to pretend to be his girlfriend to drive Joanna Sullivan away.

Hamilton’s jaw nearly dropped. He murmured, "Leave it to Mason to come up with something like that. What a dirty trick! So, you and him... nothing at all has happened between you?"

"Mm."

Eve gave a bitter smile. "Actually, after Mrs. Lawson had my mother forcibly discharged, I called Mason once. But Miss Sullivan answered, and that’s when I realized they were back together. So, soon, I’ll have to end this charade with him. I can’t keep troubling him with my affairs."

Hamilton gazed thoughtfully at the forlorn young woman before him, a fleeting, inexplicable pang of sympathy stirring in his heart.

Faced with Eve’s plea, he finally nodded. "Alright. I promise."

...

「The next day.」

Hamilton ran into Autumn Woods from his department in the parking garage on his way to work.

He greeted her coldly, "Director Woods."

Autumn Woods’s expression was grim. She stepped into the same elevator as him and said pointedly, "I just don’t get it. The woman my son cast aside... why are you all scrambling to have her? Hamilton, do you and Jonah Spencer enjoy picking up trash that much? Aren’t you disgusted, passing the same woman around?"