Chapter 313 You're Not Much to Talk About Anymore
Suzy was startled. "Mom, are you okay?"
Emma, pale with pain, couldn't find the words to reply.
Suzy quickly assisted her into the room and instructed the servant who had followed with the meal to go fetch the first-aid kit immediately.
The servant acknowledged with a quick response, set down the food, and swiftly headed downstairs.
"Mom, I'm sorry, it was not intentional," Suzy said, her eyes brimming with tears and her face full of remorse.
Emma took a deep breath to calm herself, her gaze landing on Suzy's face. She thought about how twisted Suzy's expression had looked when she had first walked in and wondered if she had been mistaken.
"Suzy, since when did you become so irritable?" she asked.
The girl she had fostered had always been graceful and even if she had a temper, it was nothing more than a slight bit of ladylike petulance.
But a while ago, the look Suzy had displayed was murderous! It made Emma feel like she was looking at a stranger.
"It's all because of Nora; I don't even feel like myself anymore," Suzy said, her eyes flickering as she pretended to be fragile. "Mom, I think I'm about to get depression."
After her confession, she broke into sobs.
Emma's fleeting sense of alienation vanished in an instant, replaced by a glimmer of pity in her eyes.
"Come on, Suzy, it's just a man. Forget about him. Can't you find someone better than him in Lindwood City?" Emma consoled her.
But Suzy's eyes were still red. "But Mom, I only like Aaron, I only want to marry him!"
Emma frowned, "Suzy, a forced melon is not sweet. You can see for yourself; Aaron's heart and eyes are filled with Nora. Even if you force yourself to marry him, you won't be happy."
She genuinely had her foster daughter's best interests at heart. Although she didn't like Nora, at this point, she had no right to oppose Aaron's feelings for her.
Emma paused, then continued, "Look, the Remington family is hosting a reunion this weekend. You should come with me.
"The eldest son of the Remington family is still unmarried, and there had been talks of marriage with our Hamilton family. But you were so infatuated with Aaron at the time, that I let it go.
"Now that things between you and Aaron have come to an end, why not marry into the Remington family? That way, you're close to home even after marriage, and we can support each other if needed."
Outside the door, Nora held a medical kit, pulling Sandy back before she could knock and enter. A frown creased Nora's brow.
Were they talking about the Remington family where Evella and Gary belonged? She wondered what kind of person the eldest Remington brother was. If he was decent, wouldn't marrying Suzy just spell disaster for him?
"Nora, aren't you coming in?" Sandy asked in a low voice.
Nora came back to her senses, smiled, and said, "Let's go."
Sandy knocked on the door and then pushed it open.
"Mom, I heard you got hurt, Nora is a doctor, let her take a look at your injury," Sandy said.
Emma's shoulder was indeed in pain, but her expression lightened when she saw Nora.
Before she could speak, Suzy interjected with a snide tone, "Nora, you're really eager. Are you trying to ingratiate yourself with my mom to win her approval and find a place in the family? You sure know how to seize an opportunity!"
Nora opened her medical kit with an unfazed expression.
"I don't know why you would think that. Should I take it that you're scared I might overshadow you?" she said, calmly.
Suzy choked on her words, snorted coldly, and said, "You? Take my spotlight?"
Nora nodded, "Indeed, there's not much of a spotlight for you to lose."
"You..." Suzy was about to retort when Nora interrupted her.
"Excuse me, let me through. I need to see to Mrs. Hamilton's wound."
Nora couldn't be bothered with more banter and cut her off.
Seeing Nora approaching calmly, Suzy pushed her in frustration.
"I don't need your pretentious care. I can apply the ointment for my mom myself."
Nora stumbled from the push but was quickly steadied by Sandy. "Are you okay?"
Nora shook her head, "I'm fine."
Sandy frowned and looked at Suzy.
At that moment, Suzy was kneeling, undoing a few buttons on Emma's shirt. The spot where the shoulder was injured was already bruised and swollen. It looked like it had been hit with great force.
Nora gauged the injury and noticed Suzy preparing to apply ointment. She offered some advice and said, "Mrs. Hamilton has a severe soft tissue injury. Just applying ointment won't be enough; you need to massage the bruising out immediately."
Suzy didn't look back and replied coldly, "I don't need your advice, I know what to do."
Win Emma's favor? She wasn't going to let Nora succeed.
Suzy squeezed some ointment onto her hand and began massaging Emma's shoulder.
She was always a delicate girl, unaccustomed to such rough work. Her actions were only meant to show off to Nora.
As a result, she handled the massage carelessly, eliciting a pained outcry from Emma.
"Stop, stop, Suzy, stop, it hurts too much!" Emma plead.
Suzy didn't let go and said, "Mom, just bear with it a little, it will get better once the area is massaged properly."
Emma's face turned white with pain, her body trembling slightly.
"Stop, please stop!" Emma begged. Another rub and she felt like she would lose half her life!
Seeing this, Nora walked over and pulled Suzy away. "Suzy, are you trying to help her or torture her?" she scolded.
Nora didn't hold back when she pulled her back, so Suzy was yanked to the ground.
Sandy could have caught her, but she swiftly stepped aside instead, letting Suzy fall hard onto the floor.
When Suzy cried out in pain, Sandy sauntered over and helped her up, politely asking, "Are you okay?"
Suzy's face went through several changes before she waved her away, rubbing her sore backside and brushing the dust off her clothes.
By now, Nora had already sat down beside Emma and poured some liniment into her palms to start massaging her anew.
As a doctor, with professional skills, her touch was careful and precise.
Emma, although still in pain, found this much more bearable than Suzy's brutish approach from moments ago.
She couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, her nerves relaxing somewhat.
After dusting herself off, Suzy glared at Nora and moved to pull her away while yelling, "Nora, step aside and mind your own business!"
Emma was alarmed, "Suzy, don't, let Nora handle it."
She feared she would faint from the pain if Suzy had another go.
"Mom…" Suzy responded, dejectedly.
"Suzy, I appreciate your intentions, but you're not a doctor. Let's leave this to the professional," said Emma hastily.
With that, Suzy couldn't say much, only stood to the side and watched as Nora treated Emma, a cold look in her eyes.
Nora helped to alleviate the bruising and then took out silver needles to apply on several acupoints on Emma's body.
Nora informed her beforehand, "While it's just a surface injury, the pain can penetrate deep into the bones. I'll insert a few needles to relieve the pain."
Hearing this, Emma said nothing. As she watched Nora's skilled hands insert the needles, she felt the pain at the wound site lessening.
Considering that the girl before her was a master healer, Emma couldn't help but give her another glance.
It was remarkable to think that at her young age, she was already so skilled in traditional medicine, likely inheriting excellent genes from the Hamilton family.
If only she were her real daughter.
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