Chapter 189 This Is Too Painful
If Ronald hadn't been so diligent, working late until eleven and suddenly remembering a document needed Stuart's signature, he wouldn't have knocked on Stuart's office door.
Stuart was inside, but Ronald knocked for ages without any response.
Given Stuart's recent condition, Ronald started to worry.
He managed to unlock the door and found Stuart slumped over his desk.
Ronald thought, "Is he asleep? He can't be sleeping that deeply. I've been knocking forever."
Ronald quickly realized Stuart had fainted.
Close to midnight, Hustalia was still buzzing with lights and activity.
The hospital's emergency room was bright and busy with medical staff and patients.
On the way to the hospital, Stuart woke up.
Severe stomach pain had caused him to pass out. At the hospital, he got an emergency exam and IV treatment.
By the time Stuart was settled in a special ward with a painkiller, over an hour had passed.
The Haustia family's private doctor arrived.
Worried about any complications, Ronald even called Andrew.
Stuart looked pale, like he'd been through hell.
Nearly eighty, Andrew rushed to the hospital, heart pounding with fear.
He found out Stuart's condition was due to neglecting rest and irregular eating, leading to gastritis and likely a duodenal ulcer. An endoscopy was needed the next day to confirm.
Andrew was both angry and worried. "Why did you let yourself get like this? Why don't you eat properly? You're not made of steel."
Amid Andrew's scolding, Stuart thought about the days before his divorce from Josephine.
Back then, he was busy with work but had regular meals and good sleep.
Thinking about those days now felt like paradise.
Why did he only appreciate it after he lost it?
Looking at himself now, Stuart felt pathetic.
As Liam said, "Untimely affection is useless."
He didn't want to be this despicable.
If he had realized his feelings earlier, he wouldn't have divorced Josephine.
Even when he had Josephine imprisoned, Stuart hadn't realized how deep his feelings were.
But the torment of these days made him understand he had lost.
He had lost to his own stupidity and insensitivity.
Stuart had always known he was exceptional since childhood.
Although his affluent family background spared him many detours, without his efforts, the Haustia family would not have achieved its current status.
Many aristocrats had declined because their heirs were incompetent, losing their status.
However, Stuart was different. He hadn't even graduated elementary school when he earned his first pot of gold through his efforts.
Later, in the Haustia family, making another fifty billion with the initial fifty billion was easy.
Even without the Haustia family, Stuart would have found success. In business, he had a sharp sense, making him confident and decisive. But in matters of the heart, he was like a child learning to walk, stumbling and unsure. He didn't even know if he liked Josephine.
All his pride and confidence shattered in an instant. He never understood or valued the respect Josephine talked about, always thinking she was making a fuss over nothing. He never felt he had disrespected her.
But looking back now, he realized that allowing Robin and others to ignore and mock her was very disrespectful. Thinking about how Josephine must have felt made Stuart wish he could invent a time machine and go back to strangle his past self. But he couldn't do that, and it broke his heart.
It was too painful. Why did thinking about past mistakes hurt so much?
Because of his parents' discord, his grandmother's early death, and growing up with Andrew, no one had told him how a normal couple should interact. He didn't know how to love or respect someone. He just took it for granted that Josephine was his possession. No matter how he treated her, she would always be Mrs. Haustia. She wouldn't leave.
But now, he had lost her. Despite many people and channels searching, there was no news of her.
Andrew's scolding was still ringing in his ears when Stuart opened his eyes and saw Andrew's graying hair. He broke down, his blue eyes welling up with tears.
Andrew hadn't expected to see the always strong and arrogant Stuart cry. "What's wrong? Are you still in pain?" Andrew was momentarily at a loss.
Stuart had been raised by him, and because of his disappointment in Elbert, he had placed high expectations on Stuart. So, from a young age, he had been both kind and strict with Stuart. But the so-called kindness was not the pampering of an ordinary family.
In Stuart's memory, he didn't even know what it felt like to be spoiled. What he remembered most clearly was sitting up straight, writing under Andrew's supervision. If he wrote well, Andrew would praise him a little.
Sometimes, Stuart would see other children running into the arms of their grandparents after school. But he always walked with a steady, determined step, his little face full of seriousness and focus.
He didn't know why he was thinking about his childhood at this moment. But he knew these memories made him feel even more sorrowful.
He wasn't making excuses for himself; he truly believed he didn't know how to love someone. Or rather, he didn't have the ability to love.
This realization completely broke him, and he turned his face away in embarrassment.
Andrew hurriedly got up to call a doctor. "What's wrong with you? Tell me; don't scare me."
"Grandpa." He stopped Andrew. "I'm fine."
Andrew asked with concern, "Then why are you crying?"
He rarely showed such vulnerability in front of Andrew. "I can't find Josephine."
"What?" Andrew was stunned before saying, "You're still looking for Josephine?"
"I asked Jair and Robin for help, but even so, there's no news of her." Stuart closed his eyes. "Grandpa, what should I do?"
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