Jasper supported Franklin and dragged him to the sofa, then called someone to take Franklin to the parking lot without alarming anyone else. They headed straight to the hospital.
The test results came out about two hours later. The doctor looked at the report in shock. “The patient is temporarily in shock. His blood oxygen level is very low, and it looks like he was exposed to a chemical substance… Let me consult my teacher.”
Jasper’s heart sank.
As he grew more anxious, a middle-aged man quickly approached, looked at Franklin’s report, and said, “This is sarin. Inhaling 55-100 mgmin/m3 of sarin (or skin contact with 1. 7 grams) can cause death within 1-15 minutes, with symptoms like convulsions, foaming at the mouth, and blurred vision. At lower concentrations, it causes pupil constriction, difficulty seeing in the dark, chest tightness, headache, nausea, and vomiting. The toxicity accumulates in the body and at higher concentrations can cause dizziness, anxiety, mental impairment, muscle spasms, breathing difficulties, and eventually death.”
“Is there an antidote?” Jasper asked urgently. What is sarin?
“It sounds strange,” he thought.
“Fortunately, the patient inhaled very little and can be treated,” the doctor continued. “This is a deadly nerve gas developed by the Nazis during World War II to paralyze the central nervous system.”
The middle-aged doctor never expected to encounter a sarin patient in his lifetime.
He quickly said, “Send the patient to the ICU immediately for treatment. Otherwise, there will be sequelae. Sarin is very dangerous.”
If treated late, it could damage nerves, the brain, and the liver.
Immediate injection of atropine into the heart was necessary to save his life.
When Franklin woke up, he felt utterly exhausted, as if he had been pulled out of a pool.
He lay on the hospital bed drenched in sweat, his clothes clinging uncomfortably to his tall and slender body.
He frowned and looked at Jasper by his bedside. In a hoarse voice, he asked, “What time is it?”
Jasper quickly got up and poured him a glass of warm water. “Young master, have some water.”
Franklin took the glass and drank it all in one gulp, feeling his throat ease a bit.
Jasper took the glass back and placed it aside, looking at him worriedly. “You’ve been unconscious for two days and nights. You were just transferred from the ICU to a regular ward today. How do you feel now?”
Franklin was stunned. Two days and nights…
What about Sylvia…
“I’m fine, just very tired. Did Sylvia… look for me?” A hint of anxiety showed in his eyes.
“Of course she did, but I managed to put her off. If she knew you were sick, she would definitely come to see you,” Jasper said helplessly. “Why didn’t you let me tell her?”
“I don’t want her to worry.” Franklin struggled to sit up and looked around the private ward. The room was clean and well-equipped with all necessary supplies.
It must have been Jasper who arranged everything.
Jasper then told him about the sarin poisoning and the doctor’s instructions.
“If there are no adverse reactions, we can be discharged tomorrow.”
Jasper silently prayed that there would be no adverse reactions as described by the doctor; otherwise, they could become long-term issues.
“Hopefully not. I inhaled very little that day,” Franklin said calmly and reached out to Jasper. “Give me my phone.”
Jasper quickly took Franklin’s phone from his pocket and handed it to him. “The president has been looking for you these past two days, but I didn’t tell him…”
“Well, you can tell him now. Let him know that things are not always peaceful; someone is always trying to harm me,” Franklin said as he dialed the president’s number. “I’m in the hospital.”
“Hospital? What are you doing there?” The president grumbled angrily. “You finally decided to contact me? Playing missing? Do you think you’re still in your rebellious phase? Disappearing without a word.”
Franklin ignored him and sent a photo of the medical report on the bedside table. “I sent it to you. Take a look yourself. I was almost assassinated a few days ago.”
With that, he hung up decisively.
The president stared at his phone in shock, wondering if he had misheard.
Assassinate his son?
Damn!
Who would be so bold!
He slammed his desk in anger. “Ouch!” He hit too hard; it hurt!
He opened the medical report photos one by one and felt his liver ache with anger. “They used sarin! How despicable!”
Fortunately, it was a false alarm this time; otherwise…
His recently reunited son would have been gone.
Dead.
The more he thought about it, the more terrified he became. He immediately called his assistant over. “Increase security and assign more bodyguards to protect Franklin.”
The assistant looked at him puzzled. “President, what happened?”
“See for yourself!” The president threw his phone at him. The assistant saw the report and medical records and was shocked. “Who would dare do this? They must have a death wish.”
“Find some highly skilled and reliable people,” the president said coldly. “Call Isaac over.”
“Yes, sir.” The assistant hurriedly replied, “I’ll go right away.”
About five minutes later, Isaac arrived at the president’s office with a humble smile on his lips. “Dad, you called for me?”
“I need you to investigate something,” the president said as he glanced at him. “Someone dared to try to kill your brother. How can I let such a person live?”
Isaac looked shocked. “Really? How is Franklin now?”
“He survived. Luckily he’s tough; otherwise, I’d be burying my son,” the president said angrily. “Investigate immediately and find out who is behind this.”
Isaac’s expression turned serious as he pledged his loyalty. “Dad, don’t worry. I’ll avenge my brother.”
With that, he left.
He didn’t notice that as he turned away, the president’s expression became sinister as he stared at his back.
In the bone marrow transplant ward.
Sylvia found it strange that she hadn’t been able to find Franklin for two days.
Whenever she called him, Jasper answered; her messages went unanswered.
Her intuition told her that Franklin and Jasper were hiding something from her.
But she couldn’t leave the transplant ward for now.
She sighed in frustration when she received a call from Isaac. “What’s wrong? Is something up?”
“Sylvia, didn’t you know? Franklin was poisoned and nearly assassinated. He’s in the hospital now,” Isaac said with genuine concern in his voice. “I heard you’re also in the hospital. I’m going to visit him now; can you come with me?”
Poisoned?!
Her heart sank. “How did you know?”
“My dad told me and asked me to investigate who tried to kill Franklin. Sylvia… can you come out?” Isaac asked again, sounding like a caring older brother.
“I…”
Sylvia hesitated but was really worried about Franklin. Leaving the transplant ward was troublesome but not impossible.
Choosing between her husband and her sister… It was really frustrating.
Just then, Jenna’s voice came from behind her. “Sylvia, you can go see brother-in-law. I’m fine now. Besides, there are nurses here! They will take care of me.”
Jenna’s pale face showed a faint smile. “I’ve been here for over twenty days now and have almost recovered.”
Recently she had been handling her personal needs like eating and drinking on her own without troubling Sylvia.
She was almost self-sufficient now.
Sylvia looked at her hesitantly. “I’ll ask a nurse to stay with you.”
She couldn’t leave either side unattended, so she had to find someone to replace her in taking care of Jenna for a while.
Before leaving, she repeatedly reminded Jenna, “Call me if you need anything.”
“Don’t worry.” Jenna waved her hand.
Leaving the transplant ward, Sylvia let out a long breath.
It had been a while since she stepped out; everything outside seemed new.
She first went to the restroom to check herself in the mirror and tidied up her collar before taking the elevator to Franklin’s floor.
As soon as she exited the elevator, she saw Isaac waiting there.
The man wore a silver-gray suit with a royal blue cashmere coat draped over it. He looked tall and elegant with a fruit basket in hand.
Isaac was momentarily stunned when he saw Sylvia. “Your hair…”
Sylvia shook her shoulder-length hair and smiled. “It’s grown a bit longer now! It was even shorter before because I had to cut it for the transplant ward.”
Isaac observed her closely; she used to have long flowing hair that made her look stunningly beautiful. Now with shoulder-length hair slightly curled at the ends, she looked even more stylish and capable.
She was beautiful no matter what hairstyle she had.
“Let’s go,” Sylvia said to him. “Do you know where Franklin’s ward is?”
Isaac’s face darkened slightly but quickly returned to normal. “It’s just ahead.”
When they arrived at the ward, Franklin was practicing walking. Even though the poison had been neutralized, he still felt weak and needed to regain muscle strength.
Hearing footsteps, he looked up and saw the woman he hadn’t seen in nearly a month.
His dark eyes gleamed like shattered diamonds as he stared at her delicate face and shoulder-length hair. She looked thinner than twenty days ago; her hair had grown longer, making her neck appear even more graceful and elegant.
His eyes were filled with longing and desire that finally turned into a soft call, “Sylvia… why are you here?”
Sylvia glared at him and walked over. “If Isaac hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have known anything. Were you planning on hiding this from me forever?”