It was a thumb-sized jade, seemingly unremarkable, with poor quality and a dull sheen.
Before Darnell could make a judgment, Bruno spoke up, “Mr. Halford, this jade is said to be worth a lot, but it’s actually not as valuable as it looks.”
“Rough craftsmanship, no luster, and no smoothness. No matter how much time passes, this thing remains priceless.”
“Don’t be fooled by him. Mr. Parvis has seen this jade and said it’s worthless and brings bad luck.”
He glanced at Weston with disdain. “This jade was probably stolen from a tomb or picked up by Weston. Even thieves don’t want this trash.”
Darnell didn’t speak. He just stared at the photo of the jade. He knew Bruno made sense, but there was another possibility for this jade.
It could be Bloodstone!
It was said Bloodstone was a kind of jade that was stained by a hero’s blood, truly a priceless treasure.
Yet, Darnell needed to see the jade himself before making a judgment.
“The jade is not trash.”
Weston said firmly, “It’s my family heirloom that has been passed down for thirty-eight generations.”
“My father said someone offered fifty thousand twenty years ago, but we didn’t sell it because we were not short of money back then. He wouldn’t lie, so the jade is really worth fifty thousand. I’m just worried that the buyer won’t recognize its value and that it might not sell…”
Bruno sneered, “I knew it. Paying off your debt in five days is a joke.”
“Weston, stop wasting words. You either give fifty thousand now or get out with your grandma and pawn the house to us.”
Darnell gently waved his hand to stop him from speaking further. “I’ll trust him this time. I’ll take on this debt.”
Bruno whispered softly, “But Mr. Halford, Mr. Parvis-”
“Just say it’s my idea. I’ll call him to explain the situation.”
Darnell waved his hand dismissively and stuffed Weston’s IOU into his pocket. “It’s settled then.”
“Or do you really want to break his hands?”
As Bruno hesitated in silence, Darnell smiled at Weston. “Remember to repay me.”
Seeing Darnell’s stubbornness, Bruno felt helpless and finally spoke up after a long pause, “Thank you, Mr. Halford.” Then he glared at Weston.
“Remember to repay Mr. Halford! If you don’t pay him back in five days, I’ll tear down your grandma’s house.”
Weston looked at Darnell gratefully. “I’ll definitely repay in five days.”
Bruno bowed to Darnell respectfully before leaving with his three companions.
Weston looked at Darnell and said, “Thank you.”
“Just remember to repay me. Take this ten thousand and use it.”
Darnell tossed the bag back to Weston and even slipped in a business card. “Repay six thousand then.”
Weston held the bag without moving and looked at Darnell calmly for half a minute before squeezing out two words. “Thank you.”
Darnell then noticed his waist injury. “Come here. Your waist is injured. I know some medical skills. Let me treat you.”
Weston was stunned and surprised. “Are you a doctor?”
Darnell responded with a smile, “Sort of. And I’m quite skilled.”
Then he approached Weston and performed some manipulations on his waist. A minute later, Weston was amazed to find his twisted waist healed.
Weston felt some joy but soon hesitated again before finally asking, “Can you help check on my grandma?”
He had an inexplicable trust in Darnell. For some reason, he believed Darnell’s skills in medicine without hesitation.
A slight smile appeared on Darnell’s face. He didn’t consider it an unreasonable request and replied graciously, “Sure.”
Then he voice his doubt. “Do you think I have such great ability to cure incurable diseases?”
Weston was slightly stunned. “How did you know?”
“You sought help from me as an unknown doctor because you’ve already tried big hospitals that were helpless. So you’re trying your luck with me as a last resort.”
Darnell’s smile was bright. “Besides, when I treated you just now, I sensed the aroma of herbal medicine on you.”
“I recognized these herbs. They are all used for cancer treatment. Hence I deduced your grandma has an incurable disease.”
Weston fell silent, but his eyes became slightly brighter as hope surged in his heart.
At four-thirty in the afternoon, Darnell appeared in an old community not far from Woodsea. The buildings here were constructed thirty years ago and were not only old and dilapidated but also surrounded by overgrown gardens filled with discarded construction waste and broken furniture. These apartment buildings all had demolition signs written on them.
Hardly anyone lived here except for some tenants collecting waste materials and owners unable to move away. Everyone else had long left this area.
After crossing three overgrown paths filled with weeds, Darnell arrived at his intended destination today.
They arrived at an apartment and went up to the second floor. Standing at the door, Weston searched his pockets for keys, only to realize they were missing. He suspected he must have dropped them during the scuffle with Bruno and his group.
He nodded apologetically towards Darnell and was about to ring the doorbell.
“Wait a minute!”
Darnell’s nose twitched, and he suddenly grabbed Weston, exclaiming, “I smell gas.”
Not only did he catch the scent of gas, but it was quite strong.
As Weston’s expression changed and he leaned closer to the door to sniff, Darnell pressed up against the wooden door. With a surge of force, he slammed it open with a loud crack.
As the door swung wide, a rush of gas poured out, prompting Darnell to quickly cover his mouth and nose. He nimbly dashed inside, opening doors and windows.
Weston snapped to attention, panic etched on his face as he shouted, “Grandma! Grandma!”
As Weston rushed to a corner room, Darnell sprinted into the kitchen, shutting off the gas.
He then opened the balcony window, which significantly reduced the overwhelming smell inside the apartment.
After dealing with the gas, Darnell rushed into the inner room just as Weston lifted an elderly woman in a wheelchair.
The woman, in her eighties, looked frail and kind, but she was unconscious.
As Weston shook his grandmother, tears streamed down his face. He cried out, “Grandma, please! Wake up! You can’t leave me!”
“Don’t move!”
Darnell quickly assessed the situation and determined she was suffering from gas poisoning. He stopped Weston from carrying her out.
“It’s too late to go to the hospital. Let me handle this.”
Without waiting for a response, he took the elderly woman from Weston and laid her down on a rickety sofa, loosening her collar and placing a spoon into her mouth.
Then he began to work swiftly, pressing and stimulating acupuncture points on her temples, and shouted to Weston, “Get me a glass of honey water!”
Weston scrambled to prepare the honey water, panicking as he repeatedly spilled the liquid on the table.
Once he had the honey water ready, Darnell continued to stimulate other acupuncture points and directed Weston to slowly pour the honey water into the old lady’s mouth.
The first glass of honey water was quickly consumed, and Darnell instructed Weston to prepare another. After two glasses, he pressed on a specific acupoint.
With a sudden movement, Darnell pressed his finger down, and the elderly woman shuddered. Then, as her throat convulsed, she violently expelled the honey water she had just ingested.
The unconscious woman opened her eyes, appearing weak but alive. Her lips trembled as if she wanted to speak, but no words came out.
“You’re going to be okay,” Darnell reassured her gently. “Don’t worry.”
Weston dropped to his knees beside her, grasping her bony hand as he cried, “Grandma, why did you do something so foolish? If something happened to you, how would I live?”
“You shouldn’t feel like a burden. If it weren’t for you taking care of me, I’d have died long ago.”
“I’ve found a job now. I can support both of us. You don’t need to worry about medical expenses anymore.”
Weston suddenly remembered something and picked up a bag from the floor, revealing a stack of dollar bills. “Look, this is the advance on my salary for the month.”
“Nine thousand a month is enough for us to live on. You can’t do anything reckless anymore. Otherwise, all my hard work would be meaningless, and living wouldn’t matter.”
Though the elderly woman couldn’t speak, she squeezed Weston’s hand a little tighter, and her eyes flickered with some light.
Darnell wiped his hands with a tissue. “We can take her to the hospital now.”
Bowing deeply to Darnell in gratitude, Weston carefully lifted his grandmother and headed downstairs to the hospital.
“I promise I’ll return the favor.”