After meeting with her lawyer, Wren Wynter went to pick up the birthday gift for Old Madam Xavier. Her parents were gone, and Old Madam Xavier was one of the few people in the world who genuinely cared for her.

It was for this very reason that Wren had been able to tolerate Helen Sawyer’s repeated humiliations.

BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ—

Just then, Wren’s phone vibrated. She put the gift away safely and answered the call. "Hello, Joy, what’s wrong?"

"Wren, you have to get back here! The higher-ups are here for an inspection, and I can’t cover for you much longer!" Joy Lynch’s voice was frantic.

Wren was surprised for a few seconds.

Inspections from management are usually announced a day or two in advance. Why the surprise visit?

"Okay, I’m on my way back now."

Wren walked to the roadside to hail a cab back to the company, but she was suddenly startled by a series of gasps from nearby.

"Look! Someone’s collapsed!"

"Ah! It’s true! Quick, call an ambulance!"

A crowd of passersby had gathered where the voices were coming from. In a hurry, Wren frantically scanned the roadside, desperately searching for a taxi and paying no mind to the onlookers’ words.

With so many people around, someone must have called an ambulance already. No need for her to get involved.

"How awful. He looks like an old man. How could his children let him go out alone at his age? So irresponsible."

"Isn’t it? If I had kids like that, I’d wish I’d strangled them at birth."

The surrounding chatter reached Wren’s ears. Her expression faltered, her heart stirred. But if she didn’t get back soon, losing her job would be a minor issue; she would also drag Joy Lynch down with her.

Yet, if she didn’t check, a life could be lost.

Finally, she clenched her fists and turned back, pushing her way into the crowd. "Excuse me, make way! I’m a doctor, let me take a look."

Although Wren wasn’t petite, she was still a woman, and her five-foot-nine frame was hardly enough to see over the crowd.

She was also slender, so her only option for getting through was to shout. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Hearing someone claim to be a doctor, the crowd quickly parted, allowing Wren to reach the center.

When Wren got closer, she saw that the collapsed person was an elderly man who looked to be in his seventies.

The old man’s face was pale, his brows were tightly furrowed, and his lips were purple. He lay on the ground, his expression twisted in pain.

This looks like a flare-up of a pre-existing condition, which caused him to collapse and go into shock.

Wren rushed forward, helped the man lie flat, and knelt beside him. She began performing CPR to restore his heartbeat.

If she couldn’t restore his heartbeat in time, the man probably wouldn’t make it until the ambulance arrived.

Wren performed chest compressions for nearly five minutes before the man’s color gradually returned, and his lips became less purple. The onlookers watched, their hearts in their throats.

Of course, some were just there for the spectacle, but they remained silent, simply watching Wren save the man.

A short while later, the ambulance arrived. Two paramedics carrying a stretcher pushed through the crowd, quickly lifted the old man onto it, and took him away.

Before leaving, they praised Wren, saying that if it weren’t for her timely CPR, the old man probably wouldn’t have held on until they got there.

Wren gave a faint smile.

The familiar feeling of pulling someone back from the brink of death made her, for the first time, regret her choice to become a flight surgeon.

Not long after the ambulance left, she received another urgent call from Joy Lynch. "Wren, where are you?! I can’t hold them off anymore!"

"I’m almost there!" Wren said, suppressing the turmoil in her heart.

—

「The Airline.」

Wren rushed back to the flight surgeon’s office, only to find several men in black suits standing inside. Kaden Xavier was among them.

He stood in the very center, his handsome face grim. The atmosphere in the office seemed to have frozen solid, and a few of the more timid nurses were already trembling with anxiety.

Wren’s brow furrowed.

This whole setup is clearly aimed at her.

The moment she saw Kaden Xavier, she was even more certain.

This so-called "management inspection" was nothing more than Kaden Xavier using the opportunity to find fault with her, all to help Seraphina Sutton regain the face she’d lost to them at noon.

"Dr. Wynter, you’re finally back!"

The director was wiping away cold sweat on the side. Seeing Wren was like seeing a savior. He quickly went over, pulled her from the doorway, and dragged her in front of Kaden Xavier and the others.

"Dr. Wynter, what is wrong with you? Why aren’t you at your post during work hours? What would happen if a major incident occurred at the company and a flight surgeon was needed?"

When he received the call about Kaden Xavier’s inspection, he was more apprehensive than confused. Upon learning that Wren was out, he had broken out in a cold sweat.

"I’m sorry, Director. It’s my fault today. If there’s a punishment, just give it to me."

"Of course you’ll be punished." Kaden Xavier looked at her coldly, his tone low. "Abandoning your post during work hours, completely disregarding company rules. You’ll be fined this month’s salary and forfeit this month’s bonus."

Wren pressed her lips together. Without objection, she said, "I accept."

Seeing Wren’s respectful and submissive demeanor, Kaden Xavier’s anger flared, and his expression grew even uglier.

Can’t she just beg him? Can’t she just yield a little? Why does she have to be so stubborn?

"Suit yourself."

Leaving her with those words, Kaden Xavier turned on his heel and slammed the door on his way out.

Wren was baffled.

What is he so angry about!

The other managers who had come with him, who were already on pins and needles, felt a chill run down their backs and scrambled after him.

The director looked at Wren with a complicated expression and advised her earnestly, "Dr. Wynter, if you have something important to do in the future, you can file a report in advance. There’s no need to sneak out."

"I know, Director. It won’t happen again."

The director nodded and also left the flight surgeon’s office.

Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief and dispersed to do their own work. However, the day’s events still caused dissatisfaction among the other doctors and nurses, and they now had a poor opinion of Wren.

Kaden Xavier was not only the company’s chief pilot but also its owner. As the president, he inevitably had business engagements to attend.

After finishing his engagement that evening, he returned to a different apartment. Ever since he and Wren had made their bet, the two had been living separately. He staggered into the apartment and collapsed onto the sofa, reeking of alcohol.

"Wren, where’s the hangover drink?" Kaden Xavier slurred drunkenly. But after waiting for a long time with no response, he had no choice but to sit up on the sofa and scan the living room.

That’s right, he thought. He’d almost forgotten. Wren didn’t live with him anymore.

In the past, whenever he came home drunk after being forced to drink, Wren would always get out of bed to make him a cup of hangover drink. He had refused it several times, thinking it tasted bad, but every time, Wren would coax him into drinking it as if he were a child.

Kaden Xavier leaned back against the sofa, covering his eyes with his arm. A bitter smile touched the corner of his mouth.

"Wren, I want some hangover drink."