Mr. Deng grinned to himself. He was an experienced man, and wouldn't dare reveal his true feelings in
front of them. "We feel regret and guilty for what happened in Phoenix Mountain, and we will give great
importance to the matter."
Richie and Frank snorted to themselves at his bureaucratic tone as Richie put on a tiny smile. "Mr.
Deng, the military attacked the royal members of Dragon Island for no reason. I believe that would
court international disapproval,"
Richie said casually like he was talking about the weather. But his words came as a shock to Mr. Deng,
whose heart stopped in his throat. The international profile and importance of Dragon Island were
rising. Though the problem seemed to have been resolved for now, Mr. Deng knew that if they didn't
handle it properly, Dragon Island would stir up the issue. The heads of the State Parliament and
Dragon Island had their own plans, and they didn't want to start a fight. But this didn't mean that
Dragon Island would swallow the insult and humiliation thrown at them silently.
"Mr. Long," Mr. Deng said, looking back and forth between Richie and Frank, "the seniors in the State
Parliament have turned a blind eye to the conflicts between the conservative faction and the reformist
faction. After all, different thoughts and ideals are needed to sustain a sound system." After a pause, he
continued, "The current issues we are facing are actually the result of something that happened years
ago. Even the cleverest man can sometimes do stupid things. If Justin hadn't done such a thing years
ago, the operation wouldn't have failed and these series of problems wouldn't have arisen. And as for
what happened at Phoenix Mountain, I admit that it was thoughtless of the military to have done it.
However, it was not all our fault."
Frank curled his lips, fixing his eyes on the young tea leaves in his cup, and said, "We are not
interested in poking our noses into other people's business. It has been over twenty years since Justin
had done all that horrible stuff in Dragon Island. We're not going to bother with that now. I'm sure that
no one wants to start a fight now, and we all want to solve these problems properly and quickly. That's
why Richie and I are here."
Frank's smile and gentle tone made Mr. Deng believe that things had taken a turn for the better. But the
words that followed made Mr. Deng's mood hit the bottom. "However, I have a major flaw in my
character. I attach great importance to my family members and will protect them, no matter what. If my
son and nephew were not on the wrong side, I won't spare anyone who hurt them. And if they were on
the wrong side,"
Frank stated and paused, putting his cup down and gazing at Mr. Deng. "I will shield them and protect
them with everything at my disposal."
He was implying that no matter who was right or wrong, the State Parliament must treat the issue at
hand immediately, otherwise he would act on his own accord.
'How arrogant!' Mr. Deng thought.
When Frank was just an ordinary staff in T City, Mr. Deng had heard that he was an arrogant man. Mr.
Deng had thought that he was being self-conceited and insolent on account of his ability, but now he
realized that Frank, as a member of the Long family, was born arrogant.
The State Parliament had sent Mr. Deng to negotiate with Richie and Frank in hopes that Dragon
Island would make a concession for the sake of their past relationship. Obviously, that was not going to
work and the matter had become very tricky now. Some people in the conservative faction and the
reformist faction would probably suffer from this, and Justin would be the first to bear the brunt.
The conversation lasted for nearly three hours and they finally came to an understanding. However,
only the three of them knew the content of the deal.
After leaving the House of Parliament, Frank and Richie got into their car with Farrell in the driver's
seat.
"Richie," Frank asked with a frown, "you sure this is alright?"
Richie opened his laptop, stared at the codes on the screen and sent his commands. "The young ones
are too naive and immature to deal with these issues sensibly. They need more experience," Richie
said indifferently.
Frank knew that Richie was right. "But, Molly is innocent."
"The truth is that what happened in Phoenix Mountain was because of her." Having received the
feedback, Richie closed his laptop, leaned against the seat and said, "Brian and Eric will get
themselves into trouble sooner or later. And what's more, you think the State Parliament would give up
on her so easily after having lost so many people in Phoenix Mountain?"
"Maybe you're right, Richie. We all need to calm down and figure out what we really have to do." Frank
shrugged and added, "What are you going to do with Molly?"
"I haven't decided yet." Richie stared coldly out the window and said, "Brian was searching for suitable
eyes for her for half a day. He's so stubborn."
Frank grinned and asked, "And why did you send a donor to meet him there? You didn't want to break
his heart?"
"Are you kidding me? Come on!" Richie snorted, "I just didn't want Shirley to be upset."
Frank didn't respond. He knew that Molly and Shirley had known each other for a while. If Shirley found
out what had happened to Molly's eyes, she would get upset and blame Richie.
*
In Emperor Hospital, A City
After a ten-hour operation, Molly was finally transferred to the ICU. Looking at her through the window,
Brian felt a terrible heartache.
Her face was as pale as death, and her eyes were covered with a gauze dressing. When Felix told him
that the operation was a success, Brian heaved a sigh of relief and thanked God for not taking Molly
away.
"Is she..." Brian sounded really nervous, "How long will it take for her to wake up?"
Looking at Molly who was surrounded by various medical devices, Dr. He said calmly, "If nothing goes
wrong, she will wake up in around three days. And if there's no postoperative adverse reaction, she will
be transferred to the HDU, the High Dependency Unit. The following three days are vital to Miss Xia. If
nothing goes wrong in the next three days, she will get well soon."
"Okay. You may leave now," Brian said with a frown.
"Okay!" Dr. He cast a glance at Brian who had his eyes fixed on the woman in the ICU. He sighed
silently and left.
Three days wasn't a very long time in usual circumstances. But for Brian, it was the longest wait of his
life and he had gone through so much intense moral suffering in just three days. His heart had been
gripped by fear as he was afraid that Molly would never wake up.
"Beep—"
A loud alarm rang from within the ICU, which startled Brian. He immediately pressed the emergency
button, and within a minute, Dr. He rushed there, followed by several nurses.
Brian's face sunk as he watched Dr. He checking Molly's situation. He could barely breathe, fearing that
he might lose Molly forever.
Time passed so slowly for him, and he let his eyes settle on Molly's face, hoping that would help her
wake up. Half an hour passed, but it seemed like a century for Brian.
Dr. He came out, took off his gauze mask and said with a pleasant smile, "Mr. Brian Long,
congratulations! Miss Xia will be transferred to the HDU."
Brian was filled with joy at his words and his cold face softened a little.
It was really good news for Brian that Molly was being transferred to the HDU. Dr. He mentioned that
their current medicine might harm Molly, so Brian asked Elias to offer medicines with lesser side
effects. Thanks to the effective medicines and the tender care from the nurses, Molly was transferred to
the general ward within a week.
Molly was now able to hear and speak, but she was in no mood to talk to anyone as she was still
unable to see. She knew that her eyes would recover soon. She had listened to the conversation
between Brian and Dr. He and had found out that someone had donated his eyes. But she could not
forgive Brian.
With a mocking smile, Molly put her hand on her belly. She was carrying a baby — Brian's baby.
'Bri, you took my corneas. I'll be taking this baby as your compensation. And you will not be a part of
my life in the future. My baby and I will only depend on each other from now on, ' Molly thought to
herself.
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