When the crowd rushed in, Natalie had already dressed. She stood before me pitifully,
and the sharp crack of a slap rang out.
Natalie clutched her swollen cheek and sobbed,
“Professor, I know you’re upset, but I told you that day—you had to wait for all the family members before signing. You wouldn’t listen to me…”
“Natalie, how dare you twist the truth! That day it was you—”
Before I could finish, Natalie dropped to her knees with a thud.
“Professor, I understand your intentions. Don’t worry—I’ll go to the hospital and admit fault immediately. I won’t let it affect your promotion.”
Boos and whispers rose behind me, while a faint smile played across Richard’s darkened face.
Turning, I saw doctors and patients crowding the doorway, pointing fingers.
“No wonder she got egged—she deserved it.”
“She forced a twenty-year-old girl to lose her uterus just to protect her own career.”
“She always preaches about saving lives, but when it counts, she treats them like grass.”
“Poor Natalie, stuck with such a mentor, and now she’s even forced to kneel.”
“Isn’t a young doctor’s life worth anything? She’s just abusing her status as the hospital director’s wife.”
Tears welled in my eyes as I looked straight at Richard.
Like he had rehearsed it all along, he wore a façade of righteous severity.
“Effective immediately, Dr. Dawson’s duties are suspended. A special investigative committee will be formed to review the family’s complaints. Dr. Dawson, you must cooperate unconditionally.”
Meeting the calculating, triumphant look in his eyes, I tore off my Chief Physician badge and hurled it at him.
The pin grazed his cheek, drawing a line of blood. Natalie rushed forward to shield him.
“You’ve gone mad, Claire Dawson! Richard is the dean—how dare you?”
Realizing she’d overstepped, she pulled back awkwardly, standing aside in confusion.
“Whether I dare or not, it’s not for a mistress like you to judge.”
“Natalie was only worried for me. Dr. Dawson, mind your manners. Security, escort her back to her office.”
Breaking free of the guards, I glared coldly at Richard.
“You want to destroy me for your mistress? You’re not worthy.”
Richard acted quickly. All my consultations and surgeries were suspended.
On the hospital’s official website, the investigation report pinned every bit of blame on me.
At the press conference, Natalie, as a supposed bystander, slipped and accidentally revealed my home address.