Chapter 4163: Niece

Dorothy had two older brothers and a younger sister. Xia De had once visited Professor Lu Lu Yisha's home as a guest, and although he had not met this particular brother of Dorothy's at the time—the brother had already started his own family and no longer lived with his parents—Xia De had seen a family portrait of the Lu Lu Yisha household in Dorothy's apartment, and the resemblance between that middle-aged man and Professor Lu Lu Yisha was striking.

Since Princess Lei Lei Qianya had seen it, Dorothy had of course seen it too. Both Dorothy and Princess Lei Lei Qianya were wearing light-colored spring dresses, one blue and the other pale yellow. At this moment Dorothy was about to pick up the veal and ham pie, and she did not look over in that direction on her own initiative:

"That's my eldest brother. He's more than ten years older than me, and he moved out of the house when I was seven. But every time he comes home to visit our parents, he always brings gifts for us younger siblings."

"Do you need to go over and say hello?"

Princess Lei Lei Qianya asked proactively:

"I can hide myself for the moment, so that you and Xia De look like you're on a date alone. Don't feel bad about it—when Xia De went to meet my parents, didn't you not say anything either?"

But Dorothy did not agree:

"My eldest brother's family looks like they're just here for a picnic too, there's no need to disturb them. My niece has a congenital heart problem, and it was hard enough getting permission for her to come out. As her aunt, I shouldn't go and spoil the fun.

We're this far away, they probably can't see me. Let's just not go over."

Xia De and Princess Lei Lei Qianya therefore said nothing more, and the three of them continued their picnic, chatting and laughing.

Xia De had a sudden whim and tried to tempt the lazy cat into showing off her potential with the offer: "Little Mia, if you do a backflip right now, you can eat anything you want from the wicker basket."

But after hearing Xia De's words, Little Mia completely ignored him and continued to lie on Xia De's lap waiting to be fed. Clearly she understood better than anyone that she could already eat whatever she wanted.

There was still plenty of time left in the day, so they ate lunch at a leisurely pace. After lunch, Dorothy and Princess Lei Lei Qianya even played a few rounds of Luo De Pai with Xia De. Looking at the smile on Xia De's face, everyone present could tell he was in a very good mood.

Not long after, Little Mia yawned, then curled up next to Xia De, looking for a sunny spot to nap. Dorothy looked at Xia De with great anticipation, and Xia De, infected by her, yawned too. He nodded:

"Then I'll rest for a bit too. If I don't wake up in an hour, be sure to wake me—we still need to keep reading through those materials this afternoon."

"Yes, yes."

Dorothy smiled and patted her lap, and Xia De laid his head down on it. He lay there in the dappled shade of the tree overhead, closed his eyes, listened to the rustling of the wind through the treetops, breathed in Dorothy's pleasant scent, felt the warm spring light, and was soon truly asleep.

Princess Lei Lei Qianya, beside them, gave Dorothy a smile, then took out the prepared sketchbook and pencil from her maid, found a suitable angle, and prepared to capture Xia De, Dorothy, and Little Mia together on paper.

Because he wasn't at home, Xia De didn't sleep very deeply. He felt as though he had only just closed his eyes when he heard panicked shouts from not far away.

Then Dorothy called out something too. Princess Lei Lei Qianya reached out to steady Xia De, and Dorothy stood up at once and ran toward the distance.

By the time Xia De opened his eyes, Dorothy was almost at her brother's family's spot.

"It seems Dorothy's niece is in trouble."

Princess Lei Lei Qianya explained quietly. She had been sketching the whole time, so she hadn't seen very clearly, but Winnie had indeed seen what had just happened:

"That little girl was just clutching at her heart, and she seemed unwell. Her parents told her to lie down and rest, but it doesn't look like she's getting better."

"She'll be alright, right?"

Princess Lei Lei Qianya said, a little worried as well. Constrained by her position, she couldn't go over to check directly, so she could only share Dorothy's line of sight:

"Her breathing is very weak—it looks like her emotions triggered the heart problem. The family doctor has actually been advising her not to go out casually. Dorothy's eldest brother and sister-in-law probably thought her condition had been improving lately, and the weather's nice today..."

"What exactly is the problem with her heart? Do you need me to help swap in a new one?"

Xia De asked. Dorothy's eldest brother's family were just ordinary local middle-class folks, not watched over by the Church at all times like royalty. Even if Xia De stepped in to treat her, as long as the family didn't go around bragging about it and let the child "recover" in stages, there wouldn't be any problem.

Princess Lei Lei Qianya shook her head:

"Dorothy says it's not needed for now. Once she becomes connected to us, the rest of her life... The situation has stabilized, she's fine now."

She let out a long breath:

"Good thing the family doctor came along today, otherwise Dorothy would definitely have had to step in."

Xia De looked over from afar. Dorothy and her sister-in-law were still kneeling beside the little girl, holding her hand, while Dorothy's eldest brother was speaking anxiously with the family doctor.

The people who had gathered to help gradually dispersed. Once nothing was blocking his view, Xia De blinked:

"Life Fire Seed."

The little girl's vitality was indeed a little weaker than an ordinary person's, and she lacked the vibrant, vigorous air unique to children.

Then Xia De subconsciously used a few other detection-type miracles:

"Edwards' Eye... hmm?"

"What is it?"

Princess Lei Lei Qianya keenly caught the surprise on Xia De's face.

"There's a red bright spot at her heart. How is that possible... it's gone. It's not there anymore."

"Go take a look."

Princess Lei Lei Qianya suggested. Xia De then stood up, and Winnie added from the side:

"Don't go over empty-handed. Take some drinks and food, and say that earlier you were worried about the crowd delaying things, so you didn't come over right away."

Xia De nodded. The young maid ladies used an empty wicker basket to pack a few bottles of pumpkin juice for Xia De, along with some sweet pastries, and only then did Xia De walk over.

Dorothy's eldest brother's family didn't know Xia De personally, but they had heard plenty of tabloid stories about the Duchess and the famous detective, and they also knew their sister had an ambiguous relationship with that famous detective.

Today Xia De appeared under the identity of "I'm Dorothy's friend," and they almost immediately understood a few things. Dorothy's eldest brother looked at Xia De and then at his sister with a complicated expression, but the occasion wasn't suitable for further questions.

The little girl seemed to have recovered a little, and was leaning in her mother's arms, looking at the wicker basket Xia De had brought. However, Dorothy only allowed her to eat one piece of pastry. Pumpkin juice was allowed, but the little girl didn't seem to like drinking pumpkin juice.

The hired servants had already gone to fetch the carriage, so the family was still staying here for the moment. After a brief exchange, Xia De also learned the details of Dorothy's little niece's heart condition.

The Outsider had no medical background and couldn't come up with very complicated medical terms. But as he understood it, the girl's condition could be completely cured by replacing her heart. If Dorothy allowed it, he could even pause time for everyone around them right now and perform the heart transplant on the spot.

But Dorothy wouldn't allow it:

"Her case isn't especially tricky among congenital heart conditions. The doctor even said that as long as she doesn't do strenuous exercise, living to fifty isn't impossible. Maybe future medical technology will be able to cure her. Unless it's a life-or-death situation, I don't want her treated by mystical means.

Of course, if treatment really is needed, Xia De, I'll let you help."

This was what Dorothy said when the two of them saw the family off at the park gate. The child seemed to really like Xia De, and when getting into the carriage she insisted Xia De lift her up, and of course Xia De agreed to her request.

And on the way back along the park path to the lawn with Dorothy, he finally mentioned the fleeting red spot of light he had seen on the girl with "Edwards' Eye."

"No, I'm quite certain she's never had any surgery, and there's certainly no foreign implant at her heart."

Dorothy denied Xia De's initial thought. She was very worried, but Xia De reassured her:

"When I was carrying her into the carriage just now, I sensed her—there are no traces of elements on her. I don't know what that fleeting red glow was, but from then until the family left, it never appeared again.

If you're still worried, you can visit her often over the next few days. Your and Princess Lei Lei Qianya's fine spatial manipulation skills are so advanced now—taking something that shouldn't be there out of her heart shouldn't be a problem, right?"

In fact, during the evening's activities, the Misses had performed even more complex operations, and at a time of great emotional upheaval — which was enough to prove that they truly had a talent for fine spatial manipulation.

Princess Lei Lei Qianya and Dorothy could share their five senses to a certain extent, so whatever Dorothy knew on her end, Lei Lei Qianya also knew. When Xia De and Dorothy returned to the picnic campsite, Lei Lei Qianya did not ask any further questions, but instead showed her sketchbook to the two of them:

"Look! It's finished!"

On the black-and-white sketch, Xia De lay with his head on Dorothy's lap, sleeping face-up toward the sky; beside him was a cat-ball curled up by little Mia; in the corner of the picture, half of Winifred's figure could also be seen.

The tenderness in Dorothy's gaze as she looked down at Xia De, the melancholy Xia De still carried even in sleep, and little Mia's cuteness — all were captured in this drawing. And the trees and the picnicking crowd in the background filled the picture with the vitality of spring.

"Truly not bad."

Xia De praised, while Lei Lei Qianya laughed and said her drawing skills could not compare with Flora's at all. Still, she herself was quite satisfied with this picture; the Misses planned to frame it and hang it in Dorothy's apartment afterward, so that they could see it every day.