Chapter 82

Chapter 82

Pristley stared at her for a long moment before asking, “What do you know?”

Tu Nan stiffened slightly, not expecting him to be so sharp.

She certainly wanted York to be punished, but without evidence to prove he was the culprit, revealing everything right now wouldn’t benefit her.

Tu Nan shook her head. “I’m just voicing my own suspicions.” She hesitated for a second. “…I was in the gazebo at the time, and I saw someone else there.”

“Who?” Pristley asked.

“A patient from Ward 404… the ward I’m responsible for. His name is York. He was also in the gazebo at the time.”

“Oh?” A sharp glint flashed in Pristley’s eyes. “So you suspect he did it?”

“I didn’t say that.” Tu Nan steadied herself. “I just think that perhaps he saw something.”

Pristley smiled, neither confirming nor denying her suggestion. “The injured young lady is the daughter of the Charles Family. Her parents are currently furious and are demanding an explanation from the hospital. They believe the hospital failed in its duty of care, yet Miss Charles insists she was simply careless. The matter has reached a stalemate.”

Tu Nan remained silent.

“If it were you, what would you do?” Pristley asked gently.

Pristley must have sensed something; otherwise, he never would have asked such a question.

Tu Nan looked up at him. Pristley’s eyes, hidden behind his lenses, seemed bottomless.

“If it were me, I would definitely find a way to appease the Duke’s anger.” She watched Pristley’s expression, speaking slowly. “But they clearly won’t accept the explanation that their daughter simply fell from the gazebo by accident.”

“Indeed,” Pristley sighed. “So…”

“So…” she paused, “someone must be pushed forward to appease their wrath.”

Pristley smiled but said nothing.

Daisy looked at them in confusion. “What are you two talking about? Didn’t Miss Charles just fall by herself?”

Pristley looked at her with an indulgent gaze. “Daisy, perhaps such matters are not for you to worry about.”

He turned his attention back to Tu Nan. “Do you know who is most likely to be pushed forward in this situation?”

Tu Nan lowered her head. After only a moment’s thought, she understood.

If the person truly responsible for Miss Charles’s injury couldn’t be found, there was only one candidate: the nurse responsible for taking care of Miss Charles.

She would be thrown out to become York’s scapegoat.

“I hate to see any member of the hospital staff come to harm,” Pristley sighed. “Unfortunately, there is no one who can help her now.”

“If…” Tu Nan hesitated, finally making up her mind to ask, “If the person who actually caused Miss Charles’s injury could be found, would she be cleared of responsibility?”

Pristley smiled and shook his head. “Regardless, allowing a patient to be injured is a dereliction of duty on her part.”

“But a nurse cannot refuse a patient’s request,” Tu Nan couldn’t help but protest. “If a patient makes a reasonable request, what choice does the nurse have?”

If she had been the one in that situation today, she would likely have met the same fate.

Because the Rules were absolute; a nurse could not refuse a patient’s reasonable request.

“Yes, I fully understand how you feel,” Pristley said. He didn’t deny her point, but his tone remained indisputable. “But those are the hospital regulations.”
To hell with these regulations.

Tu Nan took a deep breath, feeling a profound sense of empathy for helpless workers everywhere in that moment.

“However…” Pristley’s tone shifted. “If someone else truly did harm Miss Charles, she still bears responsibility, but it wouldn’t be a fatal mistake.”

Pristley looked at her with a faint smile, his words dripping with temptation. He lowered his eyes, glancing at the ID badge on his chest. “Miss Tu Nan, what do you think? Do you believe this person who harmed Miss Charles actually exists?”

“Of course.” Tu Nan clenched her fists, her voice calm. “Miss Charles isn’t a fool. She wouldn’t insist on getting up to walk when she knew her legs were injured and no nurse was around to assist her.”

“The Duke and Duchess must be so enraged precisely because they know this. That’s why they’re demanding an explanation from the hospital.”

“Are you saying Miss Charles is lying?” Daisy asked, sounding utterly confused. “But why would she do that?”

“Perhaps she wants to protect someone.” Pristley looked at Tu Nan with a smile. “What do you think, Miss Tu Nan?”

Tu Nan avoided his gaze and said vaguely, “Maybe.”

“In that case, would you be willing to find this person behind the scenes, Miss Tu Nan?” Pristley propped his head up with one hand. “In return, I can give you some preferential treatment regarding your transition to a permanent position.”

Tu Nan froze, instinctively looking at Pristley. “If I find this person, will you let me become a permanent staff member immediately?”

“That is, of course…” Pristley winked at her and said softly, “Impossible.”

Tu Nan: “…”

“The hospital has its own rules and regulations. Even as the Dean, I cannot break them. However,” Pristley continued, “I can make an exception and make the requirements for your permanent status a bit easier.”

A bit easier…

If she wanted to become a permanent employee now, she had to obtain the approval of everyone in the ward. From the looks of it, Maria was the only one she felt somewhat confident about.

This deal wasn’t a loss for her.

If she could get rid of York this time, her path to permanent status would become much easier.

“Well?” Pristley took in every shift in her expression. “This deal should be quite a bargain for you.”

Tu Nan looked up at him. She was still somewhat puzzled as to why Pristley was doing this. Under the constraints of the Rules, she wouldn’t be able to refuse even if Pristley simply ordered her to do it.

But for her, it was indeed a deal she couldn’t turn down.

“I accept,” Tu Nan said. “I will do my best to find the person who truly harmed Miss Charles.”

Pristley smiled with satisfaction. “The Duke demanded that the hospital provide an explanation by tomorrow. You don’t have much time.”

“If I fail to find that person…” Tu Nan asked tentatively, “what will happen?”

“This is a serious matter. If it’s determined to be the nurse’s responsibility, then it means the hospital’s training is inadequate.” Pristley saw right through her underlying concern. “Perhaps from then on, the requirements for a nurse to become permanent will become even more stringent.”

Just as she thought.

Now that Pristley had laid everything out in the open, Tu Nan actually felt more at ease.

“I will work hard to find this person,” she said.

For her, the difficulty wasn’t in identifying the person behind it, but in finding evidence that York had harmed Miss Charles.

She still had to start with Miss Charles herself.