Chapter 118 Strange Old Man
Maybe it was because she'd heard the happy news about Fiona getting married, but that night, Joanna actually dreamed about her own wedding with Chris.
Chris had a cold face the whole time and seemed impatient to even interact with her.
If it weren't for the guests watching and basic courtesy, he probably would have just left.
After the ceremony, Chris only briefly chatted with a few close elders, then soon went out to take a phone call and never came back.
Joanna awkwardly faced the remaining guests alone, feeling lost and wronged inside.
This kind of dream had troubled Joanna for a long time, and that heartache lasted even after she woke up.
She instinctively wiped her eyes but found no tears, yet the depression and sense of being wronged felt as if they had just happened, never quite settling down.
Joanna curled up, waiting for this feeling to pass.
After calming down and seeing it was getting late, she quickly got up to wash and go to work.
The hospital had been packed with patients lately, keeping her busy.
When she was busy, she wouldn't think about such sad things.
But there was this one patient who had registered for the wrong department and insisted on having her treat him.
Joanna spent the whole morning explaining: "I'm an orthopedic doctor. You should register for cardiovascular disease. The hospital is very busy, and I can't treat your condition."
The old man wouldn't budge, insisting she see him.
After they were stuck in this standoff for a while, Joanna had to call Dr. Lawson over.
Dr. Lawson gave her a look: "Go get a doctor from cardiology. The old man is elderly and it's not convenient for him to move around. We can work a bit harder and make a few extra trips."
Joanna nodded and quickly ran out to get someone.
When she came back, the old man glared at her: "Don't you run away! I paid money, why won't you treat me!"
Joanna explained helplessly: "I'm really not a cardiovascular disease doctor. This doctor is. Please explain your situation to him."
But no matter how much Joanna and Dr. Lawson tried to persuade him, the old man insisted that Joanna treat him.
Joanna's patience ran out, and she simply stopped dealing with the old man.
But he acted unreasonably, blocking the doorway so other patients couldn't get in or out, and she couldn't communicate properly with her patients either.
Finally, the old man successfully made Joanna angry: "Security!"
Just as the hospital security was about to pull the old man away, he suddenly collapsed on the floor and started wailing: "The doctor hit me! The doctor won't treat patients and is hitting people! Is there no justice!"
Now Joanna was certain this person was here to cause trouble.
She just didn't know who sent him.
She took a photo of the old man directly and said while typing: "I'm sending this to the police right now to find your family and have them pick you up. If you don't want to embarrass yourself all over the internet, you'd better leave on your own."
The old man's eyes widened, and he snorted coldly: "Heartless doctor, I'm going to report you online!"
Joanna was completely helpless, but fortunately the police quickly contacted his family, and before long someone came to take him away.
The rest of the appointments finally returned to normal.
But unexpectedly, right after lunch, the old man came back that afternoon.
Joanna looked at him expressionlessly: "Just tell me, who paid you?"
The old man's eyes darted around, but he wouldn't say.
Joanna opened a live streaming app right in front of him and explained while operating it: "Fine, then I'll help you find your family online and see if your children can afford this embarrassment."
The old man got scared and rushed to grab the phone, only to realize when he got it that she wasn't really going to live stream.
He glared at Joanna: "You tricked me?"
Joanna's face was cold: "Weren't you the one who deceived me first, insisting that an orthopedic doctor treat your cardiovascular disease? Who exactly sent you here to cause trouble?"
The old man pursed his lips and said: "A woman, that's all I know."
Joanna frowned and pulled up a photo of Cynthia on her phone to show him: "Is this the person?"
The old man shook his head.
So it must be Cynthia's parents then.
They wanted to embarrass her at the hospital so she couldn't continue working there.
Joanna laughed coldly and said to the old man: "You can go now. If you come to the hospital to cause trouble again, security will send you straight to the police station. If you're really not feeling well, go register for the right department. Don't disturb the order here."
The old man grumbled a couple of complaints and left.
After finishing her work, Joanna told Peter about what happened at the hospital.
Peter said: "I know about the situation. I'll go negotiate with Cynthia again and transfer the final medical payment to her. But Cynthia's parents probably hold a grudge against you because of their daughter. Be careful going home these next few days. If they couldn't cause you trouble at the hospital, they might try to hurt you in other ways."
Joanna nodded: "I understand. You be careful too, Peter."
After hanging up, she realized it was getting late and quickly packed up to leave work.
Just as she drove her car from the underground garage to street level, someone lay down straight in front of her car.
Joanna honked several times, but the person didn't move, scaring her into a cold sweat.
She quickly got out to check, only to discover it was the same old man from earlier that day.
She was helpless and could only help him into the car first and try to wake him: "Hey! If you're not feeling well, I can arrange for you to be hospitalized, but you can't do this."
The old man acted unreasonably, pretending not to understand, just staring at her blankly.
Joanna really had no way to deal with this kind of old person and could only explain: "I'm getting off work and going home. Where do you live? I can take you there."
The old man just shook his head.
In the end, Joanna had to take him back to her own place.
Fortunately, her apartment had a guest room where the old man could stay, or it would have been really awkward.
"You can stay tonight, but remember to contact your children tomorrow. I can't keep you here long-term." After helping the old man get settled, Joanna said this.
As soon as she finished speaking, she closed the door. The old man didn't want to say a word to her anyway.
Joanna was helpless but didn't take it too seriously.
It wasn't until the next day that she learned what kind of person this old man she'd taken in really was.
The old man's family had searched the hospital for a whole day and finally checked the surveillance footage to discover he had gone home with Joanna.
Victor was in his forties and had been worn out by his father who had Alzheimer's.
He brought many gifts for Joanna: "I'm so sorry. My father has Alzheimer's and sometimes causes trouble for others. Miss Jones, I know about what happened yesterday. This is compensation for you."
Joanna didn't dare accept and just said: "It was nothing really. Please take your father home soon."
Victor didn't insist and left a business card: "If Miss Jones runs into any trouble later, you can come find me."
Joanna nodded and absentmindedly glanced at the information on the card.
But the moment she saw it clearly, her eyes widened.