Chapter 318 Seeing that Charlie and Alex were still busy discussing patient cases over dinner , Zinnia realized she wasn't much help here and decided to get some fresh air . She said , " Charlie , you eat first . I'll step outside for a bit . " Sure , we'll head home after I finish eating . Zinnia , don't wander too far . Call me if you need anything ." Charlie said . He hadn't eaten all day , and now that most of his work was done , he could finally sit down and enjoy a hot meal . Zinnia closed the office door behind her and walked down the quiet corridor . She had heard from Alex that Anne was in the VIP ward on this floor . Making her way to the innermost room , Zinnia peered through the glass door and saw Anne lying on the hospital bed , connected to a ventilator , The ward was eerily quiet . No one was standing guard outside . After glancing around to confirm no one was nearby , Zinnia gripped the doorknob , quietly opened the door , and tiptoed in . The ward was silent except for the steady beeping of medical monitors . Anne lay motionless on the hospital bed , showing no signs of consciousness . Afraid of being discovered , Zinnia hurried to Anne's bedside . Anne's hand lay outside the covers . Zinnia bent down and checked her pulse . She thought , " Thank goodness , I'm in time . It's not as bad as I feared . Zinnia withdrew her hand . She took out her acupuncture kit and selected a slender silver needle . She glanced at Anne and murmured , " Though you're on Betty's side and always team up with her , I don't want Ethan and the others to carry a guilty conscience . " Besides , I don't want your father to worry himself sick over you . You've got a good dad . I'll help you this once . But if you ever bully me like Betty does , don't expect any mercy from me . " Zinnia decided to help Anne because she felt Anne was also a victim of the whole mess . Moreover , she didn't want Ethan and the others to carry the guilt . Ethan once said that if he and Brian had kept silent , maybe Betty wouldn't have gone so far and hurt Anne . That thought weighed on Ethan and the others , leaving them with a lingering sense of responsibility . In addition , Zinnia envied Anne for having a loving father . Her father didn't like her , so when she saw Daniel anxiously worried about Anne , Zinnia felt a pang of envy . Zinnia gently parted Anne's hair , her fingers expertly finding the acupoint . With swift precision , she inserted the acupuncture needle and slowly rotated it between her fingertips , carefully guiding the clotted blood to a safer spot . She thought , ' By tomorrow , once her attending physician checks on her , she should be ready for surgery . Zinnia could completely clear the blood clot for Anne , but that would raise suspicions . Besides , she couldn't swallow her pride to save someone who stood on the opposite side of her . The acupuncture session was brief , just half a minute . After that , Zinnia checked Anne's pulse once more and figured there was nothing seriously wrong . 11:20 Thu , Sep 25 Chapter 318 65 vouchers She thought , ' As long as these doctors aren't complete quacks , Anne should wake up . But if they still can't manage the surgery after this , I'll just have to call them utter incompetents . ' Zinnia carefully withdrew the needles . After confirming no one had seen her , she gently smoothed Anne's disheveled hair back into place . With one last look at Anne , she turned and slipped away . Just as Zinnia closed the ward door and was about to leave , a cold voice cut through the hallway ahead . The voice said , " Ms. Shaw , what brings you here ? Come to gloat over our family's misfortune ? " Zinnia looked up and fixed her gaze on the man emerging from the nearby corner . It was Hugo . He wore a black T - shirt , his features sharp and angular , but his eyes were bloodshot . Zinnia understood Hugo's anxiety and chose not to take offense at his harsh tone . She just said , " She'll be fine ." Hugo looked coldly at Zinnia and said , " You think just because you say she'll be fine , she will ? " It's your Shaw family's mess that got Anne into this state . How can you say that so casually ? Do you think you forever ? " Yannis will always be there to clean up after you ? Or that the Lynn family will shield Hugo complained inside , ' Since it isn't someone she cares about , of course , she isn't in a hurry . But facing Zinnia's calm eyes , his anger toward her faded . He thought , ' She is just another victim in this mess . The Shaws are still trying to drag her down . If not for Yannis protecting her , she'd be just as wretched as the rest . Hearing Yannis's name come up so suddenly , Zinnia blurted out , " What does this have to do with Yannis ? " Hugo felt a knot of frustration in his chest , yet his anger was quietly subsiding before he even realized it . " Has Yannis been looking for you ? " Zinnia asked . She hadn't seen Yannis in the past two days , and now that his name was mentioned , she found herself wanting to know almost instinctively . Hugo was momentarily speechless . He thought , ' Does she really know nothing ? ' Then he said , " Don't tell me you don't know your sister's been taken to the police station ? " " Yeah , I know , " Zinnia replied plainly . The whole school's been talking about Betty getting taken to the police station . Hugo shot her a look and said , " You should've gone to the police for questioning too . " As a key figure in the incident , Zinnia should have been questioned by the police , but Yannis intervened to keep her out of it . Given that Anne's life was hanging in the balance , the Carson family's investigation traced her condition back to Zinnia and Betty . The Carsons and Shaws were evenly matched in terms of status , though the Carsons held a slight advantage , If things had escalated into an all - out power struggle , the Shaws wouldn't have been able to protect Zinnia and Betty . But as soon as Yannis learned what had happened , he stepped in at once to protect Zinnia . Just as the Carsons 11:20 Thu , Sep 25 Chapter 318 : were about to confront Zinnia , Yannis sent an envoy bearing a lavish gift . ร 82 55 vouchers It was a multi - million dollar contract , exactly what the Carsons family desperately needed . Yannis said it was the amends for the trouble Zinnia had caused Anne . With this gesture , Zinnia was officially placed under Yannis's protection . Though the Carson family was rising in prominence , there was still an insurmountable gap between them and the powerful Perkins and Lynn families . Left with no choice , the Carsons had to swallow this bitter pill . As for Betty , the Shaw family couldn't protect her , so she landed in police custody . Although Zinnia was also a victim , it was their entanglement that dragged Anne into this mess . Naturally , the Carsons held both of them in contempt . But upon reflection , the Carsons realized Zinnia had little to do with the incident . If they needed to get to the bottom of it , the accident was mainly caused by Anne's poor choice of friends . Yet the mere sight of a Shaw still made the Carsons ' blood boil . That was why Hugo had snapped at Zinnia when he first saw her lingering outside the ward . But after a few words with her , the anger coiled in his chest began to ease . 11:20 Thu , Sep 25 Chapter 319 Chapter 319 82 EX 55 vouchers