Yue Linze lowered his gaze, seemingly oblivious to, or perhaps unconcerned by, her injury.

The housekeeper, having just returned after a sleepless night, gasped upon seeing the stark wound on Tao Yu's ear. "What happened?"

His words broke the silence. Yue Linying spoke with concern, "Miss Tao, are you alright? I'll have someone call the family doctor.  An untreated wound could become problematic…"

"That's unnecessary, Mr. Linying. I can take care of this small injury myself," Tao Yu said distantly.  This man, seemingly unremarkable, was quite adept at stirring trouble. 

He'd been subtly provocative since last night, and now, injured and irritable, she had no patience for his performance.

Yue Linying, sensing her displeasure, gave an awkward chuckle and fell silent, making Tao Yu appear somewhat unsympathetic. Gu Yansheng frowned, his disapproval of Tao Yu deepening.  Trailing behind them, Zhou Yanran was unusually quiet, even appearing distracted after the recent events.

‘This Yue family is a real headache,’ Tao Yu thought, wisely remaining silent.

"Dad, let's go downstairs. It's time for breakfast," Yue Linying spoke again, breaking the silence.

"Eat? All you think about is eating!" Gu Yansheng glared at him, then, seeing the guilt on his eldest son's face, softened slightly. He turned a cold gaze to Yue Linze. 

"I can allow Linying's mother to remain outside the Gu family estate, but your mother's grave must be relocated. Otherwise, this matter won't be resolved easily.  Decide for yourself."

At his words, Yue Linying's face darkened momentarily before he quickly composed himself, turning to Yue Linze with a gentle expression. "Linze, just do as Dad says. Don't upset him."

He finished, and all eyes fell on Yue Linze, as if his refusal would be a grave offense.

After a long silence, Yue Linze finally moved, leaning back languidly against the chair.  He slowly uttered a single word, "Get out."

"You!" Gu Yansheng flushed with anger and took several steps forward.

The housekeeper quickly shielded Yue Linze, anxiously saying, "Mr. Gu, please calm down! What if the Master is provoked and refuses to attend your birthday banquet?"

His words gave Gu Yansheng pause.  He and Yue Linze were now essentially enemies. He had summoned Yue Linze back for the banquet for two reasons, to obtain the company seal and to appease the elders of the Yue Corporation. If Yue Linze left now, Linying's position within the company would become even more precarious.

This thought calmed him, but his raised hand remained awkwardly suspended in midair.  Fortunately, Yue Linying, understanding his father well, rushed forward to support him. "Dad, don't be impulsive. You and Linze can discuss this calmly. Let's go outside, alright?"

He was half-led, half-pushed out of the room, leaving a sudden quiet. The housekeeper breathed a sigh of relief, then, noticing the blood on Tao Yu's ear, said, "Dr. Tao, please sit down. I'll call the doctor."

Tao Yu examined her wound with her phone's camera.  "No stitches needed," she said with a smile.  "Could you get me the first-aid kit, please?"

"Certainly." The housekeeper promptly retrieved the kit. As Tao Yu opened it, he asked with concern, "Dr. Tao, do you need any assistance?"

Before she could answer, Yue Linze spoke, "Get out."

"Dr. Tao is an excellent doctor. I'm sure she doesn't require my help. I'll take my leave then." The housekeeper promptly departed, thoughtfully closing the door behind him.

Tao Yu's lips twitched.  Looking up, she met Yue Linze's ink-dark gaze.

A sudden wave of guilt washed over her. She coughed lightly, gesturing towards the door.  "Does that 'get out' include me?"

Yue Linze stared at her, motionless, like a breathtakingly handsome, yet lifeless sculpture.

Tao Yu closed the first-aid kit awkwardly, stood up holding it, and said, "Alright, I'll leave now."

After taking two steps, she heard him say, "Get back here."

Tao Yu smiled, turning back and crouching beside Yue Linze's legs. "Mr. Yue, could you help me? I might have a little difficulty managing this on my own."

"Serves you right," Yue Linze said, his face finally darkening now that they were alone.

Tao Yu wanted to throttle the brat, but her professional ethics dictated against harming a patient.  It definitely wasn't because she couldn't win a fight against him.

Yue Linze clearly had no intention of helping. Tao Yu rummaged through the kit, retrieving what she needed. Glancing at the glass-strewn floor, she decided to find a cleaner spot to tend to her wound.

Gathering her alcohol, tweezers, cotton balls, and gauze, she attempted to stand. However, having crouched for so long, and having missed two meals, the world spun as blackness threatened to consume her. When she recovered from the low blood sugar spell, she found herself sitting on Yue Linze's lap.

"...Mr. Yue, I think I can explain," Tao Yu said, struggling to hold onto her supplies. Her attempts to stand only resulted in movements that resembled some sort of flirtatious teasing.

Despair began to creep in.  Her act of self-sacrifice, her bravery, any goodwill she’d earned—all gone, erased by this one awkward moment.  The cut on her ear felt like a minor inconvenience in comparison.

Yue Linze wordlessly took her supplies.  Hesitantly, Tao Yu asked, "Mr. Yue…"  Surely he wouldn't refuse to let her even bandage herself out of spite?

"Shut up," Yue Linze said impatiently.

Tao Yu immediately fell silent.  As strength returned to her legs, she prepared to stand, but felt a cool touch on her ear.  Turning in surprise, she met Yue Linze's hand holding a gauze pad.

"No glass shards," he said indifferently.

Tao Yu gave a small, embarrassed smile, no longer in a hurry to leave. She watched as he discarded the blood-soaked gauze, then gathered all the dry cotton balls into a single mass, drenching them liberally with alcohol, creating one giant alcohol-soaked ball.

…A bad feeling crept over her.  Tensing, she subtly shifted her right foot, preparing to stand, while calmly suggesting, "Mr. Yue, you should use tweezers for the cotton ball. Touching it with your hand introduces bacteria.  And I probably don't need such a large one."