Chapter 113

Before the Lunar New Year, rumors were rampant online, and the collateral branches of the He family had heard about them, but they dismissed the conspiracy theories with disdain.

Outsiders might not know, but those who have known each other for over twenty years are well aware of Xu Yirou's position in the family.

The three siblings were known for their filial piety. The old lady was stern and strict but not ruthless. Logically and emotionally, no one would want to harm someone who was terminally ill.

Yet this man, who was nearing the end of his life, had not appeared for almost a year, his disappearance sudden and mysterious.

"Where is my sister-in-law?"

"Is your health any better, sister-in-law?"

During their casual conversation, they inadvertently inquired about Xu Yirou's whereabouts. Qiao Wen, without even looking at her, gave a vague answer: "Yirou is recuperating abroad."

The answer neither mentioned the illness nor confirmed that Xu Yirou was still alive.

Since everyone gave the same answer, and they couldn't get any information out of them, they wisely stopped asking.

It was a rare occasion for everyone to gather together, so He Ming chuckled and started a conversation: "Ayan truly lives up to his reputation as the eldest among us younger generation. He has set a great example of starting a family and building a career."

“My daughter is already so big, I think it’s time to consider having a second child, and try to have a son to complete our family.”

See? They always push for babies during holidays. Jiang Yan scoffed, taking a sip of her tea while glancing at Xu Qingyan out of the corner of her eye.

Xu Qingyan said coldly, "I don't plan to have a second child, so you don't need to worry about it."

He Ming, oblivious to the subtleties, adopted the airs of an elder and said sincerely, "How can we not have a second child? There's an old saying that goes, 'Many children, many blessings, many happinesses.' Besides, you're still so young, the main force for carrying on our family line. We can't let you go astray."

His voice was booming, so loud that even a deaf person could hear it.

He Nianzhu turned her head, her face showing a speechless expression that seemed to say, "Are you teaching my older brother how to do things?"

Xu Qingyan's jawline sharpened, and he gave a cold tug at his thin lips.

A sweet, childlike voice chimed in: "Hmm, many children, many blessings, Xiaoming, is that why you have so many girlfriends? How many babies do you have?"

"Three? Four? Or five?" Xu Yirou counted on her short, white fingers. "Why don't you bring them out to play?"

He Ming paused, then subconsciously retorted, "What do you mean three, four, or five? I only have two children!"

What had just happened was already bothering him, and now this added insult to injury, he couldn't help but become furious and scolded:

"How dare a little girl like you interrupt when her elders are speaking! Go away and stay out of the way!"

Before he could finish speaking, five or six icy gazes shot towards him, making his heart skip a beat.

He Nianzhu stretched out his long legs and stood in front of Xu Yirou like a mother hen protecting her chicks.

A shadow loomed over He Ming's head. The young man, looking down at him, narrowed his long eyes and sneered, "Who do you want to stay out of the way?"

He Ming swallowed hard, feeling a little flustered.

"How dare you bully my little aunt?" He Nianzhu's eyes blazed with anger as she spat out each word through gritted teeth. "Why don't you look in the mirror and see what kind of person you are? You think you're so great just because you're old and think you can boss people around? Get the hell out of here!"

The insults were extremely harsh.

Upon hearing this, He Ming's face turned red with anger: "How dare you speak like that? I'm your elder, Grandma, look at him—"

The old lady comes from a scholarly family and values ​​rules above all else. She will definitely side with him and give this little brat a good scolding.

"Alright." Qiao Wen coldly interrupted him, "He Ming, as an elder, don't you even have this much magnanimity? Don't bring your home mentality here."

He Ming's eyes widened.

It was clearly He Nianzhu and that little girl's fault, so how did it become his problem?

He gritted his teeth in hatred; the old lady's heart had truly strayed to the Pacific Ocean.

He appeared to be bearing a heavy burden of humiliation: "The old lady is right, I will go home and reflect on my actions."

Who gave me this attitude on the first day of the Lunar New Year?!

"Wait a minute." Bubble led the aggrieved Xu Yirou forward, hands on her hips, and said fiercely, "Apologize to my little grandma!"

Another inexperienced young girl appeared, and He Ming felt a little embarrassed, but having learned his lesson earlier, he dared not put on airs again.

"Okay, okay, I apologize." Under the watchful eyes of several menacing people, He Ming turned to Xu Yirou and forced a perfunctory smile: "Rourou, it was Uncle's fault just now. Uncle shouldn't have scolded you. I'm sorry."

Xu Yirou looked up and could sense the other person's lack of effort, so she huffed softly in annoyance:

"Xiaoming, my Dabao only needs one child, Paopao. You can leave my son alone. You have your own son, don't try to take mine away. My Dabao doesn't like you, and I don't like you either."

She tilted her head and thought for a moment, then continued, "Your breath really stinks. Come back to play when it smells better."

He Ming: "???"

Xu Yirou waved her hand quickly: "Okay, I'm done talking, you can go now."

He Ming left the He family home in anger, using the excuse of buying cigarettes to send his family away. He then hid in a secluded alley and answered the phone in a low voice.

"We couldn't find out anything. They hid my sister-in-law abroad, saying she was recuperating there."

"They're lying to you. I checked her entry and exit records for almost a year and there are none." The man on the phone chuckled. "Interesting. What kind of unspeakable secret could the old lady be hiding? I'm getting more and more curious."

"So what do we do next?" He Ming asked.

"You can keep hanging around them."

He Ming felt a chill in his heart: "I just offended them, even if I go back to them, I probably won't find out anything."

"What happened?"

He Ming embellished the story, saying, "They really went too far. We're from the same family, yet they embarrassed me for some unknown girl. How hateful!"

He thought the man on the other end of the phone would at least offer some words of comfort, but instead he was met with a barrage of insults: "Have you only grown older but not smarter all these years? How dare you insult someone like me? Who do you think you are! Know your place!"

He Ming was dumbfounded by the scolding.

...Ah, aren't they in cahoots?

What's so special about that little girl? Is she the Queen Mother of the West or the Jade Emperor?

Why did he get scolded again for no reason?

He Ming was furious and was about to retort when the man said, "As long as you can get evidence that Madam He was suspected of being murdered, even if it's just a rumor, I can guarantee that Xu Qingyan will step down and give way. He Nianzhu is a good-for-nothing, but your son is not bad."

A huge pancake was fishing in front of him, and He Ming walked over again, feeling the spring breeze on his face, and readily agreed.

*

Even during the Spring Festival, a time for family reunions, there are still people who remain at their posts, such as police officers, doctors, nurses, border guards, high-speed rail attendants, and so on, who can be seen everywhere.

Another example is the laboratory researchers who have the deepest connection with Xu Yirou, led by Professor Yunlan, who is over seventy years old. They worked day and night for seven days during the Spring Festival, conducting experiments and recording data without the slightest slackening.

They knew that countless patients were waiting for the advent of a cure, and in repeated experiments they discovered that the anti-cancer substances in Xu Yirou's blood had an effect far exceeding their expectations.

Mice with acute leukemia showed immediate results after being injected with a drug containing her anti-cancer substances. The leukemia cells that were originally proliferating wildly and inhibiting normal hematopoiesis died rapidly, and the complications caused by them stopped worsening. After a period of conditioning, they returned to normal.

Acute leukemia is more common in children and adolescents. The cure rate is as high as 70%, but the relapse rate is also high, with one-third of patients experiencing a relapse.

Chronic leukemia is more common in adults over 50 years old. The cure rate is less than 50% and the recurrence rate is high. Whether it is acute or chronic leukemia, they are both ruthless hunters that reap lives.

This is a sword hanging over the heads of patients and their families. Now that Professor Yunlan's team has found a drug that is very likely to solve the patients' problems, it is urgent to use it in clinical trials as soon as possible. We dare not delay for even a second.

A month later, Xu Qingyan received the laboratory's report.

"Ayan, the anti-cancer substances in Rourou's blood are much stronger than we expected." Professor Yunlan, who was not as energetic as a woman in her seventies, said passionately, "Give us just two more years, and a cure for leukemia will definitely be available!"

Two years is incredibly fast; it usually takes three to five years to develop a cancer treatment drug before it can be used in clinical trials.

If other professors heard Professor Yunlan mentioning two years, it would probably cause them to burst into laughter.

"Isn't two years too fast?"

Although Xu Qingyan is not a professional, he has basic common sense: medicines intended for human use will never be allowed to be marketed by authoritative departments without repeated experiments and tests.

His earliest expectation is five years.

Professor Yunlan hesitated for a moment before looking at her clear eyes: "Ayan, I have a favor to ask."

"Please speak."

"I would like to invite other experts and professors to participate in the research." Fearing that Xu Qingyan would disagree, Professor Yunlan hurriedly said, "I guarantee that they will not reveal a single word about your mother's affairs. They are all my friends of many years, and you don't need to worry about their character at all. They are all very trustworthy and respectable scientists."

The initial purpose of forming this research team was simply to find out why Xu Yirou shrunk, eliminate potential risks, and ensure her safety.

Later, due to a remark by Xu Yirou, the research team went astray and began to rush towards the research of a special drug.

Given that more people means more power, and that the research could encounter bottlenecks at any time, in order not to delay the progress, Professor Yunlan had to try to discuss with Xu Qingyan about bringing in more reliable personnel.

Of course, this request is likely to cross Xu Qingyan's bottom line.

With more people involved in the project, there's bound to be a lot of gossip. If someone with a big mouth accidentally reveals that Xu Yirou has shrunk, it will bring her a lot of unnecessary trouble.

Before even speaking, Professor Yunlan was prepared to make three visits to Zhuge Liang's thatched cottage.

“Aunt Yun, I trust your judgment,” Xu Qingyan said in a steady voice.

She did not receive the rejection she expected.

"But I have a question."

"How do you plan to report the source of the main ingredients in this special drug?"

All drugs that are successfully launched on the market cannot bypass the National Medical Products Administration. Once a drug for treating leukemia is introduced, it will surely become the focus of the world.

All of this is predicated on review by the National Medical Products Administration, which means that Xu Yirou will inevitably be exposed. Therefore, whether or not to add more people midway is no longer Xu Qingyan's concern.

Professor Yunlan understood and was caught in a dilemma: "Ayan, we can't hide the source of the ingredients..."