"So, how did you earn your living expenses over the past year? Was it through part-time jobs?" Wang Li asked curiously as she was now in her second semester of sophomore year.
“It was all I received from my grandparents, the money my family lent me from time to time, and the subsidies from the local government. It was pitiful, wasn’t it? It was pathetic. I was the pride of my hometown, but also a pitiful creature struggling in this huge metropolis.”
"Drink!" Xu Chen couldn't say anything more; no one can truly empathize with the suffering of others.
Li Wei raised his glass, and the two drank it down in one gulp.
"The reason I've been working part-time lately is because my mother's condition has worsened. You could say that my family and I have reached a dead end."
Xu Chen leaned forward and patted Li Wei on the shoulder, "I'm telling you, you're such an idiot."
Li Wei and Wang Li were stunned. Was this how people comforted each other?
"If you're pitiful, then aren't the rest of the world pathetic? You're smart, considerate of others, and studying at Peking University, the best university in China. Your future prospects are at least better than 90% of the people in China. I call you stupid because when you encountered difficulties, you actually gave up asking us for help and chose to bear the burden yourself. Tell me, aren't you stupid?"
Li Wei remained silent. His family background made him quite sensitive about his self-esteem. Even with his brothers whom he spent every day with, he couldn't bring himself to ask for help freely. Subconsciously, he was afraid that his brothers would look down on him.
"Weimin, Aihua, and I are all capable of helping you with your mother's illness. Why don't you ask for help? Are you treating us like outsiders? Li Wei? I won't allow you to treat us like outsiders! It's such a great fate that the four of us came together to be classmates and roommates at Peking University. You can't refuse this brotherhood!" Xu Chen's face was flushed, as if he were drunk. Li Wei saw this and was quite moved.
"I...I'm sorry, I'm afraid you guys will look down on me."
Wang Li refilled their glasses, then poured one for herself. "Li Wei, I don't know about others, but my Xu Chen is definitely not the kind of person who would look down on others. Cheers!"
Xu Chen finished his drink in one gulp and continued, "Li Wei, you must remember that dignity is earned, not earned. Running away won't bring you dignity. If you had told us about your mother's illness earlier, we would have helped you. That way, you could have gotten back into your studies a day sooner, even a second sooner, which would have been very beneficial for your future!"
The dinner party ended amidst Li Wei's tears and Xu Chen's persuasion.
After lunch, Xu Chen called Zhao Weimin and explained the difficulties Li Wei was facing.
"Brother Chen, you knew all along?"
"Ah, am I the last one to know? Looks like I'm a really bad brother." Xu Chen said with a bit of guilt.
“Since you don’t live on campus, we naturally knew about it first. Aihua and I also wanted to help with his mother’s medical expenses, but Li Wei refused.”
“No, if this drags on, Li Wei might not be able to withstand the dual pressures of his studies and life, and might eventually choose to drop out of school. He can’t just abandon his mother.”
Zhao Weimin was silent for a moment, then said, "How about this, you and I will go to his house first, just like a trip, since the May Day holiday is coming soon."
"Alright, let's help him solve some practical difficulties."
Time flies, and May Day is just around the corner. Beijing is becoming more lively than usual, with tourists from all over the country flocking to every scenic spot and food street.
"Let's go, Li Wei, let's set off." At school, Weimin pulled Li Wei out of the school gate to get a car. Li Wei's home is in Nanyang, Henan Province. His mother is sick and staying in a hospital in Zhengzhou, the provincial capital. So the three of them took a plane directly to Zhengzhou to discuss their strategy.
"Thank you so much, thank you so much." Li Wei looked at his plane ticket, tears welling up in his eyes. It was the first time he had ever been on a plane in his life. It wasn't just because he was flying that he was crying; Li Wei was simply thinking about how his brothers had gone to so much trouble for him, and he was deeply moved.
"Don't talk nonsense again. Brothers are meant to be used, you know? Tell us about your mother's situation first, and Weimin and I will think of a solution."
The three of them were seated in the same row, and Li Wei quickly explained the situation in detail.
Li Wei's family was originally quite well-off, mainly referring to his maternal grandparents. His maternal grandparents worked in the city; one was a retired teacher, and the other a retired cadre. His father, however, was an orphan who had been orphaned at a young age and had come from the countryside to the city to make a living. By a twist of fate, he met Li Wei's mother. A college student and a primary school graduate thus came together. Li Wei's mother defied her parents and went back to the village with Li Wei's father. This marriage, so unequal in social standing, was, in a sense, a tragedy. The subsequent events are quite clear: after the marriage, Li Wei's father revealed his true nature, constantly beating and verbally abusing Li Wei's mother, believing she looked down on him, and eventually completely abandoned them. During Li Wei's high school years, his mother fell seriously ill, and Li Wei, out of desperation, sought help from his maternal grandparents, a situation he continues to this day.
"Your dad, have you looked for him in the past few years? Li Wei."
"Why bring him up? I wish he were dead." Li Wei's expression was ferocious, then he realized they were on an airplane and lowered his voice.
“Weimin is saying that we should bring him back to atone for his sins,” Xu Chen said earnestly, patting Li Wei on the shoulder.
"No need. I have my grandparents and my brothers now. There's no need to bring him back."
As they chatted, the plane arrived in the capital of Henan Province, and the group headed straight to the hospital after leaving the airport.
In the attending physician's office, Zhao Weimin took out his grandfather's cigarettes, and Xu Chen took out a red envelope that was hard to refuse. The attending physician's humanity was put to a great test, and in the end, he failed the test.
"Doctor, I'm completely entrusting my brother's mother's illness to you. If surgery is possible, then we should have it done. Money is not a problem. We want her in the best ward and with the best medicine."
The attending physician frowned and said, "Gentlemen, I... to put it this way, I can't guarantee anything, but I will do my best. The main problem is that his mother's illness is showing signs of accelerating. If it hadn't been delayed and surgery had been performed earlier, the chances of a successful cure would have been very high. But now... to be honest, it's a gamble."
"Then let's take a gamble!" Zhao Weimin said excitedly.
"Can you make the decision for him?" The attending physician's brows relaxed. These two young men looked like rich kids. What patient wouldn't have trouble affording surgery? To be honest, delaying it was just waiting to die, and the doctor didn't want to see that outcome either.
"Yes, we can, doctor. Costs are not a problem," Xu Chen and Zhao Weimin exchanged a glance and then said confidently.
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