Zhan Chunlan returned home with lingering fear. She closed the door and leaned against it. Zhan Xiaoman excitedly came up to her and licked her all over. Zhan Chunlan slowly squatted down and stroked Zhan Xiaoman's head with both hands: "Zhan Xiaoman, tell me, why can't we spend our whole lives together?"
Xiaoman whimpered comfortably in her hands. Her fingers massaged its head like a soul extractor, and it rolled its eyes in pleasure, making a gurgling sound in its throat. It was clear that the massage was very effective.
Zhan Chunlan's hands slid down Xiaoman's body, and with a gentle pull, she firmly embraced her: "Xiaoman, you're the best. We're the best of friends, mother and daughter, aren't we?"
Zhan Xiaoman tilted her head back and hummed, as if in replying, "Yes, we are the best in the world!"
I don't know if it's because Zhan Chunlan has been having a run of bad luck lately, but she keeps going on bizarre blind dates, and then her big toe got stepped on by a colleague at work.
Everyone helped Zhan Chunlan to the infirmary. When she took off her socks, Zhan Chunlan couldn't help but hiss.
"Master Zhan, I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention." The person who stepped on her foot was a man named Qin Shengli. He had just joined the factory last year and was following behind Zhan Chunlan with a learning attitude. He had just stepped on Zhan Chunlan's foot without noticing and felt very bad seeing her in so much pain.
Zhan Chunlan was in so much pain that she couldn't speak, so she could only shake her head to indicate that it was nothing.
The doctor applied iodine to her wound and said, "Your wound is a little swollen now. There's nothing we can do except disinfect it. Go home and observe it first. If there's no problem, that's best. If the wound becomes infected, then come back for treatment."
The crowd helped Zhan Chunlan leave. Over the next few days, Zhan Chunlan finally experienced the leisurely pace of working in this era. Her work consisted of nothing more than a pot of tea and a newspaper. And let me tell you, the newspaper was really short-lived; she finished it in no time. There was really nothing else to read. She somewhat understood Yan Ni's sentiment: "Every day it's just a newspaper and a few cups of tea. I can't sit still!"
Deng Birou was knitting again. She was happy to see Zhan Chunlan in the office, which was rare for her. She even poured her a cup of hot water and said, "Let me tell you, I heard that someone caused trouble at Haicheng First People's Hospital yesterday."
"Sister Deng, you're really well-informed. We haven't heard a thing."
"When I got home from get off work yesterday, I overheard someone saying that a woman was giving birth in the hospital, but the baby didn't come out. If you ask me, that woman was just being delicate. Everyone gives birth at home, but she insisted on going to the hospital, and as a result, she didn't give birth. I guess it was because she was too much of a hassle that she lost the baby."
The man speaking was a man nearing retirement. Zhan Chunlan had been there for so long, and every time she heard him speak, she felt uncomfortable all over, to the point that she didn't even know his name anymore.
Deng Bitong wasn't going to put up with this person at all. She raised her eyebrows and said loudly, "What nonsense are you talking about? It was a woman who had a difficult labor. The doctor recommended a cesarean section immediately, but the family refused. The doctors and nurses present tried to explain the facts and reason with them, but they just thought the hospital recommended a cesarean section to make more money, and they refused anyway."
"Later, the mother was unable to give birth, but her mother felt sorry for her daughter and insisted on a cesarean section. When she was being wheeled into the operating room, her mother-in-law was still shouting to save the baby."
This exchange left the man blushing and somewhat unconvinced. He wanted to continue, but was interrupted by another voice.
"Huh? Then why couldn't the baby be saved?" Qin Shengli, who had been paying attention to Zhan Chunlan these past few days, also came over to chat.
Deng Bitong, with an air of superiority, said arrogantly, "And you're supposed to be a high school student? The doctor said that according to relevant laws and medical standards, the mother's life must be saved first, and any attempt to abandon the mother's treatment is illegal! Her words aren't imperial edicts, so why should the doctor listen to her?"
Qin Shengli was a little embarrassed: "I really don't understand, I've only heard such things occasionally."
Deng Bitong didn't dwell on him and continued, "What's most heartbreaking is that the child didn't survive because of the long delay, and the mother also lost her fertility. Now the mother's in-laws are making a scene, demanding that the hospital give them one of their grandsons."
"This...isn't it their own fault? They knew they were at the hospital, so why didn't they listen to the doctor?" In her later life, Zhan Chunlan had seen countless similar cases online, and every time she saw one, she was puzzled by their thought processes.
"Who can disagree? It's just a pity for that new mother. I wonder how she will live in the future."
At this point, the soon-to-retire man was about to chime in again: "She'll definitely be dumped by her husband. What's the point of marrying a woman if she can't have children?"
"You're marrying her to be your mother!" Deng Bitong was almost furious at his words: "If you marry a wife, she has to cook for you, do your laundry, warm your bed, have your children, and take care of your elders. We all earn the same amount of money, so why are you so superior? Do you really think you're some kind of patriarch?"
The man, who was about to retire, wanted to refute her at first, but as she got more and more outrageous, even using terms like "old man," he quickly left the office, afraid that those three words would catch up with him.
Seeing him leave, Zhan Chunlan breathed a sigh of relief. In the past few days, she had been observing her big toe whenever she had free time, watching it become round and swollen, with the edges of the toenail becoming red, swollen, and festering, causing her severe pain when walking.
In the past, whenever she saw him in his office, she would leave on her own, either going to the lab or taking a walk outside. She just didn't want to be in the same space as him. But now she can't do that anymore; her feet hurt as soon as she moves.
She went to the infirmary again.
The doctor was speechless when he saw her swollen foot: "Why are you only coming now?"
Zhan Chunlan was a little confused: "Didn't you say you'd only come when the wound became infected? It hasn't become infected yet."
Doctor: "...I can't handle your situation here. You should go to Haicheng First People's Hospital for a checkup."
When they arrived at Haicheng First People's Hospital, they learned that being stepped on was not the main cause. During the research and development of the candy, they had been standing in the laboratory for a long time, and the rubber shoes they were wearing were not breathable, which had already caused some problems. When they were stepped on, all of these problems came to a head.
Of course, the doctor also said that it was not a big problem. After local anesthesia, the edge of the ingrown nail would be removed, and it would be done in ten minutes.
Wang Wenfeng had just finished his outpatient clinic when he saw a tall girl wearing a long trench coat standing there with her back to him. He felt that the girl's back looked familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before.
He walked and looked around, finally seeing her face clearly: "Zhan Chunlan? Is that you? What brings you to the hospital?"
Zhan Chunlan was getting tired of standing on one leg, so she gently placed her injured right foot on her left. Wang Wenfeng had initially thought she was posing, but upon closer inspection, he realized, "Your foot is injured?"
This was the first time the two had met since they parted ways. Zhan Chunlan was initially a little embarrassed, but seeing how natural Wang Wenfeng was, as if nothing had happened, her nervousness subsided. She smiled and said to him, "Yes, someone stepped on my foot, and the wound has become infected. I came to the hospital to get it checked out."
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