Chapter 29 The Third Takeaway
Qing Bai really didn't dare take the cat to the hospital. Scaring the doctor was one thing, but the black cat would have a "stress" reaction. If the cat ran away, where would he find it? The underworld?
But he definitely couldn't say this directly, so Qing Bai could only change the subject: "...Eat quickly, then go to class."
Qi Xiaopang also noticed that his brother Qing didn't want to talk about this topic, so he said, "There's no class today. Canglan is sick, and Uncle Li asked for a few days off for her."
Qing Bai really didn't know about this. Although he could be considered Li Canglan's tutor, and even though he only went for one day, the number of class hours he taught was actually about the same as Qi Xiaopang's. But that was only the number of class hours. After all, Qi Xiaopang, who was so good at socializing, had already infiltrated the Li family's "Loving Family" group.
Qing Bai nodded. Whether he was really sick or just... it would be good to take a few days off to adjust his mood.
Qi Xiaopang ate a steamed bun with vegetables and felt a little depressed: "I've only been working for a few days, and I'm a little uncomfortable with the sudden free time..."
Although this is not a formal job, he puts in a lot of effort. For a two-hour class every day, he has to spend at least five or six hours preparing lessons and reviewing on his own. Not only does he have to correct homework and sort out students' weak points in knowledge, but he also has to search for questions online... He even thought about taking the teaching qualification exam after finishing teaching this student.
Qing Bai didn't quite understand what Qi Xiaopang was upset about, but he still comforted him casually: "You can also take a two-day break."
Qi Xiaopang: "That's the only way—"
As he was speaking, the cell phone suddenly rang twice. Qi Xiaopang's hand had just grabbed the bun, and it was too greasy to pick up the phone directly. But after he pulled out two pieces of paper to wipe his hands, the phone was silent again.
Qi Xiaopang flipped through his missed calls and was a little confused: "How come the teacher called me and hung up halfway through?"
Qing Bai thought for a moment and asked, "Is the teacher still in the hospital?"
The 'old class teacher' the two mentioned was their university counselor, whose full name was Ban Bieyi. He had just graduated from the undergraduate and master's program at the University of Tokyo. He was not much older than them, so he shouldn't have been a counselor. However, their original counselor was on maternity leave, and he happened to be free, so he came to teach them for the last semester. Unfortunately, he didn't finish the semester, and he was admitted to the hospital before graduation.
This is also the person Qing Bai is most familiar with during his four years at university, besides his three roommates—the counselor who is very generous in giving out leave.
Qi Xiaopang wasn't entirely sure either. "He should be fine, right? It was just an appendectomy. My class wanted to organize a few students to bring some flowers and fruit to visit him in the hospital, but our teacher refused. He said it was just an appendectomy, and it would be embarrassing to mobilize so many people..."
As soon as Qi Xiaopang finished speaking, his cell phone rang twice again. This time it was not a call, but a text message. However, the number displayed was the same as the previous call, both from his teacher.
Qi Xiaopang clicked on it and took a look. His expression froze instantly. He looked up and said in a dazed voice, "Brother Qing... with the current level of medical technology, appendectomy should be a minor operation... right?"
Qing Bai, who was picking up a bun from his plate, nodded without looking up. It took him two seconds to understand the huge information contained in Qi Xiaopang's words: "Teacher's appendectomy...something went wrong?"
Qi Xiaopang didn't answer, but handed the phone to Qing Bai with a sad face.
Qing Bai took a closer look. The black, white, and gray text message page contained only a few simple lines: "The patient, Mr. Ban Bieyi, is currently hospitalized in our hospital. Despite active treatment, his condition is worsening and could be life-threatening at any time. - Shangjing City Third Hospital, Inpatient Department."
After reading the message, Qing Bai pondered and said, "It doesn't look like a text message, it looks like a critical illness notice... Are you sure it was sent by the teacher? It's not a joke?"
"The number is correct, and the teacher wouldn't joke about something like this, would he?"
But this text message is indeed strange. Even if the patient is truly critically ill, it doesn't make sense to send a text message like this, right? What hospital uses the patient's phone to notify them? But if it's a scam, there should be a link to transfer money at the end, right?
Qi Xiaopang was no longer sure, so he simply called back. However, "No one answered?"
It's more like a joke.
Qing Bai took out his silent phone and opened it. There were two red dots below, one for a missed call and one for a new text message. The call was hung up in two seconds, and the text message was also the familiar critical illness notice.
"I received it, too."
"Forget about you. All the students in my class who saved their phone numbers with our teacher have received it. I guess it was a group message." Fat Qi sighed as he scrolled through his phone. "The class group has exploded... Did you turn on the Do Not Disturb feature for your class group messages?"
Qing Bai nodded. Except for work groups, the first thing he did when joining a group was to turn on the message do not disturb function.
The more Fat Qi scrolled through his phone, the more his brows furrowed. From time to time, he would open a voice chat to exchange a few words... So when Qing Bai had put away the dishes and sent the bloated monk into the kitchen to wash the dishes, and then sat back in his recliner, Fat Qi said to him with a serious face, "Brother Qing, the organization has given us a mission!"
Qing Bai held the black cat in his arms without saying a word.
"Let's go to the hospital today and find out what happened!" Qi Xiaopang said passionately. "The classmates are all waiting for Jie Xun in the class group! The teacher's safety depends on us!"
Qing Bai was unmoved.
Qi Xiaopang chose to tell the truth: "Okay, we are the only two people in Beijing who have time now."
Qing Bai paused in stroking the cat's fur, frowning slightly. "Can I bring a cat to the Third Hospital?"
Qi Xiaopang: “???” Is this the point?
It's not a pet hospital, so of course you can't bring a cat in. Fortunately, Ai Chan, who was washing dishes, volunteered and said that he had nothing to do at home anyway, so he could wait for them outside the hospital with the cat.
Qing Bai didn't want to hand the cat over to someone else, but leaving the cat alone in the yard was...
Just as he was struggling, the black cat squatting on his lap seemed to see through his thoughts and took the initiative to put its paw on Qing Bai's arm. Its light golden eyes were as clear as glass in the morning light, and Qing Bai's somewhat depressed mood was instantly soothed.
Qing Bai and the cat stared at each other quietly for a moment. Looking into the black cat's calm and bright eyes, he suddenly smiled and said softly, "You have to be good and don't run around. If you get lost and I don't see you when I come back... I'll be sad."
The black cat blinked without making any sound, but its beautiful eyes were gentle and inclusive, as if they could accommodate everything. Just looking at it quietly made people feel at ease.
Qing Bai seemed to be bewitched and raised his finger to slowly approach the eyes. The black cat did not dodge or avoid it. When there was only the last centimeter left, his finger trembled and lightly touched the corners of the black cat's eyes. Qing Bai sighed: "...It's a deal."
Fat Qi watched from the side, feeling both nauseous and a bit strange... His brother Qing was speaking so softly, and he couldn't tell if he was coaxing the child or his wife...
Oh, I forgot, it’s the queen, the cat queen.
Ai Chan leaned halfway out of the kitchen and raised her hands to promise, "Don't worry! I'll be watching over you and it won't get lost!"
Qing Bai glanced at him with a hint of disgust: "Wash your hands first... there's still foam."
Although they regretted it, the three of them and the cat still stood at the gate of Shangjing City Third Hospital.
Qi Xiaopang was carrying a bamboo basket in each hand, one filled with peaches and the other with melons, and he also mixed in a few big, bright red tomatoes, all generously sponsored by Mr. Li next door... No matter what the reason was, since he was already here, it would be bad to go empty-handed.
It was almost noon, the scorching sun was shining brightly in the sky, there was only the chirping of cicadas but no birds. Perhaps because the people in Beijing were living a happy and healthy life recently, the hospital entrance was empty. Apart from a few ambulances, there were only security guards dozing in the security booth.
Seeing that the security guard was sleeping soundly, Fat Qi couldn't bear to disturb him. He looked at the hospital floor plan displayed at the gate for a long time. Then he turned around and said to Qing Bai with confidence: "Brother Qing, I found the specific location of the inpatient department. Let's go..."
He was reading a map under the scorching sun, while his brother Qing was saying goodbye to his cat under the shade of a tree in the flowerbed, reluctant to part...
"I'm destined to be a servant!" Fat Qi pinched his voice and pretended to be weird.
Qing Bai placed the cat on the edge of the tiled flower bed, which he had already wiped clean. Finally, he kindly told Ai Chan, "If the cat gets lost, go back to the temple and keep the Buddha company."
Ai Chan was not afraid at all, and gave a military order with a smile: "Don't worry, I won't lose this cat even if I lose it."
Qing Bai nodded, not knowing whether to believe it or not, and turned to walk towards Qi Xiaopang.
Shangjing Third Hospital is a tertiary hospital with a great reputation that has lasted for decades. However, because of this, the hospital's basic buildings and facilities are quite old. The two buildings on both sides are only five stories high, and the white exterior walls have turned gray. Only the new comprehensive building opposite the gate was newly built in the back. It is seventeen stories high, and the inpatient department is on the top two floors.
Pushing open the glass door, cold air immediately hit him in the face, causing Qi Xiaopang, who had just come out from the sun, to get goose bumps all over his arms: "Hiss! The air conditioning in the hospital is so bad..."
Qing Bai didn't react to the air, which smelled faintly of disinfectant. He simply glanced back—through the spotless glass and the glaring sunlight, he stared at a distant figure, a man and a cat. Qing Bai had excellent eyesight, but he couldn't quite make out their faces. He only saw Ai Chan wave at him. Presumably, it was a gesture of reassurance.
After taking a look at Qing Bai, he turned around. The bright hall was empty, and there was no one behind the registration and medication window. It was not known whether the staff took the opportunity to slack off because there was no one around, or it was break time. There was only a petite nurse sitting behind the reception desk.
The nurse's face could not be seen clearly from the outside. She was concentrating on eating, chewing something vigorously. All I could see was her bulging cheeks and her tongue occasionally licking the corners of her mouth... I didn't know what she was eating, but her tongue and lips were stained bright red.
Just now, I only felt the unique smell of hospital disinfectant in the air-conditioning, but once I realized that someone was eating, the smell of disinfectant was diluted by the smell of food, and it still smelled like the fragrant and sweet fruit cake.
Qi Xiaopang swallowed his saliva at the aroma and asked politely, "Excuse me..."
Before Qi Xiaopang could finish his words, he was interrupted by the female nurse who was busy eating: "The elevator is on the left..."
Perhaps because she was chewing something, her voice was light and quick, mixed with the sound of swallowing big mouthfuls, as if she was eating very fast.
Qi Xiaopang just stood on tiptoe to take a look. The nurse was not tall but had a big appetite. The cake was bigger than her face. She didn't cut it with a knife but ate it directly with her mouth. The white cream and bright red jam were mixed together in a mess. It looked a bit like blood-stained cotton wool and a broken brain structure... It was very uncomfortable.
Although this is a hospital, it's not good to scare the angels in white and make them choke, so he quickly waved his hands and said, "You eat, you eat, you eat. We get it. Don't worry about us!"
The nurse swallowed the food in her mouth with a gulp, lowered her head even lower, and spoke in a small voice, as if a little embarrassed: "Thank you."
"You're welcome, you're welcome! We just happened to arrive during your lunch break." Qi Xiaopang said politely, but he was secretly wondering, "Isn't this Third Hospital quite famous? Why don't they even arrange a lunch break? They just let the employees eat at their desks. It's hard to eat well, it affects digestion..."
"No, you came at the right time."
The nurse finally looked up, a shy smile plastered across her pale face, a bit of red and white mixture still stained the corners of her mouth. She whispered, "Hurry up! The elevator won't be running soon, and you'll have to climb the stairs to the 18th floor."
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