Chapter 29 Her life was saved by Ji Mingxiu
She didn't say anything, but the meaning of her mother's words was self-evident: she was asking her for money.
Zhao Shulan had intended to wait for her to speak first, but after not hearing a response for a long time, she knew her attitude and felt a surge of anger.
“Hey, we’ve worked so hard all these years to finally put you through your studies. We’ve done our part as parents, and now you’re doing well. You have a respectable job, sitting in an office where you’re sheltered from the wind and rain. Unlike your brother, you can easily earn ten or twenty thousand a month.”
“We don’t expect you to give us much every month. It’s just that in our family, there are only you and your brother and sister. We hope that you can get along well and help each other out.”
"Don't take it to heart. I didn't ask you for much help. It's just a small gift for Ziyi's birthday, a few thousand yuan, which is easy for you. You earn such a high monthly salary now, it wouldn't be right for you to only buy Ziyi a set of clothes for his birthday, you would feel embarrassed."
After receiving no response, she continued, "Actually, Chengyue got perfect scores in all his schoolwork when he was a child, even better than you. It's just that we were busy making money and didn't have time to take care of him, so he stopped going to school early."
"It's no use saying all this now, there's no going back. If only I had known earlier... Oh well, if only I had known earlier, I would have taken the time to deal with him, and I wouldn't have been able to work. I'm afraid I would have delayed your studies and wouldn't have had the money to send you to school."
The phone was placed on the table, and Bo Wei sat in a swivel chair, looking out the window.
Zhao Shulan said so much, but didn't hear a sound from the other person, realizing that she hadn't listened to a word she said.
It's true what they say: those who aren't raised by your side are never truly close. No wonder everyone says that daughters are always outsiders, while only sons are always family. She truly understands this now.
"Can't you hear me? I've wasted so many years of schooling, and I feel like I'm mute when I talk to you."
Bo Wei then turned around, her eyes filled with red veins.
"Mom, you haven't called me in a long time, and the first time you do, it's to talk about this. I thought you were going to ask if I had finished my medicine and if you were going to send me some more."
Zhao Shulan paused awkwardly, "Well, didn't you eat well? Okay, I'll send you some more. Eat it a few more times to completely get rid of the root cause."
As she spoke, her tone grew increasingly smug. "I knew it! Hospital doctors are all quacks. Look at you now, you're all better after taking those herbs. Luckily you listened to me and took the herbs, you're still perfectly fine. If you had gone to the hospital, you might be a ghost by now."
"Since you still want it, I'll go find Dr. Zhang in the next couple of days to get some more and send it to you. You know what, herbs are really expensive these days. If I ask someone else to get the herbs for you, they'll have to bring a ten-pound piece of meat, plus a gift, and the two thousand yuan cost of the herbs will be extra. Otherwise, no one will bother to help you."
Bo Wei felt a sharp pain in her throat. She swallowed, composed herself, and said in a low voice, "Don't send it to me anymore. I won't eat it. It's Ziyi's birthday. I'll buy him an outfit. Write your phone number down; pick it up yourself when it arrives. If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Shulan hurriedly called out, "Wait, wait!"
"Is there anything else?"
“Ziyi is still young, this is the time to nurture him. If you miss the opportunity, he will grow up too late. Look at your brother, we didn’t have the time or the money back then…”
"Mom, what is Ziyi planning to do? Go ask his parents for money."
"Aren't you his aunt? It's his birthday, so I'm asking you for a present..."
"I'm not responsible for his affairs. I'm hanging up."
"Hang up! Hang up! It's not like I'm asking you for hundreds of thousands. A few thousand dollars is nothing to you. If you can't even afford that, what's the point of raising you? I might as well not have sent you to school in the first place. You'd be more obedient. Other kids would have started working early and at least send money home every year..."
Bo Wei hung up the phone with trembling hands, and tears finally streamed down her face.
Those memories that she had forcibly suppressed in her heart and refused to resurface suddenly poured out.
I still remember when I was in the hospital bed, the nurse casually mentioned the medical expenses, which instantly chilled me to the bone and made me feel desperate. Moreover, many of the medications were not covered by medical insurance.
After hesitating several times, she mustered all her courage and made a phone call home. As the phone rang, her heart pounded in her chest.
When the call finally connected, she took a breath and tried to suppress her tears and fear. She calmly explained her situation and waited expectantly and anxiously for the other party's response.
After listening, her mother remained silent for a moment, then began to loudly berate someone, though it was unclear who she was scolding.
"There are all sorts of illnesses every day! Haven't you seen the news? These days, even a perfectly healthy person becomes a problem once they enter the hospital! They'll just give you a random illness and make you spend all your money on treatment, leaving you penniless, and the treatment will only make you worse. They'll even make you sick if you weren't sick before."
"Don't listen to those doctors' nonsense. They'll just waste your money and make your health worse. I'll go find Dr. Zhang sometime and get you some medicine to send over. You'll be fine after a few doses. Your illness doesn't sound serious. He used to be a military doctor; he can cure anyone, even ghosts."
Bo Wei didn't know how she ended the call.
She felt as if the whole world had suddenly fallen into darkness, and she couldn't see a single ray of light.
She clutched her chest, as if she had a heart attack rather than something else, even though it was clearly this spot that hurt.
The feeling of heartache was like a knife tip stabbing into her heart again and again, or like someone clenching a fist and squeezing her heart tightly. The pain was very real, so painful that she couldn't breathe.
Loneliness enveloped her at that moment.
Then, Ji Mingxiu pushed open the door and came in, saying firmly to her, "Don't be afraid, five or six hundred thousand is not a big deal. I'll find a way to solve it."
Therefore, her life was saved by Ji Mingxiu.
Of course, she didn't tell her mother the truth about her experience. Telling her might not elicit concern, but rather obstruction. After all, she had borrowed so much money for treatment, and if she died, the debt would likely fall on their shoulders.
I couldn't tell her then, and there's no need to tell her the truth now.
At this moment, feelings of grievance, frustration, helplessness, confusion, and disgust surged up simultaneously.
Overwhelmed by intense and complex emotions, her tears fell silently. She choked back sobs, her throat ached, and she could no longer hold back her sobs.
She took two tissues and stood by the window, suppressing her sobs.
Upstairs, Li He came out of his office, holding a coffee cup in his hand.
I spent some time dealing with Bo Wei's matter in the morning, and then worked overtime to handle official business at noon.
The soft sobbing stopped him in his tracks.
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