104: Chapter 104 Critical Condition! Intensive Care Unit!

Zhao Jun drove hurriedly toward home.

Halfway there, his phone screen lit up.

He picked up the phone and saw a message from Ma Huaqiang:

"Old classmate, let's keep in touch from now on!"

"If you have any difficulties or need any help, we can support each other."

"We're old classmates, so don't be shy."

Seeing this, Zhao Jun was slightly stunned.

He hadn't expected that Ma Huaqiang, who had been quiet and reticent at the gathering earlier, would say such heartfelt words to him after they parted.

Arriving at an intersection, Zhao Jun stopped the car at the red light and picked up his phone to reply:

"Alright, old classmate!"

The words Ma Huaqiang said to him were quite touching.

The other classmates were all constantly prying into how he was doing, and upon hearing he worked for a public institution, they immediately wanted to curry favor.

Only Ma Huaqiang had stayed in the corner, not showing any excessive intimacy.

He was just like before, treating him exactly as he always had.

Thinking of this, Zhao Jun felt a warmth in his heart.

"Sigh, society is a giant dye vat. After leaving campus, everything changes."

"However, there are still one or two classmates whose original intentions haven't changed."

Zhao Jun thought to himself.

Ma Huaqiang surely knew about his family situation—that his father was in poor health, his mother was elderly, and he had only recently started working.

That was likely why he sent those words, thinking there might be difficulties at home.

"He really is a thoughtful person."

Zhao Jun praised.

He drove on, heading in the direction of home.

However, just as he was a few intersections away from home, his phone suddenly rang.

The caller ID showed it was his mom.

For some reason, Zhao Jun suddenly had a bad feeling.

He slowly pulled the car over to the side of the road and answered the call.

"Hello, Mom!"

Zhao Jun called out.

"Xiao Jun, your dad suddenly had trouble breathing and fell off the bed."

"I called an ambulance; we're on our way to the Peoples Hospital now. Come quickly!"

From the phone came Zhao's Mother's anxious, tearful voice, with the faint wail of an ambulance siren in the background.

Zhao Jun's expression changed instantly.

"Mom, don't worry. I'm on the road right now, heading to the Peoples Hospital immediately!"

Hanging up the phone, Zhao Jun hurriedly started the car and slammed on the gas. With a roar, he sped toward the Peoples Hospital.

His hands gripped the steering wheel tightly as his eyes stared straight ahead, his eyeballs bloodshot.

"Why? I just took Dad to the hospital for a checkup yesterday, so why did his condition suddenly worsen today?"

"He even fell off the bed and had trouble breathing!"

A bead of cold sweat trickled down Zhao Jun's forehead.

His mind went blank, filled only with images of his father's skeletal body, currently gasping for breath under the torment of illness.

"No! Please, no!"

Zhao Jun pressed down hard, flooring the accelerator. The car whistled past like a gust of wind, leaving an afterimage on the road.

He had graduated from the Aviation University and successfully entered the Research Institute.

Now, he had even joined the project team for the Sixth-Generation Bomber.

His career was flourishing; this was exactly the time his parents should be enjoying their lives.

Nothing must happen to his father!

In fifteen minutes, thanks to Zhao Jun's speeding, he finally arrived at the Peoples Hospital.

The moment he got out of the car, he rushed up like a madman to the floor his mom had specified.

Turning the corner of the hallway, he saw his mother standing at the door of the emergency room.

At this moment, she was pacing helplessly outside the emergency room, her hair a mess, tear stains on her face, and her eyes red and swollen from crying.

"Mom!"

Zhao Jun shouted, rushing over to hug his mother.

"Xiao Jun!"

The moment Zhao's Mother saw Zhao Jun, the tears she had managed to stop began to pour down again like a flood from an opened dam.

"Your dad... your dad was lying fine in bed when he suddenly fell straight onto the floor. His whole body was convulsing, his breathing stopped, and his face turned purple..."

Zhao Jun's mother spoke of Zhao's Father's condition through her sobs.

Hearing this, Zhao Jun's heart was filled with pain and guilt.

He shouldn't have gone to that gathering. If he hadn't, this accident wouldn't have happened to his father.

Seeing his mother sobbing uncontrollably, although Zhao Jun was also deeply grieved, as the current pillar of the family, he forced himself to stay calm and comforted her:

"Mom, don't worry. Dad will definitely be fine. Have faith in the doctors!"

Zhao Jun patted Zhao's Mother's back and then led her to a bench outside the emergency room.

"Let's wait here patiently. Soon, Dad will come out of there safe and sound!"

Zhao Jun kept patting the back of Zhao's Mother's hand, suppressing the grief in his heart and holding back his tears while praying incessantly.

Time ticked by. After an unknown amount of time, the doors to the emergency room finally opened.

Hearing the sound, Zhao Jun immediately stood up from the bench.

Zhao's Mother did the same, her gaze dazed as she used the bench for support to stand.

Seeing this, Zhao Jun quickly supported Zhao's Mother and walked toward the nurse who had emerged, asking urgently:

"Nurse, how is my father?"

The nurse was wearing a mask, her eyes looking tired and tinged with a hint of worry.

"The patient has been resuscitated!"

She said in a muffled voice before changing her tone.

"However, he is not out of danger yet and must be transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU)."

"I've come out to ask for the family's opinion on whether you are willing to transfer the patient to the ICU."

The nurse asked with a sense of urgency.

For every minute the patient was delayed, the condition would worsen.

She couldn't afford to waste time.

"Transfer him! Nurse, transfer my dad to the ICU immediately!"

Zhao Jun said without the slightest hesitation.

The nurse nodded and then added:

"Lest there be a misunderstanding, I should inform you that because the ICU requires various life-support equipment, the daily cost is at least 20,000 dragon currency."

"Are you sure you want to transfer the patient to the ICU?"

The nurse held a form and looked at Zhao Jun, her eyes questioning.

Hearing this, Zhao Jun hesitated for a moment.

20,000 in a single day!

This... was indeed very expensive!

However, thinking that the man inside was his own father, what did it matter how much money it cost?!

"Transfer him! As long as my dad can be saved, I'm willing to pay any amount!"

Zhao Jun practically roared.

The nurse nodded and handed the form to Zhao Jun, signaling for him to sign.

Without even thinking, Zhao Jun signed his name directly on it.

Seeing this, the nurse took the form and returned to the emergency room, immediately transferring Zhao Jun's father to the ICU.

As the doors to the emergency room closed again, Zhao Jun let out a deep sigh.

Seeing her son in such a state, Zhao's Mother felt pained.

She pursed her lips and finally, holding back her tears, said:

"Jun'er, if it really isn't possible, we should just..."

Before she could finish, Zhao Jun immediately stopped her.

"Mom, don't say it!"

"As long as I'm here, we must save Dad!"

"Don't worry about the money; I'll find a way!"

Zhao Jun said with a resolute expression.

Seeing her son speak so firmly, Zhao's Mother could only nod through her tears.

Then, supporting each other, mother and son returned to the bench and waited silently.