217: Mid-term

After dinner, the group didn't go out again.

Everyone sat on the sofa in the living room, chatting.

They all seemed to have a tacit understanding, as no one brought up topics related to Chen Yong's health.

This was for the best.

They would know the results after tomorrow's checkup.

They shouldn't be anxious today about what might happen tomorrow.

What if it was just a minor issue... The bright moon gradually rose high, and the night grew deeper.

Start of Autumn had passed, and although Maple City was still a bit hot...

...it was much better than the previous temperatures that approached forty degrees.

The villagers of Xiulin Village all went to bed early.

After coming to Maple City, Chen Yong still maintained a regular routine.

At ten-thirty, he went back to his room to sleep... "Chen Xin, are you hungry? Do you want some supper?"

During dinner, Chen Su noticed that Chen Xin had only eaten a small bowl of plain porridge.

Ever since she found out her father might have cancer...

...she hadn't had a proper meal for several days.

She sighed and shook her head slightly.

"Brother, I'm not hungry."

"Alright then. If you can't sleep later tonight and get hungry, there's food in the fridge."

"Okay!"

After Chen Xin finished speaking, she also stood up from the sofa.

"Brother, Sister-in-law, I'm going to bed now. Goodnight!"

"Mm! Goodnight!"

...None of them mentioned anything related to Chen Yong's health all evening.

The observant Li Chuxia had noticed it from the start.

Chen Xin's state wasn't quite right, and Chen Su didn't seem to be in a very good mood either.

However, it wasn't appropriate for her to say it in front of everyone.

Only after returning to their room did she dare to ask in a low voice.

"Chen Su, is Uncle's illness a bit serious?"

"The doctors at the County Hospital said it's suspected bowel cancer and suggested Uncle come to Maple City for further examination."

Hearing that Chen Su's Uncle might have bowel cancer, Li Chuxia's heart tightened... During the time she stayed in Xiulin Village, Chen Su's parents had treated her very well.

Even Chen Su's relatives were very caring toward her when they visited.

She had instinctively started treating Chen Su's relatives as her own.

She was also very saddened to hear that Chen Su's Uncle might have bowel cancer.

Although bowel cancer is one of the more treatable types of cancer...

...anything associated with the word 'cancer' is never a good thing... "Which hospital did you make an appointment with?"

"I've booked an appointment with a specialist at Fengcheng City First Hospital for 8:30 tomorrow morning."

"Mm, Fengcheng City First Hospital has many oncology specialists. I'm sure Uncle will pull through."

"I hope so."

...Time slowly reached midnight.

Considering he had to take Chen Yong to the hospital for a checkup tomorrow...

...after Chen Su summoned the Intelligence System, he chose not to retrieve the information immediately.

Instead, he chose to accumulate it.

After finishing, he turned off the lights and went to sleep... The next day, 6:30 AM.

Before the first ray of morning sunlight could shine into the room...

...Li Chuxia quietly got up to prepare breakfast for everyone.

As soon as she stepped out of the room, she saw Chen Yong sitting alone in the living room, smoking.

"Uncle, why are you up so early?"

Li Chuxia asked Chen Yong softly.

"I went to bed early last night and woke up at dawn. I couldn't get back to sleep. Why didn't you sleep a bit longer?"

"I couldn't sleep anymore either,"

Li Chuxia said with a smile.

"Uncle, please sit for a while. I'll go prepare breakfast."

After saying that, Li Chuxia turned and went into the kitchen to start working.

Seeing how virtuous Li Chuxia was...

...Chen Yong grew more and more satisfied the more he looked at her.

Once he returned to the village, he would definitely have to report to his brother and sister-in-law...

...about this niece-in-law's performance... At seven o'clock, Chen Su and Chen Xin also got up one after another.

After they finished breakfast and were preparing to head to Fengcheng City First Hospital...

...Li Chuxia held Chen Su back.

"Wait for me, I'm coming too."

She quickly ran back to her room and grabbed her bag... At this hour, the roads in Maple City were already bustling with traffic.

They were all wage slaves rushing to work early.

By the time Chen Su drove to the hospital, it was exactly eight o'clock.

After completing the paperwork...

...Chen Su took Chen Yong and followed the doctor's instructions...

...to undergo various tests one by one... At four in the afternoon, the test results came out.

Inside the consultation room.

The Attending Physician frowned slightly as he looked at Chen Yong's test results.

"Doctor, how is my father's condition?"

Seeing the doctor's brow furrowed in deep thought, Chen Xin asked anxiously.

"Bowel cancer."

Even though she had been mentally prepared, Chen Xin's eyes instantly turned red.

Tears welled up and spilled over.

She stood in the consultation room, sobbing uncontrollably, unable to speak for a moment.

Li Chuxia quickly helped her sit down on a nearby chair.

Chen Su: "Doctor, what stage has my Uncle's bowel cancer reached?"

"It's a good thing you came early. The patient is currently in the intermediate stage of bowel cancer. If you had come any later, it might have progressed to the late stage."

"Doctor, for patients in my Uncle's condition, is the cure rate high?"

"Don't worry. Not to mention our hospital, but under my care alone, the cure rate for patients in the early to intermediate stages of cancer is over ninety percent. Even if it progressed to the late stage, I'd still have a fifty percent chance of pulling the patient back from the gates of hell."

The Attending Physician sounded a bit smug as he spoke.

"Doctor, then I'll leave my Uncle in your hands."

"Don't worry, I will definitely do my best for your Uncle's illness. It's just..."

The white-coated Attending Physician stopped mid-sentence.

Seeing his behavior, Chen Su immediately understood what he meant.

He took an envelope out of his bag and handed it to the doctor.

There was ten thousand yuan in the envelope.

He had prepared it long before coming.

Nowadays, the authorities are stricter than before regarding doctors taking bribes and kickbacks.

Few doctors dare to ask patients for money so brazenly.

However, slipping money to doctors seems to be deeply ingrained in the genes of the Chinese people.

You don't feel quite right giving it...

...but you don't feel at ease if you don't. Chen Su had originally planned to give it, but he hadn't expected the doctor to actively solicit it.

The Attending Physician took the envelope and weighed it slightly.

He knew the approximate amount Chen Su had given.

He was very satisfied with Chen Su's generosity.

Usually, family members would give one or two thousand, maybe two or three thousand.

Chen Su had given ten thousand directly.

It seemed he was a wealthy person.

His slightly furrowed brow smoothed out, and then he said with a smile:

"Don't worry, I will definitely do my best!"

"Then I'll leave it to you, Doctor!"

...Chen Yong's surgery was scheduled for 8:00 tomorrow morning.

After leaving the consultation room, Chen Su went straight to the front desk to handle Chen Yong's hospitalization.

Then he hurriedly called to inform the family...

...that Chen Yong was in the intermediate stage of bowel cancer and would be having surgery tomorrow... The sun set in the west.

Night gradually fell, and the neon lights along the roads of Maple City slowly lit up.

Ten o'clock at night.

A middle-aged man walked out of the Maple City High-speed Railway Station.

A woman followed behind him.

It was Chen Su's father and Chen Xin's mother.

Upon hearing Chen Su's phone call in the evening saying that Chen Yong would have surgery tomorrow morning...

...Father Chen and Chen Su's Aunt...

...hurriedly bought high-speed train tickets and rushed to Maple City overnight...