93: Gambler's Regret? Never Believe a Gambler's Word!

The phone's ringing echoed wildly in the quiet hospital room, one urgent ring after another, like a rapid drumbeat, making people panic and feel disoriented.

It was also like the shriek of a vengeful ghost claiming lives at midnight, each sound piercing Li Yunxia's eardrums, nearly stopping her heart.

Once, this ringtone was her favorite song; whenever it played softly, it always warmed her heart.

But now, it instantly transformed into the roar of a demon, injecting fear like icy venom into her limbs and bones.

Li Yunxia's face instantly turned ashen, devoid of color, and large beads of sweat rolled down her forehead, sliding along her cheeks and dampening her collar.

Her eyes were wide with terror, filled with panic and helplessness, staring fixedly at the phone screen as if the flashing caller ID was a ferocious beast ready to devour someone.

Her right hand seemed to be weighed down by a thousand pounds, lifting with difficulty, inch by inch, her fingers trembling as they reached for the phone, only to drop powerlessly just as they were about to touch the hang-up button.

This repeated struggle within her was clearly visible.

She wanted to press that small button to stop the annoying sound, but her fingers seemed frozen in an ice cellar, refusing to obey.

She wanted to harden her heart and turn off the phone directly, cutting off the source of this fear forever, but deep down, a faint yet stubborn voice tugged at her.

Her brows were tightly furrowed, the wrinkles on her forehead deepening, like ravines left by time.

Her eyes were a mix of hesitation, fear, helplessness, and despair, the muscles in her cheeks twitching slightly, displaying an extremely complex expression, as if entangled by countless fine spider silks, each struggle tightening the threads, making it impossible to break free.

At this moment,

Chen Xuening heard the ringtone, and her movements, as she was playing with a Barbie doll, abruptly stopped.

She looked up, her large, blinking eyes instantly filled with curiosity, and she asked in a clear voice, "Mom, what's wrong? Why aren't you answering the phone? Is it big sister calling?"

Li Yunxia seemed to awaken from a nightmare, taking a deep breath and forcing a smile that was uglier than a cry, shaking her head at her daughter, her voice trembling imperceptibly: "Xuening, don't talk, let Mom be quiet for a bit, okay?"

Chen Xuening nodded obediently and walked with small steps to the corner of the hospital room, but her small ears remained perked up, like an alert little rabbit.

Her gaze occasionally stole a glance at her mother, and the doll she had previously adored now held no interest, clutched unconsciously in her hand.

Li Yunxia's entire attention was fixated on the phone; she swallowed with difficulty, her Adam's apple rolling slowly and heavily like a rusty gear, as if trying to swallow all the sorrow in her heart.

She bit her lower lip tightly, her teeth almost embedding into her flesh, and a trace of fresh blood seeped out, starkly visible against her pale lips.

Her brows furrowed even tighter, the worry on her face as thick as unmixed ink, and the crow's feet at the corners of her eyes became more pronounced.

Finally, just as her finger was about to touch the hang-up button, the call automatically disconnected due to timeout.

Li Yunxia breathed a sigh of relief, her chest heaving violently as if she had just run a marathon, gasping for air.

Her face instantly filled with relief, and her eyes sparkled with the light of having narrowly escaped.

Her body also slumped slightly, leaning against the edge of the bed, her right hand instinctively reaching for her chest, trying to calm her wildly beating heart.

However, before she could catch her breath, the ominous ringing sound once again thundered like a clap of lightning.

Li Yunxia trembled all over, the fear in her eyes surging like a tide again, densely filling her pupils, which contracted sharply.

After much struggle, she made a pained face, her fingers trembling like withered leaves in the wind, and with great effort, she finally tapped to answer.

"Yunxia, is that you?"

A very weak, miserable voice came from the other end of the phone, like a desperate groan squeezed out with the last bit of strength from the abyss of endless darkness.

The voice was hoarse and deep, as if abraded by sandpaper, and carried a heavy nasal tone, each word dragging with a long, faint tremor, revealing boundless misery.

It was like a candle flame about to go out in the cold wind; anyone who heard it couldn't help but feel a pang of distress.

Li Yunxia's expression changed, her lips instantly forming a thin line, her teeth clenched tightly, her cheeks puffed out, not uttering a word.

"Yunxia, I know it's you, save me, I'm dying, I'm really dying..."

The voice was tearful and faint, like the last cry of a dying person, interspersed with several dry, violent coughs.

Each cough sounded as if her lungs were about to be coughed out, or like the mournful creak of an old bellows, sending shivers down one's spine.

Li Yunxia's brows furrowed even tighter, almost knotting at the center, her voice carrying an irrepressible question and anger: "Did you lose all your money gambling again?"

"No, how could I still have money to gamble! I used my last money to buy a train ticket to Yanjing City, and now I don't have a single cent on me, I can only live under a bridge..."

Accompanying the words were several increasingly dry, heart-wrenching coughs, as if all the air in her lungs had been squeezed out, leaving only this heartbreaking sound.

A trace of unbearable sadness flashed in Li Yunxia's eyes, a look of heartache mixed with resentment for a lost cause, which was then replaced by fear and helplessness: "How did you come to Yanjing?"

"I had no choice but to come; they wanted to cut off my hands and feet, so I could only come..."

Li Yunxia trembled with anger, clenching her fists, her nails digging deep into her palms, and she said fiercely, "You still went gambling? Why do you keep not listening after I've told you so many times!"

"I promise it's the last time, I absolutely won't dare to go again, please save me quickly, just this last time, please. If you don't save me, I'll really die here."

Li Yunxia was silent for a long time, tears shimmering in her eyes, as softness and determination fiercely clashed within them.

After a long pause, her tone remained stiff: "I can't save you. I promised Mengyao I wouldn't deal with you anymore."

After speaking, she quickly hung up the phone and threw it violently to the side.

Her actions carried a strong sense of hatred and determination, like throwing away a hot potato, or as if to completely shake off this endless bad luck.

She covered her face with her hands, her shoulders trembling slightly, suppressed sobs escaping through her fingers, murmuring, "Why, why won't you change..."

But not long after, the phone rang again like a demon's roar.

Chen Xuening couldn't help but cover her ears, her small face scrunched up, her eyes full of annoyance and fear.

When it rang for the twentieth time, Li Yunxia finally broke down and answered the phone again, yelling furiously: "Stop calling me! I've told you many times, I won't save you!!!"

There was silence on the other end of the phone, and after a moment, a faint crying sound came through.

Li Yunxia's body stiffened, and she fell silent.

The crying continued for a long time, filled with deep pleading: "This is really the last time, if you save me this one time, I promise I won't bother you again, and I won't disturb your lives anymore, okay?"

Li Yunxia's eyes were red, tears welling up, and after a moment of silence, she asked, "Is it really the last time?"

"I promise it's the last time; after you save me this one time, I won't bother you again."

Li Yunxia sighed deeply, the sigh filled with helplessness and exhaustion: "Tell me, how can I help you."

"Give me two hundred yuan, just enough for some food. I'll find a job tomorrow after I've eaten. Don't worry, I promise I won't gamble again."

Li Yunxia hesitated, unconsciously touching her pocket, her voice low: "I only have cash."

"Then where are you? I'll come find you."

Li Yunxia looked around the hospital room, hesitated for a long time, her gaze falling on the room number, her voice faint: "I'm at Central Hospital."

"Good, good, I'll be right there."

The phone hung up.

Li Yunxia stared at the phone, her eyes vacant, as if her Soul had been extracted, and suddenly had an ominous premonition, though she couldn't explain why.

She slowly pulled open a drawer and found two crumpled hundred-yuan bills, which still bore the creases and stains of daily life.

She clutched them tightly in her hand, her eyes filled with sorrow, tears silently streaming down her cheeks, dripping onto her clothes, forming damp spots.

Her lips trembled slightly, and she sat powerlessly by the bed, as if all her spirit had been drained.

The air in the hospital room seemed to solidify, leaving only her suppressed sobs and Chen Xuening's worried gaze...