An Ning’s heart tightened as she heard Li Chunfang continue, “I just went to check the hallway, and even the corridors are completely full!”
“How can there be no beds available?” An Ning’s voice rose slightly in urgency. “I’ve already paid the hospitalization fees!”
“I don’t know!” Li Chunfang sounded on the verge of tears, both angry and anxious. “My belongings were thrown out by that family. The nurse said the bed was registered under their name in the computer system, and we were occupying someone else’s bed.”
“Occupying the bed is one thing, but the hospital just notified me that my surgery has been postponed to a month from now.” On the other end of the line, Li Chunfang’s voice grew sharp with frustration and worry. “What should we do, An Ning?”
An Ning felt her blood boil and her scalp tingle.
The surgery was clearly scheduled for next week—how could it be delayed for a month without any reason?
This was practically a death sentence for Li Chunfang!
Without waiting for the bus, An Ning quickly hailed a taxi and rushed to the hospital.
As soon as she arrived, she saw Li Chunfang sitting helplessly on a bench in the inpatient ward’s corridor, holding an IV bag in one hand while receiving fluids through the other.
Over the past few days, her breast pain had been severe, requiring constant painkiller injections. She hadn’t been sleeping well at night, and she had visibly lost weight, her complexion pale and weary.
How could the hospital force a patient about to undergo surgery to sit in the hallway, especially when the hospitalization fees had been paid and a bed was supposed to be available? It made no sense!
When Li Chunfang saw An Ning, she quickly stood up and approached her, filled with a mix of anger, distress, and helplessness. “An Ning, how could this happen? How can the hospital handle things like this?”
An Ning took hold of her IV bag and led her directly to the head nurse.
The head nurse dismissively explained that the other party had indeed completed the hospitalization procedures in advance but hadn’t arrived at the hospital until later. A trainee nurse had mistakenly assumed the bed was vacant and allowed them to use it.
When An Ning pressed for accountability and demanded the hospital resolve the issue, the head nurse shot her an impatient look. “The trainee nurse has already been fired by the hospital. What more do you want?”
An Ning clenched her fists and argued, “Doesn’t the hospital need to take responsibility for the patients? Shouldn’t it be held accountable?”
The head nurse glanced at Li Chunfang’s attire, then lowered her head to continue writing her reports. “There are available beds in the VIP ward upstairs. As an apology, the hospital is willing to offer a partial discount.”
She looked up, her eyes impatient. “Do you want it or not?”
The cost of a VIP bed for a single day could exceed that of a regular ward for an entire month.
It was far beyond what they could afford.
Seeing their hesitation, the head nurse lowered her head and let out a faint, disdainful chuckle.
On her phone screen inside the drawer, a message she had received earlier was still visible: [“It’s done. You’ve been promoted to management.”]
…
“Here’s the situation, Miss An. Your mother’s surgery was originally scheduled for next week, but the lead surgeon, Director Zhao, has been assigned an urgent and highly important medical task. He’ll be leaving on a business trip in the next couple of days and won’t return until next month.”
In the doctor’s office, a male doctor in a white coat pulled up Director Zhao’s schedule to show An Ning.
An Ning frowned deeply. “An urgent medical task?”
“It was arranged by a government agency. I can’t disclose the details.” The doctor reviewed Li Chunfang’s medical records. “Your mother is currently in stable condition. It should be fine to schedule the surgery for next month.”
Delaying for a month would mean Li Chunfang would suffer for another month.
An Ning pressed her pale lips together. “What about changing the surgeon?”
“Doctors’ surgery schedules are quite full right now.” The doctor clicked through the computer a few times, then spoke in a surprised tone as if discovering something. “Oh, Director Tao could schedule the surgery next week, but…”
He hesitated, looking at the young woman before him. “Director Tao is one of our hospital’s most authoritative doctors. His surgeries are particularly difficult to book, and the fees are relatively higher. I’m not sure if you—”
“How much higher?” An Ning understood his implication and asked directly.
The other person held up one finger. “One hundred thousand.”
An Ning’s throat tightened, her fingernails digging into her palms.
She had just turned down the job offer from Hao Wei, and now she faced an additional one hundred thousand in surgical fees.
One hundred thousand.
Such an enormous amount.
The doctor noticed her dilemma and said understandingly, “Why don’t you think it over? Give me your decision by tomorrow morning. Director Tao’s time is truly precious.”
After leaving the doctor’s office, a sense of powerlessness washed over An Ning.
They were among the most insignificant people in Jing Hai.
Cheng Wanwan’s words weren’t without reason—in a place like Jing Hai where every inch of land is valuable and medical resources are strained, those without connections or resources struggle even to receive medical treatment.
She took out her phone and opened the payment app.
Her gaze swept past a row of bank cards, stopping on one with an intricate black and gold pattern.
The balance in that card was so enormous it made her breath catch.
Even during her most difficult times, she had never touched that card.
But Li Chunfang’s condition couldn’t be delayed any longer. Any further delay would increase the risk of cancer cells spreading.
She took a deep breath, closed her phone, and turned back toward the doctor’s office.
Just as she reached the door, the male doctor’s ingratiating voice drifted out from the partially open door.
“Don’t worry, I’ll handle everything exactly as President Lu instructed. As for that mother and daughter pair—their surgery has been postponed, their hospital bed is gone, and who knows if they can even come up with the money for the surgery…”
Her hand, poised to knock, froze mid-air.
An Ning’s face turned deathly pale.
The mother and daughter the doctor referred to—it was them!
And that President Lu?
She had almost forgotten—this hospital was originally invested in by Lu Corporation.
An Ning’s fingers trembled uncontrollably, even breathing became painful.
The man’s cold, threatening words echoed in her ears again, when he had cornered her against the wall.
“Everything that belongs to me, Lu Xiyan, I will take back.”
With just one word from him, he could cut off their chance for survival in this hospital.
When a deity wants to crush an ant, it takes no effort at all.
…
The phone rang in the Ou Teng Group CEO’s office.
“Assistant Jiang, there’s a Miss An here to see President Lu.”
“Miss An?” Jiang Yao searched his memory, then suddenly recalled the morning’s events. Could it be that Miss An? Given President Lu’s attitude toward her, he probably wouldn’t want to see her.
Just as he was about to decline, the woman in the CEO’s office smiled at him. “Assistant Jiang, let her come up. I think I know who she is.”
The elevator stopped at the top floor.
Jiang Yao noticed the visitor seemed to be arriving with anger. As he moved to ask what business she had with President Lu, she brushed straight past him and headed directly for the CEO’s office.
An Ning stepped into the wide-open office, the questions on the tip of her tongue halting abruptly when she spotted the woman seated on the sofa.
“An Ning?” Cheng Wanwan set aside the magazine in her hands and rose from the couch, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. “I just heard from Assistant Jiang that you were looking for Xiyan. He’s not here at the moment—is there something you need?”
With that, she gestured for Jiang Yao to prepare tea.
Though not yet formally engaged, she already carried herself with the authority of the CEO’s wife.
An Ning scanned the exceptionally spacious office, her hands clenched tightly at her sides. “Where is Lu Xiyan?”