NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 21 - Troubles Come in Pairs
Chapter 21: Troubles Come in Pairs
Nodding at his former classmate, Fang Jian and his friend Min Chao entered the hallway. His old classmate went by the name Min Chao, and he whispered, “Fang, I just checked on your sister’s friend.”
Fang Jian rolled his eyes in response. Unfortunately, this guy didn’t have a sister. Otherwise, Fang Jian could have retaliated.
“Your sister’s friend is in a tough situation,” Min Chao said in a hushed tone.
Fang Jian’s heart skipped a beat, and he put aside his complaints, asking, “What’s the matter?”
“She’s been diagnosed with a moderately high-risk neuroblastoma,” Min Chao replied.
“Moderately high-risk?” Fang Jian frowned.
“I looked up some information, and the cure rate for surgery combined with chemotherapy in the moderate-risk group is between 70-90%.”
Although illness outcomes vary from person to person, these large-scale statistics should generally hold.
Min Chao shook his head and said, “I wasn’t discussing the surgery. Neuroblastoma in the moderate-risk group is not a rare disease, and we’ve seen many cases. However, her condition was discovered late, and surgery is necessary.”
“Then they should proceed with the surgery,” Fang Jian suggested.
Min Chao gave him a disdainful look and said, “It’s easy for you to say, but they haven’t paid yet.”
Fang Jian was shocked and asked in surprise, “Really? How much does the surgery cost?”
“Just the surgery itself isn’t too much, probably around $7,000 to $11,000,” Min Chao sighed and continued, “Paying around $15,000 should cover the initial expenses.”
“The initial expenses?” Fang Jian questioned.
“Yes, after the surgery, there’s still chemotherapy and ongoing medical expenses, which will be a significant financial burden,” Min Chao paused and added, “Moreover, I heard that the child’s father got into trouble.”
“Got into trouble? What do you mean?” Fang Jian asked.
“He caused a fatal accident while driving under the influence. I heard he paid a seven-figure sum in compensation and got sentenced to five years,” Min Chao explained.
“How did you find out about this?” Fang Jian asked.
“One of the nurses here is my junior. She overheard the conversation between the ward attendants and others,” Min Chao replied.
Fang Jian shook his head slightly. This family was truly experiencing a series of unfortunate events. One hundred thousand dollars might not be a substantial amount for a true resident of Yongcheng. However, if the family’s main earner had recently caused a fatal accident while driving under the influence and had to pay over a million yuan in compensation…
Min Chao said a few more words and then departed. He had his tasks to attend to and couldn’t stay here indefinitely. Fang Jian returned to the hospital room and saw the two children chatting happily.
Liu’s mother’s smile also showed a sense of joy and contentment. Then she saw her daughter, who had been in pain, become happy, and she also felt joy. Suddenly, her phone rang, and she took it out to answer before entering the bathroom.
Fang Jian wasn’t intentionally eavesdropping, but he overheard words like “housing prices” and “too low.”
There was no need to ask—it was about selling the house. After a while, Liu’s mother came out. She apologized to Fang Jian and walked to the bedside, saying, “Yuan Yuan, Mommy needs to go to work. Can you be good here?”
Liu Yuanyuan’s eyes were filled with reluctance, but she didn’t cry or fuss. Instead, she nodded vigorously and said, “Mommy, Yuanyuan will be good. Please come back early.”
“Okay, Mommy will come back early.” Liu’s mother kissed her daughter, apologized to Fang Jian and his sister, and told the elderly caretaker something before leaving with her bag.
Fang Jian could tell that her mood was quite chaotic and unpleasant. She wanted to be with her daughter, but unfortunately, she had to work. After her mother left, Liu Yuanyuan’s mood became a bit downcast.
Fang Jian walked to the bedside and asked, “Yuanyuan, what does your mom do for work?”
Liu Yuanyuan immediately became excited and said loudly, “My mommy is a designer, and she’s amazing!”
Fang Yiyi said, “My brother is also a…,” She glanced at Fang Jian, unable to recall what her brother did, but still said, “He’s also really amazing!”
Then, the two little girls started discussing who was more amazing. Fang Jian chuckled and turned to the woman in her fifties next to him, engaging in a conversation. He then learned that the middle-aged aunt was a nanny working as a part-time housekeeper for the Liu family, taking care of chores.
Only after Liu Yuanyuan had an accident did she come to work as a caregiver. This middle-aged aunt was very talkative, and from her, Fang Jian learned that Liu’s mother’s name was Meng Yuhai, and she worked as a designer for a high-end interior decoration company in Yongcheng.
Liu Yuanyuan’s father was a senior executive at a foreign company, but unfortunately, he caused a fatal accident while driving under the influence. They were not originally from Yongcheng but chose to settle there after coming from elsewhere for work. Although they had bought a house and paid off the mortgage, their savings were probably depleted after this incident.
They were raising funds to perform surgery on Yuanyuan as soon as possible. Fang Jian looked at the two girls, smiling from ear to ear, and after thinking for a moment, he quietly went to the hospital payment office and paid 100,000 yuan for their bed.