Chapter 167: 167, Amputation is required. Chapter 167: 167, Amputation is required. The middle-aged woman stopped in her tracks and looked around. Aside from the bustling crowd, she could not see Song Yan Ning’s figure at all. She could only helplessly shake her head and head towards the exit.
Watching the middle-aged woman’s figure disappear into the crowd, Song Yan Ning smiled, thinking that she had promised Tong Qi to go to school today, and thus, she began walking towards the exit.
Tong Qi picked up her phone to check the time. “It’s almost noon. Why hasn’t Song Yan Ning arrived yet? She’s not going to be a no-show again, is she?”
Just as she was about to call Song Yan Ning to ask about the situation, she heard a knock on the door. Turning her head, she saw Song Yan Ning standing at the door with a beaming smile. Tong Qi’s face immediately showed a look of surprise. “I thought you weren’t coming today.” She noticed that Song Yan Ning seemed prettier than a few days ago, but looking closely, it seemed there was no change. Perhaps it was just her imagination.
“Teacher Tong,” said Song Yan Ning as she walked into the office and approached Tong Qi’s desk.
“Song Yan Ning, where have you been these past few days? Did something happen at home? If you’re facing difficulties, you should tell the teacher. There’s no need to be strangers.” Tong Qi looked at Song Yan Ning with a hint of worry in her eyes. She was genuinely concerned for Song Yan Ning. According to Song Yan Ning’s records, she had always lived with her grandparents. Could something have happened to them?
Song Yan Ning smiled and shook her head. “Thank you for your concern, Teacher Tong. I’m really fine. I just took a trip to Beijing.”
“That’s good, but if you really run into any trouble, you must tell me. I’ll think of a way to help you.” Tong Qi still felt Song Yan Ning was hiding something from her, but since Song Yan Ning wouldn’t say, there was nothing she could do.
Song Yan Ning nodded. “Teacher Tong, I’m going back to class now.”
“Okay,” Tong Qi nodded, watching as Song Yan Ning left the office.
Teacher Wang saw Song Yan Ning approaching and smiled at her. “Song Yan Ning, you’ve come to school?” Ever since that day when Song Yan Ning had solved the problem she set, her views on Song Yan Ning had changed. A rare talent like Song Yan Ning definitely needed to be nurtured properly.
“Teacher Wang,” Song Yan Ning called out politely. Usually, Teacher Wang was rather indifferent to her, so why the sudden warmth today?
“Song Yan Ning, if you have any problems with questions in the future, come to the office to find me. If you have any difficulties, you can also seek me out.” Teacher Wang found herself increasingly fond of Song Yan Ning now.
“Okay, thank you, Teacher Wang! I’ll head back to class now.” Having said that, Song Yan Ning walked towards the classroom. Although she was puzzled by Teacher Wang’s sudden change in attitude, she was still pleased to have one less person targeting her.
Liu Caixia arrived at the hospital and asked the nurse for her husband’s room number. It still took her a while to find his ward.
Just as she was about to push the door open, she heard a conversation inside and stopped, standing by the door and listening without moving.
“Has your family not arrived yet? We can’t delay your leg treatment any longer. If we don’t amputate soon, it will threaten your life,” said the nurse as she recorded Zhang Heizi’s condition and spoke to him.
“Nurse, I don’t want to be amputated. I don’t want to become handicapped. Is there really no other way?” Zhang Heizi looked at the nurse, his eyes filled with pain. If he became disabled, how would he support his family? He had already asked the doctor, and the high cost of an amputation was something he simply couldn’t afford. But to just wait and die, he couldn’t accept that either.
The nurse shook her head, looking at Zhang Heizi with sympathy. “Amputation is the only option now. You should contact your family soon to sign the operation consent form.”
“I understand,” Zhang Heizi nodded with a vacant look in his eyes. He really resented the unfairness of life, still so young but forced to face such a cruel decision.
Liu Caixia clutched her bag tightly, her face already soaked with tears. She had thought her husband had just been injured, but she had not expected the consequences to be so grave.
Hearing the door open, Liu Caixia frantically wiped the tears from her face.
“Who are you?” asked the nurse, surprised to see Liu Caixia.
“I’m Zhang Heizi’s wife. Nurse, I want to ask, does my husband really need to have surgery?” Liu Caixia looked at the nurse. She had heard everything clearly just now, but she still wanted to ask again, hoping there might be another way to save her husband’s leg.
“Yes, only amputation can save his life. Go in and discuss it with him; his surgery really can’t be delayed,” said the nurse sympathetically. Having been at the hospital for so long and having seen many patients, she knew family members would find it hard to accept such a cruel outcome, but there was nothing they could do. If it were possible to save the patient’s leg, they would have done everything they could.
Liu Caixia took a deep breath, holding back the urge to sob, but the tears kept flowing down, “Thank you! I understand.”
Zhang Heizi heard the conversation outside and knew his wife had arrived. He closed his eyes in sorrow. When he had married her, he had promised to give her a good life, but before he could fulfill his promise, now he was about to become a burden for her for the rest of her life. He genuinely felt sorry for her.
Hearing the ward door open, Zhang Heizi did not open his eyes. He was somewhat afraid to face his wife now.
Liu Caixia walked into the ward, approached the bed, and placed her big bag on the ground, looking at Zhang Heizi on the bed with a heartache. “Heizi, I know you’re awake. Listen to me, we are husband and wife. We’ve been through tough times before, and we’ll get through this together, too. No matter what happens to you in the future, I will only ever be with you.”
Zhang Heizi opened his eyes, his gaze filled with guilt. “Xia’er, I don’t want to be a burden to you.” As a disabled man, he would have no ability to take care of Xia’er and their son. All he could do was not to drag them down.
“Fool, you are my husband. Taking care of you is my duty. Besides, I’m not without hands and feet; am I afraid of starving to death? Come on, stop talking such depressing stuff. Things will get better for us. I’ve brought your favorite scallion pancakes. Let me get them for you.” Liu Caixia bent down, unzipped the bag, and took out the scallion pancakes.
“Gurgle!” A porcelain bottle came out along with the pancakes.
Liu Caixia picked up the porcelain bottle, remembering what Song Yan Ning had told her when she gave it to her, and shook her head. If only this bottle of medicine could really heal her husband’s leg.
Placing the porcelain bottle on the nightstand by the bed, Liu Caixia handed the scallion pancakes to Zhang Heizi. “Smell it, does it smell good?”