sbdcsierra Chapter 122 The Terrifying Power of Reason
Chapter 122 The Terrifying Power of Reason
When Wang Jie returned to Yangxi Road from the train station, it was not yet 10:00 AM. Passing by the market, he thought he should buy some vegetables and a pork hock to make soup. He had nothing planned for the day, so he could cook lunch with his grandfather.
It was nearing noon, and being a weekday, the market wasn't crowded. Wang Jie quickly bought the necessary ingredients: a bunch of bok choy, a block of soft tofu, and a large pork hock. Seeing that the lilies looked very fresh, he bought a bag of them, planning to cook some white porridge for his grandfather when he got home, as he'd heard that lilies were good for the lungs.
In the days that followed, aside from weekend trips to Beijing to process visa applications, there was nothing else to do. He wasn't going abroad until the end of the year, meaning he had nearly two months of free time, which was a rare treat for Wang Jie. He planned to use this time to take his grandfather to Xida Hospital for a thorough check-up, see a specialist, and get his grandfather's health properly treated.
In his original memories, there were very few scenes of Wang Jie spending time with his grandfather. Even the few fragments that did exist were not coherent, but one could always vaguely feel the affection of relying on each other for survival.
He came later, precisely when he was experiencing setbacks in his family relationships, when he had erected emotional barriers around everyone, especially his loved ones, and was indifferent to people and things. This was especially evident in his relationship with his grandfather, where he was always lukewarm and unresponsive. He felt deeply guilty about this.
As I was thinking about these things, someone suddenly called out from behind, "Wang Jie?"
Wang Jie turned around and saw his neighbor, Granny Li, carrying a basket, calling to him from a distance.
"Grandma Li." Wang Jie took a beat to come to her senses and then asked, "Hello."
Grandma Li seemed very anxious and said, "It really is you. Why are you still wandering around here?"
Wang Jie asked in surprise, "Grandma Li, what happened?"
Grandma Li stamped her feet anxiously and said, "I'm going to die, child! Don't you know? Your grandfather has been taken away by the ambulance!"
Startled, Wang Jie dropped the groceries he was carrying on the ground and ran out of the market. Behind him, Granny Li called out, "Child, slow down."
He ran back to the alley entrance in one breath, stood there stunned for a few seconds, and then quickly regained his composure. He needed to find out which hospital his grandfather had been taken to by ambulance.
He walked to the small shop at the entrance of the alley and asked the people inside, "Hello, was an ambulance here this morning? Around what time?"
The shopkeeper replied, "Yes, I saw it; it looked like it was a little before eight o'clock."
"May I use your phone?"
"Sure, you can use it."
Wang Jie picked up the phone and dialed the emergency center's number: "Hello, around 8:00 AM, an ambulance was called from Lane 1, Yangxi Road. Could you tell me which hospital the patient was taken to?"
"Okay, I'll check for you, please wait a moment."
A few seconds later, the person on the other end of the phone said, "Found it. Let me verify the information with you. The patient is a 73-year-old male, is that correct?"
"Yes, so which hospital is he in now?"
"It has been sent to Xida Hospital."
"Thank you."
After hanging up the phone, Wang Jie went outside and hailed a taxi. "Driver, to Xida Hospital."
When Wang Jie arrived at the hospital and found his grandfather, his grandfather had already been taken to the respiratory department and admitted to the hospital. He went into the ward and saw his grandfather lying on the bed, wearing an oxygen mask and receiving an IV drip. The vital signs monitor next to him was beeping regularly.
Wang Jie found the attending physician to inquire about the situation. The attending physician said, "The patient's breathing was obstructed, but he was brought in in time, and his condition is now stable."
Only then did Wang Jie finally breathe a long sigh of relief.
The attending physician added, "However, after reviewing his previous medical records, I think he was lucky this time. The outlook is not optimistic. Spend more time with him."
Wang Jie returned to the ward and sat down next to her grandfather.
Grandpa had woken up and pointed shakily to the oxygen mask over his mouth and nose.
Wang Jie immediately bent down and said softly, "Grandpa, I'm here. The doctor said everything is fine, so you can rest easy."
Grandpa shook his head and then pointed to the oxygen mask.
Wang Jie wondered if his grandfather had something to say, so he reached out and grabbed the oxygen mask.
Grandpa said softly, "Take me home."
Wang Jie said, "After the IV is finished, I'll ask the doctor if we can go home. Let's listen to the doctor, okay?"
Tell the doctor I want to go home.
"Okay, I'll talk to the doctor. I'll go see the doctor after the IV is finished."
Grandpa nodded and closed his eyes to rest.
Just as Wang Jie straightened up, someone lightly patted his shoulder. He turned around and saw Jian Zheng. "What brings you here?"
Jian Zheng peeked at his grandfather, waved to Wang Jie, and walked out of the ward.
Wang Jie also tiptoed out after him.
The two arrived at the hospital corridor, and Jian Zhengcai said, "I went to your house to look for you, and I passed by the convenience store and heard that you were in the hospital."
After pausing for two seconds, he continued, "I just went to see Uncle Xiao, um, the vice president. He'll speak to the head of the respiratory department."
"Thanks, but Grandpa just told me he wants to go home."
"Going home? Didn't we just move in?"
Wang Jie lowered his eyelids and said slowly, "The attending physician said, 'The situation is not optimistic, so I should spend more time with him.' Judging from what he said, it seems that there is little hope for Grandpa's illness."
"Then what do you mean? No treatment, go home and wait..." Jian Zheng swallowed the last word "death" and didn't say it out loud.
“What could I possibly mean? If it can be cured, of course it should be cured. Grandpa wants to go home, and I think we should respect his wishes.”
Jian Zheng looked Wang Jie up and down, sighed, and said, "I understand you less and less. You're frighteningly rational. You're right about everything, and I can't refute you, but I just feel like this shouldn't be the way it is."
Wang Jie didn't say anything and walked straight to the doctor's office.
Jian Zheng followed, "Where are you going?"
"Talk to the attending physician and see if I can be discharged. It's always good to listen to the doctor, right?"
“That makes sense.” Jian Zheng asked again, “When I opened my eyes this morning, neither you nor Zhang Qian were in the dormitory. Where did you go if you weren’t staying in the dormitory?”
Wang Jie stopped and turned to Jian Zheng, saying, "Zhang Qian went to the lab last night. By the way, I... I really have something to do. Could you do me a favor?"
Jian Zheng asked, "What is it?"
After thinking for a moment, Wang Jie said, "Let's go find the doctor first, and then decide whether Grandpa should be hospitalized or discharged."
"Are you out of your mind? Stop stammering." Jian Zheng was just waiting for Wang Jie to ask for his help, but Wang Jie changed the subject and stopped talking, which made Jian Zheng so angry that he just wanted to curse.
He thought to himself, Wang Jie used to be a quiet person who didn't like to talk much. He never expected that he was so shrewd. Is this still the Wang Jie he knows?