Lin’an First People’s Hospital!
In the hallway outside the Internal Medicine Outpatient Department, Li Yi, his older sister Li Mei, and his mother Zhang Yuehong were all waiting anxiously.
That morning, after meeting up with Xue Jianming and his wife Xiao Ya, the family headed straight to Lin’an’s most renowned First People’s Hospital.
Upon arriving at the hospital, Li Yi first took his mother for a routine physical, then had Yang Miao take his older sister for a prenatal checkup, while Xue Jianming and his wife took Xiao Jingzhu to the Internal Medicine Outpatient Department for an examination.
However, while their mother and older sister had already finished their exams, Xiao Jingzhu still hadn’t come out.
Although no one knew what was going on, this had everyone feeling a bit worried.
“Creak!”
The tightly closed door to the examination room finally swung open, and Xue Jianming emerged, his face pale, followed by Xiao Ya, who was holding Xiao Jingyu.
Seeing this, Li Yi and the others immediately gathered around.
“Director Xue, is the child all right?” Li Yi’s mother, Zhang Yuehong, was the first to ask.
Xue Jianming glanced at the papers in his hand before saying, “The doctor said Xiao Jingzhu’s heart isn’t in good shape. Although we can’t confirm yet if it’s a congenital heart defect, the situation isn’t looking good. He told us to brace ourselves!”
Congenital… congenital heart disease?
Hearing this, Zhang Yuehong, Li Mei, Zhang Ziqiang, Yang Miao, and the others were all stunned.
They had all been present when Li Yi said those things yesterday. In fact, just like Xue Jianming and his wife, they had all thought Li Yi’s words were merely personal speculation—after all, who believes in that sort of thing these days?
But they never imagined that Li Yi’s words would actually come true!
Meanwhile, Li Yi, standing nearby, didn’t seem surprised at all. At the moment, Xiao Jingyu hadn’t shown any symptoms yet, and her clinical signs were still relatively mild.
In another two or three months, he wouldn’t even need to say a word—anyone with eyes could tell the child was sick.
“Old Xue, what does that doctor mean? Whether she’s sick or not, he needs to give a clear answer. He can’t be so vague, can he?” Li Yi said in a deep voice.
Xue Jianming hurriedly replied, “Dr. Liu ordered several tests for the child and told us to take her in for them right away. He needs the results to confirm Jing Shu’s condition!”
“There’s no time to waste—let’s get them done right away!” Li Yi said.
“Mr. Li, you should take Auntie and the others back first. Xiaoya and I will take the child for the tests right away. We’ll let you know the results as soon as we have them,” Xue Jianming said.
Li Yi immediately replied, “You take Xiao Jingyu to get the tests done right away. Don’t worry about anything else!”
“Alright…”
With that, Xue Jianming hurried off with his wife and daughter to the nearby laboratory!
After watching them leave, Li Yi turned to his mother and older sister and said, “Mom, Big Sister, you two go back to the hotel with Yang Miao. Qiangzi and I will stay here to see if we can be of any help!”
His mother said with concern, “Xiao Yi, that little girl will be all right, won’t she?”
“Mom, don’t worry. I’m here. I won’t let anything happen to Jingyu!” Li Yi said.
His eldest sister chimed in, “Xiao Yi, just like Nana, I find Jing Shu to be such a sweet and endearing child. I don’t want anything to happen to her either. Do whatever you can to help them.”
“Yeah, I’ve said before that Jing Shu and Third Sister share a mother-daughter bond. She’s part of the Li family too—I won’t let anything happen to that little girl!” Li Yi declared firmly.
“Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease. Well then, Mom and I will head back now!” Li Mei said.
“Alright!”
Li Yi then turned to Yang Miao standing nearby and said, “Young Yang, please drive carefully on the way back. My eldest sister is in her third trimester, so she’s sensitive to bumps!”
“Got it!”
Yang Miao then walked out of the hospital with his mother, supporting his eldest sister, whose belly was visibly swollen…
After their mother and older sister had left, Li Yi and Zhang Ziqiang also hurried toward the lab.
By the time they arrived, Xiao Jingyu had already finished her blood draw.
Seeing the little girl with tears welling up in the corners of her eyes and a look of deep distress on her face—she must have cried during the blood draw—Li Yi couldn’t help but feel a pang of heartache.
This reminded him of a scene from his past life, when the little girl had donated part of her liver to save her mother. Back then, Xiao Jingzhu had just undergone surgery; the physical pain and worry for her mother had left her both frightened and anxious—just like the expression on her face now.
Immediately, Li Yi stepped forward and said, “Jing Shu, you’re a brave girl. Don’t be afraid!”
The little girl was still young, and since this was only their second meeting, she nervously huddled closer to her mother’s embrace.
Seeing this, Xue Jianming hurriedly said, “Mr. Li, please don’t take it personally—she’s still just a child!”
“It’s fine. Besides the lab tests, what other examinations are needed?” Li Yi asked.
Xue Jianming replied immediately, “We’ll need to take some X-rays—a chest X-ray and something called a CT scan—but…”
“But what?” Li Yi asked.
“Dr. Liu said their hospital only has one of those machines, and it’s usually very hard to get an appointment. I just went to the radiology department to ask, and they said the leaders from the Party Committee are here for physicals these days. The CT scan is already booked until next Wednesday, so the earliest we can get one for Xiao Jingyu is next Thursday…”
Before he could finish, Li Yi cut in, “Take Jing Shu to get the chest X-ray first. Leave the CT appointment to me!”
“I’m sorry to trouble you, Mr. Li, but I…”
“Stop dithering—the child’s health comes first!”
With that, Li Yi walked over to a nurse nearby and asked for directions to the director’s office.
After getting the information, Li Yi led Zhang Ziqiang out of the radiology department!
Soon, the two arrived at the door of the director’s office.
“Knock, knock, knock…”
“Come in!”
Hearing the voice from inside, Li Yi and Zhang Ziqiang immediately pushed the door open and walked in.
The director of Lin’an First People’s Hospital was an elderly man in his sixties. When Li Yi and Zhang Ziqiang entered, he was reviewing documents.
Upon seeing Li Yi and Zhang Ziqiang, the elderly director immediately took off his reading glasses and asked with a puzzled look, “Who are you two…”
Before he could finish, Li Yi stepped forward and said, “You must be Director Qiao. My name is Li Yi. Here is my ID card!”
With that, Li Yi handed him the ID card issued by the Development Committee.
With a hint of puzzlement, Director Qiao took the ID card Li Yi handed him and opened it.
Upon seeing the information on the ID card, Dean Qiao’s eyes widened in shock, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
After checking it several times, Dean Qiao finally snapped out of it and said, “Director Li… hello. I’m truly sorry—I had no idea you were here…”
Before he could finish, Li Yi raised his hand and said, “Dean Qiao, I’m not here on official business. I didn’t notify your provincial or municipal authorities in advance, and my visit to your hospital was a complete surprise. Please don’t worry about it.”
“Then, Director Li, is there something you need from me?” Director Qiao asked cautiously.
“Well, I’d like to ask you for a favor, Director Qiao!”
“What is it? Please tell me.”
“I need you to help arrange for a young patient to undergo a CT scan as soon as possible!”
Li Yi then briefly explained Xiao Jingyu’s condition to Director Qiao, asking him to help jump the queue.
For Director Qiao, this was nothing more than a matter of a word; he agreed immediately and personally led Li Yi and the others to the radiology department.
With Dean Qiao’s assistance, the subsequent examinations went very smoothly; whether it was lab tests or various imaging scans, the hospital produced the results as quickly as possible.
Examinations that would normally take a week to complete were all finished by noon.
However, when Xue Jianming and his wife returned to the consultation room with Xiao Jingzhu in their arms and the test results in hand for Dr. Liu to review, what they heard sent them into a deep abyss…
……….