The passenger airliner quickly landed at the Nanchen Airport in Beijing.
Due to Kong Xiuyao's instructions, no one came to pick them up. The two of them were relaxed and quickly went in and out. They hailed a taxi at the entrance and went straight to Beijing Saitian Hospital.
Two hours later the taxi was parked in a remote area.
Saitian Hospital was a small, private hospital. It had one more building than the clinic. From the look of it, the cramped windows and old exterior walls made it look like a small black hotel.
Kong Xiuyao and Qiu Lingruo saw this old hospital building. If not for the words "Saitian Hospital" on the roof, they would have thought that they had come to the wrong place.
Before leaving, Kong Xiuyao's mother wrote a note to him. On it was the hospital where his uncle was. After repeated verification, Kong Xiuyao finally believed that his uncle was indeed in this lousy hospital.
The two of them walked through the front door of the hospital. The broken shutter was half-hanging over their heads. The wind rattled it. People passing underneath it were like visiting a guillotine. It was as if the door was going to slam down at any moment.
As soon as she entered, the strong smell of disinfectant made Qiu Lingruo's eyes itch.
The first and second floors of the hospital were for outpatients, and the third to fifth floors were for inpatients. This hospital was really too small, so small that there was no need to ask for directions.
They walked up the damp stairs. The gaps in the stairs were filled with green mold that had grown from the humidity. As they walked, they felt that they could inhale a large amount of mold spores with every breath. Qiu Lingruo covered her mouth and nose with her hand and took three steps at a time to the third floor to wait for Kong Xiuyao.
"Oh my god, you call this a hospital? The sanitary conditions are too poor!" Qiu Lingruo complained loudly.
She did not notice that Kong Xiuyao's face was ashen behind her.
There were hospital beds on both sides of the third-floor corridor. They were in a mess with IVs hanging from them. Snoring and moaning mingled together, making one's hair stand on end.
The two of them finally crossed the corridor and found Room 318 at the far end. Kong Xiuyao knocked lightly.
"Please come in," said an old voice.
Kong Xiuyao pushed open the door and entered. He saw a man with a bandaged head and red eyes lying on the bed. One of his legs was hung high and wrapped in a thick layer of plaster.
When the man saw Kong Xiuyao, his bloodshot eyes instantly lit up. He asked in disbelief, "Is it Xiuyao?"
"Uncle, I'm Xiuyao. My father heard that you encountered something and quickly asked me to come and see you." Kong Xiuyao quickly walked to the bed and shook Uncle's outstretched hand.
His uncle lay on the bed, unable to move, but his eyes were trembling with excitement. He sized Kong Xiuyao up several times and finally said in relief, "It's good that you're back. It's good that you're back. Don't go so far in the future. Stay at home and be filial your parents."
His voice was sobbing, and his eyes were red. He turned to look at Qiu Lingruo, who had followed him in. "This is your girlfriend, right? Young lady, take a seat. It must have been hard on you."
"Okay, okay. Lie down and don't move. We'll do it ourselves." Qiu Lingruo found two stools and let Kong Xiuyao sit and talk to Uncle.
It could be seen that his uncle was really concerned about Kong Xiuyao. He had not stopped talking since he entered.
From when Kong Xiuyao returned home, what work he did outside, to how Kong Xiuyao and Qiu Lingruo met, and when they got married, he cared about everything.
He seemed to have forgotten that he was still lying on the hospital bed and was chatting happily.
However, he was still injured and his stamina could not last long. He forced himself to chat for half an hour. His uncle could not keep up and was panting from exhaustion.
"Uncle, take a rest. Lingruo, pour Uncle a glass of water."
"Coming right up."
Qiu Lingruo was about to go out to get water when her uncle hurriedly stopped her. "There's no need, little girl. I drank too much water and peed too much. It's really inconvenient since my leg is injured."
Finally, they reached the finishing point. Kong Xiuyao waved his hand and asked Qiu Lingruo to go quickly. He continued his uncle's words and asked, "Uncle, my mother said that you're doing business in the capital. Why are you in such a state? You're so seriously injured and still living here alone?"
At the mention of this, his uncle's smile faded.
Previously, he had tried his best to speak with a hint of embarrassment, but he knew that Kong Xiuyao had come for him. Some things could not be avoided.
He lay on his back until his back was numb. One of his legs was hanging in mid-air, so he could not even turn over. His uncle twisted twice and realized that there was really nothing he could do. He could only sigh.
"It's a long story…"
Kong Xiuyao's uncle left home earlier than Kong Xiuyao. He relied on the farming knowledge he had learned from his master in the city and was a farmer himself, so he had a lot of valuable experience in raising seedlings, fertilizing, and removing insects.
After completing his apprenticeship, he went north to work. Then, with his skills, he was discovered by a company called Green Friendshipship Agricultural Farming Company and hired as a technician.
His uncle had been reserved during his tenure. Four years ago, he had finally developed a new type of pesticide that was very effective. It was effective in killing pests and not harming crops. There were also very few water-soluble pesticide residues, which were very popular among farmers.
This pesticide, the "Anti-Pest Genie", had already received a lot of attention during the testing period. It was even more well-received once it was marketed. The sales of various agricultural products increased greatly back then, and the profits of the Green Friendship Agricultural Farm Company doubled.
Logically speaking, the "Anti-Pest Genie" that Uncle had developed should be able to guarantee the Boss of Green Friendship would not have to worry about anything for the next ten years if the patent was kept properly. However, for some reason, this boss did not give Uncle any rewards.
His uncle must have protested. After all, he had put in a lot of effort to develop this "Anti-Pest Genie" and had not slept well for months. No one could figure it out.
Unexpectedly, the company took out the labor contract that was signed back then. There was a rule in the cracks: "Any achievements made by technicians during their tenure will be patented by the company."
The company explained that this was part of Uncle's job to begin with. There was no additional bonus. At most, they would praise Uncle in front of the entire company.
He didn't know what his boss was thinking. He didn't give a capable employee like his uncle a good treatment. He didn't even bother to draw a big pie and just gave him an insulting verbal praise. His uncle was so angry that he left on the spot!
"I can't directly use the formula of the "Anti-Pest Genie" because they have the contract in their hands. But I clearly remember that this clause was not inside when I signed the contract. I wonder what sort of method did they use." Uncle looked at the ceiling and said helplessly.
After leaving his job, his uncle thought about it and felt indignant.
So he drained all his savings, took on a loan, and gritted his teeth to open a new agricultural company.
He just wanted to prove to everyone that it was extremely stupid for Green Friendship Agricultural Farming Company to scheme against him! He kept optimizing the formula for Anti-Pest Genie and vowed to compete with Green Friendship in the pesticide market!