They got off the bus and started walking. After a while, Zhang Jun wiped his forehead and said, "Hey, today is so hot. How about we drink something?"
Chen Ji Yang nodded. "Okay."
Zhang Jun smiled. "Then what would you like to drink?"
"Milk tea would be great," Ji Yang replied.
"Okay," Zhang Jun agreed.
They both looked at Yi Ming, who remained silent. Ji Yang poked him.
"Umm, same for him," she said.
"Alright then, you guys wait for me here. I'll go and buy," Zhang Jun offered.
Ji Yang started to follow. "Hey, let me go with you."
But Yi Ming pulled her back by her wrist. "No need."
"Hey, what are you doing? Let me go," she protested.
"It's hot. Let him go," Yi Ming insisted.
Zhang Jun nodded in agreement. "That's right. Just wait for me here."
Reluctantly, Ji Yang stayed back with Yi Ming, watching Zhang Jun head off to get their drinks."
Yi Ming looked at Ji Yang and asked "Are you going to stand here?"
"Aah," She mumbled, a bit lost in thought.
He pointed to a nearby bench. "There's a bench. Let's sit there."
"Okay," she agreed, following him to the bench.
As they sat down, Yi Ming took the initiative to start the conversation. "Are you and that senior close?"
She shook her head. "No, why do you say that?"
"Nothing, you guys look close," he replied.
"No, he asked if he could join us and he helped me out, so I didn't know how to refuse. That's why he came with us," Ji Yang explained.
"Then earlier, why did you want to follow him to buy drinks?" He questioned.
She took a deep breath and said, "Come on, bro, I was just showing some humanity, okay? Not like you, standing there like a sculpture. You don't even hesitate to say anything. I think you shouldn't be in the painting department; you should be in the sculpture department because that suits you."
Yi Ming couldn't help but chuckle a bit at her remark. "You have a point," he admitted with a rare smile.
Just then, Zhang Jun returned with their milk teas, breaking the moment.
Ji Yang: "You came."
Zhang Jun: "Hmm, here's yours." He passed the drinks to them. "What are you guys laughing about?"
She took the drinks and handed one to Yi Ming.
Yi Ming replied curtly, "That's none of your business."
Ji Yang nudged him playfully, saying, "Haha, nothing, just a casual talk."
Zhang Jun nodded, then looked around for a place to sit. Ji Yang asked him, "Do you want to sit? There's plenty of space here."
Yi Ming interjected to Zhang Jun, "You can sit on the floor."
Ji Yang sighed, "Ah, come on, bro. Hey, move over a little. Why are you looking at me like that? I said move."
Sitting between two handsome boys who clearly didn't appreciate each other's presence, She whispered to herself, "Tian na (OMG), why am I so unlucky today?"
Ji Yang: "You came."
Zhang Jun: "Hmm, here's yours." He passed the drinks to them. "What are you guys laughing about?"
She took the drinks from him and handed one to Yi Ming.
Yi Ming replied curtly, "That's none of your business."
Ji Yang nudged his leg and laughed, "Haha, nothing, just a casual talk."
Zhang Jun nodded. "Oh, I see." He looked around for a place to sit and then glanced at Ji Yang.
She asked, "Do you want to sit? You can sit here, there's plenty of space."
Yi Ming interjected, "You can sit on the floor."
Ji Yang turned to Yi Ming, "Ah, come on, bro. Hey, move a little. Why are you looking at me like that? I said move."
Reluctantly, Yi Ming shifted, making space. Ji Yang, now sitting between two handsome boys who clearly didn't enjoy each other's presence, whispered to herself, "Tian na (OMG), why am I so unlucky today? Ji Yang, Ji Yang, you shouldn't have come here today."
As they were sitting on the bench, Zhang Jun, feeling comfortable, put one arm around the back of the bench. In a bout of jealousy, Yi Ming did the same.
Ji Yang, frustrated, thought to herself, "What's wrong with these guys?" She suddenly stood up.
Both of them asked in unison, "What happened?"
"I... I think we should get going now," she replied.
Both of them looked at each other and quickly removed their arms from the bench. Yi Ming cleared his throat and said, "Let's go."
They started walking when Zhang Jun's phone rang. He answered, "Hello, Mom? What happened?" As he listened to his mom, he panicked and said, "Okay, I'll be there immediately." He hung up.
Ji Yang and Yi Ming, seeing his worried face, asked, "What happened, senior? Is everything okay?"
Zhang Jun answered, "Yeah, everything is fine. Sorry, I can't accompany you guys today. I've some urgent work, so I'll be going."
Ji Yang replied, "Ah, so suddenly? Okay, it's fine. Go ahead. Be careful on your way."
As Zhang Jun left, Ji Yang turned to Yi Ming and said, "Hey, let's go."
Yi Ming asked, "Hey dummy, where are you going that way? We have to go this way."
She replied, "No, we have to follow senior."
He said, "What? You can't be serious about following him."
She replied, "Aya bro, didn't you see that he was worried about something? I think something has happened to him. He might be in some trouble. We should follow him and see what's going on."
Yi Ming looked at her incredulously. "Chen Ji Yang, I never thought that you even had this kind of... concern."
Ji Yang said, "Are you coming or not? Forget it. I'm going."
Yi Ming sighed, "Hey, hey, wait for me."
Seeing Zhang Jun hop into a taxi from a distance, they also hailed a taxi behind him.
The driver asked, "Where do you guys wanna go?"
Ji Yang replied, "Sir, just follow that taxi."
"Alright," the driver said, and they began following Zhang Jun's taxi.
She asked Yi Ming, "Hey, where does this way go to?"
Yi Ming checked on his phone, "It says this way goes to Guangzhou Hospital."
"Hospital?" she questioned.
"Yeah, look yourself," he showed her the map.
"Why is he going to the hospital?" she wondered aloud.
Yi Ming replied, "I don't know either."
At the hospital, Zhang Jun rushed to the receptionist.
"Hello, may I ask where the patient named Zhang Jingjing is?" he asked anxiously.
The receptionist checked the records. "Alright, sir. Wait a minute... Room no. 303."
"Okay, where is that room?" Zhang Jun asked.
The receptionist replied, "Go straight, then turn right."
Zhang Jun thanked her and hurried off in the direction she indicated.He saw his mom sitting outside the room, crying. He dropped to his knees beside her and asked, "Maa, what happened? Don't cry. Tell me what's going on."
His mom looked at him with tear-filled eyes. "Son, you're here. I don't know what to do. What am I going to do? Your... your mei (little sister), she is..."
Zhang Jun's heart raced. "What happened to her?"
His mom sobbed, "I don't know. I got a call from her school while I was at work. They said she was playing and suddenly fell, so I brought her to the hospital. The doctor said..." She broke down before finishing.
Just then, a nurse approached them. "Excuse me, are you Zhang Jingjing's family?"
Zhang Jun stood up. "Yes, I'm her big brother."
The nurse continued, "Please come with me, sir. Dr. Jiang wants to discuss something with you."
He nodded, "Alright, I'm coming." Turning to his mom, he said, "Maa, don't worry. You go inside. I'll see the doctor."
Dr. Jiang looked at Zhang Jun with a grave expression. "The situation is serious. I've done a full examination and some tests on her. It turns out she has a hole in her heart."
Zhang Jun was taken aback. "What?"
Dr. Jiang continued, "Yes, and she needs to undergo surgery within a week. Otherwise, her condition will become more serious."
Zhang Jun's immediate reaction was decisive. "Okay then, perform the surgery."
Dr. Jiang sighed. "The surgery is going to be quite expensive because we have to call another doctor. Dr. Wen, our heart surgeon, is unavailable. He's very busy and can't make it. So you need to consider the costs involved."
Zhang Jun nodded, determination in his eyes. "Alright, doctor. I'll discuss it with my family."
Zhang Jun entered the room where his little sister was sleeping. His mother looked up, eyes red from crying.
"What did the doctor say?" she asked anxiously.
"He said she has to undergo surgery," Zhang Jun answered, his voice steady. "Does Dad know about this?"
His mother shook her head. "No, I called him, but he didn't answer. He doesn't care about his family. I've made up my mind. I'm giving him a divorce."
Zhang Jun looked at her intently. "Have you thought it through?"
"Yes," she replied firmly.
He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Alright. No matter what decision you make, I'll support you and Jingjing."
She nodded, appreciating his support.
A nurse entered the room and handed Zhang Jun a receipt. "Sir, these are the medicines the doctor has prescribed."
"Okay, thanks," Zhang Jun said. Turning to his mother, he added, "Maa, I'll go get these medicines now."
She gave him a nod. "Alright, go ahead."
Meanwhile, Ji Yang and Yi Ming, who had followed Senior Zhang Jun into the hospital corridor, found him looking visibly distressed.
Zhang Jun turned to them and asked, "Hey, what are you guys doing here? You were following me?"
Yi Ming responded bluntly, "I didn't come here because I wanted to. She forced me."
Ji Yang interjected quickly, "No, it's not like that. You looked so tense, worried, and in a hurry. So we came to see what's going on. Are you okay? Did something happen?"
Zhang Jun sighed heavily and sat down, gesturing for them to join him. "I have a little sister, Zhang Jingjing. She's sick. She has a hole in her heart and needs surgery. But it's expensive, and there are many things going on in my family. I don't know what to do."
Ji Yang offered reassurance, "Don't worry, it's going to be alright. Who is the doctor in charge now?"
Zhang Jun nodded slightly, "Dr. Jiang."
Dr. Jiang approached them and asked, "Zhang Jun, have you bought the medicine?"
Zhang Jun replied, "Not yet, I'm going to."
Ji Yang turned to the doctor, "Hello, Dr. Jiang. How is Jingjing's condition?"
Dr. Jiang explained, "She needs surgery within a week. We have to call in another surgeon because Dr. Wen is not available. Dr. Xie will have to do the surgery, and it's going to be expensive."
Ji Yang nodded, "Alright, thanks, doctor."As Dr. Jiang left, Ji Yang and Yi Ming sat outside the room. She turned to him and asked, "Hey, did you bring your laptop with you?"
"Yeah, I have it. Why?" he replied.
"Okay, give me your laptop," she said.
He handed her the laptop and watched as she searched for something. After a moment, Ji Yang said, "This is Dr. Xie. I got it."
Curious, he asked, "What?"
She replied, "Nothing, just wait here. I have to make a call."
Ji Yang took a deep breath and pulled out her phone. She navigated to her call logs and dialed a number labeled "Asst. Wu."
After a few rings, the call connected. "Hello, Ms. Chen. How can I help you?" came the polite yet curious voice on the other end.
She spoke quickly and firmly, "Asst. Wu, where are you? Come to Guangzhou right now."
There was a moment of hesitation before Asst. Wu replied, "Ah, right now? I can't, Ms. Chen. What will I say if Mr. Chen or someone asks why I'm going to Guangzhou?"
"If you don't come, I'll tell Grandpa," she threatened, her tone leaving no room for negotiation.
"No, no, don't do that," he responded, clearly alarmed.
"Then find a way. If someone asks, tell them it's about work or make up any business excuse," she instructed.
"Alright, Ms. Chen. I got it," Asst. Wu conceded.
Just as she ended the call, Zhang Jun approached, his face a mix of relief and concern. "Let's go, Jingjing is awake," he said.
She nodded, "Alright, let's go see her."