"Phew! The weather in Rong City is really too hot."
After wandering around the hospital, I found a private convenience store nearby that didn't reject pets. Ansheng spent over thirty bucks inside, and sat in the air-conditioned room.
Ansheng placed Xiao An on the bench, took a disposable cup from the bag, and poured the bottled coconut water into the cup, pushing it in front of the little fox.
After pouring half a bottle for the little fox, Ansheng took a small sip to moisten her lips and throat. After finishing, she continued taking sips, but she didn't dare drink too much.
Being someone who often works outdoors, she knew very well that quickly ingesting water when the body hasn't fully recovered could cause stomach cramps, side stitches, or increase heart pressure.
Therefore, even though Ansheng felt very thirsty, her water intake was restrained, and she didn't just drink plain mineral water.
"Whimper, whimper..."
After drinking the coconut water, the little fox lay flat on Ansheng's legs, looking a bit listless.
"Still feeling hot?" Ansheng raised her hand, stroking the little fox's ears, making it instinctively squint its eyes, showing a hint of a comfortable expression.
"Hang in there a little longer! Once Momo finishes paying Ajie's medical fees, we'll eat and then head straight back to the South Slope guesthouse to enjoy the air conditioning." Ansheng checked the little fox up and down, but didn't see anything unusual. Even after consulting fox expert Wang Ya via WeChat, no abnormality was found.
But for some reason, the little fox just became tired after being in the sun.
Ansheng could only assume that Xiao An was not accustomed to the environment.
Whether it was in Xia Dong, Chang'an, or South Slope, the little fox's activity area was always either in rural areas or simply in the mountains.
But places like Rong City, with its heat island effect boosting temperatures over forty degrees, were unprecedented for it.
Of course.
Ansheng thought maybe the air conditioning she used frequently had caused Xiao An to regress to some extent.
Since when do foxes not shed their fur when seasons change?
"... Ansheng, stop massaging me. It's not just my body you're kneading, but my conscience."
"Why don't you just give me a couple of punches! I'm truly, honestly a bad fox with no conscience!" The little fox curled up in Ansheng's arms, resembling a bouncy ball.
Ansheng sincerely offered ice cream.
Unable to enter the restaurant herself, Ansheng even willingly stayed with me under the 43-degree heat, sitting on a marble slab that might cause a cold burn, placed me on her lap, and jokingly offered me ice cream.
Yet, her ice cream melted before she could even taste it!
Ansheng felt utterly uncomfortable; it was a very unfamiliar emotion, like having her conscience punched. One hand pressing on her cheek, while the other pounded her chest, making her writhe.
"Mmm, mmm, mmm, I know you're uncomfortable, but now with air conditioning, it should be a bit better."
"Momo will soon finish paying the surgery fees." Ansheng patted the fluffy white fur to comfort it.
...
Meanwhile, in the hospital, Mo Yiqing made a phone call to the local private bank, withdrew two hundred thousand in cash, and prepaid Mo Shengjie's three thousand hospital bill. Just before noon, the specialist surgeon arrived at the hospital.
The chief surgeon saw a box of cash and froze, pressing himself against the wall with a stupefied look on his face.
"Just... just give me three thousand, that's enough. My ticket to and from with an intern costs one thousand six, and two lunchboxes for lunch, maybe some beer and a pack of cigarettes for the night..."
The freelance surgeon wasn't unfamiliar with money, his annual salary including bonuses reaching over fifty thousand.
But being a freelance surgeon mainly meant firefighting and some educational purposes, or simply repaying a favor, not really for money, of course, unless we're talking about millions.
Charging three thousand was merely reimbursing travel expenses.
Charging over ten thousand, that's tax evasion, and possibly illegal, nearly giving the chief surgeon a heart attack, making him collapse.
Mo Yiqing, surprised, hurriedly helped him up, handed over the three thousand to the surgeon, and patted both his pockets to show he had no electronic devices on him.
The chief surgeon let out a sigh of relief, wiping his sweat.
"You nearly scared me to death. I thought I'd appear on trending searches. Please, just pretend I came here at my own expense! Don't scare me anymore."
"... The expert consultation fee back where I come from is seven thousand." Mo Yiqing saw the doctor's reaction and was a bit speechless.
The chief surgeon paused, glanced at the girl holding the bag on the opposite side, unsure what to say.
"Is it... a cosmetic surgery consultation?"
"My friend booked an orthopedic consultation."
The doctor remained silent.
Mo Yiqing glanced at the doctor.
"Does your place have a urology department, or if you can check for kidney deficiency or bladder cancer for me, I can invite a grandmaster of the field and beyond."
"The guy inside, among friends, seems to have a whole bunch that appear deficient in Yang Qi. Cure him and I promise to introduce patients with kidney deficiency to you by the busload..."
Reaching an agreement, Mo Yiqing carried the suitcase, came out from the fire escape, and returned to Mo Shengjie's room.
Mo Shengjie was staying in a double room, which, apart from a few special wards, was already considered among the best conditions available.
"I've told them about the matter, the surgery is tonight, and your parents should be here by the afternoon," Mo Yiqing said, tossing the suitcase in front of Mo Shengjie's hospital bed cabinet.
"Sis....."
"No need for words to express the gratitude of saving a life. When you're back, promise to take me out for a seafood feast," said Mo Shengjie, lying on the hospital bed with a pain relief pump, legs spread apart, and his lower body covered with a white cloth, like a mangosteen, his face pale yet carrying a slightly broken and withering beauty as he thanked Mo Yiqing.
"Seafood, huh! I think after tonight, you probably won't want to see any seafood until after the New Year," Mo Yiqing said with a strange expression, looking toward Yang Qi.
Yang Qi's injury was very peculiar; after examination, the doctor's conclusion was a twisted clapper and expanded tubing.
A small surgery could fix it, just to open it up, untie the knot, and put it back.
But because of the blood clotting issue, the operation was tricky, so the attending physician opted for conservative treatment.
Using four or five medical leeches to clear the blood clots, then fix the major life problem, and finally address the bone fracture.
Of course.
Mo Yiqing felt it was a bit absurd, but for Yang Qi, it might as well be a reward, right?
"Hmm? Why wouldn't I want to see seafood? I'm a seafood enthusiast," Yang Qi expressed his confusion.
But Mo Yiqing didn't say anything, just told him to rest well, and then left the ward, preparing to find Lingren.
That stubborn girl, despite advice, insisted on seeing Yang Qi's serious condition. After seeing it, her face turned white, she covered her mouth, cheeks puffed like a squirrel, and who knows where she ran off to vomit.
"Wow, buddy, is that your girlfriend?" asked the young man lying on the bed next to Mo Shengjie, breaking the silence in the room after Mo Yiqing left.
"Hmm?"
Mo Shengjie turned his head to look over, the young man on the other side pulled open the curtain, looking at him with full curiosity.
"....... " Mo Shengjie was silent for a moment, unable to stop a slight twitch of his lips, and he said with utmost certainty, "No!"
Mo Shengjie was two years older than Mo Yiqing.
They lived about four or five kilometers apart, often playing together as children.
In childhood, Mo Yiqing had thalassemia, her whole body was swollen, her skin was yellow, and she was very thin and small.
But Mo Yiqing was very lively.
Was it possible she was eight years old, or maybe nine? Mo Shengjie couldn't remember her exact age anymore.
He also couldn't remember what happened that day, he only remembered one thing.
Mo Yiqing once threw him over her shoulder, looking down with a mischievous grin.
She faced her butt towards him and farted.
That day, Mo Shengjie thought he was dead, having never imagined a fart could smell that bad.
In Mo Shengjie's mind, Mo Yiqing was simply a yellow devil, a maniac murderer laughing eerily at night.
As Mo Yiqing's illness was treated, the swelling on her body gradually subsided, and the bruises and scars from her bumps gradually faded, revealing a swan-like appearance.
Mo Shengjie was stunned.
If someone as beautiful as Mo Yiqing was so abnormal.
Then those not as good-looking as her, wouldn't they be even worse? And if someone more beautiful than her, wouldn't they be gods of horror?
Adding to that was his experience of being dressed up like a Barbie doll by his three sisters since childhood.
From that day on, Mo Shengjie felt as if something in his mind had shattered, women ≈ walking extradimensional demons.
"Oh, so it's not your girlfriend!" The patient in the bed next door nodded lightly, with a hint of a smile, looking at Mo Shengjie, who naturally exuded a delicate floral aura.
"No!"
Mo Shengjie said firmly, finding lying on the hospital bed somewhat boring, he casually asked the young man opposite, "What about you? Why are you in the hospital?"
"Me? I have something stuck in my bladder, can't pee, and waiting for surgery," the young man replied with a smile.
Mo Shengjie's eyes widened, his whole body stiffened as he looked at the young man lying on the bed propping his face with one hand, a mullet-headed young man with a blooming smile, and he forced a rigid smile.
"Handcraft genius?" Mo Shengjie asked.
"No, it's a longstanding passion." The young man answered.
Mo Shengjie looked tense, swallowed nervously, it seemed like the room had refreshingly chosen a new god of color obsession.