Returning to High School to Save My Wife - Chapter 35

Jiang Yuan did not go home. She stayed at the hospital all night, with only one question looping in her mind: should she let Xu Chengyu undergo the surgery?

Ultimately, she gritted her teeth and made a decision in her heart.

The surgery had to happen; it absolutely had to.

When a parent needs surgery, how could a child just stand by and watch them die? Even if it meant discarding her dignity to borrow money, she had to resolve this. She was willing to pay it back slowly after graduation if anyone was willing to believe her and lend it to her.

She had always despised being in debt, yet at this moment, she was forced to go back on her principles entirely.

But whom should she ask?

The first person she thought of was Lin Ruoyan. However, Lin Ruoyan’s father was paralyzed and needed care; Lin Ruoyan had only recently lent her money for the hospitalization. Where would she have so much spare cash to give her?

She also could not bring herself to ask Liang Qi for money. Even though she knew Liang Qi’s family was very wealthy and twenty thousand yuan might be as easy for Liang Qi as two hundred, Liang Qi did not owe her anything.

More importantly, she did not dare exhaust the rare kindness in her life. The better this person treated her, the less she dared to burden her. Because she had suffered so much malice and slander, she cherished genuine sincerity all the more, terrified that one day she might be the one to shatter it.

Clutching her phone, Jiang Yuan scrolled through her contacts repeatedly. Finally, deep into the night, she placed a call to Jiang Wangjie.

This was the first time she had called the man who was no longer her father since his divorce from Xu Chengyu. The phone rang a few times before someone picked up, their voice tinged with a hint of surprise.

“Hello? Jiang Yuan?”

The voice was not loud. Jiang Yuan instinctively checked the time: 11:00 PM. Jiang Wangjie was likely with Yi Ping, or perhaps even asleep. She pursed her lips, suddenly at a loss for how to even begin.

She could not say it. No matter what, she could not get the words out.

If she asked for twenty thousand, what then? What about the follow-up treatment costs? Was this money a “loan” or a “handout”? Did it need to be repaid? Should she call him “Dad” or something else? Did she have to bow her head to him?

Silence stretched between them for a full minute.

Finally, Jiang Wangjie grew impatient and asked her, “Jiang Yuan, what is it? Why are you calling so late? Is it your mother looking for me?”

“I,” Jiang Yuan bit her lower lip, stopping after a single word.

“Hello? Are you listening? What exactly is it?”

“Can you lend me some money?” she interrupted softly.

Saying those words made Jiang Yuan feel like a beggar. There was silence on the other end for over ten seconds.

She took a deep breath. “If you are not willing, then let it be.”

“Borrow money? How much?”

“Twenty thousand, or over twenty thousand. It might be even more later.”

“What? Over twenty thousand? Why do you need so much money? Jiang Yuan, speak clearly. What is going on?”

“Mom needs heart surgery, and we do not have the money. Can you lend me some? I will find a way to pay it back.”

This time, the silence lasted even longer. Eventually, she heard Jiang Wangjie sigh.

“I have some money on my end. I can pay the twenty thousand, but as for the follow-up treatment costs.”

“I will pay it back,” Jiang Yuan said. “I won’t owe you money, even if you want interest.”

“It is not about interest,” Jiang Wangjie said, his tone helpless. “Jiang Yuan, you know my job was found through Auntie Yi Ping’s family. Since I am with her, she manages all the money. These twenty thousand are just my secret savings. I cannot give you money every month.”

The last life-saving straw snapped during that call.

Jiang Yuan gritted her teeth. “Then just the twenty thousand. I will find another way for the rest.”

Jiang Wangjie hesitated. In the end, feeling a sense of debt toward Xu Chengyu, he said, “Fine. I will provide the surgery money. For the rest, I will see if I can borrow from someone. But I cannot give you any guarantees. You had better think of something yourself.”

“I understand.”

After hanging up, Jiang Yuan sat down in the hospital stairwell. There were no lights; it was pitch black and frighteningly desolate. The bright moonlight spilled through the window onto the steps beside her, making her side of the shadows seem even darker.

She leaned her body against the cold wall, feeling a profound exhaustion. She drifted in and out of sleep many times but did not dare truly fall asleep. She had recurring nightmares of the year Jiang Wangjie and Xu Chengyu divorced, a time when her family shattered. She could hardly distinguish which was more painful: the dream or reality.

When she woke for the last time, she remembered she needed to ask for leave from school. She picked up her phone and instinctively opened the WeChat chat with Liang Qi.

[Yuan: Liang Qi, could you help me ask for three days of leave?]

Her finger hovered over the “Send” button, but she did not tap it.

Ask Liang Qi for help again?

She remembered the time Liang Qi had tracked her down at the hospital. That time, she had only asked for one day off, telling Liang Qi that Xu Chengyu needed care, and Liang Qi had shown up. At the time, she was surprised and moved, but now, she was terrified.

Because she did not want Liang Qi to come. She had already accumulated so many debts of gratitude; some might be repayable, but others might not be.

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