A mysterious realm descends, and I defy fate in comics.

Chapter 172 Jiang Xingni: ?

Although Jiang Xingni thought this to herself, she would never say it aloud, lest she cause others worry.

【Have a safe journey.】 Jiang Xingni only replied with this message at the end.

Pei Zhaoye did not reply to her again.

*

The shopping mall where Jiang Xingni works is not far from the hospital.

Even walking would only take about ten minutes—which is why her mother was able to sneak her daughter out.

Jiang Xingni was unfamiliar with the hospitalization process.

Putting aside the fact that if she were hospitalized, she wouldn't have her parents with her and wouldn't be able to understand the feeling of parents being able to take their daughter out of the hospital.

Just mention the word "hospital".

Jiang Xingni avoids going to the hospital—each hospitalization costs a lot of money, and it's an expense that can't be negotiated.

She didn't think she could afford the expense, and even if she could, she'd rather not spend it. Jiang Xingni would try her best to avoid getting injured or sick.

The two followed the directions given by Pei Zhaoye toward the hospital.

The ward was room 2107 on the 21st floor. As soon as Jiang Xingni walked to the door of the ward, he could hear shouting coming from inside.

"Take me away!" a girl's voice screamed. "Mommy, don't sell me!!"

Then an older woman comforted her: "Mommy didn't sell you. Mommy is taking you to get treatment. Baby, Mommy is here. Look at Mommy. Mommy won't abandon you."

But comforting words were clearly of no use; even through the door, one could hear the sounds of things being smashed inside.

Crackle, crackle.

She was completely different from the obedient girl Jiang Xingni had seen a few days ago.

But the voices are clearly exactly the same.

Jiang Xingni fell into deep thought.

*

Cui Xiufen had no idea why her daughter had become like this.

Just a few days ago, he was very well-behaved and obedient.

When Cui Xiufen first came to the capital, she thought she would be traveling with her daughter or taking her to university.

But she never expected that it was to pay for her daughter's medical treatment.

The young girl, who had never seen a shopping mall in a big city before, was naturally very curious about her surroundings.

Taking advantage of her free time, Cui Xiufen took Shi Nian'an—her daughter, whom she had been raising alone since her divorce—to the nearby shopping malls.

After walking up several floors, I finally found a small ice cream shop on the fourth floor.

"Mom, can I have ice cream?" Shi Nian'an tugged at Cui Xiufen's sleeve and asked his mother in a low voice.

Of course, the answer was negative.

Cui Xiufen originally wanted to fulfill her daughter's wish, but when she saw the price tag, she backed down.

—What kind of ice cream?

She cursed under her breath.

An ice cream costs twenty yuan.

Just then, she remembered the doctor's advice: "You're still sick."

Cui Xiufen said, "You can't eat these things. Let's go, baby."

Shi Nian'an has always been a very obedient child, and he still is.

She wouldn't complain to her mother, nor would she cry and throw a tantrum over an ice cream.

The little girl was being led outside by her mother when she secretly turned her head back and glanced again and again at the ice cream being sold in the shop window.

She thought, "What a pity, I haven't even had a bite of ice cream yet."

But it's okay, you can eat it once you're better.

Cui Xiufen noticed the look in her daughter's eyes.

She only felt guilty, guilty that she couldn't earn that much money, guilty that she couldn't meet her daughter's needs.

After a while, I'll do some odd jobs and buy Nian'an an ice cream.

It's only twenty yuan. Even if you can't eat it every day, can't you at least have a bite once in a while to satisfy your craving?

When did things take such a sharp turn for the worse?

While comforting Shi Nian'an, Cui Xiufen tried hard to recall the events before she finally remembered.

It was the day she returned from work and lay in a hospital ward, next to her daughter's bed.

— Cui Xiufen's sleeping place is a small folding bed, only big enough for one person.

I bought it from a fellow patient on the same floor for fifty yuan; otherwise, a brand new one would have cost more than fifty yuan.

She thought, well, it doesn't matter where I sleep, so what if it's secondhand? If I hadn't been discharged from the hospital, why would I sell it secondhand? Maybe buying this folding bed will bring me some of the good fortune of being discharged.

That night, my daughter suddenly woke up from her sleep and said that someone had sent her a message.

"You have six days left to live." Shi Nian'an's lips turned pale as he looked at Cui Xiufen and showed her the message on his phone.

Six days.

How could that be?

They are clearly receiving treatment now, and leukemia is not incurable. Even if the condition suddenly worsens, it is impossible for them to die in six days.

Cui Xiufen comforted her daughter, but after Shi Nian'an fell asleep, she still felt uneasy.

Reason told her that it was all fake and impossible.

However, emotionally, Cui Xiufen still couldn't help but worry about her daughter.

What if it's true? What if Shi Nian'an leaves me in six days?

She started searching for relevant records on her phone and also sought help from relatives and friends to inquire about this information.

Cui Xiufen eventually fell asleep while scrolling through her phone, her brows furrowed.

The next day, the countdown began as scheduled, but Cui Xiufen also received a message from a friend.

She's a cleaner at the hospital, and she's always well-informed.

The cleaner told Cui Xiufen about the old lady who died because of the countdown.

She opened Shi Nian'an's daily check-up report with a look of horror.

Fortunately, Shi Nian'an's condition did not worsen and he is steadily recovering under treatment.

The bad news is that Shi Nian'an seems to be experiencing mental health issues, while the countdown text messages are still being sent.

For some reason, when Shi Nian'an woke up in the morning, she began to think that her mother had sold her to human traffickers because she was short of money.

She began to resist blood draws and medication.

Even with Cui Xiufen by Shi Nian'an's side, it could only calm her down for a while, followed by even sharper resistance.

Many nurses at the hospital sympathized with the young girl who was sick, and she even received threatening text messages.

However, after Shi Nian'an scratched her face while drawing blood for her, and even pulled out the blood-drawing needle and stuck it into the nurse's hand, even though she knew it wasn't her fault, few people could be so magnanimous as to sympathize with a complete stranger after being harmed themselves.

Jiang Xingni and Xie Yungui hid outside the door.

Through the crack in the door, she could see that Shi Nian'an's eyes were filled with a layer of gray mist.

The mist swirled and lingered, drifting into her brain.

After finally getting her blood drawn and taking her medication, Cui Xiufen left the ward—if she didn't find work soon, she wouldn't be able to afford Shi Nian'an's hospitalization fees.

Then, Jiang Xingni and Xie Yungui could only watch helplessly as this small gap opened up.

The little girl in the white dress ran like a cockroach.

He darted through the crowd and ran towards the stairs.

Jiang Xingni: ?