Chapter 17 – The Hospital Discovery

Lu Yuan did have something to attend to that afternoon.

His grandfather’s cerebral infarction surgery had been completed four or five days ago.

Due to the exam, his family hadn’t allowed him to visit.

With the exam finished today, Lu Yuan decided to head to the hospital.

No. 4 Middle High School was about seven or eight kilometers away from Jiaoyan’s First Hospital, where his grandfather had his surgery.

Lu Yuan didn’t take the bus; he walked there instead.

Running at noon seemed a bit odd, so Lu Yuan alternated between jogging and walking. After twenty minutes, he finally reached the hospital’s entrance.

[Your basic footwork has improved, experience points +2]

“These seven or eight kilometers were worth it,” Lu Yuan thought, wiping the sweat off his forehead with a hint of satisfaction as he looked at the notification on his panel.

With a physique score of 10, he had reached the “elite” level of a normal adult male.

Lu Yuan was full of energy and stamina; he didn’t feel the least bit tired after the seven or eight kilometers, just hot.

Fortunately, the hospital was cool enough.

After asking a nurse where the inpatient department was, Lu Yuan followed the directions and smoothly found his grandfather’s ward.

Pushing the door open, he immediately saw the weak but kind old man lying in bed.

Sitting by the bed, peeling an apple, was Lu Xinghua.

“Grandfather! Dad,” Lu Yuan called out, glancing around the ward.

Grandfather Lu Yueping was in the most basic double room.

There was another patient in the room, separated by a blue curtain, so he couldn’t see the specifics inside but could faintly hear coughing.

“Xiao Yuan is here,” Lu Yueping recognized Lu Yuan after a moment, smiling as he struggled to sit up in bed.

Lu Yuan hurried over.

“Don’t get up, just lie down.”

“It’s just a minor surgery, nothing too serious,” Lu Yueping insisted on sitting up, holding onto Lu Yuan’s hand.

Given the medical standards of this world, a cerebral infarction surgery was indeed considered minor.

What had always burdened Lu Yuan’s family was not the risk of the surgery itself but the rather high cost.

“Why did you come at this time, in the heat of the day?”

Lu Yueping smiled warmly at his eldest grandson.

Lu Yuan replied, “I just finished the exam today. We have the afternoon off, so I thought I’d come see you.”

“How did the exam go?” Lu Xinghua asked, handing the peeled apple to Lu Yueping and interjecting.

“Top three in the grade,” Lu Yuan answered confidently.

Lu Xinghua frowned. “Weren’t you second in your class during the last Monthly Exam? Why is your goal still just the top three?”

“I’m talking about the top three in the entire grade,” Lu Yuan clarified, thanking his grandfather.

The apple that Lu Xinghua had peeled for Lu Yueping was promptly handed to Lu Yuan. He didn’t refuse and took a big bite, the juice filling his mouth.

“You’re just bragging. Last time you were only sixteenth, and now you want to be in the top three,” Lu Xinghua scolded him playfully, though his expression softened noticeably.

That was exactly Lu Yuan’s intention.

Unlike when he spoke to Cheng Peng, Lu Yuan chose to exaggerate a bit in front of his dad.

“You’ll see if I’m bragging once the results are out,” Lu Yuan said confidently, biting into the apple as Lu Yueping watched with a smile.

Lu Xinghua was about to ask more when his phone rang.

He glanced at it and quickly stepped out of the ward.

“Keep an eye on your grandfather. If anything happens, press that button up there to call the nurse.”

“Got it,” Lu Yuan replied, watching Lu Xinghua leave the room. He then sat by Lu Yueping’s side.

Since Lu Yuan had entered the room, Lu Yueping’s eyes hadn’t left him, scrutinizing him from head to toe.

“Your dad mentioned you recently joined some martial arts class to learn fighting,” Lu Yueping said, squeezing Lu Yuan’s arm, satisfied. “This money wasn’t wasted. You’ve gotten stronger and healthier, not like the frail boy you used to be.”

“I’m not bragging, Grandpa. I’m pretty strong now. When summer break comes, I’ll go to the countryside and take care of all those acres of land you have,” Lu Yuan said, puffing out his chest, making Lu Yueping laugh heartily.

Lu Yuan’s grandmother had passed away a few years ago, and his grandfather, Lu Yueping, had been living alone in the rural countryside ever since.

Lu Xinghua had tried several times to bring him to live in the city, but Lu Yueping always refused, so they had to let him be.

However, after this cerebral infarction incident, it seemed like there would be another round of discussions between father and son regarding this matter.

Lu Yuan chatted with Lu Yueping for a while. Suddenly, Lu Xinghua, who had stepped out to make a call, rushed back into the ward.

“I have something urgent to take care of right now. Lu Yuan, take good care of your grandfather. I’ll be back soon.”

“Okay,” Lu Yuan replied, standing up. Before he could say anything more, Lu Xinghua had already turned and left in a hurry.

It seemed like he hadn’t hung up his phone, as Lu Yuan could faintly hear him talking as he exited the ward.

“Keep an eye on him! I’m on my way over right now!”

“This guy! Finally decided to show up!”

Listening to his dad’s conversation, Lu Yuan guessed it was about the person who owed their family a considerable sum of money.

It seemed that Lu Xinghua had spotted the person and was heading out to catch them.

Lu Yuan silently hoped his dad would succeed and then focused on taking care of his grandfather.

Lu Xinghua had said he’d be back soon.

But as it turned out, he never returned that afternoon.

Throughout the afternoon, Lu Yuan first chatted with Lu Yueping, then watched TV with him.

He called the nurse over twice to change the IV drip.

When Lu Yueping took a nap, Lu Yuan, unable to stay idle, went to the inpatient department’s stairwell to do some physical training.

He was doing knuckle push-ups when two young nurses stumbled upon him. They looked at him strangely, probably thinking he was a runaway patient from the neighboring psychiatric ward.

“Go get your grandfather’s meal. The cafeteria is just downstairs in the inpatient department. I’ll be over later.”

It was almost dinner time when Lu Xinghua called, his voice tinged with fatigue.

Lu Yuan obediently agreed, telling Lu Xinghua not to worry and that he could manage things there.

After hanging up, Lu Yuan sighed softly.

It seemed things weren’t going smoothly for his dad.

He informed Lu Yueping and then went downstairs to get the meal.

He only got food for his grandfather, planning to go back to the cafeteria for his own meal after Lu Yueping finished eating.

His appetite had grown significantly, about two to three times that of an average person.

If he were to pack his meal, it would take seven or eight containers, and the trash bin wouldn’t even be able to hold all the waste afterward.

Just as Lu Yuan was carrying the food containers and about to take the stairs back up, he suddenly heard a voice piercing through the noise in the hall of the inpatient department, reaching his ears.

“Bed 16 on the eighth floor, Yang Jiandong.”

“I’m his friend.”

“Okay, thank you.”

Lu Yuan quickly turned towards the source of the voice.

He saw a familiar figure walking from the nurses’ station towards the elevator.

Lin Zhiqin!

Lu Yuan recognized the figure as Coach Lin Zhiqin from their martial arts class at Yuan Martial Arts Gym.

“Why is Coach Lin at the hospital? Whose name did he just ask the nurses? It sounded like Yang Jiandong?”

With his heightened physical abilities, including superior hearing, Lu Yuan had unexpectedly spotted Lin Zhiqin in the hospital.

“Is Yang Jiandong ill and hospitalized? And Coach Lin came to visit him? Are they really that close?”

Lu Yuan was filled with questions.

Driven by intense curiosity, after bringing the food back to the ward and helping his grandfather Lu Yueping finish his meal, he didn’t immediately go downstairs to eat.

Instead, he quietly headed to the eighth floor of the inpatient department.