Rebirth in the 90s: Her Counterattack and Redemption

Chapter 986: Chapter 579: Departure

”Okay, we’ll stay a little longer.” Luo Ye said, moving a chair closer to Qi Ziheng’s bedside. ”Senior, take good care of yourself. When you get discharged, we’ll celebrate for you.”

Qi Ziheng weakly smiled, ”Thank you, Luoluo. You probably don’t know me, but I’m quite familiar with you. My cousin Bai Qingchu often mentions you.”

Luo Ye looked at him in surprise, ”Senior is Qingchu’s cousin? That naughty girl never mentioned it. I’m going to have a word with her when I get back.”

”It’s not her fault.” Qi Ziheng glanced at his mother and lowered his head with a sigh. ”I used to be too vain, always worried that people would look down on me for being from a rural area in the suburbs, so I lied and said my parents were both civil servants.

When I heard Qingchu got into GF University, the first thing I told her was to pretend not to know me and not to mention me at school.

Now, I realize how wrong I was. My classmates, knowing my family background, didn’t look down on me at all; instead, they tried their best to help me.

And my cousin Qingchu never held a grudge against me. Whenever she has free time, she comes to keep me company and shares all sorts of interesting stories from school with me.

I was really immature back then. During this time, I’ve been thinking that maybe this is Heaven’s way of punishing me...”

Mrs. Qi interrupted her son, ”Ziheng, stop talking nonsense!”

”Exactly, Senior, how can you say that about yourself? There are many reasons for getting sick, but the key to healing is only one: a positive and optimistic mindset is the best medicine.” Luo Ye looked at Mrs. Qi. ”Uncle Qi is still working, right?”

Mrs. Qi wiped the corner of her eyes, ”Yes, his father has been working round the clock lately, feeling embarrassed to trouble the school and doing all he can to contribute more.”

Luo Ye shrugged, ”Senior, you’re a smart person, so I don’t need to say more, right?”

Qi Ziheng nodded, ”I know, actually, I’ve been fighting the disease really hard, cooperating with the doctors’ treatment. I’m only twenty-three, and I really don’t want to die!

But sometimes, seeing everyone doing so much for me, especially seeing my dad suddenly so old and tired, I feel terribly guilty...”

Mrs. Qi choked, interrupting her son, ”As long as your illness can get better, your dad would be willing to work himself to death. Ziheng, if possible, both mom and dad would give their lives for yours. So if you really care about us, please stop having such heavy thoughts, okay?”

”Mom, I won’t let my mind wander anymore.” Qi Ziheng turned to Luo Ye and Zhan Hao with a smile, ”I called you both here to tell you in person, you’re both more outstanding than me. I’m really happy and sincerely look forward to your victory!”

Zhan Hao shook Qi Ziheng’s hand and said, ”Because of your illness, Luo Ye and I got this opportunity, which adds a lot of pressure on us. Even at such a time, you’re thinking about easing our burden. We really appreciate it. Please believe that Luo Ye and I will do our best to perform well!”

”I’ll be waiting for the news of your victory.” Qi Ziheng breathed heavily, clearly emotional. Seeing this, Luo Ye quickly stood up, ”Senior, take a good rest. We’ll come to see you after the competition.”

”Stay a little longer.” Qi Ziheng looked at them reluctantly, ”I don’t even know...” He left the rest of his sentence unfinished.

Mrs. Qi shot her son a warning glance and turned away to wipe her eyes. Zhan Hao looked at Luo Ye for approval, ”Luoluo, why don’t we stay a bit longer?”

Luo Ye nodded, looking at Mrs. Qi, ”Auntie, has senior always been this thin or...”

”This child has been skinny since he was little. We even took him to the hospital for a check-up, and they said nothing was wrong and he’d get better when he grew up. Who knew he’d end up like this.” Mrs. Qi said, wiping her tears again.

Qu Yue immediately said, ”Auntie, I’ll be responsible for your meals during this period. I promise to fatten Ziheng up.”

Luo Ye introduced, ”Qu Yue is the owner of Liangyou Chain.”

”How could we possibly accept, how could we possibly accept...” Mrs. Qi stood up in a fluster, repeating the words awkwardly.

”It’s no trouble at all, Auntie, no need to be polite.” Qu Yue smiled at Qi Ziheng, ”Ziheng, I hope my gesture doesn’t make you feel uncomfortable.”

”President Qu, I’m not someone who doesn’t recognize kindness. If...” Qi Ziheng paused, looking at them, ”If I have the chance to be normal again, I’ll definitely do my best to repay everyone.”

Luo Ye looked at him seriously, ”Senior, it’s too formal to say that. We’re not helping you for repayment.”

Qu Yue chimed in, ”Exactly, Luo Ye and Zhan Hao help you out of school loyalty, and I help you because I have the means to do so. Also, I’m a year older than you, so if you don’t mind, you can call me Brother Qu.”

Qi Ziheng nodded, ”Brother Qu, I understand.” Then he turned to Mrs. Qi, ”Mom, could you bring out those materials for me?”

Mrs. Qi acknowledged and took a thick stack of materials from a cupboard by the door and handed it to her son. Just then, Qu Yue’s phone rang, and he apologized to the group before stepping out of the ward.

Qi Ziheng held the materials, gently stroking the pages with his fingers. After a while, he took a deep breath and handed them to the nearest Luo Ye, ”These are for you. I hope they’ll be helpful.”

Luo Ye took them and flipped through a few pages, ”Senior, you’ve been preparing for a long time, haven’t you?”

”I’ve been preparing since the competition was announced. I never expected...” Qi Ziheng shook his head, then gave a light laugh, ”If it can help you, it’s worth it.”

”Thank you, senior brother!” Zhan Hao and Luo Ye stood up together and bowed to Qi Ziheng.

Qi Ziheng gave a weak smile: ”If thanks are necessary, it’s me who should be thanking you. Most people wouldn’t accept this information from me; it’s essentially dividing your credit.

Actually, I hesitated for a long time before, and only just felt that you’re not the type to be concerned about such things, so I dared to bring it out.”

”Senior brother, that’s the right attitude,” Zhan Hao said as he stepped forward. ”Let me give you a back rub; sitting for so long must have made you stiff, right?”

”A little,” Qi Ziheng smiled and leaned his back to one side. ”Sorry to trouble you, junior brother.”

Mrs. Qi smiled with relief: ”Ziheng is truly blessed to have juniors like you all. These days, it’s thanks to everyone.”

”Family of Bed 25, please come out,” a nurse called from outside.

Qi Ziheng’s face changed slightly, and he forced a smile at Mrs. Qi: ”Mom, go ahead. I have Luoluo and Zhan Hao with me here; it’s alright.”

After Mrs. Qi left, Qi Ziheng seemed a bit absent-minded. Luo Ye gently held his hand: ”Senior brother, it might just be good news.”

”I hope so...” Qi Ziheng smiled bitterly, ”You might find it funny, but lately, I’m particularly afraid when doctors call my mom outside. For illnesses like mine, it’s generally not good news when they talk to family alone. It’s either running out of money or worsening of the condition...”

”Ziheng, it’s good news!” Mrs. Qi appeared at the door, her eyebrows and eyes full of delight.

Luo Ye jumped up instantly: ”Auntie, have you found a bone marrow match?”

Mrs. Qi nodded vigorously: ”Luoluo, you’re so smart! That’s right, we’ve found a matching bone marrow. The surgery is scheduled for next Friday, and he needs to take good care of his health until then.

As for the money, don’t worry. The doctor said Ziheng is an excellent military academy student, so the surgery fee is waived. Goodness, our family’s ancestral tomb is truly blessed.”

Qi Ziheng looked incredulous: ”Mom, is it true? You’re not lying to me?”

”Silly boy, how could I lie to you about this? I was just worried you’d overthink, so I came over to let you know. I need to go sign some papers and take care of the procedures. Luoluo, Zhan Hao, can I trouble you two to watch over him for a bit?”

Luo Ye quickly ran to the door and handed a note to Mrs. Qi: ”These are our phone numbers. If there’s anything you need help with, don’t hesitate to contact us, Aunt Qi.”

”No need to thank me, and if you don’t mind, when Ziheng is discharged, I’d love to have you all over, and I’ll make dumplings for you,” Mrs. Qi said with an embarrassed smile. ”My specialty is mackerel dumplings and three-flavor dumplings.”

Luo Ye giggled: ”We’d love to come; we wouldn’t even have time to dislike it. Just hope Auntie doesn’t mind us bringing too many people and eating too much.”

”No, no, I won’t mind. I’ll go take care of the procedures then...”

...

Early the next morning, Luo Ye, Zhan Hao, Yu Na, Lu Lu, and a group of people, led by Li Qingqi, boarded the flight to Beijing to participate in the Huaxia Cup National College Debate Competition held in Beijing.

Along with them were four students from S University and the leading teacher. Among them was someone familiar—Mu Ni, the girl Hua Rong went to see last time.

Mu Ni greeted them voluntarily: ”Luo Ye, we meet again, and I didn’t expect you to be quite impressive.”

Luo Ye gave a casual smile: ”You’re not bad either.”

”By the way, I heard you and Zhan Hao are participating in this debate competition because a contestant had leukemia, and you two became substitutes, is that true?”

”What exactly do you want to say?” Luo Ye looked at her coldly, with Qi Ziheng’s thin body and eyes yearning to live flashing in her mind again.

Coincidentally, the call Qu Yue received yesterday was from an employee of Liangyou Company, who was a volunteer for bone marrow donation and happened to be a match for Qi Ziheng. The call to Qu Yue was, of course, to request leave.

As for Mrs. Qi saying the hospital would waive the surgery fee, it was naturally thanks to Qu Yue. After hanging up the phone, he informed the hospital first, and Liangyou covered Qi Ziheng’s surgery expenses.

To avoid burdening the Qi family, the hospital was instructed to tell the family that Qi Ziheng, being an outstanding military academy student, had his surgery fee waived.

Luo Ye agreed with Qu Yue’s approach; the Qi family were good people, and since they had the ability, lending a hand was the right thing to do.

However, from this incident, it became apparent that Qu Yue was becoming more mature and skilled, truly living up to the title of Young Master Qu.

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Special thanks to ”Eternal Post-rainy Season” Xiao Yu and ”Jiu Ai” for their support. (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to visit Qidian () to vote with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)