Jishuitan Hospital, Oncology Department, Room 7018.
Wang Lianming looked at his weary wife on the hospital bed, a wave of helplessness surging in his heart once again.
"Old Wang, if it doesn't work out, let's go back to Shijiazhuang."
"For my kind of surgery, we don't necessarily have to do it in a big hospital like this."
"It can be done back in Shijiazhuang, and there probably won't be much difference."
He Fang's pale, exhausted face managed to muster a faint smile.
Of course, she knew she was deceiving herself.
If there really wasn't any difference, why would patients from all over the country flock to Beijing?
Jishuitan Hospital had top-tier medical equipment and expertise in the country, capable of performing various complex cervical cancer surgeries.
Techniques like minimally invasive surgery, robot-assisted surgery, and other cutting-edge technologies.
The specialists here were highly experienced, proficient in a variety of surgical techniques, and kept up with the latest international advancements.
Post-operative rehabilitation care was also far more professional.
The hospitals back in Shijiazhuang were significantly behind in terms of medical equipment and technology.
So, if it was possible to have the surgery at Jishuitan Hospital, it was undoubtedly the best option.
Transferring to a hospital back in Shijiazhuang was just a last resort if there were no other options.
Wang Lianming comforted her, saying, "Let's wait a bit longer, honey. Earlier, Jiang Tao called and asked me to give him Director Tang's number, saying he'd try to figure something out."
"Jiang Tao, huh…"
He Fang softly murmured Jiang Tao's name.
Her affection for this fellow townsman, whom she treated like a younger brother, grew even stronger.
As the saying goes, true friendship is revealed in times of hardship.
When He Fang was urgently admitted to the hospital without any preparations, Jiang Tao was the first to proactively buy and deliver various daily necessities and supplies to the hospital.
He visited twice more after that, never coming empty-handed.
He even offered to lend her and her husband money for medical expenses.
He Fang and Wang Lianming would remember Jiang Tao's kindness for the rest of their lives.
However…
Grateful as she was, He Fang didn't think Jiang Tao could actually help with the surgery itself.
Suddenly, a commotion of footsteps sounded outside the door.
The next moment, the door to the ward swung open, and a large group of doctors and nurses in white coats streamed in.
Leading them was none other than Director Tang Yonghua, who had brought the entire department's attending physicians to check on the ward that morning.
"Bed 3's family, take the patient for a comprehensive pre-operative check-up shortly."
"If there are no issues, your surgery will be scheduled for tomorrow morning."
"And also…"
As Tang Yonghua entered, he directed the team of doctors to perform various checks on He Fang.
At the same time, he explained the surgical arrangements to Wang Lianming and He Fang.
"Okay, okay! Great!"
"No problem, no problem! We'll fully cooperate! We'll follow your instructions!"
"Thank you, Director Tang! Thank you, Director Tang!"
Wang Lianming and He Fang were genuinely surprised by Tang Yonghua's announcement of the surgery schedule, tears of excitement welling up in their eyes.
Wang Lianming nodded vigorously, agreeing to fully cooperate with all of Tang Yonghua's arrangements.
"It must be because of Jiang Tao!"
After respectfully seeing Tang Yonghua off, Wang Lianming immediately thought of his good friend Jiang Tao.
"It has to be! Otherwise, there's no way the surgery would've been scheduled so quickly. We owe Jiang Tao a huge favor this time."
He Fang wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, her gratitude toward Jiang Tao growing even deeper.
Then, Wang Lianming took out his phone and called Jiang Tao.
The couple expressed their heartfelt gratitude over the phone.
…
On the Line 10 subway.
After hanging up Wang Lianming's call, Jiang Tao let out a sigh of relief.
Although the methods used to arrange He Fang's surgery weren't exactly honorable, Jiang Tao believed that Tang Yonghua would do his utmost to ensure the surgery's success.
For Tang Yonghua, this was also the best choice.
Though he might be somewhat greedy, he still had a baseline of professional ethics.
He wouldn't gamble with a patient's life.
In fact, he likely wanted the surgery to go smoothly even more than Wang Lianming and Jiang Tao did.
It would be best for everyone involved.
After a dozen more stops, Jiang Tao got off at Panjiayuan Station.
Exiting from the B4 exit, he headed straight to the antique street.
Jiang Tao had two purposes for coming to Panjiayuan today.
First, he wanted to find a shop to sell the tea leaves Sun Xiaobao had given him last night to recover some cash.
Second, he was hoping to see if he could pick up any valuable information at the Panjiayuan antique market.
If he could, like in some online novels, stumble upon an antique worth millions and strike it rich in one go!
It was nearing the end of the year, and many companies had probably started their holidays early.
The antique street was livelier than usual.
Jiang Tao strolled through the street, his eyes quickly scanning the shops.
He knew nothing about antiques and had no intention of buying anything.
He was just wandering around, hoping to increase the chances of triggering some valuable information.
After a while, Jiang Tao entered a shop that advertised recycling old liquor and tea leaves.
Such shops were quite niche on the antique street, far fewer than those selling various antiques.
Upon entering, Jiang Tao didn't waste time with small talk.
He took out the box of tea leaves from his shopping bag and inquired about the price.
The box contained several Pu'er tea cakes from Dayi Tea.
Jiang Tao had checked online, and the original price was around 36,000 yuan.
The system estimated their value at 30,000 yuan, so Jiang Tao set that as his selling price.
If the offer was below that, he'd walk away and try another shop.
Dayi Tea had a decent resale value in the tea market.
For some rarer teas, the recycling price could reach 80-90% of the original value.
Jiang Tao got lucky today—the first shop he visited met his expected price.
He didn't get greedy and sold the tea leaves right away, recovering 30,000 yuan.
It just so happened to make up for the 30,000 yuan Xu Li had lost yesterday.
After selling the tea, Jiang Tao wandered around the antique street for the rest of the morning, looking but not buying.
At noon, he spent 28 yuan at a nearby noodle shop for a bowl of authentic Beijing fried sauce noodles.
After eating his fill and feeling tired from all the walking, he began his journey back.
On the return trip, he was lucky enough to snag a seat as soon as he boarded the subway, but his luck didn't last.
Just one stop later, a heavily pregnant woman boarded the train.
The moment she stepped on, it was as if a hidden round had been triggered.
All the passengers seated immediately entered "eyes-closed, resting" mode.
It wasn't until Jiang Tao stood up to offer his seat to the pregnant woman that the hidden round ended.
Everyone went back to happily scrolling on their phones.
After switching between several subway lines and a bus, Jiang Tao got off at Xiaoshahe Village around 4 p.m.
As soon as he stepped off the bus, he received a call from his landlord, Lü Qian.
Lü Qian invited him to join them for dinner at Fat Brother's Seafood Restaurant in the urban village.
Of course, Jiang Tao wasn't the main guest.
He was riding on the coattails of Ma Dongmei and He Jing.
Tonight, He Jing was coming to see Ma Dongmei's new place.
Jiang Tao, being from the same hometown as He Jing and quite familiar with her, was also the "matchmaker" who had introduced Lü Qian to Ma Dongmei.
Lü Qian's invitation was both a gesture of thanks and a way to have Jiang Tao liven up the atmosphere.