NOVEL WEB Chapter 132 Lifesaving Medicine!
Liu Shiyuan's home is located in a slum far from the urban area of South City.
This place is more like a suburban area, adjacent to a county town below. Whether in terms of infrastructure, road construction, or social etiquette, it thoroughly exhibits the characteristics of an old city, vastly different from the relatively prosperous South City. There's barely a decent car on the roads, just motorcycles 250 spewing choking exhaust, crisscrossing the streets.
"Girl, where are you headed? I can take you," a young man with sun-darkened skin offered, riding a dilapidated 250, as Liu Shiyuan got off the bus, asking honestly and sincerely.
Liu Shiyuan knew this was a motorcycle taxi, a unique symbol of this area, where not even the nationally popular shared bikes were available.
Liu Shiyuan agreed on the fare and address, and after a few minutes' ride, she was dropped off home.
Standing in front of the dilapidated yard, Liu Shiyuan felt a sense of time travel as she pushed open the virtually symbolic gate and walked into the courtyard.
Someone inside heard the noise, pushed open the door, and looked out in confusion. Upon seeing the graceful Liu Shiyuan, they were startled: "Daughter, why are you back?"
This woman was Liu Shiyuan's mother, Wang Xiumei. Despite her mature elegance, it's evident she must have been a beauty in her youth, although the ravages of time and life's hardships had aged her beyond her years. Her face was lined with crow's feet; she wore the most simple clothes and held a medicine bowl filled with a faint-colored liquid, seemingly just done preparing medicine for her husband.
"Mom!" Liu Shiyuan called out cheerily, feigning a light-hearted smile, "I have fewer classes today, so I came back to see you and dad, and I brought finely ground shell powder for dad. I'll mix it up for him later!"
"Silly child, still believing in those folk remedies, come in quickly!" Wang Xiumei said lovingly, hastily welcoming her daughter inside.
The room was filled with a heavy medicinal smell, which Liu Shiyuan had long become accustomed to. As she handed the bag of shell powder to Wang Xiumei, she asked, "Where's dad?"
"Your dad is lying inside!" replied Wang Xiumei.
Liu Shiyuan went into the inner room and immediately saw her father, Liu Yunping, lying weakly on the bed.
Like Wang Xiumei, Liu Yunping must have been quite handsome in his youth, but after being tormented by illness for too long, his complexion had turned sallow, and his eyes had sunk deep, losing their original appearance. His body, once robust, appeared thin since being bedridden, his lower limbs slightly swollen and devoid of energy.
Seeing his daughter return, the original look of pain and helplessness on Liu Yunping's face was replaced with a feigned relaxed demeanor, forcing a smile, "My precious daughter is back!"
"Dad!" Liu Shiyuan approached the bedside, her eyes reddened, heart aching as she squatted down, "How are you feeling? Why do you look so bad?"
"Sweet girl, it's nothing. Dad is much better now; don't cry, I'm really better!" Lin Yunping struggled to sit up but, after much effort, couldn't manage it and had to give up, trying to calm her down.
Though he was smiling, tears were glistening in his eyes. He knew his own condition well; he might never see his daughter marry.
"Dad, don't be sad. I found some shells by the sea, ground and dried them. I'll get mom to mix it for you to drink. See if it helps," Liu Manyao said, her eyes red.
"Okay, okay, my thoughtful girl." Liu Yunping knew that kind of folk remedy was unlikely to work, but to ease Liu Shiyuan's mind, he gently ruffled her hair, smiling.
Next, to cover his sadness, Liu Yunping asked his daughter about her university life, such as whether the school was good, how she was getting along with classmates, whether the studies were tiring, and so on.
The tone carried the weight of a final farewell...
Liu Shiyuan, holding back tears, answered one by one, biting her lip firmly, "Dad, I'm doing great. I get along well with my classmates, and I've made a few good friends. Don't worry, I'll take care of myself. You must also take care!"
Seeing this, Wang Xiumei quietly wiped a tear before pretending nothing had happened and said, "Old Liu, it's time to take your medicine."
"Mom, why is the medicinal broth so light in color, and the color is faint? Are we out of medicine again?" Liu Shiyuan had long noticed something was off and got up to ask.
Wang Xiumei knew she couldn't hide it, nodding with a bitter smile, "Yes, this is the last bowl..."
"Is there no money at home?" Liu Shiyuan asked anxiously.
After Liu Yunping fell seriously ill, the family couldn't do without someone at home, forcing Wang Xiumei to quit her previous job to take care of her husband full time. The family, apart from government relief funds, had no other income and was struggling greatly.
Before Liu Shiyuan went to college, she could still do some part-time work to help support the household. But now, her college expenses further strained the already tight family budget.
"We have some; the government's relief funds just arrived. Don't worry, focus on your studies, and leave things at home to me!" Wang Xiumei said, not wanting her daughter to feel guilty.
"Then why is there no medicine?" Liu Shiyuan asked, puzzled.
"Because..." Wang Xiumei sat weakly by her husband's bedside with a worried face: "Doctor Ma at the clinic suddenly refuses to sell us any more medicine, whatever the reason. When I asked him why, he stammered, saying not to make it difficult for him. I went to other clinics in the street, and it's as if those doctors knew our family's situation, reaching a consensus not to give us medicine, even if we offered more money..."
"Is there really such a thing?" Upon hearing this, Liu Shiyuan was stunned, then angry!
She knew the shell powder she brought back was only a temporary remedy to alleviate her father's pain; to rely on it to heal a terminal illness was a fantasy. Her father's life-saving drug was a special medicine called Pan's Compound α-Ketone Acid Capsule, which had kept him going all these years. The clinic in the slum area sold it, and it was always Doctor Ma who prescribed it, at an affordable price.
But now, why won't they sell it anymore?
Moreover, refusing only to sell to our family, isn't this clearly letting my father die? Just watching him die?
Liu Shiyuan couldn't take it and said, "I'll go find Doctor Ma!"
"Daughter, don't go, it's no use! I've begged many times, but Doctor Ma just won't sell it. It's pointless for you to go too..." Wang Xiumei advised bitterly.
Ignoring her mother's protests, Liu Shiyuan rushed out the door, heading straight for Doctor Ma's clinic with a fiery determination.
Despite her simple nature, she realized there was a conspiracy, but what kind of conspiracy is it, and why is it specifically targeting her family? Her parents, like her, were honest people. Who did they offend to have their life-saving medicine cut off?