Chapter 17 - Hospital Discovery
Lu Yuan really did have something to do in the afternoon.
Grandpa's surgery for his cerebral infarction had already been done 4-5 days ago.
Because of the exams, he hadn't been allowed to go visit him at the hospital.
Taking advantage of his exams being over today, Lu Yuan prepared to go to the hospital.
No. 4 High School was about 7-8 kilometers away from Jiaoyan City Hospital No. 1 where grandpa had his surgery.
Lu Yuan didn't take the bus either, he went directly on foot.
Running around at noon seemed a bit strange, so Lu Yuan jogged and walked, and 20 minutes later he finally arrived at the hospital entrance.
【Your basic footwork has improved, +2 experience】
"This 7-8 km walk was worthwhile."
Lu Yuan looked at the prompt on the panel, feeling rather satisfied as he wiped away the sweat on his forehead.
With 10 constitution, he had reached the level of "elite youth" among normal adult males.
Lu Yuan was energetic and vigorous. After traveling 7-8 km he didn't feel the slightest fatigue, just felt hot.
Fortunately the hospital was nice and cool.
After asking a nurse where the inpatient department was, Lu Yuan followed the directions until he smoothly found grandpa's hospital room.
Pushing open the door, he immediately saw the weak but kindly old man lying in the hospital bed.
There was also Lu Xinghua sitting at the bedside peeling apples.
"Grandpa! Dad!"
Lu Yuan called out twice, and looked around the hospital room.
Grandpa Lu Yueping was in a regular double room.
There was another patient inside, separated by a blue curtain, so he couldn't see the specific situation clearly, only vaguely heard coughing sounds.
"Yuan has come."
Seeing Lu Yuan, it took Lu Yueping a while to recognize him.
A smile appeared on his face as he struggled to sit up from the bed.
Lu Yuan hurried over.
"Don't get up, just lay down comfortably."
"It was just a minor surgery, not that serious."
Lu Yueping insisted on sitting up from the bed, grabbing Lu Yuan's hand and not letting go.
With the medical standards of this world, a surgery for cerebral infarction could only be considered a minor surgery.
What had always put pressure on Lu Yuan's family was not the risk of the surgery, but the quite expensive surgical fees.
"Why did you come, at noon too, aren't you afraid of the heat?"
Lu Yueping looked at his grandson with a smile.
Lu Yuan replied, "My exams just finished today, had the afternoon off, so I wanted to come see how you were doing."
"How were the exams?"
Lu Xinghua handed the apple he had peeled to Lu Yueping, and asked Lu Yuan.
"Definitely top 3."
Lu Yuan replied.
Lu Xinghua frowned. "Weren't you 2nd in class last monthly exam? How come your goal is still top 3 this time?"
"I'm talking about top 3 in the grade. Thanks grandpa!"
The apple Lu Xinghua had peeled for Lu Yueping was immediately stuffed into Lu Yuan's hands by grandpa.
Lu Yuan didn't decline either, taking it and chomping down a huge bite, juice dribbling down his mouth.
"Keep boasting, you were only 16th last time, now you want top 3?"
Lu Xinghua scolded him with a laugh, but his expression had lightened up considerably.
This was also Lu Yuan's intention.
Unlike when answering Cheng Peng, in front of dad he chose to exaggerate a bit on purpose.
"Whether I'm boasting or not you'll know when the scores come out."
Lu Yuan bit into the apple confidently, while Lu Yueping watched on with a smile.
Lu Xinghua wanted to ask something else, when his phone suddenly rang.
He took a look, then swiftly walked out of the room to take the call.
"Keep an eye on your grandpa. If anything happens, press the button above to call the nurse over."
"Okay."
Lu Yuan saw Lu Xinghua off, and didn't say anything more. He sat in the hospital room keeping Lu Yueping company.
Ever since Lu Yuan had come in, Lu Yueping's eyes hadn't left him.
He looked Lu Yuan up and down repeatedly.
"Your dad said you started some martial arts class recently, learning martial arts from someone."
Lu Yueping squeezed Lu Yuan's arm, satisfied as he said: "That money wasn't wasted.
The boy has grown taller and more muscular, not like the sickly look before."
"I'm not boasting, grandpa.
I have quite a bit of strength now. During summer vacation I'll go to the countryside, and take care of all the acres of land you planted."
Lu Yuan thumped his chest, making Lu Yueping laugh loudly.
Lu Yuan's grandma had passed away several years ago, and grandpa Lu Yueping had been living alone in the rural countryside since then.
Lu Xinghua had tried to bring him to the city several times but he was unwilling, so they could only let him be.
But after this cerebral infarction incident, they would probably have another tug of war over this issue between father and son.
Lu Yuan chatted with Lu Yueping for a while, when Lu Xinghua who had gone out to make a phone call suddenly rushed back in looking flustered.
"I have something urgent to take care of right now and need to rush out. Lu Yuan, take good care of grandpa, I'll be back very soon."
"Oh."
Lu Yuan responded and stood up, but before he could say another word Lu Xinghua had already hurriedly turned and left.
His phone seemed to still be connected, and faint conversation could be heard from outside the hospital room.
"Keep an eye on him for me! I'm rushing over now!"
"This bastard! Finally willing to show his face!"
Hearing the phone conversation, Lu Yuan guessed it was probably related to the person who owed their family money.
Lu Xinghua seemed to have found that person's whereabouts, and was going to catch him now.
Hopefully it would go smoothly.
Lu Yuan silently prayed for his dad in his heart, then focused on keeping grandpa company.
Lu Xinghua had said he'd be back very soon.
But in the end, he never came back that afternoon.
Lu Yuan first chatted with Lu Yueping, then watched TV with him.
In between he called the nurse over to change the IV twice.
When Lu Yueping was resting, Lu Yuan couldn't sit still and went to do fitness training in the stairwell of the inpatient building.
He was doing crazy knuckle pushups when two young nurses saw him, looking at him strangely, thinking he was a psychiatric patient who had run over.
"Go help your grandpa get food from the cafeteria downstairs in the inpatient building.
I'll come by again later."
By dinner time, Lu Xinghua finally called, his voice tinged with faint fatigue.
Lu Yuan obediently said okay, telling Lu Xinghua not to worry, he could take care of things on this end.
After hanging up, Lu Yuan softly sighed.
It seemed like things weren't going smoothly for dad over there.
Lu Yuan told Lu Yueping he was getting food, then went downstairs to the cafeteria.
He only got food for Lu Yueping, planning to go down to eat again after Lu Yueping finished.
His appetite was big now, about 2-3 times that of a normal person.
If he were to order takeout boxes, he'd need 7-8 of them. After eating the garbage bin wouldn't be able to hold it all.
Just as Lu Yuan was carrying the food boxes, about to walk up the stairs, suddenly—
A voice, sharp as a needle, pierced through the layers of noise in the inpatient building lobby, entering his ears.
"8th floor, bed 16, Yang Jiandong."
"I'm his friend."
"Okay, thank you."
Lu Yuan swiftly turned his head in the direction of the voice.
He saw a familiar figure walking from the nurse's station toward the elevators.
Lin Zhiqin!
Lu Yuan recognized this person was Lin Zhiqin, the coach of their Yuan Martial Arts School's martial arts class.
"Why did Coach Lin come to the hospital?
What patient did he just ask the nurse about?
It sounds like Yang Jiandong?"
With Lu Yuan's 10 constitution, his hearing surpassed normal people's. He had unexpectedly discovered Coach Lin's presence at the hospital.
"Yang Jiandong is sick and hospitalized?
Coach Lin came to see him, are they that close?"
Lu Yuan's mind was filled with questions.
Driven by intense curiosity, after taking the food back and waiting for grandpa Lu Yueping to finish eating,
He didn't immediately go downstairs to eat. Instead, he quietly went up to the 8th floor of the inpatient building.