Yang Genshuo Returns

"What!? Where are you right now?"

Hearing his mother's words, Yang Genshuo immediately grew anxious.

"We just got to the County Chinese Medicine Hospital, they're about to do surgery—hurry back, Shuo."

"Where did he fall? Is his life in danger?"

"He fell on his arm, no life danger, but the doctor wants someone to sign, says there might be aftereffects, and I don't dare sign either."

Li Xiufeng was on the verge of tears as she spoke.

"Alright, alright, don't worry, Mom! Wait till I get back to talk! Wait for me!"

Yang Genshuo swept a handful of medicine off the shelf, tossed a bag of Spirit Rice into the Bentley's trunk.

With a roar, he shot out of the courtyard.

A thick cloud of dust and smoke rose behind the car.

Yang Genshuo's hometown was in Pingze County, over 200 kilometers from Shimen City—not too far.

He touched the Jade Bottle hanging around his neck and sped all the way.

"Immortal pill, you'd better work!"

Two hours later, he arrived at Pingze County Chinese Medicine Hospital.

The moment he stepped inside, a strong smell of Chinese Medicine hit him. Patients shuffled endlessly through the lobby, more than half of them elderly. The cashier, face full of impatience, kept teaching old folks how to use their social security cards.

Yang Genshuo went straight to the third floor, orthopedics, room 305.

As he entered, he saw a crowd gathered.

"Uncle, Second Uncle, Third Uncle, let me through."

Yang Genshuo's parents' generation valued many children for many blessings, so he had plenty of siblings and relatives, most living in the same village. When something happened, a lot of people showed up.

"Shuo's back? Drove here? Pretty fast."

"You go get your mom to sign, the doctors are all waiting. Just sign with your eyes closed—how could we know more than the doctors?"

"Go see your dad first."

Yang Genshuo squeezed through and took in the full view of the ward, frowning.

It was a three-bed room. Besides his father, there were two other patients and their families, making the small ward extremely cramped—hard to even find a place to stand, and the smell was indescribable.

At that moment, Yang Genshuo's father, Yang Guohua, lay on the hospital bed. His right arm was wrapped in thick gauze from hand to shoulder, hanging limply over the narrow bed, as he took small, sharp breaths of cold air.

Yang Guohua, always the most dignified and warm-hearted person in the family, now couldn't even muster the strength to greet the other relatives.

"Shuo, you're finally here. Let's sign quickly. The doctor said surgery has a queue—sign early to get a spot early. Might not even be scheduled by tomorrow."

Li Xiurong watched Yang Guohua's pained expression, her heart burning with worry. She only relaxed a little when she saw Yang Genshuo return. Even though his businesses had failed in recent years, in his mother's eyes, her son was destined for great things.

"Don't worry, Mom. I'm here. Give me that, I'll take a look."

Li Xiurong had been clutching the family consent form so tightly it was damp with sweat.

Yang Genshuo didn't rush to read it. He walked to the bedside and took hold of his father's uninjured left hand.

"Dad! I'm back!"

Yang Guohua opened his eyes, glanced at Yang Genshuo, and stopped his faint groaning.

"Ah, Shuo. I'm fine, just a fracture. A surgery and a month in a cast, and I'll be good. Your mom insisted on calling you over—I couldn't talk her out of it. You're busy with business, so head back soon."

He tried hard to act like nothing was wrong.

"Nothing wrong! The doctor said the worst case is amputation! It's written on this form. Even after treatment, his arm won't bend!"

"Ah! That's just to scare you. It's a possibility, not a certainty."

As he said this, Yang Guohua turned his head slightly away.

Behind them, a younger cousin, Yang Lei, spoke without thinking:

"Second Uncle, my Shuo Ge's three shops all went under—what business does he have to be busy with? A few more days of wages won't make a difference. Let Shuo Ge stay with you, at least he can show some filial piety, right, Shuo Ge?"

Yang Genshuo glanced at Yang Lei but said nothing.

"Who asked you to speak? Go out and buy your Second Uncle some food!" Yang Genshuo's third uncle, Yang Guojun, scolded.

"See! Say a little truth and nobody wants to hear it! Is it wrong to let my Shuo Ge show filial piety?"

Muttering complaints, he squeezed out of the ward.

Back when Yang Lei saw Yang Genshuo making money with his shops in Shimen City, he'd wanted to go work there—easy money, less effort. But Yang Genshuo had turned him down, saying the staff was full.

If anyone in the family was happiest about his shops closing, it was Yang Lei.

Third Uncle turned back to Yang Genshuo and said, "But then again, Xiao Shuo, you're the only child. Your dad's counting on you. He's been in a lot of pain these days. Take good care of him."

"Mm, Third Uncle, I understand."

The eldest uncle, Yang Guoli, who had been silent all along, wore old clothes caked with dirt from working in the fields. In a low, gruff voice, he said:

"You all go do what you need to. I'll sleep here at night and watch over Guohua. I'll have Xiao Liang bring over a mattress later."

Several other relatives were also chattering away, and Yang Genshuo nodded to each of them in turn.

At that moment, seeing his father's condition, he felt a slight relief—at least there was no danger to his life, and no missing parts.

This injury was far lighter than Xiang Pichi's had been back then.

Xiang Pichi, covered in sword and knife wounds, had taken this medicine and his muscles and bones recovered quickly; Yang Guofu's issue shouldn't be a big problem either.

Just then, a doctor outside heard the commotion and walked back over.

"What's wrong with you people? Are you going to do the surgery or not? Signing a consent form is this much trouble!"

Yang Genshuo walked straight over and said, "Sorry, doctor, we're planning to transfer hospitals."

"What!?"

Before the doctor could speak, the other relatives were all astonished—how could this kid decide to transfer hospitals without discussing it with everyone?

"Shuo, this Chinese medicine hospital is pretty famous, specializing in orthopedics. No need to transfer, right?" Li Xiufeng tugged at Yang Genshuo and whispered.

"Yeah, yeah, transferring hospitals—don't put your dad through more trouble." Third Uncle walked over with a displeased look.

"Don't worry, Mom. I have some classmates at the City Hospital who can help Dad. There's a good chance he won't have any aftereffects."

Hearing this, Li Xiufeng was already leaning toward her son's side.

Her husband was nearly sixty; if his arm couldn't turn later, how would he get by?

That was the real reason she'd been hesitant to sign the surgery form.

The doctor, hearing the family wanted to transfer, was straightforward about it.

"Alright, if you've decided to transfer, a family member can go to the first floor to handle the procedures."

The hospital had more patients than it could handle, so the doctor wasn't looking for trouble—if things went wrong, it'd be a headache later.

The relatives, seeing that Yang Genshuo and his mother had already made up their minds, didn't feel they could say much more.

"If we're transferring... who's going to take him? How about renting an ambulance?" Uncle Yang Guoli pulled out his wallet. "Let's all chip in some money for Little Shuo."

The eldest uncle wasn't great with words, but whenever someone had trouble, he never fell short.

Yang Genshuo pressed down on his uncle's hand.

"No need, Uncle. I drove here. I'll just put Dad in the car later."

"Didn't you sell your car to pay off the loan?" Third Uncle was the one in the family who knew Yang Genshuo's situation best. Yang Lei had a childhood friend working at Yang Genshuo's shop, and the latest news was that it had closed down, with the car sold to pay debts.

"Oh, I borrowed a friend's car."

"Borrowed a car, huh~ No wonder you got here so fast."

Yang Guohua, hearing his son wanted to transfer, said irritably, "So much trouble! A fracture is the same at a big hospital."

"Don't worry, Dad. I won't let you have any aftereffects. Do you want Mom to have to help you get dressed later?"

"...It's not that serious. Hiss~"

Yang Guohua moved slightly, cold sweat streaming down his face, and didn't have the strength to argue with Yang Genshuo anymore.

"I'll handle the transfer procedures, and then we'll go."

While Yang Genshuo was waiting in line at the first-floor window, there was a small nurse queuing in the line next to him.

She was petite, wearing a mask, with only a pair of beautiful phoenix eyes visible.

From the side, Yang Genshuo's first impression was that she was probably a beauty.

Her eyes were too pretty, and her skin was fair.

At that moment, she was staring intently at her phone, frantically tapping away, looking very busy.

Yang Genshuo hadn't planned on peeking, but when he saw the screen, he couldn't help taking a second look.

"Is that... Stardew Valley?"

The little nurse looked up sharply, caught Yang Genshuo's gaze, and grinned.

"Yeah, yeah! Do you play too?"

"I used to, but playing alone got boring, so I didn't stick with it long."

"This game is all about multiplayer! Want to join our server?"

"Uh? Can't the mobile version do multiplayer?"

"I'm using Steam cloud gaming. The computer's on, and I'm controlling it from my phone."

"That's pretty cool. The Steam version has more content too."

"Exactly!"

"Aren't you busy at work? You have time?"

"Our Luxury Ward... it's okay. I can sneak in a little playtime during breaks, hehe~"

The little nurse chatted idly with Yang Genshuo while using the time waiting in line to change forms, harvesting and planting in the game, busier than the Yang family's field hands.

Yang Genshuo watched her with a smile, finding this kind of girl—so focused on a game—quite endearing.

As they chatted, a sudden flash of inspiration struck Yang Genshuo's mind!