Chapter 22: Becoming Friends

Wen Xulai led them into the elevator and up to the sixth floor of the hospital.

Just as they stepped out, Wen Xiao heard a commotion in the hallway; it sounded like an argument. He pushed through the crowd and found three people arguing with a doctor. From their dispute, Wen Xiao gathered that they were the elderly patient's son, daughter, and daughter-in-law.

"I still think the brother should pay," said the woman in the white faux-fur coat. "I'm working away from home, and my job isn't even stable yet. Where would I have money?"

"No way, why should we be the ones to pay?" The daughter-in-law immediately snapped, raising her voice. "We don't have money either! He's beyond treatment anyway; why should we throw our family's money into this bottomless pit? Don't we have a family to feed? Children to raise? Mortgages and car loans to pay?"

The doctor explained patiently, "You are the patient's immediate family; the medical expenses must be covered by you."

The man standing silently to the side suddenly spoke up, looking at the doctor. "Can we choose not to treat him?"

"This... I'm afraid you cannot make that decision for the patient." It was the doctor's first time encountering family members clamoring to give up on treatment; usually, he saw people scraping together every penny even when they were destitute.

This couple had not only delayed coming to the hospital for a long time, but they hadn't even asked to see the patient. The daughter had only just arrived.

With patients and family members moving back and forth, the scene drew attention. Once the man spoke, whispers began to ripple through the crowd.

"Looks like they raised a house full of ungrateful wretches!"
"The father is sick, and neither the son nor the daughter is willing to pay. How heartless."
"I guess raising sons and daughters doesn't guarantee security in old age."
"Indeed. It's unbearable to have such unfilial children. They say they don't want to treat him, just like that. Who knows how they mistreated the old man at home."

The man turned bright red, feeling deeply ashamed under the scrutiny of the patients and their families in the hallway.

The woman standing next to him lashed out at the crowd, "Go away! What does our family business have to do with you? If you think it's so bad, why don't you pay for it?"

"Brother, didn't you just get two million from the Wei family a few months ago?" the woman in the white coat asked. "How can you be out of money for Dad's treatment?"

"Who told you that?" the woman glared at her, then quickly changed her tune. "What nonsense are you spouting? Are you just unable to stand seeing your brother do well?"

Wen Xiao watched from a distance. Wei Nanxing was standing beside the doctor and the teacher, his head bowed, looking at his own shoes instead of the three arguing adults.

The woman finally noticed Wei Nanxing. Her eyes lit up, and she pointed at him. "He should be the one to pay!"

Startled by the sound, Wei Nanxing took two steps back. The woman rushed toward him, reaching for his clothes, but the teacher blocked her with quick reflexes.

"Weren't you taken back by your biological father? His father is the head of the Wei Group; this little bit of money is like a drizzle to him! Or have you forgotten how your grandfather used to dote on you?"

The woman in the white coat chimed in, "The pocket money you get at the Wei household—if you leaked just a little from your fingers, it might be enough for the treatment."

The bystanders were shocked to hear the name "Wei Group." They hadn't expected to encounter such a massive piece of gossip at the hospital. That was the Wei Group—everyone had heard that they recently brought home a long-lost illegitimate child. They hadn't expected to see him here, nor that the child brought back by the Wei family would end up with such terrible, bottom-feeding foster parents.

Wei Nanxing shook his head vigorously, staring at those faces, teeth clenched. Suddenly, someone stood in front of him, shielding him from their hateful expressions.

Wen Xiao said flatly, "Asking a seven-year-old child to pay for his grandfather's medical treatment—you really have the nerve to say that."

The woman glared at him, her expression malicious. "Where did you come from? This is our family affair. Get lost and let Wei Nanxing come out."

Wen Xiao refused to budge, his small face cold and stoic. When he locked eyes with her, she felt an involuntary shiver.

"You said it yourself: Wei Nanxing's surname is Wei. Is he still a member of your family?"

Before the woman could bite back, Wen Xiao continued, "When the Wei family took Wei Nanxing away, they must have made an agreement with you that he would no longer have any connection to your family, right?"

This seemed to trigger some unpleasant memories for the woman—the promises she made when she signed the papers and took the money. Not only did she sign, but the Wei family had also recorded it on video.

Her face darkened, yet she remained unwilling to let go. As Wei Nanxing's foster parents, they hadn't gained anything beyond those two or three million. "Even if he isn't part of our Xu family, he lived with us for three years! You can grow fond of a dog in three years. Now that his grandfather is ill, and his family is so rich, are they just going to ignore it?"

Wen Xiao felt Wei Nanxing grab the back of his shirt, pressing his forehead against his spine—an instinctive reaction of fear.

Wen Xiao looked at them and blinked. "That's right, you can grow fond of a dog in three years. Looking at you, you're already in your thirties or forties—that really makes you worse than dogs."

Someone nearby couldn't help but laugh out loud, making the woman's face turn livid. She saw Wei Nanxing peek half his head out from behind the boy. His dark, round eyes, visible beneath his overgrown bangs, stared at her with a chilling, ghostly intensity.

"You little brat, how dare you glare at me!"

Wen Xiao hadn't expected that. He thought the woman had simply snapped. Just as he saw her raise her hand to strike, a shadow dashed out from the side, colliding with the woman and sending her stumbling back several steps.

Huo Zhanyan stood there, glaring at them fiercely. "You are not allowed to bully him!"

"What kind of unruly child is this? Where are your parents?" the woman shouted.

Huo Zhanyan snorted through his nose and made a face at them. "I'm afraid if my parents came, they'd scare you to death."

Just as the woman was about to retort, another boy in the same uniform stepped out, holding a phone and snapping several photos of them.

Song Jingbai looked at the photos, flipping through them one by one. "This diamond necklace is from Dugra, the bag in your hand is Violet, his watch is a Duke diamond timepiece... It seems the Wei family gave you much more than that. If you're out of money, selling these luxuries should be enough."

The woman's eyes widened, shocked that such a young child could identify these brands. She reached for the phone, but she saw several police officers appearing at the end of the hall.

The blond boy, who had been standing far away, looked at her. His mixed-race features made him stand out, but his naturally exquisite and cute face was set in a tight, serious expression.

"I called the police. Whether you have the ability to pay for medical expenses or not, let the police verify your bank accounts."

Song Jingbai pocketed his phone and smiled. "I remember that it is against the law for children to refuse to pay for their parents' medical treatment."

Hearing that it was illegal, Huo Zhanyan perked up. "It's illegal? Then take them to jail!"

The woman turned pale with fright. She wanted to argue, but she lost all her bravado in the face of the police. It wasn't that they couldn't afford the treatment; they just didn't want to spend the money on that half-dead old man. If the police investigated their bank accounts, it would be discovered that they were, in fact, quite wealthy.

The man standing silently beside her also realized this. Finally, he said, "We will pay for the treatment."

The woman glared at the children with venom, but she didn't dare do anything. With so many people watching, she had calmed down. These children clearly weren't ordinary. Looking at them standing with Wei Nanxing... perhaps their families were people she couldn't afford to provoke.

The couple turned around and whispered to each other, "Let's just convince Dad to give up treatment. It's terminal anyway, he doesn't have many years to live, and living like this is just suffering..."

After they left, the onlookers in the hallway dispersed back to their rooms.

Wen Xiao stepped aside. Wei Nanxing, who had been clutching his shirt, pulled his hand back.

"You kids are something else." Wen Xulai had known they were capable, but he hadn't expected this. He hadn't even had to do anything; they had solved the problem themselves.

The doctor nearby had never seen such a scene, but he was relieved it was resolved. If those family members had kept causing a scene, it would have affected the hospital's work.

Huo Zhanyan was immensely proud of himself; if he had a tail, it would be wagging in the sky. He glanced at Song Jingbai and Leng Shucheng. "You two didn't react badly either."

Song Jingbai thought for a long time before finding something to praise. "Your tackle was good."

Leng Shucheng scoffed at Huo Zhanyan. "I know more than you."

Huo Zhanyan was annoyed. "It was just a phone call, what's there to be smug about?"

He leaned toward Wen Xiao, thinking that his tackle—protecting the weak, pitiful, and helpless Wen Xiao from the old hag—deserved a compliment. "How did I do just now?"

Wen Xiao said expressionlessly, "Average."

Inside, however, he thought he would give them a passing grade this time.

"Huo Zhanyan and Wen Xiao? And the rest of you, why are you all here? Isn't there an exam today?" Jiang Xuan walked over suddenly.

"Aunt Jiang, why are you here?"

Jiang Xuan wore a white trench coat over a red turtleneck sweater, paired with black boots that clicked crisply against the floor.

"I'm here to visit someone."

After hearing the situation from Wen Xulai, she felt that while he might have exaggerated, it was also exactly what she expected. These children seemed to be uniquely gifted. They were so young; she wondered what they would be like when they grew up.

She bent down and tapped Huo Zhanyan on the head. "Since you aren't at school today, I won't hold it against you that you didn't call me Teacher Jiang."

This floor consisted of multi-bed rooms, which were crowded and unsuitable for recovery. She glanced at the room where Wei Nanxing's grandfather was staying and said to the doctor, "Doctor, please help apply for a private room for the patient in this room. I will cover the costs."

Seeing the children about to speak, Jiang Xuan said firmly, "You are still young; you should use your parents' money. When you grow up, you will naturally be able to do whatever you want."