"If he had only lost his mory, that wouldn't have been too bad. mories can always be slowly retrieved. Even if he truly never recovers his mories, as long as his personality is the sa, he wouldn't be too different from before. But now, it seems that's not the case."
Lu Xixi furrowed her brows and said, "We were all following him around the school, and you all saw it. He was alone in the classroom, leaning over the desk crying—I know Chen Nuo, and he's absolutely not the type to hide away and secretly shed tears on his own! And there's more! On the sports field, when a basketball was hurled at him… You all saw his instinctive reaction."
As she spoke, Lu Xixi sighed, her face filled with concern.
Sun Keke and Li Yingwan both carefully recalled the scene at that mont. When the basketball flew towards Chen Nuo, the action Chen Nuo took was to shield his face with his hands, curl up his body, and instinctively turn away. This was clearly a habitual action of evasion and self-protection, and it was an instinctive first response. This is how the most ordinary person would instinctively react to an external blow.
But this is definitely not how Chen Nuo should act!
What should Chen Xiaoguo be like? If he were standing on the sports field and a basketball flew towards him… He would certainly strike as flamboyant a pose as possible, and who knows, he might even kick the basketball back with a move like the Foshan Shadowless Kick! Even if he didn't do that, after catching the basketball, this rascal would definitely toss the ball directly into the basket with swag and nonchalance. Then he'd stroll off with his hands in his pockets, swaggeringly. In short, both showy and pretentious. That's how Chen Xiaoguo should be!
Three won stood outside the ergency room lobby when suddenly, Lu Xixi pulled the two girls back. Inside the lobby, Chen Nuo, who had been sitting, stood up and seed to look outside out of instinct. Then he rubbed his eyes. Were my eyes playing tricks on ?
He walked to the triage desk and handed the thermoter he had taken out of his mouth to the nurse. "I… don't seem to have a fever."
The nurse glanced at it. "Mhm, 36.5 degrees, normal." While quickly writing down the temperature on the dical record, she handed it back to Chen Nuo, saying, "Go find a doctor."
Chen Nuo took it and returned to the ergency departnt's doctor's office. Once the doctor had taken back the dical record, he scanned it briefly and then asked, "Past dical history, any major illnesses?"
"Hm?"
"I'm asking if you have any family history of diseases like diabetes, or major illnesses such as your personal history of conditions like hypertension or heart disease. Also, have you undergone any surgery recently?"
The young man looked at the doctor and then suddenly bowed his head, speaking softly, "Yes, I have… Last month… Um, no, that's not right. I…"
Quickly calculating the approximate days in his mind, Chen Nuo raised his head, his expression sowhat troubled. "Half a year ago, um, November last year, I felt unwell and went to the hospital. They discovered I have…"
"What?"
"Cancer..."
The doctor's face changed; the sowhat casual expression turning serious imdiately. He didn't look at the dical record anymore and raised his head to look intently at the young man before him, frowning as he said, "It's… what exactly?"
"Primary central nervous system lymphoma." The young man clearly articulated this term—these words, he rembered very clearly. This term, which he didn't understand when he first heard it, stuck firmly in his mory.
"When was it detected?" asked the doctor, straightening up.
"…Last year, um… November 2000, I guess, towards the end of the month."
The doctor quickly picked up the pen and wrote a line on the dical record. Then, looking up in surprise, he asked, "Have you received any treatnt?"
"…Um, I should… not have," Chen Nuo answered uncertainly.
The doctor widened his eyes in disbelief! His first instinct was to blurt out, "How is that possible?!" From November of last year till now, it had been over nine months! Primary central nervous system lymphoma was a malignant tumor! If left untreated and allowed to develop... In over nine months, the patient would likely be gone! And yet, there he was, alive and kicking, sitting right in front of the doctor?
In truth, Chen Nuo also felt very uneasy. He said "should" not have received any treatnt. Probably... He seed to have lost his mories of the past half year. Based on his experiences tonight, it seed that "he" had done many things and had changed a lot over that half year... Therefore, he actually didn't know whether he had ever been treated or not.
"Be clear, this is no joking matter," the doctor shook his head. "Have you actually been treated or not?"
"I don't rember," Chen Nuo whispered.
The doctor's heart skipped a beat. This is troubleso. He was just an ordinary ergency internist. When it ca to brain cancer, a neurological disease, he wasn't an expert. Although he understood the basic dical knowledge and principles, he wasn't specialized enough.
He pondered his words for a mont. "Do you feel anything else?"
"I feel... like I've forgotten a lot of things," Chen Nuo's face wore a look of distress and panic. "And... I've found that I, I seem to have... changed into a different person."
"..."
The doctor mused for a mont, then said slowly, "The condition you're talking about, primary central nervous system lymphoma... indeed, in its advanced stages, it can lead to a decline in intelligence, loss of so mory... As for you feeling like you've changed into a different person, yes, in the late stages of this disease, symptoms can also include changes in the patient's personality."
Hearing the serious tone in which the doctor spoke these words, the boy felt an odd sense of relief wash over him for so reason. So... it was the illness that caused the mory loss... and personality change? Yes, personality change! At least there was a reasonable explanation. That was better than being utterly bewildered and panicked.
"Then you..."
"I just feel like I can't rember a lot of things tonight... and so people, I clearly don't rember ever eting them, yet they seem so familiar to . And... I..." Chen Nuo paused, squeezed his fingers hard, and said in a low voice, "Forget it, no, that's all." Then he asked another question, "Doctor, are all these... caused by my condition? The primary central nervous system lymphoma?"
"It's very likely," the doctor didn't dare to be certain, but still spoke slowly. "For this disease, I suggest you co to the hospital tomorrow... You should go to a major hospital, see a neurologist, and have a proper examination."
"Okay."
"Where is your family?"
"...Not around," Chen Nuo shook his head.
"..."
The doctor collected his emotions and continued slowly, "We are a district hospital, and this departnt is likely not equipped to treat your condition. I recomnd you go to the city hospital tomorrow, see a neurologist, consult a specialist about your condition. You might need a CT scan, and so other examinations. Plus, it would be best if you have a family mber with you."
Chen Nuo slowly walked out from the ergency office, expressionless as he headed towards the exit of the hospital. Actually, he wasn't feeling too bad or scared anymore. Anyway... I've known about this illness for a while now. Back when it was first diagnosed, I was indeed scared and miserable for a while. It was at this district hospital, just in the dayti outpatient clinic. I had co in because I'd taken a fall, felt dizzy, and had a nosebleed. The doctor he saw then said pretty much the sa thing as the ergency physician did tonight.
Initially, when he first found out, his imdiate reaction was fear. Then, after returning ho, I initially felt awful, completely choked up inside. It seed as if he wanted to talk to soone, but... after a long thought, he couldn't think of anyone. Sitting at ho, for a long ti in front of his grandmother's portrait, his only thought was still, "Who should I talk to? And what should I say?" My mother is in prison. My grandmother passed away. I'm all alone in the world, utterly solitary. In school, forget friends; I don't even have a single classmate I can talk to.
But after all these thoughts... the young man suddenly wasn't afraid anymore. It was very strange. He suddenly realized that he didn't know what he should be afraid of. Afraid of death? But what would happen if I died? Anyway... nobody would care, nobody would be hurt, right? And moreover... maybe after dying, I would go to the Underground... and get to see Grandma? So... After the fear, the boy beca numb.
Chen Nuo walked out of the office with his dical record in hand, crossing the ergency hall... As he suddenly looked up, he saw Lu Xixi and two other won standing in front of him.
"What was the doctor just saying to you... what did it all an?" Lu Xixi's face turned ashen!
Chen Nuo moved his lips but did not speak.
Lu Xixi swiftly snatched the dical record from Chen Nuo's hand and looked at it closely…
"...Patient's self-reported dical history: Diagnosed with primary central nervous system lymphoma in November 2000?
Self-reported symptoms: Changes in mory, changes in personality.
Diagnosis: CA pending.
Recomndation: Transfer to another hospital for treatnt..."
As she read this, Lu Xixi felt the world spinning around her; even as a formidable Controller, her hands began to shake uncontrollably.
Sun Keke, who was anxious, was also looking over and couldn't help asking, "What is this primary central nervous system lymphoma thing?"
"It's brain cancer," Chen Nuo said in a low voice.
THUD.
Sun Keke sank to the ground.
「 」
"Your things are all packed." The middle-aged woman walked into the room. Wu Daodao was sitting on a small stool, his feet soaking in a wooden basin. She said to him, "I've brought you two shirts and two pairs of clean underwear. Wear those black pants tomorrow; they're more resistant to dirt, so you won't need to change them for a few days while you're out."
"Mhm." Wu Daodao was a bit distracted. Tʜe sourcᴇ of thɪs content ɪs NoveI(F)ire
Monts later, after drying his feet, he carried the basin outside to empty the water and returned to the room. Yet he couldn't resist walking over to the cabinet, glancing at the bowl placed on top. At the bottom of the bowl was a tiny bit of fine residue. A few days ago, when his hair burned away for the last ti, it never grew back. Until today. It seems my junior brother... has already... passed away! Wu Daodao let out a sigh. That peculiar guy with the enigmatic fate, had he really died after all?
"Why must you go to Jinling City to see him off? Didn't you say last ti that you had suffered a lot because of him in Jinling?"
"Ah, well, after all, we are fellow disciples from the sa sect," Wu Daodao waved his hand. "And I've calculated that my fate is intertwined with his. Since I've divined that he has already died, then going to Jinling to attend to his funeral affairs is only natural. We are fated to et, and it's best to see this destiny through."
"Then how do you know..."
"He's destined to return to his holand in spirit. Counting from the day his hair burned away, it's almost the seventh day since his passing. If I go tomorrow, I should be able to make it for the funeral rites."
"Alright, alright, go then." The middle-aged woman said while she made the bed. Then she took off her outer clothing and got into bed.
Wu Daodao also climbed into bed. He leaned the pillow against the headboard and lay there propped up, taking out a thread-bound, vertical-format book from the nightstand and starting to flip through it.
"..." The middle-aged woman looked annoyed at Wu Daodao lying beside her. Suddenly, she took a deep breath, then cuddled up, her face wearing a slight smile. "The kids are all asleep early..."
Wu Daodao was stunned. "… Eh?"
The middle-aged woman continued, "You'll be gone for quite a few days once you leave... Hey, Wu Daodao! Stop playing dumb with ! Hurry up!!"
Wu Daodao turned pale, his body shuddered, and he saw her leg wrapped in her pajama pants laid over his own calf...
"That, that... Oh, oh, my head... I have a terrible headache today... Maybe I haven't slept well these past few days; the headache is unbearable..." said Wu Daodao in a guilty yet pleading tone, "So other day... so other day..."
"…" The middle-aged woman's face grew cold, and she gave Wu Daodao a harsh glare and huffed, "Useless thing, hmph!" With that, she turned over, her backside towards Wu Daodao, ignoring him.
Wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, Wu Daodao let out a long sigh of relief.
「 」
After they left the hospital last night, Lu Xixi forcibly knocked Chen Nuo unconscious and took him back! That night, Chen Nuo lay unconscious in his room. Sun Keke went ho, and Li Yingwan was settled in Xiao Yezi's room to rest. And the long-legged girl, Li Yingwan, spent the night listening to Lu Xixi roaring in the living room like an enraged lioness!
In the middle of the night, Lu Xixi called Vanel over, then unleashed a torrent of fury on him! She railed in Russian and English, all sorts of shouting, all sorts of roaring. Vanel almost thought he would surely be torn to shreds by the furious Star Sky Empress that very night! Then, the shocked and terrified bear-like Davarishi scampered back in the middle of the night, practically wetting himself, and made several phone calls. When he returned at dawn, he pleaded with the Star Sky Empress and swore a torrent of oaths. He even offered to swear on the na of his long-deceased grandmother that he had absolutely not made a mistake, that such a blunder was impossible!
"Your Majesty the Empress! You must believe !
"When Davarishi was in Brazil, we found the most elite dical team to conduct a thorough and in-depth examination for him! They are world-renowned brain specialists! Neurology experts! And the most ticulous full-body checkup!
"I can guarantee, last night I repeatedly confird Davarishi's dical examination records from his ti in Brazil with the Brazilian side! Moreover, I had different experts re-examine the reports! The brain CT and MRI scans Davarishi had done in Brazil were all read by at least three neurological specialists! The director of that hospital swore to that the patient's MRI scans show he absolutely does not have any primary central nervous system lymphoma!
"If he had such a serious illness, that top-tier hospital in Brazil couldn't possibly have failed to detect such a major condition!"
This statent finally allowed the Empress, who had been agitated all night, to breathe a slight sigh of relief. Then, still uneasy, of course, she imdiately decided to have another examination done right there in a Jinling hospital!
This checkup was organized by the leggy Miss Li Yingwan. Arranging such an examination as a foreign investor was, naturally, extrely convenient. In 2001, it was still an era when various local governnts actively sought foreign investnt, and foreign investors received treatnt that was almost better than that of nationals. They could use special 'green channels' and get appointnts with specialists whom ordinary patients could never get to see, no matter how long they queued. There were even dedicated dical departnts serving foreign investors. Of course, this phenonon changed significantly many years later. One can't say whether it was right or wrong, but at that ti, it was indeed a peculiar existing phenonon.
In the morning, Lu Xixi and Li Yingwan accompanied Chen Nuo for the hospital checkup. Sun Keke did not go. After all, Sun Keke's family was strict. Last night, when School Belle Sun learned Chen Nuo was ill, she nearly had an emotional breakdown. Fortunately, Lu Xixi later cald her down and ordered School Belle Sun to go ho first... Otherwise, Old Sun would definitely have co looking for her in the middle of the night!
After Sun Keke returned ho, she didn't dare say anything to Old Sun and his wife, simply claiming she was too tired and sleepy and went to her room to rest. That night, hiding under her covers, the girl had a good cry. One mont, her heart ached that Chen Nuo actually had other won... The next, she was distressed that Chen Nuo had lost his mory. Then, even more agonizing was the discovery that Chen Nuo had been diagnosed with such a terrible, terminal illness! That Chen Xiaoguo... is he going to die?
In the morning, School Belle Sun waited impatiently for Old Sun and his wife to leave for work. Once they were gone, she ca out of her room. Without bothering to dress up, she quickly washed her face, brushed her teeth, and rushed out the door. She didn't even take her bicycle, instead hailing a taxi and heading straight to Chen Nuo's house. But she was still too late. Lu Xixi and Li Yingwan had already escorted Chen Nuo to the hospital for the examination.
「 」
THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.
Reaching the fifth floor, Wu Daodao took a couple of light breaths. He checked the door number. Then he straightened his shirt collar. He took out a black armband from his bag and put it on his arm. After thinking for a mont, he took sothing else out of his bag, gripping it in his hand, and then reached out to knock on the door.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
Footsteps approached, and the door opened. Wu Daodao looked closely at Sun Keke, who was standing in the doorway. I recognize her! I saw her at Master Jiang's birthday celebration! I rember she's supposed to be Little Junior Brother Chen Nuo's girlfriend. Seeing Sun Keke now, her face was etched with worry, and her red eyes clearly showed she had been crying. Wu Daodao instantly understood!
His expression instantly shifted to one of profound grief. He stepped forward, grabbed Sun Keke's hand, and shook it a few tis. His tone was even more mournful. "I'm late! I'm late! Did my junior brother have a peaceful passing? As his senior brother, I dared not delay and rushed here overnight. I must give my junior brother a proper send-off!! My condolences! My condolences! Sister-in-law, you must stay strong!"
As he spoke and released her hand, a thick white envelope was left in Sun Keke's palm. Then, Wu Daodao looked at the still sowhat dazed Sun Keke, swallowed, and asked, "So, which day is the funeral banquet?"
[Please have a little patience when reading, alright? I won't write the protagonist as having two souls in one body. Have you forgotten about that black and white grain of rice? That was foreshadowing planted long ago. Don't start complaining that you're dissatisfied the mont you encounter a slightly more complex or convoluted plot. If you just want instant gratification, you might as well watch Japanese action movies. A novel can be a satisfying read, but it needs so twists and turns to be more interesting, right?]
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