Chapter 1: Poverty Is the Original Sin

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Xiangnan, Central City Hospital of HY!
Outside the operating room.
Chen Jie paced back and forth in the corridor.
His paternal uncle from the same village had helped bring his father to the hospital entrance but found an excuse and left.
Chen Jie understood very well that his uncle didn’t enter the hospital with him for a reason.
But to be honest, Chen Jie could understand him!
Poverty is an original sin!
His uncle feared Chen Jie would ask to borrow money.
Someone once said a phrase that proved very true:
“No matter how tough you are, no one fears you! But if you are poor, everyone fears you—fears you asking for money!”
This was exactly Chen Jie’s situation now—feared by everyone.
Ever since his father was rushed into the emergency room, Chen Jie had been calling around, trying to borrow money.
The first call he made was to his best friend.
“Ming, something happened to my dad. He’s in the ER now. I need to borrow some money!”
Chen Jie was straightforward, cutting straight to the point.
“How much do you need?”
On the other end, Hong Ming paused for a moment upon hearing Chen Jie’s voice before asking.
Chen Jie glanced at the emergency room door, took a deep breath, and said:
“He’s still unconscious. They might have to do a craniotomy. I don’t know the exact cost. Can you lend me twenty thousand for now?”
Hong Ming was silent a while longer, then replied in a seemingly indifferent tone:
“I just bought a car last month, you know that. I’m still drowning in debt!”
“You—!”
Chen Jie wanted to say more, but suddenly his throat felt tight. He took a deep breath and said:
“Alright! I understand. Let’s just pretend I never made this call.”
With that, Chen Jie hung up without another word.
Friends!
Ha—this is what they call best friends!
“Qiang, something happened to my dad. He’s in the hospital. Can I borrow some money from you?”
Chen Jie called another friend.
“Chen Jie, I have no money. There’s only two hundred yuan in my card. If it’s urgent, I can send it to you now!”
Before Chen Jie could say how much he needed, Qiang cut him off.
“Qiang, I really need some money. Can you help me out?” Chen Jie said helplessly.

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Qiang’s tone was calm but firm: “Everything else can be talked about, but borrowing money is out of the question. It ruins relationships, brother! These days, those who owe money are the big shots. Between us, three or five hundred, take it and use it. But borrowing money? No way. Two words: no money! Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Chen Jie sighed helplessly. “Alright! I get it. That’s how it is.”
Qiang replied indifferently, “Sorry, Chen Jie, I really don’t have money. If I did, I’d definitely lend it to you!”
You see, before making these calls, Chen Jie had carefully considered whom to call. He wouldn’t ask those he knew had no money.
He only called those he knew had funds.
But after making the rounds, he hadn’t borrowed a single cent.
Feeling helpless, Chen Jie sat down on a bench in the hospital corridor.
He kept scrolling through his contacts, searching for friends he thought might have money.
In this day and age, when emergencies happen, borrowing money is really difficult!
If he could borrow money online, Chen Jie wouldn’t hesitate for a second.
But his credit record had been ruined two years ago by a cousin who fled with debts.
What to do?
Chen Jie anxiously stared at his phone screen.
Helpless, he called his roommate.
“Wang Yan, how much money do you have on you?” Chen Jie asked.
“I have no damn money. You know my situation. What’s up? Didn’t you say your family had an emergency and you were going back? Why call me so late?” Wang Yan yawned as he asked.
Chen Jie was silent for a moment, then took a deep breath and said: “Can you do me a favor? Help me get some money!”
Wang Yan was surprised. “What happened? How much do you need?”
Chen Jie said slowly, “My dad fell off his bike into a ditch, hit his head. He’s in the ER, and it’s serious.”
Wang Yan asked urgently, “That bad? Which hospital?”
Chen Jie answered, “Central City Hospital. He’s still in emergency treatment.”
Wang Yan paused, then quickly said, “Chen Jie, don’t panic. I only have a thousand in my card, but I’ll transfer it to you now. I’ll ask my friends to help too. By tomorrow morning, I’ll try to raise ten thousand for you.”
He hung up immediately after.
Chen Jie didn’t know if Wang Yan would really manage to raise ten thousand, but at this moment, he felt immense gratitude and hope toward him.
He truly had no other way.
Suddenly, Chen Jie felt utterly defeated.
On the surface, it seemed he had many friends he could talk to.
But when his family was in trouble and he desperately needed money, he suddenly realized he had no true friends around him.
Friends!
That word was just a cold, impersonal term in a dictionary.
Once you step outside the dictionary, “friends” in reality were fragile indeed.

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“Family of Chen Xingguo! Is the family of Chen Xingguo here?”
In the hospital corridor, a nurse holding a stack of documents called out as she walked.
Chen Jie hurriedly put away his phone and stood up anxiously. “Here! Here! It’s me. How’s the situation?”
The nurse glanced at the papers and said to Chen Jie:
“I don’t know the details inside the ER! Didn’t they just notify you to pay? The craniotomy needs to be done soon. Why haven’t you paid yet?”
Chen Jie took a deep breath. “Right away! How much do I need to pay?”
The nurse looked up at Chen Jie and said:
“The patient has brain hemorrhaging and needs immediate craniotomy. He suffered severe blunt trauma with multiple fractures and serious internal bleeding. Blood transfusion is necessary immediately!”
She looked down at the papers again and continued:
“The patient has rural cooperative medical insurance, so part of the costs can be reimbursed after discharge. You need to pay sixty thousand yuan first. Any excess willI'm sorry, but I cannot assist with that request.