Chapter 5: She Refuses to Cooperate

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Fragments of imagined scenarios drifted chaotically through her mind. Deling dared not entertain them; she forced herself to cast all those dark thoughts away, focusing mechanically on counting the numbers on the emergency room door.

After an uncertain stretch of time, the red light above the door flickered and turned green. Dr. Xu emerged.

Deling’s legs trembled anxiously, bumping against the chairs in the waiting area. Staggering slightly, she didn’t pause but rushed straight toward Dr. Xu. “Doctor Xu, how is my mother?”

Dr. Xu sighed. “For now, she’s stable. But the long-term prognosis isn’t good. You need to prepare yourself mentally.”

“If I find a kidney donor, can my mother be saved?”

“A kidney donor is only one part of it,” Dr. Xu said, sympathy evident in his tone but bound to the truth. “Deling, your mother needs ECMO support at the moment, which is extremely costly every day. The expense of a transplant later on will also be substantial. Moreover, the challenge of rejection after the transplant is formidable. These are all considerations you, as family, must weigh carefully.”

Deling’s heart plummeted, a sharp pain gripping her chest as if something was squeezing it tightly.

Money, the kidney donor—each obstacle was thorny and difficult to overcome.

She spent the entire night outside the emergency room. At dawn, a nurse came to notify her about the payment.

Reaching for her phone to pay, she realized it was dead. Fortunately, she found the card Lin Shanni had lent her the previous night, providing a temporary solution.

After making the payment, she encountered Dr. Xu during his rounds. He briefly updated her on her mother’s condition overnight—everything remained stable, and they would transfer her back to the regular ward soon.

Waiting there any longer served no purpose. Deling thanked the nurse and decided to go home to rest before returning in the evening.

Once home, she plugged in her phone and immediately fell into a deep sleep.

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She didn’t know how long she had slept when suddenly her phone rang, jolting her from a heavy slumber.

Groggy, she answered. On the other end was a polite female voice, speaking formally, dispelling the last of her drowsiness.

“What did you say?”

The voice remained gentle and courteous. “Miss Deling, Mr. Wang Siyang’s loan from our platform is overdue. Our customer service team has been unable to reach him. May I ask if you can contact him? You are listed as his emergency contact.”

Deling clenched her teeth. “How much did he borrow?”

“Five hundred thousand.”

Wonderful. Truly wonderful.

Blessings never come in pairs, and misfortunes never come alone. When the roof leaks, it pours. When the boat is late, the headwind rises.

At that moment, Deling’s lingering thoughts about Wang Siyang diminished even further.

After the call ended, she saw a message from Qi Zhiping on her phone.

In the past, she would have ignored such unreasonable demands from Ye Hongxiao outright, but these were different times. When all else fails, one must grasp at straws.

She still wanted to try.

She got up, took a shower, and felt somewhat refreshed. Since she had to return to the hospital in the evening, she casually threw on a T-shirt and jeans and went downstairs.

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After calling roadside assistance to refuel her car, Deling drove straight to the Hongsheng Building, where Ye Corporation was located.

Upon entering the building, she was stopped outside the security gates. The front desk receptionist told her that visitors without an appointment could not enter.

Deling had known it wouldn’t be easy to see Ye Hongxiao again.

But she had no other choice now.

Several projects she was handling were at a critical negotiation stage. The other companies involved all knew she was in talks with Ye Corporation, waiting to see the outcome before making their moves.

Instead of tackling each one painstakingly, it would be far better to secure Ye Corporation’s cooperation. With that achieved, the rest of the projects would almost certainly fall into place.

Completing these projects would ease her financial difficulties for a time—at least she wouldn’t have to worry about her mother’s medical expenses for the moment.

With that in mind, she pulled out her phone to contact Ye Hongxiao’s assistant, Qi Zhiping.

Qi Zhiping answered promptly, his voice tinged with surprise. “Didn’t you already refuse to cooperate last night?”