Chapter 368: Chapter 368: ’Diverting the Disaster

Northern Hospital.

A great stone seemed to be crushing Ai Shengbing’s chest.

Every breath was a knife-like pain, and his heart thrashed wildly in his chest like an untamed horse.

He lay weakly on the hospital bed, his vacant eyes staring at the ceiling.

It was a blinding white, just like his own increasingly pale existence.

He was only twenty-three, but the monster of his illness had gnawed away at his vibrant life until only a skeleton remained.

He was five-foot-seven, but he weighed just over sixty pounds—so light a gust of wind could have blown him away.

Six months ago, when Ai Shengbing first coughed and saw the bright red streaks of blood in his phlegm, his world began to collapse.

Back then, he was in the prime of his youth, full of hope for the future.

He had just graduated from college, found a good job, and was ready to make his mark.

However, the strangeness in his body was like a clap of thunder, shattering his peaceful life.

He remembered the anxiety of his first hospital visit.

Blood tests, X-rays, CT scans... one test after another.

With each one, his heart sank a little lower.

Until that day, in the doctor’s office, when his attending physician, Professor Dong Chen, told him with regret, "Ai Shenbing, your diagnosis is... lung cancer."

Those two words struck him like a bolt from the blue, shattering him instantly.

Lung cancer!

He couldn’t believe it. How could someone so young like him contract such an incurable disease?

The world started to spin, and a ringing filled his ears.

He didn’t hear a single word the doctor said after that.

When he walked out of the office, the sun was still shining brightly,

but in his eyes, the entire world had turned to shades of gray.

His mother, Wang Xiufang, rushed over when she heard the news. It was as if she had aged ten years overnight.

Seeing his mother’s red, swollen eyes, Ai Shengbing felt his heart twist in agony.

He was an only child, his mother’s only hope.

He couldn’t fall. He had to live.

For the next three months,

Ai Shengbing endured painful chemotherapy.

Each round of chemo was like being dragged through hell.

The side effects of the drugs made him vomit endlessly.

His hair fell out in large clumps.

His body felt hollowed out, without a shred of strength.

Lying in his hospital bed, he watched the withered yellow leaves outside the window and felt that he, too, was a fading life, heading toward its end.

"Son, just hold on a little longer. You’ll definitely get better."

Wang Xiufang sat by his bed, holding his gaunt hand.

Though clearly exhausted, she forced a smile.

"Mom, it hurts..."

Like a child getting a shot, Ai Shengbing wanted someone to lean on.

He didn’t want his mother to see his weakness,

and he certainly didn’t want to break her heart.

But the physical pain and the despair in his heart made it impossible to pretend to be strong any longer.

After the chemotherapy ended,

his condition didn’t improve. Instead, it took a sharp turn for the worse.

The chest tightness, shortness of breath, and heart palpitations grew more and more severe, making it impossible for him to even lie flat. He could only sit propped up, gasping for air.

The slightest movement made his heart feel like it was about to leap out of his throat.

The hospital ran more tests, and the results were even worse: malignant pleural effusion and pericardial effusion.

"What... what does that mean?"

Wang Xiufang’s voice trembled.

Dong Chen had long since grown accustomed to such situations. He said calmly, "It means the tumor has spread, compressing his heart and lung function. We’ve done everything we can. Continuing treatment now will only increase the patient’s suffering."

"Then what should we do?"

Wang Xiufang asked through her tears.

Dong Chen sighed. "Go home and prepare for the end. He won’t live for more than a month."

"What?"

Go home and prepare for the end.

Those words were like a final judgment,

and Wang Xiufang could no longer remain strong.

A mother’s love makes her strong, but even that has its limits.

Faced with an illness that was invisible, intangible, and incurable, her strength was useless.

Ai Shengbing lay on the hospital bed

and heard Dr. Dong’s words as well.

But he was already numb.

The snow outside the window had melted.

’Just let me melt away, too.’

"My son is only twenty-three! He has his whole life ahead of him! How can it just end like this...?"

Wang Xiufang’s cries were heart-wrenching. She grabbed Dr. Dong’s sleeve, begging almost hysterically, "Professor Dong, you’re the expert! Please, think of something else, I’m begging you..."

Dong Chen frowned.

He had seen far too many cases of incurable cancer, and every patient’s family was just like the woman before him—stubborn and desperate.

He wasn’t a god; he had his own limits.

Besides,

he was in a foul mood. He had recently issued an online challenge to Li Xu,

but Li Xu had been too scared to accept.

"Ma’am, please calm down. It’s not that I won’t help; it’s that we’ve reached the limits of medical science."

Dong Chen shook off Wang Xiufang’s hand. "Late-stage lung cancer with malignant pleural and pericardial effusion... there’s no coming back from this. You need to accept reality."

"No, no, I can’t accept it."

Wang Xiufang sank to her knees, tears streaming down her face. "My son can’t die, he can’t! Professor Dong, I’m begging you, please help him again. Even if there’s just a sliver of hope, I’m willing to try..."

A wave of irritation washed over Dong Chen.

Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind.

’Li Xu...’

’Isn’t he supposed to be some so-called ’Divine Physician’?’

’The one who can supposedly cure all sorts of difficult and rare diseases?’

’I challenged him online, but he just turtled up and didn’t dare to respond.’

’Isn’t this the perfect opportunity to ’test’ him?’

The more Dong Chen thought about it, the more excited he became.

’If I push this patient onto Li Xu, there’s no way he can cure him.’

’When that happens, the myth of the so-called ’Divine Physician’ will crumble on its own.’

’And I’ll be able to thoroughly humiliate Li Xu.’

"Actually... there might be one other option..."

Dong Chen’s tone softened as he began to coax her. "There’s a traditional Chinese medicine doctor named Li Xu who’s become very popular recently. I hear he’s highly skilled and can treat all kinds of difficult cases. You might as well go and give him a try. Who knows, maybe he can actually cure him."

A flicker of hope ignited in Wang Xiufang’s eyes. "Li Xu? Really? Can he cure my son?"

Dong Chen spoke cautiously, "I’m just giving you a suggestion. As for whether he can be cured, I can’t make any guarantees. After all, traditional Chinese medicine... well, you know, a lot of it is just hocus-pocus."

He paused, then added, "I hear his clinic is right here in Feng City. You can go try your luck... What if, right? What if he can actually cure him?"

Dong Chen’s words seemed to offer a path to life, but in reality, they hid a deadly intent.

Ai Shengbing’s condition had reached the point of no return; no doctor could save him.

He was pushing this patient onto Li Xu for no other reason than to use this opportunity to viciously stomp on him.

Wang Xiufang was completely unaware of Dong Chen’s intentions.

As long as there was a glimmer of hope, she was willing to try.

"Thank you, Doctor, thank you. I’ll take my son there right away."

But Ai Shengbing’s heart remained unstirred.

He had already given up. To him, any hope was just another form of cruel torture.

"Mom, stop trying so hard. Let’s just go home..."

he urged weakly.

"Son, don’t say such foolish things."

Wang Xiufang gently stroked Ai Shengbing’s withered cheek. "Mom won’t give up on you. As long as there’s a sliver of hope, Mom will definitely save you."