Serenade

At this time, Shen Pingchuan was being supported by Jin Xi and had not yet walked out of the school infirmary, when Chen Yuxiang and several others walked in with bruised faces, supporting each other.

In the corridor, the two groups met face to face.

Jin Xi glared at them and shouted in a weak threatening tone: "What do you want to do again! I... I warn you, Bo Yan has gone to get medicine and will be back soon. If you dare to act rashly, I will... I will hit you!"

Unexpectedly, the boys in front bowed ninety degrees deeply to Shen Pingchuan in unison: "Chairman Shen, we're sorry! We shouldn't have deliberately made trouble for you, and we won't do it again in the future! Please forgive us!"

Shen Pingchuan took a step back in disbelief: "What are you doing, did you take the wrong medicine?"

"Chairman Shen, please forgive our ignorance and offense!"

"We won't dare to do it again."

Chen Yuxiang looked very nervous: "Brother Shen, oh no, Master Shen, you must forgive us! We didn't know you had such... such friends, we're really sorry!"

Just then, Bo Yan walked back from the stairs. Seeing this, he immediately blocked in front of Shen Pingchuan: "What are you trying to do again?"

"We came to apologize."

Jin Xi whispered to Bo Yan: "Did you beat them like this?"

Bo Yan shrugged: "I'm a model student, okay? I won't resort to violence casually."

Of course, the main reason was that as soon as he finished, he hurried over to see Shen Pingchuan, and had no time to punish these bastards yet.

"Get out of here, I don't want to see you again." Shen Pingchuan put his hand on his brother-in-law's shoulder, and limped away.

Chen Yuxiang said anxiously: "Brother Shen, oh no, Master Shen, you must forgive us. That person said if you don't forgive us, we will have to be beaten every day!"

"Are you crazy? I still have to go eat. Good dogs don't block the way!"

"Master Shen, Master Shen, just say a word, is it ok if we kneel down for you!"

Shen Pingchuan was also stubborn: "I won't say it! Get out, get out!"

Because Bo Yan was there, they didn't dare pester him further. They watched Shen Pingchuan leave in a pitiful manner.

Regarding the sudden change in Chen Yuxiang and the others' attitude, Shen Pingchuan could easily guess who had helped him vent his anger behind the scenes with his toes.

But he didn't dare to confirm.

That day in the basketball hall, he saw Xia Qing's figure, but didn't quite dare to believe it was real.

After his leg injury healed, Shen Pingchuan went to find Xia Qing several times, but she always acted cold and indifferent, and left after barely chatting for a few sentences.

**

In early December, Xia Qing went to the provincial hospital. Her father had just undergone dialysis. She took a day off to take turns with her mother taking care of her father.

When she arrived at the hospital, she found that her father's original hospital bed in the ward was empty, and his personal belongings had been removed. The nurses were busy preparing the bed for a new patient.

Xia Qing thought her father had been kicked out of the hospital again. She hurried to the doctor's office to inquire about the situation, and was so anxious that tears were about to fall.

"Doctor, we already borrowed money for last month's medical expenses. Don't discharge my dad. His condition is more serious than other patients. It could be dangerous if he is discharged. Please, I beg you!"

In the doctor's office, she almost knelt down. Tears kept streaming down her cheeks, she was very emotional: "I will definitely find a way to pay the money. Please, I beg you!"

The doctor quickly helped Xia Qing up: "Hey, don't get excited young lady. Your dad was not discharged, but was transferred to the special care ward."

Xia Qing looked up in disbelief: "Special...care ward?"

"Your family came this morning to pay off all arrears. Not only that, but the medical expenses for the next three months have also been paid in full. So your dad is now transferred to the special care ward."

When Xia Qing walked out of the office, she still felt like she was dreaming. She walked lightly as if treading on clouds...

Such scenes had occurred countless times in her dreams, but how could it be real? How could her family afford a special care ward...

Xia Qing rushed to the special care ward and saw her old father lying on the soft, snow-white hospital bed, resting while her mother sat on a chair watching over him.

The ordinary wards had 3 beds squeezed together, looking very narrow. But the special care ward only had one bed, spacious and bright, with a TV, microwave oven and care bed, fully equipped.

Whether it was the hospital bed or the medical equipment, everything looked brand new. The room was even equipped with air conditioning.

Xia Qing looked around in a daze and asked, "Mom, what's going on?"

"Well...the medical expenses have all been paid off, so the doctor transferred him to this ward."

"We still owe the hospital money. How did the medical expenses suddenly get paid off? Mom, where did our family get so much money?"

Xia's mother was a very honest and simple woman, and didn't really know how to lie. Seeing Xia Qing ask, she hesitated for a long time before telling the truth: "It was... funded by your school."

Xia Qing was even more puzzled: "Funded by the school? How come I don't know about this?"

"That young man said the school funded your family's medical expenses without telling you, because he was afraid you couldn't handle the blow to your self-esteem of being looked down upon by your classmates. So he told us not to tell you no matter what."

The more Xia Qing listened, the more absurd she felt. She asked again: "Which young man?"

"I... I don't know him. He said he was from your school..." Xia's mother looked very nervous. "Qingqing, what's wrong? Is there something wrong with the money?"

"How much did he give you?"

"Over 200,000 yuan."

"200,000 yuan! Mom, are you crazy! How could you accept that!"

Xia's mother was completely flustered and stammered: "It wasn't that much at first, just a few thousand, enough for living expenses. Then it slowly increased later. Qingqing, I didn't keep a penny, it all went to pay your dad's medical expenses. He said it was funded by the school, not personal...so I..."

"You accepted so much money from someone without asking who he was?"

"I did ask! I did!" Xia's mother quickly said: "Called Bo Yan..."

"Bo Yan?"

"Yes, yes, Bo Yan! He said he was your senior schoolmate, visiting your dad on behalf of your school..."

Xia Qing shook her head in disbelief. She didn't know Bo Yan at all, she just knew his name, that's all. How could senior Bo Yan do such a thing for her?

She didn't even have Bo Yan's phone number. Bo Yan was often out for practical training these days, and rarely stayed at school. She didn't know where to look for him.

In a daze, Xia Qing walked out of the ward and unsteadily went downstairs, intending to ask the doctor again to get things clear.

There were cries of grief coming from the ordinary ward on the third floor. Some patients were unwilling to be discharged, but the hospital beds were too tight. Those patients who really could not afford the fees had to go home for recuperation.

Xia Qing saw this every day. She was really afraid.

Her father's condition had always been unstable. He could have an attack at any time. She dared not imagine what would happen if he left the hospital.

Xia Qing scratched her hair and sat weakly against the wall, watching the family members supporting the patients walking shakily past her.

She rubbed her nose with the back of her hand, and tears flowed out from between her fingers.

After calming down for a long time, Xia Qing got up and washed her face in the bathroom, then returned to the ward.

Her daughter's reaction earlier had frightened Xia's mother. Seeing her coming in, she immediately stood up apprehensively and asked: "Qingqing, what's wrong? Is there a problem with the money?"

"Mom, don't worry, there's no problem with the money. I want to find Senior Bo Yan and thank him personally, but I can't contact him now."

"Oh, that's right, he left me his contact information and said to contact him if your dad has any problems or urgently needs money."

Xia's mother hurriedly took out the folder from the cabinet. The folder contained her dad's medical records and payment statements. From the piles of papers, she found the note with the phone number and handed it to Xia Qing.

**

When Shen Pingchuan received Bo Yan's call, he was in the office discussing business with his father and a client. The office had floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides, installed with soundproof glass.

The office was very quiet, so Shen Pingchuan turned his back and pressed the answer button. Bo Yan's angry voice suddenly came through, and the office heard it loud and clear:

"Shen Pingchuan, you bastard! Can you discuss with me first before doing things in my name? You think you're really my brother Shen!"

The well-dressed client across from him maintained a polite and tolerant smile towards his junior, while Shen Shishan's face was gloomy as he scolded Shen Pingchuan, "Go answer the phone! No manners!"

After apologizing, Shen Pingchuan hurried out of the office, covering his phone and whispering, "You're my brother, okay? I'll call you big brother, don't make a fuss, let's talk nicely."

"You tricked me without any hesitation, using my name to send Xia Qing money. What will others think of me? What will your sister think of me?!"

"No way, you found out that fast?!"

Shen Pingchuan was genuinely surprised that the news had spread so quickly. He had repeatedly urged Xia's mother to absolutely not tell Xia Qing, and had been very serious about it. His future mother-in-law seemed like an honest, down-to-earth woman who had promised not to say anything. He didn't expect it to come out so soon...

But he had set up a second line of defense early on, which was to do this in Bo Yan's name.

Even if Xia Qing asked Bo Yan about it, given Bo Yan's wit and tacit understanding with him, this insurance was definitely the best defense. He would surely come up with a clever excuse to gloss it over.

"My dearest brother-in-law, you...haven't blown your cover, have you?"

"I told her it did happen."

Bo Yan's tone sounded more relaxed, and he was less angry, presumably because he was thinking of Jin Xi's face and didn't want to make a big deal out of it with him. He just said, "I said it was a philanthropist entrepreneur who donated to her, but didn't want to reveal his name, and it had nothing to do with any school. You should make up a more plausible excuse—how could a school give money to a student's family, bypassing the student!"

"I know, I just wanted her mom to accept it more easily. If you say philanthropist entrepreneur, who knows what they might imagine." Shen Pingchuan didn't forget to butter up his brother-in-law: "But your excuse makes perfect sense to her, totally ok! My sister is so lucky to have such a great brother-in-law."

"Shen Pingchuan, I'll only help you out this one time. Handle it yourself from now on."

"No, Brother Bo, if you don't help me get through this, I'll be finished."

"If my wife finds out I used a huge sum like this to help another girl, I'll be the one who's finished!"

"Don't worry, I'll explain it to Xi Xi. A large part of the money was from her anyway."

The other end of the phone was silent for a few seconds before Bo Yan uncertainly asked, "My wife has that much money?"

"Of course! From when she was little until now, she never spent her red envelope money and allowance frivolously. She hoarded it like a miser, see if she has anything worth over 1000 yuan on her, right? She didn't dare spend too much of Father Shen's money. This girl is much more sensible than you think." Shen Pingchuan slowly explained, "This time, she really wanted to help Xia Qing."

Looking down at the expensive watch on his own wrist, Bo Yan felt a sour, stinging pain in his heart.

"Since it's Xi Xi's face, fine, I'll help you."

"Oh, thank you Lord Bo!"

"But you need to be mentally prepared. If you don't plan on telling your dad, the subsequent medical expenses can't be solved just with savings."

Shen Pingchuan tugged at his tight collar to breathe more easily: "I make money from my projects, I'm working hard on it..."

"Shen Pingchuan, it's not that if you try hard, things will definitely go as you imagined. There will be many emergencies where you need to make a choice in an instant."

"What do you mean?"

Bo Yan said heavily, "The money you gave her is no small amount. She may have never seen so much money in her life before, and can't pay it all back either. At that time, how she handles herself..."

Shen Pingchuan immediately interrupted him, "I don't want her to pay it back. Everything I do is voluntary."

Bo Yan sighed and didn't continue.

And soon, Shen Pingchuan understood what Bo Yan meant.

About half a year had passed since the incident, and during this time, Shen Pingchuan had sent quite a lot more money to Xia's family.

Most of this money came from his project earnings, plus a lot of red envelope money from relatives during the new year. He also sold many of his prized collectible sneakers, most of them limited international editions worth a lot of money.

As the Shen family's only son, although Shen Shishan intended to restrict his spending to prevent him from developing the habits of a prodigal son of a wealthy family, he still tried his best to satisfy Shen Pingchuan's harmless little hobbies.

Even second-hand, these items could be sold for a decent price.

He thought his plan was going very smoothly, coordinating with Bo Yan without Xia Qing noticing anything.

In early July, Xia's father's condition improved and he could return home for a while. On the night he was discharged from the hospital, Xia Qing unexpectedly asked Shen Pingchuan to meet.

The meeting location was a hotel room outside the school.