Watching the doctor busy inside, I felt even worse.
What I feared most was Ah Bei not making it. I had promised him I would follow him, and he had offered his utmost loyalty to help me complete this mission. I didn't want to be a heartless person, letting his loyalty turn to dust.
Qian Fugui said that before his sudden cardiac arrest, Ah Bei had woken up once. The doctor had even asked Qian Fugui to go in and see if he could speak, to say anything. But Qian Fugui only saw his lips move, his eyes open to look at Qian Fugui, and he shed tears. Then, Ah Bei suddenly opened his mouth in pain and coughed violently. Seeing this, the doctor quickly asked Qian Fugui to leave so they could perform suctioning. After he calmed down a bit, his electrocardiogram turned into a straight line, his blood pressure dropped rapidly, and his temperature lowered. The doctor declared him critical and asked Qian Fugui to sign for resuscitation.
Just then, a doctor came out, and I quickly stopped him, asking about Ah Bei's condition.
After verifying my identity, the doctor informed me of the situation inside.
He said Ah Bei's cardiac arrest was due to a massive lung infection, with phlegm blocking his airway, causing oxygen deprivation to his heart. His throat had been cut open, and the doctors were suctioning phlegm from his lungs, using large doses of antibiotics to control the inflammation. If the inflammation couldn't be controlled and led to sepsis, there would be no hope.
Hearing this, cold sweat broke out on my back.
"What are the chances of controlling the condition now?" I asked anxiously.
"It's hard to say. Right now, it doesn't look like there's any chance," the doctor replied.
At this point, it wasn't just my back that was sweating; my palms and the soles of my feet were drenched.
"However, don't worry too much. We've ordered the strongest antibiotic, Pioneer No. 5, from the provincial hospital, and an expert in this field is coming on the next flight. They'll be here soon."
In the early nineties, Pioneer No. 5 was a scarce antibiotic, much stronger than penicillin. His words finally calmed me down.
I asked Wen Siqiang to pay another tens of thousands as a deposit, to prevent any delay in treatment due to insufficient funds.
We were racing against time. Ah Bei's life was being counted in seconds, and we couldn't afford any mistakes that might affect him.
I'm not one to believe in fate, but even I was silently praying in my heart, hoping the heavens would give him a chance to live, to see him return to me, vibrant and energetic.
Since we couldn't enter the intensive care unit, I instructed Qian Fugui to keep a close eye on things. For any major decisions, he didn't need to consult me; he could make them himself. After speaking, Wen Siqiang and I, having paid the deposit, drove to Da Shijie.
With such an incident, my mood became exceptionally heavy. I felt the impermanence of life, how someone once full of life could suddenly be on the brink of death.
We drove in silence, the only sound being the rustling of the tires.
As the car pulled up to the entrance of Da Shijie's main hall, I got out and asked Wen Siqiang to park the car downstairs and wait for me.
Da Shijie had just opened for business, and the vast hall was in the midst of roll call.
I remembered when I first met Lan Ya, I followed her around like an assistant and experienced such scenes. Three rows of hostesses, dressed in different outfits, each row more revealing than the last, naturally with different prices for their services. In industry jargon, they were called "mao." The current prices were three, four, and five mao, with five mao being the most expensive.
That was a tip of five hundred for an escort.
Da Shijie had the highest prices. Most other establishments charged one, two, or three mao, and even the most expensive one in the suburbs was only four mao.
In the mid-nineties, with a monthly salary of four to five hundred yuan for an individual, these prices were astronomical.
Unlike today, where calculating by mao would be impossible; the starting price would be eight mao, and the most expensive one a yuan and a half.
This was essentially just for accompanying drinking and singing, at most letting the customer "touch their tofu," nothing more.
Going to a hotel room cost extra. Back then, it was eight mao; now, it would be two to three yuan.
Therefore, drinking "flower wine" was the least cost-effective consumption.
Even so, every nightclub was packed every night, with vast sums of money seemingly blown in by the wind.
A bottle of counterfeit foreign liquor could be sold for hundreds or even thousands, while its cost was only a few dozen yuan.
Beer and soft drinks were outrageously priced, yet the customers didn't find them expensive; they enjoyed the feeling of luxury and indulgence.
As I walked in, the manager saw me and quickly hurried over. He bowed deeply to me and then loudly announced, "Good evening, General Manager Li. We are in the process of roll call. Please give your instructions!"
At this moment, hundreds of men and women in various outfits turned to look at me in unison and shouted, "Good evening, General Manager Li!"
I suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu, as if I had time-traveled. A little over a year ago, I couldn't even enter this place; they treated me like a delivery person. I would never forget the contemptuous, dismissive looks, the expressions telling me to get lost. Today, I had become their boss, and the situation had turned a complete 720 degrees, leaving me dizzy.
I waved off the manager, telling him to continue without minding me. Then, I skirted around behind them and went directly to the elevator.
Lan Ya was alone in the room. In the dim light, she was sitting behind the boss's desk, reading documents.
Now, she was dressed in a dark professional suit, diligently looking at what was in her hands. As I entered, she didn't even look up and said, "I'll be done soon. Please, have a seat."
I didn't say anything and sat on the sofa next to her.
I hadn't yet come to terms with Ah Bei's situation, and my heart was heavy. Seeing Lan Ya not paying attention to me, I leaned back, closed my eyes, and rested.
After a while, I heard the sound of high heels tapping on the floor. Lan Ya walked over to me and sat beside me, putting her arm around my shoulder. "You don't seem in high spirits. What's wrong? Are you unhappy to be here?"
I forced a smile, which I suspected looked uglier than crying. I said, "It's not because I'm here. I just came from the hospital. Ah Bei, who came with us, made significant contributions to this operation. Who knew he would be exposed while delivering a message to a senior? Brother Hui tortured him severely. In the end, that old dog, to lure us over, hung Ah Bei above a bonfire. As a result, due to inhaling a large amount of smoke, his lungs suffered a massive infection. Now the doctor has issued a critical notice; he had a cardiac arrest and his throat was cut open. His life is hanging by a thread."
After saying all this in one breath, my mood became even heavier, and I sat there with my head down.
Lan Ya hugged me tightly and whispered, "I understand you. It's not normal for you not to be upset when your brother is in such grave danger. However, his life is in the doctors' hands. Only by supporting them properly can we ensure he passes through the gates of hell. We still have a lot to do. As a woman, it's difficult for me to handle everything alone. You need to spare some thought for our affairs these days, so I can free myself up to manage those obstacles from above, lest they cause us trouble later."