NASAY CH 47

“Dr. Chen, please tell me the truth. What’s his current condition?”
Lin Xicheng leaned against the hospital wall under the harsh, pale lights.

Luo Zhiyuan had just been wheeled back to his hospital room by a nurse. He could no longer walk due to the pain. The intense bone pain woke him up in the middle of the night, forcing him to endure wave after wave of agony, biting down hard just to get through it.

His body couldn’t handle any more painkillers. Even when he could, they barely had an effect.

The hospital was quiet at night, filled with a grim atmosphere under the dim lights—almost suffocating in its hopelessness.

“Mr. Luo’s condition is very serious,”
Dr. Chen said.
“We’re actively searching for a bone marrow match. Of course, if he has direct relatives—like a son or daughter—the chances of a successful match would be much higher.”

Lin Xicheng had taken a long leave from work to care for him at the hospital. Watching Luo Zhiyuan grow thinner by the day, tortured by pain until he looked twenty years older, Lin crouched down in despair.

Clutching his head, he pulled at his hair and muttered in a low voice,
“Is there really no way? He’s still so young… How could this happen now?”

Dr. Chen, who had seen many similar cases, sighed softly and helped him up.
“Please don’t be too discouraged. We’re doing everything we can to find a match. There’s still hope.”

Lin Xicheng gripped his phone, anxiously staring at the unanswered message on the other end.

He had done his research. Luo Xing was a good kid. Despite Zhao Jiulan treating him poorly, he remained outstanding. If Luo Xing saw his biological father suffering like this, father and son being naturally connected, his kind heart would surely soften.

The most important thing now was to have him visit Luo Zhiyuan and witness his condition.

Lin Xicheng knew he couldn’t push too hard. After all, Luo Zhiyuan had never been part of Luo Xing’s life. As a dying father, it was reasonable to want to meet his son once. But if he insisted too much, it would appear deliberate and suspicious.

Lin Xicheng had spent a long time studying psychology and was quite confident in his expertise. His portrayal of “Luo Zhiyuan” was sincere and bittersweet.

Most people would feel at least a little sympathy—and Luo Xing was no exception.

Even if he didn’t soften immediately, he’d at least be curious about the father he’d never met. Combined with years of mistreatment by Zhao Jiulan, Luo Xing was bound to feel some resentment. Why hadn’t his father ever cared for him?

As long as that curiosity existed, he would come.

The phone buzzed. Lin Xicheng glanced down and saw Luo Xing’s reply—he agreed to visit in three days.

Thrilled, Lin reread the message multiple times, worried it might just be wishful thinking or a mistake.

Once he confirmed it was real, he quickly sent Luo Xing the hospital room number, fearing he might change his mind.

Clenching his fists, Lin couldn’t help but smile. He almost grabbed Dr. Chen’s hand to share the good news but realized the doctor had left at some point. Left alone, Lin patted the pale pink wall twice to suppress his excitement.

There’s hope.

Lin Xicheng gripped the doorknob, took a deep breath to suppress his excitement, and put on a calm expression as he looked at Luo Zhiyuan sitting by the window. He slowly walked over, crouched down gently, and asked in a soft voice,
“How was your checkup today? Are you still in pain?”

Luo Zhiyuan nodded wearily. His once pure and youthful face was now pale and bloodless, and his tall, slender frame had become alarmingly thin.

Perhaps because he was nearing the end of his life, he couldn’t stop reflecting on everything he had done wrong in his life. He didn’t want things to turn out this way with Zhao Jiulan, yet it had happened.

As for Luo Xing, though he felt helpless, he had no choice but to live with his guilt. He couldn’t take the child away from Zhao Jiulan after hurting her—how could he take away the only thing she had left?
And he had let Lin Xicheng down too.

His entire life had been filled with failures. Now, at the brink of death, he just wanted to see Luo Xing once—to see the son he had barely known. He wondered if Luo Xing would even call him “dad.”
Probably not.
They didn’t know each other. Sometimes he thought, what’s the point of holding on so tightly in this life? Perhaps it would have been better to just drift along and accept whatever came. Chasing an unreachable tomorrow only left him struggling in endless pain.
He had wanted the best of both worlds, but in the end, he had caused pain to four people.

Lin Xicheng gently patted Luo Zhiyuan’s hand, his voice soft and coaxing.
“Xing said he wants to come see you the day after tomorrow. He asked if it was okay, and… I took the liberty of saying yes for you.”

Luo Zhiyuan froze for a moment, then suddenly threw off Lin Xicheng’s hand. He clenched the wheelchair armrest in anger, gritting his teeth.
“You contacted him again? I’ve told you, my illness will follow its course—live or die, it’s up to fate. I don’t want his bone marrow.”

Lin Xicheng’s temper flared as well. He stood up abruptly.
“He’s your son! He’s the only person who can go into that operating room for you! You gave him life. Now you’re about to die. What’s wrong with him giving you a bit of bone? It won’t kill him!”

Luo Zhiyuan closed his eyes in pain. After a long pause, he reopened them, his gaze icy and filled with self-mockery.
“I always thought there was no need for extra words between us. I gave him life, but I also gave him pain. What kind of father does that make me? What right do I have to ask him for anything?”

“What if he’s willing to do it?”
Lin Xicheng pressed.

Luo Zhiyuan paused, frowning slightly.
“Willing?”

“I promise you, I won’t force Luo Xing to donate. But if he’s willing to save you, you can’t refuse him, okay?”
Lin Xicheng crouched down again, holding Luo Zhiyuan’s hand and pressing it to his own face.
“You don’t want his first time seeing you to also be his last, right?”

“Don’t you want to watch him grow up, get married, and have children of his own? Hold his child in your arms and hear them call you ‘grandpa’?”
Lin Xicheng guided him step by step, watching him soften bit by bit.
“Do you want Luo Xing’s only impression of you to be just a distant name—‘father’?”

Luo Zhiyuan didn’t want that.

But what right did he have to ask Luo Xing to willingly donate bone marrow for him? Just because he had given him life and was called ‘father’?

Luo Zhiyuan let out a bitter laugh. Was Lin Xicheng too naive, or was he just overestimating Luo Xing’s kindness?
He would be grateful if Luo Xing didn’t hate him. How could he dare ask for more?

Ever since he replied to Buyuanxing’s message, Luo Xing had been trying to find a chance to visit Beishi.
With the situation involving Ding Chao, the fight he got into at the gym due to rumors, and Zhao Jiulan’s sudden softening attitude, Luo Xing had been pondering these past few days. Most likely, Huo Xingzhou had privately spoken to Zhao Jiulan.
Huo Xingzhou hadn’t told him about it, probably because he didn’t want him to worry or feel upset.

He was protecting himself, but he didn’t want the bank to handle everything for him, allowing him to live carefree under its care.

Some things could only be faced by him alone, and besides, he wanted to grow stronger, to become someone that the bank could lean on.

There was still one round left until the winter vacation. Once he and Huo Xingzhou returned home, he wouldn’t have another chance to go out alone, so he had to act before then.

Coincidentally, there was a basketball game coming up. Huo Xingzhou didn’t want to participate at first, but Cheng Limin snorted coldly,
“Before, you weren’t allowed to play, and you skipped class just to play. Now the school needs you to bring glory, and you don’t want to go? You have to go! No excuses!”

“…” Huo Xingzhou stared at Cheng Limin’s back, opened his mouth to speak but closed it again.

Luo Xing heard the game schedule and immediately felt relieved. If Huo Xingzhou went that day, he could take leave and go to Beishi without needing to skip training and make excuses.

“What’s this? You’re happy because I’m playing in a game?”
Huo Xingzhou sneered, noticing the slight curve of Luo Xing’s lips. He tapped the table coolly and said,
“Hey, hey, hey. I’m talking to you.”

Luo Xing raised his head, squinted his eyes, and smiled,
“I’m not happy. I was just thinking it’s rare for Teacher Cheng to render you speechless. Tables do turn, huh?”

Huo Xingzhou paused and, leaning sideways, said,
“I’m playing that day. Why don’t you take leave and come watch? You don’t really need to study that hard, right?”

“No way,”
Luo Xing immediately refused.
“I have to study.”

“Studying is more important than me?”
Huo Xingzhou said, annoyed, reaching for Luo Xing’s notebook. Seeing the neatly written problems Luo Xing had prepared for him, he frowned.
“Stop writing. The holiday is coming soon.”

“You can’t slack off even during holidays! Your foundation is already shaky—you’re just smart. If there’s a problem you’ve never seen before, you won’t know how to solve it!”
Luo Xing hastily tried to snatch the notebook back, afraid it would get torn.

Looking at the notebook, Huo Xingzhou suddenly remembered the last time he had a competition in Beishi and chuckled,
“If you’re so diligent, why were you explaining problems to me while hiding under the covers last time?”

Luo Xing couldn’t hear soft sounds, so he wasn’t sure if Huo Xingzhou had really spoken or just mouthed the words. He turned in shock to check the classroom and saw that everyone was busy with their own things. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

“I’m asking you a question,”
Huo Xingzhou leaned closer, his gaze intense as he tapped twice on the desk.
“Teacher Luo, are you going to start being picky about the teaching environment too?”

Luo Xing cleared his throat, feeling embarrassed, and gave a light nod.

“I didn’t hear that. What did you say?”
Although Huo Xingzhou had understood him, he still insisted on making him speak. Smiling, he looked at the faint red spreading from Luo Xing’s neck to his ears, unable to resist reaching out to touch it.

Luo Xing shrank his shoulders and threatened softly,
“Huo Xingzhou, don’t push your luck.”

Huo Xingzhou thought to himself, What if I do push my luck? What can you do? But on the surface, he acted like a well-behaved student, saying,
“Okay, okay, I won’t if Teacher Luo says so. But when you want me to, I’ll gladly comply. Deal?”

“Mm…”
Luo Xing nodded, but before he could finish his sentence, his eyes widened. Seeing Huo Xingzhou’s sly smile, his face instantly turned red. Furious and flustered, he turned his head away, refusing to talk to him.

How can this guy twist every word like that…

Feeling wronged, Huo Xingzhou said,
“Teacher Luo, did I say something wrong again? Don’t be mad. How about this… I won’t use my mouth anymore if you don’t want me to. Deal?”

He reached out to tickle Luo Xing, who dodged him. Then, he pulled out his phone and started typing one message after another.

Huo Xingzhou: Teacher Luo, what did I do wrong? You have to tell me so I can apologize. If not, you can punish me.

Luo Xing read the message but didn’t reply.

Huo Xingzhou: Teacher Luo, you have such a dirty mind.

Luo Xing was dumbfounded by the last message. Flustered and angry, he pressed down on the screen hard, typing word by word: You! Clearly! Are! The one!