Reborn in 1985, starting from the mountains of Northwest China

Hearing the doctor's words, Chen Feng's spirits plummeted, and he anxiously asked, "Doctor, what's wrong with my father?"

"Your father's leg injury isn't a big problem, just a soft tissue contusion. I'll prescribe you a bottle of safflower oil later. Apply it every day at home, and he'll be fine after a month of rest. But during my examination just now, I suspected he might have a tumor."

"Doctor, don't scare us," Chen Laogeng waved his hand, "I know my body best, I'm perfectly healthy, how could I have a tumor!"

Chen Feng knew that his father was afraid of spending money at the hospital, which was why he directly denied what the doctor said.

But he was reborn because he wanted his family to live a good life, so he dared not gamble!

"Doctor, does my father really have a tumor?"

"Well, I'm not trying to scare you. I just met Comrade Chen a few days ago. The town mayor is a distant relative of mine, and he speaks highly of you. That's why I'm explaining everything to you."

Fearing that Chen Feng and the others might misunderstand, the doctor offered a few words of explanation. Seeing that Chen Feng was indeed a reasonable person, he continued, "Your father is unusually thin, and his calves are so swollen."

I just felt a very hard lump on your father's abdomen. That's why I suspect he might have a tumor, but we need to go to the county hospital for an examination to confirm."

Chen Laogeng wanted to say something more, but Chen Feng stopped him. At this time, he couldn't let his father have his way.

"Doctor, please tell us how to treat it! We'll figure out the money ourselves."

Before leaving, Chen Feng asked Lin Xiu for thirty yuan, but according to the doctor, this amount would definitely not be enough.

The doctor took out safflower oil and a small glass bottle from his white coat and placed them on the table.

He flicked his finger, and with a crisp sound, the flat top of the small glass bottle shattered.

After drawing out the medicine with a syringe, he gestured for Chen Laogeng to take off his pants and turn his back to him.

"Your father has a slight fever. I'll give him an injection to bring it down."

The doctor dipped a cotton swab in iodine and spread it evenly for a while before inserting the needle into Chen Laogeng's buttocks. After all the medication was injected, the doctor quickly took a cotton swab and pressed it against the injection site.

"He's practically half-buried, and he still has to get injections in his butt like a child," Chen Laogeng complained somewhat discontentedly.

"The town clinic has limited resources, so I can only treat your father's leg injury for now. Tumors are best treated as early as possible; we can't delay! If you're free today, take him for a checkup!"

After thanking the doctor, Chen Feng quickly took his father to the county hospital.

"Third brother, if you ask me, let's forget about it. It's not worth spending that money. I'm still healthy enough to handle it."

"Dad, when I was little, I had a high fever. It was the coldest time of winter, and you carried me to the hospital overnight, afraid that something might happen to me. Now that you're older, it's our turn to take care of you. Don't worry, Lin Xiu and I have some money saved up."

Chen Feng rode his bicycle faster and faster, afraid that he would waste time and affect his father's treatment.

We arrived in the county town in half an hour. Wushun County today is very different from what it will be decades later.

Among the rows of low-rise houses, several huge chimneys are clearly visible, marking the location of several factories in the county.

But Chen Feng had no time to think about any of that. As soon as the bicycle stopped in front of the county hospital, he carried his father inside.

The hospital was filled with the pungent smell of disinfectant, and the occasional groans of patients could be heard from the wards.

He held the medical report from the hospital, which concluded that his father had a tumor.

The good news is that my father's tumor is benign. With surgery and a period of recuperation, it will not be life-threatening.

The bad news is that the treatment will cost at least seven or eight hundred!

……

Chen Jun paced back and forth anxiously. He had just gone to the town's health center to inquire and learned that Chen Feng had taken his father to the county hospital.

But the information he received made him extremely anxious: his father's condition was very serious, and he not only needed surgery but also to be hospitalized for a period of time!

He learned from the doctor that the treatment would cost at least five or six hundred yuan!

This was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue; he had two children to support. His family simply couldn't afford anything, and his second and third children were in similar situations.

As the saying goes, the eldest brother is like a father, so naturally, the eldest brother should pay the lion's share of the money for their father's medical treatment.

"Can you please stop turning this? It's giving me a headache!" Sister-in-law Wang Chunmei said discontentedly. "If you ask me, it's all the third son's fault for sticking his neck out. In our village, if someone gets sick, we just tough it out at home. Why be so delicate and go to the hospital for surgery? Isn't that just making a fool of yourself?"

As soon as she spoke, Chen Lin's family and Lin Xiu stared intently at her. After Chen Jun relayed the doctor's words, everyone was worried about when their father's condition would be cured.

What does Wang Chunmei mean by saying this now? Is she preparing to give up treatment?

Wang Chunmei knew she had misspoke, but she still stubbornly argued, "Am I wrong? What is our family's situation? We don't have the money to go to the county hospital for treatment. Let's make it clear first, several families can chip in. But we only have a few dozen yuan in savings, we definitely can't take the lion's share!"

"Shut up!" Chen Jun yelled at Wang Chunmei. He usually tolerated her as much as possible, but she had developed this kind of personality.

They dare to say anything!

"What I said was wrong! Chen Jun, stop pretending to be rich!"

Wang Chunmei was surprised to see her usually honest and unassuming husband dare to yell at her, and that she was actually going to argue with him in public.

"Shut up, all of you!" Liu Xia slammed her hand on the table. Although she was usually kind and gentle, she still held authority in front of her daughters-in-law.

Seeing that she was truly angry, Wang Chunmei didn't dare to speak anymore. Liu Xia, seeing that everyone had calmed down, continued, "What Lao San did today wasn't wrong! Whether it can be cured or not, we should still try."

Eldest brother, go to the county today and find him. First, determine how much it will cost. If you don't have the money to save your father, I'll sell the house and the land!

After saying this, she went back to the inner room alone. What Wang Chunmei had said earlier really chilled her to the bone. Although the second son's family didn't say anything, their attitude was very similar to Wang Chunmei's.

Only Lin Xiu chased after him, taking out fifty yuan from her cotton-padded coat: "Grandma, give this money to my older brother later. Chen Feng left in a hurry and didn't bring much money with him."

When Liu Xia saw the money, she couldn't help but smile bitterly.

She used to be most worried about her third son's family, as they were both idle and obsessed with making a lot of money.

Every night, she and her husband would discuss it and they would conclude that their son was unreliable and that their eldest and second sons were more dependable.

But who could have predicted that when the time came, it would be her most useless son who cared about her the most!