Rebirth: Illuminating a Brilliant Life

Chapter 171 A Human Trial on the Edge of Life and Death

The night was as dark as ink, and a torrential downpour began, the raindrops pounding wildly against the ground, splashing up layers of water. Nianci ran anxiously along the road, the rain blurring her vision and obscuring the headlights of a car speeding towards her.

In an instant, a sharp screech of brakes shattered the silence of the rainy night, followed by a dull thud. Nianci's body was thrown violently into the air like a kite with a broken string, before crashing heavily onto the cold asphalt road.

Blood gushed from all over her body, spreading rapidly under the wash of the rain, converging into shocking dark red streams.

Her face was filled with pain and despair, her lips trembled slightly, but she could not utter a sound, and her consciousness gradually faded away in the endless darkness and pain.

When Su Xuan arrived at the hospital after receiving the news, the corridor outside the emergency room was filled with a suffocating tension and oppression.

Her eyes were bloodshot, and she staggered toward the closed operating room door, gripping the door frame tightly with both hands until her fingernails turned white from the force.

Just then, a nurse rushed over and pulled Su Xuan aside with a serious expression.

"Are you Nianci's family member? We discovered during a routine check-up that the child has leukemia. The situation is very serious, and we must arrange follow-up treatment as soon as possible." The nurse's voice was low and helpless.

Su Xuan felt a sudden darkness engulf her, and she swayed precariously. Had the nurse beside her not reacted quickly enough to catch her, she would have collapsed to the ground. "This is impossible... how could this happen..." Su Xuan murmured to herself, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face.

Su Xuan collapsed stiffly onto the cold-lit bench in the hospital corridor, as if her spine had been removed. Her eyes were vacant, her gaze fixed blankly on the closed operating room door in the distance, as if she had lost her soul. Her mind was a tangled mess, like a ball of yarn.

Nianci is currently battling death behind that door, her fate uncertain. Meanwhile, her daughter with Cheng Ran has been diagnosed with leukemia. This double blow makes Su Xuan feel as if she is in an ice cellar, with a bone-chilling cold spreading from her heart to her entire body. Every breath feels like it is tearing at her broken heart and lungs, making it almost impossible for her to breathe.

Just then, a flurry of footsteps approached from afar. Cheng Ran rushed into the corridor like a gust of wind, his hair disheveled as if ravaged by a storm, a few strands of hair on his forehead soaked with sweat and clinging to his face in a sorry state.

His eyes were filled with panic and fear, red-rimmed, like a raging wild beast. The moment he saw Su Xuan, a glimmer of hope ignited in his eyes. He lunged forward, his hands gripping Su Xuan's shoulders like iron clamps, with such force it seemed he wanted to crush her bones. His voice trembled violently, choked with sobs as he cried, "How is Nianci? Where is my daughter? What happened?" Su Xuan slowly raised her head; her eyes were swollen and red from crying, like two ripe peaches.

Seeing Cheng Ran's almost frantic and panicked state, her tears broke down again, flowing like a surging tide. Her lips trembled violently, and she finally managed to choke out the whole story to Cheng Ran.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Ran felt as if he had been struck by lightning. His body swayed violently, his knees buckled, and he almost fell straight to the ground. His face instantly lost all color, turning deathly pale, as pain and despair overwhelmed him like a tidal wave.

He kept muttering to himself, "How could this happen, how could this happen..." His voice was filled with endless regret and self-blame.

Just then, the tightly closed operating room door swayed slightly and then slowly opened. Cheng Ran and Su Xuan were jolted awake from their grief as if struck by lightning. They exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with urgency and anticipation, and then rushed towards the doctor like two wild horses.

The doctor, looking exhausted, removed his mask, his forehead covered in fine beads of sweat. His eyes held a mixture of weariness and relief as he slowly said, "The surgery is temporarily considered successful, but the patient has lost too much blood and is still in critical condition. He's not out of danger yet. The next 48 hours are crucial; the slightest mistake could..."

Before she finished speaking, Cheng Ran and Su Xuan understood the meaning perfectly. They breathed a slight sigh of relief, but before they could fully relax, their daughter's distressing illness weighed heavily on their minds again.

In the days that followed, Cheng Ran and Su Xuan stayed by Nianci and the child's bedside almost day and night, without sleep. Nianci remained lying quietly on the bed with her eyes closed, as if she had fallen into an endless sleep. No matter how Cheng Ran and Su Xuan called to her, she did not respond.

The child, whose once rosy and adorable face had become pale and emaciated due to the relentless torment of leukemia, looked as fragile as a fallen leaf that might wither at any moment. Looking at his two loved ones on the deathbed, Cheng Ran felt as if a thousand needles were piercing his heart, filled with self-blame and regret.

He recalled how, because of his busy work schedule, he had neglected the warmth of his family, Nianci's care for him, and his daughter's expectant calls. Now, faced with this sudden change, he wished he could give his own life to save their health, but everything seemed so powerless.

Su Xuan silently supported this broken family. Like a tireless machine, she ran around everywhere, using all her connections to contact top experts in the country, all to find a suitable bone marrow match for her child.

Every time she dialed the number, she was filled with hope; every time she received a negative answer, she fought back her tears and continued searching for the next hope. At the same time, she had to constantly monitor Cheng Ran's emotions, offering him comfort and encouragement when he was on the verge of collapse, helping him to face everything with strength.

During this difficult process, Su Xuan unexpectedly discovered some secrets about Nianci and Cheng Ran's past. Those untold stories gave her a completely new understanding of the father and daughter, and strengthened her resolve to help them out of their predicament.

Days passed by like flowing water, and Nianci remained lying quietly in the hospital bed, showing no sign of waking up. The child's condition worsened, deteriorating rapidly, and the doctors' expressions grew increasingly grave. Just when everyone felt despair, as if the darkness would never end, an unexpected person appeared at the hospital.

The appearance of this person was like lighting a faint lamp in endless darkness, bringing a glimmer of hope. He stood at the door of the ward, looking at the child on the hospital bed with a complicated expression, and slowly said, "I may be a suitable bone marrow match for the child."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Ran and Su Xuan's eyes instantly lit up with hope, but before they could even cheer, the man abruptly changed the subject and proposed a condition that was both unbelievable and unacceptable to them.

This condition, like a boulder, crashed down on their already battered hearts, plunging them into a desperate dilemma...

Inside the ward, the air seemed to freeze, filled with a suffocating oppression. The person leaned against the door frame, their entire body hidden in the dim light, only revealing a pair of shrewd and calculating eyes.

His gaze was like two sharp knives, cutting back and forth between Cheng Ran and Su Xuan. There was no sympathy in his eyes, only a chilling indifference and greed.

After a moment of silence, a faint, cold smile curled at the corner of his lips, a smile as chilling as a viper's hiss. "You want me to donate bone marrow?" he drawled, his voice hoarse and icy, "but I want you to transfer the ownership of the house you're currently living in to my name." These words exploded in the hospital room like a bombshell.

Cheng Ran and Su Xuan seemed to be struck by lightning, their bodies jolted violently, and their originally dim eyes widened instantly, filled with fear and disbelief.

Their mouths were agape, yet they couldn't utter a word, as if they had heard the most absurd thing in the world. Their eyes were filled with the anger of betrayal, the shock of this unreasonable demand, and the despair of being struck hard again in their already desperate situation.

"You...you're taking advantage of my misfortune!" Cheng Ran finally exploded. His eyes instantly became bloodshot, like a raging bull, his eyes wide open, staring intently at the hateful person in front of him.

He lunged forward, his hands clenched into fists, knuckles white, veins bulging on his arms like angry little snakes. His chest heaved violently, each breath like a burst of fire, his body trembling violently with rage.

At this moment, his reason had been completely burned away by anger. If it weren't for the lingering fear of his daughter's uncertain fate, he would have already thrown that furious punch and smashed the guy in front of him to pieces.

Su Xuan bit her lower lip hard, leaving a deep bloody mark, the taste of blood spreading in her mouth. She suppressed the volcanic anger and overwhelming sorrow within her, her hands trembling slightly at her sides, her nails almost digging into her flesh.

She strained with all her might to remain calm. “That house is the culmination of our family’s hard work over the years,” she said, her voice trembling and choked with sobs, her words filled with pleading. “It holds so many memories. We scrimped and saved, endured so much hardship and toil to buy it. Every corner holds their laughter and tears; it’s their safe haven. Could you perhaps change the terms? If it’s something we can do, we certainly won’t refuse.” Tears welled in her eyes, a mixture of heartache for Nianci and helplessness in the face of their current predicament.

The man remained unmoved, like a cold stone statue. He crossed his arms, tilted his head slightly, and his eyes were full of disdain and arrogance, as if the suffering of Cheng Ran and Su Xuan before him was nothing more than a farce for his amusement.

He gave a soft snort, his voice full of sarcasm, "Don't give me that crap. I only care about the house. If you don't agree, don't expect me to donate bone marrow. I don't have that much time to waste with you." After saying that, he deliberately glanced at his watch, his arrogant and rude manner making one's teeth itch with hatred.

The atmosphere in the ward grew increasingly oppressive, like the deathly silence before a storm, making it hard to breathe. This cruel battle of human nature seemed to have only just begun, with the darkest curtain yet to be drawn.

The atmosphere in the ward was tense, as if it could ignite at any moment. Cheng Ran's eyes were bloodshot, wishing she could tear the opportunist in front of her to pieces; Su Xuan slumped to the ground, tears streaming down her face, pleading desperately. The indifferent man, however, stood with his arms crossed, looking impatient, as if watching a boring farce.

At this critical, desperate moment, the ward door was slammed shut by a mysterious and powerful force, with a loud crash that seemed to shake the entire building apart. The sudden sound made everyone's heart clench, as if gripped tightly by an invisible hand.

A fierce wind, carrying thick dust, rushed into the ward. Everyone looked in horror and saw an old man with almost completely white hair and an extremely hunched figure, like a withered leaf swaying precariously in the wind, yet with an inexplicable resolute air, standing panting at the door.

His chest heaved violently like a broken bellows, each breath accompanied by heavy panting, as if trying to drain all the air from his lungs. Large beads of sweat rolled down his forehead like broken strings of pearls, sliding down his deeply lined, weathered face, soaking his faded and tattered clothes. In his eyes, anxiety burned like a raging fire, while guilt seemed to engulf him like endless darkness; these two emotions intertwined and surged, sending chills down one's spine.

The old man's gaze swept frantically around the room, his eyes carrying a tangible force, slicing across everyone's faces like sharp blades. When his gaze settled on the cold and heartless man, the guilt in his eyes ignited instantly, transforming into a raging, all-consuming fury.

Without the slightest hesitation, he dragged his body, which seemed on the verge of falling apart, and with unsteady yet incredibly determined steps, charged straight toward the person who had made the unreasonable demand.

For a moment, the whole world seemed to freeze. Everyone held their breath, their hearts stopped beating, and their eyes were fixed on the scene, unable to believe what was about to happen.

Suddenly, the old man mustered all his strength, raised his thin, bony arm with bulging veins, and withered his hand, which was as dry as a withered branch, carrying decades of nurturing kindness, a heart full of disappointment, and an overwhelming rage, and with a thunderous force, slapped the man hard across the face.

The slap was incredibly powerful, its sound crisp and loud, like a thunderclap exploding in the ward, making the windowpanes vibrate and causing everyone's eardrums to ache.

The old man's body swayed violently from the force of the slap, almost causing him to fall to the ground. Pointing at the man with a trembling finger, his voice, like a withered leaf in late autumn, filled with endless heartache and despair, he screamed hoarsely, "You wicked son! They're already in such dire straits, their family is about to be destroyed, and how could you do such a heinous, inhuman thing! Do you have any conscience? Do you think you're worthy of the love and care I gave you to raise you? You're a beast, a disgrace to our family!"

Every word seemed to be squeezed out from the depths of his broken soul, filled with years of regret and deep self-reproach, echoing in the oppressive ward for a long time.