Ye Xiao drove Xia Mingyue's Ferrari not for a casual spin, but headed to the southwest of Jinling District following the address given by Li Shengrong—that was where Yan Luo lived.

Ye Xiao did not like being indebted to others, nor did he want to inadvertently cause others to suffer. Yan Luo's dismissal was directly related to Ye Xiao. If it hadn't been for Ye Xiao, Yan Luo wouldn't have been fired by Wang Dongliang. Although Wang Dongliang played a major role and acted out of personal vendetta, in the end, it was related to Ye Xiao. Yan Luo, a man of few words, naturally wouldn't go explaining anything.

According to the note, Yan Luo's home should be in a place called Tongchui Village in the southwestern suburbs of Jinling District. Though it was called a village, it was in reality a slum area of Jinling District.

Ye Xiao saw that the roads inside the village were narrow and potholed, which he thought might damage the Ferrari. If the car had been his, it wouldn't have mattered much, but since it belonged to Xia Mingyue, damaging it would have made him feel uncomfortable. Hence, he parked the car next to a grocery store at the entrance of the village.

When Ye Xiao got out of the car, many people inside the grocery store turned to look at him. Clearly, they found it odd that a luxury car had come to Tongchui Village, a place forsaken by birds.

"Boss, a pack of cigarettes!" Ye Xiao said with a smile as he walked up to the grocery store.

The grocery store owner was a middle-aged man, the honest and unassuming sort.

"What kind of cigarettes would you like?" The grocery store owner was also very curious. After all, he had run his store here for a long time, but he had never seen such an extravagant car here before. He figured the visitor would probably leave right after buying the cigarettes.

"I'll take a pack of 'Xiyan' for twenty-one," Ye Xiao said.

A twenty-one yuan pack of 'Xiyan' was not considered a good cigarette in the eyes of the wealthy, but for the grocery store owner and the people playing cards next to the store, it was considered a luxury. Normally, they smoked the ten-yuan 'Di Hao' brand.

"Here's your cigarette." The grocery store owner, knowing that anyone who drove that kind of car was not someone he could afford to upset, quickly handed over the cigarettes.

As Ye Xiao was paying, he asked with a smile, "Uncle, is there someone named Yan Luo living in Tongchui Village?"

"Yan Luo?" Upon hearing Ye Xiao's question, the grocery store owner sized him up and asked, "Do you know him?"

Ye Xiao was secretly pleased to hear this from the grocery store owner. Clearly, the man knew Yan Luo.

"Yes, I know him. Does he live in the village?" Ye Xiao quickly asked the grocery store owner.

"He is from the village, but these past few days, he won't be around."

Hearing this, Ye Xiao was immediately curious and asked, "What happened? Did he go to look for work?"

"You know he lost his job, don't you? That guy doesn't talk much. As it happens, even though he has some relatives in Tongchui Village, his mother got seriously ill, and no one lent a hand. I reckon he must be with his mother at the hospital right now," the grocery store owner said, taking the money from Ye Xiao and smiling.

Upon hearing these words, Ye Xiao felt even more curious and asked, "Is that so? Do you know which hospital his mother is in? By the way, what's her illness?"

"His mother has always had some vascular blockages. Apparently, she fell ill last night after hearing about Yan Luo getting fired. I'm not sure about the specifics, but it seems she's at the orthopedic hospital," the grocery store owner explained.

"What? The orthopedic hospital? Her condition should be treated by internal medicine, right? Why would she go to an orthopedic hospital?" Ye Xiao was very surprised.

"Ah, young man, you don't know. Yan Luo's family has always been struggling financially, and his father passed away early. Although he came back from the military, there are no resettlement benefits these days. He took a job as a security guard, and even made team leader, but look at him now—not even employed for a few months before getting fired. He was already short on money, and now his mother has a cerebral vascular blockage. With that kind of illness, without money, you are as good as dead. Two people in our village passed away from the same cause the year before last. I guess Yan Luo has already resigned himself to what's to come," the grocery store owner continued, his face full of helplessness.

They say that money isn't a good thing, but at critical moments, a dime could save a person's life. But then again, the value of human life can seem so insignificant in front of money.

"Then, sir, where is the orthopedic hospital?"

"It's not far if you're driving. Just follow this road north, and you should arrive in about five minutes," the grocery store owner said, pointing in the direction.

Ye Xiao nodded, thanked him, and turned to leave.

"Young man, your change!"

Without turning back, Ye Xiao waved his hand and said, "Thank you for telling me all this, sir. Next time I come by, just give me a pack of cigarettes."

Ye Xiao got back into the Ferrari and disappeared in an instant.

Those who were hanging out at the grocery store started discussing amongst themselves, clearly curious when Yan Luo had made such a wealthy friend.

Ye Xiao's driving skills were already quite good and the road wasn't far; so in short order, Ye Xiao saw a three-story small white building with a sign that read "Hand and Foot Surgery Hospital." Clearly, this must be the place.

Ye Xiao parked the car outside the hospital, immediately got out, and walked straight into the Hand and Foot Surgery Hospital. One glance and it was obvious this was a privately operated facility. Moreover, its location was quite remote, resulting in very few patients. Even the security guard at the door was an old man in his sixties, hardly official.

"I'm begging you, please take another look, I will find a way to get the money, I definitely won't owe you," the young man pleaded desperately. "Please, you must save my mother."

"Son, it's not that we don't want to help people, but we really are out of options," the medic said. "It's been all night and we've given your mother medication to ease her condition, but there's been no improvement. So, we're helpless. I suggest you transfer her to a larger hospital, otherwise, your mother might be in danger tonight."

"This..."

Ye Xiao had just entered the three-story building and saw several men talking in the hallway, one of them with a determined face, but red eyes.

Yan Luo knew having his mother transferred to a larger hospital would be beneficial, but such a transfer required money, and a lot of it at that. It wasn't that he didn't want to transfer her; he simply lacked the funds.

The hospital staff exchanged a few words with Yan Luo and then left, clearly without a solution.

In this day and age, if you want to get treatment but can't fork up the money, you're out of luck.

"What should I do? What should I do?" Yan Luo murmured, tears dropping onto the ground one by one.

Real men don't easily shed tears, but that's until their hearts are truly broken.

At this moment, Yan Luo's heart was indeed shattered, overwhelmed with extreme sorrow. Yet, grief achieved nothing.

"If you wipe away your tears, perhaps, there's still hope for your mother!" a calm voice reached Yan Luo's ears.

Yan Luo heard the voice, his spirit lifted, and he immediately looked up to see who was speaking—it was none other than Ye Xiao.

"Ye... Ye Xiao?"

Yan Luo looked at Ye Xiao in surprise. He certainly hadn't expected Ye Xiao to appear here of all places, especially since he hadn't told Ye Xiao he would be here; he assumed Ye Xiao was here for a medical visit too.

Ye Xiao somehow had a packet of tissues in his hand and handed it to Yan Luo, saying, "Didn't your drill sergeant tell you during your time in the military that men of steel shed blood, not tears?"

"I..." Yan Luo took the tissue from Ye Xiao, sighed heavily, and slapped his forehead. Of course, he understood the logic, but the present situation left him utterly helpless, as there was nothing more distressing for a son than watching his mother die for lack of medical funds.

Moreover, Yan Luo was a profoundly filial man.

"Medical care is highly advanced in our country, so I believe your mother can definitely recover," Ye Xiao said to Yan Luo with a smile.

Yan Luo replied with a helpless look, "It's impossible, truly impossible. I have no money, and a hospital is a business, not a charity."

"I never said the hospital was a charity. Go tell the doctors here to transfer her, to the State Hospital," Ye Xiao suggested. "The best doctors in Chu City should be there, right? Once there, are you still worried that your mother's illness won't be cured?"

"But that requires a lot of money, money I can't afford," Yan Luo's tears started to flow once more, a mixture of heartache and helplessness pouring out. "I'm so useless, forced to watch my mother suffer and die. I'm truly unfilial."

"Enough with your tears, put them away," Ye Xiao said firmly. "I'll cover the costs, whatever they are. Money is nothing compared to a life."

Upon hearing these words, Yan Luo suddenly felt as though Ye Xiao was merely comforting him, knowing Ye Xiao wasn't wealthy. After all, why would he be looking for a job at the labor market, and even the salary during the probation period was very low.

"Ye Xiao, stop trying to console me, I know you're not well off," Yan Luo said to Ye Xiao, his gratitude for Ye Xiao's kindness shining through.

Ye Xiao, hearing Yan Luo's words and knowing that Yan Luo thought he had no money, cheerfully said, "Yan Luo, now that there's a chance for your mother to recover, as a filial son, wouldn't you fight for it? Or do you want to watch your mother die?"

"No..." Yan Luo's voice was loud as he stood up quickly and stared at Ye Xiao, shouting, "I won't let my mother die."

"So listen to me, your mother won't die; she will live a long life," Ye Xiao said, smiling at Yan Luo's fierce expression.

"Ah?" Hearing this, Yan Luo was shocked, still somewhat incredulous, yet in Ye Xiao's eyes, he saw confidence, an unshakable confidence.

Yan Luo felt inspired by this confidence, as if he had truly found hope to save his mother.

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