The boss initially thought he was just a kid, but to his surprise, he spoke eloquently and with great sincerity.
After negotiating for so long, the boss was somewhat moved.
"Okay, don't worry, I'll definitely find someone knowledgeable to handle it."
"thank you."
Jian Changnian nodded slightly and turned to leave.
Chapter 34 Physical Testing
The next morning, the doctor conducted a thorough pre-operative examination on Grandma. When the results came out, Jian Changnian almost burst into tears of joy. All of Grandma's physical indicators met the surgical criteria, which meant that the surgery could be performed that afternoon.
She and the doctor took her into the operating room, and throughout the process, she held her grandmother's hand tightly, never letting go for a moment.
When we arrived at the operating room door, it was time to part ways.
With tears welling in her eyes, she looked at the doctor and said, "Doctor, please take care of me."
The surgeon nodded solemnly: "Don't worry, we will do our best to save the patient."
Jian Changnian then let go of her grandmother's hand and watched her being pushed inside. The operating room door closed, and the green light came on.
Jian Changnian began a day of anxiety.
She sat on the cold floor, hugging her knees, waiting anxiously and uneasily.
Time ticked by, and she lost track of how much time had passed. People came and went around her until finally a nurse, unable to bear seeing her like this, handed her a glass of warm water and told her to sit and wait at the nurses' station.
Jian Changnian wanted to refuse, but was forcibly pulled up by someone.
“Go ahead, the brain surgery is still a long way off. The ground is cold, and if you catch a cold, there will be no one to take care of Grandma even if she comes out. Besides, there are people coming and going at the entrance of the operating room, and it won’t be good for you to sit there.”
Jian Changnian couldn't refuse her and didn't want to cause trouble for others, so she followed the nurse to the nurses' station.
The nurse found her a chair to sit down. It was a busy time in the afternoon, and there weren't many people at the nurses' station; they were all engrossed in writing.
The small TV on the wall was still on, playing local news, and Jian Changnian's gaze was involuntarily drawn to it.
"Good afternoon, viewers, and welcome to Midday 30. We're bringing you a breaking sports news report: the annual National Badminton Championships are about to begin, and physical fitness tests will be held this afternoon at the Binhai Provincial Badminton Training Base. It is understood that our province will send sixteen athletes to participate in this national competition, including last year's runner-up and newcomers. Let's look forward to their outstanding performances in the national competition!"
The female host's mouth opened and closed, but Jian Changnian didn't listen to what she was saying afterward. Her gaze was fixed on the small window on the TV screen. The camera was zoomed out, but she still managed to see the person clearly.
Xie Shi'an, dressed in a blue and white tracksuit, stood against the wind, his upright back resembling a birch tree on the playground.
"After her grandfather passed away, badminton became her everything; no one wanted to win more than her."
“In the last national competition, Shi’an participated in several events, but because other teammates underperformed, we only won the runner-up position.”
“You came this year and filled that gap. I think she must be very happy, even if she doesn’t say it.”
"As for me, this might be my last national tournament."
These words echoed repeatedly in Jian Changnian's mind, and her eyes welled up with tears without her realizing it. When the scene ended, she suddenly stood up.
***
Although the physical fitness test was held at the training base, the organizing committee still arranged for its own referees to come over in order to prevent cheating. In addition to the dozen or so members of the Binhai Provincial Team, other teams also came early to prepare for the first leg of the competition, which was held in Jiangcheng City, so they were all tested together.
The referee held the list of participants and called out their numbers one by one.
"Number 1 Yang Li, Number 2 Wang Bingbing, Number 3 Su Jie."
"Here." The person whose name was called raised their hand and stepped forward.
"Prepare for the 400-meter shuttle run."
...
To avoid any appearance of impropriety, Yan Xinyuan could not officiate. He could only stand in the coach's office, quietly watching his students sweating profusely on the playground through the glass window, while also waiting for someone.
Xie Shi'an was also waiting for someone. As time passed, her teammates went to the physical test one after another, leaving her alone. She was the second to last.
The referee called her name.
"Thank you, Shi'an."
Xie Shi'an knew in his heart that the person most likely wouldn't come, but he still walked over with a normal expression.
"arrive."
After completing all the physical fitness tests, the judge looked at her score sheet with satisfaction and wrote "Excellent". He turned another page of the roster in his hand, and there was another name on the paper, but the waiting area was empty.
He asked, somewhat puzzled, "Where's Jian Changnian? Didn't he come?"
He called out several more times, and the crowd whispered among themselves after the competition, but no one came out to answer him.
The group exchanged bewildered glances. Finally, a member of the Binhai Provincial Team raised his hand and responded, "Referee, Jian Changnian... she might not be able to come."
The referee frowned: "What's going on? Don't you know that not showing up is considered a forfeit?"
He glanced at his watch, thought it was getting late, and was just about to write "abstain" after her name when...
A teenager pushed through the crowd and rushed in, panting.
"Reporting... Reporting to the referee, this is Jian Changnian, number 105."
Upon seeing her sudden appearance, the members of the Binhai Provincial Team surrounded her.
"Chang Nian, what brings you here?"
Changnian, is Grandma feeling better?
"Chang Nian, we all thought you wouldn't come. We thought there would be one less person this year."
...
They all spoke at once, but their words were kind and warm.
Jian Changnian smiled and said, "I'm sorry to have worried you. Grandma's condition is basically stable, so I came over."
The most urgent thing is to get the physical test done as soon as possible. After she finished speaking, she bowed deeply to the referee.
"Referee, I'm late because of a family emergency. I apologize for taking up a little more of your time. Please begin the physical test."
Yan Xinyuan stood by the window, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and finally a long-lost smile appeared on his face.
Half an hour later, Jian Changnian passed the physical fitness test with a "good" score. After the test, she didn't have time to catch up with her teammates. Instead, she looked everywhere for that person and wanted to apologize to them.
There was no playground, no small playground, no canteen, no dormitory. Jian Changnian turned and ran towards the training room.
Before she even reached the door, she heard the sound of shoes scraping the floor coming from the training room. She gently pushed the door open and, sure enough, only Xie Shi'an, this genius girl and training fanatic, would come to play ball after the rigorous physical test.
Xie Shi'an was so focused on his practice that he kept hitting the ball against the wall, completely unaware that someone had quietly slipped in.
One ball bounced off the wall and landed at the doorway because of excessive force, and all the balls in the ball tube had already been played.
Xie Shi'an bent down to pick it up, but someone had already picked it up for her.
"Give."
She looked up and saw Jian Changnian.
Xie Shi'an took two steps back as if casually, his tone a little cold: "What are you doing here?"
The sunlight shone on her, and Jian Changnian smiled.
"I'll be your final piece of the championship puzzle."
After a long standoff, Xie Shi'an finally spoke, a slight, contemptuous smile playing on her lips.
"Ha, quite the boast."
Jian Changnian scratched his head, pretending not to understand.
"Ah, but didn't someone come to see me specifically yesterday? And he was even punished by Coach Yan. To be honest, it's not a big deal if you want me to come back to play, really."
"You..." Xie Shi'an's temples were bulging with veins, he was just short of hitting her with a badminton racket.
Jian Changnian took a step back, afraid of being accidentally hurt, with a smile on her face, but her eyes were very sincere.
“Just tell me, and I’ll come anytime.”
"Are you done talking? If you are, then leave and don't disturb my training." Xie Shi'an's ears turned a little red after someone had hit the nail on the head, but his expression remained calm as he pointed his racket towards the door.
Jian Changnian finally remembered the lotus lantern.
"Actually, I came here today not only for the physical test, but also..."
She checked her backpack and realized, oh no, she'd left it at the nurses' station in her rush.
Xie Shi'an frowned, wondering what tricks she could come up with.
Jian Changnian smiled awkwardly: "I forgot to take it, I'll give it to you another day."
No sooner had she finished speaking than the training room door was kicked open, and Qiao Yuchu rushed in, breathless.
"Chang...Chang Nian, Coach Yan just received a call from the hospital saying..."
Chapter 35 Changes
Jian Changnian's expression instantly tensed up.
Qiao Yuchu calmed her breathing and a big smile appeared on her face.
"Grandma's surgery was a success!!!"
Jian Changnian stood there, her eyes wide with disbelief. After a moment, a surge of joy overwhelmed her. She jumped three feet high and then hugged Qiao Yuchu, laughing and crying at the same time.
"That's great...that's great...Sister Yu Chu..."
Seeing them embrace each other and cry tears of joy, Xie Shi'an also showed a faint smile.
***
When they arrived at the hospital, the police also informed them that the perpetrator had been found. However, the perpetrator's family situation was also complicated. The family of four lived in a cramped house of only a dozen square meters in an urban village. The father was paralyzed and bedridden, the wife was disabled with dwarfism, and the child was only a month old. He was the only breadwinner in the family. In order to earn a few hundred yuan, he had been working night shifts at the construction site for a week straight, and the accident was caused by driving while fatigued.
The police took the man to the hospital. He was handcuffed and kneeling on the ground, crying bitterly: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but I really didn't drink. I was just too tired, and I only closed my eyes for a moment... I have a wife and children to support. I was afraid of going to jail, so I ran away. I can't go in! What will happen to my children if I go in!"
The man's wife also came, carrying her child on her back, tears streaming down her face, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness.