OFBL Chapter 41

Because of Zhang Yuze’s instructions, Xu Li took a deep breath all the way, barely managing to keep his reason in check, and calmly asked his old man to give his money back. But unexpectedly, because of Xu Hai’s single sentence, all his psychological preparations became useless in an instant. A burst of fire rushed to his forehead, and all his calm no longer existed. He still remembered Zhang Yuze’s advice to “stay measured,” but it felt useless now.

 

“You gambled away 50,000 yuan! Was all that money meant for your surgery?!” Xu Li’s voice cracked with disbelief as he slammed his fist into Xu Hai’s shoulder, sending the frail old man stumbling backward.

 

Xu Hai coughed violently, clutching his chest. His face twisted into a grotesque smirk despite the clear pain wracking his body. He wheezed out a laugh, his voice hoarse: “Your mother gave me the money willingly. What I do with it is none of your business!”

 

Xu Li’s lips twitched into a bitter smile. His hard-earned money… Gone in a heartbeat, tossed onto a dirty gambling table like worthless scraps. Years of suppressed fury bubbled to the surface. He couldn’t hold back anymore, since it wasn’t about patience or being the bigger person. Xu Li only felt that it was extremely ironic and funny. His father was a scumbag before, and that didn’t change with him getting older. For example, back when he was still in high school, he had to give up on his dreams and support his mother after being abandoned. The only thing he could do then was to swallow his anger, ruin the mistress’s garden, and walk away.

 

But now, he didn’t need to be patient anymore. It was nothing more than punching him to relieve his anger. If he still couldn’t teach that useless thing a lesson today, then he would be a coward. And so, without even thinking, he grabbed the collar of Xu Hai’s filthy, worn-out jacket. The older man’s eyes widened in genuine fear, his hands flying up defensively.

 

“Help! My son’s attacking me! Someone call the police!” Xu Hai wailed theatrically, shielding his face.

 

Xu Li snarled. “Son? You think you deserve to call me that?” His fist connected sharply with Xu Hai’s jaw, sending him sprawling to the ground. “Where’s the money? Give me my money, or I swear I’ll keep going!”

 

A few curious neighbors began gathering at a distance, whispering to each other, mentioning “Xu Hai,” “son,” and “money.” But their words faded into meaningless noise in Xu Li’s ears. He had one goal—getting his money back. Everything else could burn to ashes.

 

He took another step toward Xu Hai, fist raised again.

 

Suddenly, the reality of the situation hit Xu Hai. He was out of tricks. His neighbors were gathering, some pulling out phones, some muttering about calling the police. If the cops came, his whole gambling racket would be exposed.

 

Panicked, he stumbled to his feet, desperate to escape. But his body betrayed him—his knees buckled, and a crushing pain spread across his chest like wildfire, making his breath hitch and his eyes widen in terror. He felt that his breathing was difficult and his heart was sore. Gradually, he only saw a hazy white ball in front of him…

 

Xu Li saw him lurch forward and instinctively rushed after him. “Don’t you dare run!” He reached out, fingers just brushing the frayed edge of Xu Hai’s jacket—

 

With a sickening thud, Xu Hai collapsed, his head hitting the frozen ground with a brutal impact. Because there was nothing to cushion his fall, only a muffled sound was heard.

 

For a second, the entire world stilled.

 

Xu Li froze, his hand still outstretched. His mind spun, caught between disbelief and suspicion. Was this another one of Xu Hai’s scams?!

 

Before he could react, someone in the gathering crowd shrieked: “He’s dead! He’s dead!”

 

The sharp cry shattered the frozen silence and Xu Li’s heart pounded as the reality hit him: Xu Hai wasn’t playing this time. His pale complexion and clenched chest flashed through Xu Li’s mind—classic symptoms of a heart attack.

 

“Get back! Move!” Xu Li shouted, shaking himself out of his daze as he shoved through the onlookers. “I’m a doctor!”

 

Kneeling beside his father, he swiftly checked for a pulse, but there was nothing. Xu Hai’s face was ghostly white, lips tinged with blue. There wasn’t time for second-guessing. Xu Li locked his hands together, fingers interlaced, and began chest compressions. “One, two, three, four…” he counted under his breath, keeping a steady rhythm as he fought against the crushing panic rising in his chest.

 

The crowd pressed in, phones pointed at him, cameras flashing. He could hear them murmuring accusations, spinning vicious narratives: “He beat him for money.” “He’s pretending to help now!” “Doctor? What kind of doctor does this?”

 

Their words cut through him like razors, piercing deeper with every syllable.

 

But Xu Li’s mind couldn’t afford to fracture, not now. “Breathe, damn it!” He hissed through gritted teeth, sweat mixing with the icy wind as he performed CPR with all the strength he had left.

 

His world shrank to the rhythmic press of his hands against Xu Hai’s chest, fighting desperately against time, and against every judgmental stare drilling into his back, like an arrow piercing into his body that was already full of scars.

 

…………

 

Zhang Yuze was in surgery all morning. When he finally finished and went to grab lunch, he noticed something strange. People in the hallways avoided making eye contact with him, but their stares lingered just long enough to be unsettling, and their whispers followed him like a dark cloud.

 

Confused, he pulled out his phone and saw that he had countless missed calls from Li Chenghong. Alarmed, he immediately dialed back, and the call was picked up on the first ring.

 

“Where have you been?! Why didn’t you answer?! Do you even know what’s going on?!” Li Chenghong’s voice was frantic.

 

Zhang Yuze stiffened. “I just got out of surgery. What happened?”

 

There was a pause. “You really don’t know…?”

 

“No! Tell me already!”

 

Li Chenghong took a deep breath and spoke slowly. “It’s Xu Li… He went to his father’s place this morning to ask for his money back. But… His father had a heart attack and died during the rescue attempt.”

 

Zhang Yuze froze.

 

“That’s not the worst part,” Li Chenghong continued grimly. “Some random tabloid somehow caught wind of it and twisted the whole story. They’re saying Xu Li killed his father over money. People on the Internet have gone completely crazy.”

 

“WHAT?!” Zhang Yuze almost dropped his phone. His mind reeled as he frantically opened a news site.

 

The headlines were a nightmare:

“Doctor at Artillery Hospital Lets Father Die Over Debt Dispute.” “Heartless Doctor Stands By as Father Dies from Heart Attack.”

 

With trembling fingers, he played a video attached to one of the articles. It was heavily edited, with Xu Li’s angry voice amplified: “If you don’t pay me today, I’ll keep coming back!”

 

His chest tightened as he read the vicious comments below, accusing Xu Li of being a greedy, unfilial son who let his father die for money. Looking at the comment section again, even he almost believed that Xu Li was an ungrateful son who asked for money until he caused his old father to drop dead in anger.

 

“This… This is insane…” Zhang Yuze whispered, feeling nauseous. He quickly dialed Xu Li’s number, but it was constantly engaged, making his anxiety skyrocket.

 

“Damn it, pick up!” He growled, his fists clenched.

 

Unable to wait any longer, Zhang Yuze grabbed his car keys and bolted from the hospital, without even asking for leave. With Xu Hai dead, Xu Li left without a single penny in his pockets, and the Internet full of abuse, he simply wanted, even needed, to help. He had no idea where Xu Li was, but he couldn’t leave him alone in the middle of the storm.

 

Just as he reached the parking lot, his phone rang again—it was the hospital dean.

 

“Dr. Zhang,” the old dean’s voice was solemn, “I’ve been trying to reach Xu Li, but I can’t get through. The hospital board has decided to suspend him indefinitely due to… The negative media coverage.”

 

“What?” Zhang Yuze’s heart sank. “You’re firing him? Without even hearing his side?”

 

“This is beyond personal opinions,” the dean said stiffly. “The hospital’s reputation is at stake.”

 

Before Zhang Yuze could argue, the line went dead. He tried calling back, but the dean refused to answer, his change of heart obvious to anyone who had eyes to see. The hospital decided to sacrifice Xu Li without hearing a second opinion.

 

Swearing under his breath, he slammed his fists on the steering wheel, clearly feeling that everything was spiraling out of control.

 

His phone rang again—this time, it was his mother.

 

“Mom, not now,” he snapped as he started the car. “I’m going to find Xu Li.”

 

“Wait,” the Empress Dowager’s voice was unusually urgent. “Don’t get involved.”

 

“Are you serious right now?!” Zhang Yuze’s voice shook with disbelief.

 

“Listen to me,” she insisted, her voice turning surprisingly anxious. “This is already a media circus. Anything you do now could make it worse. You’ll be dragged into it too.”

 

“I don’t care!” He yelled. “Xu Li is innocent! His father was a gambler who wasted his money. He had a heart attack because he was unhealthy, not because of Xu Li!” Poor Dr. Zhang never thought that he would one day argue with his mother because of Xu Li.

 

“That’s not how the public sees it,” she said grimly. “Facts don’t matter when people have already made up their minds. His father is dead and everyone only saw one side of the story. The Internet’s turned him into a villain, and the more you defend him, the worse it will get.”

 

Zhang Yuze’s voice finally cracked. “He’s… He’s all alone out there.”

 

The Empress Dowager sighed deeply. “I know you care about him, but think carefully before you act. I’m not asking you to break up with him, but once you step into this mess, there’s no going back.”

 

“I’m already in it,” Zhang Yuze said coldly, ending the call.

 

He pressed the accelerator and sped toward the main road, his mind racing as fast as the car. He could still see the media circus outside the hospital’s gate in his rearview mirror, reporters and cameras swarming like vultures.

 

No matter how messy things got, he would never let Xu Li face it alone.

 

T.N: Not gonna lie, this plot development really took me by surprise. 😲