Electronic Nezha

Chapter 4 Visit
The noodles were cooked, and I scooped them into a bowl and walked ahead. Liu Zhenhua followed behind, carrying two empty bowls and some fried sauce. The father and son sat facing each other in the living room. Although he was only in the second year of junior high school, he had already grown to 1.76 meters tall, and was a head taller than me when he sat there. He looked a bit thin because he was growing taller, and he had thick hair on his upper lip, which was showing signs of developing into a mustache. He had light acne on his face. His youthful and delicate features were obvious, and he exuded a strong sense of boyishness.

Neither of us was very enthusiastic about the bowl of fried sauce. To be fair, my skills in making fried sauce are quite good; it has a rich color, a thick texture, and a meaty aroma. But we've eaten it so many times that we practically live on fried sauce noodles every day unless we specifically decide to. One bowl of sauce can last us a long time.

I was actually hoping he would bring up Chen Zihan's situation so I could offer some words of comfort. Liu Zhenhua slowly picked out a bowl of noodles and asked me, "Dad, do you think Chen Zihan can get better?"

I chuckled to myself; he really is still a child.

"Probably, ambulances usually arrive pretty quickly."

Liu Zhenhua glanced at me and said, "You looked pretty cool when you were cursing that driver who caused the accident."

I said calmly, "Don't learn that."

I feel a little happy.

"Are you referring to behavior or swearing? I think behavior should be learned, but swearing is something you'll learn even if you don't learn it."

I stared at him blankly for a moment, and finally couldn't help but sigh, "What will her parents do if something happens to this child?"

Just then, Teacher Wang called. I immediately tensed up, gestured for Liu Zhenhua to eat first, went to the balcony to answer the call, and lit a cigarette in the process.

"Liu Zhenhua shouldn't attend the first class this afternoon," Teacher Wang bluntly stated.

I said unhappily, "Didn't you say I would talk to him first? Why is class suspended?"

"You've misunderstood—you've heard about Chen Zihan, haven't you?"

“I was right there at the time.”

"Here's the thing, after school this afternoon, have Liu Zhenhua take Chen Zihan's schoolbag and take her to the hospital. I'll send you her mother's phone number later."

I breathed a sigh of relief when I heard it was about this matter, and quickly agreed.

"Just when things were getting exciting, this happened! Look at the mess this has made!"

"Teacher Wang, don't worry, she might be awake by now."

Teacher Wang said, "I hope so. Aren't you a fruit seller? See what you can bring, and I'll reimburse you from the class fund."

"Don't worry about that." I thought to myself that only a student who is a favorite of the teacher would receive such treatment. If someone is ranked 50th in the grade, they must be in the top three in their class to keep the teacher on their toes. If someone is ranked 50th in their class, then whether or not they get a schoolbag is probably not so important.

After hanging up the phone, I told Liu Zhenhua what had happened, and we each quickly ate a bite of noodles before I settled him down to sleep.

As soon as the alarm rang, Liu Zhenhua and I left home, rode our electric bikes to the school, and found it still teeming with students and parents rushing to and fro. There was no sign of the accident. I called Chen Zihan's mother, who, after hearing my purpose, coldly gave me the hospital address.

Not long after Liu Zhenhua entered the school, he came out with a schoolbag slung over each arm and a water bottle with Chibi Maruko-chan painted on it, like a soldier who had just returned from the battlefield, carrying the equipment of his fallen comrades.

Liu Zhenhua put his schoolbag in the basket of the electric bike, slung Chen Zihan's schoolbag over his shoulder, and sat on the back. We rushed to the Municipal People's Hospital.

"Dad, what did Chen Zihan's mother say? Is she awake?" Liu Zhenhua asked from the back seat.

"I didn't have time to say these things, but I guess the situation isn't good."

"Why do you say that?"

"Her mother obviously wasn't in the mood to talk to us. She only let us go because of your teacher, Mr. Wang. If Chen Zihan wasn't in any trouble, she wouldn't have been so polite."

“That makes sense.” Liu Zhenhua agreed with my assessment.

"Why are so many people going the wrong way? Why don't the traffic police do anything about it?" I complained. It was strange today too. There were groups of two or three electric bikes coming towards me in the non-motorized vehicle lane, making it difficult for me to maneuver. Those people had a determined yet strange expression. A few of them seemed to want to say something to me as they passed by, but Lao Wang's electric bike was exceptionally powerful and left them all behind, leaving only their hesitant expressions. After getting through this wave of people going the wrong way, I smoothly slid forward a lot, and then I immediately understood why they were going the wrong way—there were traffic police checking helmets at the intersection!

I slammed on the brakes and tried to turn the horse around, but I had already entered the enemy's line of sight. The fat traffic policeman at the intersection pointed sharply at me, freezing me in place.

Damn it, no wonder Li Ping made me wear a helmet, there's a big check today!

Aside from "creating a civilized city" and when higher-ups come down for inspections, we rarely check helmets here. Today we were unlucky enough to be caught in the crossfire, but there's nothing we can do about it. I lowered my voice and reminded Liu Zhenhua behind me, "You get off first." Electric bikes are theoretically not allowed to carry passengers, and traffic police usually turn a blind eye. At this critical juncture, we don't want to be charged with multiple offenses.

Ahead of me, there were a few construction workers waiting to be dealt with. They had paint buckets filled with electric drills and hammers, laughing and joking without a care in the world. A skinny traffic cop took a picture of them and they all left.

"You, give me your ID number." The fat traffic policeman noticed me, and the thin traffic policeman held up his phone to take a picture of me and the electric bike.

I tried to make a last-ditch effort and explained, "Officer, my situation is special, could you please make an exception?" "Oh?" The fat traffic policeman remained noncommittal.

Seeing an opportunity, I quickly said, "I'm going to the hospital to see a patient—you've all heard about the little girl who was hit by a car at noon, right? I'm going to see her."

"Knowing it's dangerous, why aren't you wearing a helmet?" The chubby traffic policeman's words left me speechless.

"ID number," the thin traffic cop said unhurriedly. "I saw you from afar, like a race car driver, with a child! Did you modify the speed limit on your car?"

For a moment, I really felt I was wrong... mainly because I realized I couldn't escape it, so I obediently gave my ID number and finally faced the camera of the skinny traffic policeman, leaving the first official stain on my life.

The chubby traffic cop said, "This is a warning. If you do it again, you'll be fined 50 yuan." It seems everyone has one excuse for not wearing a helmet, which is like a get-out-of-jail-free card. My get-out-of-jail-free card is now canceled.

Once past the intersection and out of the traffic police's sight, Liu Zhenhua nimbly jumped into the back seat. Feeling incredibly frustrated at having embarrassed himself so badly in front of his son, I gritted my teeth and said, "Your dad has been driving for so many years and never broken a traffic rule! Your Uncle Wang ruined me!" I knew this was morally questionable; I was the one who didn't wear the helmet, but it was Old Wang who changed the speed limit. If he hadn't modified the car to be so erratic, would I have been unable to stop in time? So many people walking towards me who wanted to tell me about the helmet check were all left behind—there are still many good people in this world.

Liu Zhenhua said, "It's okay, Dad. Maybe their system malfunctioned today and they didn't register you."

I said speechlessly, "Son, it's good to comfort people, but don't be too harsh—and don't you have some issues with your values ​​too?"

Liu Zhenhua said, "The word 'also' is used well; it doesn't matter who I resemble."

"Little bunny!"

When I arrived at the hospital, I parked the car in front of a flower shop and gave my phone to Liu Zhenhua so he could buy a bouquet of flowers. I had already thought about this; it wouldn't be appropriate to bring a box of apples or half a basket of oranges when visiting a patient like Chen Zihan. I also had to be selective in carrying out my teacher's instructions. Liu Zhenhua knew my payment password and lived on the fifth floor, so he was always the one to run errands, whether it was buying a pack of cigarettes, needing some cilantro, or missing a piece of tofu.

After contacting Chen Zihan's mother again, we went to the 7th floor of the inpatient department as she instructed. This floor houses the neurosurgery department of the Municipal People's Hospital. The name "neurosurgery" might be unfamiliar to the general public, but everyone in the area knows "brain surgery." It's the most authoritative brain surgery department in the city and even the province, and beds are extremely scarce. We found the doctor's office, where only a young doctor was writing a medical record, and a middle-aged woman in a business suit sat silently in a chair.

"Chen Zihan's mother?" I asked from the doorway.

The woman slowly stood up, without answering, but instead using her gaze to inquire about our purpose.

"Teacher Wang asked us to bring Chen Zihan a schoolbag."

"Oh, you just made a phone call, right? I didn't think about it." She admitted her identity, numbly took her daughter's schoolbag, and made no comment.

"Where's Chen Zihan?" I asked, wondering why she hadn't called us directly to the ward.

"She's still in the ICU." At this moment, Chen Zihan's mother saw the things her daughter had used. She picked up the water bottle with Chibi Maruko-chan printed on it and rubbed it in her hands. Her eyes immediately reddened. It was clear that she had cried before, but she had been hiding it well. Now she finally couldn't hold back anymore.

"Still not awake?!" I didn't expect Chen Zihan's condition to be so serious. Then I could understand all the emotions her mother was showing. Judging from her appearance and demeanor, Chen Zihan's mother should be a cadre in the system, and she was already considered very calm. I might not be as calm as her.

Chen Zihan's mother didn't respond to my nonsense; she remained silent, clearly intending to see me out.

"Auntie, have you seen a school uniform?" Liu Zhenhua asked. After Chen Zihan fell, his school uniform was used to cushion Chen Zihan's head. Getting the school uniform back is also a side quest for us.

"Are those your clothes?"

"Yes, I am Chen Zihan's deskmate."

"So you're Liu Zhenhua?" Chen Zihan's mother's tone softened a bit, and I felt ashamed too, looking at other parents!
Chen Zihan's mother pulled a plastic bag from under the chair; inside was a blood-stained school uniform. She said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I haven't had a chance to wash it clean yet."

"It's okay, we can wash it ourselves," I said.

Chen Zihan's mother looked at Liu Zhenhua approvingly and said to me, "I often hear Chen Zihan talk about your child. He has a good personality and does well in his studies."

"My studies are just so-so, and I'm usually quite mischievous. The teacher just talked to me about it today."

"Boys are all mischievous, aren't they?" This was the first time the two parents had exchanged pleasantries since we arrived. Taking advantage of the warm atmosphere, I asked, "Is Chen Zihan's condition serious?"

Chen Zihan's mother sighed: "It's not good. He has intracranial hemorrhage and hasn't woken up yet."

Where is the child's father?

Chen Zihan's mother casually pointed to the wall in the corridor, which surprised me greatly. The child's father can't be hanging on the wall, can he?
"Her father is a doctor here."

I looked in the direction she pointed and saw a row of introductions of all the medical staff in the department hanging on the wall. Only one person surnamed Chen was listed first on the left. Chen Zihan's father was the director here. He was highly educated, had a strong resume, and had a bunch of impressive-sounding titles from various research organizations. And it really was hanging on the wall.

(End of this chapter)