Chapter 5: Standoff and Asking for the Lion’s Share

Chapter 5: Standoff and Asking for the Lion's Share

"Excuse me, let me through! I know first aid!"

There were too many people, and Ye Qing couldn't squeeze her way in. Out of options, she shouted from behind.

Sure enough, the crowd immediately parted to make a path for her.

Ye Qing hurriedly ducked through.

In the middle of the tram, an elderly woman with gray hair lay unconscious on the floor. The woman had completely lost consciousness.

Kneeling down beside the elderly woman, Ye Qing checked her condition and asked, "Can someone tell me what happened? Was there anything unusual with the elderly woman?"

Immediately, a concerned passenger replied, "She was sitting right here, and then suddenly, without any warning, she started convulsing before collapsing."

Ye Qing had studied clinical medicine, but before the apocalypse, she hadn't graduated from college yet.

When the apocalypse hit, global disasters struck daily, causing countless people to get injured or fall ill. Hospitals were severely understaffed, and as a result, all the half-baked medical students were conscripted by the government and had to step up.

Ye Qing went from studying clinical medicine to becoming a general practitioner. There was no distinction between internal and external medicine anymore; they had to treat every patient that came in.

Of course, in the beginning, Ye Qing only assisted in the departments, but by the third year, she awakened a healing ability. With this talent as an aid, her medical skills visibly skyrocketed.

By the tenth year, her wood-element ability had barely reached level two. By then, she could handle cases independently and had earned some fame and status in the survivor base.

However, by that time, her relatives and friends were gone, and the survivor base was showing signs of collapse. She felt like she was about to reach her limit too.

But that's beside the point.

Right now, after briefly probing the elderly woman with her ability, Ye Qing had already figured out what was going on.

Without further delay, she quickly adjusted the woman's posture to ensure her airway was fully open. She then undid the woman's shirt and began pressing down hard and fast on her sternum with the heels of her hands.

During the compressions, a faint green wood-element ability quietly seeped into the old woman's heart and lungs.

CPR and artificial respiration continued for about four to five minutes. Ye Qing's arms were starting to ache from exhaustion when the elderly woman finally stirred back to consciousness.

"Oh, she's awake! It's a miracle!"

As soon as the elderly woman regained consciousness, all eyes turned to Ye Qing in surprise and curiosity.

Wiping the sweat from her forehead, Ye Qing said to the surrounding passengers with some embarrassment, "Could you all please step back a little? It's too crowded, and it's not good for the patient's breathing."

The people were mostly kind-hearted and helpful. Hearing Ye Qing's request, they immediately stepped back, clearing the central area.

Although the elderly woman had regained consciousness, she was still confused. Ye Qing leaned in and asked her a few questions, but the woman couldn't respond.

With no other choice, Ye Qing asked the driver to head to the nearest hospital.

The elderly woman had suffered an acute myocardial infarction caused by coronary atherosclerosis. Although Ye Qing's first aid had stabilized her, it didn't mean the patient was out of danger yet. She needed to be taken to the hospital as soon as possible.

Of course, with Ye Qing's wood-element ability, she could have healed the elderly woman on the spot if she injected a large amount of her ability. But Ye Qing wasn't foolish; she wouldn't put herself at risk for a complete stranger.

Being able to help stabilize the elderly woman's life was already more than generous.

When the passengers heard that the elderly woman was still in critical condition, they immediately agreed that the driver should change course to the hospital.

Soon, with the help of many concerned people, the elderly woman was taken to the nearest People's Hospital.

Ye Qing followed into the emergency room and briefly explained the situation to the doctors.

Since they didn't know the elderly woman's background yet, Ye Qing had to pay the ten-dollar medical fee out of her own pocket.

Of course, Ye Qing didn't plan to be an anonymous hero. When she paid the fee, she left her name and contact information, intending to get the money back from the elderly woman's family when they arrived.

After seeing the elderly woman being wheeled into the operating room, Ye Qing finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Since she was already at the hospital, she wasn't in a hurry to go back. She took the opportunity to handle something she had been thinking about since she had crossed into this era.

She registered herself for a detailed cardiology check-up.

After all the commotion, it was already dark when she got back on the tram to head home.

Thinking about the situation when she had left home in the morning, Ye Qing guessed that the Ye family hadn't saved her dinner. Not wanting to go hungry late at night, she decided to eat out before returning home.

At that time, the state-run restaurant had just opened. She got off the tram and headed straight to the state-run restaurant at the old street by the pond. She ordered two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and half a jin (250g) of rice, spending five jiao (0.5 yuan), along with two meat coupons and one grain coupon.

Not having tasted pork for many years, Ye Qing felt like she could devour an entire pig. The chefs at the state-run restaurant were genuinely skilled. Even these three ordinary home-cooked dishes were so delicious that she almost swallowed her tongue.

She finished all three dishes and half a jin of rice, even using the remaining sauce to mix with her rice.

Her ravenous eating style would have been embarrassing in the pre-apocalyptic era, but in this era, it was understandable.

In the 1970s, everyone lived frugally, and the awareness of cherishing food was deeply ingrained in the souls of nearly everyone. So, eating like Ye Qing wasn't uncommon, and her voracious appetite didn't stand out much.

After eating her fill, Ye Qing wiped the oil from the corner of her mouth and returned to the tube-shaped building compound with satisfaction.

However, as soon as she opened the door to her home, a broom flew toward her.

Realizing the danger, Ye Qing reacted quickly and immediately dodged to the side.

The broom fell to the ground, and Mother Ye’s curses followed closely after:

"You still know to come back? Look at the time, do you even know what hour it is? Your father and your older brother have been busy at the factory all day, and when they come home, they can’t even get a hot meal. Have you no conscience at all? Why don’t you just die outside already?"

Ye Qing’s eyes turned cold.

"So, am I the only one in this family who has hands? Dad and Brother have to work, but you, Eldest Sister, and Little Sister don’t need to work, do you? Only I can cook, and all of you just sit around waiting to eat. Am I this family’s nanny? After cooking for so many years, I take a single day off and still get scolded for having no conscience. What does that make all of you who have been living off my labor?"

Mother Ye was shocked and taken aback by her second daughter’s sudden rebellious attitude. But soon, she snapped back, flying into a rage:

"Listen to the nonsense you’re spouting! What do you mean by living off your labor? Do you think it was easy raising you all these years? I’m not asking for much in return, just that you cook a few meals. And yet you have so much resentment. You’re truly a white-eyed wolf that can’t be warmed up! It’s a good thing we sent you to the countryside; if we had kept you here, you’d probably end up holding a grudge!"

Mentioning the countryside only reminded Ye Qing of the poor girl who had died of a heart attack.

Ye Qing looked at Mother Ye and asked with a smile:

"Do you know that your second daughter has a heart condition?"

Mother Ye was stunned.

Father Ye and the other siblings who had come out upon hearing the commotion were also left speechless by Ye Qing’s words.

Ye Qing’s expression was cold, and her gaze swept over everyone present:

"Do you know that Ye Qing has a congenital heart valve defect, that she can’t endure excessive fatigue, stress, or heavy physical labor?"

"Thanks to all of you, her condition has worsened due to overwork and malnutrition. She doesn’t have many years left to live, and she might not even make it through the countryside trip."

A deathly silence filled the room.

A flash of shock crossed Mother Ye’s eyes, but she hadn’t noticed that Ye Qing had spoken in the third person. After a few seconds of stunned silence, she snapped back:

"Heart condition? Don’t try to make up nonsense to scare us. Just because you fabricated a reason doesn’t mean you can avoid going to the countryside! I’m telling you, the revolutionary committee’s list is final. Even if you die, you’ll die on the train to the countryside!"

At this, the others in the room also came to their senses.

"Ye Qing, can you stop being so willful? This is the policy now. Every family has to send someone. Your brother has a job, and your elder sister has a partner. It’s most appropriate for you to go to the countryside! You need to have a sense of the bigger picture and a spirit of dedication. Don’t make things difficult for your mother and me!" Father Ye launched into a lecture.

"Yes, second sister," Ye Hong chimed in, her words dripping with sarcasm. "Comrade Leader has said that the countryside is vast and full of opportunities. You don’t have a job in the city, so it’s better to go to the countryside to farm. Besides, you’re used to doing household chores, so you’ll be able to handle it there. Unlike me, I don’t even know how to cook or prepare dishes."

Ye Zhi Gao looked righteous and stern:

"She’s just spoiled and can’t handle hardship, trying to avoid going to the countryside. Parents, elder sister, there’s no need to say so much to her. The spot is already decided. If she dares to be a deserter, just let the revolutionary committee arrest her!"

Though Ye Zhiyuan and Ye Xia remained silent, their eyes were filled with disgust and contempt. Clearly, everyone believed that the heart condition was just an excuse Ye Qing made up to avoid going to the countryside.

Ye Qing knew that the Ye family had little emotional attachment to the original body, but she hadn’t expected them to be so cold and heartless.

Since that was the case, she saw no need to continue with false pleasantries.

She nodded:

"Even though you’ve bullied me for so many years, I thought there was still some family affection left. I didn’t expect it to be all in my head."

"But since that’s the case, it’s easier."

"You want me to go to the countryside? That’s fine, but first, let’s talk about the handover before I leave."

"First, this morning when the revolutionary committee delivered the notice, they gave 250 yuan as a resettlement fee. You need to give me every single penny of that money!"

"Second, prepare ten jin of new cotton, an additional 300 yuan for my personal expenses, and a watch."

"Without these things, you can forget about sending me to the countryside!"

Ye Qing’s demands were outrageous.

Not to mention the extra 300 yuan and a watch; even the 250 yuan resettlement fee was something Mother Ye had planned to keep for herself and had never intended to hand over to Ye Qing.

Hearing such absurd demands, the others were left speechless, but Mother Ye was furious:

"You’re not suffering from a heart condition; you’re out of your mind! Do you think I’d prepare all these things for you? You must be dreaming!"

Ye Qing wasn’t surprised by Mother Ye’s reaction.

But she remained calm, pulling out a medical certificate from the hospital’s cardiology department that she had obtained that afternoon:

"If you don’t agree, that’s fine too. I’ll just go to the revolutionary committee tomorrow."

"I’m sure with this certificate, they’ll reconsider the family member to be sent to the countryside. After all, they probably wouldn’t want an educated youth to die on the train to the countryside, right?"