Chapter 156 Cancer

Chapter 156 Cancer

It was only when Zhao Guangyuan requested a meeting that Huo Zongzhuo learned what had transpired—that Jiang Luo, much like the initial revelation at the banquet, had now proactively disclosed the truth about the switched babies.

Jiang Luo had known all along.

Zhao Guangyuan sighed. "Su Lan has taken it very hard and is now hospitalized."

"I'm also deeply concerned about Jiang Luo, which is why I sought you out."

"He's fine."

Huo Zongzhuo offered little else. "He's completely normal."

Zhao Guangyuan appeared to have aged dramatically overnight, his temples streaked with gray. "I never imagined the truth would be like this."

"I feel immense guilt, and so does Su Lan."

"If I had stayed by the delivery room, if Su Lan hadn't dozed off for that brief moment after giving birth, perhaps none of this would have happened."

Huo Zongzhuo calmly stated, "There's no point in dwelling on that now."

Jiang Luo's life was proceeding as usual: he was busy working and earning money, enjoying a loving relationship with Huo Zongzhuo, and socializing with his friends.

His life, or rather his existence, was so remarkably smooth it could almost be described as "perfect."

That is, until Wang Chuang called Jiang Luo from Shenzhen that day—

At the time, Huo Zongzhuo and Jiang Luo were dining with several finance professionals who had returned from the UK and US, as well as the President of the Bank of China and others.

They were enjoying their meal and lively conversation when Jiang Luo's phone rang.

Seeing it was Wang Chuang, Jiang Luo took the call, turning slightly away. Huo Zongzhuo glanced at him, a questioning look in his eyes. Jiang Luo simply said, "It's just Wang Chuang."

Jiang Luo rose and stepped aside to answer, while Huo Zongzhuo continued chatting with the others.

But as he stood by the window and answered, there was no sound on the other end. Jiang Luo held the phone to his ear, puzzled, and said, "Hello? Speak up."

Suddenly, Wang Chuang's uncontrollable sobbing erupted from the phone.

Jiang Luo froze, his expression immediately turning serious. "What's wrong?"

Wang Chuang was crying hysterically.

"Wang Chuang!"

Jiang Luo held the phone to his ear and walked out of the room.

Once outside the private dining room, he demanded, "Stop! Stop crying first! What happened?"

At the same time, he tried to guess, thinking it probably wasn’t about the company or the factory.

Wang Chuang was still crying, sobbing between words. "Luo-ge, Luo-ge…"

"What on earth is going on?"

Jiang Luo's heart clenched.

On the other end of the line, Wang Chuang cried as he spoke. "My mom, it's my mom…"

"What's wrong with Auntie?"

"My mom… my mom…"

Wang Chuang wept, wailing. "I just found out—they’ve been hiding it from me."

"What exactly is wrong?! Tell me!"

Jiang Luo insisted.

Wang Chuang cried out, "My mom has cancer! It's cancer! Breast cancer!"

Jiang Luo froze in place.

"Thud"—as his heart skipped a beat, the phone slipped from his hand and fell to the floor.

How could this be…

Jiang Luo remained frozen in shock for a long time.

He knelt, picked up the phone, closed his eyes for a moment, then calmly spoke into the receiver: "Give me the specifics. When did you find out? How long has Auntie been ill?"

After hanging up and returning to the private room, Jiang Luo sat down and leaned close to Huo Zongzhuo, whispering, "I have to leave now."

Hmm?

Huo Zongzhuo looked at him questioningly.

Jiang Luo said nothing but handed him the phone, showing him the text on the screen. It read: Wang Chuang's mom has cancer.

Huo Zongzhuo was surprised and immediately said, "I'll go with you."

He then turned to the table and told the others, "Something urgent has come up."

On the plane, noticing Jiang Luo seemed troubled, Huo Zongzhuo comforted him. "It's okay. Breast cancer isn’t a death sentence. It can be treated."

"If Shenzhen can’t handle it, we can go to Peking Union Medical College Hospital. If treatment here in China isn’t enough, we can find doctors abroad."

Jiang Luo glanced at Huo Zongzhuo but said nothing, leaning closer against him.

When they arrived at the hospital room, Wang Chuang, Mo Wanzhen, Wang Junwei, and the others were all there. Bai Ting was sitting on the hospital bed, smiling as if she had just been telling something amusing.

Seeing Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzhuo enter together, Bai Ting immediately exclaimed, "Oh dear, I knew it. I told you all not to come."

"It’s really nothing."

"Mom."

Wang Chuang called out "Mom," his voice immediately choking up. He turned his head away, trying to hold back tears.

Jiang Luo asked, "When did this start? How long has it been? What did the doctors say?"

It turned out Bai Ting had been experiencing discomfort in her chest earlier and saw a doctor in Shenzhen.

At first, the tests didn’t reveal anything—just a few nodules in her chest.

When the pain persisted, she had it checked again and underwent a detailed examination. Unfortunately, a tumor was found this time.

The tumor was initially small, and the doctor hoped to manage it with medication.

During this time, Bai Ting and Wang Junwei secretly visited the hospital, not daring to tell Wang Chuang and Mo Wanzhen, thinking it was minor and could be resolved.

It wasn’t until recently that the tumor grew and was no longer controllable. The hospital notified them that it had to be surgically removed. Only then did the couple realize they couldn't hide it any longer and finally told Wang Chuang and Mo Wanzhen.

After Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzhuo arrived and heard what happened, they immediately went to see Bai Ting’s doctor. Huo Zongzhuo even made some calls to try to find the top breast cancer specialist in Shenzhen.

After asking around, they confirmed that Bai Ting’s condition indeed required surgery, along with subsequent medication and chemotherapy.

As for whether it could be controlled, according to several experts: each case is different.

Bai Ting remained remarkably optimistic: "Luckily, I go for my yearly check-ups, so it was detected early. They'll remove it and I'll be fine, really."

Wang Chuang and the others felt that Bai Ting was putting on a brave face, not wanting them to worry, which was why she said that.

Only Jiang Luo seemed distracted, lost in thought.

Huo Zongzhuo knew Jiang Luo was worried about Bai Ting’s illness and comforted him: "The surgeon in Shenzhen is already among the best breast cancer specialists in the country. Don’t worry."

It went without saying that if Bai Ting was sick, the couple would definitely find the best doctors in Shenzhen.

Huo Zongzhuo added, "If the treatment goes smoothly, we’ll handle it here in Shenzhen."

"If it doesn’t, I’ll arrange for us to fly directly to Beijing and see specialists at Peking Union Medical College Hospital."

"Mm."

Jiang Luo didn’t say much and didn’t show much emotion.

It wasn’t until that evening, after visiting Bai Ting and returning home to Silver Lake, that Huo Zongzhuo casually brought something up as they entered: "By the way, in the past—in their previous life—did Wang Chuang’s mother also have this illness?"

Jiang Luo paused mid-step and turned around: "Yes."

"Was she cured?"

Huo Zongzhuo looked at Jiang Luo.

Jiang Luo met his gaze, without showing emotion. After a moment, he sighed deeply. "No, she passed away."

No wonder Jiang Luo had seemed troubled.

Huo Zongzhuo went over and slipped an arm around his shoulder. "It’s okay. It was caught early this time, and the outlook is positive. She can be cured."

Jiang Luo nodded: "I think so too. Luckily, it was found early."

But that night, after washing up and lying in bed, Jiang Luo found himself wondering again: Why? Why did he remind Wang Chuang to have Bai Ting get annual check-ups every year, yet she still got this illness?

Why?

Everything had changed.

Was this the only thing that wouldn’t change?

If so, then he…

Impossible!

Jiang Luo immediately denied the thought inwardly.

It can’t happen!

Bai Ting’s surgery was still a few days away. Huo Zongzhuo was too busy and, after making arrangements, flew out the next day.

Jiang Luo stayed.

He and Wang Chuang walked across the lawn outside the hospital inpatient building. Wang Chuang, hands in his pockets, took a deep breath in the bright sunlight. "If my mom doesn’t get better and passes away, I don't even want to think about it."

"It won’t happen. Don’t think like that."

Jiang Luo walked beside him.

Wang Chuang continued, "What’s the point of earning so much money? When you get sick, money can’t buy back your life."

"How can it not buy it back?"

Jiang Luo said, "What doesn’t require money? The private room, surgery fees, chemotherapy drugs—all of it costs money."

"True."

Wang Chuang chuckled. "I’m being silly, saying things like that."

"It’s fine. Don’t worry."

Jiang Luo reached out and patted Wang Chuang’s shoulder. "She’ll get better. Everything will be okay."

Wang Chuang turned to look at him and smiled. "Was I really pathetic crying like that the other day?"

"Softie."

But Jiang Luo added, "If I were you, I’d have cried even louder."

Wang Chuang chuckled happily.

Jiang Luo said, "Silly."

Jiang Luo received a call from Huo Zongzhuo, who told him, "I made some calls and pulled some strings. The surgery has been moved up. They added an extra slot that day—it’s for Auntie."

They chatted a bit about Bai Ting’s condition. Huo Zongzhuo said, "I’ll come the day before the surgery."

Jiang Luo replied lightly, "It’s fine if you can’t make it."

"I should," Huo Zongzhuo said gently. "You see her as family, and your family is my family too."

"Okay."

Jiang Luo smiled.

After hanging up, Jiang Luo was about to go upstairs when he caught sight of a line on the directory sign in front of the building. Staring at the words "Respiratory Medicine," he froze—what about him? Bai Ting still got breast cancer. Would he, too, end up scheduling an appointment with the respiratory medicine specialist someday in the future?

Jiang Luo made up his mind. He couldn’t keep it a secret any longer. He had to tell Huo Zongzhuo.

The night before Bai Ting’s surgery, Huo Zongzhuo’s flight landed, and he came to the hospital immediately to see Bai Ting. Bai Ting, aware of how busy Huo Zongzhuo was and that he had flown back and forth for her, felt deeply apologetic.

"I want to tell you something."

Leaving the hospital and returning to the car, Jiang Luo had given Huo Zongzhuo a heads-up earlier.

"What's wrong?"

Huo Zongzhuo paid attention to every word Jiang Luo said.

Jiang Luo looked relaxed. "Let's go home first. I'll tell you when we get home."

Huo Zongzhuo responded naturally. "Good news or bad news?"

Jiang Luo thought for a moment. "Not exactly bad news, I guess."

But it wasn't exactly good news either.

Once they returned home to Silver Lake, before even taking off his shoes, Jiang Luo faced Huo Zongzhuo, put his hands on Huo Zongzhuo's shoulders, looked down thoughtfully, then looked up calmly. "Do you remember? I mentioned to you what they called the TV tower, what happened in '95, and what happened in '96."

"Hmm."

Huo Zongzhuo remembered clearly—it had left a deep impression. He even recalled that night when Jiang Luo played "Dream Wedding" for him.

"Actually, I..."

Jiang Luo paused, lowered his gaze, then lifted it again, speaking calmly. "I lied to you that time."

"What?"

Jiang Luo looked into Huo Zongzhuo's eyes. "It wasn't that I didn't want to tell you what happened in the year 2000..."

Huo Zongzhuo met his gaze quietly, waiting.

Jiang Luo paused again. "I lied to you. It wasn't that I didn't want to tell you—it's that I didn't know."

Jiang Luo felt apologetic for what he was about to say next. He thought those words would sound cruel to Huo Zongzhuo. He didn't want to hurt him, but he had to say it.

"I didn't experience the year 2000. I don't know what major events happened that year."

Jiang Luo looked at Huo Zongzhuo, his expression instinctively showing a trace of sorrow.

He couldn't hold back; his emotions welled up, and his eyes reddened. "Because by that time, I was also sick."

"I died a few days before New Year's Eve of 1999, in Beijing, at Union Hospital."

Jiang Luo finally uttered the two words he had always kept deeply hidden:

"Lung cancer."