Seventh Year Of Separation chapter 57
ICU
Gu Jiahe drove all the way and finally caught the last high-speed train back to Pingcheng.
They didn’t even bring any luggage, just boarded the train with a mobile phone charger.
At half past ten in the deep night, the high-speed train rushed away from the platform.
The two sat at the back of the carriage, watching the dark plains rapidly recede from the window.
Li Zhao sat by the window, repeatedly lighting up and dimming the screen of his phone, lips tightly sealed, not saying a word.
After some thought, Gu Jiahe reached out and covered the back of his hand.
At three-thirty in the morning, the two finally got off the high-speed train. They stood in the cold wind for twenty minutes before finally getting a taxi.
They bumped all the way and took a taxi to the hospital.
Li Zhao went to the ward sent by Song Ling, but when he pushed open the door, it was pitch black inside, and there was no one on either of the two beds.
Gu Jiahe quickly backed out and found the nurse’s station, asking the duty nurse, “Hello, where did the patient from bed 27 go?”
“Are you a family member of Li Guoyi?” the nurse asked, looking up.
Gu Jiahe’s Adam’s apple moved, “I’m not, he is.”
Li Zhao hurriedly followed up, “Yes, where is he now? There’s no one in the ward.”
The nurse finally answered, “The patient’s condition is not very good. He was just transferred to the ICU.”
“Where’s the ICU?” Li Zhao was so anxious that he couldn’t speak clearly.
“I know where it is,” Gu Jiahe pulled him and ran wildly.
Gu Jiahe pulled him into the elevator, “ICU on the third floor, but you probably won’t be allowed to visit. Only one person is allowed to visit at a fixed time each day, and they have to wear isolation suits.”
Gu Jiahe seemed to be more familiar with the hospital than his own home.
Gu Jiahe followed Li Zhao to the entrance of the ICU.
The sun had not yet risen in the early morning, and it was cold at the entrance of the ICU.
The long corridor had a window that was slightly open, allowing the cold wind to blow in.
A huge electronic clock hung on the bleak wall.
Underneath the clock sat a woman.
She covered her face, lowered her head, and made no sound.
“Mom,” Li Zhao called out to her.
Song Ling suddenly raised her head as if startled.
Gu Jiahe looked at the woman in front of him, dressed in a woolen suit, but she looked a bit older than the last time they met.
She looked up at Li Zhao and quickly got up to walk over.
Soon she also saw Gu Jiahe. Her gaze stayed on him for two seconds before she turned her head away, no longer looking at him.
Li Zhao asked, “How’s dad?”
Song Ling shook her head, tears seeming to well up in her eyes, “Not good. The doctor said he’s having difficulty breathing on his own.”
Li Zhao still couldn’t believe it, “How did it suddenly become so serious? Didn’t he just have a cough during Chinese New Year?”
“Yes. At that time, it was just a cough. None of us expected it to be so serious. Who knew it would worsen suddenly yesterday? He said he couldn’t breathe at home. So I brought him to the hospital. After taking an X-ray, the doctor said it was not good. His blood oxygen level was also very low, so he had to be admitted to the hospital immediately.”
Li Zhao rubbed his forehead and asked, “Where’s the doctor’s office?”
Song Ling replied softly, “Go to the end, then turn left. He’s probably not there now; he’ll come in the morning.”
Li Zhao could only sit with her on the bench outside the ICU. The blinds on the window made a rustling sound with the breeze, disturbing people’s minds.
Gu Jiahe stood beside them alone, accompanying the two.
Li Zhao asked him to sit down, but he didn’t. After a while, Gu Jiahe rushed to the end of the corridor.
Five minutes later, he came back with two bags, a little out of breath, “I bought some breakfast at the hospital cafeteria. You guys should eat something first.”
Song Ling looked up at his eyes but didn’t reach out to take them.
Li Zhao quickly took the bags and pulled him to sit beside him, “You should eat too.”
Gu Jiahe hadn’t had time to change and was still wearing thin sports pants.
For some reason, the sunrise was very late today, and it wasn’t until after six o’clock that a little sunlight came in. The corridor was still very cold, and Gu Jiahe shivered.
At seven o’clock, nurses began to come in and out of the ICU. Li Zhao followed them to take a look inside, but he saw nothing.