Chapter 1048: Chapter 1048: You Really Need to Be Careful
(Thanks to Desert Lone Wolf for the reward and monthly vote encouragement, and thanks to bunkerchina, Uneasy Madman, Roaming Wind, Mischievous Dragon 1976, and Rice Noodles@Sky for the monthly vote encouragement)
"I know I’m going to have troubles for sure, so let’s not focus on my problems right now. Let’s first look into your issues," Liu Banxia said.
The patient laughed, "Do you always persuade patients who don’t want to undergo surgery like this?"
"Not always. It depends on the situation," Liu Yiqing said.
"Your issue isn’t that serious. You just need to remove this tumor. What about those third-stage or fourth-stage cancer patients who really want surgery?"
"My situation isn’t the same as theirs, right? If I had a choice, wouldn’t I choose it? My situation is very special," the patient thought for a moment and said.
"On the way back, I kept thinking about it. Now I’ve made up my mind and I’ll be even more determined to not have the surgery."
"Maybe if I have the surgery, I can live healthily. But that version of me would be soulless. It’d be no different from being dead, just eating, sleeping, with no joy."
Liu Banxia frowned. Although the patient kept talking about fortune-telling, he no longer felt that it was the real reason.
Don’t judge him by his initial reaction when hearing the news. Through observing the patient, he had a different thought now.
The patient’s calmness was telling. Someone making such a decision in such a short time must be very rational.
Like the patient said, it’s a deliberate choice, going to death with this brain tumor.
For an average person, could they decide so quickly? Liu Banxia felt he couldn’t reach such a rational level.
This indicated that something was off about the patient, and not due to the brain tumor.
In his gut feeling, the patient seemed rather peculiar.
"Even if you keep watching me, I won’t have the surgery. Do I need to sign any documents? If not, I’ll be leaving," the patient said.
"No need for documents. We’ll mark it clearly in your medical record," Liu Banxia said.
"You almost had me convinced. Can you explain why you’re so set on dying? Your words spun me into confusion."
"I just feel like living is tough, and it takes a lot of courage to want to die. You’re very rational, making money from fortune-telling but different from other fortune-tellers."
"No matter where your insights come from, no matter how mysterious, you’re accurate, so many people must seek you out for fortune-telling."
"You don’t love money. If you did, even after surgery, without your fortune-telling skills, you could still make money by deceiving people."
"There are doctor-patient confidentiality agreements. Nobody would know if you had the surgery, and your fame would let you keep making money."
"Not loving money, not loving life. I can’t think of anything else, except you don’t want to live, maybe even hope to die. That’s the only explanation."
"But I’m unsure about my analysis. It’s based on my clinical experience and your behavior, not predictions. I lack your skills."
The patient was slightly stunned but nodded, "I’ve truly lived enough. I don’t have the courage to kill myself. Isn’t getting a brain tumor just convenient?"
Liu Yiqing was startled, not expecting such a reason.
"How can you think like that? Deciding to die, haven’t you considered your family?" Liu Yiqing said, her tone sharp.
"They like my money. Whether I live or die doesn’t seem to matter to them," the patient said with a smile.
"I’ve earned enough for them to spend. If I die, I’ll find peace. Every family has its pains. What looks perfect may be full of resentment."
"They’re still my parents. I can’t do anything to them. But I resent them. What should I do? If I bottle it up, what if something serious happens?"
"Nonsense. Thinking of earning money for them, how could you have those thoughts?" Liu Banxia said.
"No need for excuses. You’re just giving yourself a reason to feel justified."
"They may have faults since I don’t know your family or situation. But if you can say this, they’re not the reason you want to die."
"Sigh... If it’s not money, it must be for love. Failed relationship due to your parents? You can still try again. Why take such an extreme path?"
The patient gave him a glance, "I think you should try fortune-telling. You’d be quite accurate."
"You’re flattering me. In my simple mind, for someone to feel so trapped they want to die, it’s either money or love. Can you tell me otherwise? No chance to reconcile with an ex?" Liu Banxia said.
The patient nodded with a smile, "It’s irreversible. She’s been dead for four years now. How can it be undone? I can tell fortunes but can’t bring people back to life. No matter how skilled you are in medicine, once a person is dead, they’re dead."
Liu Yiqing was getting anxious. What a situation, the more they talked, the more severe it seemed to become.
Initially, when listening to Liu Banxia, she thought the guesses were pretty accurate, and she felt a bit pleased inside. Since the guesses were accurate, surely with Teacher Liu’s persuasive ability, the patient could be talked into having surgery.
But now it’s over; it’s such a deep-seated issue that no amount of persuasion would work.
"Can you talk about it?" Liu Banxia asked again.
Liu Yiqing glared at Liu Banxia, actually trying to give him a hint, but she was so anxious that her eyes widened completely.
How could you persuade someone like that? Isn’t this just poking at someone’s wound? And doing it quite forcefully.
"It’s nothing, really. In my sophomore year, I accidentally got pregnant. I planned to take a year off and have the baby," the patient said straightforwardly.
"But you have to tell your family about this kind of thing, right? My parents disagreed, saying it would delay my studies. Then, they secretly found her, and I don’t know what they said, but she jumped into a river."
"What would you do if it were you, facing parents like mine? Every day I live in regret. She initially wanted to abort the baby, but I insisted on keeping it."
At this point, the patient’s inner world was truly touched, and tears rolled down from the corners of his eyes.
Liu Yiqing hurriedly found some tissues and stuffed them into his hands.
"We’ve basically figured out the situation. The hallucinations you’re seeing are related to your deceased girlfriend, right?" Liu Banxia said.
The patient was slightly stunned, then slowly nodded.
"Two years ago, I wanted to commit suicide, and I even prepared the medicine. But then I suddenly saw her and heard her speak, so I persevered," the patient said.
"I don’t know anything, it’s all her telling me. She said you two are good people, that doctors are mostly good, saving lives and helping the wounded."
"So in your current situation, I can’t believe she didn’t tell you how to face it," Liu Banxia said.
"She surely wants me to have the surgery, but if I do, I won’t be able to see her again. How is that different from dying?"
"Strictly speaking, your thinking can’t be considered wrong, given the complexity of your current situation," Liu Banxia nodded.
"If anyone dared to touch my wife, I would certainly fight back. But when it comes to my parents, all that anger just has to be swallowed."
"This is your business, and I won’t advise you on what to do. I’m just talking a lot and mentioning some possible scenarios for you to consider."
"When your brain tumor acts up and you’re nearing death, will your girlfriend, or rather your wife, be happy to welcome your arrival?"
"I don’t know how others live, but I’ll just talk about my own family. No matter if a dish is delicious or not, if my wife and I find it tasty, we’ll leave some for each other."
"Take durian, for instance; my wife finds it really fragrant. I tried very hard to eat it, but it’s truly stinky to me. She finally realized I genuinely don’t like it and gave up."
"So now, when she wants to eat it and it’s hot, she’ll eat outside. When it’s cool, she’ll eat when I’m not home, still considering me."
"I’m not a relationship guru, and having this wife is almost like picking one up. If you’re interested, you can search for titles like ’a doctor who lives off a woman,’ and you’ll surely find me."
"I cherish her, so I don’t care what others say. Besides, what if I do live off her? What’s it to anyone else if it’s delicious or not? Who can say for sure there’s no genuine love in it?"
"Couples can’t always think about themselves; even if they manage to keep going, life would be hard. As they say in idol dramas, lovers are often more important than oneself, right?"
"I’ll give you some time here in this treatment room to consider. No matter what you decide, I have to treat you to lunch. You told my fortune, and I can’t just benefit from that."
After saying this, Liu Banxia signaled to Liu Yiqing with a look.
The patient frowned, "You really need to be careful this time. The trouble won’t be easy to handle; Ya told me, and said it several times."
Liu Banxia nodded with a smile, "Thank Ya for me, and have a good talk with her."
What surprised Liu Yiqing was that after hearing Liu Banxia’s words, the patient actually stood up voluntarily and bowed to Liu Banxia.
"I don’t deserve it, I’ll leave this place for you guys and open another treatment room," Liu Banxia said, stepping aside and patting his shoulder.
Liu Yiqing was a bit bewildered, following Liu Banxia in a daze, not really understanding what had just happened.
