"So, Doctor, you mean his heart function is failing?"
"You could say that."
"Does that mean he..."
"You want to ask how long he has to live, don't you?"
The doctor adjusted his glasses.
"You're young, and I won't beat around the bush. Medically speaking, we don't usually give exact answers because there are always exceptions."
"But based on big data, it won't be long. The family should be mentally prepared."
Zhou Jinbei exploded.
"Mentally prepared for what? Prepared to let him die?"
"No. We want to save him! I don't want him to die!"
The doctor raised his hand, signaling her to be quiet.
He saw all sorts of family members every day; no reaction surprised him.
"Alright, since you want to save him, then surgery is the only way."
"We'll do a pathological analysis as soon as possible to confirm the cause of his heart failure."
"If it's arterial stenosis, it can be improved with a stent."
"If there's a problem with the heart valves, it can also be improved by replacing the heart valves."
As long as the doctor said it could be improved, Zhou Jinbei felt relieved.
She asked about the cost of stents and valve replacement.
"About 500,000. Prepare at most 500,000, and it should basically cover it."
500,000.
For Zhou Jinbei, who had been pampered since childhood, spending over ten thousand on skincare and over a hundred thousand on a bag, it wasn't really a lot.
But that was in the past.
A year ago, she would have scoffed at this figure.
But now...
With less than 5,000 yuan in her account, asking her to prepare 500,000 was like a fantasy.
Zhong's father was sleeping, and Zhou Jinbei leaned against the windowsill, looking out.
She couldn't help but think about her future again.
Since childhood, her father had instilled in her a belief.
Money is earned, not saved.
Only by doing business or entering politics can one change their destiny.
Relying on working for others was impossible.
Thanks to the care of Zhan Bei Jue and Jiang Nan Fang, she had been very happy working at Zhan's these past few months.
She had no worries about food or clothing.
Although she always told herself to work hard and learn from Jiang Nan Fang, she hadn't taken any actual action.
Until today, she understood.
She couldn't go on like this anymore.
She couldn't always expect others to lend a hand when facing problems.
If she didn't start thinking about making money, she wouldn't have the face to approach anyone when problems arose in the future.
In this world, one can live without a man, but without money, one definitely cannot survive.
She couldn't spend her days thinking about romance anymore.
Speaking of starting a business and borrowing money.
The first person Zhou Jinbei thought of was Chen Jiaojiao.
Because she had been in Jincheng for the past few days, she really wanted to catch up with her.
However, things were too busy, and their positions were different, so it was delayed.
Today, whether she made the call or not, she had to.
Unexpectedly, Chen Jiaojiao was in Nancheng at this very moment.
An hour later, they met at a coffee shop two streets away from the hospital.
Chen Jiaojiao was as glamorous as ever.
She wore a black spaghetti strap top, paired with wide-leg jeans, and strappy sandals.
With exquisite makeup, wavy hair, sunglasses, and a designer bag, she walked in with the demeanor of a movie star.
Then looking at herself.
Barefaced, with her hair in a messy bun.
A dress she had worn for two days and hadn't had time to change.
The contrast was stark.
Zhou Jinbei couldn't help but mock herself.
"We're both called rich second generation, but look at you, and then look at me."
"You're a rich second generation dripping with wealth, and I'm a negative second generation in debt. People really can't be compared."
Since the night of her wedding, Chen Jiaojiao hadn't seen Lu Mingzhe again.
Of course, she hadn't seen Hu Jiasheng either.
Every day she was alone in the marital home, sleeping, drinking alone, drinking alone, sleeping.
Like a wandering ghost.
If her condition weren't so bad, she wouldn't bother putting on such heavy makeup to see Zhou Jinbei.
No one knew the specifics of anyone else's situation.
She chuckled self-mockingly and said.
"We haven't seen each other for so long, aren't you just meeting me to complain?"
"What happened? Why are you in debt?"
Chen Jiaojiao knew everything about Zhou Jinbei and Zhong, so she didn't hide it from her.
She told her about her father's accident.
"He's overwhelmed with work in Jincheng right now, and I don't want to distract him."
"Let's just say after this is done, I won't owe him anything, and I won't care about him anymore. Help me out. Lend me 500,000."
Chen Jiaojiao was feeling very disappointed with love and life at the moment.
Seeing Zhou Jinbei getting pregnant for someone else and rushing to treat his father, she looked down on her.
"You're as beautiful as a flower, usually as sharp as a rabbit, but why do you act so foolish when it comes to men?"
"What do you owe him? Because you didn't give birth to the child for him, so you owe him?"
"And you want to compensate him? And borrow money to treat his father? Zhou Jinbei, you might as well have 'saint' written on your forehead, do you know that?"
Zhou Jinbei knew.
Given her situation with Ah Zhong, she had no standing to treat someone else's father.
It was normal for Chen Jiaojiao to look down on her.
She had already prepared herself mentally.
"What can I do? I like him."
"No wonder your parents disagreed with you two being together. Men who are incompetent just make women worry endlessly and suffer endlessly!"
Chen Jiaojiao felt it wasn't worth it for her.
"Fortunately, he only has a father, not a mother. If he had a mother, and then you had children, with the elderly above and the young below, relying on him alone to support the family? Ha!"
Zhou Jinbei looked at her. "So, are you going to lend it to me or not?"
Chen Jiaojiao thought for a moment.
"He'll find out about this eventually. Do you think he'll repay the money?"
Zhou Jinbei had a feeling Ah Zhong was a person of integrity and would definitely repay it.
But she was also conflicted; she didn't want him to repay it.
"I'm willing to help him. We'll talk about the future later."
"Then record a video for me. Guarantee this is the last time you'll help him, otherwise, I won't lend it to you."
Zhou Jinbei was already a bit embarrassed talking about these things with her.
Although Chen Jiaojiao meant well for her, she went too far as they talked.
Zhou Jinbei felt mortified.
"Chen Jiaojiao, don't you think you're hurting my self-esteem?"
"I hurt your self-esteem? Who ever cared about my self-esteem?"
In the end, Chen Jiaojiao was just feeling miserable.
She wanted to get Zhou Jinbei's attention and have her comfort her.
"You keep saying we're good friends, why didn't you come to my wedding with Lu Mingzhe?"
Zhou Jinbei flinched, almost spitting out her coffee.
"What? You got married to Lu Mingzhe? When did that happen? I didn't know!"
Chen Jiaojiao took off her sunglasses, letting her see her eyes.
They were swollen like peaches.
"I just suffered the consequences of love. I just don't want you to follow my old path, to be heartbroken and lose money."
"Not a single man in this world is good. Not—one! Beibei, I advise you to stop being foolish."