Two days later.
In the morning, Aron, who was having breakfast, already had a pile of empty plates beside him.
Perhaps because he hadn't eaten for two days or because of the two months, Aron felt extremely hungry and needed a lot of food, as if his stomach were an endless abyss that was never satisfied. He had no idea how many servings he had eaten since he started.
Sima Kong, who was sitting across from him, seemed unfazed by it. As a martial artist, he knew that the body required a lot of nutrients to continuously replenish its blood and qi. Especially for Aron, who had just stepped into the ranks of martial artists.
After all, his butcher house was a place where wild and mutated animals were slaughtered, so he would not lack meat. Moreover, seeing Aron in front of him looking healthy and eating heartily made Sima Kong feel both happy and relieved.
"Uncle Kong," after finishing his last plate, Aron suddenly said, looking at Sima Kong with a bit of embarrassment and hesitation to speak.
"Do you need money?" Sima Kong seemed to notice and immediately asked without waiting for an explanation, "How much do you need?"
Aron felt truly embarrassed upon hearing the question. Honestly, he didn't know what to say about the kindness of someone who was not even his biological uncle.
Yes, Sima Kong was actually a good friend of Aron's father in the past. They had known each other for quite a long time, and both families were like siblings.
Sima Kong and Aron's father had traveled together during the chaos a few years ago. They had relied on and saved each other many times during the turmoil, which ultimately strengthened their bond, even when Sima Kong lost his wife and children in the chaos.
At that time, when Aron's father passed away, Sima Kong promised to take care of his family. Even when Aron's mother eventually also passed away, Sima Kong had asked to make Aron and Jia Chen his godsons.
However, because of the overwhelming kindness Aron had received since then, he felt too embarrassed to accept it.
Unexpectedly, even now, Sima Kong was still a truly good person to him. In a chaotic world like this, even though Aron did not call Sima Kong his father, in his heart, he had already acknowledged him as a second father.
"Is 10,000 marks enough?" Sima Kong asked again when he saw Aron not answering.
"No, no, no," Aron quickly shook his head and hurriedly replied, "2,000 is enough!"
"What? 2,000? Are you joking?" Sima Kong looked a bit angry and without further ado, directly handed him a stack of money amounting to 10,000 marks.
"Take it!"
"Uncle Kong…" Aron was left speechless when he saw the pile of money in his hands. Especially when he saw Uncle Kong take out the money without asking much, as if he had been prepared for it for a long time.
"Don't think too much! As a fighter, I know you must need a lot of money to do something! If you still consider me your uncle, take that money!" This time, Sima Kong's tone sounded like an order that could not be disputed.
Hearing that, Aron's heart felt warm, and his eyes became slightly wet. In his heart, he silently vowed that if one day he had good things, he would not forget his uncle.
Aron was truly grateful because, as Sima Kong had said, he really needed money to do something he had always dreamed of.
"One more thing," Sima Kong spoke again, reminding Aron, "Don't use that money to pay for Jiajia's treatment; your uncle Kim Yoon has already covered her medical expenses for half a year. Just use that money for your own needs."
Aron nodded in understanding, with overflowing feelings in his heart, and said, "If that's the case, Uncle Kong, I will go to see Jiajia first."
"Go ahead. It's been more than two months since you last visited her; that little girl must be very happy to see you come." As he spoke, Sima Kong seemed to be shooing him away.
Aron smiled wryly and nodded his head upon hearing those words.
"Thank you, Uncle Kong," said Aron before finally turning and walking out.
"Hey…" Sima Kong suddenly sighed deeply and felt a bit sad as he watched Aron's back grow distant.
It was as if he felt guilty for something he should have said to Aron but couldn't bring himself to say it.
___
Back at the hospital located in the city center, with money in his pocket, Aron was in a very good mood.
Walking to Jia Chen's room, Aron couldn't wait to share the good news about his promotion to a martial artist with Jiajia.
However, his mood slightly fluctuated when he saw Doctor An, who was busy in the hospital ward and frowned several times while checking Jia Chen's condition.
"Doctor An, is something wrong?"
Doctor An, who was busy examining Jia Chen's body, immediately stopped when she heard the question. When she saw that it was Aron, she smiled slightly and said, "Oh, it's you, kid! It's been two months since you last came; I thought you had an accident. But your uncle said you were busy and would come back later. Seeing you now, it seems you're doing fine."
"Thank you for your concern, Doctor An. Everything is fine; I will continue to come here as before," Aron replied with a slight smile while looking at Jia Chen on the bed.
Not long after, his expression changed, and he unconsciously frowned when he noticed that Jia Chen's beautiful face now looked a bit paler than what he had seen last time.
"Why does Jiajia look pale? Doctor An, what happened to Jiajia? Is the hospital not taking good care of her because I haven't come? I have money; just tell me how much is needed, and I will pay it immediately!"
"Didn't your Uncle Kong tell you earlier?" Without answering, Doctor An asked Aron back with a strange look.
Aron quickly nodded and replied, "Uncle Kong said that Jiajia's medical expenses were covered by a friend of his. So there shouldn't be anything wrong with Jiajia. But why does her face look pale and seem thinner?"
Not answering immediately, Doctor An observed Aron's panicked face for a while and realized that Sima Kong seemed not to have said everything he should have said.
Reluctantly, she sighed deeply and, with a slightly serious voice, said, "Aron, you should know that since Jiajia fell ill, it has been over four years and eight months. If we refer to your mother's condition in the past, Jiajia only has about four months left. With her current condition, that assumption seems to be more than just an assumption."
Aron's heart sank to the bottom upon hearing Doctor An's words. His face turned pale, and his chest felt slightly tight as if it was hard to breathe. Even his vision became a bit blurry.
"No, no, no, this is impossible. This must be impossible!" All the joy he had at the beginning of his arrival had now vanished, replaced by fear and disbelief.