Chapter 116: An Unexpected Goal

This story is purely fictional.

Xiao Jin hurried back home, shouting loudly, “I was just getting excited watching the game! Why on earth did you call me back, woman?”

He rushed to the bathroom doorway and saw his wife desperately grabbing their daughter’s hair and banging her head against the wall.

Xiao Yi struggled fiercely, trying to break free from Jin Yan’s grasp. But Jin Yan had already lost control of herself. She screamed hysterically in the bathroom, “How have I raised you? Is this how you repay me? Your exam results are a complete mess, and that’s one thing—but now you can’t even protect your own body? You might as well be dead!”

~~~~~~

At the sports center.

Fan Wei’s goal caught everyone by surprise—except for Hao Benshan.

On the stands, Zhang Chi and Wang Yifa stood there, devastated.

That goal shattered the plans of Zhang Chi and Wang Yifa, who had bet heavily at the sports center.

They had hoped to turn their luck around with the secret insider information they had for this match, to finally break free from their losing streak. But the reality before them crushed that dream completely.

“Didn’t you say this match was a sure fix? How could the predetermined Dahe lose and yet win? What’s even funnier is that it was your childhood friend Fan Wei who scored, not some random player. Are you colluding with others to scam me?” Wang Yifa yelled, furious.

“Me scam you? Are you crazy? If I were going to scam you, I wouldn’t have risked dying alongside you. Today’s game was purely a fluke. My childhood friend hasn’t played a single minute all these years, yet today he suddenly got on the field—and scored the winning goal. Normally, that wouldn’t matter, but today, when we were all in, Fan Wei ruined everything.” Zhang Chi was equally furious that the goal came at the worst possible moment.

As the crowd at the sports center began to disperse, only Zhang Chi and Wang Yifa remained, lost in their nightmare.

They exchanged glances, arguing briefly before falling silent.

Zhang Chi placed both hands on his hips, his face glistening with sweat and tears mixed together. His bronze-colored face bore the marks of his wiping, evoking both pity and ridicule. One could only imagine how utterly devastated they felt.

At their feet lay a laptop, still powered on. Both men stared at it in unison. Wang Yifa kicked it hard. The laptop tumbled between the seats before coming to rest in a triangular position, its lid and base propped against a chair.

“What good is venting on the laptop? The important thing now is how we fix this mess,” Zhang Chi shouted.

“Fix it? I’m already at a dead end. I promised to repay last Monday, but judging by this, I don’t think I have the means anymore. To fix this, we have to settle accounts with your friend Fan Wei. He promised to give you good news but didn’t follow through. And that damned coach—what the hell is he? Saying Dahe wouldn’t win, but didn’t Dahe just win? Let’s go confront him,” Wang Yifa cried out as he stormed off the field.

“What good will confronting him do? He wasn’t the one who told me Dahe wouldn’t win. I overheard that from a private conversation between a couple. What promise could he possibly make you?” Zhang Chi retorted.

“Then what? We might as well just wait for death!” Wang Yifa felt utterly hopeless.

“Let’s go. We still need the laptop—it belongs to your school, and you’d have to pay for it if it’s lost.” Zhang Chi headed down the stands, Wang Yifa following.

Zhang Chi picked up the laptop, checking for damage. Despite tumbling on the stands, it was still intact.

“Well, it really can take a beating.”

---

Xiao Jin entered the room, saw the scene before him, and dashed forward, grabbing his wife’s wrist just as she was about to strike again. He shouted, “What are you doing? Why are you hurting our precious daughter like this? You damn woman! If anything happens to her, I swear I won’t let you off!”

At last, Xiao Jin forced Jin Yan to release Xiao Yi’s hair.

With a shove, Jin Yan collapsed onto the bathroom floor.

She looked at Xiao Jin, “It’s all your fault. Because of you, your daughter is like this. Didn’t I tell you? She’s really pregnant by someone else. Are you happy now?”

“You’re still saying that? I haven’t even argued with you yet. As they say, a child’s upbringing is the father’s responsibility. Now it’s the mother’s fault? Why am I even arguing with you? You’re the one who pushed our daughter to this point, do you realize that? A perfectly good child, now in this condition, and you still won’t reflect—you blame me instead. I don’t have time for nonsense. Let go of her now. I need to find her right away.” Xiao Jin yanked Jin Yan off him with all his strength.

By the time he reached downstairs, Xiao Yi had already run out of the house.

No matter how loudly Xiao Jin called her name, Xiao Yi seemed deaf to it.

She ran wildly toward the yard gate, desperate to escape her mother’s grasp, to find her own happiness with Dai Yunjiu.

Just as Xiao Yi reached the road outside the yard, she was struck by a speeding van, thrown several meters, and collapsed onto the ground.

Xiao Jin, still inside the yard, heard the heart-wrenching screech of sudden brakes on the street.

He instantly knew: his precious daughter was in trouble. Xiao Yi had been hit!

When he arrived at the scene, Xiao Yi lay in a pool of blood, still bleeding.

Overcome with rage and despair, tears streaming down his face, Xiao Jin pulled out his phone and dialed emergency services.

The ambulance arrived swiftly. Paramedics performed basic first aid and bandaging before lifting Xiao Yi onto a stretcher and loading her into the vehicle.

With sirens blaring, the ambulance sped toward Dahe Hospital’s emergency surgical department.

Jin Yan and Xiao Jin arrived at the emergency room, which was bustling with activity...

~~~~~~

An unexpected goal caused massive losses, catching Chi Zhaoming off guard. He had no idea where to borrow money to repay this huge debt. He sat before his office computer like an ant on a hot pan.

He opened a drawer, revealing a bank card with the PIN written on it.

“This card’s been here so long, why hasn’t any company contacted me for advertising? Could it be they don’t need to advertise for now? If only—” Chi Zhaoming shook his head, questioning himself.

Holding the bank card, he left the television station building.

At a nearby ATM, he checked his balance: a full 500,000 yuan. This tempted Chi Zhaoming to temporarily use that money. “Whatever, better to ease the emergency first.”

With 500,000 yuan in hand, he felt a little less panicked, though numb to the fact that this money might be a trap waiting for him.

---

At that moment, Ming Yue called, sobbing, “Dad is sick. He’s already admitted to Xiaohe Hospital. Ming He told me he has a brain tumor and needs surgery to have it removed.”

Hearing this, Chi Zhaoming felt utterly crushed. His own gambling debts were already overwhelming; misfortune piled upon misfortune.

He called Wu Zhengzhe and took Du Juan along, rushing to Xiaohe.

At the surgical nurse’s station, after learning Chi Qian’s room number, the three went straight to his ward.

Inside, Chi Qian lay in bed, hooked up to an IV drip.

Ming Yue was preparing some cooled boiled water for their father’s medication when she heard them enter. Turning, she saw her elder brother, sister-in-law, and Zhengzhe arriving.

“You’re here? Was the trip smooth?” Ming Yue asked.

“Smooth enough. How’s Dad’s condition?” Chi Zhaoming inquired.

“The doctor said surgery is necessary, but given Xiaohe’s limited medical facilities, brain surgery carries considerable risks here. They recommend transferring Dad to Dahe Hospital, which has the best equipment and top surgeons in the country.” Ming Yue put the water cup on the bedside table. “Dad’s had headaches every day for the past few days, each lasting several hours. The doctor just administered pain medication, and he managed to sleep briefly.”

Because his sleep was shallow, any noise stirred Chi Qian awake.

Looking at Du Juan, Chi Zhaoming, and Zhengzhe nearby, Chi Qian motioned for Du Juan to sit. “You’ve come?”

“Yes, just arrived. Is your head still hurting?” Chi Zhaoming asked.

Chi Qian’s eyes shone brightly, as if seeing someone he had longed to meet. Holding Du Juan’s hand, he gestured again for her to sit beside him.

Tears welled in Du Juan’s eyes as she sat close.

No words were spoken—only the silent bonds of care between generations, the quiet sorrow of a father watching over his children. In that moment, silence spoke louder than words.

After a while, the doctor came to speak with the family about the surgery.

“From what we know, your father has a brain tumor that requires immediate surgery. The operation should restore his health. However, given Xiaohe’s limited medical capabilities, it’s best to transfer him to Dahe Hospital, where they have the most advanced equipment and top-tier surgeons.” The doctor explained to Chi Zhaoming, Du Juan, Wu Zhengzhe, and Ming He.

“How much will the surgery cost approximately?” Chi Zhaoming asked.

(To be continued.)