Chapter: 5764

"Young people enthusiastic about the outdoors usually have very outgoing personalities, being basically social butterflies. Each of these young people was very passionate about Ah Chen and Lin Wan'er, so they quickly got into a lively conversation."

"Hu Lèqí had great leadership among this group, with everyone seeming to trust him deeply. Ah Chen noticed that he looked pretty young, so he curiously asked: 'Lao Hu, are you still a student or already working?'"

"Lao Hu nodded and said: 'I'm still a student. Before, I studied in the US as an American-born Chinese. This isn't just a summer vacation, so I wanted to come back home and go on this walking trip to appreciate my motherland's beautiful scenery.'"

"Saying that, Hu Lèqí added: 'We're mostly university students. I and Sun Jing, Ma Linchao are studying in the US, while Shu Ran, Xiao Bao, and the three of them from Tsinghua University; Hai Peng and Li Ju from Beijing University; there are also some people studying in the UK and Canada. What about you two?'"

"Ye Chen replied casually: 'We're high school classmates who didn't take their studies seriously, so we didn't get into any university afterwards. We ended up going to a private college that doesn't require entrance exams and stayed for two years before dropping out.'"

"Lín Wǎn'ér looked at Ye Chen with a hint of annoyance, her heart protesting: 'This prince's words, my family has invested decades of effort in education... it's all for nothing...'"

"In reality, Ye Chen was saying this to create the impression that he and Lín Wǎn'er are slackers. If they were to really talk about universities, people might find out where they studied or dropped out from, which would be embarrassing."

"But by saying they didn't even finish college, Ye Chen created a subconscious perception in these people's minds, making them think he was self-conscious about his educational background, so they naturally wouldn't ask many questions or bring up the topic. This way, they could avoid revealing their own secrets."

"As expected, after Ye Chen said that he and Lín Wǎn'er didn't even finish college, these people immediately stopped asking about school-related topics."

"Hu Lèqí was worried that Ye Chen and Lín Wǎn'er would feel self-conscious because of their educational background, so he laughed and said: 'Actually, whether or not you attended a good university is irrelevant. What's most important is living happily and peacefully for your whole life.'"

"'That's right,'" Hu Lèqí's girlfriend Shu Ran agreed, adding: "'Studying isn't very meaningful. My parents started preparing me to become a chicken from kindergarten, all the way until I got accepted into Tsinghua University and even prepared to study at Harvard... but in the end, I only managed to get my ticket booked for this month's trip to the US before discovering that I had brain glioma and it was located on the brain stem, making it impossible to operate.'"

"Lín Wǎn'er was surprised and asked: 'You have brain glioma?'"

"'Yes,'" Shu Ran nodded, speaking in a flat tone: "'The incidence rate is less than one per million, but I got hit anyway.'"

"Hu Lèqí also laughed and said: 'My situation is similar to Shu Ran's. I was diagnosed with lung cancer last year, and it was stage IV small-cell lung cancer. From childhood to adulthood, I never smoked a single cigarette, nor did I try marijuana in the US. Yet, after examination, I found out that I had stage IV lung cancer, and there were no good treatment options left. So, I decided to enjoy life without worrying about it.'"

"Lín Wǎn'er thought unconsciously: 'Stage IV small-cell lung cancer is also treatable with chemotherapy, combined with targeted drugs, which can have a relatively good treatment effect. Don't give up hope.'"

"Hu Lèqí laughed and said: 'I didn't give up either. Originally, I came to China from the US to participate in the clinical trial of Nine Heaven's 'Nine Heaven Rebirth Pill'. According to rumors, this pill can have very good effects on any type of cancer. The doctor also recommended me to try it to see if I could get a spot. But when I arrived, I found out that the competition for this spot was really fierce, not just limited to me. Even James Smith, the former FDA director, couldn't get his son into the program.'"

"On the side, Shu Ran said: 'It's not that simple. The allocation of spots at Nine Heaven is not based on who has money and influence, but on who needs treatment more urgently. All applicants for the clinical trial are cancer patients, with at least three-quarters being those with a life expectancy of less than half a year. Many patients are even children, like us in our early twenties, making it almost impossible to get a spot.'"

"Yè Chén curiously asked: 'Shu Ran, did you also apply for the clinical trial at Nine Heaven?'"

"Shu Ran nodded and said: 'I did, but I didn't get selected. The evaluation mechanism at Nine Heaven is like a cruel game. First, they compare who has the most severe illness, then they compare who is youngest, whose family situation is most pitiful, or whose family responsibilities are heaviest... They have a scoring system. The more desperate the situation, the higher the score. In the end, all selected candidates come from those with the highest scores, like a game of elimination.'"

"Yè Chén was not surprised by this rule, as it's essentially setting one's own guidelines and having Wei Liang implement them in reality."

"The Nine Heaven Rebirth Pill is actually an attenuated version of the 'Scattered Blood Rescue Heart Dan'. This thing can only be produced by oneself, requiring the use of spiritual energy to refine. It's impossible to mass-produce it, and it's just a tool to open the door for the FDA."

"Deep down, Yè Chén was very clear that he wasn't God or a saint. There are too many cancer patients in this world, and it's not possible for one person to save them all. So, he could only do what he could and rescue a small part of them."

"That being the case, there's no way someone with money can get a spot. Yè Chén decided that Wei Liang would only rescue the most desperate ones."

"They may have never had good luck or received any care, but in a critical moment when life and death hang in the balance, Nine Heaven Rebirth Pill can still give them a chance to turn things around."

"So, according to Yè Chén's view, he tends to let Wei Liang rescue someone who has been suffering from cancer for 20 years, rather than rescuing someone living in a middle-class family with a pampered upbringing." JrNovels.com