Chapter 557: History Repeats Itself

A new year, a new beginning.

During the Spring Festival holiday, Shen Yan holed up in his villa for two days; with the biting cold wind outside, he had absolutely no desire to go out. Early on the third day of the lunar new year, he and Wu Yueer took a flight to Sanya to experience a different kind of warm sun in the middle of winter.

Here, the sun was bright, the sea breeze was gentle, and the fine sand on the beach was as soft as silk.

It was truly beautiful!

Shen Yan had originally planned to stay in Sanya until the seventh day, the day before work resumed, but he didn't expect a phone call from Chen Shanni on the afternoon of the sixth to disrupt his plans.

"Do you miss me that much, that you can't even wait until I get back tomorrow?" Shen Yan teased.

However, Chen Shanni on the other end did not have the leisure to joke around.

"You need to get back to Hangzhou immediately, it's a matter of life and death. I'm waiting for you at home."

Hearing the urgency in her tone, Shen Yan's expression tightened. He asked what had happened, but Chen Shanni only said it couldn't be explained in a few words and urged him to return quickly.

It concerned the life of Chen Yezi.

It turned out that for the past two days, Chen Yezi had been experiencing pain and weakness in her legs from time to time. At first, she hadn't taken it seriously, assuming she just hadn't rested well, but as time passed, these symptoms showed no signs of recovery and instead grew increasingly severe.

When she woke up this morning, her legs had developed to the point where she couldn't use any strength at all.

In a panic, the family took Chen Yezi to the hospital for an examination.

The results were like a bolt from the blue, leaving everyone at a loss.

It was actually Variant Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

Under normal circumstances, the survival period for this condition is 3-5 years, but Chen Yezi's symptoms were very rare and the disease progressed quite rapidly; even the top doctors in Shanghai were helpless.

Conventional medical treatments had negligible effects.

If things continued this way, Chen Yezi would pass away in less than a few months.

Wei Wenli simply couldn't believe her ears, because her own mother had passed away from this disease, though the condition hadn't been quite as severe.

She had heard long ago that there was a tiny probability of this disease being hereditary, and the probability of it skipping a generation was infinitesimal.

For a time, Wei Wenli had worried it would manifest in herself, but she never expected that while she was fine, her daughter, whom she had regained, would suffer such a fate.

Chen Jun, of course, could not stand by and watch his daughter leave him; he pulled strings to investigate related cases, hoping to find a miracle survivor, perhaps there was still a glimmer of hope.

The investigation results showed that there had been 15 cases of this condition in modern medical history, 14 of whom had failed to escape the judgment of the Grim Reaper and had left this world early.

From the onset of the disease to death, the longest was less than three months, and the shortest was only twenty days.

The only thing worth rejoicing about was that the last patient was still alive today.

This patient was diagnosed at Hangcheng Affiliated Hospital No. 2 in April of last year. Ten days after the diagnosis, the patient had another examination in Yunnan, and to everyone's surprise, the condition had improved significantly, turning into ordinary Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

As for now.

It was unknown to what extent the condition had progressed, because the patient had never been examined again.

However, another unexpected thing happened.

The patient was 19 years old this year, named Chen Shanni, from Shanghai, and was a law student at Hangzhou University...

Hearing this information from the doctor, Chen Jun and Wei Wenli felt it sounded more and more familiar, and finally, their eyes widened larger than copper bells.

They simply couldn't believe their ears.

Their eldest daughter had actually suffered from this disease too; why had she never mentioned it?

With no time to think, the two opened the door to the consultation room and ran out as if flying. They saw the two sisters sitting at the end of the corridor, both looking full of sorrow.

Only one was sitting in a chair, and the other was in a wheelchair.

At this sight, Wei Wenli could not control her emotions at all; with tear-filled eyes, she scanned Chen Shanni, wanting to see something.

Tears blurred Wei Wenli's vision, and she raised her hands to wipe them away incessantly.

"Mom, what's wrong?"

Chen Shanni was startled by her mother's state and hurriedly stood up to show concern.

"Shanni, Mom's precious daughter."

Wei Wenli pulled her into her arms and said with great heartache: "Why didn't you tell Mom you were suffering from such a serious illness? You scared Mom to death."

???

Chen Shanni was completely bewildered.

It was clearly her younger sister who was sick, so why was it being dragged onto her? Could it be...

Meeting her father's worried gaze nearby, Chen Shanni had a bad premonition.

"Mom, what are you saying? My body is perfectly fine. Did you mix me up with Yezi again?" she asked tentatively.

Wei Wenli wiped away her tears and slowly let go of her daughter.

Looking at Chen Yezi's confused expression in the wheelchair, Wei Wenli couldn't bear to see her sad, so she pulled Chen Shanni to the side and pressed: "Shanni, Mom didn't mix you up. Tell me honestly, were you diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis last February?"

"I..."

Chen Shanni's heart sank. She didn't know how to answer; clearly, the matter had been exposed. The hospital must have found something.

Combined with Chen Yezi's condition.

So... her younger sister had also run into such an unfortunate thing?

Seeing her daughter's expression, Wei Wenli understood everything. She didn't want to dwell on the past; she only wanted to know Chen Shanni's current physical condition.

"Mom, don't worry, I'm healthier now than I've ever been." Chen Shanni felt great heartache for her mother and leaned against her face to comfort her quickly.

Wei Wenli and Chen Jun were instantly relieved.

That was true.

Looking at her daughter's rosy complexion and spirited appearance, she didn't look like someone who was sick at all.

Chen Jun asked: "Then how did you get cured? Yezi has the same illness as you did now, and even the top doctors in Shanghai are helpless. If this continues, she might not live much longer."

"I..." Chen Shanni bit her red lips, not knowing how to speak.

Her fingers were almost shredding the corner of her clothes.

That kind of unspeakable treatment method—how could she bring herself to say it?

In such a situation, Chen Jun and his wife were as anxious as ants on a hot pan; Wei Wenli said, "Shanni, what time is it now? You are still hemming and hawing; do you want to worry your father and me to death? This concerns your sister's life."

Looking at her sister sitting in the wheelchair not far away, Chen Shanni felt as if she were stuck deep in a quagmire, her heart struggling over and over again.

On one side was the man she deeply loved, and on the other was the younger sister she had finally managed to find again.

Heavens! Why must you make me make this kind of choice?

In the end, Chen Shanni steeled her heart and softly comforted them, "Mom, Dad, please don't force me. I really don't know how to explain it to you. Conventional treatment methods for this illness are completely useless. Let me talk to Chen Yezi alone first. No matter what, I will do my best to help Chen Yezi."

These words made Chen Jun and his wife feel slightly more at ease.

With their eldest daughter as a precedent, at least there was still a glimmer of hope.

Afterward, the two sisters returned to the car, and watching their parents' retreating figures, a dark cloud gathered over Chen Yezi's heart.

"Sister, what exactly is going on between you and Mom and Dad? Why did Mom say that you have a serious illness?"