Chapter 154: Turning Point

This is simply too bizarre.

Song Wan cast a somewhat unkind glance at Guo Kai, feeling that his actual choice contrasted sharply with the demeanor he had displayed.

Guo's mother grabbed Song Wan's hand, waiting for her to turn her gaze back before shaking her head and saying, "Song Wan, you might not know this, but the Peace Hospital is not a place just anyone can enter."

Even for the Guo family, getting her admitted to the Peace Hospital required pulling strings across multiple connections and exhausting a vast amount of personal favors.

Conversely, simply inviting a doctor from the Peace Hospital to treat her illness was much simpler.

Before Guo Kai had explicitly agreed to inherit the family business, this was the utmost sincerity the Guo family could muster.

In order for Guo's mother to receive the best possible treatment, Guo Kai had originally intended to accept the Guo family's conditions.

However, Guo Mother stopped him.

Song Wan parted her lips slightly, her expression stunned: "A hospital... isn't it just a place for patients to get cured?"

Yet, in the next instant, she realized how naive her assumption had been.

True enough, with the Jin family being so fabulously wealthy, it was entirely understandable that they would establish a hospital exclusively serving the elite, extracting vast sums of wealth from the hands of the privileged.

Especially after discovering Jin Youqian's slight penchant for money, she doubted Guo Mother's words even less.

Guo's mother caught a glimpse of Song Wan's inner thoughts and couldn't help laughing softly, "You're overthinking it, Song Wan."

Song Wan was slightly dazed. She was overthinking?

Guo's mother nodded, "The Peace Hospital was not established for profit; its sole purpose is the health of the Jin family members."

Furthermore, the doctors inside the Peace Hospital, strictly speaking, can no longer be considered traditional physicians—

They are more like researchers. Aside from treating members of the Jin family, all their remaining time is dedicated to studying viruses, investigating diseases, and researching more effective cures.

Undoubtedly, within their respective fields, their medical skills are the absolute pinnacle.

However, they harbor little interest in healing ordinary patients, and even less in dealing with sick individuals and their families.

They simply want to conduct research.

And the Jin family fulfills every single requirement for their research: money, equipment, a quiet and secure environment. The sole condition is that whenever a member of the Jin family falls ill, they must provide treatment unconditionally.

The Jin family is not large; counting even the distant relatives, there are barely a dozen people.

Besides, it is impossible for them to fall ill every single day.

Even if someone were sick daily, it would be impossible for everyone to contract the exact same ailment.

With such a leisurely schedule, why wouldn't they agree?

Because of these reasons, the Peace Hospital has ultimately recruited a multitude of medical geniuses whose skills surpass mortal imagination.

Yet precisely because of these special circumstances, even if the Jin family grants permission, those doctors are very likely to refuse any request from the Jin family to treat individuals outside the family.

Seeing that Song Wan was genuinely oblivious to these intricate details, Guo Mother spoke in a gentle, soothing voice, explaining everything with crystal clarity.

Upon hearing this, Song Wan couldn't help widening her mouth. After a long moment, she blurted out, "I thought the Jin family was already formidable, but I never expected there would be someone even more powerful!"

Just listen to the kinds of people who have sought consultation at the Peace Hospital—leaving aside the Jin family, who have reigned supreme as the richest in Jiuzhou for years, their status alone already commanding awe—

There are also figures ordinary people could never even fathom: military marshals, political heavyweights, national-treasure-level scientists...

It is even rumored that the founding head of state once sought treatment at the Peace Hospital.

However...

"Didn't President Jin say I could bring people there?" Song Wan frowned, looking strangely at Guo Mother.

Guo Mother did not find this strange at all, so she merely smiled in silence.

Yet Guo Kai was young after all, and this matter involved the mother he depended on for survival, causing him to lose his composure somewhat.

His voice cracked as he blurted out, "Are you certain? Was it President Jin who personally gave the word?"

Song Wan blinked. "After I investigated the situation you were facing, I immediately realized you needed better doctors. But since I used to be just an ordinary person, I had no way of knowing anyone more formidable than the doctors the Guo family hired, so I went and asked President Jin if he had any good recommendations..."

"And then he told you about the Peace Hospital?"

Song Wan shook her head. "He didn't recommend a hospital at first, but he asked me why I was looking for one."

Guo Kai stared unblinkingly at Song Wan, his gaze sharp enough to strip her alive.

Song Wan felt no particular discomfort and merely recounted, "So I told President Jin about your situation, and as soon as he heard, he called the Peace Hospital directly..."

Having said that, Song Wan felt a brief flash of bewilderment.

Could there perhaps be two Peace Hospitals in Kyoto? Otherwise, why would Jin Youqian's attitude have been so nonchalant?

Thinking this, she voiced the question aloud.

Guo Kai looked toward Guo Mother, hearing her explain, "There are indeed two Peace Hospitals in Kyoto, and both are private institutions. However, the reasons behind their establishment are fundamentally different."

The Peace Hospital they discussed earlier was founded solely to net the most brilliant medical minds to serve the health of the Jin family, and upon that foundation, they pay those doctors whatever remuneration they desire.

The other Peace Hospital, however, came into being because the former was simply too difficult to enter, and many minor ailments and trivial disasters hardly justified mobilizing countless resources and personal favors to seek treatment there. Consequently, bowing to the "suggestions" of outsiders, that second hospital was opened.

Although the resident physicians there still possess top-tier medical skills, they are vastly inferior compared to the previous batch.

Nevertheless, for those not suffering from critical illnesses, such a hospital was more than sufficient.

Moreover, yielding to the demands of those individuals, this hospital established by the Jin family caters to the upper echelons of society, making admission for treatment relatively easy.

Naturally, in the event of a severe illness, they would still place their trust in the other hospital.

"However, I hardly think the Peace Hospital President Jin mentioned to you is the one we could easily access on our own," Guo Mother said with a smile, her eyes brimming with fondness and gratitude toward Song Wan.

Guo Kai snapped back to his senses, wholeheartedly agreeing with his mother's assessment.

"Although our relationship with the Guo family is strained, we are still members of the Guo family after all. Entering that relatively accessible Peace Hospital would be quite easy for us. If President Jin knew our identity as members of the Guo family, he wouldn't have introduced us to a hospital we could have accessed by ourselves anyway."

Song Wan pondered this for a moment and nodded. "Then do you wish to leave the Guo family with your mother? If you want to leave, I will call the people at the Peace Hospital right now."

After Jin Youqian had greeted the staff at the Peace Hospital, he had given her a contact number, telling her to reach out directly if the need arose and assuring her that all her demands would be met.

Guo Kai nodded vigorously. The treatment conditions at the Peace Hospital were vastly superior to those in the Guo family estate; why wouldn't he go? He wasn't truly a fool!

Seeing him agree, Guo Mother finally retrieved her phone from beneath her pillow and dialed a number.

Guo Kai was stunned. That explained why Zhou Qi and the others had come to the Guo family estate earlier—it turned out his mother had been the one to contact them.

Yet when had this phone been hidden? Why hadn't he known? How had the Guo family managed not to confiscate it?

The moment the call connected, Guo Mother hung it right back up.

Guo Kai blinked. What was the meaning of this?

He suddenly recalled that when Song Wan entered the Guo family estate, she seemed to have done so without alarming anyone.

Since the Guo family had directly refused Zhou Qi when he tried to visit through the front entrance, it made no sense that they would casually grant Song Wan entry.

Thus, it seemed certain that within the Guo family, someone was still standing on his side after all.

With this thought, Guo Kai cast another glance at Guo Mother.

Sensing his gaze, Guo Mother looked up and met his eyes. "What is it?"

Seeing Guo Mother feign ignorance, Guo Kai could only heave a sigh. "Nothing." In any case, once the people came upstairs, he would find out soon enough.

After waiting for roughly four or five minutes, a knock finally sounded at the door.

Guo Kai rushed eagerly to open it—

"Butler?" Guo Kai froze in place, dumbfounded. "Why is it you?"

The butler glanced at him, lowering his gaze. "Miss, let us leave quickly."

Guo Mother smiled, attempting to rise directly from the bed.

Song Wan shoved Guo Kai roughly. "What are you waiting for? Go carry your mother on your back!"

Recovering his wits, Guo Kai hurriedly crouched down in front of Guo Mother. "Mom, get on my back. We can move faster if I carry you."

Although they were leaving the Guo family estate openly, to prevent getting entangled in protracted wrangling with the Guo family and wasting precious time, it was best to exercise caution and avoid running into them wherever possible.

Besides, the presence of a living stranger like Song Wan within the Guo family estate was a major issue in itself.

The group departed Guo Mother's bedroom at maximum speed. Finding the living room empty, they hurried downstairs.

The butler walked in the lead, guiding the way while explaining, "There is a minor door beside the kitchen. You can leave the old estate without passing through the living room. Usually, Aunt Li uses that small door when she goes out to buy groceries."

This proved immensely convenient for them.

With Guo Mother piggybacking on him, Guo Kai dove straight into the kitchen, while Song Wan followed closely behind, carrying a large bag of medicine.

Initially, everything went smoothly. The living room was vacant, and the kitchen staff had been cleared out early by the butler, allowing them virtually unhindered passage.

Just as they were about to exit the old estate, however, a sudden ringtone shattered the quiet.

Guo Kai panicked slightly. "Whose phone is that?"

Song Wan blinked, hurriedly searching her bag before letting out a breath of relief. "It's not mine."

The butler carried no phone on his person whatsoever.

As for Guo Kai's phone, it had long since been confiscated by his father under the pretext that it would "aggravate your mother's condition," meaning he didn't have one either.

Realization dawning upon them all, every gaze shifted toward Guo Mother.

Guo Mother was momentarily blank, but seeing everyone staring at her, she paused before hastily saying, "The phone is in the pocket of my clothes."

Song Wan swiftly fished the phone out.

Just as she intended to power it off, she noticed the caller ID flashing on the screen read "Guo the Second."

Song Wan: "..." Word had it that Guo Kai's biological father ranked second among his siblings.

So, precisely what kind of relationship did Guo Mother share with her husband—was it good or bad? Or perhaps it had been wonderful once, only to sour as the years passed?

As Song Wan stood in brief silence, Guo Kai grew urgent. "Hurry up and turn it off!"

Snapping out of her reverie, Song Wan immediately powered down the phone.

*Thump, thump, thump...*

A burst of footsteps suddenly echoed from the staircase.

The figures exchanged glances. Seizing the phone from Song Wan's hand, the butler shoved them all out through the small side door.