In the heart of River Citys university town, under the scorching sun, the square was bustling with people. A "bear" in costume stood swaying, holding a thick stack of flyers.
At noon, Peter removed the bear head to reveal his handsome face. He sat on the steps outside the mall, nibbling on a steamed bun he had bought for two dollars.
A woman with a child passed by, and the child, curious, looked at Peter twice before turning to his mother and asking, "Mom, what does he do?"
The woman quickly pulled her child away, "Hes a beggar. If you dont study hard, youll end up like him."
The child, seemingly understanding, nodded and tossed a few coins into Peters headpiece.
Peter, who was eating his bun, stiffened, then after a while, he muttered, looking at the departing figures, "Damn it, youre the beggar, your whole family are beggars."
Fuming, Peter caught sight of a beautiful figure approaching him – it was his girlfriend, Yvonne. With an impatient look on her delicate face, she wore a bag slung over her shoulder and had her hair flowing down her back.
Dressed in the bear costume, Peter hurriedly got up and clumsily ran towards her with a smile.
Yvonne pushed him away in annoyance, "Peter, you promised to buy me an iPhone X, where is it?"
Peter replied bitterly, "Yvonne, I dont have enough for the down payment yet. Once I distribute more flyers and get paid, Ill definitely buy it for you."
"Wait, wait, how long have I been waiting?" Yvonne complained.
"Yvonne, didnt I just buy you a phone last month? Just use it for a couple of days..." Peter coaxed her patiently.
Yvonne suddenly took out the phone from her bag, "If you hadnt mentioned it, Id forgotten. This piece of junk, you can use it yourself."
She threw the phone at him, and Peter caught it just in time to prevent it from falling to the ground.
"Yvonne, this was the phone I bought after a month of bussing tables at a hotel..." Peter said with a pained heart.
"So what? Its still a piece of junk. Were through, Peter. Im breaking up with you." Yvonne ran towards the school after saying this.
Peter, dressed in the bear costume, couldnt catch up to her. After chasing for a while, he stopped, panting heavily.
At that moment, the phone in his hand rang with a text message from an unknown number.
"Young master, your asset restriction has been lifted. You may now access your assets."
Peter turned off the message, and the emotions he had suppressed for so long finally erupted.
For three years, since his father suddenly asked him to leave the family and froze all his assets, Peter had been angry and struggled, only to receive a cold "confidential" in response.
He had not taken a cent from home in these three years; all his living expenses and tuition were earned by himself. Now, he could finally stop living that hard life.
Peter decided to win Yvonne back and tell her that following him would never lead to such hardships again. He wanted to surprise her, to let her know that he, Peter, was a top-tier rich second generation, a man with immense wealth and influence.
In his excitement, he felt his head grow dizzy, the world spun around him, and suddenly, everything lost its color as he fainted to the ground.
"Help, someone has fainted!"
"Call an ambulance!"
Soon, an ambulance arrived and took Peter to the hospital, where a newly graduated nurse, checking on Peters condition, pushed him into the emergency room.
At that moment, a doctor came out and asked, "Xiao Kong, whats going on?"
"Director Wu, a patient fainted from heatstroke, and Im about to take him to the emergency room," Xiao Kong said.
"Let me see," Wu Youguang slowly approached and glanced at Peter.
"No need for the emergency room, its just heatstroke. When he wakes up, just have him drink more water," Wu Youguang said.
Nurse Xiao Kong was confused; heatstroke could be serious and should not be taken lightly. It was necessary to examine him properly, "Director Wu, but he fainted."
"Whats the big deal about fainting?" Wu Youguang said, "Im doing this for his own good. Look at him, does he look like he can afford the emergency fee? Maybe when he wakes up, hell blame you for the medical expenses."
"..." The nurse was speechless, not knowing what to say.
"Just listen to me and leave him here; he might wake up in a bit," Wu Youguang said.
The nurse looked at the unconscious Peter, feeling reluctant, "Director Wu, hes a patient; how can we do this?"
"Oh, so youre challenging me now?" Wu Youguang said, "Ive been a doctor longer than youve been alive. Even if you were a doctor, youd have to listen to me. Hospitals arent charity; people like him, who cant afford medical care, dont deserve to be in a hospital!"
As he spoke, his gaze shifted to a little girl nearby, who hurriedly left after hearing his veiled insults.
The nurse insisted, "No, Director Wu, hes fainted; what if something happens to him?"
"Ha, youre all talk. Then save him yourself," Wu Youguang said, "And pay for his medical expenses."
The nurse didnt know what to do; she was a recent graduate interning at the hospital and didnt have much of a salary. The medical fees, hundreds or thousands of dollars, were hard for her to afford.
But looking at Peter, she was genuinely worried something might happen to him. She gritted her teeth and said, "Ill pay!"
With that, she pushed Peter into the emergency room.
When Peter woke up, he found himself lying in a hospital bed, hearing people chattering outside. Next to him was a middle-aged woman, and a girl quietly entered from outside, sitting by the bed and peeling fruit.
Peter sat up on the bed, and a slender, fair hand extended, holding a piece of peeled apple. Peter looked up and saw it was the girl; her face was free of makeup, her features as delicate as art, and her skin seemed to be filled with water.
"Here you go!"
Peter was momentarily mesmerized and only reacted after a while, blushing slightly as he took the apple from her hand and whispered, "Thank you."
The girl didnt speak, just lowering her head in seeming self-consciousness.
At that moment, Nurse Xiao Kong came over, delighted to see Peter awake, "Youre alright now, but your blood pressure is low, probably due to long-term malnutrition. Take better care of yourself."
"Okay."
Peter got off the bed and followed Xiao Kong out to the hospitals payment counter, where Wu Youguang was waiting to watch the drama. Xiao Kong handed in the medical form, and the other side gave her a payment slip. When Xiao Kong saw the amount, she was stunned.
Wu Youguang mocked, "See, I told you, but you didnt listen. Now you regret it, dont you?"
Peter took the slip and was also a bit shocked to see the numerous items listed, costing over two thousand dollars.
Xiao Kong said, "Dont worry, I said Id help with the money, and I will."
As Xiao Kong was about to pay, Peter stopped her, saying, "My own medical expenses, theres no way I can let you pay."
Wu Youguang laughed, "Ha, take a good look at the numbers. Do you really have the money?"
Peter had heard the previous discussion when he woke up and saw the medical items on the slip; they must have been deliberately changed to the most expensive ones by Wu Youguang, or it wouldnt have cost so much.
If it were before, Peter wouldnt have