Under Zhao Liang's lead, the three of them quickly arrived at the clinic. Zhang Wei was already in the ward and Zhang Miao was still undergoing emergency treatment.
"How are the children?" Li Gui asked as she ran forward agitatedly.
"The boy is alright now. He's resting and will probably wake up in a while. The girl is still in danger and might need to go to the hospital in the county city," the doctor said.
"Is it very serious? What's the problem?" Qiao Mei asked.
"We don't have the more advanced technology and medical equipment here, so we can only make a preliminary judgment. We suspect that the ribs on both sides might be broken," the doctor said solemnly.
When Li Gui heard this, she fell to the ground. She did not understand how the child could be injured so badly after she went out for only half a day.
Li Gui sat there and gave herself two hard slaps. It was all her fault. As a mother, she did not take good care of them. It was all her fault!
"Goodness, sister! What are you doing!" Zhao Liang said in shock.
"It's all my fault! If I'm not so busy with work, the child won't have suffered such serious injuries!" Li Gui sat on the ground and sobbed.
At the side, Qiao Mei also could not bear to see Li Gui hurt herself. She reached out to help her mother up and said, "Don't cry. It's more important to save the child first. I'll go and pay the fees. Go and take a look at Zhang Wei."
"Yes, yes, yes! Where's Zhang Wei?" Li Gui asked.
Zhao Liang brought Li Gui to the ward to look for Zhang Wei. Zhao Liang was the one who had requested for this clinic to be built back then and he was very familiar with this place.
Qiao Mei sighed. Her heart tightened when she heard about Zhang Miao's broken ribs. What exactly happened to make those animals do such a thing to such a young child?
"I'll go and pay the fees. Looks like we'll have to do the paperwork for the hospital transfer now. Let me go and ask if the troops nearby can send a car," Xia Zhe said.
Qiao Mei shook her head. She did not want Xia Zhe to call on his own people for this matter. After all, this village was so remote and the people he knew were all in the capital. It would take a lot of time for the news to be transmitted to and fro.
It would be much faster to ask Chen Hu for help regarding this matter.
"Go and pay the fees at the clinic cashier. I'll contact Chen Hu from the county city. He knows my grandfather and he has some authority in the local area," Qiao Mei said.
Xia Zhe agreed with Qiao Mei's idea. He picked up the bag and went off to pay the bill. Qiao Mei walked into the room to make a telephone call to Chen Hu.
"Oh my, isn't this my eldest niece! Are you missing Uncle?" Chen Hu said happily.
"Uncle Hu, something had happened on my end. Can I ask you for a favor?" Qiao Mei said.
Chen Hu immediately stood up from the chair and asked nervously, "What happened! Is it your grandfather! Or is it your health! I'll come immediately!"
"No, no! It's something to do with my mother, Li Gui. I wonder if Uncle Hu is willing to help me?" Qiao Mei asked.
Back when Li Gui remarried after Qiao Yue passed away, she left a very bad impression on Chen Hu. His brother had only died a few years ago, and he wondered why she was in such a hurry to leave Qiao Mei behind and go off with another man.
If Qiao Mei had not been lucky enough to hang on until Qiao Qiang returned, she would have died in the pigsty long ago!
"Tell me what happened first," Chen Hu said unhappily.
"It's about my four younger siblings, the children Li Gui had with Zhang Qian. Two of them have been kidnapped by someone. One of them is seriously injured and needs to go to the county city hospital for treatment. The other one is still unconscious, but alright for now," Qiao Mei said.
Chen Hu angrily threw the glass of water in his hand at the table, giving the soldier beside him a fright.
There was actually someone who dared to snatch children in his territory? They were really courting death!
"Then this matter is considered official business. I'll send someone to look for the two missing children. As for the seriously ill child you mentioned, what do you want to do?" Chen Hu asked.
"This child needs to be sent to the county city now. The doctor says that someone kicked her and her ribs are broken. I'm wondering if Uncle Hu can send a car here to drive her there. The three-wheeled vehicle we have here won't be able to get us to the county city," Qiao Mei said.
"It's alright, the child is innocent. On account of you and your grandfather, I'll help you with this matter. But I still won't forgive Li Gui!" Chen Hu said.