Richard had been feeling unwell for some time, but because he was busy fighting for his inheritance, he never paid much attention to it. In the past few days, he had been drinking excessively and went to the hospital for a check-up. The results showed that his kidneys were failing, and he had already reached the stage of uremia, requiring dialysis. The illness came suddenly, hitting Richard like a heavy blow. He never expected that he would develop such a disease.
When Andrea heard about his illness, she sneered, “This is karma!”
At this moment, she wasn’t sure whether she still had any feelings for Richard.
Anyway, she was going to die soon. If Richard died with her, that wouldn’t be too bad either.
Henry never expected that both his parents would fall ill at the same time, which made him very anxious. “Mom, how did Dad get this disease? I heard that once a patient reaches the stage of dialysis, they can get a kidney transplant.”
However, external sources for kidney transplants were very limited, and most cases relied on donations from relatives.
“What are you trying to say?”
Henry hesitated. “If Dad needs a kidney, does that mean I can…”
“Don’t even think about it!” Andrea sneered. “What has he ever done for you? Since the day you were born, he has never fulfilled his responsibilities as a father. Besides, you have a long life ahead of you. If a man loses a kidney, what is he supposed to do? He’s already at this age, how could he have the nerve to ask you to donate a kidney to him?”
Henry was merely suggesting it. He hadn’t even asked the doctor if it was a viable option. But regardless, Richard’s sudden illness was difficult for him to accept.
Andrea, on the other hand, felt satisfied. In the past, when she was sick, Richard never visited her. Now that he was ill, she had absolutely no intention of seeing him either. The problem was, Richard had already received his share of the inheritance. If he didn’t pass it down to Henry, then all her efforts over the years would have been in vain. Furthermore, now that he was seriously ill, this was the perfect opportunity for the women in his life to make their moves. How could she leave space for those people?
With this in mind, Andrea dragged her ailing legs to the hospital to see Richard.
Richard had fallen ill so suddenly that it wasn’t until Emily forcibly brought him to the hospital that he finally realized he was truly sick. Life was ironic—he had schemed his whole life, fought tooth and nail to inherit wealth, only to end up in a hospital bed, uncertain whether he could even keep his life.
“Richard…” Emily cried miserably, holding their child in her arms, looking pitiful.
Emily was still very young, with both her parents still alive. This was the first time she had encountered such a thing, and it was hard for her to accept. Seeing her young and obedient demeanor, Richard felt a chill in his heart. She was still so young, but he was already old. With such a serious illness, he wasn’t sure if he could survive. If he didn’t, she would have to raise the child alone. Even if he did survive, this illness would deal him a major blow, and he had no idea how much it would age him. The thought of it left him with mixed emotions.
“Don’t worry, I won’t leave you behind. Even if I die, I will make sure you’re taken care of.”
Emily was stunned and, with red eyes, said, “Don’t talk about dying. The child and I still need you. He’s so young—how could you bear to leave him?”
“I will still leave you what you need. The house and money—I will at least ensure you live the rest of your life without worries.”
“I don’t want those things. No matter how good they are, they’re not as good as having you.”
Richard felt a mix of sourness and gratitude in his heart. Emily didn’t deny that money was important, but she still said that nothing was more valuable than him. This meant that, in her heart, he still held significance. Having lived this long, it wasn’t easy to find someone who genuinely cared for him.
As they were speaking, someone knocked on the door. Andrea entered, dragging her ailing leg. The moment Richard saw her, he instinctively frowned. His emotions were complicated—he was the one who, in his greed for inheritance, had suggested pulling the plug on the old man’s ventilator and instructed Andrea to carry it out. But now that the old man had survived, he was remorseful and, suddenly, he resented Andrea for going along with it. He had only been confused for a moment—couldn’t she have stopped him? But instead, she had carried it out without hesitation. A woman who could go as far as committing murder—how could he feel at ease keeping her around?
“Why are you here?”
“I came to see you.” Andrea sighed and cried, “I never expected that we would both fall ill. Every time you were sick before, I was the one taking care of you. If I didn’t come to see you now, I wouldn’t be able to rest easy.”
Richard suddenly recalled her past kindness. After all, they had spent half a lifetime together, and no matter what, there was still some affection.
And so, Andrea and Emily stayed at the hospital to care for Richard together. Due to her leg condition, Andrea could only do what was within her ability, while Emily busied herself with everything else. At first, things were fine, but later on, when Richard needed help with daily necessities, including using the bathroom, Emily didn’t mind at all. However, Andrea would often just stand there motionless.
