236: Chapter 231 Filial Piety and Unfilial Conduct

"Boss, next time we go out, not only should you remember to check the weather forecast in advance, but you also need to check the almanac. Damn it, that scared the hell out of me! I've never seen such a terrifying thunderstorm. Even ball lightning appeared, popping out one after another like eggs. It was so abnormal; it didn't even feel like we were on Earth!"

The flight landed safely, and Li Quanshuo scrambled down the boarding stairs as if fleeing for his life. It wasn't just him; the usually steady Duan Hong also looked shaken. Cao Xiao was no exception. At this moment, all the passengers on the flight were still in shock, appearing even worse off than they were.

Duan Hong turned on his phone, checked the weather forecast, and frowned, saying, "I've never heard of such a strange thunderstorm. The forecast for Qian Province was only an orange warning. Ground observations of lightning activity weren't strong, no lightning disasters occurred, and no ball lightning was reported. It only happened above the clouds. But the lightning energy gathered by so many instances of ball lightning must have been absolutely massive. I estimate it would have been enough to destroy a small city. Yet, it didn't explode and dissipate above the clouds, nor did it affect the ground, and it couldn't have escaped into space. Such massive energy wouldn't just disappear into thin air without a trace. This is another unsolved mystery. We can consider ourselves eyewitnesses; although we were scared witless, we're also quite lucky."

Cao Xiao had initially been shocked by the scene, which felt like an apocalyptic disaster, but that was only because of the visual impact of the initial sight. In the past, he had single-handedly channeled lightning to charge the industrial mother machine, so he didn't fear lightning. Even if the plane had actually encountered ball lightning, he would have had the ability to ensure the plane remained safe. Therefore, while all the passengers on the plane were in a panic, he watched with great interest as if he were seeing a beautiful landscape, while also trying to figure out the cause of the thunderstorm's abnormality. Unfortunately, when they encountered the thunderstorm, the plane rapidly reduced its altitude and even took a wide detour to stay far away from the thunderstorm area, so he couldn't reach any conclusions.

A few years ago, there was a special lightning disaster in Qian Province, which was said to have been caused by ball lightning. The scene was very strange, and the weather in Qian Province is relatively abnormal. It's not that no one has studied it, but all studies remain at the conjecture stage, and many don't hold water.

Since he hadn't observed the whole process, Cao Xiao just let his mind wander to kill time. Fortunately, his curiosity wasn't that strong, and as soon as he got off the plane, he put the matter out of his mind. Seeing that Duan Hong and the other man were still discussing and agonizing over it seriously, he spoke up: "This can already be classified as a supernatural event. So many scientists can't explain it, so don't waste your brain cells. Encountering something like this once in a lifetime is just sheer bad luck. But after surviving a disaster, good fortune is sure to follow. After we finish handling our business, we'll go out for a stroll; we'll definitely have good luck. We're already half an hour late. I don't know if we'll make it in time! We must rush over as fast as possible. Let's go!"

Before setting off, Elder Chen had instructed Cao Xiao that the old man's condition had suddenly deteriorated and he could pass away at any moment. As the closed-door disciple of the old man who had saved Elder Chen's life, even if there were reasons for the delay, he could not simply think of leaving it to fate. He had to take it seriously and do his utmost; he couldn't let his teacher harbor lifelong regrets because of this.

Not daring to delay, they exited the terminal and saw no one there to pick them up. He didn't call to check, and the three of them hailed a taxi and told the driver to rush over as fast as possible. The driver received fifty thousand yuan; after weighing the pros and cons, he didn't even tap the brakes on the road. Roaring with the throttle wide open, he fully displayed his superb driving skills, which were said to have come from his time in the transport corps. Even Duan Hong complimented him, saying he was good. With the horn blaring urgently, the taxi sped, weaving left and right like a lightning bolt, scaring the other drivers along the way. In the end, it took less than ten minutes to reach the destination.

"I am a guest of Villa Number Nine. I have an urgent matter and need to go in immediately. Please let us pass!" Security at this villa complex, named "South of the Frontier," was very strict. Just at the entrance, the security guards on duty consisted of a five-person team. As soon as the taxi approached, a guard stopped them for questioning. Cao Xiao was racing against time, so he stuck his head out of the window, finished speaking, and then immediately told the taxi driver to start moving.

Upon hearing this, the security guard did not let them pass. They all knew what kind of family lived in Villa Number Nine. That was their employer, the owner of the most luxurious villa complex in the Northwest, the uncrowned king of the Hotan region, a big shot famous throughout the Northwest! And now, someone arriving in a taxi claimed to be a guest invited by that family. Looking at the young men in the car, they had a military aura similar to their own, but on this land in the Northwest, no one dared to have devious ideas about that family. They were more willing to believe these were poor relatives coming to sponge off them, so they didn't even bother to report it. Walking up to the car, they said coldly, "Sorry, without the owner's permission, you cannot enter!"

Seeing this, the other security guards thought Cao Xiao was going to force his way in, so they quickly surrounded the car, simultaneously pulling out the electric batons from their waists, looking ready to take action at the slightest disagreement.

"Uh! Stop!" Cao Xiao was speechless. He couldn't blame them for doing their duty, so he had to tell the taxi driver not to start moving yet.

"Shen Hao, right? I am Cao Xiao. I've arrived at the entrance of the complex. Tell the gate guard to let us through!"

The call connected, and Cao Xiao didn't care about the reaction on the other end; he hung up after speaking.

Less than half a minute later, the security guard who had spoken earlier received a call. His face turned somewhat ugly, and he immediately had someone open the barrier. He walked to Cao Xiao's side, bowed, and respectfully said, "Mr. Cao, I apologize. It's my duty. Please! I will take you there."

"Understood! No need!" Cao Xiao nodded at the man and then said to the driver, "Driver, let's go!"

Fearing that time was running out, Cao Xiao had located his target when approaching the villa complex, figured out the situation, and had already taken corresponding protective measures, beginning to infuse Yuan Energy into the old man to stabilize his condition. That was why he had stopped at the gate; otherwise, he wouldn't have cared about any gate guard and would have just crashed through.

Familiar with the route, they arrived at the gate of Villa Number Nine, where the old man's grandson, a young man named Shen Hao, was already waiting.

Sending the taxi away, Cao Xiao looked at this haggard young man with bloodshot eyes and said, "Hello! I am Cao Xiao."

"Thank you! It's good that you're here. Grandpa is already failing; let's just do our best and leave the rest to fate!" Shen Hao smiled very forcedly, his voice hoarse and trembling slightly.

Cao Xiao shook his head and said seriously, "It's too early to say that. Take me to see the old man first. As long as his life force hasn't completely extinguished and his time hasn't naturally come to an end, I'm confident I can beg a favor from the King of Hell."

"Ah!" Shen Hao was surprised to hear Cao Xiao say this, but then he smiled bitterly and sighed, "Sigh! The doctors have already reached their conclusion, so it wouldn't hurt to let you try!"

Cao Xiao didn't speak again and gestured for Shen Hao to lead the way. He didn't care whether Shen Hao believed him or not. He wasn't a practicing doctor, didn't make a living from medicine, and had no medical skills to speak of. His purpose here was only to save Elder Shen. As long as they didn't hinder him, he couldn't be bothered to waste his breath.

"Little Hao, is this the doctor you invited? Is he here to be a joke?"

As soon as Cao Xiao entered the door, a mocking voice fell into his ears. Turning to look, he saw more than a dozen people in the living room, some sitting and some standing, frolicking around. Most looked bored, with only a few sulking in the corner. A middle-aged man in his forties, dressed very trendily, was looking at his side with disdain.

Before coming, Elder Chen had roughly described the situation of Elder Shen's family. The focus, however, was on the family discord. Elder Shen had spoiled his children too much, and most of the younger generation were good-for-nothings, and some were even extreme. Although he was mentally prepared, he really hadn't expected it to reach this point. Their father was critically ill and on his deathbed, yet as children, instead of accompanying him during his final moments to fulfill their filial duties, they were here impatiently frolicking, playing cards, playing games, chatting, and having fun. They were simply unworthy of being children! This was outrageous!

Cao Xiao heard the man's sarcastic words and saw this scene, he was instantly furious. Although he had no connection or friendship with Elder Shen, he had always despised those who were unfaithful and unfilial. He was almost about to curse out loud, but he held back. Now was not the time to tangle with these scums; saving Elder Shen was the priority.

Shen Hao gritted his teeth, stared at the man, and said word by word, "Sixth Uncle, don't force me to lose my temper. If I start, I won't be able to hold back!"

"Haha! I'm just joking!"

"Move aside, it's my turn!"

That "Sixth Uncle" was clearly quite wary of Shen Hao. Upon hearing this, the expression on his face froze. To cover up his embarrassment, he laughed it off, pretended nothing had happened, and quickly turned back to play cards. Shen Hao scanned the people present; those people also seemed to fear Shen Hao a bit and collectively turned their heads to look away. Seeing this, Cao Xiao couldn't help but re-evaluate Shen Hao. He hadn't expected this junior, Shen Hao, to have quite a lot of prestige in the family, even daring to lay hands on his elders! However, if it were him, he would have long since kicked these people far away, one by one. They didn't deserve to be here!

"Cao... Uncle Cao, please come upstairs with me."

According to the hierarchy, Shen Hao had to call Cao Xiao "Uncle," but since the two were about the same age, it was truly embarrassing to say it for the first time. Shen Hao made a gesture and led Cao Xiao up to the third floor.

"Your family members are really eccentric!"

Arriving on the third floor, Cao Xiao couldn't help but complain. To actually arrange for an eighty-something-year-old man with mobility issues to live alone on the third floor—Elder Shen's children were truly filial!

Shen Hao smiled forcedly: "Incorrigible, the bad habits are too deeply ingrained. Brother Cao, you're laughing at me. If Grandpa can pull through this time, I'll take him to live with me. Anyway, taking care of one or a few is the same."

"Hehe, it's hard for you. Good people are rewarded; heaven is fair."

Cao Xiao comforted Shen Hao, while internally sighing. He had heard from his teacher that Shen Hao's parents had been in a car accident more than a decade ago. His father had injured his spine and was paralyzed in the lower limbs, forced to sit in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. His mother had suffered severe brain trauma and was still lying in a hospital bed, not yet awake. Shen Hao and his sister, Shen Bei, had been going to school and living alone since they were teenagers, taking turns caring for their parents. Shen Bei was already twenty-nine years old this year, and to take care of their parents, the siblings still hadn't married. It's said that there are no filial children before a long-term sickbed, but as children, they had already done something very rare. And in this situation, Shen Hao was still willing to provide for Elder Shen until the end. Compared to the others in the Shen family, they were completely two extremes!

On the third floor, there was only a three-room suite: a living room, a bedroom, and a study. Now, the study had been temporarily converted into a sickroom. Elder Shen was lying on the hospital bed, with an oxygen mask on his face and his body covered in sensors for various medical monitoring devices. Five or six middle-aged and elderly doctors were nervously observing the changes in Elder Shen's body through the instruments. In the corner of the room, a beautiful girl wearing a small suit was anxiously looking at the old man on the hospital bed, sobbing softly, her face streaked with tears. Cao Xiao found her somewhat familiar, but couldn't recall who she was.

Cao Xiao entered the room and said to Shen Hao beside him, "Leave this to me. Have the doctors all leave! I don't like to have others present when I'm treating someone."

To consider Shen Hao's feelings, he paused and added, "Don't worry. As long as he hasn't reached the point where the lamp is dry and the oil is exhausted, I am confident that I can let Elder Shen live until his natural end."

"Okay, we'll wait downstairs for you. No matter what the result is, notify me immediately."

Shen Hao was still worried and took a deep look at Elder Shen, as if he wanted to engrave that face in his heart forever.

Cao Xiao nodded at Shen Hao, then turned back and instructed Duan Hong and Li Quanshuo, "Immediately ask everyone to go downstairs, guard the stairwell, and don't let anyone disturb me."

"You are... Cousin-in-law? Cao Xiao! Why are you here?"

Just then, a pleasant female voice reached his ears. Hearing this, Cao Xiao turned around in surprise to see that the girl had walked up close. He carefully examined the girl's appearance, but still had no impression of her.

Cao Xiao frowned and asked, "Who are you?"

The girl wiped the tears from her face and looked at Cao Xiao with a puzzled look, saying, "I am He Yueyou's cousin. My name is Yu Pinyun. We haven't met, but I've seen your photo at Yueyou's place."

"Oh! I remember now. Yueyou showed me your photo. Hello, cousin! What are you doing here?"

Hearing Yu Pinyun say this, Cao Xiao suddenly realized. No wonder he had an impression; the surname [Yu] was quite rare, so Cao Xiao had looked at it a few more times back then. Now seeing her in person, he felt she looked familiar. Yu Pinyun was indeed He Yueyou's cousin, not a close one—it was almost outside the five degrees of kinship—but the two families still interacted frequently, so the relationship was still quite close.

"This is my maternal grandfather!"

Yu Pinyun was still looking at Cao Xiao curiously.

Cao Xiao said, "My teacher and Elder Shen are close friends, and I have been ordered to come specifically to treat Elder Shen. Cousin, you all should go out first. I will treat the old man first, and we can talk later."

Previously, there had always been people around the old man, so Cao Xiao hadn't dared to let go and treat him fully, only infusing a small amount of Yuan Energy to maintain Elder Shen's life force. But the earlier the treatment, the better the effect. Every second lost now could be consuming more of Elder Shen's lifespan. Now, Elder Shen's life was hanging by a thread, like a candle in the wind. A tiny change in his condition could extinguish his life force completely. He had rushed to the scene without stopping; if he were to miss the best treatment time because of unrelated matters, it would be completely unacceptable.