Chapter 78: A Bold Decision

  “I support it too, brother-in-law. Go ahead and use it boldly. Even if… even if it fails, I’ll take responsibility with you, just like Second Sister!” Xu Danying also raised her hand and said firmly.

  Zhang Yang looked at her and Xu Dantong, showing a faint smile—no one could tell if it was bitter or not. He thought, since they already call me brother-in-law, no one will suspect me of trying to murder my future father-in-law, right?

  “Since Tongtong and Yingying both agree, that makes three with me.” Zhang Yang tugged Xu Danlu’s arm and said to He Zhen, “Auntie, let me make the decision for you. Whether it succeeds or fails, we’ve got to take the risk.”

  “Zhang Yang, I… I may not be well educated, but I know this is illegal. I can’t let you take such a risk.” He Zhen’s face still showed hesitation.

  Xu Maogen grew agitated, coughing violently, wanting to object. Xu Danying quickly patted his chest to help him breathe.

  “It’s okay.” Zhang Yang smiled easily. “The chance of success is quite high. Besides, even if… it fails, maybe no one will hold me accountable. And if I really have to go in, won’t Tongtong and Yingying accompany me?” He hugged Xu Danlu closer and added, “And Lulu will go with me too, right? What man could ask for better luck?”

  Hearing that, Xu Dantong only glanced at him, while the shy Xu Danying blushed instantly. Just as she was about to say something, Zhang Yang sensed the awkward direction and quickly turned to Xu Danlu, saying, “No time to waste, Lulu, let’s go get Uncle’s discharge papers done.”

  The hospital’s expert team sighed as they processed the discharge papers. Vice Dean Wang patted Zhang Yang’s shoulder and said, “Let’s hope Lao Xu can hold on a bit longer. It’d be great if he could last until your anti-cancer serum is ready.”

  “You’re heading to Meining tomorrow too, right?” Zhang Yang suddenly recalled that Vice Dean Wang was also one of the invited guests.

  “Yes, I am.”

  “We’ll succeed.” Zhang Yang smiled confidently.

  The hospital was very cooperative, giving them greenlight access. By afternoon, all paperwork was done. The medical and hospitalization fees were waived, and Vice Dean Wang even assigned a senior nurse to accompany and care for Xu Maogen on the flight to Meining.

  That night, Zhang Yang met with Shangguan Hong and explained his intention.

  Shangguan Hong frowned and said, “In theory, since you invented this thing, it’s reasonable for you to decide how to use it. But now it’s part of the ‘Dragonborn’ Project’s research results, and it’s going public tomorrow. To be honest, we’ve already reported to the media, UICC, and the national supervision departments. The report clearly lists the total reagent volume as 25 milliliters, to be tested on 50 lab mice. If you take 10 milliliters, the number of test subjects will have to be reduced.”

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  “Of course, that’s not the main issue. The key is that everything has been officially reported. If the quantity decreases, the higher-ups will definitely ask where it went. If it succeeds, fine. But if it fails… you know the risks. If something happens, it’ll be disastrous—for you personally, for our research team, and for the country.”

  Shangguan Hong sighed deeply and placed a key on the table. “I don’t want you to take the risk, but the choice is yours. This is the key to the safe where the reagent is stored.”

  Zhang Yang, who had expected a long argument, couldn’t help but bow deeply when he saw how understanding Professor Shangguan was. “Professor, thank you!”

  “Haha, thank me? I should be thanking you instead. If nothing goes wrong, once this is announced tomorrow, I, Old Zheng, Old Ding, and Xiao Qiao—the four of us credited as discoverers of the Super Anti-Cancer Cells—will likely share next year’s or the year after’s Nobel Prize in Medicine.” Shangguan Hong chuckled, rubbed his forehead, and added, “Why do I feel like I’ve just become a thief?”

  That night, in the special care ward of Meining University Zhongshan Hospital, under the supervision of Shangguan Hong, Zheng Yuntai, Ding Pengshan, and several secretly invited medical experts, Xu Maogen first underwent a blood test and a lymph node tumor biopsy for reference. Around 1 a.m., 10 milliliters of Nanxing One reagent was successfully injected into the enlarged lymph node on his right neck.

  There would still be a delay before the drug took effect, but Xu Maogen was already connected to various monitoring instruments to observe his vital signs and reactions, ensuring the collection of first-hand data.

  Moreover, in case of any emergency, immediate rescue was ready.

  For pain relief, Xu Maogen also took an OxyContin pill.

  He Zhen and the three Xu sisters waited anxiously outside the ward.

  Time passed minute by minute. After two hours, Xu Maogen’s vital signs showed no major changes. In other words, there was no acute side reaction, meaning patients as weak as him could at least tolerate the injection for two hours.

  But in the third hour, Xu Maogen suddenly showed signs of rapid heartbeat and shortness of breath. Just as everyone grew alarmed, they realized it was because the painkiller’s effect had worn off, and the returning pain had caused the breathing difficulty.

  After ruling that out, everyone resumed their long wait.

  Shangguan Hong walked up to Zhang Yang, who was still staring intently at the monitors, and said, “Based on the earlier mouse trials, when one-twentieth of the adult dose was injected, significant results appeared after eight hours. After that, it took another two hours for the reagent to reach the tumor tissue and begin devouring the original cancer cells—about twelve hours total.”

  “Now we’ve injected twenty times the dosage, so who knows? Maybe it’ll act faster, or maybe slower because of the weight difference. If we get similar results to the mice, we won’t see changes until tomorrow morning.”

  “So aside from the essential staff on duty, let’s withdraw for now. Don’t forget, we’ve got an even more important task tomorrow.” Shangguan Hong patted Zhang Yang’s shoulder and added, “If there’s any sign of change, I’ll have them inform you immediately.”

  Zhang Yang hesitated for a moment, then nodded. He’d barely slept these past few days—his body was at its limit.

  So, except for He Zhen, a few night-shift doctors, and several dedicated nurses, Zhang Yang and the others left. The three Xu sisters followed him back to the villa.

  Liu Zixuan was extremely curious about the two newly arrived beauties—one was the stunning Xu Dantong, who could rival Qiao Xier in looks, and the other was the youthful Xu Danying, about her own age.

  Naturally, she found the classically beautiful and slightly airheaded Xu Danying more interesting. Under Liu Zixuan’s persuasion and insistence, the two sisters joined the room-grabbing army—Xu Dantong in 401, Xu Danying in 404, right next door to Liu Zixuan.

  Of course, the sisters were just doing it for fun. Their school was far from Meining, so they couldn’t possibly stay there long—it was just for show, a total waste of resources.

  But Zhang Yang didn’t dare oppose it. Theoretically speaking, these were his two sisters-in-law, and he had to serve them well.

  Early the next morning, Zhang Yang got up. In truth, he hadn’t slept at all—just dozed lightly before waking.

  Checking the time, it was just past six. He casually threw on a trench coat, rubbed his tired eyes, and walked slowly to the rooftop on the fifth floor.

  It was late autumn, and the morning wind was bone-chilling. Zhang Yang instinctively tightened his coat around him.

  To his surprise, he saw a familiar figure—Xu Danlu. She was wearing only thin sleepwear, standing quietly by the balcony, facing the wind. Her curvy figure was fully outlined from behind.

  Zhang Yang frowned in confusion. This girl usually loved sleeping in.

  He naturally draped his coat over her shoulders and slipped an arm around her waist. “Lulu, why so early…”

  The woman stiffened slightly, turned around, and looked at him. “Brother-in-law!”

  “Uh…” Zhang Yang nearly fell on his ass. That wasn’t Xu Danlu—it was Xu Dantong!

  And worse, that casual hug earlier seemed to have brushed against the underside of her perky peaks—firm, maybe even a bit larger than Xu Danlu’s.

  This was bad. Their hairstyles were obviously different—Xu Danlu had dyed hers blonde, while Xu Dantong hadn’t.

  Damn these eyes.