Free Web NovelChapter 323: Chapter 323: Medical Parole
Su Li had long ago gotten a card for the library closest to her home, and she already had one for the school library, of course.
Then, she went and got a card for the Imperial City Library, getting one for Little Tang Mo as well.
Little Tang Mo was young, but Su Li insisted on getting him one anyway.
The Imperial City Library had the most extensive collection, so Little Tang Mo would be able to borrow anything he wanted.
Su Li ran her own bookstore, and while it was well-stocked, many of the books weren’t suitable for Little Tang Mo’s studies, so she had to find another solution.
"This is great!" Little Tang Mo’s face lit up with joy when he saw the library card, and he immediately took it from her.
Su Li loved to read, and so did Little Tang Mo. He had already read nearly every book in his elementary school’s library and was just starting to worry he would run out of things to read.
"I want to go tomorrow," Little Tang Mo declared at once.
"Of course, go ahead," Su Li nodded. "Tomorrow’s the weekend, so you can stay there all day if you want."
Spending a whole day in a library was a blissful thing, indeed.
「The next day」, Su Li and Little Tang Mo went to the Imperial City Library.
As luck would have it, they ran into Yu Zhengqing. Su Li was overjoyed when she heard he was planning to spend his day off at the library.
She gave Little Tang Mo a gentle push toward him. "In that case, Yu Zhengqing, I’ll leave Little Mo in your hands today."
Yu Zhengqing blinked. "In my hands?"
"Yes. Just take him with you when you get lunch and keep an eye on him. I have an errand to run, but I’ll be back to pick him up before the library closes."
Yu Zhengqing understood. He patted Little Tang Mo’s head. "Go on, then."
They had bonded after dealing with that incident involving Ling Zhen, so he was already quite familiar with Little Tang Mo.
Without any prompting from Su Li, Little Tang Mo waved to her. "Go on and get your work done, Mom."
While Little Tang Mo was diving into an ocean of books at the Imperial City Library, drawn to the physics section and having a fated encounter of his own, Su Li was rushing to the women’s prison.
’I have to find out what really happened, face-to-face.’
As the one who had originally pressed charges against Mrs. Tang and as Little Tang Mo’s current guardian, Su Li was quickly granted a meeting with the person in charge.
The story of Mrs. Tang’s release from prison began a few days ago.
When Tang Yuanxiao had visited earlier, he hadn’t told Mrs. Tang about his assignment, afraid it would frighten her.
Unfortunately, Mrs. Tang found out about it after he left.
After his visit, Tang Yuanxiao recalled the reason behind his mother’s vicious habit of stuffing things into people’s mouths, and he also spoke with a prison guard about his situation.
Feeling uneasy, he specifically asked the guard to help look after Mrs. Tang and told the man he was going to be out of town.
As it happened, that guard had an acquaintance in Tang Yuanxiao’s unit and had even heard about the "devil training." Upon learning Tang Yuanxiao was going, he was filled with admiration and urged him to return safely.
While the guard was remarking on the matter to a colleague, one of Mrs. Tang’s cellmates happened to overhear.
Later, when Mrs. Tang started causing trouble again, the cellmate told her what she’d heard, intentionally trying to provoke her.
The news was such a shock to Mrs. Tang that she was terrified and collapsed on the spot.
She already had high blood pressure and was not supposed to get agitated. The doctor had warned her of the danger, and she had been trying desperately to keep her temper in check, but this time, she failed.
Mrs. Tang had a stroke, which left her with hemiplegia.
The muscles on the right side of Mrs. Tang’s body, including her right arm and leg, had weakened. She had sensory impairment—unable to feel heat, cold, or pain—and was completely immobile on that side.
She also had a visual field defect in her right eye.
In short, Mrs. Tang was now a complete invalid.
She could hardly even sit up straight and had to spend most of her time lying down, completely unable to care for herself.
Once Mrs. Tang was out of critical condition, the prison authorities realized they had a problem on their hands.
Forget about reform through labor; Mrs. Tang now needed help with even the most basic functions like eating, drinking, and using the toilet. It was a filthy, exhausting task.
The prison guards were too busy, so they had a cellmate care for her for two days, but the inmate said she’d rather do hard labor than continue with the task.
Dealing with drool, feces, and urine... After all, Mrs. Tang wasn’t her mother, and she found the work disgusting.
After two days, all the inmates were afraid of the duty.
Although she was a convict, they couldn’t simply neglect her and let her die in prison. The authorities had no choice but to notify her family and arrange for Mrs. Tang to be released on medical parole.
"Under the circumstances, we couldn’t hire someone to care for her, so our only option was to have family handle the paperwork for her release."
The prison official explained the situation to Su Li in detail.
"Our hands were tied. Tang Guihua was here to serve time and perform labor. She can’t work, and she can’t even take care of her own basic needs..."
Su Li sighed after listening. "And what if she recovers?"
The official shook his head. "We asked the doctor. Recovery is very rare in a case like this."
’It’s not that I don’t understand that,’ Su Li thought. ’I just feel like she’s getting off too easy, being released after only a few months in prison.’
’Still, a stroke and paralysis isn’t exactly a happy ending.’
"These are the photos we took as evidence. You can take a look."
The official showed Su Li the doctor’s written diagnosis and the photos they had taken for their records, presenting each piece of evidence to her.
In the photo, Mrs. Tang lay stiffly in bed, so emaciated she was almost unrecognizable. A trickle of drool escaped the corner of her mouth; she looked like she had one foot in the grave.
There was no trace of the imperious woman who had burst in to catch her "cheating" and assaulted both Su Li and the handyman.
Su Li glanced at the photo once before looking away and letting out a long sigh.
’This is her own doing, a kind of karmic retribution. Little Tang Mo can speak now, and there’s no way around the medical parole. I suppose I have to let it be.’
’She may be out of prison, but I believe she still has a lifetime of suffering ahead of her.’
Su Li was right. Mrs. Tang was indeed living a life worse than death.
When the time came for her release on medical parole, Tang Yuanxiao wasn’t in the Imperial City, leaving no one to handle the paperwork.
The prison was about to contact his unit and ask them to send someone, but Mrs. Tang spoke up and gave them Qin Shanshan’s name, telling them she was her future daughter-in-law and could handle the arrangements.
The prison contacted Qin Shanshan, and she came at once without the slightest hesitation.
After completing the paperwork, Qin Shanshan took Mrs. Tang home.
Seemingly unfazed by Mrs. Tang’s filth, she began to care for the older woman with her whole heart.
She attended to all of Mrs. Tang’s needs, from feeding her to changing her. She bought a wheelchair and would strap Mrs. Tang into it for medical appointments and walks. Aside from attending her classes, she spent almost all her time caring for the invalid.
Even a biological daughter could not have done more.
Mrs. Tang was moved beyond words. She gripped Qin Shanshan’s hand with her one good one and promised she would make sure Qin Shanshan became her daughter-in-law.
Qin Shanshan lowered her head, her gaze resolute.
’Being filial to one’s mother-in-law is a daughter-in-law’s duty. If Tang Yuanxiao were to marry me, if I were to become a daughter-in-law of the Tang Family, I would be willing to care for Mrs. Tang forever.’
Qin Shanshan was a young woman, and a meticulous one at that. How could she not be disgusted by the filth?
Of course she was. When she first started caring for Mrs. Tang, she lost a significant amount of weight.
Everyone assumed it was from exhaustion, but the truth was, she mostly couldn’t keep her food down.
She only started to eat properly again after she slowly grew accustomed to the work.
Amid everyone’s curious gazes and showers of praise, Qin Shanshan persisted in caring for Mrs. Tang, all the while counting the days until Tang Yuanxiao’s return.
’Tang Yuanxiao is a filial son. If he sees me taking care of his mother like this, I refuse to believe he can remain indifferent.’
’Compared to Su Li, I’m a much better match for him. I’m more virtuous, more filial, and I love him more.’
’Tang Yuanxiao has to see that.’
