The Fragrance of a Daughter chapter 1

Amy is a rural girl. She is fourteen years old this year. Due to illness, she was admitted to the county – level hospital in a small town in the United States. In just a few days, it cost several thousand dollars. Amy didn’t know what illness she had. She asked the doctor, and the doctor said she had a severe cold and was a bit anemic. She didn’t believe it. How could a cold cost so much money? She asked her dad, and he said the same thing.

One day, her dad went back home to raise money again. Her aunt came to take care of little Amy instead of her dad, and her aunt’s son, Tom, came along. Tom and Amy are cousins. The two kids chatted happily together. Little Amy pretended to be relaxed and said, “Cousin Tom, guess what illness I have. If you guess right, I’ll give you something delicious.”

Tom didn’t even think and blurted out, “What’s there to guess? I’ve known for a long time that you have late – stage leukemia…” As soon as the words came out, he suddenly remembered his mom’s warning and quickly changed his words, “No, it’s not leukemia. It’s ane… anemia. Really!”

Little Amy didn’t say a word for a long time, with tears in her eyes. She looked around and saw that there was no one else in the ward. Instead, she comforted Tom, “Tom, don’t be nervous. Anyway, no one else heard. I’ll just pretend I don’t know. Aunt won’t blame you.”

That night, little Amy still cried secretly several times. Her tears wet the pillow. She knew that late – stage leukemia was a very difficult disease to cure. Even if it could be cured, it would cost a huge amount of money. However, there was only her dad working on the farm. Where could they get so much money? So, she cried while thinking about her troubles.

The next morning, her dad rushed back to the hospital. There were still spots of blood on his body and face. Amy was quite surprised. After asking for a long time, her dad stammered and told her that he couldn’t borrow any money when he went back. So he asked someone to help slaughter their family’s cow and sold it overnight. He didn’t even have time to change his clothes. Seeing her dad’s face that had aged a lot overnight and thinking about the beloved old cow that had left for her sake, Amy’s nose twitched and tears welled up again. Her dad wiped the tears from the corner of Amy’s eyes and forced a smile, saying, “I know you’re reluctant to part with that old cow. In fact, it was no longer useful. Before selling it, I fed it the best forage. I said to it, ‘We’re selling you to save Amy. Do you have any objections?’ It seemed to understand and nodded, and even mooed. Then we took action…” As he was speaking, his eyes were also full of tears.

Just as the father and daughter were sighing in the ward, several medical staff came in. It was the hospital’s routine. At this time every day, the attending doctor and nurses would come for a routine ward round. Unexpectedly, little Amy, who was always obedient, behaved unusually this time. She got up from the hospital bed. She neither answered the doctor’s questions nor accepted any examinations. With tears in her eyes, she just silently packed her luggage. The attending doctor was puzzled and asked softly, “Amy, you’re our patient. You should cooperate with us. Don’t be willful!”

“Who says I’m your patient? I’m not sick!” Amy’s abnormal words and actions not only surprised and puzzled the medical staff but also left her dad completely confused for a moment. Seeing his daughter offending the doctor, his face turned pale with anxiety. But Amy seemed not to notice and just said to herself, “Dad, I just had a little cold, but they insisted it was a severe cold. I had a few nosebleeds. Clearly, it was because I had too much blood, but they still said I was anemic! They’ve already cost us several thousand dollars, and they still want more. They’ve even made our family sell the cow… Dad, don’t listen to them. I’m really not sick. Even if I was sick, I’m already cured. Look, I’m fine! Let’s go home. If we keep going like this, our house won’t be saved either!” As she was speaking, she pulled her dad straight towards the door. For a moment, the doctors and nurses were all stunned. Although Amy’s words were a bit excessive, no one blamed her. What made everyone anxious and sad was that they couldn’t tell this innocent child her real condition!

Of course, Amy’s dad was even more anxious. This farmer, who was an orphan since childhood, had never married because of poverty. Fortunately, ten years ago, he picked up a baby girl beside the cowshed and finally became a father. Seeing his smart and lovely daughter growing up day by day, he, who had endured so much hardship, finally found some spiritual comfort. Unexpectedly, the hateful illness had targeted his daughter… When he learned about his daughter’s condition, he was so anxious that he almost hit his head against the wall. He secretly vowed that he would rather die himself than let his daughter’s life slip away!

But now, he was puzzled. Overnight, his kind and well – behaved daughter seemed to have changed into a different person. She not only refused treatment but also spoke ill of the hospital. At this moment, this honest man was afraid that telling the truth would hurt his daughter, and he was also afraid that his daughter’s rude words would offend the doctors. In a fit of anxiety, he was at a loss. He felt a blackout in front of his eyes and fainted…

The doctors and nurses on the scene became even more nervous. One group tried to calm little Amy down, while the other group sent Amy’s dad to the emergency room for rescue. They gave him an IV, oxygen, and acupuncture. After a busy while, he slowly came to.

Seeing her dad wake up, little Amy finally let out a sigh of relief and returned to her ward with the medical staff. Unexpectedly, as soon as she entered the ward, she suddenly burst into tears, leaving everyone at a loss.

After a while, she stopped crying. She slowly walked up to everyone and bowed deeply, saying, “Uncle and Aunt, I’m sorry. I know you’re good to me. You hid my real condition from me because you were afraid I’d be sad. In fact, I already know what illness I have. Please forgive me for what I said earlier. I just wanted to deceive my dad into giving up my treatment. I didn’t expect my dad to be so anxious. Now, while my dad isn’t here, I beg you, Uncle and Aunt, to help me tell a lie and deceive my dad. Just say that you made a wrong diagnosis. I don’t have leukemia. I really just have a cold…”

Everyone was shocked when they heard this. “What? Kid, you can’t do this! It’s unethical!”

“Because, because my family is too poor… Dad has raised me all by himself for so many years. He’s suffered so much. Now that I have this illness, if we keep treating it, Dad will go bankrupt and will never have a good life. I don’t have a chance to repay his kindness for raising me, but I don’t want to drag him down anymore. Please, Uncle and Aunt, fulfill my little wish. Deceive my dad. Just this once…” After saying that, little Amy knelt down on the cold floor with a thud.

The doctors and nurses were heart – broken when they heard and saw this. They surrounded little Amy and cried together…

At this time, in the emergency room, Amy’s dad gradually regained consciousness. He was worried about his daughter and got up to go and see her. Coincidentally, his daughter’s attending doctor came to find him.

Amy’s dad quickly asked about his daughter’s situation. The attending doctor was stunned for a moment and then said seriously, “I’m really sorry. There was a mistake in your daughter’s previous diagnosis. She doesn’t have leukemia. It’s just a severe cold…” After saying that, the attending doctor handed him a thick envelope, saying that it was the money from selling the cow and some extra money that everyone had chipped in to buy food for little Amy! Amy’s dad pinched his own thigh hard. He couldn’t believe it was true! He left the attending doctor and rushed to his daughter’s ward like a madman. He asked several familiar doctors and nurses, and when he found that everyone said the same thing, he was so happy that he bowed repeatedly, full of gratitude. The doctors and nurses who knew the truth felt a complex mix of emotions. Some of them couldn’t help but shed tears secretly.

Everyone knew clearly that this would be a farewell for little Amy…