Chapter 3

Tanya's condition took a sharp turn for the worse on the third day.

When I arrived at the hospital, Jessica was crouching down in the hallway, organizing documents.

She packed all the property deeds, bank cards, vehicle registration certificates, and investment products purchased over the past few years into a transparent folder.

She then handed the folder to me.

"This is all of our joint property. The house in the southern district and the two apartments are all yours. I won't take a single cent from the bank accounts either. The cars and the funds are yours too."

I didn't reach out to take the folder.

"What about the share transfer agreement?"

Jessica's hand froze in midair.

"I can't give you the shares."

"Then these are just waste paper."

I walked past her.

She suddenly grabbed me and shoved the folder into my arms.

"Kevin, that 12% won't decide the ownership of Eterspring. You're already the largest shareholder. Why do you need my shares?"

I stopped.

"That's my condition. You're free to say no."

The ICU doors opened.

Dr. Graves walked out with a grave expression.

"Tanya's hepatic encephalopathy has entered stage three. She's experiencing impaired consciousness and intermittent coma. If the transplant can't be done within three days, she may not even make it to the seventh day."

Jessica staggered backward.

"Doctor, please think of something. Can't we look for a donor liver from the organ bank?"

Dr. Graves shook his head.

"There's not enough time. Our best hope is to find a living donor in an immediate family member."

He turned to me.

"Mr. Holland, the compatibility tests only require a few tubes of blood. Whatever conflict you and your wife have, can't you at least get the tests done first?"

Everyone in the hallway turned to look at me.

Jessica stared at me blankly.

A few seconds later, her knees suddenly buckled, and she collapsed to the floor.

"I'm begging you."

She hugged my leg, and her forehead slammed heavily against the floor tiles.

"Tanya's only six. Every night, she asks when her daddy's coming to see her. If you hate me, take it out on me. Take the house, take the money. But please, save Tanya!"

A low murmur spread through the crowd.

Someone pulled out a phone and aimed it at us.

Another patient's family member couldn't help but scold me, "Your daughter is about to die, but you're using her life to negotiate for money? You don't deserve to be a father."

I ignored them.

Jessica picked up the share transfer agreement but couldn't bring herself to sign.

Her tears fell onto the paper, drop after drop.

"If I don't sign, will you really let Tanya die?"

"The person deciding whether she lives or not isn't me, it's you."

The moment I said that, the crowd erupted.

Jessica seemed to have finally lost all her strength. She collapsed onto the floor.

That night, a video of the incident was posted online.

The person who filmed it had only captured the part where Jessica begged me on her knees, and where I placed the share transfer agreement in front of her.

The title was brutally provocative.

"Six-Year-Old Girl Has Liver Failure, But The Father Refuses To Donate Liver Unless His Wife Leaves With Nothing."

The video was viewed over 10 million times in less than two hours.

My name, picture, and company were all posted.

The comments were filled with insults.

"Someone like him should just die."

"I suggest the company fire him immediately."

"He's using his own daughter as a bargaining chip. He's worse than an animal."

"The wife spent eight years building the business with him, and now that he's successful, he wants to take everything."

At one in the morning, the related hashtags hit number one on the trending list.

My mother forwarded me the video.

She said only one thing.

"Kevin, you've disgraced our whole family."

Shortly after, the hospital sent a new critical condition notification.