At the Nursing Home

Today was Wednesday, and as usual, I went to Happy Nursing Home to see my mom. When the car stopped at the nursing home entrance, ginkgo leaves were falling onto the windshield, golden like shards of broken gold. I carried the insulated container into the third-floor VIP ward. The moment I opened the door, I heard my mom's weak cries. "Shirley... it hurts... my chest hurts..." My heart sank as I hurried over, my hand immediately reaching into my bag for the fast-acting heart pill. The doctor had specially prescribed this medicine for me; each bottle was stored in a small silver box labeled "For Lily Clark's Use Only." My fingers still chilled by the metal of the pill bottle, just as I was about to twist off the cap, a hand painted with bright red nail polish suddenly reached across. That hand was incredibly forceful, slamming the pill bottle onto the ground and scattering tablets everywhere like white shards. "Visitors are strictly prohibited from giving medication to the residents on their own!" A sharp voice cut through the air. I looked up and saw a woman in a nurse's uniform standing in the doorway, her name tag reading "Head Nurse Linda White." Her hair was pinned up perfectly, her makeup impeccable, and her eyes dripping with contempt. "I've just issued a new rule: no medication can be administered without my permission!" My mom lay on the hospital bed, her face pale as paper, her breathing growing increasingly labored, her hand gripping the corner of my shirt tightly. "My mom has coronary artery disease, and she's having an angina attack right now. We have to give her medication immediately! Any delay could be deadly!" My voice was trembling with panic as I bent down to pick up the bottle from the floor. Unexpectedly, Linda White stepped forward and crushed the bottle under her high heel. With a crunch, the plastic bottle was crushed out of shape, and the remaining tablets were ground to powder. "Chest tightness is common in the elderly. Don't make such a big deal out of it." She crossed her arms and looked down on me with utter contempt, her tone dripping with disdain. "If everyone started playing favorites like you, could you really take responsibility for the chaos that would follow?" I stared at the heel of her shoe pressing down on the medicine bottle and suddenly felt how ridiculous it all was. I invested three hundred million to build Happy Nursing Home. From the design to the operation, I personally supervised every detail. And now, my mom falls ill in the nursing home I built, and she doesn't even have the right to take emergency medication? I was trembling with anger as I reached into my bag for my phone. When my fingertips touched the cold screen, I suddenly remembered to call the principal. "Peter! You have three minutes to get to ward 302, or forget about being the principal!" I shouted into the phone, but before I could hear a response, someone suddenly grabbed my wrist. Linda White snatched my phone and, with a flick of her arm, smashed it against the wall with a loud crack. The screen instantly shattered into a spiderweb of cracks; pieces fell to the floor with a soft clatter. She crossed her arms and looked me up and down, a mocking smile playing on her lips. "Oh, still have the nerve to call and threaten the principal? Who exactly do you think you are?" Her eyes scanned the cotton-linen dress I was wearing—the one I had custom-made by a designer because my skin is sensitive and I can't wear anything with synthetic fibers. "Look at you, dressed so poorly. Can't afford our Happy Nursing Home's VIP fees, huh? Trying to put on a show and scam us?" "I'm telling you, no way!" My chest tightened with pain. Just as I was about to protest, I heard my mom let out another painful groan. I turned to look at her; her forehead was covered in fine cold sweat, her lips were turning purple, and her breathing was growing shallow. "My mom's condition is critical. You need to call the doctor immediately!" I didn't have time to argue with Linda White; all I cared about was saving my mom. But Linda arrogantly lifted her chin, her eyes shining with smug satisfaction. "Doctor? Even if the doctor comes, they have to follow my orders." "I said no medication, and there will be no medication! No one can change my decision!" I stared at her utterly heartless face, a surge of fury rising straight from my core. "Fine, if you won't call the doctor, I'll take my mom to the hospital myself!" I reached out to support my mom, trying to lift her into her wheelchair—Happy Nursing Home was only a ten-minute drive from the nearest hospital, so we still had time.