Li Guishu and his wife Wang Zhihua hold their son Li Rui, who is suffering from leukemia, in Beijing Pediatric Hospital on Tuesday. Premier Wen Jiabao arranged for Rui's treatment after he accidentally met the family in Tianjin on Monday.

When Li and Wang first took their son to the emergency department of a hospital in June, the doctors suspected he was just suffering from fever. But on their second visit, doctors told them about the diagnosis.

Li and Wang rushed their son to a hospital in Zhangjiakou, but the 60,000-yuan bill was crippling for the family that earns only about 3,000 yuan a year. Hence, they were forced to return after only three months of treatment for Rui, the newspaper said.

But Li was determined to raise more money for his son's treatment. So he sold more than 400 kg of plants and saved 2,000 yuan. He took Rui to Tianjin Blood Research Center this time.

But the cost of treatment in the Tianjin hospital was very high, Li says. That left the parents with no choice but to forego their son's treatment.

And then the meeting with Wen took place.

(China Daily February 19, 2009)