The two remained in an embrace for a considerable time. To her surprise, Ni Shanshan realized she was no longer cold; the debilitating symptoms that had plagued her body were steadily fading away.
“You’re truly warm,” Ni Shanshan murmured, “like a giant heat pack. I feel so much better now.”
Unable to resist praising her, Ni Shanshan tightened her embrace, pulling the girl closer, as if to absorb every last bit of warmth.
Nestled within the nurse’s soft, comforting embrace, Chen Xuanqiu felt a blush creep across her face. ‘Is it truly alright to take advantage of my feminine appearance like this?’ she mused inwardly.
‘No, that’s not right,’ she quickly corrected herself. ‘I’m performing a good deed, not taking advantage.’
Lingering in the profound sense of security, Chen Xuanqiu shamelessly rationalized her actions.
Thus, Ni Shanshan provided Chen Xuanqiu with a sense of safety, while Chen Xuanqiu, in turn, offered healing to Ni Shanshan. The two remained entwined, passing the night in quiet companionship.
Chen Xuanqiu awoke to the full light of day, discovering she was still resting against the nurse’s shoulder. A flush of embarrassment rose, and she quickly shifted away.
“I’m so sorry! Sister, I leaned on you all night.”
Chen Xuanqiu quickly straightened her clothes, offering a hasty apology.
“It’s fine,” Ni Shanshan replied, dismissing her apologies. “Didn’t you help me too? I’m completely recovered now, so I won’t need to take leave tomorrow. Otherwise, they’d dock my pay again.”
Instead, Ni Shanshan expressed her gratitude.
Meanwhile, Li Rui was meticulously packing her personal belongings, a clear sign that she was resolute in her decision to resign.
Chen Xuanqiu’s eyes widened in surprise. ‘The young women in this world are truly something,’ she thought. ‘They treat work as if it’s merely a life experience, coming and going entirely as they please.’
Noticing the time, Chen Xuanqiu prepared to return to her ward.
“Little sister,” Ni Shanshan reminded her, “I’m off today. If you need anything, speak to the nurse on duty, alright?”
“Mm-hm.”
Chen Xuanqiu nodded, then reluctantly made her way back to the ward. She wondered if the other nurses would be as accommodating. If she wasn’t allowed to stay at the nurse’s station, how would she endure the long nights ahead?
Soon after, her mother and sister arrived, bearing breakfast. They eagerly inquired about her first night’s sleep in the psychiatric hospital.
Wishing to spare her family any worry, Chen Xuanqiu lied, assuring them that everything was perfectly fine.
A moment later, a young nurse entered the ward, carrying a medical tray.
Chen Xuanqiu observed her closely. This nurse was even more petite than Ni Shanshan, barely a meter and a half tall, and her features were quite ordinary. Her work badge clearly displayed the name “Zhai Xiaozhen.”
‘She must be Zhai Xiaozhen, the one who took leave last night,’ Chen Xuanqiu realized.
“Take your medicine.”
Zhai Xiaozhen extended the medicine bottle to Chen Xuanqiu, her voice utterly devoid of warmth.
As Chen Xuanqiu reached for the medication, Zhai Xiaozhen’s hand immediately withdrew, as if she feared even the slightest brush against Chen Xuanqiu’s skin.
Chen Xuanqiu instinctively looked up, only to catch a fleeting glimpse of disgust in the nurse’s eyes.
Unsure why she was met with such disdain, yet unwilling to inquire, Chen Xuanqiu simply swallowed the pills as instructed.
Zhai Xiaozhen then turned and exited the room, having uttered only that single sentence.
“What kind of attitude is that nurse displaying?” Chen Xuanzhu fumed. “Does she have any professional ethics at all?”
Chen Xuanzhu was instantly incensed.
“Darling,” Melissa interjected, trying to soothe her. “Young women these days lack neither jobs nor money. Can you truly expect them to maintain a professional attitude?”
Melissa attempted to explain, standing beside her.
“If she’s so irrelevant, she can simply leave!” Chen Xuanzhu retorted, still fuming. “Who is she putting on that ugly face for?”
Still unable to calm her indignation, Chen Xuanzhu continued to rail against the young nurse.
Another hour passed. The mother and her two daughters heard a commotion outside the door, and then watched as five or six doctors entered the ward. Leading them was Dr. Ren, the physician who had initially examined Chen Xuanqiu, followed by a retinue of young medical professionals, both male and female, clad in white coats.
Recognizing it as the doctors’ rounds, Melissa and her daughters promptly stood, moving aside to give them space.
The doctors’ gazes quickly fell upon Chen Xuanzhu, then shifted to Chen Xuanqiu. Their faces registered expressions of astonishment and disbelief, clearly struggling to comprehend how two individuals could be so strikingly similar.
Dr. Ren was the first to recover, and he immediately inquired with concern about Chen Xuanqiu’s condition over the past day of her hospitalization.
Eager to be discharged as soon as possible, Chen Xuanqiu naturally claimed that everything was perfectly normal.
Dr. Ren then proceeded to brief the young medical professionals behind him on Chen Xuanqiu’s case, inviting them to offer their assessments.
“There are no organic lesions,” a young male doctor stated. “Yet she experiences hallucinations without cause, and even faints during severe episodes. These are classic symptoms of schizophrenia.”
He articulated his medical opinion.
‘Hey, I’m not mentally ill!’ Chen Xuanqiu inwardly protested, her thoughts a silent scream.
She couldn’t help but refute the diagnosis in her mind.
“Schizophrenia?”
Upon hearing the diagnosis, Melissa and her two daughters’ faces instantly paled.
“I’m not so sure,” another young female doctor countered. “Her symptoms only began a few days ago. It could be a case of transient physiological hallucinations, perhaps induced by prolonged physical exhaustion. I believe we need to observe her for a longer period before making a definitive diagnosis.”
This young female doctor held a contrasting view.
The three women felt a measure of relief at this alternative perspective. As long as she wasn’t definitively diagnosed with a mental illness, there was hope.
Ultimately, Dr. Ren appeared to concur with the young female doctor’s assessment, choosing not to hastily conclude Chen Xuanqiu’s diagnosis.
Seeing the doctors prepare to depart, Melissa quickly pressed them for an update on her eldest daughter’s condition.
“Rest assured,” Dr. Ren assured the three women. “We’ll have a conclusive result within two weeks at most.”
Only after offering this reassurance did Dr. Ren lead his entourage of young medical professionals out of the ward.
A peaceful day thus drew to a close. As dusk descended, Melissa and her daughters departed.
Chen Xuanqiu, too, began to dread the coming night. She had noticed that Zhai Xiaozhen and another young nurse were on duty, and she wasn’t sure if they would permit her to seek refuge at the nurse’s station again.
Chen Xuanqiu wrestled with her inner turmoil, her gaze fixed on the stark white ceiling.
“Why is this light still on so late?”
Moments later, Zhai Xiaozhen entered the ward and, without a word, switched off the light.
Chen Xuanqiu was already prone to fear, but now, plunged into utter darkness, her terror intensified. She quickly retrieved her phone for illumination, her ears keenly attuned to every sound around her.
“Let me out… I’m going to kill you all…”
“Mama… Mama… have you come to take me home? I’m sorry, it’s all my fault for being unable to cure your illness.”
“Nurse… Nurse… there’s blood… blood everywhere… Help me!”
“I can’t take this, I truly can’t take this…”
****
In the quiet of the night, the cacophony of voices began to rise and fall once more.
Having heard these sounds last night, Chen Xuanqiu felt a slight resistance building within her. She believed she could endure if this was the only trial the night held.
“Waaah… waaah…”
Yet, at that very moment, the sound of a baby’s cries, high-pitched and childlike, echoed throughout the entire hospital wing.
‘Where could a baby possibly be in this psychiatric hospital?’ Chen Xuanqiu wondered.
Confusion clouded Chen Xuanqiu’s mind, compounded by the eerie silence from the nurses’ station outside.
‘Is no one going to attend to a child crying so loudly?’
Chen Xuanqiu was utterly baffled. She listened intently, discerning that the infant’s cries seemed to emanate from a ward somewhere to her left.
‘To my left? My left are rooms 303, 304, 305… 305!’
As she mentally tallied the rooms, Chen Xuanqiu’s heart convulsed. Room 305—that was where the infant spirit resided.
‘Could these cries be coming from that infant spirit?’
Chen Xuanqiu’s subconscious thought sent a wave of terror through her, draining all color from her face.
‘If that infant spirit is crying, will it come to my room?’
The more Chen Xuanqiu dwelled on it, the more terrified she became. Her body was rapidly drenched in a cold sweat. Frantically, she raised her phone, scanning the room, terrified that a dark shadow might suddenly lunge from a hidden corner.
‘No! I can’t stay here any longer.’
After only a few agonizing minutes, Chen Xuanqiu’s psychological defenses shattered. She quickly slipped into her sandals and hurried out, desperate to find refuge at the nurse’s station.
As she exited, Chen Xuanqiu swiftly turned right, her eyes resolutely avoiding any glance to the left.
Chen Xuanqiu rushed to the nurse’s station, where she found two young nurses laughing and teasing a handsome young man in a security uniform. Zhai Xiaozhen, in particular, was practically dancing with joy, a stark contrast to her demeanor when she had spoken to Chen Xuanqiu.
“It’s so late, why are you out here?”
Upon seeing Chen Xuanqiu, Zhai Xiaozhen’s expression instantly soured.
“I… I can’t sleep…”
Needing their help, Chen Xuanqiu stammered out her explanation.
“Even if you can’t sleep, you must stay in your ward,” Zhai Xiaozhen stated coldly. “Now, go back immediately.”
Zhai Xiaozhen’s tone was overtly aggressive.
Chen Xuanqiu had not anticipated such coldness and found herself caught between a rock and a hard place.
“You won’t go back, will you? Then I’ll let Brother Han deal with you.”
Zhai Xiaozhen glanced at the security guard, a clear threat in her voice.
Chen Xuanqiu looked at the security guard, only to find him staring back with an intensely aggressive gaze. A chill ran down her spine, and she quickly turned to retreat.
“Xiao Zhen, who is this foreign girl? She’s really pretty.”
The security guard’s voice drifted faintly to her ears.
“What girl? Just a transvestite.”
Zhai Xiaozhen’s dismissive reply followed.
“A transvestite? No way, can a transvestite be that good-looking?”
The security guard’s tone was tinged with disappointment.
“Do you think I’d lie to you? If you don’t believe me, ask Xiao Hua.”
“Yes, she’s a transvestite. She just moved in yesterday.”
****
‘A transvestite?’
A pang of hurt pierced Chen Xuanqiu’s heart, and her delicate fists clenched. This night, she resolved, she would rather be scared to death than ask these people for help again.