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墨書 Inktalez
Even though I studied medicine, I couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy. I remembered back when I was at Medical University, after anatomy class, we were always required to stay behind to clean up. Whenever it was my turn on Duty, bending down to carry those cadaver specimens made me feel strangely anxious, as if they might sit up at any moment when I wasn't paying attention. That thrilling sensation lingered throughout the entire academic year until the end of the course.
I quickly stepped aside, planning to enter the Department after the car passed. As it rolled over a concrete seam, it jolted slightly, and a hand slipped out from under the white sheet, revealing a red ribbon around the wrist.
Hmm? Aren't hospital patients usually wearing blue wristbands? Even among the deceased, it's rare to see one tied with a red ribbon. I found it odd as the attendant pushed the gurney around the corner. Shaking my head, I didn't dwell on it and turned to enter the Surgical Ward.
Upon returning to my room, I was taken aback to find my bedside table piled high with various items—food and drinks included. I turned to Maliao, who was munching away while watching TV, and asked, "Who came to see me? And brought so much stuff?!"
"Who else could it be? That girl in white waited for you for a long time before leaving! If I hadn't needed to turn off the lights and rest, she would have stayed longer."
Sighing, I paused for a moment.
"Don't you find that interesting at all?!" Maliao questioned.
"Not really. Some girls you just feel an instant attraction to; that's love at first sight. Others, no matter how many times you look at them, just don't spark anything—that's simply not having chemistry."
"Man, you really have your standards!"
After pondering for a moment, I said, "How about this: tomorrow morning I'll go out for some fun. Even if it's just hanging out at an internet café, I won't be in the ward. If anything comes up, you can cover for me. What do you think?"
"Sure, go ahead! My girlfriend is coming to see me tomorrow anyway. I'll eat whatever you have left over," he chuckled.
"Wow, your girlfriend is really clingy! You two work normal hours at the Provincial Military District and still stick together like that?"
"Well, we're getting married soon!"
We chatted casually for a bit longer before washing up and turning off the lights to sleep.
The next morning, I woke up early, changed into casual clothes, and dashed out of the hospital. Not far from there, I found an internet café where I sat down at a computer to play games. Despite my left hand being inconvenient, simple controls were still manageable.
I ordered takeout for both lunch and dinner; this way, I felt like I'd settled in at the café. I thought that if Xu Zengjing were smart enough, he would eventually figure things out through our interactions.
However, when I returned to my room that evening, I was shocked to see Xu Zengjing chatting with Maliao!
“Hey, aren’t you going back to sleep? We’re about to turn off the lights!” I asked curiously, shooting a sharp glare at Maliao, implying why she wasn’t doing anything to send her away and instead was chatting. Maliao responded with a helpless look.
“Why go back so early? It’s only a little past nine. Besides, I moved down here, right across from you guys. I was bored at night, so I came to chat with you. By the way, this Ma Liaison just told me a lot about your unit, and it’s completely different from what I thought before.”
“Oh, really? You’ve never been to the unit, so of course you wouldn’t know.” I initially didn’t react, replying lightly as I started tidying up my bed. Wait, what did she just say? “Hey, what do you mean you moved down here?”
“I had Dad find someone to switch places with me. It’s too high up; it’s inconvenient. Plus, this is for observation. I’m not taking any shots or medication; it doesn’t matter where I stay. Look, you’re right across from me in a VIP room, single occupancy.”
I felt a bit of a headache coming on. How could I not escape this? Now she was living right across from me. It seemed I needed to try to get discharged as soon as possible.
The room fell silent for a moment. Maliao sensed the awkward atmosphere and retreated to the bathroom to freshen up.
“Is there a chance I could visit your unit?” she asked timidly after a while.
“Why is a wealthy lady like you suddenly interested in the military? Aren’t you afraid your car will be requisitioned again?” I replied with a hint of sarcasm.
“You… you!” She was about to explode but quickly calmed down. “I just realized that some of my previous thoughts and views about soldiers were wrong. I want to see the real you guys. What’s wrong with that? Am I not welcome?”
I didn’t take her bait. “It’s too late; you should go back to your room.”
“No, it’s too boring to go back now. I can’t sleep that early. Besides, this ward isn’t just yours; you can’t just kick me out.”
At that moment, Maliao came out of the bathroom. “Are you okay? Ma Liaison?”
Maliao didn’t understand the situation and casually replied, “Oh, oh, yeah, it’s fine if we chat for a bit.” She sat on the bed and pressed the button for the TV channel; a horror movie was playing on screen. Maliao plopped down directly facing the TV on my bed.
The three of us were clearly too close together; I glanced back and had no choice but to sit on Maliao's bed.
Turning back around, the room fell silent again because Maliao didn’t know whether to join in the conversation, Xu Zengjing couldn’t find any topics to discuss, and I didn’t want to talk either. The only sound came from the horror movie on TV as we all turned our faces toward it, pretending to watch.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Xu Zengjing seemed hesitant to watch. An idea struck me. “Xu Zengjing, are you really watching this? I suggest you stop and hurry back to close the door and draw the curtains to sleep.”
"Why?! Oh right, just call me Jing." She was quite stubborn about it.
"Ah, Jing," I hesitated to say her name, but for the sake of the plan, I had to endure. "Do you know that right across from your room is the Morgue?"
"The Morgue?" Xu Zengjing looked confused.
"It's the place where they keep dead bodies!"
"Ah!" She exclaimed in shock.
"Your window faces the Morgue directly. Have you noticed the frosted glass window near the basement A Row? That's the Morgue's basement. Make sure to close your window and draw the curtains at night! Hospitals are already places filled with negative energy, and the area near the Morgue is even worse. You're just a girl, and you belong to the yin side, so be careful." In truth, all Morgues are pretty much the same; I was just making things up to scare her.
"Is that true?" Xu Zengjing asked, still unsure. Maliao chimed in from the side, his expression also a bit uneasy.
Xu Zengjing shrank back in her chair and asked, "Are you trying to scare us?"
"Hehehe, of course not! Have you heard about a real ghost story that happened in a hospital downtown?"
Both of them shook their heads vigorously. I continued weaving my tale. "There was a doctor who finished his shift in the emergency room at midnight and was heading down to the basement parking lot to get his car and go home. When he reached the elevator door, he saw a nurse in a long-sleeved work uniform and decided to take the elevator down together. The parking lot is on the B3 floor, and there was no one else in the elevator. When they reached B1, the elevator doors opened, and a girl appeared before them, her head lowered as she tried to enter. The doctor panicked and quickly pressed the close button. The nurse curiously asked why he wouldn't let her in. The doctor explained that the Morgue is on B1, and every corpse has a white wristband tied to its right hand; that girl had one too! Hearing this, the nurse slowly extended her own right hand towards him with a sinister smile: 'Is it... something like this?'"
Suddenly, two screams pierced through the air—one from Xu Zengjing and another from Maliao.
I looked at Maliao in surprise; he was pressed against the wall with genuine fear on his face. Xu Zengjing was different; although she looked scared, she bit her lip tightly, clearly trying hard to control herself after her initial scream.
Both of them stared at me. I wanted to laugh but held it back. I slowly spoke up, "Old Ma, you've been hospitalized here before, right? Do you know there's something very sinister about this hospital?"
Maliao looked terrified and shook his head. I slowly turned my gaze towards Xu Zengjing. "According to rumors, during each month's new moon is when negative energy is at its peak, and strange occurrences happen in the Morgue. Sometimes during shifts, staff members find bodies scattered across the basement floor; other times people claim they've heard voices coming from there... Jing, your room is so close; you need to be careful at night."
I chuckled mischievously and suddenly raised my voice, shouting, "Look out behind you at the window!"
Both of them jumped in fright and ran towards the door while glancing back nervously as if trying to play along with me. Outside, a strong wind blew against the window, causing the curtains to flutter wildly without stopping.
Seeing the two of them so frightened, I couldn't help but laugh. "Jing, there's only one more before the moon wanes. It's better to get discharged early."
Maliao stood there in terror, waiting for the wind to stop. As soon as it did, he rushed over to close the window tightly, pulled the curtains shut, and then came back to pull me up. He lay back down on his bed, covering himself with a blanket, leaving only his head exposed as he looked at me. "Bro, you're a bit terrifying. I'm going to sleep first; you can sleep after I do!"
Jing was stomping her feet at the bathroom door before running over to my bed, lying down fully clothed. "I'm not going back! I'm scared!"
What the hell! I never expected Jing would actually stay overnight in the male ward! It seemed like she was digging her own grave! I stared dumbfounded at the two people on their respective beds.
Fine! I admit defeat. With my head hanging low, I sat in front of the TV. Maliao pressed the remote and changed the channel. "Why don't we play some cards to lighten the mood?" he suggested after flipping through a few channels.
"Sure, sure! Let's play Landlord! I know how to play."
I shot her a look. "For money? Are you brave enough?"
"Bring it on! Am I scared?" Jing suddenly sat up from her bed but then seemed to remember something and lay back down.
"By the way, my ward door isn't locked, and my phone and bag are still there! Can you go get them for me? I'm too scared to go." Jing looked at me with pleading eyes.
(To be continued, more exciting content tomorrow!)
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