Chapter 150: The Most Dangerous Patient
"The patient in Room 5 is named Xu Tong. He suffers from Fregoli delusion, a type of delusional misidentification syndrome. He believes that everyone around him is actually the same person in disguise, and that he lives in a manipulated world."
"The patient in Room 6 is named Han Bao'er, a midnight show streamer. There's no photo in her file, but her attending physician wrote this sentence at the end of her case notes—'Just how much does God want to ruin a person, to bestow upon them such beauty?'"
"Han Bao'er only stayed in the closed ward for two and a half months before someone took her out. She suffers from a very rare condition—body dysmorphic disorder."
"She always exaggerates flaws in her appearance, strongly believing that some part of her body is ugly, unable to accept even the slightest imperfection. During her hospitalization, she even wanted to cut off her fingers because she couldn't trim her nails symmetrically."
"The patient in Room 7 left no name. He suffers from Cotard's syndrome, believing that his own body and internal organs have changed, claiming his internal organs have rotted away, and that he is actually dead. He asserts that he has seen the real world, and that the reality we live in doesn't actually exist."
"Room 8 has a specially reinforced iron door. The patient inside is named Xiong Qing. He was once a doctor in the Third Ward. Perhaps because he witnessed too many suffering and twisted patients, he developed hemispatial neglect syndrome at the age of thirty."
"Patients lose the ability to focus equal attention on both sides of a space. When someone with this condition draws a person, they often leave out one arm and one leg. When asked about it, they'll say it looks perfect."
"Strictly speaking, this condition isn't severe, but Xiong Qing is a perfectionist. So when he sees patients with intact limbs, he can't control the urge to 'correct' them."
"The patient in Room 9 is named Wu Fei. Up until the hospital was shut down, his condition was never diagnosed."
"Some doctors believe Wu Fei has Asperger's syndrome—simply put, autism without intellectual disability. He has an extraordinary memory and exceptional abilities in certain areas. He never communicates with others, probably thinking everyone around him is an idiot, including the doctors treating him."
"During treatment, he once admitted to doing many crazy things, some of which even alarmed the police. Unfortunately, investigations revealed that most of those things were fabricated. For the few real incidents, the perpetrators had already been found, with complete chains of evidence, and they likely had nothing to do with Wu Fei."
"Wu Fei never harmed anyone in the ward, but the hospital still decided to keep him in Room 9. This was a joint decision between the hospital and the police."
"By risk level, the most dangerous should be Room 10. The patient in this room has no name. I checked all the case files, and the name column only has the number 10 written in. The doctors never mention his name, and in the case notes, they usually refer to him as 'the devil.'"
"This patient suffers from Lesch-Nyhan syndrome, also known as self-mutilation syndrome. When it flares up, he uses various tools to disfigure his face grotesquely. His cognition is completely different from normal people, and he has an极强的 destructive urge."
"Patient 10 is mostly restrained to his bed. When he goes out, he's also tied to a wheelchair under constant supervision."
"In fact, people with Lesch-Nyhan syndrome rarely live past twenty. This Patient 10 is probably no longer alive by now."
Dr. Gao finished listing the information on all nine patients. Chen Ge picked up a pen and wrote down the details and names of all nine on paper.
He looked at what he had written, feeling increasingly uneasy. "Dr. Gao, do you know where these nine people were transferred after leaving the Third Ward?"
"Aside from Wang Shenglong, Xu Tong, and Han Bao'er having medical records elsewhere, the others seem to have vanished. I can't find any information related to them."
"Do you have contact information for these people?" Chen Ge wanted to learn more about the Third Ward before starting the livestream.
"The contact info in the files is mostly unusable now. Telling you wouldn't help." Dr. Gao politely declined Chen Ge's request. "I called so late mainly to tell you that Wang Shenglong might be very dangerous. Many patients are one way when lucid and another when they have an episode. Don't provoke them. After all, if you provoke them first, even if they hurt you, the punishment would be light."
Dr. Gao's point was simple: don't court death. After Chen Ge fell, he noticed the carpet was smooth without wrinkles, suspecting Chen Ge hadn't tripped on his own but was knocked down by an external force. That's why he called late at night to warn him.
"I understand. I'll be more careful from now on." Chen Ge thought for a moment and added, "Dr. Gao, if you find any more information related to the Third Ward, let me know. I'm very interested in that hospital."
"You have a truly unique interest. Alright, get some rest. I'll notify you immediately if there are any new developments."
Hanging up, Chen Ge put away the papers on the table, his mind churning over the nine patients.
"Ten rooms, but only nine patients. If the room numbers are related to risk level, why is Room 3 empty? Was there ever a patient in there? Or did the patient in Room 3 die in the ward?"
Chen Ge didn't remember when he fell asleep. He hadn't even taken off his clothes, and when he opened his eyes again, it was already dawn.
He checked the time—just six o'clock. He went out to wash his face, opened the haunted house door, rode a shared bike outside the amusement park, and headed to the nearest farmers' market.
The sky had just brightened, and the market was already bustling with noise. Chen Ge squeezed in among a crowd of elderly people, standing out conspicuously.
He first bought a live rooster, then went to the pork stall, standing there eagerly.
When the vendor finally had a moment, Chen Ge quickly approached.
The pork seller, a man in his forties, had already noticed Chen Ge. "What do you want?"
When it came time to speak, Chen Ge felt a bit embarrassed. "I want to buy your butcher knife."
"You come to me to buy a knife?" The man thought Chen Ge was messing with him and scowled.
"I'm serious about buying it." Chen Ge put the money directly on the cutting board. "Name your price."
After explaining for a while, the pork seller finally understood why Chen Ge wanted the knife. He found it both amusing and exasperating. "It's not that I won't sell to you. These days, we use specialized machines for electric slaughter. Besides, I only have bone cleavers, boning knives, and regular meat knives. If you want a slaughter knife, you'll have to go to the slaughterhouse."