Soul Patch

Chapter 186 Has it come back again?

Wenjie rubbed his chin: Zhang Zhipeng and Li Shiman were born on the same day, month, and year.

That would be really strange!

Liu Qingqing is definitely a terrible teammate; she shouldn't have revealed such important information from the beginning.

His temper flared up instantly. His eyes widened, and he lowered his voice to question, "Liu Qingqing, what do you mean? You don't want to complete the mission at all, do you?"

Liu Qingqing put on that innocent expression again. Her eyes reddened, and she pouted, saying, "I'm afraid of danger. This is really scary. I was especially frightened when I was standing outside the door!"

Wenjie sneered, "You'd better cooperate with me to complete the mission, or I guarantee you won't survive this mission."

As he spoke, he clenched his fist and waved it at Liu Qingqing.

"Oh..." Liu Qingqing looked very scared and started looking down at the medical records again.

Wenjie's gaze lingered for a moment behind Liu Qingqing before shifting to the medical record in front of him.

Born in 1994, Charmaine Li was six years old in 1999 (by the traditional Chinese age reckoning).

Perhaps we should start looking back from 1999...

Wenjie changed direction and started searching again.

Soon, in the July 1998 medical records, a somewhat worn-looking medical document caught his attention. He pulled out the medical record bag and was surprised to see the patient's name written on the cover: Li Shiman.

He eagerly flipped through the book, and at the top was the attending physician's diagnosis: hysteria.

Clinical manifestations: Separation symptoms and conversion symptoms appear alternately.

When separation symptoms occur, patients exhibit emotional and affective dysregulation, shouting, crying, screaming, banging their heads against walls, etc.

The main symptoms of conversion disorder are sensory and motor disturbances, initially limb spasms, followed by body rigidity after two months, and difficulty walking after six months. At the onset of the disease, symptoms such as aphasia and blindness may also occur…

As Wenjie looked at the written descriptions on the medical record, the listed symptoms were no longer just words on paper; they had become vivid images...

Wenjie seemed to see a little girl suffering from hysteria, sometimes acting crazy and sometimes losing her limbs.

Her loss of speech prevented her from expressing her pain, and her blindness prevented her from seeing her loved ones. Trapped in darkness, she fought the disease alone, or waited for it to defeat her...

A thick stack of medical records, containing all sorts of examination reports: CT scans, brain MRIs, tendon examinations, neurological tests...

The last page is a record of the last treatment:

Date of consultation: June 28, 1999. The patient's condition worsened, and he became delirious and experienced cardiopulmonary failure.

Doctor's advice: Close monitoring, seek medical attention immediately in case of emergency.

These shocking words stung Wenjie's eyes.

June 28th was just a week ago. He had heard of hysteria before. Old Li's grandson at the village entrance had hysteria. Apart from being a little dull and stupid, he didn't have any serious symptoms.

The last time he went home, he passed by the village entrance and saw Old Li's grandson. He had grown a lot taller, but he still looked a bit slow-witted, clearly lacking in intelligence, though his physical condition was quite good.

In comparison, the entire process from the onset of Li Shiman's illness to the worsening of her symptoms, culminating in the hospital issuing a critical condition notice, took only a little over a year.

How did Li Shiman's condition deteriorate so quickly?

Wait a minute... Judging from this critical condition notice, Li Shiman's condition is very difficult to reverse. It's already difficult enough for her to stay alive, let alone be cured.

So how did 6-year-old Li Shiman escape the terrible clutches of hysteria?

Wenjie was deep in thought, his eyes half-covering the medical record. Liu Qingqing, who had been turning over papers from time to time, put down her own medical record and came over when she heard that Wenjie had been silent for a while.

Liu Qingqing glanced at the medical record in Wenjie's hand and exclaimed in surprise, "Hysteria? Li Shiman has hysteria?"

Wenjie immediately held up a finger to signal silence, glanced towards the door, listened intently for a moment, and seeing no movement outside, lowered his voice and said:

"Keep your voice down, don't be so jumpy!"

Liu Qingqing nodded repeatedly and whispered, "Does Li Shiman have hysteria? Is she possessed by a ghost?"

Wenjie glared at her. "Don't talk nonsense. What ghosts and gods? Hysteria is a mental illness, but the cause is unknown and there is no effective treatment, so it has been spread more and more strangely."

"Let's go quickly! I feel creeped out here!" Liu Qingqing curled up and snuggled into Wenjie's arms.

Okay, the case has been found, they can leave now.

Wenjie took the medical record in his hand, put his arm around Liu Qingqing's shoulder, and walked towards the door.

"Wait a moment"

Upon reaching the door, Wenjie pressed his ear against it and listened for a while before opening it, making sure there was nothing suspicious outside, before turning the inner lock of the security door.

With a creak, the door opened, and Wenjie and Liu Qingqing quietly left the medical records room.

The two walked quickly toward the stairs, their movements perfectly synchronized. Liu Qingqing stayed close to Wenjie the whole way, as if afraid of being left behind.

Only after the two of them went downstairs and arrived outside the hospital building did they dare to breathe loudly.

"Huff, huff," Liu Qingqing patted her chest, still shaken, and said, "I was so scared! I was in the upstairs corridor when some leaves brushed against my feet. It scared me to death."

"Leaves?" Wenjie repeated, puzzled. "What kind of leaves, like the ones under your feet?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Qingqing stiffened, feeling cold sweat break out on her back, and a gust of wind sent a chill straight to her bones.

She slowly lowered her head, looking at the few leaves at her feet. Her face suddenly turned deathly pale, her eyes widened in terror, and her lips trembled as she stammered, "Yes, it's this kind, exactly the same, also three leaves... Ah!"

Liu Qingqing screamed and buried herself in Wenjie's arms, her slender arms tightly wrapped around his waist.

"It's alright, it's alright. There are poplar trees all around the hospital. What's so strange about a few poplar leaves?" Wenjie patted Liu Qingqing on the back and patiently comforted her.

"No, you don't know, it's not as simple as you think. Let's get out of this awful place quickly!" Liu Qingqing was really scared, and even her voice changed.

"Alright, alright, let's walk forward and see if there's a guesthouse!" Wenjie said, putting his arm around Liu Qingqing's slender waist.

The two walked forward, leaning against each other. Wenjie felt awkward walking in this position, and several times he tried to remove Liu Qingqing's hand from his body.

What she got in return was an even tighter embrace from Liu Qingqing.

After walking for half an hour, Liu Qingqing asked, "How much further is it? I'm tired. Should we take a taxi?"

Wenjie was also a little confused. He felt that the road was very, very long. He walked for a long time but did not reach the intersection. He did not see a single shop on either side of the road, let alone a hotel or similar establishment.

Wenjie wondered, "Should I take a taxi?"

He weighed the few coins in his pocket, debating whether to take a taxi, when he suddenly looked up and froze: "We're still at the hospital entrance? Have we walked back again?"

"..." Liu Qingqing.

(End of this chapter)