Note: The story is sourced from Zhihu Yanxuan, purely fictional, please do not get addicted!#
The days in the hospital were the most leisurely days since my birth, eating well and sleeping well every day. The model came to the hospital to accompany me every day, just like clocking in for work. Little Li, that kid, was clueless; a few times when my cousin arranged for him to fill in, he was chased back by the model.
I had clearly become the model's private territory again.
During this calm period, I even developed a childish fantasy, thinking that the days ahead would be as mundane as now, working peacefully under my cousin, and everything would fall into place with the model. But I suddenly forgot that in the world of mice, problems are always entangled with problems.
The big issue happened a week before my discharge, and my peaceful life shattered like an unreal dream...
The only downside of hospital life was the smoking ban. I have a strong smoking addiction, and during these days in the hospital, I suffered from cravings for two months.
In this matter, the model blatantly played double standards; she was clearly a heavy smoker herself but had to earnestly educate me on the dangers of smoking, brainwashing me daily with health gurus from Douyin, and even bought me a book titled "This Book Can Help You Quit Smoking," seriously saying that a sign of a mature man is learning to let go.
She was like a big bad wolf teaching a rabbit to be vegetarian and chant Buddha.
The smoking ban was lifted starting from the day of the re-examination. That day, the model pushed me to the outpatient department, where I underwent a series of chaotic tests like CT and MRI. The results were not just good but excellent; the bones were healing well, and the spleen had no issues. The doctor diagnosed that I could be discharged after another week of recovery.
The model was quite happy that day and cheerfully said on the way back to the ward that she would throw a party for me after discharge to wash away the bad luck of these past few months.
Seeing that she was in a good mood, I cautiously took the opportunity to say that whether there would be a party or not could be skipped, but if she could reward me with a cigarette now, that would be the ultimate happiness in life.
The model smiled and scolded me for being unambitious, then pulled out her own blue Lighter from her handbag, lit one for herself, and handed me one too.
To be honest, if it were any other time, I wouldn't even look at such a tasteless cigarette, but given the circumstances, having one was better than none.
I pouted, holding the cigarette and waiting to enjoy the nicotine, but the model suddenly went silent.
Sitting in the wheelchair with an air of an old leader, I said, "Little Wang, as the saying goes, understanding the world is knowledge, and being well-versed in human feelings is literature. You still need to practice your insight."
The model replied, "Practice your head! I'm looking for a lighter."
I turned my head to look and saw the model rummaging around as if she were infested with lice, searching for five minutes before finally throwing her hands up at me with a silly grin.
I asked, "Where's the lighter?"
With wide innocent eyes, the model said, "Strange, I remember packing it before leaving, how could it be missing?"
At that moment, we happened to be at the entrance of the ward building, right at the corner of the main gate was a smoking area.
I said, "Forget it, let's go to the smoking area and borrow a lighter."
That day, the model really went along with me, scolding me for being unambitious while pushing me to the smoking area.
We had spent the whole morning in the outpatient building for tests, and by the time we returned to the ward, it was just mealtime. The smoking area was empty except for a guy in a patient gown standing in front of an ashtray.
This guy had a pretty unique look, with a big bandage wrapped around his head, puffing away at a cigarette, and from a distance, he looked like a giant garlic bulb on fire.
I jokingly said to the model, "This look is quite similar to how you looked a couple of days ago; he must be from your garlic spirit family."
The model shot me a big eye roll.
Who would have thought that such an ordinary cigarette would completely shatter the peaceful life I had with the model?
Two gears that were gradually meshing suddenly began to misalign and twist in that instant, the uncontrollable whirlpool like a giant black hole, swallowing us back into the dark abyss we had never truly left, and then we fled, hid, concealed, and wandered.
But at that moment, we were in it, yet oblivious.
The model pushed me closer, and I said to the guy in the patient gown, "Brother, can I borrow a lighter?"
At that time, the guy in the patient gown was facing the ashtray, with his back to me.
I don't know which word I said that was off, but as soon as I spoke, the garlic spirit brother froze in place as if electrocuted, and the half-smoked cigarette in his hand fell to the ground.
I didn't catch on at first, thinking maybe I had startled him with my sudden question.
I lowered my voice and said, "Hey, buddy, it's nothing serious, just looking to borrow a lighter."
Suddenly, the garlic spirit spun around and met my gaze. This time, I was genuinely startled.
To be honest, the garlic spirit's appearance was quite fierce; his face was wrapped in layers of medical gauze, completely covering his head, with only a nose, two eyes, and a tiny mouth barely visible.
Even though it was slightly exposed, it was just enough to let some air through the gauze seams.
I had no idea how this guy got injured, but the gauze was yellow and black, looking like it had been stuck in a pot, giving off the impression of a spoiled garlic bulb.
I didn't expect the garlic bulb to look so fierce head-on; I shivered at that moment. My surprise coincided with the garlic spirit's gaze, and I don't know if he was afraid of strangers or what, but when he saw me looking at him, a fleeting look of panic flashed in his eyes. He suddenly lowered his head, tossed the lighter he had in his hand at me, and hurriedly scurried away like a frightened chicken towards the ward building.
Instinctively, I picked up the lighter and fiddled with it, feeling that it had a nice grip. I looked down and saw it was a pure silver Dupont, a branded item.
I casually opened the lid, and the sound of the lid opening had that distinctive crisp sound of a Dupont lighter, ringing in my ears.
I weighed the lighter in my hand; it wasn't cheap, so I didn't dare keep it. I quickly lit my cigarette and called out to the garlic spirit, "Hey, don't go! Are you not going to keep your lighter?"
As soon as I shouted, it was as if I had cast some kind of spell; the garlic spirit shivered again, hurriedly took a couple of steps, and dashed into the ward building, disappearing from sight.
I didn't think much of it at the time, assuming he might have been some oddball afraid of strangers.
I even remarked, "Isn't it amazing how good life has become? Just a perfectly good lighter, and he just leaves it behind?"
The model didn't respond, her eyes fixed on the ward building, silent for a while, then suddenly leaned in close to me and said, "Chen Jia, doesn't that person look a bit familiar?"
Before the model said this, I hadn't noticed anything, but suddenly I recalled that gaze seemed vaguely familiar. However, with his head completely wrapped in gauze, it was hard to make out his features. I racked my brain but couldn't place him.
I said, "You’re right, he does look familiar, but I just can't remember where I've seen him."
The model looked at me as if I were an idiot and said, "Chen Jia, are you suffering from some kind of brain damage? Can't you tell that's clearly a woman?"
With the model's reminder, I suddenly realized, recalling the person's figure, that it indeed resembled a woman.
I felt a bit foolish for my lack of perception and awkwardly smiled, raising the lighter to show the model, changing the subject, "Look at this, the lighter seems quite expensive; we should return it to its owner, let's not take advantage of this."
The model glanced at the lighter, nodded absently, and pushed me into the ward building.
By the time my model and I reached the ward lobby, the garlic spirit had already vanished, and we could only see the elevator numbers rapidly climbing, finally stopping at the seventh floor.
I looked at the sign; the seventh floor was the burn ward.
At that moment, my mind suddenly clicked, and I said to the model, "Did you see that? The person with the dark face must have burn injuries; they should be in the burn ward."
The model didn't respond, and when the elevator arrived, she pressed the button for seven directly.
At that time, I still hadn't sensed anything unusual about the model. I complained to her, "That person is really something; their face is burned to a crisp, yet they still remember to come down for a smoke. That's what you call nonchalance—no matter the winds from the east or west, I just want a cigarette."
I rambled on, and the model just replied with an "mm," not engaging further.
In the brief exchange, the elevator shot up to the seventh floor.
As soon as we exited the elevator, we were blocked by a nurse at the nurse's station. This little nurse was quite responsible, stopping us to ask who we were looking for, which room, which bed...
We couldn't answer a single question, so we told the truth that a patient from their ward had dropped a lighter while coming down to smoke, and I was here to return it.
The nurse looked at us with disbelief and said, "You must be in the wrong place; this is the burn ward, where all the serious patients are. We’re afraid of infections; who would still be smoking?"
I insisted that we should be allowed to check the ward; we could probably return it to its rightful owner, but the nurse flatly refused.
Things were getting urgent, and just as we were about to explain further, my phone rang. It was Little Li calling.
Little Li was good at being serious about his work. He had come to deliver lunch that day, but when he arrived at the ward and didn't see anyone, he asked the nurse's station and learned we had gone for tests. After waiting for a while without seeing us, the honest kid couldn't hold back and called me.
As soon as the call connected, Little Li hurriedly asked where I and the model were, wondering if the test results were bad or something.
I laughed and said we were in the burn ward.
This startled Little Li, and he asked what had happened.
Realizing there was a misunderstanding, I quickly said we would be back in the ward soon and hung up.
Seeing the nurse's firm attitude, we felt it wasn't worth the trouble for a lighter, so we thought we would ask again after lunch. We left feeling a bit disgruntled and returned to the surgical ward.
The model still looked absent-minded as we went downstairs, staring at the bare elevator panel and muttering to herself, "It really looks like..."
I asked, "Looks like what? Like the garlic spirits you grow in your field?"
The model remained silent.
Little Li was genuinely concerned about me. As soon as I returned to the ward, I saw him pacing back and forth like an ant on a hot pan. He only relaxed when he saw I was back in one piece.
I shared the story with Little Li as a joke, and he looked at the lighter and said I was lucky to have found it.
That day, Little Li brought dumplings. He said his cousin had arranged for his wife to make them early in the morning. His cousin had business to attend to and sent Little Li over to run an errand.
His cousin was still worried about me.
The dumplings were filled with chives, meat, and abalone bits. His wife was quite skilled, and they tasted good, but they had become a bit sticky after sitting for a while.
After a busy morning, I was indeed a bit hungry. I started eating the dumplings while telling Little Li that the company was busy and he should head back, as I had no major issues.
I knew business was tough these days; it was rare to get a single order. The clients coming to us were increasingly difficult to please. I figured my cousin must have been worried while I was hospitalized, and seeing him running around for me made me feel a bit guilty.
But when I looked up, I saw Little Li still standing in front of me.
I said, "If you have something to do, just go. Don't delay for me."
As soon as I said this, Little Li's face turned as red as a tomato, and he stammered, "Chen Ge, there's something..."
I was puzzled and asked, "What is it?"
Little Li said, "There's something I think you and Qian Jie should see; otherwise, I won't feel at ease."
Little Li's words were hesitant, and my heart sank. I asked if something had happened at the company.
Little Li replied, "No, Chen Ge, it has nothing to do with our company; you'll understand when you see it."
As Little Li spoke, he pulled out his phone. I lost my appetite after all the back and forth, so I put down my chopsticks and leaned over to take a look. Little Li's finger swiped across the phone, and he finally pulled up a video that was over three minutes long.
At first, I didn't pay much attention, thinking Little Li was just being mysterious. What could be so interesting about a video?
Life always seems to catch you off guard with unexpected events.
After just a few seconds of the video playing, my dismissive smile froze on my face, and my mind exploded...
It was a somewhat disjointed video, chaotic and short.
First, there was a cacophony of sounds, the screen shaking, and nothing was clear, as if someone was adjusting the filming equipment. It felt like a hidden camera.
Then the image suddenly became clear, revealing a dimly lit room that looked like a bedroom.
The camera was positioned perfectly to capture the bed, showing the scene on it completely.
A young woman with disheveled hair lay on the bed, her hands and feet bound with ropes. It seemed she had already been frightened before the video was recorded, her body trembling and writhing in extreme fear.
Then the camera captured the woman's face.
In the next moment, I suddenly understood why Little Li had looked so troubled when he revealed this video, because the face in the footage was so familiar to me.
Even though fear had distorted the woman's features, it couldn't hide the original stunning beauty of her face.
No one can forget such a stunning face; I instantly recognized the woman in the video as Bai Yueguang, who had been joking and arguing with me just two months ago.
This was a video with no clear beginning or end. I had no idea why this girl, who was always in trouble, appeared in such a strange video and why she was in such a dangerous situation at that moment.
I looked at the model beside me in confusion, and she also wore an expression of disbelief.
The video continued to play.
A man then walked to the bedside, entering the frame.
The man wore a golden rabbit mask, deliberately obscuring his features, revealing only a pair of indifferent eyes.
At this moment, Bai Yueguang in the video seemed to have reached the peak of her fear, trembling as she said in a shaky voice, "Who the hell are you? Do you know this is kidnapping? Let me go, let me go!"
But the man only silently turned around and picked up a wooden comb from the bedside cabinet.
I noticed that as the man picked up the comb, he made a strange motion, dipping the comb's teeth into a small metal box beside him, adjusting it...
This bizarre and subtle action instinctively alerted me to a sense of danger, and the next second, that bad premonition quickly came true.
After dipping the comb in the small metal box, the man walked back to the bed and suddenly pressed Bai Yueguang down.
Bai Yueguang tried to struggle, but the difference in strength between men and women was too great, and the comb began to violently tug at her hair.
I couldn't see what the comb was dipped in, but I could see Bai Yueguang's hair becoming noticeably wet.
After a few harsh strokes, the man threw down the comb, stood up, and began rummaging through a handbag on the bedside.
At this point, Bai Yueguang was trembling like a leaf, tears swallowing in her mouth as she mumbled, "What did you put in my hair? What do you want? Why are you going through my bag? Are you robbing me?"
The man continued to remain silent, quickly pulling out a silver lighter from the handbag.
The moment I saw the lighter, I leaned back in my chair in despair.
Because this was also a lighter I recognized.
A pure silver shell, engraved with a bear paw, inlaid with a turquoise.
At this moment, the lighter in the video was sitting right beside me, and a flash of realization illuminated my mind. The incident in the smoking area and the video before me had an eerie connection.
I anxiously picked up the lighter on the table and whispered to the model, "This lighter, the person in the smoking area is..."
The model was quicker on the uptake than I was, already realizing what the man was about to do. Her face turned pale as paper, and she covered her mouth, whispering in shock, "Damn, that freak."
In the next moment, the man flicked open the lighter lid, and the video emitted a crisp sound...
It was the distinctive sound of a Dupont lighter.
By this point, the model had already started covering her eyes. I trembled, gasping for breath, and we both instinctively foresaw the conclusion of this video.
Everything proceeded without surprise.
In the next moment, there was a sharp sound in the video as the lighter sparked a small flame in the man's hand. Bai Yueguang tried to struggle to escape, but the flame approached her sticky hair...
In the next moment, a massive fire erupted from Bai Yueguang's head, and the phone captured her heart-wrenching screams...
I had never heard such a tragic scream, a sharp and piercing sound that seemed to tear through her throat.
The raging flames spread from Bai Yueguang's head, and she struggled and twisted like a human oil lamp that wouldn't stop moving.
Thick smoke billowed from her head, and the flames began to spread to her face. I vaguely saw Bai Yueguang's goddess-like face gradually melting in the fire.
The final shot was of the man holding a fire extinguisher, reappearing in the frame, spraying powder onto Bai Yueguang's head...
The video abruptly ended there.
The video was only a minute long, but in my timeline, it felt like a year had passed.
The ward fell into a long silence.
For a few seconds, I even entertained an unrealistic thought that this chaotic short video was merely a segment from some movie, and Bai Yueguang might have been a background actor in some thriller or suspense film.
But the silver lighter sitting beside me was like a spell that shattered all my delusions, clearly reminding me that everything was a real occurrence.
The model's face turned ashen, trembling as she tried to stand, but she stepped wrong and collapsed into my arms.
With a trembling voice, the model said, "Chen Jia, is this even human? Does this beast still consider us human?"
I tightly gripped the model's hand, wanting to offer some comforting words, but they wouldn't come out. I gasped uncontrollably.
It was Little Li who first broke the silence.
Little Li looked guilty and said, "Chen Ge, I know it's inappropriate to show you this while you're in the hospital, but I thought this girl is a friend of you and Qian Jie, and I felt it wasn't right to hide this from you two. The last time I saw her family, they seemed nice, and I just felt sorry for them..."
As Little Li spoke, he lowered his head, rubbing his hands, looking like he was afraid I would get angry. I silently patted Little Li, knowing he was an honest kid who couldn't keep things bottled up.
I gasped and asked Little Li what was going on and where this video came from.
According to Little Li, this video had been circulating for about half a month, and he had just found out about it yesterday.
The incident started when Little Li had dinner with a few fellow countrymen last night.
Little Li was also a child of misfortune, growing up in a single-parent family. His father was a heavy drinker, and his mother couldn't stand the endless days, so she divorced years ago.
Little Li's hometown was the same as mine. I vaguely heard my cousin mention it; it seemed to have some connection with my cousin. My cousin had a natural leadership quality, and when he saw Little Li, a half-grown kid, without a clear path during the New Year, he softened and brought him to Beijing.
Little Li was sincere and knew how to be grateful. He worked hard with my cousin over the years and had become a capable assistant to him.
When people are away from home, the bond with fellow countrymen becomes particularly strong. Over the years in Beijing, Little Li had made a circle of friends of similar age.
When fellow countrymen meet, it's always emotional. That night, they drank a case of white liquor and another case of beer. As the drinks flowed, the young men's conversations turned to more provocative topics.
One of the IT guys in the group mysteriously said, "Hey, let me show you something fresh."
After saying this, the IT guy pulled out his phone and flipped to this short video.
The group of young men was already tipsy and dismissed the beginning, saying, "Damn, what's this dark and blurry footage? What a joke."
The IT guy insisted, "Just wait and see; this is really different."
As the video played halfway through, the young men fell silent, and the once lively dinner table was completely quiet, as the shocking video sobered them up.
Little Li immediately recognized Bai Yueguang and took note, casually asking where the video came from.
The IT guy, seeing Little Li's interest, explained that the video had gradually gained popularity from an app known for hidden camera footage. This app was quite recognized in the hidden camera community, featuring several top-notch hidden camera experts who made money from paid live streams.
The man in the video, the rabbit, was one of the most notorious figures in the hidden camera scene, who had given himself a nickname, "Low-Magnetic Candid Shooter," with a loyal fanbase. He was particularly adept at posing as a rich second-generation and luring various girls, and this was the first time he had gone so far as to create such an outrageous video, directly blowing up the hidden camera community...
As Little Li spoke, I realized Bai Yueguang had fallen into the hands of a hidden camera freak.
There was nothing new under the sun. At that time, the incident in South Korea was trending online, and unexpectedly, a version of it unfolded right before my eyes.
The joys and sorrows of humanity may differ, but the taste for evil is surprisingly consistent.
By the time Little Li finished, the model could no longer sit still. She suddenly stood up and rushed out of the ward.
Seeing the model so agitated, I feared something might happen and chased her to the elevator door, saying, "Where are you going? Are you going to find her?"
The model kept pressing the elevator button, muttering angrily, "Not human, beast, freak, damn it..."
I blocked the model, saying, "Calm down. Didn't we just run into her in the smoking area? She doesn't want to see us now; won't you just make things worse by going up?"
The model was completely worked up and didn't respond. The elevator arrived, and she stepped in, pressing the button for seven repeatedly. I saw that she was clearly in a frenzy, and I had no choice but to follow her.
The nurse recognized us as soon as she saw us and said, "What are you two doing here again? Didn't I tell you this is the burn ward? You can't just come and go..."
Seeing the model going crazy, the nurse was frightened and wanted to call the police. I quickly explained to the nurse that we weren't causing trouble; we were just here to see a patient. While I was arguing with the nurse, a person suddenly emerged from the furthest room and quickly walked up to us.
This person had thick eyebrows and big eyes like Zhu Shimao, and he was tall, standing in front of us like a wall, glaring at us and asking, "Who are you?"
I don't know if it was some sixth sense awakening, but I felt a strong sense of pressure from this tall guy, clearly indicating he was not one of us.
I instinctively shielded the model behind me and glared back, asking, "Who are you?"
The tall guy shot me a glare, pulled out a small notebook, and I saw the three big golden characters on it, clearly reading "Police Officer..."
The tall guy seemed afraid I wouldn't see it clearly and deliberately opened the badge to show me.
City Bureau Criminal Police Team, Li Li, followed by his badge number XXXXX.
All the information was complete.
At that moment, my mind started to spin, and my legs felt weak. I thought, "They haven't even called the police yet, how did this officer just drop down from the sky? Are they starting to station plainclothes officers in hospitals now..."
People like us are naturally allergic to such righteous professions. Although we hadn't done anything illegal, we felt nervous. This tension made it hard for me to speak clearly, and I stammered, "Officer, we... we just came to see a patient."
The tall police officer glared at me and said harshly, "If you're here to see a patient, then see one. Why are you shouting in the hallway? Do you know this is a ward?"
I really didn't dare to argue with the police, so I forced a smile and said, "I know, I know."
The police officer continued to scold me and the model, saying, "If you're looking for someone, just look for them. Speak properly. What are you making such a fuss for? Are you blowing up a bunker? What’s your relationship with Bai Xiaoxian?"
The model squatted on the ground, silent, while I smiled awkwardly and said, "Yes, yes, uh?"
I nodded like a chick pecking at rice, but suddenly froze when I heard Bai Xiaoxian's name come from the police officer's mouth.
At that moment, my mind turned quickly, and I realized that Bai Xiaoxian's case had likely been reported, and the police were here for her. But when the police asked, I didn't know how to respond.
To be honest, my relationship with Bai Xiaoxian was a bit unclear.
If I said we were business partners, it sounded a bit distant; if I said we were friends, it felt like we lacked that deeper connection.
In front of the police, I didn't dare to lie, and just as I was hesitating about how to respond, I heard a familiar voice behind the police say, "Officer Li, these two are our relatives; let them in."
The voice sounded familiar, and when I looked up, it was even more familiar.
The person was tall and thin, slightly balding, wearing a light green old man's shirt, which looked like it had been worn for many years and had faded. He was neatly dressed, exuding a scholarly vibe.
It was none other than Bai Xiaoxian's father.