Chapter 1 Strange Rules
Some people say that the scariest place in a hospital is the morgue.
I tell you, it’s not.
There is a place that is more terrifying, more gloomy, and more desperate than the morgue.
Although the people living there are not dead, they are more like dead people than dead people...
My name is Tian Zhiyong, I’m 21 years old and a sophomore in a technical college.
Anyone who has studied at a technical college knows that it is a place where the atmosphere does not allow it even if you want to study seriously.
Every day, people live for the moment and enjoy life to the fullest. No one thinks about life planning or what they can do after graduation.
However, before I graduated, I went to that spooky and dead place...
There, I witnessed the greatness of love, but also experienced endless nightmares, so that now my lower body is paralyzed, and I am entangled by dirty things every day, and I am miserable...
I don’t know how long I can live, nor do I know when they will attack me. There is always a chilly wind around me, and whispers ringing in my ears...
Yes, I don't have much time left...
I will record this story bit by bit here...
…
That day, my mother, who was cooking at home, suddenly fainted without any warning. After being sent to the hospital, she was diagnosed with kidney failure.
The doctor asked me to be mentally prepared. First of all, there was little hope of recovery, and the treatment would require a lot of surgery and medical expenses.
It was like a bolt from the blue.
I collapsed all of a sudden...
Fear, tension, despair, all kinds of emotions surged in my heart.
I started borrowing money everywhere, looking for a job, looking for a part-time job...
Maybe it was because I was too young, or maybe people looked down on a junior college student - either they offered me a very low salary, or they simply rejected me.
Just when I was worried, a phone call came.
The person who called was a woman who sounded young. She asked me if I had submitted my resume online and whether I had found a job.
I said, “No, I’m looking for it.”
The woman asked me if I was interested in working as a security guard at Aiken Hospital .
When I heard it was Aikon Hospital, I was a little surprised, because my mother was hospitalized in Aikon Hospital - I didn't expect it to be such a coincidence!
I agreed without hesitation and made an appointment with the woman to meet at the hospital gate at two o'clock in the afternoon.
After lunch, I went home to take a shower, change clothes, and go to the appointment cleanly.
Before two o'clock, I saw a very beautiful woman walking towards me.
The woman was about thirty-seven or thirty-eight years old, with a pointed face and long eyebrows. She was wearing a black dress and had wavy hair draped over her shoulders. She had fair skin and was well-maintained.
"Hello, I'm looking for a job. Is that you?" the woman looked at me and said.
I nodded and asked her anxiously, how much does it cost per month to work for you?
The woman smiled, probably seeing that I had little social experience, and said amiably, "Don't worry, go take a look at the working environment first, and then decide whether to do it or not."
I didn't quite understand, so I pointed at the hospital gate and said, "Isn't he just a security guard here?"
“No, not here.” The woman smiled and shook her head. “Come with me. You’ll know soon enough.”
I didn't ask any more questions and followed her to our destination.
Because it was right next to the hospital, the distance wasn't far. After walking towards the west gate for about three minutes, we arrived at a somewhat old building.
The building has five floors in total. The walls are mottled, dilapidated and yellowed, and covered with ivy. Through the window, you can see several shadows swaying in the dim light inside.
On the side of the corridor, a big "D" comes into view.
She took me into the building, and a pungent smell of disinfectant hit my nose - I pinched my nose, frowned, and looked around.
The feeling here is like coming to an old house from decades ago. The walls are dark gray and there are spider webs everywhere. The floor is not the common PVC plastic floor, but cement. Maybe because the house is humid, there is still some scale left on the ground.
"This is Building D. Your future job will be to keep watch here." The woman glanced at me and said.
Keep vigil?
I breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, it’s not something particularly difficult.
I said, "No problem. As for the salary..."
"Don't agree so quickly." The woman smiled and interrupted me. "Well, come with me to have a look around first. Maybe you will change your mind."
I scratched my head and thought, what's so good about visiting? As long as the salary and benefits are good, I can tolerate being a toilet cleaner.
Follow the woman up from the first floor.
During the process, we chatted casually.
The woman's surname was Sun and she asked me to call her Sister Sun.
Sister Sun said that Building D is a special building in Aiken Hospital.
Even, it is special among all hospitals.
Because those who live here are all patients who are seriously ill, have no money to pay for medical expenses, and have no relatives or friends.
The hospital had no idea what to do with these "lonely" patients. They couldn't just throw them away , and they couldn't contact their families, so they had no choice but to transfer them all to Building D.
In Building D, both medicines and medical equipment are the cheapest.
These patients have almost one foot in another world. They cannot tell the difference between day and night and have no concept of time. Staying here with a clear mind is a torture in itself.
To put it bluntly, they are just lingering on - waiting to die.
Sister Sun’s story left me dumbfounded and at the same time, I felt a chill all over my body.
To me, this place feels like a forgotten "living hell"...
Suddenly I thought of my mother. If the medical bills cannot be paid, will she also be sent here?
When passing by some wards, I often hear patients crying, screaming, and vomiting.
These sounds, full of pain and despair, are more heartbreaking than the ICU ward.
Occasionally, a few nurses passed by. I looked at them and they all had expressionless faces, as if they treated us as air and passed by us.
When I arrived at the fourth floor and passed by Ward 404, I couldn't help but stop and take a few more glances.
The door of Ward 404 is slightly different from the doors of other wards.
The doors of the other wards are all light walnut color.
Only door 404 was dark red, as if a layer of blood was splashed on it... From a distance, it looked like the bloody mouth of a demon, which was indescribably creepy.
On the door beam of Room 404 hangs a palm-sized, round Bagua bronze mirror, which is covered with dust and appears to have been there for some time.
"Hurry up, what's there to see?" Sister Sun urged with some dissatisfaction.
I glanced at her and saw that her face had turned a little pale and she seemed a little panicked.
Strange, what is she in such a hurry for?
I didn't think much about it and continued walking with her.
…
When we returned to the first floor, Sister Sun asked me if I had made up my mind and whether I wanted to do it.
Honestly, I now understand why Sister Sun asked me to visit first before making a decision.
This kind of depressing environment, facing various dying patients every day, if it goes on for a long time, even if one has a strong mental state, will probably be affected, and it is even possible that one will suffer from depression.
However, I have no way out. My mother's condition is critical, and the only way to keep her alive is money.
I don’t want the day when my mother is transferred to this dark and hellish place because I can’t afford the medical bills.
"Sister Sun, I'm willing to do it!" I said seriously.
Hearing this, Sister Sun showed a look of relief, smiled, and said, "Okay, then let me explain to you, the first three months are the probation period, the working hours are from 8 pm to 7 am every day, 5,000 yuan a month, after the probation period, the salary will be doubled, is that acceptable?"
My eyes widened, almost suspecting that I had heard it wrongly.
Five thousand yuan?
Good boy...
This salary is even higher than that of ordinary white-collar workers in our city!
"It's acceptable, totally acceptable!" I said excitedly.
Sister Sun smiled and said, "Okay, give me your ID card so I can register."
After the registration was completed, Sister Sun looked at me seriously and said, "By the way, there are a few things you must remember when working here."
I nodded: "You go ahead."
“First, do not sleep in the corridor or ward in the middle of the night.”
"Second, after 2 a.m., don't go to the toilet even if you are dying of suffocation."
"Third, you must not accept anything a patient gives you ."
"Fourth, you must not open the door of Ward 404!"
I was a little confused by Sister Sun’s words. Isn’t it just being a security guard? Why is it like an underground warfare?
The first and third ones are pretty normal, but what the hell are the second and fourth ones?
If you are not allowed to go to the toilet after 2 a.m., wouldn't that make you suffocate to death?
I smiled bitterly: "About not being able to go to the toilet at two o'clock, isn't that a bit harsh? What if I can't help it?"
Sister Sun's face darkened and she said, "I don't care. Anyway, you must not go to the toilet after 2 a.m.!"
I didn't agree with it in my heart, but I agreed to her on the surface, thinking that once I start working, will you still be able to control me?
"Oh, Sister Sun, that ward 404—"
"You can't open it!"
Before I could finish, Sister Sun suddenly interrupted me nervously.
I was startled by her sudden nervousness and stammered, "Why...why?"
Sister Sun stared at me, her pupils dilated, revealing a bit of panic, and said in a trembling voice:
"Anyway, if you don't want to die, don't open it..."
