Ya She

Chapter 61 Revolving Lantern

【1】

After encountering the black jade ball that inexplicably appeared in the hallway, the doctor was plunged into darkness. When he regained consciousness, he found himself in a familiar scene: some old dormitory buildings, similar roads, and plane trees lining both sides of the road that almost blocked out the sky... Wasn't this his university campus?
The roadside was lined with stalls displaying secondhand items. The vendors and shoppers were all students. It took the doctor a while to confirm that this was the year he graduated, when he was about to leave school...

The doctor's childhood dream was to become a doctor who saves lives. He had always strived towards this goal, graduating from medical school with excellent grades. His internship hospital was already secured, and everything was progressing smoothly according to plan. The doctor was full of enthusiasm. As an annual tradition at the school, in the week before the internship began, graduating seniors would set up stalls along a designated road on campus, displaying items they couldn't take with them. Textbooks, reference notes, basketballs, soccer balls, daily necessities, and more—a dazzling array of goods attracted many junior students to browse and find bargains. From early morning, the entire road was bustling with people.

The doctor and his roommate Chun Ge also salvaged an old item and symbolically sold it for three or five yuan a piece, because there were too many competitors in the same market. All the sports equipment had been sold out, and no one wanted anything else.

They weren't in a hurry; their internships were already secured, giving them more time than others, so they were dragged into being stall owners. Anyway, the money from selling secondhand items wouldn't be much, so it would be used to fund their dorm farewell dinner.

Chun Ge, as if possessed by obsessive-compulsive disorder, meticulously arranged everything on the plastic sheet before patting the dust off his hands with satisfaction. He frowned, staring at the doctor repairing an alarm clock nearby. "I heard you've secured an internship? At the city hospital?"

"It's almost settled. I should be able to go for the final interview next Monday." The doctor had been so busy these past few days that he hadn't had a moment to breathe, falling asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow every night. He only had time to talk to Chun Ge about this now. Hearing this, Chun Ge gave him a disappointed look: "Why didn't you come with me to that place? With your grades, if you work hard, you should be able to get into a top-tier hospital."

The doctor rolled his eyes helplessly. His friend was sometimes a bit too naive. Did they think it was easy to get an internship at a prestigious, top-tier hospital? His grades weren't the best in medical school, and he didn't know anyone in the hospital's upper echelons to ask for help. He was just wandering around like a headless fly. Finding a lower-tier city hospital to take him in was already a miracle! Besides, he was a little unsure about his abilities, but he knew the competition in hospitals was fierce, and he wasn't sure if he could handle it. Gaining experience at a lower level first was a good idea; he could climb higher when he was more capable.

However, he knew that Chun Ge meant well, so he slowly revealed his thoughts. Chun Ge, however, still couldn't accept it. In his view, giving up before even trying was simply a sign of cowardice.

The doctor was speechless and didn't know how to refute it. Chun Ge came from a family of doctors and had been immersed in top-notch hospitals since childhood, so his thinking was completely different from that of ordinary students. As for himself, he was an orphan who struggled alone in this city without any support, so he naturally wanted to prioritize stability.

With differing perspectives and understandings, neither could convince the other, making communication impossible. The doctor knew that Chun Ge actually wanted to work at the same hospital, but reality wasn't a fairy tale; how could it be so easily achieved? The doctor patiently listened to Chun Ge's rambling for a long time, but finally couldn't help putting down the alarm clock, making an excuse to go visit other units, and leaving Chun Ge to watch the stall.

Although the surrounding area was bustling with noise, the doctor found peace and quiet. He had come out for a casual stroll, but as he wandered around, he couldn't help but get serious and wanted to buy many things.

However, the doctor came back here to sell old things, not to buy more old things to take back! He suppressed the urge to buy something and wandered from one end of the road to the other, where he found a rather special stall.

A cardboard box sat on the stall, labeled "Charity Sale." The stall owner, a young man with a buzz cut, was asking questions of the students who had gathered around. The doctor learned that these items belonged to a student he had taught, Yin Han, who had died in a car accident. Yin Han was a top student in medical school, and had reportedly already secured an internship at the same prestigious hospital as Chun Ge—a true academic star. Tragically, he passed away at such a young age.

Yin Han's parents lived in a remote mountainous area. After completing the necessary procedures at the school and taking his clothes as a keepsake, they returned home. The remaining books, textbooks, and miscellaneous items were left behind. His roommates decided to auction off these belongings, and the proceeds would be donated to Yin Han's parents.

The short-haired boy was of average appearance, but quick-witted and eloquent, quickly persuading the surrounding students to open their wallets. Everything on the stall had no price; buyers could pay whatever they pleased. Medical students, having even dissected corpses, naturally didn't find anything about belongings offensive. Furthermore, Yin Han was a good student and diligent, so his textbooks and notebooks were quickly snapped up, and even most of his stationery was sold. When the doctor squeezed in, the stall was almost empty. Many students, even those not buying anything, were stuffing money into the box, and the doctor also pulled out his wallet and slipped in a red bill. The doctor recognized Yin Han, though not well, just a nodding acquaintance, but he wanted to do his part. Perhaps the amount he slipped was a bit too large, because the short-haired boy, seeing him turn to leave, quickly grabbed him and urged him to choose something from the stall.

"It's fine to keep it as a souvenir; it's not easy to be classmates."

The buzz-cut guy was indeed eloquent, and the doctor couldn't help but glance back at the remaining items on the stall before finally picking up an old-fashioned lamp. This lamp resembled an old kerosene lamp, less than twenty centimeters tall, made of bronze, with some verdigris on its surface from its age. It had six sides, but only one was made of paper; the other five were opaque, dark glass. It looked antique, yet it had a power outlet, though it was probably broken.
"Wow! You have a good eye! This is Yin Han's favorite lamp. It's said to be a revolving lantern. Originally, it needed to be lit with candles, but later, when open flames were banned in the dormitory, he modified it into a light bulb. It's said to turn automatically when plugged in." The buzz-cut boy talked on and on, but of course, he said it was said to turn automatically. He hadn't actually paid attention to whether it could turn automatically or not.

The doctor didn't seem to mind, but since it was already picked up, it was difficult to put it back down, so he asked the short-haired guy to find a plastic bag and take it away.

When he wandered back, Chun Ge didn't bring up the previous topic again. Instead, he teased him for buying another impractical old item and advised him to just sell the revolving lantern.

The doctor, however, was curious to see what the lantern would look like when plugged in. Back in his dorm that evening, he eagerly plugged it in. The lantern wasn't broken; it flickered briefly before lighting up with a warm, soothing yellow light. On its simple paper shade, a paper-cut image was projected.

"Huh? What's this drawing?" Chun Ge asked, leaning closer.

The paper lampshade is somewhat yellowed and wrinkled due to its age, but you can still make out that there are two people on the left side of the paper painting and a horse that has left on the right side.

"Two people and one horse, in front of and behind? But the positions are not right!" Chun Ge complained.

"It's not like you're guessing an idiom from a picture."

"...Wasn't this supposed to be a rotating lantern? How come it hasn't changed its appearance in so long?"

The two sat in front of the revolving lantern for a long time, but the image didn't change, so they gave up hope. To be honest, the fact that the lantern even lit up was already beyond their expectations. Moreover, the light from the lantern was indeed warm and not glaring, so the doctor didn't turn it off and simply left it there as a bedside lamp.

Chun Ge took stock of the unsold items and took his share home. With graduation approaching, the school no longer required graduating students to stay on campus every day. Since his home was in the city, he went home on weekends. He said goodbye to the doctor and left.

After staying at home for two days, Chun Ge was stunned as soon as he opened the door to his dormitory. He asked in shock, "Why are you still in the dormitory? It's almost eleven o'clock! Weren't you supposed to have your final interview at the city hospital today?"

The doctor looked up, annoyed, and slammed the alarm clock on the table. "I thought I had fixed it, but it's still broken. It didn't go off at all this morning! I also set an alarm on my phone, but I didn't hear it either."

"So...you overslept?" Chun Ge asked with a look of sympathy. "Did you call the personnel department?"

"I called, but they said all the spots were filled and I didn't need to go anymore." The doctor lowered his head dejectedly. The interview was the final hurdle, with a 70% acceptance rate. He originally had a 70% chance of being accepted, but now, because he didn't show up, he didn't even have a 10% chance.

Chun Ge didn't know what to say for a moment. He stayed quietly with the doctor for a few minutes, then his gaze fell on the revolving lantern on the table, and he stopped. Perhaps because the light emitted by the lantern wasn't glaring, it hadn't been turned off at night. "Wow! This lantern can really rotate by itself? The paper paintings I saw before weren't like this, were they?"

The doctor glanced at it listlessly, noticing that the left side of the drawing still depicted two people, while the right side showed two horses running back. He wasn't concerned about whether the drawing had changed, and sighed uninterestedly, "Maybe it's different? Who knows, I didn't even notice." Chun Ge felt the meaning depicted in the two drawings was somewhat familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. He sat for a while longer, then suddenly noticed a folder. It contained the doctor's resume, which he was supposed to bring to his interview today, but now, due to its owner's carelessness, it lay quietly on the table.

"Hey, you haven't had breakfast yet, have you? I'll go out and get you some rice bowls from the cafeteria." Chun Ge quietly picked up the folder and put it into his backpack.

"Oh, thank you. Give me some spicy diced chicken, and ask the cafeteria chef to add extra chili." Although he was in a bad mood, the doctor still had many requests when it came to food.

"Okay, okay, just wait!" Chun Ge picked up his bag and walked out.

The doctor felt like he was dreaming these past few days. Because he missed the interview at the city hospital, he couldn't muster any energy all day, but then he received another call in the evening inviting him to another interview.

It turned out to be the provincial hospital that Chun Ge was supposed to go to! Chun Ge explained that Yin Han, who was originally going to this hospital, had passed away unexpectedly, leaving a vacancy. He used his family connections to submit Yin Han's resume, but whether he could get in still depended on the doctor's own efforts.

The doctor knew that although Chun Ge spoke lightly, he must have actually done a huge favor. Thinking he would definitely find a way to repay him in the future, the doctor accepted this timely help.

The interview went very smoothly, and the doctor signed the employment contract on the spot. That evening, he treated Chun Ge to a big meal. In their excitement, the two drank a lot of beer, and as they helped each other back to their dormitory, the revolving lamp on the table was on, emitting a soft, warm light.

"Hey! This lamp is great! It can be used as a nightlight, so I don't have to turn on the bright light to keep my eyes open when I get up at night." Chun Ge sat drunkenly in the chair, leaned over to look at the revolving lantern, and then paused in surprise, "This lamp can really rotate by itself, look, the paper painting has changed again!"

The doctor went over and saw that the drawing had indeed been changed. It depicted a person falling from a horse, clutching a slightly dislocated leg. The doctor instinctively judged, "This person's leg is probably broken, but this posture is incorrect. They shouldn't be clutching a broken leg, otherwise the bones will dislocate and won't heal properly, leading to long-term complications."

Chun Ge rolled his eyes upon hearing this: "Alright, are you obsessed with preparing for interview questions? You can see so much from a paper drawing." The doctor's head was still spinning from drinking, and after a brief moment of clarity, it was all muddled again: "You... you take your time looking at it, I'm going to wash up and go to sleep."

Chun Ge, however, felt something was amiss the more he thought about it: "Hey! Do you remember the drawings on the first two sheets of paper? What were they?"

"Two people and one horse, two people and two horses, now it's one person and one horse." The doctor summarized it simply with one picture and four words, grasping the key points quickly and accurately, truly worthy of his rich experience in solving problems.

Chun Ge muttered to himself, then suddenly slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "This is... a blessing in disguise!"

"Yes! The two figures refer to the old man and his son. The first picture shows the old man's horse going missing, and the second shows the lost horse bringing back a fine steed. And this one shows the old man's son breaking his leg while riding this fine steed. Tsk, this revolving lantern depicts the old man losing his horse. It's quite fitting!" "Oh? It really is." The doctor nodded. "The old man lost his horse, but who knows if it's a blessing in disguise? Fortune and misfortune are intertwined. Hehe, that's quite similar to my situation these past few days! You see, I missed my interview at the city hospital because my alarm clock broke, but who would have thought I'd get into the provincial hospital!"

Chun Ge looked at the grinning doctor with a complicated expression and had to pour cold water on him, saying, "If we follow this conclusion, then you're about to encounter some trouble." "...Are we even brothers? Why are you saying such things to scare me?" The doctor immediately sobered up a bit.

"Hehe, just kidding!" Chun Ge didn't take what he said seriously. The two chatted for a while, then went to wash up and go to bed separately.

Only that revolving lantern remained, emitting a faint glow in the pitch-black night.

Before the internship began, the doctor had to attend training sessions and bought a new alarm clock to ensure that he arrived at his post early every day.

Although I was mentally prepared for the hardship of this job, the intensity of the work was still hard to accept. The supervisor who led them often had a disappointed look on his face, and would often yell and scold them, making them work even harder just to get a word of praise.

Of course, this is difficult for beginners. However, anyone who truly loves this profession will never let go once they've tried it.

Saving lives with your own hands, witnessing critically ill patients regain their vitality or pass away, experiencing the process of fighting against death, and personally receiving the gratitude and grief of family members—the sense of accomplishment is intertwined with a feeling of powerlessness. Each patient is like a new challenge, and there is no way to back down.

There's competition and mutual support among the interns. The doctor and Chun Ge still live in the dormitory, waking each other up to the sound of their new alarm clocks every day before squeezing onto the bus to go to work at the hospital. In fact, they spend more than two hours commuting each day. The doctor plans to take the advice of his seniors and rent an apartment near the provincial hospital.

However, their days off were on a rotating schedule, so they didn't really have the concept of weekends and hadn't had time to look for a place to live. That morning, the doctor told Chun Ge his thoughts: "Finding a place would be good. I've been thinking about it too. I've almost got all the graduation stamps from all the departments, so I won't have to go to school next week." After getting off the bus, the two walked quickly towards the hospital entrance. Chun Ge nodded in agreement after hearing the doctor's plan: "But I'll probably be staying at home, so I won't be sharing an apartment with you!"

"Okay, then I'll just find a smaller place to stay by myself." The doctor's plan to find someone to share the rent fell through, so he had to abandon the idea. However, he knew that Chun Ge was staying in the dormitory to keep him company; his home was only a twenty-minute walk from the provincial hospital.

It was still some time before the hospital opened, and the only place with people in the entire hospital was the emergency room, which was open 24 hours a day and located near the main entrance. As the doctor passed by the emergency room, he seemed to sense something and glanced back, only to see a man in a black Tang suit standing in the corner. On the dark fabric, a crimson dragon was faintly embroidered, but because of the distance, the man's face was not clearly visible.

"What are you spacing out for?" Chun Ge asked, turning around when he saw that the doctor hadn't followed.

"Tsk, there's someone standing there, dressed in weird clothes. Could they be a cosplayer from some club?" The doctor turned around and jokingly remarked.

"Where? There's no one there!" Chun Ge looked in the direction the doctor had been looking, then looked again in confusion.

"...Don't scare me." The doctor suddenly got goosebumps, but when he turned his head again, there was indeed no one in the corner. He chuckled dryly and said, "Heh, maybe I'm just seeing things."

"Tch, are you telling a ghost story?" Chun Ge thought the doctor was joking with him, getting revenge for not sharing an apartment with him. After all, this guy had too many past offenses; back when they first started anatomy classes, the ghost stories he told were absolutely terrifying, practically giving him psychological trauma!
The doctor didn't explain much, perhaps he just misread it. There wasn't time for him to dwell on it afterward. After they changed into their white coats, the internship hell began again, with the head doctor directing them around, running up and down the stairs, only able to catch their breath while waiting for the elevator.

After picking up the ultrasound images the head doctor needed from the ultrasound department, the doctor took out his phone to check the news while the elevator was waiting. However, after flipping through three pages and still no elevator, he realized the wait was far too long. The elevator lobby was already crowded with patients and their families, all complaining that the hospital elevators were unreliable; neither of the two elevators had come down. Some people couldn't wait and went to another elevator further away, while most remained waiting. Thinking of the head doctor's eyes, sharper than a scalpel, the doctor decided to take the stairs. He pushed open the door to the adjacent stairwell, looked up at the seemingly endless staircase, and the thought of climbing eight floors made his legs feel weak.

However, he had to finish the path he had chosen, even if he was crying. The doctor, trying to find some humor in his suffering, started climbing the stairs while taking out the film from the file folder in his hand, imagining what questions the head doctor would ask him later.

With an elevator available, few people take the stairs. So when the doctor heard footsteps descending from upstairs, he looked up in surprise. A young man in a black Tang suit was walking down the stairs. His striking black Tang suit had a dark red dragon embroidered on the right sleeve, winding its way up the sleeve, its claws bared at the collar. At first glance, the deep red buttons embroidered on the dragon's lapel looked like drops of blood dripping into the night. This eerie yet lifelike embroidery was so captivating that it was impossible to look away, even to the point of overlooking the man's appearance.

The two walked past each other, one going up and one going down the stairs. When the doctor came to his senses, he could only look down at the top of the other person's head, watching him go down the stairs until he could no longer see him. The doctor listened blankly to the receding footsteps, thinking, "There really was such a person! It seems I wasn't seeing things this morning." He wondered what was wrong with the other person that led them to the hospital; perhaps they also took the stairs because they couldn't wait for the elevator?
It was just a minor incident that he quickly forgot about; the doctor vaguely thought he heard a muffled thud downstairs, but didn't think much of it. However, when he finally reached the eighth floor, panting heavily, he received a call from Chun Ge.

"Where am I? I'm on the eighth floor! The elevator was too slow, so I climbed the stairs instead. Is the doctor getting impatient waiting for the scans? I'll bring them over right away." The doctor thought Chun Ge was calling to urge him and quickly explained. But what Chun Ge said in a fit of rage on the phone shocked the doctor: "What? You mean, the elevator just crashed? The one we usually use in the east wing?"

The investigation into the elevator incident quickly revealed that the elevator was old and carrying passengers near its designated load point, causing it to crash. Fortunately, the floors weren't very high, and most of the passengers suffered only lumbar spine injuries or broken legs. They received timely treatment at the hospital and none sustained life-threatening injuries. The doctor, however, felt a lingering sense of dread, because if he hadn't taken the stairs, he would have definitely taken the elevator.

Chun Ge also felt that the doctor was lucky to be alive. This incident also caused panic within the hospital. After all, they worked in the hospital and took the elevator at least several times a day. How were they supposed to take the elevator after this? Even after they got off work and returned to their dormitory that night, the hospital's QQ group was still discussing the matter.

The doctor decided to order takeout tonight to calm his nerves, but considering the rent, he decided to just order a pizza and skip the pasta. Just as he hung up the phone, he saw Chun Ge, who was staring at his computer, looking rather pale.

"What's wrong? I was the one who almost broke my leg today, not you! We can always climb the stairs together tomorrow!" the doctor suggested, then added with a pained expression, "But that means we have to leave ten minutes earlier."

"Didn't you say that the elevator took a long time to come down today, which is why you chose to take the stairs?"

"Yes, I was afraid the director would yell at me if I waited too long! But I'm also grateful for the director's strictness, otherwise I would have definitely waited for the elevator!"

"I guess you should thank someone else."

"what?"

"According to the people in the monitoring room, the elevator didn't come down for so long today because someone upstairs pressed the elevator button for a while, preventing it from going down."

"Hmm... that's not surprising, is it? Maybe he's waiting for a friend?"

"It was one person, and after pressing the elevator button for several minutes, he didn't get on the elevator but went down the stairs instead." The doctor suddenly remembered the young man he had brushed past in the stairwell. He looked at Chun Ge for confirmation: "Could it be... that man in the black Tang suit?"

"It's him! You actually ran into him!" Chun Ge exclaimed in despair. "Is he some kind of omniscient master?! Did he know this elevator would malfunction, so he didn't take it? Or is he a ghost from the hospital, lingering and cursing the motor?!"

The hospital is never short of ghost stories and legends. Chun Ge was almost driven crazy by the imaginations of the seniors in the QQ group: "Quickly! Did you see his face?! What did he look like?!"

"Uh... I think I noticed what he looked like." The doctor scratched his head sheepishly; his attention had been entirely on the other person's clothes. Chun Ge couldn't sit still anymore, pacing back and forth in his dorm like a caged animal, muttering to himself about whether he should switch hospitals for his internship. The doctor, however, didn't take it seriously. Knowing Chun Ge as he did, he figured that while the guy might be scared, it wouldn't affect his work. Otherwise, with that kind of mental fortitude, he would have dropped out of medical school long ago.

"Ah! This lantern has a different picture again! It hadn't changed when I looked at it this morning!" Chun Ge, who was pacing around, suddenly discovered something new. Ever since he had become suspicious of this lantern, he had been paying close attention to it.

The doctor looked in the direction of the sound and saw that the paper painting on the lantern was much more detailed this time, with more figures and a scene. It was clear that it depicted a scene of conscription in the village, and the old man's son, who had escaped because of his broken leg.

"If that expert hadn't pressed the elevator button, you might have broken your leg today," Chun Ge muttered to himself, speculating. "Could this revolving lantern really be a harbinger of good or bad fortune?"

"You're overthinking it..." the doctor said, not entirely without conviction. "But, doesn't the story of the old man who lost his horse end here? That means I'll definitely have a good outcome in the end!"

“But this revolving lantern has six sides…” Chun Ge said quietly.

The doctor was speechless.

Because interns work on a rotating shift system, Chun Ge doesn't rest on the days doctors are off, so the doctors have to find their own accommodation.

Standing at the hospital entrance, looking around blankly, he didn't know where to find an agency. Suddenly, almost unconsciously, he remembered Chun Ge's earlier jest. According to Chun Ge's deduction, the basis of the story of the old man losing his horse was that the effect of one event was the cause of the next. The lost horse attracted a wild, excellent horse, and because of the wild horse, the old man's son broke his leg, and because of his lameness, he escaped military service.

In this sense, his recent experience was that he lost his job at the city hospital because he was late for the interview, so he was accepted by the provincial hospital. Then, after entering the provincial hospital, he was involved in an elevator accident. If it weren't for that mysterious man in the Tang suit holding the elevator button, he would definitely have broken his leg by now.

The doctor continued to think. If we consider the possibility that he broke his leg, the other patients injured in the elevator accident all have casts on their arms, and their injuries aren't serious. Even if they were injured, the head doctor's iron-fisted nature wouldn't allow him to rest easily. So now that he's in a wheelchair, he definitely wouldn't choose a real estate agency too far away to look for a house.

The doctor asked the security guard at the hospital entrance about the nearest real estate agency. Sure enough, there was one in the alley to the right after exiting the hospital. Standing opposite the agency, the doctor was overwhelmed by the wall of listings pasted on the storefront window. Relying on his previous theory, if he were in a wheelchair, he wouldn't be able to see the top listings; he should look down. The doctor crouched down and scanned the listings within his line of sight. Sure enough, in a corner, he spotted a cheap and inexpensive rental room.

Sure enough! Good things always save money! The doctor rubbed his hands together, convinced that such a great property must have been sitting unsold because the real estate agent had left it in a corner. At this price, he had originally planned to pay six months' rent, which would have been enough to rent it for a whole year! He immediately rushed into the store, specifically requesting to see this property. The real estate agent hesitated, but seeing his insistence, he retrieved the key from the back of the drawer and took him to see the property.

The apartment was great, just across the street from the hospital, less than a ten-minute walk. It was fully furnished and equipped with all necessary appliances. It was a one-bedroom apartment with a living room, both facing south. The living room was already partitioned off and included a bed, effectively making it another bedroom – practically a two-bedroom apartment. He could also find roommates later, saving even more money. The doctor was already calculating his options, and after seeing the apartment, he was satisfied and ready to sign the agreement with the agent.

I have to snag this bargain! Otherwise, I won't be able to sleep or eat! The real estate agent, probably genuinely interested in renting, hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "Sir, aren't you curious why this house is so cheap?"

"Huh? What's wrong?" The doctor immediately stopped smiling and asked, "Is the water and electricity bill too high? Is the toilet leaking? Or is some awful neighbor playing rock music and disturbing the peace?"

“It’s much more serious than that.” The real estate agent glanced around nervously, lowering his voice as if afraid of being overheard. “It’s a haunted house, someone died there, and it was a wrongful death… Several previous tenants rented it, but they all moved out after a short time…”

"Oh, it's nothing!" The doctor, who had expected the other party to mention some intractable problem, breathed a sigh of relief. He was a medical student; he'd seen it all. What was there to be afraid of?
The real estate agent tried to persuade the doctor again and again, but seeing that the doctor didn't seem to mind, he stopped talking. After all, he had done his best and said everything he could. Even though the commission from renting out the house was small, every little bit helps!

The two happily returned to the real estate agency, signed the contract, the doctor paid the fees, and received the keys. The entire process, from viewing the property to signing the contract, took less than an hour, and it wasn't even lunchtime yet.

Anyway, he didn't have too much stuff in the dorm, and if he didn't move out quickly on this rare day off, he probably wouldn't be able to move into the new place until next week. So the doctor went back to the dorm to pack, bringing only the necessities for now, and planned to borrow Chun Ge's car to move tomorrow when he had time. After washing, cleaning, and buying some household items, it was almost done by the time Chun Ge got off work.

"Wow! You've managed to rent the place without a word!" Chun Ge, having received the news, brought food and drinks for the housewarming party and went to check. "There's even a bed! Does that mean if I get off work too late, I can just sleep here?"

"Okay! I won't rip you off. The rent is just for one night's sleep and one breakfast!" the doctor joked. He was in a good mood for getting such a cheap place. But he still shouldn't tell Chun Ge that it was a haunted house; that guy was too timid, and he definitely wouldn't be able to sleep if he found out.

"Huh? Weren't we supposed to move tomorrow? Why did you bring this revolving lantern over today?" Chun Ge noticed the familiar revolving lantern on the kitchen counter. He took a closer look and gasped, "I knew it! You're lucky you managed to rent this place so quickly. Look, the revolving lantern has changed into another picture!"

"I was planning to use it as a nightlight." The doctor was taken aback; he had been busy tidying up and hadn't noticed. However, he was also quite curious about the fifth picture in the fable of the old man losing his horse, since only the fourth picture had survived to this day. The picture on the lantern was clearly visible under the warm yellow light, and its content was immediately apparent. The old man's son had stayed in his hometown because he hadn't joined the army, but due to the war, all the able-bodied men in the village had been conscripted, the fields were left uncultivated, nine out of ten houses were empty, and corpses littered the fields. The old man and his son were starving and on the verge of death.

The doctor and Chun Ge exchanged a glance. The doctor forced a smile and said, "Well... maybe it means I've run out of money for rent and won't have any money for food? But I still have you to lend me some money!"

"If only it were that simple..." Chun Ge had a bad feeling about it.

The next day, Chun Ge borrowed his family's car and went to the dormitory to help the doctor move all his belongings. Since they were all boys and didn't usually have many things, Chun Ge saw that there was still room in the car, so he packed up his own things and took them with him. And while helping the doctor move his things to his new home, he accidentally loaded a few of his own things onto the truck as well.

The doctor didn't say anything. He'd welcome this guy to stay at his house with open arms! That way, his breakfast would be taken care of!

Ever since Chun Ge found out how much the doctor had paid for the apartment, he felt like he'd gotten a great deal and kept asking him if anything unusual had happened while he slept there. The doctor said there were no problems, except that the neighbors seemed a bit noisy in the middle of the night. The soundproofing in apartments these days isn't great; there's a commercial street not far away, and he could hear cars speeding by late at night, but that didn't affect his sleep.

Chun Ge paced back and forth in the room suspiciously, scrutinizing the house with a critical eye, even moving bookshelves and furniture around, not feeling at ease until he had thoroughly inspected everything.

"Huh? There's a red line on the wall, is it a telephone line?" Chun Ge moved a single sofa aside and saw a red line.

"Maybe so, but I already have a cell phone, so I don't need to set up a landline." The doctor was mopping the floor. "Let's move this sofa over there! Over there!"

Chun Ge followed instructions, but he still felt something was off about the conspicuous red line on the wall, and as someone with obsessive-compulsive disorder, he kept wanting to pull it out. He looked around a few times, and finally simply placed a small coffee table in front of him to block it.

Then Chun Ge rummaged through the cabinet and found a box of dusty books. To his surprise, these books were all related to medicine, and many of them were original foreign books. They were covered with notes and annotations, written in neat handwriting, and the name "Li Hua" was written on the title page.

"She must be a female student." The doctor thought the owner of these books was a girl, because it was rare for men like them to take such meticulous notes. Moreover, although the layout and furniture of the rented room were later changed, it was still evident from some of the details of the decoration that a lot of thought had been put into it, showing a touch of girlishness.

"She's a top student, a senior student." Chun Ge flipped through the books. Although they were quite old, they were still clearly top-tier medical materials from their time. At least with their current level, they couldn't fully understand them. Since they were just going to gather dust anyway, they might as well make the most of them. After wiping the books clean, they neatly arranged them on the bookshelf.

After settling in, the doctor rushed back to the hospital to continue working. He had only asked for half a day off, and it was only after pleading with the head doctor that he got it. If he had been even a minute later, he probably would have been severely punished.

Chun Ge was given a spare key by the doctor, but he wasn't in a hurry to leave. He took two books from the bookshelf and sat down to read for a while. However, after turning just two pages, he felt that the room was too quiet.

It was an indescribable silence. He didn't feel it when the doctor was around, but once he was alone, the silence became unbearable. It was like being submerged in a viscous liquid; he could hear nothing but his own breathing. He didn't know if it was just his imagination, but Chun Ge felt a chill run down his spine, a shiver running down his spine. But this place was clearly near a shopping street! How could he hear nothing at all! Not even the sound of cars!

Chun Ge grew increasingly frightened. He immediately stood up, abandoned his book, grabbed his keys, locked the door, and left. He didn't plan to tell the doctor; after all, it seemed like he was just scaring himself, and he was too ashamed to say it!

The day after the doctors moved, the head doctor announced that they had barely passed their probationary period and were officially entering their internships. The interns groaned in despair. All this trouble was just a probationary period? They had barely settled in, and now the wedding was telling them things would get even tougher?

However, perhaps having grown accustomed to the torment, the doctor gritted his teeth and persevered no matter how hard or tiring it was. Fortunately, he moved to a new home in time, returning home earlier and waking up later, which meant he could sleep an extra two hours each day. So even with the increased workload at the hospital, the doctor felt much better than before.

What puzzled him was that Chun Ge's home was a bit far, yet Chun Ge had never once suggested staying at his place. The doctor invited him several times, but seeing that Chun Ge didn't agree, he stopped bringing it up. However, the doctor had already planned that whenever Chun Ge came to stay at his house, he would ask him to treat him to a meal at that incredibly upscale-looking Han Family Private Kitchen on the commercial street!
Every time the doctor passed by that quaint entrance on his way to work, he would imagine how delicious the food inside must be, his mouth always watering. But imagination is often rosy, and reality is harsh. A few days later, the doctor discovered that the shop had been covered up by a green curtain. While eating xiaolongbao next door, he overheard the neighbors gossiping that the business had changed hands and was no longer a restaurant, but an antique shop.

What was this owner thinking? Opening an antique shop on a commercial street full of restaurants and entertainment venues? Shouldn't they be on an antique street?!

The doctor's dream of a lavish meal was shattered, leaving him in a low mood all day. It was an exceptionally busy day; a multi-vehicle collision had occurred on the highway, and they worked in the emergency room until after 11 PM before being relieved. Since there were no more buses running at that hour, the doctor invited Chun Ge to stay at his house for the night. Chun Ge hesitated for a moment, but he was truly exhausted. Considering he had to get up early the next morning, he agreed.

The doctor went home, quickly washed up, and fell asleep without any dreams that night.

It felt like he'd only been lying down for a few minutes when someone woke him up. The doctor struggled to open his eyes and saw someone sitting beside his bed. The sky outside was just beginning to lighten, and faint sunlight streamed into the room through the window, where the curtains hadn't been drawn the night before. Because of the backlighting, he couldn't make out the person's face at all, making the scene even more eerie and terrifying.

"What are you doing?!" The doctor shuddered, his imagination racing, and he was fully awake. He looked closely and realized the person was Chun Ge, his face deathly pale. He then realized he had invited Chun Ge back to sleep in the living room last night. "There...there's something in the room..." Chun Ge's voice trembled. "What is it?" The doctor picked up the nightlight alarm clock by the bed and saw it was still far from the time he had set, so he planned to pull the covers over himself and go back to sleep.

How could Chun Ge let him have his way? She grabbed him and started complaining.

He said he barely slept all night, constantly feeling like someone was watching him whenever he closed his eyes. He felt a constant, stabbing pain all over his body. He struggled to get up and ran to the doctor's room, but couldn't wake him no matter what he did. He couldn't even open the door to leave, and his phone had no signal to call the police.

"I'm going to break down if you don't wake up soon!" Chun Ge said frantically.

He actually seems to have broken down now.

The doctor mentally grumbled, then comforted the other person, saying, "Are you overthinking it? Feeling unwell? Did you forget to air out your blankets? I told you not to be lazy, now you have fleas! As for not being able to get out of the house and having no phone signal, that's probably just your hallucination. You haven't been sleeping well lately, so you're experiencing sleep paralysis! Hey, even though it's a scary name, medically it's a symptom of sleep paralysis. You're a medical student! You can't believe in superstitions!"

Seeing that the doctor wouldn't believe him no matter what he said, Chun Ge got angry, put on his coat and shoes, and left. The doctor, hearing the door close outside, lay back down for a nap, muttering to himself, "Isn't it easy to open the door and go out? Really..."

When it was fully light and the alarm clock rang, the doctor reluctantly got out of bed. Reflecting on the morning's events, she decided to tease Chun Ge on her way to work. Wasn't he supposed to treat everyone to breakfast today?! Using such a low trick to avoid paying was truly pathetic!

The doctor had a lot to say, but when he arrived at the hospital, he found that Chun Ge hadn't come to work at all. No one replied to his messages, and no one answered his calls. The doctor started to worry. Around noon, the doctor couldn't hold back any longer and went to the head doctor's office to inquire.

"Chun Ge? He's taken leave and will come to work tomorrow." The head doctor, contrary to his usual seriousness, smiled unusually kindly. The doctor shuddered, forcing a smile, and pressed on, "Head doctor, why did you approve his leave? And why are you so happy about it?" Shouldn't this kind of leave request be severely criticized?

"Do I look like such a heartless person?" the director scoffed. "Everyone encounters unexpected events. Even doctors can't be immune to all illnesses. Taking leave is perfectly normal, isn't it? Besides, if you force yourself to stay home, if you have something on your mind or aren't feeling well, you're more likely to be distracted and make mistakes. If we make mistakes, it could be fatal! Do you understand? From now on, you can ask for leave if you need to!"

The doctor hadn't expected to be lectured for so long just for asking a question, so he quickly and meekly agreed.

"If you take too many days off, trying to coast through your days, and your attendance record won't be good, then I'll have no choice but to fire you." The director gave the doctor a lecture, a mix of reprimand and criticism, before letting him leave. The doctor hung his head. Fine, if Chun Ge didn't come, he didn't come. His colleagues all knew they were close, and this guy had been pushing all his work onto him. He'd been doing the work of two people all day, and he felt like he'd lost two pounds from exhaustion. Chun Ge absolutely had to treat him to a big meal!
When the doctor saw Chun Ge again the next day, he didn't have a chance to make the request before being pulled into a corner. Chun Ge mysteriously handed him a wooden box the size of a palm.

"What is this?" The doctor looked down and found it was a dusty wooden box with some of the paint peeling off, looking old and worn.

"This is a good thing! I specially went back to my hometown to get it for you from the temple! Put it on the ground when you get home to ward off evil spirits!" Chun Ge patted his chest and assured him.

The doctor was utterly bewildered. What good thing could it be? Had he been tricked by some monk? Just as he was about to open it to see what it was, Chun Ge immediately grabbed his hand.

"No, you can't look at it or touch it!" Chun Ge hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, I'll go to your house myself after work!" He then snatched the wooden box from the doctor's arms, afraid that he would open it carelessly. The doctor found it amusing but didn't take it seriously.

After work, Chun Ge indeed took the wooden box to the doctor's house, and, seemingly lost in thought, placed it in the corner of the wall where the telephone line was. Chun Ge, as if not daring to linger for a moment, immediately went home. Before leaving, he even glanced at the scrolling lantern and found it was still the same paper drawing, indicating the trouble wasn't over yet, and warned the doctor to be extra careful. The doctor, however, didn't take it seriously, instead staring at the wooden box in the corner for a long time. He thought about it while eating, showering, brushing his teeth, and even lying in bed. Now, he couldn't sleep without opening it and checking!

Having found an excuse to check everything in the house, the doctor got up, walked to the wall in the living room, hesitated for a long time, and then opened the wooden box. Inside the box, a metal object that looked like a weight stood quietly.

The doctor curiously took it out and discovered it was a bronze tiger sculpture, covered with some patina of patina. The tiger stood on a rock, head raised, roaring, and it was remarkably lifelike.

But no matter how you look at it, it seems like a scam.

The doctor put the bronze tiger back, and after thinking about it, he figured the wooden box wouldn't be in any trouble, so he decided not to move it.

As he stood up to walk towards the bedroom, he almost tripped. He looked down and saw it was the red telephone cord sticking out of the wall.

Strange, perhaps Chun Ge accidentally pulled out the telephone cord when he moved the coffee table today. Thinking he should remember to cut or fold it up properly when he had time, the doctor yawned as he walked back to the bedroom, completely unaware that the red cord had moved on its own without any wind, suddenly disappearing into the wooden box whose lid wasn't properly closed…

The doctor fell asleep the moment he lay down on the bed, but in his half-awake state, he discovered that his body was paralyzed! In his mind's eye, he could clearly tell that he was experiencing the sleep paralysis he had previously mentioned to Chun Ge, commonly known as sleep paralysis. However, as time passed, he inexplicably began to panic.

Just as Chun Ge had said, my body started to ache, one pain after another, as if someone were cutting pieces of flesh off with a knife.

The doctor tried to get up, but his limbs were too weak to sit up. He tried to shout, but no sound came out.

He rolled his eyes, hoping to break free from this sleep paralysis by moving his eye muscles, but as he turned to a corner of the room, he saw a red shadow dart past.

If he wasn't mistaken, it was a...red dragon?
(End of this chapter)