After being poisoned by mushrooms, all the strange creatures became fascinated by me.

At six o'clock in the morning, Tang Li woke up and lay in bed smiling happily for a while.

Last night, Tang Li chatted with the boy until very late. Afraid that the nurses would wake up everyone on the floor if they didn't see her during their rounds, she drifted back to her room in a daze.

I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

When I woke up this morning, I found that a boy had drawn a menacing black pattern on my palm—an ugly little smiling face.

Tang Li admired the little smiling face for a while longer, looking at those dark eye sockets—it was exactly like the boy in her hallucination! So lifelike!

At seven o'clock, Tang Li went out.

"Want to have breakfast together, beautiful?"

"Shall we go have breakfast, sir?"

Two voices rang out simultaneously from both sides of the door.

Tang Li felt a chill run down her spine, as she dreamt of the nightmare moment when her two roommates in high school broke off their friendship.

On the left is a short-haired patient with one hand in her pocket, and on the right is a slender, hourglass-shaped nurse standing respectfully.

The two glared at each other, neither willing to give in, their auras evenly matched.

"I saw the anchor with two women on either side first thing in the morning." "What are they doing? Competing for attention?" "Look behind the pillar, there's that four-armed nurse lying there." "The door to room 401 is also a crack open, and the skinny guy is peeping inside."

Tang Li felt she could have both.

But when they reached the restaurant entrance, the nurse turned back. Tang Li was puzzled and, amidst the nurse's sad gaze, went into the restaurant with the short-haired woman.

"She can't come in," Jiang Hui said casually as she put pickled cucumbers into her plate. "Only patients can enter the safe zone... into the dining room."

Tang Li blinked, thinking to herself that this hospital was really strict; patients and medical staff ate separately. "Did you sleep well last night?"

"It's alright. Last night I dreamt of a long-haired female ghost in black jeans floating down the corridor with her eyes closed." Jiang Hui served herself some scrambled eggs and gave Tang Li double the amount. "We have a group debriefing this morning, so eat more eggs to nourish your brain."

Tang Li was taken aback: "...A debriefing?"

Do we really need to organize a debriefing session for all patients just to see a doctor? Debrief what? The cause of the illness?

Hello everyone, I am Tang Li. At this debriefing meeting, I sincerely repent for over-trusting my friend's cooking skills, for my love of mushroom hot pot, and for my recklessness and untimely courage.

A soft cough startled Tang Li, who instinctively took three steps back while protecting her plate. The bespectacled man, who had only wanted to get attention, awkwardly adjusted his glasses. "Don't worry, I'm not contagious."

"Jiang Hui, did you invite some newcomers to play our murder mystery game together?" Qiu Wanting glanced at Jiang Hui suggestively.

"Oh right," Jiang Hui shrugged, "Tang Li is a board game that we made when we were bored. It's very immersive."

"The question setter is in place, please sit down."

This is the whole reason why Tang Li is sitting at the table, eating scrambled eggs and holding a pen.

"Where exactly did Lao Ding go?"

The person who set the questions sat in the center of the restaurant.

The tall man said, "Yesterday, Lao Ding and I went to the fifth floor for a checkup. Lao Ding was first in line, and I was second. The doctor's name is James."

"James had us lie on the machine, which was called 'Dreams Come True.' The machine was huge, and it swallowed us little by little. It was making a loud buzzing sound. The doctor was reading out the examination instructions."

"First, you must not open your eyes during the examination. Second, you must clear your mind and not let your mind wander during the examination."

"I was terrified, so I hid in Lao Ding's arms. Lao Ding protected me, putting his arm around my shoulder, and I wasn't so scared anymore. I knew that Lao Ding would rather disappear himself than not protect me."

"When the machine pushed us out, I found that Lao Ding was gone, and I was the only one left. James told me to leave, saying that the check was over, but Lao Ding was gone."

The tall man raised his head and looked at everyone blankly.

"So, where did Old Ding go?"

After a moment of silence, the host signaled to everyone that they could begin asking questions.

Tang Li asked, "Is the entrance and exit of the 'Dream Come True Machine' the same?"

The tall man said, "No. The entrance is wide enough for two people to lie side by side; the exit is narrow enough for only one person to come out at a time."

Qiu Wanting asked, "Could Lao Ding see the difference between the entrance and the exit before the inspection?"

The tall man said, "Yes, he saw it."

Tang Li asked, "Can you see it too?"

Tall man: "Yes, I saw it too."

Low voices could be heard in the restaurant.

Jiang Hui asked, "Old Ding would rather disappear himself than not protect you—is this your own thought?"

Tall man: "No."

Tang Li asked, "Is this Lao Ding's idea?"

The man's lips trembled slightly, and cracks appeared on his usually calm and resolute face: "Yes. He was inside the machine, constantly, constantly saying that in my ear."

Tang Li asked, "...Did Lao Ding's dream come true?"

The man closed his eyes: "Yes."

The whispers in the restaurant grew louder, as if the mystery had been solved: the machine could only allow one person to live. Old Ding made a wish to the machine: to disappear and save his companion.

"No, it's not! It's not!" The man suddenly opened his eyes, pleading with everyone, his dark eyes glistening with tears. "Why? Why can't the machine fulfill my wishes?! I've been saying it! I've been saying it—"

Tang Li looked at the man, and for a moment, she almost felt cruel as she asked the question: "Your wish was for Old Ding to live, right?"

The man stared at her blankly: "Yes."

Tang Li stood up: "We've been chatting for so long, and I still haven't asked your name?"

"...Meng Wanwan."

"Okay, Meng Wanwan." Tang Li held out her hand to Qiu Wanting, who pulled out half a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and gave it to her. Tang Li then handed it to the tall man, "Meng Wanwan, do you smoke?"

The man, whose fingertips and teeth were yellowed, waved his hand blankly: "I can't."

Tang Li sighed and this time handed the man a small mirror.

The tall man looked at himself in the mirror, and tears welled up in his eyes.

Old Ding is right in front of me, isn't he? Tang Li asked herself in her heart.

--Yes.

A couple, before entering the machine, knew that one of them would perish. The husband prayed: "Let me disappear, please let my wife live." The wife prayed: "Let my husband live, let my husband live, even if I am torn to pieces."

So the dream-come-true machine fulfilled all wishes: the husband's soul disappeared, the wife's body vanished in the wind, only the husband's body remained alive, containing the wife's still-living soul.

Old Ding has always been there, but now Meng Wanwan's soul resides within him.

"What's wrong with you?"

In the corridor, Jiang Hui suddenly asked.

"It's nothing." Tang Li paused for a moment before realizing she hadn't spoken since leaving the restaurant, then added, "The person who set the question was such a good actor. Even though I knew it was a game, I still felt a little uncomfortable."

Jiang Hui remained silent for a while.

"Is that all you're feeling bad about?" The veteran player of this bizarre game gave a wry smile and muttered to himself, "Then what are you going to do when...?"