She took a deep breath secretly. Then she took two quick steps and walked to the side of Zhou Yan. In a low voice, she asked, “Why haven’t we seen anyone here?”

Director Hu, who was leading the way before them all the time, answered her when Zhou Yan was just about to say something, “It’s lunch break now!”

Xia Yu frowned. She was clearly skeptical of the answer. Zhou Yan smiled and explained to her patiently, “Out of concern for these special patients, centers of this kind have strict time regulations on entry and rest. This place demands that patients should rest in their rooms before two o’clock in the afternoon.”

“Then, what about after 2 p.m.?”

“It depends on their health conditions. Some are allowed to stroll in a certain area under the supervision of nursing workers. Some may be advised to stay in a confined area.”

“Why?”

Zhou Yan stopped. As a psychologist who always dealt with patients of this kind, he understood the regulations here and was used to those things that might be difficult to understand and accept for common people. But it was Xia Yu’s first time to come here. In other words, this place with high walls and iron gates was cut off from the outside world which was totally different from here. How could he help her understand the rules here?

“Let me put it in this way!” Zhou Yan began to walk again, followed by Xia Yu. “The neurological rehabilitation center may be different from what you imagined before. This is the home to people who have or once had mental diseases, ranging from depressive disorder, delusional disorder, schizophrenia to anorexia or bulimia. There are many different kinds of mental illness. And these diseases have different symptoms. Some are serious, while some are mild. Besides, when these diseases do not come on, some patients look like normal people, but some of them have a serious self-abuse tendency and a serious propensity to violence. So, they will receive a professional examination after admission. After that, according to the results, these patients will be divided into different inpatient areas in terms of mild or serious symptoms by the rehabilitation center. People with mild symptoms will have certain areas of activity, and others with serious symptoms will be cut off from others totally. These measures are for the sake of the safety of patients and healthcare workers.”

“That’s true!” Director Hu turned around and smiled. “Doctor Zhou is very familiar with the conditions here. Generally speaking, our rehabilitation center has a very good environment. Probably, it can be regarded as the best one among those welfare neurological rehabilitation institutions in our country. The working staff here are all nice and patient. They will never abuse or hurt our patients.”

The director, who had been wearing a long face, stopped and explained to Xia Yu with patience, which made her feel flattered, but she always felt that he was boasting. So, she frowned and inquired tentatively, “I have heard before that you have good conditions here. But wasn’t there a news report lately that one of your patients was pregnant and injured by jumping off a building at the gynecology clinic?”

Once she finished her words, the director turned gloomy again.

“Assistant Xia, where did you get this rumor? Our center has always conformed to strict regulations. We only shelter women and children. How could a patient get pregnant and jump off a building?” He sneered and pretended to wear an unbelievable look. “Which newspaper or media gave out such a rumor? I will inform our dean of this. It is related to this center’s reputation which has been won by our great efforts for so many years. We won’t let off such a rumor! We’ll accuse them of defaming.”

Xia Yu really didn’t expect that he would defend in such an indignant way. Was he really telling the truth? Or did he want to conceal the truth on purpose? Since he said so and they came here for a reason, she stayed calm as before and then gave a forced smile. “Perhaps, someone started such a rumor. When it comes to online news, it’s difficult for people to tell the truth from the false, anyway.” After she finished her words, she glanced at Zhou Yan beside her and just met with his eyes. Zhou Yan was still as calm as usual.

“Move on!” Zhou Yan interrupted the topic in time.

Director Hu kept leading the way to move on. After walking about another hundred meters, they finally saw a sign at the corner, showing the Verification Department, the Clinical Laboratory, the X-ray Department, and so on. Suddenly, Zhou Yan stopped. “I want to have a word with Director Hu. Can you show yourself around in the center? Next time when I bring you here, you’ll become more familiar with it. But don’t go to the bungalows behind the X-ray Department.”

“Why?”

“It’s a segregated area. Only critically ill patients live there.” Zhou Yan said and then seemed to deliberately cast a look at Xia Yu.

Xia Yu agreed obediently without showing any objections. “I know. I won’t walk around randomly.” Xia Yu stood in situ and looked around. Perhaps, she was thinking about where to go first.

“What are you looking at?” Zhou Yan asked.

“I’ve read some reports about this rehabilitation center, but there are mostly some words with very few pictures.” Xia Yu withdrew her eyes and answered.

“Journalists are not allowed to enter, not to mention interviewing the patients.”

Xia Yu was very surprised, “Why is there such a rule?”

“Firstly, they want to protect these patients. After all, they are special. Though some of them have mental problems in our view, they still have independent personalities. So, cameras and the exposure are disrespectful to them.”

“Secondly…” Zhou Yan suddenly lowered his head and gave a sigh. “I heard that during an interview, an accident once happened. One of the interviewed patients had an attack suddenly and attacked the journalist. So, this center has been very cautious about this kind of thing ever since.”

Xia Yu was astonished by such an explanation.

“Really?”

“You don’t believe it?”

Xia Yu was stunned. Then Zhou Yan smiled. “Will you believe it if I say that every time I come here, I will buy a personal accident insurance in advance for me?”

Xia Yu finally realized the reason why there were so few materials and photos of this place on those reports. Partly, the rehabilitation center had strict external control, which prevented common visitors from coming here. And the people coming here needed some courage. People with special mental diseases might attack others suddenly, so very few journalists were willing to risk their lives to come here and interview those madmen. They could just report some gossip about the private affairs or small household affairs of celebrities easily. It was not only eye-catching but also relatively easy. After all, very few people were interested in a gloomy and confined madhouse and a group of lunatics.

Xia Yu looked up at Zhou Yan, who was in a light grey sweater, with a small part of his stiff shirt collar exposed. He majored in psychology in Nihon and was admitted to Zaodaotian University through one year’s efforts. And then he got his master’s degree in psychology there. A few years ago, he returned from abroad and ran his own psychologic clinic.

Zhou Yan was renowned in his field, but in the past two years, he often provided the regular free psychological counseling for some welfare institutions. This center was one of these institutions.

It was hard to imagine how he could have dealt with these indifferent and even crazy patients in such a mild manner all the time. Perhaps, he really had a lot of love in his heart, which was unselfish and broad-minded. Therefore, he could be so warm-hearted.

“Doctor Zhou, go in please.” Director Hu said.

“You just walk around here. I’ll come out soon.” Zhou Yan said to Xia Yu and then went in with Director Hu.

“I’ve never seen your assistant before.” Director Hu felt it inconceivable that Xia Yu always asked some unprofessional questions. How could Zhou Yan hire her as his assistant?

“She’s an intern at my clinic and a relative of my friend. She was curious about this center when she heard that I would come here, so she asked me to bring her here by any means.” Zhou Yan casually made an excuse to fudge on him.

“That is the case! How can Doctor Zhou have such an unprofessional assistant?” Director Hu pushed a room’s door open while saying.

Xia Yu walked around at first, but when she found no one was watching her, she headed for the back. None of the nurses or doctors around paid any attention to her, so she went on smoothly all the way.

After she passed through the long corridor and went out, she found it began to rain outside. But the rain was not heavy. Sporadic raindrops fell onto the grey cement pavement outside little by little.

The whole rehabilitation center was still deathly quiet, with small grey buildings lining with each other. They all looked similar on the surface, and their doors and windows were all closed. If no acquaintance helped to lead the way, one could easily lose his way. Luckily, Xia Yu had a good sense of direction. She returned by the way she came and got to the sign which she saw before. As the arrow showed that the X-ray Department was to the west, Xia Yu went west along the road.

Zhou Yan said just now that only critically ill patients lived in the bungalows, and they were segregated totally. Was Aunt Jiang placed here? Xia Yu walked west for about several hundred meters and found that the road became remoter and remoter. However, there was no one on the road. The rain got heavier gradually. In such gloomy weather, Xia Yu inevitably started to feel a little scared in her mind. When she was about to go back, she found that a sign seemed to stand in the bushes around the corner. She walked over and parted the bushes. Then she saw a rusted iron sign. It seemed to be very old, and there were several letters on it, “No. 17 Inpatient Area”.

“Who? Who is hiding there?”

An angry and fierce voice rang from behind her. Someone grabbed Xia Yu’s arm from behind and dragged her out of the bushes. Xia Yu stumbled a bit and then turned around, only to find a male nurse in a blue uniform, tall and strong, with a fierce look.

“Which inpatient area are you from?”

Xia Yu did not react for a moment. She stared at him at a loss. Seeing him frown, Xia Yu explained in a hurry, “I’m not a patient here.”

“Everyone says in the same way when they come here. I hear these words a dozen times a day. Tell me! Which inpatient area are you from?” The male nurse insisted that Xia Yu should be a patient here. He then rolled up her sleeve. “Where’s your number card? Show me your number card!”

Xia Yu disliked the touch of others, so she wanted to get rid of him. “Don’t touch me. I’m really not a patient here!”

The more she struggled and revolted, the ruder the male nurse became. He simply caught her collar and dragged her rudely to the back door of one building.

“Stand here obediently and don’t move. Or I’ll slap you.” He even raised his hand and showed the gesture of slapping her. Xia Yu dodged him reflexively. The male nurse was seemingly satisfied with her attitude. He then groped for his walkie-talkie.

“Did any patient escape from No. 17 Inpatient Area?” He said to the person over there and waited for the person to inspect. After a short time, the male nurse glanced at Xia Yu and said to the person over there again, “A new one? Haven’t you changed her clothes yet?”

It was unknown what the reply from the other side was. The male nurse then added, “Check again. I’m at the back door of the No. 17 Inpatient Area.”

Xia Yu felt speechless aside when hearing this, but she didn’t back down again. She guessed that someone in charge of the inpatient area would come over to take her soon. But after less than one minute, the door beside them was opened, and a nurse came out. “Why are you shouting? Where’s the person from?”

“Well, this one!” The male nurse pointed at Xia Yu. The nurse looked her up and down and found she was very unfamiliar. She said with hesitation, “She’s not from here. You…”

She had intended to let the male nurse go to the other areas to check. However, before she could finish her words, the door behind her was pushed open by such a force from inside at once that she was knocked to stumble forward a bit. Xia Yu was so stunned that she did not react, and then a woman ran out of the door suddenly, who was bloated with grey hair. She was running and giggling. Meanwhile, she kept sending something white into her mouth.

Xia Yu was so scared by this scene that she had no time to react at all. Soon, another nurse ran out of the door. “No. 47 has an onset again. Catch her! Quickly!”

“Take away the pills from her hands first!”

“Right! The pills!”