Joven Primer Ministro, un ermitaño

Capítulo 41

“Zheng...Zheng...Zheng...Shan...Shu...!”

"Don't be nervous, just tell the truth, your age, and where you work." Ye Cheng first asked some simple questions to help him gradually get used to it.

"Age 41, workplace: Qianhuangtai Mental Hospital".

What exactly do you do for a living?

"I am responsible for cleaning. I am in charge of cleaning the restaurant, corridors and wards. I usually clean them twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening."

Seeing that the time was right, Ye Cheng asked, "Were you the first to discover the body this morning?"

"Yes...yes!" Ye Cheng's question reminded Old Zheng of the horrific scene. His heart skipped a beat, his hand loosened, and the cup fell onto the table, spilling water all over Ye Cheng. Old Zheng hurriedly wiped it up, but Ye Cheng waved his hand and said, "It's alright, don't be afraid, it's all over. Just tell me in detail what you saw this morning."

Old Zheng swallowed hard and slowly began, "I start cleaning at five every morning. By the time I finish cleaning the restaurant, it's already 5:30. I push the cleaning cart to the wards, and the corridor is shrouded in a gray haze, as if there's a mist flowing through it. You should know that a horrific murder happened here. I heard the victim's vengeful spirit refuses to leave and still lingers in the hospital; some colleagues have even seen it. Just thinking about it sends chills down my spine, but the corridor still needs to be cleaned. I start mopping the floor and walk to the door of the ward where the incident occurred." My mouth watered, and I smelled a metallic odor in the air. I looked up and saw a woman, like a ghost, standing at the window of the ward opposite the scene. Her face was deathly pale, and her disheveled hair obscured most of her face. Her eyes were fixed on the window of the opposite ward. I turned my head and saw traces of something crawling on the opposite wall. I looked back, but the woman was gone. My curiosity piqued, I wanted to see what she was looking at, so I went to the ward door and peered through the small window. And then I saw…and…that pile of…rotten flesh!”

Ye Cheng frowned again. "You said you saw Su Youqing? Are you sure it wasn't a hallucination caused by fear?"

"It should be her. I heard she was just locked up, which I also find a bit strange. The doctor must have given her a sedative; she couldn't possibly be awake. Afterwards, I took a look at her from outside her door, and she was lying on the ground sleeping. So I'm not so sure anymore."

Li Xiao asked, "Did you see any insects near the scene, especially slugs?"

"Insects? Impossible. I cleaned very thoroughly; there wouldn't be any insects. Slugs live in damp environments; how could there be any in a hospital room?"

Ye Cheng fell into deep thought. Su Youqing's condition worsened after being frightened by an insect, and she was admitted to the intensive care unit. That very night, the patient across from her died mysteriously, and the cause of death was related to the insect. Her mind was filled with too many secrets. Could it be that someone wanted to silence her but killed the wrong person? This possibility could not be ruled out. Thinking of this possibility, Ye Cheng suddenly jumped up from his chair. "Where is Su Youqing's attending physician? I need to see Teacher Su right away."

Led by two caregivers, Ye Cheng met Su Youqing's attending physician. After obtaining his permission, the caregivers opened the iron door to the ward. No one noticed two bluish-white insects crawling into the room and quickly burrowing into the cotton pad on the floor. Ye Cheng carefully helped Su Youqing up from the floor and gently called out, "Teacher Su, wake up. It's me, Ye Cheng. You saved me, haven't you forgotten?"

Su Youqing slowly opened her eyes, her face expressionless, staring blankly at Ye Cheng, showing no reaction to his words. Ye Cheng gently shook her, but she still didn't respond. Ye Cheng turned around and asked, "What's going on? Doesn't she recognize me? She's not responding to what I'm saying."

The caregiver standing outside the door said, "She probably took the sedatives prescribed by the doctor. The medication can suppress her excitement and calm her down. The side effects make her unresponsive, so it's normal that she doesn't recognize you."

Ye Cheng gently laid Su Youqing down, "How long will the effects of the medicine last?"

"She just took her medication, and its effects will last for about eight to twelve hours. She won't wake up until the afternoon at the earliest."

Standing at the door, Li Xiao asked, "Can we believe what a mentally ill person says? She probably doesn't even know what she's saying."

Ye Cheng walked out of Su Youqing's ward. "Let's go back to the police station first. The autopsy report should be out soon. I want to know the cause of death." Before leaving, he didn't forget to instruct the caregiver, "Take good care of Teacher Su for me. If anything happens to her, see how I deal with you."

Kamijō City Police Department, Forensic Autopsy Room.

The elderly forensic pathologist, Gong Qingyong, stood pale-faced by the pool washing his hands. Having worked as a forensic pathologist his entire life, he had never seen such a disgusting corpse. His group of apprentices were on the other side of the pool, vomiting bile. Gong Qingyong dried his hands and tidied his graying hair. "Young people just lack experience; they can't even handle this little scene." He forgot that he himself had almost vomited when he first saw the corpse, and had only managed to hold it in with great effort.

"Professor Gong, I heard the autopsy is complete. Where is the report?"

Gong Qingyong turned around and saw a male and female police officer standing in front of him with their hands behind their backs and smiling. It was Ye Cheng and Li Xiao. Gong Qingyong sighed and said, "The autopsy is done, but I haven't written the report yet. Where did you two find this body? I've been a forensic doctor all my life, and this is the most disgusting corpse I've ever seen. If I weren't so knowledgeable and have such strong willpower, I would have thrown up my breakfast."

Ye Cheng glanced at the young forensic doctor who was vomiting so badly he couldn't even straighten his back, and flattered him, "Professor Gong is really amazing. The body was found at the former Huangtai Mental Hospital. This case is being personally supervised by the director. We won't wait for the autopsy report. Time is precious. Please tell me if you have any discoveries."

Gong Qingyong revealed an expression of realization, "The former Huangtai Mental Hospital, that awful place. A horrific incident happened there before. I was responsible for examining many of the corpses. After that, I didn't eat meat for six months. You guys didn't see how horrific it was. The case is still unsolved, and I always feel..."

Ye Cheng coughed lightly a few times. "Professor Gong, we're here to ask you about the autopsy results. What did you find?"

Gong Qingyong walked to the printer, pulled out a sheet of paper, and said, "We found a potent anesthetic that I've never seen before inside the corpse. Not a single bone fragment was left. I have no idea how this happened. The bone areas were filled with disgusting slugs, and the milky white liquid flowing from the corpse contained bone components. The cause of death was the loss of skeletal support, which led to the internal organs compressing each other, ultimately resulting in the failure of multiple organs, including the heart, lungs, and kidneys. The whole process was extremely long. Based on my years of experience, I speculate that after this unfortunate soul was anesthetized, he remained conscious. His bones were gradually eaten away or dissolved by the slugs, which replaced the bones to form a skeletal skeleton. Then, after three to four hours, he slowly died."

Ye Cheng and Li Xiao both shuddered. Li Xiao stammered, "Teacher Gong, you mean he was conscious the whole time?" She tried to imagine the feeling of countless slugs crawling inside her body, and her scalp tingled. This was definitely the most terrifying and horrifying way to die that she had ever heard of or seen.

Ye Cheng also shuddered. "Professor Gong, you've been a forensic doctor your whole life. What clues can you provide for solving cases?"

Gong Qingyong thought for a while and said, "I found some slugs in the corpse. Judging from the characteristics of the slugs, they are basically the same and can be determined to come from the same place. If I can find more slugs to compare, maybe I can find out where these slugs came from." He didn't think much of these slugs before, but now he feels nauseous and wants to vomit just thinking about them.

"Hehe..." Ye Cheng chuckled mischievously, pulling out a bottle hidden behind his back. It was a large bottle filled with slugs, some still alive and wriggling inside. Gong Qingyong glanced at it, his stomach churning violently. He finally couldn't hold it in and vomited up his breakfast. Several forensic doctors, having finally finished vomiting and straightened up, saw the slugs in Ye Cheng's bottle and the milky white liquid in Li Xiao's bottle, and returned to the pool to vomit again. Instantly, a sour, foul odor filled the air.

Ye Cheng turned to Li Xiao and asked, "Is it really that exaggerated?"

"I don't know," Li Xiao shrugged.

Gong Qingyong returned, his face green from vomiting. He pointed to the bottles in the two men's hands, then to the table beside them, and finally to the door of the dissection room. Ye Cheng and Li Xiao put down their bottles and left without a word. Half an hour later, a note appeared on the door of the dissection room, which read, "Ye Cheng and Li Xiao are not allowed to enter without permission."

Ye and Li walked out of the dissection room. Li Xiao asked, "It's still early, what should we do next?"

Ye Cheng said confidently, "Go get a bottle and tweezers. We're going out for a bit. Slugs like to live in dark, damp places. I think I can guess where those disgusting slugs come from."

The two took their tools and headed towards Yishi Academy.

Meanwhile, at the former Huangtai Mental Hospital, Su Youqing woke up from her coma.

"Where am I?" Su Youqing woke up to find her hands tied behind her back. The walls of the room were padded with soft, fluffy material. This seemed to be a room for mental patients, one she had seen on television. "Why am I here?" She tried to remember, only recalling that she had drunk a lot of alcohol and then gone home to sleep.

She just had a strange dream.

She dreamt she was walking on a country path, a dirt road overgrown with waist-high weeds. It must have been dusk, for the sky was a pale yellow, the whole world resembling a faded old photograph. She walked lightly along the dirt road, not knowing where she was going; she couldn't control her body. The path soon came to an end, and directly ahead stood a large tree, its trunk thick and its age at least a hundred years.

She stepped over the weeds and continued towards the large tree, around which a hazy, oppressive mist hung in the air. Looking down, she saw many animal carcasses on the ground: some black, dead rats with bellies swollen like balloons, their bodies rotting and emitting a pungent stench; maggots seemed to wriggle beneath their skin. Every now and then, disgusting toads leaped out of the grass, croaking strangely.

Reaching the foot of the large tree, she saw a gruesome corpse—a man dressed in an old-fashioned suit, his face covered in blood, a gaping hole in his head from which milky white brain matter and deep red blood gushed. His lips were rotting, revealing a stark white jawbone. The upper half of his lip, like a long, red piece of paper, was stuck to his nostrils. A pair of dark, hollow eyes stared intently at her, then opened his mouth and gave Su Youqing a smile. In an instant, the hairs on Su Youqing's body stood on end. The corpse had uttered three words to her: "Thank you!"

What was there to thank? Su Youqing didn't know, and she didn't want to know. She just wanted to wake up from the nightmare as soon as possible. Terrifying images flooded her mind like a tide, and after what seemed like an eternity, she finally woke up, drenched in sweat. In the past, she hadn't even dared to watch horror movies; those nightmares, with their incredibly realistic touch, taste, and smell, were driving her crazy.

Su Youqing rolled to the corner of the wall and sat up against it. Perhaps because the room rarely saw sunlight, it was somewhat cold and damp. She needed to carefully recall what had happened, why she was in a mental hospital. Could it be that she had gone mad from the series of heavy blows? It wasn't impossible. She was a fragile woman; at least, she considered herself a fragile woman.

The sun was setting in the west, and the world was a blood-red color. Su Youqing racked her brains but couldn't get a response. With a click, the door opened, and a doctor and two caregivers walked in.

"You're awake. How are you feeling?" the doctor asked kindly.

Su Youqing asked, "I feel much better. Can you tell me what happened? I don't remember anything at all."

"You have schizophrenia and have been here for over half a month. You could have been discharged in a few more days of treatment, but yesterday morning, while you were drawing, you were frightened by a caterpillar that fell from a tree, which worsened your condition, so you were confined here. Now it seems your condition is much better." The doctor waved his hand, signaling the caregiver to put the medication back and remove her restraints. "Did you hear any strange noises coming from across the hall last night?"

Su Youqing looked completely bewildered. "What happened across the hall?"

“A patient suddenly died.” The doctor didn’t want to frighten Su Youqing any further. “Eat something. We’ll observe you here for another day. If you can maintain this good condition tomorrow, we’ll let you out.”

Speaking of food, Su Youqing felt her stomach was empty, so she ate all the food and fruit the caregiver brought her. The doctor was very satisfied with Su Youqing's performance and left with a smile. After eating, Su Youqing no longer felt cold and had more energy. She stood up and walked around the room a couple of times to stretch her limbs.

On the ground near the doorway, Su Youqing saw two small holes. How could this be? She knelt at the doorway; the two holes were about the size of a thumb, and there seemed to be something inside. She peered into the holes. A cold wind blew out, chilling Su Youqing to the bone, and she suddenly felt incredibly cold. She scrambled away, using both hands and feet. Inside the holes was something terrifying, something a thousand times more terrifying than a vengeful ghost.

The sun had set, and Su Youqing's room grew even colder. Grayish mist billowed from the small holes, slowly circulating throughout the room. Su Youqing stared wide-eyed at the two small holes, her eyelids drooping as if something was about to crawl out.

Half an hour passed, and nothing happened.

A bead of cold sweat trickled into Su Youqing's eye. She couldn't help but blink. When she opened her eyes again, two bluish-white worms crawled out of the round hole and slowly made their way towards her. Worse still, she found herself unable to move; the gray gas circulating in the room was poisonous!

Five minutes later, two insects crawled to Su Youqing's side, and she felt an itch as one of the insects crawled onto her finger.

Suddenly, Su Youqing saw a flash of golden light before her eyes. Her body suddenly regained its movement. With a flick of her finger, an insect flew out, hitting the glass of the iron gate with a thud. The insect's body was surprisingly tough. Before Su Youqing could react, another insect bit her finger. She felt a chill creep into her body, quickly spreading throughout her entire being, and her consciousness began to fade.

Am I going to die? That was the last thought in her mind.

Ye Cheng and Li Xiao spent the entire afternoon battling it out on the grass behind the old building, achieving remarkable results. The two returned to the police station with over a dozen bottles of slugs. The bottles were placed in front of Gong Qingyong, who nearly vomited his lunch. The other forensic doctors stared at Ye and Li with grim expressions.

"Professor Gong, please," Ye Cheng pleaded. "I know you're disgusting, but please bear with me a little longer and help me determine if the slugs we caught and those in the corpses came from the same place. An expert like you won't waste much time; you'll have the results soon, right? If you don't agree, I'll stay here and not leave."

Gong Yongqing said helplessly, "Alright, let's put them all down."

Half an hour later, the results came out.

Gong Yongqing praised, "Xiao Ye, you're even more amazing than your dad! After comparative analysis, you found that both types of slugs live in the same environment. How did you find that?"

"Yishi Academy!" Ye Cheng's guess was correct.

bell……

Ye Cheng's phone rang. It was a call from the former Huangtai Mental Hospital.

Ye Cheng's expression froze instantly, and his phone slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.

Li Xiao hurriedly asked, "What's wrong?"

"Su...Su...Su...Teacher...is dead!"

003 Xia Chen's Secret

As the sun rose, Xia Chen woke from a deep sleep, stretching lazily in bed, feeling incredibly comfortable. Lately, he'd been sleeping much better. Just six months ago, he'd often wake up startled from nightmares, frequently seeing Ah San and Tang Ying—his two closest friends, the two who'd treated him like a younger brother in the orphanage. Now, both of them were gone, their deaths linked to that damned Xia Group. The thought of the Xia Group made him grit his teeth. Since meeting Luo Shimin, his mindset had become much more peaceful. "Good morning, everyone!" Xia Chen greeted his roommates warmly. His attitude towards people had also become much more enthusiastic.

*Buzz...* My roommate's computer automatically turned on. This has been happening frequently lately. Xia Chen figured that since the dorm's power goes out every night and comes back on the next morning, the current surges through the computer the instant the power comes back on. Nothing unusual, though. My roommate nimbly jumped out of bed, grabbed a yellow talisman, and stuck it on the computer screen. He muttered something under his breath...

"I have no grudge against you, so don't bother me. Please leave now." The dormitory was deathly silent! A bead of cold sweat rolled down Xia Chen's forehead.

Haha… While eating at the restaurant, Xia Chen told Luo Shimin what had happened in the dorm that morning. Luo Shimin laughed very unladylike, spitting out a mouthful of food. The ancients said one shouldn't show their teeth when laughing, but Luo Shimin laughed so hard you could see her tongue sticking out of her throat. “Your roommate is so funny! How come I never realized there was such an interesting guy in our class?”

Hu Rongrong stepped on Luo Shimin's foot under the table and whispered, "Mind your manners, lady, lady."

"Hahaha," Luo Shimin's laughter abruptly stopped, and she swallowed the remaining string of chuckles. Xia Chen didn't actually mind. He looked at Luo Shimin, the corners of his mouth curving upwards, a faint smile on his face. He felt a little envious of Luo Shimin; she said what was on her mind and never deliberately hid her emotions. He always kept himself hidden, never showing his joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness on his face. Living like that was too tiring. Once he resolved the matter at Yishi Academy, he wanted to live like Luo Shimin, freely expressing his emotions.

Luo Shimin stole a glance at Xia Chen out of the corner of her eye. Xia Chen had a smile on his lips, he was so charming. She felt a rush of heat to her head, and she almost fainted.

A middle-aged man walked into the restaurant. Xia Chen saw him, and the smile on his face vanished instantly. Luo Shimin saw Director Wang from the Academic Affairs Office. On Xia Chen's first day at Yishi Academy, it was Director Wang who led him to the classroom, leading his classmates to speculate that Xia Chen had connections to the Xia Group. Luo Shimin wasn't particularly bright, but she sensed something between Director Wang and Xia Chen. What could it be?

Director Wang's full name is Wang Shaoyi. He is fifty-one years old this year. He has been working at Yishi College since its inception and has worked diligently for more than twenty years. Five years ago, he finally became the Dean of Students. Director Wang is honest and kind. He always has a smile on his face when he criticizes students. The students have given him a friendly nickname, "Old Wang." Among all the school leaders, Director Wang is the one who is scolded the least by the students.

Director Wang also saw Xia Chen. The two exchanged a glance, and Director Wang made a strange gesture to Xia Chen. Noticing Luo Shimin watching her, she smiled brightly, bought breakfast, and went home. Xia Chen's expression became somewhat unnatural.

Time flew by, and it was noon in the blink of an eye. After lunch, Xia Chen said to Luo Shimin rather awkwardly, "I'll take you and Hu Rongrong back to your dorm first. I have some things to take care of."

Hu Rongrong asked, puzzled, "Didn't we say we'd go shopping together this afternoon? What do you need to do that you have to go by yourself?"

"I..." Xia Chen didn't know how to explain.

Luo Shimin tugged at Hu Rongrong, "Rongrong, I'm a little tired and want to go back to the dorm to rest for a while. Xia Chen, you go ahead with your work, call me when you're done, and we'll go shopping."

"No problem." Xia Chen breathed a sigh of relief. "My business won't take long. I'll wait for you downstairs at your dormitory in two hours."

"Okay." Luo Shimin pulled a bewildered Hu Rongrong away. Xia Chen watched the two leave, and after they were out of sight, he turned and walked towards the old building.

After Luo Shimin and Hu Rongrong turned a corner, Luo Shimin stopped and secretly watched Xia Chen from the intersection. Hu Rongrong felt puzzled. "Are you two playing a detective game?"

"No." Luo Shimin pulled Hu Rongrong behind her. "I always felt that there was some secret between Xia Chen and Director Wang. I've been waiting for him to tell me, but he still won't. I really want to know. The opportunity is right in front of us. Will you come with me?"

Hu Rongrong hesitated for a moment, "This isn't a good idea. Xia Chen doesn't want to tell you, there must be his reasons. He'll naturally confess to you when the time is right."

Luo Shimin stared at Hu Rongrong and said, "I just want to know if you're coming or not? Don't tell me you're not curious. I always feel that Director Wang isn't a good person, and I'm afraid Xia Chen will get hurt."

Hu Rongrong's curiosity was piqued. "You're the only one in the whole school who thinks Director Wang is a bad person. I'm curious, but Xia Chen will be angry if he finds out."

"We just need to be careful not to get spotted," Luo Shimin said, dragging Hu Rongrong along as they followed. Hiding behind a tree by the roadside, they saw Xia Chen standing at the entrance of the old building, looking around suspiciously, clearly waiting for someone. Ten minutes later, Director Wang appeared, and the two of them furtively entered the old building.

"Hurry up!" The two jogged into the old building. The corridor was empty; there wasn't a soul in sight. Hu Rongrong asked, "Where are they? Where did everyone go?"

"Keep your voice down," Luo Shimin said coquettishly. "I know where they are. Come with me."

The two tiptoed to the door of room 104, and could faintly hear voices coming from inside. The people inside were deliberately keeping their voices down, and it was impossible to hear anything in the corridor. Luo Shimin gently pushed open the door, and Hu Rongrong said in a low voice, "What are you doing? Be careful not to be discovered."

"Don't forget why we risked our lives to come here. If we close the door, we won't hear anything. That's not like we came here on our own." Luo Shimin pushed the door open a crack and saw Director Wang with his back to her, blocking Xia Chen. Director Wang said fiercely, "Don't give me that 'Nuwa Project' nonsense. Don't forget what your mission is and why you came to Yishi Academy."