Dossiers Bizarres 2 - L'Étrange et le Réel

Chapitre 1

The bizarre behavior of thousands of toads spontaneously exploding has puzzled scientists.

According to an AFP report on April 23, a bizarre and inexplicable phenomenon has recently occurred in Germany: thousands of toads have suddenly exploded, ejecting their internal organs a meter high. This strange phenomenon has baffled German scientists and biologists, who, despite their research, have been unable to explain the toads' suicides.

According to numerous reports from German veterinarians and animal welfare workers, biologists have discovered that at least 1,000 toads suddenly and continuously inflated their bodies until they reached their maximum size and finally exploded. Their internal organs were also ejected up to one meter high during the explosion. The phenomenon of toad self-explosion was most severe in the Odonna region of Hamburg, Germany, where a local lake was filled with toad carcasses, earning the lake the nickname "Pond of Death."

Currently, Hamburg authorities have banned public access to the small lake. Every day between 2 and 3 a.m., a biologist is sent to the lake to observe the suicide toads exploding. Werner Smonik, a member of the Hamburg North Nature Conservation Society Observation and Research Institute, said, "It's like a science fiction movie. They suddenly swell and explode, and their bodies are 3.5 times larger than ordinary toad carcasses."

Biologists have speculated on the reasons for the toad's self-explosion, including that the toad was infected with an unknown virus.

Beijing Youth Daily, April 25, 2005

Seven skulls found on the ceiling of an old Shanghai villa

On the 23rd, workers discovered seven skulls on the ceiling of an old villa on Xibaoxing Road in Shanghai during demolition. Police have launched an investigation.

Around 11:00 AM on the 23rd, after receiving a tip, a reporter arrived at the scene. Mr. Zhang, who discovered the skull, told the reporter that he and his wife found a human skull on the roadside near a demolition site while taking a walk. After inquiring with the workers, Mr. Zhang learned that the skull had been found by demolition workers from an old house nearby and discarded by the roadside. The reporter observed that although it was damaged in several places, it was confirmed to be a human skull.

According to a worker, the day before yesterday afternoon around 4 pm, the workers found the skulls in the gap between the ceiling and the roof on the second floor of the old house while they were demolishing it. A total of 5 skulls were found at the time, and the workers broke 2 skulls during the cleaning process.

During the interview, several workers enthusiastically pointed out the location where the skulls had been found. Unexpectedly, in the second-floor roof mezzanine where the five skulls had been discovered, they found two more skulls. One worker showed the reporter the two newly found skulls and two other bones. The reporter noticed that the skulls were wrapped in a newspaper from May 17, 1967.

According to demolition workers, of the five skulls initially discovered, two were broken, while the other three were taken away by the police yesterday for investigation.

July 25, 2005, Shanghai Youth Daily, Part 1: Overture - People Who Escaped from the Hands of Death

cloudy day.

I hate cloudy days; bad weather always affects my mood. This story begins in bad weather, foreshadowing that things won't be good for us to come.

But I didn't realize that when I answered that call.

"Thank you so much! Well done! I bet you'd do a fantastic job as a reporter!" I showered him with compliments. I knew he loved hearing that.

"Hehe, not at all, just providing a tip. Your article is truly excellent. I'd be perfectly content if I could have your name listed as a correspondent someday." Old He immediately returned the compliment.

"Being a whistleblower isn't so bad, is it? Your information will definitely earn you a reward, at least fifty. I'll try my best and see if I can get a hundred."

"Oh dear, oh dear, I can't accept this." Without even looking, I could guess how wide the grin was on the other end of the phone.

"Of course, you should tell me first if you have any news like this in the future."

"Of course," Old He assured him.

This kind of thing is mutually beneficial. If the news gets out too late and is published by another newspaper first, or if our cleaning lady finds out through other channels, his tip-off fee will be lost.

"That patient, did he really have a terminal illness?" I asked him again to confirm.

"There's no mistake. Our Ruijin Hospital organized an expert consultation, and it's definitely Heinrich's disease, an extremely rare and incurable disease. We've never heard of anyone in the world who got this disease and recovered. This is the first case. Although the recovery is a bit inexplicable."

"Okay, I'll come over for the interview this afternoon."

I've crossed the line again. Oh well, it's all for survival. That's what I thought after hanging up the phone.

Normally, this kind of medical news would be written by reporters covering health, but now it's different when my informant calls the hotline to break the news. As a reporter from the mobile department, I can interview anyone who calls the hotline.

I have several informants on my side, or to put it more bluntly, "deep throats." They're usually hidden in various industries, and they'll tip me off at the slightest sign of trouble. Take this Lao He, for example; although he works at Ruijin Hospital, he's familiar with most of the major hospitals in the city center. He spends his free time calling acquaintances at these hospitals to gather news leads. Of course, the reason these "deep throats" are so proactive, besides my personal charm, is primarily because of the tipping fees. Earning several hundred or even a thousand yuan a month just by talking—why not?

If I train a few more, I won't have to worry about running out of writing material.

During my lunch break, I looked up Heinz syndrome online, but I didn't find any useful information. Perhaps it's because the disease is too specialized, or perhaps I mispronounced one character in the transliterated name of this terminal illness.

All organs atrophied and quickly failed? On the way to Ruijin Hospital, I pondered the simple description of Hainix case that Lao He had given me. It sounded terrifying. How could it have suddenly resolved itself, leaving even the attending physician baffled?

That's interesting.

"A Miracle Occurs at Ruijin Hospital: Deadly Illness Mysteriously Cured!" I've already come up with the headline for this news story. That's right, it has to be sensational. Even if the interview itself isn't anything special, the headline still has to be eye-catching.

There were more than twenty people waiting to see a doctor outside the internal medicine department. When I walked into the consultation room, I felt a chill down my spine. They must be cursing me for rushing in without waiting in line. If they knew that I was going to delay their doctor by at least ten or twenty minutes, even more vicious curses would come pouring down on me.

Lao He had already informed my interviewer, Dr. Lin, and after he finished seeing the next patient, I sat down on the bench opposite him.

"Old He said you're the attending physician for that patient with Heinz O.M. disease. I'd like to learn more about the situation," I asked him after identifying myself.

"Your information network is really impressive." The middle-aged man in the white coat, with a slightly balding head, seemed a little surprised: "The patient was only confirmed to have recovered yesterday, and you've already come to interview him today." It seemed he didn't know Lao He's "Deep Throat" identity.

Of course, I wouldn't say it out loud; I just smiled and looked very profound.

“But this is truly a miracle, a miracle indeed.” The doctor began to wave his hand, and his voice became louder than before. Only then did I notice that his eyes were bloodshot.

He was very excited; perhaps he had been excited for days.

"Let me talk about this disease first. Heinz syndrome is not caused by a virus, but is congenital. From a genetic point of view, it means that there is a congenital defect in the gene. Most of the time, this defect does not cause problems, but if it is unfortunately activated at some point, the immune system will have a problem, a big problem. Eventually, it will lead to the slow failure of all organs, especially the heart, liver, lungs and kidneys. An even more peculiar phenomenon is that although the cause of Heinz syndrome is not a virus, patients with Heinz syndrome are particularly susceptible to a special virus. This virus cannot survive in a healthy human body, but it can multiply and thrive in the internal organs of patients with Heinz syndrome, which will further accelerate organ failure."

Is there no treatment?

The doctor shook his head swiftly and rapidly.

"Before this, the longest recorded time from diagnosis to death for Heinz disease was seven years. Usually, patients die within two years. Current medical methods can only prolong this time as much as possible, at the cost of patients living in pain and ultimately dying anyway."

"How long has this patient been ill? Oh, and I still don't know his name."

"The patient's name is Cheng Gen. He is a businessman. He was probably too busy and kept putting off his health. By the time he was diagnosed, the disease had already progressed to the middle stage. The effects of medication on this disease are limited. When we had a consultation a week ago, our opinion was that he had at most ten months to live. A few days ago, when his son was with him, Cheng Gen was so weak that he needed help to walk."

"Oh? So his son wasn't around when Cheng Gen recovered?"

"Yes, I heard it was some urgent business for him to handle, so he flew to Guangzhou. My father's miraculous recovery will be a big surprise for him." Dr. Lin smiled as he said this. He was genuinely happy for his patient; a doctor's heart is truly compassionate. But not every doctor these days can be like him.

Dr. Lin's smile lasted only two seconds. He suddenly slapped the back of his bald head and said, "Oh no, his son doesn't know that Cheng Gen has a terminal illness. Cheng Gen instructed our hospital not to tell his son about his condition. The young man always thought his father was just having a kidney attack."

"Ah..." I opened my mouth, thinking that this was such a good real-life scenario that I was even planning to write it into my manuscript: "So, Cheng Gen will get better in the next few days?"

The doctor nodded: "The day before yesterday morning, when the caregiver was helping him to the toilet, she slipped and fell, causing the old man to fall as well. The caregiver was terrified, but before she could even stand up to help him, the old man groaned and got up on his own. The nurse, not wanting to be too worried, did a simple check-up and found that all his indicators were much better than they had been five days ago. I was shocked when I heard this, and that afternoon I arranged for a full check-up. The result..." At this point, Dr. Lin frowned and shook his head slightly, as if he was still surprised by the test results.

"So, what was the result?" I asked, knowing my place. The result, of course, was that I recovered; otherwise, why would I have come here?

"To use an inappropriate analogy, Cheng Gen's internal organs are like they've been given a stimulant, recovering at an astonishing rate. His heart is now as strong as a thirty-year-old's."

"Oh?" I was a little surprised. It wasn't just a recovery. Judging from his tone, Cheng Gen must be in his fifties or sixties. Now, he has actually turned misfortune into blessing and his internal organs have become younger.

However, I felt that Dr. Lin was also like he had been given stimulants; he kept gesturing with his hands, which seemed somewhat ridiculous to me.

"Could it be... just a temporary phenomenon? Is it going to be..." It didn't seem quite right to say that, so I quickly stopped myself.

"You mean a final burst of energy before death?" Dr. Lin chuckled. "How could that be? We wouldn't confuse superficial phenomena with a fundamental improvement. All the data shows that he is getting better from the root."

"It's truly a miracle," he exclaimed again.

"So the sudden improvement in the condition wasn't due to medication or any other medical treatment?"

The doctor looked a little embarrassed: "Yes, we're still very puzzled. We didn't change the medication during this period of transformation, and the patient didn't exhibit any unusual behavior. He suddenly recovered without any prior warning. I can only say it's a miracle. The hospital is currently trying to keep Cheng Gen in the hospital for a longer period of time. Firstly, it's safer to observe him for a while longer, and secondly, if we can find out the reason for his recovery, perhaps Heinz O. disease will no longer be a terminal illness."

He then became excited again: "Do you know what this means? No, you don't. A congenital genetic problem has been mysteriously solved, and in just two days. It's revolutionary. If we can find out why, not only Heinz O., but so many other incurable diseases will also have hope."

I scratched my head. If this really is a miracle, then we shouldn't have too high hopes of solving it. There are many mysterious things in this world, and current science is still a long way from solving them.

Of course, I wouldn't dampen the doctor's enthusiasm; as someone who had witnessed a miracle, he seemed a bit ecstatic. The doctor went on and on about a bunch of professional stuff, like how certain indicators had recovered to what extent, and what the chances were of repairing the problematic 23rd pair of spirochetes in Hainigs disease. But I was already too preoccupied to waste any more time seeing patients outside; I'd finished my interview with him, and now it was time to go see that old man who'd somehow gotten lucky.

The air in the hospital made my chest feel increasingly suffocated. The emergency room corridor was filled with beds, and as I walked past pale faces looking up at the sky, I seemed to hear silent wails.

Right next to me lay a emaciated body, glucose dripping slowly into his dry hands. His lips were grayish, and his yellowish, cloudy eyes were completely lifeless. I glanced at him briefly before quickly moving away, quickening my pace until I reached the elevator before letting out a sigh of relief. I didn't want to breathe in that kind of air.

"Ding," the elevator doors opened, and a bed was wheeled out, the person lying on it covered with a white sheet. I quickly stepped aside. The two nurses pushing the bed were chatting and laughing. In a place like this, life and death are too close.

The patient I was interviewing, Cheng Gen, was on the fifth floor, in a private ward. The daily cost here is quite high. I remembered Dr. Lin saying that this patient was a businessman, and his business must be quite large.

The door was ajar. I knocked and went in. An elderly man in a hospital gown was sitting on the sofa reading a magazine. His face was rosy, and he looked just as well as I did. Hearing the noise, he put down the magazine and looked towards the door.

"Hello, I'm Na Duo, a reporter from Morning Star. Congratulations on your significant improvement. Would you be willing to give me an interview? All the doctors think it's a miracle."

Cheng Gen smiled and spoke with a strong voice: "No problem. I'm so bored. If it weren't for the hospital's insistence, I would have liked to be discharged today. It would be great if someone was willing to keep this old man company."

I sat down next to him, handed him my business card, and said with a smile, "You don't look like a patient at all."

"I really didn't expect to come back to life. I felt weaker and weaker every day while I was in the hospital. I thought my life was coming to an end."

"Could you tell me more about your profession, when you discovered you had the illness, and how your condition suddenly improved in the last two days?"

"Me? I used to work in construction, and in the last year or two I've also dabbled in real estate. I'm always busy from morning till night, with too many things to worry about. It's natural that I'm getting old and not as strong as I used to be. My health has noticeably declined over the past year or so, but I didn't think much of it. A month ago, my legs gave way and I fell to the ground, which made me decide to get it checked out. I didn't expect to have such a strange illness. As for how I got better, even the doctors don't understand it. Why are you asking me?"

"How do you feel about it? Are there any signs or omens?"

Cheng Gen smiled bitterly: "The night before last, before I went to bed, I hadn't improved at all. The medicine the doctor prescribed wasn't working. Dr. Lin said that mood is very important, and a good mood would help with the condition. But I knew I wouldn't live much longer no matter what I did, and I had so many things on my mind that I couldn't let go of. I went to sleep and had a lot of chaotic dreams all night. When I woke up in the morning, I was soaked in sweat, but surprisingly, I felt better and had a bigger appetite. I felt that the breakfast at the hospital wasn't enough, so I asked someone to buy me some fried dough sticks and soy milk. After breakfast, I went to the toilet. Actually, I felt like I could walk on my own, but the caregiver insisted on helping me. As a result, she slipped and I fell down with her. Hey, that caregiver was probably only forty years old. Before she could get up, I stood up on my own. Her eyes were wide open." At this point, the old man, who had just escaped death, burst into laughter.

"I would be staring at it too," I said with a laugh.

"I feel like I've regained the strength in my arms and legs. You can tell if you're getting better by how much you eat. These past two days I've been eating three bowls of white rice at every meal. When the nurse came to my room to do a simple test, I felt hopeful. Yesterday morning, Dr. Lin officially told me that I'm recovering, and very quickly. That's all. I'm still a bit confused, like I've just had a dream."

The illness was cured, but both the doctor and the patient remained confused. But that's alright; it makes the news story even more legendary.

“Dr. Lin told me that he originally thought you only had less than a year left to live. What did you originally plan to do with that time? But now you have made a miraculous recovery, you can be said to have been reborn. Your thoughts are different from before, right?”

Before Cheng Gen could answer, the ward door was pushed open with a "whoosh".

A fat man, two sizes bigger than me, strode in, his chin jiggling. He stared at Cheng Gen with wide eyes, looking utterly astonished.

"Dad, the doctor said your illness... is cured?"

Cheng Gen's face hardened: "Why haven't you called back these past few days? You haven't reported on the situation over there, and you don't even care whether your father is dead or not."

The fat man's face twitched, and he said, "I rushed back, didn't I? You, you're really cured?"

"You still hope I won't get better?" Cheng Gen's voice suddenly rose.

I didn't expect that the old man, who had been so kind to me just moments before, would change his attitude the moment his son arrived. Feeling a little uncomfortable watching him scold his son like that, I spoke up and said, "Your father's Heinrich's disease has been cured, which is a miracle. I'm Na Duo, a reporter from the Morning Star, and I'm here to interview Mr. Cheng about this."

"Henriel's disease? What's that? Wasn't it supposed to be a kidney attack?"

Seeing the fat man's gaping mouth, I suddenly remembered what Dr. Lin had said earlier: Cheng Gen had been hiding the truth about his illness from his family, but I had blurted it out. Luckily, Cheng Gen recovered, otherwise, he would have been in serious trouble.

"Oh dear," I said with an embarrassed smile, giving Cheng Gen an apologetic look.

"Anyway, you're better now, so it's okay to tell you. Your father almost died."

"Ah." The fat man's expression suddenly tensed up, and his body trembled.

He never expected his father to be so rude to him; he really is a filial son. Although Cheng Gen was perfectly fine here, his son's face had turned pale.

After Cheng Gen briefly explained Heinrich's disease and the miracles that had occurred in the past two days, the fat man's expression remained somewhat unnatural.

"Dad, you should have told Mom and me sooner! Ugh, how long can you keep this a secret?" The fat man clenched his fists and shook his head repeatedly.

"Go away, why didn't you say so earlier? Look how well I am now. If you had told me earlier, your mother would have been worried sick. And you, how could I feel at ease with you looking like that? I was planning to wait until you took over the company for a while and got it on track before talking about it. By the way, how did the bidding go? Did you win it?"

"Ah, that..." the fat man stammered.

"What do you mean, 'this' and 'that'?" Cheng Gen shouted.

The fat man pouted, his face full of bewilderment.