Chapter 19
Chang Ting turned around with a cold sweat and saw a young man with curly hair in a white coat standing behind him. He recognized him as Chen He's boyfriend Song Zhou.
Song Zhou seemed startled by him as well and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I didn't expect you to react so strongly."
"Ah, it's okay, it's okay." Chang Ting wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "Why are you here?"
Song Zhou showed off his white coat: "I work here."
"Oh... you're a doctor. What do you treat?" He was still half absorbed in the comics, a little distracted.
"I'm in the rehabilitation department. Officer Chang, what are you doing in our hospital? Are you feeling unwell?" Song Zhou looked him up and down, his eyes were concerned and gentle through the gold-rimmed lenses, revealing the unique scrutiny of a doctor.
"I'm not sick. I'm here..." Chang Ting calmed himself down. "It's about work. I'm here to check something. I'm looking for information on a patient who may have visited your hospital."
"Then go to the Information Department. I'll take you there."
Song Zhou led the way, and along the way, he met doctors, nurses, and patients who all greeted him, calling out, "Doctor Song, Doctor Song!"
Song Zhou responded with a smile one by one, like a little sun shining as it went.
When they arrived at the Information Department, under the influence of Little Sun, the clerk put down her work and received Chang Ting first.
Chang Ting showed his ID: "Please check the information of a child with leukemia named Xu Xixi." He handed over a piece of paper with Xu Xixi's household registration information on it.
The clerk checked the computer for a while, then looked up and said, "There's no medical record for this child."
Song Zhou stood aside and interjected, "Are you sure he was treated in our hospital?"
Chang Ting asked in return: "Is there any other hospital in our city that can provide leukemia chemotherapy?"
Song Zhou shook his head: "Only our hospital can do it. Other hospitals offer conservative treatment, not chemotherapy."
Chang Ting was lost in thought. He had seen Xu Candong's livestream with Xu Xixi, and in it, Xu Xixi was bald. Whether telling the neighborhood committee, the police, or the livestream audience, Xu Candong had claimed that Xixi was undergoing chemotherapy, and that was why all her hair had fallen out.
But Xu Xixi didn't receive treatment at the only hospital in the city that could provide chemotherapy. Did Xu Candong take Xixi to another city for treatment?
The medical level in this city is not bad, so there is no reason to go far away.
Then there is only one explanation: Xixi's hair was deliberately shaved off to create the illusion of hair loss after chemotherapy.
Xixi doesn't have leukemia at all.
Just as he and his apprentice gradually suspected during the investigation, and just as Chen He drew in the comics.
The healthy child, who was not sick, was forced by his father to pretend to be sick as a tool to gain sympathy and defraud money.
From having doubts to running around to verify, it was not until today that Chang Ting went to the hospital to verify this step, which confirmed his suspicions.
Chen He, however, got there first and drew the truth. Before the police could figure out how the child had faked illness so convincingly, the comic had already provided the answer. How did Chen He do it?
Chang Ting's mind raced with the drugs mentioned in the comics: sleeping pills, anticoagulants.
He licked the corners of his chapped lips.
"Doctor Song, I have a question for you. What would happen if... a healthy two-year-old child was fed sleeping pills and anticoagulants for a long time?"
Song Zhou frowned. "Long-term use of sleeping pills can affect a child's brain development and lead to intellectual disability. It can also suppress the nervous system, causing symptoms like drowsiness, dizziness, and fatigue. It can also affect the normal development of nerve reflexes, leading to poor motor coordination and movement disorders. If a child is only two years old, they may lose the ability to walk. It also has a suppressive effect on the respiratory system, potentially causing respiratory arrest and death from suffocation in their sleep."
"Anticoagulants can reduce blood coagulation function, cause bruises on the skin, and may also cause nosebleeds and bleeding gums. More seriously, there is a risk of intracranial hemorrhage and gastrointestinal bleeding.
"Either of these two drugs could endanger the child's life. If used simultaneously, drug interactions could occur, further increasing adverse reactions and heightening the risk. Simply put, if someone did this to a two-year-old, it would be murder. Officer Chang, are you giving an example or is this true? If it's true, the child is in danger at any time. Stop it immediately and send the child to the doctor as soon as possible."
Chang Ting's face lost all color.
Song Zhou looked at him and asked in surprise, "Could someone really do this?"
"Not yet... not yet confirmed. I have something else to do, so I'll leave first."
Chang Ting turned around and walked a few steps, then turned back and said, "By the way, didn't you read the comics your girlfriend updated today?"
Song Zhou's expression became increasingly confused: "No, I've been busy today."
"Oh, no wonder. Well, you said you'd go find Chen He to find out more about the situation. You have to be there, right?"
Song Zhou's brows turned cold: "That's right."
"Then you arrange it."
"Okay." Song Zhou nodded reluctantly, "When?"
"I'll contact you again."
Chang Ting had already hurried away. Song Zhou watched him disappear, the fluorescent light hitting his lens as thin and cold as a razor blade.
He pulled out his phone, which he had been hiding in the pocket of his white coat, and glanced down. The screen unlocked, revealing the final frame of "The Blazing Fire" from "Prophecy of the Other Shore."
Looking at the charred body of "Xu San" lying in the alley, a smile flashed across his lips.
He put his phone back in his pocket, turned around, and regained his sunny smile. He thanked the clerk on Chang Ting's behalf: "Thank you for your trouble."
The clerk blushed and said quickly, "It should be done."
Song Zhou walked out of the Information Department, and behind him floated the whispers of praise from several clerks:
"Mrs. Song is so nice."
"He's not only handsome, but also incredibly gentle. He dotes on his girlfriend like crazy. He keeps asking the Chinese medicine department for dietary supplements, saying they're for his girlfriend's health."
"I wish to live a life of vegetarianism and meat-free living. I'm looking for a boyfriend like Dr. Song!"
…
Chang Ting walked through the hospital lobby while calling his apprentice.
"Where is it?"
"In Xu Candong's neighborhood. Master, have you found Xu Xixi's medical records?"
"No. She doesn't have leukemia at all." Chang Ting gritted his teeth. "It's just like in the comics."
Zhou Zheng was speechless and shocked.
Chang Ting asked, "Is Xu Candong still alive?"
"I just checked, he's still alive, he hasn't burned to death yet." Zhou Zhengzheng's voice trembled a little. "Master, if the first half of the comic is true, then the second half... will it be true too?"
"How is it possible! There are no ghosts in this world!" Chang Ting said one thing and meant another, and the more guilty he felt, the louder his voice became. The patients in the hall all looked at him.
Chang Ting walked out of the hall awkwardly and lowered his voice: "Have you contacted the child's mother?"
"No, we can't find her in her hometown in the countryside or where she works. If we can't find her anymore, we should file a missing person case."
Chang Ting swallowed his saliva and said, "I will report to the bureau now. We must first control Xu Candong. You stay there and watch, wait for orders, and be ready to rescue the child at any time."
That night, Chang Ting led his men into Xu Candong's house and first pinned Xu Candong, who was drinking beer with his bare chest, to the ground.
Xu Candong howled with his face pressed to the ground: "What are you doing? Why are you arresting me?"
Chang Ting ignored him and pushed open the door of the storage room. That was Xixi's "bedroom".
It was his first time here, but he was familiar with the place. In his rage, he didn't realize that this familiarity came from the comics.
Xixi wasn't in the cabin. He searched the master bedroom, the "live studio," and the bathroom, but couldn't find Xixi.
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