Chapter 590
Chapter 590
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 590
>Chapter Title: Mental Hospital
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Li Huowang sat in a wheelchair, pushed out of his room by his mother Sun Xiaoqin. His hands, thin as chicken claws, were handcuffed with silver cuffs to the wheelchair's armrests.
Even though he was out, he wasn’t wrapped in the double restraint suit. Li Huowang was surprised by this himself. It seemed they really believed his illness was cured.
“There’s no need for so many guards just to go out for a stroll and get some fresh air, right?” Li Huowang said to the four burly guards around him.
“Hey, just let them follow. It’s orders from above. It’s not easy for Little Liu and the others. Don’t make it hard for them.”
Hearing his mother’s words, Li Huowang gave a faint smile. She was even using their nicknames now. It looked like Mom had gotten pretty chummy with everyone here.
“Son, it’s raining outside today, so we won’t go out to sunbathe. Let’s just walk around indoors.”
“Okay.”
Soon, Li Huowang was wheeled through corridors, around a few turns, and into a larger open space.
Some patients in the same blue-and-white striped uniforms as Li Huowang were craning their necks to watch the TV mounted on the wall.
The saying goes, “A long illness makes a good doctor.” While mental illness wouldn’t turn you into a doctor, Li Huowang could still roughly diagnose his fellow patients at a glance.
The ones babbling nonsense or with clear thoughts but mouths that wouldn’t stop—those were probably schizophrenics, the most familiar type to the public.
They made up a big portion, likely the ones who’d been wandering the streets unattended and picked up by this public hospital.
The silent, withdrawn ones who didn’t interact with others—those were most likely depressives.
The ones full of energy, constantly riding high on emotions—probably manic.
As for the dazed ones with blank expressions and vacant eyes, they’d probably just been medicated by the nurses, and the drugs hadn’t worn off yet.
Of course, there were some who acted perfectly normal. Whether they were nearly cured, binge-eaters, fakers, or something else—only they knew.
Seeing these people, Li Huowang felt the place wasn’t so bad. There were no violent, randomly assaulting maniacs.
Maybe those types, like his past self, were locked up tight. The ones out watching TV had relatively stable symptoms.
These covered most patients in a mental hospital. As for the rarer types, he wasn’t a doctor, so he didn’t recognize them.
But soon, Li Huowang noticed no one was watching the TV anymore. They all turned their heads at once, staring at him wide-eyed, as if his face was way more entertaining than the program.
Looking at the crowd in the room all staring at him, Li Huowang asked in confusion, “Why’s everyone looking at me like that?”
The guard named Little Liu nearby spoke up. “Little Li, you’re one of the top names in White Tower Ward. Forget them—even across all fifteen wards in the prison, who hasn’t heard of your famous reputation?”
“I’m that well-known?” Li Huowang said, somewhat surprised.
“More than that. The hype’s died down now, but back when you broke into University City to save your girlfriend? You were topping the hot search lists every day. You think that’s why the warden’s so accommodating with you?”
Hearing this, Li Huowang finally understood his status in their eyes.
Right after, he noticed an invisible barrier around him. No patient dared come within ten meters.
“Mom, stop here. I want to watch some TV. It’s been ages since I last watched.”
Li Huowang looked up at the midday news playing.
The once-boring footage now seemed so novel to him.
“Hello, viewers. Today is the twenty-third of the twelfth lunar month, Little New Year. As the saying goes: twenty-third for the Kitchen God; twenty-fourth to sweep the house. Across provinces...”
“New Year’s already?” Li Huowang suddenly felt like he’d traveled through time. For a long stretch, he’d had no sense of time at all.
“Yeah, New Year’s here. You’re a year older, son. What do you want to eat for the holiday? Tell me, I’ll make it for you.”
“I heard there’s this hot new game lately. When I get discharged, I’ll give you some New Year’s money to buy it and play.”
“Mom, I’m not a kid anymore.” Li Huowang spoke helplessly.
“How old are you? Just eighteen. Legally an adult, sure, but you’re still a young pup.”
Amid Sun Xiaoqin’s nagging and the cheerful background music of the news, time slowly passed.
Li Huowang loved this peaceful feeling. He cherished these calm days, hoping they’d last forever, right up until he died of old age.
Under this serene illusion, all his past ordeals felt like a dream.
“Mom, where’s Doctor Yi? Haven’t seen him lately.”
“Him? Word is, he’s too busy to work. Something about writing a paper.”
“A psychiatrist suddenly publishing a paper?”
“No idea, hon. Mom doesn’t get that stuff. But I heard from Sister Ma in the cafeteria that TV people came to interview him. He’s probably going on air.”
“Really? Congrats to Doctor Yi, then.”
“Yeah, yeah. Not many doctors are as dedicated as him. Oh, and get this—he’s over thirty and still single.”
“Imagine how worried his mom must be. If you’re that old and unmarried someday, I’ll really worry myself to death.” Sun Xiaoqin said empathetically.
Li Huowang wanted to scratch his head hearing that. Were middle-aged women’s gossip networks always this sharp? Even Doctor Yi’s single status?
“Sun Jie, times have changed. Being over thirty and unmarried is normal these days,” one of the guards chimed in.
Li Huowang’s stabilizing condition had clearly put them at ease, enough to chat idly with Sun Xiaoqin.
“Hey, you young folks just wanna play. There are perks to marrying early—your parents can help with the kids. And women who have babies young don’t get postpartum issues as easily.”
“It’s not that we don’t want to marry. We graduate and we’re already in our twenties, broke, no car, no house—who’d marry us? Plus, our prison shifts are fifteen days on, fifteen off. How do we even date? They all run when they hear we can only meet half the year.”
“You’ve got iron rice bowls and you’re worried about wives? What about those migrant workers outside—should they just give up?”
Soon another single guard joined the debate. Sun Xiaoqin perked up, fighting fiercer, holding her own against both.
Seeing his spirited mother back in action, Li Huowang’s lips curved into a slight smile. He preferred her full of vigor like this.
Just as the debate was hitting its peak, Li Huowang suddenly felt his scalp tingle. He whipped his head toward the corridor on the distant left.