Chapter 648
Chapter 648
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 648
>Chapter Title: Needle
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The midday meal at Kangning Hospital's cafeteria was decent enough—one meat dish, one vegetable, and a soup. Even though it was mass-produced from big vats, it wasn't hard to swallow.
But at that moment, Li Huowang was only half paying attention to his food.
Just moments ago, Qian Fu had sidled up to him again, spouting more of that nonsense.
He'd thought it was just a passing whim before, but now it was clear this guy had latched onto him.
Since Qian Fu wouldn't let it go, Li Huowang was now racking his brains for a way to shake him off.
With cameras everywhere, killing him was out of the question. Even giving him a beating and a warning wasn't an option.
As he mulled over the problem, he picked up some hollow vegetable stems with his chopsticks and shoved them into his mouth. He bit down hard—
"Hiss!"
A stabbing pain exploded in his mouth along with the taste of blood, making every muscle in his body tense up instantly.
When he opened his mouth and shakily reached in with his fingers, amid the agony he quickly felt several needles embedded in his tongue!
"You okay?"
The attendant watching nearby noticed Li Huowang's odd reaction and walked over to him.
When he saw Li Huowang pulling needles from his mouth, his face drained of color as he realized the gravity of it. He immediately shouted for all the patients around to stop eating.
Needles in the food at a mental hospital—this was a huge deal. It could turn into a major incident. Chaos erupted throughout the ward in an instant.
Yet after a thorough inspection, they found needles only in Li Huowang's meal. No one else's food had any.
Such a serious safety breach couldn't be brushed off lightly. The director arrived with a team to review the surveillance footage, while all the patients were sent back to their dorms.
Meanwhile, back in his own dorm, Li Huowang pondered the suspicious aspects of the whole affair. Compared to the pain targeted at him, he was more interested in what it signified behind the scenes.
"Who put those needles in there? Logically speaking, I haven't offended anyone in the hospital."
"Could it be..." Li Huowang recalled Qian Fu and all his cryptic ramblings.
At that moment, Wu Cheng walked in alone from outside.
"How are you holding up? This was definitely a lapse on our part. To express our apologies, we've decided to waive part of your fees."
"Also, you're an adult now, so we won't notify your mother about this little incident, okay?"
"What? From the sound of it, you've already figured out who did it?"
"Yeah, of course. Their methods weren't all that clever. Here's the cafeteria surveillance footage."
Wu Cheng held out his phone horizontally in front of Li Huowang.
With a light tap on the play button, Li Huowang soon saw exactly who had put the needles in his food.
"Qian Fu? It was him?!"
"Mm-hmm."
Wu Cheng slipped the phone back into his white coat pocket.
"I saw on the footage he's been seeking you out a lot lately. Is there some grudge between you two?"
"What grudge could I possibly have with him? Where is he now? I want to get some straight answers!"
Li Huowang was genuinely furious now. This guy had actually fed him metal needles just to make him believe his ravings.
What Leo aliens threatening him? The biggest threat to him in this entire mental hospital was probably Qian Fu!
"Come on, Little Li. Do us a favor—ask him where he got those long needles from. They shouldn't have been able to bring something like that into the hospital."
Li Huowang soon spotted Qian Fu in the severe restraint room, strapped into a straitjacket.
His feet sank into the soft flooring as Li Huowang stared coldly at Qian Fu's excited face.
"Why did you do it? How have I ever offended you?"
At those words, Qian Fu shouted frantically,
"No! It wasn't me trying to harm you! It was them! The Leo aliens!"
The attendant nearby snapped at him sternly,
"The cameras caught it all! If it wasn't you, then who? Speak! Where did you get those needles from!"
But Qian Fu ignored him completely, fixing his gaze dead on Li Huowang.
"Don't believe them! The surveillance footage has already been tampered with! Their tech is advanced! They can alter it! It wasn't me! Really, it wasn't!"
"You know why they're doing this? They're sowing discord between us! They want us to kill each other off so they can pick us apart one by one!"
"They've already infiltrated us! Just like lizard people, they've silently replaced our people!"
Looking at him like that, Li Huowang felt like he'd been insane to even try reasoning with a lunatic.
"Forget it. I'm done asking. Just keep this guy locked up here. Don't let him out to hurt anyone else."
With that to Wu Cheng, Li Huowang turned to leave.
Staring at Li Huowang's back, Qian Fu yelled desperately,
"Little Li! Do you get what I mean? Do you? No one else will understand! Only you can!"
"The Leo aliens have come down! Danger is closing in! Running away won't solve anything! We have to strike first!"
Li Huowang ignored him and headed back to his room.
Now that the guy was locked up, things should be peaceful for a while.
Li Huowang really didn't want any more incidents. He just wanted to stay put quietly until discharge, walking out of here as a normal person.
His meal had been interrupted halfway, so to placate him, Wu Cheng kindly ordered him some Peking duck delivery.
He took a few scallion strips and cucumber sticks, smeared on some sweet bean sauce, laid them on a lotus leaf pancake with slices of roast duck, rolled it up, and took a bite.
Having grown accustomed to the hospital food, this takeout hit the spot.
But just as Li Huowang was savoring the meal alone, he suddenly sensed a gaze from outside the window.
He jerked his head up to look, but saw no one.
"Someone's spying on me!?"
His brows furrowed tighter.
A few minutes later, as the two outside cautiously peeked in again, they locked eyes with Li Huowang standing guard at the window.
They jolted in fright and stumbled back several steps.
Li Huowang recognized them—the new guy with glasses named Wang Gang, and the old man Yuan Heping!
Seeing Li Huowang glaring at them, Glasses huffed indignantly and led the old man away.
"This is ridiculous. How come he gets Peking duck?"
"Sigh, let's go. Don't stir up trouble. Maybe he's got connections with the hospital."
"Seriously, using pull for better food? Special privileges in a mental hospital."