That was an old villa, with a yard and a wall, the wall was covered with vines, blooming white small flowers, one string after another. A pair of iron gates were painted red, outside there was an electric button, the three-story foreign-style house with red bricks and black tiles stood quietly in the center of the city but seemed exceptionally quiet.

  The door was called, and after a moment, someone came out. The door opened to reveal a middle-aged man in a black suit, with some gray hair. His clothes were well-tailored, clearly made by a good tailor according to his measurements. He looked at us, and we looked back at him. From his eyes, I read a hint of complicated emotions, although his face was etched with the calm and composed traces of having weathered countless storms.

  "Who are you looking for?"

  "Hello uncle, we are friends of Yuan Xiaobai, may I ask if she lives here?"

  That person hesitated for a moment and asked again: "What friend, very unfamiliar, havent seen before."

  The fat man pulled out a small notebook from his bag, with a photo stuck in the middle. It was a group photo taken when we parted ways after leaving the wilderness village that year. He said to the man, "We were sent down to the countryside together in Northeast China as educated youth, look, I still have our group photo."

  The man took the photo, squinted his eyes to take a look, and then returned it to Fatso: "She had told me about you guys before, thanks for taking care of her that time, but unfortunately Xiao Bai is not at home."

  Chubby awkwardly took back the photo and said: "Ah? Thats quite unfortunate."

  The man raised his hand to look at his watch and then said to us, "I think you dont know yet. In that case, if you have time, follow me to see her. If she knows that these old friends have come, maybe shell be a bit happier."

  "Alright, we have time, uncle, may I ask who you are?" I asked.

  "Im her father, just wait here for me, Ill go arrange the car." The man turned and walked into the yard, I saw his back as he walked away seemed to be limping, it was then that I noticed one of his legs seemed to have some problem.

  After a while, the gate was fully opened and a black high-end imported SUV slowly drove out. Her father sat in the back row, I saw that there was also a thermos beside him, and I seemed to smell the aroma of chicken soup.

  The car drove into a place where I saw a crowded crowd, with many people wearing white coats and masks, and the two striking words "hospital", my heart had a bad premonition, was something wrong with Yuan Xiaobai?

  Fourth floor, we passed through an iron gate with a guard holding it, this was the first time I saw such facilities in a hospital. Yuan Xiaobais father handed over a note to the doorman, and I noticed that when we walked in, the door was closed again. After passing through the gate, several large characters on the corridor made my heart skip a beat: Psychiatric Special Area, No Entry for Outsiders!

  Another green iron gate, a man holding an electric baton enthusiastically greeted Yuan Xiaobais father. There were two hanging locks on the door, and it took another helper to push open the door. As soon as I opened this door, I heard all sorts of crying, laughing, and inexplicable sounds.

  Room 414, a doctor wearing glasses was already waiting at the door. Yuan Xiaobais father and he walked to one side and whispered to each other, I saw that doctor shaking his head frequently. I exchanged a glance with Pangzi, his mood must be as complicated as mine, everyone understands what this means. A few minutes later, Yuan Xiaobais father walked over with his head down, accompanied by the doctor.

  The doctor pointed at us and asked: "Mr. Yuan, are these people Misss friends?"

  Yuan Xiaobais father nodded and said: "Lao Da has come from afar, he has helped Xiaobai many times before, Mr. Tang, shouldnt be a problem, right?"

  The doctor with the surname Tang instructed me: "After entering, do not stimulate the patient, do not speak loudly, and if the patient attacks you, do not resist. I will be beside you. Also, the patient is afraid of bright lights, so the lights inside are not turned on."

  The outside of the ward door was wrapped in a layer of iron sheet, with two hanging locks, one key held by Mr. Tang and the other by another nurse, only when both keys were opened could they enter, I think even serious criminals are not treated like this.

  As Dr. Tang said, after the door was opened, it was pitch black inside and I couldnt see anything. There was only one sound in the room, which was a low, stifled breathing that sounded like someones throat being choked.

  "Xiao Bai, its me, Dad. Dont be afraid, Dad will turn on the light, okay?"

  "Bang", the houses lamp was very dim, not much brighter than a candle, barely able to see the ground clearly. Not far away from the corner of the wall, there was a bed with someone tightly wrapped in a quilt, shivering non-stop.

  Is that Yuan Xiaobai? I could hardly believe my eyes, her hair was disheveled, her head kept swaying slightly from side to side, her hands were crossed and hugging herself, with her entire head buried in her legs.

  Yuan Xiaobais father walked up to her with a bowl of chicken soup, on which there was a plastic bowl and chopsticks. He carefully poured the soup into the bowl and handed it to Yuan Xiaobai, saying softly: "Come on, dear, open your mouth and take a sip."

  With a "pa" sound, Yuan Xiaobai swung her arm and the chicken soup splashed all over the floor.

  Her two hands began to swing around, grabbing whatever was in her hands and smashing it, pillows, quilts, while shouting: "Dont feed me Meng Po soup! Dont come and harm me! Youre a ghost! Get out! Help! Help!"

  Yuan Xiaobais father endured his daughters scolding and silently squatted down to clean up the mess.

  "Lets just give it to you, feed her some." He handed the chicken soup over to the nurse and then said to me: "Youre friends, go try, see if you can recognize each other."

  I and Pangzi never thought that Yuan Xiaobai would become like this, the year we parted ways she was such a good girl, I didnt expect that before I and Pangzi even approached her, she burst out laughing: "Haha, you two little ghosts cant take me away, I wont go with you, give up on it!"

  I didnt dare to get too close, keeping a distance of about an arms length. I asked: "Xiao Bai? Im Xia Yi, this is Pangzi, Shi Jiangjun! Ye Ren Tun, do you still remember?"

  "Life and death are unpredictable? Oh dear! Someone, please!" She started shouting again. In an instant, she jumped off the bed and knelt in front of us, crying loudly: "Please, great sages, spare my life! My father is really pitiful on his own, I still need to take care of him, I dont want to die so early, please have mercy!"

  "Xiao Bai take a good look, its us, Im Pangzi!"

  "What? Are you Zhu Bajie? Wheres Sun Wukong? Hurry up and call out Sun Wukong to fight the monster, theres a ghost here." As she spoke, she lifted her head and glanced around: "Look, look quickly, over there is a child, wearing blue clothes, hes even holding a knife with blood on it. Ah! Hes walking towards me, save me!" She scrambled onto the bed like flying and covered herself with the quilt, trembling with fear...

  As we walked out of the ward, Yuan Xiaobais father had red eyes. We followed him to that doctors office. The doctor said: "Mr. Yuan, currently Lingqians condition can only be maintained for life support, but Im afraid if it continues like this, she wont last more than a month. All her physical indicators are declining..."

  "Stop at nothing! Spare no expense!"

  "Its not that we dont want to, but the experts from Beijing also came two days ago, and they are all the best doctors in the country. The result is that they were helpless, and we cant find the cause of her illness at all. Generally speaking, mental illnesses are either neurological disorders or caused by strong stimulation, but neither of these applies to her after repeated discussions."

  Yuan Xiaobais father was as pale as death, his fists clenched tightly...

  The doctor continued, "This afternoon my mentor, Dr. Karen, will come. He gave an international academic lecture in Shanghai yesterday and promised me that he would make time to see Miss Yuan. He is currently the worlds leading expert on mental illnesses, which may be the last hope."

  "As long as she can be saved, Ill agree to anything."

  "I know that Mr. Yuan is a patriotic red capitalist and also the leader of Shanghai Industrial and Commercial Association, so treating relatives of such a national pillar like Mr. Yuan is my responsibility and duty. Dr. Karen has already seen the information about Miss Yuan that I faxed to him earlier, and he will arrive this afternoon."

  "Alright, lets wait!"

  "Were also waiting." I and Pangzi said in unison.

  At one oclock in the afternoon, the phone in the office rang, and Dr. Tang excitedly shouted: "Its here!"

  Ten minutes later, Yuan Xiaobai rushed out of the ward with a face full of bloodstains. He looked disheveled and said: "Tang, Im powerless against this patient, let his family prepare for the worst..."