In the game, Xiao Bu found the dungeon key inside her mother's nightgown, but the dungeon entrance wasn't in her own home — it was in her classmate Jiang Xiaohu's house. What troubled
A person could only push open that door when they had lost all hope. So what had Xiao Bu seen in the dungeon? What had she gone through?
"Officer Li, do you have any information on Jiang Long's family?" Only Jiang Long's family would know what happened in the dungeon. Chen Ge planned to go ask them directly.
"Why are you asking about that?" In Li Zheng's view, Jiang Long's family had nothing to do with the case.
"I believe the people who killed Bu Yi might be Jiang Long and his family. Do you still remember that painting on the ceiling of Room 104? It had the names of all four members of Jiang Long's family written on it." Chen Ge intended to give Li Zheng some hints. If he could get the police's help, things would be much easier for him.
"The killer wouldn't be stupid enough to carve their own name at the crime scene." Li Zheng had been working cases for over a decade and had never seen anything like this. "Leaving your name at the place where you hide a body — is that deliberately telling everyone you're the murderer?"
"That painting might have been made by someone else, or it could be part of some kind of ritual." Chen Ge knew that Li Zheng, as a police officer, couldn't easily disclose citizens' personal information, so he could only insist that Jiang Long's family was connected to the dismemberment case.
On the other end of the phone, Li Zheng was silent for over a dozen seconds before he spoke. "Actually, we've already investigated Jiang Long's family. Their situation is rather complicated."
A bad feeling stirred in Chen Ge's heart. "Don't tell me the whole family has gone missing?"
"Before Jiang Long's incident, his wife had taken the two children to see a psychologist. Then, just a week later, Jiang Long got into a car accident. His wife, Zhang Chuyu, and the eldest daughter, Jiang Bai, both disappeared one after another. Of the family of four, only Jiang Xiaohu is still alive." Li Zheng seemed hesitant, as though he was debating whether or not to tell Chen Ge what came next.
"Jiang Xiaohu is still alive? Where is he living now? I have a few questions I need to ask him in person." Chen Ge felt this child was the key.
"That boy has gone completely mad. He stabbed the psychologist who was treating him. Sometimes he acts like a beast with no reason at all — there's no communicating with him. If you insist on going to talk to him, then head to the Jiujiang Psychiatric Hospital. We just met with him there earlier today." Everything Chen Ge could think of, the police had already thought of as well. They just hadn't gotten any useful leads from Jiang Xiaohu.
Hearing Li Zheng's words, Chen Ge's first reaction was to wonder whether the boy might be faking his madness. He would never underestimate any opponent, not even a child.
"Officer Li, can you take me to see the boy?"
After Chen Ge repeatedly persuaded him for a long while, Li Zheng finally agreed. He hung up, but called back a moment later. "I've given the psychiatric hospital a heads-up. You'd better get there early — they seem to stop allowing outsiders in and out at nine o'clock."
"Thank you, Officer Li!"
"Chen Ge, you can go, but there's something I need to tell you in advance." Li Zheng's tone was somewhat off. "Be careful. When you talk to that boy, remember to keep your distance. Watch out for him having an episode and hurting you."
After saying that, Li Zheng hung up. There had been a homicide in the eastern suburbs, and he had been extremely busy lately.
"Why did Li Zheng tell me to be careful of that child?" Chen Ge sat up from the bed, grabbed his backpack, checked the contents inside, and rushed out of the haunted house.
The Jiujiang Psychiatric Hospital was a public hospital, unlike Building No. 3. It was completely legitimate and strictly followed regulations. If he arrived too late, he might not even be able to get through the front door.
At seven-twenty, Chen Ge took a taxi to the Jiujiang Psychiatric Hospital. After he reported Officer Li Zheng's name from the city precinct's criminal investigation division to the old man guarding the gate, a doctor in a white coat hurried out.
"You must be the Chen Ge that Captain Li mentioned?" The doctor was tall and thin, wearing black-framed glasses, and had a stiff, silent demeanor — he didn't seem like much of a talker. "My full name is Pei Jiaoyang. Just call me Dr. Pei. The patient has already been brought to the interview room from earlier today. For safety reasons, your conversation must be concluded before nine o'clock."
"Understood." Under Dr. Pei's guidance, Chen Ge entered the Jiujiang Psychiatric Hospital. The feeling it gave him was completely different from Building No. 3.
"This is the room. I'll stay with you along with the orderly, so you don't need to worry about safety."
"I appreciate it." Chen Ge felt that having the police's name to back him up really made a difference. If he had come on his own, they probably wouldn't have even let him through the door.
"Lives are at stake. It's only right that we cooperate with your investigation." Dr. Pei entered the ward and pointed to the boy on the bed. "That's Jiang Xiaohu. Someone will bring his files over shortly."
The ward was sparse, containing only a hospital bed and three wooden chairs. The child sat on the bed, his hands and feet bound with rope, his eyes vacant. Even when someone approached, he didn't so much as glance up.
"Can you untie the ropes?" Chen Ge sat down in a wooden chair beside the bed. He noticed the ropes had already dug into the boy's flesh.
"For your safety, it's better to keep them on. He just had an episode this afternoon — he'd bite anyone who came near. It took quite an effort to restrain him." Dr. Pei sat down next to Chen Ge and added, "Don't let his appearance fool you. He looks fair and clean-cut, almost delicate, but when he goes wild, it takes two orderlies just to hold him down."
While Dr. Pei was speaking, there was a knock at the door. A female nurse walked in carrying a file. "Dr. Pei, here are the patient records you asked for."
Dr. Pei took the files and handed them directly to Chen Ge. "Everything is in here, from the first time Jiang Xiaohu came to us for treatment three years ago to the present. Take a look yourself. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me."
Chen Ge opened the files and quickly scanned them. He discovered that the psychologist who had been providing counseling to Jiang Xiaohu three years ago was none other than Pei Jiaoyang — and the same psychologist who had later been stabbed by Jiang Xiaohu.
"So three years ago, you were the one giving Jiang Xiaohu psychological counseling?" Chen Ge had finally found the right person. He was eager to learn what had happened three years ago. "Can you tell me in detail what the situation was back then?"
The room suddenly fell silent. Dr. Pei didn't answer immediately. The treatment process from three years ago seemed to be a memory he was very reluctant to revisit.
"I noticed that in Jiang Xiaohu's diagnosis, it initially said manic disorder, then it was changed to schizophrenia, and finally it was revised to say the patient's personality was relatively stable with fairly intact self-awareness, and psychotic disorders could be ruled out. The same person — why were three consecutive diagnoses all different?" Chen Ge set down the files and looked at Dr. Pei. "What happened three years ago? Why would Jiang Xiaohu's family send a child to a psychiatric hospital?"