Chapter Nineteen: The Mystery of Displacement (Part One)

“Did you notice anything?” Liu Qing sighed quietly as she saw Shi Jun still staring blankly at the tightly shut gates of the psychiatric hospital.

Hu Hai and Mo Tuo hurried over as well, with Hu Hai shouting, “What just happened? What happened? Am I seeing things? Did you all see that?”

Shi Jun shook his head with a wry smile. “How could we miss something so strange? It seems there really is something off about this hospital... Sister Liu, is this what you meant by something being wrong here?” Seeing Liu Qing nod silently, he continued, “Why don’t you come back with us now? I’d like to understand what else is peculiar inside.”

Liu Qing hesitated for a moment, then shook her head apologetically. “I’m afraid I can’t. I have things to do this afternoon... My daughter is unwell, and I want to visit her in the hospital.”

“What?” Hu Hai blurted out, his eyes wide. “Your daughter is in there too?” As soon as the words left his mouth, Shi Jun jabbed him hard in the side, making him realize he’d said something inappropriate, and he quickly fell silent.

Liu Qing gave a bitter smile and said to Shi Jun, “Are these your friends? Looks like they can see me too—are they spirit catchers as well?”

Seeing Liu Qing’s absent-minded look, Shi Jun quickly replied, “They’re both my friends and partners. By the way, Sister Liu, is your daughter’s illness serious? Do you need any help from me?”

“You’d help me?” Liu Qing’s eyes suddenly lit up with hope at Shi Jun’s words. Her body trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes. “That would be wonderful! But how could I trouble you like that?”

“It’s no trouble at all!” Shi Jun smiled. “We could visit your daughter in the hospital for you. By the way, does she have any favorite foods or toys?”

“No, no, that’s not necessary,” Liu Qing replied hurriedly. “Just check on her for me. You’re all students; I wouldn’t want you to spend money on my account.”

Mo Tuo reached out his hand to reveal two credit cards in his palm, grinning as he said to Liu Qing, “What’s a little expense? This guy here’s got plenty of money—don’t worry about him.” He gestured at Hu Hai.

Hu Hai yelped, “Hey! Why are my credit cards in your hand?”

“Is that so strange?” Mo Tuo answered breezily, “You left them at Chen Ya’s place. She came back this morning to pack her things and was practically ransacking your room. How was I supposed to know what belonged to you or to her? So, just as I did last night, I used a little trick, and she obediently handed these over!”

Seeing Hu Hai’s face darken, Mo Tuo quickly added, “Hey, I did this for your own good. If I hadn’t, that woman had no intention of giving these back. After she sobered up, you should’ve seen how desperate she was to snatch them away again!” With that, he handed the cards back.

Hu Hai gave a bitter smile and nodded. He’d long suspected Chen Ya wouldn’t return his money so easily and had never planned on asking for it back—money was just a material thing. After all, they’d known each other for some time, and it would be graceless to squabble over possessions at the end of a relationship. Yet deep down, he’d still hoped Chen Ya wouldn’t be so greedy, that she’d return the cards of her own accord—not for the money’s sake, but in the faint hope that his first love wouldn’t be tainted by something as ugly as greed.

“Yes, Sister Liu, money really isn’t the issue. What matters is what we can do to help you,” Hu Hai said earnestly, shaking off the thoughts of the past.

Liu Qing looked at Shi Jun, Hu Hai, and Mo Tuo with grateful eyes, a faint smile slowly appearing on her lips.

* * *

“Sigh! We skipped classes all afternoon, but it was worth it—truly worth it!” Hu Hai took a deep breath as the three of them left the children’s hospital. “Sister Liu and her daughter—what a deep bond. It seems that even when separated by life and death, the ties of blood can never truly be broken.”

Shi Jun said nothing; his mind’s eye was filled with overlapping images of Liu Qing and his own mother, Qin Xiaoya.

Sister Liu’s daughter, nicknamed Zhenzhen, was a pitiable little girl—curled up alone in her hospital bed, cared for only by a drowsy teenage maid. Not a single family member was by her side. When Shi Jun and his friends brought food and toys, Zhenzhen showed no reaction, hiding under the covers as if she already had the signs of early autism.

Seeing her daughter in this state, Liu Qing could only stand helplessly by, silently weeping. The sorrow and despair in her eyes made Shi Jun’s heart tremble with pain.

Suddenly, it was as if his mother’s face flashed before him—just for an instant, but the sorrow, despair, and hint of fear in her eyes were the same as Liu Qing’s, so real and vivid that it made Shi Jun’s heart ache. But when had he ever seen that expression on his mother’s face? He couldn’t remember.

Even Mo Tuo, who usually remained unaffected, couldn’t bear it any longer. He quietly cast a “Whispering Spell” on Liu Qing so that Zhenzhen could hear her mother’s voice. For once, the mischievous boy succeeded on his first try. The three young men stood aside, listening as Liu Qing, tears streaming down her face, choked out the lullabies she had sung countless times in life. Strangely, though Zhenzhen had ignored everyone, the moment she heard her mother’s song, her expression softened, a sweet smile touching her lips, and she finally drifted into sleep to the sound of her mother’s tearful lullaby.

“What do we do now?” Mo Tuo asked, rubbing his stomach as he lagged behind Shi Jun and Hu Hai, clearly hungry again.

Shi Jun glanced at the time; it was nearly four in the afternoon—too late to return to school, too early for dinner, an awkward hour. He suddenly felt nostalgic for the old days—before, he would’ve gone straight to the internet café with Hu Hai to play games, but now that urge was gone. Sometimes, even playing requires the right mood.

“Let’s go to Hai’s place,” Shi Jun suggested, seeing the others looking at him expectantly. “I told Sister Liu earlier that after her daughter falls asleep, she can meet us there. My place isn’t convenient—my mom isn’t working late tonight and will be home early.” As he spoke, he called Qin Xiaoya to say he’d be staying at school for an event that night and wouldn’t be home for dinner or to sleep.

“Alright, take care of yourself, don’t get too wild, and go to bed early,” Qin Xiaoya’s gentle voice came through the phone, making Shi Jun inexplicably recall that flash of memory from the hospital—his mother’s frightened, despairing eyes. It seemed to be an image from her younger days, her long hair matted and damp... Did such a moment really exist? Shi Jun still couldn’t remember.

* * *

With Chen Ya gone, the two-bedroom apartment Hu Hai rented suddenly felt empty and desolate. All the little trinkets had been swept away, and the bedroom was a mess of Hu Hai’s clothes, strewn everywhere as if the place had been looted. Who knew what Chen Ya was thinking when she left—it looked more like an act of revenge than a simple departure.

A shadow crossed Hu Hai’s eyes, but he couldn’t be bothered to tidy up. He quickly bundled up the scattered clothes and stuffed them into the wardrobe, then clapped his hands and grinned, “Alright, guys, let’s celebrate—let’s celebrate my official return to bachelorhood!”

Mo Tuo nodded enthusiastically, “Excellent idea! Let’s have a feast!”

The three immediately sprang into action, ordering seven or eight dishes from a nearby restaurant and two big cases of canned beer. They set up a “celebration banquet” right in Hu Hai’s living room, with Mo Tuo eating to his heart’s content. Halfway through, Liu Qing drifted in.

Although Hu Hai tried to restrain himself, his mood was low and he’d already turned red-faced after just a few beers. As soon as he saw Liu Qing, he stood up, slurring, “Sister Liu... come, come sit and eat with us!”

Even Mo Tuo, usually oblivious, could tell Hu Hai was out of line. Seeing his drunken state, he quickly clapped a hand over Hu Hai’s mouth and shoved him back into his chair.

“Sorry, Sister Liu, he’s drunk,” Shi Jun quickly covered for him.

Liu Qing smiled warmly, clearly in better spirits than that afternoon, no doubt because of her daughter. “Don’t worry, I don’t mind. If anything, I should thank you.” She floated closer. “Right, you mentioned earlier that you wanted to know more about the hospital. I actually wanted to talk to you about it—I ran into someone strange when I went back to the psychiatric hospital earlier.”

“Someone strange?” Shi Jun’s attention was instantly piqued.

It turned out that Liu Qing had been wrongfully committed to the psychiatric hospital for two years, where she eventually died of illness and heartbreak. After her death, her spirit lingered in the area around the hospital, returning often to visit, especially the doctors and nurses who had treated her kindly. When Shi Jun saw her earlier that day, it was just such an occasion.

“You saw it yourselves today—the doctors and patients in the hospital seem all wrong, almost as if their roles were reversed. The doctors looked like patients, and the patients were acting as doctors, isn’t that so?”