Chapter 585: The Unreliable Young Man

The first diagnosis—Intestinal Obstruction.

After a professional explained it, Fan Dao looked at that piece of paper and seemed to feel it was a bit more sacred; it was no longer just scribbles.

However, even with a professional's explanation, Fan Dao still couldn't understand what was written on it. Even if he followed along to find the three characters for Intestinal Obstruction, he ended up finding nothing at all.

While opening the recording on his phone to play back the "Differential Diagnosis" his friend had explained to him, Fan Dao compared it to the text on the wrinkled A4 paper, recalling Lin Jiuze's actions.

At the time, Lin Jiuze had first written the differential diagnosis on the paper, then looked up at the Patient.

The first diagnosis was wrong; that is to say, the diagnosis of "Intestinal Obstruction," which both the Deputy Director of the Emergency Department and Miao Zong considered a matter of course, was not correct.

So Lin Jiuze lowered his head and wrote down another diagnosis.

After finishing writing, he looked up at the Patient for a moment.

What expressions and actions did Lin Jiuze have during this interval? Fan Dao thought, feeling dazed.

But soon he discovered that he was completely unable to recall the situation at that time.

Fan Dao could only roughly remember the process; if he were asked to recall the details in depth, he was completely unable to do so.

Why would it be like this?!

Fan Dao was puzzled.

Comparing, recalling, until the last diagnosis on the A4 paper—Superior Mesenteric Artery Embolism—appeared, Lin Jiuze looked at the Patient, seemingly very satisfied, and directly stopped the Deputy Director of the Emergency Department, firmly insisting that the Patient first undergo a slice CT to check the blood vessels.

Facts proved that Lin Jiuze was right!

All these unreasonable points caused endless doubt in Fan Dao.

After thinking for a long time, Fan Dao discovered that his impression of Lin Jiuze was very vague; he only remembered that he didn't seem to pose any threat. As for the rest, Fan Dao's memory faded as time passed.

However, not much time had passed, and Fan Dao remembered Lin Jiuze writing down the differential diagnosis and looking up at the Patient.

How did he discover something was wrong?

Fan Dao thought alone for a long time again, and finally sighed deeply.

Truly f***ing weird.

But Fan Dao immediately grinned; other than always being ignored by people, Lin Jiuze fit the needs of the program perfectly.

Lu Gang always said he couldn't find any young person who could stand up and compete with Ji Xiang.

This, isn't it just perfect!

Although he thought this way, Fan Dao was still very cautious when he called Lin Jiuze.

On the phone, Fan Dao very politely said that he wanted to pay Lin Jiuze a visit.

After the two agreed to meet at the hotel's first-floor café, Fan Dao took the Camera Crew straight to the hotel.

When the time came, Lin Jiuze appeared in the café wearing very casual clothes.

Seeing the camera team preparing their equipment, Lin Jiuze smiled slightly, "Fan Dao, recording a program this late? It seems the hotel doesn't fall within the scope of the recording, right?"

These words were already a polite refusal; Fan Dao stared "intently" at Lin Jiuze, his gaze not daring to shift even a little, for fear that if he moved even slightly, he would forget Lin Jiuze's existence.

"Doctor Lin, just doing some daily recording."

"Daily? There's no place for you, Director Fan, in my daily life."

Fan Dao was helpless and had to let the camera team withdraw first.

Lin Jiuze sat down with a smile, ordered an iced Americano, looked at Fan Dao, and asked, "What's the matter, looking for me so late?"

Fan Dao didn't hide it; after all, time was limited, and back-and-forth haggling and probing would only delay the program's production.

"Doctor Lin, I discovered a strange point."

As he spoke, he took out the A4 paper that Lin Jiuze had crumpled into a ball and then smoothed out, spreading it on the table.

Lin Jiuze's expression didn't change in the slightest, which made Fan Dao somewhat disappointed.

Fan Dao suppressed the emotions in his heart and began to pour out his insights.

"Doctor Lin, do you have supernatural powers?" Fan Dao said a term full of the marks of the era.

Supernatural powers, which were incredibly popular in China in the 1980s, leaving behind countless legends.

"Heh heh." Lin Jiuze smiled, "I went to the United States with my parents when I was a child. On the morning of the day we left, a thick fog descended on my hometown. I still had to say goodbye to my friends, so I was groping my way through the fog."

Just as Fan Dao was constructing the scene Lin Jiuze described in his mind, he suddenly realized that although his eyes were looking at him, this person was already gone from his mind.

It was as if he had entered a dream.

Fan Dao immediately focused his mind, staring fixedly at Lin Jiuze, not daring to be careless at all.

Lin Jiuze still had that lazy look, seemingly not noticing Fan Dao's change, and continued, "The fog that day was really thick; how should I put it, you couldn't see your own fingers. I could walk the streets I'd lived on since childhood with my eyes closed, but I got lost that day."

"Simply put, it was just like a scene from Silent Hill."

"Suddenly, a middle-aged man wearing yellow clothes appeared in front of me. He stopped me and asked, 'Little friend, what do I look like to you?'"

"Uh..." Fan Dao was stunned.

What Lin Jiuze said was strange and bizarre, and full of the flavor of that era; most young people today wouldn't know about this stuff.

Even people of a certain age might not necessarily know such feudal superstitious stories.

"I was in a hurry to go to my friend's house to say goodbye and deliver the paper airplane I'd folded myself, and getting lost had delayed me a bit, so I just gave a perfunctory answer and continued looking for the way."

Unintentionally, Fan Dao had already entered the scene Lin Jiuze outlined and couldn't help but shiver.

"The middle-aged man in yellow clothes was a bit unhappy and stopped me again, asking, 'It's just a matter of one sentence, please just say it,'" Lin Jiuze said. "I'm soft-hearted, and seeing that he seemed very anxious, I said, 'I think you look like a kind person.'"

"..."

A kind person—these four words didn't match the scene Lin Jiuze had described or the related legends at all.

That intense sense of dislocation lingered over Fan Dao's entire body, leaving him unable to extricate himself.

"At this time, the fog cleared a bit, and I saw he was wearing an old yellow military uniform. We chatted for a while, and he sent me to my friend's house and then brought me home."

"After that, I never saw him again."

Lin Jiuze told a bizarre and strange, yet completely off-topic "story," but Fan Dao seemed as if he knew nothing, following Lin Jiuze's train of thought.

"Alright, I'm done speaking, I'm going back to rest. Goodbye, Fan Dao."

After Lin Jiuze finished speaking, he didn't dawdle; he stood up and left.

A full half hour passed before Fan Dao could only smile bitterly in helplessness.

Damn it, he had actually been fooled by a young man.

He picked up his phone and dialed Lin Jiuze's number again.

"Doctor Lin, you are a doctor who studies natural sciences, how can you casually... that kind of superstitious nonsense isn't even allowed to be discussed in the country."

"Oh, Fan Dao, you're still pondering that?" Lin Jiuze laughed heartily. "I saw weasels all around a trash can when I came out of a bar in Sanlitun last year, and a friend told me about it. I even fed the weasels some biscuits. Fan Dao, you must go to Sanlitun often; remember to feed them some biscuits when you see them."

Fan Dao's vision went black, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood.

Do young people these days have any sense of propriety or not?

(End of this chapter)