Chapter 633: 院内

In the pristine white ward, Li Huowang raised a plastic cup filled with water and shook it in front of Wu Cheng. He then held up his yellowish-green pills, displaying them to him. Li Huowang put the pills into his mouth one by one, then used the water in the plastic cup to wash them down. That wasn't all. Li Huowang opened his mouth and lifted his tongue up and down to show that he hadn't hidden any pills.

When Wu Cheng finished his check and was about to leave, Li Huowang asked, "Are these pills I'm taking expensive? I can take more psychiatric medication for your and Yi Donglai's peace of mind, but that doesn't mean you can prescribe more expensive ones and treat my family as a cash cow for kickbacks. Hehe."

Wu Cheng smiled but said nothing.

"I'm not joking with you. I'm well aware of this; I've seen too many instances of this in private hospitals."

"When you're fine, don't stay by yourself. Go out more, take walks, get some sun, and make new friends. That might help you get discharged faster."

After Wu Cheng finished speaking, he took a key from the pocket of his white coat, bent down, and unlocked the shackles on Li Huowang's ankles. Feeling his legs regain freedom, Li Huowang's expression brightened slightly, a sign that he was one step closer to discharge.

After Wu Cheng left, Li Huowang also walked out of his ward. Although he wasn't keen on following Wu Cheng's advice, there was nothing in the psychiatric hospital's single ward except for a bed. If he stayed in the ward any longer, he'd probably have to choose between staring blankly or sleeping.

Outside the ward, the corridor seemed much livelier. Although many patients still dared not approach Li Huowang due to his reputation, the situation was much better than before. Those in his support group could now greet him naturally.

"Buddy, come to the lobby to watch TV! They're playing Titanic, and it's almost at the revealing scene!" yelled a young man with a buzz cut, suffering from bipolar disorder, excitedly at Li Huowang.

"No thanks, I'm going out to get some sun."

Li Huowang understood why people were so happy now: his condition had recently stabilized, and he was about to be discharged. In the psychiatric hospital, only two things mattered most: family visits and discharge.

Li Huowang walked to the small garden behind the hospital, sat on the blue tiles with his eyes slightly closed, and quietly enjoyed the warm sunlight falling on him from the sky. Li Huowang silently savored this brief tranquility. In truth, he didn't want to experience despair and madness; he too wished to enjoy all the beauty the world had to offer. But in the past, it was as if the world was constantly against him; countless overwhelming events came one after another, leaving him nowhere to hide. Fortunately, everything was finally over.

Just as he was enjoying this peace, a commotion erupted. He opened his eyes and looked over, noticing several people in blue and white striped patient uniforms fighting over something. Li Huowang walked closer and saw a thin, mean-looking woman and a teenager trying to snatch an apple from someone.

"Mine! Mine!" the drooling man, whose apple was being snatched, struggled desperately. Li Huowang knew him; this guy was what others called "moderately intellectually disabled." The teenager suddenly exerted force with both hands, forcefully grabbed the apple, and excitedly started walking inside with the thin woman. However, he was quickly blocked by Li Huowang.

"Give me the apple."

When the teenager saw Li Huowang's hands, which were bound by silver handcuffs, his heart trembled. He remembered this person; this guy had genuinely killed someone.

"H-h-here! For you!" The frightened teenager threw the apple into Li Huowang's arms, abandoned his companion, and ran off desperately.

Li Huowang steadily caught the apple. He glanced at the name on it and realized the intellectually disabled man's name was Gao Jinyun. Li Huowang walked up to the intellectually disabled man, who was lying on the ground, crying and wiping tears from his neck, and handed him the apple.

"Th-thanks, brother!" Gao Jinyun was very simple-minded; he immediately stopped crying upon getting his apple back. He sat on the ground, looking gratefully at Li Huowang.

"Next time they hand out food, if you don't want it to be stolen, remember to smear saliva on it immediately. Understand?"

Seeing the other person nod repeatedly, Li Huowang stood up and walked back inside the building, where he coincidentally ran into Zhao Ting, who suffered from depression. She seemed to have witnessed everything that had just happened.

"Thank you for pitying him. Many people think he's foolish and often bully him behind their backs."

"I wasn't pitying him. To be able to keep an intellectually disabled person in a private hospital for life, his family is probably richer than mine. I just couldn't stand it."

"This intellectually disabled person's family is that rich? Then why do his family members never visit?"

Zhao Ting quickened her pace, catching up with Li Huowang. Although others feared him, after interacting with him, she felt he was actually quite good.

"Heh, how much difference is there between intellectually disabled people and lunatics? Fools, like us, are also divided into different ranks. It's all the same: rich fools live in private institutions, those with less money live in public ones. If a family truly has no money or is unwilling to spend it on a fool, the responsible ones chain them up, while the irresponsible ones drive them onto the streets to pick up garbage and fend for themselves."

As if Li Huowang's words triggered a thought, Zhao Ting stopped in place, her expression showing a hint of pain as she pondered.

Li Huowang didn't notice this. He continued walking. He didn't go to the common room to watch TV, as the lobby was probably packed with people at that time. Instead, he strolled along the corridors, floor by floor, carefully measuring every part of the psychiatric hospital with his steps, observing this unfamiliar new environment.

There wasn't much to see in other wards or restrooms, and the kitchen and doctors' offices were off-limits. Li Huowang wandered around until he reached the severe restraint area. The severe restraint area was neither big nor small, but the entire corridor was exceptionally desolate. Standing there, Li Huowang felt as though he was in a prison. Approaching a thick door, Li Huowang, with a hint of caution and curiosity, peered inside through the glass window. However, after nervously looking around, he was somewhat embarrassed to find that the room was empty. Li Huowang then approached the second severe restraint room, but it was also empty.

"What's going on? Could it be that Kangding only accepts mild to moderate cases? Then they really make easy money."

Just as Li Huowang was about to turn back, a faint banging sound came from a ward at the far end of the corridor. "Huh? Is there really someone?" Li Huowang looked over in surprise, slowing his steps as he approached. As he got closer, the banging grew louder.

Bang! Bang!! Bang!!!