novelraw Chapter 299: The Sanatorium
Chapter 299: The Sanatorium
Xiao Ya hurriedly explained to the doctor, "Doctor, hello. We found this uncle while on patrol. He... he seems to have very serious mental issues, wandering alone in the wilderness. It's very dangerous.
We were really worried, so we brought him here, hoping he can receive professional treatment and care."
Brother Li added from the side, "Yes, we brought him in following the proper procedure."
The middle-aged doctor's face broke into a professional, gentle smile as he nodded repeatedly. "Thank you both, thank you so much! What you did was absolutely correct!
Wandering psychiatric patients like him are the group most in need of help and supervision.
Please rest assured, although this is a sanatorium, we possess proper medical qualifications.
And you don't need to worry about the costs.
For this type of patient, all treatment, food, and accommodation expenses are covered by special official subsidies. We will do our utmost in treatment and rehabilitation;
it's also part of our sanatorium's social responsibility."
Xiao Ya felt her decision was absolutely perfect. "That's wonderful! Doctor, please make sure to take good care of him. He looks like he's suffered a lot..."
The doctor assured her, "Absolutely, absolutely! We will! Thank you for your kindness. On behalf of the sanatorium, and on behalf of this... uh, gentleman, thank you!"They exchanged a few more polite pleasantries.
Afterwards, she and Brother Li watched as orderlies, one on each side, helped Su Zhan up and escorted him deep into the white building. Only then did they turn and leave, feeling they had done a great deed.
The interior environment was indeed as clean as it appeared from outside.
White walls, polished floors.
But this cleanliness carried a feeling of lifelessness.
The corridors were quiet.
The lighting was pale.
It lacked a certain human vitality.
After seeing Xiao Ya and Brother Li off, the doctor's professional smile instantly vanished, replaced by shrewdness.
He instructed an assistant standing nearby who was holding a clipboard, "Take him for photos, file creation, mental status assessment... write it up as severe cognitive impairment with behavioral disturbance.
Has his identity been confirmed?
No?
Then mark him in the system as 'identity unknown' and 'suspected expired.' Submit the paperwork and subsidy application as soon as possible. We need to secure this quarter's allocation."
The assistant nodded proficiently. "Understood. Photos and basic info can be entered today. The subsidy application can be approved as early as next week."
The two were discussing a soon-to-be-received payment.
There wasn't a shred of sympathy or care for the patient.
Su Zhan listened silently, a cold laugh echoing in his heart.
His earlier suspicions were indeed mostly correct.
This mental health sanatorium, or at least the doctor before him, had no genuine intention of treating patients. Instead, they were using these helpless psychiatric patients as tools to extract subsidy funds from the authorities.
The so-called treatment and care were likely maintained at the bare minimum standard of keeping them alive, with most of the funds probably flowing into their own pockets.
The speed of that face-changing act further confirmed their hypocrisy.
That assistant led Su Zhan to a room door, roughly shoving him inside. "Stay put!"
*Clang!* The door was locked from the outside.
The room was small, containing only an iron-framed bed, a simple cabinet, and a window fitted with iron bars.
Su Zhan stood in the center of the room, his gaze sweeping the surroundings, his eyes cold.
This place was less a sanatorium and more a tool for a businessman to exploit official loopholes for profit.
Through the small, barred window in the door, Su Zhan witnessed an occasional scene in the corridor outside.
A male patient, who didn't look very old, for some reason became agitated and began shouting loudly in the hallway.
Soon, two burly orderlies strode over. Without a word, they flanked him, grabbed his arms, and began dragging him towards the depths of the corridor.
The patient struggled violently, letting out fearful roars, but it was useless.
About half an hour later.
Su Zhan saw that male patient being brought back by the orderlies.
He seemed like a completely different person. His eyes were vacant and empty, his body slightly hunched, needing the orderlies to half-support him as he walked.
When a sudden door slam echoed in the corridor, his entire body flinched violently. He curled up like a frightened rabbit, his face filled with terror, making incoherent sounds.
Su Zhan's heart sank.
This was absolutely not the result of any professional treatment.
This was clearly the manifestation of someone whose spirit had been utterly crushed by violent suppression, leaving only instinctual fear.
"Does a psychiatric patient have any human rights here?"
The answer was obvious.
In the eyes of these orderlies who saw patients as cash cows and nuisances, the concept of "human rights" probably didn't even exist.
"And who speaks up for them?"
The answer was, almost no one.
These poor souls, disconnected from society and unable to even express themselves clearly—their suffering was isolated behind thick walls, overlooked by the system.
Su Zhan sighed.
What landed him in his current predicament was precisely that female officer Xiao Ya's overflowing kindness.
"Her kindness merely provided these businessmen in white coats with another tool for making money, and... gave me a colossal headache."
Su Zhan felt utterly helpless inside.
The Anxin Mental Health Sanatorium wasn't completely isolated from the world.
To maintain a facade of compliance, there were two designated outdoor periods each day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
The patients were herded like sheep by the orderlies into a courtyard enclosed by high walls.
This should have been a rare chance for the patients to get some fresh air, but the atmosphere in the courtyard was oppressively heavy.
Dozens of people wearing identical grayish-white patient uniforms were scattered across the yard.
But most hung their heads low, bodies curled in on themselves.
Some stood alone in a corner.
Others paced aimlessly, their eyes dull and numb.
No one talked, no one laughed. The entire courtyard was deathly still.
They exhibited extreme fear towards the orderlies stationed around the perimeter.
Whenever an orderly's gaze swept over them, those nearby would involuntarily stiffen, bury their heads even lower, and tremble slightly.
If an orderly inadvertently moved close to someone, that person would panic and scurry away.
Or freeze on the spot, not even daring to breathe heavily.
Su Zhan blended into the crowd, minimizing his presence as much as possible, mimicking the others' numb, cowering posture.
*Sigh, these people have already been tortured half to death.*
They were already people with mental problems to begin with;
now they've been tormented into having even more problems.
In the eyes of these orderlies and doctors, these people are merely tools for making money, just a means to claim subsidies.
Even prison inmates probably get better treatment than these people;
at least they're less likely to be bullied by the guards.
For these people, it's precisely the opposite.
*How tragic.*
Su Zhan planned to find a good opportunity to escape as soon as possible.
But it was best not to reveal his strength, otherwise his location would be locked down, putting him in a very passive position.
*Tricky.* Leaving silently was simple for him.
But leaving silently *without* exposing his strength?
That was incredibly difficult.