The Key to Fear

The heavy iron door of the ward closed silently behind us, completely isolating us from the outside world. The smell inside, a mixture of disinfectant, medicine, and a faint, almost imperceptible odor of blood, became even stronger, almost nauseating.

The Monkey followed Lin Feng into the room, which resembled a metal cage. His gaze immediately locked onto the figure bound to the hospital bed— Qin Ming.

Upon closer inspection, the scene was far more horrifying than what was seen through the observation window.

Qin Ming's blue and white striped hospital gown was disheveled, and his exposed skin was covered with bruises of varying shades, with some areas even showing scabbed tears.

The most shocking sight was his head—the area around his right ear was now just a wad of blood-soaked, slightly rumpled white gauze, starkly stuck there. Above his right eye, a similar gauze covered the area, the edges faintly showing traces of medicine.

He was like a broken doll, discarded after being played with, tightly bound to the cold bed frame, with only the faint rise and fall of his chest proving that he was still alive.

Seeing this pitiful state, the Monkey instinctively paused, a primal sense of compassion for its fellow human being quietly emerging within it. Qin Ming before it was truly wretched, almost unrecognizable as human.

However, this glimmer of pity lasted only a moment.

The next moment, his younger sister Xiaoya lay on the hospital bed, her small face pale and weak from chemotherapy and overtreatment, constantly vomiting, clearly appearing before his eyes. His parents' hair had turned white overnight, their desperate and helpless cries, and the immense pressure the whole family had been under during this time... all these images instantly crushed that tiny bit of sympathy!

Anger, like a campfire doused with gasoline, suddenly erupted in his chest!

He rushed to the bedside, his eyes bloodshot, staring intently at Qin Ming's face, contorted with fear and pain. His voice trembled and became hoarse with extreme rage.

"Qin Ming! You bastard! Look at me!"

Why did you do that in the first place?! Huh?!

"What did my sister ever do to you?! How old is she?! You almost killed her! Do you know how much you've ruined our family?!"

"Speak! You fucking talk to me! Why?!"

The Monkey roared excitedly, its spittle almost hitting Qin Ming's face. It even reached out uncontrollably, trying to grab Qin Ming.

However, Qin Ming on the hospital bed seemed completely oblivious to the Monkey's desperate questioning. He remained in that stiff posture, his empty left eye staring blankly at the ceiling, his lips moving slightly as he uttered extremely weak and indistinct murmurs, as if immersed in a broken and terrifying world entirely of his own, having lost most of his responsiveness to external stimuli.

"It's over... it's all over..."

"Imperfect... none of them are perfect..."

"Please don't come any closer... please..."

His ramblings were intermittent and filled with neurotic fear, but he did not respond to the Monkey's questions.

The Monkey's fists clenched so tightly they cracked, a feeling of powerlessness—like striking cotton with all his might—mixed with raging anger, almost driving him mad.

Just then, Lin Feng, who had been standing quietly to the side like an observer, finally spoke. His calm voice broke the Monkey's one-sided outburst of anger.

"Monkey, you won't get anything out of him like that."

As Lin Feng spoke, he slowly walked to the foot of the hospital bed, his gaze calmly sweeping over Qin Ming's miserable state, his face expressionless, as if he were looking at an object unrelated to himself.

Then, he raised his hand and clapped twice, neither too hard nor too softly.

"Clap. Clap."

The crisp applause sounded particularly abrupt and eerie in the quiet hospital room.

Almost the instant the applause subsided, the heavy iron door to the ward was silently pushed open once again.

A figure walked in silently.

He was a rather young-looking boy, even somewhat handsome. He wore a clean but ordinary hospital gown, his long black hair flowing smoothly over his shoulders, his face fair, and his features even possessing a delicate, almost feminine quality. His eyes were calm, and there was even a faint, gentle smile on his lips.

It was Chen Meijiao.

His appearance, though silent, was like a boulder thrown into an icy lake, instantly unleashing a devastating tsunami in Qin Ming's lifeless mental world!

Just as Chen Meijiao stepped into the ward, her gaze casually sweeping over the hospital bed—

Qin Ming, who had previously ignored the Monkey's roars and acted like a walking corpse, suddenly felt as if he had been electrocuted, and his whole body convulsed and struggled violently!

"Ughh...

He let out inhuman, terrified screams, his limbs, tightly bound by restraints, twisting and kicking wildly, trying to break free! The sturdy, specially made hospital bed creaked and groaned under the strain of his struggles, as if it were about to fall apart at any moment!

His only remaining left eye bulged out, bloodshot, and stared intently at the calm Chen Meijiao with utter terror, as if he were seeing a demon from the deepest part of hell!

"Don't come any closer! Don't come any closer!!"

"Get away! Please get away from me!!"

"I was wrong! I was really wrong! Please forgive me! Please forgive me!!"

He cried out and begged with all his might, tears streaming down his face, a stark contrast to his previous numb and empty demeanor. The fear he felt was a primal tremor from the depths of his soul, far more intense and desperate than any physical punishment.

Lin Feng seemed to have anticipated Qin Ming's hysterical reaction. He leaned down slightly, close to Qin Ming's head, which was trembling violently with extreme fear. His voice was not loud, but it clearly pierced through the shrill screams, like a final judgment:

"Tell me everything you know," Lin Feng said, his tone still calm but carrying an undeniable authority.

Qin Ming, as if grasping at the last straw, almost immediately screamed in response, his words flowing so fast it was as if he feared that even a second's delay would lead to something even more terrible:

"I'll talk! I'll tell you everything!!"

"It was Mr. Wei! It was Wei Guangyuan who instigated this!!"

"As long as you don't let him near me! I'll tell you everything! Everything!!"

"Please! Let him go! Let him go!!!"

He broke down.

Faced with Chen Meijiao, this "living catalyst of fear," all his psychological defenses, all his wishful thinking, and all his pretense crumbled in an instant.

At this moment, he would rather face the severe punishment of the law, any cruel interrogation, or even die immediately, than let that seemingly handsome and harmless long-haired youth get even a fraction closer to him.