Players, Please Board the Train

”Hey, you tall, lanky young man up ahead!” Outside the old residential area, an elderly woman stood at the intersection calling out, holding several bags of vegetables and fruits.

The hurried passerby didn’t turn around, but the old woman spoke again, ”That tall and handsome young man... not you two ugly brats, the one wearing black clothes.”

Two young men who had turned around with smiling faces to offer help walked away with darkened expressions, and only then did Xu Huo turn back, smiling slightly, ”Old lady, are you calling me?”

The old woman’s eyes lit up, ”Yes, yes, it’s you. Such a handsome young man, with such good facial features too. You look like a good young man at first glance. Could you give me a hand and help carry my things?”

Xu Huo walked over and picked up the bags, supporting her arm with one hand, ”Where do you live, old lady?”

”In the Red Star Community ahead.” The old woman held his hand, her face full of wrinkles as she smiled, ”My shopping cart was stolen by some damned little bastard, making my old arms and legs suffer. I almost strained my back just buying groceries.”

”Not many kind young men like you around these days. If my grandson were still alive, he’d definitely be as tall as you, and just as good as you.”

”Not at all, most people are kind-hearted.” Xu Huo said with a smile, ”I saw someone wanting to help you just now.”

But the old woman tightened her grip on his hand and didn’t let go, ”They don’t have good facial features, I don’t want them. I want you. How old are you, young man? Are you married? If my granddaughter were still alive, I’d definitely introduce her to you. She was so beautiful, already a beauty in her teens. Many neighbors wanted to arrange childhood marriages!”

Xu Huo helped her into the community and, under her direction, headed toward Building Three.”Young man, I haven’t seen you around here before. You don’t live in this area, are you visiting relatives?” The old woman looked at him affectionately.

”I’m here to find someone. I heard there’s an old professor living in Red Star Community. Have you heard of him? A very famous psychiatrist.” Xu Huo asked.

”No!” The old woman pushed his hand away, her expression switching between disgust and smile, then she leaned back and said, ”Oh, I can’t walk anymore, I can’t climb up to the sixth floor!”

Xu Huo glanced at the elevator displaying ”Under Maintenance” and said, ”How about I carry you up?”

”You can carry me?” The old woman waved her hand, ”Don’t I know it, you young people these days, none of you can carry anything or lift anything. When outsiders come to cause trouble, not only do you not help, you take advantage of the situation. Useless things, neither pleasant to look at nor useful.”

As she spoke, she took out five yuan and gave it to Xu Huo, ”Go, buy me a drink from outside the community. Get one of those energy drinks you young people like.”

Xu Huo put down the bags and left. After walking some distance, he heard the old woman talking on the phone in a low voice. He smiled slightly, went to the supermarket to buy the drink, and just as he returned, he happened to bump into a stooped little old man walking past him with a cane.

He reached out and patted his shoulder, ”Dean Lin.”

”You... you... you’ve got the wrong person. Dean Lin lives in Building Six...” The little old man bent over, staring at the ground as he tried to leave.

Xu Huo gripped his shoulder, ”I need to talk to you about something. Don’t rush.”

”You damned loan shark, let go of me!” The old woman swung her vegetables at him, shouting to the old man, ”Old thing, run quickly! At my age, I don’t believe they dare do anything to me!”

Xu Huo dodged the items and, worried she might fall, pulled her back. But the old woman took the opportunity to sit on the ground, crying out to heaven and earth, ”Help! Loan sharks are bullying old people!”

Some passersby not far away saw this scene but seemed accustomed to it, some already taking out their phones.

”I’m not a loan shark.” Xu Huo said, ”Dean Lin, I received treatment at your hospital twenty years ago.”

Only then did the little old man straighten his back to look at him, studying him for a good while before saying, ”I remember you. Your name is... Xu... Xu... Xu Huo! You were a very smart child!”

”It’s been twenty years, and you still remember what I look like?” Xu Huo was quite surprised.

”All the children who entered that hospital back then were exceptionally smart. It’s hard to forget.” The little old man helped his wife up, brushing the dust off her, ”It’s fine, this is a former patient of mine.”

The old woman became all smiles again, holding Xu Huo’s hand, ”Such a handsome young man. If my granddaughter were still alive, I’d definitely make you my grandson-in-law. Are you hungry? Let me cook a couple dishes for you. Come eat at my place.”

”He came specifically to see us, of course he’ll eat. You go upstairs first to steam the rice, we’ll be up right away.” Professor Lin said cheerfully.

The old woman happily left.

Professor Lin turned back to Xu Huo, ”Don’t mind her. Our son and daughter-in-law died early, and after our grandson and granddaughter passed away, she became like this. But her condition is still manageable.”

Xu Huo picked up the bags and went upstairs with him. Looking at the dirty, messy hallway, he asked, ”Why do you live here?”

Professor Lin glanced back at him, ”You don’t know? I haven’t been a dean for a long time.”

”Over ten years ago, I resigned from the Seventeenth Hospital and never took a position at any other hospital. After working in hospitals for so many years, I’ve seen through the fickleness of human relationships and life and death. I didn’t want to continue...”

”I heard you were fired from your previous hospital before taking the position at the Seventeenth Hospital because of repeated alcoholism.” Xu Huo stared at him expressionlessly.

Professor Lin looked embarrassed, scratching his sparse hair, ”Really? Oh, I’m old, can’t remember these things.”

”Because of your record, no hospital was willing to hire you afterward. I want to know who invited you to become the dean of the Seventeenth Hospital.” Xu Huo said.

”I don’t know that. I only heard his surname is Zhu, he’s a businessman. The people who came to sign contracts and pay salaries were all his secretaries. I never met him in person.” Professor Lin said.

As they spoke, they had reached the sixth floor. The old woman was waiting at the door, took the bags from Xu Huo’s hands, invited him to sit and have tea, then went to the kitchen to cook.

Although he had anticipated the old couple might not be living well, he hadn’t expected them to be this poor—almost destitute, without even a proper dining table, just a few plastic stools placed around the tea table.

”Please sit, please sit.” Professor Lin wiped nonexistent sweat from his forehead and asked, ”You came this time to find the person who funded the establishment of the Seventeenth Hospital? Why don’t you go ask at the hospital? The current dean should know.”

”The Seventeenth Hospital has disappeared.” Xu Huo said, ”Not just the hospital building, but any related records have vanished without a trace.”

”I went to check the patient records of those transferred to the Seventeenth Hospital back then. During the years the hospital existed, it had patient exchanges with other hospitals and institutions. Normally, these places should have kept records, but now they’re all gone. I’ve also looked at the patient files for transfers in and out—the parts related to the hospital are blank.”