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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Two: Awakening
Jiang He opened his eyes, his mind engulfed in confusion.
Before him was a world of gray and white—the gray-white ceiling, the gray-white blanket, the gray-white sheets.
He tried to move his limbs, and a wave of soreness washed over him, indicating that this was not a dream.
For a few seconds, he felt lost and bewildered, but there was no fear. There were no sounds around him, and as he scanned the surroundings, he saw the cold, rough concrete walls standing silently.
Jiang He lay still for several minutes until he felt that his limbs had regained enough strength. Then, he suddenly flipped over and sat up.
His hands tingled with pain as he tore off the IV tape, revealing clear needle marks on his skin. The bed was a typical single hospital bed, but the gray-white bedding looked more like something from a prison ward. Beside the bed stood a wooden cabinet, worn and battered, with most of its paint chipped away to reveal darkened wood underneath. On top of the cabinet sat a tea jar, steam still rising from the water inside. The walls and floor were made of concrete, with no windows; one corner had an old wooden door.
Jiang He moved his body slightly, and his joints cracked like popping beans. The fatigue and soreness lessened somewhat, but his head still felt foggy. He instinctively touched the bandaged area on his forehead and confirmed that there was indeed gauze covering it. Although the environment made him feel as if he had been transported to some medieval dungeon, the needle marks and bandage suggested that he might have been rescued…
“Hospital?” Jiang He felt a surge of excitement mixed with apprehension. Last night he had been on watch when he dozed off; now he found himself in an entirely different situation.
He lifted the blanket to get out of bed but froze at the sight before him. “Where are my clothes?!” Jiang He exclaimed as he looked at his bare body and quickly pulled the blanket back over himself.
“What… what… what…”
Panicking, Jiang He glanced around; the concrete room was empty—there were no clothes or even a hospital gown in sight.
“Hey! Is anyone there?!” Jiang He shouted towards the door.
He heard hurried footsteps outside, and then the wooden door swung open to reveal a short-haired girl rushing in with an anxious expression.
“Yao Yao?!?!” Jiang He cried out in disbelief.
Song Yao’s tense face broke into a smile as if she had just breathed a sigh of relief. Right behind her appeared Chao Yifan, his head wrapped in bandages. He glanced at Jiang He sitting up and nodded gently before closing the door and stepping back out.
“You’re awake! How do you feel?” Song Yao asked with a smile as she approached the bedside, though her eyes were swollen like peaches.
“I… I… what is this place? How… how are you here? Are you okay?” Jiang He stammered out questions, his mind swirling in chaos.
“I’m fine. Do you want something to eat?” Song Yao asked softly as she sat down beside him.
"I want to get dressed..." Jiang He awkwardly pulled the blanket over his bony frame.
"Okay, I'll get you some clothes," Song Yao said, placing a pillow behind him before turning and walking out of the room.
A few minutes later, Song Yao returned with a stack of clothes, followed by a woman in a white coat and a Military Man.
Jiang He took the clothes with a puzzled expression; they were a light yellow camouflage training uniform that looked a size too big.
"Your clothes aren't dry yet, so you'll have to make do with these for now," Song Yao said, standing aside somewhat embarrassed as she watched Jiang He and the other two stare at each other in silence.
The woman in the white coat broke the silence with a smile. "The guy next door who got shot has woken up. You, on the other hand, have been sleeping quite a while with your concussion."
"Ah? Uh... how is he?" Jiang He's face flushed red as he hurriedly changed the subject.
"He's out of danger. The emergency treatment was timely, but the wound from removing the bullet was too large, causing unnecessary blood loss. Plus... there was too much gunpowder; his flesh got burned badly," the woman said brightly, answering Jiang He's question. She then pointed to the silent man in military attire beside her and introduced him. "This is Vice Commander Bai Yudong; he has some questions for you. Of course, you can ask him anything as well." After saying this, she waved goodbye to Song Yao and walked out. Before leaving, Song Yao told Jiang He, "We'll wait for you outside."
Vice Commander Bai closed the door and sat down on the edge of the bed, extending his rough hand toward Jiang He. "I am Vice Commander Bai Yudong of the 182nd Regiment of the 61st Division's Field Company."
Jiang He hesitated before reaching out his hand for a symbolic handshake. "I... I am—"
"You are Jiang He, 24 years old, an ordinary city white-collar worker. We have all this basic information about you," Vice Commander Bai smiled as he removed his military cap and set it aside, revealing his full face.
Seeing his face was much more pleasant than when it was obscured by the cap. When wearing it, the brim had been pulled low enough that only his dark cheeks and stubbled chin were visible, combined with his deep voice and stocky build; he resembled more of a thug than an officer. Without the hat, he appeared more approachable—slightly overweight with black-framed glasses, thick eyebrows, and big eyes that revealed a bright smile showcasing two rows of white teeth.
Jiang He studied him while he seemed unbothered by it. Bai Yudong scratched his greasy hair and said, "Your people are currently safe; you don't need to worry. Your companion who got shot can't talk yet, so we have to ask you some questions. There's no need to be too nervous; it's just a simple inquiry."
"Oh, oh, Vice Commander, please go ahead," Jiang He quickly straightened up. Previously, the highest-ranking military personnel he had encountered were instructors during university military training; now sitting next to an actual Vice Commander made him somewhat anxious.
Bai Yudong waved his hand dismissively, indicating that Jiang He shouldn't feel too constrained. He pulled out an unbranded pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offered it to him. "Do you smoke?"
"No, I don't smoke," Jiang He replied verbally while unconsciously reaching for one.
Bai Yudong chuckled as he lit it for him. Once he saw that Jiang He seemed less tense, he asked, "Where did you get your gun?"
"Uh, what?" Jiang He's heart sank instantly at this question; he thought to himself anxiously, "Oh no! Illegal possession of firearms will ultimately lead to trouble!"
"Don't be nervous; I just want to know where you found this gun." Bai Yudong pulled out a Type 54 pistol from behind his waist. "This was found on that kid; he said you gave it to him but didn't want to say anything else."
Jiang He paused for a moment, recalling, "This was discovered at the Service Area."
"Which Service Area?"
"The one just past the first toll station on the Xijing Expressway..."
Bai Yudong furrowed his brow, "Can you recall the details?"
Jiang He took a couple of gulps from the Tea Jar and roughly described what he and Ming Junwei had found in the Service Area and the Gas Station lobby, concluding with the mention of the video.
When Bai Yudong heard that those soldiers were believed to have been shot and killed, a fierce killing intent erupted from behind his glasses. Although Jiang He didn't know what killing intent should look like, that gaze truly made him feel unable to meet his eyes.
After a moment of silence, Jiang He cautiously asked, "Those Soldiers... are they your subordinates?"
Bai Yudong exhaled, pointing at the crooked character 'Zhao' engraved on the gun handle. "This is our Vice Commander's sidearm."
"We didn't find any surveillance equipment during our inspection. Where is the video you mentioned?" Bai Yudong inquired.
"It's all on the highway. Our car was parked at the toll station, but then some unexpected events happened, and we didn't have time to take it with us when we escaped." As he spoke, Jiang He recalled what had happened yesterday, and a pang of pain shot through his heart.
Bai Yudong patted his shoulder. "Thank you for your honesty. That doctor informed us about your situation; you can rest here for a few days." With that, he stood up and prepared to leave.
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