Chapter 27

Harsh white light. The whole world was white—white walls, white ceiling. That was what Jiang Shan saw when she opened her eyes after she didn’t know how long.
Her mind was dull, much like when she had woken in the tent.
She felt something soft and springy under her—a proper mattress. The air held a lingering smell of disinfectant.
The surroundings felt both unfamiliar and vaguely familiar. She slowly made out a stand by the bed with an IV bag hanging from it, the line running to her hand…
A hospital?
The thought crossed her mind. She remembered Wei Yuan giving her a “bottle of water.” She hadn’t thought much of it; she had drunk it…
That was the last thing in her mind.
Now she had woken—not on the bone-rattling antique truck, but lying straight on a bed in a place that made even less sense.
Someone seemed to approach the bed. When they saw Jiang Shan’s eyes open, they started and looked at her in disbelief.
“She’s awake… she’s awake!”
The person by the bed turned and called out. The cry brought more people. Jiang Shan saw many white coats crowding around her. Her eyes were stung again by all that white.
Closest was a woman. Jiang Shan’s vision wasn’t clear yet; she couldn’t see her face, but she heard a pleasant voice: “Hello. This is Songshan Hospital.”
Gentle and soothing—it eased the tension.
Jiang Shan couldn’t speak. She could only blink twice.
When they saw she could really respond, the white coats seemed even more excited. Finally that pleasant voice said: “Please don’t be alarmed. We need to run a routine physical check.”
Jiang Shan couldn’t resist and couldn’t refuse. She could only stare, trying to make out the people around her.
A light seemed to shine into each of her pupils. “Head nurse, she still has some light sensitivity.”
The pleasant voice paused. “That’s all right. It will recover gradually.”
Jiang Shan felt a warm breath near her ear: “Close your eyes for now and rest…”
The IV seemed to drip faster. Jiang Shan was hit by another wave of dizziness and lost consciousness.
—
When she woke again, the white coats were gone. The ward was quiet. She tried moving her limbs—sensation had returned.
And her vision was clearer. She could see the ceiling lamp. The IV by the bed was gone.
She lifted her hand—clean and pale, nails neatly trimmed.
As if the grime and the dirt under her nails had all been a dream.
And Jiang Shan really did feel as if she had been dreaming. Waking in the tent, waking in the hospital—both seemed like scenes from another dream.
“Notify Dr. Wei. Tell him she’s awake…”
Jiang Shan heard that familiar, pleasant voice—it seemed to come from outside the ward.