Chapter 32

…
The institute had also asked them to monitor Jiang Shan’s mental state. Five months alone on a barren mountain—they could hardly imagine a normal person not going mad.
Could her amnesia be post-traumatic stress?
Zhang Wanqiu’s task was to observe Jiang Shan as much as possible, talk to her, and try to trigger her memory. She had been recruited to Songshan Hospital for her other role—therapist at Jingang’s most renowned private psychology clinic.
After just two days, Zhang Wanqiu felt she had met her match.
First, she was sure Jiang Shan’s mind was perfectly sound. She was not mad.
Jiang Shan’s thinking was quick, her logic clear. Above all, natural psychological resilience couldn’t be faked in a short time.
The chance of Jiang Shan cracking under stress was vanishingly small.
So her mind was normal. For Jiang Shan, the loss of those months on the mountain might be simple amnesia. The cause was another matter.
—
The moment Jiang Shan’s test results came back they were rushed to the observation room. Geng Jianghui put on his reading glasses and stared at the report.
“Her white blood cell count is abnormally high.”
The figures showed Jiang Shan’s white cell count was three times normal—more extreme than in leukaemia.
Geng Jianghui said in spite of himself: “Are you sure there’s no error?”
It looked like a mistake. If the numbers were real, Jiang Shan should have dropped dead long ago.
The assistant said shakily: “We checked three times and did cross-checks. There’s no error.”
With Jiang Shan under close observation, no one dared make a mistake with her results.
Zhao Qisheng brought out another scan and held it to the light. “There’s more. Look—this is her full-body scan. Every organ looks healthy. She doesn’t look like a sick person at all.”
In cancer patients the internal organs typically show severe, irreversible failure.
But Jiang Shan’s organs looked vital. The scan showed no sign of spreading cancer cells.
With both results together, you couldn’t blame the tests.
“I have a hypothesis.” Zhao Qisheng swallowed. “White blood cells are immune cells. Setting aside blood disease, could such an abnormal count be—an immune response?”
In infection or inflammation, white cells multiply rapidly.
In plain terms: her immune system was in overdrive.
Geng Jianghui was startled. “You mean the cancer? But the immune system can’t cure cancer…” If the human immune system could kill cancer cells, it would be an evolutionary marvel.
Cancer cells came from the body itself; the immune system reacted to external invaders.
Zhao Qisheng said with difficulty: “I know. I mean—could something else have activated her immune system…?”