The Silent Courtyard

Chen Mo felt like he'd been scammed.

On his first day at the Silent Psychiatric Hospital, after graduating with a psychology degree and being lured in by a job listing for a "high-paying caregiver," he already wanted to quit. Old Li in the next bed was shouting "God of Thunder, help me!" at a rice cooker while holding up a remote control. Auntie Wang at the end of the hallway stuffed three steamed buns into his pocket and told him, "Save these for the famine." And there was a little girl who never spoke, crouching on the floor and drawing strange symbols all day long.

There wasn't a single normal person in this place.

Until one night, he heard crying from the basement.

Summoning all his courage, Chen Mo went downstairs and saw something he never should have seen in his life: a monster made of nightmares and shadows. It seeped out of the corner and opened its mouth toward him.

Then a light shone at the end of the hallway.

The chalk drawings A Ning had made during the day all lit up one by one, like ancient runes pinning the monster to the wall. Old Li's remote, wrapped in arcs of electricity, came flying at it with a bang. The steamed buns Auntie Wang had stuffed in his pocket had somehow turned into some kind of glowing food. The moment he put one in his mouth, strength surged through his whole body.

This novel and its characters are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental. Do not imitate.