十天结束

Chapter 5 The Doctor

"I..." The man in the white coat appeared calmer than the others, unaffected even by the body lying on the table before him. "My name is Zhao Haibo, and I'm a doctor. You can tell from my attire."

He gestured to his dirty white coat and continued, "Before coming here, I was performing surgery on a woman. She had a tumor in her brain ventricle, which had been rapidly growing for the past six months, causing mild hydrocephalus. Without immediate surgery, her life was in danger."

"I opted for a surgical approach through the frontal lobe, directly puncturing the ventricle under CT guidance. This surgery is always accompanied by significant risks, but the woman chose to take the chance to be with her young son for a longer time."

"Typically, in the operating room, even the slightest breeze is not allowed to ensure environmental stability, but no one expected something stronger than a breeze to come."

"When the earthquake struck, I had just removed the woman's skull and was cutting the dura mater. Any mistake in this step could lead to severe brain trauma and devastating consequences."

"I made the decision to terminate the surgery and temporarily cover the woman's skull back. Otherwise, in the dusty environment, her life would have been in danger."

"But this step turned out to be more difficult than I had imagined. I couldn't even stand steadily, let alone accurately replace a small piece of skull."

"The nurse beside me knocked me off balance, and no one could maintain their balance. In the chaos, I could only cover the woman's head with a sterile sheet and immediately organize everyone to evacuate. But then, I was hit by a medical trolley on my leg and fell to the ground."

"Before I could stand up again, the ceiling of the operating room cracked open, and I immediately lost consciousness."

After hearing the doctor's story, everyone's expressions were unnatural.

He had used many medical terms in this narrative. If any of these terms were fabricated, no one would be able to identify it.

"Dr. Zhao, where are you from?" the burly man asked casually.

"I don't feel obligated to answer your question," Dr. Zhao replied. "I've finished my story."

The burly man opened his mouth but didn't say anything.

"Is it my turn now?" a bespectacled man blinked for a moment and said, "My name is Han Yimo, and I am..."

"Wait." The goat head suddenly interrupted Han Yimo's speech.

This action startled Han Yimo, who turned around, puzzled.

"W-what's wrong?"

"It's 'halftime'," the goat head said with a wry smile. "We'll take a twenty-minute break now."

Everyone was somewhat at a loss.

A "halftime" break at this time?

Qixia glanced at the clock in the middle of the table. It had been half an hour since he woke up. It was now twelve thirty.

"So, this 'break' is compulsory," Qixia silently repeated to himself, "When it's twelve thirty, regardless of who the speaker is, there will be a mandatory twenty-minute break..."

But the game had only been going on for thirty minutes, and now they had a twenty-minute break?

Qixia frowned, knowing this wasn't something he needed to consider. The organizer of this game was a lunatic, and there was no need to think about it with ordinary logic.

So, he kept brainwashing himself repeatedly.

"I am Li Ming, from Shandong."

Only after repeating this countless times to himself could he speak it out loud when it was his turn.

Everyone looked at him with a look of embarrassment, waiting quietly.

Although it was "halftime," the atmosphere became even more tense.

"Um... can we talk?" the burly man asked the goat head.

"Oh, of course, you have free time now. I have no authority to interfere."

The burly man nodded and then looked at Dr. Zhao. "Dr. Zhao, where are you from, exactly?"

Dr. Zhao's expression darkened. "I believe you've been dissatisfied with me from the beginning. Why do I have to tell you where I'm from?"

"Don't misunderstand, I don't have any ill intentions," the burly man said in a steady voice. "The more you say, the more credible it becomes. Since everyone has already said where they're from, you don't need to hide it, right?"

"The more I say, the more credible it becomes?" Dr. Zhao shook his head indifferently. "I only know that 'the more you say, the more mistakes you make.' If the rules are absolute, there's nothing wrong with my narrative now. Besides, I don't trust any of you."

"That's a bit biased," the burly man said. "There are nine people here in total, and only one is an enemy. If you're willing to cooperate with everyone, we can work together to expose the liar. But the more you continue to hide, the more suspicious you become. I've asked you twice already, are you still going to hide?"

The burly man seemed adept at questioning, and with just a few words, he had pushed Dr. Zhao into a logical corner.

His words were clear.

Only the "liar" would need not to trust others, after all, they knew their own identity.

If Dr. Zhao continued to conceal his identity, he would become a target of suspicion.

But someone who could become a neurosurgeon couldn't be an ordinary person. Just as he was about to apologize, Dr. Zhao suddenly interjected, "What about you? Who are you? What do you do?"

"Me?" The burly man was surprised by Dr. Zhao's sudden counterattack, and his expression became somewhat unnatural.

"Yes, since after my narrative, you've persistently questioned me, I can also ask you before your narrative." Dr. Zhao smiled slightly. "Isn't that fair?"

After a moment of thought, the burly man nodded and said, "You're right. I have nothing to hide. My name is Li Shangwu, and I'm a detective."

As soon as he spoke, everyone turned to look at him.

At this moment, the words "detective" gave them an unexpected sense of security.

"You're a cop?!" Dr. Zhao was taken aback.

No wonder he had been probing from the beginning. He was also the first to suggest that everyone should survive. Maybe he really wanted to save everyone.

Dr. Zhao's attitude had obviously changed quite a bit. "If that's the case, I apologize for my attitude just now. I'm from Jiangsu."

At this point, Qiao Jiajin, the tattooed man, looked grim. "Dr. Zhao, do you trust this Officer Li?"

"Hmm?" Dr. Zhao looked at Qiao Jiajin puzzledly. "What are you trying to say?"

Qiao Jiajin tapped the table with his fingers and said lightly, "It's not 'narration time' now. In other words... now everyone can lie."