I was a rookie reporter in the 00s

Chapter 345: Visiting Experimental Participants

Chapter 345 Visiting Experiment Participants

There were sobs on the other end of the line. "He's become increasingly withdrawn, his mood swings are extreme, and he even loses his temper sometimes," the mother said with a hint of despair in her voice. "I don't know what to do. He's becoming less and less like himself."

"Have you noticed any hallucinations or delusions in him?" Zhang Wanqing asked, a hint of urgency in her voice.

"Sometimes he would suddenly say that he saw things that didn't exist, or heard some strange noises." The mother's voice was filled with tears and trembling.

"Thank you, your information is very important to us." Zhang Wanqing said, with a hint of gratitude in her voice.

After hanging up, Zhang Wanqing took a deep breath, feeling a heavy weight on her heart. She looked up and saw Fu Siyuan and Li Wei also busy at work. Fu Siyuan was talking to a student, his expression somewhat serious. Li Wei was at his computer, typing away at the keyboard, organizing the information they had gathered.

"Wanqing, how are things going over there?" Fu Siyuan turned around and asked after hanging up the phone.

"The mother said that her child became more and more withdrawn after leaving the project, with great mood swings and sometimes even hallucinations and delusions," said Zhang Wanqing, with a hint of heaviness in her voice.

"It's similar here," Fu Siyuan said, a hint of helplessness in his voice. "These students have all exhibited varying degrees of abnormal behavior after leaving the program."

The three continued to contact other students participating in the project and their families, trying to find more clues. Every call was like opening a door to the truth, but they didn't know what was hidden behind these doors.

Just as the three were about to conclude their investigation, an unexpected phone call interrupted their thoughts. A tearful voice came from the other end of the line.

"Hello, I'm Zhang Wanqing, an investigative reporter for the newspaper," Zhang Wanqing said, a hint of urgency in her voice. "May I ask who you are?"

"I'm Wang Qiang's mother." A tearful voice came from the other end of the line. "I know you're investigating these cases, and I want to tell you something."

"Wang Qiang's mother?" Zhang Wanqing's heart tightened. "What do you want to tell us?"

"Wang Qiang became increasingly strange after leaving the project," said Wang Qiang's mother, a hint of despair in her voice. "Sometimes he would suddenly lose his temper and even say strange things."

"Have you noticed any hallucinations or delusions in him?" Zhang Wanqing asked, a hint of urgency in her voice.

"Yes," Wang Qiang's mother said, her voice trembling. "Sometimes he would suddenly say he saw things that weren't there, or heard strange noises."

"Have you noticed any abnormal behavior in him?" Zhang Wanqing continued to ask, with a hint of urgency in her voice.

"Sometimes he would suddenly disappear and even say some strange words, as if he was talking to another person. In fact, there was no one else, he was just talking to the air." Wang Qiang's mother said in despair.

"Have you been to the hospital? What did the doctor say?" Zhang Wanqing asked.

"I saw him and took him to a mental hospital. The diagnosis was schizophrenia," Wang Qiang's mother replied.

"I understand, thank you!" said Zhang Wanqing.

Night enveloped every corner of the city. Zhang Wanqing stood at the entrance of the graduate school, gazing at the dim streetlights, a sense of unease welling up in her heart. Her younger brother, Zhang Chen, attended the school, where three recent homicides had occurred. The victims were all students involved in drug development. After participating in a program called "Mind Purification," these students developed split personalities as a side effect and were ultimately murdered.

Zhang Wanqing, Fu Siyuan, and Li Wei have been investigating for a whole week but still haven't found a clear suspect. Li Wei, a former police officer, instinctively tells him there must be a conspiracy behind this case. Zhang Wanqing, on the other hand, is even more eager to uncover the truth because of her brother.

"Wanqing, let's sort out the clues again." Fu Siyuan's voice interrupted her thoughts. He was holding a thick investigation report in his hand, which recorded the information of all the victims and the details of their participation in drug development.

"Okay." Zhang Wanqing nodded, her eyes landing on a name in the report: Lin Hao. He was one of the project leaders and a counselor at the graduate school. They had tried to get information from him many times, but he always claimed to know nothing about these matters.

"Lin Hao said he doesn't know, but we can't let him off so easily." Li Wei interrupted, "He was once a student of this project. Maybe he knows something we don't."

"Let's go see him again." Zhang Wanqing said firmly.

The three of them came to the graduate school again and found Lin Hao's office. When Lin Hao saw them, an unnatural smile appeared on his face: "You are here again, I really don't know what you are talking about."

"Lin Hao, we've investigated many students who participated in this project, and they all developed split personality issues," Fu Siyuan said bluntly. "You said before that you didn't know the students who participated in this project, but during our visit, many people said they knew you. And since you were once part of this project, it's impossible for you not to know about these things. Why did you hide this from us before?"

Lin Hao's face turned pale in an instant. He lowered his head and was silent for a while. Then he raised his head, a trace of panic flashed in his eyes: "I... I really don't know. I withdrew from this project a long time ago."

"Quit?" Zhang Wanqing keenly caught this detail. "When did you quit?"

"It was a long time ago." Lin Hao answered with a guilty conscience.

"How long ago was it?" Li Wei asked.

Lin Hao didn't answer. Instead, he stood up and tried to end the conversation: "I really don't know anything. Don't ask me anymore."

"Lin Hao, we won't let go of anyone who participated in or knew about this. We're only questioning you normally, not interrogating you, so don't be too nervous." Zhang Wanqing said firmly, "If you really know something, tell us now. It might even help you."

Lin Hao's expression turned even uglier. He gritted his teeth, as if hesitating about something. Just then, a sudden noise came from outside the door. The three of them turned around and saw a student running in in a panic, his face terrified.

"Teacher Lin, something bad has happened again!" the student said anxiously.