Asian Guide to American Horror

In my opinion, the United States should be the country that believes the most in supernatural powers. From civilians to presidents, they all devoutly believe in God. Almost every American believes in their hearts that: God is omnipresent, and that God particularly blesses America. So, every U.S. president puts his hand on the Bible when he takes the oath of office, and Americans often say “oh my god” even when they are having s*x! But there are also many places in America that have been forsaken by God, or places that God cannot reach. The most well-known examples are The Woodburn Mansion, Franklin Castle, Rowan Oak, and the haunted Stanley Hotel. However, unless you have experience you have no right to talk, so I think Connecticut Hospital is the scariest, most evil place in America. Before talking about Connecticut Hospital, please allow me to briefly introduce myself. I’m Chinese. My ancestral home is near Fuzhou, China. When I was 18 years old, smuggling abroad was prevalent in my hometown. Almost half of the young people in the village had been smuggled abroad, and I was one of them. At that time, I was going to be smuggled to Canada, but the ship encountered a storm in the Beaufort waters, and more than 100 stowaways fell into the sea. I held onto a wooden board and floated in the sea for two days, and finally drifted to the United States in a confused state.  After going ashore, I was afraid of being caught by the police, so I hid in the mountains during the day sleeping, and went to the town down the mountain late at night to rummage through trash cans to find food. This lasted for half a month until I encountered human traffickers. They sold me to a logging farm in Alaska. The logging farm was controlled by gangsters. Most of the workers were smugglers. In addition to the Chinese, there were Koreans, Africans, Indians, Mexicans, and many from other parts of the world. After staying at the logging farm for nearly a year, the g**g had infighting and a firefight broke out, and a few of us took the opportunity to escape and headed to Miami. In Miami, I officially started my part-time career. I worked odd jobs in restaurants, supermarkets, factories etc. ran by Chinese nationals, and learned to speak fluent English and crappy American humor. It’s just that the good times didn’t last long, and the largest financial crisis in the history of the United States broke out. Factories closed down, workers lost their jobs, and many families went bankrupt... Against that background, stowaways like us lost our jobs, and even had a problem with food. But heaven never seals off all the exits. With the help of a co-worker, I found a job at Connecticut Hospital. I still remember clearly the first time I went to Connecticut Hospital. Connecticut Hospital was in a remote town called Tol Barad. The person who met me was a black man named Morgan, who was mainly responsible for the hospital’s security. Morgan was so warm and friendly when he saw me that he shook my hand and poured me coffee, which flattered me. I swear to God, in all the time I've been in America, I’d never been so warmly welcomed. Because I was introduced by a friend, I didn’t hide my identity as a stowaway from Morgan. Morgan didn’t care that I was a stowaway. He said that the hospital needed a security guard in the back courtyard, and didn’t need me to go to the front courtyard. I didn’t need to have contact with outsiders. As long as I did my job well, I would be paid $285 a week. At a time when the average American salary was around $1,000 a month, it was conceivable how tempting the offer was. What’s more, I was a stowaway. However, after a brief euphoria, I was suspicious again. As we say in China, there is no pie in the sky, but if there is, it is definitely a trap. I asked cautiously: “Why is the salary so high? Is the job difficult?” Morgan said: “It’s not difficult. Your job is to guard the back gate of the hospital and strictly abide by the rules of the hospital. There can be no mistakes.” “What are the rules?” “First, you can’t bring friends to the hospital whether it is during working hours or in your spare time. Second, your working hours are 9:00-17:00, when to go to work, when to open the door, when to get off work, and when to lock the back gate, not a minute too early, and not a minute too late. Don’t open the back gate when you’re not on duty.” I asked in astonishment: “Not a minute too early, and not a minute too late?” Morgan said in a firm tone, “Yes, exactly the right time, not too early, not too late.” The first requirement was very reasonable, but the second requirement was a bit harsh, even to a strange extent. Normally, opening the door late and locking the door early would be considered sabotage, but if I am active at work, why can’t I open the door early and lock the door late? Morgan stubbed out half of his cigarette in the ashtray. At this time, I found that there were several half-smoked cigarettes in the ashtray. “And the third point, also the most important point.” Morgan took out a cigarette case, lit another cigarette, and continued: “There is a white house in the backyard of the hospital. You must not go in there, and must not allow anyone to approach it.” “Why?” Morgan smiled and said, “Because of the taboo. You agree, you stay; you don’t agree, you leave. But don’t worry, I won’t call the police.” Morgan meant my identity as a stowaway when he said that he would not call the police. Although he had a harmless look and was very sincere, it sounded more like a threat to me. But then again, I thought I really needed a job in the current situation, not to mention the attractive pay. After a little hesitation, I said, “I’d like to stay.” Morgan was very happy and said, “Since you’ve accepted this job, when will you be able to work?” “Anytime.” “Then let’s make it today.” Morgan’s cigarette was only half smoked, and he stubbed it out in the ashtray again. I thought to myself that he was very unique about the way he smoke, but rather wasteful. Morgan first took me to the logistics department to get bedding and daily necessities, and then took me to the backyard of the hospital. The hospital building did not have a back gate. To get to the backyard, we had to go through the ally next to the building. The ally was very narrow, only about one meter or so. Because few people walked there, there were a lot of weeds growing at the foot of the wall. At the end of the ally was a broken iron gate, giving people a “work place, no entry” feel. The backyard of the hospital was very large, about half an acre, and it looked like entering a primitive wilderness full of desolation and lifelessness. The weeds in the courtyard were more than half the height of a person. When the door was pushed open, countless birds flew from the weeds to a tree with a crooked neck at the root of the west wall. Morgan explained that the hospital was formerly a psychiatric hospital, and the backyard was an exercise place for the mentally ill. After the hospital was taken over, it had not yet been cleaned up. Morgan also told me that I was the only security guard at the back gate of the hospital. I could take two days off every month. There was no fixed vacation dates. I could ask him for leave at any time. Passing through the courtyard overgrown with weeds, we came to the back gate of the hospital. The back gate of the hospital was two black iron railing door. Due to the age and weathering, some parts had rusted. Outside the iron gates was a concrete road. On the other side of the road was a lush reed bush that was as tall as a person. It stretched out neatly along the concrete road, like a green wall. To the right of the big iron gates was the guard’s room, and to the left was a row of bungalows with about seven or eight rooms. The room next to the gate was my bedroom, and at the end of the bungalow was a white house facing west. The white house was not big and not conspicuous. Under the scorching sun, it looked like being covered by a layer of mist, mysterious and abrupt. Morgan gave me a brief introduction to the surroundings, left me with two keys and left. There were two keys, one was for the backyard gate, and the other was for the small door leading to the ally. After Morgan left, I started to clean up the dormitory. There was dirt everywhere in the dormitory, as if no one had lived in it for more than ten years. The bed was an old-fashioned wooden bed with green paint, but it was quite sturdy. After cleaning the bedroom and making the bed, I started to clear the weeds at the door of the bedroom, and unknowingly worked late into the night. I straightened up and looked around the desolate backyard under the hazy moonlight. The grass and trees moved and rustled as a gust of wind swept through. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a figure standing in front of the white house! It stood motionless in the shadows, looking straight at me...