```
Dai Lin took the contract and began to examine it closely.
He was quite serious, and Yin Wuque was very patient, not urging him.
"This..." But the more Dai Lin read, the uglier his face became: "This...this..."
The female doctor anticipated his reaction, saying, "The first time I signed the contract, I reacted just like you. Yes, working at our hospital is very dangerous, especially for surgeons."
Upon reaching the last page of the contract, Dai Lin lifted his hand and stroked his chin a few times.
"May I ask... must I sign this?"
"If you refuse," the female doctor seemed to have been waiting for him to ask this question, she quickly replied, "we can only lay you down in our hospital's morgue. Let me be clear, this is not a threat. I asked the same question when I was in your shoes, and I've seen with my own eyes what happens to those who refuse to sign the contract. We are all slaves to the dean. If he wishes, he can kill any doctor in this hospital at any time."
"Could it be that the dean... was also recruited in?"
"You better not inquire about the dean's affairs. You only need to remember one thing, the dean, to us, is like a god or devil; there's absolutely no possibility of us defying him," Yin Wuque reminded him, "Dr. Dai, you have until... let me check the time, midnight. There's not much time left. If you don't sign this contract before then... well, what Dr. Gao said earlier was harsh, but indeed, it is the truth."
Dr. Gao looked at Yin Wuque and said, "No matter how pretty the words, death is still death, and that won't change."
From beginning to end, the burly doctor hadn't said a word.
Dai Lin noticed that whenever the dean was mentioned, Yin Wuque's previously pleasant demeanor changed, his expression became grave, and his tone, less courteous.
It didn't seem like an act. Moreover, when he mentioned "there's absolutely no possibility of resisting," Dai Lin noticed that Yin Wuque emphasized the words "absolutely no." He sensed that Yin Wuque too deeply detested this so-called dean.
"It's okay," Yin Wuque said, "I don't have surgeries today or tomorrow, so I can stay here with you. If Dr. Dai has any doubts, you can consider."
Yin Wuque's tone was very polite, but Dai Lin could tell he was full of confidence.
"Fine, I'll sign. Give me a pen."
Dai Lin didn't hesitate.
The content of this contract had no binding force from a legal perspective.
So, it likely symbolized a supernatural force, much like the contracts between humans and devils in Western films.
However, given the current circumstances, Dai Lin had no room for choice. If he didn't sign, he would face the risk of death. Even if he refused, the people here could easily force him to sign. He didn't think the police or the law could pose any threat to them.
With that in mind, why waste time? Better to comply and suffer less.
Dr. Gao handed a pen to Dai Lin, turning to the last page.
Then, Dai Lin took the pen and signed his name in the space for Party B.
"Starting tomorrow..." Yin Wuque saw Dai Lin's signature, and his face immediately brightened, saying, "Dr. Dai, you will temporarily follow Dr. Gao Heyann for your outpatient rotation internship in the Wraith Surgery Department."
Afterward, he stood up, walked over to Dai Lin, extended his hand, and said with a smile, "Welcome to our hospital, Dr. Dai Lin."
Dai Lin noticed this deputy dean's enthusiasm seemed beyond normal for a successful candidate.
At that, he became more cautious.
Dai Lin knew that the situation was against him, so he chose to bow his head for now and wait for the right moment to take action.
Thus, he also shook hands with Yin Wuque.
...
"This is your doctor's rest room."
Dai Lin was surprised by the spacious rest room that lay before him: Was this for an intern?
And outside the window of the room...
Was a boundlessly deep and vast darkness!
Behind him, the previously silent muscular doctor said, "The last group of interns at the hospital have mostly become official, so currently it's just you in here. You've just signed the internship contract, so you can go back to handle your original job handover or arrange some other things. Your shift starts tomorrow afternoon, and you will be on duty daily, so you'll need to stay at the hospital, going home only on weekends. After signing the contract, a mere thought will allow your body to move freely between the real world and the hospital's space, although each time you can only return to the last location you transported from."
After exiting the interview room (there was a hidden door that only the deputy dean could open), the deputy dean arranged for the muscular doctor to take Dai Lin to the intern's rest room. This doctor had been rather silent throughout, speaking for the first time now.
Dai Lin nodded and asked the muscular man, "May I know... how should I address you?"
"Huo Ping, physician from Ghost Surgery Department. Dr. Gao Heyann, responsible for your internship, is the attending physician in Wraith Surgery Department. Among our departments, excluding the Emergency Department, Wraith and Ghost Surgery are the most understaffed. After your department rotation, you will be assigned based on overall performance. Normally, the department heads recruit, but they've been too busy lately, so they sent us. Deputy Dean Yin holds you in high regard, so I hope you do well. Here, not progressing means getting closer to death. By the way, the rest room has a detailed introduction to the hospital and the doctors' rules; it's best you read them as soon as possible."
"Okay, I understand," Dai Lin replied.
After Huo Ping left, Dai Lin found the hospital introduction and doctors' rules in the rest room and read them thoroughly.
After finishing, he stood in place, thinking about returning to the real world.
Then... he immediately found that the scenery in front of him switched in an instant to the corridor of the Ninth Hospital!
He was back!
It was then that Dai Lin truly realized just how terrifying Hospital 444 was.
All of this felt like another lifetime, but he knew it was all too real.
It was a long night indeed.
Soon after, his phone rang.
Previously, Dai Lin had noticed that once inside that hospital, his phone was completely shut down and couldn't be turned on no matter what. Yin Wuque told him that they couldn't use phones inside the hospital. Physicians below the level of attending could only use the internal intercom, and only after becoming an attending physician could they use a special phone within the hospital.
"Dr. Dai, where on earth did you go?" The caller was Dr. Zhao, "Listen to me, we checked carefully afterward, and the patient you mentioned... he had already passed away last night!"
```