I’ll provide a concise and fluent translation of the example article into English, tailored for an American audience aged 18-40, preserving the chapter title translation:

Chapter 625: The Rebellion of the Mad

“That man who dared to stand up against them was Zhou Xiao!” Wang Ying’s eyes sparkled with memories. “He was as weak as us, yet he never yielded. Whenever the absurd rules of the psychiatric hospital oppressed us, he would always speak out against them. Even though it seemed futile, someone finally voiced what we all felt inside. We were overjoyed, but the director saw him as a troublemaker. He would punish Zhou by solitary confinement, sometimes for three days, sometimes five, once even for seven. Every time he emerged, frail and pale, we worried—afraid he might collapse or give in. But no matter the hunger, suffering, or beatings, he always wore that defiant smile. He was our pillar of strength. As long as he refused to bow down, we felt there was still hope for resistance.

“Zhou Xiao’s struggle with the psychiatric hospital could fill three days and nights. Let me recount one vivid memory. It was a hot summer when the director promised us popsicles if we behaved well, with no white slips of punishment on our doors. We longed for those popsicles, tired of the same daily fare in here. Finally, the day came, but the popsicles we received were homemade, loaded with artificial sweeteners and colors, barely edible. The director shamelessly claimed they were healthier than those sold outside. Zhou Xiao stood up and said, ‘How much have you profited off us? Can’t you spare a dime for proper popsicles?’ The director snapped back, ‘It’s you again! Sit down! You weren’t getting any popsicle anyway. Why cause a scene and risk another stint in solitary?’ Zhou Xiao pounded the table, ‘We want popsicles!’ He shouted repeatedly, and soon, others joined in. We had never been so united. ‘We want popsicles!’ We want popsicles!’ The director was scared off, calling the nurses to take us back to our rooms, but this time, no one obeyed. Patients employed their best antics—acting even crazier than usual—scaring the nurses to the other side of the iron gate. We shook it, shouting non-stop, ‘We want popsicles!’

“The standoff lasted till evening. Finally, the director relented and ordered popsicles from outside, three dollars each. Everyone got one. It was the sweetest popsicle I ever had in my life. I couldn’t bear to bite it. We savored them in the recreation room, while those outside the gate looked pale. I realized they feared us too, because we were many, we had nothing to lose, and we had Zhou Xiao.

“Perhaps sensing a growing threat, one night, we were awakened by the commotion. People said Zhou Xiao was taken to the basement, they wanted him dead! We feared losing him, so we banged on our doors, protesting loudly. Wang, the male nurse, came running, banging on the surveillance window with his baton, ordering us back to sleep. But the strongest among us kicked open the doors. Wang was helpless before him, like a chick before an eagle. We cheered as the strong one took the keys. We were free. Our first act was to settle our scores with Wang, punching him one by one, making him unrecognizable. He might have died right then, or maybe in the fire that followed.

“We rushed out, using a recreation room table to smash open the iron gates, cheering wildly with each door opened. Nurses either fled or suffered the same fate as Wang. Our only goal was to save Zhou Xiao. Finally, we stormed the basement. Zhou Xiao lay anesthetized, marked for surgery, a line drawn on his belly. Though we didn’t know what they intended to take, we knew if we hadn’t barged in, Zhou Xiao might not have left that operating room alive. The doctors, the director—they were all there. The doctors fled at the sight, while the director futilely ordered us to leave. But at that moment, we feared no one. The strong one lifted Zhou Xiao, others pinned the director to the operating table, retaliating with surgical tools. The director cried and screamed. It was then that a fire broke out, chaos ensued. When we ran down, the entire second floor was ablaze. That’s when we realized—the director had escaped in the confusion.

“That night, I felt like someone else. I was caught up in the crowd, shouting, fighting, and celebrating. Many cheered in the face of the fire. It was only later that someone said, ‘The police are coming; this could get messy.’ People started leaving. I went with a female patient to a small town. She stole clothes and food, and that’s how we survived, evading the police. Later, I came to Long’an to work. I don’t know what happened to the others. According to the news, all the escaped psychiatric patients were apprehended. That was clearly the official line. But I believe some of us got away, just like me. I never imagined I’d meet Zhou Xiao here!”

Chen Shi and Lin Dongxue listened in shock. After a long silence, Chen Shi asked, “So, the reunion with Zhou Xiao you described earlier—it was all made up, right?”

Wang Ying nodded. “Actually, it wasn’t that dramatic. But meeting him again, finding out we lived in the same neighborhood—that alone was pretty dramatic… Officers, are you going to arrest me now that you know all this?”

“Many hands make light work. Consider it in the past. After all, the psychiatric hospital is gone, with no records or evidence left behind.”

“Thank you. I know you’re good people.”

“So, how did the director end up here?”

“I’ve told you everything I know. I have one request—could you let the strong one go? He’s simple-minded and might have been manipulated. He didn’t understand the gravity of what he did.”

Chen Shi shook his head. “Exactly because he’s simple-minded, he’s dangerous. He’s already killed three innocent people out of vengeance. We have to arrest him. We can’t afford any more casualties!”

“I see…” Wang Ying sighed in disappointment.

After bidding farewell, Chen Shi suddenly remembered something. He asked Lin Dongxue to wait and returned to Wang Ying, showing her a sketch on his phone. “Was this person also there?”

After studying the sketch for a while, Wang Ying said, “I vaguely remember him. He’s the one who pinned the director to the operating table.”

In that moment, Chen Shi realized. That guy had indeed been at that psychiatric hospital. That was why he went by the name Zhou Xiao—because that name carried profound meaning. Excitedly, Chen Shi asked, “What’s his name?”