A 13-year-old student in Xinchai County, Henan Province, died unexpectedly on campus last week. His mouth was bleeding, and there was a nail-sized hole in his chest, triggering his family and a large number of people to surround the school gate demanding an explanation. The authorities dispatched a large number of armed police to maintain stability.
According to reports from various media outlets including Newtalk News, on the morning of January 8th, a male student surnamed Zhu from the “Jinshi Tsinghua Garden Senior High School” in Xinchai County, Henan Province, died in the school dormitory. Before the family arrived at the school, the school authorities unilaterally called for an ambulance to take the body away. When the deceased’s relatives found out, they intercepted the ambulance with a small truck, leading to a standoff at the school gate.
It wasn’t until 1 p.m. in the afternoon that, under police guard, the parents were able to see the frozen body in the hospital morgue. The parents discovered blood at the corner of the child’s mouth, a nail-sized hole in the chest, and a dark bruise on the waist.
The father of the deceased stated that on January 7th, his child was perfectly fine, but on the morning of January 8th, at 5 or 6 a.m., he received a sudden call from the school saying the child was “not well.” The parents questioned how their child could suddenly be gone without any clear reason from the school.
After videos and photos related to the incident circulated online, it sparked high public attention and various speculations.
Medical professionals’ analysis suggested that the round hole in the child’s chest resembled a needle puncture for heart blood extraction. Commentator Li Muyang explained that if blood is drawn too quickly, it can lead to the rapid depletion of blood from the heart and cause a pressure difference, resulting in blood backflow, which could explain why red fluid leaked from the deceased’s mouth.
An internet user posted, “One crucial step in organ retrieval surgery involves creating a hole near the heart, typically referred to in medical terms as aortic root cannulation, to infuse protective fluid to temporarily stop the heart beating, pausing time and preventing organ decay due to lack of oxygen in a short period.” Combined with rumors that the deceased had a rare blood type and underwent medical examinations, the incident continued to escalate online.
Enraged by the incident, local residents flocked to the school gate on January 9th to demand the truth. Authorities deployed a large number of police to maintain order and blocked the local roads on the afternoon of January 9th to prevent outsiders from joining the protest. It wasn’t until the evening of the 10th that the crowd gradually dispersed, but police cars and patrols remained prevalent around the school.
Facing public doubts, the Xinchai County Education Bureau issued a notification on the 9th, stating that after preliminary investigations, they ruled out any criminal involvement. However, the notification did not specify the cause of Zhu’s death. On January 11th, officials issued another notification stating that Zhu died of “sudden cardiac death” and the red fluid at the corner of his mouth was “body fluid released when the forensic expert manipulated the body,” but this explanation still raised questions among some Chinese citizens.
On the day of Zhu’s death, parents found that all his personal belongings had inexplicably disappeared when they went to the dormitory, which was meticulously cleaned. They requested to view surveillance videos but were refused by the school citing “monitoring equipment malfunctions.”