Free Web NovelChapter 470: Chapter 441 Psychological Test_1
The next day, Zhou Ning moved.
Of course, he was forced to move by his second aunt, with He Shancun and Mr. Zhao, a whole bunch of people executing the order. Zhou Ning watched helplessly as his various belongings were arranged in a room on the third floor.
Mr. Zhao spread his hands, standing beside the second aunt, looking quite like he was borrowing authority.
"Let me tell you, Zhou Xiaozhou, although today we’re forcibly helping you move, you can’t bear a grudge against me. If the second aunt bullies me, you’ll have to stand up for me later on."
The second aunt patted Mr. Zhao’s arm, quickly soothing:
"Alright, I’ll go cook. I’ve already made an appointment with the designer. He’ll be over soon. Xiao Ning, you go pick up Momo and discuss your ideas together."
Having said that, she dragged Mr. Zhao away, while Mr. He stood on one side with a smile, not minding adding to the chaos.
"No choice, just bear with it. Who told you to marry the mayor’s daughter, from a family of scholars no less."
Zhou Ning didn’t really say anything, dialed Xia Momo’s cellphone, not expecting Xia Momo to have already arrived downstairs. He quickly went down, and Xia Momo threw a document bag to Zhou Ning.
Seeing this bag, Zhou Ning was of course very familiar with it; it was the trump card he had revealed yesterday and his entire fortune.
"What are you giving this to me for?"
"From now on, you’re mine. You keep these. I don’t want to worry about it."
He Shancun leaned out the window, not minding the chaos, and shouted:
"Can I listen to this for free? I’m saying, aren’t you two cold talking outside? Hurry up and come in."
Zhou Ning gave him a look, glanced at the things in his hand, but considering the house needed renovation, it really did have to be kept at the small building. He pulled Xia Momo upstairs to put away the items, and the second aunt came over with her cell phone.
"The designer is here. Go talk to him and come back quickly. I’ve already discussed the work schedule. You don’t need to worry about anything else, just talk about the future design of each room, the colors you like, and any hobbies, so we can all eat together later."
The two didn’t delay any further and quickly headed to Zhou Ning’s house. Indeed, the designer and his team had already arrived, looking very professional.
They measured upstairs, then discussed their careers, and their color preferences. The designer was quite challenged, especially since Xia Momo was a professional herself. They quickly set a temporary code for the door, and Zhou Ning pulled Xia Momo to stand on the south-facing balcony, overlooking the campus of Qin University below.
"Do you need me to prepare a proposal ceremony? Coming back yesterday, I still have some regrets. I see a lot of girls who really value a sense of ceremony, and I feel I was a bit too casual."
Xia Momo shook her head, resting her head on Zhou Ning’s shoulder, wrapping her arms around his waist.
"I’m not like those other girls. From the first time I saw you, my goal was very clear. What I want is you. Whether you’re the little forensic doctor from Qidong County, the technical shareholder of Qin University Technology Center, or the head of Qindao Forensic Department, to me, you’re Zhou Ning. I can accept all of you, the good and the bad."
Zhou Ning tightened his arms, hugging Xia Momo close. Her words moved him; what man could reject such a deeply devoted girl? If his parents were still alive, they would be very comforted.
Thinking about it, Zhou Ning’s eyes stung a bit. He rubbed Xia Momo’s shoulders hard, trying to control his emotions for a long time. Suddenly, Zhou Ning remembered something, feeling a mix of regret and annoyance.
Xia Momo, feeling his change, looked up at Zhou Ning.
"What’s wrong?"
"Nothing much, just that moving into the small building means I won’t get to see you in stockings as often."
Xia Momo’s cheeks visibly reddened, giving Zhou Ning an annoyed look and said coyly:
"Show some respect, I’ll let you see it every day if you don’t get tired of it. We have a lifetime to live, what’s the hurry!"
Zhou Ning laughed, then remembered the second aunt’s instructions and quickly brought Xia Momo back to the small building. After dinner, he took Xia Momo to the Qin Da Research and Development Center where her team had a meeting. He Shancun said he would hitch a ride and went with them. After Xia Momo disappeared from view, Zhou Ning finally turned to Mr. He.
"Tell me, where do you want me to go with you?"
"To Doctor Shi’s place. You’d verbally agreed but never followed up. I don’t want to be nagged by him. A talk won’t take much time, and you’re not that busy these days."
Zhou Ning nodded, saying no more. Ever since Wang Guanli died, he hadn’t visited Doctor Shi, and that dream that had always troubled him hadn’t made any progress.
According to the system’s prompt, he needed to reach level five with his forensic system to repair his memory and he was currently at level four. That’s why he had been desperately taking cases, working tirelessly.
But facing those memories one on one with Doctor Shi was honestly daunting to him.
Half an hour later, the car arrived at Doctor Shi’s clinic. He Shancun parked the car, glanced at Zhou Ning, and didn’t need to call him; Zhou Ning opened his eyes himself. They got out of the car, and Zhou Ning felt a bit embarrassed.
"I’ve been a trouble to him for so long and haven’t shown any gratitude. Today’s visit was so rushed. Should I go buy some fruit or something?"
He Shancun grabbed Zhou Ning’s arm and dragged him directly into the clinic.
"You just stay honest. This is my friend. Do you think he’s treating you because of some fruit? Stop trying to back out, hurry up and go!"
Pulling and dragging, Zhou Ning’s arm was hauled into the clinic. The receptionist nurse immediately recognized Zhou Ning and quickly came over.
"Mr. Zhou, it’s been a long time since your last visit. Please go upstairs directly. Doctor Shi has been waiting for you for a long time."
Saying this, she stepped aside and personally escorted Zhou Ning and his companion upstairs. He Shancun pursed his lips and didn’t comment until the young lady left, then slowly said:
"How come she acted like she didn’t see me? I’m the regular customer here, after all. Your face really is the absolute killer of young girls; as soon as they see you, they lose all composure."
Zhou Ning laughed, without a word, followed He Shancun into Doctor Shi’s office. It had been a long time since their last encounter, and Doctor Shi looked a bit thinner, but he was very spirited. He eagerly extended his hand upon seeing Zhou Ning.
"You’re here. Please, have a seat. If it hadn’t been for me asking Mr. He to find you, would you have not wanted to come for a while?"
Zhou Ning gave an awkward smile, not expecting a psychologist to be so blunt.
"Sorry, my job has changed, and this past year, one case after another came up, taking me almost all over Qindao’s districts and even handling cases in Dayao City, busy to the point of barely touching the ground, and I haven’t spent many days at home."
Shi Tianxiao crossed his arms and sized up Zhou Ning before handing him a folder, which upon opening, revealed a set of questionnaire-like items, all are multiple-choice questions, with "SCL-90" labelled on the upper left corner. Zhou Ning roughly guessed what it was for and knew he couldn’t avoid it today, so he took the pen and started looking at the questions.
He Shancun exchanged a few simple words with Shi Tianxiao before heading outside to wait, as his presence might distract them.
Zhou Ning looked at the questions and felt a headache coming on.
1. Do you have a headache?
No¨
Very mild¨
Moderate¨
Quite severe¨
Very severe¨
2. Do you have unwanted thoughts or sentences reeling in your mind?
No¨
Very mild¨
Moderate¨
Quite severe¨
Very severe¨
Zhou Ning glanced up at Shi Tianxiao, who simply spread his hands.
"You think these questions are stupid, don’t you? It doesn’t matter, just answer them as if they were stupid questions," he said.
"I know SCL-90 is a test for psychological issues like depression and anxiety, but does this really matter?"
"Write it down." freewebnovёl.ƈom
Seeing that resistance was futile, Zhou Ning quickly completed the ninety questions, choosing almost immediately after reading each one without a moment’s pause for thought. Shi Tianxiao took the folder, removed the contents, and rang for a nurse to come in. He handed the test papers to the young woman.
"Okay, shall we talk now? Do you really detest seeing me?"
Zhou Ning watched the young woman leave before nodding slightly.
"Yes, I really detest it, not because of you, but because of that man with the scarred eye I saw clearly in that memory. I found him, saw him in real life, almost unchanged from my memory, only looking a bit older."
This response made Shi Tianxiao pause, seemingly surprised by such a result. He quickly wrote something in his notebook before tilting his head to look at Zhou Ning.
"That’s not right. Just seeing this person shouldn’t make you so averse to continuing to unlock your memories. Did something special happen?"
Zhou Ning nodded, closed his eyes, and let out a faint sigh. When he opened them again, the tumultuous feeling inside had been suppressed.
"He’s dead. Right in front of me, he chose to confront the police. We saved the hostage, but he chose to jump off the building, falling apart like clay, just to cover up the evidence. He said a lot to me.
He said he had investigated and learned who I am, regretting that he didn’t kill me in time back then, asking if I wanted to know about my parents’ business. But today, he wanted to leave with those secrets, leaving me unable to verify anything, to live a life of pain."
"I know he was telling the truth, and I hope you can keep what I told you a secret today because there are many things I can’t clarify or disclose publicly. Even my family does not know my parents’ actual occupations or their identities; now there’s nothing like crew member records or any archives to begin a search with."
"So, this also makes me wonder whether understanding that dream, rediscovering my childhood memories, would help with my investigation. I don’t know; I’m confused and directionless. That’s why I haven’t been here, not because I resist your therapy."
Shi Tianxiao nodded and stared into Zhou Ning’s eyes.
He was well aware that Zhou Ning was speaking the truth, without any pretense, yet the content still left him somewhat shocked.
"Alright, I understand. But I think my therapy does help you, right? If you hadn’t undergone this therapy, you wouldn’t have recognized that man with the scarred eye, and you wouldn’t have gotten involved with him, would you?"
Zhou Ning thought it over and nodded earnestly. Shi Tianxiao was right; if it hadn’t been for the previous psychological therapy, he wouldn’t have been able to clearly see the man with the scarred eye, and he wouldn’t have noticed him visiting Xia Shouchang last spring festival.
He might even say that without this discovery, he wouldn’t have cracked the case involving the Guanghai Pharmaceutical Group. Although Wang Guanli died by jumping off a building, if he hadn’t been pushed into a corner or, so to speak, lost his usefulness, he wouldn’t have been abandoned. What Zhou Ning had done advanced the case’s development and indirectly contributed to Wang Guanli’s death.
Considering this, could this be considered revenge for his parents?
Upon this realization, Zhou Ning suddenly understood what Shi Tianxiao meant, and he firmly nodded his head.
"You’re right. The recovery of my memory allowed me to learn part of the truth. Seeing him die, I was panicking. For a long time, I was immersed in that, wondering if I could have prevented it all if I had reacted faster.
After all, his death meant the end of all secrets. But now it seems that maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing. First of all, according to my memory, Wang Guanli was the leader of the trio. His death can be considered as a way to mourn my parents and avenge them.
Secondly, Wang Guanli chose suicide because those behind the scenes thought he lost his value, and if he had no vulnerabilities, he wouldn’t have resolutely chosen death. So it seemed like a dead-end, but his related acquaintances have left a lifeline."
Shi Tianxiao blinked.
"Okay, now lie back on the chair, close your eyes, and let’s try again."
