“Do you really need this?”
“I need to suppress the mental illness. If I am still that lunatic who goes crazy every now and then, I am afraid I will not be able to enter her life normally.”
“Sigh… well then, sign this Hypnosis Liability Waiver first.”
—
“Zhao Yicheng, relax.”
The man’s voice was like a soothing incantation, yet it also felt like a demon’s lure.
“Do not think about any troubles. Empty your thoughts and surrender yourself to a professional Psychological Doctor. I will take good care of you.”
“Now, clear all other distracting thoughts from your mind and focus on my voice…”
“Are you still troubled by your daily bouts of madness? Now, let us step into your inner World and see the person deep within you…”
The Doctor’s voice guided Zhao Yicheng’s subconscious to the deepest depths of his heart, where he encountered the crazed Wild Beast lurking at the bottom of the subconscious abyss.
“Do you see that frantic, roaring Wild Beast? Yes, he is your symptoms. Lock him into the deepest part of your heart and never let him out. Never, ever…”
The voice seemed to become distant and ethereal, as if coming from the horizon, hollow and calm.
“Very good, Zhao Yicheng — you are no longer sick now.”
“Now then, wake up!”
Zhao Yicheng slowly opened his eyes. The hazy scene gradually became clear, like waking up after a long sleep or a rebirth after death.
The World became exceptionally clear before his eyes. Every beam of light was so beautiful and brilliant. The ceaseless noise and clamor in his mind finally fell silent, and the entire Heaven and Earth became tranquil and serene.
He laughed out loud in surprise, but a thick, powerful arm suddenly lunged forward, deathly gripping his throat. The beautiful World seemed to turn upside down in an instant.
A terrifying sense of suffocation rushed to his head, and the World before him blurred, as if he were about to be strangled to death.
In his fading consciousness, Zhao Yicheng saw only a pair of black eyes filled with fury and injustice, and he heard a frenzied, savage roar like a Wild Beast.
“Why are you locking me up? She is mine! She is mine!! She is mine!!!”
—
The next day, morning.
Zhao Yicheng slowly opened his eyes. His brain throbbed with a slight pain and a bit of noisy clamor, as if he were in the middle of a bustling market. He pressed his hand to his forehead and shook his head with effort, trying to shake off the noisy voices in his head.
He climbed out of bed and walked over to a Mirror embedded in the Wardrobe.
The man in the Mirror had faint dark circles under his eyes, and his expression was somewhat listless and exhausted.
‘Another nightmare,’ he muttered softly.
The memory of last night’s nightmare surged into his mind again. It had the same development, the same process, and the same result. The only difference was that thick, powerful arm and that pair of black eyes that looked as if they were about to bleed like a Wild Beast’s.
He took a deep breath, as if to suppress all this negative Energy into the bottom of his heart. Looking into the Mirror again, he stared at the spirited black eyes of the man in the reflection, as if looking directly into his own heart.
‘Zhao Yicheng, your illness is cured. You are no longer sick. Now you can live like a normal person; you can cook with them, build blocks with them, and go shopping with them.’
A smile played at the corners of his mouth.
‘And today is another day to pursue Little Yin.’
*Beep! Beep! Beep!*
A noisy phone ringtone sounded. Zhao Yicheng picked up the Mobile Phone and answered. An unsatisfied, hurried voice came from the other end. “Hey, you, surnamed Zhao, it is already 8:30. Why are you not here to cook yet? The two of us are already awake.”
Hearing this voice, the smile on Zhao Yicheng’s face grew even wider.
“Alright, alright, I am coming… I am coming…”
After hanging up the Mobile Phone, he quickly walked out of the bedroom. The moment he stepped out the door, a wanton sneer abruptly sounded in his ear, though he did not know what it was mocking.
“She is mine! She is mine! I raised her for twenty-some years; even a dog would be familiar by now! Why should I let her go!?”
“If she dares to run, I will break her legs, sever the tendons in her hands, and pull out the claws the kitten dares to use for resistance, making her stay as my caged cat.”
The raspy voice echoed in his mind, full of endless allure and evil. The infinite clamor and noise filled his entire head, making him feel extremely uncomfortable and oppressed.
“A’Zhao, A’Zhao.”
A pleasant female voice suddenly sounded in his ear, and a small hand waved in front of his eyes, pulling him out of his thoughts.
“What is wrong? Are you feeling unwell?” Bai Xu Yinsheng looked at him with her chin resting on her hands, her beautiful eyes full of concern.
It was not just her; Hei Xu Yinsheng, at the other end of the Brocade Table, was also sizing Zhao Yicheng up with a strange look.
The three of them were just about to have the Evening Meal when Zhao Yicheng’s face suddenly darkened, then he frowned, and then a very evil smile appeared on his face. This made everyone feel uneasy, thinking he was having another episode.
“It is nothing. I have just been too tired lately and have not rested well,” Zhao Yicheng said, shaking his head and making up a random excuse to brush it off.
“Mm-hmm.” Xiao Bai nodded. She was currently under a Love Curse, a fool blinded by love, so she naturally believed Zhao Yicheng’s words unconditionally.
“A’Zhao, you should go sleep in my bed for a nap in a little while. Leave the Evening Meal to me. After we eat, we can go for a walk in the neighborhood park to relax,” Bai Xu Yinsheng suggested with a beaming smile as she pulled on Zhao Yicheng’s arm.
“Alright, alright.” Zhao Yicheng stroked the top of her head, his eyes full of doting affection.
*Snap!*
A crisp sound rang out as Hei Xu Yinsheng threw the broken chopsticks in her hand into the trash can. Without looking back, she walked toward her room. With a *bang*, the bedroom door closed and was locked from the inside!
“Bleeeh~” Bai Xu Yinsheng stuck her tongue out in the direction the other had left. She then hugged Zhao Yicheng’s arm, pressing her face tightly against it.
“Xiao Hei is just jealous of me. Hmph, a woman like her who does not know how to please her boyfriend will never get a boyfriend’s nourishment.”
“I like both of you,” Zhao Yicheng hastily interrupted. Such divisive words were not good to say.
“No, you can only like me.” Bai Xu Yinsheng put her hands on her hips, assuming a queenly posture and making a domineering announcement.
Zhao Yicheng was amused and could not help but tease her. “What if I want both?”
“Then you are still not allowed to like her.” Xiao Baiyin bristled like a cat whose fur had been rubbed the wrong way. “If you want her, I can kidnap her and bring her to your bed, but if you like her, I absolutely will not allow it.”
“Xiao Hei is so mean. She does not let me eat shaved ice, she does not let me eat spicy hot pot, and she does not even let me drink sour plum soup.”
Looking at her bristling appearance, Zhao Yicheng could not help but laugh. He pulled the “bristling kitten” into his arms and pinched the little thing’s face into the shape of a bun, his eyes full of mirth.
Noisy.
So noisy.
It was really so noisy.
The clamor was like a dark dream quickly shattering into pieces. Zhao Yicheng only felt as if there was a caged Wild Beast struggling and roaring frantically in his head. It was as if someone were forcibly stuffing things into his brain and stirring them, causing unbearable pain.
“A’Zhao, time to eat. After eating, we will go for a walk.”
In a daze, the little chef Bai Xu Yinsheng, wearing an apron, pulled Zhao Yicheng to the Brocade Table to sit down. Zhao Yicheng ate the food in his bowl mechanically, his eyes fixed and motionless as if he had fallen into a trance.
Hei Xu Yinsheng lowered her head and ate her dinner quietly, not even giving them a single glance.
At the Evening Meal table, one person was in a trance, one was enthusiastic and hospitable, and the other had clearly noticed something but pursed her lips and said nothing.