Who would study psychology if they didn't have some kind of problem?

Chapter 298 Nan Zhuren: Is it so hard to make friends?

"Junior brother, what are you thinking about?"

inside the room.

Nan Zhuren, who was fiddling with the equipment, looked up upon hearing this and saw Chonghui's concerned gaze.

You don't seem to be in a good mood.

The senior student keenly noticed that Nan Zhuren's expression had been off ever since he entered the school.

At first, Chonghui thought that Nan Zhuren was still thinking about the student named Li Mingchen, but gradually, Chonghui sensed that something was wrong.

At this point, the two had moved to the psychological counseling room in the campus office building.

Compared to the university's counseling center, which spans two floors, this high school's counseling room seems rather small.

All things considered, this place is only about the size of one grade-level office; after renovation, it has been divided into roughly three standard consultation room-sized cubicles.

The cubicle closest to the door serves as the school psychologist's office; the middle cubicle is designated as an "emotional catharsis room," containing punching bags and mannequins; and the innermost cubicle is the "psychological counseling room," used for intervention for students experiencing emotional distress.

Now, the "Emotional Venting Room" and "Psychological Counseling Room" are being temporarily converted into studios by Nan Zhuren and others to collect students' emotional expressions.

Under Chonghui's guidance, Nan Zhuren set up the camera, computer, and other equipment and configured the parameters. Upon hearing Chonghui's concern for his well-being, he paused in his actions.

He touched his face: "Is it obvious?"

Chonghui chuckled lightly: "Your facial expression control is indeed very good; most people probably wouldn't notice, but—"

"I'm different." These were the words Chonghui didn't say.

It's rare to let him be so smug.

Nan Zhuren shrugged, thought for a moment, and said, "It's not that I'm in a bad mood, it's just that... since coming to high school this time, I've felt particularly depressed."

[Micro-expression analysis - Intermediate] The impact on him was quite significant.

Just like how a person subconsciously takes something handed to them while on the phone, after upgrading from "Beginner" to "Intermediate," Nan Zhuren will also subconsciously receive all micro-expression information within his field of vision when he activates "Micro-expression Analysis."

Just after class ended, the density of students in my line of sight was a bit high, and the amount of information was also a bit overwhelming.

And all of it is negative information.

Chonghui immediately understood; those who know, know the emotional state of senior high school students.

He even felt a bit of empathy for Nan Zhuren.

"Let me give you a somewhat inappropriate example," Chonghui thought for a moment, "Don't you feel like someone with obsessive-compulsive disorder is living in a garbage dump?"

Nan Zhuren frowned: "That's a bit too inappropriate."

"It's like throwing a person with OCD into a room where the wallpaper pattern is misaligned, the door frame is crooked, the tile grout is uneven, and there's always the sound of a dripping faucet?"

Nan Zhuren blinked: "It's getting closer."

Just thinking about it is terrifying, but thankfully his "micro-expression analysis" is an active skill.

"Being able to visually identify negative emotions and sense oppressive atmospheres, yet being unable to intervene due to limitations in ability, stance, or other factors, makes it unbearable and causes one's own condition to deteriorate—am I right?"

Nan Zhuren nodded this time: "More or less."

Chonghui sighed: "Generally speaking, this kind of situation occurs in beginners. I didn't expect you to be so 'desensitized' yet—is it because your observation skills are too strong, so you can't ignore it? Didn't your former mentor... no, Sister Pingting talk to you about this issue?"

I was desensitized before, but now I'm probably sensitive again because my skills have just been upgraded recently.

However, it was difficult to say, so Nan Zhuren did not answer directly.

Nan Zhuren finally said, "Maybe I've been too sensitive lately." Adult matters are best left unsaid when discussing them.

Moreover, Chonghui and Nan Zhuren's relationship was not yet deep or intimate. Seeing that Nan Zhuren had no intention of delving into the topic, Chonghui simply nodded.

However, after thinking about it, he still said: "Many times, when we study psychology, we assess problems from an individual perspective, which often limits us to a narrow viewpoint; if we want to know the whole picture of a region or a group, we sometimes have to rely on a third party."

Nan Zhuren looked at Chonghui.

"The same applies to the project we're working on now. Collecting emotional expressions is correct, but setting the threshold for abnormal emotions and when to send alerts still needs to be determined based on the sample norm group."

“So—” Chonghui looked at Nan Zhuren, “You may be a bit sensitive, but there’s nothing wrong with taking this opportunity to learn more about this high school. I also hope you can get rid of your current emotions as soon as possible, so as not to interfere with the progress of our project.”

Nan Zhuren looked at the experienced Chonghui and, seeing that the other party was trying to comfort him, listened attentively.

"Of course, following that Vice Principal Ma just now will definitely not give you a comprehensive understanding of the school."

Chonghui said, "That might be a little difficult, but—maybe you could try making some new friends at this school?"

……

Zhao Xinyu slowly walked past the sign for "Jiangdu No.1 Middle School", wearily greeted the security guard, and parked her electric scooter.

High school teachers are arguably one of the groups whose age is hardest to judge from their appearance.

For example, Zhao Xinyu right in front of us.

She was fairly pretty, but her skin was dull and tired; she had dark circles under her eyes, and she was without makeup, looking like she had only done the most basic facial cleansing and skincare, and then tied her hair in a ponytail.

She wore a rather old-fashioned plain jacket on top and solid-color sweatpants without any stripes on the bottom.

Apart from that, she wore no other jewelry such as earrings, necklaces, or bracelets.

To sum it up, it's about having the demeanor of someone in their thirties and dressing like someone in their forties.

"Teacher Zhao, you're only here today?" the security guard greeted Zhao Xinyu.

Judging from the way she's addressed, she's probably in her early twenties.

"Good morning, Mr. Liu." Zhao Xinyu smiled politely and replied, "Our subject has relatively few classes."

Although she said that, the tired look on her face didn't make her seem like a "leisurely person".

Before Zhao Xinyu could catch her breath, her phone suddenly received a text message.

[Principal Ma: Xiao Zhao, come to my office.]

"Here we go again..."

She muttered a complaint to herself, her face filled with resistance. But her feet, as if on their own, began to climb the stairs, until she reached Vice Principal Ma's door.

"Knock knock." A knock on the door.

"Enter."

Vice Principal Ma had been waiting there for a while. As soon as he saw Zhao Xinyu's face, he got straight to the point: "Little Zhao, have a seat. I have a new task for you."

He said "trouble," but his tone left no room for argument.

"Recently, two teachers from outside the school came to our school to work on some kind of... psychological monitoring and identification system, which requires the cooperation of our school teachers."

"Please help me."

(End of this chapter)