My left and right hemispheres fight each other.

The stars are silent, but the cities remain bustling.

The soft, white moon eternally overlooks this land of mountains and seas, but this era no longer brings her the silence of the world; instead, it responds with the rainbow-colored light emitted by countless stars on earth.

One of them is Chen Xin's hometown, Qing City.

Most young people are night owls, and as a psychologist, his work is not only free but also easy, without any of the fatigue that needs to be released or the impulse to indulge.

Moreover, he had long been accustomed to going to bed early and getting up late. Apart from getting up late, he lived like a healthy and energetic old man.

At this moment, he had just returned home from grocery shopping, carrying large and small bags, and was walking towards his residential community.

He hummed a song, looked around at the night view, and turned the last corner.

"An uninvited guest." Chen Xin sighed softly as she looked at the lonely and petite figure standing in front of the gate, as if waiting for someone.

He hesitated for a moment, but eventually started walking forward.

"Uncle Chen." The figure in the moon-white dress turned around in surprise and called out softly.

"I've told you so many times, call me 'brother'." Chen Xin walked over with a helpless smile and asked, "How did you know I was outside? You didn't even call, and you waited for me here on purpose?"

"Hmph... Uncle Chen, I know a lot about you."

"Is that so..." Chen Xin stroked his chin, noticing the large black suitcase behind the girl that was almost as tall as her, and said in a somewhat complicated tone, "This is the first time I've ever served such an unusual client."

The girl in front of me is named Su Ruier. She has just started high school and had suffered from mild depression, which was cured by him.

Now, she seems to have relapsed into her old illness, and the situation is urgent, so her parents rushed her back to the hospital.

If that were all, it would be quite ordinary. What made him suspicious was the situation of her parents.

His fees vary widely, ranging from about 500 to 1500 yuan per hour for cheaper options, with discounts depending on his mood and individual preferences. As for the services, they consist of simple psychological counseling, verbal communication, and a degree of reassurance.

It's usually young men and women in junior and senior high school who come to him for consultation, or they simply want him to diagnose their condition. A few adults, however, don't have that much budget, don't take mental health issues seriously enough, and even when they finally decide to come, they're just trying it out.

Moving up the price range, services cost 2000 to 3000 yuan, which is quite expensive and beyond the reach of most people.

As for business exceeding three thousand... there's no upper limit. As long as you have a reputation, wealthy people won't care about such a small amount of money. He always accepts all comers, and often all he needs to do is use his words, without even needing to use any professional methods. As long as the other party feels that their trip was worthwhile, that's enough.

The love and care that the girl in front of him received from her parents was evident from the fact that she chose a service worth three thousand yuan.

After all, as far as he knew, her parents weren't particularly wealthy.

She chose the same service level last time, but her parents accompanied her then. This time...

She requested a full three days of uninterrupted psychological services!

Charged hourly, for up to three days...

Su Ruier's parents directly transferred a huge sum of 100,000 yuan to him.

To be honest, he had never seen or even heard of such a situation before.

The other party's reason was that the situation was very serious and they hoped that he could take care of Su Ruier's daily life for a few days, so that more hidden psychological problems could be seen from her life.

The reason wasn't wrong, but he chose to refuse.

What kind of person would agree to let their underage daughter live with an adult who is not a complete stranger but is far from being a familiar face for a few days?

Moreover, in front of a psychologist, a young girl of this age and experience is completely defenseless, which is no different from being at the mercy of others.

What puzzled him most was that her parents didn't accompany him, claiming they were afraid he would mind... In the end, after he kept pressing them, they chose to visit him every day.

Chen Xin still hesitated. He wanted to refuse, but Su Ruier kept coming to his house. It was practically the same as staying at his house overnight.

"But since you came to see me so easily, Brother Chen, you must have agreed, right?" Su Ruier looked up at him, her eyes seemingly reflecting stars.

"You're right, you really do know me quite well." Chen Xin smiled wryly, proved his identity to the gatekeeper, and led Su Ruier towards his home.

"Yay!" Su Ruier's voice came from behind. Chen Xin walked forward with a smile on her face, but a wary look flashed in her eyes.

"With our expertise, most patients can be identified by their words and actions, and the rest of the process is just time-consuming communication and a necessary procedure that looks cool."

"But after these past few days of contact, her symptoms..."

"That's why I agreed. I certainly won't do anything to her; I have no such intention or thought. Since her parents are at ease, I'll satisfy my own desire to investigate."

……

Su Ruier placed the huge suitcase in the spacious foyer, and then, as if she were in her own home, she quickly found a pair of women's slippers that fit her. She then deftly took off her shoes and socks, stomped her feet into the slippers while running, and swiftly leaped onto the simply decorated but exceptionally large sofa.

"You don't look depressed at all. I still remember how quiet and polite you were when you first came here." Chen Xin put down the vegetables and meat, turned around and saw this scene, and pouted with some resistance.

"I was so excited to see you finally fall for it, Brother Chen, that I couldn't help myself!" Su Ruier laughed, sinking into the sofa and stretching out her body in an unladylike manner, enjoying its softness.

Chen Xin shrugged helplessly, ignoring her nonsense, and turned to go into the kitchen.

"Even the accidental clinking of kitchen utensils when Brother Chen is cooking sounds so beautiful. If I hadn't missed seeing you come out, I would have thought you sneaked into the music room to play music." Su Ruier smiled as she watched Chen Xin fiddling with things in the kitchen.

"You're going a bit too far with your flattery," Chen Xin remarked smugly.

"No, I didn't." Su Ruier stuck out her tongue.

Chen Xin glanced behind him and saw Su Ruier staring intently at him, her body swaying gently as if she were completely absorbed in the sight.

He raised an eyebrow: "A child this age, given a brief respite while waiting for dinner, doesn't even glance at their phone?"

Chen Xin raised her hand in confusion, touching her cheek in bewilderment: "Am I really that charming?"

Su Ruier chuckled, leaned forward, and simply sat up cross-legged, resting her chin on her hand: "Brother Chen is really narcissistic."

Chen Xin smiled and picked up the prepared dish, placing it lightly on the table: "I'm a little lazy today, so I'll just make this one dish."

"It's such an honor to be able to taste Brother Chen's cooking!" Su Ruier's eyes lit up as she snatched a chair and sat down, almost pressing her eyes against the fragrant golden potatoes, eager to feel the steaming hot vapor. However, she still forced herself to refrain from starting to eat before Chen Xin.

"You're exaggerating too much. Are you trying to fool me like I'm an embryo? Who's the doctor here, you or me? You know me so well, you should learn from me later, but don't steal my job." Chen Xin joked casually, taking out two bottles of chilled black tea and arranging them neatly on the table.

Su Ruier's mood suddenly became a little down: "I don't know why, but as soon as I come to Brother Chen's house, I feel that everything is so wonderful and I feel very relaxed. But as soon as I return to the home that I thought was warm, I always feel depressed."

Chen Xin mixed the steaming hot rice with the sauce from the potato and chicken pieces, suppressing her drooling, and glanced at the little girl in front of her: "You."

"Everything at home is incomplete, but all things in the world feel serene and beautiful; the familiar things before my eyes are utterly uninteresting, while all the unseen sights are full of splendor."

"Many people are like that."

Su Ruier thought for a moment, then snorted, "That's not true."

Then she muttered, "I only think things related to Brother Chen are beautiful."

"Dispel all illusions, dispel all evil. Likes and dislikes share the same cause, flaws and virtues are intertwined. We must view everything in the world dialectically, accept what you cannot discard, distance yourself from what you cannot possess, focus on what you truly need, and embrace what you do not want to lose." Chen Xin sighed contentedly, looking at the clean bottom of his bowl, speaking earnestly. But then he looked up at the girl before him and smiled, saying, "If I were your teacher, perhaps I would teach you this way."

Su Ruier blinked. She had actually completed the CD task before Chen Xin, and rolled the last grain of rice from the corner of her mouth into her mouth with her tongue.

Seeing this amusing and adorable scene, Chen Xin composed herself and asked, "Is your mother pregnant with your second child?"

Su Ruier's ever-present charming smile froze for a moment upon seeing Chen Xin, and Chen Xin keenly noticed the abnormality.

"Is this your reason for being upset? Just because of this? You don't want to go home? But what can three days change?" Chen Xin asked, as if accusing someone.

Su Ruier lowered her head: "Brother Chen, I thought you could understand."

After a moment of silence, Chen Xin suddenly sighed and smiled, "Of course."

Are you afraid that he will take away your parents' love? Because that's what you cherish.

"You hate children? I knew it the first time you met me."

"You had a huge fight with your parents because of this, and even went on a hunger strike? I remember you weren't this thin the last time I saw you."

Su Ruier remained silent.

"But they still haven't listened to you and still want a child, right?"

"Brother Chen...you're amazing!" Su Ruier exclaimed in a daze.

Chen Xin neither confirmed nor denied it. His eyes were no longer as gentle as before, but he still gave a warm smile.

He suppressed all his aggressive aura, gently reaching out to grasp Su Ruier's wrist. His moon-white sleeve slipped down, revealing scars like sores.

"But no matter what, you promised me, didn't you? Never hurt yourself." The slightly hoarse voice, as if he had just finished crying, penetrated Su Ruier's ear with extreme emotional impact.

She was stunned for a moment, then tears streamed down her face.

Chen Xin grabbed her wrist, but she snatched the hand back and used it as a tear pad.

She buried her eyes in them, her body trembling slightly as she tried to hold back her sobs.

Chen Xin, who is somewhat of a germaphobe, did not resist; he simply smiled quietly.

"You copied the answer exactly, and you made it sound so sophisticated and refined. You clearly had someone investigate beforehand." Chen Xin's inner thoughts rang out with a sneer.

"What answer? This is reasoning!" Chen Xin replied impatiently, adding, "Of course, it's also psychology!"

"Brother Chen...why? You're not like them, mocking my reasons for suffering and tormenting myself, saying they're so childish, mocking my almost-adult mind for being so fragile, complaining that I'll always be like a child and never grow up." The girl struggled to suppress her trembling, choking back sobs after every few words.

Chen Xin responded, "I would never mock someone's emotions, no matter how far the object of their joy, anger, sorrow, or grief may deviate from universal norms."

"People always consider it a disgrace for others to see their emotions, as if caring about something is some kind of heinous crime."

"Because if you don't gain their approval, opening up will only bring ridicule and sarcasm, which makes people close their hearts, harden their expressions, and become just like those guys who laugh at others."

"It's as if expressing indifference and lack of urgency makes one seem superior."

"But this is precisely the breeding ground for the increasingly serious psychological problems that people are experiencing today."

"Cherishing this emotion is one of the most precious things about human beings, and expressing one's emotions is one of the most important things a person needs to learn."

"Relief and catharsis are necessary, so no matter how messy the trash can is, people should realize its value."

"Reality has too many frameworks that people dare not break through, so an emotional dumping ground where one can be 'bullied' at will is necessary."

"Humans need trash cans because holding things in will only hurt themselves."

"Then...am I just a...trash can?" Su Ruier raised her head and mumbled in a daze.

"Haha." Chen Xin smiled and ruffled her hair. "Everyone is a trash can, but if a trash can isn't emptied, it will eventually become overburdened."

"Bang!" A strange noise suddenly came from the window behind her. Chen Xin turned around abruptly and stared out the window as if by reflex.

"Is it the wind?" Seeing no further movement and everything as usual, Chen Xin frowned and was about to get up to check when suddenly a strong force came from his hand, making him turn around in surprise.

Su Ruier's face was filled with terror. She put almost all her weight on his hands just to prevent him from getting up.

"Rui'er? What's wrong?" Chen Xin calmly observed the changes in her expression and called out softly.

Su Ruier snapped out of her daze, her eyes still red from crying. She shook her head violently, her face deathly pale, and said, "Don't go... really don't go... really, absolutely, you can't go..."

"Could it be that she has a phobia of the view outside the window? I never noticed it before. Could it be a phobia that has only recently appeared?" For some reason, Chen Xin felt a chill run down his spine. An unease urged him to investigate, but psychologically, he didn't want to reject this fragile girl too harshly at this moment.

"Since it's your request, then so be it. After all, you're the customer! You're God!" Chen Xin paused, sensing the girl's determination, and could only try to ease the tension with a joke.

Su Ruier visibly breathed a sigh of relief. It took her a while to regain her composure before she winked at Chen Xin and smiled, "Here's a God with two hundred thousand for you!"

"Haha!" Chen Xin chuckled lightly, sat back down comfortably, and said meaningfully, "Then I'll have to give you a good talking to. Tomorrow I'll be using all my skills on you, Miss God of Two Hundred Thousand."

"Bring it on!" Su Ruier patted her chest and assured her.

……

After covering Su Ruier, who was sleeping with her legs curled up like an anxious little rabbit, with a blanket, Chen Xin quietly returned to the kitchen, gently opened the window, and carefully checked to make sure there was nothing unusual.

"Su Ruier's expression... what exactly did she see? What cast such a shadow on her?" Chen pondered, gazing at the ordinary night view outside the window.

Soon, his gaze froze on the outside of the double-pane glass.

There... there was actually a tiny handprint.

Yes, it's small, smaller than a baby's, and it's a human palm print.

"This is the 13th floor! How can shadows affect reality? Am I filming a horror movie?" Chen Xin examined the place in disbelief, even reaching out to touch it.

"Brother Chen." A sudden shout from behind startled Chen Xin. He turned around and saw Su Ruier standing in the shadows of the lamplight.

You couldn't see her expression, but her voice was icy cold: "What are you looking at?"