The white rose I picked up cried and said she liked me.

"Well..."

Xu Nian was speechless for a moment, unsure how to continue.

"Just kidding, don't be nervous."

Leng Huaqiu winked playfully, tore off a toffee and popped it into her mouth, then handed one to Xu Nian.

"I hypnotized that girl several times, and there was a name she kept mentioning."

"You must be the brother that little girl can't forget... right?"

"Uh...yes..."

Xu Nian took the candy, but instead of tearing open the packaging, she put it in her pocket.

He appeared somewhat reserved in this elegant and imposing building.

"Speaking of which, it's been a long time since I've seen her."

"How is she? How's she been lately?"

"It might not be good."

Xu Nian sighed and began to recount Xu Xi's current situation.

Leng Huaqiu frowned, listening attentively while scribbling in her notebook.

After the man finished speaking, she put down her pen and said solemnly.

"It seems my guess back then was correct."

"What conjecture?"

Xu Nian asked in confusion.

Leng Huaqiu capped her pen and held up her sketchbook.

It was a sketch of two people walking side by side.

One of them was carrying a heavy burden, which caused her back to hunch slightly.

The other, however, walked forward with ease and confidence.

"When I first met Xu Xi, she was suffering from severe bipolar disorder and at one point even medication couldn't control her condition."

"Several times, I had no choice but to use electrotherapy on her to barely stabilize her emotions."

"Later, she said she felt much better and didn't feel so much pain anymore. She even gave me a banner."

As she spoke, Leng Huaqiu pointed to a bright red banner on the wall.

The inscription reads: "Superb medical skills, miraculous healing hands."

"Now it seems that it wasn't my superior medical skills that mattered."

She chuckled softly twice.

"It was her other personality that took the blame for her."

"What?"

Xu Nian was completely confused.

"In dissociative identity disorder, also known as multiple personality disorder, the formation of sub-personalities is often an individual's passive psychological defense mechanism."

"When the primary personality is overwhelmed by the pain of severe depression and can no longer bear it, the psychological level will form a new subpersonality through dissociation, and transfer all the bipolar emotions and symptoms that cannot be faced to the subpersonality."

"At this moment, the dominant personality does feel that 'the manic-depressive disorder has disappeared and I have returned to normal,' but this is only because a dissociation barrier has formed between the dominant personality's consciousness and the experience of mania."

"The primary personality can no longer perceive the pain of bipolar disorder, while all the symptoms of bipolar disorder will be fully reflected in the secondary personality."

"The subpersonality will exhibit persistent low mood, loss of interest, exhaustion, and manic agitation, becoming a 'victim' of bipolar disorder."

Leng Huaqiu pointed to the two little figures in the picture in her hand.

"This state is like this: a person is carrying a heavy 'bipolar disorder' burden in their heart. When they can no longer carry it, they throw the burden to another 'self,' which is the secondary personality."

"So...every time Xu Xi appeared, it was when Xiao Xi's symptoms flared up, and he took on all her pain for her?"

"If the 'Xu Xi' you're referring to is her other personality's self-designation, then yes."

Leng Huaqiu nodded seriously.

Upon hearing this, Xu Nian felt as if she had been struck by lightning.

He stood there, speechless for a long time.

No wonder... no wonder Xu Xi acted like a madman, doing so many extreme things and acting crazy in front of him.

Not only did she have to clean up the company of parasites for the kind-hearted Xiaoxi, but she also had to bear the pain and suffering of her illness when the symptoms flared up.

Furthermore, she also needs to maintain a glamorous image in front of the camera, without showing any signs of collapse, so as not to affect the business bearing his name.

A person lives in hell, enduring daily tortures of being cut by knives and roasted by fire, yet still has to force a smile to please the King of Hell.

Just thinking about it is suffocating.

All of this should have been borne by the girl he loved.

Xu Nian lowered her head, biting her lip tightly, her vision blurry.

"What can I do to put Xu Xi into a deep sleep so he won't have to suffer this torture anymore?"

Leng Huaqiu shook her head.

"Her existence is more about bearing the pain of bipolar disorder on behalf of the main personality."

"Otherwise, it will be the fragile girl who is hurt beyond control by your lie who will bear all of this."

"Therefore, once her bipolar disorder is cured, her dissociative identity disorder will naturally recover."

She walked to the medicine cabinet, took out several boxes of medicine, packed them up, and handed them to Xu Nian.

"Medication can only alleviate and control her symptoms, but it cannot completely cure her condition."

"The treatment of bipolar disorder is more about psychotherapy."

"The person who keeps being mentioned in her dreams is the key to the treatment."

Leng Huaqiu gave Xu Nian a meaningful look.

"Okay, I understand."

Xu Nian nodded, preparing to leave the church.

"I remember that girl liked to eat candy."

Leng Huaqiu called out to Xu Nian.

"If you resist taking medicine, you can try taking some sugar with it."

Xu Nian was stunned for a moment.

"Okay, thank you."

......

After being taken out of the sanatorium by the guards in a shuttle bus, Xu Nian did not return to the villa immediately.

He first delivered a few bottles of wine to Zhang Feng, then bought some vegetables and a few bags of candy at the supermarket.

"Thank you for your patronage. The total is 698 yuan. Would you like to pay in cash or by scanning the QR code?"

"Scan the QR code."

After receiving the money, the sales clerk skillfully packed the goods into bags.

"Wait a minute."

Xu Nian's gaze fell on a bag of toffee on the shelf behind the sales clerk.

He took out the toffee that Leng Huaqiu had given him from his pocket and found that it had the exact same packaging.

"Give me another bag of those toffee candies."

"OK."

On the way back, Xu Nian tore open the toffee wrapper and put it in her mouth.

So sweet, it's sickeningly sweet.

No wonder Xu Xi likes sweets.

She had endured so much suffering; she needed something sweet to cheer herself up.

It seems... there's a hole in the center of this candy.

......

After returning to the villa, Xu Nian began preparing dinner.

Sweet and sour pork, sweet and sour pork, candied bananas... In addition to desserts, he also made two spicy dishes.

If Xiaoxi comes back, she should at least have something to eat.

After all that was done, the familiar sound of a sports car engine came from outside.

Xu Xi, with an aloof demeanor, dragged his weary body into the villa.

The aroma of the food in the air whetted her appetite, and her stomach rumbled loudly.

But when she looked at Xu Nian, she felt very awkward and quietly turned her head away, pretending to be busy with something else.

After all, she had threatened to take drastic measures against this man that morning.

"You're back. Wash your hands and eat."

Xu Nian smiled slightly and greeted her casually.

Xu Xi then gave a soft "hmm," went to the bathroom to wash her hands, and walked to the dining table.

Today, she seemed to have a better appetite than usual and ate more than usual.

Perhaps it's because I was too tired at work and used up too much energy.

After dinner, she didn't push Xu Nian to the bedroom, but instead lay down on the sofa alone and closed her eyes to rest.

Xu Nian took the bag of toffee and came to her side.

"I bought you some candy, would you like some?"

Xu Xi lazily raised an eyebrow, and after seeing the bag of candy in the man's hand, nodded slightly.

Xu Nian put a fragrant candy into her little mouth.

The girl chewed carefully for a couple of seconds, and with the tip of her tongue, she picked out a capsule-shaped object from the toffee.

She was stunned for a moment, looked at the man in disbelief, swallowed the candy after her throat bobbed.

"Is there anything else?"

Upon seeing this, Xu Nian was overjoyed.

He fed Xu Xi toffee filled with pills beforehand, like feeding him beans.

Xu Xi swallowed the candy without hesitation.

"Have a sip of water to clear your throat. Eating so much sugar will cause cavities."

Xu Nian handed her a glass of warm water.

Xu Xi took it, tilted her snow-white neck back, and drank it all in one gulp.

The pill, along with the one hidden under the tongue, was sent into the stomach.

"sorry."

She spoke in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

"What did you say?"

Xu Nian rubbed his ears, his attention completely focused on the empty water glass, and he didn't hear what Xu Xi said at all.

"It's nothing."

Xu Xi turned away indifferently, her back to the man.

Xu Nian looked at her slightly flushed cheeks, smiled gently, and understood her feelings.

He bent down and gently embraced the small figure on the sofa, using his own body heat to warm this wounded soul.

A single tear slid down the corner of the girl's eye.