Chapter 94: Paranoid Possessiveness
The studio door was pushed open from the outside. Xie Shibai looked up and saw it was Lu Ciheng. He asked, “What was that noise outside just now?”
Lu Ciheng straightened his clothes before coming in, feigning confusion. “Was there a sound? I didn’t see anything. The floor was polished very slippery today; maybe some unlucky guy fell down.”
Xie Shibai stared at Lu Ciheng for a few seconds. His gaze swept over the man’s clothes, landing on a tiny mark on the cuff.
Lu Ciheng pulled up a chair and sat next to Xie Shibai. He propped his chin in his hand and looked at Xie Shibai with a grin. “Xie-laoshi, I’ve come to pick you up from work.”
Xie Shibai gave a soft “Mm.”
Lu Ciheng said slowly, “Just an ‘Mm’ and that’s it? Where’s my kiss? Sigh, I really am a discarded husband. Once you got me, you stopped treasuring me.”
Xie Shibai was speechless for a few seconds. He was very familiar with Lu Ciheng’s clumsy, drama-king performance. He asked helplessly, “What counts as treasuring you?”
Lu Ciheng’s lips curled, a thick sense of amusement hidden in his dark eyes. “For example, Xie-laoshi could call me Laog—”
“Xie-ge, I’ve bought the coffee!” The studio door was suddenly pushed open, and Xiao Lin rushed in holding the coffee.
Lu Ciheng: “…”
Seeing Lu Ciheng suddenly swallow his words, Xie Shibai didn’t need to guess to know the man hadn’t been planning to say anything serious. The corners of Xie Shibai’s mouth curled slightly; he really liked seeing Lu Ciheng get thwarted.
Xiao Lin didn’t realize the situation in the workroom. He took the coffees out one by one and handed them over. “The cleaning lady came in early today. She’s been cleaning something at the elevator for ages. Xie-ge, here’s your coffee. I didn’t know what you drink, Senior Lu, so I just bought a random one.”
Lu Ciheng’s heart felt as cold as the ice in the coffee. He let out a heavy sigh. It was better to go home; besides a fat little dog biting his pant legs, no one would disturb them.
Xie Shibai held the coffee, his expression thoughtful. Lu Ciheng had likely run into Zhou Chengping, and the two had a serious conflict.
Once the Xie family’s mess was completely settled, Xie Shibai went to Chen Yi’s therapy room. Seeing Xie Shibai, Chen Yi was surprised for a few seconds. She poured him a glass of water and observed how he took it; his condition didn’t look like it had worsened.
Moreover, she had been following the Infinite Heartbeat variety show. From the program, she could observe that Xie Shibai’s condition had improved beyond expectations. For a moment, she couldn’t guess the reason for his visit.
Chen Yi asked, “Is there a problem with the treatment?”
Xie Shibai sat on the sofa. “No. The treatment plan you provided is very effective. I came today to ask about psychological disorders.”
Chen Yi’s brow furrowed, her heart jumping. Sometimes a patient’s sudden shift isn’t a good thing. A patient in the next department said the medicine made them feel better, only to turn around and nearly succeed in a suicide attempt.
Xie Shibai lowered his lashes and said, “My mother suffered from bipolar disorder. From a genetic perspective, what is the probability of me developing the illness?”
Hearing the question, Chen Yi’s heart sank. As expected, there was a major issue. One big problem with anxiety disorders is that they can imperceptibly lead to hypochondria. Especially when an elder in the family has a hereditary condition, it can induce a hypochondriacal mindset both mentally and physically. Without intervention, it will get worse until a new source of anxiety triggers somatization.
Chen Yi weighed her words. “Heredity can’t be generalized. Many current literatures and research directions are not yet mature, and most probabilities are on the high side. In fact, many people never develop the illness in their lifetime even if their elders had it. Have you encountered any problems?”
Xie Shibai’s thumb ground against the water glass. Recalling Xu Ruixin’s words, he briefly summarized his issue. He experienced a paranoid desire to lock someone up, and his possessiveness toward Lu Ciheng was also increasing. Like the Xie family, he couldn’t escape the ancestral paranoia. As someone belonging to Ming Yu, he couldn’t escape it either. Xie Shibai never felt he was lucky enough to avoid genetic inheritance.
Chen Yi gave a light cough. Although her professional ethics as a doctor didn’t allow her to find this “ship-worthy,” she couldn’t help but feel that Xie Shibai and Lu Ciheng were truly a perfect match.
“It’s normal to have possessiveness toward things you love; that’s a characteristic of love. How can it be called love if you have no thoughts at all? You need to distinguish the degree of possessiveness. As you said, suppose the love is worn away and you break up peacefully; would you still have such thoughts?”
Xie Shibai was silent for a few seconds. A single word immediately came to mind.
Yes.
If Lu Ciheng proposed a breakup, Xie Shibai would still lock him up.
On the other side.
“If—I’m saying if,” Zhong Mingxiu weighed his tone and said, “suppose he doesn’t like you and wants to divorce you to pursue a new happiness; would you still have this kind of thought?”
Lu Ciheng looked up coldly and glared at Zhong Mingxiu. “What are you saying?”
Zhong Mingxiu shrank his neck. “Damn, don’t glare at me! I said it’s a hypothetical!”
Lu Ciheng said each word seriously, “Such a hypothetical is impossible.”
Zhong Mingxiu pursed his lips. He used to think Lu Ciheng had psychological issues, and after this, he completely realized the man’s possessive paranoia was terrifying. He was already a bit worried for Xie Shibai. “Fine. But as a doctor, you should still intervene in this mindset. Don’t stop the medicine. If one day they’ve had enough and want to leave, are you really going to lock them up? This is a society ruled by law! Even if we’re brothers, I’ll call the police.”
Lu Ciheng felt like locking the marriage certificate away so Xie Shibai would be tied to him for life. He was too lazy to listen to Zhong Mingxiu’s words. “If there’s nothing else, take care and good riddance. I’m going to pick up my wife.”
Zhong Mingxiu ‘tsked.’ The more he thought about it, the more he felt Xie Shibai was amazing to be able to endure Lu Ciheng’s personality.
Lu Ciheng stared at the messages on his phone for a few seconds, his brow furrowing slightly. Xie Shibai hadn’t replied. This was the first time since the show ended that Xie Shibai hadn’t replied for so long. Lu Ciheng dialed Xie Shibai’s number, and his face instantly turned very ugly when he heard the voice prompt that the phone was off. An unease rose in his heart.
Zhong Mingxiu noticed Lu Ciheng’s reaction and joked, “What, your wife doesn’t want you anymore?”
Lu Ciheng’s dark eyes swept over Zhong Mingxiu, and he made another call. It still prompted that the phone was off.
Zhong Mingxiu paused, belatedly sensing something was wrong. “He really doesn’t want you anymore…?”
They had just finished discussing Lu Ciheng’s pathological possessiveness today, and within three hours, he had to worry about Xie Shibai being locked up?
“Calm down. Maybe there’s just something going on.” Zhong Mingxiu had just comforted the man when another thought occurred to him. He muttered, “The Xie family is gone; everything he wanted to solve is solved. He has no attachments left…”
Lu Ciheng’s heart went cold halfway through. He instantly associated it with Xie Shibai’s self-destructive tendencies. The unusual phone shutdown caused a cold sweat to break out on his back, his heart pounding with panic. He didn’t even have time to finish listening to Zhong Mingxiu’s next words before bypassing him and rushing toward the studio.
“…Probably just relaxed and turned it off to rest without being disturbed.” Zhong Mingxiu finished muttering and looked up to find Lu Ciheng was gone. He scratched the back of his head. “Where’s Old Lu?”
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