Xia Fanxing, under the relentless phone calls from his uncle, arranging dates, and applying pressure with pleas, arrived at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Listening to the instructions of a voice on the phone that was both very pleasant and gentle, he arrived at the door of her office.
After ringing the doorbell, he was greeted by a young and extremely beautiful woman.
Although the woman was stunningly beautiful, there wasn’t a hint of arrogance typical of great beauties on her face; instead, she looked serene and non-aggressive, like the moon.
There was a kind of tranquil aura about her that he hadn’t seen in other beautiful women before.
The woman opened the door without even greeting him.
He was silent for a moment before lowering his head and saying, "I’m here to see Professor Ning."
"I am Professor Ning." As soon as she spoke, her voice was indeed exactly like the one on the phone.
She was the accomplished psychologist his uncle had found for him.
Xia Fanxing felt secretly alarmed, yet a bit irritated.
In truth, he didn’t want to leave his house, nor did he want to see any psychologist.
No matter how pretty the woman in front of him was, no matter how comfortable her aura made him feel.
Just hearing about her profession made him instinctively resistant.
However, he had come all the way here, so he couldn’t just turn around and leave.
Xia Fanxing lowered his head and stopped speaking.
Then, he was led into a room surrounded by walls filled with books. The room had two chairs and a small, natural wood-colored desk with nothing on it except a super-thin silver laptop.
She sat down on one of the chairs.
He looked at her for a moment before sitting down on the other chair.
...
Xia Fanxing lowered his head, remaining silent.
He was already used to people around him initiating conversations as if they were the start of a lengthy reprimand or lesson.
Everyone seemed so accomplished, as if they knew more than he did.
This young, pretty woman across from him, according to his uncle, was supposed to be a genius, a famous psychologist, and the youngest psychology professor in the history of the university.
With such a self-perceived sense of superiority, she would presumably talk to him in a similar fashion.
He was prepared to be lectured, but after waiting for a long time, there was no movement at all.
The office was filled with silent stillness.
The quiet lasted for so long that Xia Fanxing gradually grew anxious; he began to feel uncomfortable all over, yet the teacher across from him just quietly glanced at him.
He finally couldn’t hold back and asked, with frustration and grievance, "Aren’t you planning to ask me something?"
"About what?" Professor Ning answered with good-natured patience.
"Tell me what the right thing is to do, what the good thing is to do, what should be done. Didn’t my uncle want me to come to you for this very reason?"
Xia Fanxing let out a sarcastic laugh.
His mouth curled into a careless smile, yet deep within his eyes there was a profound sadness that he couldn’t see but was clear to Ning Youguang across from him.
She gently asked, "Do you feel like what you’re doing is wrong?"
"Yes, my uncle must have told you everything about my situation, right?" As he said this, the young man couldn’t help but cover his face, tears dripping from his eyes.
Soon, they trickled down through his fingers.
Ning Youguang said nothing, continuing to silently gaze at him.
Faced with her silence, Xia Fanxing’s emotions became even more uncontrollable.
Since he was already crying, he completely let go, fiercely releasing the discontent he held within in front of her.
He cried for a long time.
Ning Youguang still said nothing; during this time, she only quietly handed him a box of tissues.
After a long time, when Xia Fanxing’s sobbing gradually subsided, he grabbed a few tissues and wiped his eyes and face randomly, taking a deep breath.
He looked at the serene, yet exquisitely jade-sculpted woman across from him through tear-blurred eyes.
Even though she had done nothing and said nothing, he felt somewhat better.
Then, in a despondent tone, he said, "My uncle asked me to come to you, saying you could help me. I’ve decided to listen to you now. Tell me, what should I do? I’ll do whatever you say since I know my uncle is doing it for my own good."
He thought that now that he’d made it so clear, the teacher across from him would give him a long lecture about what to do, but unexpectedly, she simply asked in a calm voice, "Who approached me for this case study? Was it you, or your uncle?"
"Does it make a difference?"
"It makes a difference."
"What difference?" Xia Fanxing didn’t quite understand.
"You see, it’s your uncle who thinks you have a problem, so he reached out to me to work on your case, to alleviate his worries about you. You want me to help you because you know it’s for your uncle’s peace of mind. Throughout this process, I haven’t seen any reason why you personally feel you need my help. Therefore, as I see it, the person who truly needs help is your uncle, isn’t it?"