Chapter 15

Yu Congyan deeply realized that this matter could not be resolved with just his minor degree in psychology. A few days ago, there had been signs of improvement in Xia Wansheng’s condition, but now suddenly this new development had occurred. The only option was to call on his doctor friend.

Moments later, Fu Yan, who had just finished work at the clinic and was out walking his dog, held four short-legged Shiba Inu puppies wriggling in his arms. With some force, he punched the doorbell of the villa.

“I just got back to the country and you’re already summoning me to be your laborer. Can’t the Yu family afford a family doctor?” Fu Yan said impatiently.

He was truly pitiful—he had just returned from studying abroad in Germany, planning to inherit the vast family business and enjoy a life of leisure. But Yu Congyan was unexpectedly good at delegating tasks, making a single phone call to his older brother to get someone, while Fu Yan himself only counted as a partial favor.

“I’m just coasting through life here. You better have a good reason to ask for my help, or else our friendship is over!” Fu Yan growled, and the Shiba Inu in his arms bared its teeth in unison.

“The situation is complicated; others lack the professional expertise,” Yu Congyan said plainly, given their many years of acquaintance, not bothering to be polite and emphasizing the seriousness of the matter.

“Xia Wansheng’s condition fluctuates unpredictably,” Yu Congyan explained.

This time, it was Fu Yan who frowned.

“We need to see him in person to make a proper assessment, but one thing’s certain: these abnormal behaviors are not mere tricks to get your attention,” Fu Yan clicked his tongue.

After all, a canary wouldn’t risk its life just to please its owner.

Fu Yan had initially thought Yu Congyan was overreacting, but it now clearly fell within his professional expertise.

“Take me to his room. Maybe we can find some clues,” Fu Yan suggested after some thought.

Meanwhile, Xia Wansheng had just finished dealing with the discarded drafts left by his former love and was preparing to return to his bedroom feeling relieved.

By now, he had become adept at playing the role of a disgraced canary. He could calmly ignore the butler and servants’ hesitant expressions, occasionally revealing a faint air of melancholy—though in truth, he was just daydreaming about what to eat for dinner.

Approaching his bedroom door, he saw Butler Zhang standing in front of it, raising a hand to stop him.

“Mr. Xia, dinner is ready. Why not eat first?”

The old butler stood resolutely at the door as if guarding some unspeakable secret.

“???” Xia Wansheng briefly wondered which scene from the book this was and whether he should play along.

Had it already reached the tragic moment where the truth was revealed, causing Yu Aotian’s wrath to order his men to drag him to drown in the river?

Could he even struggle at this point?

Meanwhile, Fu Yan was leisurely searching for clues inside Xia Wansheng’s bedroom. Leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed, Yu Congyan reminded him, “Xia Wansheng is right outside. Have you thought about how you’ll explain this?”

Without looking up, Fu Yan replied, “I’m a doctor; healing is my duty. Besides, you forced me in here. What does it have to do with me?”

Yu Congyan thought to himself that Fu Yan was quite adept at shifting blame.

“But this trip isn’t entirely fruitless. Look what I found.” Fu Yan picked up a dusty gray notebook from the corner of the room.

Though Yu Congyan hadn’t seen the notebook before, the handwriting was unmistakably Xia Wansheng’s, and it seemed to have been written some time ago.

“Peeking at someone’s diary is unethical, but if the patient doesn’t find out, it’s often the best way to understand their mental state,” Fu Yan said as he put on gloves and opened the slightly yellowed diary.

What greeted his eyes were large swaths of blurred writing, impossible to decipher.

“Are you sure this is a clue?” Yu Congyan asked bluntly.

“The diary being in this state actually indicates it’s key to understanding his psychological changes,” Fu Yan said, unwilling to explain the complex psychology to an outsider.

After all, no one would understand the profound psychological knowledge involving astronomy, geography, and history unless they had lived through those eight years in Germany to synthesize and apply it.

Flipping through the pages, Fu Yan noticed that the dates on every diary entry had been blurred out.

Yet, the intensity of the pen strokes still conveyed the writer’s frenzied emotions at those times.

Initially confident, Fu Yan thought the diary would reveal impatience and anger, but as he read on, his expression shifted.

Why did the psychological state reflected in the diary change so drastically?

The earlier entries were full of large ink blots and vague expressions of hatred toward certain unnamed matters, revealing restlessness and yearning.

But the last few pages, written in fresh ink, were cold and terse, as if summarizing half a year’s major events in just a few sentences.

They had the air of someone who once sought dominion over the world.

“When you first told me Xia Wansheng’s mental state was off, I thought you were just like them, messing around for fun. But now…” Fu Yan’s tone turned unusually serious.

“He might be a remarkable figure. What we’re seeing could be his destructive alter ego—a persona formed out of hatred for the original self, disgusted by past actions, so this new personality has no will to survive…”

Yu Congyan’s brow twitched at this.

“Because the original personality will return eventually, he’s trying to end it all now,” Fu Yan explained in simple terms.

Yu Congyan was momentarily convinced.

But it seemed too coincidental. How could someone have such a stable dissociative identity disorder that nothing happens normally, but when a flaw is discovered, the personality suddenly switches?

“Most psychological problems stem from family neglect—that saying is spot on,” Fu Yan shook his head.

He sighed, thinking sometimes being misunderstood is the fate of a genius.

Outside the door, Xia Wansheng was trying to recall which scene he was being stopped at.

Suddenly, the long-dormant system in his mind activated, its sharp voice blaring: “Alert! Important clue discovered by the protagonist. High risk of exposure. Immediate intervention required!”

Its tone was unprecedentedly urgent, as if it wanted to rush to the door and stop the unfolding situation.

Xia Wansheng: ???!!

What part of the original story was this?

But the system inside his head was already roaring loudly, like the culprit who had made a huge mess and desperately wanted to fix it.

Meanwhile, the butler’s gaze remained steadfast, showing no intention of letting him back into the room.

“Sorry, Mr. Xia. The room was disinfected this morning. It’s really unsuitable to enter now,” the butler said delicately.

Inside, he was sweating profusely.

He didn’t want to offend any of these people!

But if he told the truth now, who knew what would happen next.

“Mr. Xia, why don’t you rest in the living room first... Are you feeling unwell?”

Xia Wansheng displayed his exceptional acting skills, clutching his chest and feigning chest tightness and breathlessness, appearing ready to collapse at the door.

Seizing the moment when the butler turned to support him, he deftly twisted the doorknob.

The door opened unexpectedly.

Due to inertia, Xia Wansheng nearly fell face-first onto the floor.

Just before his nose met the floor, Yu Congyan, standing by the door, quickly grabbed his collar and pulled him upright.

“!!!” Xia Wansheng’s eyes widened.

Yu Congyan’s next move wouldn’t be to calmly order the butler to deal with him, would it?

Or had his true identity been discovered?

For a moment, he couldn’t tell which outcome would be worse.

---

“Why are you in my room?” Xia Wansheng saw Fu Yan sitting on the floor and asked.

He recognized this person from previous novels—a doctor friend of the domineering CEO, a top scholar recently returned from studying abroad, wealthy yet preferring a quiet life. Fu Yan had appeared in several CEO novels by the same author.

A truly dedicated worker.

Xia Wansheng suddenly wanted to shake this senior’s hand and discuss how to maintain his composure and not break character in such an awkward situation.

“The reasons are complicated, but overall, we need to talk about this diary,” Fu Yan said, flipping it open and placing it in front of Xia Wansheng.

“Did you write these entries?”

Fu Yan stared at Xia Wansheng like a falcon eyeing its prey, confident in his judgment.

Human personality and preferences don’t change drastically overnight; the only explanation was that this shell contained a different personality.

“You’re not the original Xia Wansheng, are you?”

The system screamed in his mind: “Host, we’re doomed! Your five million and my year-end bonus are gone!”

In the original plot, this diary was a crucial turning point in their deteriorating relationship and revealed that Xia Wansheng had planned from the start to use the Yu family’s influence to make a comeback.

Although the system knew about this time bomb, it had no authority to request changes.

Now it was all over.

Just as his internship was about to become permanent, the time bomb exploded.

The system was utterly despondent.

How could it have caused such a mess?

Now all that remained was to hope the host could adapt and improvise.

“You figured it out?” Xia Wansheng asked calmly.

“!!!” The system was shocked.

Why was he already giving up? At least try to save it!

Before the system could recover, Xia Wansheng naturally stepped forward and picked up the diary from the floor.

“A while ago, a good character came to me. The diary was written during my early attempts to study and simulate that character’s psychology. I think I did a good job mimicking it,” Xia Wansheng said nonchalantly.

After all, the diary was written for acting practice; his mental state had nothing to do with the real him.

Hopefully, this excuse would pass muster.

“You’ve never played this kind of role before,” Yu Congyan said coldly.

He had thoroughly researched these days and found no record matching this character. His gaze darkened.

Xia Wansheng was lying again.

“Some complications arose, so the project was canceled,” Xia Wansheng seemed unwilling to elaborate.

“What could make you give up a role you prepared for so long? You put a lot of effort into it,” Fu Yan pressed.

Xia Wansheng glanced at Yu Congyan, and seeing no objection, sighed and closed the diary. His tone slowed, “The director wanted to exploit me. I beat him up, so I was blacklisted. That’s only natural.”

Though the original Xia Wansheng was arrogant and had offended many, the director had done many bad things and was now in jail. Yu Congyan certainly wouldn’t go confront him there.

This explanation was flawless.

Yet the two men opposite him suddenly felt a pang of conscience, as if struck by an arrow called “guilt.”