The Barrier of Reason and the Battering Hammer of Emotion

Once Su Xiao's drive is ignited, it spreads like wildfire. After confirming Lu Zi'ang's "single" status and the significant challenge he presented at the celebration banquet, she officially launched her pursuit. Her first wave of attacks was full of her personal style—passionate and direct.

On Monday morning, a pricey bouquet of exquisitely arranged imported sunflowers mixed with white tulips was delivered to Lu Ziang's department at the city hospital. The card bore Su Xiao's flowing handwriting: "To the busy Dr. Lu, may the sunflowers bring sunshine and the tulips bring tranquility. —Su Xiao"

According to the extremely simplified and rationally filtered version that Jiang Chen later obtained from Lu Ziang, after receiving the flowers, Lu Ziang, facing the curious gazes of his colleagues, simply placed the bouquet at the nurses' station and said to the head nurse, "Distribute some to the children in the ward; it can improve their mood." He casually tucked the card into a medical record folder, and that was the end of it. Su Xiao's carefully prepared romance was thus "redistributed" by him in the most efficient and reasonable way.

When Su Xiao found out, she was not discouraged at all. Instead, she felt that he "even dealt with the flowers from his suitors with such love and magnanimity."

In the first round, the emotional offensive clashed with the absolute rational defense, resulting in a complete defeat.

Unwilling to give up, Su Xiao quickly adjusted her strategy. Remembering that both Lu Ziang and Jiang Chen were skilled in and appreciated logic and data, she decided to "play to their tastes." She put considerable effort into collecting several highly-rated science fiction films and documentaries that Lu Ziang might be interested in, and meticulously created a data comparison and analysis table. The table listed the films' ratings, analyses of the core science fiction plot flaws, and their compatibility with her guesses about Lu Ziang's likely preferences, which she then sent to him via WeChat.

The postscript read: "Dr. Lu, you need to relax after work too~ These are all movies I carefully selected; the data and reviews are excellent, and I think they'll suit your taste!"

This time, Lu Zi'ang did reply. His reply was a calm and collected text:

"Ms. Su, thank you for your recommendation. However, your data analysis model has several problems:"

The sample size is too small and the source is singular, so it is not statistically significant.

The parameter settings for 'preference matching degree' are too subjective and lack objective quantitative standards.

Appreciation of film and television works is highly subjective, and using data analysis for recommendations is inefficient and its accuracy is questionable.

It is recommended to directly refer to authoritative rankings; there is no need to spend time and effort on this analysis.

Su Xiao stared at the reply, speechless for a long time. Lin Wanxing, noticing this, couldn't help but sigh and poured her a glass of water. "He's the same kind of person as Jiang Chen," Lin Wanxing tried to enlighten her friend, "Approaching him with these...superficial 'data' might not be as effective as being more sincere."

"Where did I not act sincerely?" Su Xiao retorted, "I spent so much time on it!"

“Perhaps,” Lin Wanxing carefully chose her words, “you’ve misdirected your time and energy. They value the essence of things more than the form.”

Su Xiao seemed to understand, but the sense of frustration was real.

In the second round, the overconfident tactic of "common language" was completely dismantled by the opponent's more rigorous logic.

After two unsuccessful attempts, Su Xiao decided to unleash what she considered her "secret weapon"—showing her virtuous and considerate side. Remembering that Lu Ziang had mentioned doctors didn't eat regularly, she meticulously prepared a luxurious multi-layered insulated food box. Inside was a beautifully plated bento box she had made according to a nutritious recipe, along with a handwritten card that playfully read: "Dr. Lu, even when you're busy, remember to eat on time~ A lovingly prepared nutritious meal to express my feelings."

This time, she deliberately chose to appear in Lu Ziang's clinic during the hospital's lunchtime. When Lu Ziang saw her and the conspicuous box, his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.

“Miss Su,” he spoke first, his tone more distant, “I appreciate your kindness, but please take the things back. Your actions could easily cause unnecessary misunderstandings.”

"This time is different!" Su Xiao quickly explained, with a hint of ingratiation, "This is food, you work so hard..."

“Thank you, but I still can’t accept it.” Lu Zi’ang interrupted her, his reasons still sound and irrefutable. “First, I’m not used to accepting food from unfamiliar people; that’s a basic principle of safety and boundaries. Second, the hospital has a cafeteria, so my meals are guaranteed.”

His words, clear and logical, instantly froze Su Xiao's enthusiasm. Watching his retreating figure without a backward glance, clutching the heavy food box, she felt a profound sense of defeat and embarrassment once more.

Su Xiao was feeling down after a series of setbacks, so she went to Lin Wanxing to complain. Jiang Chen happened to be in the office, sitting quietly in front of his computer with some complex code on the screen.

"Wanxing, how can someone like Lu Ziang still exist these days?" Su Xiao slumped on the sofa and sighed, "He refuses flowers, gets lectured for talking about movies! He even talks to me about boundaries when I bring him food! Does he have no human emotions at all?"

Lin Wanxing smiled helplessly, her gaze inadvertently sweeping over Jiang Chen in the corner. He was wearing headphones, seemingly shutting out external distractions, intently staring at the screen, his fingers occasionally tapping on the keyboard. A thought stirred within her, and she said to Su Xiao, "Perhaps it's not that they lack emotions, but rather that their ways of expressing and receiving them are different. Like... some people, they don't say much, but they silently do a lot of things well." Her words were pointed, as if she were referring to Lu Zi'ang, or perhaps to the silent figure in the room.

Jiang Chen's fingers paused almost imperceptibly for half a second while typing, then resumed their typing.

Su Xiao followed Lin Wanxing's gaze and pouted, "You mean someone like Jiang Chen? Sigh, he's pretty good, but someone like Lu Ziang doesn't give you a chance at all!" She suddenly sat up straight, as if she had thought of a new idea, "That's it! He works so hard, his neck must be sore! I'll buy him a high-end U-shaped pillow! That should be useful this time, right?"

Two days later, Su Xiao indeed reappeared at the hospital carrying a beautifully packaged, luxurious U-shaped pillow made of the latest memory foam technology. This time, she was smarter; instead of delivering it directly to the department, she "coincidentally" met Lu Ziang at the hospital entrance when he was leaving work.

"Dr. Lu! What a coincidence!" Su Xiao greeted him with a bright smile. "Just got off work? This... I saw you were working so hard, this is very useful for relieving neck fatigue, here you go!" She handed over the gift, her eyes full of anticipation.

Lu Ziang looked at the obviously expensive pillow but didn't take it. He was silent for a few seconds, and just when Su Xiao thought he was about to launch into another rational analysis of pillow principles, he spoke, his tone more serious and direct than ever before:

"Ms. Su, thank you very much for your kindness. But please stop!"

Su Xiao's smile froze.

Lu Ziang continued calmly, as if informing me of an ailment: "First, we are not familiar with each other, and frequently receiving your gifts will cause me unnecessary psychological burden and social pressure. Second, your behavior has already interfered with my work rhythm and personal space to some extent. Third, based on our limited contact, I believe we have significant differences in our ways of thinking, behavioral patterns, and interests, and are not suitable for developing the deeper relationship you seem to desire. In conclusion, your behavior is inefficient and meaningless. Please stop."

His words were like a scalpel, precise, cold, and merciless. Su Xiao's face instantly turned deathly pale, and her eyes began to redden slightly. Holding the expensive U-shaped pillow, she stood there, as if someone had poured a bucket of ice water over her head, leaving even her fingertips feeling cold.

“I…” she wanted to say something, but found that any words seemed pale and powerless in the face of his impeccable “rational analysis”.

Seeing the disappointment in Su Xiao's reddened eyes, Lu Ziang felt that his words might have been a bit harsh. However, he was not good at expressing himself gently, so he could only nod slightly to her as a final courtesy. Then he walked past her and headed straight for the subway station without looking back.

Su Xiao stood there, watching his resolute back, and for the first time felt what true embarrassment and heartbreak meant. She wasn't unfamiliar with rejection, but never had she been so utterly negated in such an "objective" and "reasonable" way.

She found Lin Wanxing, cradling her pillow in a daze. This time, she didn't even have the strength to complain. With red eyes, she recounted what had happened. "He said I was... inefficient, meaningless..." she choked back sobs, repeating Lu Ziang's last words. For someone who had always been so confident, this was a huge blow.

Lin Wanxing put her arm around her shoulder with heartache and gently comforted her, "Perhaps... he just needs time, or... to reach out in another way." Lin Wanxing tried to comfort her, but she also knew how pale these words were at this moment.

"No more." Su Xiao rubbed her eyes hard, her voice still nasal, but her tone was clearer and more stubborn. "I, Su Xiao, can take it or leave it! He doesn't like me, and I don't like that blockhead of a man!" Despite her words, the disappointment and hurt in her eyes could not be easily erased.

The battering ram of emotion shattered before the impenetrable wall of reason. Watching her friend's sorrow, Lin Wanxing gained a clearer, yet more blurred, understanding of the boundary between "emotion" and "reason." Her own heart seemed to be subtly changing through these observations.