Chapter 41
In the study of the City Lord's Mansion, the atmosphere was as solemn as a block of frozen lead.
The dark wooden bookshelves exuded an old smell, and the air was filled with the smell of expensive cigars and an invisible, suffocating pressure.
Lu Cheng stood not far from the door, his back straight, brows furrowed, his whole body exuding resistance and alienation.
Ever since the truth of the illusion scam was exposed, his relationship with his father Lu Tianheng has reached freezing point.
If his father had not sounded extremely serious in the communication this time, and even mentioned that it was "related to Lin Yao", he would not have set foot here at all.
"Father, what exactly do you want to talk to me about?" Lu Cheng's voice was filled with suppressed impatience, and he got straight to the point. "Is it related to Yaoyao? What happened to him?"
He was alarmed, worried that his father was going to do something again.
Lu Tianheng sat behind a large desk, a half-burned cigar between his fingers. The smoke curled up, blurring his majestic but now extremely tired face.
He did not answer Lu Cheng immediately, but turned his gaze to the other side of the study.
Only then did Lu Cheng notice that his father wasn't the only one in the study. There were two people sitting on the sofa by the window.
One was Xia Wei, who was wearing a modified version of a neatly tailored combat uniform that outlined her beautiful figure. At the moment, she was folding her arms, her delicate chin slightly raised, and looking at Lu Cheng with a complex and difficult-to-understand look, which contained undisguised resentment and a hint of... indescribable pride and satisfaction.
Sitting next to Xia Wei was a woman of graceful and calm demeanor. She looked to be in her forties, well-maintained, with a hint of her youthful beauty visible between her features. Her deep eyes held the wisdom bestowed by time and a reassuring power.
She was none other than Xia Wei's mother, Su Yingxue, a top-tier psychic with immense spiritual power, just one step away from reaching the legendary SS-rank.
She is also the elder who watched Lu Cheng grow up and provided crucial guidance and protection in the early stages of Lu Cheng's supernatural power development. Lu Cheng has always had deep respect and dependence on her.
"Aunt Xue? Xiaowei?" Lu Cheng was a little surprised, but nodded politely. "Good morning, nice to meet you."
Su Yingxue nodded gently, her eyes calm. Xia Wei snorted coldly and turned away, clearly unhappy that the bitch had returned to her beloved brother, Ah Cheng.
"Please sit down first." Lu Tianheng finally spoke, his voice low and hoarse, with a hint of imperceptible fatigue. "Cheng'er, I called you back this time because Yingxue found out something about you. To be more precise, it's about what happened between you and Lin Yao."
"Yaoyao?" Lu Cheng's heart suddenly tightened, and he looked at his father and Su Yingxue warily, "What's the matter? He's fine! Father, I hope you won't try again..."
"Cheng'er," Su Yingxue interrupted him softly. Her voice flowed like a spring, carrying a strange soothing power, but it made Lu Cheng's heart beat faster. "Don't worry, we just want to confirm some things."
"Confirm what?" Lu Cheng's brows furrowed even tighter, and an ominous premonition quietly arose.
Lu Tianheng did not answer directly, but looked at Su Yingxue and asked in a deep voice: "Yingxue, can you see it?"
Su Yingxue's gaze fell on Lu Cheng. It was no longer the gentle gaze of an elder, but became as substantial as substance, deep and focused, as if it could penetrate the skin and look straight into the depths of the soul.
She slowly closed her eyes, and an invisible, vast and gentle mental power, like mercury pouring on the ground, silently enveloped Lu Cheng.
Lu Cheng's body tensed instantly! As an S-level psychic, his perception of mental power was extremely sharp.
Although Su Yingxue's mental power was gentle, it carried an irresistible, huge pressure like the deep sea.
He didn't resist because it was Aunt Xue, an elder he trusted. But the uneasiness in his heart grew like wild weeds.
Time passed in a suffocating silence. Su Yingxue closed her eyes, her brows sometimes furrowed, sometimes relaxed, as if she was carefully distinguishing something extremely subtle and complex.
Finally, she slowly opened her eyes, and deep in those eyes filled with wisdom, there flashed a trace of shock and... solemnity that was difficult to conceal.
She nodded very slowly and heavily to Lu Tianheng.
"What the hell is going on?!" Lu Cheng could no longer contain himself and spoke suddenly, his voice carrying a hint of panic that he himself didn't even notice. "Aunt Xue, Father! What are you talking about? What did you see?!"
Su Yingxue looked at him with a complicated expression, a hint of pity in her eyes, but her voice remained steady: "Cheng'er, your memory... has been tampered with. It was very delicate, but also very... fragile."
boom--!
It was like a bolt of thunder exploding in my mind.
Lu Cheng froze in place for an instant, his pupils suddenly shrank, and the blood drained from his face at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"Tampered with? My memory?"
He repeated in disbelief, his voice dry and hoarse.
"This is impossible, Aunt Xue! I'm an S-class psychic. How could someone tamper with my memory without me noticing? Unless it's..."
He paused abruptly, thinking of the legendary existence, "Unless it's an SS-level psychic. But SS-level..."
"I can't confirm whether the other party is SS-level or not." Su Yingxue shook her head, her eyes sharp as a needle, "But you know this person."
"Who?" Lu Cheng asked subconsciously, but his heart sank to the bottom.
"Lin Yao." Lu Tianheng's cold voice was like a heavy hammer, hitting Lu Cheng's heart hard.
“Impossible!!!” Lu Cheng almost roared, like a cat whose tail was stepped on, his fur instantly standing on end.
"Yaoyao... he only has F-level potential! How could he possibly have the ability to tamper with memories?! Father! Aunt Xue! Are you mistaken?! Is someone framing him?!"
His eyes were filled with offended anger and a defensiveness that bordered on paranoid.
"F-Class?" Lu Tianheng sneered, stood up, and walked over to Lu Cheng, his eyes as sharp as a hawk. "Okay, even if he's F-Class. Then let me ask you, you said you met on the edge of Area D7, so where was he before? Why is there no record of him?"
Lu Cheng's chest heaved as he suppressed his anger. "His identity chip was destroyed. In order to be with me, he was forced to destroy it and wandered on the edge of the contaminated area for several months. During that time..."
His voice was choked with sobs, and there was real heartache in his eyes. "He must have suffered a lot, so he doesn't want to talk about the past."
"Destroyed?" Lu Tianheng pressed on. "Even if it was destroyed, the central database should have the original registration and destruction records. But I used my highest authority to search through all the files. The name Lin Yao first appeared in the official records of City D on August 23, 437 of the Star Calendar. That was three months after he accompanied you to the Psychic Training School. Before that, there was no record! A blank! It's like... he appeared out of thin air."
Lu Chengru was hit hard and staggered back a step, bumping into the back of the sofa.
August 23, 437? This date… He subconsciously wanted to refute it, but several images flashed through his mind.
When he wanted to know about Yaoyao's past life and his experience of wandering in District D7, Yaoyao's eyes were always filled with sadness and fear, and his answers were vague, with "It's too terrible, I don't want to recall it."
Those answers perfectly explained all the questions, but never provided any specific details about time, place, or people.
"That... that's because he was so frightened! He encountered a powerful polluting beast on the edge."
Lu Cheng's voice was a little weak, but he was still struggling, trying to find a reasonable explanation for Lin Yao. The heartache in his heart once again took over, "He needs time..."
"So frightened that you could erase all official records?" Lu Tianheng's voice rose, filled with anger and disappointment.
"Cheng'er! Wake up! Are you sure he never tampered with your memory? Never influenced your perception and feelings towards him in any way?!"
"I'm sure!" Lu Cheng said firmly, his eyes firm. "Yaoyao... he loves me! I love him too! Our relationship is real! We don't need any external interference!"
He seemed to want to use this firm declaration to dispel the cold doubt that was growing in his heart.
Looking at him who was so deceived yet stubborn, Lu Tianheng was so angry that his chest heaved violently and he slammed the table.
"Okay! You're sure! Very well then!" He turned to Su Yingxue, his tone carrying an unquestionable command, "Yingxue, since he's so sure, then please help him 'check' and let him see for himself. What on earth did his beloved do to him?"
Lu Cheng suddenly looked at Su Yingxue, with a hint of pleading and a final hope in his eyes: "Auntie Xue..."
Su Yingxue looked at the mixed light of trust, pain, and a hint of pleading in Lu Cheng's eyes and sighed softly, "Cheng'er, don't be afraid. I'm just checking the memory imprint of your mind domain regarding the existence of 'Lin Yao'. I won't hurt you, nor will I pry into your privacy. If you truly believe that he didn't do anything, this is the only way to clear his name."
Looking at Su Yingxue's calm and powerful eyes, Lu Cheng's trust in Aunt Xue finally overwhelmed the slight uneasiness in his heart.
If this could make my father give up, and could completely prove Yaoyao's innocence...
"Okay." He took a deep breath, sat on the sofa, closed his eyes, and said with a desperate determination, "Auntie Xue, come on."
Su Yingxue nodded, extended her slender white fingers, and gently tapped Lu Cheng's brow. A spiritual force, more condensed and pure than before, as vast and gentle as the deep sea, slowly penetrated Lu Cheng's spiritual realm.
Lu Cheng's body tensed instantly, like a fully drawn bowstring. The mind is a person's most core and intimate part. Being invaded by an external force feels incredibly uncomfortable, like a cold probe piercing deep into the brain. But he fought the discomfort and tried to relax.
Time passes by every second.
Su Yingxue's expression became increasingly solemn, her brows furrowed, as if she was peeling off the disguise covering an extremely delicate yet extremely fragile work of art.
Fine beads of cold sweat oozed out of Lu Cheng's forehead.
Sudden!
Su Yingxue's fingers trembled slightly, and her mental power seemed to have touched something extremely subtle, as fragile as spider silk, but with a unique mental imprint.
This is it!
She carefully guided her mental power, like the most delicate tweezers, gently and extremely slowly touching and analyzing the mark.
The way this imprint is constructed is extremely unique. It does not forcibly implant a complete memory picture, but leaves a basic information anchor about "Lin Yao" and a powerful psychological suggestion: "You fall in love with him at first sight/you are extremely familiar with him/you must protect him."
All the remaining "memories" about "meeting", "getting along" and "falling in love" were actually deduced, filled in and imagined by Lu Cheng's own brain based on this powerful psychological suggestion and anchor point, combined with his own experience, emotions and expectations.
That's why it appears so real, so reasonable, and so seamlessly integrated with Lu Cheng's original memory, because it was originally created by Lu Cheng himself.
This method is both ingenious and extremely vicious! It utilizes the human brain's powerful ability to associate and rationalize, deeply burying the seeds of falsehood and allowing the victim to cultivate an entire forest of falsehood themselves.
Su Yingxue's eyes flashed with shock and coldness. Carefully, without damaging Lu Cheng's spiritual essence, she began to try to peel away the fragile basic mark and the attached psychological guidance.
This process is like dancing on nerve endings, extremely dangerous and painful!
“Ugh—!”
Lu Cheng suddenly groaned in pain, his body shaking violently. It was as if countless red-hot needles were piercing his brain, stirring up his memories.
The scenes he cherished so much, of "meeting", "knowing each other" and "loving each other" with Lin Yao, began to twist violently, shake and crack like the surface of water where a stone was thrown.
He saw the silver-haired boy he first met at the edge of Area D7, his body covered in wounds but with a stubborn and clear look in his eyes. A cold scrutiny seemed to flash across the depths of his eyes that he had never noticed before.
He heard Lin Yao talk about the pain of destroying his identity chip, and behind those sad tears, there seemed to be a kind of indifferent calculation hidden.
He felt every heartbeat, the tenderness and dependence that made him addicted, but now it was like a carefully woven, cold net.
No! It's not true! Yaoyao... Yaoyao...
Lu Cheng screamed wildly in his heart, trying to hold on to the beautiful illusions that were shattering. The huge pain and confusion overwhelmed him like a tsunami, and physiological tears flowed out of his eyes uncontrollably.
finally!
laugh--!
An extremely slight sound, like the sound of a broken guitar string, rang out deep in Lu Cheng's spiritual realm.
Su Yingxue abruptly withdrew her fingers, her face turned slightly pale, and sweat broke out on her forehead.
In her palm, an extremely faint, almost transparent fragment of the spiritual imprint flickered like a candle in the wind. It was the guiding anchor point belonging to Lin Yao that she had forcibly separated from Lu Cheng's spiritual domain.
"Cheng'er..." Su Yingxue's voice was a little tired and heavy.
Lu Cheng collapsed on the sofa as if exhausted, breathing heavily, his back soaked with sweat.
He stared at the ceiling with empty eyes, which contained fragmented light and great confusion.
The pain and the tearing of memories at that moment were real.
That peeled fragment of the mark... is also real.
At this moment, a cold, hard little object slipped from his palm, which had loosened slightly due to pain, and with a crisp "ding-dong" sound, it fell crisply on the smooth marble floor.
It was an extremely exquisite velvet jewelry box.
The box was smashed open, and a pair of cufflinks fell out. The cufflinks were made of a starry sapphire as deep as the night sky, and were surrounded by tiny diamonds, like a galaxy surrounding the stars. Under the ceiling light in the study, they reflected a dreamy and cold luster.
This was something he had specially chosen for Lin Yao. It was more precious than the necklace and he was going to give it to him as a gift during their date tonight.
He was originally filled with joy, looking forward to seeing Yaoyao's surprised smile...
At this moment, the pair of cufflinks, symbolizing love and the future, lay alone on the cold floor, reflecting the dazzling light of the chandelier and Lu Cheng's face, as pale as paper, filled with the numbness and emptiness after the collapse of faith.
He lowered his head stiffly and extremely slowly, his eyes fixed on the pair of cufflinks, then slowly raised it and looked at the faint but extremely dazzling mark fragment in Su Yingxue's palm. Finally, his eyes fixed on the report on the blank space in Lin Yao's file that his father had prepared long ago on the desk.
The four cold bold letters "Memory Tampering" were like a red-hot iron, searing fiercely into his retina and burning through his heart that had just been immersed in great happiness.
The world shattered completely in silence.
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