"After I got home, I originally planned not to disturb him for the next few days because he said that day that he wanted to have a good sleep. I also felt that he had a very difficult year and he should rest quietly for a while."
He Jingsheng recalled, "But on the third night, my aunt found the gift contract in my pocket while she was doing laundry. That's when I remembered that after he received the call, we were in such a hurry to get to the scene that I forgot to return it to him."
In fact, until that point, He Jingsheng still didn't think too much about it. He just thought that since Ye Ying was gone anyway, Jiang Que would definitely come back after a while, and it wouldn't be too late to return it to him then.
Unexpectedly, just as He Jingsheng was about to put the contract away, the aunt who handed it to him suddenly made a joke.
She said, "Why does this look like a will?"
He Jingsheng was stunned by what she said.
Auntie's words were just unintentional, but they happened to pluck a dull chord in him. He looked down at the contract, and suddenly his ears echoed with the words Jiang Que said in the cemetery -
"I'm a little tired."
"I guess I can't go back."
"I'll leave this house to you as a souvenir."
He Jingsheng's heart skipped a beat, because these words sounded so ominous together, and he was so annoyed by the meaning of "repay" in the words at the time that he completely ignored this aspect.
He Jingsheng suddenly realized what was happening and thought to himself that it was bad. He quickly took out his cell phone and called Jiang Que.
No one answered.
He hit several more in succession.
Still no one answered.
It's over.
He Jingsheng thought.
His first reaction was to call the police, but just as he was about to dial, he suddenly remembered that this was just his guess and there was no evidence. What if nothing happened? Wouldn't it be nonsense to call the police?
Thinking of this, he simply bought the fastest plane ticket and decided to go there first to take a look. Then he picked up his clothes and prepared to go out.
But at this moment, the phone rang.
The caller was Jiang Que.
He Jingsheng quickly picked up the phone: "Hello?"
"What's wrong?" Jiang Que on the opposite side asked calmly.
"Why didn't you answer the phone just now?" He Jingsheng was still anxious.
"My phone is on silent," Jiang Que replied calmly, "Do you have something to talk to me about?"
"Are you okay?" He Jingsheng blurted out.
Jiang Que didn't seem to understand: "What do you mean?"
Hearing his normal tone, He Jingsheng finally realized that this was probably just a false alarm. He was relieved that he hadn't called the police rashly. "Oh...it's okay. When are you planning to come back?"
This was just a casual question he asked to change the subject, but Jiang Que was silent for a moment after hearing it, and then said, "I'm back."
"What?!"
He Jingsheng's voice instantly rose eighteen degrees: "When?!"
"yesterday."
This answer shocked not only He Jingsheng at that time, but also Song Yecheng and Zuo Jianqing in the hospital duty ward who were caught off guard by this turn of events.
Song Yecheng frowned and said, "He went back the day after you went back?"
He Jingsheng nodded in disbelief. "I asked him why he didn't tell me he was coming back, and he said he was busy. I asked him what he was busy with, and he said... renting a house."
Hearing this word, Song Yecheng instantly realized something: "Is it the tube-shaped building where he lived before?"
"Yes," He Jingsheng said, "I was completely baffled at the time. I thought, he clearly bought a house, why would he rent one? Then I changed my mind and thought, could he really take that gift contract seriously and think that the house is mine? So I quickly asked him for his address, thinking of going over to talk it out with him."
He Jingsheng originally thought that even if Jiang Que rented a house, he would rent a house similar to that apartment. However, when he drove over to the address, he found that it was a dilapidated, deserted area waiting to be demolished. It was dark and he almost thought he had gone to the wrong place.
There's certainly nothing wrong with the place.
Jiang Que indeed lived there.
He Jingsheng went upstairs full of confusion, and the first thing he did when he entered the house was to take out the contract and return it to him.
Jiang Que said he didn't want it, and He Jingsheng said, "If you don't want it, I don't want it either."
"If you don't want it, just sell it." Jiang Que said lightly.
He Jingsheng didn't expect him to be so stubborn, so he just followed suit: "Even if you sell it, it's not mine, right? I still have to give you the money."
Jiang Que said indifferently, "Then donate it for me."
He Jingsheng originally thought that this was just some angry remark, but he didn't know until later that Jiang Que not only didn't want the house, he also donated all his savings and only left one year's rent.
One year's rent.
Song Yecheng knew about this matter, as Jiang Que had told him in person. However, although he had some guesses in his mind at the time, he had never asked Jiang Que for the reason.
Hearing He Jingsheng mention this, he couldn't help but ask, "Have you ever asked him why he only kept one year's rent?"
He Jingsheng said, "I asked him, and asked him more than once, why he only left one year's rent, and what he planned to do after that year. At first, he always brushed me off, always saying 'we'll talk about it when the time comes'. Later, I asked him more and more, and one time he was silent for a long time, and finally asked me a confusing question."
"He said... Do you believe that the dead can be resurrected and time can be reversed?"
As soon as these words were spoken, Song Yecheng and Zuo Jianqing immediately looked at each other in tacit understanding, because these words obviously matched what Jiang Que said about "rebirth" - after death, one will return to a year ago anyway, so there is no need to consider a year later.
Zuo Jianqing quickly asked, "And then? How did you answer?"
He Jingsheng didn't understand why he suddenly became excited, and said in confusion, "Of course I don't believe it. And the resurrection or something, it should refer to his adoptive parents, right? I thought he must have been fooled by some charlatan, believing that 'giving away all the family wealth and coming back to life' or something like that, so he gave away all the money. So I quickly confirmed with him how he donated the money. What if the scammer took it and said it was donated for him, but ended up pocketing it all for himself?"
“…”
Zuo Jianqing and Song Yecheng were speechless for a moment. They had not expected that He Jingsheng would have such a train of thought. However, after thinking about it, they found that his idea was actually very reasonable and even the logic was self-consistent.
He Jingsheng looked at their expressions and asked guiltily, "What are you doing?"
Zuo Jianqing shook his head and asked, "What did he say?"
He Jingsheng blinked, his brows furrowed slightly, his eyes filled with confusion. "He seemed... a little disappointed with my reaction. He told me I was overthinking it, and that it was just a setting for his new book, nothing more."
disappointment.
After hearing this description, Song Yecheng and Zuo Jianqing pondered for a moment and soon came up with a similar guess.
To verify this speculation, Zuo Jianqing asked again, "After he came back, did you feel any changes in him? Or, in other words, during your time together, was there anything about him that made you feel that was not right?"
He Jingsheng seemed to have hit a nerve when he heard this, and immediately said, "It's not 'something's wrong', it's 'everything's wrong'! Take the fact that he rented a place, for example. Even if he did, why did he choose such a remote and shabby place? Why did he donate all his money and only keep one year's rent? This is all wrong."
These things were indeed not right, but this was already known. Zuo Jianqing did not intend to delve into it further and simply changed the direction of guidance, saying, "What I mean is, apart from these, is there anything different about his words, actions, and attitude?"
He Jingsheng was stunned for a moment. After a brief recollection, his expression became a little tangled, as if he had been reminded of something. "To be honest, I actually had a vague feeling at the time, but I wondered if I was being too sensitive. I always felt that... my relationship with him seemed to have regressed."
"What do you mean?" Zuo Jianqing asked.
He Jingsheng said, "Back in college, he was the type of person who never confided in me. It wasn't until after graduation when he stayed here to buy a house, and then after going through what happened with his adoptive parents, that I felt like we were getting closer. At least he could often tell me what was on his mind. But ever since he came back, I feel like we've become distant again, like we've gone back to college. He's become the person who never said anything and kept everything to himself."
He paused for a moment, as if remembering something more, and added, "Also... I feel like his whole state is different now. He still looks haggard, but he's no longer sad or depressed. It's like... he suddenly doesn't care about what happened in the past two years. He's lost interest in everything, as if nothing has anything to do with him."
Zuo Jianqing nodded thoughtfully and asked, "After he came back, did you mention his adoptive parents to him?"
He Jingsheng thought about it, then shook his head and said, "At that time, I just wanted him to forget all those bad things as soon as possible, so why would I take the initiative to bring it up with him? Including the house he bought. After I gave him the contract, I didn't dare mention it again. Because that night when I got home, I suddenly remembered that before his adoptive father had the accident, he was going to come over to help him decorate his new house. Maybe that's why he didn't want to live in that house anymore?"
After he finished speaking, he paused, then suddenly seemed to remember something and changed the subject, "But it's not like I haven't mentioned it at all. I have hinted at it a few times."
"The first time was before the winter solstice last year. I was wondering if he would go back to visit his ancestors' graves, so I called him and asked if he was going back to Suzhou the next day. He asked me, 'Why would you go back?' I choked and swallowed my words back."
"The second time was this year," He Jingsheng looked at Song Yecheng, "when I went to your Liangji Villa's opening party. I mentioned Qingming Festival to him and asked if he would have a day off, but he ignored me."
Hearing this, Zuo Jianqing's speculation was almost confirmed, but he still didn't rush to draw conclusions. He continued to ask, "Have you met frequently since he came back?"
He Jingsheng smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Didn't I tell you that since he came back, he has become just like he was in college, quiet and cold, staying at home all day without even leaving the house. Seeing him is harder than climbing to heaven."
At this point, he seemed to suddenly remember something and turned to Song Yecheng and said, "Oh right, that's why I remember him going to the set of 'Heaven Will Snow' so clearly. Because after he came back, he almost never contacted me and never left the house. I asked him to take him to the set several times, but he refused. But that day, he actually called me and said he wanted to visit the set. I was really surprised."
This was exactly the question Zuo Jianqing wanted to ask next, but unexpectedly He Jingsheng brought it up on his own initiative. Zuo Jianqing simply followed the trend and asked, "What exactly happened that day?"
He Jingsheng recalled, "That morning... he called me and said he wanted to go to the crew and asked if I could arrange it. I was quite surprised at the time, thinking why did he want to go again? But it was not a difficult thing to do, so I agreed immediately and was ready to go with him. But he said he didn't need me to accompany him because I knew too many people on the crew and he didn't want to attract attention. He just wanted to arrange for someone to bring him to the crew."
He Jingsheng looked at Song Yecheng and said, "As you know, I was the one who introduced the martial arts team to the crew. I'm most familiar with Team Leader Liu from their props team, so I contacted him directly and said that a friend of mine wanted to join the crew. But you guys had filming all day and all night that day, so he said he would arrange for a stagehand to pick you up at the airport, and he would come to meet you after you join the crew."
"After we made contact, I called Jiang Que back. We hadn't seen each other for a long time, so I said I would drive to pick him up and take him to the airport. He didn't agree at first and insisted on going alone. Later, when I told him I was already on my way, he had no choice but to agree."
Zuo Jianqing and Song Yecheng noticed something at the same time. Zuo Jianqing frowned slightly and confirmed, "So it sounds like... he seemed to be avoiding you that day?"
He Jingsheng admitted: "Indeed, I felt the same way at the time, and I thought he was a bit strange that day."
Song Yecheng's expression changed slightly: "Why?"
He Jingsheng said, "From the moment he left home to the airport that day, he barely spoke a word in my car. When I spoke to him, he only replied briefly with two words. He was also wearing a mask that day, covering it tightly. I asked him what was wrong, and he said he had a cold. I told him not to go if he wasn't feeling well, and to go another day. But he said it was fine and it wouldn't affect him."
After hearing this answer, Song Yecheng's expectant look dimmed a little, and Zuo Jianqing was unable to draw too many clues from it. After all, these behaviors might seem strange to He Jingsheng, but they were not extremely abrupt. If Jiang Que was really unwell, his silence was understandable.
"besides."
Unexpectedly, at this moment, He Jingsheng spoke again: "When I arrived at his house that day, he was signing for a package at the door. At first glance, I thought his posture was a bit awkward. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that he was writing with his left hand. However, because his right hand was also busy holding the package, I thought it was just a coincidence and didn't think much of it."
"But later I discovered that day, whether he was opening and closing the door, taking a ticket or grabbing something, he subconsciously reached out with his left hand - but I have known him for six years, and his dominant hand has always been his right hand. He has never had the habit of using his left hand."
As soon as these words came out, Song Yecheng and Zuo Jianqing's eyes lit up, and Song Yecheng asked almost anxiously: "Are you sure?"
He Jingsheng had said so much, but this was the first time he saw such a big reaction from the two of them. He was inevitably startled, and then he nodded seriously and said, "I'm sure."
The two seemed to have finally gotten the answer they wanted. They turned their heads and looked at each other as if they were silently discussing something. After a moment, they looked at He Jingsheng again. Zuo Jianqing said, "There's something we didn't tell you before, but I can tell you now."
His words were rather serious, sounding as if he was about to announce some bad news. He Jingsheng couldn't help but swallow nervously, "...What is it?"
Song Yecheng took over the conversation: "Jiang Que once told me that he was reborn."
The reason why they tacitly did not mention this matter to He Jingsheng before was not because they wanted to hide anything from him, but because they did not want his memories and narration to be influenced by other factors and be affected by preconceived psychological suggestions.
Precisely because he did not know the existence of "rebirth", when faced with Zuo Jianqing and Song Yecheng's questioning about some details, he did not have too many associations or make far-fetched assumptions due to associations, and the answers he gave were the most real and objective.
This is just like how the police always take separate notes when extracting testimony. Completely independent testimonies complement and corroborate each other to restore the truth to the greatest extent possible. Whenever one party is influenced by the other, subtle deviations may occur.
By this point, He Jingsheng had almost told everything he knew, and Song Yecheng and Zuo Jianqing had already gotten the answers to everything they wanted to verify, so there was naturally no need to continue "isolating" him from this matter.
Rebirth is like a bombshell to anyone, including He Jingsheng.
As Song Yecheng was telling his story, he seemed to be stunned, and his expression was blank for a while.
However, as Song Yecheng continued speaking, the blank space was gradually replaced by a wave of realization, because he gradually discovered that if he looked at it from the perspective of "rebirth", all the changes in Jiang Que that made him feel "wrong" could be explained -
He only kept one year's rent because he felt that he would be back to his old ways in a year.
He was indifferent to everything around him because he felt that everything would "ultimately vanish into nothing."
What he meant by "coming back from the dead and going back in time" was not referring to his adoptive parents, but to himself.
Clues gradually surfaced, just like a piece of glass that was originally only visible on one side slowly became transparent, and what appeared on the glass was no longer one's own reflection, but the scenery on the other side of the glass.
However, even though all the known conditions have been pieced together, and it is obvious that there is a causal relationship between the car accident, rebirth, online articles and Jiang Que's mental problems, He Jingsheng still cannot come up with a clear and accurate logical chain.
"So..." He Jingsheng looked at Song Yecheng and Zuo Jianqing, "What is your conclusion now?"
Song Yecheng remained silent. Although his inner guess had already taken shape with the past events revealed by He Jingsheng, he was still a layman in the field of psychiatry. So he didn't try to show off his skills. Instead, he and He Jingsheng looked at Zuo Jianqing together and asked, "What do you think?"
Zuo Jianqing rested his elbows on the table, with his fingers crossed and placed against his lips, but he didn't seem to be thinking, but rather organizing his words.
After a moment, he put down his hand and finally said, "Let's make an assumption first."
Song Yecheng and He Jingsheng nodded.
Zuo Jianqing said, "Assuming his mental state is perfectly fine, then the footage shot in the crew's warehouse proves that the so-called 'prophecies' in his online article are a complete hoax he staged and directed himself, and his 'rebirth' theory is a lie he fabricated to create a reasonable explanation for this hoax—the reason I can predict the future is because I was reborn from the future."
These words were obviously very different from what Song Yecheng was thinking. He frowned slightly and was about to refute, but Zuo Jianqing quickly raised his hand to stop him: "Don't be impatient, I said this is just a hypothesis, I haven't finished yet."
Song Yecheng pursed his lips, but didn't say anything else. He nodded and signaled him to continue.
As expected, Zuo Jianqing quickly changed the subject. "But this hypothesis only connects the 'online article' and 'rebirth' together, but it fails to explain another question—why did he lie about his adoptive parents going abroad? After all, whether his adoptive parents went abroad or passed away, it wouldn't have any impact on his scam. There was absolutely no need for him to go to the trouble of making up this lie."
As he spoke, he looked at He Jingsheng and said, "More importantly, if he deliberately fabricated this lie, then knowing that you knew the truth, he should at least ask you to keep it confidential, instead of letting you know and ignoring it, making this lie a hidden danger that could be revealed accidentally."
He Jingsheng nodded in agreement.
Song Yecheng had already heard that he was using hypotheticals to reverse the story, and finally added: "Also, if he was just lying, there was no need to link the reasons for his two 'rebirths' to his adoptive parents' car accidents. That would only increase the risk of being exposed. He could just make up two accidents that were unique to him."
Zuo Jianqing nodded and said, "Yes. This hypothesis has too many logical flaws to be reasonable. Therefore, I am more inclined to believe that those 'Arabian Nights' are not lies he deliberately fabricated, but 'truths' that even he believes in. This means that there is indeed a problem with his mental state."
In fact, this conclusion had already taken root in the minds of Song Yecheng and He Jingsheng, but it had to be admitted that after Zuo Jianqing's rigorous assumption and rebuttal based on his professionalism, the weight of this conclusion was obviously heavier than before.
"Let's get back to the point."
Zuo Jianqing concluded his hypothetical foreshadowing and finally got to the point. "Actually, after understanding his experiences, his mental health issues are easy to understand. Whether it was the devastating loss of his adoptive father or the year-long torture and abuse inflicted by his adoptive mother, they must have indelibly damaged his spirit. Even on the anniversary of his adoptive father's death, he showed clear signs of self-abandonment."
"That day in the cemetery, his mental state was probably already on the verge of collapse, and the 'replay of the past' created by his adoptive mother's suicide was the final blow, completely severing that thread. So, in my opinion, his mental problems must have completely erupted on that day."
This judgment was similar to what Song Yecheng thought, because it could explain why Jiang Que left Sucheng the next day, came back to rent a house, and showed behavior and attitude that was very different from before.
He Jingsheng asked, "What exactly is the problem? Did he simply lose his memory? Or did he have some... hallucinations?"
Zuo Jianqing didn't intend to hide his feelings, but before offering his opinion, he cautioned, "Although I've formed a judgment on this matter, it's not definitive until I've conducted a specific diagnosis. All I can say is that this is a conclusion I've drawn based on the abnormalities you've described, my own professional experience, and the logical development of the situation."
Usually, the identification of mental problems requires a series of complex diagnoses. Now Jiang Que is not even awake, so it is impossible for him to give a 100% conclusion based on the descriptions and memories provided by Song Yecheng and He Jingsheng.
Seeing that both of them nodded in understanding, Zuo Jianqing pondered for a moment and did not use overly obscure professional terms, but chose the most simple and easy-to-understand statement -
"In short, my current diagnosis is that it's a case of paranoia and multiple personality disorder."
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