She sat on the sofa with both hands on her legs and blinked up at Professor Lan with her clear eyes. She didn’t respond to Professor Lan’s question and it seemed as though she didn’t have an answer to that question either.
Professor Lan gave her a pat on the shoulder and tried to pull He Xiyan out from her reverie.
He Xiyan’s shoulders shook but she shook her head.
“I don’t know, doctor. I’m afraid of everything you just mentioned because I’ve been through it myself,” she said.
“What terrifies you the most?” Professor Lan asked.
“I don’t know,” she replied.
Professor Lan acknowledged her response. She stood up, walked over to her desk and picked something up on the desk. It looked like a watch and this watch was connected to a string.
“Ms. He, I’d like to conduct a test on you. You mentioned that you don’t know what you’re most afraid of in your marriage, so I’d like to perform hypnosis on you later. After you’ve been hypnotized, your most painful memories will be brought back to the surface, then you will know what you’re most afraid of. Are you willing to let me perform this test?” Professor Lan asked.
He Xiyan looked at Professor Lan with a frown and looked at the watch in her hand.
She knew what Professor Lan meant and also knew that the Professor wanted to hypnotize her just like they did in the movies.
Her fingers twisted together and she wondered if she should proceed with this test. She knew that when one was hypnotized, they would answer whatever they were asked. If the Professor asked her what her bank passcode was, she might end up divulging the details. She even watched a movie where the hypnotizer asked the person he had hypnotized to kill himself and the hypnotized person had actually turned the gun on himself and committed suicide.
“What’s wrong? Are you afraid? Do you not have the courage to proceed with this test?” Professor Lan asked with a smile. She was a highly acclaimed psychologist, so she immediately knew what He Xiyan was thinking. She could also see how guarded He Xiyan was.
“I…” He Xiyan paused for a moment and hesitated before she finally nodded and said, “Let’s try.” She wanted to know the answer as well.
Professor Lan nodded, walked up to He Xiyan and sat beside her.
She lifted the pocket watch in her hands and swung it gently from left to right as she muttered words that He Xiyan couldn’t understand.
When Professor Lan first started, He Xiyan wondered whether Professor Lan was speaking Arabic, Italian, or some other language, but soon her mind went blank and her eyes gradually became blank and unfocused.
“Tell me, what is your name?”
“He Xiyan…” she said very softly. She sounded as though she was about to fall asleep after answering the question.
Soon, she shut her eyes but she remained motionless on the sofa.
Professor Lan asked, “Could you tell me where you are?”
“28 Yangguang Road in the west of the city. I’m at home,” She said she was at home and not elsewhere.
Professor Lan checked the map and the address corresponded to a mansion but she couldn’t tell whose house it was.
“Could you tell me where you are at home and who do you see around you?” Professor Lan probed with a frown. This was the most crucial point of a hypnosis session and it was also when she could glean the most information.
“My husband, my mother-in-law, and… and Xia, Xia Yuwei.”
Professor Lan quickly took this name down because this is the only name that He Xiyan had mentioned.
“What are they doing to you?” she asked.
