Captain Lu was aloof again today.

Chapter 50 Consciousness
Looking at the unfamiliar scenery outside the car window, Wei Qingsong joked in a good mood, "This doesn't seem to be the way home. What, Captain Lu, are you really taking me to work overtime?"

To everyone's surprise, Lu Jingming simply hummed in response without changing his expression.

Wei Qingsong opened her eyes wide in surprise: "Is this considered exploitation?"

"No, just fulfill the value you are meant to fulfill."

Because Lu Jingming's tone was so cold and serious, Wei Qingsong really couldn't tell if he was joking or not.

Even after the car came to a smooth stop in front of a Chinese restaurant, Wei Qingsong was still in a daze.

"You want to treat me to dinner?"

"Working overtime, and having lunch while I'm at it." Lu Jingming's indifferent expression perfectly embodied the exploitative class.

The entire process of ordering food was led by Lu Jingming alone; Wei Qingsong didn't even get a glimpse of the menu.

She thought to herself: What a jerk! He's having dinner with a girl and he won't let her order. Who started all those rumors? Lu Jingming, does he even look like someone who knows how to be in a relationship?

After all the dishes were served, Wei Qingsong was stunned.

Lu Jingming ordered dishes that she used to love.

Six years have passed, and he still remembers it.

While on Nanxun Street, she was forced to take a large amount of psychotropic drugs and was hypnotized. Later, when she received treatment in Country Y, medication was still essential.

For most of the time, the memories of those youthful years are vague to her.

She once had a vibrant youth, but now, the only thing that medication cannot erase from her gray memories is Lu Jingming.

Seeing her lost in thought, Lu Jingming frowned in displeasure, his voice tinged with coldness: "You've been abroad for too long, can't get used to Chinese food anymore?"

Wei Qingsong recovered her senses and, upon hearing his sarcastic words, didn't really get angry with him. She glared at him and said reproachfully, "Why do you always think the worst of me?"

Lu Jingming gave a soft hum, picked up the water glass beside him, and drank it all in one gulp.

Receiving no response from him, Wei Qingsong continued, "Don't you think memory is a truly wondrous thing?"

Actually, she doesn't remember many of her classmates from middle school anymore.

In the spacious classroom, on the solemn platform, the teacher's face had been blurred by time and medication, becoming a blank sheet of paper. The surrounding scenery was also shrouded in a hazy mist. She could not remember those once vibrant, laughing, and playful innocent faces.

The only thing I remember is the white figure beside me, as handsome and dignified as ever.

Thinking of this, Wei Qingsong suddenly froze, as if someone had pressed a switch, her eyes remaining motionless.

She thought she probably understood why Wencheng killed him.

His well-defined knuckles slowly rubbed the rim of the water glass. After a long silence, Lu Jingming finally managed to speak: "Yes."

Memory is indeed wondrous; it is forever beyond our control.

If memory were something that could be manipulated subjectively, he should have erased Wei Qingsong from his memory long ago.

During those three days when he was utterly devastated, and also those three days when he hated her the most, he tried countless times to forget that pretty figure and that bright face.

But he couldn't do it. The more he tried to forget, the deeper those fragments of memory burrowed into his mind.

After that, he couldn't bear to forget it.

He told himself that remembering her was simply to remind himself of that foolish past.

But whether that's the truth or not, even he himself can't say for sure.

After a few seconds of silence, Wei Qingsong remained silent. Lu Jingming then looked up at her and saw that she was frowning, seemingly lost in thought.

He frowned slightly and tapped his fingers lightly on the table: "If you don't want to continue this meal, you don't have to force yourself."

Despite this, Lu Jingming felt as if his heart was stuffed with cotton.

Is it really that unbearable to eat with him?

In a short period of time, she had already drifted off into her own thoughts several times.

Wei Qingsong suddenly came to his senses.

She raised her clear eyes and glanced at him, her glossy lips pouting into a smile: "Didn't you say you were going to work overtime? I'm thinking about important things."

“…You are quite honest.” Lu Jingming’s face grew increasingly ashen.

He refused to believe that she was so smart that she couldn't see that the so-called "overtime" was just an excuse.

He just... had a rare moment of selfishness; he wanted to spend more time with her and make up for the time he had missed over the past six years, little by little.

Since Wei Qingsong had already said so, he had no choice but to patiently ask, "Then, I'm all ears. May I ask what you've come to this conclusion, Consultant Wei?"

"Freud said that the human subconscious is like an iceberg at sea. The visible part that floats above the surface is consciousness, while the unseen main part of the iceberg below the surface is the subconscious."

Wei Qingsong sat up slightly and began to deliver her theory in a long and detailed manner.

Lu Jingming lazily lifted his eyelids: "So?"

"Therefore, the subconscious is the master of a person, while the body is merely a puppet. A person may be able to control their facial expressions, but cannot control their subconscious."

Wei Qingsong smiled mysteriously and continued, "Chen Jin previously said that he couldn't understand why Wen Cheng would kill someone just because of a reunion."

Lu Jingming nodded calmly: "I'm afraid no one can understand."

Wei Qingsong just smiled, swirled the soy milk in her cup, took a sip with a hint of disgust, and continued speaking.

"I just realized this because I was casually talking about memories. Human consciousness has a distinction between subconscious and conscious. Memories are the same. When Wencheng and Situ Hui parted, he probably didn't have the ability to consciously remember."

“There must be some secrets within him that we haven’t yet uncovered, secrets that could plant the seeds of tyranny in his subconscious. And Situ Hui’s appearance awakened his subconscious and subconscious memories, further driving him to make such a behavioral judgment.”

Lu Jingming raised an eyebrow and said, his long, slender fingers tapping rhythmically on the table. "Could you be more specific?"

Wei Qingsong rested his chin on his hand, as if considering how to phrase it. After a moment, he said, "Let's put it this way: the so-called subconscious is rooted in a person's heart and even brain, but it is not something we are aware of. However, at critical moments, the subconscious represents our most subjective reaction, making judgments and behaviors that we cannot understand in our conscious mind."

"Whether it's Wen Ye's subconscious indifference to Wen Yu's death, or Wen Yu's subconscious disregard for Situ Hui's life and death, what allows them to have this subconscious mindset is that their father was such a cold-blooded and ruthless person."

"Therefore, this cold-blooded concept is deeply rooted in their bones. No matter if he is unrestrained or gentle and refined on the outside, his subconscious determines that he is a cold-blooded person."

“But conscious awareness is a person’s social reaction. Wen Ye is a playboy, and Wen Yu is a gentle and kind nobleman. This is something they can be aware of and control. Conscious awareness can make choices. Wen Ye can turn over a new leaf at any time, and Wen Yu can use Situ Hui without any burden.”

"The subconscious mind is forever beyond our control, but thankfully, most of the time, through the development of our wisdom, the conscious mind can also determine what kind of person we become."

At this point, Wei Qingsong's eyes trembled slightly, and her face suddenly tightened as if she had thought of something.

Lu Jingming had previously found the explanation somewhat obscure and difficult to understand, but now he was beginning to grasp its deeper meaning.

Just as he tried countless times to forget Wei Qingsong, but after his attempts failed, he only remembered her more deeply.

I suppose this is the work of the subconscious.

In his subconscious, he never wanted to forget Wei Qingsong.

Thank you Jiu Liang for the donation.

It's getting colder, kids, please take good care of yourselves and remember to add layers and blankets.

Regarding subconscious killings, there is such a story in Edogawa Ranpo's "Who is the Murderer," which is quite interesting.

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(End of this chapter)