Persona: Devil Summoner

Maruki believes that when you encounter painful and sad things, just avoid them. There are indeed strong people who can resist pain, overcome sadness, and motivate themselves to cheer up and work harder, but more often than not, humans are not that strong.

What's more, choosing this path itself is a painful road full of thorns.

So, why do you deliberately make yourself suffer so much?

As if deliberately going against him, Jiang Tianwei firmly believed that no matter how painful this matter was, you must face it personally.

This does not mean that he must ask Sumire Yoshizawa to choose the path of overcoming pain, but that even if he really has to choose the route of escape, it must be the choice made by Sumire Yoshizawa herself after witnessing all the possibilities of the entire tragedy.

This choice cannot be made by others for her, but must be made by her herself.

What Jiang Tianwei has to do is to show all the possibilities of this tragedy.

The two people's completely different perceptions naturally created two different choices. Maruki Takuto used his sophisticated hypnosis to successfully make Yoshizawa Sumire think that she was Yoshizawa Kasumi. And Jiang Tianwei forcibly pulled her out of Yoshizawa Kasumi's fantasy and showed her different possibilities.

Maruki Takuto is a human being, not a god. He himself cannot predict which of the routes chosen by himself and Jiang Tianwei will be better for Fang Ze Jin, so he wants to confirm it.

If Jiang Tianwei's actions were wrong, if Fang Zejin was still in pain...

(Then, even if I have to use some twisted means, the teacher will definitely save you. Now, it’s not too late...)

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 307 You have to make it real even if it’s just a fake act!

Ryuji Sakamoto came to Jiang Tianwei's class several times today.

In the entire campus, he is the only one who walks with a hunched back, and he is the only one with dyed yellow hair. Maybe he doesn't realize it, but he is really too conspicuous!

However, Jiang Tianwei only glanced at him from a distance at the door, then ignored his winking and waving, pretending not to notice, and looked out the glass window, looking at the light blue sky. Jiang Tianwei didn't hate Long Si, but simply felt that such a simple-minded person would definitely say something simple to him, making him waste his brain cells... It's better to avoid this trouble fundamentally.

Although the Phantom Thieves were split into two teams, it was just a show for others to watch. But, since you know it's a show, you have to respect the prescribed situation. You come to me every day, are you afraid that others don't know this is a fake show? !

Fortunately, because Sumire Yoshizawa got good results in the competition, she has become the focus of the whole class. The whole class either surrounded her to inquire about the situation, or discussed her situation in groups behind her back. Few people noticed Ryuji at the door. Even if they noticed him, they just thought that this guy came over to chat up his junior high school sister.

He didn't really pay attention to the class today, his mind was full of Maruki Takuto's invitation. He had to go, of course, but he had to have an idea of ​​what to say when he got there.

He is a human being, not a bionic robot. He is neither black nor has he a painter master in a wheelchair. He cannot draw "non-existent things". It would be too difficult for him to debate with others without any preparation.

As mentioned before, I dare not say that the focus of the whole school today is on Sumire Yoshizawa, at least the focus of the whole class is on Sumire Yoshizawa, even at lunch. These people who usually can't say a word to Sumire Yoshizawa, when they heard that she had made achievements, they immediately swarmed over like bees.

Although they couldn't get any benefits directly from Yoshizawa Sumire, they could tell others "I have a friend" as a topic of conversation after dinner. Now that they were attached to her, it was as if they had also gained glory. Yoshizawa Sumire obviously had no experience in dealing with such occasions, and was busy and exhausted.

If she was bullied, Jiang Tianwei could still come to the rescue, but the problem was that now it was the opposite, everyone was praising her, so it was not appropriate for him to step in. Otherwise, it would be easy to leave people with comments like "Who is that person? Is he Fangze's boyfriend?" "Fangze is so unsociable. We talked to her, but she acted cool!"... The root of the tongue can kill people, and gossip can melt gold!

There was no other way. Jiang Tianwei could only wish in his heart that his companions would escape quickly. According to his experience, after three or two days, once the heat of this matter died down, everyone would stop bothering him.

School was over just like that. Jiang Tianwei took a deep breath and walked towards Mr. Maruki's psychological counseling room.

"Oh, classmate Jiang, you are here. Welcome, welcome."

When Mr. Wanxi saw Jiang Tianwei coming, he immediately stood up and greeted him warmly. Today, his psychological counseling room was empty.

This is also easy to understand. High school students of this grade either know how to work hard or are under family pressure to bury themselves in books in order to get into a good university...

Either they are planning to take advantage of their youth to sing praises of youth, join club activities, or have fun, or find a partner, and be a live-in star every day...

Or you can indulge in the virtual world, games, animation, comics, TV series, movies... and enjoy all kinds of life through the screen...

In short, children of this age are very busy, how can they find the time to chat with teachers every day? Or find a psychologist? Or find a male psychologist... If this were replaced by a mysterious big sister with silver hair and plump body, maybe she would be very popular - such as Elizabeth... No, forget it.

Jiang Tianwei imagined the situation of that woman in the health room and was afraid that several students would be angry to death on the spot. So he gave up after thinking about it.

Maruki Takuto is a psychologist, not a supernatural person. Although he has studied micro-expression psychology, no matter how powerful psychology is, it is not mind reading. He has no way to figure out what kind of beauty Jiang Tianwei is imagining deep in his heart. He can only rely on his own experience and smile first: "Here are tea and snacks. Do you want to eat? You're welcome. Just treat this place as your own home. Don't be restrained."

"Okay, I get it now."

Normally, foreigners always think that Chinese people are too polite and a bit "hypocritical", and even Chinese textbooks will make fun of this. But in this regard, Jiang Tianwei is very in line with the world. When Mr. Maruki said not to treat himself as an outsider, Jiang Tianwei sat on the sofa carelessly and picked up a candy on the table and started playing.

It's obvious that this kind of candy must have been bought by Mr. Maruki from a supermarket or something like that. He mixed some bulk candies weighed by kilograms with some high-priced candies sold separately, which looked both quantity and style. Jiang Tianwei really didn't mean to be polite at all. He directly picked the exquisitely packaged candy and stuffed it into his mouth.

As for the tea, Jiang Tianwei was even more impolite. He picked up the sugar cube jar and the plastic-sealed creamer box on the table and added them to the black tea. These ingredients, which were originally added to coffee, turned the good quality black tea into milk tea...

Maruki Takuto felt his eyelids twitching unconsciously. He opened his mouth slowly with a bit of embarrassment: "Um... Mr. Jiang, although the teacher told me that you don't have to be polite, I would be happier if you could save me a little money."

"Didn't you say 'Don't treat yourself as an outsider'?"

Jiang Tianwei said as he picked up the milk tea he had transformed, took a sip, and then put it down. Judging from his expression, the taste of this thing should not be particularly good.

He doesn't really like drinking tea. Although various animations always depict the deliciousness of this drink, he just can't get used to it. Compared to hot tea, he still prefers ice-cold and refreshing drinks.

Seeing his rude look, Maruki Takuto could only smile bitterly.

The funny thing is that for a psychologist, no matter what kind of emotion you show, it is a good thing. Even if it is rage or even destructive tendencies, as long as you are venting your emotions, there are still ways to think about it. The most frightening thing is the kind of patient who has a blank expression and does not say a word, as if he is a vegetable. No matter what you say or what stimulation you give him, he will ignore it and pretend that nothing happened. In this case, no matter how good the psychologist is, he cannot solve his psychological problems.

Although Jiang Tianwei was very impolite, these things also showed some of his psychological emotions and deep logic.

It's bitter... Of course, those good things destroyed by Jiang Tianwei were all bought with his own money. The school hired a psychological counselor out of helplessness and as a strategy to restore its image. Who will reimburse you for the money for tea and snacks?

According to Jiang Tianwei's eating habits, as long as he comes four or five days a week, Maruki Takuto won't earn a penny in the few months he's been at Shujin Academy, and he has to pay for some snacks himself...

This is really the helplessness of a social animal...

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 308 Don’t Play Psychological Warfare with the Psychologist

Chatting with Maruki Takuto was a very strange feeling.

This is Jiang Tianwei's true feeling.

First of all, Takuto Maruki is definitely a very good communication partner. Like the psychologist that everyone knows, he always has a gentle expression, is very good at listening, knows when to follow the other person's topic, and also knows when to bring up a topic himself.

In particular, this person has a lot of miscellaneous knowledge, covering a wide range of topics. There is always a topic that is suitable for the occasion you are chatting with. There is always some unpopular knowledge that can arouse the other person's curiosity. After chatting, there will always be a pleasant feeling.

So, what is that weird feeling?

That was too smooth... so smooth that Jiang Tianwei always worried whether this person was deliberately using those powerful psychological techniques to secretly steal his information. Perhaps it was because he had made a conscious decision to modify Sumire Yoshizawa's mental cognition without authorization. Jiang Tianwei was always worried that Maruki Takuto would suddenly hypnotize and brainwash him.

When it comes to hypnosis, Jiang Tianwei has a very unfounded worry. Although he has not studied psychology, he likes comics. Many comics - especially the thin comic books of more than ten or twenty pages sold at comic exhibitions often have very popular descriptions of hypnosis... He is afraid that Maruki Takuto will suddenly take out a mobile phone from his pocket to show him the screen of the APP...

Jiang Tianwei was still a little afraid of this sudden attack on the spiritual level.

Of course, if someone really studies psychology, they would probably just sneer at this kind of hypnosis plot: if hypnosis could work so well, psychologists would have ruled the world long ago...

But Jiang Tianwei does not have such professional knowledge. Often, his worries are completely due to the "unknown." Just like a child who is afraid of the dark night is worried that some unknown ghost will come and take him away.

In order to prevent the other party from having the opportunity to use this strange hypnotic ability, Jiang Tianwei tried to resolutely not cooperate with Maruki Takuto's topic, always frequently changing the subject and not talking in depth with him on a certain issue.

"I always feel like you're always on guard against me, Jiang."

Maruki Takuto smiled as he spoke. Although this was a friendly expression, it made Jiang Tianwei more cautious. However, as the saying goes, the more skilled you are, the more courageous you are. Jiang Tianwei thought about it for a moment and decided that if things really didn't work out, and the two of them fell out, he would just punch him in the face and smash his thick glasses to pieces. What was there to be afraid of?

"Yeah. Considering what you did to Yoshizawa-san, I'm still scared."

When Jiang Tianwei said this, he secretly glanced at Fang Zexia beside him. He thought that this little girl would either be indignant for her sister, or speak up for her sister, or strongly condemn the fact that someone had impersonated her. Unexpectedly, she was surprisingly calm and looked very interested.

This is also one of the reasons why Jiang Tianwei is fearless. Even if he was hypnotized by Maruki Takuto, no matter how powerful he is, he would not know that there is a ghost hiding here. At that time, Fang Zexia would remind him.

"Well, it seems like I deserved it..."

Maruki Takuto showed a somewhat bewildered expression on his face. He stretched out his hand to scratch his head and smiled bitterly: "It seems that I have been regarded as a bad guy."

"Well, what else?"

"Well, before we get to that topic, let's talk about something lighter - Jiang, do you like pain?

"? Then you definitely don't like it."

Jiang Tianwei responded in confusion. He couldn't understand why Maruki Takuto asked him this question. He was not a masochist, and the person asking the question was not a mature lady in latex with an amazing body. This was not the set of a Japanese movie that could be performed by two or three people. So this question seemed abrupt and inexplicable.

"So, look, if there is a way to eliminate pain, the person who can do this should not be a bad person, right?"

When Maruki Takuto said this, Jiang Tianwei understood what he meant. Maruki Takuto was talking about the time when Yoshizawa Kasumi had just died. Yoshizawa Sumire was in great pain because of this incident. Therefore, Maruki Takuto erased this memory through hypnosis or something like that.

Since everyone doesn't like pain, if I erase the pain, I should be a good person. This is Maruki Takuto's idea.

Jiang Tianwei can only say that this statement makes some sense, but it is not completely correct. After all, for many things, we cannot just discuss whether the conclusion is correct or not, but also consider the process.

"Teacher, let me give you another example. For example, I see a person suffering from a terminal illness and there is no chance of cure. In order to prevent him from suffering any more, I kill him with a knife. What do you think of this behavior?"

"Oh, you are very good at finding unreasonable things. It shows that you are a very serious and responsible person in your daily life."

As a psychological counselor, Maruki Takuto is very good at dealing with Jiang Tianwei's way of speaking, which is similar to "finding fault". When facing this kind of person, you must not say to him, "You are wrong, you are wrong, I am more correct here." This will cause the other party to resist. Instead, you should choose to "go along with the hair", and he directly chose to praise Jiang Tianwei.

As expected, Jiang Tianwei was stunned, and his wide-open eyes told Maruki Takuto clearly: he didn't expect that Maruki Takuto was not angry, and even praised him instead.

Moreover, he was also very clear about the deeper thought behind Jiang Tianwei's somewhat extreme example: using the wrong method to get a correct conclusion. Jiang Tianwei wanted to use this example to indirectly prove that he had used the wrong method.

"Your example is very reasonable. Truth is something that is true under any circumstances. On the other hand, if it is not true under some extreme circumstances, it is not the truth - but human hearts are not like this. Let's continue with your example. Let's assume that the old father is in pain. He knows that he has a terminal illness and that he doesn't have much time left, so he begs his children to let him have euthanasia. What action do you think the child is most likely to choose?"

“…Then you probably won’t agree, right?”

Jiang Tianwei was silent for a moment, and had to give this answer. For most families and general situations, this answer may not be correct, but it is indeed what most people would choose.

"Yes, this is the [other kind of correctness] besides the [correctness] itself, which is what we often call [mood]. I can understand that for you, casually modifying Fangze's memory is an unforgivable blasphemy. But even so, I want to free her from that grief. Let me think about it... you see, it's like a doctor facing a diseased part that has no cure, he will choose to remove it, right? This is to make the whole better, isn't it?"

This set of debating skills is exactly the same as the one Jiang Tianwei just used, and it is obvious that Mr. Maruki is more skilled. He uses an example that Jiang Tianwei has to agree with to guide him step by step into his own conversational rhythm.

Jiang Tianwei thought for a while and noticed something was wrong, so he quickly said, "No, no, even if you want to save Fangze, the method you used has a big problem."

"oh?".

Maruki Takuto made a slightly interested sound. He was not debating, but more like chatting with a real patient with psychological problems. Rather than "refuting Jiang Tianwei", he was more curious about "what new sophistry Jiang Tianwei would come up with".

So, he didn't interrupt him, but just used a syllable to express his interest, and then continued to wait for Jiang Tianwei's next round of verbal sparring.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 309: Mistakes are also valuable

Jiang Tianwei is not a good debater, nor is he a wise man.

If he was a colonel with a very high IQ among the founders of some infinite flow, he would probably be able to render Maruki Takuto speechless with just a few words, but unfortunately Jiang Tianwei is not such a person - it would be very easy for him to beat Maruki Takuto so hard that he can't get up again with just a few punches and kicks.

Therefore, he needed some time to sort out his thoughts and logic. After making a rough draft in his mind, Jiang Tianwei picked up a fruit knife on the table.

"Why, do you want to eat some fruit? Let the teacher peel it for you..."

Maruki Takuto thought he wanted to eat something, so he was ready to help him. Firstly, small details like these often win the other person's favor, and secondly, he also wanted to give the student some more time to sort out his thoughts.

"Teacher Maruki, let me ask you a question. Suppose I put this knife into your neck now, what will you do?"

"What a dangerous assumption, huh?"

Maruki Takuto scratched his head, with a helpless expression on his face, as if to say, "I really can't do anything about you. How can this example work?" Jiang Tianwei didn't give him a chance to dodge and asked the same question again. Maruki Takuto didn't understand why and replied, "Probably, he will die."

"Then, my knife clearly didn't penetrate, why can you make such an inference, Mr. Maruki?"

"Because... Oh, I see. You mean, this is all based on [historical experience], is that what you mean?"

Should I say, he really deserves to be called a psychologist? Jiang Tianwei only started with the words he thought of, but he guessed what would happen next.

"Yes."

Seeing that Maruki Takuto had guessed what he was going to say next, Jiang Tianwei was not surprised. It would be strange if a psychologist of Maruki's level could not guess what he was going to say. Since the other party was better at talking than he was, the best way was not to use those fancy things, but to speak directly to him with words that would make him respond even if he knew there was a problem.

In military strategy, this technique is called "open strategy", which means that even though you know that the other party is plotting against you, you still have to jump in. It is an admirable technique.

Jiang Tianwei continued, "The reason why you feel that a knife stuck in your throat will kill you is because someone has done something similar before, allowing you to accumulate relevant experience. Regardless of whether it is right or wrong, this is a necessary [experience accumulation]. Humans constantly make mistakes, and then constantly improve, and finally open up a safe path for those who come after them. If every time you encounter this kind of pain, it is completely erased, how can you accumulate experience?"

“Great entry point.”

Maruki Takuto praised him from the bottom of his heart.

Among students of his age, most of the worries are poor academic performance, lack of results in club activities, love troubles, etc. Everyone tends to only accept Mr. Maruki's suggestions in full or half, and rarely encounters someone like Jiang Tianwei who will directly raise questions and then debate with them.

Maruki didn't dislike this kind of people, he even liked them a little. After all, many conclusions needed to be discussed over and over again before they were confirmed - they needed to be discussed over and over again.

Moreover, Jiang Tianwei's thinking was also very flexible, which made him particularly impressed. There are two situations in which people become arrogant and unable to communicate: one is when they are particularly ignorant, and the other is when they are particularly knowledgeable.

The former is fearless because of his ignorance, while the latter is intolerant of different opinions because of his authority. Being able to constantly switch your argument angle like Jiang Tianwei is a very commendable way of flexible thinking.

"So, Mr. Jiang, what you want to say is: because [error] itself is meaningful, my approach of directly deleting it is also a mistake. Don't you think so?"

Maruki Takuto tried to summarize it and Jiang Tianwei nodded.

"Indeed, from a macro perspective, the continuous accumulation of mistakes is indeed meaningful to the entire human society. But, as I said before, have you ever thought about the [feelings] of those who are troubled by [mistakes]? Not everyone has a strong enough spiritual core to withstand such great grief."

As Maruki Takuto spoke, he unconsciously revealed an expression of pain and sadness. Through the thick lenses of his glasses, his eyes, which were always bright and lively, were now filled with a mist.

"Having the courage to face the painful reality is certainly an admirable way of life, but there are also many people who cannot cope with that pain, right? Otherwise -"