Abyssal Wanderer

Chapter 71 NO.0046: Liao Qi's Past

"I told you I'm not lying to you. My mental index hasn't changed at all. So your previous emotional fine-tuning is completely fine, although my reaction at that time was indeed a little strange..."

Jiang Zhou pointed to the numbers on the mental measuring instrument and said comfortingly.

Seeing Bai Dong's skeptical appearance, he was really embarrassed.

My own body in the interrogation room of Tartarus proved that the other party's professional level is indeed no problem - I can only blame her for being unlucky to run into me at this time.

In order to prevent Bai Dong from completely losing her confidence as a mind adjuster, Jiang Zhou forced her to test his mental index again. Then, with my mental index that has not changed, I try to explain to her that there is actually no problem with her previous adjustment and treatment.

"Just...maybe my usual reaction to expressing emotions is a bit..."

"Stop talking..."

Regarding this, Bai Dong waved his hand weakly and interrupted:

"Stop talking, just let me be alone for a while, I'll just be quiet..."

As she spoke, she mechanically packed up the equipment on the table with stiff movements.

No matter how you say it, Bai Dong's current emotions are much better than his previous unrequited love.

Seeing this, Jiang Zhou got up with a little peace of mind, went to the entrance, changed his shoes, and was about to leave.

"well……"

Leaving before opening the door, he probed again to confirm:

"No matter what you say, don't have anything to worry about. Also, don't go to Booker and say that you quit or something. The only mind adjustment teacher in the organization said that he quit, he knows You have to give me a punishment."

In this era, a mind adjuster is an extremely rare profession. Talent, perseverance and luck are indispensable to obtain the qualification to practice medicine.

Generally speaking, no one who really passed the exam would be willing to stay underground in the resettlement area—in fact, as long as Bai Dong is willing, she can get the permanent residence right for the upper-ground class in the resettlement area in minutes.

It is even said that if she wants to enter a large enterprise, even a super enterprise under the Olympus order, it will not be too difficult.

If it was really because of Liao Qi that the only mind adjuster in the organization saw through the world and retired, Booker would definitely be anxious with him.

"Just leave me alone for a while."

The other party replied weakly.

Jiang Zhou pushed open the door anxiously, ready to leave.

But halfway through the door, he turned back as if he suddenly thought of something.

"Speaking of Sister Bai Dong, how much do you charge for a fine-tuning of emotions here?"

he asked carefully.

But these words made Bai Dong, who was half packed, stop.

"What's wrong? The organization will reimburse the money for the fine-tuning just now."

she replied.

Sentiment adjustments are billed by the minute and have a high threshold.

Although Bai Dong is willing to provide emotional adjustment services for members of the Icarus Liberation Front for free, in order to show respect for senior talents, the organization still insists on paying according to market standards.

In the end, the two parties negotiated that the organization would reimburse members for their emotional adjustment fees afterwards, while Bai Dong charged 60% of the market price—this was almost the cost price, and most of the money was used to pay the Mental Adjusters Association. The copyright of the latest emotional material library.

"I know, but that's for organization members."

Jiang Zhou nodded.

Then he continued:

"I'm asking if you accept private work? Also, what is the charging standard?"

…………

The former Liao Qi didn't know that the mind adjuster in the organization used to live in the same community as his mother.

But it's no wonder, first of all, since he hasn't been adjusted or modified in the past, and he hasn't even installed a prosthetic body, it's normal for him to be unfamiliar with the mind adjusters in the organization.

Secondly, since Liao Qi joined Icarus, he rarely went home.

In fact, he didn't even think that Huimin Community on the fourth floor of the resettlement area could be regarded as his home.

This is not a safe haven for him. Except for a house for people to live in, there is no warmth or family affection here.

In a sense, he doesn't even have family...

When Jiang Zhou unlocked the door with Liao Qi's mandala, the room had already been lit with the most suitable light in advance.

The soft music reverberates the welcoming atmosphere, and the warm air with the smell of the radiators of the last century blows in as the door is pushed open.

The figure of a maid was projected on the mechanical arm on the ceiling, and she bowed to Jiang Zhou with an impeccable gesture.

"Good afternoon, welcome back, master."

As she spoke, she bowed her head slightly towards Bai Dong again.

"And you too, the master's guest. In order to provide better service, may I know your name?"

"No need, Jenny, all records of this lady's visit will be deleted after we leave, and no backup will be kept. Besides, where is my mother?"

"Ms. Ma Wei fell asleep an hour ago and is currently in a deep sleep state. It is not recommended to wake her up here."

The AI ​​housekeeper Jiang Zhou called Jenny replied.

"Notify me five minutes before she wakes up, and turn on the secret chat mode in the living room, so as not to disturb her sleep."

Jiang Zhou said so, and then put on the indoor shoes handed over by the robotic arm.

Jenny nodded:

"It's all set up, what would the host and the guests want to drink?"

"I just want black tea..."

As Jiang Zhou said, he turned to look at Bai Dong who was beside him, only then did the other party come back to his senses.

"Then let me have a cup of black tea too, without milk and sugar."

Bai Dong quickly replied.

Jenny bowed again, and then she turned and walked towards the kitchen—although she was just a 3D projection, she still had to go through such a process for the sake of atmosphere.

"Vista Jenny home system? Which model?"

After sitting on the sofa in the living room, Bai Dong asked in surprise.

In her impression, such a home system is very expensive. At least not what a family like Liao Qi can afford.

"The tenth generation, the old version. Based on the size of my house, the monthly subscription fee is about 2,000 Ore."

Jiang Zhou replied:

"In short, it's basically all the money I make every month."

Vista Jenny is an artificial intelligence butler service under Vista Intelligent Controls. Basically, it is equivalent to hiring a professional nanny to take care of the big and small affairs at home 24 hours a day. From house decoration and upgrading, to grocery shopping and cooking, everything can be arranged seamlessly.

And the installation of the equipment is completely free, but the service fee is charged every month.

However, if you can’t pay the service fee and choose to cancel the subscription, you need to pay for a large amount of equipment dismantling and depreciation costs—this is very reasonable, Vesta is the kitchen god in Roman mythology, and since ancient times, it has been easy for God to send God is difficult.

Of course, if you really can't afford it in the end, Vista Intelligent Controls will also considerately introduce loan channels.

Bai Dong didn't reply, but took a sip of black tea.

"I seldom come back here, but my mother really needs someone to take care of her. So in the end, I can only subscribe to this. To be honest, compared to when I usually go home to take care of her, the monthly fee of 2,000 Ore has brought me mental pressure Much lighter."

Jiang Zhou said so.

Bai Dong has heard that the organization has always taken special care of Liao Qi, and the monthly subsidy given to him is enough for him to live. But even so, he still works three jobs outside at the same time.

It turned out that all the money was spent here...

"so……"

As Bai Dong said, he looked in the direction of the bedroom beside him in a blink of an eye.

"Is that your mother?"

she asked.

Jiang Zhou put down the plastic tea cup imitating bone china, and said:

"Yes and no."

Immediately, he didn't let it go, and immediately continued:

"For less than an hour every day, she will live as Ma Wei, my biological mother. At other times, even in dreams, she will be the heroine of the simulating movie and live.

"I took a look, and the most recent she should be Audrey Bergman, an ill-fated star in the show business. Every day, she is moved among many handsome men with different identities, but also loves her deeply. I am distressed that I should How to break free from the complicated emotional quagmire."

"Identity Anchoring Syndrome?"

Bai Dong asked seriously.

"It's late."

Jiang Zhou nodded.

Fragmented Identity Anchoring Syndrome, a type of cyberpsychopathy. Most of the patients are addicted to stimulant movies, or people who use low-quality memory for a long time. A typical symptom of the disorder is a failure to properly anchor one's identity and see oneself as someone else.

In the early stage, he was addicted to simian movies and could not extricate himself, and unconsciously imitated the tone of simian movie characters when speaking. After entering the late stage, strong hallucinations and auditory hallucinations will occur, and the surrounding environment will be recognized as an environment that matches one's fantasy identity.

For example, when eating cheap krill cake, you will feel like you are eating a prime tomahawk steak. Or the people around them will also be recognized as characters in simulating movies. If the people around you don't cooperate with your acting, there may be hysteria.

"At the worst, every day when I went home, she called me by a different name. I heard that acting with the patient could improve the condition, but I couldn't even keep up with the speed at which she changed identities."

Jiang Zhou said so.

Bai Dong sighed slightly when he heard the words, and then said:

"Identity-anchored split syndrome is more effective in prevention than in treatment afterward. When she was addicted to simian-sensation movies, you should tell her about the dangers..."

"she knows."

Jiang Zhou replied.

Bai Dong froze for a moment.

"When we were still living on the seventh floor, my mother made a living by copying pirated simian movies. At that time, she saw a lot of people who were tortured by simian movies and had mental problems."

"Then why is she still..."

She doesn't understand.

Sense-simulating movies are not physiologically addictive, and patients can clearly realize that something is wrong at an early stage, especially those who are engaged in related industries.

"She probably did it voluntarily."

Jiang Zhou answered vaguely, then asked:

"Can fine-tuning the mood of a terminal patient make her condition better?"

Regarding this, Bai Dong shook his head regretfully:

"It cannot be said that there is no hope at all, but the possibility of full recovery of terminal patients can be said to be negligibly low."

Seeing that Liao Qi's expression darkened suddenly, she immediately added:

"Of course, it is still possible to stabilize your mother's condition, at least to stabilize her mental index so that it does not continue to drop."

As she spoke, she began to take out the equipment from the bag she brought over.

"In addition, please tell me more about your mother's illness. For example, you said earlier that she 'voluntarily' allowed her condition to worsen. Choice matters."

Bai Dong said quickly.

When she spoke, her previous decadent feeling was swept away, and she seemed to have returned to her usual capable and confident state.

But Jiang Zhou hesitated for a moment. But in the end, it still talked about Liao Qi's past.

…………

Liao Qi's father died in the acquisition of the sewage treatment plant. He was laid off because the replacement of the prosthetic body could not keep up with the demand in the factory. He was also forced to find a veterinarian to connect his original arm because he could not pay the loan for the previous prosthetic body.

Eventually died of postoperative infection.

After that, Liao Qi was raised by his mother Ma Wei alone.

His mother decided that if she wanted her son to avoid the mistakes of her husband, she had to make him a regular employee of the company, become a superior person, and stand out from the crowd.

So, she saved money and money for Liao Qi to go to the Talent Incubation Center set up in the Pluto Deep Potential Resettlement Area. I hope he can pass the company assessment and become an intern employee of the company.

At the beginning, Liao Qi studied hard, not wanting his mother to be disappointed.

However, facing the promotion rate of less than 1%, facing the surrounding students who can use high-priced memory to speed up learning, and I just rely on the biological brain to read at night. He just failed again and again.

Originally, the so-called talent incubation center, from Jiang Zhou's perspective, was essentially just giving false hope to the people at the bottom. In Liao Qi's memory, the only one who was born as a commoner but got promoted in counterattack was the man named Lu Yuan in the same class—but he was very talented. After installing the brain-computer interface, the Hongqiao brain area mutated. Extremely developed, and finally recruited as a hacker candidate.

But Liao Qi's mother didn't think so. She put all her expectations for the future on her son. But with the example of Lu Yuan, she firmly believes that this is a way out with visible results.

Or maybe, deep down in her heart, she knew that it was futile, but she still needed such a goal to numb herself.

Because once she gave up this pillar of belief, she would immediately and completely collapse.

However, after experiencing repeated failures, Liao Qi finally gave up.

He didn't see any point in staying at the incubator other than continuing to squander his mother's hard-earned money.

And his mother's constant expectations on him, as well as her aging and tired appearance, put him under great mental pressure.

It made him feel extremely suffocated.

In the end, the conflict between their mother and son broke out completely.

At that time, he was kicked out of the house by his mother, and he didn't come back in a fit of anger, and went to join the street gangs alone.

Originally, Liao Qi thought that without burning money in the talent incubation center by himself, his mother should be able to live a good life by relying on her own work.

But after about a year, he didn't find out that his mother had gone crazy until he came home after making a living in the gang.

"What was the fuse that caused the conflict between you to break out at that time?"

Hearing this, Bai Dong interrupted and asked.

Jiang Zhou took a deep breath, and he recalled the mandala pattern Liao Qi had chosen.

It was a broken toy.

He said slowly:

"Because my mom smashed my favorite toy."