[Signals of loss of control]

It’s unknown whether Xiao Kesong can be saved.

Chen Zemian, left alone in the lounge with Lu Zhuonian, felt like he was about to die.

Lu Zhuonian seemed a bit upset. Ever since Ye Chen and the others left, he had been stone-faced and silent.

Chen Zemian suddenly realized that the reason he had previously gotten along well with Lu Zhuonian was because the other man was willing to be pleasant. Once Lu Zhuonian put on his aloof, “keep-everyone-a-thousand-miles-away” demeanor, the air pressure in the room instantly dropped. Forget about having a smooth conversation; even breathing normally became difficult.

The invisible pressure was hard to describe. If he had to put a word to it… it was probably the imposing aura of the male lead.

Who had angered this “Crown Prince” now?

Just a moment ago, they were talking and laughing, so why was he displeased again now?

Truly, the heavens’ wrath is unpredictable.

Chen Zemian wanted to say something to break the awkward silence, but he didn’t know where to start, nor did he know if the other person was willing to chat. He could only quietly pick up a handful of melon seeds from the dried fruit platter and play with them.

Thinking about it carefully, it seemed that every time he was alone with Lu Zhuonian, Lu Zhuonian had shown some degree of displeasure.

Whether he talked back or flattered him, the result wasn’t much different.

Given these past failures, Chen Zemian figured there might be no other reason for Lu Zhuonian’s bad mood; he just simply found him annoying.

That made sense.

No wonder Lu Zhuonian rarely came to the shooting range anymore. Yan Luo said that Young Master Lu used to come 1-2 times every week, but since Chen Zemian started working at the shooting range, he had only seen Lu Zhuonian two or three times in over a month.

Since that was the case, he might as well not talk to Lu Zhuonian. The more he talked, the more annoyed Lu Zhuonian would become.

Perhaps if he waited a bit longer, Lu Zhuonian would cheer up on his own.

—-

Lu Zhuonian wouldn’t be cheering up anytime soon.

After several consecutive instances of abnormal emotional fluctuations caused by Chen Ze, Lu Zhuonian ruled out coincidence and concluded that Chen Ze indeed affected his emotions.

With this conclusion, Lu Zhuonian made an appointment with his psychologist.

He told his psychologist, “I’ve met a very special person.”

The psychologist showed a hint of imperceptible shock, but Lu Zhuonian still caught it.

“Can you tell me what makes them special?” the doctor asked him.

Lu Zhuonian, in an extremely objective manner, truthfully recounted Chen Ze’s various unusual behaviors, finally adding his subjective assessment: “It feels like he changed overnight. I suspected he had a second personality, but later, through observation, I ruled out that guess.”

The doctor didn’t ask him how he ruled it out, only saying, “Everyone has different sides. Perhaps you didn’t understand him enough before, or perhaps he went through something that affected his personality…”

“He suddenly gained skills he never displayed before,” Lu Zhuonian added. “This skill was completely absent from his entire past life experience. This is very abnormal.”

The doctor asked, “You noticed his ‘abnormality,’ so you think he’s special?”

Lu Zhuonian said, “That’s part of it, but it’s mainly because his changes are beyond my control. Things that exceed expectations have too much uncertainty, which is very… dangerous.”

The psychologist had been treating Lu Zhuonian for many years, watching him grow from a little boy. The doctor was well aware of his patient’s unique persistent illness, and also knew about his self-control, which far exceeded that of ordinary people due to his condition.

Lu Zhuonian was resilient and determined, unwilling to succumb to his illness. His methods of overcoming and suppressing his condition were almost rigorous, even to the point of overcorrecting.

He strictly controlled his body and emotions.

This overly strong self-control gradually spread into his life, evolving into absolute dominance over his surroundings. Like a precisely programmed high-performance computer, Lu Zhuonian was accustomed to everything running according to his calculated path, developing step by step, without allowing for accidents or other errors.

Chen Ze was an accident.

Since his appearance, Lu Zhuonian’s emotional stability system had been constantly popping up error messages.

This in itself was a dangerous signal.

Signals of loss of control.

“Emotional fluctuations aren’t what concern me,” Lu Zhuonian preempted. “What I worry about is how emotional changes affect the body. Scientific research shows that physical reactions are influenced by emotions.”

The psychologist understood Lu Zhuonian’s unspoken meaning and offered their own advice: “You’re projecting too many unfulfilled expectations onto him right now. This projection will continuously increase your psychological burden. Sometimes, the more a person tries not to focus on something, the more they end up focusing on it.”

Lu Zhuonian conceded, “Indeed.”

The doctor continued, “You can try to shift your attention to other things, or gradually eliminate this ‘sense of crisis’ through moderate exposure.”

Lu Zhuonian frowned. “So, you mean I should familiarize myself with his behavior patterns, summarize the rules, and use that as a model to mentally prepare in advance, preventing emotional changes caused by a feeling of loss of control?”

The doctor remained silent for a full thirty seconds. “I didn’t say that. My meaning was that desensitization training can enhance one’s adaptability.”

So, Lu Zhuonian selectively accepted the doctor’s advice and arranged for Chen Ze to work at the shooting range, placing him where he could be seen.

In the past month and a half, although he had only seen Chen Ze twice, he had been observing him for a long time.

His phone could access any surveillance camera at the shooting range, and Lu Zhuonian would occasionally open it to watch in his spare time.

Unfortunately, the results so far had been minimal.

Over a month had passed, and he had neither been able to summarize Chen Ze’s behavioral model nor had his own adaptability improved.

He still experienced a variety of emotions because of Chen Ze, and this trend seemed to be escalating.

Perhaps the accumulation of quantitative change wasn’t enough to reach a qualitative change.

The reason for the failure had to be attributed to Chen Ze’s lack of cooperation.

Chen Ze was too unpredictable.

Lu Zhuonian had been an excellent student since childhood, and he never imagined that he would repeatedly suffer setbacks in the subject of predicting Chen Ze’s behavior.

And Chen Ze was like the most annoying university lecturer, not only refusing to highlight any key points but even denying Lu Zhuonian the opportunity to practice—

When Xiao Kesong was around, Chen Ze acted like a living person, but as soon as Xiao Kesong left, Chen Ze would shrink into a corner, preferring to play tic-tac-toe with himself using melon seeds rather than talk to Lu Zhuonian.

At this rate, it would likely be difficult to achieve a qualitative change in a short time.

Lu Zhuonian was very pragmatic and slightly annoyed by this overly slow progress.

He looked at Chen Ze, his gaze growing deeper.

—-

Chen Zemian felt like he had daggers in his back, unable to sit still, and wanted to find an opportunity to slip away. He looked up to sneak a glance at what Lu Zhuonian was doing, only to meet the other’s scrutinizing gaze head-on.

“Young Master Lu,” Chen Zemian couldn’t bear it anymore and found a random excuse, “Are you hungry? I’ll go get you something to eat.”

Lu Zhuonian said, “Not hungry. Are you hungry?”

Chen Zemian was indeed hungry, so he nodded and said, “A little.”

Lu Zhuonian seized the opportunity to gather information and immediately asked, “What do you want to eat?”

Chen Zemian wanted to eat barbecue, hot pot, and spicy chicken, but unfortunately, Chen Ze’s stomach wasn’t very good, and eating those at night would cause stomach pain. He could only reluctantly say, “Some noodles will do.”

Lu Zhuonian took in Chen Zemian’s expression completely. “You don’t seem very genuine about wanting to eat that.”

Chen Zemian smiled and flattered him, “Young Master Lu truly sees everything clearly; you even noticed that.”

Lu Zhuonian generously shared his observation: “It’s obvious. You wrinkled your nose just now. You make that little gesture when you’re dissatisfied or reluctant.”

Chen Zemian was a bit surprised. “How did you know?”

Lu Zhuonian didn’t answer. He pressed a bell and called a waiter. “Let’s order first.”

Chen Zemian flipped through the menu, wanting to eat everything, but ultimately only ordered a bowl of noodles.

He still had plans to go out with Xiao Kesong tonight, and stomach pain would really spoil the fun.

Chen Zemian felt that Lu Zhuonian’s mood had improved, and the pressure instantly dropped. He then chatted with Lu Zhuonian for a few more minutes.

Lu Zhuonian was used to Chen Ze talking nonsense and also heard that the other party was deliberately flattering him.

Lu Zhuonian had heard flattery many times and couldn’t help but feel a little unenthusiastic. Subconsciously, he also felt that Chen Ze shouldn’t be like this.

If it was because of his status, Chen Ze had never flattered Ye Chen, could joke around playfully with Xiao Kesong, and was even impolite to people like Xu Shaoyang and Liu Yuebo.

He interacted normally with everyone else; it was only when he was with him that he seemed fake.

Lu Zhuonian didn’t know what the problem was, and this was the main reason he couldn’t predict Chen Ze’s behavior.

The waiter arrived quickly. Chen Zemian ordered a bowl of noodles, and Lu Zhuonian added a few more dishes. After taking down the order, the waiter bowed and left.

Chen Zemian flattered, “It seems you^[1] 您: means ‘you’ in a courteous or respectful way.’re very familiar with the signature dishes here.”

“There are a few edible ones,” Lu Zhuonian paused for half a second, then suddenly said, “Stop using honorifics. It sounds strange.”

Chen Zemian responded, “Alright, whatever Young Master Lu says.”

Lu Zhuonian’s tone was flat. “Is that so?”

Chen Zemian said, “Of course. You said my hair was dazzling before, so I dyed it black.”

Hearing that, Lu Zhuonian’s gaze shifted slightly.

“Why listen to me?” Lu Zhuonian asked.

Chen Zemian said matter-of-factly, “I’m Young Master Lu’s little brother; little brothers should naturally listen to their big brother.”

Lu Zhuonian’s voice was stern, without a trace of emotion. “You’re very insistent on being my little brother.”

Chen Zemian thought of the original Chen Ze in the book, and his thoughts drifted for a moment.

Lu Zhuonian was very familiar with Chen Zemian’s absentmindedness. He expertly tapped the table, initiating the wake-up process: “Chen Ze.”

Chen Ze indeed came back to his senses. “Young Master Lu.”

Lu Zhuonian asked again, “Why do you want to be my little brother?”

Chen Zemian was uncharacteristically silent for a few seconds. A flicker of an indescribable emotion passed through his eyes, and he slowly said, “Maybe I feel that… if Young Master Lu protects me, I won’t be bullied or humiliated.”

Lu Zhuonian’s fingers moved imperceptibly. He raised his eyes. “Do many people bully you?”

Chen Zemian didn’t know how to answer, so he said, “I don’t remember very clearly.”

Lu Zhuonian’s gaze, light as a feather, gently settled on Chen Zemian’s face.

Chen Zemian’s lips curved into a polite smile.

Neither of them spoke again.

A moment later, the waiter knocked on the door and brought in the food they had ordered.

Chen Zemian picked up a chopstick full of noodles.

The noodles tasted a bit bland. Chen Zemian was about to reach for the condiment bottle on the table when it was picked up by someone else.

Chen Zemian looked up, noodles still in his mouth.

Before him was a hand with distinct knuckles.

“Chen Ze,”

Lu Zhuonian first called his name, then pushed the condiment bottle in front of him and said in a deep voice, “If anyone bullies you in the future, no matter who it is, you can come to me.”