novel-bin Page 629
Page 629
Qiong immediately volunteered, grabbed the still somewhat dazed Liuying, and ran towards the Steinway Peregrine Falcon that was parked to the side.
"Get on the bus!"
With a roar of engines, the streamlined sports car sped like an arrow toward Sunset Park on Martin Avenue.
It wasn't until the car had driven some distance that Liu Ying, sitting in the passenger seat, suddenly snapped out of her daze.
She turned her head in surprise to look at the composed boy beside her:
"Qiong! You specifically asked Miss Kokona where she threw the samples... was it all for this moment?"
Her voice was filled with disbelief.
"Yes, what's wrong?"
Qiong's tone was relaxed.
"You...you had already planned to seal away Miss Cocona's memories back then?"
Liu Ying's heartbeat quickened slightly.
Why do this?
"Ah."
Qiong nodded, her gaze calmly fixed on the brightly lit street ahead.
"Of course, it's to help her. Now you should call her Nanako. Remember that, and don't call her by the wrong name again."
"Helping Nanako...it really made her forget the heavy shackles of reality."
Liu Ying spoke softly, her brows furrowed, a deep sense of confusion in her eyes.
"But... can Miss Nanako now still be considered the original Miss Kokona?"
Why doesn't it count?
Qiong countered with a question, his tone gentle yet powerful.
"Because she lost the memories that made up her."
"It's firefly," Liu Ying said softly.
"So do you think there's any fundamental difference between what I did and her going to drink a special Sorida for temporary numbness?"
Qiong's voice was calm.
"One is selective memory loss, and the other is more directly losing worries; both are just means of escapism."
"This……"
Liu Ying was speechless for a moment, unable to find a reason to refute.
"Firefly, do you know about the Ship of Theseus?"
"The Ship of Theseus? What's that?"
The firefly blinked blankly.
"This is an age-old question to ponder."
Qiong's voice sounded exceptionally clear amidst the hum of the engine.
"Imagine a ship named Theseus sailing on the high seas. Whenever a plank rots and breaks, people replace it with a new, sturdy plank. And so it goes, one plank after another, year after year, until one day, every plank and every part of the ship is no longer the original one."
"So, is this still the same ship?"
"If so, what is the reason? If not, from which plank was it replaced that it ceased to be part of the original ship?"
"This……"
The fireflies fell silent.
This question seems simple at first glance, but the more you think about it, the more you realize that the reasoning it contains is like a deep-sea whirlpool.
She thought about it carefully for a long time, and finally shook her head gently.
"I...I don't know."
Raising her head, Liu Ying looked at Qiong with a yearning for answers.
What is the answer?
"I do not know either."
Qiong smiled gently, a smile that carried an air of calm acceptance of the unknown.
"If we compare Kokona to a ship, then this ship is about to be crushed by the heavy reality and sink into the deep sea of despair."
"She is unwilling and unable to continue sailing. Even if we rescue her like we did today, can we always arrive in time? There will come a time when she will sink completely."
"Actually, there are many ways to solve a problem."
Qiong continued, her tone carrying a hint of cold scrutiny.
"For example, the most direct and brutal method is to completely cleanse and reshape her consciousness, forcibly instilling optimistic and positive instructions."
"What you love is your life."
"Let her become a happy puppet who is always smiling."
"Absolutely not!"
Firefly was startled by this idea and instinctively objected.
"Of course not."
Qiong nodded affirmatively.
"That was truly killing Kokona on a spiritual level, leaving only an empty shell of a puppet."
"What I chose to do was to remove the most rusty and critical planks from this dilapidated ship that caused it to sink, so that she could continue sailing in her lighter form, Nanako, for the time being."
"She will experience a brand new life as Nanako."
"When she has accumulated enough new shipboard on her new voyage—joy, hope, support, the sense of accomplishment in creation... when her shipboard is strong enough and the time is right, those memories that have been temporarily sealed away will be returned little by little in batches."
"Nana's positive new life experience will become the cornerstone that supports Kokona to continue living. Only in this way can she be changed, allowing her to see hope again and change her mindset."
"But no matter what the final outcome, she should have the right to choose."
"I see... I understand."
"It's like fireflies murmuring," her eyes sparkling with understanding.
According to Qiong's explanation, this is indeed an extremely tactful, patient, and respectful therapy.
It is on the ruins of despair that new scaffolding is carefully erected.
The final answer to the question of the Ship of Theseus may be uncertain to the fireflies.
But she was absolutely certain:
No matter what repairs and changes it undergoes, the soul that created "Imagine a Rose of the Future," the singer who regained inspiration under the starlight—Nanako's boat—will always be Kokona herself!
Liu Ying stared blankly at the boy beside her who was focused on driving, a strong emotion surging in her chest.
Sora, you're amazing!
And...so gentle.
This is probably the gentlest treatment that can get to the root of the problem.
For a moment, the carriage fell silent, with only the low hum of the engine.
Liu Ying pursed her thin lips, turned her head slightly, and gazed at Qiong's profile with gentle, flowing eyes.
Those eyes held a delicate warmth, gentle and serene, as if silently telling a story.
Soon, they arrived at their destination, and Qiong found the record that Kokona had discarded in the flower bed.
I showed the demo of "Imagine a Rose of the Future" to Nana Ke and watched her refine the song.
Then, Qiong and Liuying became the first listeners of the song.
"If you can't make a choice, don't look back?"
Will the long night ever end?
Will the unopened roses also wait for spring and the poet's favor?
"On a planet where roses bloom?"
"Are you honest with yourself?"
"Let the gentle songs weave new stories?"
PS:
Kokona's story is very real, and it touched me.
I have a friend from my hometown village who is three years older than me.
He suffers from severe depression, severe bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. He has been staying at home for four years, not working, and is afraid of and terrified of contact with people. Recently, his condition has become so severe that it has affected his normal activities, and he has started experiencing hallucinations.
He was bullied when he was a child, and his parents did not care. They often beat and scolded him.
He has a brother, and his parents are extremely biased, spoiling the younger brother.
As a result, the second child also developed problems as he grew up, particularly in terms of personality.
Extremely selfish. He doesn't visit or care for family members who are seriously ill and hospitalized. He just stays at home playing on his phone. He didn't look for a job after graduating from university. He just doesn't want to work. He has been staying at home for nearly 4 years.
My family's financial situation isn't great. My mother is a farmer who grows crops, and my father used to work away from home, but he's retired now and is almost sixty years old.
With no source of income for their parents and both brothers suffering from serious psychological problems, life is incredibly difficult.
In the old rural areas, almost no one understands depression. My friend has cut his wrists several times, but because his parents are still alive, he doesn't dare to die.
I went to Beijing Anding Hospital for treatment the last time, but I didn't buy any antidepressants.
I don't want to spend money and I'm worried about my family's financial situation.
He hardly spoke to anyone; his other village friends of the same age were very traditional and didn't understand depression.
I have no better solution than to listen.
ε=('ο｀*))) Sigh!
Difficult!
The above is just a personal reflection; this part is free of charge.
Volume 1: Chapter 569 The Moment of Assist, The Moment of Breaking the Defense
It sounds simple, but even with the Feather of Dust, sealing one's own personality and memories is not something that can be done overnight; there's no such thing as an instant solution.
This requires Qiong to perform a precise, tedious, and meticulous operation, akin to micro-sculpting surgery in the spiritual realm. It is very troublesome and requires considerable effort.
But for the sake of 50... cough, to heal the sick and save lives, it's nothing for Qiong to be a little tired and suffer a little.
[Task: Imagine a future rose (Completed)]
[Reward: 49 Crystals.]
[Comment: 49 crystals is recognition of the elder brother, -1 crystal is the younger brother's respect.]
"Damn, it's still almost there?"
Qiong pointed at the task settlement interface.
"Chief, Chief, have you been embezzling your brother's hard-earned money?"
[I'm innocent, brother!]
The system adopted a false accusation, followed by a series of emotionally charged statements such as "The child is weak and pitiful, can't do anything but eats a lot," "It's just a crystal, brother, please have mercy and give me a chance to eat," and "I'm under immense pressure from my KPI assessment, please be lenient."
The mental space was filled with a joyful atmosphere.
"Tsk tsk, fine, fine."
Qiong was just joking with her own system.
It is indeed difficult to define what constitutes a flawless task.