Dr. Ou's Psychotherapy Chapter 33

Hunter and Prey

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Yi Zhize was filled with astonishment.

He had never imagined that the conceited and arrogant doctor would, one day, put himself down and act in this manner.

His breathing was chaotic and his mind was a jumble of emotions.

Ou Tingyun just looked at him in silence, his eyes filled with earnestness and expectation.

Yi Zhize began to get a headache.

He coughed and a fishy sweetness rose in his mouth.

Impossible.

Never.

Reason told him that he must not make the same mistake.

He had never been a sociable person, how could he beat that manipulative doctor?

Yi Zhize sighed softly and said, "Tingyun, please let me go."

He raised his eyes to look at the sky, a curved moon shining brightly: "I'm tired, I'm already very tired."

With that, he walked forward without looking back.

Ou Tingyun watched his distant back, his eyes dark and his heart desolate.

"Zhize."

He called out to him.

Yi Zhize's steps paused, but still didn't stop.

"I won't give up on you."

He said.

Ou Tingyun returned to his residence and began to pack up the things Yi Zhize had left with him.

Since the lawyer had not asked for them, he had no intention of returning them.

He hung his clothes in his own wardrobe, as if his lover was merely out of town and would be back any minute.

In the bathroom were sets of toiletries, and the kitchen was still stocked with a double supply of tableware.

If Ze Ze came back this weekend, Ou Tingyun thought, what should I cook for him?

Although he's not a fussy eater, he looks like he's lost some weight again and needs to eat something good.

Ou Tingyun took the steak and some meat out of the fridge.

Putting on his gloves, he took out his silver knife and began to tackle it.

The cold blade cut through the bloody tissue, and a strange paranoia rose in Ou Tingyun's mind.

He thought of killing,

thought of death,

thought of eternal possession.

There was a ‘click’, it was the soft sound of a blade cutting through bone.

The blood was sticky and smeared on his fingers.

Ou Tingyun cut it inch by inch until the flesh and blood were indistinguishable.

‘Thud!'

It was the sound of the knife cutting through the flesh and sinking into the wooden cutting board.

Ou Tingyun began to laugh aimlessly.

I won't give up on you.

He said, I won't.

At night, Ou Tingyun lay in bed.

He couldn't sleep.

As a psychiatrist, he suffered from the same problem as his patients.

He was filled with anxiety, with no place to relieve it.

He took out his cell phone and dialled a number from memory.

No one answered.

With a clatter, he yanked open the wardrobe.

He found the robe that Yi Zhize had once worn, and the scent of his body was still on it.

Like a sweet spring in the desert, he wrapped his arms around the garment and drowned in it greedily.

His body reacted instantly and the urge to rub against it brought a thrilling sensation of pleasure.

It was as if his lover was lying in his arms right now, as if they had never been apart.

There was a madness in the bottom of his eyes that had lost all sense of reason.

Ou Tingyun understood,

he had long since crossed that line.

The old paranoia had been awakened.

He had fallen into the purgatory of endless greed.

———

After dealing with the aftermath of his grandfather's death, Yi Zhize applied to the firm and was transferred to the UK branch for a business assignment.

He spent the whole winter in England before stepping back on his native soil in the late spring of the following year.

Victor and he travelled side by side, discussing the latest international cases in the circle.

He had spent less than three months in the UK branch, but had solved a number of difficult cases and made a name for himself there, which gave Victor a sense of satisfaction.

On his return to China, Victor made a special trip to see him off with the intention of networking at the headquarters to see if it was possible to recruit Yi Zhize to come and live in the UK.

At the reception, the partners of Ruizheng Law Firm welcomed Yi Zhize back to China. Before three rounds of wine had passed, Xu Kai, the firm's most senior partner, said tentatively, "Mr. Yi, the firm currently has a difficult case on its hands. We have discussed it for a while, but we think it's best to leave it to you."

Yi Zhize was a light drinker, and although he had drunk very little, his face was still flushed: "What case?"

"An asset restructuring case." Xu Kai said, "It's a big company, and if it's done well, the dividends will be very high according to the commission."

"What's the tricky part?"

Xu Kai hesitated for a while and deliberately said, "It involves Ou Rui Real Estate, it's a hard bone, very difficult to chew."

Yi Zhize's heart skipped a beat.

Ou Rui Real Estate.

Ou Tingyun.

No wonder he had been hastily summoned back from England, these old guys were very smart.

Yi Zhize smiled, "Okay."

Xu Kai's face showed joy, "You're agreeing?"

"En," Yi Zhize drank all the wine in his glass, "I agree."

After the meal broke up, Victor drove him back: "Yi, with all due respect, I remember that that Ou Rui Real Estate seems to be related to your ex-boyfriend?"

"En."

"They came to you on purpose, didn't they?"

"En."

"You're not avoiding it?"

"No need." Yi Zhize's eyes were cold: "Since there are existing connections to exploit, why not do so?"

Victor's grip on the steering wheel tightened: "Yi, don't lie to me. I know that you're not that kind of person."

"What kind of person?"

"My kind." Victor smiled wryly, "Like me, a despicable, shameless villain."

"Why can't I be that kind of person?"

"Back at UCL Law School, I did nothing more than trick you into helping me out with a case study and you held a grudge against me for all these years." Victor feigned being wounded: "And at a dinner party, we had a falling out. How do you say it in Chinese, caring too much about the insignificant things and seeking revenge for the smallest grievances?"

"Not bad, you can use idioms now."

"But I still feel that you and I are not the same." Victor said, "I'm indeed the bad guy, and you're not. You just want to play it cool."

"Please don't judge me freely." Arriving at his destination, Yi Zhize opened the car door, "People are always changing, Victor."

Returning to his condo after a long absence, Yi Zhize left the lights off.

He went straight to his study, turned on his computer and reviewed the case file sent to him by Xu Kai.

However, after not seeing him for a few months, the largest controlling director of Ou Rui Real Estate had changed from Ou Jiaxun to Ou Tingyun.

Yi Zhize could not help but speculate whether this case was a trap he had laid for him since the very beginning.

To lure him back from England, and then what?

It didn't matter, he didn't care.

He was no longer the man he had been before.

A new game had begun.

Who was the hunter, 

who was the prey?

He opened WeChat, found Meng Xing's circle of friends and browsed through his latest updates.

This rich boy, who throws at least three parties a week.

Sure enough, there is another one tomorrow night.

Yi Zhize sent him a message: [Just returned to China, shall I come to your party tomorrow night?]

Meng Xing replied in seconds: [No problem! Barrister Yi! I'll be waiting for you!]

[Who else did you invite?]

[Some people from the entertainment industry in A City, but don't worry, they are all old friends of mine and are easy to get along with. Oh yeah, why don't you invite Victor too?]

[Okay, by the way, I'd like to ask you one thing.]

[Courteous! What is it?]

[Invite Dr. Ou Tingyun for me, I have a personal matter to discuss with him.]

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: December 8, 2022