Chapter 132: Hand in Hand (3) |
Tang Jinxia went to the meeting room next door. Shen Qing closed the office door, sat back down on the sofa, and asked with a hint of anticipation: “Now that you two have hashed things out, when can I join your research?”
“There’s some preparation to do first, probably a couple of days,” Wei Hongsi estimated.
The project team needed to make some preparations and adjustments for Shen Qing’s involvement. The official cooperation invitation also required approval through the proper channels. While there weren’t any real difficulties, it would still take some time.
“Oh.” Shen Qing nodded. “So, what work will I need to do?”
Wei Hongsi said, “First, there’s the musical aspect. We need you to compose, record, or curate a large amount of musical material capable of carrying and conveying specific emotions.
“After testing, this content will be processed into components of the ‘Emotional Reshaping Method.’ You can think of this treatment like a formulated medicine, and the musical material you provide is one of the key ingredients.
“The formula for this medicine isn’t fixed; it needs to be adjusted according to the patient’s condition, which means the ingredients you provide also have to be tweaked continuously.
“The goal of our research is to find the formula that can be adapted for various patients. That requires constant experimentation and adjustment, making it a rather tedious process.”
Shen Qing smiled and said, “Don’t worry, I’ve always had great patience. This work is essentially the same as recording those few musical phrases for you before, isn’t it?”
Shen Qing said with great confidence, “No problem. I believe I can do it well.”
This was quite different from her usual songwriting—definitely challenging, but not overly difficult.
“Yeah, it really shouldn’t be a problem for you,” Wei Hongsi agreed.
Of course, he had no idea what Shen Qing’s composition skills were like, but he assumed a graduate from a music school’s composition program would be more than capable of handling the work.
Shen Qing smiled and asked, “Anything else?”
Wei Hongsi said, “Also, we need to thoroughly understand the mechanism by which you use music for self-regulation to weaken the ‘Psychological Virus.’”
“Simply put, we need to first figure out how you treat yourself, then summarize that treatment plan, and finally use it to treat others.”
This was the greatest value Shen Qing brought to the research.
Wei Hongsi had started with the musical aspect first to give Shen Qing a strong sense of involvement, preventing her from feeling like just a research subject, which might dampen her enthusiasm.
Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Shen Qing’s eyes lit up. “I’ve always believed that music is incredibly powerful. It can inspire people and heal them. When you said earlier that I had immunity and self-healing ability against that virus, I thought, if everyone could be like me, wouldn’t we have nothing to fear from it anymore!”
Wei Hongsi was a bit surprised by her perspective on the issue, but after thinking about it, he found it quite normal.
Shen Qing had a strong self-directed cognitive restructuring ability. This ability couldn’t have been innate; it largely depended on her cognitive capacity for understanding things. If she didn’t have such a mindset, she probably wouldn’t possess this ability.
Wei Hongsi said with some emotion, “Your idea is wonderful, but it’s very difficult to give everyone else this ability—even just a few people would be hard.”
Shen Qing said, “That’s why we need to help them.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” Wei Hongsi nodded and went on to explain the key points of her work to Shen Qing.
Now that he understood her motivation for joining the research, many issues became easier to discuss.
For instance, they needed Shen Qing to provide detailed information about her own reactions to the “Psychological Virus” and the process of self-regulation, including her subjective experiences. These unique first-hand data and qualitative analysis materials were essential for the research.
Additionally, since Shen Qing carried residual traces of the “Psychological Virus,” she could become one of the first candidates to receive and verify new therapies for “virus removal” or “immunity strengthening,” testing the effectiveness and safety of the treatments through her own participation.
Considering that Shen Qing was a public figure, Wei Hongsi also proposed several measures to protect her personal privacy, such as anonymizing sensitive data sources and limiting disclosure of personal experiences to relevant researchers. This wouldn’t affect Shen Qing’s contribution to the research work.
After finishing the main topic, Shen Qing said, “When I heard you say earlier that you were an engineer, I thought it was about machinery or architecture or something. I never expected it would be this.”
Wei Hongsi said, “Actually, my research direction does have some relation to mechanical equipment.”
Shen Qing asked, “So how much time do you usually have to study music?”
After receiving Wei Hongsi’s two rounds of suggestions for revising the music—especially the second one—Shen Qing felt that his understanding of music was quite insightful. Since he wasn’t formally trained in it, he must have studied it in his spare time, which was no small feat.
This question stumped Wei Hongsi. When had he ever studied music? He had only helped Shen Qing “look over” a piece of music once.
But the skills in the “System” would certainly be unlocked and exchanged in the future, so he couldn’t claim complete ignorance.
Wei Hongsi thought for a moment and said, “Actually, music is my second life.”
Shen Qing didn’t find his statement exaggerated at all; instead, she nodded in agreement.
Wei Hongsi took the opportunity to ask, “If someone has studied an instrument, like an electronic keyboard or a guitar, can you tell from their appearance?”
“Testing me?” Shen Qing smiled. “Let me see your left hand.”
Wei Hongsi extended his left hand in front of Shen Qing.
She grabbed his wrist and examined it, then looked at his fingers and fingertips before saying, “You must have studied guitar, and for a long time, but you haven’t touched it in recent years.”
As she spoke, she scraped at the side of Wei Hongsi’s index finger and fingertip with her nail. “The calluses here are hard to see, but they haven’t disappeared.”
She scraped at his finger pad a few more times. “Looks like you might have played the electronic keyboard, but the signs aren’t obvious. But since you asked, it’s more likely you did play. Am I right?”
Wei Hongsi smiled and nodded. He thought to himself, I sure hope you’re right. At least that would guarantee that the memories tied to the four skill options in the “System” are my own.
Shen Qing said, “If you kept playing the guitar, it would be obvious at a glance.”
As she spoke, she held her hand out in front of Wei Hongsi. “Look at my fingers.”
Wei Hongsi didn’t take her hand; he just examined it from nearby. He could see the small calluses on her fingertips were very prominent, while the area near her finger pads had become relatively smooth.
