The Genius Female Forensic Pathologist, The Psychological Anatomist-Chapter 220

Upon entering high school, Shen Xiyin was plagued by a dilemma: What is the meaning of life?

At that time, she voraciously read a lot of philosophical books and suddenly realized that life was dull, drab, and meaningless—dull, drab, meaningless. Human beings will eventually die, and at the moment of death, everything they possessed becomes meaningless to the deceased.

Her friends did not understand her confusion. They found life to be very meaningful, pursuing their passions vigorously—romantic relationships full of fervor, participating in various activities, or preparing for university applications...

But ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‍Shen Xiyin didn't have such strong desires. She could effortlessly attain whatever she wanted, had no dreams, and could not comprehend the meaning of life.

It was around this time that Mu Mian came to her home.

Shen's Father told her, "Xiyin, little Mian is going to live with us from now on. Do you mind?"

"Not at all."

This was her second encounter with Mu Mian. The first time she met Mu Mian, she was still a chubby baby. Now, though older, Mu Mian appeared like a soul-less doll, indifferent and unresponsive to the outside world.

Shen Xiyin approached Mu Mian, offering her a piece of chocolate, "Little Mian, hello. Welcome to my home."

Mu Mian lowered her head, staring at the patterns on the floor, offering no response.

In that moment, Shen Xiyin realized that Mu Mian might not be a normal child.

Shen's Father told Shen Xiyin, "Xiyin, little Mu Mian might have to live with us permanently from now on. You two should get along well."

"Dad, will Uncle Mu also be living with us?"

The expression on Shen's Father's face became slightly unnatural, "He has something important to attend to."

"Alright."

Soon, Shen Xiyin learned that Mu Mian was a child with autism.

Mu Mian didn't speak, never made eye contact, disliked physical contact, but she was also very obedient. Her way of resisting others was to sneakily hide in the closet.

Upon arriving at the Shen family's home, Mu Mian wouldn't eat, drink, or sleep. Whenever no one was watching, she would crawl into the wardrobe.

The Shen family were at their wits' end with Mu Mian's behavior, and even the nanny was on the verge of resigning from the constant hassle. Everyone was on the brink of losing patience.

When Shen Xiyin returned home from school, she found that Mu Mian was missing. She searched the room for a while before finally pulling open the wardrobe door, only to meet the gaze of darkened eyes and a slight upturned mouth.

Mu Mian was smiling at her. Her smile was stiff, but her eyes sparkled.

Mu Mian glanced at Shen Xiyin, quickly averted her eyes, and her smile faded from her small face—her expectations were unfulfilled, as this was not the person she had hoped for.

Shen Xiyin suddenly understood something and inquired, "Little Mian, are you waiting for your dad?"

Previously, Shen Xiyin had always assumed that Mu Mian lived in her own world, much like being enclosed within a glass dome, isolated from the outside world.

But in that instant, Shen Xiyin realized that perhaps Mu Mian could perceive the outside world, just not in the way a normal person would.

Mu Mian didn't answer. She shrank back into the closet, hiding herself in the darkness, finding comfort there.

Shen Xiyin felt that the closet was like another world, with only Mu Mian, alone in the darkness.

"Little Mian, you must be hungry. Wait a moment, I'll get you something to eat."

Shen Xiyin wasn't sure what Mu Mian liked to eat, so she grabbed a bit of everything they had at home—snacks, fruits—placing them on the floor in front of the closet.

"Little Mian, come out and have a bite, okay?"

Mu Mian still showed no response.

Shen Xiyin waited for a long time, but Mu Mian didn't come out. She had no choice but to run and find her father.

"Dad, has Uncle Mu abandoned Little Mian? She's very sad, continuously waiting for her father to come and pick her up."

Shen's father's expression was complicated: "Your Uncle Mu has gone to a faraway place. He is unable to care for Little Mian."

"Is he... deceased?"

"Yes."

Shen Xiyin found Mu Mian utterly pitiful. She had no father; the only person who could understand and take care of her was gone.

"Dad, what will become of Little Mian?" Without the mediator through which she communicated with the world, she could only live alone, trapped in her own world.

Mu Mian was pitiful!

"I promised your Uncle Mu that I would find the best therapists and provide her with intervention treatments. Xiyin, she will be your sister from now on. We have to take good care of her together."

"Dad, I will!"

The next day, Shen Xiyin discovered that one of the soufflé cakes she had placed on the floor was missing, as were a few strawberries.

A sudden happiness swelled within her—Little Mian had accepted her food.

"Little Mian, do you like this kind of cake and strawberries?"

Mu Mian didn't respond to her.

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Shen Xiyin helped Mu Mian unpack her luggage, where she found a notebook inside, recording some of Mu Mian's habits:

For example, upon arriving in a new environment, she had to be guided to inspect the environment repeatedly, over and over, until she was confident that the place was safe and no longer showed signs of stress.

Mu Mian cared little about the taste of food but had high standards for its appearance; she wouldn't eat sliced cucumbers but adored diced ones.

Bringing Mu Mian to the bathroom, she would wash herself, but the water temperature had to be strictly between 35 and 37℃.

Mu Mian enjoyed playing hide-and-seek and liked hiding in the closet. However, just knocking on the cabinet door three times would coax her out. This was her secret signal with her father.

Mu Mian disliked any physical contact. If one wanted to hold her hand, she must be given gloves to wear...

Shen Xiyin realized that this notebook was like a codebook, decoding Mu Mian's thoughts. She wondered about the tremendous effort Uncle Mu must have gone through to compile this information.

Mu Mian had a father who deeply loved her.

Shen Xiyin recalled the last time she had seen Uncle Mu; he had recently gotten a divorce, looking gaunt and desperate, reluctantly approaching her father to borrow money.

At that time, Shen Xiyin hadn't known that Mu Mian had autism, entrusting Uncle Mu to give Mu Mian a doll.

"Xiyin, Mu Mian doesn't like dolls. But thank you anyway," Uncle Mu had said with a bitter smile.

"What kind of toy does she like?"

"Right now, I don't know. Mu Mian has no favorite toys."

"I will ask her the next time I see her."

Shen Xiyin felt sad, for she would never see Uncle Mu again.

Shen Xiyin went to the cabinet, following the instructions in the notebook by knocking on the closet door three times:

Knock, knock, knock.

When the third sound echoed, Mu Mian crawled out of the cabinet.

Seeing Shen Xiyin, the light in Mu Mian's eyes dimmed, and she tried to retreat back into the closet. But Shen Xiyin said, "Little Mian, your father entrusted me with taking care of you. From now on, I am your big sister."

Mu Mian didn't reply, but she didn't return to the cupboard.

"Don't you believe me?" Shen Xiyin knocked three times on the cabinet door again, "Look, I know your secret signal with your father. Do you believe me now?"

Mu Mian still didn't answer, but after a few seconds, she nodded her head.

Shen Xiyin was delighted—Mu Mian could understand her speech. This meant that Mu Mian's world was not entirely closed after all.

"Little Mian, sister will accompany you to explore this house, alright?"

Mu Mian remained silent.

Shen Xiyin slipped gloves onto Mu Mian's hands and then led Mu Mian to inspect the room, prying the girl away from her closet.

"This will be your room from now on, little Mian. Do you like it?"

The room's decor was an exact replica of Mu Mian's former home, causing no disruption for the girl who inspected every corner meticulously.

"Now let's go outside and take a look. Don't be afraid—big sister is here to protect you."

Shen Xiyin led Mu Mian to inspect the exterior corridor.

Mu Mian moved slowly, taking great care to examine each tile, each piece of furniture, retracing her steps and revisiting things over and over.

Shen Xiyin patiently accompanied Mu Mian in her inspection, documenting areas that seemed uncomfortable for her.

They had spent four hours studying every nook and cranny of the Shen family's home.

"Little Mu Mian, this house will be your new home from now on, a home where you will abide forever," Shen Xiyin assured.

Mu Mian turned her head toward Shen Xiyin, apparently inquiring, what about my father?

"Mu Mian, when you are grown, your father will return," Shen Xiyin lied with a kind heart.

Methodically, the girl with gloves reached out, slowly grasping Shen Xiyin’s hand in her gloved one.

Shen Xiyin smiled and said, “Mian, you’ve accepted this place, haven’t you?”

Mu Mian patted her stomach.

“Are you hungry? Let’s go eat.”

Mu Mian gradually adapted to her life in the Shen family, but she seemed to only understand what Shen Xiyin said. She rarely responded to anyone else.

Shen's father had hired many therapists for Mu Mian. When they evaluated her, she would sit there like a lifeless puppet, not giving any responses, leading to extremely poor test results.

“She is the most severe case of autism I’ve ever seen.”

“Her condition is very bad. Her intellectual level is low, her sensory integration is severely disordered, and she’s already six years old, yet she still hasn’t spoken a single word. She has missed the optimal period for language development… You need to prepare yourselves. Intervention therapy at this point won’t bring much improvement.”

Shen's father showed little reaction to this news, as he had expected such a result. However, since he had promised Mu Wenzhou that he would take good care of Mu Mian, he would continue to provide her with the best intervention therapy, even if there was no hope of improvement.

Upon hearing the therapist’s words, Shen Xiyin quietly but firmly expressed her dissatisfaction: “You don’t know enough about Mian. How can you say her condition is so bad without truly understanding her?”

“But I’ve dealt with many autistic patients. I know their condition well.”

“Everyone is unique, and every autistic person is unique. You can’t just base your diagnosis on your experience.”

The therapist looked at Shen's father: “If you doubt my professional capabilities, why did you hire me in the first place? I’m sure other therapists have said the same thing.”

Shen Xiyin stared at him and said, each word clear: “So, you’re fired!”

Shen Xiyin suddenly found something she desperately wanted to achieve: she wanted to become a therapist herself. She wanted to make Mu Mian normal.

“Xiyin, you can’t be so disrespectful!”

The therapist was actually a friend of Shen Xiyin’s father. Shen's Father quickly apologized and escorted him out.

Shen Xiyin decided to go home and look up information about autism but saw Mu Mian standing motionless at the corner of the corridor.

Shen Xiyin walked over to Mu Mian and crouched down to look at her. “Did you hear what we just said, Mian?”

Mu Mian didn’t respond.

“You understand, don’t you?”

Mu Mian still didn’t respond.

“He’s wrong! There’s nothing wrong with not speaking. People don’t always need to communicate through words. You don’t speak, and yet I know what you’re thinking. You want to eat strawberries, don’t you?”

Mu Mian glanced at Shen Xiyin and shook her head.

“You want to build with blocks?”

Mu Mian continued to shake her head.

“Do you want to play hide and seek?”

Mu Mian paused for a moment and then shook her head.

“Mian, are you missing your dad?”

Mu Mian didn’t nod, nor did she shake her head. She had no idea what “missing” was. All she knew was that someone very important to her was gone.

“Don’t be afraid, Mian. I’ll always be with you.” Shen Xiyin promised.

Later, Mu Mian gradually forgot about her father.

One day, Mu Mian spoke her first words: “Sister, I’m hungry.”

Mu Mian started going to school.

Mu Mian made her first friend, though the friend had been bribed by Shen Xiyin.

Eventually, Mu Mian found something she liked.

One day, the nanny said to Shen Xiyin: “Xiyin, Mian was playing with the corpse of a small animal. Could there be something wrong with her psychology?”

“Mian likes corpses? That’s great, she’s finally found something she likes.” Shen Xiyin’s expression was calm.

Aunt Zhang grabbed Shen Xiyin, her face filled with fear: “Xiyin, but Mian likes corpses!”

“Aunt Zhang, there’s nothing wrong with liking corpses. Mian likes corpses, so she can pursue a career that legally allows her to interact with them. She can become a forensic scientist, a specimen maker, a butcher, an undertaker, or even work at a mortuary…”

The nanny left in resignation.

Just then, Mu Mian walked over and handed Shen Xiyin a box: “Sister, gift, for you.”

Shen Xiyin opened the box and inside was a specimen of a small hamster.

“It’s cute, isn’t it?” Mu Mian looked up, proudly.

“Yes. But you can only turn corpses into specimens. You can’t harm living things.”

“I’ll remember. Sister, when you die, I’ll turn you into a specimen too. That way, you’ll exist forever.”

“That’s fine with me!”

Shen Xiyin felt she had found the meaning of her life.

But only much later did Shen Xiyin realize that this had all been a trap. Mu Mian was the bait, and her father had used this trap to ensnare her entire life.