Who would study psychology unless they had some issues?!-Chapter 121 - 119: Gratitude of the Family

What’s going on?

Nan Zhubin glanced curiously at Shen Bing and then at his watch, "Is it a client? But we should still have about ten minutes before the consultation starts. Could he have arrived early?"

At the same time, Nan Zhubin noticed that Shen Bing’s expression was somewhat subtle.

[The corners of his mouth were twitching, as if he wanted to curl them up but was suppressing it; the corners of his eyes were restraining from curving—Is he forcibly holding back joy?]

[Did something good happen, but he’s holding back trying to play a trick on me?]

Seeing that Nan Zhubin misunderstood, Shen Bing seemed to want to restrain something but couldn’t help bursting into laughter, "Pfft!"

"Mr. Nan, it’s something good, really good!" His tone couldn’t hide his excitement, "Come out and see, and you’ll understand!"

Nan Zhubin raised an eyebrow, pulled back his chair, and walked toward the reception area.

He saw Lu Jia offering tea to a middle-aged man in a suit and tie.

This man looked unfamiliar, yet his features gave Nan Zhubin a sense of familiarity.

Upon seeing Nan Zhubin, the man in the suit immediately stood up.

"You must be Mr. Nan. I’ve heard Tingting mention you—saying you’re a consultant who even if never met in person, can be recognized at first glance."

The man introduced himself, "I am Chen Ting’s father."

Nan Zhubin’s expression remained unchanged, but internally he went "Uh-huh."

...

When Mr. Chen stood up, his gaze was scrutinizing; after seeing Nan Zhubin’s face, its contours and lines, and his features, this expression turned into an admiration akin to viewing a masterpiece painting.

He recalled asking his wife earlier, "How should I find the consultant Nan Zhubin at the Yan Nuo Psychological Center?" His wife’s expression was peculiar, she only said, "You’ll know when you see it, he’s the most distinctive among the young ones, identifiable at a glance."

He was quite puzzled at the time.

Now he understood what his wife meant.

If Mr. Chen were twenty years younger, he might feel a hint of hostility towards Nan Zhubin’s face; but now, successful and accomplished, all that remains is relief and appreciation.

And a bit of gratitude.

"Mr. Chen," Nan Zhubin chose a relatively less distant term, "Nice to meet you for the first time."

As Mr. Chen sized up Nan Zhubin, Nan Zhubin was also assessing Mr. Chen.

Not everyone is Sherlock Holmes, capable of deducing a great deal about a person at first meeting.

But fortunately, there soon appeared a frame of reference to help Nan Zhubin read him.

"Mr. Chen, I hadn’t expected you’d come directly."

Howard walked briskly out from the office area, bypassing Nan Zhubin to extend both hands towards Mr. Chen, "And without giving a heads-up, welcome, welcome."

[A fawning smile.]

[The sense of "enthusiasm" in his words exceeded the normal "host welcoming guest" level, bearing a hint of a subordinate meeting a superior.]

[So does Mr. Chen surpass the boss in financial strength or social status?]

Nan Zhubin looked again at Mr. Chen. He scanned Mr. Chen’s expression to confirm his purpose for coming today.

[The smile stayed on his face for a long, stable duration, a social smile.]

[However, just now when interacting with me, there were periodic contractions around his eyes; now, that’s gone, leaving only a sense of social formality.]

Facing Howard, Mr. Chen slightly straightened his back, a certain out-of-place temperament filled the room, contrasting with the rest of the psychological center.

"I’ve long admired you, Boss Huo." Mr. Chen explained, "This is a personal affair and was on a whim. I’m neither here for consultation nor business, so I didn’t give advance notice and I apologize for any inconvenience caused."

"Not at all, not at all!" Howard laughed heartily.

The center boss’s voice was loud; although the consultation rooms in the center had good soundproofing, Nan Zhubin couldn’t help but frown, worried about disturbing other visitors currently in sessions.

At this point, the shuffling of feet sounded from behind; even without looking back, Nan Zhubin could guess it was the consultants "nurturing their brains" in the office area who heard about the special situation and started to gather.

"What personal affair, Mr. Chen, your visit is indeed a big deal." Howard continued to laugh.

Mr. Chen’s composure as he withdrew his hand was remarkable, then pivoted back to face Nan Zhubin, turning his side towards Howard’s position. At the same time, his smile shifted from "Mr. Chen" to more akin to "Chen Dad."

"The main reason for my visit today is to see Mr. Nan." Mr. Chen said solemnly, "I wanted to express my heartfelt thanks."

Nan Zhubin instinctively responded, "It’s my duty."

"No, if it weren’t for Mr. Nan’s dedication, we really wouldn’t know what to do," Mr. Chen’s sincerity showed, "Previously, we sought many consultants, but none could perceive Tingting’s issues or help her as attentively as Mr. Nan did."

At this point, the man’s social mask completely slipped, revealing his genuine emotions.

"We—Tingting’s mom and I—have been really negligent; we weren’t even aware of what problems Tingting had."

"I asked my friends these past few days and learned that what Mr. Nan has done recently on top of everything was rather challenging, yet you’ve done it for Tingting."

Mr. Chen looked into Nan Zhubin’s eyes, "So I had to come and personally thank you, Mr. Nan. Without you, we really wouldn’t know what might have happened, and if that ’something’ had indeed transpired, we truly wouldn’t know how to cope with it."

"No need to be thankful." Nan Zhubin maintained, but the expression on his face finally revealed an internal smile beyond the social niceties.

"Yes, this is what we are supposed to do." Howard interjected, laughing, "Though Yan Nuo was only recently established, our consultants are exceptionally reliable one by one."

His voice was so loud that Weng Pinting, who had been looking at materials in the office area, came to listen as well. The consultation supervisor stood with arms crossed among the group of onlookers, frowning tightly but also remained silent.

The gratitude from family was received, a most precious emotional acknowledgment for a psychological consultant, yet Nan Zhubin still had two doubts in his heart.

"How has your spouse been recently, Tingting’s mom?"

Upon hearing this, Mr. Chen’s facial expression froze significantly, for a moment conveying a vast amount of information, overwhelming even in situations where Nan Zhubin had a point of reference, let alone now.

"She... isn’t in a position to come and thank Mr. Nan personally."

Hearing this answer, Nan Zhubin nodded thoughtfully, "Then today, you must have come for other reasons as well?"

Mr. Chen forced a smile, "Mr. Nan is indeed professional, can you see that?"

Nan Zhubin did not answer, simply smiling.

Mr. Chen quickly composed himself, "Today I’m here primarily for two things—besides thanking Mr. Nan, I’d also like to see if there’s anything wherein I could offer assistance to express my gratitude, and then there’s Tingting, such a significant event won’t just pass by easily, I am deeply concerned about Tingting’s current state, so I wish to trouble Mr. Nan to continue assisting..."

Howard had been listening on the side, and at this point, his glee was almost uncontainable.

He clapped his hands in a self-blaming manner and then quickly moved to Mr. Chen’s side, making a gesture of invitation, "We’ve been talking for so long, and we’re still at the doorway, how about joining me in the office, and we can have a leisurely chat with young Nan?"

Mr. Chen nodded agreeably.

He moved one foot slightly, very politely gesturing to Nan Zhubin, "After you."

However, Nan Zhubin didn’t budge, instead, he turned his body away in the opposite direction from Howard and Mr. Chen.

He pulled out his phone, acting as if checking the time, then said, "Boss, I have a consultation shortly."

"...Ah, what?"

"I have a consultation," Nan Zhubin repeated, "In five minutes, I need to get to the consultation room to prepare."

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