Chapter 11 09 Witness

"After waking up, I found myself strapped to a chair with something gagged in my mouth. It took me a while to see where I was - the ground was gray concrete, the There are still square concrete pillars in the place. It seems that this is an office floor that has not been renovated? I can’t see behind me. There is a row of tall floor-to-ceiling windows about five or six meters in front of me. There is a person standing in front of the window , I can only see the back. It should be the back of a woman, she was standing in front of the window looking out. "I tried to struggle a few times, but I couldn't move at all because it was tied tightly. Although the woman didn't turn her head, she had already noticed that I was awake. She turned her face and seemed to be looking at me from the corner of her eye. I couldn't see her face at all in the backlight, but the profile looked...beautiful.

"'Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you.' She said, 'You know what? This world is fake. Everything in front of you, these bustling crowds, these busy figures, don't actually exist, they all It's fake. It's just that they didn't realize it. Of course, you were the same as them before I finished speaking, but after I finished speaking, you were different from those people. At that time, you naturally You will understand why I say what I say and why I do what I do. What I tell you today means a lot to you. It will affect your whole life.'” One morning, a man with a crew cut came to the clinic and said he needed my help.

I know this guy, he's a policeman.When we sent the murderer who had become a monk to avoid crimes and surrendered, he received us and made a record.He's here today because he needs help with a trickier case—me, to be precise.A young woman fell to her death from a dozen floors, and the police found a man tied to a chair on the floor where the woman broke out of the window.It is said that the man was in a trance and emotionally unstable at the time.What's more: he only remembered seeing the young woman who fell to her death a few hours before the crime, and he didn't remember anything else.After a psychiatric appraisal, the witness and important suspect at the scene had symptoms of reverse thinking blankness, that is to say, he lost his memory.

Police: "Can hypnosis retrieve the part of his amnesia? Although there is no evidence that he killed him, he cannot be ruled out as a major suspect." Me: "I can't be sure about this. I don't know anything until I meet him in person. I have to confirm." Police: "So, are you willing to take this order? We want to know what happened to that woman before she died." I thought for a while: "I'm not the only one who has the final say. My partner is on a business trip. I need to make a call to discuss it. I'll tell you later? Or tomorrow?" Police: "If it's convenient, call now. I can wait."

So, I called my partner and described the general situation to him. "It's a pity that I'm not here, remember to back up all the data, I'll read it when I come back." It sounds like the partner on the other end of the phone seems to be very interested in this matter. "You mean I'll pick this up myself?" I was asking for his opinion. Partner: "That's right, I just need hypnosis anyway, and it's nothing to do with me. Don't forget to back up, I want to know the result." Me: "Okay." "Well, if you have any questions, please contact me." Then, he hung up the phone.

I put down the receiver, turned my head and nodded to the policeman. "I don't understand why the woman said that. I just felt so scared. For a while, I couldn't even remember what happened and why I was here. It felt like a puzzle to me at the time. I spent It took a long time to find clues from the scattered memory fragments. The clues became clearer and clearer, and slowly formed a complete picture-I remembered how it happened-I mean after I passed out What happened before. At this time, the woman slowly turned around and looked towards me, but I still couldn't see her clearly, the backlight made me unable to see clearly, and my head still hurt.

"'I'm sorry I used force to make you sit here and listen to me, but that's all I can do. Because I tried to persuade some people to listen and ask them to be witnesses, unfortunately, I Most of the men you find will say nonsense that they don't even believe. For example: Life is beautiful, how can you have such thoughts? Are you broken in love? Is your work stressful? Do you have Children, do you have parents? Have you thought about their feelings? Do you want to try a new life? Are you short of money now? Have you encountered any difficulties in life? Can you try your relationship? Can we date? These It's all men's way of saying it. Women's expression is more simple and direct: Are you crazy? Or run away screaming. So, after repeated trials and failures, I decided to use compulsive methods to force a man to sit on you Now sit where you are and listen patiently to me explaining everything.” After speaking, the woman shrugged.

"At this time, I was even more scared. I didn't know what she was going to do, because I had completely remembered what happened before." The next day, a couple of police guys came with the amnesiac man, and I took a quick look at him. He looked about twenty-six or seventeen years old, average height and appearance, nothing special, and he didn't have the fake calm or fake anxiety of a liar.Preliminary judgment, I think he has really lost his memory, because there is still a hint of confusion and hope in his slightly frightened eyes—he really hopes that his blank memory can be retrieved—if he has not been subjected to In terms of professional performance training, it is very difficult to pretend such complex emotions, very, very difficult.

After a few reassuring hints, I began the routine questioning.Before that, I told the police repeatedly: Never interrupt my conversation with the amnesiac, don’t smoke, don’t make noise, don’t walk around, don’t chat—I don’t care if he is a suspect now , since you want me to retrieve his memory, then you have to listen to me. The police officers looked at each other and nodded in agreement. I think, I can start. Me: "How much can you remember? I mean before that blank period." Amnesiac: "Uh... just a little..." Me: "Okay, then tell me what you remember." Amnesiac: "I was busy with work at noon that day, and I didn't go out for lunch until the afternoon. Because it was already past lunch time, I went alone, usually with my colleagues. On the company's road, at the corner of an office building that had just finished construction and hadn't yet undergone interior decoration, a woman tripped over something and nearly fell down. A large stack of documents in her hand was scattered everywhere. "

Me: "Are you going to help?" Amnesiac: "Yes, uh... She seems to be in good shape, so I noticed her from a distance... I ran to help her collect the documents scattered on the floor and found that the papers were all blank Yeah, nothing. Then don't remember what happened." Me: "Did you squat on the ground at that time?" Amnesiac: "Yes." Me: "I don't have any impression after that?" The amnesiac frowned: "Maybe a little bit, but it's kind of weird to say." Why do I?" Amnesiac: "It's like... like drowning."

Me: "You mean suffocation?" Amnesiac: "Well, it's like struggling in water—you don't know whether the next breath you take is air or water..." "That woman came by the window, and I gradually could see her face clearly. Yes, it was her, I remembered. She was very beautiful, and she had a good smile, but I was too scared at the time, because I remembered what she did when I helped her pick up the scattered papers: She took a spray can from her pocket, and the moment I looked up, she sprayed something in my face, Then I lost consciousness. When I woke up, I was bound here. "'I said I would do no harm to you, and you may have some doubts about that, but if you think about it, I have no other intention than to tie you here. Otherwise, I Won't wait until you wake up to tell you this because I have enough time to hurt you or kill you while you're unconscious, right? So calm down and listen to me.' That woman crouched over me In front of him, his tone seemed to be persuading a disobedient child, and so was his expression. "There was nothing else I could do but nod or shake my head, so I nodded - I was afraid that if I didn't do it, I would offend her. "'Fine.' She stroked my hair like a real child, then stood up and looked down at me, 'Remember what I told you when you first woke up? I said, This world, everything you see, is fake.' "I keep nodding. "'Maybe in your opinion, there are many unknowns in this world. You don't know what will happen tomorrow, what will happen in an hour, and you can't even guess what will happen in a minute. You don't know that those people downstairs are what you're thinking, don't know what I'm thinking, the only thing you know is what you're thinking right now. But, you don't know what you're going to be thinking an hour from now. Sounds annoying, right? We almost Nothing is under control, nothing is in our expectation, nothing is sure, we seem to be groping forward in a fog, and the next second is unknown." She stood up and walked not far away A thick square concrete pillar, leaning against it, not caring about getting your clothes dirty, 'But it's all wrong, we don't live in the unknown, it's all set up, early on. It was buried deep, had a direction and a decision. Sadly, most people don't believe that.'” "So," I looked into the amnesiac's eyes, "what else do you remember about what happened next?" Amnesiac: "No, I've been thinking about having a headache for the past few days, but there's nothing, it's blank." I nodded: "Well, then tell me what you still remember." Amnesiac: "I... as long as I remember, I was tied to a chair, and the thumbs of both hands were tightly strangled by something." As he said, he raised his hands to show me—two big The thumb is still a bit of a greenish tint now. "There's a lot of duct tape around my wrists - I can feel it, because they're making my skin so uncomfortable. It's duct tape that binds me all over the chair, and it's very tight. I couldn't move at all. When the police came, it took a long time to untie me." Me: "Have you been gagged all this time?" Amnesiac: "Uh... yes, it's... my own socks." Me: "Did the police wake you up?" Amnesiac: "I can't tell. It seems that I fell asleep or passed out while being strapped to the chair. I have no memory of what happened." Me: "Were you scared then?" Amnesiac: "It's not that I'm afraid... I don't know what it feels like... I thought amnesia is a very interesting thing when I read novels and movies. When it really happens to me..." Speaking of this, he smiled wryly, "...it's not fun." Me: "Yeah, amnesia isn't fun. When you wake up, do you remember anything else?" Amnesiac: "I'm facing a row of floor-to-ceiling windows, the kind of big windows in an office building, about... um... five or six meters away from me. The glass of the window facing me was smashed open by something There, small fragments all over the place..." He was referring to fragments of tempered glass at the scene, and I had seen photos from the police. Me: "Do you know why that happened?" Amnesiac: "I didn't know at first, but later I heard from the policeman who rescued me that the woman... fell and died." Me: "Did she tie you to the chair?" Amnesiac: "Looks like... isn't it? I don't know about that." Me: "But why do you say it seems to be?" Amnesiac: "Because the last person I saw before that period of memory was blank was her, so I think it should have something to do with her... But I can't be sure, I just think so." I glanced at the policeman and nodded.I believe that the amnesiac in front of me is not lying. Automatic correlation thinking makes him have this kind of cognition. Me: "Is there any more? I mean feeling, did you still feel anything at that time?" Amnesiac: "You may know the rest. After the police untied me, I don't know what happened. I vomited all over the place, and I was so weak that my legs were so weak that I couldn't stand up. I was put in the car by the medical staff. Pushed out." I nodded my head: "Well...well, I get it in general. You should rest for a while, let's analyze whether we need hypnosis or not." "'Our whole life is decided from the moment when the first cell begins to divide before the embryo is fully formed. At that moment, it is decided whether we are a man or a woman, tall or short, ugly or ugly. Beautiful, the color of the eyes, the color of the hair, the length of the fingers, the level of IQ, whether there is a heart disease, what will be done in the future... In short, that moment determines everything about us, everything about us has become a definite number , the probability of being able to turn over is very small, unless it is a very extreme external environment-for example, severe malnutrition during the development period will prevent us from growing as high as originally planned. If there is no extreme environment, it will not change. It has been decided long ago. all of that.' The woman took a pack of cigarettes out of her pocket and lit one. Psychopath, right? But, I'm fine, I'm normal, and there's nothing wrong with what I just said. It's just that many people don't know the truth. Of course, I have enough evidence. Would you like to hear ?' She pointed at me with two fingers holding a cigarette. "I can't do anything but nod. "'I'm afraid you have no other choice now. However, I promise to use the most common words so that you can understand.' She came back to me with a smile, stroked my hair, and sat not far away On a battered wooden box. 'You know DNA? You must have heard of it. What about genes? You must have heard of it too? But I guess you don't understand how the two are related, do you? Let me tell you, DNA is the double helix, and genes are contained in DNA. Got it now? Well, I'm going to say genes. Maybe you've heard the saying that genes manipulate Everything about us. That statement is correct, but the wording is somewhat imprecise. In fact, from that little embryo formed, the genes no longer have any activity, it cannot and does not need to manipulate us, because our Behavior has long been determined by genes. Your actions are already predetermined. You are destined to grow up and become what your genes want you to look like; you are destined to make choices that your genes want you to make Choice. You may be wondering - aren't genes not active? Yes, they are not active from the time you are formed, but when you are a small embryo, everything about you is programmed Program, you will only live in accordance with the set mode, and will not violate the code of conduct and thinking mode it sets for you. Do you understand? We are firmly trapped in a cage, and we can't go anywhere. We're docile marionettes, and without those strings we're nothing.' "Maybe it's because her mouth is blocked, maybe it's the effect of the unknown liquid she sprayed on me, maybe it's because the blood is not flowing well because of the tight binding, but I'm dizzy, but I hear every word she says Went in, and got it, and for some reason, I thought it was all horrible. "She threw away the cigarette in her hand and looked at me for a while: 'If I hadn't gagged you, you would definitely jump up and refute me at this time. It's really normal, because the sting I said is you.'" "Hypnosis can remind him of that blank memory?" the policeman asked me. Me: "Not necessarily." Police: "But in the movie..." I shook my head: "Don't believe the all-powerful hypnosis in the movie, it's all nonsense. His current situation is that he spontaneously blocks memory after receiving some kind of stimulation, which is very tricky, so I can't guarantee anything." Police: "Then how sure are you?" Me: "I don't know. Before hypnosis, I can't give you any guarantee. Because his situation is that the subconscious mind has rejected this memory, and what hypnosis is facing is the subconscious mind—that is, he is not really It is the repelling of that memory that creates a blank memory.” Police: "I've heard a saying that there is no real amnesia." I nodded: "Yes, that is indeed the case. You see, he still remembers his name, what he does, before and after. That's why I say that he is deliberate because of subconscious rejection. Amnesia. To put it bluntly, it is selective." Police: "So that means he did it on purpose?" I do not." Police: "You just said it was optional..." Me: "I'm not referring to his conscious choice, but his subconscious choice—the subconscious cannot be manipulated by oneself, otherwise it wouldn't be called the subconscious." Police: "Oh, I see, even he can't decide by himself, right?" Me: "That's it. So I want to ask you again, do you need hypnosis? I'm not sure I can get his memory back." Police: "Well... try it? Because there is no better way at the moment." Me: "OK." After preparing the video camera and the relatively dark environment, I gave the amnesiac the last soothing suggestion before hypnosis.It took me a long time because his nervousness made it hard for him to relax.I think it's an indirect way of his subconscious's refusal to awaken the memory. However, despite the delay, I did it. After watching him gradually hand over the dominance of consciousness, I breathed a sigh of relief and began to ask for guidance. Me: "Where are you?" Amnesiac: "...I was strapped to a chair..." Me: "Who tied you there?" Amnesiac: "It's...a woman..." Me: "Can you see her?" Amnesiac: "Yes, she is standing... in front of the French windows..." Me: "The dead woman?" Amnesiac: "Yes." "'You have heard countless descriptions since you were a child, describing the greatness of human beings-our appearance has changed the world, we have leveled mountains, created rivers, piled up tall buildings, and created brilliant civilizations. If we want, we can wipe out a species completely; if we want, we can also save a creature that is about to be eliminated by nature. We are at the top of the food chain, despising other creatures, we can not be hungry but greedy To kill, we can also pardon the death of an animal with a merciful face. We are almost the gods of this planet, and we create far more than we need. This is what you know, Right? How amazing we are! But that's why what I said before stings you. Such a great species, all behavior is manipulated? And by those small, lowly Little things? It's annoying, isn't it? Are we just machines? Doing a fixed program? Are all we've created and are proud of are just faithful executors of our genes? Would you be upset about it? Or angry? Or sad? Would you?" She stood up and walked to the window, arms folded, seeming to be looking out of the window. "I wanted to sigh, but I couldn't because my mouth was tightly gagged. "It took her a while to turn around and look at me: 'But genes, they're just like computer codes - they're just tools, and it's the manipulators who actually create the codes. With our intelligence, it's impossible to imagine What kind of existence the real manipulator would be, it is far beyond the boundaries of our thinking." She sighed a long time, "The real sad thing is that we would rather believe that there is no such existence, but we Can't go against the heart's desire - imitate it. Would you be puzzled by this sentence? I think you will, because it proves that you are still sane. Come to think of it, we use computer programming to imitate manipulation in the most direct way Behaviors of human beings—use extremely simple 0 and 1 to create complex systems, and even have the ability to adapt. Of course, it is only a certain degree of adaptation, within the scope we delineated. In addition, we There are also indirect ways to try to figure something out. For example, astrology? Fortune-telling? Skull reading, palmistry, facial reading? ——Trying to find patterns in large and disorderly data. Some of them do do a good job and become masters in their field because of it. But if you can get to know them and talk to them, you will You will find that they will tell you without exception: 'I have only mastered a little bit.' And, you will also find that they are actually more pessimistic than me, because their cognition has surpassed their own identity ——Human beings. It is a terrible thing to jump out of yourself and see yourself. How many people do you think can accept? Accept that we are trapped in an invisible cage, and every action, every word and every action is planned, strictly Execution according to the program. Creativity? Imagination? When you don’t look at it with human eyes, those are just synonyms for ridiculous, pathetic, pathetic.'” Me: "Do you remember what happened?" Amnesiac: "Remember...remember..." Me: "Is there a third person there?" Amnesiac: "No... I don't know..." Me: "Is there, or is it not?" Amnesiac: "I...can't see behind me..." Me: "Then do you feel someone behind you?" Amnesiac: "I don't feel... I don't... I don't feel anyone..." Me: "That is to say, she is the only one you can see, right?" Amnesiac: "Yes." Me: "So, tell me what she was doing then?" Amnesiac: "She... she said a lot..." Me: "Do you remember what it was?" Amnesiac: "I don't know...I don't want to...I..." His state is a bit unstable. I decided to go around and ask, "You were gagged, weren't you?" Amnesiac: "Yes..." Me: "You can only listen, but not speak, right?" Amnesiac: "Yes..." Me: "She's always been talking, isn't she?" Amnesiac: "Yes, she was talking about..." Me: "She talks a lot and you're just listening? So, can you hear me?" Amnesiac: "I... heard it, heard it..." Me: "Hear what?" The amnesiac frowned, her body convulsed slightly, but it was not serious: "She... she said, all of this is fake... we can't change anything, we... are just puppets, and we have been trapped in the ...in the cage..." Me: "You heard every word she said, and it became clearer and clearer, so you have to tell me slowly that everything she said is false?" The body reaction of the amnesiac was a little tense, and he took a quick breath: "The whole world...is fake...it cannot be changed..." Me: "She said we can't change, what does that mean?" Amnesiac: "We... can't change... anything... we're just being manipulated by an invisible... invisible hand... puppets..." Me: "Very good, those details are now in front of your eyes, you don't need to bear anything, you just need to tell me everything in front of you, and you will be relieved by it. Did you hear that?" Amnesiac: "Yes... I don't need to take on anything... I will... be relieved..." Me: "Very well, now describe the situation to me slowly and tell me what she told you. Can you do it?" Amnesiac: "I...can do..." Me: "So, what happened? What did she say?" At this time, the amnesiac suddenly calmed down: "She said that this world is just an illusion." "'So I say, the world is just an illusion, and we're living in that illusion. We haven't really created anything, so we haven't made any breakthroughs, and we're exactly like the computer that executes the program, as if the computer I will not understand that I am executing the program." She came to me and knelt down, "The only difference is that we firmly believe that human beings are the masters of this world." She looked at me quietly, "Because Few know the truth.' "I can see that her eyes reveal more horror than mine, and there is also despair. Or maybe it's not despair, but something else... I can't tell what it is, I just know the look in her eyes It seemed like something was going to go off. I was terrified, and I was terrified before, but this was different, I'd never seen anyone look like that. So even being strapped to a chair, I still couldn't help shaking. "'I've said all I have to say, and that's one of the reasons I tied you up here.' She lit another cigarette, went back to the window and looked out, her voice sounding like... Crying, 'Of course, you may have your own ideas, or you've thought up a whole bunch of rebuttals to me, but that doesn't matter to me, because I can't hear them. As for you, someone will came to save you, but it will take a while, after you have witnessed for me. Do you know what you will witness?' "I didn't shake my head or nod this time, because I felt as if something was pressing on my chest and I couldn't breathe. I wanted to open my mouth and take a deep breath, but I could only take a deep breath through my nose. Inhale deeply, but doing so only makes the suffocation feel stronger. "'Don't be afraid, I said I wouldn't hurt you, and I want you to witness my death. Do you think I'm really sick or crazy? And still very sick and crazy. The kind? No, I'm pretty clear, otherwise I wouldn't have spent so much time setting it up. Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that, there's a hidden one here somewhere Pocket camera, it's very small, so you won't be taken as a suspect. I said, I won't hurt you, but guess what, where is it?' "I really wanted to turn my head and look for the camera, but for some reason, my tears kept coming, and I couldn't tell if it was fear or something else, and suddenly I felt hopeless. "She threw away the cigarette in her hand and came over to wipe my tears: 'It means a lot to you to see me free. I will be completely free in 10 minutes. I can't stand this cage. I don't want to follow the procedure anymore. Pretending to be alive." She took out something, walked to the French window, and scratched hard on the glass. I don't know what she was doing, but I could hear the harsh sound. "Many white marks were scratched on the glass. The sun shone on it, and those white marks transmitted some colorful light. She threw away the thing that scratched the glass in her hand, and picked up a big big hammer from the ground. After smashing it a few times, the glass of the floor-to-ceiling window shattered with a 'bang', and glass shards were everywhere on the ground. "The wind was blowing in but I was still out of breath and I felt like I was suffocating. "She put her hands in her trouser pockets and stood by the window with her back facing me, looking at me. I couldn't see her expression. The backlight made me only see her figure, and I couldn't see anything else clearly. "I struggled like hell, not sure if I was struggling to break free or if I wanted her to stop. Something started to boil in my chest and I wanted to throw up, but because my mouth was blocked, I I could only try my best to suppress the pain caused by my stomach being twisted and squeezed. Suddenly, my limbs lost all strength. "She took a half step back slowly: 'Maybe your program will change because of this, maybe you won't remember anything after a while, but that doesn't matter, because you have witnessed my liberation.' Finished, She raised her head and thought for a while, then leaned back and disappeared through the window." The partner closed the folder and rested his head on the back of the sofa, seemingly thinking about something. Me: "Finished?" He nodded. Me: "You don't have any questions?" The partner thought for a while: "Is the camera found?" Me: "I found it, it's fixed to the pipes on the roof, it's hard to find." Partner: "Yeah." Me: "In other words, what he said is true." Partner: "Is there a recording?" Me: "No, that kind of small camera doesn't have this function." Partner: "That woman died on the spot, right?" Me: "Of course, if you jump from the 13th floor, the probability of survival is negligible." The partner took a deep breath and seemed to want to say something, but held back. Me: "What? Still have questions?" He shook his head. Me: "That woman may not be mentally normal." Partner: "But she's right." Me: "I know..." Partner: "I think she is not abnormal, but too sober." Me: "I know." The partner stood up and walked to the window, put his hands in his trouser pockets and looked out: "Yes, we know everything."