Professor Bai gave me some more information and I realized that Happy Science wasn’t as rich as I had imagined.

Since they didn’t scam money from ordinary members and only used them as a source of intelligence, their main income came from the wealthy members. It was paid in the form of ‘prediction fees’ for the calculation and also the thank you fees paid after the predictions were correct. In addition, Happy Science had to rent classrooms, pay electricity bills, and rent supercomputers. That’s why they haven’t saved much money and was just barely breaking even, so the organization was still in the start-up development phase.

So Happy Science was actually a very poor cult? Although some of its wealthy members were very generous, the cult’s operating costs were also very high, which resulted in low amounts of working captial. I only wanted to run ‘Heartbeat Q&A’ because it’s fun, so I’m sorry that Happy Science will have to suffer more losses.

What surprised me was that members who were willing to spend a lot of money and apply for in-depth predictions multiple times regardless of the consequences weren’t rich people who wanted to engage in business speculations, but rather their wives.

“Does my husband have a mistress?” “Who was the woman who had dinner with him the day before yesterday?” “Is my husband secretly transferring his assets in preparation for divorcing me?”

Those questions could actually be solved by hiring a private detective agency, but it would take a certain amount of time and those anxious rich wives couldn’t wait another second. They heard that Happy Science had a magical calculation program, where you can get an answer instantly as long as some clues were provided, so they flocked to it and became one of the main sources of income for Happy Science.

Damn, what a waste of money, using the world’s leading technology to determine whether your husband is unfaithful. No wonder it seems like Happy Science gained a lot of female members recently. Did they all suspect that their husbands were unfaithful to them?

Since I brought Xiao Qin and Gong CaiCai with me today, Professor Bai felt it wasn’t appropriate to talk too much about secrets with me. He only asked me to collect more information, otherwise it will be difficult for the calculation program to be effective. He also added winning over Dr. Yu to his agenda.

Xiao Qin and Gong CaiCai had been watching Happy Science’s promotional videos in the back row of the conference room together for a long time.

In the past, schools would put us in classrooms and force us to watch ‘anti-cult propaganda videos’ and didn’t even allow us to use the washrooms in the middle. Today, Gong CaiCai, who was famous for being a good child, was watching a ‘cult propaganda video’ while enthusiastically explaining it to Xiao Qin. I’m not sure how teacher Yu would react if he sees this.

There was a section of audio at the end of the promotional video that said:

“…Although Americans have made promotional films on the Law of Attraction, they don’t explain how human thoughts directly affect the universe. Due to the limits of current scientific and technological development, Happy Science can only make the following conjecture:

The strong desire that appears in your heart is an ‘imaginary image’ that has not yet materialized. Although the imaginary image does not have a physical form, according to quantum physics, it is essentially a set of waves, just like stones, plants, and air.

Since there is no essential difference between them, only a quantitative difference, then as long as you strengthen one’s belief, it’s possible to pile up the imaginary images in the mind into a real image, making one’s dream come true.

However, thousands of years of human history have proved: in order to realize your wish, mere wishful thinking is not enough; you must transform thoughts into actions. So, is the law of attraction wrong?

No, the law of attraction is not wrong. Those who think they can succeed by lying in bed and daydreaming are the ones who are greatly mistaken.

As previously mentioned, thoughts produce imaginary images, while actions produce real images. It takes the accumulation of many imaginary images to create a single real image. Achieving one’s wishes purely by accumulating imaginary images is something that only some extremely devout religious believers can do, and their wishes are often connected with self-interest.

For ordinary people, faith is comparable to that of religious believers. Therefore, a more scientific approach is to harbor a beautiful wish, firmly believe that one’s wish can be fulfilled, and take action. Actions produce real images, which in turn strengthen one’s confidence, accelerating the accumulation of imaginary images. When these two aspects combine, the fulfillment of one’s wishes is just a matter of time.

“How is it? It makes sense, right?” After the promotional video played, Gong CaiCai couldn’t hold in her excitement and asked Xiao Qin.

Of course it makes sense. It sounds profound, like it’s trying to explain Big Bang, but the conclusion is simply encouraging everyone to work hard towards their goals. It’s just like any other typical motivational speech.

No wonder many people say: Since joining Happy Science, their back doesn’t ache, their legs don’t hurt, they can climb five floors without getting out of breath, they received pay raises, and those who wished to woo the girl of their dreams have succeeded. It’s simply because, to achieve their goals, they engaged in physical exercise, asked their bosses for raises, and persistently pursued their love interests.

What does this have to do with Happy Science? As long as you’re brave enough to go for it, then of course there will be a chance of success. If you’ve achieved your wishes, then it wasn’t due to the teachings but rather your own efforts.

However, even though it’s clear that everyone’s been deceived, it’s still so inspiring to see members share their stories in the promotional video. It’s the most inspiring cult I’ve ever seen.

In summary, based on the information gathered:

Happy Science, for regular members, is essentially a motivational and mutual aid society. It encourages everyone to bravely face life, to speak out when troubled, to make wise investments when you have spare money, to pursue someone they like, and to promptly seek medical treatment when ill…

After forming a good reputation among these people, its reputation naturally reached the ears of those who are wealthy but lack a sense of security. Thus, wealthy members joined one after another for concerns like “Is my husband having an affair?” or “Is my wife cheating on me?”, who repeatedly provided information and requested predictions about themselves and their spouses. This is Happy Science’s main source of income.

It’s a classic case of robbing the rich to help the poor. Moreover, these wealthy individuals usually receive accurate predictions. On careful consideration, the only evil thing Professor Bai and his team have done is collect everyone’s private information through backdoors on their phones, then fool them like they were idiots.

In conclusion, Happy Science seem to be a relatively harmless cult to society. The main reason might be because its leader was a madman who doesn’t use his groundbreaking technology solely for amassing wealth, but rather preferred to influence others’ thoughts.

It was somewhat unexpected. Although Happy Science was essentially a cult, compared to Ai ShuQiao, it could be considered a force for good. If there had to be a winner in the war between Happy Science and Ai ShuQiao, I would rather Happy Science win.

As evening came, Professor Bai announced that our meeting was over for today. We could meet privately again another day, or I could contact him through ‘Heartbeat Q&A’ where he was listed as my ‘heartbeat friend’.

Xiao Qin felt a bit disappointed to hear that the meeting ended so soon.

“Huh, isn’t there an initiation ceremony, or a pledge to make? I’ve always been irked by the Taoist priests from Tian Wang Temple who don’t get along with my grandfather. Left protector, just say the word, and I’ll take people to give them a beating.”

A large bead of sweat rolled down Professor Bai’s forehead, “I know your family’s martial arts are formidable, but there’s no need for violence. Also, when did I become the left protector? If I was the left protector, who’s the right protector?”

Xiao Qin confidently pointed at me, “Isn’t the right protector Ye Lin classmate? Ye Lin is fascinated by authority. He decided to join after hearing he could become the right protector. Don’t tell me you can’t give the position of right protector to Ye Lin.”While saying this, she subtly winked at me, and I immediately understood.

Xiao Qin was feigning ignorance. She wanted asking Professor Bai to give me a position higher than a regular member. In order to fulfill the deal with Ai ShuQiao, I had to enter the inner circle of Happy Science to be able to physically access the servers storing the calculation program.

Xiao Qin’s remark that seemed like a joke actually had an effect on Professor Bai, probably because he was already considering winning me over.

“Haha, Xiao Qin, what you said is really interesting. In that case, I’ll raise Ye Lin as the right protector. But let me reiterate, our seminar is not a religion. Before Ye Lin gets more familiar with our affairs, he could start as my assistant. After all, my previous assistant was arrested by the police for illegal activities, and I needed someone to replace him.”

Xiao Qin did well. If it wasn’t because we were standing in front of Professor Bai, then I would have given her a thumbs-up. I only just joined Happy Science and didn’t have any contributions, yet I’ve already got the position of an assistant. Given enough time, I’ll surely become the right protector. Professor Bai and I will be combine our scientific powers to become an unstoppable force, potentially triggering the second upheaval of mankind.

Wait a minute… I think I got carried away. Why was I just fantasizing about a scientific cult ruling the world? It seems that humans can easily be brainwashed when joining any organization.

After leaving the office building, it was nearly 8:30 PM. I felt fortunate that we came out today with Gong CaiCai under the pretext of buying a Teachers’ Day gift. Otherwise, it wouldn’t really matter for me, but Auntie Ren might have already urged Xiao Qin to hurry home.

It was already past 8 PM and none of us had eaten dinner, so our stomachs were growling. When we passed by a McDonald’s, I offered to treat the two girls to a meal. Before Xiao Qin said anything, Gong CaiCai immediately refused, as if accepting a boy’s invitation behind her parents’ back would result in her being disciplined by her family.

Eventually, Gong CaiCai was semi-forcibly dragged into McDonald’s. After we ordered food and sat down, and while Xiao Qin was in the restroom, I looked at Gong CaiCai, who was eating uneasily, and suddenly remembered the “Heartbeat Q&A” app that Professor Bai had installed on my phone. So, I asked her:

“Cai Cai, can I call you Cai Cai?”

Gong CaiCai nodded vigorously and accidentally smeared ketchup from her fries onto her lips.

“Don’t be afraid, relax. We’re now both classmates and fellow parishioners. By the way… has any shameless guy ever asked you about your exact bust size?”