Most children don't know their parents as well as parents know their children. This is because once they have children, most parents focus a lot of attention on them. However, children have so many things to learn and so many things to pay attention to as they grow up. By the time they consciously start paying attention to their parents, it's usually after they've become adults, started working, or encountered some major change.
When Xiang Kun was in his rebellious phase in middle school, he often felt that his parents' views were too old-fashioned and utilitarian. It wasn't until he started working that he gradually realized that their views might indeed be old-fashioned and utilitarian, and incompatible with the passion and ideals of teenagers. However, their purpose was to help their children avoid some of the detours and setbacks they had experienced.
Unfortunately, many principles cannot be explained by words alone; only through personal experience can one truly understand and comprehend them.
While planning recipes in the kitchen, Xiang Kun discovered that although he had eaten thousands of meals with his parents since childhood, in terms of sample size, he was not even in the same league as Tang Baona, who had only eaten four meals. However, his "mastery" of his parents' tastes was far less than that of Tang Baona.
This is not only related to the fact that his sensory abilities and brain analytical and computational abilities have undergone several rounds of targeted training and guided mutation evolution during meals with Tang Baona, resulting in a significant improvement, but it is also closely related to the level of attention he pays while eating.
When eating with Tang Baona and the others, Xiang Kun's attention was mostly on them, constantly gathering their feedback on the food. In contrast, when eating with his parents before, his attention was only on the food or his own affairs.
So now, when he tries to adjust the recipes to suit his parents' tastes, he finds that his only judgment is: his mother's cooking tends to be salty, but she doesn't like spicy or sweet food, prefers fish, and likes lean meat over fatty meat; his father's taste is similar to his mother's, also salty, but because his teeth aren't very good, he prefers meat that's cooked until very tender, likes large pieces of pork belly, and dislikes food with many bones or thorns...
Because they hadn't prepared in advance, they didn't have much food at home. It was mostly vegetables, Xiang Kun wasn't very good at cooking, and the only meat they had was a plate of leftovers in the refrigerator. Thinking back to the dishes he used to cook at home, he knew that his parents were reluctant to spend money on groceries when he wasn't around.
It was obviously unlikely that he would cook a meal that would amaze his parents tonight, but he wasn't discouraged. He would cook a few dishes first to test his judgment of his parents' tastes. He believed that after one or two meals, he could update his judgment and surpass his understanding of Tang Baona's tastes. After all, he had eaten thousands of meals with his parents.
As Xiang Kun finished planning the recipe and began to cook, the sound of his parents talking quietly in the living room drifted into his ears.
"Aren't you going to help?" That was my dad's voice.
"My son won't allow it. He says he's a really good cook now," Mom replied, her tone full of doubt.
"Should we call and order a couple of dishes?" Dad asked, sounding a little worried.
"There's no problem with the rice. I watched him wash the rice and put it in the pot. At worst, we can take out a couple of leftovers, heat them up, add some pickled vegetables and peanuts, and that will do. Don't easily discourage your son's confidence. These days, men who can cook are more popular with girls..." Mom replied calmly.
While listening to the elderly couple's conversation, Xiang Kun prepared three dishes and a soup, feeling both amused and exasperated.
Although dinner didn't look lavish due to limited ingredients, my parents were quite pleased and full of praise as long as the dishes were edible and not burnt or undercooked.
Dad excitedly ran to get the liquor Xiang Kun had bought, poured himself a glass, and slowly drank it. Mom also kept encouraging Xiang Kun to try cooking more in the future. She didn't say a single bad thing or anything; she just praised him.
This forced Xiang Kun to rely on his own sensory information to gather feedback and determine his parents' true feelings about the dishes.
While eating, Xiang Kun talked about some interesting and trivial things that had happened to him over the past six months. Of course, he didn't mention that his company had gone bankrupt and that he was currently without a stable job.
Then, seemingly casually, Xiang Kun mentioned that a colleague had been hospitalized at the beginning of the year due to illness, and it was later discovered that it was a hereditary disease; six or seven of their relatives had the same disease.
Whether it was the colleague or the illness the colleague had, it was all Xiang Kun; his purpose was to get his mother talking.
Sure enough, my mother, with her gossipy soul, quickly began talking about the genetic diseases she knew, knew, and had heard about. Then she mentioned the knowledge a relative who worked at a maternal and child health hospital had shared with her, saying that many young children now undergo gene testing for common genetic diseases, allowing for early prevention or treatment.
Xiang Kun knew that if there was a clear history of hereditary diseases among his father's or mother's relatives, his mother would know about it, given her ability to gather information.
When he first considered the cause of the mutation, he speculated that it might be due to a genetic disease. He even thought about having his parents or himself undergo whole-genome sequencing. However, he quickly dismissed the idea because the analysis reports from these gene sequencing companies were only for known diseases and tumors, and Xiang Kun himself probably wouldn't be able to figure anything out by looking at the raw data and reports. If it were found that his genes were too different from those of ordinary people, it might attract unwanted attention.
Moreover, he soon discovered that body tissues undergo drastic changes and turn to ash within ten minutes of being removed from the body. How could he possibly test that? Processing DNA samples alone would take more than that.
After discovering the Giant Owl, Mutated Creature, Xiang Kun essentially ruled out the possibility of a genetic disease; after encountering Guo Tianxiang, he also completely abandoned the idea of having any strangers or institutions conduct tests.
He brought this up now just to verify something, since there's always a chance of something going wrong.
Then Xiang Kun brought up the topic again, making his parents recall some capable, extraordinary, or eccentric people, reclusive, or missing people from the Xiang family and his mother's maternal family.
His parents also mentioned some ancestors they had heard about from their elders, but after judging, Xiang Kun felt that they were unlikely to be vampires like him.
After finishing their meal and chatting for a while, Xiang Kun took the initiative to clear the table and wash the dishes before returning to his room.
"Our son has changed a lot since he came back this time!" After seeing Xiang Kun's room door close, Mom Xiang said to Dad Xiang in a low voice.
Dad Xiang nodded and said, "It is a bit big."
Mom Xiang continued, "Not only did he shave his head, but he also started cooking and doing housework after coming back. He's also become more talkative. Before, I had to subtly probe him to find out about his work and life when he came home, but now he tells me all about it on his own initiative."
Dad Xiang nodded again. "That's good. He said he's started exercising again, and his overall mental state is much better than when he came back for the New Year. A man needs to be physically fit to be able to perform well at work. And the dishes he cooked tonight were quite presentable and tasted pretty good. He knows how to enjoy life."
"Oh, that's not what I meant. What I meant was... there must be a reason why our son has changed so much all of a sudden. You know, his company is so busy that he doesn't get weekends off or even National Day holidays. Does he have time to learn to cook? Does he have time to exercise? If I'm not home, do you think about cooking for yourself?"
Dad Xiang was taken aback, thought for a moment, frowned, and slowly said, "It is a bit strange."
He knew his son's habits very well. When he was busy with work, he would definitely choose to eat out, order takeout, or eat bread or instant noodles to solve the problem quickly. It was unlikely that he would specifically learn to cook, which would take several times longer than buying, preparing, cooking, cleaning up, washing dishes, and taking out the trash.
Judging from my son's consistent behavior, there is really no reason for him to learn to cook unless there is a special cause.
"He definitely started dating after he went back to his company after the Spring Festival!" Mom Xiang said confidently.
"Huh?" Dad Xiang was taken aback, then slowly said, "That's a good thing!"
Mom Xiang immediately said, "But she's definitely been dumped!"
"Huh??" Dad Xiang was taken aback again.
Mom Xiang analyzed, "If he weren't in a relationship, would my son spend so much time working out, learning to cook, and becoming more talkative?"
Dad Xiang realized that it really was true. The only thing that could make a man push his instincts, overcome laziness, squeeze out time from the impossible, and do things that he would normally consider a waste of time was his desire for the opposite sex and the folly that comes with love.
"Then why did you say you got dumped?"
"Isn't it obvious? If he were already dating someone, he could have just told me he already had a girlfriend when I said I'd introduce him to potential partners! And that shaved head, isn't it obviously some kind of 'shaving his head to show his determination' kind of trick? Your son always likes to do these childish things! Maybe he hasn't even had a chance to date anyone yet, and he's already been rejected..."
Dad Xiang nodded in agreement. "What you said makes sense. Hmm, it seems that might really be the case. But he doesn't seem to be depressed. A man can grow by experiencing some setbacks."
Mom Xiang said happily, "This is the perfect time for him to go on a blind date. He just said he'll be staying for three days this time..."
In his room, Xiang Kun sat at his desk, listening to his parents chatting in the living room outside, his expression somewhat dazed.
My mom has such a unique and interesting way of thinking!
The problem is, Xiang Kun actually thought his mother's analysis made a lot of sense, and he was speechless.
Unless he can spill everything—that he became a vampire, that he works out to induce mutations, that he cooks to process rabbit meat, that he has more free time because he's unemployed...
But he estimated that these explanations might not be as convincing as his mother's conjectures.
Xiang Kun shook his head, continuing to eavesdrop on his parents' conversation while also reflecting on his own abilities, sparked by the Eight-Armed Eight-Eyed Wooden Carving.
Thanks to the following readers for their generous donations: Zhenyucheng, Wozixiaoyaozhizizai, Jinzhizhongdan, Huakailiushiliu, Zhoujiadaxiansheng, Lingxia1000℃, Qidian Reading iOS, 20190715071748026, Renbenwuge, and Jiyana_Kaslana.