Lao Xia Is Hungry

Dad Xiang occasionally enjoys a few drinks, but because he has a low tolerance, he's usually very moderate, stopping after only about half a glass each time. However, tonight he was clearly in a good mood, and the dishes Xiang Kun prepared were quite to his liking, so he drank a bit more. Now he looks a little tipsy, with his eyes squinted and his face flushed.

Even when drunk, Dad Xiang behaves quite well; most of the time, he just goes to sleep.

However, he wasn't at the point of sleep yet tonight. On the contrary, he was very talkative and chatted with Xiang Kun about many things from his early years, starting with phrases like "back then," "at that time," and "I remember." Then they talked about the international situation, economic policies, housing prices, the stock market, and Xiang Kun's job.

"Actually, if you're not happy in the big city, feel too much pressure, and don't see many good opportunities for development, then... there's no need to stay in the big city. Come back, it's fine. Your parents may not be the most capable, but we're local, so we can still take care of things to some extent. Besides, we both have pensions and medical insurance, so we won't be a burden on you. Citong is developing quite fast now. Look at all those shopping malls, buildings, and shopping centers, they're being built one after another, the roads are getting wider and wider, and the houses are getting more and more beautiful. Education, medical care, and public security are all getting better and better. Living in Citong is not bad, the pressure isn't so great..." Dad Xiang said with a sigh.

Hearing this, Mom Xiang muttered softly, "And Xia also works in Citong."

Xiang Kun rubbed his nose. His mother was talking about "Xia" all the time now? This misunderstanding was getting a little deep...

However, Dad Xiang wasn't swayed and continued, "Of course, the choice is still up to your own judgment. I heard from Xiao Li from my old workplace that for people like you who do programming, the best career prospects are mainly in a few first-tier cities in China. Our hometown doesn't have that kind of environment, so the upper limit for future development might be lower."

Mom Xiang couldn't help but whisper a reminder, "It's getting late, you should go make Xia a midnight snack, right? Xia must be hungry..."

Dad Xiang glared at Mom Xiang, but opened his mouth without knowing what to say. He could only put his arms across his chest and hum as he watched TV.

Xiang Kun smiled and said, "Don't worry, Dad, my work will be adjusted after the Spring Festival. I'll be partnering with someone on some new projects, and I might even have to leave the city I live in now. Of course, you can also rest assured that I remember what you taught me before: don't just think about success, but also consider failure. I'll weigh my own capabilities and won't gamble everything." He didn't tell his parents that he was "unemployed," nor would he reveal it until the infrastructure project in Tongshi Town was completed, so as not to make them overthink. He just needed to reassure his parents now, but of course, some groundwork had to be laid first.

Dad Xiang nodded. "Just do what you plan to do. Remember, no matter what, your mom and I will always be your strong support. Whatever choice you make, we will support you."

Xiang Kun nodded.

Mom Xiang couldn't help but mutter to herself, "I wonder what Xia will eat tonight. The hospital cafeteria is probably closed, and there's probably nowhere to eat outside. Will she go hungry without having dinner? Or will she just have some bread or instant noodles? Sigh, New Year's Eve, it's really heartbreaking..."

Xiang Kun was both amused and exasperated. "Alright, Mom, I'll make it right away and send it to Xia as soon as it's done." Looking at the time, it was indeed about time.

Mom Xiang immediately smiled and said, "Do you want me to help you?"

"No need, no need, the ingredients are all ready, it'll be quick," Xiang Kun said, getting up and walking towards the kitchen.

As he started heating the pan, he heard his mother complaining to his father in the living room. "Hey, Lao Xiang, stop arguing with our son about all that nonsense and getting distracted."

"What nonsense! My son and I were talking about serious business..."

"What nonsense! From childhood to adulthood, from choosing a high school, to deciding between arts and sciences, to filling out college applications, to finding a job, to buying a house, weren't all decisions made by him? You're just worrying unnecessarily. What's the most crucial and important thing right now? Can't you tell?"

After a long silence, Dad Xiang surprisingly agreed, saying, "That makes sense. 'Settle down and build a career,' one must first settle down before building a career. Now that the year is over, and everyone's over thirty, it's time to take care of these important matters."

"So now we just have to give him a good push and make him work harder. I used to think he was so focused on his work, wanting to achieve success before finding a wife. But what if he never achieves success? When will I ever have a grandson? So I was always trying to arrange blind dates for him. But look at Xia now... hehe, our son is very focused in everything! Now we just need to make him work hard! Don't talk to him about anything else and distract him!" Mom Xiang instructed earnestly in a low voice.

Dad Xiang replied in a low voice, "Coconut flakes, selling lamps!"

"Sell me your head! If you can't speak English, then don't! Speak like a human being!"

In the kitchen, Xiang Kun could only manage a silent, bitter smile as he deftly processed and cooked the ingredients. By a little after ten o'clock, the meal was almost finished.

"Mom, Dad, I'm off!" Xiang Kun parents, carrying two large insulated food containers that his mother had specially prepared for him today.

"Hurry up, be careful on the way, don't spill the food." Mom Xiang waved her hand.

With a slight smile on his face, which was flushed from drinking, Dad Xiang nodded slowly. "Go, go, good luck, I love you."

At this point, there were naturally no buses running, and taxis were hard to find. Of course, if Xiang Kun could run at full speed and take shortcuts, he wouldn't have to wait long to reach the Third Hospital where Lao Xia worked, but that would be a bit of an exaggeration and would easily be caught on camera by traffic cameras, raising suspicion.

So he went to the hospital on his mother's electric scooter, but the scooter was clearly not used to such a heavy load, creaking and rattling the whole way, looking very tired.

Upon arriving at the Third Hospital, Xiang Kun told the security guard on duty at the entrance that he was looking for Xia Libing. After the guard confirmed the request by phone, Xiang Kun handed him a pack of cigarettes that he had prepared earlier and said, "Happy New Year." Then he parked his electric scooter, picked up the food box, and went into the hospital.

Lao Xia had told Xiang Kun beforehand that their hospital had several closed wards that outsiders were not allowed to enter, and even visits from patients' families were subject to very strict regulations. The intensive care unit, in particular, was under extremely strict management.

So after receiving Xiang Kun's call, Lao Xia came over and took him directly to the meeting room in the main office building.

Although it was Lunar New Year's Eve, there were still quite a few doctors and caregivers on duty at the hospital. However, the hospital was so big that it looked a bit eerie when you walked into the lobby before the motion-sensor lights came on.

Of course, neither the bald Xiang Kun carrying two food boxes nor the ponytail Xia Libing wearing a white coat felt afraid at all; the two were discussing the food that Xiang Kun had brought.

"My mom brought over some seafood this afternoon, including a big lobster. I made it for Christmas last time, but you weren't here, so I didn't get to try it. I'm going to try it now and see how it tastes. I added garlic vermicelli and some fish. It should be alright. The fish is good quality too, a grouper."

"Do you have pork knuckle?" Xia Libing asked.

"You're not eating lunch...? The crispy pork knuckle will taste a little off if you eat it right after it's cooked, otherwise it won't be perfect if you keep it in an insulated food container. I also stewed pork trotters for dinner, but I don't think the flavor goes well with seafood vermicelli. By the way, what did you have for dinner? Are you hungry?"

"Fried noodles, I'm hungry."

Upon entering the reception room, Xiang Kun laid out the dishes he had brought one by one on the table. Just as he was about to take out the chopsticks and soup spoons he had brought from home, he noticed that Xia Libing had hung up his white coat on the hanger, turned around, and took out a long box from the coat pocket. It was the same box that Xiang Kun had given to Lao Xia to hold the chopsticks.

Xia Libing glanced at Xiang Kun and noticed that he hadn't set out a bowl for her, so she asked, "Aren't you eating?"

"I've already eaten at home. I ate a lot tonight, I'm really full. All of this is for you," Xiang Kun said.

But Xia Libing shook her head. "You definitely don't eat much." She paused slightly, then added, "Is it because you can't eat much that you started to enjoy cooking?"

Xiang Kun was taken aback; this question... was rather cryptic.

However, he's been responding to quite a few of Lao Xia's direct attacks lately, so he remains quite calm.

Sure enough, after asking the question, Lao Xia didn't seem to care about getting an answer from Xiang Kun. She simply picked up the chopsticks Xiang Kun had given her and started eating.

Watching Lao Xia slurp down the still-steaming seafood vermicelli, Xiang Kun could sense her intense appetite, and the resulting anxiety and urgency, through her chopsticks.

Clearly, these chopsticks, designed to "Emotional Injection" into the Little Chubby Girl's eating habits, successfully connected with Lao Xia's emotional state.

Even though he had previously observed that Lao Xia would experience more pronounced emotional fluctuations when eating her favorite foods, other Emotional Injection items couldn't directly convey Lao Xia's emotions.

Now, through these chopsticks, Xiang Kun can sense not only Lao Xia's emotions while he eats, but also, at other times, as long as Lao Xia is within the chopsticks' sensing range, he can perceive that seemingly emotionless yet extremely indifferent rationality—that is Lao Xia's normal state.

This feeling of extreme rationality and clarity is like a reset button, helping him clear away all other emotions when he is aware of them.

Xiang Kun believed that if he were to reach the Blood Drinking stage now but were unable to find a blood source for the time being, he could suppress his anxious emotions and avoid making any uncontrollable moves by directly sensing these chopsticks and relying on that extremely rational feeling. He could also use this rational feeling to clear away the backlash from abilities like "Mental Intimidation" used at night.

Of course, this is on the premise that Lao Xia always carries those chopsticks with her, and that she is not eating when she senses them.

Otherwise... Xiang Kun sensed Lao Xia eating when he was in a period of extreme hunger, tsk tsk.

Seeing that Lao Xia had almost finished his seafood vermicelli, Xiang Kun quickly pulled the lunchbox back a little. "Hey, eat slowly, there are other dishes too, try the others."

Xia Libing pulled the lunchbox back and then reached for the other dishes with her chopsticks. Actually, Xiang Kun's original plan for dinner wasn't to cook these dishes, but because his mother suddenly brought these ingredients, he focused all his energy on this seafood vermicelli dish. Now it seems that his energy was not wasted, Lao Xia was clearly enjoying the meal.

"So, which is tastier, this or the pork knuckle?" Xiang Kun asked.

"Pork knuckle." Xia Libing without hesitation.

Xiang Kun smiled and nodded, "Next time I'll treat you... oh no, next time you treat me to a meal, I'll cook for you again. I remember before the first time I treated you, Nana, Zhen'er to a meal, I asked you guys on WeChat how the food was, and what your three favorite dishes were. Your answer was: crispy pork knuckle, smoked goose, and Napoleon cake. Was it because you had eaten it somewhere before, so it left a particularly deep impression?"

"Yes," Xia Libing replied simply, chewing on the egg yolk spring roll in her mouth.

Okay, so she meant she wasn't going to go into detail about that direction, so Xiang Kun changed his approach. "Did you come to Citong and to this hospital for a particular reason?"

Before Lao Xia arrived in Citong, Yang Zhen'er and Nana had asked her similar questions when they were hanging out together. At the time, she didn't give any reason, and Yang Zhen'er and Nana could only guess that it was because the vice president was her third aunt. But given Lao Xia's education, academic performance, and resume, she shouldn't have had much trouble getting a job in a relevant department of a large hospital in her original city, or even a better psychiatric hospital. Normally, for the sake of her career development, she wouldn't have traveled all this way here.

In the past, Xiang Kun wouldn't have asked this question, knowing it would be pointless. But recently, Lao Xia has been frequently being direct, and he feels that Lao Xia's attitude and observation strategy towards him must be different from before. Perhaps he can get a different answer now.

Lao Xia picked up a piece of lobster meat, put it in his mouth, squinted his eyes, chewed it a few times, then took a sip of the mushroom soup next to him, exhaled a puff of hot air, and said, "Because Third Aunt is the vice president, and because there are many special cases here."

Xiang Kun immediately understood her meaning. Because her third aunt was the vice president of the hospital and knew her abilities well, she might have more authority here than in other hospitals.

"For example... what kind of special cases? Oh, if it's inconvenient to say, you don't have to," Xiang Kun continued to ask.

Xia Libing looked at him for a while and briefly introduced the characteristics of several cases. Of course, she omitted information that could be associated with the patient's true identity, including gender, occupation, and name.

Some patients suffering from delusional disorder believe they are cultivating immortality, practicing fasting, and surviving by breathing in the essence of heaven and earth, even when their bodies can no longer hold up and they are about to starve to death. However, if they are told that steamed buns are elixirs of immortality, they will eat them with relish.

Some patients believe they have superpowers and can hear other people's thoughts. Even if someone tells them they are wrong, they will only think that the other person is lying to them.

Some patients believe they are favored by fire, and even though they have extensive burns, they still firmly believe that fire can heal them and take away their pain.

Some patients feel like they are some kind of wild animal and always take off their clothes and run into the mountains;

Some patients believe they are noble vampires who only drink fresh blood and are afraid of sunlight, but in reality, they can eat anything if given red drinks or food with plenty of tomato sauce.

Some patients see everyone as a monster, their perception of the world is completely different from that of normal people, and they live in constant fear;

Some patients believe they are geniuses who can remember everything they see and answer all sorts of questions. But in reality, what they memorize is completely different from the original content, and their problem-solving methods are utterly chaotic. Yet, they are absolutely convinced that what they say is correct and that others are distorting reality to deceive and stifle them.

Some of these patients were brought in for treatment voluntarily by themselves or their families, while others were forced to undergo treatment by the authorities after committing serious criminal offenses.

Upon hearing about the "vampire" case, Xiang Kun's eyes instinctively glanced towards the window of the reception room. From there, he could see the hospital's intensive care unit. However, because there were too many buildings separating the area, even if there were "vampires" or "Mutated Creature" inside, his "infrared thermal imaging vision mode" couldn't see through them all. Therefore, he couldn't be sure if there were really "vampires" there.

Of course, based on Lao Xia's description, the case was most likely just an ordinary mental patient, not a "vampire".

However, I'll still double-check it later.

Xiang Kun looked away and saw that Lao Xia was staring at him. He knew that Lao Xia had been observing his changes while they were talking about those cases, but he didn't care.

"Why did you choose psychology and psychiatry as your majors?" Xiang Kun asked again.

"To treat myself," Lao Xia said.

Xiang Kun immediately pressed, "Are you sick?"

Lao Xia replied, "You have one too."

Xiang Kun paused for a moment, then laughed and said, "We are all patients." He had heard Lao Xia say this on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival when he went to Lao Xia's house for dinner.

Lao Xia nodded. "Yes, we're all patients, just with different illnesses and varying degrees of severity, hiccup~"

That sounded sophisticated at first, but Lao Xia burped right after he said it, instantly ruining the sophisticated vibe.

Seeing that Lao Xia was about to continue eating, Xiang Kun quickly said, "Take a break, take a break. I'll put the insulated container here. If you get hungry later, you can continue eating. Don't eat it all at once; you're eating too fast."

Xia Libing thought for a moment, picked up the last piece of lobster meat and ate it, then picked up the food box and slurped up the remaining vermicelli. While wiping her mouth, she tidied up the food box. She put the leftover dishes in a large food box and the finished dishes in another food box, and gave them to Xiang Kun to take back.