Please Have Some Cake

Xiang Kun connected with "Alice" via his mobile phone and asked her to collect information about the patient in the Third Hospital who claimed to be a "vampire" to see if they could first determine the patient's identity.

Communicating with "Alice" and issuing tasks via mobile phone naturally poses security risks, but for the time being, no one knows of "Alice's" existence, and "Alice" herself is responsible for security, so there shouldn't be any problems.

He then reviewed the various materials about Lao Xia that "Alice" had collected. He had previously looked up Lao Xia's information manually, and later "Alice" had also collected it.

However, the information available online doesn't reveal anything unusual about Lao Xia; she was an outstanding student from elementary school to middle school to university.

During this period, Alice also used big data identity comparison to find comments posted online by people who knew Lao Xia and related to Lao Xia.

Judging from the comments her classmates made about her, they were all things like "pretty, a bit aloof, not sociable, prefers to be alone, very smart, has excellent grades, and is very athletic."

Furthermore, Xiang Kun discovered that, based on the information Alice collected, there were far more girls than boys among those who expressed liking or even confessed their feelings for Lao Xia online.

In the eyes of the girls, Lao Xia had always been a very handsome and cool person. Whether it was his extremely high looks, super intelligence, tall figure, good physical fitness, or his uninhibited androgynous style, they all thought he was almost perfect. Even when Lao Xia grew his hair long after graduating from high school, it broke the hearts of many of his former classmates and younger female students.

However, this information was of no use to Xiang Kun, because he knew that other people's opinions had nothing to do with Lao Xia. She was basically unaffected and always maintained an "observer" attitude, even during group activities.

Xiang Kun kept searching through the information Alice had sent him, information she had collected that Xiang Kun thought would be useful in judging Lao Xia's situation. He hoped to further improve his cognitive model of Lao Xia so that he could communicate with Lao Xia in a more appropriate way and with more effective strategies when they had lunch together, and get the information he wanted.

The Third Hospital.

Xia Libing was in the duty room, with her notebook in front of her. She was using one hand to operate the touchpad, opening a folder and browsing the information inside, while in the other hand she was tossing a crispy pig's trotter up and down.

After being tossed into the air, the pig's trotter sometimes transforms in mid-air, turning into a Napoleon cake before falling back into your hand. When it touches your hand, some of the cake's crust might even crumble due to the vibration. But when it's tossed up again, it transforms back into a pig's trotter.

Just as Xiang Kun had predicted, Xia Libing had many questions about her sudden ability to "manifest" these two dream foods.

At one point, she even wondered if she was still dreaming, and if her previous "lucid dreams" were actually Dream Within a Dream, while this dream was another nested dream, but she was unaware that she was dreaming.

Otherwise, these two things that "appear together" contain too many irrationalities and problems that her knowledge system cannot explain.

Although many things, including the projection of the three Coin in her dream through special perception, and the first time she "manifested" the Napoleon cake after waking up, were all things she had planned and accomplished step by step according to her previous ideas.

But even if it actually happens, she still needs to find a way to explain it all using real-world theories.

However, after receiving Xiang Kun's WeChat, she stopped thinking about it.

What she was browsing on the computer now was not any information related to the principles behind the creation of those two "manifested" items, but rather the information she had been collecting about Xiang Kun.

It contains not only a large amount of basic information about Xiang Kun that she collected through the internet, but also a lot of content that she personally observed and summarized.

Based on the WeChat message Xia Libing just received from Xiang Kun, she can basically conclude that:

Xiang Kun should know, or at least be aware of, the strange things that happened in her dream tonight, and her ability to "manifest" the two kinds of food after waking up.

As for how she knew, it must be related to the items Xiang Kun gave her.

Moreover, based on the WeChat Xiang Kun sent her, she astutely deduced that Xiang Kun might "come clean" with her tomorrow, or at least offer a basic explanation for her ability to "reveal" the cake and pig's trotters.

In this way, we can naturally obtain more relevant information tomorrow, making it easier and more targeted to find relevant theoretical systems to explain these phenomena.

Therefore, she needs to re-examine the information and data she has about Xiang Kun in order to decide how to communicate with Xiang Kun tomorrow.

On the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year, Xiang Kun did the same thing as yesterday: after judging from his parents' physical condition that they were about to wake up, he went to prepare breakfast.

After they got up and washed, the hot breakfast that had been prepared was "just in time" placed on the table.

My parents seem to have gotten used to their son's diligence, so they didn't nag me much today and just sat down at the table to eat.

"What time did you get home last night?" Mom asked while eating the beef soup Xiang Kun had made.

"I think it was a little after two or three o'clock, I didn't really pay attention to the time after I got back," Xiang Kun said.

"You got up so early? Why didn't you sleep a little longer?"

"I sleep well; four hours of sleep is equivalent to eight hours for others."

"You're bragging... By the way, did Xia like what you made last night?" Mom asked with concern.

Xiang Kun knew that her mother's previous remarks were just a casual prelude; when she woke up, she actually wanted to ask questions related to Lao Xia.

"Need I say more? I'm not bragging, but the dishes I made last night tasted better than what chefs at most five-star hotels could replicate."

"Sigh... you child, why have you suddenly become so flamboyant? Be more humble and steady. Girls don't like overly arrogant men. So, after having late-night snacks with Xia last night, you stayed at the hospital until two or three in the morning before coming back?" Mom asked.

"More or less," Xiang Kun said. "By the way, I won't be coming for lunch. You guys will have to cook for yourselves."

"What you're saying... You only suddenly became interested in cooking this year and cooked a few meals, but it's not like we can't cook anymore. Hey? Is Xia on duty today? If she's not, why don't you find some time to ask her out?" Mom Xiang basically talks about "Xia" every other sentence these days.

Xiang Kun said, "I had something to do at noon to see Xia."

A smile immediately lit up Mom Xiang's face, as if to say, "Son, you've finally come to your senses!" "Alright, alright, then don't come home for dinner either. We can manage on our own."

Xiang Kun said helplessly, "Mom, don't overthink it. Xia and I are here to talk about serious matters."

Mom Xiang nodded repeatedly, "I know, seriously."

Xiang Kun didn't explain any further. After chatting about other topics for a while, seeing that it was almost time, he took the ingredients he had prepared at home and prepared to go to the Third Hospital to find Lao Xia so they could cook together at her rented apartment.

Watching Xiang Kun leave, Dad Xiang looked at his wife with a sigh, "You know what, these last two times the child came back, he only cooked a few meals, but each one was better than the last. Now I feel like his appetite has been spoiled. Just thinking about how our son doesn't cook lunch makes me lose my appetite."

He glared at his Mom Xiang: "What, are you starting to complain that my cooking doesn't suit your taste?"

"Oh, it's different. I've been eating your cooking for decades, it's just that I'm too used to it and there's no surprise anymore. Of course, the taste is still very good." Dad Xiang realized he might have said something wrong and quickly tried to salvage the situation.

Mom Xiang snorted and said, "Then eat less at lunch, consider it a diet!"

After leaving home, Xiang Kun took a bus directly to the Third Hospital. As soon as he arrived at the entrance of the Third Hospital, he saw Xia Libing, who was carrying a bag, standing by the bus stop waiting for him.

The bag she was carrying was the same bag Xiang Kun had given her to pack clothes for before.

After they met, Xiang Kun casually asked, "You didn't sleep very well last night, did you?"

"I was dreaming again," Lao Xia said.

What kind of dream?

"When I was little, I would go out to eat with my parents," Xia Libing said succinctly.

"Did you wake up after having that dream and then not be able to fall back asleep?"

"Right."

"Nightmare?"

"No."

"Are there any bakeries or pastry shops near where you live? Let's go buy some desserts to eat after lunch. Didn't you say you love Napoleon cake the most?" Xiang Kun suddenly asked.

Xia Libing looked at him. "No need, I've already prepared."

"Oh, I see." Xiang Kun smiled and looked back at her.

The apartment Xia Libing rented was basically unchanged from when Xiang Kun last visited. Judging from the state of the kitchen, it was clear that Xia Libing rarely cooked when she was alone.

Just like last time, Xiang Kun arranged for Xia Libing to help him with tasks such as washing vegetables and preparing ingredients. Once she was almost done, he told her to wait in the living room.

I prepared four dishes and a soup for lunch, which should be quite a feast for two people.

After Xia Libing served the rice, she looked at Xiang Kun, who was also about to get his food, and suddenly said, "If you don't want to eat, you don't have to force yourself."

Xiang Kun was taken aback, not expecting Lao Xia to start with this topic.

"Why would you think I'm forcing myself to eat?"

"I've always thought so." Xia Libing said, holding her bowl and picking at her food, "Now that I think back, the first time we played cards at Nana's house, it wasn't that you didn't like watermelon, it was that you didn't like anything, right?"

Xiang Kun said, "When I treated you to dinner, you all ate something, didn't you?"

Xia Libing shook her head. "You eat too little. Although you always have an excuse, I can tell that you have no desire for food. No matter what kind of food it is, you eat it as if you are completing a task, pretending to be doing it for us."

Xiang Kun did not deny it again. He put down the empty bowl, placed the chopsticks on the bowl, crossed his hands, and placed them on the table.

"Lao Xia, it seems like you eat differently than usual?" Xiang Kun said. "Like you said, your dreams are all related to food. In the two dreams I had recently, one was that I was at my house and I was treating you to dinner, and the other was that your parents were taking you out to eat. Why? Do you have a strong attachment to food? Were you ever hungry when you were a child?"

Lao Xia nodded. "I've been hungry." Then she started eating, just like always, eating very quickly, but not in a rude way. There was even a strange sense of rhythm to it, as if she had specially practiced how to eat more efficiently.

After seeing Lao Xia finish a bowl of rice, Xiang Kun asked, "Aren't you an only child, and your family is quite well-off? How come you've ever gone hungry? Did something happen?"

Xia Libing glanced at him and asked, "Are you eating any unusual foods?"

Xiang Kun looked at Xia Libing, and after a moment nodded, "Yes."

Next, Xia Libing ate another bowl of rice, and nearly half of the dishes on the table were also finished.

The chopsticks she was holding were the ones Xiang Kun had given her, so Xiang Kun could naturally sense her emotions. But they were no different from the emotions she felt when she ate her midnight snack last night—the same appetite for food, the urge to possess it, and the restraint to suppress that urge.

After finishing another bowl of rice, Xia Libing put down her bowl and chopsticks and suddenly got up and went into the kitchen.

With his exceptional hearing, Xiang Kun knew that she had taken a porcelain plate from the kitchen. Just as he was wondering what Lao Xia was going to do, he suddenly realized that his ability had been activated. The next moment, he saw Xia Libing walk out of the kitchen with a porcelain plate on it, which contained a very tempting-looking Napoleon cake.

"Here's some dessert I prepared." Lao Xia placed the plate directly in Xiang Kun, then sat down opposite him and looked at him. "Try it and see how it tastes."

Xiang Kun paused for a moment, then looked at Lao Xia, slowly smiled, and placed the plate in front of her. "Isn't this your favorite cake? You can have it."

Lao Xia then handed the plate over. "I've already eaten, this is for you."

"Have you really eaten?" Xiang Kun asked, looking at her.

Xia Libing looked at him and said, "I've eaten this before."

Xiang Kun pointed to the cake on the plate. "Are you sure it's edible?"

"Give it a try," Xia Libing said.

"Take a bite first and see," Xiang Kun said.

Xia Libing looked at him without answering, but her attitude was clear.

"How about we play Coin toss game? Whoever loses gets to eat first," Xiang Kun said, flicking a Coin from his hand.

"I'm not playing." Xia Libing shook her head.

"Rock, paper, scissors?" Xiang Kun suggested again.

Xia Libing shook her head again.

Xiang Kun understood what she meant and reached out to pick up the Napoleon cake from the plate.

He naturally knew that this was the cake that Lao Xia had just "manifested," but as soon as he held it, he could clearly feel that this cake was slightly different from the one he had "manifested."

Holding it gives me a somewhat unreal, illusory feeling, unlike the clear, tangible feel of a cake.

Xiang Kun slowly opened his mouth and took a bite of the cake.

As expected, the cake vanished from my hands.

Xiang Kun showed no surprise. He naturally lowered his clenched hand and placed the empty plate in front of Lao Xia. The next moment, a new Napoleon cake appeared on it.