Chapter 146: How to Get Better

On the surface, Xinghe seemed perfectly normal.

No one knows exactly what aliens should look like, but the entrenched impression is that aliens are supposed to be highly intelligent, mysterious, and… well, just however they want to be.

So, whatever Xinghe did was normal, no matter what it was.

But why did Xinghe only want to communicate with himself, and not speak to others?

Gao Yuan was extremely puzzled by this.

"I'm a bit tired. I want to lie down and watch, this is called a TV, right? I want to lie down and watch TV."

After saying this, Xinghe stood up and sat down on the bed, then he, or rather, she, lay back.

Perhaps it should be 'she.'

Gao Yuan felt somewhat confused because he really couldn't keep up with Xinghe's leap in thought.

Xinghe lay on the bed looking at Gao Yuan, and Gao Yuan sat on the adjacent sofa looking at Xinghe.

"Why don't you lie down?"

Gao Yuan frowned and said, "It wouldn't be appropriate, would it?"

"Is that so? Do Earthlings also value personal space very much? Hmm, okay, I understand."

Xinghe moved over to one side of the bed, then he, no, she, patted the bed and said, "I've made space for you."

Gao Yuan frowned and said, "I refuse."

This time it was Xinghe's turn to be puzzled, then she nodded and said, "Alright, I know you refused."

Xinghe didn't say anything more and continued to watch the TV attentively, he or she.

"I like this show. I like the attitude of Earthlings who waste their limited life and time on food."

"Life is but a few decades; if you don't eat delicious food, don't… what's the point of living, then?"

"What did you omit?"

"'Food and sex are basic human desires,' you know what this means, if you don't know, look it up yourself. I can't explain it."

Xinghe looked at the ceiling and then pondered, "This is a topic about basic biological instincts. We've long since outgrown low-level biological instincts."

"So your lives are quite boring, and, I think this is a philosophical question, which is why humans live."

Xinghe rarely frowned, then he nodded and said, "I think I'm inclined to be dominated by low-level instincts again. I'm really interested in the food I've eaten. As for the rest, I haven't felt anything yet. Why won't you lie down with me on the bed?"

"Do people on your planet just lie randomly in the same bed?"

"Of course not, we value privacy very much. We almost never sleep together in the same room. But if it's necessary, then we'll naturally sleep together. It's determined by circumstances, not personal desire."

Gao Yuan thought for a moment and said, "I can't lie with you in the same bed because you are male, and I would feel very awkward. If you were female, I would also feel very awkward. And regardless of whether you are male or female, my girlfriend would feel very awkward, so I don't want to share the same bed with you."

Xinghe sat up and looked at Gao Yuan, saying, "Your girlfriend? Are you talking about Luo Xingyu?"

"Yes."

"Why would she feel awkward? Can the word 'awkward' replace 'angry'?"

"No, 'awkward' just means 'awkward.' It's not about being angry or sad, it's just... feeling uncomfortable all over."

"What does 'feeling uncomfortable' mean?"

Gao Yuan sighed and said, "Can we stop fussing over such words? I'm not a linguist; it's hard to explain."

Xinghe lay back down on the bed, and after glancing at the TV a few times, said, "This doesn't look tasty at all, completely lacking in aesthetic appeal. I don't want to try it."

Gao Yuan glanced over and said, "That's ham; actually, it's quite delicious, um, really delicious."

Xinghe exhaled slowly and said, "You really try hard for the sake of eating."

"Of course, in life, eating is the most important thing."

"I disagree with you. Eating is definitely not the most important thing for humans, or any intelligent beings."

Gao Yuan didn't want to argue with Xinghe because it was impossible to win. What was the point of arguing such things with an alien?

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead."

Gao Yuan pondered seriously for a moment and felt that he still needed to ask, so he said solemnly, "Why are you willing to talk only to me and not willing to communicate with others?"

Xinghe replied with puzzlement, "Not at all, is there? Of course, I communicate with others."

"But why are you different with me than you are with others?"

Xinghe seemed to be stumped by the question, he thought for a long time and eventually said, "I don't know, you are special, you are... actually, I also don't know."

Gao Yuan took a good look at Xinghe, the tall figure over one meter ninety stretched out on the bed, those long legs were truly pleasing to the eye.

However, Gao Yuan seemed to have also noticed a problem.

"Why do you seem shorter than you were earlier today? Hmm, and your legs have gotten a bit thicker."

Xinghe answered without hesitation, "Because I've been traveling in space for too long, after landing on Earth, I must be in the mecha, because I need to readapt to Earth's gravity, then the gravitational pull will gradually restore my stretched height back to normal."

"Is that so?"

"Of course, so now I need to lie down, readapting to gravity is an uncomfortable process."

"Then what will your normal height be?"

Xinghe thought for a moment, then replied, "The mecha estimates, according to Earth's gravity, my final height should be 1.87 meters and my weight 60 kilograms."

Gao Yuan sighed and said, "Still very tall, and also very thin."

"You think my current appearance is not good-looking, not in line with human aesthetics, do you?"

"Oh, no, um, it is a bit too thin, but it's not unattractive."

Xinghe nodded, "I don't care about appearances, and our people's height and weight have reached the perfect proportion, an intelligent species that does not consume food but ingests nutrients sensibly will definitely not have any overweight individuals, this looks like it would be very tasty."

"This is lotus root stewed with pork ribs."

"Can I eat it tomorrow?"

"I can't guarantee that, the ribs should be available, but I don't know about the lotus root."

Xinghe sighed, then he became serious.

After a long silence, Gao Yuan asked curiously, "What are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking, we have a lot of animals on our third planet, among them, which are edible and which are not? We have studied these animals, but we have never researched how to eat them, now..."

Xinghe looked at Gao Yuan seriously and said, "I have made a decision, which is that I must bring Earth's advanced culinary civilization back to our planet. I know Earth's dietary system is complex, I cannot simply copy Earth's culinary civilization, so I need to arrange and summarize the inner core of Earth's culinary wisdom, it's a complex task, I will formally request assistance for my work."

Gao Yuan smiled and said, "I understand what you mean, now I will tell you a phrase of three true words, as long as you remember these three words, then you've grasped the essence of Earth's culinary civilization, once you return to your own planet, if you follow these three words, that will be enough, definitely enough."

Xinghe looked serious again, he knelt and said gravely, "Please speak."

"Edible, tasty, how."

"What?"

Gao Yuan spread his hands, smiling, "It's 'Is it edible? Is it tasty? How do you eat it?' Whenever you encounter any species, ask yourself these three questions and then boldly try and verify, that's all there is to it."

Xinghe pondered for a long time, then he finally took a long breath and said, "Profound in simplicity, I finally understand the meaning of this phrase, 'edible, tasty, how,' I got it, thank you for your words of wisdom, talking to you is always full of surprises."

Full of surprises? Are there really surprises?

Where are the surprises?

Gao Yuan couldn't figure it out; actually, he was joking, but Xinghe seemed to take it seriously, and he was excited.

Just like those scientists when they learned of the universe's first law, that excited.

This is really a cultural difference, such a big cultural difference.

"Tomorrow I will formally submit a diplomatic note, requesting that you provide me with information on seasonings for an exchange, an exchange of civilizational exchange; I want to know how soy sauce, vinegar, and various other seasonings are made, I think these are very important."

Xinghe looked invigorated, he nodded and said, "I thought this trip to Earth was just a one-sided assistance, but now it seems we have much to gain."