"137 Xiangming Residential Community, Xiangshan Road." Lin Feng had searched around that remote dock, found a road after searching, and then walked more than a dozen miles before entering the edge of the city to hail a cab.
The driver was a quiet man, who didn't say much, just giving Lin Feng a professional once-over.
Xiangshan Road is a popular villa area in Tianhai City. Those who live there have some money but aren't super rich, and while it's also a villa area, the prices aren't high, neither are the properties very large.
It's a bit remote, but the advantage is affordability and a peaceful environment, so the houses sell well. Through the rearview mirror, the driver took another glance at Lin Feng and then quietly drove on!
As the car entered the city, the bustle began to emerge. Seeing familiar places that had mostly changed, Lin Feng couldn't help but sigh; the city had changed so much in 5 years!
Thinking about it, it wasn't just the city that had changed so much over five years, but he had changed greatly too.
"Xiao... Xiao Feng... is it really you... Mom has missed you so much!!!" Just as Lin Feng had paid the taxi fare and stepped out of the car, Zhang Lan, who had been waiting outside, rushed over and hugged Lin Feng tightly.
"Five years... a full five years... you... woo... you..." As she cried, Zhang Lan looked at Lin Feng as he was now and couldn't stop the tears.
Lin Feng's father, Lin Yiwen, stood by, unable to stop his own tears, although he was coping slightly better than Zhang Lan. Seeing his son return, his emotions were already beyond restraint, yet he managed to hold back from breaking down utterly…
No matter what Lin Feng had gone through on the island, facing his parents at this moment, his heart was in tremendous pain, stabbing him sharply. "Dad, Mom, I have been unfilial..." Lin Feng said with a choked voice.
"Come in... It's good that you're back... it's good... Let's talk at home, stop crying..." Lin Yiwen eventually managed to control his overwhelming emotions, and together with Lin Feng, they helped Zhang Lan, who was almost collapsing in tears, into the house.
Having disappeared for over five years, seeing his mother, once a formidable businesswoman, now with a haggard appearance and white hair at the temples, clearly a result of pining for him after his departure. He then glanced at his father; his dad, just fifty years old, had more white hair than his mom, and his face was lined with wrinkles.
Lin Feng's heart was filled with immense guilt and sorrow. After all, he was no longer the frivolous, immature, and rebellious Lin Feng of old. His experiences on the island only emphasized how naive he had been, and his departure had brought such immense pain to his family.
A quick look around the house showed it wasn't very large, just two stories, but it was tidy. It took a while inside the house before Zhang Lan's emotions calmed down.
"Dad, Mom, what happened at home during these 5 years?" Only after his mother's mood stabilized somewhat did Lin Feng inquire, looking at the small villa. He knew that just one night out racing cars with his friends in the past could have paid for several houses like this. He was well aware that his father was engaged in technological research and his mother was a true business powerhouse; even if there were big problems at home, it shouldn't have been to the point of decline.
Because, even if his mother's business faced problems, there were countless large corporations willing to pay millions of US Dollars a year to hire his father for research. Moreover, many countries wanted to recruit him, and he could have gone abroad immediately and received all sorts of offers with just a word.
"We didn't have any particular issues. However, since you disappeared, your mother lost interest in managing the corporation, and I no longer had the heart to research new technologies or subjects. It was only at that time we realized that we truly missed out on the most precious things. It wasn't until you were gone that we understood nothing is more important to us than you, nothing is more important than being together as a family..." As Lin Yiwen spoke, his voice began to tremble again,
It was Zhang Lan, who had cried her heart out, who recovered slightly better. Holding Lin Feng's hand on one side, she took Lin Yiwen's trembling, emotional hand with the other, and the family sat there together.
"When looking for our son, you usually talk fluently, chatting with anyone for half a day to ask for help. Now that our son has returned, you've become just like before. Let me do the talking." Zhang Lan said, her eyes filled with happiness as she looked at Lin Feng. "Your father decided to halt all of his research projects while I sold the corporation. We put all our energy into finding you because we, your father and I, firmly believed that you were alive and well."
Her mother's words made Lin Feng's heart skip a beat. His father was a research fanatic, and his mother had great aspirations in the business world; he was very clear on that. Though his mother glossed over it with a light remark, the sacrifices his parents had made for him, the hardships they endured to find him, and all they had gone through these five years... were almost unimaginable…
These were his parents. Back then, he did not understand and always rebelled against them, acting out in ways that provoked them. Now it seemed so immature when he thought about it.
"Let's not talk about that. Your father and I have long since realized over these years that you are our most important and most precious treasure, the most worth cherishing. Xiao Feng, please tell Mom where you've been over these five years. We've searched every possible place for you." Zhang Lan, worried that Lin Feng would be distressed, quickly changed the topic, which also occupied her own thoughts.
"Oh, I was racing boats with friends, then somehow got blown to a deserted island by a storm. Then I spent time on the island mastering various skills; 'Peerless Divine Skill', 'Astronomy and Geography', playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting, proficient in everything, and then I came back…" Lin Feng answered very honestly. After all, the old man had once said, honesty is just another form of strength!
"Ah!..." Hearing this, both Father Lin and Zhang Lan glanced at each other, each ruminating in their hearts. Had their son developed some mental issues from living on a deserted island? Why was he talking nonsense?
It wasn't strange that they thought this way; how could a normal person learn martial arts on a deserted island, let alone 'Astronomy and Geography', or zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting? That was even less likely! Thus, they overlooked what exactly he did on the island and just remembered that Lin Feng had lived there for over five years…
"Old Lin, think of how much hardship and suffering our son must have endured! How did he manage alone on an island for five years!" Hearing Lin Feng speak this way, Zhang Lan felt even more heartbroken, her tears falling non-stop…
Lin Feng quickly comforted his mother, "Mom, look, I've come back in good shape, stop crying, okay?"
Lin Yiwen, though also feeling distressed, kept it down and joined Lin Feng in comforting Zhang Lan.
The family finally managed to shift the atmosphere away from sadness, Lin Feng even coaxed smiles onto his parents' faces. Seeing them smile, Lin Feng's heart settled too! As for money matters, he didn't care much about those anymore; having his parents well and the family reunited was better than anything.
The family chatted until late, Lin Feng doing his best to make his parents a little happier, a little more cheerful.
Early in the morning, accustomed to waking up early, Lin Feng went downstairs to prepare breakfast for his parents...
When Mother Lin came downstairs, elated to make breakfast for her son, she was surprised to see a breakfast already set on the table. Overjoyed, she realized her son had learned how to cook!
They couldn't believe it and rubbed their eyes, confirmed it again, and eventually couldn't help but shout upstairs, "Husband, come down quickly, our son made us breakfast, hurry up, the breakfast our son made!!!"
Then Zhang Lan turned her head to look at Lin Feng, feeling both surprised and a little heartache. Her son, who had never set foot in the kitchen before, had now...
Upstairs, Lin Yiwen also found it hard to believe. He knew what his son was like before. Now he could cook! Lin Yiwen clomped down the stairs, eager to see if what Zhang Lan said was true. This was simply too unexpected...
The family sat down together, Lin Yiwen and Zhang Lan scrutinizing the breakfast on the table: a simple fare of clear congee, sunny-side-up eggs, and a few pickled vegetables made with greens. Yet, altogether, it looked appetizing! They exchanged glances, both finding it hard to believe their own son made this, and it took them a while to pick up their chopsticks and start tasting.
"Mmm..." At first, they were just pleased, touched, and joyful, but upon tasting, Zhang Lan and Lin Yiwen's expressions stiffened.
This flavor...
"Son, how did you make this, this... these... I can cook, too, but how come it's never been this delicious?" Zhang Lan was surprised that such simple ingredients like clear congee, sunny-side-up eggs, and pickles could taste this flavorful.
Lin Yiwen wasn't much of a talker, but he also nodded in agreement. Zhang Lan wasn't just praising Lin Feng; it was genuinely delicious, much better than what she herself had made, and not just compared to her cooking.
Zhang Lan had been many places and tried many dishes, but she had never had such a fresh, refreshing, and comforting breakfast.
Each dish was supremely satisfying, opening up the appetite.
"Son, is this sunny-side-up egg really made by you? How did you do it? How come it's so different from the usual sunny-side-up eggs we have, it's strange!" In that moment, Lin Yiwen was tasting the egg, nodding continuously, and couldn't help but ask Lin Feng.
Lin Yiwen looked at the sunny-side-up egg on his chopsticks, never having imagined such a simple dish could be made with a flavor beyond description, tastier than anything a professional chef could make! The heat and seasoning were just right! He didn't know how to put it into words.
Seeing his parents' satisfaction with his cooking skills, Lin Feng said with a mild smile, "They're just some simple things. As long as you both like them, I'll make them for you every day!"
Upon hearing Lin Feng's words, Lin Yiwen and Zhang Lan felt especially delighted, and Zhang Lan's tears began to well up again. Her son had grown up, become sensible, no longer the profligate son of the past! Even though the family business was lost, seeing her son like this now satisfied her more than anything.
"My good son, didn't you say you were stranded on a deserted island? Where did you learn these culinary skills?" Zhang Lan asked, puzzled. Such good cooking skills, better than those of big restaurants, how did her son learn?
"Mom, really, it's nothing. Just by myself on the deserted island, messing around, and I gradually picked it up," Lin Feng answered simply and truthfully.
Hearing her son's response, Zhang Lan didn't probe any further, feeling as if too much had happened to her son in those five years. But they didn't want to bring it up; just being together as a family again was more important than anything.
They happily ate the first meal their son had made for them, delicious and blissful!
Meanwhile, Lin Feng, watching from the side, wanted to compensate for the guilt of disappearing these past few years. So whatever would make his parents happy, he would do!