The Secret of Dumpling Filling

Master Wang, a veteran chef who has been in charge of the Geely cafeteria for thirty years, was recently transferred to a new department - the "Galaxy E5 Dumpling Filling R&D Group." He found the name strange, but he didn't think much about it, after all, everything now emphasizes "technological innovation."

The new department's office was more like a small laboratory than an office. Various unknown instruments hummed, and people in white coats came in and out, holding not kitchen knives and spatulas, but test tubes and chips.

Master Wang was placed in front of a huge display screen, which was covered with dense data and curves. A young man wearing thick glasses told him that his job was to "observe" and record "data changes."

"Observe what?" Master Wang asked.

"Dumpling filling." The young man pushed up his glasses, "We are using AI to optimize the taste of the dumpling filling."

Master Wang thought this was simply unbelievable. Isn't dumpling filling just meat, vegetables, and seasonings? What else could be optimized? But he didn't dare ask more questions, so he could only follow the instructions and start his "observation."

Every day, he had to stare at the screen, watching the data jump up and down. The patterns on the screen went from blurry to clear, and finally, they showed the molecular structure of the dumpling filling. Master Wang felt that this was more complicated than his decades of culinary skills.

A few days later, they started to try making them. Not by hand-rolling the dough, not by cooking in a pot, but by using a 3D printer to print the dumpling skin, and then using a robotic arm to precisely fill the filling. Master Wang felt strange looking at the exquisite, "dumplings" without any trace of human touch.

On the day of the launch, Master Wang was arranged to stand in the corner of the exhibition platform, watching the fashionable leaders on the stage introduce their "technological dumplings" to the reporters below in vivid detail.

"Through big data analysis, we have accurately grasped consumers' taste preferences!" One of the leaders waved his hand excitedly, "Our dumpling filling, optimized by AI, has reached an unprecedented peak of taste!"

Reporters took photos, capturing the dumplings that looked too exquisite to be food. Master Wang felt a trance watching all of this. He suddenly remembered the scene when he and his wife used to make dumplings together in front of the stove when he was young. Back then, the dumplings, although not perfect in shape, were full of the taste of home.

After the launch, the leader pulled Master Wang backstage, smiling, and asked, "Master Wang, what do you think of our dumplings?"

Master Wang hesitated, not knowing how to answer, and finally could only say, "Quite... quite technological."

"Haha, right! You see, this is the perfect dumpling we created with the power of technology!" The leader patted Master Wang on the shoulder, "We've also attached a small chip to each dumpling, recording its 'production history', to ensure that each dumpling is unique!"

Master Wang looked at the chip, smaller than a grain of rice, in the leader's hand, a strange chill washing over him. He suddenly realized that this was no longer about making dumplings, but about making some kind of precise industrial product.

That night, Master Wang went home and found his wife cooking dumplings. The dumpling skins were uneven in thickness, and the filling was obviously not as "perfect" as the ones on the stage. But Master Wang felt that these were the real dumplings.

He picked up a dumpling and took a bite. The familiar taste gave him a sense of comfort.

"I brought back some dumplings from work today, try them." Master Wang handed a box of beautifully packaged dumplings to his wife.

His wife took the dumplings, looked at them carefully, and then carefully opened the packaging box.

Inside, a white, temperatureless "dumpling" lay quietly. On its surface was a tiny, shimmering chip.

His wife stared at the chip for a while, and then suddenly asked, "Old Wang, this dumpling... it has no filling?"