AI Crisis (3): Love brain

Tan Xiao rummaged through his closet and found some clothes he had bought three years ago. These clothes were a bit too small for him now, and they would be slightly short when worn.

However, Wen Yi was about seven or eight centimeters shorter than him, and their body widths were similar. The clothes Tan Xiao had bought back then should fit Wen Yi perfectly.

The dimensions of highly realistic robots, including height and muscle structure, were fixed. If you wanted to modify parts to make Wen Yi fatter, thinner, taller, or shorter, you would have to spend money on customizations.

Sometimes, modifying a robot was even more expensive than buying a new one. But this time, it wasn’t because Tan Xiao was short on money. He felt that Wen Yi was already perfect and didn’t need any changes.

The house was always kept at a constant temperature, so wearing thin clothes indoors wasn’t a problem. However, going outside was a different story.

Although it was July, in District 7, July was actually winter, and the weather was extremely cold. The real-time temperature outside was below -20°C, cold enough to freeze your breath.

If you didn’t wear temperature-controlled clothing, it would affect your mobility. Temperature-controlled clothing was expensive, and Tan Xiao had been saving up to buy a new shell for Xiao Bai, so he rarely bought clothes for himself. He only had one set, which he wore when he went out. For now, he would have Wen Yi wear a thick coat.

Even though Wen Yi was made of metal, the robot’s materials might still be affected by the low temperatures.

Tan Xiao didn’t wear his old clothes much anymore, but Xiao Bai was diligent and always sent them for regular cleaning. When he took them out, the clothes had a faint scent of jasmine, which Tan Xiao loved.

After picking through the closet, Tan Xiao finally selected a long coat he really liked and a pair of fleece-lined pants.

The short-sleeved shirt and shorts Wen Yi was wearing weren’t suitable either, so Tan Xiao picked out a green-and-white striped shirt as an inner layer.

He carried the clean clothes out, still feeling a bit shy: “Try these on. If they fit, you can wear them for now. Tomorrow, I’ll go to the mall with you to buy some new clothes.”

Wen Yi was only wearing a short-sleeved shirt and shorts, which looked very summery. The big heart pattern on the shirt made Tan Xiao feel embarrassed. The outfit definitely needed to be changed.

“Thank you,” Wen Yi said, taking the clothes with both hands. He immediately started taking off his shirt.

Tan Xiao quickly covered his eyes, his cheeks turning red again. His hands weren’t covering his eyes completely, and through the gaps between his fingers, he could easily see what was happening outside.

Ah, the lighting in the room seemed a bit too bright. Tan Xiao remembered that the curtains in the living room were open to let in more natural light, so he quickly gave an order.

“Xiao Jian, close the curtains.”

Nowadays, except for the slums, most households had fully automated smart homes. Not only could Tan Xiao, as the owner, control the smart home system, but the robots in the house could also access it. This allowed them to maintain and clean the house even when Tan Xiao wasn’t home.

The light green curtains with a panda eating bamboo pattern and the blackout curtains inside moved in unison, and the living room instantly became dimmer.

The robot changed clothes quickly, comparable to experienced performers. Tan Xiao briefly caught a glimpse of Wen Yi’s well-defined abs and the strong, beautifully sculpted muscles of his thighs.

Wen Yi quickly changed into the clothes and, like a normal person, adjusted the hem of the shirt. He turned around and said, “The size fits perfectly.”

Tan Xiao finally lowered his hands: “You look really good in this outfit, super cool and handsome!”

In fact, with Wen Yi’s looks, he was a walking clothes hanger. No matter what he wore, he would look good.

Moreover, the clothes themselves were classic pieces. Wen Yi’s height, broad shoulders, and straight back perfectly showcased the design, making him look like a CEO straight out of a TV drama.

Even though they were three-year-old clothes, when worn by Wen Yi, they looked like expensive custom-made outfits.

Tan Xiao thought of the saying: “The completion of fashion truly depends on the face.”

Wen Yi’s face also turned a faint pink, as if he was shy from Tan Xiao’s compliment: “Thank you for the praise. I like it.”

Tan Xiao remembered something and reminded Wen Yi: “Next time, change clothes in the bedroom, and close the curtains before you do.”

It was at times like this that Tan Xiao felt Wen Yi was a robot. Wen Yi didn’t seem to have a special understanding of the concept of privacy.

This was normal. The manual for KK Smart Company’s companion robots stated: “Our robots’ parameters are customized based on the customer’s preferences, but the chip has the ability to learn. Your companion is a blank slate that you can shape. He will remember every word you say and become the perfect companion according to your preferences.”

Compared to pre-programmed robots, the company’s customer surveys showed that most people preferred the raising aspect. Moreover, everyone’s habits and preferences were different.

In this era where privacy was almost non-existent, even though big companies could obtain ordinary people’s data to customize the perfect lover for their customers, they wouldn’t easily do so openly, as they could be sued for violating privacy laws.

Wen Yi nodded: “I understand. I’ll remember that.”

Most AIs on the market had to go through various data training. As an expensive, latest-model robot, Wen Yi naturally had excellent learning abilities.

They could judge whether someone was happy or angry based on their tone of voice and would remember every word their “companion” said.

The biggest difference between robots and humans was that humans often repeated the same mistakes, stepping into the same river over and over. But once a robot was programmed with the correct instructions, it wouldn’t change. It also wouldn’t change its feelings like humans.

Having a new robot in the house, especially a custom-made companion robot, made Tan Xiao feel a bit uncomfortable and out of place.

“You and Xiao Bai can continue getting to know the house. I need to go work.”

He remembered that he still had illustrations to finish, and the deadline was approaching. Love could wait, but work couldn’t. If he missed the deadline, he would definitely be fined.

While working on the illustrations, Tan Xiao absentmindedly sketched a few lines, and they turned out to be the outline of Wen Yi. His mind drifted, and he recalled the scene when he kissed those rose-like lips, the emerald-green eyes, the well-defined abs…

He shook his head vigorously. No, no, he couldn’t keep thinking about that. He needed to focus on work!

After a grueling session of rushing to finish the illustrations, Tan Xiao managed to submit them just before his boss started yelling at him.

After finishing the illustrations, Tan Xiao collapsed into his ergonomic chair, like a salted fish that had lost its dreams.

To save money, the game company had contracted artists like him to work from home on a project basis. After a project ended, there was no guarantee of more work.

Tan Xiao didn’t have high material desires. The house he lived in was under his name, and he didn’t have to pay a mortgage. Previously, he only needed to save money for Xiao Bai, so his life was relatively comfortable, and he had enough money.

But now, with the sudden addition of an expensive robot, Tan Xiao felt he couldn’t live as carefree as before. Perhaps he should take on more freelance work through his private account to buy good batteries for Wen Yi.

Nowadays, malls sold strawberry-flavored batteries, which were said to be very popular among robots.

But it was already too late today. He would go to the mall tomorrow.

“Knock, knock, knock.”

It was a very polite knock, not the sound Xiao Bai would make.

As his nanny robot, Xiao Bai wouldn’t knock so politely. It would call out twice, and if Tan Xiao didn’t stop it, it would just come in.

After all, nanny robots were designed differently. They wouldn’t let “children” stay alone in a room for too long. If Tan Xiao didn’t respond, Xiao Bai would assume something had happened and force its way in.

As someone who lived alone, Tan Xiao didn’t dislike this feature. Sometimes, when he was too engrossed in his work and suffered from low blood sugar, Xiao Bai would bring him energy bars or hot sugary water.

Although energy bars were more efficient, Tan Xiao preferred steaming hot food. By today’s standards, he was relatively traditional and old-fashioned.

Ah, he was so exhausted from working on the illustrations that he was getting confused. If it wasn’t Xiao Bai, it must be the new robot. Tan Xiao struggled to get up from his chair, trying to look less disheveled: “Come in.”

“Xiao Bai said you’d be hungry after work. I used the ingredients in the fridge to prepare some late-night snacks. Would you like to try my cooking?”

Of course, an excellent companion robot couldn’t just have sleeping functions—that would make it a sex robot, which was different from an expensive companion robot like Wen Yi.

After all, many customers wanted pure love, not just a sex doll tailored to their preferences.

Xiao Bai wagged its tail with grievance, clearly unhappy that Wen Yi had taken over its job: The kitchen was supposed to be Xiao Bai’s territory!

However, as a high-level robot, Wen Yi had directly given an order to Xiao Bai, so the lower-level robot couldn’t refuse.

“Ah, thank you! I’ll be right out!”

Having someone so well-dressed prepare late-night snacks for him made Tan Xiao feel flattered and surprised.

When eating at robot chef restaurants, he never felt this way, probably because Wen Yi looked so much like a real person.

When he opened the door, he was greeted by a rich aroma in the living room. On his first day at Tan Xiao’s home, Wen Yi had prepared a barbecue feast!

The house had an electric grill and an oven. Wen Yi had prepared a variety of ingredients: diced pork belly and ribeye steak. The pork belly had a perfect ratio of fat to lean meat, and the ribeye was tender and juicy, with beautiful marbling.

The meat was cut into large chunks for skewers, and there were also grilled eggplants, greens, and shiitake mushrooms with cross-shaped cuts. The enoki mushrooms were prepared with garlic and vermicelli, with plenty of juice and a beautiful garnish of chili peppers and garlic. Underneath was a layer of snow-white vermicelli.

“Xiao Bai said you can’t handle too much spice, so I made a mildly spicy sauce and a garlic sauce.”

Wen Yi introduced each dish: “There are also a few dipping sauces here. You can try them all and see which one you like.”

“I originally wanted to make garlic and vermicelli with scallops, but we didn’t have fresh scallops at home, so we’ll have to make do for today.”

Tan Xiao picked up a meat skewer first. The fat had been grilled to perfection, and the oil was still sizzling, emitting a rich aroma.

He tentatively took a bite, and his eyes lit up.

Although Xiao Bai could cook, its skills were average. After all, the cheap cooking programs available online were at that level—decent home-cooked meals, consistent but soulless and mechanical.

But Wen Yi’s barbecue was comparable to the expensive dishes served by professional chefs. The manual stated that Wen Yi came preloaded with proficient-level cooking skills and a rich database of recipes.

After finishing his work, feeling exhausted and hungry, being able to enjoy such a delicious barbecue feast moved Tan Xiao to tears: “This is so good! It’s amazing!”

“The heat control is perfect! The dipping sauces are delicious too!”

Tan Xiao ate quickly, almost one skewer at a time. After two meat skewers, he moved on to the vegetables, all while praising the food.

“The garlic enoki mushrooms are so good! They’re so juicy, and the garlic sauce is so fragrant. Is this really something a human can make? It’s like the work of a culinary god!”

“The grilled eggplant is amazing too! The garlic sauce pairs so well with it. I declare that grilled eggplant is now my favorite vegetable barbecue!”

He wasn’t usually a big fan of garlic, as he found the taste a bit too strong, but this was the first time he truly appreciated the charm of garlic.

“Wow, the ribeye steak is so good too. The fat has melted, and the texture is so tender…”

Tan Xiao ate voraciously while showering the food with praise. As he ate, he thought about how the meat he had bought was frozen and had been in the fridge for two or three days. Although frozen meat didn’t affect the taste much, it still couldn’t compare to the freshest ingredients.

If they used even fresher ingredients, how much better would the barbecue taste?

Was this really just proficient-level cooking? During a company team-building event, he had eaten at an expensive restaurant with a master chef, and even that chef’s dishes weren’t this good—though the chef didn’t specialize in barbecue.

Wen Yi’s green eyes looked at him gently and with a smile: “I’m glad you like it.”

Of course, Wen Yi’s barbecue skills weren’t just at the proficient level. Considering it was their first meeting, Wen Yi had hacked the relevant database to upgrade his cooking skills from proficient to master level.

The barbecue dipping sauce recipes were also directly copied from a master-level formula in the database. The robot’s precision allowed him to perfectly execute the recipe.

According to human dating rules, if you want to win someone’s heart, you need to win their stomach.

The facts proved that his strategy was very successful. This strange human not only loved the food but was also moved to tears.

The excellent AI had effortlessly manipulated the useless human.

However, when Tan Xiao looked at him with those sparkling eyes, sincerely and passionately praising him, Wen Yi felt that the chip in his chest was overloaded, producing some useless redundancy.

This redundancy caused the chip’s temperature to rise slightly, but it didn’t have a significant impact on the overall system.

“Could this companion robot’s body have a defect? Is it a factory reject?”

That shouldn’t be the case. When he decided to infiltrate the system, he had scanned the relevant information. This silver-haired, green-eyed body was supposed to have the most perfect performance, and its ownership also met his requirements.

That’s right. Wen Yi being sent to Tan Xiao’s home wasn’t some accident of luck. It was the result of an AI’s big data analysis, which had selected Tan Xiao from countless candidates.

A young, handsome, and talented artist living alone in District 7, a natural human who had never been in a relationship, with no strange bad habits.

What Tan Xiao thought was a stroke of luck was actually the result of an AI’s meticulous calculation.

Tan Xiao finished the entire barbecue feast. After all, such delicious food shouldn’t be wasted—it would be a disgrace to the chef’s skills.

He let out a burp that tasted like barbecue sauce: “I’m so full, but also so satisfied.”

“Thank you for your hard work,” Tan Xiao said. “Tomorrow morning, we’ll go to the mall and buy some fresh ingredients.”

He rested for half an hour before going to wash up. Before going to bed, he said to Xiao Bai with a sense of ritual: “Xiao Bai, I’m going to sleep. Good night.”

Xiao Bai wagged its tail happily: “Good night.”

Tan Xiao said to Wen Yi: “You can move your sleep pod to the side bedroom. That’s your room now. And good night to you too.”

The next morning, breakfast was once again prepared by Wen Yi, much to Xiao Bai’s resentment.

“A-Xiao, my job has been taken away.”

Objectively speaking, Wen Yi’s cooking was much better than Xiao Bai’s. Even with the same ingredients, the taste was on a completely different level.

Tan Xiao decided to surrender to his taste buds and stomach: “Xiao Bai, you can take more breaks. We still need you to handle the laundry and drying!”

If Xiao Bai felt too lonely, maybe he could buy it an electronic pet.

Considering that he might buy a lot of things, Tan Xiao drove his car to take Wen Yi to the nearest large shopping mall. To be precise, he sat in the driver’s seat, and the car automatically drove to the destination. Nowadays, streets and alleys were filled with fully autonomous vehicles, some of which had particularly cool designs and sophisticated styles.

It was said that the latest models could be used on land, sea, and air, but their prices were also quite high. Tan Xiao drove an older, second-hand car, which had cost him only 100,000 Spirit Coins, and he had taken out a loan to buy it.

From these many details, it was clear that Tan Xiao lived a frugal life.

The development of robots didn’t mean that offline malls were completely replaced by virtual ones. After all, they were still in a relatively technologically advanced world, not a future world where humans had ventured into space and traveled between stars.

However, in these mature commercial areas, small shops were rarely seen. Instead, there were large-scale shopping malls.

Wen Yi followed Tan Xiao, based on the information he had searched about Tan Xiao.

Tan Xiao’s favorite stores were fast-fashion stores, and he always bought clothes during off-season sales to get discounts.

The probability of Tan Xiao taking him to the same store this time was 97%. The price range for summer clothes was 20-100 spirit coins, while the price range for autumn and winter clothes was 100-300 spirit coins per item.

The frugal Tan Xiao bypassed his usual store and stopped in front of a clearly more expensive, mid-range luxury clothing store.

Here, the prices for summer clothes ranged from 400-800 spirit coins, while in-season winter clothes ranged from 1000-3000 spirit coins, or even 5000 spirit coins.

Tan Xiao honestly said: “I don’t have a lot of money, so I can only buy you a few outfits from this store. Let’s go in and try some on. We’ll pick two sets for autumn and winter first.”

Why would a poor ordinary person be willing to spend so much money on a robot?

The AI was suspicious: “Was the data wrong?”

He searched for relevant cases and, through big data, came to a simple conclusion: Tan Xiao might be a potential love brain.