ASPWWD Chapter 31

The one knocking on the door this time was the little robot that seemed like it had some malfunction in its programming.

The small robot opened Wen Xia’s door and cheerfully spun around twice. “Good morning! Time to eat!”

Wen Xia was speechless. “It’s evening.”

The robot paused for a second before responding, “Good evening! Have a good dream!”

Wen Xia sighed, deciding to just let it go.

As soon as the door opened, the aroma of food wafted in, making it clear what the robot’s purpose was. Lin Fengqi had made pork rib and radish soup, along with two light side dishes.

When their eyes met, there was a brief moment of awkwardness in the air, something that was slightly more than just awkwardness, but neither lingered on it. They quickly looked away.

The robot stopped by the chair Wen Xia usually sat in. “Time to eat, time to eat, remember to eat.”

Wen Xia finally found something to talk about. “Has your robot always been this silly?”

Lin Fengqi paused mid-action, ladling soup, and asked, “You don’t like it?”

“It’s fine, actually. It’s kind of cute.”

Lin Fengqi nodded, a barely noticeable tension leaving his face.

The more Wen Xia looked at the robot, the more familiar it seemed. He couldn’t help but ask, “Did you make this robot yourself, just for fun?” Surely, it wouldn’t be a product for sale—who would buy such a silly thing? Maybe as a toy for kids?

“No.”

“Then what’s it for?” Wen Xia scrutinized it again. “Why does it seem like I’ve seen it somewhere before…”

Lin Fengqi’s hand holding the chopsticks twitched slightly. He suddenly said, “You can have it.”

“Huh?”

“If you want, you can take it.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Wen Xia extended his leg and nudged the little robot with his foot. Its previously dimmed eyes lit up with a blue glow. “Please don’t kick me.”

Wen Xia laughed. “Who kicked you? I just nudged you.”

The robot replied, “Please treat me gently (embarrassed).”

Can you believe it? The word “embarrassed” was spoken aloud, and as it said that, its dark screen-like face even blushed with a faint red hue.

Wen Xia burst out laughing. “So I can really take it with me? It’ll be mine from now on?”

Lin Fengqi nodded.

So Wen Xia nudged the robot again with his foot. “Did you hear that? Your master said you’ll be coming with me from now on.”

The robot responded, “My master is Wen Xia. Have you seen him?”

Wen Xia: “?”

Wen Xia looked up at Lin Fengqi.

Lin Fengqi kept his head down, eating.

What was that supposed to mean?

Although this little robot often spoke nonsense, its words were usually weird and nonsensical, this one really came out of nowhere. First of all, Lin Fengqi had never mentioned his name in front of the robot, right? And this sounded more like a response triggered by a specific keyword, similar to how it earlier responded with “Good evening” when Wen Xia mentioned “evening.”

To be honest, compared to modern AI, this little robot’s intelligence wasn’t all that impressive.

So what keyword did he just trigger? Was it… “master”?

What did it mean by “My master is Wen Xia”?

Wen Xia stared directly at Lin Fengqi until the man across from him couldn’t swallow his food anymore.

Lin Fengqi put down his chopsticks and tried to act casual as he looked up. “What?”

“How should I address it? Don’t these smart devices usually have a name, like Siri or Alexa?” Wen Xia asked.

“It…” Lin Fengqi hesitated for a moment, “You can call it ‘Xiao Wu.’”

“Why Xiao Wu?” Wen Xia pressed.

“…”

“Well?” Wen Xia continued to press, “And why does it know its master is called ‘Wen Xia’? Did someone program some weird trigger words into it?”

“Eat,” Lin Fengqi said, “The food’s getting cold.”

Wen Xia chuckled.

Although he didn’t know the exact reason, he had a vague feeling that the name had something to do with him. Otherwise, why would Lin Fengqi avoid the topic? Wen Xia had learned that when Lin Fengqi coolly changed the subject, it usually meant that the matter in question had something to do with him.

This man’s thoughts were becoming far too easy to read.

After dinner, Lin Fengqi went to wash the dishes. Wen Xia took the opportunity to carry “Xiao Wu” back to his room to get better acquainted. “Hello, Xiao Wu.”

Xiao Wu responded, “Yes, I am Xiao Wu. Hello!”

Wen Xia said, “My name is Wen Xia.”

He emphasized his name, drawing out the syllables.

Wen Da Ge, hearing the strange voice, curiously squatted by Wen Xia’s leg, his big blue eyes staring at the robot.

Xiao Wu replied, “Hello, Wen Xia! I am the robot Xiao Wu, created just for you! I’m called Xiao Wu because Lin Fengqi failed five times!”

Wen Xia was taken aback. “Failed five times at what?”

Xiao Wu continued, “Failed five times to give Wen Xia a birthday gift!”

Wen Xia was stunned.

Just as he was processing this, there was a knock on the door. Since Xiao Wu was with him, it was obviously a human on the other side.

Lin Fengqi stood at the door, wearing his usual impassive expression, and calmly announced, “It’s time.” Just in case Wen Xia didn’t understand, he held up a “Pet Friendship Plan” schedule, pointing to the Wednesday evening slot from 8:00 to 9:30 PM.

Wen Xia glanced at it. The schedule for this time was: Pets get to know each other under the supervision of their owners.

Well, he nearly forgot about that. It was already the second week since he moved in, and Wen Da Ge and A Moo still hadn’t managed to get along.

A Moo’s gastroenteritis had almost completely cleared up. He was eating normally, his stools were back to normal, and he was full of energy—until he met his destined nemesis, Wen Da Ge.

Wen Xia carried Wen Da Ge to the living room. Lin Fengqi was originally squatting on the floor, rubbing A Moo’s belly as the dog lay on his back with all four legs in the air. But as soon as Wen Da Ge meowed, A Moo flipped over in a panic and scrambled under the coffee table.

“You little bully,” Wen Xia muttered, rubbing Wen Da Ge’s head in frustration.

“It’s not his fault,” Lin Fengqi said, glancing at Wen Xia… or rather, at the cat in his arms. “A Moo is just timid.”

Whether A Moo understood or not, he whimpered pitifully from under the coffee table.

“What now?” Wen Xia asked. He’d never organized a pet get-together before. After Wen Da Ge had beaten up Zou Boyan’s cat, every time Zou Boyan mentioned “Wen Da Ge” his cat would start retreating and looking for a place to hide.

“That toy I gave you,” Lin Fengqi reminded him.

Wen Xia had nearly forgotten about the little yellow duck. Wen Da Ge was initially hostile towards it, hissing every time he saw it. Wen Xia hadn’t paid much attention in the past few days, but he noticed that the little yellow duck was always in a different spot when he came home.

Wen Xia retrieved the toy. When pressed, the little duck made a sound, and A Moo perked up immediately, poking his head out from under the coffee table, his mouth opening in a grin as if he was smiling, his dark eyes fixed on the toy in Wen Xia’s hand.

Wen Xia pressed the toy again.

A Moo tilted his head, clearly intrigued.

He looked at Lin Fengqi, who nodded toward the other end of the living room.

Wen Xia tossed the little yellow duck.

A massive black shadow wriggled out from under the coffee table, dashing towards where the duck had landed.

At that moment, Wen Xia attempted to place Wen Da Ge on the floor. He didn’t completely let go, keeping a hold on Wen Da Ge just in case he decided to rush over and pummel A Moo.

Wen Da Ge let out a soft meow, making it clear that he wanted to break free.

“A Moo, come here.”

A warm presence approached, and Lin Fengqi crouched down beside Wen Xia, their bodies so close that there was barely enough space for a fist between them.

Wen Xia glanced sideways and saw the sharp lines of the man’s profile. Although he was staring straight ahead, the slight redness at the tips of his ears betrayed the tension he felt from being so close.

A Moo came bounding back with the yellow duck in his mouth, but when he saw Wen Da Ge, he suddenly skidded to a stop. The dog seemed torn between running back under the table and playing with the toy, standing indecisively in the middle of the living room.

“Come,” Lin Fengqi called, his tone gentler, and he beckoned with his hand.

A Moo looked at his owner, letting out a soft whimper. But he started to inch toward Lin Fengqi, taking a hesitant step forward.

Not wanting to discourage A Moo, Wen Xia also petted Wen Da Ge’s head, coaxing, “Be good, son, that’s your little brother.”

Brother or younger brother?

Who cares. His son should always be the boss!

Wen Da Ge, restrained by his owner, could only crouch on the floor, but at least he didn’t hiss at A Moo anymore.

It seemed like an eternity passed before A Moo finally brought the yellow duck back, but he stopped at a distance that he probably thought was safe, tossing the toy in front of Lin Fengqi.

Then he took two steps back, signaling for Lin Fengqi to throw it again so he could continue playing.

Things seemed to be heading in a positive direction.

Wen Xia thought so too, so when Lin Fengqi threw the yellow duck for the second time, he let his guard down. The next second, a white blur shot out, racing in the same direction as the big black dog.

“Damn it, Da Ge!” Wen Xia tried to stand up and grab Wen Da Ge, but Lin Fengqi placed a warm hand on his arm to stop him.

“Wait.”

Wen Da Ge charged at the yellow duck, but his mouth was far too small compared to the dog’s, and after two attempts, he still couldn’t pick it up. At first, A Moo was scared when he realized Wen Da Ge was trying to take his toy. He retreated two steps, ready to run, but seeing that Wen Da Ge’s small mouth couldn’t manage it, A Moo, after cautiously inching forward twice, suddenly grabbed the yellow duck and ran back.

Wen Da Ge, furious, meowed in frustration, chasing after A Moo.

Knowing that the little bully couldn’t play with the duck as well as he could, A Moo’s confidence grew, and he became bolder. When Wen Da Ge reached out a paw to bat at him, A Moo even had the nerve to nudge the cat away with his nose as a form of retaliation!

Seeing that Lin Fengqi was about to throw the duck again, Wen Xia got interested. “Let me throw it.”

He reached out to take the duck from Lin Fengqi, but since both were crouching, Wen Xia had to shift his weight to the other side to grab it. This movement brought them even closer, and they accidentally bumped into each other.

“Whoa—”

Lin Fengqi probably didn’t expect that either, and since he hadn’t braced himself, and with nothing to lean on nearby, when Wen Xia’s weight shifted, both of them ended up toppling over.

Lin Fengqi fell flat on his back, while Wen Xia managed to catch himself with his hands on the floor, stopping just short of landing directly on top of him.

But this position left him with his hands on either side of Lin Fengqi’s body, while Lin Fengqi, who now looked like a maiden who had been suddenly pushed down, stared at him in a daze. If there had been tears at the corners of his eyes, it would have completed the picture.

One above, one below.

Lin Fengqi was stunned.

Wen Xia was also stunned.

So they both turned their heads away at the same time.

A dog and a cat, sitting harmoniously side by side, looked at their respective owners with curious eyes.

“…”

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